Understanding adolescent personality pathology from growth trajectories of childhood oddity.

Research on developmental trajectories of early maladaptive features for understanding later personality disorders (PDs) is increasingly recognized as an important study area. The course of early odd features is highly relevant in this regard, as only a few researchers have addressed childhood oddity in the context of emerging PDs. Using latent growth modeling, the current study explores growth parameters of odd features in a mixed sample of Flemish community and referred children (N = 485) across three measurement waves with 1-year time intervals. Personality pathology was assessed at a fourth assessment point in adolescence. Beyond a general declining trend in oddity characteristics, the results demonstrated that both an early onset and an increasing trend of oddity-related characteristics over time are independent predictors of adolescent PDs. Childhood oddity tends to be the most manifest precursor for PDs with a core oddity feature (i.e., the schizotypal and borderline PD), but also appears to predict most of the other DSM-5 PDs. Results are discussed from an overarching developmental framework on PDs (Cicchetti, 2014), specifically focusing on the principle of multifinality. From a clinical perspective, the significance of increasing or steady-high childhood oddity trajectories for adolescent PDs highlights the relevance of systematic screening processes across time.

Toward a more nuanced perception of Alzheimer's disease: designing and testing a campaign advertisement.

Starting point of this study was the assumption that Alzheimer's disease is made worse for the person who has the disease by the negative regard in which the illness is held by society. The aim was to test by means of a campaign advertisement whether more nuanced counterframes could have an impact while remaining credible and comprehensible to the public. A sample of thousand people living in Belgium evaluated the campaign in an experimental design. This revealed that all the versions tested achieved a high average evaluation. The ad in which the heading referred to the fear of death and degeneration was judged to be most attention-grabbing, easier to understand, and more credible than the alternative heading with the idea that someone with Alzheimer's could still enjoy playing cards. Together, these findings provided a basis for the use of counterframes to generating a more nuanced image of Alzheimer's disease.

Frames and counter-frames giving meaning to dementia: a framing analysis of media content.

Media tend to reinforce the stigmatization of dementia as one of the most dreaded diseases in western society, which may have repercussions on the quality of life of those with the illness. The persons with dementia, but also those around them become imbued with the idea that life comes to an end as soon as the diagnosis is pronounced. The aim of this paper is to understand the dominant images related to dementia by means of an inductive framing analysis. The sample is composed of newspaper articles from six Belgian newspapers (2008-2010) and a convenience sample of popular images of the condition in movies, documentaries, literature and health care communications. The results demonstrate that the most dominant frame postulates that a human being is composed of two distinct parts: a material body and an immaterial mind. If this frame is used, the person with dementia ends up with no identity, which is in opposition to the Western ideals of personal self-fulfilment and individualism. For each dominant frame an alternative counter-frame is defined. It is concluded that the relative absence of counter-frames confirms the negative image of dementia. The inventory might be a help for caregivers and other professionals who want to evaluate their communication strategy. It is discussed that a more resolute use of counter-frames in communication about dementia might mitigate the stigma that surrounds dementia.

Major coronary anomalies in childhood.

UNLABELLED: Major coronary artery anomalies are extremely rare in childhood. We wanted to assess the historical and diagnostic features and the therapeutic options of three distinct types of coronary artery anomalies: abnormal origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ALCAPA), coronary fistula and coronary stenosis. In a retrospective study, 33 children with these types of coronary artery disease were identified, 15 with ALCAPA, 12 with fistula and six with coronary stenosis. History, physical examination, ECG, X-ray, echocardiography, angiography, therapy and outcome were reviewed. ALCAPA showed distinct typical echocardiographic characteristics. Coronary artery fistula could be identified by a typical murmur and echocardiographic evidence of coronary dilatations. Coronary stenosis should be suspected by the clinical picture in a specific context. CONCLUSION: rare coronary artery anomalies can be accurately diagnosed in childhood. Timely therapy yields good prognosis.