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Biomedical subjects

A Bleich

Publications and source records attributed to A Bleich.

116 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1982

Masked depression--an ambiguous entity.

The term 'masked depression' is not accepted in current psychiatric classification for three basic reasons: (1) It is not a unique type of a disease or a syndrome, but a state or a stage which is a part of the depressive syndromes. (2) No special list of symptoms which has enough specificity, reliability and validity can be drawn in order to describe this state. (3) The term 'masked' is vague, and is in contradiction to the basic necessity to describe what is observed in contrast to what is unobservable and masked. However, precise and scientific criteria may be unsuitable for diagnostic purposes in these cases which are quite common; thus an entity which has a deep meaning and begs recognition among general physicians may be ignored. In addition, diagnosis of such depression is very important to allow for suitable and adequate treatment procedures. Diagnostic problems, clarification of the term 'masked' and the procedures of diagnosis are discussed in the article.

Depressive Disorder↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Denosologization of biological psychiatry or the specificity of 5-HT disturbances in psychiatric disorders.

5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) disorders have been reported to occur in a variety of psychiatric disorders. The situation has been called chaotic, the disturbances non-specific. We reject this viewpoint. 5-HT disturbances are non-specific only from a nosological/categorical viewpoint; they seem rather specific from a functional/dimensional point of view, correlating as they do with particular psychopathological dimensions, i.e. aggression-, anxiety- and possibly mood-disregulation, across diagnosis. The evolution of 5-HT research in psychiatry illustrates the importance of what we have called the functional approach, implying dissection of a given psychopathological syndrome in its component parts, i.e., the psychological dysfunctions, and searching for correlations between biological and psychological dysfunctions. The rigid preoccupation of biological psychiatry with the search for markers of disease entities has hampered progress. The functional approach should be incorporated in biological psychiatry, not as an alternative for the nosological approach but as its complement.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Israeli psychological casualties of the Persian Gulf war: characteristics, therapy, and selected issues.

The Persian Gulf war in 1991 presented Israel with its first experience of a threat of chemical attack on the home front. Ground-to-ground missiles were aimed directly at civilian populations, threatening death and destruction over a period of several weeks. Uncertainty as to time, place, and nature of the missile attacks affected the civilian population psychologically. The psychological responses of the population were the result of the continuous nature of the emergency which affected the entire population, and the destruction, injury, and displacement which affected those who were the targets of the attacks. The primary psychological effects of the emergency were investigated in several ways: surveys of samples of civilian and rear-echelon military populations, studies of the military personnel who asked for ambulatory psychological treatment as a result of the war, and studies of the specific populations that bore the brunt of the actual physical attacks were conducted. These studies show a high level of distress in the samples, with considerable differentiation between the populations. Levels of functioning generally remained intact even among the displaced or injured. Interventions were based on experience gained in the treatment of combat stress reaction. The issues of evacuation of psychological casualties to hospitals, psychiatric aspects of chemical attacks, and secondary traumatization of therapeutic and other staff are emphasized.

Chemical Warfare↗
PubMedDate not supplied

In the shadow of the Gulf war: psychological distress, social support and coping among Israeli soldiers in a high risk area.

This study assessed the sense of safety, psychiatric symptomatology, coping and sources of support among eight groups of soldiers stationed in the region at highest risk for missile attacks during the Persian Gulf war. The sample consisted of 659 regular, reserve, and career soldiers, both male and female. Findings show that elevated levels of distress were associated with a high level of perceived threat, a low level of perceived self-efficacy, a low level of trust in army authorities, and a low level of support from the social network, particularly from commanding officers. Practical implications are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗