Iranian Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology
Year:2003 | Volume:8 | Issue:3 (31)|Papers Count:14

Objectives: This research investigated the prevalence of anxiety disorder among Tehranian population ages 20-64 years in summer and winter 1999-2000.Method: 1070 Tehranian were selected by random cluster sampling method and then they participated in screening anxiety test (Beck Anxiety Inventory).Those, whose scores were higher than the cut of point in anxiety inventory, were -psychiatrically interviewed. In case of –presence of disorder, its type was determined. The interviewers were blind to the result of patient's anxiety test Findings: The results showed anxiety disorders in about 15% of subjects and also revealed anxiety level among women subjects is two to three times as much as men.Results: The current research presents similarities and differences in comparison with previous studies.

Objectives: Evaluating the effects of fluoxetine and clomipramine on fasting blood sugar, tri-glyceride, cholesterol, weight, and liver function of obsessive-compulsive of Iranian children and adolescents. Method: 30 patients (7-17 yrs.) referred by Roozbeh Hospital with the diag-nosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), were selected as the subjects. Clinical inte-rviews based on DSM-IV, Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOS) and Maudseley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI) was used for the purpose of diagnosis. The sub-jects were randomly assigned to two groups; each composed of 15 subjects. For a period of 8 weeks, in a double blind clinical trial, one group received fluoxetine and the other group received clomipramine. The first group started with 10 to 20 mg. of fluoxetine; the dosage was ultimately increased to 20-60 mg. per day in the second week. The second group received 25 mg. of clomipramine in the beginning and then in the second week, it was raised up to 75-200 mg. per day. The severity of OCD was measured by YBOS and MOCI at the beginning and end of the study. Triglyceride, Cholesterol, fasting blood sugar, and weight were first measured at the initial phase, and then two, four, and 8 weeks after the initiation of the medi-cation. The results were analyzed by descriptive statistics and t-test. Finding: This study showed that fluoxetine decreased fasting blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride signi-ficantly; fluoxetine increased the density of ALP of liver function. On the other hand, clomi-pramine decreased fasting blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride; but had no effect on ALP of liver function. Both fluoxetine and clomipramine caused an increase in the density of SGPT and SGOT of liver function. Whereas after eight weeks of treatment, fluoxetine had little impact on the subjects’ weight, clomipramine significantly increased their weight. Results: fluoxetine is preferred in treatment of OCD patients who have over-weight issue and also suffer from cardiovascular or diabetic disorders.

Objective: The purpose of this research was to determine the prevalence of depression in patients undergoing hemodialysis and also to prevent and treat depression by clarifying the risk factors for these patients. Method: 60 patients (21 men, 39 women) who had undergone hemodialysis were selected as the subjects of the study by convenient sampling. A demo-graphic questionnaire and Beck Depression Inventory were used to collect data; the results were then analyzed by X2 statistical test. Findings: In this study, 50% of the subjects were afflicted with depression; of which, 33.3% suffered from mild depression, 15% from moderate depression, and 1.7%sufferedfromseveredepression.Therewasno significant differ- A rence between the two groups of depressed and non depressed patients across gender, age, marital status, and duration of dialysis factors. There was however a negative correlation noted between the level of education and depression. Results: Considering the high prevalence of depression, attending to the mental health of dialysis patients is indispensable in the area of depression. Specific plans need to be executed to prevent and treat their depression.

Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and side effects of baclofen and clonidine treatments in opioid detoxification. Method: 66 subjects from an outpatient setting diagnosed with opium dependency (based on DSM-IV) took part in a double blind study. Randomly 32 and 34 subjects were assigned to take respectively baclofen and clonidine for 14 days. Findings: Both drugs showed similar efficacy in regards to physical and mental symptoms of withdrawal syndrome. No significant difference was noted between the two groups on depression and anxiety scales. The side effect profiles of the two groups were more or less the same except for "vomiting" and "euphoria" which were more significantly evident in the baclofen group. Results: Baclofen can be invariably considered as an equivalent of clonidine, in opium detoxification

Objectives: The current research was conducted to compare the effectiveness of Lazarus Multimodal Therapy, Ellis Rational Emotive Therapy, relaxation, and placebo on decreasing students' test anxiety. Method: 92 high school students suffering from test anxiety were selected as the subjects of the study. They were clients of counseling centers affiliated to Ministry of Education and. National Youth Center in Tehran. Using simple random method, the subjects were assigned to five treatment groups: Lazarus Multimodal Therapy (n=20), Ellis Rational-,Emotive (n=18), relaxation (n=19), placebo (n=17), and control group (n=17). After ten treatment session (two 50 minutes weekly sessions) for each group, the students' test anxiety was assessed once again. The data was analyzed by using multigroup pre-post test experimental design and analysis of variance. Findings: The findings revealed that the four therapeutic methods were more effective in reducing anxiety than the control group. There was no significant difference between Lazarus Multimodal Therapy and Ellis Rational Emotional Therapy. Lazarus Multimodal Therapy was significantly more effective in reducing anxiety than relaxation, placebo, and control groups. There was no significant difference between relaxation therapy and placebo method in reduction of anxiety. Results: Four therapeutic methods in this research significantly were more effective than control group.

Objectives: The present study was designed to investigate the automatic activation of semantic priming in schizophrenic patients. Method: 36 schizophrenic patients and 36 normal subjects participated in two experiments. In experiment one, the effect of semantic relation on identification of degraded targets was examined between a series of single prime words and single target words presented in a typical semantic priming paradigm. To restrict the priming to automatic processes, in experiment two, series of two primes were presented simultaneously instead of one. Both primes were related to the target, and the effect of semantic relation between two primes on identification of degraded targets was examined. Finding: In experiment one, both groups demonstrated semantic priming effect for related words; there was no significant difference between the two groups. In experiment two, semantic relation between two primes resulted in a significant priming effect in normal subjects, but not in schizophrenic patients. Results: This study showed that schizophrenic subjects have difficulties in automatically activating related words in their semantic networks. Restricting semantic priming to automatic processes can suggest a way to resolve the inconsistencies in studies with schizophrenic subjects.

Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to determine the prevalence of personality disorders in male prisoners in Shahr-e-Kord prison. Method: 203 men, 16years or older were selected through a systemic random procedure as the subjects of the study. They were then assessed by a clinical interview checklist based on ICD-10 diagnostic criteria. Where there was a discrepancy on diagnosis, MMPl-2 was used as an aid. Findings: The prevalence of personality disorder was 55.2% amongst the subjects. The most prevalent disorders were antisocial personality disorders (18.2%), schizoid personality disorder (8.4%), and dependent personality disorder (8.4%).They were followed by border line (7.4%), mixed (3.4%), histrionic (3%), obsessive (3%) and paranoid personality disorder (2.5%). The results also indicated that the prevalence of personality disorder based on the sort of crime was the highest amongst the robbers, (64.1%) followed by inmates incarcerated for drug addiction, murder, drug dealing, and fraud respectively at 60.9%, 55.6%,55%, and 40.9%. There were also a significant correlation between-the subjects' marital status, educational level, and age with personality disorders. Results: The high prevalence of personality disorders among prisoners suggests a broader investigation and prevention measures by judicial system, prison authorities, and medical personnel.

Objectives: The purpose of this research is to investigate two different perspectives on depressive thinking. One viewpoint considers depression as a reflection of increasing general accessibility of negative constructs and depressive memories; the other defines depressive thoughts as a reflection of changes at a more general level of cognitive representation. Method: 54 subjects selected by convenient sampling method took part in the study. They were assigned to the following three groups: 18 patients suffering from, major depression, 18 patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder, and finally 18 normal subjects composing the control group (10 female and 8 male in each group). To investigate contrasting predications from the two perspectives, depressed patients, obsessive patients, and normal control groups responded to Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS), perfectionism, DAS-need for approval, and Sentence Completion Task. Findings: The result of one-way analysis of variance showed a significant difference between depressed, obsessive, and normal groups on Sentence Completion Task and DAS-need for approval test. Furthermore, the follow up Tukey test indicated a significant difference between depressed and the normal groups; there was not a significant difference between depressed and obsessive groups. Results: The results supported schematic mental prediction. Since schematic model was established for perfectionism and need for approval in obsessive patients, its exclusive explanation for depressed patients may not be confirmed.

Objectives: The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of music therapy and relaxation on hospitalized CCU patients' anxiety. Method: The subjects of the study were 90 patients hospitalized in one of the teaching hospitals in Tehran. The subjects were assigned randomly to three groups: music therapy, relaxation, and control. Data were collected via demographic information and Spielberger Questionnaires. For the music therapy group, non-lyric tape was used; for the relaxation group a cassette player with headphone was used to play relaxation music for 30 minutes. Both before and after audio tape trial, Spielberger Questionnaire was completed by music therapy, relaxation, and control groups. The difference in anxiety scores assessed before and after the intervention determined the efficacy of music and relaxation tapes. Findings: The findings showed that both music therapy and relaxation method significantly reduced anxiety among the subjects. The level of control group's anxiety was not reduced in post-test assessment: Results: Hearing music and relaxation tapes reduce patient's anxiety.

Objectives: The purpose of this survey was to compare the amount of zinc concentration between normal children and the children suffering from Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, micromacrocephaly, and hydrocephaly in Iran. The correlation between zinc concentration and the spoken syndromes was further assessed.Method: In the present study, the hair samples were used to estimate zinc concentration. Whereas many pathological conditions are associated with alteration of scarce elements in hair, samples of both normal children and patients were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometery. Findings: The patients had significantly higher level of zinc concentration in hair samples than normal children. Results: Considering the dietary of the children in the study, this increased level of zinc could not be attributed to qualitative dietary intake. Therefore, such a high accumulation of zinc uptake could be due to the very syndromes from which the children are suffering; this could lead to receiving or using cellular substances such as albumin, transferrin, or other related proteins.