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Biomedical subjects

S M Andersen

Publications and source records attributed to S M Andersen.

27 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Changing the psychiatric knowledge of primary care physicians. The effects of a brief intervention on clinical diagnosis and treatment.

This research examined the malleability of physicians' knowledge about psychiatric disorders (and their recommended treatments) based on a brief educational intervention. Primary care physicians were randomly assigned to a single-session intervention dealing with selected DSM-IIIR affective and anxiety disorders or to a wait-list control group. Posttest (vs. pretest) measures indicated that experimental physicians showed greater increases than controls in diagnostic accuracy on relevant disorders, specifically, major depression, dysthymic disorder, and agoraphobia with panic attacks. Treatment recommendations were also influenced, specifically, for major depression and panic disorder. Interestingly, treatment recommendations were also influenced for certain somatic disorders not addressed in the intervention, suggesting "halo" effects for these disorders. Overall, the intervention was effective in increasing diagnostic knowledge and altering treatment recommendations. Implications for research on psychiatric interventions among physicians are discussed.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMed1990

"Do I know you?" The role of significant others in general social perception.

This research used an idiographic method to examine the proposition that significant others are mentally represented as well-organized person categories that can influence social perception even more than representations of nonsignificant others, stereotypes, or traits. Together, Studies 1 and 2 showed that significant-other representations are richer, more distinctive, and more cognitively accessible than the other categories. Study 3 replicated the accessibility data and gauged inferential power by indirectly activating each category in a learning trial about a fictional person and then testing recognition memory. The results showed that participants made more category-consistent false-positive errors about targets who activated significant others vs. any other category. This constitutes the first experimental demonstration of transference and has implications both for social categorization and for basic personality processes.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

The Diagnostic Knowledge Inventory: a measure of knowledge about psychiatric diagnosis.

A psychometrically sound measure of knowledge of psychiatric disorders and diagnoses (consistent with both DSM-III and DSM-III-R) was constructed for use by mental health and health care professionals. No such measure otherwise exists, in spite of its potential value as an educational tool and in research on clinical diagnosis. The diagnostic accuracy (content validity) of a large item pool of brief case vignettes was verified in a prestudy by a team of experts. This item pool then was reduced by half, and two forms of the measure were constructed based on an item analysis that used a heterogeneous sample of clinically trained and untrained respondents (Study 1). Reliability and validity were demonstrated using a cross-validation sample (Study 2). Finally, comparisons were made between practicing mental health professionals and controls; these supported the measure's validity (Study 3). Overall, the measure demonstrated concurrent validity (by distinguishing clinically trained from untrained respondents) and reliability (by showing internal consistency and inter-form association). Potential uses of the measure in research and training concerned with clinical diagnosis are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

The recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders by primary care physicians.

A valid and reliable vignette-based measure of DSM-III psychiatric diagnostic knowledge was administered to practicing primary care physicians (PCPs; generally, internal and family practice medicine) and mental health professionals (MHPs, in psychiatry and psychology). Recognition, diagnosis, and treatment recommendations were measured for 14 different disorders. Contrary to other reports, PCPs consistently recognized the presence of mental disorder and did so virtually as well as MHPs, although both PCPs and MHPs showed more under-recognition than over-recognition. Diagnostic accuracy, however, was substantially lower, with that of MHPs exceeding PCPs for the general classes of affective, anxiety, somatic, and personality disorders, but not for the organic disorders. In making specific diagnoses, significantly fewer PCPs than MHPs gave an accurate diagnosis for eight of the 14 disorders: dysthymic disorder, major depression with psychotic features, agoraphobia with panic attacks (marginally), generalized anxiety disorder, adjustment disorder with anxious mood (marginally), psychologic factors affecting physical condition, and two personality disorders. Overall, PCPs were most accurate in identifying organic disorders (81% correct), least accurate in identifying the personality disorders (14%), and intermediate in identifying the affective (47%), anxiety (49%), and somatic disorders (49%). In most cases, both PCPs and MHPs preferred referral to treatment in primary care, but more PCPs than MHPs recommended treatment in primary care for certain anxiety and somatic disorders. Some differences in the recommended use of antidepressants in primary care were also found. Implications for the provision of mental health care by primary care physicians are discussed.

Anxiety Disorders↗
PubMed1989

Herpes simplex virus-specific antibodies present in tears during herpes keratitis.

We examined the specificity and levels of antibodies present in rabbit tears after induced infection of the rabbit cornea. Two strains of herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV) with different patterns of ocular disease were used: RE which produces stromal disease, and F which produces epithelial disease. We found that (i) IgG, IgA, and IgM antibodies were produced, (ii) the number of specific HSV antigens recognized by these antibodies was no significantly different, and (iii) postinfection (PI) timing and concentration of antibodies varied according to the disease pattern of the virus strain. The animals infected with strain F produced high levels of IgG antibodies early PI which remained constant, while IgA and IgM antibodies also increased early PI but declined after Day 16 PI. Animals infected with strain RE showed low levels of IgA and IgM antibodies which remained low. IgG antibodies increased early PI but declined at Day 16 PI. These differences in times of appearance and in amounts of antibodies in tears may be related to the clinical course of the disease. It has been shown that stromal disease has an immunopathologic basis. Inflammation, cellular infiltration of lymphocytes, and plasma cells are seen in the stroma of RE-infected animals, but these are not present in the stroma of F-infected animals. Infectious virus was not isolated from corneal explants taken from animals during the quiescent stage of the disease. The difference in pathogenicity cannot be explained in terms of specificity of tear antibodies. Even though the disease patterns were different, the number and types of HSV polypeptides recognized by both sets of tears was similar. Consequently, we believe that the immunopathology seen in the stromal disease may be due to the anatomical site of HSV antigens, rather than to differences in specificity of tear antibodies.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Herpes simplex virus IgA in pregnancy.

From 170 pregnant women, cervico-vaginal secretion, serum and amnion fluid were collected to determine concentrations of herpes simplex virus (HSV) IgA in different risk groups. We found a higher concentration of HSV IgA in cervicovaginal secretions in women with positive cultures, compared with women with negative cultures. Women with a prior history of genital HSV infections also had higher levels of HSV-IgA in cervico-vaginal secretions, compared with those with no HSV history, but the differences were not statistically significant. The concentrations of HSV IgA in cervico-vaginal secretions were not correlated to any other risk group defined in the study. An asymptomatic mother with no previous history of genital HSV infection, but belonging to the risk groups gave birth to an infant who developed neonatal herpes on the 4th day of life. Women at risk for viral shedding during gestation and at the time of delivery cannot be identified solely on the basis of grouping into risk groups and/or on concentration of HSV IgA in cervico-vaginal secretion.

Amnion↗
PubMed1985

"Mind control" and the battering of women.

This paper describes one variation in the battering phenomenon which was initially observed among low-income women. The strategies of coercion and deception utilized by the abusive male in these relationships are described and compared with similar strategies of "mind control" utilized in more traditional "cultic" systems. The debilitating effects of these techniques on the battered female are described, as is the battering male's own separation reaction, and the probable dynamics of the men and women involved in this pathological family system. Some preliminary assessment and treatment guidelines are offered.

Dominance-Subordination↗
PubMed1981

Induced hearing deficit generates experimental paranoia.

The development of paranoid reactions was investigated in normal people experiencing a temporary loss of hearing. In a social setting, subjects made partially deaf by hypnotic suggestion, but kept unaware of the source of their deafness, became more paranoid as indicated on a variety of assessment measures. The results support a hypothesizes cognitive-social mechanism for the clinically observed relationship between paranoia and deafness in the elderly.

Hearing Loss↗