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Biomedical subjects

J C Overholser

Publications and source records attributed to J C Overholser.

44 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

The dexamethasone suppression test and completed suicide.

The present study was undertaken to further explore the relationship between the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) and suicide. Depressed inpatients who had undergone the DST at index admission and later committed suicide (n = 13) were matched for age, gender, diagnosis, and type of DST (1 mg, 2 mg) with depressed inpatients from the same hospital and study time period to form 2 groups: a suicide attempter group (n = 25) and a nonattempter group (n = 28). The suicide completers group had significantly higher 1600 postdexamethasone cortisol levels than the suicide attempters group and a significantly higher 1600 rate of DST nonsuppression compared with the suicide attempter + nonattempter combined group. Although the rate of DST nonsuppression did not differ between the suicide attempter and nonattempter groups, serious attempters had significantly higher 1600 cortisol levels and a statistically higher proportion of patients who completed suicide than nonserious attempters.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Accuracy of symptom perception in childhood asthma.

Children's reports of their asthma symptoms are used as important data in the assessment and management of pediatric asthma, but little is known about the accuracy of such reports. Children's subjective perception of the level of asthma symptoms was correlated with peak expiratory flow rate measures on average of 34 observations for 37 children with asthma. Subjective/objective correlations for a given child varied from 0.86 to -0.16. The children's perceptual accuracy was not related to age or sex, or to duration or severity of asthma. Implications for clinical practice are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Suicide awareness programs in the schools: effects of gender and personal experience.

The present study evaluated the effects of gender and personal experience with suicide on the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of 471 high school students. Also, a suicide awareness curriculum was provided to 215 students and its impact was assessed. Results showed that having personal experience with a peer who had attempted suicide served to sensitize the student to the issues discussed in the curriculum, making it more likely that their knowledge regarding suicide would improve. However, this effect was overshadowed by the strong sex differences that emerged. Males were more likely than females to report maladaptive attitudes toward suicidal tendencies in their peers, display less adaptive coping styles, and exhibit less knowledge of suicidal behaviors. The role of sex differences in suicide prevention is discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Differentiation between schizoid and avoidant personalities: an empirical test.

A number of authors have questioned the rationale for subdividing the DSM-II schizoid diagnosis into three separate personality disorders in DSM-III, the schizoid, avoidant, and schizotypal. The present study was designed to explore differences between psychiatric patients with schizoid and avoidant personalities as compared to psychiatric controls with no personality disorder. Differences were examined on demographic data, self-report measures, and clinical information. A Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) revealed a significant overall effect for groups across MMPI subscales. However, subsequent univariate Analyses of Variance (ANOVA's) revealed that almost all differences were between the two personality disorder groups as compared to the psychiatric controls. Contrary to expectations, schizoid and avoidant personalities were found to display equivalent levels of anxiety, depression, and psychotic tendencies as compared to psychiatric control patients. No meaningful distinctions were found between the avoidant and the schizoid personalities. Results are discussed in terms of problems with the assessment methods and the diagnostic criteria.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMed1989

The assessment of personality characteristics in depressed and dependent psychiatric inpatients.

The diagnosis and treatment of depression may be complicated by the presence of excessive dependency needs. Previous research has found stable personality traits useful in identifying depressive subtypes. This study was designed to assess the personality characteristics of 106 psychiatric inpatients. Subjects were grouped according to the presence or absence of two primary dimensions: depression and dependency. Results indicated that both depression and dependency were significantly related to various indices of psychopathology. Main effects were more useful than interactions, implying that depression and dependency both affect symptomology directly rather than interactively. Although the assessment of personality traits may be complicated by the presence of a major psychiatric disorder, results from our study suggest that the assessment of both Axis I and Axis II variables can be useful in understanding the current clinical picture.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

The course of depressive symptoms in suicidal vs. nonsuicidal depressed inpatients.

The present study attempts to delineate the course of depressive illness in suicidal, depressed inpatients as compared with a matched group of nonsuicidal, depressed inpatients. Thirty adult nonpsychotic psychiatric inpatients presenting with symptoms of a major depressive episode participated in the present study. Two subject groups were identified, one suicidal and the other nonsuicidal according to their responses on the Modified Scale for Suicidal Ideation. Subjects were assessed on a variety of self-report measures and several clinical interviews during hospitalization and follow-ups at 4, 10 and 16 months after discharge. Results supported the hypothesis that, although displaying similar levels of depression during hospitalization as well as at long-term follow-up, the two groups differed in the speed of their recovery. Approximately 4 months after discharge virtually all of the nonsuicidal patients had recovered, whereas a majority of the suicidal group remained quite depressed. These results suggest that more time is needed for the recovery process to occur in suicidal patients. Future research in the area of depression and suicide should take into account the different courses seen in these two groups of subjects. Furthermore, those who treat suicidally depressed patients should be cautions of the slow recovery of these patients.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Patterns of response to childhood asthma.

The present study was designed to evaluate the concordance between parental and child ratings of asthma symptoms, and to determine the relationship between symptom ratings and morbidity data. The sample consisted of 162 asthmatic children from various treatment settings and 105 parents. The symptom pattern assessment employed a modified-for-children version of the Asthma Symptom Checklist (CASCL), which was completed independently by the parent and by the child. The CASCL data were factor analyzed to replicate the findings of the earlier panic/fear work. Factor analysis of both versions of the Asthma Symptom Checklist yielded three interpretable factors, which we labeled General Physical Symptoms, Panic/Fear, and Hyperventilation/Irritability. Correlations between parent and child across individual items ranged from 0.00 to 0.35. Correlations between the parents and the children across factor scores resulted in modest agreement. Using medication level, emergency room visits, and hospitalizations as indices of functional morbidity, many of the parents' and none of the children's factor scores were significantly related to functional morbidity.

Adolescent↗