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Chronic life stress and treatment outcome in agoraphobia with panic attacks.

OBJECTIVE: Factors associated with response to treatment for agoraphobia are as of yet poorly understood. The authors investigated the relationship between chronic forms of life stress and clinical improvement and recovery in subjects with agoraphobia. METHOD: Subjects meeting the DSM-III criteria for agoraphobia with panic attacks (N = 73) completed measures of life stress, agoraphobic symptoms, and depressive symptoms at the initiation and completion of the 12-week treatment protocol. Chronic stressors were assessed during intensive structured interviews 3-5 years after the completion of treatment and were rated by using a reliable, and previously validated, contextual rating system. The contextual life stress interview was completed by 54 subjects. The relationship of chronic forms of stress to treatment response was assessed by comparing symptomatic improvement in the subjects who had and had not experienced chronic stressors. RESULTS: Of the 54 subjects, 23 (43%) reported chronic stressors of marked or moderate severity. Subjects experiencing chronic stressors evidenced less improvement after treatment on both self-report and objective indexes of agoraphobic symptoms. Additionally, more subjects identified as nonrecovered experienced chronic stressors than did recovered subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Chronic stressors appear to predict a relatively unfavorable treatment outcome, as defined by higher levels of symptoms after treatment, less improvement, and less likelihood of recovery. These results have important implications for enhancing psychotherapeutic outcomes.

Adult↗

Aldosterone excretion among subjects with resistant hypertension and symptoms of sleep apnea.

OBJECTIVE: The severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) correlates with the difficulty of controlling BP. The mechanism, however, by which sleep apnea contributes to the development of resistant hypertension remains obscure. Having observed a high prevalence of OSA among hypertensive subjects with primary hyperaldosteronism, we hypothesized a possible association between sleep apnea and aldosterone excretion. DESIGN: In consecutive subjects referred to a university clinic for resistant hypertension, we prospectively determined plasma renin activity (PRA), plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC), and 24-h urinary aldosterone excretion during high dietary salt ingestion. In addition, all subjects completed the Berlin Questionnaire, a survey designed to identify subjects at risk of having sleep apnea. Primary hyperaldosteronism (PA) was defined as a PRA < 1.0 ng/mL/h and 24-h urinary aldosterone excretion > 12 micro g during high urinary sodium excretion (> 200 mEq/24 h). RESULTS: Of the 114 subjects evaluated, 72 subjects had a high probability and 42 subjects had a low probability of having sleep apnea based on their responses to the Berlin Questionnaire. Subjects at high risk for sleep apnea were almost two times more likely to have PA diagnosed (36 vs 19%, p < 0.05), tended to have lower PRA (1.2 +/- 1.8 ng/mL/h vs 1.9 +/- 4.1 ng/mL/h), and had significantly greater 24-h urinary aldosterone excretion (13.6 +/- 9.6 micro g vs 9.8 +/- 7.6 micro g, p < 0.05) compared to subjects at low risk of sleep apnea. CONCLUSION: These data provide evidence of increased aldosterone excretion in subjects with resistant hypertension and symptoms of sleep apnea. While the causality of this association is unknown, it is hypothesized that sleep apnea contributes to the development of resistant hypertension by stimulating aldosterone excretion.

Aldosterone↗

Reliability of assessing end-feel and pain and resistance sequence in subjects with painful shoulders and knees.

STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive. OBJECTIVES: Examine the intrarater and interrater reliability of end-feel and pain/resistance sequence for patients with painful shoulders and knees. BACKGROUND: Clinicians make diagnostic and intervention decisions based on end-feel and pain/resistance sequence, but few studies have examined agreement within and between physical therapists when assessing subjects with pathology. METHODS AND MEASURES: Subjects with unilateral knee pain (18 men and 22 women with a mean age of 31.8 +/- 9.5 years) or shoulder pain (21 men and 25 women with a mean age of 34.3 +/- 12.9 years) were examined twice. Two physical therapists used standardized positions to evaluate 2 knee motions and 5 shoulder motions. Evaluators did not interview subjects and were blinded to previous test results. Evaluators applied overpressure and noted the end-feel while subjects identified the moment their pain was reproduced. Following testing, subjects rated their pain intensity. Analyses included: percentage of agreement; kappa, weighted kappa, and maximum kappa coefficients; and confidence intervals. Analyses were repeated for subjects whose pain intensity during testing did not change between examinations. RESULTS: Intrarater kappa coefficients varied from 0.65 to 1.00 for end-feel, and intrarater weighted kappa coefficients varied from 0.59 to 0.87 for pain/resistance sequence. Most coefficients remained stable or improved for the unchanged subjects. Interrater kappa coefficients for end-feel and weighted kappa coefficients for pain/resistance sequence varied from -0.01 to 0.70. End-feel kappa coefficients remained low for the unchanged subjects, but pain/resistance sequence weighted kappa coefficients improved. Unbalanced distribution affected many coefficients, producing low coefficients even when the percentage of agreement was high. CONCLUSIONS: The appropriate use of end-feel and pain/resistance sequence data requires reliable data gathering, especially when patients are managed by more than one physical therapist. Intrarater reliability of end-feel and pain/resistance judgments at the knee and shoulder were generally good, especially after accounting for subject change and unbalanced distributions. Interrater reliability, however, was generally not acceptable, even after accounting for these factors.

Adult↗

Health and socioeconomic status differences among antibody hepatitis C positive and negative transfusion recipients, 1986-1990.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the socioeconomic and health status, disease symptoms of anti-HCV-positive and negative transfusion recipients. METHODS: A cross-sectional interviewer-administered survey of subjects identified through the British Columbia Blood Recipient Program. Study subjects were 18 years and over and had to have had a transfusion between August 1, 1986 and June 30, 1990 and completed an interview of satisfactory quality. Anti-HCV-positive subjects were those seeking monetary compensation from the provincial and Canadian governments and the comparison group was randomly selected from a pool of anti-HCV-negative subjects. The study was designed to detect an assumed difference of 20% in signs and symptoms between the two groups. Statistical comparisons were conducted using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: A total of 241 and 222 anti-HCV-positive and negative subjects were respectively interviewed and met the study's eligibility criteria. Results from the multivariate analysis indicated that anti-HCV-positive recipients were more likely to have two or more clinical symptoms (OR = 3.53; 95% CI: 1.44, 8.70), to be in worse health status as compared to ten years previous (OR = 1.60; 95% CI: 1.30, 1.96), to have a higher illness intrusiveness rating (OR = 1.35; 95% CI: 1.25, 1.46), and to be younger (OR = 0.97; 95% CI: 0.95, 0.98). CONCLUSION: Our results show that persons exposed to HCV were more likely to have had two or more clinical symptoms, be male, have worse health status as compared to ten years previous, have a higher illness intrusiveness rating, and be younger in age.

Aged↗

Two-dimensional Fourier spectrum of QRST integral maps in classification of patients prone to ventricular arrhythmia.

Two-dimensional Fourier spectra of QRST integral maps, obtained by body surface potential mapping, were analyzed to identify subjects prone to ventricular arrhythmia, when they have not been identified by the extrema count method. The diagnostic performance (84.38 percent) of the peak value of the Fourier spectrum as a classifier for subjects prone to ventricular arrhythmia showed an improvement of 3.65 percent over the use of the extrema count method as a classifier.

Arrhythmias, Cardiac↗

Plasma catecholamines and angiotensin-converting enzyme activity in hypertensive subjects with positive rollover tests.

The rollover test is useful in predicting and identifying subjects developing hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. The mechanisms responsible for positive tests are unclear, but a greater release of pressor substances occurring in subjects with positive tests has been proposed. The authors measured and compared heart rate, diastolic blood pressure, plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine levels, and serum angiotensin-converting enzyme activity in ten pregnant subjects with positive rollover tests and seven control subjects with negative rollover tests at 29 to 36 weeks' gestation. Resting levels of epinephrine were significantly lower in subjects with positive rollover tests than in the control group. Plasma levels of epinephrine increased significantly during the positive rollover tests. Basal angiotensin-converting enzyme activity was significantly increased in subjects with positive tests and may play a major role in the altered cardiovascular sensitivity to pressor substances resulting in positive tests.

Epinephrine↗

Detection of memory impairment in the general population: screening by questionnaire and telephone compared to subsequent face-to-face assessment.

BACKGROUND: Development of efficient methods for identifying subjects with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) from the general population is warranted, because these subjects represent an important group for (epidemiological) research purposes. OBJECTIVES: (1) To describe a two-step population screening for identifying adults with MCI from the general population for research purposes, by questionnaire and telephone; (2) to compare screening by telephone (method 1) to a subsequent face-to-face assessment (method 2). METHODS: In method 1, subjects with memory complaints were identified from the general population (n = 5491) by a postal questionnaire. Subsequently, cognitive status and memory were assessed in a telephone interview using the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status and the Ten Word Learning Test. Next, subjects with MCI according to method 1 were subjected to a face-to-face assessment for method 2, in which cognitive status and memory were assessed using the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT). RESULTS: Two hundred and twenty-seven subjects completed both the telephone interview and the face-to-face assessment. Ninety-three subjects (41%) had MCI according to both methods. Seven subjects (3%) failed to meet MCI criteria according to method two because of an MMSE score <24; 127 subjects (56%) failed because of normal AVLT scores. CONCLUSION: (1) The two-step population screening was able to detect a considerable number of MCI-subjects in the general population; (2) agreement between both methods was moderate. Therefore, the method of recruiting subjects for (epidemiological) studies has to be taken into consideration when interpreting results of these studies.

Aged↗

Spontaneous reference systems in individuals.

In a series of five experiments the referencing function of spatial structures was investigated. The problem was (a) to determine whether subjects' effective frames of reference and their object figures could be experimentally identified, (b) to determine whether the analyses developed for this purpose were adequate, and (c) to determine some conditions of frames of reference. Graduate and undergraduate students were asked to reconstruct and to recall multiply-embedded figures viewed earlier. In these figures the spatial orientation of the figure elements was manipulated. Both reconstruction and recall errors were analyzed to identify subjects' effective frames of reference and their object figures. A single-subject design was used throughout. Frames of reference and their objects could be identified in Exp. 1. This experiment also showed the appropriateness of the analyses. Exp. 2 indicated that embedding figures provide one condition for identifying frames of reference. Exps. 3 to 5 demonstrated that changes in element figures, measurement, and reduction of trials and number of elements did not eliminate frames of reference. Differences in types of frames of reference were found. These differences were interpreted to indicate that some subjects use content, others formal schema (referents) to evaluate spatial orientation.

Adult↗

Autonomic cardiovascular regulation in subjects with acute mountain sickness.

The aims of this study were 1) to evaluate whether subjects suffering from acute mountain sickness (AMS) during exposure to high altitude have signs of autonomic dysfunction and 2) to verify whether autonomic variables at low altitude may identify subjects who are prone to develop AMS. Forty-one mountaineers were studied at 4,559-m altitude. AMS was diagnosed using the Lake Louise score, and autonomic cardiovascular function was explored using spectral analysis of R-R interval and blood pressure (BP) variability on 10-min resting recordings. Seventeen subjects (41%) had AMS. Subjects with AMS were older than those without AMS (P < 0.01). At high altitude, the low-frequency (LF) component of systolic BP variability (LF(SBP)) was higher (P = 0.02) and the LF component of R-R variability in normalized units (LF(RR)NU) was lower (P = 0.001) in subjects with AMS. After 3 mo, 21 subjects (43% with AMS) repeated the evaluation at low altitude at rest and in response to a hypoxic gas mixture. LF(RR)NU was similar in the two groups at baseline and during hypoxia at low altitude but increased only in subjects without AMS at high altitude (P < 0.001) and did not change between low and high altitude in subjects with AMS. Conversely, LF(SBP) increased significantly during short-term hypoxia only in subjects with AMS, who also had higher resting BP (P < 0.05) than those without AMS. Autonomic cardiovascular dysfunction accompanies AMS. Marked LF(SBP) response to short-term hypoxia identifies AMS-prone subjects, supporting the potential role of an exaggerated individual chemoreflex vasoconstrictive response to hypoxia in the genesis of AMS.

Acute Disease↗

Combination of BMI and Waist Circumference for Identifying Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Whites.

OBJECTIVE: BMI (kilograms per meters squared) and waist circumference (WC) (measured in centimeters) are each associated with the risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). Therefore, a combination of the two may be more effective in identifying subjects at risk than either alone. The present study sought to identify the combination of BMI and WC that has the strongest association with CVD risk factors in whites. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Subjects were 8712 white men and women from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The optimal combination of BMI and WC was developed using logistic regression models with BMI and WC as predictors and CVD risk factors as outcomes. The combined measure of BMI and WC using current cut-off points was also examined. Sensitivity, specificity, and receiver operating characteristics curves were compared between the combined measures and BMI alone. RESULTS: For white men, the optimal combination of BMI and WC for identifying CVD risk factors was 0.68 x BMI + 0.32 x WC. This combination generated a score that better estimated the odds of having CVD risk factors than either alone. For white women, WC alone largely determined the likelihood of having CVD risks. The combination of BMI and WC using current cut-off points may provide an improved measure of CVD risk. Combined measures showed a higher sensitivity or a shorter distance in receiver operating characteristic curves in the identification of CVD risk factors. DISCUSSION: Combined measures of BMI and WC may provide a higher overall test performance for CVD risk factors and may be useful in some ethnic groups as an improved means of screening subjects for further evaluation in the clinical setting.

Body Constitution↗

Dietary calcium intake in postmenopausal Malaysian women: comparison between the food frequency questionnaire and three-day food records.

The objective of this study was to compare the dietary calcium intakes assessed by a quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and the three-day food record method in 230 Chinese postmenopausal women aged 50-65 years in Kuala Lumpur. The results showed that the mean calcium intake from the dietary records was 447+/-168 mg/day and 499+/-211 mg/day from the FFQ. The mean difference in intake by the two methods was 51.3 mg (95% CI = -30.8-77.9; SD = 181.2, P>0.05), which did not differ significantly from zero. Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.56 was obtained between the two methods. Ninety-five percent of the individuals classified by food records fell into the same or within-one-quartile category when classified by FFQ. Forty-eight percent were classified into the same quartile by both methods. No subjects were grossly misclassified by the FFQ. The FFQ correctly identified subjects with calcium intakes below the Malaysian recommended daily allowance (450 mg/day) with 60% specificity and with 92% specificity for women consuming less than 800 mg calcium/day. In conclusion, the FFQ developed was a useful, rapid clinical tool for assessing calcium intake and identifying postmenopausal Chinese women with low calcium intakes in Malaysia.

Adult↗

A real electro-magnetic placebo (REMP) device for sham transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).

OBJECTIVE: There is growing interest in neuropsychiatry for repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) as a neuromodulatory treatment. However, there are limitations in interpreting rTMS effects as a real consequence of physiological brain changes or as placebo-mediated unspecific effects, which may be particularly strong in psychiatric patients. This is due to the fact that existing sham rTMS procedures are less than optimal. A new placebo tool is introduced here, called real electro-magnetic placebo (REMP) device, which can simulate the scalp sensation induced by the real TMS, while leaving both the visual impact and acoustic sensation of real TMS unaltered. METHODS: Physical, neurophysiological and behavioural variables of monophasic and biphasic single-pulse TMS and biphasic 1Hz and 20Hz rTMS procedures (at different intensities) were tested in subjects who were expert or naïve of TMS. Results of the real TMS were compared with those induced by the REMP device and with two other currently used sham procedures, namely the commercially available Magstim sham coil and tilting the real coil by 90 degrees . RESULTS: The REMP device, besides producing scalp sensations similar to the real TMS, attenuated the TMS-induced electric field (as measured by a dipole probe) to a biologically inactive level. Behaviourally, neither expert nor naïve TMS subjects identified the "coil at 90 degrees " or the "Magstim sham coil" as a real TMS intervention, whilst naïve subjects were significantly more likely to identify the REMP-attenuated TMS as real. CONCLUSIONS: The "goodness of sham" of the REMP device is demonstrated by physical, neurophysiological, and behavioural results. SIGNIFICANCE: Such placebo TMS is superior to the available sham procedures when applied on subjects naïve to TMS, as in case of patients undergoing a clinical rTMS trial.

Adult↗

Contrast effects on stop consonant identification.

Changes in the identification of speech sounds following selective adaptation are usually attributed to a reduction in sensitivity of auditory feature detectors. An alternative explanation of these effects is based on the notion of response contrast. In several experiments, subjects identified the initial segment of synthetic consonant-vowel syllables as either the voiced stop [b] or the voiceless stop [ph]. Each test syllable had a value of voice onset time (VOT) that placed it near the English voiced-voiceless boundary. When the test syllables were preceded by a single clear [b] (VOT = -100 msec), subjects tended to identify them as [ph], whereas when they were preceded by an unambiguous [ph] (VOT = 100 msec), the syllables were predominantly labeled [b]. This contrast effect occurred even when the contextual stimuli were velar and the test stimuli were bilabial, which suggests a featural rather than a phonemic basis for the effect. To discount the possibility that these might be instances of single-trial sensory adaptation, we conducted a similar experiment in which the contextual stimuli followed the test items. Reliable contrast effects were still obtained. In view of these results, it appears likely that response contrast accounts for at least some component of the adaptation effects reported in the literature.

Humans↗

Smoking and age-related maculopathy. The Blue Mountains Eye Study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the associations between stage of age-related maculopathy (ARM) and current, past, and passive smoking. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 3654 subjects from a defined geographic area west of Sydney, Australia, identified subjects with late age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and early ARM by ocular examination and detailed grading of retinal photographs. Interviewer-administered questionnaires provided data about smoking history for subjects and spouses. Logistic regression, adjusting for age and sex, and 2-way analysis of variance were used to assess associations. RESULTS: Current tobacco smoking was significantly associated with late AMD (odds ratio [OR], 3.92), including neovascular AMD (OR, 3.20) and geographic atrophy (OR, 4.54), and early ARM (OR, 1.75). Having ever smoked was significantly associated with late AMD (OR, 1.83) but not early ARM. Passive smoking was associated with increased but insignificant odds for late AMD. The risk was slightly higher among women compared with men for most exposure categories. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide convincing evidence that smoking may be causally associated with ARM. The strongest risk was found for current smokers, suggesting potential benefits of targeting education to older people who are current smokers and have signs of early ARM.

Aged↗

Risk of breast cancer associated with short-term use of oral contraceptives.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate breast cancer risk associated with short-term (<6 months) oral contraceptive use, and explore variation in estimates by use characteristics and medical, menstrual, and reproductive history. METHODS: We analyzed data from the Women's Contraceptive and Reproductive Experiences Study. Case subjects were white women and black women, 35-64 years old, diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in July 1994-April 1998. Control subjects identified by random-digit dialing were matched to case subjects by age, race, and study site. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: Overall, short-term oral contraceptive use was not associated with breast cancer risk (OR = 1.0; 95% CI = 0.8-1.1). However, significant interaction between short-term use and menopausal status led to an observed increased breast cancer risk in pre-menopausal women (OR = 1.3; 95% CI = 1.0-1.7) and a reduced risk in post-menopausal women (OR = 0.8; 95% CI = 0.6-1.0) associated with short-term use. The association was more pronounced in women with non-contraceptive reasons for use and underlying risk factors for breast cancer. CONCLUSIONS: These associations may result from underlying characteristics of users or unmeasured factors influencing duration of use and breast cancer risk.

Adult↗

Symptoms related to snoring and sleep apnoea in subjects with chronic bronchitis: report from the Obstructive Lung Disease in Northern Sweden Study.

To assess the relationship between chronic bronchitis and obstructive sleep apnoea, a postal survey was performed. A postal questionnaire was sent to 523 subjects identified as having chronic bronchitis or long-standing cough and sputum production in the Obstructive Lung Disease in Northern Sweden Study I (OLIN I). In 1986-88, all 6610 adults born in 1919-20, 1934-35 and 1949-50 living in representative areas in Northern Sweden were screened for airway diseases according to different methods. A random sample of healthy adults identified in the screening were chosen as references (n = 625). Subjects were asked about a variety of airway symptoms, smoking habits and symptoms related to obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS). In the bronchitic group, 20% did not report bronchitic symptoms in the present study, and 26% of the formerly healthy reference group reported at least one bronchitic symptom in the present study. Snoring, apnoea and liability to 'nod off' during activity were much more common in the bronchitic group in both men and women, and most common in men, as expected. Snoring was reported by 29% of the men in the bronchitic group and by 14% in the reference group. In women, the corresponding figures were 14 and 8%, respectively, and for apnoea, the figures were 25 vs. 11% in men and 6 vs. 4% in women. The prevalence of OSAS symptoms was similar in subjects with attacks of breathlessness, long-standing cough, sputum production and recurrent wheezing. Bronchitic symptoms may influence quality of sleep and contribute to daytime tiredness, but this does not fully explain the high prevalence of snoring and apnoea reported by subjects in this cohort. This study indicates a positive correlation between chronic bronchitis and OSAS, but sleep studies are required to confirm this.

Adult↗

Heterogeneity of cognitive style among depressed inpatients.

An inference from the cognitive theories of depression is that only a subset of depressed individuals should exhibit distinctively negative cognitive styles. Although this inference has been supported by previous research, attempts to characterize these depressives have yielded few identifying variables. This study of psychiatric inpatients and normal control subjects identified several characteristics of depressives with very negative cognitive styles by (a) examining traditional depression subtypes, (b) grouping depressives on the basis of clinical observations, and (c) asking whether sex, developmental events, and history and severity of depression predict cognitive styles. We found that borderline personality disorder, negative family dynamics during childhood, a history of sexual abuse, and severity of depression predict cognitive styles. We speculate that aversive developmental events may contribute to cognitive vulnerability to depression.

Adolescent↗

Thyroglobulin autoantibodies in iodized subjects: relationship between epitope specificities and longitudinal antibody activity.

INTRODUCTION: We previously reported a high thyroglobulin autoantibodies (TgAb) prevalence in healthy Sri Lankans after iodine supplementation. In the present study 58 TgAb-positive schoolgirls were followed up after 5 years of continued iodination. The objectives were: (1) to observe the longitudinal profile of TgAb epitope specificities and (2) to examine the relationship between these specificities and the course of thyroid autoimmunity in this population. METHODS: Paired subjects' sera (at onset and at 5-year follow-up) were tested for TgAb, thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), and TgAb epitope-specificity. Epitope reactivity was determined by employing a panel of 10 murine monoclonal antibodies (Tg-mAbs) directed against 6 Tg antigenic clusters (I-VI) in competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) reactions with test sera. RESULTS: The overall pattern of epitope recognition in individual subject's sera remained preserved over the time period. Nine subjects showed restricted specificities while majority of the subjects were broadly heterogeneous. At follow-up, median TgAb concentration in the restricted group was higher than in the unrestricted (1650 versus 110 kIU/L; p < 0.005). Epitope specificity was a stronger determinant of TgAb persistence than the height of the initial TgAb response or the TPOAb status of subjects. CONCLUSION: Tg epitope reactivity pattern in iodised populations may identify subjects at greater risk of developing autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD).

Alkaline Phosphatase↗