Prevention of post traumatic stress disorder in the aftermath of war

This paper examines a traditional model of PTSD prevention addressed at three levels: [1] primary - preventing exposure to trauma, [2] secondary - preventing the development of PTSD immediately after trauma exposure and [3] tertiary - preventing the worsening of PTSD. The psychological profile that emerges from Iraq's experience of war and sanctions offers insight as well as challenges for the debate as to whether PTSD is preventable. Costs associated with many pharmacological and psychosocial approaches, for example, may render prevention a low priority for funding, Further, while the DSM-IV provides a psychiatric framework for single-trauma exposure in its description of PTSD some note that 'it fails to capture the full range of disruption caused by multiple and repeated exposures' These are important considerations in the aftermath of war when trauma-related disorders are likely to be a greater public health concern than in the years that preceded it

family study of panic disorder in Iraq

Panic disorder is a common psychiatric disorder and is slightly higher in women than men, the age range is between 22-44 years, there is increasing evidence of familial transmission of panic disorder with morbidity risk in first degree relative of 17.3%. To determine the rate of PD among first degree relatives of both probands and control group among a sample of psychiatric out patients with PD and the sociodemographic characteristics of such patients. A sample of sixty probands with their 342 FDRs and a control group of sixty people matched for age and sex with their 314 FDRs were assessed by the use of semi structured psychiatric interview schedule based on diagnostic and statistical manual fourth revision [DSM IV] criteria for diagnosing PD. The rate of PD was high among FDRs of probands [14.9%] than FDRs of control group [3.1%] with female to male ratio of 2:1, most patients were married and living in urban area and were of good educational status. PD was higher among FDRs of case probands than FDRs of control group which suggest a genetic aetiology for PD

Depression in patients with Parkinson's disease

A high rate of depression has been observed in patients with Parkinson's disease [PD]. PD involves a loss of central monoamines, and a decrease of monoamines has been implicated in depression; therefore, it is possible that depression in PD results from the loss of endogenous neurotransmitters. however, it is equally possible that depression represents a reaction to the chronic disabling course of PD. Fifty-four patients with definite PD [according to Calne research criteria for diagnosing PD] were selected from attendants of out-patient clinics of Baghdad Teaching Hospital and Hammad Shehab Hospital during the period from lst November 1999 till 30th June 2000. The presence of depression was diagnosed by using a semi-structured interview based on ICD-lO" criteria and its severity was rated by Beck Depression Inventory [Concise Arabic Version] while the motor disability of PD was determined according to Hoehn and Yahr scale. The patients group was matched for age and sex with [52] healthy control to achieve the comparability The results showed that the rate of depression in patients with PD was [42.59%] which is highly significant compared with [7.69%] among their matched control [i.e. P< 0.001] and there is a positive correlation between the severity of depression and severity of motor disability [i.e., P <0.05]. 47% of depressed parkinsonian patients were in the age group [50-59], and the rate of depression was nearly equal between males and females [i.e., statistically not significant, P <0.05]. We concluded that, depression is common in parkinsonian patients and its relation to the motor disability is supported by this study