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At least 847 records · Page 47Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

Conversion pseudodementia in older people: a descriptive case series.

METHODS: This paper reports a case series of ten patients collected over a 12-year period of clinical work in old age psychiatry in the UK by the author. RESULTS: The core features of the syndrome are: apparent cognitive impairment, regression and increasing physical dependency beginning in late middle or early old age, without evidence for an organic dementia from investigations or from taking into account the course of the illness. The syndrome is more common in women from a higher socio-economic background with past psychiatric histories dominated by depressive symptoms. The syndrome usually progresses to the point where long term institutional care is needed although the mean survival from onset is 13 years. CONCLUSIONS: The author suggests that conversion pseudodementia in older people is caused by a catastrophic reaction to cumulative loss in later life in individuals who have predisposing borderline and narcissistic personality traits. Treatment using psychotherapeutic approaches may limit the progression of the syndrome if it is recognised at an early stage.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Conviction and conversion: the role of shared fantasies about analysis.

This paper is an attempt to understand the origin of the analyst's conviction about both the patient's analyzability and the psychoanalytic endeavor. Clinical material will be used to illustrate the way that the intensity of the analyst's conviction is or isn't noticed or interpreted, by both patient and analyst. The primary hypothesis to be proposed is that the analyst's awareness of the transmission of conviction during conversion (or evaluation) can trigger recognition and use of a critical period for identification with an underlying mutual fantasy of intergenerational, analyst-patient conviction about analysis.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Effect of deep brain subthalamic stimulation on camptocormia and postural abnormalities in idiopathic Parkinson's disease.

Camptocormia has been described in patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD). We present a patient with young-onset PD in whom the disease progressed over 25 years to a crippling state with severe camptocormia and bent knees. The camptocormia along with other parkinsonian symptoms improved dramatically after bilateral subthalamic deep brain stimulation.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Camptocormia induced by atypical antipsychotics and resolved by electroconvulsive therapy.

We present a depressive patient who developed mild parkinsonian signs and camptocormia after the introduction of olanzapine. She had been treated before with other antipsychotic drugs. When camptocormia was diagnosed, olanzapine was withdrawn and levodopa was introduced. Depressive symptoms got worse and electroconvulsive therapy was tried. When the treatment was completed, her depression substantially improved and her posture became completely upright.

Antipsychotic Agents↗
PubMed1987

The butterfly and the serpent: culture, psychopathology and biomedicine.

Cultural explanations of psychopathology in the West have rarely employed models derived by anthropologists for small-scale non-literate communities. Some general features of those ritual patterns usually classed as 'culture-bound syndromes' are applicable to Western neurosis. Such reactions articulate both personal predicament and public concerns, usually core structural oppositions between age groups or the sexes. They gain their power by relying on certain unquestionable assumptions which, although beyond everyday jural relationships, articulate such relationships. In the case of Western reactions, such 'mystical sanction' is provided by biomedicine. Theoretical paradigms emphasize either the individual pragmatic or expressive aspects, or social homeostasis.

Agoraphobia↗
PubMed1990

Natural history and outcome of psychogenic seizures: a clinical study in 50 patients.

The natural history and the outcome of psychogenic seizures was studied in 50 patients by retrospective analysis and follow-up after a mean of 2 years. Concomitant epilepsy was definite in only 8% and possible in 14%, while 50% took anticonvulsants. Overall, 66% of patients showed heterogeneous psychiatric abnormalities, most commonly a depressive syndrome (24%), whereas hysterical personality features were rare (8%). Forty-two percent of patients were unemployed. Follow-up of 41 patients (82%) showed that 34% had become seizure free. Outcome was poor in those with a long history of psychogenic seizures and pathological psychiatric findings. In contrast, almost all patients with recent onset of psychogenic seizures and normal psychological status had become seizure free. At follow-up, 56% of patients were found to be in a poor or very poor state, which resulted from a combination of physical, psychic and social problems in most cases.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Camptocormia.

Camptocormia is a conversion type of hysteria, found mainly in recruited soldiers. The condition is characterized by powerful hyperflexion of the trunk and pains in the lumbar region. Characteristically, the anthropoidal posture disappears entirely during sleep when the patient is lying on the back. Knowledge of the syndrome permits an easy diagnosis and treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The relationship of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) profile clusters to pain behaviors.

Previous research involving cluster analysis of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) profiles among persons with chronic low back pain has suggested the existence of four distinct profile clusters. The present study had two goals: (1) to replicate the previous finding independently and (2) to investigate the relationship of the profiles to the subjects' self-reported pain history and response to treatment. Subjects were 92 patients in a multimodal inpatient low back-pain treatment program. A cluster analysis of the MMPI profiles was performed and the resultant clusters were compared in terms of histories and treatment outcome. The four clusters were successfully replicated for the total sample and for males and females separately. The profiles were significantly related to subjects' pain histories, but only one outcome difference was found. It was inferred that the MMPI is of value in understanding patients' pain coping behaviors but that further research is needed to explore the utility of the MMPI in understanding their response to treatment.

Back Pain↗
PubMed1978

Multivariate analyses of the MMPI profiles of low back pain patients.

A multivariate clustering procedure was used to identify replicable, homogeneous MMPI profile subgroups among three independent cohorts of male (N = 233) and female (N = 315) low back pain ((LBP) patients. Three subgroups were replicated across all male cohorts and four subgroups were replicated across all female cohorts. Multiple discriminant analysis showed that for both male and female patients between-subgroup variability was significantly greater than within-subgroup variability. The results suggest that LBP patients may not be solely characterized by MMPI profiles featuring the "conversion V" configuration. Examination of the profile subgroups also suggests there may be distinct, pain-related, behavioral attributes associated with each subgroup which might have important implications for practitioners' choice of treatment modalities. Suggestions are made for research regarding the development of specific, optimal treatments for various LBP patient subgroups.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1988

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Hysteria (Hy) scale: scoring bodily concern and psychological denial subscales in chronic back pain patients.

Chronic back pain patients were compared to two nonpain comparison groups on Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Hysteria (Hy) scores and scores on two Hy subscales: Bodily Concern and Psychological Denial. Pain subjects had significantly higher scores on the Bodily Concern Subscale and lower scores on the Psychological Denial Subscale than nonpain subjects with similar elevated Hy scores. However, pain subjects had Psychological Denial scores similar to those of subjects with normal MMPI profiles, despite significantly higher Hy scores. These findings are interpreted to support the hypothesis that, among pain patients, Hy elevations are partially accounted for by the endorsement of a disproportionate number of Bodily Concern items. Finally, within pain patients, scores on the Bodily Concern subscale were significantly related to more indices of pain duration and severity than were scores on the Psychological Denial subscale. The potential clinical utility of scoring these subscales is discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Brief therapy for monocular hysterical blindness in childhood.

A case report of monocular hysterical blindness, a rare form of childhood conversion reaction, is presented. A brief description of the treatment is included, which utilized a team approach and short-term management. An attempt is made to compare this patient's motivation with other cases of conversion reactions and to identify a possible dynamic mechanism for monocular hysterical blindness.

Blindness↗
PubMed1978

Children's reactions to hospitalization and illness.

The paper describes children's reactions to illness and hospitalizations from a developmental point of view. Taking the latter into account, it becomes easier to understand not only the child's reaction at different ages and the reasons for it, but the nature of the potential damage, that is, where and why it takes place, as well as the resources available to the child that may help, if wisely used, to minimize the potential traumas.

Affective Symptoms↗