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P Ettigi

Publications and source records attributed to P Ettigi.

13 recordsLinked to original sources

The quality of life and employment in panic disorder.

Our purpose was to measure quality of life (QOL) and work productivity (WP) in persons with panic disorder. Eighty-four panic disorder patients with limited psychiatric comorbidity for ten U.S. outpatient mental health centers were evaluated in a cross-sectional design. Patients self-administered the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and Work Productivity and Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. The independent effects of psychiatric comorbidity were addressed through entry criteria, stratification, and regression analyses. QOL scores are significantly below age and sex-adjusted population norms on all SF-36 measures (p < .01). We note far greater impairment on measures of mental and emotional versus physical well-being. The unemployment rate among these patients is 25%, and only 57% are employed full-time. Those who are employed rated their WP as low. This sample of outpatients suffer marked QOL and employment impairment, which is only partially explained by the presence of psychiatric comorbidity.

Adult↗

Diagnoses of the relatives of schizotypal outpatients.

Relatives of 22 schizotypal probands were evaluated for lifetime psychiatric diagnoses. Forty-four (N = 44) of the 97 available relatives were interviewed directly using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. The rates of psychiatric diagnoses were compared with those of sixty-six (N = 66) of 140 relatives of 30 depressed patients. Family history of mental illness was ascertained by the informant method on the remainder of relatives of both proband groups. The rate of depression found in the relatives of schizotypal patients was 52% in those directly interviewed and 25.7% when informants' reports on unavailable relatives are pooled with direct interview data. These rates were not significantly higher than those found for the relatives of depressed probands (34.8% by direct interview and 21% including reports from informants). The high rates of depression in the relatives of schizotypal probands may indicate that schizotypal personality is associated with affective disorder and not only with schizophrenia. However, the high rates may be due to the presence of depressive character traits in relatives, which inflate the rates of dysthymic disorder and other chronic depressive disorders in the relatives of borderline patients.

Adult↗

Effect of acute and chronic neuroleptic therapy on serum prolactin levels in men and women of different age groups.

A single fasting level of serum prolactin was measured in each of sixty control subjects and eighty-three psychiatric patients of both sexes who had been on neuroleptic therapy for 2-4 weeks (acute treatment) or at least 5 years (chronic treatment) and who were aged either 17-45 or 48-85 years. All groups of patients had significantly higher mean prolactin levels than controls. Gender, age group of women, and exposure to acute or chronic treatment were significant variables determining the magnitude of neuroleptic-induced elevation of prolactin. In some of the groups, dose, duration of chronic therapy, and concomitant administration of anticholinergic drugs also influenced prolactin levels. Whereas all acutely treated women had prolactin values above the control range, one out of twelve (8-3%) of the women aged 17-45 years and six out of fourteen (42-9%) of the women aged 48-85 years who were under chronic treatment had normal values. Normal prolactin levels were also found in five out of sixteen (31-2%) of the acutely treated and nine out of twenty-four (37-5%) of the chronically treated men aged 17-85 years.

Adolescent↗

Effect of apomorphine on growth hormone and prolactin secretion in schizophrenic patients, with or without oral dyskinesia, withdrawn from chronic neuroleptic therapy.

Serum growth hormone (GH) and prolactin (PRL) concentrations were measured after administration of the dopamine receptor agonist, apomorphine HC1 (0.75 mg subcutaneously), to 17 chronic schizophrenic patients, four of whom had an oral dyskinesia, who were withdrawn from chronic neuroleptic therapy for periods of two to 15 weeks, and in 21 control subjects (normal volunteers or physically healthy alcoholics not exposed to neuroleptics). Six of the schizophrenic patients, but none of the controls, had raised baseline levels of GH (greater than 6 ng/ml). After apomorphine all controls showed an increase in serum GH with a peak concentration of 9 ng/ml or more, whereas eight subjects withdrawn from neuroleptics showed an inadequate response (peak less than 6 ng/ml) and in two others an inadequate response was obtained on one of two trials. The peak GH concentration was significantly less after apomorphine in patients withdrawn from neuroleptics (11.90 +/- 3.19 ng/ml) compared with controls (20.80 +/- 2.11 ng/ml) (P less than 0.05). Among patients withdrawn from neuroleptics, those with an oral dyskinesia had significantly lower peak GH concentration 2.46 +/- 0.93 ng/ml) after apomorphine compared with those without (14.85 +/- 3.83 ng/ml) (P less than 0.05). There were no differences in serum PRL concentrations, before or after apomorphine administration, between patients withdrawn from neuroleptics and controls. In uncontrolled observations none of the four patients with an oral dyskinesia showed any worsening of the movement disorder after apomorphine. These data provide no evidence for supersensitivity of dopamine receptors in chronic schizophrenic patients withdrawn from chronic neuroleptic therapy.

Adult↗

Effectof sex, oral contraceptives, and glucose loading on apomorphine-induced growth hormone secretion.

Apomorphine-induced growth hormone (GH) secretion less in women either on or off oral contraceptives than in men. Women on oral contraceptives have a significantly greater peak GH response to apomorphine than women on no medication. The reason for these differences is unclear. Prior glucose loading in men significantly decreases the GH response to apomorphine. This suggests that stimulation of glucoreceptors antagonises dopaminergic modulation of GH secretion.

Adolescent↗

Alprazolam versus imipramine in depressed out-patients with neurovegetative signs.

The purpose of this study was to compare the safety and efficacy of a relatively new antidepressant drug, alprazolam (a triazolobenzodiazepine) with imipramine in the treatment of 60 depressed symptomatic volunteers. Eligible patients were randomly assigned after a 1-week washout to one of the medications and followed for 6 treatment weeks. Contrary to the earlier report of Feighner et al. (1983), who found alprazolam superior to imipramine and placebo, but consistent with Rush et al. (1985) we find imipramine superior in efficacy to alprazolam on a variety of symptoms. Both the present study and Rush's study employed patients with signs indicative of response to tricyclics. Feighner's patients may have been the type who tend to be less responsive to tricyclics but may be more responsive to alprazolam. Some of our data also show that alprazolam may have a more advantageous effect in the early weeks of treatment but is overtaken in subsequent treatment weeks by imipramine.

Adolescent↗

Dexamethasone suppression test in diagnosis of depressive illness.

Neuroendocrine abnormalities present in depressive illness and use of the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) in diagnosing depression are reviewed. The coexistence of neuroendocrine disturbances and depressive illness may be explained by a central nervous system neurochemical abnormality. Norepinephrine appears to inhibit hypothalamic corticotropin-releasing factor, thus decreasing ACTH secretion by the pituitary and, in turn, cortisol secretion by the adrenal glands. Thus, a deficiency in brain norepinephrine may lead to both depressive symptoms and increased adrenal cortisol production. Episodes of cortisol secretion are longer and more frequent in depressed patients, and the circadian rhythm of cortisol release is altered. Dexamethasone does not suppress plasma cortisol levels in depressed patients as compared with normal subjects. Abnormal DST results were obtained in 40-70% of inpatients and 20-50% of outpatients diagnosed as having unipolar primary depression or major depressive illness. The incidence of abnormal DST results in most nondepressed psychiatric patients is comparable with that in normal subjects. DST results do not distinguish between unipolar and bipolar depression but may differentiate primary from secondary depression. Depressed patients with abnormal DSTs responded positively to drug treatment. DST nonsuppressors responded more favorably to norepinephrine-reuptake blockers, while DST suppressors preferentially improved with serotonin-reuptake blockers. Normalization of DST response has been associated with clinical improvement. Certain drugs, a number of psychiatric conditions, and several major physical illnesses may alter DST response. The DST is a commonly used and practical tool in evaluating depressive illness; however, its diagnostic value in depressed outpatients and elderly depressed patients is not clear.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Depressive Disorder↗