Prevalence of Childhood Physical and Sexual Abuse in Veterans With Psychiatric Diagnoses.
Prevalence of childhood physical and sexual abuse in veterans with psychiatric diagnoses.
J Nerv Ment Dis. 2013 Apr; 201(4): 348-52
Koola MM, Qualls C, Kelly DL, Skelton K, Bradley B, Amar R, Duncan EJ
We examined the prevalence of childhood (?18 years) physical and sexual abuse reported among patients admitted to the psychiatric inpatient service and the differential rates of this abuse associated with psychiatric diagnoses. This study consisted of a retrospective chart review of 603 patients admitted to a psychiatric ward during a period of 1 year at Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center who had data on childhood physical and sexual abuse. The prevalence of reported childhood physical or sexual abuse in this inpatient clinical population was 19.4% (117/603). The prevalence of reported physical abuse was 22.6% (19/84) in the women and 12.0% (62/519) in the men (p = 0.008); the prevalence of sexual abuse was 33.3% (28/84) in the women and 7.7% (40/519) in the men (p < 0.0001). More patients with depressive disorders reported sexual abuse than did those without these disorders. More patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) reported physical and sexual abuse than did those without these disorders. Stratifying by race, sex, and diagnoses, multivariate analyses showed that the women with PTSD had a greater likelihood to report physical abuse (p = 0.03) and sexual abuse histories (p = 0.008) than did the women without PTSD. The men with substance-induced mood disorder (p = 0.01) were more likely to report physical abuse compared with the men without substance-induced mood disorder. Screening for abuse in patients with depressive disorders and PTSD is warranted to tailor individualized treatments for these patients. More research is needed to better understand the potential implications of childhood abuse on psychiatric diagnoses. HubMed – depression
Consenting not to be informed: a survey on the acceptability of placebo use in the treatment of depression.
J Nerv Ment Dis. 2013 Apr; 201(4): 345-7
Nitzan U, Feffer K, Bloch Y, Lichtenberg P, Lev-Ran S, Becker G, Wolfman S, Fennig S
The aim of this study was to investigate the opinions of healthy students regarding the acceptability of placebo treatment if they were to experience depression. A survey was conducted among 344 students in five academic centers in Israel. After a thorough explanation of the placebo effect, its efficacy and limitations in the treatment of depression, the study participants completed a 32-item self-report questionnaire. Seventy percent (n = 243) of the participants answered that they would agree to treatment with a placebo as a first-line treatment if they were to experience depression in the future. Eighty-eight percent (n = 297) of the subjects did not think that a physician who administered placebos was deceitful. Once aware of the possible benefits and limitations of placebo treatment, most of our study population was willing to accept placebo as a legitimate treatment of depression. Additional studies on the possible use of placebo as an effective, safe, and acceptable form of therapy are warranted. HubMed – depression
Quality of life and marital adjustment in remitted psychiatric illness: an exploratory study in a rural setting.
J Nerv Ment Dis. 2013 Apr; 201(4): 334-8
Vibha P, Saddichha S, Khan N, Akhtar S
People with mental disorders experience impaired quality of life (QOL). In India, spouses form the most important caregiver for the patient and therefore impact the patients’ QOL. However, relatively little is known about marital adjustment, which can definitely influence QOL of patients with mental illness. This study intended to explore marital adjustment and QOL among remitted patients with schizophrenia (SC), depression, and bipolar disorders (BPADs) and to study differences, if any, between the groups. Using a cross-sectional design, consecutive patients (N = 150) with an ICD-10-Diagnostic Criteria for Research diagnosis of SC, depression (recurrent depressive disorder [RDD]), or BPAD, who were currently in remission, were taken up for the study and administered the WHOQOL-BREF for assessing QOL and the Marital Adjustment Inventory for assessing marital adjustment, separately for the husband and the wife. The patients with SC reported poor QOL, whereas a better QOL was seen in those with BPAD and RDD, with significant differences noted between all three groups (p < 0.001). Marital adjustment was perceived to be poor by the patients but not so by the spouses. The greatest marital dissatisfaction was reported by the patients with SC (96%). A positive correlation was observed between the patients' perception of marital adjustment and QOL (p < 0.05). Provision of mental health care should take into consideration patients' possible perception of marital maladjustment and factor these into treatment strategies. HubMed – depression
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