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Introduction
Additional affiliations
August 2016 - October 2018
January 2013 - present
November 2013 - present
Education
September 2011 - January 2014
September 2010 - September 2011
April 2004 - December 2009
Publications
Publications (88)
Background
One of the most relevant risk factors for suicide is the presence of previous attempts. The symptomatic profile of people who reattempt suicide deserves attention. Network analysis is a promising tool to study this field.
Objective
To analyze the symptomatic network of patients who have attempted suicide recently and compare networks of...
BACKGROUND
Suicide is a significant global public health concern. Individuals with suicidal behaviors often seek help in emergency departments (ED), making mental health providers critical in suicide prevention. Brief interventions, such as safety planning, are essential in these settings. However, there is a limited understanding of how mobile dig...
Background
Suicidal behavior constitutes a multi-cause phenomenon that may also be present in people without a mental disorder. This study aims to analyze suicidal behavior outcomes in a sample of attempters, from a symptom-based approach.
Methods
The sample comprised 673 patients (72% female; M = 40.9 years) who attended a hospital emergency depa...
Current rates of mental illness are worrisome. Mental illness mainly affects females and younger age groups. The use of the internet to deliver mental health care has been growing since 2020 and includes the implementation of novel mental health treatments using virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence. A new three dimensiona...
Background
Suicide is one of the main external causes of death worldwide. People who have already attempted suicide are at high risk of new suicidal behavior. However, there is a lack of information on the risk factors that facilitate the appearance of reattempts. The aim of this study was to calculate the risk of suicide reattempt in the presence...
Background
Suicide is an international health concern with immeasurable impact from the perspective of human and social suffering. Prior suicide attempts, anxious and depressive symptoms, and relatively lower health-related quality of life (HRQoL) are among the most replicated risk factors for suicide. Our goal was to visualize the distribution of...
Monitoring of the mental health status of the population and assessment of its determinants are 2 of the most relevant pillars of public mental health, and data from population health surveys could be instrumental to support them. Although these surveys could be an important and suitable resource for these purposes, due to different limitations and...
Background:
The 8-item version of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8) is one of the self-reported questionnaires most frequently used worldwide for the screening and severity assessment of depression. However, in some European countries its reliability is unknown, and it is unclear whether its psychometric properties vary between European cou...
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Monitoring of the mental health status of the population and assessment of its determinants are 2 of the most relevant pillars of public mental health, and data from population health surveys could be instrumental to support them. Although these surveys could be an important and suitable resource for these purposes, due to different li...
Background
Long-term follow-up studies in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) consistently show persistent impairment in psychosocial adjustment, although symptoms tend to decrease over time. Consequently, it might be better to deemphasize symptom-oriented interventions and instead promote interventions that incorporate patient pers...
Objectives: Adjustment disorders (AjD) are common in clinical practice, but research on treatment alternatives is scarce, as it is on the impact of common comorbid symptoms such as pain. The present study explored the effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on a sample of AjD outpatients and analyzed the role of pain in treatment respo...
Background:
Up to 20% of the cases of anorexia nervosa (AN) are chronic and treatment-resistant. Recently, the efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS) for severe cases of AN has been explored, with studies showing an improvement in body mass index and other psychiatric outcomes. While the effects of DBS on cognitive domains have been studied in p...
Objectives: Evidence suggests the efficacy of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) to prevent depression relapse and decrease depressive symptoms during the acute phase. However, the effectiveness of MBCT in real-world heterogeneous samples treated in clinical health settings, including primary care, has received little attention. This study...
The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to increase suicidal behavior. However, data available to date are inconsistent. This study examines suicidal behavior and death trends in 2020 relative to 2019 as an approximation to the impact of the pandemic on suicidal behavior and death in the general population of Catalonia, Spain. Data on suicide-related tho...
Objectives:
Previous imaging studies in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) have detected functional brain dysfunctions. Mindfulness training may improve the symptoms of BPD, although the neural mechanisms involved remain poorly understood. This study had several key aims: 1) to investigate the role of right anterior insula (rAI) f...
Although previous imaging studies in borderline personality disorder (BPD) have found brain abnormalities, the results have been inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate structural brain abnormalities using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and cortical thickness (Cth) analyses in a large sample of patients with BPD. Additionally, we aimed to dete...
Objective
Ayahuasca is a psychedelic brew that originated in the Amazon basin. The psychological effects of this drug are becoming better understood due to the growing research interest in identifying new potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of emotion dysregulation and other disorders. Previous studies suggest that ayahuasca enhances min...
Background:
Mindfulness skills training is a core component of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) that has proven to be an effective stand-alone treatment for the general symptoms commonly present in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). The aim of the present study was to compare the effectiveness of mindfulness-based DBT skills tr...
In this chapter, we review the latest research on the neuroscience and therapeutic potential of ayahuasca. Currently, the type of research available ranges from in vitro experiments to clinical studies performed to assess the modulation of neural and psychological processes. We also discuss the most recently reported findings, including (a) the neu...
Depressed patients often do not respond to the first antidepressant prescribed, resulting in sequential trials of different medications. Personalised medicine offers a means of reducing this delay; however, the clinical effectiveness of personalised approaches to antidepressant treatment has not previously been tested. We assessed the clinical effe...
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2018.00224.].
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a severe and highly prevalent psychiatric disorder, more common in females than in males and with notable differences in presentation between genders. Recent studies have shown that epigenetic modifications such as DNA methylation may modulate gene × environment interactions and impact on neurodevelopment. W...
Introduction: Suicide is one of the leading causes of avoidable death. Gathering national data on suicidal behavior incidence is crucial to develop evidence-based public policies. The study has two primary objectives: 1) to determine the incidence of suicide attempts in Spain and related risk factors, and 2) to analyze the efficacy of secondary pre...
Background: The study explores the association between pain and functional impairment in patients with partially remitted MDD, considering both clinician and patient reported outcomes.
Methods: Multicenter, observational, and cross-sectional study, with 583 outpatients with partially remitted MDD. Measures of pain intensity (VAS), functional impai...
Background: Behavioral tasks focusing on different subdomains of reward processing may provide more objective and quantifiable measures of anhedonia and impaired motivation compared with clinical scales. Typically, single tasks are used in relatively small studies to compare cases and controls in one indication, but they are rarely included in larg...
Introduction
Suicide attempts represent an important public health burden. Centralised electronic health record (EHR) systems have high potential to provide suicide attempt surveillance, to inform public health action aimed at reducing risk for suicide attempt in the population, and to provide data-driven clinical decision support for suicide risk...
Background:
The main objective of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with severe anorexia nervosa (AN).
Methods:
Eight participants received active DBS to the subcallosal cingulate (SCC) or nucleus accumbens (NAcc) depending on comorbidities (affective or anxiety disorders, respectively)...
Background
: Suicide prevention is an emerging priority for public health systems. Here, we present the Catalonia Suicide Risk Code (CSRC), a secondary suicide prevention program that provides a systematic approach to follow-up care for patients at risk. We describe the care pathway of the CSRC and characteristics of the patients enrolled in the pr...
Objectives
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), an intervention that integrates mindfulness with cognitive-behavioral therapy, is an 8-week program originally developed to prevent relapses in patients with depression. Previous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of MBCT for preventing relapse, but few studies have evaluated MBCT in natura...
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) was studied from the 1950s to the 1970s to evaluate behavioral and personality changes, as well as remission of psychiatric symptoms in various disorders. LSD was used in the treatment of anxiety, depression, psychosomatic diseases and addiction. However, most of the studies were not performed under contemporary sta...
Emotion dysregulation (ED) and impulsivity are the two core characteristics of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Although the mindfulness module of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) has proven effective to treat general BPD symptomatology, no studies have yet been conducted to determine whether mindfulness specifically targets impulsivity and...
Patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) present dysfunctions of the default mode network (DMN). Mindfulness training has proven effective to improve the symptoms of BPD. The present study examines the effect of mindfulness training on BPD symptomatology and DMN activity during the performance of a working memory task in patients with BP...
The aim of the present study was to determine 1) whether deficits in two mindfulness dimensions (present-centered awareness and acceptance) were present in individuals with different psychiatric conditions and 2) whether co-existing depressive symptoms affected the mindfulness-related capacities in these groups. A total of 246 individuals, both cli...
Bipolar disorder (BD) and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) share numerous clinical features, which can make the differential diagnosis challenging. Studies conducted in adults suggest that patients with BD and ADHD have different sleep patterns. However, in pediatric populations, data on these potential differences are scant. The pre...
Background
Research suggests that mindfulness-based interventions may improve mindfulness-related capacities (e.g., decentering, non-judging, and non-reacting) and emotion regulation. Previously, our group reported that ayahuasca could be a potential analogue of mindfulness practice. The main aim of the current study was to examine the effects of a...
Background:
Dialectical behaviour therapy skills training (DBT-ST) has proven effective to treat individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, therapy still faces the problem of early dropout. The aim of the present study is to examine which factors are associated with early dropout from DBT-ST in a sample of subjects with BPD....
Background: Individuals with eating disorders might be characterized by lower levels of direct engagement with the eating experience. This study aims to explore similarities and differences in direct experience while eating in four different weight conditions and healthy controls (HCs): anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), eating disorders...
In the original publication of this article [1] the funding acknowledgement for grant "PI13/00134, ERDF Funds" was missing.
As dimensions of effortful control (EC), activation control, attentional control, and inhibitory control could mediate the relationship between mindfulness meditation practice and the facets of mindfulness (i.e., observing, describing, acting with awareness, non‐judging and non‐reacting to inner experience). In this study, we tested whether partici...
Background: The therapeutic effects of the Amazonian plant tea ayahuasca may relate to its ability to enhance mindfulness capacities. Ayahuasca induces a modified state of awareness through the combined action of its active principles: the psychedelic N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and a series of centrally acting β-carbolines, mainly harmine and tet...
Differential remission rates observed in patients with early or delayed diagnosis of BPD
Objective:
To compare individuals with eating disorders (EDs) to healthy controls (HCs) to assess for differences in direct engagement in the eating process.
Method:
Participants (n=58) were asked to eat an orange slice. To assess the degree of direct engagement with the eating process, participants were asked to write down 10 thoughts about the...
Clarification of personal values and meditation practice has been associated in most meditation traditions and in academic texts. Both values-related behavior and meditation practice increases well-being, but their relationship has not been well studied. It has been suggested that values, together with self-regulation, psychological flexibility, an...
Background
Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) skills have become increasingly used to treat several psychiatric conditions, including major depressive disorder (MDD). The aim of the study was to investigate the efficacy of an intervention that combines emotion regulation and mindfulness skills of DBT to prevent depression relapse/recurrence.
Met...
Objective:
To describe the pharmacological management of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in Spain from 2001 through 2016, the factors associated with prescriptions, and changes in pharmacotherapy over this time period.
Methods:
Retrospective, cross-sectional, observational study conducted in a sample of 457 patients with BPD consecutively...
Background: Ayahuasca is a plant tea containing the psychedelic 5-HT2A agonist N,N-dimethyltryptamine and harmala monoamine-oxidase inhibitors. Acute administration leads to neurophysiological modifications in brain regions of the default mode network, purportedly through a glutamatergic mechanism. Post-acutely, ayahuasca potentiates mindfulness ca...
Background:
Ayahuasca is a plant tea containing the psychedelic 5-HT2A agonist N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and harmala monoamine-oxidase inhibitors. Acute administration leads to neurophysiological modifications in brain regions of the default mode network (DMN), purportedly through a glutamatergic mechanism. Post-acutely, ayahuasca potentiates m...
Background
During the last decade online interventions have emerged as a promising approach for patients with mild/moderate depressive symptoms, reaching at large populations and representing cost-effective alternatives. The main objective of this double-blind, randomized controlled trial is to examine the efficacy of an internet-based self-managem...
Comorbidity between borderline personality disorder (BPD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) is high and relevant as alcohol consumption seems to worsen BPD symptomatology. One of the newest treatments for AUD, nalmefene, may be useful to improve BPD symptoms not only indirectly by reducing alcohol consumption but also directly by acting on the opioid...
In the last few years, compassion-based approaches have been integrated into the field of psychology and psychotherapy. In order to evaluate their efficacy – and to explore the relationship between compassion, self-compassion and other psychological processes –, several self-reported instruments have been developed. The objective of this paper is t...
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a common and severe mental illness. Early detection is important and reliable screening instruments are required. To date, however, there has been no evidence of any specific BPD screening tool validated for the Spanish-speaking population. The McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder...
The aim of this prospective study was to expand previously reported evidence on the 10-year clinical and functional course of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in a Spanish sample. Participants diagnosed with BPD were assessed at baseline and at 10-year follow-up to evaluate BPD symptomatology and other relevant clinical measures, suicidal beha...
Nonattachment is a Buddhism-rooted construct, which can be defined as the relative absence of fixation on ideas, images, or sensory objects, as well as an absence of internal pressure to get, hold, avoid, or change circumstances or experiences. The present study was aimed at exploring the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Nonatt...
Recent research suggests that deficits in the ability to be mindful may be related to core aspects of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Mindfulness plays a central role in BPD treatment, and evidence also indicates that mindfulness is the most commonly practiced of the skills taught in dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). The present study inve...
Introduction:
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a common and severe mental illness. Early detection is important and reliable screening instruments are required. To date, however, there has been no evidence of any specific BPD screening tool validated for the Spanish-speaking population. The McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Person...
Negative consequences of alcohol abuse during adolescence have been extensively described. Consequently, different interventions have been developed to address this issue. This article describes the implementation and evaluation of Iudicium, an educational drama-based intervention designed to increase risk perception of alcohol abuse. In this activ...
Background:
Ayahuasca is a psychotropic plant tea used for ritual purposes by the indigenous populations of the Amazon. In the last two decades, its use has expanded worldwide. The tea contains the psychedelic 5-HT2A receptor agonist N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), plus β-carboline alkaloids with monoamine-oxidase-inhibiting properties. Acute admini...
Ayahuasca is the Quechua name for a tea obtained from the vine Banisteriopsis caapi, and used for ritual purposes by the indigenous populations of the Amazon. The use of a variation of the tea that combines B. caapi with the leaves of the shrub Psychotria viridis has experienced unprecedented expansion worldwide for its psychotropic properties. Thi...
Distintos estudios muestran que los sujetos con trastorno límite de la personalidad (TLP) presentan –respecto a controles sanos– una menor capacidad de mindfulness, entendida como la habilidad para prestar atención al momento presente de forma no-evaluativa y no-reactiva. Parecería ser que estos déficits en la capacidad de mindfulness se relacionan...
Highlights:
Three weeks of loving-kindness and compassion meditations increased acceptance of the present-moment experience in patients with borderline personality disorder. Significant improvements in the severity of borderline symptoms, self-criticism, mindfulness, acceptance and self-kindness were observed after the LKM/CM intervention. LKM/CM...
Impulsivity is considered a core characteristic of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Previous research on the effects of mindfulness training (MT) has shown that it might modify impulsivity-related aspects of BPD. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of MT on various facets of impulsivity in BPD patients.
Subjects wit...
This study investigated the possible association of 40 polymorphisms within 4 noradrenergic genes with BPD risk and the modulating effect of childhood trauma on these associations in 481 BPD subjects and 442 controls. COMT rs5993882, DBH rs77905 and SLC6A2 rs1814270 showed associations with BPD, which were modulated by childhood trauma. However, no...
Current knowledge suggests that borderline personality disorder (BPD) results from the interaction between genetic and environmental factors. Research has mainly focused on monoaminergic genetic variants and their modulation by traumatic events, especially those occurring during childhood. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are no studies...
Deficits in mindfulness-related capacities have been described in borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, little research has been conducted to explore which factors could explain these deficits. This study assesses the relationship between temperamental traits and childhood maltreatment with mindfulness in BPD.
A total of 100 individuals d...
This poster reported results on pot