Henning Værøy

Akershus universitetssykehus | Ahus · Department of Psychiatric Research

Oxytocin is a neuropeptide produced mainly in the hypothalamus and secreted in the CNS and blood. In the brain, it plays a major role in promoting social interactions. Here we show that in human plasma about 60% of oxytocin is naturally bound to IgG which modulates oxytocin receptor signaling. Further, we found that IgG of violent aggressive inmate...

26RFa, also referred to as QRFP, is a hypothalamic neuropeptide mainly known for its role in the regulation of appetite and glucose metabolism. Its possible relevance to emotional regulation is largely unexplored. To address this, in the present exploratory study, we analyzed the plasma concentrations of 26RFa in humans characterized by different l...

Adrenocorticotropic hormone together with arginine vasopressin and oxytocin, the neuropeptides regulating the stress response and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, are known to modulate aggressive behavior. The functional role of the adrenocorticotropic hormone immunoglobulin G autoantibodies in peptidergic signaling and motivated b...

Significance The number of inmates imprisoned for violent aggression is increasing, as are the penitentiaries, but still our understanding of mechanisms underlying criminality is limited. Our analysis of violent aggressor inmates reveals unique properties of IgG reactive with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). We show that these IgGs can regulate...

Background. Violent aggression in humans, including murder, may involve altered actions of stress-related hormones but the underlying mechanisms are uncertain. We studied if immunoglobulins (Ig) reactive with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) may alter ACTH signaling relevant to aggressive behavior? Methods. Affinity kinetics of plasmatic ACTH-rea...

Abstract Evidence is growing that aggressive behavior and impulsivity have subgroups. The subscales of the Urgency, Premeditation, Perseverance and Sensation seeking (UPPS) impulsivity scale and the Bryant and Smith shortened and refined version of the Aggression Questionnaire were used to describe and compare impulsive and aggressive behavior in e...

This review presents unique information rarely seen in a description of a politically extreme right wing terrorist. During the trial following the terror acts in Norway on July 22 nd 2011, the author, a forensic psychiatrist was at the time engaged by a national Norwegian newspaper to comment on the court proceedings. The author has later thoroughl...

Can increased affinity of IgG for ACTH be linked to violent aggression

Aims and objectives To assess the effects of introducing a systematic approach to pain and sedation management in the ICU . Background Identification of ICU patients' analgesic and sedative needs decreases the risk of complications and the hospital length of stay. Several studies have reported a lack of systematic assessment. Design and methods T...

Rettsforhandlingene etter terroren 22. juli er avsluttet og Norsk rettspsykiatri er gjenstand for debatt som aldri før. I denne debatten savner vi en prinsipiell drøfting av strafferettslig rettspsykiatri og dagens utilregnelighetsregler. Vi foreslår her ti konkrete tiltak til forbedring av rettspsykiatrisk virksomhet. Men gratis blir det ikke.

Introduction A Norwegian government publication (1) claims a prevalence of around 50% of Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) in a small group of male detainees on preventive detention. The present study population is recruited from more or less the same population as those among whom a 50% prevalence of APD has been claimed (1). Norwegian forensi...

Viewpoints from 26 inmates on preventive detention regarding their own risk for reoffending, once out of prison, showed that 73% of the detainees acknowledged this risk and specifically explained their vulnerability. Fifty-eight percent expressed themselves negatively regarding rehabilitation programmes and the availability of various services. Cle...

Inmates on preventive detention are a small and select group sentenced to an indefinite term of imprisonment. Mood disorders and substance abuse are risk factors for inmate violence and recidivism, so the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse was examined in this cohort using psychometric tests. Completion of self-report questionna...

Denne artikkelen handler om de metodene de sakkyndige anvender for å undersøke om siktede var å anse for bevisstløs eller hadde en sterk bevissthetsforstyrrelse i gjerningsøyeblikket. Artikkelen er en forkortet og omarbeidet versjon aven artikkel publisert i International Journal of Law and Psychiatry i 2009

Objectives: The relationships among muscle pain, pain threshold, sleep and depression were studied within a group of women in the active work force reporting musculoskeletal pains. Methods: Female low salary office employees, all [N = 96] reporting muscle pains, answered a sleep questionnaire. A muscle pain index comprising self-reported pain in th...

About one third of defendants in homicide cases claim amnesia during the time of their alleged act. Examining the authenticity of claimed amnesia is a special challenge for forensic experts. Because the experts' conclusions have legal implications, it is useful to study the characteristics of defendants who claim amnesia regarding a homicidal act a...

The aim of the present work was to study correlations between self-assessment of symptoms of depression, anxiety, rheumatic pain and functional disability. One hundred patients admitted to a university rheumatology clinic were tested in a consecutive manner, applying the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). In addition, the patients were a...

Previous studies report a wide range of prevalence rates of depressive illness among general hospital inpatients, all higher than in a non-patient population. Several factors may have influenced on these results. Mixed study population, depression-prone subgroups and continuous shift in what is a surgical inpatient population due to day surgery tre...

Henning Vaeroy is responsible for the scientific translations

Henning Vaeroy has written the foreword to the Norwegian version

Existing studies suggest that depression is underdiagnosed and undertreated in general practice, and that the known prevalence of this mood disorder in a primary care population may represent only the "tip of the iceberg'. A total of 100 consecutive patients in an average Norwegian general practice were tested, of whom 31 patients were diagnosed as...

Fibromyalgia is established in current practice as a condition with widespread pain and a number of specific tender points, as well as symptoms of limb stiffness, lack of refreshing sleep and depression. Musculoskeletal correlations with the syndrome have generally been disappointing. Chemical changes in the cerebrospinal fluid are of interest and...

The present article is the result of a working group conference held in Moss, Norway, in June 1993, financed by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Health and Social Affairs. Its purpose was to review and focus upon problems and needs related to the medico-legal aspects of fibromyalgia and chronic widespread musculoskeletal complaints: thus to define d...

In this work we have studied the dynorphin convertase (DCE) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collected from patients with different states of chronic pain. The assessment of the enzyme activity was accompanied with measurements of the CSF level of prodynorphin derived opioid peptides. In CSF from patients with fibromyalgia the DCE activity was found to...

Fibromyalgia is regarded a state of pain that can both be triggered and maintained by a broad spectre of events, ranging from massive psychogenic stress to long-lasting excessive somatic strain. Based on a review of selected studies supported by the Norwegian Medical Research Council, this paper focuses on muscular exercise and related pain, the fu...

To compare the levels of biogenic amines in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of primary fibromyalgia syndrome (PFS) patients with those in the CSF of controls. Metabolites of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine were identified in CSF, using high performance liquid chromatography with coulometric detection. CSF levels of metabolites from all 3 neur...

The peripheral sympathetic activity was studied in 27 patients with fibromyalgia and 29 healthy controls through simultaneous measurements of electrodermal variables and blood flow at palmar skin sites during baseline, acoustic stimulation, and cold pressor tests. Compared to the controls, the patient group showed a significantly larger overall inc...

The CSF levels of Met-enkephalin-Arg6-Phe7 and dynorphin A were measured in patients with fibromyalgia. The mean CSF Met-enkephalin-Arg6-Phe7 level was 35.1 +/- 2.4 fmol/ml (mean +/- S.E.M.). The mean CSF level of dynorphin A was 14.3 +/- 0.9 fmol/ml. Regression analysis showed a statistically significant correlation between Met-enkephalin-Arg6-Phe...

Cerebrospinal fluid investigations in patients with fibromyalgia: Met-Arg6-Phe7, Dyn a(1-17), substance P and beta-endorphin.

Twenty-seven female patients with fibromyalgia and 29 female healthy controls underwent an auditive stimulation test and a left hand cold pressor test at 10 and 4 degrees C. The microcirculatory changes observed, indicate that, as a response to 80 dB, 1000 Hz, 2 seconds sounds and cooling with associated pain, the vasoconstrictory responses are les...

The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of calcitonin gene related peptide (CGRP) were 0.94 +/- 0.06 fmol/ml (mean +/- SEM), of substance P, 35.1 +/- 3.2 fmol/ml and of substance P (1-7), 10.8 +/- 1.2 fmol/ml, as measured by radioimmunoassay in 26 female patients with fibromyalgia. No correlation was found between the levels of CGRP and the substance...

Forty-three of fifty-eight (74.1%) female patients with fibromyalgia completed an eight-week treatment period testing the combination of carisoprodol, paracetamol (acetaminophen) and caffeine versus placebo. Twenty-three patients received placebo and twenty active medication. In the placebo group 56.5% of the patients used additional analgesics or...

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from 18 female patients with fibromyalgia (fibrositis syndrome) were analyzed for beta-endorphin. The mean CSF level of beta-endorphin was 20.7 +/- 0.7 fmol/ml in the patients compared to 20.5 +/- 2.0 fmol/ml (mean +/- SEM) in healthy controls (p greater than 0.05). Thus, patients with fibromyalgia (fibrositis synd...

In 30 patients with diagnosed fibromyalgia, the CSF level of immunoreactive substance P (SP) was investigated. Compared to normal values (9.6 +/- 3.2 fmol/ml), all the patients had elevated CSF levels of SP (36.1 +/- 2.7 fmol/ml, range 16.5-79.1 fmol/ml). Anamnestic information from the patients revealed that 53.3% had Raynaud/Raynaud-like phenomen...

Central and peripheral release of substance P-like immunoreactivity in arthritic inflammation in man: A pilot study.

Enzyme activity capable of converting the glycine-extended substance P precursor, substance P-Gly12, into substance P was purified from human cerebrospinal fluid. The conversion reaction was monitored by radioimmunoassay measurement of substance P formation. The chemical identity of the product was verified by reversed-phase HPLC. The enzyme reacti...