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Biomedical subjects

M J Follick

Publications and source records attributed to M J Follick.

33 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

The Framingham Type A Scale and severity of coronary artery disease.

The relationship between scores on the Framingham Type A Scale (FTAS) and angiographic severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) was examined in a sample of 50 patients undergoing diagnostic cardiac catheterization. Age and family history of coronary heart disease (CHD) were positively related to CAD severity. Contrary to prediction, the FTAS demonstrated a non-significant, inverse relationship with CAD. However, FTAS-defined Type As with at least some CAD were younger than Type Bs with CAD. This inverse relationship between FTAS scores and age was not found in patients without CAD. Thus, though the FTAS was related to a younger clinical presentation requiring catheterization, it was not associated with the severity of CAD.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Participant characteristics as predictors of attrition in worksite weight loss.

Attrition is a significant problem in worksite weight loss interventions, and differences in participants' motivational levels have been hypothesized to account for this high attrition rate. The present study examined characteristics of participants who completed a worksite weight loss program compared to those who dropped out, using a step-wise discriminant function analysis. The results indicate that a combination of motivational characteristics, expectations, and change in weight just prior to treatment significantly discriminated drop-outs from completers. The results of this investigation are discussed with respect to implications for developing cost-effective worksite treatment protocols and directions for future research.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Development of an audiovisual taxonomy of pain behavior: reliability and discriminant validity.

This article represents the final stages in the development of a pain behavior taxonomy that was empirically derived from patients', spouses', and health care providers' nominations of pain behaviors. Seventy-one chronic low back pain patients and 40 controls were videotaped while undergoing a structured sequence of movements involving sitting, standing, walking, bending, and exercising, and a brief standardized interview component. Two independent observers rated each subject's videotape employing a 16-category observational rating system that included both verbal and nonverbal pain behaviors. Seven of the pain behavior categories, including guarding, bracing, position shifts, partial movement, grimacing, limitation statements, and sounds, had acceptable reliabilities and frequencies and were therefore selected for inclusion in a discriminant analysis. The subject sample was randomly divided into two equal groups, and a stepwise discriminant function analysis on the first subsample indicated that partial movement, limitation statements, sounds, and position shifts accounted for 75% of the variance in group membership and correctly classified 94.4% of the patients and 95.2% of the controls. On cross-validation, the same four categories identified in the initial discriminant function correctly classified 88.9% of the subjects in the second subsample. The utility of this pain behavior observational recording system is discussed in reference to both patient assessment and treatment outcome research.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Life-events and psychological disturbance in chronic low back pain.

Stressful life-events have been identified as contributing to psychological disturbance in chronic low back pain (CLBP). However, previous research has focused on the presence versus absence of generalized distress and failed to distinguish between positive and negative events. The present study examined the relationship of positive and negative life-events to various aspects of distress as measured by the eight clinical scales of the MMPI. Negative life-events were found to be associated primarily with depression and social maladjustment, while positive events were inversely related to somatic concern.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Chronic pain: electromechanical recording device for measuring patients' activity patterns.

Many authors have recommended the development and use of automated recording devices as alternatives to self-report measures of activity patterns in chronic pain patients. An electromechanical device is described that can be used to measure downtime or uptime in chronic pain patients. This monitor has several advantages over mercury tilt-switch devices including freedom from plane dependence, resistance to artifact associated with rapid or vigorous movements, and the flexibility to permit conceptualization of sitting time as either uptime or downtime, depending upon placement of the position switch. The monitor consists of a miniature electronic timer, a switching delay circuit and battery pack, an electromechanical position switch, a belt with carrying cases, and a battery recharger. The device has high reliability (agreement coefficients of 1.0) and concurrent validity (r = 0.99) for both downtime and uptime assessments. Research applications and clinical use of this device are discussed as well as directions for the further development of automated recording devices.

Chronic Disease↗
PubMed1984

Psychosocial adjustment following ostomy.

Ostomy patients have been identified as a chronic illness population frequently experiencing adjustment difficulties. The present study, based on the biopsychosocial model (Engel, 1977) of chronic illness, examined a range of post-surgical adjustment difficulties in a sample of 131 ostomy patients. The patient population reported experiencing a significant number of technical, emotional, social, marital/family, and sexual difficulties post-surgically. Technical difficulties were associated with impaired emotional, social, and marital/family functioning. Emotional difficulties were also associated with problematic social, marital/family adjustment, and impaired sexual functioning. Technical problems, emotional difficulties, and social problems were all associated with the patient's perception of having received inadequate preparatory information. Marital/family and sexual maladjustment, on the other hand, were associated with low levels of perceived social support. The results of this investigation are interpreted as supporting the biopsychosocial model of chronic illness, and the clinical implications of these findings are discussed as well as their relation to previous research on adjustment to stressful medical procedures.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Anger, neuroticism, type A behaviour and the experience of angina.

The relationship of personality factors to self-reported variations in symptoms of angina pectoris and their impact on functioning was examined in a sample of 50 cardiac patients. The frequency of anginal pains was significantly correlated with trait anger. The degree of perceived interference of angina with daily activities was related to Type A behaviour, anger and neuroticism. However, only neuroticism was related to the tendency to avoid activities because of the possibility of angina. Results are discussed in terms of the role of psychological factors in the manifestation and management of angina.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Contrasting short- and long-term effects of weight loss on lipoprotein levels.

The short- and long-term effects of weight loss on high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels were examined in 42 women who completed a 14-session behavioral weight-loss program. Lipid values were determined from samples taken before treatment, after treatment, and at six-month follow-up. There were significant changes in plasma lipid levels, but the short- and long-term effects differed. Both total and LDL cholesterol levels decreased during treatment and remained lower at follow-up. However, HDL cholesterol level and the HDL/LDL ratio did not change during treatment but increased significantly above pretreatment levels at follow-up. Furthermore, long-term changes in lipoprotein levels were significantly correlated with changes in the body-mass index even after correction for initial values. These results show that weight loss can, in the long term, have a potentially beneficial impact on lipoprotein levels in women.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed1980

A sequential criterion analysis for assessing coping with chronic illness.

A three-stage sequential criterion analysis based on the Goldfried-D'Zurilla behavior model is presented as a heuristic approach for studying chronic illness. The three interrelated stages consist of: (a) problem identification, (b) response enumeration, and (c) response evaluation. The utility of this systematic approach for understanding the adaptive process, helping to identify patients who might benefit from intervention, providing content for actual intervention, and reducing the myth of homogeneity among chronic patient populations for both clinicians and researches, is discussed. Examples of the utility of the criterion analysis are provided throughout the paper.

Adaptation, Psychological↗