Subject(s)
Basal Ganglia Diseases/epidemiology , Basal Ganglia Diseases/genetics , Calcinosis/epidemiology , Calcinosis/genetics , Cognition Disorders/epidemiology , Cognition Disorders/genetics , Psychotic Disorders/epidemiology , Psychotic Disorders/genetics , Anticipation, Genetic/genetics , Basal Ganglia Diseases/diagnosis , Calcinosis/diagnosis , Cognition Disorders/diagnosis , Comorbidity , Family , Humans , Pedigree , Psychotic Disorders/diagnosis , Syndrome , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
The David Grant Medical Center at Travis Air Force Base in California is the site of a collaboration between the U.S. Air Force, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the School of Medicine of the University of California, Davis, which was begun in 1994 to assure optimum use of resources and provide broader educational experiences to residents and students. The three systems have been integrated most fully on an inpatient mental health unit. The authors describe the history and development of the collaboration, focusing on how the model has helped the three organizations address clinical, institutional, and educational needs.
Subject(s)
Education, Medical/trends , Hospitals, Military/organization & administration , Hospitals, University/organization & administration , Hospitals, Veterans/organization & administration , Internship and Residency/organization & administration , Psychiatric Department, Hospital/organization & administration , Psychiatry/education , California , Forecasting , Hospital Bed Capacity , Hospital Shared Services/trends , Humans , Internship and Residency/trends , Length of Stay/trends , Patient Admission/trendsABSTRACT
Objectives for Emergency Medicine residents on a Psychiatry rotation is the 33rd article in this continuing series of off-service objectives. Psychiatric presentations, including substance abuse and violent behavior, are ubiquitous in the emergency department. In addition, psychological issues influence every aspect of clinical care. A psychiatry rotation can be valuable in emergency medicine training. This experience can be enhanced by clearly defined learning objectives in clinical psychiatry.
Subject(s)
Curriculum , Emergency Medicine/education , Internship and Residency , Psychiatry/education , Emergency Services, Psychiatric , Humans , United StatesABSTRACT
Three cases of adult patients with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder who received their initial clinical evaluation and management in an Air Force Mental Health Clinic are presented. Diagnostic, therapeutic, and administrative issues pertinent to these patients are discussed. Clinicians should be alert to the diagnostic possibility of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in adult patients reporting the characteristic history and symptoms.
Subject(s)
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/diagnosis , Adult , Age of Onset , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/physiopathology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/therapy , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Humans , Male , Military PersonnelABSTRACT
The clinical use of sertraline for 1 year in a family practice clinic in a small Air Force hospital was reviewed. Retrospective chart review showed that 85% of patients receiving five or more prescriptions for sertraline had a diagnosis of depression; the remainder were treated for chronic pain or dysthymia. The patients in the review needed dose increases (above the recommended starting dose of 50 mg qd) in nearly 50% of the cases. Clinicians using sertraline for the treatment of affective illness in the primary care setting should be aware of the likelihood for dose increases to achieve maximal clinical benefit.
Subject(s)
1-Naphthylamine/analogs & derivatives , Antidepressive Agents/therapeutic use , Depressive Disorder/drug therapy , Hospitals, Military , 1-Naphthylamine/administration & dosage , 1-Naphthylamine/therapeutic use , Antidepressive Agents/administration & dosage , Drug Utilization , Family Practice , Humans , Retrospective Studies , Sertraline , United StatesABSTRACT
The foundations of our current system for profiling military psychiatric patients were laid during World War II, well before the development of the first version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The general principles and terminology remain in use today through Air Force Instruction 48-123, Medical Examination and Standards. The terminology used is clearly outdated, making it difficult to use and risking misuse, deploying the wrong person or denying deployment to an appropriate person. Our objective is to review the current standards for making psychiatric profiles in the U.S. Air Force and propose a practical interpretation of the current Air Force Instruction. Considerable research remains to be done to improve our profile system, especially in light of the development of effective treatments for many psychiatric illnesses. Although prognostic data are available for some illnesses, little research has been done on military populations and essentially none of it considers the rigors of military deployment. Diagnosis, prognosis, duty environments, and demands of duties all must be considered in making profile decisions. Reductionistic approaches more simple than this will serve neither the commander nor the airman.
Subject(s)
Aerospace Medicine/standards , Mental Disorders/diagnosis , Military Personnel , Practice Guidelines as Topic/standards , Terminology as Topic , Aerospace Medicine/methods , Diagnosis-Related Groups/classification , Diagnosis-Related Groups/standards , Diagnostic Errors/prevention & control , Disability Evaluation , Humans , Mental Disorders/classification , Prognosis , Severity of Illness Index , United StatesABSTRACT
A case is presented of a young active duty woman who experienced nonpsychotic denial of pregnancy until she precipitously delivered a healthy full-term infant. Despite the lack of prenatal care and the requirement for neonatal resuscitation, the child has apparently developed normally. The woman had no ongoing psychiatric illness. She was able to make appropriate use of medical, nursing, and social work resources to function well with her child at home. The recent literature on denial of pregnancy is reviewed, and the clinical differences between nonpsychotic and psychotic denial of pregnancy are described. Clinical management and mobilization of social support structures can improve the chances of successful clinical outcomes in nonpsychotic denial of pregnancy.
Subject(s)
Denial, Psychological , Military Personnel/psychology , Pregnancy/psychology , Adult , Aerospace Medicine , Female , Humans , Infanticide/psychology , Maternal Health Services , Pregnancy Outcome , Social Support , United StatesABSTRACT
We evaluated a patient who developed a psychotic disorder after 4 months of isoniazid prophylaxis for a positive tuberculosis tine test. His symptoms resolved within 2 weeks of discontinuing the isoniazid. Clinicians should be aware of the possibility of psychotic symptoms with the use of this agent.
Subject(s)
Antitubercular Agents/adverse effects , Isoniazid/adverse effects , Psychoses, Substance-Induced/etiology , Adult , Humans , Male , Tuberculosis/drug therapyABSTRACT
A retrospective chart review of 2 years of admissions (1995-1996) for alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence patients on an inpatient substance abuse unit showed the prevalence of comorbid affective disorders, personality disorders/subsyndromal personality traits, and the combination of all three diagnoses to be 8.2, 17.5, and 9.6%, respectively. The available literature on these additional diagnoses in substance abusers is reviewed and compared with the findings of the current study. Patients identified for inpatient substance abuse treatment need full psychiatric evaluation for other Axis I and Axis II comorbidity that may greatly affect their treatment plans and clinical prognoses.
Subject(s)
Alcoholism/complications , Alcoholism/psychology , Military Personnel/psychology , Mood Disorders/complications , Mood Disorders/psychology , Personality Disorders/complications , Personality Disorders/psychology , Personality , Adult , Aged , California , Comorbidity , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Patient Admission/statistics & numerical data , Prevalence , Rehabilitation Centers , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
Various studies examining the prevalence of personality disorders in civilian inpatient and outpatient populations have consistently found narcissistic personality disorder to be one of the least common. In striking contrast to this, a recently published study showed narcissistic personality features to be among the most common personality features in a military outpatient clinic population. This paper examines several possible explanations for this finding. This surprisingly high relative incidence of narcissistic personality features may be related to a self-selection bias on the part of persons choosing a military career. Narcissistic personality traits may confer adaptive advantage in certain military professional roles. Kohut's theory of specific transference requirements in individuals with narcissistic character structure serves as a useful explanatory model for these findings.
Subject(s)
Military Personnel/psychology , Narcissism , Humans , Leadership , Prevalence , Psychoanalytic InterpretationABSTRACT
Clinical criteria for psychiatric illnesses that are career limiting to active duty Air Force personnel are defined in Air Force Instruction (AFI) 48-123. The terms used in the AFI are not sufficiently specific to the standards of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV). The authors review AFI 48-123 for conditions commonly seen in Air Force mental health practice and offer clinical interpretation of this AFI to bring it into line with DSM-IV. As a result of this synthesis, decisions regarding which mental health conditions warrant medical evaluation board disposition are clearer and more uniform. Clinicians and administrators are encouraged to refer to this paper for assistance in making decisions on mental health patients.
Subject(s)
Mental Disorders/classification , Military Personnel/psychology , Military Psychiatry/standards , Practice Guidelines as Topic , Humans , Mental Disorders/diagnosis , Prognosis , Psychiatric Status Rating Scales , Terminology as TopicSubject(s)
Hepatitis B/psychology , Hepatitis C/psychology , Liver Cirrhosis/complications , Psychotic Disorders/complications , Adult , Antiviral Agents/therapeutic use , Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry) , Hepatitis B/drug therapy , Hepatitis C/drug therapy , Humans , Liver Cirrhosis/psychology , Liver Cirrhosis/therapy , MaleSubject(s)
Depressive Disorder/diagnosis , Depressive Disorder/epidemiology , Dysthymic Disorder/diagnosis , Dysthymic Disorder/epidemiology , Chronic Disease , Cohort Studies , Comorbidity , Humans , Outcome Assessment, Health Care , Personality Disorders/epidemiology , Recurrence , Severity of Illness Index , Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiologySubject(s)
Amnesia/etiology , Carbon Monoxide Poisoning/complications , Cerebral Infarction/physiopathology , Hippocampus/physiopathology , Suicide, Attempted/psychology , Adult , Amnesia/physiopathology , Amnesia/psychology , Carbon Monoxide Poisoning/diagnosis , Carbon Monoxide Poisoning/physiopathology , Cerebral Infarction/complications , Cerebral Infarction/diagnosis , Functional Laterality , Humans , Male , PrognosisABSTRACT
Lithium salts are commonly prescribed psychiatric medications. While they are usually safely used on outpatients, lithium preparations are associated with systemic and ocular side effects with both acute and chronic use. The optometrist should be aware of the ocular side effects so as to participate in the management of these patients. Ocular side effects may be the first signs of lithium toxicity.
Subject(s)
Eye Diseases/chemically induced , Lithium/adverse effects , Bipolar Disorder/drug therapy , Humans , Lithium/therapeutic use , Nystagmus, Pathologic/chemically inducedABSTRACT
Beta adrenergic blocking agents are in widespread use as both systemic and topical medications. While they are safely used in the great majority of cases, several side effects are well known. Central nervous system side effects, specifically depression, can be among the most clinically important of these and must be investigated by the clinician.
Subject(s)
Adrenergic beta-Antagonists/adverse effects , Depression/chemically induced , Administration, Topical , Adrenergic beta-Antagonists/therapeutic use , Brain/drug effects , Depression, Chemical , Glaucoma/drug therapy , Humans , Ophthalmic Solutions/adverse effectsABSTRACT
Internal carotid artery disease is a challenge to the optometrist because of its full spectrum of manifestations. A detailed case history and a thorough evaluation of the ocular and visual signs and symptoms are invaluable in the appropriate management of the patient. The optometric practitioner must consider this disease in middle-aged or elderly patients who present with suggestive signs and/or symptoms. Appropriate diagnosis and management of the disease will, it is hoped, result in the continued visual health and longevity of these patients.