ABSTRACT
Parental Alienation Syndrome is characterized by the presence of a campaign of denigration towards a previously loved parent, which is done by instigating unjustified fear and hatred in the course of a divorce custody battle. In this campaign one parent instills resentment in the child, and is successful when the child itself directly shuns the accused parent. The resentment in the child extends towards the family of the accused parent. The syndrome arises in the absence of actual abuse, which would justify the child's rejection. Pediatricians have access to their patients' family crisis and are in a special stance to acknowledge it. The parental alienation syndrome is a form of emotional child abuse and both psychological assessment and multidisciplinary intervention are required to stop it. In this article we provide an update on parental alienation syndrome and was motivated by the authors' intervention in clinical cases where this diagnosis was posed.
El Síndrome de Alienación Parental se caracteriza por la presencia de una campaña de denigración hacia un progenitor previamente querido por el niño, la que se inicia instigando temor y animadversión injustificadas y que suele producirse durante el litigio por la custodia del niño en un proceso de divorcio. En esta campaña habitualmente participa un progenitor que instiga el resentimiento y que culmina cuando el niño rechaza abiertamente al progenitor acusado, haciendo suyas las descalificaciones esgrimidas en su contra. Este síndrome se produce en ausencia de maltrato físico o abuso, en cuyo caso el rechazo del niño es justificado. Los pediatras tienen acceso a las crisis por las que atraviesan las familias de sus pacientes y están en condiciones de detectar y reconocer a tiempo una situación de esta naturaleza. El síndrome de alienación parental es una forma grave de maltrato psicológico y requiere de una intervención multidisciplinaria para detenerlo. En el presente artículo se presenta una actualización del síndrome de alienación parental basado en la experiencia de los autores en casos clínicos en los cuales se propuso este diagnóstico.
Subject(s)
Humans , Female , Child , Child Abuse , Divorce/psychology , Parent-Child Relations , Parents/psychology , Social Alienation , SyndromeABSTRACT
Background:Even though studying Medicine and perceiving abuse seem to be two opposite situations, recent investigations in Chile and abroad find that this is a frequent and pervasive combination. These studies also report the negative effects in the lives of students as well as the impact on the profession as a whole. Aim: To ascertain the perception of abusive situations in medical students during training at the University of Chile. Material and Methods: Descriptive and cross sectional study in which a questionnaire was applied to all the students enrolled in 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 7th year during 2001 and 2002. Using short vignettes, they were asked if they had experienced verbal, psychological, physical and sexual abuse, at least once, during their training, by whom and the eventual effects derived from it. Results: We obtained 757 questionnaires. Of the surveyed students, 91 percent reported having perceived at least one abusive episode during training. Teachers and fellow students were identified as the main offenders. Among the effects of such behavior, 32 percent mentioned that they considered dropping out of the career as a consequence of this experience. Discussion: The perception of abuse in medical students is common and has adverse effects. Efforts should be made to draw attention to this problem to prevent it.
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Clinical Clerkship/statistics & numerical data , Faculty, Medical , Perception , Students, Medical/psychology , Violence/psychology , Chile , Internship and Residency , Interprofessional Relations , Organizational Culture , Surveys and Questionnaires , Sex Factors , Students, Medical/statistics & numerical data , Violence/statistics & numerical dataABSTRACT
The use of isotretinoin as a treatment for acne is related to psychiatric syndromes such as psychosis and depression. On the other hand, several drugs have been identified as causing panic attacks. A relationship between dermatologic and psychiatric disease has also been established. We report a 20 year-old male who started to suffer panic attacks after using isotretinoin for acne.
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Male , Acne Vulgaris/drug therapy , Dermatologic Agents/adverse effects , Isotretinoin/adverse effects , Panic Disorder/chemically induced , Dermatologic Agents/therapeutic use , Isotretinoin/therapeutic useABSTRACT
Background: Molecular biology is a new branch of biological sciences, with novel laboratory techniques that are being progressively applied into biomedical and clinical research and, furthermore, into medical practice. Aims: To evaluate the use of molecular biology techniques in Chilean biomedical and clinical research and its evolution in the recent decade. Methods: All papers published as research articles, clinical experiences or case reports, in Revista MÄdica de Chile, during two time periods: 1987-1989 and 1997-1999, were reviewed to find out whether molecular biology techniques had been used or not. This journal publishes roughly 40 percent of papers generated in Chile, in biomedical or clinical topics, while another 15 percent appears in foreign journals. Results: Among 341 papers published in 1987-1989, 57 (16.7 percent) had used one or more molecular biology techniques; in contrast, among 318 papers published in 1997-1999, 91 (28.8 percent) had used them (p<0.001). Most papers using molecular biology techniques were research articles. Immunology, genetics, endocrinology, hematology, hepatology and rheumatology were the specialties providing a greater number and proportion of papers using molecular biology techniques. Chilean universities were the main institutions sponsoring these articles and FONDECYT (the Chilean Government Research Granting Office) was the main source of funding. The University of Chile (State-owned) provided most centers where these publications had been generated, followed by the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. Conclusions: Molecular biology techniques have been rapidly and progressively incorporated as research tools in biomedicine and clinical medicine, in Chile. At the present time, these techniques are predominantly used in research conducted in University settings and funded by Governmental research grants