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Biomedical subjects

D L Stronks

Publications and source records attributed to D L Stronks.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Interictal daily functioning in migraine.

Migraine induces disability and an impaired quality of life, even between attacks. As most studies are based on subjective reports only, this study was set up to objectively quantify the interictal daily activities and heart rate of migraine patients, in relation to their subjectively reported highest realizable level of activity and of symptoms of mood in their habitual environment. Measurements were obtained during a migraine-free 2-day period of 24 patients (age range: 21-57 years) and 24 controls (age range: 18-59 years). Accelerometry was used to quantify the time spent in different postures and movements. The subjective parameters were documented by daily log. Whereas heart rate was similar for patients and controls, migraineurs were found to be significantly less physically active than controls and reported a significantly lower realizable level of activity. In addition, when active, their body motility was less than that of controls. Migraine patients also showed a higher level of sleepiness and lower level of vigour. These interictal behavioural and subjective phenomena objectively illustrate the individual and societal burden of migraine and its chronic impact on both domains.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2000

Towards an objective quantitative assessment of daily functioning in migraine: a feasibility study.

Migraine is a chronic disabling disorder, with migraine episodes significantly reducing quality of life and leading to impaired functioning (physically, socially, emotionally) both at home and at work. We explored whether ambulatory accelerometry can be used as an objective method to quantify the behavioral aspects of migraine-related disability. Four body mounted uni-axial piezo-resistive accelerometers were used to quantify the time spent in different body postures (lying, sitting, standing), physical activities (walking, cycling) and a general index of body motility during eight migraine attacks and subsequent recovery periods of six patients in their habitual environment. The migraine attacks and recovery periods could be monitored after about 1 h, which was the time required for the investigator to travel to the patient and for the sensors to be attached. In order to quantify the influence of a migraine episode on daily activities, we also performed measurements during a headache-free baseline period of the same patients. Overall, the procedures functioned well, indicating that ambulatory accelerometry measurements before, during and after a migraine attack are feasible to perform. Furthermore, our quantitative data revealed that migraine always influenced behavior by reducing overall body motility and that, dependent upon the severity of the attack, the effectiveness of acute treatment and the time of day, the time spent in various body positions, dynamic activities, and the number of postural transitions were affected. This feasibility study showed that ambulatory accelerometry can provide the objective behavioral effect parameters for the evaluation of migraine and its treatment on daily functioning in the habitual environment of migraine patients.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1999

Personality traits and psychological reactions to mental stress of female migraine patients.

The purpose of this study was (i) to compare a range of stress-related personality traits, including defense and coping mechanisms, of migraine patients (n = 23) with those of tension headache patients (n = 18) and dermatologically afflicted, but otherwise healthy, controls (n = 22), and (ii) to compare their state anxiety and other moods before, during, and after the presentation of a psychological stressor (mental arithmetic). For all three groups, mental arithmetic induced a significant increase in state anxiety and mood disturbance, followed by a subsequent decrease during recovery. Migraine patients were not found to have a higher disposition for anxiety, depression, or rigidity than tension headache patients or controls. Between the headache groups no differences in the use of defense and coping mechanisms were found. Compared to the control group, however, both migraine patients and tension headache patients were more inclined to use internally focused defense mechanisms and less inclined to seek social support when confronted with a problem. The psychological reaction of migraine patients to mental stress hardly differed from tension headache and control subjects. Compared to the control subjects, however, both groups of headache patients exhibited a diminished recovery from feelings of vigour, depression, and fatigue due to the stress induced. It is suggested that this distinct psychological reaction to stress of headache patients versus healthy control subjects is related to the more internally focused defense style of the headache sufferers. Thus, in contrast to previous results, this study does not present evidence of a migraine personality. It suggests the development of specific personality characteristics as a consequence of suffering from episodic headache.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1999

Clinical utility of the judgment of line orientation test and facial recognition test in children with acquired unilateral cerebral lesions.

In unselected adult patients with brain damage, the Judgment of Line Orientation Test and the Facial Recognition Test are considered valid instruments for detecting right cerebral hemisphere lesions. It is unknown, however, whether this applies to children as well. Performance levels on the Judgment of Line Orientation Test and the Facial Recognition Test of 18 children with acquired left cerebral lesions and 14 children with acquired right cerebral lesions were reviewed. Subjects were unselected for age, sex, or etiology. Age-related norms were obtained in 81 normal controls, aged 7 to 14 years. Judgment of Line Orientation Test and Facial Recognition Test performance levels did not predict the presence of cerebral pathology per se in our unselected groups with demonstrated unilateral cerebral lesions, nor did they contribute to the prediction of the side of the lesion within the two groups with cerebral lesions. These results cast serious doubt on an important aspect of the clinical utility of both tests in children, namely their discriminative validity in the assessment of etiologically unselected populations with brain damage.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Serotonergic, catecholaminergic, and cardiovascular reactions to mental stress in female migraine patients. A controlled study.

This study aimed at the combined assessment of the serotonergic and sympathetic nervous system reactions of migraine patients before, during, and after the induction of mental stress in order to detect the possible role of these reactions in inducing a migraine attack. The responses to mental stress of the migraine patients were compared to a group of patients suffering from tension headache and a control group. Activation of the sympathoadrenomedullary system due to mental stress was successfully induced in the migraine patients (n = 23), in the tension headache patients (n = 18), and in the control group (n = 22). The results of this study present evidence of increased cardiovascular activity in migraine patients as compared to nonmigraineurs. However, no evidence was found of a specific serotonergic, sympathoadrenomedullary, or cerebrovascular response of migraine patients to mental stress as compared to nonmigraineurs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Psychosocial effects of skin treatment with Imedeen.

In a 3-mo. randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study, the psychosocial effects of the food supplement IMEDEEN on health-specific quality of life were examined. Participants were 45 Caucasian women with a normal skin condition in relation to their age. The variables measured were social anxiety and social skills, self-esteem, satisfaction with several parts of the body, state and trait anxiety, and psychological and social problems related to the skin. No significant effect of IMEDEEN was found on any of these psychosocial variables. Suggestions for further research are given.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1993

[Marked decrease in the number of hospitalizations for gonococcal infections in The Netherlands from 1981-1988].

The number of admissions for gonococcal infections in the Netherlands fell strongly over the period 1981 to 1988, in particular in the 15 to 40-year age group. The decline can only partly be explained by a change in sexual behaviour associated with the fear of AIDS. The change from clinical to outpatient treatment of these infections offers no explanation either because the number of outpatients treated dropped substantially as well.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

[Number of admissions for Reiter's disease (ICD-9-code 099.3) in Dutch hospitals in 1981-1987].

The number of hospitalisations of male patients for Reiter's syndrome in the Netherlands declined over the period 1981 to 1987 by almost 40%. This decline is probably connected with a change in sexual behaviour, associated with the fear of AIDS. The number of admissions of female patients is considerably smaller than that of male patients, possibly due to underdiagnosis of the disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

The Dutch version of the Nottingham Health Profile: investigations of psychometric aspects.

Data on the adaptation, reliability, and validity of the Dutch version of the Nottingham Health Profile are discussed. The linguistic adaptation of the English version into Dutch is described, followed by the field-testing procedure and the analyses of data from 276 selected subjects from an average general medical group practice in a village nearby Rotterdam. The internal consistency, Cronbach alphas, of the subscales varied from .70 to .85. Test-retest measures for 51 patients with cardiac problems gave Spearman correlations from .69 to .92, while the interscale relationships yielded six relatively independent areas of discomfort and stress. By means of logistic regression analysis on differences between old versus young, male versus female, and healthy versus ill individuals, discriminant validity was satisfactory. Findings suggest that the psychometric aspects of the Dutch version, also seen from a cross-cultural point of view, are sufficient. Nevertheless, further research on reliability and validity of the Dutch version is required to establish its usefulness with different patient groups.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Psychological consequences of genital herpes, an exploratory study with a gonorrhea control-group.

Measurements of some psychosocial variables were obtained from 27 patients with a genital herpes infection and compared with those from 12 patients with a gonorrhea infection. The measurements referred to the period before and during the infection. Evidence was found that during the infection patients were more anxious, more sexually inhibited, more bitter towards their partners, and had more psychological complaints than before the infection. Generally there was no difference between the two groups of patients, with one exception: patients with genital herpes judged themselves as having fewer psychological complaints prior to the disease than did patients with gonorrhea.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1992

[The number of admissions to Dutch hospitals for barbiturate poisoning from 1981-1989 and those for poisoning with sedatives and hypnotics,and benzodiazepines].

Over the period 1981 to 1989, the number of admissions to Dutch general hospitals for barbiturate poisoning has dropped sharply and steadily, due to a more restrictive policy in prescribing regarding these sedatives. This trend is also present concerning poisoning with sedatives and hypnotics in general (ICD-code 967), but not concerning those with benzodiazepines (ICD-code 969.4). The female-male ratio was nearly 2:1. This difference is possibly due to the fact that females take more medication than males.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Value of the Mini-Mental State Examination and informants' data for the detection of dementia in geriatric outpatients.

The Dutch version of the Mini-Mental State Examination was administered to 138 elderly patients who were referred to a geriatric outpatient clinic for a variety of reasons. An optimal cut-off point of 24/25 was found for the detection of dementia. At this cut-off point, the Mini-Mental State Examination was 87.6% sensitive and 81.6% specific in detecting dementia. The discriminative validity was influenced by education and by the presence of psychiatric disorders other than dementia. Informants' data showed better sensitivity and specificity than the Mini-Mental State Examination for the detection of dementia. The findings suggest that informants' data are a primary source of information for the detection of dementia in geriatric outpatients.

Aged↗