Biomedical subjects

Catherine Gilvarry

Publications and source records attributed to Catherine Gilvarry.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Predicting violence in schizophrenia: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: People with schizophrenia are more violent than the general population, but this increased risk is attributable to the actions of a small subgroup. Identifying those at risk has become an essential part of clinical practice. AIMS: To estimate the risk factors for assault in patients with schizophrenia. METHODS: Two hundred seventy-one patients with schizophrenia were interviewed using an extensive battery of instruments. Assault was measured from multiple data sources over the next 2 years and criminal records were obtained. Multiple sociodemographic and clinical variables measured at baseline were examined as possible predictors of assault during follow-up. RESULTS: Sixty-nine (25%) patients committed assault during the 2-year follow-up. The model that best predicted assault included a history of recent assault (OR 2.33, 95% CI 1.17-4.61), a previous violent conviction (OR 2.02, 95% CI 1.04-3.87), having received special education (OR 2.76, 95% CI 1.22-6.26) and alcohol abuse (OR 3.55, 95% CI 1.24-10.2). CONCLUSIONS: Previously established risk factors including a history of violence and alcohol abuse are replicated in this study. Although low premorbid IQ did not predict violence, a need for special education did.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Personality dimensions and neuropsychological performance in first-degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia and affective psychosis.

Several studies have found a significant increase in the prevalence of some personality disorders in the first-degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia; other studies have found subtle neuropsychological deficits in these relatives. However, little is known about the specificity of the personality traits reported or about the relationship between these traits and the neuropsychological deficits.One-hundred first-degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia (SR) and 88 first-degree relatives of affective psychotic patients (APR) completed the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire which measures extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism; they were also administered the National Adult Reading Test (NART), the Trail Making Test (TMT) and a Verbal Fluency Test (VFT). The male relatives of patients with schizophrenia scored significantly higher on the psychoticism scale than the male relatives of affective psychotic patients. In the SR group, there were significant correlations between the TMT performance and the extraversion scores and, between the IQ scores and the psychoticism scores. However, when logistical regression analyses were performed, none of the three personality scores predicted any of the neuropsychological performance in either the SR or the APR group. These results indicate some specificity as well as sex differences in the psychoticism dimension. Moreover, the relationship between the personality dimensions and the neuropsychological performance could indicate that psychoticism increases vulnerability to psychosis whereas extraversion decreases it.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Patients' perceptions of intensive case management.

OBJECTIVE: The authors examined patients' perceptions of their case management care and the factors that influenced those perceptions. METHODS: A nine-item patients' perceptions questionnaire was administered to 225 patients with severe psychosis who were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial evaluating the efficacy of intensive versus standard case management. RESULTS: Factor analysis of the responses to the perceptions questionnaire revealed two principal components: quality of care received (including relationship and contact with the case manager) and overall perception of case management. Patients had a better overall perception of intensive case management compared with standard case management, but no significant differences were noted in perceived quality of care. Patients with female case managers had more positive perceptions of the quality of the care they received than those with male case managers. Several clinical and social variables were strongly associated with perceived quality of care but less so with overall perception of case management. CONCLUSIONS: Patients' general perceptions of intensive case management seemed more favorable than patients' general perceptions of standard case management, but no difference was noted in their perceptions of quality of care.

Adult↗