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Biomedical subjects

H G Rooijmans

Publications and source records attributed to H G Rooijmans.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

DNA-testing for Huntington's disease in The Netherlands: a retrospective study on psychosocial effects.

Presymptomatic DNA-testing for Huntington's disease has made it possible to predict whether or not at-risk individuals are gene-carriers with a reliability of about 98%. In our retrospective study of 18 tested individuals, most of the newly identified carriers function apparently well. They use avoidance and repression of affect as psychological defense strategies. However, 8 out of 9 non-carriers do not experience the expected relief about their test results. They experience survivor guilt and emotional numbness and find it difficult to cope with the effects of the test results on the family system. The partners of gene-carriers are at risk of becoming emotionally isolated by putting aside their own feelings for fear of seeming self-centered. Appreciation of these effects on tested individuals is important and professional support is needed to prevent post-traumatic stress disorders. Whatever the test result may be, the working through process may take years rather than months. These findings have important implications for patient care and necessitate an extended period of observation after presymptomatic testing.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Prevalence of the dementia syndrome in the oldest residents of a somatic nursing home].

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of dementia among subjects of 85 years and over residing in a somatic nursing home. DESIGN: A two-phase design with the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) in the screening phase and the geriatric mental state schedule (GMS) in the diagnostic phase. SETTING: Three somatic nursing homes in Leiden. SUBJECTS: All subjects aged 85 years and over residing in one of the three nursing homes on December 1, 1986. First phase participation rate was 75%; second phase participation rate was 88%. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: DSM-III diagnosis of dementia without further specification of the aetiology of the dementia. RESULTS: An overall prevalence of 54% (95% CI: 43-66%) was found. This included 32% mild dementia, 9% moderate and 13% severe dementia. CONCLUSION: Dementia was found to be the most prevalent disorder among somatic nursing home residents aged 85 years and over. The shortage of psychogeriatric nursing home beds may have contributed to this high prevalence of dementia. However, the relatively large number of mild cases, which are usually not listed for admission to a psychogeriatric nursing home, indicates that the combination of a beginning dementia with physical impairment led to admission to a somatic nursing home. Considering the growth of the oldest part of the population it is to be expected that the prevalence of dementia will remain high among the oldest residents of somatic nursing homes.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Mental play in Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

A new phenomenon, found only in Gilles de la Tourette (GTS) patients, and which we have called 'mental play', is described. It was compared with the phenomenon of counting, which occurred in both GTS and obsessive-compulsive patients. In the GTS patients both mental play and counting were best characterised as playful impulsions. In contrast to the GTS patients, the counting of the obsessive-compulsive patients was in line with their obsessive-compulsive behaviour. These findings suggest that repetitive symptoms in GTS patients, even when they share superficial similarities with obsessive-compulsive symptoms, should not be diagnosed automatically as obsessive-compulsive.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Alcohol abuse among elderly patients in a general hospital as identified by the Munich Alcoholism Test.

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of alcohol abuse among elderly patients in a general hospital. Scores on the Dutch version of the Munich Alcoholism Test (MALT) and medical records were obtained from 132 patients aged 65 and over, staying at the University Hospital Leiden. According to the MALT, 9% of the elderly patients (13% of the men and 7% of the women) were classified as alcoholics. In contrast, the discharge diagnosis involved alcohol dependence or abuse for only 0.5% of the patients 65 years and over admitted in 1989. In this study, two thirds of the alcoholic patients were recognized by the attending physician. Vague symptoms as admission diagnosis occurred more frequently in alcoholics than in nonalcoholics. Regarding former medical diagnoses, alcoholics had suffered significantly more often from organic brain diseases. In comparison to nonalcoholics, elderly alcoholics used more psychotropic drugs.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

Psychiatric consultations with depressed medical inpatients: a randomized controlled cost-effectiveness study.

Nonspecific, supportive psychiatric consultations were performed with a random sample of thirty-three general medical inpatients scoring thirteen or more on the Beck Depression Inventory. The control group consisted of thirty-five patients, matched for sex, marital status, somatic history, and seriousness of illness. The number of patients receiving no analgesic and/or psychotropic medication in the consult group (39%) was significantly greater than that in the control group (17%). When compared with their mean BDI score on admission, the BDI score just before discharge had decreased significantly in the consult group (from 20 to 13), but not in the control group (from 19 to 16). Probably because the patient sample was too heterogeneous, with too low a prevalence of mental disorders (45%), a significant reduction in other medical care expenditures and in length of hospital stay could not be demonstrated.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed1987

Prevalence and recognition of depressive disorders in general medical inpatients.

The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was administered to 220 of 340 patients consecutively admitted to three general medical wards of a University Hospital, whose length of hospital stay was more than five days. At least mild symptoms of depression (BDI greater than or equal to 13) were reported by 70/220 (32%) of the patients. Alternate BDI depressive patients underwent psychiatric consultation. The psychiatric consultant established a DSM-III depressive disorder in 10/33 (30%) of these patients. Only 3/10 (30%) of the DSM-III depressive patients had been referred to the consultant psychiatrist by their physician.

Adolescent↗