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Biomedical subjects

Torben Ishøy

Publications and source records attributed to Torben Ishøy.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

[Street prostitution and drug addiction].

INTRODUCTION: Street-based prostitution accounts for 10% of the prostitution activity in Denmark, mainly involving female drug addicts. We studied a group of women with a common history of substance abuse and their comparative psychosocial characteristics, correlated with whether they had previously been a prostitute or not. Their psychic symptoms were evaluated and compared with those of controls. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 27 females receiving maintenance treatment for substance abuse completed a questionnaire dealing with their social background, substance abuse profile, and history of sexual abuse and prostitution, as well as their current health status, including SCL-90. The scores were compared to those of a control group of an age- and gender-matched Danish standard population. RESULTS: Neglect in childhood and adulthood corresponded to international findings. 14 of the women had previous sex-trading experience, and early use of heroin and cocaine was a predictor for starting a career in prostitution. The SCL-90 scores for the dimensions of somatization and depression were significantly higher for drug-abusing women in general than in the control group. The scores of drug-abusing former prostitutes were similarly significantly higher on most of the dimensions except the hostility dimension when compared to those of drug-abusing women who had never been involved in prostitution. Rape and domestic violence were characteristic phenomena among drug-abusing prostitutes (p < or = 0.05). DISCUSSION: Victimization during childhood and adulthood constitutes a serious risk for generating social vulnerability through drug addiction and prostitution. Various psychosocial stress factors among street-based prostitutes indicate the need for broader psychiatric approaches in Danish drug addiction maintenance programmes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Lamellar-to-cubic phase change in phospholipid bilayer systems incorporated with block copolymers: DMPC and PEO-PPO-PEO (P85).

We have used small-angle X-ray scattering and calorimetric methods to investigate the temperature-dependent phase behavior of ternary systems of phospholipid (DMPC), amphiphilic PEO-PPO-PEO block copolymer (Pluronics P85), and water. It is shown that a relatively small amount of block copolymers ( approximately 3 wt %) results in a lamellar-to-cubic phase transition. Still, both the bilayer-characteristic main transition, associated with chain melting, and the pretransition, associated with in-plane modulations, are preserved for copolymer concentrations up to 50-70 wt %, indicating the preservation of a bilayer type of lipid organization also within the cubic phase. The main transition splits up into two transitions upon the addition of copolymers, one resembling the high cooperativity of the main transition and one broad transition which may reflect complex formation with the copolymers. Parallel studies incorporating poly(ethylene glycol) into the DMPC multilamellar vesicles do not give analogous structural changes. It is concluded that the major effect on the molecular scale of adding PEO-PPO-PEO block copolymers is not only due to the hydration of the membrane but also due to the incorporation of the PPO block into the bilayer structure.

Calorimetry, Differential Scanning↗
PubMed2004

Increased psychological distress among Danish Gulf War veterans--without evidence for a neurotoxic background. The Danish Gulf War Study.

INTRODUCTION: Compared with controls, up to six years after their return, Danish Gulf War veterans have a significantly higher prevalence of self-reported neuropsychological symptoms, potentially as a result of neurotoxic exposure during deployment. We tested the hypotheses that: 1) GW veterans would perform less well than controls using a computerized neuromotor test battery; and that 2) GW veterans have a psychological profile different from that of controls. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 686 subjects who had been deployed in the Persian Gulf within the period August 2, 1990 until December 31, 1997; the control group comprised 231 subjects matched according to age, gender and profession. All participants underwent clinical and paraclinical examinations, along with a neuromotor test battery (CATSYS Test System) and a psychological health status questionnaire, the SCL-90-R rating scale. RESULTS: No differences were found between GW veterans and controls with respect to lifestyle and cohabitational characteristics. Differences between the two groups with respect to neuromotor function were very small. Within the GW veteran group, stratified according to clustering of neuropsychological symptoms, and stratified according to SCL-90-R score, no trends were found suggesting reduced motor function with increasing symptoms. Of nine dimensions constructed on the basis of the SCL-90-R items, six were significantly associated with being a Gulf War veteran. Statistically, the strongest associations were found for ratings of the obsessive-compulsive dimension and of the depression dimension. No associations were found with respect to phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, and psychoticism. INTERPRETATION: The increased psychological distress found among Danish GW veterans seemed rather due to a mentally distressing environment than to neurotoxic exposure.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Estimating the prevalence of problem opioid use in Copenhagen 1997-1998.

INTRODUCTION: Estimates of the prevalence of drug use in Denmark were, until 1999, based on the mortality multiplier method. This paper presents a study estimating the prevalence of problem opioid use in the Greater Copenhagen region using the capture-recapture method. METHODS AND MATERIAL: Records from the prehospital mobile emergency care unit, The Copenhagen Prehospital Research Database, were searched with a particular focus on treatment of opioid overdose. In addition, data from The National Register of Drug Users in Treatment in Greater Copenhagen were analysed for the years 1997 and 1998. Four samples were used within the capture-recapture analysis, ie the Prehospital Research Database for 1997/1998 and the Register of Drug Users in Treatment for the same period. RESULTS: The estimates from the stratified capture-recapture analyses, when summed up, suggest that there is a hidden population of 4116 and thus a total population of 6992 opioid users in Greater Copenhagen (population approx 700,000). This corresponds to a rate of 10 per 1000 inhabitants aged 15-54 years. The 95% confidence attached to this estimate is 5787 to 10,885. DISCUSSION: The prevalence rate of 10 per 1000 inhabitants aged 15-54 years is comparable to figures found in similar cities in Europe. A previous study of Central Copenhagen calculated the rate to be 12.4 per 1000 inhabitants between 15 and 59 years. It seems reasonable that the estimate of prevalence of problem drug use in Greater Copenhagen is lower than the prevalence in Central Copenhagen, as the city area is more urbanised and has a slightly different demographic and socio-economic profile. About 75% of all opioid overdose incidents are assumed to occur in the central district of the city during the observed period.

Adolescent↗