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Biomedical subjects

C D Jenkins

Publications and source records attributed to C D Jenkins.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1978

Two methods of assessing the type A coronary-prone behavior pattern in Belgium.

Two methods developed in U.S.A. for measuring the Type A coronary-prone behavior pattern--the Structured Interview and the self-administered Activity Survey, were translated into French and Flemish and utilized in a large preventive cardiology study in Belgium. The distribution of behavior-type judgments made by trained interviewers were compared to similar data from North America and found to be similarly symmetrical but clustering more toward central categories in Belgium. The Activity Survey, when scored by the scoring key developed in California, yielded averages for this Belgian group which appeared to be more in the Type B direction than the California sample, particularly in terms of Job-Involvement and tendencies toward haste and impatience. The Activity Survey scales and Structured Interview judgments showed a strong correspondence, with a 70% agreement observed between the Interview and Type A scores. This comparability between findings in Belgium and U.S.A. suggests that the concept of the Type A behavior pattern has sufficient cross-cultural validity to permit the derivation of reliable measurements and to make feasible the determination of whether Type A behavior is a risk factor for coronary disease internationally.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Coronary-prone behavior: one pattern or several?

A cohort of 2750 healthy men who responded to a 61-item questionnaire was studied prospectively for 4 years, by which time 67 sustained acute myocardial infarctions (AMI), 30 were discovered by ECG to have had myocardial infarctions, which had gone clinically unrecognized ("silent") (SMI), and 23 had developed classical angina pectoris without ECG changes indicative of infarction. Item analysis of the questionnaire using multi-group optimal scaling and discriminant function revealed the patterns of responses to be characteristically different among the three clinical presentations of coronary disease and those men who remained healthy. The psychological properties of the three significant dimensions of discrimination are discussed. A second study, involving largely healthy men from the same population, supported the inference that the dimensions isolated were statistically and psychologically genuine. The implication is that different facets of the coronary-prone Type A behavior pattern may be specifically associated with different clinical manifestation of coronary disease. Refinement of these dimensions may lead to more specific prediction of coronary disease risk in the future.

Angina Pectoris↗
PubMed1978

The assessment of life change stress: a comparative and methodological inquiry.

A comprehensive life events questionnaire was administered to 416 men. Total life change scores were computed from published normative weights and from individuals' own ratings of events that occurred. The results showed that the rank order of life events was highly correlated between our sample and the original normative groups. However, in the population of men we studied, there were significant differences between the total life event scores derived by summing the published normative weights and the total adjustment or distress reported by those men who experienced the events. Other results indicated that life event scores based on normative weights reflect more on the number of life events that are experienced, whereas life change scores based on individuals' ratings may better reflect on the potential impact of life change. Finally, the psychometric properties of several life change inventories are poor.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1978

Health change in air traffic controllers: a prospective study. I. Background and description.

The background, rationale, and design of a 3-year prospective study of health change in 416 air traffic controllers is described. This study was designed to assess the relevant variables that might predict future physical and psychological health change. This report describes the major variables that were assessed in all participants, which included endocrine, cardiovascular, and behavioral differences in response to work, the occurrence of significant life events, work attitude and morale, availability and usefulness of psychosocial supports, and job commitment and performance. Future reports will describe the contribution, both individually and interactively, of these various factors to the risk for future illness. A major hypothesis to be tested by this study is that health change among air traffic controllers can be predicted by differential responsivity to work.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1976

Risk of new myocardial infarction in middle-aged men with manifest coronary heart disease.

Men incuring coronary heart disease (CHD) during surveillance of an employed population were studied for risk factors associated with additional myocardial infarctions. The coronary-prone Type A behavior pattern measured by a test score, number of cigarettes smoked daily, and serum cholesterol were significantdiscriminators between the 67 men with recurrent CHD and the 220 with but a single clinical CHD event. Diastolic blood pressure and fasting serum triglycerides were not significant discriminators. Statistical analyses directed to possible sources of bias occasioned by the combined retrospective-prospective study design revealed that these problems are negligible and do not alter the findings observed. Type A score appears relatively unaffected by whether the measure was made before or after the initial CHD event. Multivariable discriminant function equations showed Type A score to be the strongest single predictor of recurrent CHD among the variables available. Number of cigarettes smoked and serum cholesterol accounted for additional variance. Future field trials for the secondary prevention of myocardial infarction would be strengthened by consideration of the possible role of Type A behavior.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Psychological correlates of coronary angiographic findings.

Prior to undergoing diagnostic coronary angiography, 94 men responded to tests for the coronary-prone behavior pattern, anxiety, depression, and neuroticism. Independently, cardiologists rated cineangiograms by the percent of atheromatous luminal obstruction in four major coronary arteries. The patients with greater atheromatous obstruction scored significantly higher than those with lesser disease on all four scales of the test for the type A coronary-prone behavior pattern. Those with more seriously diseased vessels also scored significantly higher on anxiety and depression scales but significantly lower on a denial scale. Men rated as having more frequent and intense angina pain scored significantly higher on hypochondriasis, depression, and admission of symptoms than men less subject to ischemic pain. Multivariate statistical analyses revealed that the findings regarding extent of atherosclerosis are independent of anginal pain or congestive heart failure.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Blood platelet aggregation and personality traits.

Changes in blood platelet aggregation may precipitate episodes of arterial occlusive diseases. Little is known, however, regarding the influence of psychological traits, emotional states and other behavioral stressors on platelet aggregation phenomena. This study examined 46 healthy college men at rest and after submaximal treadmill exercise. Associations were found between the duration of platelet aggregation and a number of scores from the California Psychological Inventory and self-administered anxiety scales. The more socially adequate, poised and dominant persons--those with more mature ego development and less overt anxiety--had platelets with more prolonged aggregation reactions to the in vitro introduction of noradrenalin. Irreversible aggregation of platelets occurred more regularly to lower in vitro concentrations of noradrenalin in platelet samples drawn from subjects who were less anxious and tended to be more rigidly defensive. It is premature to attempt to derive clinical implications from this exploratory work, but some implications for the design of future research are discussed.

Adult↗