Complementary and alternative medicine use by psychiatric inpatients

82 psychiatric inpatients hospitalized for acute care were interviewed about their use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) modalities. The clinical diagnoses of respondents included Depressive Disorder (61%), Substance Abuse (26%), Schizophrenia (9%), and Anxiety Disorders (5%). Analysis indicated that 63% used at least one CAM modality within the previous 12 mo. The most frequently used modality was herbal therapies (44%), followed by mind-body therapies such as relaxation or mental imagery, hypnosis, meditation, biofeedback (30%), and spiritual healing by another (30%). Physical modalities such as massage, chiropractic treatment, acupuncture, and yoga were used by 21% of respondents. CAM therapies were used for a variety of reasons ranging from treatment of anxiety and depression to weight loss. However, most respondents indicated they did not discuss such use with their psychiatrist or psychotherapist.     

Prevalence of anxiety among patients undergoing colorectal surgery

To assess prevalence of anxiety 36 consecutive patients undergoing colorectal surgery with general anesthesia were interviewed on the day of surgery and completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Postsurgical ratings of pain and anxiety were obtained within 24 hours after surgery. Analysis indicated that 29 scored moderate or higher on the State Anxiety scale prior to surgery. The correlations for scores on presurgical Trait Anxiety with postsurgical pain and Trait Anxiety scores were significant (p<.01) but not that for pre- and postsurgical State Anxiety     

Span of apprehension in schizophrenic patients as a function of distractor masking and laterality.

Twenty schizophrenic patients, 10 depressed control patients, and 20 normal control subjects were compared in a forced-choice, target-detection method for assessing the span of apprehension. The detection task required the subject to report which of 2 target letters was presented among 7 other (distractor) letters. Performance accuracy was examined as a function of target location and whether the distractor letters were masked after their presentation. The backward masking of the distractors improved target-detection accuracy of both control groups but reduced accuracy of the schizophrenic group. In addition, schizophrenics performed particularly poorly on targets located in the left half or lower half of the display. These results suggest that response to the masking of distractors may be a new index of attentional shortcoming in schizophrenia. Various theoretical explanations for the target location findings are also discussed.     

Forgetting, preconditioning CS familiarization and taste aversion learning: An animal experiment with implications for alcoholism treatment

The rapid taste aversion acquisition, which typically occurs in many species when ingestion of a novel flavor precedes gastrointestinal distress, is retarded by preconditioning familiarity with the CS flavor. This CS familiarity effect (CSFE) might contraindicate taste aversion approaches to alcoholism treatment since alcoholics are quite accustomed to the tastes of alcoholic beverages. However, many alcoholics do develop strong nausea—induced alcohol aversions under appropriate conditioning parameters. Additionally, the CSFE is attenuated in rats by repeated conditioning trials including discrimination training. The present animal experiment was conducted to determine if the CSFE could additionally be weakened by process of forgetting, i.e. by preconditioning withdrawal of a familiar flavor analogous to an alcoholic's ‘drying out’ before psychotherapeutic intervention. Using saccharin as the CS flavor and cyclophosphamide as the conditioning agent, Sprague-Dawley derived rats acquired no aversions when conditioning was attempted immediately after flavor familiarization. However, significant and equivalent saccharin aversions were observed when conditioning was delayed for either 20 or 100 days after familiarization. These findings imply that the efficiency and cost effectiveness of taste aversion approaches to alcoholism treatment might be enhanced by a pretreatment period of abstinence from alcohol ingestion.     

Evaluating Gender Discrimination Claims: Is There a Gender Similarity Bias?

A rich literature exists that examines individuals' perceptions of affirmative action in organizations. However, little is known regarding the evaluation of reverse gender discrimination claims arising from gender-based preferential treatment. This study investigated the possible existence of a gender similarity bias in evaluations of gender discrimination allegations using a laboratory experiment in which the strength of evidence against the defendant company and the gender of the plaintiff were manipulated. Our sample consisted of 120 undergraduate students (60 men, 60 women) from diverse racial/ethnic groups (35% Asian, 6% African American, 18% Hispanic, and 41% Caucasian). Results suggested that female mock jurors favored female plaintiffs over male plaintiffs. In contrast, there were no gender-related differences in perceptions of male plaintiffs. Thus, although women did not disadvantage male plaintiffs, there was a tendency for them to be favorably biased in favor of female plaintiffs. As expected, this tendency was greatest under conditions of evidential uncertainty about the company's guilt.     

Clients’ perceptions of personal psychotherapy or counselling for therapists

The purpose of this study was to examine clients’ opinions of therapists’ personal use of psychotherapy or counselling. Participants in this study, a nationwide sample of clients recruited through Amazon’s MTurk system, were asked to complete an online survey assessing their attitudes towards treatment use by therapists as well as their general attitudes towards psychological help-seeking and perceptions of stigma (social and self) with psychological treatments. In this study, we found that clients generally had positive views about therapists’ personal use of psychotherapy or counselling. Although overall positive attitudes were found, the results from repeated measures ANOVAs indicated that attitudes depended somewhat on whether the therapist had sought out treatment as part of a training requirement for self-enrichment, or for the treatment of a psychological problem. In addition, participating clients were less supportive of therapists disclosing a treatment use history with their clients. Regression analyses also indicated that attitudes towards treatment use by therapists were significantly predicted by general help-seeking attitudes and perceptions of stigma (social and self), but attitudes towards disclosure were not. The findings from this study have important implications regarding therapist treatment use and disclosure in practice.     

Improving the Transportability of CBT for Internalizing Disorders in Children

Research provides strong support for the efficacy and effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for the treatment of childhood internalizing disorders. Given evidence for limited dissemination and implementation of CBT outside of academic settings, efforts are underway to improve its transportability so that more children with mental health needs may benefit from treatment. Creative modifications to existing treatments aim to deliver CBT for anxiety disorders and depression in a more transportable format. Notable progress has been made within the areas of computerized CBT, camp-based CBT, school-based CBT, and CBT delivered through primary care settings. These approaches are discussed within the context of key elements of transportability that are particularly germane to the dissemination and implementation of child treatments.     

An appraisal of chemical aversion (emetic therapy) approaches to alcoholism treatment.

More than 35,000 alcoholics have received chemical aversion (emetic therapy) in at least 75 settings worldwide since the 1930s. This consummatory aversion (CA) treatment, which pairs ethanol ingestion with emetically induced nausea, incorporates the highly efficient variety of learning known as taste aversion (TA) conditioning. The CA literature indicates that emetic therapy should induce conditioned alcohol aversions in many alcoholics. Such aversions have been widely reported by clinicians and have been confirmed by recent psychophysiological evidence. Long standing evidence of treatment effectiveness is found in the results of private hospitals which have consistently produced 1-yr abstinence rates approximating 60%. Diminished alcohol craving is a frequently reported benefit. Few experimental evaluations have been completed, as is generally the case for all alcoholism treatments, but those which used methodologically sound temporal parameters during conditioning have supported the clinical efficacy of emetic therapy. The clear need for more definitive research notwithstanding, there are compelling indications that emetic therapy is a useful component of multimodal treatment within certain alcoholic populations. However, its availability is severely limited. Many alcoholics could probably benefit from expanded treatment availability. The time is ripe for a reevaluation of resistances to the clinical use of emetic therapy alcoholism treatment.