bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Team Attributes, Processes, and Values: a Pedagogical Framework
Authors: Keyton Joann , Beck Stephenson J.
Published: October 2008

This article proposes a pedagogical framework to help students analyze their group and team interactions. Intersecting five fundamental group attributes (group size, group goal, group member interdependence, group structure, and group identity) with three overarching group processes (leadership, decision making, and conflict management) creates an analytical tool for the examination of team interaction. Furthermore, each group attribute/group process intersection encourages analytical questions targeting assumptions, values, and ethical positions embedded within the group. One advantage of this heuristic device is that it weds team member behaviors with the values members espouse and enact during team interactions. Pedagogical considerations are also discussed.
Violence in independent travel to India
Authors: Lozanski Kristin
Published: October 2008

While western women travelers to India are frequently sexually harassed by Indian men, such men are sometimes subjected to retaliatory violence. Through analyses of the sexual harassment of women travelers and the violent acts committed against Indian men by western travelers, I draw connections between the ways in which individual travelers make sense of sexual harassment and the broader discourses of patriarchy and (neo-)colonialism. Moving beyond the western women and Indian men who figure prominently in constructions of sexual harassment, I argue that both of these forms of violence reproduce a patriarchal colonialism that privileges western men through control of women travelers' mobilities and the emasculation of Indian men.
Selling New Orleans to New Orleans
Authors: Gotham Kevin Fox
Published: October 2008

This article examines the process of tourism authenticity using a case study of the rise of tourism in New Orleans during the first half of the 20th century. Tourism authenticity is a process by which tourist modes of staging, visualization, and experience shape and `frame' meanings and assertions of local culture and heritage. Empirically, I examine the place promotion efforts of the New Orleans Association of Commerce to `sell New Orleans to New Orleans', to convince local people that tourism was not only a lucrative economic development strategy but constitutive of civic life and urban culture. I analyze minutes of meetings, reports, and analyses from the Association of Commerce to illustrate how elite conceptions of urban reality were woven into discourses about New Orleans community and authenticity. Theoretically, I show that the study of interplay of place promotion and authenticity construction is a useful strategy for deepening our understanding of the complex intersections of local actions and global processes in the emergence of modern tourism in the United States.
Holding people responsible for what they do not control
Authors: Stemplowska Zofia
Published: October 2008

A crucial question for egalitarians, and theorists of distributive justice in general, is whether people can be held responsible for disadvantages they bring upon themselves. One response to this question states that it would be inegalitarian to hold people responsible on the basis of their actions if their actions are not ultimately under their control and reflect instead the good or bad luck the agent had in being the type of person who happens to act in a given way. I argue that even if we accept that there is something inegalitarian about holding people responsible on the basis of actions they did not ultimately control, the alternative (that is, not holding people responsible) is even more inegalitarian. Therefore, egalitarians, including so-called luck egalitarians, can and should hold people responsible on the basis of their actions, even if people lack free will and their actions are ultimately a matter of luck.
Fracture toughness for interfacial delamination of Cr–Mo steel multilayer laminate
Authors: Pozuelo M. , Cepeda-Jiménez C. M. , Chao J. , Carreño F. , Ruano O. A.
Published: October 2008

Interface toughness for delamination has been determined in a laminate composite consisting of Fe–0·9Cr–0·5Mo steel layers. Three point bend tests were used to evaluate the critical energy release rate Gc for delamination under elastic linear and plane strain conditions. A value of Gc of 2·8 kJ m−2 was obtained which is considerably lower than the energy for crack propagation across the layer. The given Gc corresponds to a critical stress intensity factor Kc of 25 MPa m1/2. These low values are responsible of delamination and, therefore, of the 34% improvement in toughness of the laminate with regard to the monolithic material.
Detection of Francisella tularensis in ticks and identification of their genotypes using multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis
Authors: Zhang Fang , Liu Wei , Wu Xiao-Ming , Xin Zhong-Tao , Zhao Qiu-Min , Yang Hong , Cao Wu-Chun
Published: October 2008

Background

Tularemia was reported in China over 50 years ago, however, many epidemical characteristics remain unclear. In the present study, the prevalence of Francisella tularensis in ticks was investigated during an epidemiological surveillance in China and then we measured their genetic diversity by conducting multiple-locus variable- number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA).

Results

1670 ticks from 2 endemic areas (Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Heilongjiang Province) and 2 non-endemic areas (Jilin and Fujian Provinces) were collected and tested for evidence of tularemia by nested PCR. The prevalence of Francisella tularensis in ticks averaged 1.98%. The positive rates were significantly different among tick species, with Dermacentor silvarum and Ixodes persulatus responsible for all positive numbers. All F. tularensis that were detected in ticks belonged to F. tularensis subsp. holarctica and MLVA disclosed genetic diversity. One subtype was identified in 17 of 33 positive tick samples in three different study areas. Another subtype belonging to F. tularensis subsp. holarctica genotype was described for the first time in the current study.

Conclusion

The study showed two tick species, D. silvarum and I. persulatus harboring the pathogen of tularemia in natural environment, indicating these two tick species might have a role in tularemia existence in China. MLVA results disclosed the genetic diversity F. tularensis and identified one genotype as the most prevalent among the investigated ticks in China.
Thrombocytopaenia in pregnant women with malaria on the Thai-Burmese border
Authors: Tan Saw Oo , McGready Rose , Zwang Julien , Pimanpanarak Mupawjay , Sriprawat Kanlaya , Thwai Kyaw Lai , Moo Yoe , Ashley Elizabeth A , Edwards Bridget , Singhasivanon Pratap , White Nicholas J , Nosten François
Published: October 2008

Background

Haematological changes associated with malaria in pregnancy are not well documented, and have focused predominantly on anaemia. Examined here is thrombocytopaenia in pregnant women infected with Plasmodium falciparum or Plasmodium vivax in a low transmission area on the north-western border of Thailand.

Methods

In this observational study we reviewed the platelet counts from routine complete blood count (CBC) in a cohort of healthy and malaria infected Karen pregnant women attending weekly antenatal clinics. A platelet count of 75,000/μL was the threshold at 2 standard deviations below the mean for healthy pregnant women used to indicate thrombocytopenia. Differences in platelet counts in non-pregnant and pregnant women were compared after matching for age, symptoms, malaria species and parasitaemia.

Results

In total 974 pregnant women had 1,558 CBC measurements between February 2004 and September 2006. The median platelet counts (/μL) were significantly lower in patients with an episode of falciparum 134,000 [11,000–690,000] (N = 694) or vivax malaria 184,000 [23,000–891,000] (N = 523) compared to healthy pregnant women 256,000 [64,000–781,000] (N = 255), P < 0.05 for both comparisons. Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax caused a 34% (95% CI 24–47) and 22% (95% CI 8–36) reduction in platelet count, respectively. Pregnant compared to non pregnant women were at higher risk OR = 2.27 (95%CI 1.16–4.4) P = 0.017, for thrombocytopaenia. Platelets counts were higher in first compared with subsequent malaria infections within the same pregnancy. Malaria associated thrombocytopaenia had a median [range] time for recovery of 7 [2–14] days which did not differ by antimalarial treatment (P = 0.86), or species (P = 0.63) and was not associated with active bleeding.

Conclusion

Pregnant women become more thrombocytopenic than non-pregnant women with acute uncomplicated malaria. Uncomplicated malaria associated thrombocytopaenia is seldom severe. Prompt antimalarial treatment resulted in normalization of platelet counts within a week.
Human ESCs predisposition to karyotypic instability: Is a matter of culture adaptation or differential vulnerability among hESC lines due to inherent properties?
Authors: Catalina Puri , Montes Rosa , Ligero Gertru , Sanchez Laura , de la Cueva Teresa , Bueno Clara , Leone Paola E , Menendez Pablo
Published: October 2008

Background

The use of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in research is increasing and hESCs hold the promise for many biological, clinical and toxicological studies. Human ESCs are expected to be chromosomally stable since karyotypic changes represent a pitfall for potential future applications. Recently, several studies have analysed the genomic stability of several hESC lines maintained after prolonged in vitro culture but controversial data has been reported. Here, we prompted to compare the chromosomal stability of three hESC lines maintained in the same laboratory using identical culture conditions and passaging methods.

Results

Molecular cytogenetic analyses performed in three different hESC lines maintained in parallel in identical culture conditions revealed significant differences among them in regard to their chromosomal integrity. In feeders, the HS181, SHEF-1 and SHEF-3 hESC lines were chromosomally stable up to 185 passages using either mechanical or enzymatic dissection methods. Despite the three hESC lines were maintained under identical conditions, each hESC line behaved differently upon being transferred to a feeder-free culture system. The two younger hESC lines, HS181 (71 passages) and SHEF-3 (51 passages) became chromosomally unstable shortly after being cultured in feeder-free conditions. The HS181 line gained a chromosome 12 by passage 17 and a marker by passage 21, characterized as a gain of chromosome 20 by SKY. Importantly, the mosaicism for trisomy 12 gradually increased up to 89% by passage 30, suggesting that this karyotypic abnormality provides a selective advantage. Similarly, the SHEF-3 line also acquired a trisomy of chromosome 14 as early as passage 10. However, this karyotypic aberration did not confer selective advantage to the genetically abnormal cells within the bulk culture and the level of mosaicism for the trisomy 14 remained overtime between 15%–36%. Strikingly, however, a much older hESC line, SHEF-1, which was maintained for 185 passages in feeders did not undergo any numerical or structural chromosomal change after 30 passages in feeder-free culture and over 215 passages in total.

Conclusion

These results support the concept that feeder-free conditions may partially contribute to hESC chromosomal changes but also confirm the hypothesis that regardless of the culture conditions, culture duration or splitting methods, some hESC lines are inherently more prone than others to karyotypic instability.
Hematopoietic cell activation in the subventricular zone after Theiler's virus infection
Authors: Goings Gwendolyn E , Greisman Adriana , James Rachel E , Abram Leanne KF , Begolka Wendy Smith , Miller Stephen D , Szele Francis G
Published: October 2008

Background

The periventricular subventricular zone (SVZ) contains stem cells and is an area of active neurogenesis and migration. Since inflammation can reduce neurogenesis, we tested whether Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV) induces inflammation and reduces neurogenesis in the SVZ.

Methods

We performed immmunohistochemistry for the hematopoietic cell marker CD45 throughout the central nervous system and then examined neuroblasts in the SVZ.

Results

CD45+ activation (inflammation) occurred early in the forebrain and preceded cerebellar and spinal cord inflammation. Inflammation in the brain was regionally stochastic except for the SVZ and surrounding periventricular regions where it was remarkably pronounced and consistent. In preclinical mice, SVZ neuroblasts emigrated into inflamed periventricular regions. The number of proliferating phoshpohistone3+ cells and Doublecortin+ (Dcx) SVZ neuroblasts was overall unaffected during the periods of greatest inflammation. However the number of Dcx+ and polysialylated neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM+) SVZ neuroblasts decreased only after periventricular inflammation abated.

Conclusion

Our results suggest that after TMEV infection, the SVZ may mount an attempt at neuronal repair via emigration, a process dampened by decreases in neuroblast numbers.
Confusions Concerning Sleep Disorders and the Epilepsies in Children and Adolescents
Authors: Stores Gregory
Published: October 2008

There are interesting parallels between sleep disorders and the epilepsies. Firstly, both terms refer to a group of conditions differing in cause, clinical manifestation, natural history and impact on the lives of patients and their relatives. Secondly, the investigation and management of both sets of conditions require a combined physical and psychological approach. Thirdly, neither field is usually covered systematically (if at all) in medical education, although some initiative has been taken in the USA for the introduction of these areas into the curriculum of medical schools (Medical School Curriculum Task Force, 1988). This relative neglect no doubt explains the fourth parallel – that in both sleep disorders and the epilepsies misdiagnosis or inadequate diagnosis appears to be common.
Assessing Schizophrenia in Adults with Mental Retardation
Authors: Meadows Graham , Turner Trevor , Campbell Lachlan , Lewis Shôn W. , Reveley Michael A. , Murray Robin M.
Published: October 2008

Twenty-five patients with mild mental retardation were compared with 26 schizophrenic patients of normal intelligence. The patients with retardation had suffered an earlier onset and were less likely to have been married or employed. However, the clinical phenomena exhibited by the two groups, as elicited by a SADS–L interview, were very similar. Thus, standardised interviews and criteria for schizophrenia can be readily applied to those with an IQ between 50 and 70.
Organic Manic Syndrome Associated with Advanced Uraemia due to Polycystic Kidney Disease
Authors: Thomas Christopher S. , Neale T. James
Published: October 2008

Mania secondary to advanced uraemia caused by polycystic disease of the kidneys in a 62–year-old woman involved a complex interplay of physical, psychological and social factors. Psychotherapy and thioridazine led to full recovery.

British Journal of Psychiatry (1991), 158, 119–121
Psychosis Following Hydatidiform Mole in a Patient with Recurrent Puerperal Psychosis
Authors: Hopker S. W. , Brockington I. F.
Published: October 2008

The association of a puerperal psychosis with the removal of a trophoblastic tumour supports the hormonal hypothesis for the aetiology of puerperal psychosis and suggests new lines of investigation into this disorder.

British Journal of Psychiatry (1991), 158, 122–123
A Steroid Stupor in a Surgical Ward
Authors: Doherty M. , Garstin I. , McClelland R. J. , Rowlands B. J. , Collins B. J.
Published: October 2008

In the development and management of a steroid-induced stupor, in a 17–year-old man, the dose and route of administration of steroid medication were felt to be important aetioiogical factors. A co-ordinated plan of management involving the physician, surgeon and psychiatrist is needed in such cases.

British Journal of Psychiatry (1991), 158, 125–127
Controlled Comparison of Day-patient and Out-patient Treatment for Persistent Anxiety and Depression
Authors: Dick Peter H. , Sweeney M. Leonie , Crombie Iain K.
Published: October 2008

The effectiveness of day care versus out-patient care in the treatment of persistent severe anxiety and depression was compared in a controlled clinical trial. Of 96 consecutively referred patients meeting the entry criteria, 92 were followed up for six months. Patients were randomised to day care or out-patient care, and assessed at entry and at six months using the Standardised Psychiatric Interview and in terms of their time structuring and socialisation. Marked improvement in all three measures was seen for most of the day patients, but for few of the out-patients: this difference was highly significant for each measure. Day patients also rated themselves as coping more effectively and as more satisfied with their treatment. These differences could not be explained by differences in use of medication. Day treatment should remain an option for patients with persistent anxiety and depression resistant to outpatient treatment.
Lithium: Long-Term Effects on the Kidney
Authors: Hetmar Ole , Povlsen Uffe Juul , Ladefoged Jørgen , Bolwig Tom G.
Published: October 2008

Forty-six patients with recurrent affective disorders, who began prophylactic treatment with lithium an average of 20 years previously, were followed up prospectively after a ten-year observation period to assess renal function. Nineteen patients had maintained lithium therapy, and eight patients had died. Tubular function was almost unchanged and patients who had continued lithium had not shown increasing urine volumes, but patients who had received lithium in a single daily dosage at night had a significantly lower urinary output than those on a multiple-dosage schedule. The GFR decreased significantly, but the decline was essentially dependent on increasing age, except in two patients who had developed renal insufficiency. Renal function during chronic lithium treatment is related to age, lithium intoxication episodes, pre-existing renal disease, and treatment schedule rather than to duration of prophylactic lithium therapy.
Morbidity Risks of Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders among First-Degree Relatives of Patients with Schizoaffective Disorders
Authors: Tsuang Ming T.
Published: October 2008

Of 510 patients consecutively admitted and diagnosed as schizophrenic, 310 who failed to meet research criteria for schizophrenia were labelled as having ‘atypical psychosis'. This heterogeneous group of patients was then subtyped into more homogeneous subgroupings according to their clinical characteristics, independent of their family data. One subgroup resembled schizophrenia, one resembled affective disorders and a third (n = 57), which did not resemble either schizophrenia or affective disorder, was defined as ‘schizoaffective’. Comparing the morbidity risks for schizophrenic and affective disorders in the relatives of this schizoaffective group with those of the relatives of ‘typical’ groups of schizophrenia and affective disorder, showed that this group was different from those with schizophrenic and affective disorders.
Ordering Thoughts on Thought Disorder
Authors: McGrath John
Published: October 2008

A common denominator can be found permeating thought disorder at various levels – the lack of executive planning and editing. With data available from aphasiology and neuropsychology, certain features of thought disorder can be reinterpreted as being consistent with dysfunction of the frontal lobe. It is hypothesised that thought disorder may reflect a dysfunction of the cortical–subcortical loops that project into the pre-frontal cortex. The hypothesis predicts that thought-disordered patients will have impaired performance on tests of frontal lobe function, regardless of diagnosis.
Motor, Volitional and Behavioural Disorders in Schizophrenia
Authors: Lund C. E. , Mortimer A. M. , Rogers D. , McKenna P. J.
Published: October 2008

The assessment of catatonic symptoms, unlike that of other schizophrenia symptoms, has not acquired accuracy and phenomenological rigour, and their distinction from extrapyramidal side-effects is not always easy. The Modified Rogers Scale can rate abnormalities in movement, volition, speech, and overall behaviour in schizophrenia. It is detailed, reliable and valid, and permits the isolation of a score for non-extrapyramidal and hence presumably catatonic phenomena.
Schizophrenic Syndromes and Frontal Lobe Performance
Authors: Liddle Peter F. , Morris Danielle L.
Published: October 2008

A battery of neuropsychological tests sensitive to frontal lobe impairment was administered to 43 chronic schizophrenic patients to delineate the abnormality of mental processing associated with the syndromes of psychomotor poverty and disorganisation, which had been identified in a previous study of the segregation of schizophrenic symptoms. Psychomotor poverty was found to be associated with slowness of mental activity, including slowness of generating words. The disorganisation syndrome was associated with impairment in tests in which the subject is required to inhibit an established but inappropriate response.
Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome in the Middle East
Authors: Robertson Mary M. , Trimble M. R.
Published: October 2008

In a cohort of five patients from the Middle East with the Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, family history of a tic disorder or the Gilles de la Tourette syndrome was positive in three cases. In one of these there was a multiply affected pedigree spanning six generations. The phenomenology of the syndrome is the same as that described in Western reports. The familial pattern of inheritance and cross-cultural similarity emphasise the biological factors in the aetiology of the syndrome.
Pisa Syndrome in an Adolescent on Neuroleptic Medication
Authors: Turk Jeremy , Lask Bryan
Published: October 2008

To our knowledge Pisa syndrome in childhood or adolescence has not previously been described. The syndrome developed in an adolescent girl following administration of neuroleptic medication for psychotic features, and was transiently thought to be abnormal illness behaviour. This case emphasises the need for early diagnosis and rapid effective treatment.
Pituitary Microadenoma Presenting as Panic Attacks
Authors: Wilcox James Allen
Published: October 2008

A woman with pituitary microadenoma presented with panic attacks. This case illustrates the need both for routine medical screening of psychiatric patients and for psychiatrists to remain aware of the clinical features of medical syndromes.
Evidence for Allelic Heterogeneity in Familial Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease
Authors: Van Duijn Cornelia M. , Van Broeckhoven Christine , Hardy John A. , Goate Alison M. , Rossor Martin N. , Vandenberghe Anton , Martin J-J. , Hofman Albert , Mullan Michael J.
Published: October 2008

Age of onset was examined for 139 members of 30 families affected by early-onset AD. Most (77%) of the variance of age of onset derived from differences between rather than within families. The constancy of age of onset within families was also observed in an analysis restricted to families derived from a population-based epidemiological study with complete ascertainment of early-onset AD. Furthermore, we observed clustering of age of onset within those families that support linkage to the predisposing locus on chromosome 21. Our data are compatible with the view that allelic heterogeneity at the AD locus may account for the similarity in age of onset within families. This finding may be of value for scientific studies of AD as well as for genetic counselling.
A Retrospective Case-Note Study of Bipolar Disorder in Old Age
Authors: Snowdon John
Published: October 2008

In a replication of an earlier published study, case notes of 75 elderly in-patients with bipolar affective disorder were examined. Few of the patients had experienced a manic episode before the age of 40. Mean age of onset of affective disorder was 46 years, and first manic episode at 60 years. Cerebral insults before the first manic attacks were recorded in a substantial number of cases, and a family history of mental illness was less common among this group. Bipolar affective disorder is relatively common as a reason for admission of elderly patients.
Unfit to Plead in England and Wales, 1976–88
Authors: Grubin D. H.
Published: October 2008

The Home Office files of all 295 cases of defendants being found unfit to plead between 1976 and 1988 were evaluated. The majority were male and either schizophrenic or mentally impaired. Median age was 32 years. Two-thirds had past criminal convictions, and nearly 90% had past contact with psychiatric or social services, but only 28% were receiving psychiatric care at the time of their alleged offence; 14% were hospital in-patients. Offences of theft and violence predominated, but in most cases they were not of a serious nature: 34% were rated as mild or nuisance, 40% moderate, and 26% severe. In more than 80% of cases, evidence linking the accused with the offence seemed good. Less than one-third were admitted to special hospitals. Forty-six per cent of the population (135 patients) eventually regained their capacity to plead (within a median of four months), with 76 (26%) returning for trial. Of the remainder, 68 (23%) are still in hospital, 39 of whom have been there for more than five years. Time to discharge without trial reflected the severity of the alleged offence.
The Genetics of Schizophrenia is the Genetics of Neurodevelopment
Authors: Jones Peter , Murray Robin M.
Published: October 2008

Genes are now accepted as being important in the aetiology of schizophrenia (Gottesman & Shields, 1982; McGuffinet al,1987), and over the past decade the emphasis in genetic research has shifted away from genetic epidemiology to searching the chromosomal DNA for the genes themselves. Despite this increasing technical sophistication, the application of linkage analysis to families multiply affected by schizophrenia has been accompanied by the familiar controversy over the exact borders of the adult clinical phenotype (Sherringtonet al,1988; St Clairet al,1989). Indeed, the preoccupation of researchers with the vagaries of the clinical definition has resulted in repeated attempts to use genetic studies to determine the relative validity of different operational definitions of schizophrenia (McGuffinet al,1984; Farmeret al,1987). To us, such studies beg the question of how precisely genes are involved in the aetiology of schizophrenia; after all, genes code for proteins, not for auditory hallucinations in the third person.
Evidence for a Pseudo-autosomal Locus for Schizophrenia Using the Method of Affected Sibling Pairs
Authors: Collinge J. , Delisi L. E. , Boccio A. , Johnstone E. C. , Lane A. , Larkin C. , Leach M. , Lofthouse R. , Owen F. , Poulter M. , Shah T. , Walsh C. , Crow T. J.
Published: October 2008

A susceptibility locus for schizophrenia in the ‘pseudo-autosomal’ region has been proposed on the basis of the reported excess of sex-chromosome aneuploidies (e.g. XXY and XXX) among patients with schizophrenia and the finding that schizophrenic sib-pairs are more often of the same than of the opposite sex. This hypothesis has been tested in 83 sibships with two or more siblings fulfilling Research Diagnostic Criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Alleles at the pseudo-autosomal telomeric locus DXYS14, which is unlinked with sex, were analysed using the method of affected sib-pairs. Affected sibs shared alleles at DXYS14 more frequently than expected by random Mendelian assortment, supporting genetic linkage between DXYS14 and schizophrenia.
No Genetic Linkage Detected for Schizophrenia to Xq27–q28
Authors: Delisi Lynn E. , Crow Timothy J. , Davies Kay E. , Terwilliger Joseph D. , Ott Jurg , Ram Ragnatham , Flint Tracey , Boccio Angela
Published: October 2008

The hypothesis that at least a subgroup of familial cases of schizophrenia could be due to a genetic defect on the X chromosome is supported by the observation of an excess of X-chromosome aneuploidies (XXX and XXY) among populations of patients with psychosis. The distal long arm, Xq27–q28, is a candidate region where linkage has been claimed to manic-depressive disorder and a fragile site has been associated with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. The present study excluded linkage to a large part of this region using four polymorphic probes and multipoint lod-score analysis in 10 families with multiple members with schizophrenia.
No Evidence for a Susceptibility Locus Predisposing to Manic Depression in the Region of the Dopamine (D2) Receptor Gene
Authors: Holmes Deborah , Brynjolfsson Jon , Brett Peter , Curtis David , Petursson Hannes , Sherrington Robin , Gurling Hugh
Published: October 2008

Recent reports of cytogenetic abnormalities linked to psychiatric illness and the localisations of the genes for the dopamine (D2) receptor and tyrosinase on the long arm of chromosome 11 have suggested that susceptibility loci for schizophrenia and manic depression might be situated in this region. We could find no evidence for linkage in five Icelandic pedigrees between manic depression and markers in this region, and we have excluded candidate genes coding for the D2 receptor and tyrosinase. We conclude that mutations at loci in this region are not a common cause of manic depression in the population studied.
Lithium Treatment and Prophylaxis in Unipolar Depression: A Meta-analysis
Authors: Souza F. G. M. , Goodwin G. M.
Published: October 2008

Meta-analysis was used to establish the efficacy of lithium in acute treatment and prophylaxis of depressive illness from existing published clinical trials. Effect sizes were measured by the odds ratio using the Mantel–Haenszel method and the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient. Some benefit from lithium, compared with other treatments, emerged from trials of acute treatment. Lithium was clearly superior to placebo in the acute treatment of bipolar depressed patients. In controlled studies of lithium prophylaxis over five months to three years, an impressive effect was found for lithium when compared with placebo. For uncontrolled studies there was a similar-sized effect, corresponding to an improvement in the rate of favourable outcome from 35% for placebo to 70% with lithium treatment. The comparison of lithium with other antidepressants in prophylaxis showed no conclusive advantage for lithium in unipolar illness. There is no reason to doubt the efficacy of lithium in the prophylaxis of unipolar depressive illness.
Facial Dyskinesia: A 16–Year Follow-up Study
Authors: Mcclelland H. A. , Metcalfe A. V. , Kerr T. A. , Dutta D. , Watson P.
Published: October 2008

The 109 female survivors of a mental hospital population surveyed in 1965 for facial dyskinesia were followed up 16 years later. The 99 survivors with non-organic brain syndromes were analysed. Prevalence of dyskinesia had risen from 18.4% to 46.5% during follow-up and its development was significantly associated with neuroleptic dosage. Enlarged ventricles on brain scans were significantly associated with dyskinesia, cognitive impairment and neuroleptic prescribing.
The Marketing of5-Hydroxytryptamine: Depression or Anxiety?
Authors: Healy David
Published: October 2008

The discovery that tricyclic antidepressants blocked the re-uptake of both noradrenaline and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) was a significant step on the road to the development of the monoamine hypotheses of depression (Healy, 1987). The subsequent demonstration that the de-aminated metabolites of amitriptyline and imipramine, nortriptyline and desipramine, were antidepressants tilted the balance toward noradrenaline as the pertinent neurotransmitter, as these latter drugs were clearly inhibitors of noradrenergic rather than 5-HT uptake.
Unexplained Fluctuations in the Risk for Schizophrenia by Month and Year of Birth
Authors: Kendell R. E. , Adams W.
Published: October 2008

Variation in their year and month of birth was studied in the 13 661 schizophrenics born between 1914 and 1960 known to the Scottish Psychiatric Case Register. Year-to-year fluctuations in the number of schizophrenics per 10 000 live births were outside chance limits. So were month-to-month fluctuations between January 1932 and December 1960, and this was largely due to fluctuations in the numbers of schizophrenics born in February, March, April and May. Time-lagged correlations with mean monthly temperatures suggest that in these same four months the incidence of schizophrenia is influenced by temperature six months previously – the lower the temperature in the autumn the higher the incidence of schizophrenic births the following spring. If these findings can be confirmed in other data sets, they would suggest that some influence which varies consistently with season and temperature is contributing to the aetiology of schizophrenia and may exert its effects as early as the third or fourth month of foetal development.
Compulsory Psychiatric Treatment in the Community
Authors: Sensky Tom , Hughes Timothy , Hirsch Steven
Published: October 2008

Following in-patient psychiatric treatment under Section 3 of the Mental Health Act, some patients have in the past remained on Section after discharge, and subsequently the Section has been renewed while the patient remained ‘on leave’. People treated thus with ‘extended leave’ probably resemble closely those who would be placed on a community treatment order if this were available. A group of these extended-leave patients was compared with a control group, matched for age, sex and diagnosis, selected by consultant psychiatrists as not requiring treatment using a community treatment order. The two groups showed very few differences, but the extended-leave patients more commonly had a history of recent dangerousness and non-compliance with psychiatric treatment. Use of extended leave improved treatment compliance, reduced time spent in hospital, and reduced levels of dangerousness.
Day Care in an Inner City
Authors: Holloway Frank
Published: October 2008

Seven units providing psychiatric day care to residents of an inner-city area were surveyed. The extent to which the clinical and special problems of attenders were adequately managed by the services was measured using a ‘needs-assessment’ technique. Units differed in the proportion of clinical and social problems that were rated as ‘unmet needs', although the extent of ‘unmet need’ was not clearly related to the morbidity of attenders at a unit or the available staffing.
The Prediction of Chronic Persistent Versus Intermittent Tardive Dyskinesia
Authors: Glazer William M. , Morgenstern Hal , Doucette John T.
Published: October 2008

Relatively little is known about the course of TD in patients continuing to receive neuroleptic medication. In a retrospective follow-up study of 192 patients seen two or more times (average 7.7 visits) over 3–55 months in the Yale Tardive Dyskinesia Clinic, 112 (58%) demonstrated a ‘chronic persistent’ pattern, the remainder an ‘intermittent’ pattern. The most important predictors of chronic persistent TD, using multiple logistic-regression analyses, included increased age and the presence of non-orofacial TD at baseline.
Is Schizophrenia Disappearing?
Authors: Eagles John M.
Published: October 2008

“The incidence of schizophrenia is regarded as being similar between different cultures and times. However, several studies, mostly based on first-admission rates, have suggested that the incidence has declined over the past 10–15 years. Data from England and Wales for 1952–86 have been examined: there has been a substantial decrease, beginning in the mid-1960s, in the incidence of schizophrenia.”
Outcome of Bipolar Disorder on Long-Term Treatment with Lithium
Authors: O'Connell Ralph A. , Mayo Julia A. , Flatow Leslie , Cuthbertson Beverly , O'Brien Barbara E.
Published: October 2008

The long-term treatment outcome of 248 bipolar patients in an out-patient lithium programme was assessed. Over half of the patients (138 or 56%) had no affective episodes in the year observed. Patients were divided into outcome groups according to GAS scores: the outcome for 40% of patients was good, for 41% fair, and for 19% poor. More frequent psychiatric admissions before starting lithium treatment was the best predictor of poor outcome, followed by a negative affective style in the family and lower social class. Current alcohol and drug abuse was associated with poor outcome. Although familial and psychosocial factors were significantly associated with outcome, the findings suggest there may be inherent differences in the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder reflected in an increased frequency of episodes which account for a large variance in lithium treatment outcome.
The Evolution of the British Journal of Psychiatry
Authors: Rollin Henry R.
Published: October 2008

Whereas the history of the Royal College of Psychiatrists has been reasonably well documented, that of its journal, under its various titles, has received little attention. What follows is an attempt to redress the balance, but this could not have come about if my attention had not been drawn to the existence in the College library of the original, handwritten minutes dating from 1841 of the Association of Medical Officers of Asylums and Hospitals for the Insane and the succeeding body, the Medico-Psychological Association. This historic treasure, to steal a line from one of its pages, written in immaculate handwriting and expressed in elegant Victorian Gothic prose, “contained an unworked mine of golden wealth”.
Affects as Central Organising and Integrating Factors a New Psychosocial/Biological Model of the Psyche
Authors: Ciompi Luc
Published: October 2008

A new psychosocial/biological model of the psyche is proposed, in which the affects play a central role in organising and integrating cognition. The psyche is understood here as a complex hierarchical structure of affective/cognitive systems of reference (or ‘programmes for feeling, thinking, and behaviour’), generated by repetitive concrete action. These systems store past experience in their structure, and provide the functional basis for further cognition and communication. Affects endow these programmes with a specific qualitative value (such as motivation), connect cognitive elements synchronically and diachronically, and contribute to their storage and mobilisation according to context. They also participate in differentiating cognitive systems at higher levels of abstraction. These assumptions are supported by recent findings on the role of the limbic and hypothalamic system for the regulation of emotion, on neuronal plasticity, and on the phenomenon of state-dependent learning and memory. Refutable hypotheses are formulated for further research on the interaction of emotion and cognition.
Lithium in Tricyclic-Resistant Depression Correlation of Increased Brain 5-HT Function with Clinical Outcome
Authors: Cowen P. J. , McCance S. L. , Ware C. J. , Cohen P. R. , Chalmers J. S. , Julier D. L
Published: October 2008

The addition of lithium to the tricyclic antidepressant medication of 23 patients with major depression resulted in an increase in the prolactin response to intravenous l-tryptophan after both four days and four weeks of treatment. The extent of this increase did not distinguish the ten patients who were classified as clinical responders (> 50% reduction in score on the HRSD). Among the responders there was a modestly significant correlation between the decrease in score on the HRSD and the enhancement of tryptophan-induced prolactin release. Some responders, however, showed very little change in this endocrine response over the four weeks of lithium treatment. Lithium may increase brain 5-HT function in tricyclic-resistant depression but there is only limited support for the hypothesis that changes in brain 5-HT function are involved in the antidepressant effect of this treatment combination.
Age, Transvestism, Bondage, and Concurrent Paraphilic Activities in 117 Fatal Cases of Autoerotic Asphyxia
Authors: Blanchard Ray , Hucker Stephen J.
Published: October 2008

Autoerotic asphyxia is the practice of self-inducing cerebral anoxia, usually by hanging, strangulation, or suffocation, during masturbation. This study investigated the relationships between: asphyxiators' ages; two paraphilias commonly accompanying autoerotic asphyxia, bondage and transvestism; and various other types of simultaneous sexual behaviour. Subjects were two concurrent series totalling 117 males aged 10–56 who died accidentally during autoerotic asphyxial activities. Data concerning sexual paraphernalia at the scene of death or among the deceased's effects were extracted from coronors' files using standardised protocols. Anal self-stimulation with dildos, etc., and self-observation with mirrors or cameras were correlated with transvestism. Older asphyxiators were more likely to have been simultaneously engaged in bondage or transvestism, suggesting elaboration of the masturbatory ritual over time. The greatest degree of transvestism was associated with intermediate rather than high levels of bondage, suggesting that response competition from bondage may limit asphyxiators' involvement in a third paraphilia like transvestism.
Comparison of Imaginal Desensitisation with other Behavioural Treatments of Pathological Gambling a Two- to Nine-Year Follow-up
Authors: McConaghy Nathaniel , Blaszczynski Alexander , Frankova Anna
Published: October 2008

Of 120 pathological gamblers randomly allocated to imaginal desensitisation (ID) or to other behavioural procedures (60 to each group, all procedures administered over one week) 63 subjects were contacted two to nine years later. Twenty-six of the 33 who received ID reported control or cessation of gambling compared with 16 of 30 who received other behavioural procedures. This difference was significant, indicating ID had a specific effect additional to that of the other behavioural procedures. It is suggested the other procedures could be regarded as placebos. As the response at a mean of over five years to one week of ID is comparable with that reported to more intensive therapies, after briefer follow-up, it is suggested ID is a cost-effective therapy for pathological gambling, and is worth considering when resources are limited.
Delusional Memories: First-Rank Symptoms?
Authors: Buchanan Alec
Published: October 2008

Delusional memories have an established place in psychiatric phenomenology and use of the term extends to its inclusion in the Present State Examination (Winget al,1974). Not all writers have used the term, however, and present definitions are inconsistent. This paper attempts to clarify the significance of delusional memories for a diagnosis of schizophrenia according to Schneiderian criteria.
Psychotropic Drug use in Medical and Surgical Wards of a Teaching Hospital in Northern Nigeria
Authors: Abiodun O. A. , Ogunremi O. O.
Published: October 2008

The overall prescription rate of psychotropic drugs in a Nigerian teaching hospital was 33.1%. This was slightly higher among surgical than medical patients. It is suggested that more attention needs to be paid to psychotropic drug education in developing countries in order to ensure a more rational use of these drugs.
Maternal Mental Health in a Squatter Settlement in Rio de Janeiro
Authors: Reichenheim Michael E. , Harpham Trudy
Published: October 2008

The literature on household-based measures of mental health in developing countries is limited. Much emphasis is currently placed on the physical well-being of mothers in relation to child care, yet their mental well-being receives little attention. The present study measures maternal mental health in the largest squatter settlement of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The proportion of mothers who were probable cases of mental ill-health was 36%.
Role of General Practitioners in Care of Long-Term Mentally Ill Patients
Authors: Poynton Amanda , Higgins Peter
Published: October 2008

“Objective – To assess general practitioners' involvement with long term mentally ill patients and attitudes towards their care.

Design – Postal questionnaire survey.

Setting – General practices in South West Thames region.

Subjects – 507 general practitioners, 369 (73%) of whom returned the questionnaire.

Main outcome measures – The number of adult long term mentally ill patients whom general practitioners estimate they have on their lists and general practitioners' willingness to take responsibility for them.

Results – 110 respondents had noticed an effect of the discharge of adult long term mentally ill patients on their practices. Most (225) respondents estimated that they had 10 or fewer such patients each on their lists. Having higher numbers was significantly associated with practising in Greater London or within three miles of a large mental hospital and having contact with a psychiatrist visiting the practice. 333 general practitioners would agree to share the care of long term mentally ill patients with the psychiatrist by taking responsibility for the patients' physical problems. Only 59 would agree to act as a key worker, 308 preferring the community psychiatric nurse to do it. Only nine had specific practice policies for looking after long term mentally ill patients and 287 agreed that such patients often come to their general practitioner's attention only when there is a crisis.

Conclusions – The uneven distribution of long term mentally ill patients suggests that community psychiatric resources might be better targeted at those practices with higher numbers of such patients. Most general practitioners seem to be receptive to a shared care plan where the consultant takes responsibility for monitoring psychiatric health with the community nurse as key worker. The lack of practice policies for reviewing the care of long term mentally ill patients must limit general practitioners' ability to prevent crises developing in their care.”
Suicide among Immigrant Psychiatric Patients in Canada
Authors: Chandrasena Ranjith , Beddage V. , Fernando M. L. D.
Published: October 2008

Ninety-four Canadian-born psychiatric patients who committed suicide were compared with 23 foreign-born patients committing suicide in Canada. East Europeans were over-represented, and significant differences were found in the age distribution, stress, level of education, social isolation, and methods of suicide. Most foreign-born patients had come to Canada for family or economic reasons but were unemployed, with poor social integration. Employment, homing, education, social integration and a support network seem to be important in preventing these deaths. Cultural evaluation of the patient and early intervention is recommended.
Isolated Cataplexy of more than 40 Years' Duration
Authors: Van Dijk J. G. , Lammers G. J. , Blansjaar B. A.
Published: October 2008

For over 40 years, a 55-year-old woman had suffered from cataplexy, which had been mistakenly identified as hysteria. Sleepiness, hypnagogic hallucinations and sleep-onset paralysis were not present. This is the longest duration of isolated cataplexy reported so far.
A Psychophysical Method for Assessing Visual and Acoustic Hyperesthesia in Patients with Mild Head Injury
Authors: Bohnen N. , Twijnstra A. , Kroeze J. , Jolles J.
Published: October 2008

Although it is well known that patients with mild head injury (MHI) are less able to endure intense light and sound stimuli than normal people, there are few psychophysical studies that have objectively measured this type of hyperaesthesia. In the present study, using a computerised rating scale technique, both the maximal and submaximal levels of reduced tolerance to light and sound were assessed for a wide range of stimuli. Three to six days after the trauma, 40 MHI patients were significantly less tolerant to stimuli of intensities over 71 dB and 500 lux levels than controls. These intensities are common, and MHI patients may suffer as a consequence.