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T Lundin

Publications and source records attributed to T Lundin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Salivary cortisol and serum prolactin in relation to stress rating scales in a group of rescue workers.

BACKGROUND: Rescue service personnel are often exposed to traumatic events as part of their occupation, and higher prevalence rates of psychiatric illness have been found among this group. METHODS: In 65 rescue workers, salivary cortisol at 8 AM and 10 PM and serum prolactin at 8 AM were related to the psychiatric self-rating scale General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) measuring psychiatric health, and the Impact of Events Scale (IES) and Post Traumatic Symptom Scale (PTSS) measuring posttraumatic symptoms. RESULTS: Seventeen percent of the study population scored above the GHQ-28 cut-off limit but none scored beyond the cut-off limit in the IES and PTSS questionnaires. Salivary cortisol concentration at 10 PM correlated with statistical significance to anxiety (p < .005) and depressive symptoms (p < .01) measured with GHQ-28, as well as to posttraumatic symptoms, with avoidance behavior measured with IES (p < .01) and PTSS (p < .005). Two of the rescue workers were followed over time with the same sampling procedure after a major rescue commission. CONCLUSIONS: The correlation between evening salivary cortisol and anxiety, depressiveness, and posttraumatic avoidance symptoms indicates that these parameters can be used in screening and follow-up after traumatic stress events.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Suicidal behavior after severe trauma. Part 1: PTSD diagnoses, psychiatric comorbidity, and assessments of suicidal behavior.

The study comprises 149 refugees from various countries, reporting exposure to severe traumata, who were referred for psychiatric diagnosis and assessment of suicide risk. The stressors reported comprised both personal experience of and/or forced witnessing of combat atrocities (including explosions or missile impacts in urban areas), imprisonment (including isolation), torture and inflicted pain, sexual violence, witnessing others' suicide, and of summary and/or mock executions. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was diagnosed in 79% of all cases, other psychiatric illness in 16% and no mental pathology in 5%. The prevalence of suicidal behavior was significantly greater among refugees with principal PTSD diagnoses than among the remainder. PTSD patients with depression comorbidity reported higher frequency of suicidal thoughts; PTSD nondepressive patients manifested increased frequency of suicide attempts.

Africa↗
PubMed1996

[A study of post-traumatic stress reactions among war refugees based on medical records. A standard model may support the treatment].

A special project designed to aid Bosnian refugees in Stockholm County was initiated and funded by the County Council in February 1994. The present study, a joint endeavour involving the Bosnian Project, the Centre for Trauma and Torture Diagnostics, and the Red Cross Centre for torture victims, was designed to fulfil the following aims: To characterise the patient population in terms of social situation, trauma history, symptoms and treatment; To review accumulated experience at the three centres; To outline and discuss the treatment; and To suggest new avenues for further research concerning refugees and trauma. To obtain comparable material for this retrospective review of case records at the three centres, a special case chart format was adopted, covering pre-war and pre-treatment information on general background, social situation, health status and medication, as well as trauma history, symptoms and treatment. Most patients reported good pre-war health, but at the time of the study exhibited manifest effects of trauma history; 95 per cent reported mental problems, and 39 per cent medical disease or physical disorders. These refugees were thus characterised by manifest post-traumatic stress symptoms and need of treatment. Despite their relatively short time in Sweden, almost all had permanent residence permits and fixed addresses. The absence of a comparable control group precluded comparison with other refugee or normal populations. The findings suggest the need of co-ordination and co-operation between the special facilities available to refugees, and of a standardised format for case records.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Early traumatic stress reactions among Swedish survivors of the m/s Estonia disaster.

BACKGROUND: This study is a three-month follow-up study in order to assess the short-term impact of traumatic stress among 53 Swedish survivors of the Estonia disaster. METHOD: A questionnaire consisting of general questions about conditions during and after the disaster and self-assessment by Post Traumatic Symptom Scale (PTSS-10), Impact of Event Scale (IES), Sense of Coherence-short version (SoC-12), and the DSM-IV list of dissociative symptoms of Acute Stress Disorder formulated as questions regarding individual reactions was distributed. RESULTS: The response rate was 79.2% (n = 42). The participants scored an average of 3.9 on PTSS-10, 28.5 on IES ('intrusion' and 'avoidance' subscales) and 62.8 on SoC-12, which shows elevated levels of post-traumatic stress reactions but a normal level of sense of coherence. The reported occurrence of dissociative symptoms during the disaster was as follows: emotional numbing in 43% of the survivors, reduction of awareness in 55%, derealisation in 67%, depersonalisation in 33%, and dissociative amnesia in 29%. Survivors scoring low in SoC scored significantly higher in both PTSS-10 and IES than those with high scores in SoC. All dissociative symptoms were predictive of post-traumatic reactions. CONCLUSIONS: This study substantiates the importance of assessing dissociative symptoms during a life-threatening event as a possible for later post-traumatic reactions and possible PTSD. The Sense of Coherence Scale may be useful as an instrument to sort out survivors at risk.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1995

Collision at sea between two Navy vessels.

During training at sea, two missile carrier vessels crashed at rather high speed on November 14, 1991. One of the vessels (HMS Luleå) was seriously damaged by the other (HMS Nynäshamn), and one conscripted seaman was killed. Both vessels had a complete crew of 29 each, 15 of whom were officers. Informal support and formal debriefing sessions were performed during the first 2 weeks. The crews of both vessels were followed by questionnaire concerning the psychological stress reactions after 1 month and 6 months. The post-traumatic symptom scale and the impact of event scale were used for assessing the psychological symptoms and reactions.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

The treatment of acute trauma. Post-traumatic stress disorder prevention.

Although it is not yet clear that striking gains can be made toward the goal of preventing the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) through early treatment, an initial step has been made by identification of a new category of disorder in DSM-IV, the acute stress disorder. Evidence exists that, at the least, it is possible to have a significant effect on the symptomatology generated by acute stress through the use of culturally endorsed rituals, psychological methods such as support and formal crisis intervention, focused psychotherapy, and psychopharmacology. Whether success on this front will ultimately affect the incidence and development of PTSD remains to be seen.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1992

Swedish UN soldiers in Cyprus, UNFICYP: their psychological and social situation.

Two Swedish rifle batallions serving as UN soldiers in Cyprus (UNFICYP) have been investigated with respect to their demographic background and motives for application for UN service. The comparison of symptoms of stress in general, of posttraumatic stress disorder specifically, and some other variables of reaction with various studies of Swedish UN soldiers in different settings has given the following results. Very few interviewees experienced 'personal nervous breakdown' (0.5%). The soldiers reported in general very few psychological or psychosomatic complaints in the short time perspective. There seemed, however, to be two groups of persons at risk, namely those who were repatriated and those with a high consumption of alcohol.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

A research method for the study of psychological and psychiatric aspects of disaster.

This paper attempts to draw together some of the current questions related to the methodology of exploring the psychological and psychiatric aspects of human response to disaster. It sets out some of the key areas in which research questions might be mounted. A range of relevant instruments are suggested. The value of a structured interview which can explore issues of relevance to disaster victims is demonstrated. Early screening measures and proposals regarding these, as well as the particular instruments for longer term follow-up and assessment of outcome, are discussed in considerable detail. The article concludes with an overview of the principal issues to be addressed in methodology research, and emphasises the need for a collaborative approach using core items so that studies embracing different disasters and different countries can have some comparative basis.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1988

The panorama of psychiatric emergencies in three different parts of Sweden.

A total of 1226 psychiatric emergencies from three socially different catchment areas in Sweden were analyzed. Data were obtained over 28 consecutive days at the beginning of 1985. Very small differences were found between urban and rural catchment areas, which is probably due to a high degree of equality for both social and medical services throughout Sweden. The largest diagnostic subgroup was patients with an alcohol problem (33%). A measure of the patients network of close relatives, yielded small differences between the diagnostic subgroups.

Adult↗