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Achromatopsia: Definition

Achromatopsia Achromatopsia refers to agnosia for colour. This term includes colour blindness. A partial or total absence of colour vision is the hallmark of achromatopsia. People with complete achromatopsia cannot perceive any colours; they see only black, white, and shades of grey. Incomplete achromatopsia is milder; it allows some colour discrimination. Other vision difficulties associated with achromatopsia include increased sensitivity to light and glare (photophobia), involuntary back-and-forth eye movements (nystagmus), and severely decreased visual acuity.  Farsightedness (hyperopia) or, less typically, nearsightedness (myopia) might affect those who are affected (myopia). During the first several months of life, these eyesight issues first appear. Achromatopsia differs from the more common forms of colour vision deficiency (also called colour blindness). People can perceive colour but have difficulty distinguishing between certain colours, such as red and green. 

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder: Clinical Features and Diagnostic Criteria

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder: Clinical Features and Diagnostic Criteria Waleed Ahmad Published online by MRCPsych UK: Tuesday, 03 May 2022 Introduction There is a loss of skills in several areas of development and deficits in social, communicative, and behavioural functioning that follow normal development in this condition. Often the condition follows a prodromic period during which children develop obscure symptoms; they become restive, irritable, anxious, and overactive. Impoverishment follows this and then loss of speech and language, accompanied by behavioural disintegration. Sometimes the loss of skills is persistently progressive (especially if there is an underlying progressive neurological condition), but more often, the decline over some months and then a slight improvement. The prognosis is usually abysmal, and it leaves most individuals with severe intellectual disability. There is uncertainty about the extent to which this condition differs from autism. Sometimes, th

Symptoms and Functioning Severity Scale (SFSS): A Summary Scoring and Interpretation

Symptoms and Functioning Severity Scale (SFSS) The key measure of therapy success is the Symptoms and Functioning Severity Scale (SFSS).1  This scale examines the intensity of general symptoms and symptoms related to children and adolescents' most prevalent mental health problems (ADHD, CD, ODD, depression, and anxiety).  It comprises a 5-point Likert scale for each item ("never," "rarely," "occasionally," "frequently," and "very often"). A total score, an externalising score, and an internalising score are all provided by the SFSS. Youngster, caregiver, and clinician versions are available.  A 26-item version (SFSS-Full) and 2 other variations (SFSS Short Form A and Short Form B) are the different versions. Therapists apply these later 2 versions during alternate therapy sessions to assess change over a short period (i.e., weekly or biweekly sessions). Bibliography Bickman L, Athay M, Riemer M, et al. Manual of the Peabody treatmen

A brief Description and Interpretation of Beck Suicidal Ideation Scale

  Beck Suicide Ideation Scale Waleed Ahmad Aaron Beck developed the Beck Suicidal ideation scale in 1979. 1 The scale applies to those aged seventeen and above . Five items for screening and the rest for severity are on the scale.  The first ten items assess active suicidal desire. Interpretation A score of up to six indicates low risk . According to the interpretation, those scoring above six but lower than thirteen are at moderate risk of suicide . Individuals with a severe risk of suicide score between 13 and 20, while those who score higher than twenty-one have a very high risk of suicide. About the Author The author is a consultant psychiatrist at the department of psychiatry, Mercy Teaching Hospital Peshawar, and a member of the faculty at the department of psychiatry and behavioural sciences, Peshawar Medical College, Peshawar, 25000, KP, Pakistan. Email: dr.waleed@outlook.com  Reference Beck, A. T., Kovacs, M., & Weissman, A. (1979). Assessment of Suicidal Inten

Differences between Typical and Atypical Antipsychotics: Efficacy and Adverse Effects

Typical Versus Atypical Antipsychotics By definition, typical antipsychotics are those which produce extrapyramidal side effects, while atypical antipsychotics do not. However, at the doses used today, most atypical antipsychotics do not produce extrapyramidal side effects. Whether typical and atypical antipsychotics differ in efficacy in a long-held debate. Except for clozapine, there are no significant differences in the efficacy of typical and atypical antipsychotics.  Two large pragmatic studies, CATIE  in the United States, and CutLASS  in the United Kingdom, in 2005 and 2006, respectively, produced similar conclusions. Another meta-analysis, in 2009 showed that risperidone, olanzapine, and amisulpride were more effective compared to typical antipsychotics.  Overall, typical antipsychotics are more likely to produce extrapyramidal side effects, while atypical ones are more likely to produce metabolic side effects, including weight gain, hyperlipemia, and diabetes.  Clozapine is mo