Efficasy of Different Psychiatric Treatment Methods of Liaison Psychiatrist in Treatment of Women with Breast Cancer.

Being diagnosed with breast cancer is a traumatic event that can lead to development of different mental disorders and influences all aspects of affected woman's life. Anxiety and Depressive Disorders in physically ill people still don't have clear diagnostic criteria which make diagnosis and treatment very difficult since different psychiatric therapeutic approaches have different effects. The aim was to evaluate influence of separate and combined psychotherapeutic approach (psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral) and psychopharmacotherapy on decrease of anxiety and depression in breast cancer patients. The sample consisted of 120 subjects divided into four groups. The first group of patients was treated with psychopharmacotherapy, the second group received psychotherapy, the third group was treated with the combination of psychopharmacotherapy and psychotherapy, and the fourth group of patients didn't receive any kind of psychiatric treatment. We used psychotherapeutic interview with detailed clinical assessment using DSM-IV criteria for mental disorders, specially structured non-standardized questionnaire for assessment of etiological factors in development of mental disorders, Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A), Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D). The subjects filled the questionnaires on entry, one moth and two months after the beginning of research. Psychotherapeutic treatment was conducted once a week. All of the therapeutic approaches of liaison psychiatrist applied in the treatment of women with breast cancer are successful in reduction of anxiety and depression. Liaison psychiatrist's combined approach of psychopharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatment of breast cancer patients with depression obtained better results than separate approach.

Influence of psychical trauma through transgenerational transfer on the development of traumatic reactions in women with diagnosed breast cancer.

Earlier experience of psychological trauma of a close person can through a transgenerational transfer influence traumatic reactions of a person going through a trauma at present, resulting in a repetition of earlier traumatic experiences and a development of a variety of mental disturbances. Purpose of our study was to evaluate the influence of transgenerational transfer on the development of Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in women with diagnosed breast cancer that had a family member with diagnosed cancer. The sample mainly consisted of 120 women treated in a Department of Oncology, Osijek University Hospital Center with diagnosis of newly discovered breast cancer, during the conduction of radio therapy having values Hamilton depression scale (HAM-D) from > or = 8 to < or = 24 or values Hamilton anxiety scale (HAM-A) from > or = 17 to < or = 30. Psychotherapeutic interview with a detailed clinical overview and with applying diagnostic criteria according to DSM-IV for mental disorders, specially structured non-standardized questionnaire for etiologic factors evaluation of the beginning of examinees' mental disorder, Los Angeles Symptom Checklist of PTSD symptoms (LASC), Hamilton's scale for anxiety evaluation (HAM-A) and Hamilton's scale for depression evaluation (HAM-D) were used. Results show that 61 (51%) of patients have a family member with diagnosed cancer. The average total value on LASC for examinees that had a family member with diagnosed cancer was slightly higher (22.92) in comparison to those who had no such family member (20.88). No statistically significant connection was found between having a family member with diagnosed cancer and the average total value on LASC. Although no connection was established between having a family member with diagnosed cancer and the average value on LASC in women with diagnosed breast cancer, transgenerational transfer of emotions seems to be important in their traumatic reactions, but it is still insufficiently researched and it is a challenge for future researches leaving many complicated issues open.

Prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases in Croatian children is increasing: survey study.

AIM: To estimate the prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis among school children in the region of Primorsko-goranska County in Croatia, and compare the results with data from other countries. METHODS: The study was conducted during the 2001-2002 school year, in complete adherence to the Phase One protocol of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). The target population comprised two age groups (6-7 and 13-14 years) in the region of Primorsko-Goranska County in Croatia. Data were collected using standardized ISAAC written questionnaire and asthma video questionnaire. RESULTS: There were 1,634 participating children in the 6-7 age group (response rate 80.3%) and 2,194 participating children in the 13-14 age group (response rate 89.8%). Estimated 12-month prevalence rates of symptoms were: wheezing 9.7% and 8.4%, allergic rhinitis symptoms 16.9% and 17.5%, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis symptoms 5.6% and 6.7%, and atopic dermatitis symptoms 5.4% and 3.4%, for younger and older age group, respectively. CONCLUSION: Results suggest an increase in the prevalence of atopic disease symptoms in north-west part of Croatia over the last few decades when compared to prior studies. The results are suitable for international comparison, suggesting that this part of Croatia is a county with a moderate prevalence of atopic diseases in the pediatric population. The results represent a baseline for further epidemiological research of asthma and allergic diseases.