European Psychiatry - Volume 33 - March 2016

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S60 24th European Congress of Psychiatry / European Psychiatry 33S (2016) S56–S71
Over the last decade, the “traditional” drug scene has been sup-
plemented – but not replaced – by the emergence of a range of
novel psychoactive substances (NPS), which are either newly cre-
ated or existing drugs, including medications, now being used in
novel ways. By the end of 2015, in excess of 700 NPS had been
reported by a large number of countries in the world. Most recent
data show however that synthetic cathinones; synthetic cannabi-
noids; and psychedelics/phenethylamines; account for the largest
number of NPS. Given the vast range of medical and psychopatho-
logical issues associated with the molecules here described, it is
crucial for health professionals to be aware of the effects and tox-
icity of NPS. The “Drugs 2.0.” revolution facilitated the birth and
growth of an “Online Drug Culture” which finds its main expres-
sion in chats/fora/blogs as well as the diffusion of online drug
marketplaces (both in the surface and deep web). The web has pro-
gressively modified the drug market from a “street” into a “virtual”
one, so by increasing the availability of newdrugs/NPS/“legal highs”
(“legal alternatives” to the traditional illegal drugs). The rapid pace
of change in the NPS online market constitutes a major challenge to
the provision of current and reliable scientific knowledge on these
substances. The present lecture aims at providing an overview of
the NPS phenomenon, also giving an overview of the main clini-
cal and pharmacological issues relating to these most popular NPS
categories.
Disclosure of interest The authors have not supplied their decla-
ration of competing interest.
W12
Translational perspectives in
addiction psychiatry
A. Schellekens
Radboud University Medical Centre, Donders Centre for
Neuroscience, department of Psychiatry, Nijmegen Institute for
Scientist Practitioners in Addiction, Nijmegen, Netherlands
Background Heritable factors account for approximately 50–60%
of the risk for alcohol dependence. However, which genes confer
this risk remains to elucidate. Moreover, genetic association studies
are hampered by non-replication. Several strategies can be applied
to approach this issue. One option is the application of intermedi-
ate phenotypes. Neurobiological measures that are closely related
to the addiction phenotype may be more directly related to genetic
variation. Intermediate phenotypes related to dopamine function
seem particularly suitable, given the strong dopamine hypothesis
in addiction. Another strategy is to include environmental factors,
such as childhood adverse experience, in genetic association stud-
ies. We tested the effect of COMT Val158Met and DRD2 Taq1A
genotypes, as modulators of brain dopamine function in the con-
text of self-reported environmental factors, like childhood adverse
experience.
Methods Alcohol-dependent patients ( n = 110) and healthy con-
trols (n = 99) were genotyped for the COMT Val158Met and DRD2
Taq1A genotypes. Childhood adversity was measured using self-
report questionnaires. Dopamine sensitivity was assessed using an
apomorphine challenge with cognitive performance and plasma
growth hormone levels as main outcome measures.
Results COMT genotype modulated the effect of apomorphine on
cognitive performance, but was not directly associatedwith alcohol
dependence. Yet, the interaction between childhood adversity and
COMT genotype did predict alcohol dependence. DRD2 genotype
modulated the effect of apomorphine on plasma growth hormone
levels and was also not directly associated with alcohol depend-
ence. Yet, the interaction between parental rule setting and DRD2
genotype did predict alcohol use in a separate population-based
sample of adolescents.
Conclusion This study provides evidence for a role of COMT and
DRD2 genotypes in alcohol dependence using both the GxE and
intermediate phenotype approach. This confirms that both an inter-
mediate phenotype approach and GxE interaction analyses can
be useful tools in understanding mechanisms mediating addic-
tion vulnerability. The clinical relevance of dopamine genes and
intermediate phenotypes for staging and profiling of alcohol use
disorders remains to be investigated.
Disclosure of interest The author has not supplied his declaration
of competing interest.
Getting started: The first steps in psychiatric
consultations
W13
Short-term psychotherapeutic
interventions in consultation-liaison
psychiatry
A. Diefenbacher ∗, R. Burian
Ev. Krankenhaus-Königin Elisabeth Herzberge gGmbH, Psychiatry,
Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic, Berlin, Germany
∗ Corresponding author.
Due to a reduction in length of hospital stay of general hospi-
tal inpatients, CL-psychiatrists find themselves confronted with
the problem of “less time to do more”. This presentation will
first outline procedural aspects of CL-psychiatry, delineating its
development from the “situational approach” do becoming case
managers. Then, short-term supportive interventions will be dis-
cussedwith regard to their applicability andnewer disorder specific
techniques, such as ACT and DBT will be demonstrated in their
usefulness for the medically ill.
Disclosure of interest The authors have not supplied their decla-
ration of competing interest.
W14
The magic list of everyday problems in
consultation-liaison psychiatry (and
hints for solving them)
S. Ferrari ∗, G. Mattei , G.M. Galeazzi , M. Rigatelli
University of Modena & Reggio Emilia, Department of
Diagnostic-Clinical Medicine and Public Health, Modena, Italy
∗ Corresponding author.
Introduction Consultation-liaison psychiatry (CLP) deals with
clinical, research and training activities at the interface between
psychiatry and the rest of medicine. The main clinical competen-
cies of CLP include medical-psychiatric comorbidity (co-existing
psychiatric and non-psychiatric disorders affecting reciprocally);
medically unexplained physical symptoms, “somatization” and
functional disorders; and liaison activities, addressed to medical
workers and teams.
Objectives/aims To describe and discuss typical clinical scenar-
ios that CL psychiatrists have to work in, and suggest effective,
evidence-based solutions.
Methods Long-standing everyday clinical experience of the
authors combined to evidence derived from international literature
consented to create a list of the most common and complex prob-
lems or difficulties typical of the CLP clinical context, and related
possible solutions.
Results Most common/complex problems include the following:
stigma and prejudice (of patients, relatives, colleagues, and own);
excessive technicality of language; short/unpredictable duration of
hospital stay of patients, and more in general pressure in clinical