PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

E J Garland

Publications and source records attributed to E J Garland.

18 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Amotivational syndrome associated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in children and adolescents.

A frontal lobe syndrome has previously been reported in adults treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), but not in children. Five typical cases of apathy and lack of motivation, one accompanied by disinhibition, are described in a child and four adolescents. Symptoms were dose related and reversible. The subtlety of symptoms, lack of insight in patients, disabling effects, and delayed onset indicate a need for clinicians to inform families of these potential symptoms when SSRIs are prescribed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Correlation between anxiety and oppositionality in a children's mood and anxiety disorder clinic.

OBJECTIVE: While parents and clinicians have described oppositional features as interfering with the management of children with anxiety, research on this relation is lacking. We designed this study to investigate the presence of oppositional symptoms in children presenting with mood and anxiety symptoms. METHOD: In a mood and anxiety disorders clinic, we used the DSM-IV Child Symptom Inventory to document the presence and correlates of oppositional defiant symptoms in 145 preadolescents assessed during a 2-year period. RESULTS: Oppositional defiant symptoms were found to correlate (P < 0.01) with generalized anxiety symptoms in both parent and teacher ratings. Correlations remained significant after controlling for the presence of symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Parents found both boys and girls to be equally oppositional, while teachers found boys to be significantly more oppositional. CONCLUSION: Oppositional features are found in clinically referred children with anxiety and are potentially significant for treatment and prognosis of anxiety disorders in children.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMed2001

Rages and refusals. Managing the many faces of adolescent anxiety.

OBJECTIVE: To provide family physicians with a practical approach to recognition, assessment, and treatment of adolescent anxiety disorders complicated by avoidance or oppositional behaviour. QUALITY OF EVIDENCE: Current literature was searched via MEDLINE using the MeSH headings Anxiety and Anxiety Disorders, focusing on epidemiology, clinical presentations in adolescence, and both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatment. In addition, internationally accepted diagnostic criteria, current practice guidelines, and recent textbooks by recognized experts were reviewed. Research evidence and consensus recommendations were integrated with a practical approach developed in a provincial mood and anxiety disorders clinic. MAIN FINDINGS: Anxiety disorders are common in adolescents, with estimated prevalence of at least 10%. Substance abuse and avoiding school are common complications, and irritability with behavioural and rage problems can interfere with effective management. Current controlled research is examining the effectiveness of serotonergic medications known to benefit panic disorder, social phobia, and generalized anxiety in adults. While cognitive and behavioural treatments are effective for some child and adolescent anxiety disorders, they can be difficult to administer, and a supportive and psychoeducational approach could be as effective for those who refuse to go to school. CONCLUSION: Family physicians' awareness of the role of anxiety in adolescent school avoidance and in intense, oppositional emotional reactions at home can lead to more specific assessment and therapeutic intervention. Practical management strategies are recommended.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Pharmacotherapy of adolescent attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: challenges, choices and caveats.

A recent increase in stimulant treatment of adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been documented. Challenges in treating adolescent ADHD with methylphenidate or dextroamphetamine include compliance with frequent dosing, abuse potential and wear-off or rebound effects. Co-morbid anxiety, occurring in at least 30 percent of ADHD youths, is associated with lower rate of response to stimulants. The effective alternatives, tricyclic antidepressants or pemoline, are each associated with rare but serious toxicity. Bupropion has recently proven effective in controlled trials. Other noradrenergic or dopamine-enhancing agents such as venlafaxine and nicotine show some benefit in open trials. The need for more options in pharmacotherapy of ADHD is evidenced by rapid adoption in clinical practice of alternative and adjunctive medication despite lack of controlled research on efficacy and safety. The indications for long-term stimulant treatment of ADHD present some controversy, and highlight a need for more research on safety and efficacy through the lifespan. Thresholds for diagnosis are much lower with DSM than with ICD, and thresholds for treatment are contentious, given the performance-enhancing effects of stimulants in normal students. The endpoint for treatment is unclear, as stimulants are also effective in adult ADHD. Based on short- and intermediate-term studies to date, stimulant medication is clearly more efficacious than cognitive and behavioral strategies for the symptoms of ADHD. Longer term research is needed to determine whether sustained stimulant therapy will reduce the adverse emotional, behavioral and academic consequences of inattention and impulsivity in adolescents and adults.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Case study: obsessive difficult temperament and its response to serotonergic medication.

The syndrome of "obsessive difficult temperament" is described, and its response to serotonergic medication is reported. Diagnostic criteria are proposed for this temperamental pattern characterized by functional impairment due to obsessive rigidity, irritability, withdrawal, and poor self-regulation. The clinical characteristics, prior treatment, family history, and medication response are presented for a case series of eight children, five female and three male, presenting initially for assessment at ages 8 to 11 years, with obsessive difficult temperament which improved significantly as a result of serotonergic medication.

Child↗
PubMed1994

Adolescent depression. Part 1. Diagnosis.

Clinical depression among adolescents results in significant morbidity, including somatic distress and impaired cognitive, interpersonal, and academic functioning. Risk factors are clearly identifiable, and family physicians should have a high index of suspicion. Depression is the primary risk factor for adolescent suicide.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Adolescent depression. Part 2. Treatment.

Treatment of adolescents with clinical depression is multimodal, involving pharmacologic, psychotherapeutic, educational, and family interventions. Medication has a limited role because of its lack of efficacy, its minimal effect on etiologic factors, and the frequent noncompliance of adolescents. Physicians should promote coping mechanisms and effective problem-solving styles to prevent recurrence of depression.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Simultaneous prepubertal onset of panic disorder, night terrors, and somnambulism.

Concurrent acute onset of night terrors, somnambulism, and spontaneous daytime panic attacks meeting the criteria for panic disorder is reported in a 10-year-old boy with a family history of panic disorder. Both the parasomnias and the panic disorder were fully responsive to therapeutic doses of imipramine. A second case of night terrors and infrequent full symptom panic attacks is noted in another 10-year-old boy whose mother has panic disorder with agoraphobia. The clinical resemblance and reported differences between night terrors and panic attacks are described. The absence of previous reports of this comorbidity is notable. It is hypothesized that night terror disorder and panic disorder involve a similar constitutional vulnerability to dysregulation of brainstem altering systems.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMed1991

Multiple sclerosis and affective disorders.

Affective disorders occurring in association with multiple sclerosis have been attributed both to the psychosocial impact of a chronic disabling illness and to the structural lesions of cerebral demyelination. A review of research evidence suggests that while there is a correlation between chronic depressive symptoms and both progressive disability and lack of social support, acute major depressive and manic episodes may be psychiatric manifestations of demyelinating lesions and may be the initial presenting symptoms of multiple sclerosis. Anti-inflammatory agents may be required in the management of acute psychiatric symptoms despite the fact that these agents have a propensity to precipitate psychotic episodes. Two case reports are presented to illustrate the clinical challenge of distinguishing between organic and functional affective illness in patients with multiple sclerosis. The interplay between biological and psychological aspects of multiple sclerosis in precipitating affective disorders is discussed, with implications for patient assessment and management.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Panic disorder on a child psychiatric consultation service.

In a review of all cases seen from 1984 to 1988 by the psychiatric consultation-liaison service of a tertiary referral pediatric hospital, four cases of definite panic disorder meeting DSM-III-R criteria were identified. Three of these children were referred to the consultation service after intensive investigation of physical complaints had failed to yield a diagnosis. These cases of panic disorder differed from those previously reported in child psychiatric populations by their relative absence of psychiatric comorbidity. This suggests that uncomplicated panic disorder may present with primarily somatic symptoms in pediatric subspecialty clinics, while panic disorder, complicated by behavioral or emotional disturbance, is more likely to present directly to child psychiatric services. Children presenting with somatic symptoms are at risk for receiving nonproductive investigations while having delayed diagnosis and treatment of the panic disorder.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Effect of vasopressin and naloxone alone and in combination on cortisol secretion after dexamethasone pretreatment.

In order to further examine the possible role of endogenous opioid peptides and vasopressin in the phenomenon of dexamethasone nonsuppression, we studied the effect of naloxone, vasopressin, and vasopressin-naloxone combination on cortisol secretion following dexamethasone pretreatment. Nine healthy males were given 1 mg dexamethasone at 23.00 h. The following day starting at 12.30 h and at 90-min intervals they received intravenously naloxone (0.2 mg/kg), arginine vasopressin 3 units, or the two drugs combined. The order of drug administration was counterbalanced using a Latin square design. Blood samples were drawn at 15-min intervals, and plasma aliquots were assayed for cortisol and dexamethasone. Naloxone failed to induce an escape from dexamethasone suppression. Four of the 9 subjects responded with an escape from dexamethasone suppression in response to vasopressin alone. The observed variability in response to vasopressin was unrelated to dexamethasone plasma levels but was associated with a decrease in systolic blood pressure. Peak cortisol levels were lowest in response to naloxone and highest in response to vasopressin. There was no evidence of an increased cortisol response to the coadministration of naloxone with vasopressin compared to vasopressin alone. These results fail to implicate an opioidergic mechanism in the pathophysiology of dexamethasone nonsuppression.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Effect of codeine and oxazepam on afternoon cortisol secretion in men.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of oral codeine and oxazepam on afternoon cortisol secretion. Nine subjects received either oxazepam (30 mg) or codeine (30 mg) or placebo at 1700h on separate days in a counterbalanced design; the subjects were not aware of the sequence. Blood samples were collected with an indwelling intravenous catheter at 30-min intervals from 1500h to 1630h. Codeine, but not oxazepam, suppressed cortisol secretion. The trend of the declining cortisol values following codeine was significantly linear. These results are consistent with other evidence indicating the presence of an inhibitory opioid mechanism in the human hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The cortisol response to codeine may be a reliable and potentially useful paradigm for the study of the role of opioidergic mechanisms in HPA axis dysfunction.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Weight gain with antidepressants and lithium.

Undesired weight gain is a common complaint of patients receiving pharmacological treatment for major affective disorders. It has been found to jeopardize patient compliance and may pose additional health hazards. A review of the literature on weight gain associated with tricyclic antidepressants, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, and lithium was carried out with the aim of deriving practical management strategies. Tricyclic antidepressants were found to stimulate appetite, carbohydrate craving, and a dose-dependent continuous weight gain of 0.57 to 1.37 kg per month of treatment. Proposed mechanisms include noradrenergic or antihistaminic inhibition of satiety and decreased metabolic rate. Novel serotonergic and dopaminergic antidepressants were found to be anorectic. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors may stimulate appetite and potentiate insulin-induced hypoglycemia. Lithium maintenance therapy stimulates weight gains of over 10 kg in 20% of patients. Documented mechanisms include insulin-like actions on carbohydrate and fat metabolism, polydipsia, and sodium retention. Recommendations regarding choice of antidepressant drug as well as dietary and behavioral strategies to prevent excessive weight gain are presented. Potential adjunctive drug approaches to severe weight gain are reviewed.

Antidepressive Agents↗