Symptom Change (symptom + change)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Early Family Transitions and Depressive Symptom Changes From Adolescence to Early Adulthood

JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 1 2008
Alan Booth
Some research and theory suggest that early cohabitation, parenthood, and marriage have negative long-term implications. Nevertheless, in the context of their resources and opportunities, early transitions may represent positive choices for some individuals. We studied the family and personal characteristics of young adults (N = 8,172) who did, versus those who did not, make early family transitions. We assessed changes in their depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood. Individuals who made early family transitions were disadvantaged in many respects, but differed little from those who did not with respect to changes in depressive symptoms. That they stay "even" with those who do not make transitions suggests that some young adults make positive choices from among limited options. [source]


Severity of anxiety and work-related outcomes of patients with anxiety disorders

DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 12 2009
Steven R. Erickson PharmD.
Abstract Background: This study examined associations between anxiety and work-related outcomes in an anxiety disorders clinic population, examining both pretreatment links and the impact of anxiety change over 12 weeks of treatment on work outcomes. Four validated instruments were used to also allow examination of their psychometric properties, with the goal of improving measurement of work-related quality of life in this population. Methods: Newly enrolled adult patients seeking treatment in a university-based anxiety clinic were administered four work performance measures: Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ), Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire (WPAI), Endicott Work Productivity Scale (EWPS), and Functional Status Questionnaire Work Performance Scale (WPS). Anxiety severity was determined using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). The Clinical Global Impressions, Global Improvement Scale (CGI-I) was completed by patients to evaluate symptom change at a 12-week follow-up. Two severity groups (minimal/mild vs. moderate/severe, based on baseline BAI score) were compared to each other on work measures. Results: Eighty-one patients provided complete baseline data. Anxiety severity groups did not differ in job type, time on job, job satisfaction, or job choice. Patients with greater anxiety generally showed lower work performance on all instruments. Job advancement was impaired for the moderate/severe group. The multi-item performance scales demonstrated better validity and internal consistency. The WLQ and the WPAI detected change with symptom improvement. Conclusion: Level of work performance was generally associated with severity of anxiety. Of the instruments tested, the WLQ and the WPAI questionnaire demonstrated acceptable validity and internal reliability. Depression and Anxiety, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Domains of quality of life and symptoms in male veterans treated for posttraumatic stress disorder,

JOURNAL OF TRAUMATIC STRESS, Issue 6 2007
Carole A. Lunney
This study examined the relationship between domains of quality of life and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in 319 male veterans in a randomized trial of group psychotherapy. Confirmatory factor analyses suggested a 4-factor model of quality of life (achievement, self-expression, relationships, and surroundings) fit better than a unidimensional model. Clinically meaningful symptom change was associated with greater change in all quality of life domains. At pretreatment, numbing symptoms uniquely predicted all quality of life domains. Change in avoidance and hyperarousal uniquely predicted change in achievement. Change in reexperiencing uniquely predicted change in self-expression. Change in numbing uniquely predicted change in relationships. Examining change in PTSD symptoms and quality of life domains may provide important information for treatment planning and evaluation. [source]


Treatment intensity and regularity in early outpatient psychotherapy and its relation to outcome

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY & PRACTICE), Issue 6 2006
Susanne Kraft
The distribution of treatment sessions (number of interruptions, weeks without psychotherapy and number of sessions) during the first three months of psychodynamic psychotherapy (PD), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psychoanalytic psychotherapy (PAP) was analyzed prospectively over two years in a sample of 256 outpatients. Number of weeks without psychotherapy in early treatment was predicted by initial helping alliance in PD and by initial quality of interpersonal relations in CBT. Level of initial psychological or physical impairment showed no effect on distribution of sessions during early treatment. In PD and CBT, session distribution early in treatment did not predict subsequent course of improvement. Only in PAP did weeks without psychotherapy and number of sessions affect rate of symptom change, in that participants showed better outcome when treatment started continuously at a rather slow pace. Implications for psychotherapy practice and research are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


The relationship between subjective and objective assessments of sacral neuromodulation effectiveness in patients with urgency-frequency,

NEUROUROLOGY AND URODYNAMICS, Issue 8 2008
Kenneth M. Peters
Abstract Aims Global response assessment (GRA) has been used to evaluate patients' perceptions of treatment effectiveness. However, few studies have scrutinized the relationship between GRAs and objective voiding diary outcomes data. This study explores the relationship between self-reported symptom-specific GRA responses and objective changes in frequency, urgency and pelvic pain in patients with urgency-frequency with or without pelvic pain after implantation of a prosthetic sacral nerve stimulation device. Methods Patients scheduled for a staged procedure were enrolled in a prospective, observational, longitudinal study. Post implantation, patietns were grouped into "responders" or "non-responders" based on their answers to symptom-specific GRAs at three and six months. Treatment responders were defined as those reporting "moderately" or "markedly improved" on a 7-point scale, and all others were considered non-responders. Pre- and post-implant changes in mean 24-hour voiding frequency, voided volume, urgency and pelvic pain scores as recorded on voiding diaries were compared between groups using paired t-test. Results At three months, responders demonstrated corresponding statistically significant improvement in voiding frequency (P,<,0.001), average voided volume (P,=,0.003), urgency (P,=,0.022) and pelvic pain (P,=,0.039). At six months, responders demonstrated statistically significant improvements in frequency (P,=,0.025) and urgency (P,=,0.006). None of the symptom changes were statistically significant in treatment non-responders. Conclusions The GRA non-responders groups' perceptions of treatment response agreed with their objective changes in bothersome symptoms and responders' changes agreed with their perception of improvement in the majority of symptoms. Further study is needed to standardize the GRA, and explore its potential for use in clinical practice. Neurourol. Urodynam. 27:775,778, 2008, © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Changes in serum lactate dehydrogenase activity in children with atopic dermatitis

PEDIATRICS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2010
Yasuyuki Morishima
Abstract Background:, In recent years an increase has been seen in the number of patients with severe atopic dermatitis (AD) accompanied with generalized typical eruptions. Some markers indicating the severity of the disease and symptom changes are very useful, and therefore the purpose of the present study was to investigate serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) as such a marker. Methods:, A total of 58 children with AD were enrolled. The severity of the disease was graded on the basis of the extent of eruptions and the severity of atopic symptoms. The fraction of serum LDH, number of eosinocytes in the peripheral blood, and serum IgE levels were also determined. Results and Conclusion:, There was a close correlation between the severity of cutaneous symptoms and serum LDH activity, and between severity and eosinocyte count, but no relationship was seen between serum IgE levels and severity of the disease. The aforementioned factors were determined in a time-related way. As the patients' condition improved, serum LDH activity tended to decline, but there were no consistent changes in eosinocyte count in the peripheral blood or serum IgE level. On LDH isozyme the levels of LDH4 and LDH5 were high. Tissue showed high LDH activity, especially in epidermides. These results suggest that serum LDH activity is a useful marker. [source]


Long-term effects of chondroitins 4 and 6 sulfate on knee osteoarthritis: The study on osteoarthritis progression prevention, a two-year, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

ARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 2 2009
André Kahan
Objective To assess the long-term effects of chondroitins 4 and 6 sulfate (CS) on the radiographic progression of, and symptom changes associated with, knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods We performed an international, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in which 622 patients with knee OA were randomly assigned to receive either 800 mg CS (n = 309 patients) or placebo (n = 313 patients) once daily for 2 years. Radiographs of the target knee, using the Lyon schuss view, were obtained at the time of enrollment and at 12, 18, and 24 months. The minimum joint space width (JSW) of the medial compartment of the tibiofemoral joint was assessed by digital image analysis. The primary outcome was the loss in minimum JSW over 2 years. Results The intent-to-treat analysis demonstrated a significant reduction (P < 0.0001) in minimum JSW loss in the CS group (mean ± SEM ,0.07 ± 0.03 mm) as compared with the placebo group (,0.31 ± 0.04 mm). The percentage of patients with radiographic progression ,0.25 mm was significantly reduced in the CS group compared with the placebo group (28% versus 41% [P < 0.0005]; relative risk reduction 33% [95% confidence interval 16,46%]). The number of patients needed to treat was 8 (95% confidence interval 5,17). Pain improved significantly faster in the CS group than in the placebo group (P < 0.01). There were no differences in safety between groups. Conclusion The long-term combined structure-modifying and symptom-modifying effects of CS suggest that it could be a disease-modifying agent in patients with knee OA. [source]


Parental Divorce and Offspring Depressive Symptoms: Dutch Developmental Trends During Early Adolescence

JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 2 2008
Albertine J. Oldehinkel
In this study, we investigated if the association between parental divorce and depressive symptoms changes during early adolescence and if developmental patterns are similar for boys and girls. Data were collected in a prospective population cohort of Dutch adolescents (N = 2,149), aged 10 , 15 years. Outcome variables were self-reported and parent-reported depressive symptoms. The effects of divorce were adjusted for parental depression. In both self-reported and parent-reported data, we found a three-way interaction of gender, age, and parental divorce, indicating that with increasing age, parental divorce became more strongly associated with depressive symptoms among girls, but not boys. These results suggest that girls with divorced parents are at particularly high risk to develop depressive symptoms during adolescence. [source]