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Biomedical subjects

E K Gunderson

Publications and source records attributed to E K Gunderson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Infectious disease rates in the U.S. Navy, 1980 to 1995.

The effect of increasing numbers of women in the U.S. Navy, particularly those aboard Navy ships, on infectious disease risk is unknown. This study examines gender and other demographic differences among all U.S. Navy enlisted personnel in first hospitalizations for infectious diseases from 1980 through 1989 and identifies trends in incidence rates during the extended period from 1980 to 1995. All data were obtained from official personnel and medical records. First hospitalization rates were computed using the Epidemiological Interactive System. Varicella and other viruses and chlamydiae accounted for more than 20,000 hospitalizations among Navy enlisted personnel in the 1980s. In 7 of the 12 categories of common infectious diseases, women's rates were higher than those for men, particularly for viral meningitis, herpes simplex, syphilis, gonococcal disease, and candidiasis. An excess of certain common infectious diseases among women and nonwhite ethnic groups emphasizes the need for continuing education and surveillance in these populations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Predictors of behavior and performance in extreme environments: the Antarctic space analogue program.

BACKGROUND: To determine which, if any, characteristics should be incorporated into a select-in approach to screening personnel for long-duration spaceflight, we examined the influence of crewmember social/ demographic characteristics, personality traits, interpersonal needs, and characteristics of station physical environments on performance measures in 657 American men who spent an austral winter in Antarctica between 1963 and 1974. METHODS: During screening, subjects completed a Personal History Questionnaire which obtained information on social and demographic characteristics, the Deep Freeze Opinion Survey which assessed 5 different personality traits, and the Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior (FIRO-B) Scale which measured 6 dimensions of interpersonal needs. Station environment included measures of crew size and severity of physical environment. Performance was assessed on the basis of combined peer-supervisor evaluations of overall performance, peer nominations of fellow crew-members who made ideal winter-over candidates, and self-reported depressive symptoms. RESULTS: Social/demographic characteristics, personality traits, interpersonal needs, and characteristics of station environments collectively accounted for 9-17% of the variance in performance measures. The following characteristics were significant independent predictors of more than one performance measure: military service, low levels of neuroticism, extraversion and conscientiousness, and a low desire for affection from others. CONCLUSIONS: These results represent an important first step in the development of select-in criteria for personnel on long-duration missions in space and other extreme environments. These criteria must take into consideration the characteristics of the environment and the limitations they place on meeting needs for interpersonal relations and task performance, as well as the characteristics of the individuals and groups who live and work in these environments.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Behavior and performance on long-duration spaceflights: evidence from analogue environments.

BACKGROUND: Analyses of data collected in Antarctica since 1963 were conducted to identify features of behavior and performance likely to occur during long-duration missions in space. METHODS: The influence of mission duration and station latitude on POMS mood scores was examined in 450 American men and women who wintered-over in Antarctica between 1991 and 1998. The influence of crewmember social characteristics, personality traits, interpersonal needs, and station environments on measures of behavior and performance at the end of the austral winter was examined in 657 American men who wintered-over between 1963 and 1974. Both data sets were used to examine the influence of crew social structure on individual performance. RESULTS: Seasonal variations in mood appear to be associated with the altered diurnal cycle and psychological segmentation of the mission. Concurrent measures of personality, interpersonal needs, and coping styles are better predictors of depressed mood and peer-supervisor performance evaluations than baseline measures because of the unique features of the station social and physical environments and the absence of resources typically used to cope with stress elsewhere. Individuals in crews with a clique structure report significantly more depression, anxiety, anger, fatigue and confusion than individuals in crews with a core-periphery structure. Depressed mood is inversely associated with severity of station physical environment, supporting the existence of a positive or "salutogenic" effect for individuals seeking challenging experiences in extreme environments. CONCLUSION: Behavior and performance on long-duration spaceflights is likely to be seasonal or cyclical, situational, social, and salutogenic.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1983

Effects of alcohol rehabilitation treatment on health and performance of Navy enlisted men.

Changes in medical care utilization (rates of hospital admission and days hospitalized) and performance (rates of unauthorized absence and desertion) from pre- to posttreatment for alcohol abuse were determined for a group of career Navy enlisted men. Comparisons were made with two control groups matched with the abusers on year of entering the service and age at enlistment. Treatment favorably affected health and performance during the 2-year posttreatment period. While the alcohol abuse group showed no change in the mean number of hospital admissions from pre- to posttreatment, significant increases were reported for both control groups. Similarly, although rates of unauthorized absence and desertion increased significantly from pre- to posttreatment for alcohol abusers, the increases were proportionately less than those experienced by either control group.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Alcohol-related morbidity among older career navy men.

Hospital admission histories were compared for groups of Navy enlisted men identified as alcohol abusers or controls during the later years of their service careers. The alcohol abuse group had a higher mean number of hospital admissions per year and a higher mean number of days hospitalized per year than did the control group. Highest admission rates for both abusers and controls were reported in two major diagnostic categories, first, accidents, poisoning, and violence, and second, diseases of the digestive system. The rates for alcohol abusers exceeded those of controls in these and several additional diagnostic categories including mental disorders where the greatest disparity in rates of hospitalization was noted. The greatest differences in rates of specific illness between abusers and controls were observed for cirrhosis of the liver and diseases of the pancreas. Reasons for higher illness rates other than alcohol abuse were not apparent from available data.

Accidents↗
PubMed1981

A longitudinal study of health risks associated with alcohol abuse in young navy men.

Hospital admission histories were compared for groups of alcohol abusers and controls who entered the Navy in 1970 or 1971 and who reenlisted. The histories extended over a period of 6 to 8 years. The alcohol abuse group had a significantly higher mean number of hospital admissions and days hospitalized for conditions other than alcoholism than did the controls. Differences in frequencies of illnesses between the two groups were apparent during the first year in service and continued throughout the study period. Highest rates of illness in both groups were reported for accidents, poisonings, and violence; diseases of the respiratory system; infective and parasitic diseases, and diseases of the respiratory system; infective and parasitic diseases, and diseases of the digestive system. Mental diseases were a major cause of morbidity in the alcohol abuse group but not in the control group. Differences in illness rates were related to identification as alcohol abusers rather than to differences between abusers and controls in education, aptitude, or age at enlistment.

Accidents↗
PubMed1981

Motivational determinants of illicit drug use: an assessment of underlying dimensions and their relationship to behavior.

Principal components analysis was used to delineate motivational patterns associated with illicit drug use in a population of U.S. Navy enlisted men (n = 867) undergoing drug rehabilitation. Patients indicated which of 31 reasons for drug use were associated with various drugs. Four components emerged from this analysis, labeled Insight-Seeking, Therapeutic Needs, Sentience, and Pleasure-Seeking. Higher order factor analysis revealed the presence of a general factor, labeled General Sensation-Seeking. Multiple regression procedures were used to relate the derived dimensions to actual drug use behavior. The significant relationships observed among the factor analytic patterns in predicting overall drug involvement were shown to lead to increased explanation concerning interrelationships among personality needs and social resources. The findings suggested a number of hypotheses pertaining to increased understanding of motivational patterns underlying initiation and continuation of illicit drug use.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

A longitudinal study of neurosis in young men.

Because of the widely varying symptomatology seen in the neuroses, questions have been raised about whether they constitute a realistically defined category of illness. The authors followed 4074 Navy enlisted men diagnosed as neurotic between 1966 and 1969 and compared disposition decisions and posthospital outcomes for four major neurotic subtypes (anxiety, hysterical, depressive, and phobic-obsessive-compulsive). Neurotic patients as a group were also compared with patients in other diagnostic categories. Although posthospital outcomes were found to differ among the four neurotic subtypes, the differences were not large when compared with the differences between the neuroses as a group and other major diagnostic categories. Those findings suggest that the neuroses are a distinct group with regard to outcome, and that the use of this diagnostic category should not be abandoned without further study.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

The clinical characteristics of personality disorder subtypes in Naval service.

The clinical importance of personality disorder subtypes was evaluated through an analysis of the demographic characteristics and outcomes for 11,549 navy enlisted men who received a primary diagnosis of a character and behavior disorder. Men with similar demographic characteristics serving in similar environments and demonstrating grossly similar clinical pictures received different diagnoses and dispositions in the various hospitals studied. Within any 1 hospital over the 4 study years, while demography of character and behavior disorder patients remained stable, diagnostic breakdowns and administrative and outcome characteristics varied markedly. The data are thus consistent with the hypothesis that diagnostic subtypes for personality disorders have limited clinical and prognostic meanings. The label may reflect the idiosyncratic preference of a particular physician at 1 point in time as much as the clinical picture or prognosis of the patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Transient situational disturbances: course and outcome.

The validity and usefulness of the diagnostic category transient situational disturbance were evaluated by studying the course and outcome for 2,078 hospitalized naval personnel. The condition was found to be less severe and disabling than other major psychiatric disorders in terms of chronicity, length of hospitalization, and disposition. Outcomes in terms of rehospitalization rates and work effectiveness also were relatively favorable. Based on three or more years of follow-up, a substantial proportion of patients originally diagnosed as having a transient situational disturbance subsequently manifested personality disorder problems. The results suggest that clearer criteria are needed to define situational disturbances operationally and to identify patients with underlying personality disorders.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1978

Prediction of posttreatment effectiveness in Navy alcoholics.

Major predictors of the posttreatment effectiveness of 2195 alcoholics enlisted in the U.S. Navy were, for men 26 and over, abstinence during treatment, years of service and level of pay, and, for younger men, level of pay, not being demoted and not missing promotion to petty officer status.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Alcoholism in young men.

This study compares the characteristics of groups of younger (age 25 or less) and older men hospitalized for alcoholism in calendar years 1966--1969 and 1970--1971. While the percentage of young alcoholics increased from 28 to 43 between the two time samples, such an increase does not necessarily indicate a higher prevalence of alcoholism amoung young Navy men, although this possibility merits further study. Most young men who drink heavily do not become alcoholic, and many may have underlying character and behavior disorders and poor prognoses. Clear criteria for admission to treatment appear to be especially important for young alcoholics because of this diversity in clinical history and prognosis.

Adult↗