Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

A Hoffart

Publications and source records attributed to A Hoffart.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Mental health locus of control in first-degree relatives of agoraphobic and depressed inpatients.

Mental health locus of control in 77 first-degree relatives of agoraphobic, agoraphobic and major depressed (comorbid), and depressed inpatients were studied. Relatives of comorbid patients externalized locus of control more to chance than did relatives of agoraphobic and of depressed patients. These results suggest that a tendency to externalize to chance is familially transmitted and may be a vulnerability factor for the development of the comorbid condition of agoraphobia and major depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Cognition and coping in agoraphobia and depression: a multivariate approach.

A multivariate strategy for the cognitive study of overlapping symptom disorders is presented and exemplified by an empirical investigation. Inpatients who met DSM-III-R criteria for anxiety and/or unipolar depressive disorders were assessed on 13 agoraphobic and depressive symptom subscales. Factor analyses of these scales were performed and yielded an agoraphobic and a depressive factor. The patients (N = 117) completed the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scales, the Attributional Style Questionnaire, and the Ways of Coping Check List. Stepwise regression analyses were performed with the cognitive and coping variables as independent variables. The externalizing of mental health locus of control to chance was the only significant predictor of agoraphobia factor score. Attributional variables were the only consistent predictors of depression factor score.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1991

Mental health locus of control in agoraphobia and depression: a longitudinal study of inpatients.

This study represents a longitudinal extension for 75 inpatients of a previous cross-sectional study, wherein agoraphobic inpatients, both depressed and nondepressed, attributed mental health locus of control more to chance than non-anxious depressed inpatients. This difference regarding chance locus of control persisted across posttest and one-year follow-up. At pre- and posttest, but not at follow-up, the group differences regarding externality to chance could be reduced to differences in reported fear of fear. Mental health locus of control scores exhibited moderate to high stability across assessments. Pretreatment level and during-treatment change of externality to chance did not predict proneness to relapse after treatment. Both a vulnerability model and a symptom model of the relation between externality to chance and agoraphobia received some support. On the other hand, reductions in internality during treatment predicted posttreatment relapse. Locus of control variables were also associated with effectiveness of treatment and posttreatment course, both with respect to fear of fear and to depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

[Institutionalized treatment of agoraphobia with panic anxiety].

We describe an integrated behavioral-psychodynamic treatment programme for inpatients suffering from agoraphobia and panic anxiety. This programme emphasizes intensive drug-free exposure training followed by work with anxiety-laden dynamic conflicts. We present promising results of evaluation studies, and discuss the important role of cognitive reconstruction of anxiety and of passive and active avoidant attitudes in exposure training. Lastly, we make certain recommendations concerning the approach to anxiety problems in general practice.

Agoraphobia↗
PubMed1989

A factor analytical study of the Comprehensive Psychopathological Rating Scale among patients with anxiety and depressive disorders.

A sample of 136 inpatients, meeting the DSM-III-R criteria for anxiety and/or unipolar depressive disorders, were rated on the 37 CPRS items designed for nonpsychotic disorders. By factor analysis we identified 2 indices: a 12-item depression index and a 7-item anxiety index. The indices proved to have good internal consistency and interrater reliability. They differentiated well between patients with anxiety and those with depressive disorders, and among subgroups of anxiety and depression. Our depression index may represent a slight improvement in specificity compared with previously suggested depression indices. Our main finding is the identification of an anxiety index with good psychometric properties.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

The Phobic Avoidance Rating Scale: a psychometric evaluation of an interview-based scale.

An interviewer rating scale for the measurement of (agora)phobic avoidance, the Phobic Avoidance Rating Scale (PARS), is described and psychometrically evaluated. The criteria of avoidance used are purported to correct weaknesses of the sets of criteria used in self-report instruments. Two samples with inpatients satisfying DSM-III-R criteria for unipolar depressive and/or anxiety disorder were studied. Intercorrelational and factor analyses revealed 3 dimensions among agoraphobic fears: separation fears, social fears and simple phobic fears. Overall, the 3 subscales constructed from these dimensions proved to have good reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change following treatment. The internal consistency of the social subscale seemed to be somewhat low. The PARS should be well suited to assess avoidance among agoraphobic patients on separate dimensions and to distinguish patients with agoraphobia from other psychiatric patients. It seems to be the first interviewer rated agoraphobic scale that is psychometrically investigated and should ideally be used for research purposes in combination with a self-report instrument.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Comparing aerobic with nonaerobic forms of exercise in the treatment of clinical depression: a randomized trial.

We compared aerobic with nonaerobic forms of exercise in the treatment of clinical depression. Ninety-nine inpatients, who met the DMS-III-R criteria for major depression, dysthymic disorder, or depressive disorder not otherwise specified (NOS), took part in the study. They were randomly assigned to two different physical training conditions, aerobic and nonaerobic. In both conditions, one hour of training was performed three times a week for a period of 8 weeks. There was a significant increase in maximum oxygen uptake (VO2 max) in the aerobic group; there was no change in the nonaerobic group regarding this variable. Depression scores in both groups were significantly reduced during the study, but there was no significant difference between the groups. The correlation between increase in physical fitness and reduction in depression scores was low. The study indicates that the antidepressive effects associated with exercises are not restricted to aerobic forms of training.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Causal attributions in first-degree relatives of depressed and agoraphobic inpatients.

Causal attributions in 77 first-degree relatives of major depressed, agoraphobic, major depressed and agoraphobic (comorbid), and dysthymic inpatients were studied. The hypothesis that the relatives of comorbid and dysthymic patients should exhibit more "depressogenic" causal attributions for bad events than the relatives of major depressed and agoraphobic patients was partly supported. Relatives of dysthymic patients attributed bad events to more internal causes and assigned more importance to the events themselves than did relatives of major depressed patients. Relatives of patients with major depression and agoraphobia comorbidity attributed bad events to more internal causes than did the relatives of major depressed patients. Statistically controlling for differences in sex, age, social class, and depressive symptom level did not significantly alter the results among the four groups.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Personality traits among panic disorder with agoraphobia patients before and after symptom-focused treatment.

The first aim of this study was to examine the relationship between change of the agoraphobic state during treatment and personality change. The second aim was to examine the potential effect of PD traits on symptom change during and after treatment. Patients (N = 46) suffering from panic disorder with moderate or severe agoraphobia and considering agoraphobia as their main problem were randomly assigned to receive either cognitive therapy or guided mastery therapy in a 6-week inpatient group program. From before to 1 year after the end of treatment, the number of avoidant and dependent traits decreased significantly. Among changes during treatment on various symptom and cognitive variables, only change in catastrophic beliefs was significantly related to reduction in avoidant and dependent traits. Number of dependent traits at pretreatment was related to less improvement from pretreatment to 1-year follow-up on the symptom and cognitive scales.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Tolerance to intensive exercise and high levels of lactate in panic disorder.

We wanted to test the tolerance of intensive exercise and corresponding high levels of lactate in patients with panic disorder. Thirty-five consecutive patients with DSM-III-R panic disorder completed submaximal tests, and 24 completed additional supramaximal exercise tests. All experienced high values of lactate during the supramaximal test (M = 10.7 mmol/L, SD = 2.9), but only 1 patient experienced a panic attack. The blood lactate values in the present study were higher than the usually achieved values of 5 to 6 mmol/L during infusion. In general, 67% of patients panic during infusion, compared to 4% in the present study. This discrepancy in frequency of panic following exposure to endogenous and exogenous lactate is discussed on the basis of various hypotheses of panic disorder, with an emphasis on cognitive theory of panic. The study indicates that patients with panic disorder can safely undergo vigorous exercise of such intensity to result in significant lactate production, with the chances of panic being small.

Adult↗