Background: Bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism (BDSM) is gaining popularity through the mainstream media. Nevertheless, very little is known about the prevalence of BDSM-related fantasies and activities in the general population. Aim: To determine the prevalence of BDSM fantasies and behavioral involvement in four different age groups of the general population in Belgium. Methods: By use of a cross-sectional survey questionnaire, the level of interest in several BDSM-related activities was investigated in a sample representative of the general Belgian population (N = 1,027). The questionnaire evaluated interest in 54 BDSM activities and 14 fetishes. Self-identification as BDSM practitioner, situational context of BDSM practice, age at awareness of these interests, and transparency to others were queried. Outcomes: Individual item scores and summary scores on four BDSM categories were included in the analyses. Results: A high interest in BDSM-related activities in the general population was found because 46.8% of the total sample had ever performed at least one BDSM-related activity and an additional 22% indicated having (had) fantasies about it. Interestingly, 12.5% of the total population indicated performing at least one BDSM-related activity on a regular basis. When asked whether they saw themselves as being interested in BDSM, 26% stated this to be the case and 7.6% self-identified as BDSM practitioners. Interests in dominant and submissive activities were comparable and, remarkably, were highly intercorrelated. BDSM and fetish interests were significantly higher in men than in women. The older group (48–65 years) had significantly lower BDSM scores compared with their younger peers. Of participants with a BDSM interest, 61.4% became aware of it before 25 years of age. Clinical Implications: There is a high level of interest in BDSM in the general population, which strongly argues against stigmatization and pathologic characterization of these interests. Strengths and Limitations: This is the first thorough study concerning prevalence of interest in and fantasies about a wide range of BDSM-related activities in the general population worldwide. Although our findings tend to argue against it, we cannot completely rule out participation bias introduced by non-interest in the non-completers. In addition, some topics might have been subject to interpretation by the respondents. Conclusion: Interest in BDSM is present in most of the general population. Further research is needed to destigmatize it by confirming BDSM as a leisurely preference rather than a psychiatric affliction.

Adherence to prescribed medication regimes improves outcomes for patients with severe mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorders. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare the effectiveness among interventions to improve medication adherence in patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorders. Literature published in the last decade was searched for interventions studies to improve adherence in patients with schizophrenia or a bipolar disorder. Interventions were categorised on the basis of type, and the context and effectiveness of the interventions were described. Two review authors independently extracted and assessed data, following criteria outlined by the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. The GRADEPro (McMaster University, 2020, Ontario, Canada) was used for assessing the quality of the evidence. Twenty-three publications met the selection criteria. Different types of interventions aiming to improve adherence were tested: educational, behavioural, family-based, technological, or a combination of previous types. Meta-analysis could be performed for 10 interventions. When considered separately by subgroups on the basis of intervention type, no significant differences were found in adherence among interventions (p = 0.29; I² = 19.9%). This review concluded that successful interventions used a combination of behavioural and educational approaches that seem easy to implement in daily practice.

Introduction: BDSM (bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism) increasingly receives attention from the scientific community. Where earlier research efforts mainly focused on epidemiologic characteristics, psychological and biologic factors driving BDSM preferences have recently gained interest as well. Aim: To bring together all the existing scientific literature on BDSM from a biopsychosocial perspective. Methods: Based on the PRISMA guidelines, the current systematic review brings together all the existing literature on BDSM from a biopsychosocial perspective. Main Outcome Measure: Prevalence rates of BDSM interests were investigated in the literature, as well as the associations between BDSM interests on one hand and personality traits, adverse childhood experiences, education levels, sexual orientations and biological markers on the other. Results: Biologic factors such as gender identity, sex hormone levels, and the neurologic constitution of the brain’s pain and reward systems influence BDSM orientation. With regard to psychological factors, both personality traits (eg, higher levels of openness or extraversion) and the presence of a personality disorder have been associated with a heightened interest in BDSM, although only limited supporting evidence is available. Additionally, sensation-seeking levels and impulsivity seem to contribute, because they presumably guide one’s drive to explore new or more-intense kinks. Whereas attachment styles impact couple dynamics, they also influence willingness to explore limits in a BDSM context. Lastly, education levels impact relational and sexual dynamics. Strengths and Limitations: The limitations of the current review reflect those of the topical scientific literature. Although the number of studies focused on all aspects of BDSM is exponentially growing, most of these are only descriptive, and very few focus on underlying driving processes. Conclusion: From this biopsychosocial perspective, we offer a dimensional approach while integrating the factors driving the onset and evolution of BDSM interests.

Background: In psychotic and mood disorders, immune alterations are hypothesized to underlie cognitive symptoms, as they have been associated with elevated blood levels of inflammatory cytokines, kynurenine metabolites, and markers of microglial activation. The current meta-analysis synthesizes all available clinical evidence on the associations between immunomarkers (IMs) and cognition in these psychiatric illnesses. Methods: Pubmed, Web of Science, and Psycinfo were searched for peer-reviewed studies on schizophrenia spectrum disorder (SZ), bipolar disorder (BD), or major depressive disorder (MDD) including an association analysis between at least one baseline neuropsychological outcome measure (NP) and one IM (PROSPERO ID:CRD42021278371). Quality assessment was performed using BIOCROSS. Correlation meta-analyses, and random effect models, were conducted in Comprehensive Meta-Analysis version 3 investigating the association between eight cognitive domains and pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory indices (PII and AII) as well as individual IM. Results: Seventy-five studies (n = 29,104) revealed global cognitive performance (GCP) to be very weakly associated to PII (r = −0.076; p = 0.003; I² = 77.4) or AII (r = 0.067; p = 0.334; I² = 38.0) in the combined patient sample. Very weak associations between blood–based immune markers and global or domain-specific GCP were found, either combined or stratified by diagnostic subgroup (GCP x PII: SZ: r = −0.036, p = 0.370, I² = 70.4; BD: r = −0.095, p = 0.013, I² = 44.0; MDD: r = −0.133, p = 0.040, I² = 83.5). We found evidence of publication bias. Discussion: There is evidence of only a weak association between blood-based immune markers and cognition in mood and psychotic disorders. Significant publication and reporting biases were observed and most likely underlie the inflation of such associations in individual studies.

OBJECTIVE: In this exploratory open label study we investigated the prevalence of catatonia in an acute psychiatric inpatient population. In addition, differences in symptom presentation of catatonia depending on the underlying psychiatric illness were investigated. METHODS: 130 patients were assessed with the Bush-Francis Catatonia Rating Scale (BFCRS), the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) and the Simpson-Angus Scale (SAS). A factor analysis was conducted in order to generate 6 catatonic symptom clusters. Composite scores based on this principal component analysis were calculated. RESULTS: When focusing on the first 14 items of the BFCRS, 101 patients (77.7%) had at least 1 symptom scoring 1 or higher, whereas 66 patients (50.8%) had at least 2 symptoms. Interestingly, when focusing on the DSM-5 criteria of catatonia, 22 patients (16.9%) could be considered for this diagnosis. Furthermore, different symptom profiles were found, depending on the underlying psychopathology. Psychotic symptomatology correlated strongly with excitement symptomatology (r=.528,p<.001) and to a lesser degree with the stereotypy/mannerisms symptom cluster (r=.289; p=.001) and the echo/perseveration symptom cluster (r=.185;p=.035). Similarly, manic symptomatology correlated strongly with the excitement symptom cluster (r=.596;p<.001) and to a lesser extent with the stereotypy/mannerisms symptom cluster (r=.277;p=.001). CONCLUSION: There was a high prevalence of catatonic symptomatology. Depending on the criteria being used, we noticed an important difference in exact prevalence, which makes it clear that we need clear-cut criteria. Another important finding is the fact that the catatonic presentation may vary depending on the underlying pathology, although an unambiguous delineation between these catatonic presentations cannot be made. Future research is needed to determine diagnostical criteria of catatonia which are clinically relevant.

Beyond Boundaries: In Search of an Integrative View on Motor Symptoms in Schizophrenia