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Biomedical subjects

R von Frenckell

Publications and source records attributed to R von Frenckell.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Controlled comparison of two anxiolytic benzodiazepines, cloxazolam and bromazepam.

The clinical activity and the tolerance of cloxazolam (4 mg/day), a new anxiolytic benzodiazepine, was compared to bromazepam (12 mg/day) in two parallel groups of 427 and 410 psychiatric outpatients, respectively. The duration of the study was 4 weeks with clinical assessments at inclusion and after 2 and 4 weeks of therapy by the Hamilton anxiety scale and visual analogue scales. While the Hamilton anxiety scale did not exhibit significant differences between the two benzodiazepines, visual analogue scales showed significant superiority of cloxazolam over bromazepam on psychological anxiety, somatic anxiety, depressed mood, and sleep, with a lack of significant difference related to the sedative effect, but less muscle-relaxant effect with cloxazolam than with bromazepam. The better efficacy and tolerance of cloxazolam compared to bromazepam was confirmed by the global assessments using visual analogue scales; moreover, a significantly larger proportion of patients in the cloxazolam group wanted to continue the same treatment.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Controlled comparison of buspirone and oxazepam in generalized anxiety.

The anxiolytic activity, the tolerance, and the withdrawal symptoms of buspirone and oxazepam were compared in two groups of 14 and 12 outpatients, respectively, suffering from generalized anxiety in a double-blind study with random allocation of patients. The 6-week active period was preceded and followed by 1 and 2 weeks on placebo, respectively. Clinical assessments were performed before and after the predrug placebo period and every 2 weeks thereafter and included Hamilton anxiety and depression scales and AMDP anxiety subscale. The initial daily dose was 15 mg buspirone or 45 mg oxazepam in 3 intakes and the mean final daily doses were 22.2 and 55.8 mg, respectively. Results showed a slower anxiolytic activity of buspirone compared to oxazepam with less improvement after 2 weeks of treatment. The rebound anxiety following abrupt discontinuation of the drug and the level of side effects did not significantly differ between the two compounds.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Psychopathological correlates of dopaminergic disturbances in major depression.

In a recent report, we confirmed the role of dopamine in the pathophysiology of depression by demonstrating a blunted response of growth hormone (GH) to apomorphine, a selective dopaminergic agonist, in endogenous depressive patients. Few data are available on the possible psychopathological correlates of disturbances in the apomorphine test. In this study, we assessed the relationship between GH response to apomorphine and the Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory (MMPI) scales in a sample of 20 major depressive inpatients. The GH response (area under the curve) after apomorphine injection was positively correlated with the social introversion scale scores (r = 0.56, df = 19, p less than 0.01) and the anxiety scale scores (r = 0.45, df = 19, p = 0.04). These results suggest dopaminergic overactivity in anxious psychopathology rather than in depressive psychopathology. The relationship between the social introversion scale score and the apomorphine test is in agreement with the dopaminergic hypothesis of schizophrenic disorders.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Open multicentre trial of zuclopenthixol in mania and schizophrenia based on the AMDP scales.

A total of 95 schizophrenic or manic patients received zuclopenthixol (cis(Z)-clopenthixol) either intramuscularly or orally during a period of 2 to 4 weeks in mean daily doses of 25 mg (i.m.) or 75 mg (p.o.). They were rated with the CGI, VAS, MSS, BPRS, and AMDP scales. Zuclopenthixol proved to be a potent antimanic, anti-aggressive and antidelusional neuroleptic already from the second day of injection. Very few anticholinergic and extrapyramidal side effects as well as little somnolence were seen and the local tolerance was excellent. The 14-factor AMDP profile proved valid, sensitive to change and highly differentiated.

Administration, Oral↗
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[Open study of clotiazepam (Clozan) in ambulatory anxious patients centered on a multifactorial evaluation using the AMDP and on a study of the rebound effect].

The efficacy and tolerance of the first thienodiazepine, clotiazepam, is well established but its clinical spectrum and the possibility of a rebound effect upon its cessation needed further research. Moreover, the validity of the AMDP Anxiety scale had been tested but not yet its sensitivity to change. Clotiazepam was given in an "open" design to 42 anxious outpatients at the dosage of 3 X 5 to 3 X 10 mg daily during 1 month, followed by a 1-week "single blind" placebo period. No other psychotropic drug was needed in 74% of the cases. A battery of observer rating scales (CGI, VAS, HAMA, BPRS, AMDP-4 and -5, AMDP-AT) confirmed the anxiolytic and tensiolytic efficacy of clotiazepam as well as its excellent tolerance. The 13-factor AMDP profile proved superior to short scales in the sample description and in the illustration of the clinical spectrum of the drug. Both the HAMA and the AMDP-AT were sensitive to change but the HAMA more significantly than the AMDP-AT.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The Newcastle Index for the diagnosis of endogenous depression. Comparison with the Research Diagnostic Criteria for major depression].

The Newcastle index comprises 10 items (with a positive or negative score) the sum of which enables us to separate endogenous and neurotic depressive patients. We applied this index to a sample of 41 depressive inpatients who met Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC) for major depression. According to Newcastle index, 20 patients were considered to be endogenous and 21 to be neurotic. There was no significant difference between the two groups with regard to sex distribution and mean age. The distribution of scores suggested a trend toward bimodality. Endogenous depressives exhibited higher severity level than neurotic depressives, as shown by the total score on the Hamilton depression scale as well as the scores on various items related to depressive mood, guilt, decreased activity, psychomotor disturbances, genital symptoms, helplessness, hopelessness, and worthlessness. This higher severity level was confirmed by the higher frequency of two symptomatic criteria of major depression among endogenous depressives as compared to neurotic depressives: psychomotor and memory disturbances. Moreover, endogenous depressives defined by Newcastle index were more frequently of primary, endogenous, agitated and simple RDC subtypes whereas neurotic depressives were more frequently of secondary and situational RDC subtypes. Therefore, the results of this preliminary study suggest that the Newcastle index may enable us to define two subtypes of depressive patients characterized by different symptomatic severity levels.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[What do you say, agnostic?].

This short novel is the story of the perplexity of a statistician travelling for more than a decade in the quicksands of quantitative psychopathology, from the nonvalidated concepts of the DSM-III to their validation by the Dexamethasone Suppression Test whose validity is ignored, from the "mathematical" concepts of Lacan to items suppressed from the AMDP-System, such as autism, because of a lack of agreement of the psychiatrists on objective criteria. The author concludes with a note of hope: comprehensive scales like the AMDP, combined with biological predictors, should facilitate the discovery of new psychotropic drugs, more specific for certain syndromes, hence contributing to new classificatory models.

Humans↗
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[A problem detected by the AMDP rating of the Mar. case: the relation between phobia and obsession].

The rating of the videotaped interview of the Mar. case during three meetings of the French-speaking section of the AMDP has revealed the problem of the relationships between phobia and obsession. These ratings triggered a critical reflection based on the theoretical framework from the literature, on the clinical material (the videotaped interview) and on the pragmatic difficulties which appeared during the discussions of the ratings.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[AMDP profile of endogenous and non-endogenous depressions].

The multifactorial, comprehensive description--as allowed by the AMDP scales--of two samples of depressed patients (95 endogenous vs. 86 nonendogenous according to ICD-9) illustrates a common pattern dominated by anxiety, depression, retardation and hostility but also significant differences: endogenous depressives reach higher Depression and Apathy-Retardation scores, whereas nonendogenous depressives have higher Dramatization and Hostility scores. The methodological aspects linked to the extraction of factorial profiles and the implications of the endogenous/nonendogenous differences are discussed.

Depression↗
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[Preliminary results of a double-blind study between rolipram and desipramine in hospitalized patients with major depressive symptoms].

Rolipram facilitates the postsynaptic neurotransmission of NA through a completely new mechanism of action, namely, an inhibition of the inactivation of the second messenger (the cyclic AMP) by phosphodiesterase. In the present study, Rolipram is compared to a classical tricyclic antidepressant which facilitates the NA transmission through an inhibition of its presynaptic reuptake: Desipramine. Preliminary results on 12 Rolipram patients vs. 9 Desipramine patients indicate that Rolipram has an antidepressant potency comparable to Desipramine with less anticholinergic and hypotensive side effects. This study also illustrates that a 14-factor AMDP profile gives much more information than a single total score such as the Hamilton score.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The AMDP scales in a phase II evaluation of psychotropic drugs].

Four multicentre double blind trials (two studies comparing placebo to a marketed activating drug and two comparing placebo to a new drug with central adrenergic modulating properties) were pooled, totalling 77 placebo Ss, 30 reference drug Ss and 73 study drug Ss. The AMDP-4 and -5 scales were filled out at day 0 and 7 by trained raters. Four statistical analyses were performed on the pre- vs. postdrug differences: an analysis of variance, a principal components factor analysis, a discriminant analysis and a cluster analysis. The results indicate that 9 out of the 14 AMDP factor scores significantly decrease within 1 week while the factor Mania-Agitation increases, without differences between both active compounds; on the item level, the "inhibition of drive" is specifically improved by the study drug; the discriminant analysis confirms that the two most improved items are "Inhibition of drive" and "Hopelessness". Three factor scores significantly improve on placebo (Depression, Retardation, Psycho-organic Symptoms), which points to the necessity of placebo-controlled studies in clinical trials of new drugs.

Double-Blind Method↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Psychological indices and longevity].

Among 63 former prisoners of war, aged 54 to 65 years, submitted to a psychometric battery, 16 died within the next three years. The comparison of the deceased and surviving groups indicates that personality variables (MMPI) are more predictive of death than mental deterioration.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Preliminary construction and validation of an anxiety scale derived from the French version of the AMDP, the AMDP-AT].

The authors have applied to 493 Belgian and French patients the French version of the AMDP Psychopathology and Somatic scales, made of 140 items from the original German version and of 22 items specific to its French adaptation, among others anxiety items. By applying a principal components factor analysis to this sample, a 17-items. Anxiety Scale was extracted from the 162-items complete scales. This new scale is characterized by a predominence of tension/irritability items over somatic items as compared to the Hamilton Anxiety Scale. On 116 cases, the correlation between both scales is .59 (p less than .0001). A cut-off score for anxiety and an inclusion score for drug trials are suggested on the basis of statistical data.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Critical flicker fusion frequency in psychopathology and psychopharmacology. Review of the literature].

As far back as the second century, Ptolemy reported the apparent immobility of wheel radius at a certain speed. The psychophysical laws of this flicker fusion phenomenon related to the frequency of the light stimulus were established in 1834-1835 by the Englishman Talbot and by the Belgian Plateau, whose thesis in Liège is described as a landmark in the field. CFF is more a measurement of cortical arousal than of visual functions. In psychophysiology, CFF underwent periods of success and oblivion, at the mercy of researcher's enthusiasm or disappointment. At the turn of this century, Pierre Janet measured CFF in the laboratory of physiology of the Salpêtrière Hospital and demonstrated its decrease 'in hysteria, in states of depression, of lowered tension'. All reviewers of CFF literature have overlooked these observations, reported by Henri Piéron in the 'Melanges dedicated to Monsieur Pierre Janet'. When CFF falls into disgrace, it is because of the variability of its results, due to differences in apparatus and designs of the trials as well as the great number and the intrication of the variables which modify CFF thresholds, among them the nonsensory variables. When CFF is reappraised, as it has been the case in psychopharmacology in recent years, the reason is that it represents a brief, easy and economical measure of vigilance which, under certain conditions, seems to be also reliable, valid and sensitive. In the present monograph, the first in French on CFF, the authors try to analyze the most important contributions of the literature from the standpoint of the most relevant variables: characteristics of the stimulus (light intensity, wave form, wavelength, light-dark-ratio, diameter of the flickering point), test procedure (light vs. dark adaptation, visual angle, continuous vs. discontinuous presentation, monocular vs. binocular vision), influence of various physiological or psychological conditions (pupillary diameter, age, training, IQ; anxiety, depression, motivation etc.). The authors summarize the prerequisite for CFF to measure vigilance or aging in psychopharmacological research. The present Monograph is dedicated to the authors' 'Maîtres', who recently became Emeritus Professors, namely the ophthalmologist Roger Weekers, the pioneer of the clinical application of CFF in Belgium, and the psychiatrist Jean Bobon, who pioneered clinical psychopharmacology in Belgium.

Adaptation, Ocular↗
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[A scale inspired by AMDP, adapted for coronary patients].

In the aim of evaluating the goodness of the relaxation proposed to coronary patients, the authors have used their own scale which consists of a list of 51 items related to psychological attitudes. They have analyzed 156 scales by mean of principal components analysis followed by a Varimax rotation. So they have shown a good structural validity and have, in the same time, increased its sensitivity. For 53 paired patients rated by one of the authors before and after relaxation, the evolution of 10 factors has been analyzed by mean of a t test. This statistical procedure gives good results, particularly in the life adaptation (p less than 0.0001). All factors, but one related to "PATTERN A", are significantly changed. This last fact is interpreted in the way of defense mechanisms.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Factor analysis of the French revision of the AMDP rating scales. Results of an international study of 388 cases].

A total of 388 patients from 10 Belgian and French Centers were evaluated with the 1981 revision of the psychopathological and somatic scales of the AMDP System. Principal components factor analyses indicate that the somatic items contribute little to the structure. A 10-factors solution of the psychopathological items generate the following factors after orthogonal rotation: Obsessions-Phobias, Dramatization, Anxiety, Depression, Retardation, Organicity, Dissociation, Delusions, Mania, Dysphoria. This structure is similar to the analyses of the previous German edition except for Anxiety (due to additional French items) and Dramatization (which replaces the German factor on Hypochondriasis). The correlations between raw factor scores and item scores of the BPRS and of a similar AMDP-derived scale contribute to the validation of the AMDP factors and to the justification of a 13-item AMDP Syndromic Scale.

Adolescent↗