Browsing by Author "Alptekin K."

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    Assessment of quality of life with the WHOQOL-BREF in a group of Turkish psychiatric patients compared with diabetic and healthy subjects
    (2006) Akvardar Y.; Akdede B.B.; Özerdem A.; Eser E.; Topkaya Ş.; Alptekin K.
    Decreased quality of life is often an important cause or consequence of psychiatric illness, and needs to be included in a comprehensive treatment plan. The authors aimed to identify how psychiatric patients characterize the quality of their lives compared to others who are suffering from a chronic physical illness (diabetes) and healthy individuals. A total of 100 psychiatric patients were recruited from Dokuz Eylül University Psychiatry Department outpatient clinic. Of these, 34 had 4th edition Diagnostic and Statistical Manual diagnosis of alcohol dependence, 38 had schizophrenia, and 28 had bipolar disorder. A total of 35 patients with diabetes and 49 healthy individuals were also included in the study. The World Health Organization's Quality of Life Questionnaire was used to measure the quality of life. Patients with alcohol dependence, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia scored lower than healthy subjects on the physical aspects of quality of life. Patients with schizophrenia had lower scores in the psychological domain compared to patients with bipolar disorder, patients with diabetes, and healthy subjects. In the social relationship domain, patients with schizophrenia and alcohol dependence scored lower compared to healthy subjects. Patients with schizophrenia were worse with respect to social relationships than bipolar patients and diabetics. World Health Organization's Quality of Life Questionnaire is useful for evaluating the needs and targets for interventions in psychiatric patients. © 2006 The Authors.
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    Efficacy and tolerability of switching to ziprasidone from olanzapine, risperidone or haloperidol: An international, multicenter study
    (Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2009) Alptekin K.; Hafez J.; Brook S.; Akkaya C.; Tzebelikos E.; Ucok A.; Tallawy H.E.; Danaci A.-E.; Lowe W.; Karayal O.N.
    To compare the effectiveness of a switch from haloperidol (N=99), olanzapine (N=82), or risperidone (N=104) to 12 weeks of treatment with 80-160 mg/day ziprasidone in patients with stable schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Stable outpatients with persistent symptoms or troublesome side effects were switched using one of three 1-week taper/switch strategies as determined by the investigator. Efficacy was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale score, Clinical Global Impression, Positive and Negative Symptom Scale, Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale, and the Global Assessment of Functioning Scale, and tolerability by using standard measures of weight change, extrapyramidal symptoms, and laboratory findings. Suboptimal efficacy was the primary reason for switching. The preferred switch strategy was immediate discontinuation, and the preferred dosing regimen was 120 mg/day. Completer rates were 68, 60, and 86% in the haloperidol, risperidone, and olanzapine pre-switch groups, respectively. At week 12, a switch to ziprasidone resulted in statistically significant improvement from baseline on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale score, Clinical Global Impression- Improvement, Positive and Negative Symptom Scale, and Global Assessment of Functioning scales, reduction in extrapyramidal symptoms and a neutral impact on metabolic parameters. Switch from olanzapine and risperidone resulted in weight reduction and from haloperidol in some weight increase. In conclusion, oral ziprasidone of 80-160 mg/day with food was a clinically valuable treatment option for stable patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder experiencing suboptimal efficacy or poor tolerability with haloperidol, olanzapine, or risperidone. © 2009 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.
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    Psychiatric epidemiology in Turkey: Main advances in recent studies and future directions
    (Turkish Association of Nervous and Mental Health, 2014) Binbay T.; Direk N.; Aker T.; Akvardar Y.; Alptekin K.; Cimilli C.; Çam B.; Deveci A.; Gültekin B.K.; Şar V.; Taycan O.; Ulaş H.
    Objective: To overview and evaluate the main findings, methodological shortcomings, and time trends of the recent psychiatric epidemiology studies in Turkey, as well as to provide areas prone for development in forthcoming research. Method: PubMed and Turkish Psychiatry Index were screened to identify relevant studies. Any epidemiological study from 2000 to 2012 with a general population or unique sub-population sample was included. Papers and results were classified as depression, anxiety, psychotic, dissociative, conversion, personality, alcohol and substance abuse, and trauma-related disorders, and common geriatric disorders. Results: There are various epidemiological studies on various psychiatric disorders in Turkey. However, there are main shortcomings and trends in research that subsequently stagnate current psychiatric epidemiological research. First, epidemiological studies were mainly conducted for academic purposes, not for addressing epidemiological issues or issues of health policy. Second, studies mainly focused on particular fields and institutions, which led to non-systematic accumulation of epidemiological results. Third, although Turkey is a natural laboratory of social conflicts and disasters, there were few studies with a focus on probable outcomes. Fourth, high-quality epidemiological studies with disseminating results tended to decrease, even in common mental disorders such as depression. Fifth, there were very few epidemiological studies using contemporary designs such as followup, genetic, or biomarker data in the general-population. Conclusion: Although psychiatric epidemiological studies of the last decade provide a suitable ground for future challenges, current trends in this research area has tended to stagnate, despite the potential for unique contributions. Forthcoming studies and researchers may notice novel methodological developments in epidemiology, with a growing attention on rapid urbanization, natural disasters, social conflicts, and migration.