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Biomedical subjects

S Pfeifer

Publications and source records attributed to S Pfeifer.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Psychopathology and religious commitment--a controlled study.

The relationship between psychopathology and religious commitment was explored in a group of psychiatric patients (n = 44) with depression, anxiety disorders and personality disorders, compared with a control group of healthy subjects (n = 45). Neuroticism and the degree of religious involvement were measured in all probands. The findings did not show any correlation between neuroticism and religiosity. While life satisfaction was negatively correlated with neuroticism, there was a significantly positive correlation with religious commitment. Anxiety concerning sexuality, superego conflicts and childhood fears of God was primarily associated with neuroticism and not with religious commitment. The findings support the clinical observations that the primary factor in explaining neurotic functioning in religious patients is not their personal religious commitment but their underlying psychopathology.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

[Interpersonal therapy of depression--an integrative approach for clinical practice].

Interpersonal therapy of depression (IPT) has proven to be very effective in a comparative study of therapeutic modalities for the treatment of depression. It reflects contemporary research on the etiology and the nosology of depressive disorders and offers a multifactorial treatment concept. Specifically, IPT integrates aspects of biological vulnerability for depression with the psychosocial context of a person. Disturbed social relations are seen as possible causes as well as consequences of depressive disorders. IPT has the goal to reduce depressive symptomatology and to improve interpersonal functioning. It emphasizes the structured diagnosis of depression in order to help the patient to better understand his condition. Symptoms are then related to his or her interpersonal context. Therapy sessions deal with four problem areas: Grief over loss, interpersonal disputes, role transitions, and interpersonal deficits. When necessary, prescribing medication is an integral part of the therapeutic procedure. The article gives an overview of the literature and the therapeutic strategies of IPT which seems especially effective for the treatment of mild to moderate depressions in primary care.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Belief in demons and exorcism in psychiatric patients in Switzerland.

Belief in demons as the cause of mental health problems is a well-known phenomenon in many cultures of the world. However, there is little literature on this phenomenon in Protestant subcultures of the West. The author conducted a systematic investigation of the prevalence of this attribution in 343 mainly Protestant out-patients of a psychiatric clinic in Switzerland, who described themselves as religious. Of these, 129 (37.6 per cent) believed in the possible causation of their problems through the influence of evil spirits, labelling this as 'occult bondage' or 'possession'. One hundred and four patients (30.3 per cent) sought help through ritual 'prayers for deliverance' and exorcism. Prevalence of such practices was significantly related to diagnosis (p < .01) and to church affiliation (p < .005). Patients in charismatic free churches suffering from anxiety disorders and schizophrenia reported the highest rate of exorcistic rituals (70 per cent), and patients with adjustment disorders from traditional state churches the lowest (14 per cent). The various forms and functions of these healing rituals are described. Although many patients subjectively experienced the rituals as positive, outcome in psychiatric symptomatology was not improved. Negative outcome, such as psychotic decompensation, is associated with the exclusion of medical treatment and coercive forms of exorcism.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Beryllium-induced disturbances of the murine immune system reflect some phenomena observed in sarcoidosis.

Sarcoidosis is a systemic granulomatous disorder of unknown origin. In respect to clinical and immunological characteristics, it is indistinguishable from berylliosis. As an approach to develop a murine model reflecting some aspects of sarcoidosis, we attempted to induce berylliosis in mice by treating inbred F1 mice (C57B16 x DBA/2) with 3 mg beryllium sulfate (BeSO4) per kg body weight intraperitoneally. Either pure BeSO4 or BeSO4 in combination with incomplete Freund's adjuvant was administered. Alternatively, pure BeSO4 was injected 2 days after a single application of cyclophosphamide (150 mg/kg). The spleen index, the spontaneous and phorbolmyristate acetate (PMA)-induced radical oxygen intermediates (ROI) released by peritoneal macrophages, and the proliferative activity of spleen mononuclear cells in response to BeSO4 and concanavalin A (ConA) were evaluated and compared to the corresponding changes observed in sarcoidosis. In all three modes of BeSO4 treatment, the spontaneous ROI release by peritoneal macrophages was significantly elevated. These elevations were very similar to those observed with alveolar macrophages in active sarcoid alveolitis. After BeSO4 treatment, a small proliferative activity of spleen mononuclear cells in response to BeSO4 could be observed. Further, BeSO4-treated spleen mononuclear cells exhibited a markedly reduced response to ConA stimulation (approximately 20% of control) which parallels the reduced proliferative capacity of sarcoid peripheral blood mononuclear cells (approximately 45% of control). This reduction could be abolished by pretreating the mice with cyclophosphamide. BeSO4 treatment in combination with incomplete Freund's adjuvant resulted in a significant increase of spleen mononuclear cell proliferation (1.9-fold) after in vitro stimulation with BeSO4, and prevented the low responsiveness to ConA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1994

[Multiple personality disorder. Presentation of 2 cases and a model of the etiology].

Although the syndrome of Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD) has received much interest in the international literature, there have been virtually no professional articles on the topic in German over the last 70 years. This is a report on two cases with nine and 70 persons respectively. Both had undergone severe and prolonged sexual abuse in childhood. Compared with DSM-III-R, the ICD-10 criteria seem to reflect historic reports on alternating personalities rather than recent empirical research on multiple personality. The proposed etiological model postulates that extreme trauma in childhood can result in dissociative vulnerability persisting into adulthood.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Nefazodone in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome: a preliminary study.

Nefazodone, a new phenylpiperazine antidepressant agent with serotonin type 2 antagonism and serotonin reuptake inhibition, was evaluated in two patient groups to determine its effectiveness in reducing the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The two studied groups were PMS patients with no coexisting major depression or dysthymia (N = 23) and PMS patients with current major depression or dysthymia, termed the premenstrual exacerbation group (N = 24). The two patient groups received open-label nefazodone for 8 weeks, with optional maintenance at the same dose for up to 1 year. The initial dose was 100 mg, titrated to 600 mg/day, on a twice-daily dosing schedule. Symptoms were assessed by the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and by Daily Symptom Ratings. Premenstrual symptoms improved significantly from pretreatment baseline values, with similar improvement for the PMS and premenstrual exacerbation groups. Significantly improvement occurred by the end of the first treated cycle (4 weeks of therapy), at an average dose of 245 (range, 100 to 400) mg, and was maintained thereafter. Nefazodone was well tolerated, side effects were often transient, and the most common were nausea and headache. Forty-seven of 54 patients completed 2 months of therapy, with a mean daily nefazodone dose of 319 mg at the 2-month point. A placebo-controlled study should be conducted to confirm and extend these promising preliminary findings.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

[Subtyping of T-lymphocytes in sarcoidosis].

Sarcoidosis is characterised by a T-helper cell-alveolitis. Phenotyping of T-cells of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and of peripheral blood was performed with antibodies directed against naive T-cells (CD45RA+), memory T-cells (CD45R0+), alpha beta T-cell antigen receptor (TCR) bearing cells and gamma delta T-cell antigen receptor bearing cells in 11 patients with active sarcoidosis, 5 patients with inactive sarcoidosis, 5 patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and in control individuals (7 for BAL and 21 for peripheral blood). In peripheral blood one third of sarcoidosis patients exhibited increased (< 12%) numbers of TCR gamma delta+ cells. The corresponding numbers of BAL were within the normal range. More than 95% of alveolar T-helper cells in sarcoidosis, in IPF, and in controls could be identified as memory T-cells (CD45R0+). In comparison to controls in the peripheral blood of sarcoidosis and IPF patients a small, not-significant shift towards memory T-cells was observed. The immunophenotypical markers evaluated in BAL and peripheral blood did not yield parameters for the clinical staging of the investigated diseases.

Antigens, CD↗
PubMed1993

Increased chemotactic activity of peritoneal fluid in patients with endometriosis.

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to investigate the ability of the peritoneal fluid of patients with endometriosis to induce chemotaxis of neutrophils and macrophages. STUDY DESIGN: Peritoneal fluid samples of patients with endometriosis (n = 20), normal fertile controls (n = 12), or patients with medical suppression (n = 8) were evaluated for chemotactic activity. Results of chemotactic activity were analyzed by analysis of variance. RESULTS: Peritoneal fluid of patients with endometriosis demonstrated a significantly higher chemotactic activity than that of patients without endometriosis or with medical suppression. Patients who had received medical treatment had the lowest chemotactic activity. (p < 0.001 for endometriosis vs control or treatment patients, p = 0.005 for control group vs treatment group). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with endometriosis have a higher chemotactic activity in their peritoneal fluid; prior medical treatment significantly reduces this activity. This chemotactic factor has an estimated weight of 20 kd. The nature and source of this chemotactic factor remains to be determined.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

[Alternative treatment of psychiatric diseases].

This article gives an overview of the use of unconventional medicine in patients with psychiatric and psychosomatic problems. Frequently used methods are herbal remedies, homeopathy, acupuncture, various forms of massage and relaxation as well as a wide variety of unconventional psychotherapeutic approaches. Conceptually, these practices can be grouped into four categories: biological-pharmacological remedies, physical-energetic methods, esoteric-spiritual techniques and psychological treatments. Often patients use these methods on their own without contacting a provider, but also without telling their psychiatrist. A review of outcome studies shows that effectiveness is difficult to assess, as there is substantial controversy on the basic definition of terms and mechanisms. The use of complementary methods in psychiatric patients poses various questions including compliance and ethical considerations, demanding a high flexibility and integrative thinking in psychotherapy.

Combined Modality Therapy↗
PubMed1992

Measurement of lymphocyte proliferation: critical analysis of radioactive and photometric methods.

Different methods of lymphocyte proliferation are compared to identify a non-radioactive alternative to 3H-thymidine-test. The enzymatic assays evaluating the turnover of mitochondrial dehydrogenases (MTT-test) and lysosomal hexosaminidase (NAG-test) proved not sensitive enough to substitute for 3H-thymidine incorporation. The incorporation of the nucleotide analog 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) can be exploited using an ELISA-system (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay) employing a monoclonal anti-BrdU antibody to measure cell proliferation. An optimized test protocol of the BrdU-ELISA which fulfills the requirements for a sensitive and practicable non-radioactive alternative to 3H-thymidine-test is presented.

Autoradiography↗
PubMed1992

Lung-restricted activation of the alveolar macrophage/monocyte system in pulmonary sarcoidosis.

An activation of T-cells that is restricted to the lung has been demonstrated in pulmonary sarcoidosis. The role of blood monocytes (MO) and alveolar macrophages (AM) in this concept of compartmentalized inflammation has not yet been evaluated. In order to elucidate this question, we measured the release of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) and AM in 43 patients with sarcoidosis (32 with active, 11 with inactive disease) without therapy and correlated the spontaneous monokine release to parameters of the T-cell alveolitis and the course of the disease. TNF alpha as well as IL-1 were spontaneously released by AM of the active group, i.e., 2,385 +/- 735 pg/ml/10(8) cells/24 h and 7/12 (IL-1+/total), respectively. Autologous PBMNC were quiescent, releasing only baseline levels of any monokine. AM were not activated in the inactive group, releasing 500 +/- 212 pg/ml/10(6) cells/24 h TNF alpha, whereas 1/5 were IL-1-positive (p less than 0.05 in both comparisons), which is within the range of the control group. Kinetic experiments revealed that the TNF alpha gene of AM is activated in vivo, resulting in TNF alpha mRNA-positive, TNF alpha-releasing cells that, cultured in vitro, regulate the TNF alpha gene transcription down and cease to release TNF alpha. Interestingly, there is no stringent correlation between the spontaneous release of TNF alpha by AM and signs of T-cell activation as soluble interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptor serum concentration, release of IL-2, and expression of IL-2 receptor by alveolar T-cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Humans↗