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Query: UMLS:C0036341 (schizophrenia)
 60,220 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The existing literature dealing with the phasic orienting response (OR) in schizophrenia, examining, for the most part, the skin conductance component (SCOR), reports conflicting results with divergent implications for the nature of the attentional dysfunction in these patients. The present authors have contributed to that literature and to its divergencies. The present report addresses this issue by applying a common set of response definitions and uniform statistical-analytic procedures to the previously gathered electrodermal data obtained independently in each author's laboratory. A total of 14 studies is involved, drawn from six laboratories in the U.S.A., the U.K., and West Germany. Collectively, these studies examine chronic and acute schizophrenics, males and females, those receiving neuroleptic drugs and those not receiving them, recording SCOR from either (or both) hands using a variety of instruments and somewhat differing instructions and conditions, to both auditory and visual stimuli of different intensities and rise-time properties. The authors' purpose is two-fold. First, to determine whether some 'universal' dysfunction can be demonstrated across laboratories, conditions, and samples. Given the heterogeneous origins of these data such a finding would offer fairly strong evidence of 'real' dysfunction in schizophrenia. Second, where disagreement exists, to describe the scope and nature of the disagreement, and to articulate more clearly the findings on each side of a disputed area. One such 'universal' dysfunction emerged. Consistently, schizophrenics displayed an abnormally high incidence of nonresponsiveness, involving nearly 50% of the schizophrenic sample on average. The next most common finding is that many of the schizophrenics who display an SCOR often habituate faster than do nonschizophrenic responders. This was seen in a majority of the studies and laboratories, but conflicting evidence was presented by a minority. Evidence for a dysfunction simultaneously involving SCOR hypo- and hyper-responsiveness within schizophrenia was obtained, but in a minority of studies. The possible effects of neuroleptic drugs, stimulus intensity and rise-time factors, and differential significance evaluation on these findings was discussed. The possibility that schizophrenic dysfunction involves the input-facilitating OR but not input-attenuating 'protective' responses is examined. The correlates of hyporesponsiveness in schizophrenia, including physiological response patterns, clinical symptom patterns, and specific input deficiencies, is also examined. Several areas are noted where systematic research has only begun, and further study is particularly needed.
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PMID:An analysis of the skin conductance orienting response in samples of American, British, and German schizophrenics. 612 21

When we examine the cultural characteristics that influence mental disorders and related behavior among the Chinese, no major differences are found between Chinese and other groups in the range of disorders or in overall prevalence. Several cultural factors influence the recognition and treatment of mental illness, among which are attitudes toward emotional display, somatic as opposed to psychogenic disorders and features of the traditional medical belief system in Chinese culture. The Chinese have a relatively favorable prognosis of schizophrenia, low rates of depressive illness, a strong tendency towards somatization and the presence of several unique culture-bound syndromes. From studying Chinese in Vancouver, it was found that they have a characteristic way of dealing with mental illness in the family, in that there is first a protracted period of intrafamilial coping with serious psychiatric illness, followed by recourse to friends, elders and neighbors in the community; third, consultation with traditional specialists, religious healers or general physicians; fourth, outpatient or inpatient treatment from specialists, and, finally, a process of rejection and scapegoating of the patient. The efficacy of Western psychiatric treatment of Chinese patients has yet to be objectively assessed.
West J Med 1983 Dec
PMID:Psychiatry and Chinese culture. 636 76

The pattern of delusions in a cross-cultural hospital population was studied. It was found that there were cultural differences in persecutory, grandiose and religious, and sexual and fantastic delusions, accounted for mainly by the relatively higher frequencies in the African and West Indian cultural groups. These phenomena can be understood in terms of the cultural backgrounds of these groups. It is further argued that similarly defined persecutory delusions have a wide clinical significance that goes beyond schizophrenia in some cultural groups.
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PMID:Frequency and clinical significance of delusions across cultures. 646 97

The frequencies of auditory, visual and olfactory hallucinations as defined by Wing et al. were studied in schizophrenic patients of various groups treated in the same hospital. The diagnosis of schizophrenia was made by the use of the Syndrome Check List. It was found that there were some cultural differences in the frequencies of hallucinations, these being higher in the African, West Indian and Asian culture groups than in the English and other groups. The possible clinical significance of these variations are discussed.
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PMID:A comparative cross-cultural study of the frequencies of hallucination in schizophrenia. 652 20

A prospective study of patients with religious delusions identified 24 West Indian and West African patients. Those who had none of Schneider's first-rank symptoms of schizophrenia (principally West Indians) differed from those who did by virtue of early religious commitment, life-long religious experiences, an acute admission precipitated by social events, a greater chance of having their diagnosis changed, less than 10 different PSE syndromes, the absence of 'twentieth-century' delusions, and the presentation of malevolent witchcraft as the sole explanation of the episode. It is suggested that this group can usefully be considered as demonstrating an acute psychotic reaction of the type previously described in Africa and the Caribbean.
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PMID:Acute psychotic reactions in Caribbean-born patients. 726 72

Various studies have shown: (i) increased rates of psychoses in immigrants to Britain, and a particularly high rate of schizophrenia in the West Indian- and West African-born; and (ii) a greater proportion of atypical psychoses in immigrants. A retrospective study of psychotic inpatients from a London psychiatric unit demonstrated increased rates of schizophrenia in patients from the Caribbean and West Africa. These patients included a high proportion of those with paranoid and religious phenomenology, those with frequent changes of diagnosis, formal admissions, and married women. The West Indian-born had been in Britain for nearly 10 years before first seeing a psychiatrist and, if they had an illness with religious symptomatology, were likely to have been in hospital for only 3 weeks. Rates of schizophrenia without paranoid phenomenology were similar in each ethnic group. It is suggested that the increase in the diagnosis of schizophrenia in the West Indian-born, and possibly in the West African-born, may be due in part to the occurrence of acute psychotic reactions which are diagnosed as schizophrenia.
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PMID:Some social and phenomenological characteristics of psychotic immigrants. 726 71

In the past, birthplace has frequently been omitted in completing the Sheet, but in 1976, over 91 per cent of all first admissions to psychiatric hospitals in South-East England were analysed by birthplace, sex, age-groups and marital status. First admissions for schizophrenia were five times the expected number for immigrants from new Commonwealth America (the West Indies), four times the expected number for immigrants from New Commonwealth Africa (mostly ethnic Asians) and three times the expected number from India. Immigrants from Pakistan and the remaining New Commonwealth Asian countries did not show a significantly higher than expected number of admissions for schizophrenia, and their first admissions for alcoholic psychosis and alcoholism, psychoneuroses and personality and behaviour disorders were significantly fewer than expected. First admissions for schizophrenia were also significantly more than expected among immigrants from Ireland, Germany and Poland, but not from italy.
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PMID:First admissions of native-born and immigrants to psychiatric hospitals in South-East England 1976. 733 54

The pattern of response of positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia to depot neuroleptics was studied in a Nigerian Sample of schizophrenics in a drug-free state. Both positive and negative symptoms showed significantly good response, but positive symptoms were more responsive. Cultural factors do not seem to influence the pattern of response. Rather, neuroleptic naivety may enhance the responsivity of positive symptoms, whereas stimulating millieu (non-pharmacologic) factors may enhance that of negative symptoms.
West Afr J Med
PMID:The positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia: patterns of response to depot neuroleptic treatment. 775 83

In a study of the social and clinical characteristics of inpatients at the Jos University Teaching Hospital Psychiatric unit in Northern Nigeria, 387 patients made up from 421 consecutive admissions into the unit over a 9-month period, were studied. The patients were followed up at the out-patient clinic after discharge for a period of at least 3 months. Functional psychoses (66%) and especially schizophrenia (35%) predominated. About 14% of the cohort had depressive psychosis. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.001) excess of females with depressive illness. The mean duration of hospitalization was 15 days and at discharge, the majority of the patients (79%) were improved. Three months after discharge, 46% of the patients had defaulted from follow-up. The most important factor associated with default was patients' residence of 100 kilometres or more from the hospital. Of those still attending the out-patient clinic 15% had relapsed.
West Afr J Med
PMID:A study of the social and clinical characteristics of in-patients at a psychiatric unit in northern Nigeria. 775 81

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.
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PMID:Belief in demons and exorcism in psychiatric patients in Switzerland. 780 17


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