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Biomedical subjects

J Hintikka

Publications and source records attributed to J Hintikka.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

Depression is strongly associated with alexithymia in the general population.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines how alexithymia and depression are related to each other in men and women in a sample of Finnish general population (n = 2018). METHODS: Alexithymia was screened using the 20-item version of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Level of depression was assessed using the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Life satisfaction was estimated with a structured scale. RESULTS: The prevalence of alexithymia was 12.8% in men and 8.2% in women. However, the prevalence of alexithymia was 32.1% among those having BDI scores of > or = 9, but only 4.3% among the nondepressed subjects (p < 0.001). The BDI scores explained 29.2% of the variation in TAS-20 scores. Alexithymia was associated with several sociodemographic factors if depression was not taken into account. However, after including depression in the logistic regression models, only depression and low life satisfaction were associated with alexithymia, both in men and women. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that alexithymia has a close relationship to depression in the general population. The impact of social factors on alexithymia may be primarily explained by depression. Depression must be taken into account as a confounding factor when studying alexithymia in general populations due to the strong association between alexithymia and depression.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Men, women and friends--are there differences in relation to mental well-being?

This is a study on associations between the number of close friends and mental well-being in a nationwide sample of the Finnish general population (n = 1,603). Mental well-being was assessed by means of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire. A total of 3% of the sample had no close friends and another 3% had only one. Over half of the sample (52%) reported having five or more friends. The overall prevalence of mental distress was 15% in men and 21% in women. According to multivariate analyses the risk of mental distress was increased in men among those with no friends (odds ratio [OR]: 2.70) and among those who had one (OR: 4.32) or two to four friends (OR: 1.75), as compared with those who had more friends. In women, having only one friend (OR: 2.30), insufficient family support (OR: 1.63) and insufficient support from relatives (OR: 1.77) associated with the risk of mental distress. These results suggest that mental well-being might be promoted if mentally distressed men seeking professional help were supported in building up and maintaining social networks and mentally distressed women were supported in harmonizing their family life.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Depression after coronary heart disease events.

OBJECTIVE: To study the prevalence of depression at least 6 months after various coronary heart disease (CHD) events (bypass grafting, coronary angioplasty, myocardial infarction, myocardial ischaemia without infarction) and the associations between depression and clinical variables. DESIGN: In the course of the study 414 (284 males, 130 females) patients younger than 71 years (mean age for men 60.9 years and for women 63.6 years) were interviewed and examined. Smoking habits, body mass index, lipid levels and diabetic status were recorded. The New York Heart Association (NYHA) class was assessed. Depression was screened using a self-rated depression scale. RESULTS: In the four diagnostic categories, one-sixth of the patients (14-19%) suffered from depression. Depression was associated with smoking (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.2; 2.4) and poor NYHA class (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.4; 2.6). CONCLUSION: Depression is common after CHD events, and is associated with smoking and poor NYHA class. The identification and treatment of depression should be one of the elements in the rehabilitation of cardiac patients.

Cholesterol↗
PubMed2000

Effect of somatic comorbidity on alleviation of depressive symptoms.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate whether somatic comorbidity (SC) impedes recovery from depression. METHOD: The study design was naturalistic. Diagnosis of depression was confirmed by means of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID). Changes in the symptom scales for those patients with somatic comorbidity (n = 75) were compared with corresponding changes in depressive patients without somatic comorbidity (n = 41) in a 6-month follow up. RESULTS: Measured on the Hamilton and Beck scales, recovery rates of those with SC was only slightly lower to that of the others. The difference was statistically significant only in relation to the Hamilton scale. Forty-four per cent of those with SC and 42% of the other patients recovered from their depression (BDI score < 10 on follow up). Logistic regression analysis showed no independent association between recovery and somatic comorbidity. CONCLUSIONS: Moderate somatic comorbidity has only a minor effect on recovery from depression.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Gender differences in associations between religious attendance and mental health in Finland.

We investigated in a nationwide sample of the Finnish general population (869 women and 773 men) whether there were gender-differences in associations between religious attendance and mental well-being. Respondents were asked during telephone interviews about sociodemographic variables, frequency of religious attendance and social contacts, and perceived social and family support. Mental health was screened by means of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). More women than men (62% vs. 50%) attended religious events, and there was a corresponding difference in percentages relating to regular religious attendance (17% vs. 10%). Regular religious attendance was most common among those over 65 years of age. In women, minor mental disorder (GHQ-12 score > or = 3) was more common among those who never attended religious events than among the others (25% vs. 16%). In men there was no difference. In women, religious attendance associated positively with social contacts, in men with happy family life. In multivariate analyses an independent positive association between religious attendance and absence of minor mental disorder was found in women (adjusted OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.12 to 2.24) but not in men. These results suggest that there may be gender-differences in associations between religious attendance, social and family life, and mental health.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Is it possible to adapt to the suicide of a close individual? Results of a 10-year prospective follow-up study.

We conducted a prospective ten-year follow-up study on the consequences of a suicide among relatives or other individuals close to the suicide victim. Baseline interviews (n = 104) were carried out during the National Suicide Prevention Project in Finland from 1987 to 1988. Semi-structured follow-up interviews including the 12-item General Health Questionnaire and the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory were carried out ten years later (n = 64, 64% of those still alive). Mental symptoms were reported to have been common after suicide but they had subsided during three years. Mental symptoms had been common especially among children after their parent's suicide. At baseline mothers had had depressive symptoms more often than others, but at follow-up there was no statistical difference. Life changes associated with the suicide were common, and they could be unfavourable as well as favourable. At the time of the follow-up study, half of the interviewees felt that baseline interviews had helped them to adjust to the suicide.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1999

Gender differences in living skills and global assessment of functioning among outpatients with schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of this paper are to study skills in personal and domestic activities, and their associations with Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale scores among outpatients with schizophrenia, and to study the impact of depressive mood on functional capacity in schizophrenia. METHOD: Three hundred and two outpatients with DSM-III-R schizophrenia completed the 13-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and a questionnaire relating to their sociodemographic characteristics, and living and working conditions. Staff members completed the GAF scale and a questionnaire relating to the patient's medical history and current treatment. This questionnaire also included the staff's assessments on patient's skills in six personal or domestic activities (personal hygiene, homemaking, management of financial affairs, shopping, decision-making, getting about). RESULTS: Fifty-six percent of men and 33% of women (p < 0.001) with schizophrenia did not have independent skills in at least one personal or domestic activity but there was no difference in the mean GAF score between men and women. In men, the GAF score was independently and positively associated with all living skills studied and in women with homemaking, management of financial affairs, and decision-making, respectively. The BDI scores were not independently associated with functioning in personal and domestic activities except with getting about in women. CONCLUSIONS: The GAF scale is a simple and time-saving measure for assessing overall living skills among outpatients with schizophrenia. However, assessments on the GAF scale may be biased towards poor functioning in women. Moreover, psychosocial functioning and depression should be evaluated separately.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1999

Self-reported life satisfaction and treatment factors in patients with schizophrenia, major depression and anxiety disorder.

Our aim was to study the associations between life satisfaction and treatment factors and how depression affects these associations among patients with schizophrenia (n=403), major depression (n=349) and anxiety disorder (n=139) from a defined area. Treatment satisfaction and compliance were high, but life satisfaction was low regardless of diagnostic group. Patients with schizophrenia recorded better life satisfaction than patients with the other disorders. There were few independent associations between life satisfaction and treatment factors. Fortunately, factors amenable to treatment intervention, such as depression, problem-solving ability and social support, were independently related to life satisfaction in every diagnostic group. Depression decreased these associations significantly only in patients with schizophrenia. Life satisfaction and treatment satisfaction should be included as separate variables in treatment outcome studies.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Suicide mortality in Finland during an economic cycle, 1985-1995.

This is a study on associations between suicide mortality, unemployment, divorce rate and mean alcohol consumption during an economic cycle in Finland, from 1985 to 1995. Data on annual suicide mortality, gross domestic product, unemployment, divorce rate and mean alcohol consumption were collected from official Finnish statistics. Regression analyses using a correction for serial autocorrelation were performed. Suicide mortality in both males and females increased during an economic upswing from 1985 to 1990 and decreased during an economic recession from 1990 to 1995. Suicide mortality was not associated with unemployment or divorce rate. These results are opposed to those of many previous studies. However, a significant association was found between male suicide mortality and mean alcohol consumption, in accord with other studies. In conclusion, the results suggest diversity in associations between suicide mortality, socioeconomic factors and alcohol consumption.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1998

Risk factors for suicidal ideation in psychiatric patients.

Sociodemographic and clinical risk factors for suicidal ideation have been less studied than risk factors for parasuicide and suicide. No reports on associations between therapy satisfaction and suicidal ideation among psychiatric patients have been published. In this study we compared a group of patients with suicidal ideation (n = 84) with a randomly selected group of nonsuicidal patients (n = 166) in community-based psychiatric services. Patients with suicidal ideation felt a need for psychiatric treatment more often than nonsuicidal patients. They were also more likely to receive antidepressive medication, and weekly therapy sessions were more common among them. A wish to change therapist (OR 15.6, 95% CI 3.6-67.8), hopeless future orientation (OR 14.8, 95% CI 4.5-48.9), severe depression as evaluated by the Beck Depression Inventory (OR 14.0, 95% CI 4.3-45.2) and dysthymia (OR 12.8, 95% CI 1.7-97.3) were the factors most strongly associated with suicidal ideation in multivariate analysis. A wish to change therapist is an expression of therapy dissatisfaction, which may therefore be among the factors most strongly associated with suicidal ideation in psychiatric patients. To help prevent suicidality among psychiatric patients special attention to therapy factors is needed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Suicidal ideation and parasuicide in the Finnish general population.

In a sample of the Finnish general population (n=4868), 2.4% of women and 2.3 % of men reported having thought about suicide during the preceding 12 months. The prevalence of parasuicide was correspondingly 0.9% in women and 1.1% in men, higher figures than have previously been found or estimated. Most suicidal individuals (85%) had contacted general practitioners or other primary care services during the previous 12 months, and a minority (20%) had made contact with psychiatric services. General practitioners and other primary care services are thus in a key position to identify suicidal behaviour in the Finnish general population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Debt and suicidal behaviour in the Finnish general population.

We studied the significance of debt as a risk factor for suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in a nation-wide sample (n = 4868) of the Finnish general population. Those experiencing difficulties in repaying their debts more often than others (37 vs. 16%, P<0.001) had a probable minor mental disorder (GHQ-12 score > or =3). Nevertheless, difficulties in repaying debts were found to be a factor independently associated with suicidal ideation (OR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.9-4.2). The clinical implication of these findings is that individuals experiencing difficulties in repaying their debts may require psychiatric evaluation as well as socio-economic counselling.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Smoking and suicidality among psychiatric patients.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the relationship between smoking and suicidality among psychiatric patients. METHOD: All psychiatric patients (N = 1,217) from Kuopio University Hospital in eastern Finland were examined for current smoking, suicidal ideation, previous suicide attempts, and other risk factors by using a cross-sectional, multivariate design. RESULTS: The probability of at least one previous suicide attempt was 100% higher in current smokers than in nonsmokers. Smokers also had a 43% higher risk of experiencing mild to severe suicidal ideation than nonsmokers. CONCLUSIONS: Current smoking was significantly related to suicidality in multiple logistic models, even after several confounding factors were controlled. The independence of this association seems possible, but the subject requires further research.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Hunting guns in homes and suicides in 15-24-year-old males in eastern Finland.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between firearm ownership, the presence of guns in homes, the use of psychiatric services and suicides in 15-24-year-old males in Eastern Finland. METHOD: Police and medicolegal records of all suicides (n = 68) performed by 15-24-year-old males in the Kuopio province, Eastern Finland, in 1988-1995 were studied. Information was sought about firearm ownership, legality and purposes of use. Information was also sought about recent contacts with psychiatric services. Firearm suicides were compared with suicides by other methods. RESULTS: The annual suicide rate for 15-24-year-old males was 51/100 000. Sixty-two percent of suicides were committed by shooting. In 74% of these, licensed hunting guns were used. The proportion of suicides committed by legal hunting guns stored in the homes of victims was 60% of all firearm suicides. Sixty-two percent of firearm suicides were committed in homes of victims or in someone else's residence where guns were present. Only 2% of those who shot themselves were seen in psychiatric consultation during the 3 months prior to death. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of hunting guns in homes means easy access to a most lethal suicide method and is associated with a high suicide rate for 15-24-year-old males in Eastern Finland.

Adolescent↗