Biomedical subjects

Susan Abbey

Publications and source records attributed to Susan Abbey.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

The Toronto Mindfulness Scale: development and validation.

In this study, the authors both developed and validated a self-report mindfulness measure, the Toronto Mindfulness Scale (TMS). In Study 1, participants were individuals with and without meditation experience. Results showed good internal consistency and two factors, Curiosity and Decentering. Most of the expected relationships with other constructs were as expected. The TMS scores increased with increasing mindfulness meditation experience. In Study 2, criterion and incremental validity of the TMS were investigated on a group of individuals participating in 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction programs. Results showed that TMS scores increased following treatment, and Decentering scores predicted improvements in clinical outcome. Thus, the TMS is a promising measure of the mindfulness state with good psychometric properties and predictive of treatment outcome.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

The relationship between lipodystrophy-associated body changes and measures of quality of life and mental health for HIV-positive adults.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between lipodystrophy-specific symptom severity and wellbeing. METHODS: HIV-positive adult patients with body fat redistribution (lipodystrophy syndrome) associated with antiretroviral therapy reported their total non-lipodystrophy symptoms and side effects and completed measures assessing body fat changes (yielding Atrophy, Hypertrophy and Total Lipodystrophy scores), mental health and quality of life. Effects of total symptom complex and lipodystrophy severity on quality of life and mental health were analyzed using Spearman's rho correlations. Logistic regression analyses were utilized to determine the relative-odds of depression produced by overall symptom count and lipodystrophy score increments. RESULTS: Mean ratings for Hypertrophy and Atrophy corresponded to 'very mild' and 'mild' degrees of severity, respectively. The total symptom complex was associated with ratings for most of the mental health and quality of life measures. Patient-perceived body image scores were the sole study variable responsive to lipodystrophy severity ratings. In comparison to reference norms, a pronounced degree of body image impairment was evident. CONCLUSION: Although responsive to the total symptom profile, psychosocial measures typically utilized for evaluating quality of life and mental health status in HIV disease lacked sensitivity and specificity for measuring the consequences of lipodystrophy-associated fat distribution changes alone. Lipodystrophy severity did impact negatively on body image.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Sex differences in predictors of illness intrusiveness 1 year after a cardiac event.

OBJECTIVE: This prospective study examined sex differences in illness intrusiveness and in baseline predictors of illness intrusiveness in cardiac patients' 1-year postcardiac event. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with a myocardial infarction (MI) or unstable angina (UA) completed a baseline questionnaire during their hospitalization (139 men and 104 women). Eighty-one men and 67 women completed the follow-up questionnaire 1-year postcardiac event. The questionnaire included measures of illness intrusiveness in three life domains, depressive symptomatology, social support, medical information, risk factors for heart disease, and sociodemographic information. RESULTS: A MANCOVA with the three Illness Intrusiveness subscales as dependent variables, sex as the between-group factor, and partnership status as a covariate found a sex effect for the Intimacy subscale, but not for the Instrumental and the Relationships/Personal Development subscales. Men reported more intrusiveness in the Intimacy domain of their life as compared to women. After controlling for sociodemographic factors and risk factors for heart disease, hierarchical regressions indicated sex differences in baseline predictors of 1-year follow-up illness intrusiveness in the three life domains. For men, being satisfied with support from partner at baseline was associated with less intrusiveness in the Instrumental Life domain 1 year after the cardiac event. For women, surprisingly, more satisfaction with support from their partner at baseline was associated with more intrusiveness in their intimate lives 1 year after their cardiac event. In addition, emotional symptoms of depression at baseline were predictive of increased illness intrusiveness in Relationship/Personal Development and Intimacy domains for men and in Instrumental and Intimacy domains for women. CONCLUSION: Support from partner may have a differential impact for men and women after a cardiac event. Depressive symptomatology during initial hospitalization, particularly emotional symptoms, is a prominent indicator of illness intrusiveness for both sexes 1 year after the cardiac event.

Angina, Unstable↗

PubMed2003

Prevalence and incidence of chronic fatigue syndrome in Wichita, Kansas.

BACKGROUND: Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a debilitating illness with no known cause or effective therapy. Population-based epidemiologic data on CFS prevalence and incidence are critical to put CFS in a realistic context for public health officials and others responsible for allocating resources and for practicing physicians when examining and caring for patients. METHODS: We conducted a random digit-dialing survey and clinical examination to estimate the prevalence of CFS in the general population of Wichita, Kan, and a 1-year follow-up telephone interview and clinical examination to estimate the incidence of CFS. The survey included 33 997 households representing 90 316 residents. This report focuses on 7162 respondents aged 18 to 69 years. Fatigued (n = 3528) and randomly selected nonfatigued (n = 3634) respondents completed telephone questionnaires concerning fatigue, other symptoms, and medical history. The clinical examination included the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, laboratory testing, and a physical examination. RESULTS: The overall weighted point prevalence of CFS, adjusted for nonresponse, was 235 per 100,000 persons (95% confidence interval, 142-327 per 100,000 persons). The prevalence of CFS was higher among women, 373 per 100,000 persons (95% confidence interval, 210-536 per 100,000 persons), than among men, 83 per 100,000 persons (95% confidence interval, 15-150 per 100,000 persons). Among subjects nonfatigued and fatigued for less than 6 months, the 1-year incidence of CFS was 180 per 100,000 persons (95% confidence interval, 0-466 per 100,000 persons). CONCLUSIONS: Chronic fatigue syndrome constitutes a major public health problem. Longitudinal follow-up of this cohort will be used to further evaluate the natural history of this illness.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Psychosocial impact of renal donation.

PURPOSE: To determine the psychosocial effects of donor nephrectomy on a sample of Canadian donors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients donating one of their kidneys for transplantation at the Toronto Hospital between 1991-1996 were asked to complete a 170-item questionnaire designed to assess their psychosocial well-being and the impact of renal donation on various aspects of their lives. Of the 153 donors contacted, 104 (68.0%) have responded to date. RESULTS: Less than 5% of donors complained of renal donation severely affecting any aspect of their life. Most donors (84%) were able to perform their normal daily activities within 12 weeks of nephrectomy, and 75% had recovered their pre-donation level of work function by this time. Almost one third of donors lost wages because of their donation, and half incurred significant transportation costs. Very few donors (< 10%) complained of other costs. Almost 90% of donors felt that donating a kidney had positively impacted their relationship with the recipient, and donors felt that their relationships with the recipient were significantly more positive at follow-up (p<.003). CONCLUSIONS: Donating a kidney results in a moderate psychosocial impact on the donor and appears to strengthen the bond between donor and recipient. Recovery times to daily activities and work may be longer than anticipated in a large proportion of donors.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Disclosure of misattributed paternity: issues involved in the discovery of unsought information.

Kidney transplantation from living donors is generally a safe, effective form of renal replacement therapy. When evaluating potential living donors and their intended recipients, a careful assessment process is followed in order to ensure that ethical standards are upheld. During this assessment, important medical information with serious consequences, which was not being sought as part of the donor/recipient evaluation, may be discovered. The information may or may not be relevant to the decision to donate. However, such a discovery raises the difficult questions of whether or not there is an obligation to disclose the information, to whom does the information belong, and what process should be used to resolve the issue? We present a case that forced us to confront these questions and raised issues of truth telling, autonomy, paternalism, confidentiality, and the nature of the relationship between patients and health care professionals.

Ethics, Medical↗