Objectives: Schizophrenia is a devastating and chronic mental disorder that affects 1% of the population worldwide. It is also associated with cognitive dysfunction and cardiovascular risk factors. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between cognitive impairment and some inflammatory markers and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in schizophrenia. Methods: The participants of this study were 51 schizophrenia and 57 healthy controls (HC). The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was used for severity of illness, and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) was used for cognitive functioning. The MoCA scores, some biochemical and inflammatory markers, and CIMT were compared between schizophrenia and HC groups. Results: Of the patients with schizophrenia, 11 were women (21.6%), and 40 were men (78.4%). MoCA scores were lower, and levels of NLR, MLR, PLR, SII, CRP, ESR, and CIMT were higher in schizophrenia compared to the HC group (respectively; p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.035, p = 0.008, p = 0.002, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001). In the schizophrenia group, there was no correlation between MoCA and inflammatory markers. MoCA and CIMT had a significant negative and moderate correlation (p < 0.001). Conclusions: This is the first study to show the relationship between cognitive impairment and CIMT in schizophrenia. In this study, NLR, MLR, PLR, SII, CRP, and ESR markers were higher in schizophrenia compared to HC, indicating inflammation. Our finding of elevated CIMT in schizophrenia suggests that there may be an atherosclerotic process along with the inflammatory process. The finding of a positive correlation between cognitive impairment and CIMT may be promising for new therapies targeting the atherosclerotic process in the treatment of cognitive impairment.

Objectives: This study aims to investigate cardiovascular disease markers in patients with schizophrenia and to contribute to the early indication of asymptomatic cardiovascular diseases in these patients. In our study, there are three groups: schizophrenia with negative symptoms (SCH-N), schizophrenia in remission (SCH-R), and a healthy control group (HC). In these groups, there were compared parameters such as lipid panel, Atherogenic Index (AIP), Triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index, Castelli Risk Index-1 (CRI-I), Castelli Risk Index-2 (CRI-II), and Atherogenic Coefficient (AC), which are associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease. Methods: The participants of the study were from the HC group and schizophrenia patients aged between 18 and 65 who were followed up at the Psychiatry Clinic of Karaman Hospital. This cross-sectional case–control study consists of the SCH-N (n:20), the SCH-R (n:23), and the HC (n:21) groups. Those with cardiovascular, endocrine, and inflammatory diseases, those with alcohol and substance addiction, those using drugs other than psychiatric drugs, and those lacking informed consent were excluded from the study. Patients in active psychotic episodes were also excluded from the study due to communication difficulties. All data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 package program in a computer environment. The conformity of continuous data to normal distribution was evaluated with normality test value, q-q plot, skewness, and kurtosis. For significant results in the ANOVA test, pairwise comparisons were conducted using the post hoc Bonferroni correction when variances were homogeneously distributed. Similarly, for significant results in the Kruskal–Wallis Test, pairwise comparisons were performed using the Dunn–Bonferroni test. In this study, values less than p < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: When all groups were compared, the increase in the TGs, TyG index, AIP, CRI-I, CRI-II, and AC values in the SCH-R group compared to the HC group was found to be statistically significant (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.015, p < 0.001; sequentially). Conclusions: This study revealed that cardiovascular risk markers in schizophrenia patients showed significant differences. In particular, the elevation in parameters such as TGs, TyG index, AIP, CRI-I, CRI-II, and AC indicates that schizophrenia patients have an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, it is recommended that schizophrenia patients be closely monitored for cardiovascular risk factors and to intervene early.

Background: Bipolar disorder is a chronic psychiatric disorder with depression and manic episodes. It is one of the leading causes of disease-related disability worldwide. Despite the presence of various alternative drug options for bipolar disorder, some patients do not adequately benefit from the treatment. Therefore, possible underlying mechanisms need to be clarified. Recently, studies on the relationship between bipolar disorder and vitamin D (Vit D) have attracted attention. Although many studies have found an association between depression and Vit D deficiency, little is known about the relationship between manic episodes and Vit D. The aim of this study was to compare Vit D and related metabolites of bipolar manic episodes prior to treatment, bipolar remission after treatment, and healthy control groups. Methods: This case–control study consisted of 34 bipolar manic episode patients and 34 healthy controls. Disease activity was evaluated with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) and Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS). Firstly, serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OHD), calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) levels of patients in the bipolar manic episode were measured and compared with healthy control. Secondly, serum 25-OHD, Ca and P levels in the euthymic periods of the same patients were measured and compared with healthy control. Results: Bipolar manic episode Vit D levels were lower when compared to healthy controls; while there was no difference in terms of Ca and P levels. There was no significant difference between the bipolar euthymic period patients and the healthy control group in terms of 25-OHD, Ca and P levels. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated low serum Vit D concentrations in the acute manic episode of bipolar disorder. Decreased Vit D level may play a role in the onset of the manic episode, or malnutrition and insufficient sunlight during the manic episode may have caused Vit D deficiency. Future studies are needed to exclude potential confounding factors and to compare all mood episodes.

Objective: Inflammation is one of several etiopathological mechanisms contributing to bipolar disorder. Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) are relatively cheap hematological parameters recommended to measure the level of inflammation. In this study, the NLR, MLR, and PLR values of the same patients during manic and euthymic periods were compared to a healthy control group. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted on inpatients with bipolar disorder manic episodes at the University Faculty of Medicine psychiatry clinic. Ninety-nine patients with manic episodes of bipolar disorder and age and gender-matched 101 volunteers without prior psychiatric illness were included in the study. Neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, and platelet counts during the disease period were recorded, and NLR, MLR, and PLR values were calculated from these values. Similar hematological parameters of the same patients in the euthymic period after discharge were compared. Results: Patients with manic episodes were shown to have significantly higher neutrophil, platelet, NLR, MLR, and PLR levels than the control group (p<0.001). Monocyte count was significantly lower in manic episode patients compared to controls (p<0.001). Neutrophil and monocyte counts were significantly lower during the euthymic period compared to the control group, while NLR, MLR, and PLR levels were higher (p<0.001). Conclusions: The fact that NLR, MLR, and PLR are higher in BD patients compared to the healthy control group in both manic and euthymic periods indicates that they can be used as trait biomarkers.

Dear Editors, I was very interested in your editorial [1]. Technological advancements are so rapid that humans are unable to keep up. And we eagerly await the outcomes of technological advancement. The study of artificial intelligence is one of the topics that has recently gained popularity. If someone had predicted a hundred years ago, "A technology will come that will detect the commands you receive, act accordingly, and write scientific articles," we would laugh at her. Many artificial intelligence dreams that appear weird to us now, I believe, will come true shortly. The Generative Pre-Trained Transformer 3 (GPT3) was developed a few years ago, in line with improvements in artificial intelligence. With this model, artificial intelligence was used to generate content that resembled human-written documents. A more advanced version of ChatGPT was produced a few years later. In March 2023, the most recent GPT4 version was launched. Errors in article writing have been reduced using this and comparable applications such as artificial intelligence. In fact, it has become nearly impossible to detect the difference between publications written by scientists and articles written by artificial intelligence. Some journals have begun to accept artificial intelligence apps as co-authors [2]. Article authoring is made considerably easier by artificial intelligence. In terms of time savings, using artificial intelligence products such as ChatGPT and GPT 4 may make sense. However, there are some risks associated with this circumstance. For example, because disseminating personal data is a felony, authors may feel compelled to conceal some information in order to preserve personal data. Artificial intelligence programs can readily perpetrate crimes involving personal data by releasing secret facts. This situation presents numerous legal issues. Furthermore, the language to be used in article writing may alter depending on the topic of study. In this instance, it is vital to go check the words chosen by artificial intelligence programs in the article. As a result, my recommendation is to use tools such as ChatGPT, GPT 4, or similar basic jobs once the user has written the article themselves. Leaving all of the work to these apps may cause more harm than good. Kind Regards

Aims: Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a heterogeneous disorder characterized by obsessions and compulsions. Despite the studies, etiopathogenesis is not fully understood. Pharmacological and psychosocial interventions in OCD may be insufficient due to limited knowledge of etiopathogenesis. Therefore, it is important to find inexpensive and easily determined biochemical parameters related to etiopathogenesis. In this study, the relationship between OCD and vitamin B12 (VitB12), folic acid (FA), vitamin D (VitD) and ferritin was investigated. Material and Method: 50 patients with OCD (12 female, 38 male) and 50 healthy controls (HC) (13 female, 37 male) were included in this retrospective study. Serum VitB12, FA, ferritin and 25-OH VitD levels of both groups were compared. Results: VitB12 (p <0.001), FA (p =0.004) and 25-(OH)VitD (p =0.001) serum levels were significantly lower in the OCD group than in the HC group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of ferritin values. Conclusion: Our study shows that serum VitB12, FA and VitD deficiency can contribute to etiopathogenesis in OCD patients. This study may lead to research to find new pathways related to etiopathogenesis. For this, prospective studies with large participation are needed, including the post-treatment period. Amaç: Obsesif kompulsif bozukluk (OKB), obsesyon ve kompulsiyonlarla karakterize heterojen bir bozukluktur. Yapılan çalışmalara rağmen etyopatogenezi tam olarak anlaşılamamıştır. OKB'de farmakolojik ve psikososyal müdahaleler, sınırlı etyopatogenez bilgisi nedeniyle yetersiz olabilir. Bu nedenle etiyopatogenez ile ilgili ucuz ve kolay saptanabilen biyokimyasal parametrelerin bulunması önemlidir. Bu çalışmada OKB ile B12 vitamini (VitB12), folik asit (FA), D vitamini (VitD) ve ferritin ilişkisi araştırıldı. Gereç ve Yöntem: Bu retrospektif çalışmaya 50 OKB hastası (12 kadın, 38 erkek) ve 50 sağlıklı kontrol (SK) (13 kadın, 37 erkek) dahil edildi. Her iki grubun serum VitB12, FA, ferritin ve 25-OH VitD düzeyleri karşılaştırıldı. Bulgular: VitB12 (p <0.001), FA (p =0.004) ve VitD (p =0.001) serum düzeyleri OKB grubunda HC grubuna göre anlamlı olarak düşüktü. Ferritin değerleri açısından iki grup arasında anlamlı fark yoktu. Sonuç: Çalışmamız OKB hastalarında serum VitB12, FA ve VitD eksikliğinin etyopatogenez ile ilişkili olabileceğini göstermektedir. Bu çalışma, etiyopatogenez ile ilgili yeni araştırmalara öncülük edebilir. Bunun için tedavi sonrası dönemi de içeren geniş katılımlı prospektif çalışmalara ihtiyaç vardır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Obsesyon, B12 vitamini, folik asit, ferritin ve D vitamini