bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Medical students' attitudes to psychiatry at the end of the clinical curriculum
Authors: Wilkinson D. G. , Toone B. K. , Greer S. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisThe significantly favourable changes in medical students' general attitude to psychiatry and intention to specialize in the subject, which we found after an 8-week psychiatric clerkship, were maintained one year later, at the time of the students' M.B., B.S. examinations. However, of 18 specific attitudes to psychiatry, only one changed significantly overall – fewer students agreed that ‘psychiatrists are held in poor regard by most other doctors’. Contrary to other reports, these preliminary findings suggest that a psychiatric clerkship may be followed by stable attitudes and intent towards the specialty.
An evaluation of the proposal for a multi-axial classification of child psychiatric disorders
Authors: Rutter M. , Shaffer D. , Shepherd Michael 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisAs part of its programme on the standardization of psychiatric diagnosis, classification, and statistics, the World Health Organization has sponsored studies in different parts of the world to evaluate systematically a multi-axial approach to classification with particular reference to the field of child psychiatry. Preliminary findings from the United Kingdom study with 22 child psychiatrists are reported. The study included two parts: (1) a reliability study using the case histories of 17 patients; and (2) the testing of the classification in routine clinical practice. The ways in which these methods may be used to evaluate a new system of classification are described. It is concluded that a multi-axial system has such important advantages that it should be tried out further both in the field of child psychiatry and in other branches of psychiatry.
Creativity, divergent and allusive thinking in students and visual artists
Authors: Tucker Peter K. , Rothwell Sharon J. , Armstrong Michael S. , McConaghy Neil 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisVisual artists of acknowledged creativity but not students with divergent thinking showed allusive (loose) thinking on an Object Sorting Test. It was concluded that high but not low level creativity in some fields may be associated with a predisposition to schizophrenia.
The relationship of exercise response to personality
Authors: Stanaway R. G. , Hullin R. P. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISIn an experiment to investigate the relationship of exercise response to the personality dimensions of introversion-extraversion and neuroticism, 30 subjects filled in an Eysenck Personality Inventory and were later given a standard amount of exercise on a bicycle ergometer, with blood samples being taken before and afterwards to be analysed for lactate and glucose. A highly significant positive correlation was found between neuroticism and the change in blood glucose and a highly significant curvilinear relationship between neuroticism and the increase in blood lactate, with the largest increases in lactate occurring at the extremes of the neuroticism scale. No significant relationship was found between introversion-extraversion and either of the biochemical variables. Hypotheses are put forward to account for the relationship between neuroticism and the change in blood glucose in terms of the action of adrenaline in releasing glucose from the liver, and to account for the relationship between neuroticism and the increase in blood lactate in terms of differing rates of pulmonary ventilation during and after exercise.
Cortical atrophy and air encephalography: a clinical and radiological study
Authors: Mann A. H. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISForty-nine patients with radiological evidence of cortical atrophy were followed up five to 10 years after their radiographic examination. The survivors were examined personally. The original radiographs were then reassessed to establish features indicating a good and poor prognosis. Dimensions of the body of the lateral ventricle distinguished good and poor prognosis, whereas the appearance of the cortical surface did not.
Changing images of the brain
Authors: Lantos P. L. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISOur concept of the structure and function of the normal and diseased brain has developed throughout the centuries. The first stage in the discovery of the brain stretched over three millennia, from the earliest descriptions by the Egyptians in the sixteenth century B.C. to the comprehensive anatomical treatise of Vesalius. The invention of the light microscope brought to the eye a previously invisible world, and heralded the beginnings of the systematic histological investigation of the immensely complex cellular networks of the brain. With the advent of electron microscopy, the organelles and connections of brain cells have been revealed, and the new era of molecular biology has begun. Neuropathology, which concerns itself with diseases of the brain, spinal cord, nerve and muscle, has enormously benefited from these developments to establish the morphological basis of diseases of the nervous system.
Multiple measures of hemispheric dysfunction in schizophrenia and depression
Authors: Schneider Sid J. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISElectrodermal, electroencephalographic and perceptual measures of lateral hemispheric function were obtained from groups of chronic schizophrenics, depressives and normals on 2 occasions, separated by 4 weeks. The measures of hemispheric function were derived from previous research. About half of the schizophrenics were medicated on both occasions; the other schizophrenics underwent drug ‘washout’ before the first session. Results revealed that the measures of laterality were not strongly intercorrelated. In the perceptual task, the schizophrenics and normals displayed different laterality effects. Unlike the normals, the schizophrenics' left hemisphere function appeared to be inferior to the right hemisphere function in the perceptual task. The laterality effects of the depressives and normals differed on two electrodermal measures: skin conductance level and skin conductance response amplitude. The depressives' electrodermal activity from the right hand was diminished as compared with the left hand; the normals did not show this effect. Medication decreased electrodermal activity in the schizophrenics, but had no significant effect on laterality. These results suggest that the various measures of laterality used singly in previous research in psychopathology may not all assess the same phenomenon.
Validation of the General Health Questionnaire in a young community sample
Authors: Banks Michael H. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISValidity coefficients of the 30-item, 28-item and 12-item versions of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) were determined by comparison with the Present State Examination (PSE) in a sample of 200 17-year-olds. The PSE classified 7 people (3·5%) as cases, although only 47% were identified as free of symptoms. Misclassification rates, sensitivity and specificity values are presented for different cutting scores for the three versions of the GHQ. The GHQ-28 had superior values, especially with a cutting score of 5/6; the GHQ-12 with a 2/3 cutting score also had acceptable values. All versions of the GHQ correlated highly with the PSE Index of Definition and total scores, providing support for the treatment of GHQ scores as a continuous variable in this kind of population. Correlations between sub-scales of the GHQ-28 give further evidence for a general factor and the relative independence of the social dysfunction sub-scale.
Do positive symptom and negative symptom subtypes of schizophrenia show qualitative differences in language production?
Authors: Allen Heidelinde A. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisThe present study examined a prominent symptom subtype conception of the psychopathology of schizophrenia. It analysed the presumed dichotomy between hallucinations, delusions and formal thought disorder as positive symptoms and flattening of affect and poverty of speech as negative symptoms, and tested predictions concerning the nature of the mediating processes of positive and negative symptoms. Four different analyses were applied to the transcripts of speech produced by 9 normals, 10 chronic schizophrenics with only positive symptoms of whom 7 had incoherence of speech, and 9 chronic schizophrenics with only negative symptoms of whom 4 had poverty of speech. The conception of the nature of the mediating processes of positive and negative symptoms was not supported by the results. Further, a clear dichotomy between positive and negative symptom groups was not shown to exist, because positive speech disorder and negative speech disorder did not follow the presupposed dichotomy. Thus, contrary to existing conceptions of speech disorder in schizophrenia, both positive and negative speech disorder are marked by poverty of thought, as measured by the production of fewer and shorter ideas and lower speech variability.
The long-term psychological adjustment of children treated for congenital dislocation of the hip
Authors: Standen P. J. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisEighty–one children previously treated for congenital dislocation of the hip (CDH) before the age of 5 were followed up several years after their treatment, and their psychological adjustment was compared with that of 3 other groups; (i) 44 children who had experienced a single hospital admission of less than a week before the age of 5; (ii) 26 children who had experienced 2 or more hospital admissions, the first being before the age of 5; and (iii) 51 children who had no experience of hospital admission. All 4 groups were similar in composition in terms of sex ratio, age at follow-up, family size, birth order, parental age and social situation. Psychological adjustment was measured by means of Rutter's questionnaires for parents and teachers. In addition, the children completed a Schonell reading test. Both the parental and the teacher's questionnaires selected more disordered children in the CDH group. The CDH group also had a higher total score and more health and behaviour problems than did the single admission group on the parental questionnaire. On the teacher's questionnaire they were more antisocial than the single and no admission groups combined. No significant differences were found on the reading test. While the overall impression is that the CDH group are poorly adjusted, there is some suggestion that it is the younger children who are contributing to this effect.
Clinical trial design: the neglected problem of asymmetrical transfer in cross-over trials
Authors: Millar Keith 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisThe paper illustrates drawbacks of the popular cross-over design in clinical trials in psychiatry where treatment effects become distorted by, and confounded with, the effects of their order of administration. It is argued that research workers should analyse data from cross-over trials for asymmetries due to order of treatment and seriously doubt the reliability of data if such effects are found. The problem is avoided by the use of separate-groups designs.
A study of long-attending psychiatric day-patients and the services provided for them
Authors: Pryce I. G. , Baughan C. A. , Jenkins T. D. O. , Venkatesan B. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisA year's follow-up study of day-hospital long-attenders underlined doubts as to the adequacy of service provision in urban areas of England and Wales for the increasing numbers of chronic psychiatric patients living in the community. Very few of the 82 men and 53 women were married or capable of employment, and both psychiatric and physical morbidity were high; 2 young men committed suicide and 3 elderly men died within a year of discharge. Over the age of 45 men tended to be socially isolated and over the age of 60 they were also physically ill; a number probably required better residential care. Few women under 45 attended, possibly because the services offered were unacceptable.
Persistent auditory hallucinations: coping mechanisms and implications for management
Authors: Falloon Ian R. H. , Talbot Ralph E. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisThe strategies used by 40 chronic schizophrenic out-patients with persistent auditory hallucinations to cope with the intrusive phenomena were explored. Frequent coping mechanisms included changes in activity, interpersonal contact, manipulations of physiological arousal, and attentional control. A high risk of suicide was noted.Coping behaviour appeared somewhat independent of clinical and sociodemographic variables. Successful coping appeared to result from systematic application of widely used coping strategies. The implications for the clinical management of patients with persistent auditory hallucinations are discussed.
Suicide in England and Wales: an analysis of 100 years, 1876–1975
Authors: Low A. A. , Farmer R. D. T. , Jones D. R. , Rohde J. R. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisThe variations in suicide mortality in England and Wales over a 100-year period (1876–1975) are explained by the development of a descriptive model. The model used is a stepwise linear regression using 5 variables including toxic gas production. The variables give a good description of the observed changes in suicide mortality. The limitations of the method and the data are discussed. Despite the limitations of the method, it can be concluded that toxic gas production affected total suicide mortality.
(Des-Tyr1)-γ-endorphin in the treatment of schizophrenia
Authors: Manchanda Rahul , Hirsch Steven R. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisInj. (Des-Tyr1)-γ-endorphin was used in a pilot study over a period of 12 days for the treatment of 11 schizophrenics and the assessments were carried out using standardized rating scales. Only 2 patients showed an improvement. Euphoria and excitement were observed in 3 patients. The findings are discussed in contrast to the earlier reports of a dramatic improvement with the compound.
Continuous infusion of luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) in patients with anorexia nervosa
Authors: Beumont P. J. V. , Abraham Suzanne F. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISLHRH was administered by continuous 4-hour intravenous infusion to 14 anorexia nervosa patients on a refeeding programme. Infusions were repeated in 7 patients following weight gain and in 4 after a course of bromocriptine. Five healthy female volunteers in the early or midfollicular phase of the menstrual cycle served as controls.The LH response was diminished in patients at 65% standard weight, but was of progressively increasing magnitude in patients at 80% and 95% standard weight. The pattern of LH response to the 4-hour infusion was suggestive of a deficient stimulation by endogenous LHRH in patients at extremely low weights, and of an impaired oestrogen feedback mechanism in patients at intermediate weights. Bromocriptine enhanced the LH response on one occasion in a patient with moderately elevated plasma HPR values, but failed to produce a similar effect when given to 3 patients with normal HPR levels. The mean FSH response did not differ significantly between patients in different weight categories, although those at 65% standard weight had a markedly greater variance of response. Plasma oestradiol values were lower in patients at 65% standard weight than in those at higher weights.
Electrodermal activity in the affective disorders and schizophrenia
Authors: Toone B. K. , Cooke E. , Lader M. H. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISElectrodermal activity was measured bilaterally at rest and during stimulation in 22 schizophrenic, 11 depressed and 12 anxiety state patients, and in 32 normal volunteers. No group showed a distinctive pattern of lateral asymmetry. The frequency of spontaneous fluctuations in electrodermal activity was greater in the anxiety state and schizophrenic groups and in those patients who reported auditory hallucinations during recording. Few schizophrenic subjects failed to respond to visual stimulation but a substantial minority failed to habituate. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Compulsory admissions in a London borough: I. Social and clinical features and a follow-up
Authors: Szmukler G. I. , Bird A. S. , Button E. J. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISThis study examines the role that clinical and social factors play in compulsory admissions to hospital in a London borough. 150 patients compulsorily admitted under a Section of the Mental Health Act 1959 were compared with 100 informally admitted patients. Significant differences in social-demographic and clinical characteristics are described as well as differences in outcome on follow-up. A long-term unwillingness on the part of the compulsory patients to engage in follow-up services was evident. These differences still held when the compulsory patients were compared with a group of informal patients matched for age, sex and diagnosis. Patients referred by the police and admitted under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act showed those features associated with compulsory admission in general to the most severe degree.
The future of psychiatry in science and society
Authors: Blakemore Colin 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISPsychiatry is, in a number of ways, a unique area within medicine. It is a subject of intense public interest, with a wide-ranging influence on non-medical culture; its practitioners have a perplexing variety of strategies of diagnosis and treatment, the diversity of which can be attributed to the lack of understanding of the physical basis of mental disease. It is argued here (using schizophrenia as a particular example) that the special nature of the signs and symptoms of psychiatric disorders, involving mainly behavioural disturbances, and alterations of thought and mood, have led to particular social, even political, attitudes towards the mentally ill, to the segregation of psychiatry as a medical discipline and to a view of the disease process different from that operating in other areas of medicine. The future progress of psychiatry, both in science and in society, might depend on changes of attitude among psychiatrists themselves.
Lithium therapy and thyroid function: a long-term study
Authors: Lazarus J. H. , John R. , Bennie E. H. , Chalmers R. J. , Crockett G. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISSeventy-three patients who had been continuously receiving lithium carbonate for 6 months or more had their thyroid function evaluated clinically and biochemically. Goitre was found in 37 %, exophthalmos in 23 %, positive thyroid auto-antibodies in 24 % and abnormal TRH tests in 49 %. It would appear that thyroid failure due to lithium is usually dependent on antibody mediated damage. It is unlikely that lithium has a direct effect on the hypothalamic–pituitary axis.
Asperger's syndrome: a clinical account
Authors: Wing Lorna 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISThe clinical features, course, aetiology, epidemiology, differential diagnosis and management of Asperger's syndrome are described. Classification is discussed and reasons are given for including the syndrome, together with early childhood autism, in a wider group of conditions which have, in common, impairment of development of social interaction, communication and imagination.
The psychosexual histories of adolescent girls and young women with anorexia nervosa
Authors: Beumont P. J. V. , Abraham Suzanne F. , Simson Kathleen G. 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISComprehensive psychosexual histories were elicited from 31 female patients with anorexia nervosa. The subjects showed a wide spectrum of sexual knowledge, attitudes and behaviour. Some appeared to be markedly inhibited, while others were experienced and assertive in regard to sexual matters. Age at interview appeared to be the major factor determining whether individual patients were sexually experienced or not.A majority of patients felt that a sexual challenge had precipitated their illness, and most reported a decrease in sexual interest and enjoyment following weight loss, particularly when this was severe. The effect of the illness on actual sexual behaviour, however, was variable, some patients decreasing and others increasing their sexual activity.
Domiciliary and out-patient treatment of self-poisoning patients by medical and non-medical staff
Authors: Hawton Keith , Bancroft John , Catalan Jose , Kingston Breda , Stedeford Averil , Welch Nick 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISIn a study of domiciliary and out-patient treatment of self-poisoning patients, using a brief problem-orientated approach, it was found that domiciliary treatment resulted in much higher attendance rates but no difference in outcome. Patients who completed out-patient treatment had a better outcome than those who failed to attend treatment sessions. Completion of out-patient treatment was more frequent among higher social class patients. Domiciliary treatment may be more appropriate in some cases for married patients and for those of lower social class. Medical and non-medical staff proved to be equally effective therapists. Future research should be concerned with evaluation of alternative methods of provision of help and further identification of patients who are most likely to benefit from treatment.
Suicide in England and Wales 1959–63 Part 2: London
Authors: Whitlock F. A. 
Published: July 2009

SynopsisSuicide deaths by age and sex have been examined in 28 London boroughs for the period 1959–63. In contrast with the findings in 82 county boroughs, the relationships between suicide and 18 other variables did not differ greatly for the sexes. In old age, as in the previous investigation, most of the variables having high correlations with suicide rates tended to disappear. Loneliness and ill-health were probably more important determinants of suicide rates in the elderly than other environmental or personal attributes. The finding that the distribution of suicide in London has not changed much in 40 years implies a need for the development of services to combat this problem in boroughs where suicide is particularly high.
A prospective study of children with head injuries: I. Design and methods
Authors: Rutter Michael , Chadwick Oliver , Shaffer David , Brown Gillian 
Published: July 2009

SYNOPSISThe main unresolved issues with respect to the psychological sequelae of brain damage in childhood are noted, and the previous studies of children suffering head injury are critically reviewed. A new prospective study is described. Three groups of children were studied: (a) 31 children with ‘severe’ head injuries resulting in a post-traumatic amnesia of at least 7 days; (b) an individually matched control group of 28 children with hospital-treated orthopaedic injuries; and (c) 29 children with ‘mild’ head injuries resulting in a post-traumatic amnesia exceeding 1 hour but less than 1 week. The children were studied as soon as possible after the accident and then again 4 months, 1 year, and 2¼ years after the injury. The parents were interviewed, using systematic and standardized interview techniques; both parents and teachers completed behavioural questionnaires; and the children were seen for individual psychological testing using the WISC, the Neale Analysis of Reading Ability and a battery of tests of more specific cognitive functions. At the final follow-up, the severe head injury group (but not the other 2 groups) received a systematic neurological examination and the school teacher who knew the child best was personally interviewed. The findings are given on physical handicap, neurological abnormality, school placement and psychiatric referrals. All types of disabilities were both more frequent and more persistent in the children with severe head injuries.