bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Multiple Sclerosis Presenting as Catatonia
Authors: Mendez Mario F. 
Published: May 2005

Objective: Catatonic disorder due to general medical condition must be excluded in psychiatric patients presenting with this movement disorder. This report emphasizes the association of catatonia with multiple sclerosis. Method: A patient with catatonia, psychotic depression, and the subsequent diagnosis of multiple sclerosis is described and the literature reviewed. Results: Mutism, immobility, cataplexy, waxy flexibility, and other aspects of catatonia occur in multiple sclerosis, usually as a consequence of a severe mood disorder and extensive cerebral demyelination. These symptoms may be the presenting manifestations of multiple sclerosis. Conclusions: A high index of suspicion for neurological disease is indicated in patients with new-onset catatonia. Neuroimaging and other studies may reveal underlying demyelination requiring specific therapy.
Observations on Potential Contributions of Health Planning
Authors: Anderson Nancy N. , Robins Leonard 
Published: May 2005

The passage of the National Health Planning and Resources Development Act in the United States in 1974 is used to set the context for a new assessment of health planning as a change agent. In reviewing the record of health planning the most striking conclusion is that even its friends have been unable to establish that it has had any quantifiable impact. The authors suggest, however, that comprehensive health planning may have stimulated the belief that changes in medical care organization are crucial to improving the health care system. The authors next consider the role of health planning inferred from three widely espoused “models” of the health care system: professional, central planning, and market. Although market advocates generally deemphasize health planning as contrasted to those supporting a centrally planned system, none of the models is sufficiently developed to indicate specific roles and functions for health planning. Basing their argument on goals for health care reform generally espoused by students of medical care organization, the authors assert that health planning agencies will be most effective if they are organizationally linked to general-purpose governments, encourage the formation of Health Maintenance Organizations, consciously involve themselves in health system reorganization, and design their policies so they can be effectively evaluated.
Using New Technology to Assess the Academic Writing Styles of Male and Female Pairs and Individuals
Authors: Hartley James , Pennebaker James W. , Fox Claire 
Published: May 2005

Background: Previous research suggests that there are advantages to writing in groups or in pairs compared with writing individually, and that men write differently from women. However, as far as we know, no one has yet used new technology to assess published academic articles written in these different modes. Method: We assembled 80 papers from recent issues of the Journal of Educational Psychology as follows: 21 authored by individual men, 21 by individual women, 19 by pairs of men, and 19 by pairs of women. We then used two computer-based measures to assess various textual features of the Abstracts, the Introductions, and the Discussion sections of these 80 papers. Results: Several differences were found between these various parts of the journal articles (e.g., the Discussions were more readable than the Introductions and these in turn were more readable than the Abstracts). However, there were few differences between the writing of pairs or individuals, or between that of men and women. Conclusions: There was no real evidence to support the notion that writing in pairs would lead to better quality articles or that there would be differences between the readability of papers produced by men and women. Such differences may occur, however, before peer review.
The Past and the Future of Scientific and Technical Writing
Authors: Whitburn Merrill D. 
Published: May 2005

Excerpts from Thomas Sprat's History of the Royal Society, published in 1667, are used to explore the parallels existing between the rise of modern scientific and technical writing and the rise of seventeenth century science. The author of this paper shows how the English teachers of today, like the scholastic critics of the past, are too often isolated from the realities of communication. He quotes Thomas Sprat to emphasize that communication techniques should not be studied at a distance. The practice of scientific and technical writing must be brought closer to the university. Doing consulting work is one possibility; another is conducting communication research for business and industry. Additional specialized courses should be introduced for students specializing in the professions. English majors planning to work full time in communication should have internships provided. Sprat recognized that a bridge must exist between science and the humanities. This applies as well to the present condition.
Correlates of Depression among Heavy Drinkers in Polish Primary Care Clinics
Authors: Manwell Linda Baier , Czabala Jan Czeslaw , Ignaczak Marek , Mundt Marlon P. 
Published: May 2005

Objective: Depression and co-morbid substance abuse disorders are a major public health problem. Information is limited for patients attending Polish primary care clinics. This article addresses 30-day and lifetime prevalence of major depression in a heavy drinking population from 12 Polish primary care clinics. Method: 277 heavy drinkers were interviewed by a researcher in each clinic. Heavy drinking was defined as more than 20 drinks per week for males, or more than 13 drinks per week for females, or consumption of more than four drinks five or more times in the previous 30 days, or two or more positive replies to the CAGE questions. Criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual were used to assess lifetime and past 30-day depression. Results: 35% of women and men met criteria for depression in the 30 days prior to the interview. Lifetime rates were 45% for women and 52% for men. Men and women with a CAGE score of 4 were at higher risk for both 30-day (67%, OR = 3.85 [1.47, 10.08]) and lifetime (78%, OR = 3.28 [1.12, 9.66]) depression. Recreational drug users and patients reporting symptoms of antisocial personality disorders were at increased risk for lifetime depression. Subjects reporting symptoms of a childhood conduct disorder were at higher risk for 30-day depression. Conclusions: Depression among patients with substance abuse problems is a common problem. The rates are higher than for other countries and highlight the need for Polish primary care clinicians to routinely screen for depression in patients with substance use disorders.
Effects of Individual versus Paired/Cooperative Computer-Assisted Instruction on the Effectiveness and Efficiency of an In-Service Training Lesson
Authors: Makuch Joseph R. , Robillard Paul D. , Yoder Edgar P. 
Published: May 2005

Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) has the potential of meeting the in-service training needs of various organizations. This study compared individual CAI with paired/cooperative CAI as a method of providing in-service training. Subjects were twenty-seven Pennsylvania extension agents who participated in an in-service training program. The main effect of CAI method and possible interactive effects of previous CAI experience and topic familiarity were analyzed. Differences in cognitive achievement and time spent on the lesson were compared. No significant difference in cognitive achievement was found between agents using CAI individually and agents using CAI cooperatively in pairs. No interaction was found between the treatment and the moderating variables, previous CAI experience and topic familiarity, on cognitive achievement. Agents who used CAI cooperatively took significantly longer to complete the lesson than did agents who used CAI individually. No interaction was found between the treatment and moderating variables, previous CAI experience and topic familiarity, on time spent on the lesson.
Health and Housing: A Historical Examination of Alternative Perspectives
Authors: Jacobs Michael , Stevenson Gelvin 
Published: May 2005

The deleterious effect of low-quality housing and related environmental factors on the physical and mental health of its residents is a widely accepted phenomenon. Yet low-quality housing continues to exist, partly because of the nature of housing as a commodity in a capitalist system. This paper defines three political-analytic perspectives within which the housing-health relationship can be seen: individualistic, reformist, and dialectical-materialist. These approaches incorporate perspectives on the nature of the relationship as well as strategic implications arising from them. In this context, the housing-health relationship is examined in fact and interpretation from the 1840s to the present. All three perspectives are illustrated by various popular analyses of changes in urban form and housing as well as the housing-health relationship. The dependence of housing quality on the mode of production is shown, demonstrating the weaknesses of the individualistic and reformist perspectives, which assume housing quality to be independent of the mode of production. The different strategic implications of the three perspectives are illustrated in the conclusion in a discussion of the case of lead paint poisoning.
User Participation in an Interactive Software Design
Authors: Rushinek Sara F. , Rushinek Avi 
Published: May 2005

In this study an attempt was made to clarify conflicting results in the learner control literature. The learner control concept was redefined in order to include both choice and self investment variables. The combined effects of choice and self investment variables were considered in this study to be motivational variables which affect the learner's attitudes and performance on a computer assisted instructional task. The results of this investigation indicated overall differences in performance among treatment groups. An interaction effect between choice and self investment was found for the performance measure. The expected interaction and perceived control measures were not found.
The Consequences of Non-Cognitive Symptoms of Dementia in Medical Hospital Departments
Authors: Wancata Johannes , Windhaber Johann , Krautgartner Monika , Alexandrowicz Rainer 
Published: May 2005

Objective: To our knowledge, there are no studies investigating the non-cognitive symptoms of patients with dementia such as depression, agitation, or delusions among general hospital inpatients. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of such non-cognitive symptoms among medical inpatients and to analyze their impact on the length of hospital stay and on admission to nursing homes. Method: The sample consisted of 372 elderly inpatients admitted to four internal medical departments (i.e., not including psychiatric wards) in Austria. Patients were investigated by research psychiatrists using the Clinical Interview Schedule. For the analyses of the non-cognitive symptomatology, only marked and severe symptoms were included. To identify predictors for the length of hospital stay and for nursing home placement, multivariate regression procedures were used. Results: Of all inpatients, 27.4% met criteria for dementia according to DSM-III-R. Of those with dementia, 27.8% had marked or severe non-cognitive symptoms. A diagnosis of dementia markedly increased the risk for nursing home referral and prolonged the duration of inpatient treatment. Among the demented, both, cognitive and non-cognitive symptoms turned out to be significant predictors for nursing home placement and for prolonged duration of acute hospital stay, even when controlling for other independent variables. Conclusions: Non-cognitive symptoms occur frequently among medical inpatients with dementia and considerably increase both the duration of inpatient treatment and the risk of nursing home placement. Since such non-cognitive symptoms are treatable, they should receive attention from the hospital staff.
Reference to Psychiatric Consultation in the Discharge Letter of General Hospital Inpatients
Authors: Schnyder Ulrich , Feld Corina , Leuthold Axel , Buddeberg Claus 
Published: May 2005

Objective: The consultation-liaison psychiatrist is frequently confronted with the consultees' lack of adherence to the consultants' recommendations. The aim of this study was to investigate the question if and how the C-L psychiatrist's diagnoses and recommendations are mentioned in the consultee's final medical report and thus communicated to the physician responsible for the aftercare. Method: Psychiatric consult reports of a consecutive sample of 144 patients of the departments of neurology, internal medicine, and gynecology and obstetrics at the University Hospital of Zurich were compared to the content of the respective discharge letters. Results: Some kind of information about the psychiatric consultation was found in 84 percent of the discharge letters (consultation as such: 71.5%; psychiatric diagnosis: 66.7%; recommendations: 76.2%). Length of stay, timing of the consultation, length of the consult report and type of recommendation correlated significantly with the mention of psychiatric aspects in the final medical report. Psychotropic medication and psychiatric hospitalization were the recommendations most reliably mentioned. Conclusions: Psychiatric consultation seems to be taken seriously by attending physicians and is communicated in a high percentage to the physicians responsible for the aftercare. Nevertheless, in patients where active post-discharge management is needed the C-L psychiatrist should actively manage referral to outpatient settings and/or instruct primary care providers.
Serum Cholesterol in Patients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder during Treatment with Behavior Therapy and SSRI or Placebo
Authors: Peter Helmut , Tabrizian Susanne , Hand Iver 
Published: May 2005

Objective: Patients with panic disorder are reported to have elevated cholesterol levels. There is also some evidence that cholesterol elevation is not so much a specific condition in panic disorder but is generally associated with anxiety. So far, there is little data on cholesterol levels in patients with obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD) which is also classified as anxiety disorder. Method: Thirty-three patients with OCD participated in the study. Serum cholesterol was measured as pretreatment and at the end of a ten-week treatment-period. All patients received behavior therapy and, in a double-blind fashion, fluvoxamine or placebo. Severity of OCD was assessed by the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). Results: Pretreatment cholesterol values of OCD patients were compared with cholesterol levels of thirty panic disorder patients and thirty normal controls. OCD patients had elevated cholesterol levels comparable with those of panic disorder patients. Cholesterol levels decreased significantly from pre- to posttreatment. OCD patients with high cholesterol levels (≥ 240 mg/dl, n = 7) could make best use of the treatment whereas patients with desirable cholesterol levels (< 200 mg/dl, n = 11) did not change their cholesterol during treatment. Conclusions: Our data support the assumption that not only panic disorder but also other anxiety disorders, e.g., obsessive compulsive disorders, may be associated with serum cholesterol elevations. Effective treatment (behavior therapy and/or treatment with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor [SSRI]) seems to decrease cholesterol levels, especially in patients with pathological cholesterol elevations.
A Primary Care Perspective on Prevailing Assumptions about Persistent Medically Unexplained Physical Symptoms
Authors: Stanley Ian M. , Peters Sarah , Salmon Peter 
Published: May 2005

Objective: To re-examine the widespread assumption that medically unexplained physical symptoms represent discrete syndromes resulting from somatization of mental illness. Method: Primary care patients ( N = 223) with medically unexplained symptoms of at least one year's duration were recruited to a study of exercise therapy. Data gathered from patients, from their general practitioners, and from medical records were used to examine relationships between self-defined disability, symptoms, mental state, and use of health care. Results: Levels of disability and health care use were both raised, but were only weakly correlated. While most patients were depressed and/or anxious, a minority (14 percent) were neither. Although mental state correlated with disability, health care use was unrelated to either. Among a wide range of recorded symptoms, few correlations were found to support the existence of discrete syndromes. Analysis of agreement between patients and their doctors in assigning symptoms to broadly defined “syndromes” appears to reflect collaboration that is largely expedient. Conclusions: In this sample of primary care patients with persistent unexplained physical symptoms, we found little evidence of discrete somatic syndromes. The level of health care use is no indication of mental state or level of disability, and the findings are equally consistent with depression or anxiety being secondary to disability and its consequences as with them being primary. The observed collaboration between patients and their doctors carries the risk of shaping, reinforcing, and legitimizing dubious syndromes.
Medical Interests and the Public Interest: A Comparison of West Germany and the United States
Authors: Altenstetter Christa 
Published: May 2005

In Germany, the influence of providers of medical services has long been subordinated to that of government and public policy making bodies. Public involvement in the health field is the result of a social commitment to a right to health care made a century ago and most widely manifests itself today in national health insurance for about 87 per cent of the population. Other restraints on the providers are the influence of trade unions, business management, political parties, and officials of the federal and state governments. Due to a built-in concern for the consumer, and its more integrated and coordinated organizational structure, the German health system attempts to benefit the recipient at least as well as the provider of health services. Until recently, the health scene in the United States has been characterized by a lack of positive government action. While this is consistent with the United States' traditional concern for pluralism and individualism, the result has been to vest a predominant policy making role to the private enterprise providers of medical services. The medical community in the U.S. has had a long and successful political career through its lobbying activities. Entry to the medical profession, physical facilities, and standards have all been controlled by the physicians themselves. Current trends and concerns for the consumer, however, have both identified and challenged deficiencies in performance under the influence of self-regulating providers.
Delusional Parasitosis: A Clinical Profile
Authors: Bhatia Manjeet S. , Jagawat Tushar , Choudhary Sandeep 
Published: May 2005

Objective: Delusional parasitosis is a form of monohypochondriacal psychosis, a condition sometimes encountered in psychiatric or primary care practice. The outcome of this condition is not well known. Method: In the present study, a series of fifty-two consecutive cases of delusional parasitosis is reported. Results: A majority of cases (92%) had insidious onset. The duration of symptoms in all but two cases was six months or more. Twenty-six cases presented with a delusion of infestation by insects over the body and twenty-three cases with a delusion of insects crawling over the scalp. Three cases had associated diabetes mellitus, five cases had leprosy, five cases dementia, four cases had depression, and three cases presented with trichotillomania. Pimozide was used in forty-six cases, amitriptyline and fluoxetine in three cases each. Twenty-eight cases (54%) showed complete remission while receiving pharmacotherapy, eighteen cases showed partial improvement, and six cases did not respond to treatment. Conclusion: Further studies are warranted to study the treatment and outcome of this important psychiatric disorder.
Profile of Medical Education in Latin America
Authors: García J. C. 
Published: May 2005

Preliminary results of a study on medical education in Latin America carried out by the Department of Human Resources Development of the Pan American Health Organization are given in this article. Each of the Latin American schools of medicine existing at the end of 1967 and at the beginning of 1968 was visited by a researcher for approximately seven days. During this period specially prepared questionnaires were completed. An analysis of the data reveals the presence of three types of imbalances: (1) imbalance between the system of secondary education and that of medical education, (2) internal imbalance between the system of higher education and medical education, and (3) imbalance between the system of health services and that of medical education. The study of the data compiled may serve as a basis for the proposal of activities leading to harmonious development of the health manpower sector.
A Randomised Comparison of Two Forms of a Brief, Group, Psychoeducational Program for Cancer Patients: Weekly Sessions versus a “Weekend Intensive”
Authors: Cunningham Alastair J. , Edmonds Claire V. I. , Jenkins Gwen , Lockwood Gina A. 
Published: May 2005

There is considerable evidence that brief group psychoeducational programs for cancer patients, offering support and some training in coping skills, may have lasting beneficial effects on mood and quality of life. Objective: to compare two different formats of a brief, group psychoeducational program for cancer patients; a standard format of six weekly two-hour sessions or a “weekend intensive,” involving the same content and contact time compressed into two days. Method: Cancer patients were randomly assigned to either the standard weekly intervention ( n = 77) or the weekend program ( n = 79). Two assessment measures were used: Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Functional Living Index for Cancer (FLIC). Assessments were made before and after each intervention and at a nineteen-week follow-up. Results: While the two formats were found to be equivalent in their overall effects on mood and quality of life, there were some differences. There was a sudden, large improvement in mood by the end of the weekend version of the course (2-day time point) but this did not persist, and by the six-week point and again at nineteen-weeks, mood improvement was the same for both groups. Quality of life improvement seemed to be marginally greater with the six-weekly sessions (reaching statistical significance at the 6-week point). Conclusions: The two formats produced similar improvements in both mood and quality of life. We discuss the need for further studies to find optimal ways of presenting such help for different patient groups.