The Impact of Personality Traits on Ratings of Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to evaluate consistencies and discrepancies between clinician-administered and self-report versions of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and to examine relationships between these scales and personality traits. METHODS: A total of 106 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) participated in this study. All participants were assessed with both clinician-administered and self-report versions of the Y-BOCS. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Disorders Personality Questionnaire (SCID-II-PQ) was used to evaluate relationships between personality traits and scores on the Y-BOCS. RESULTS: Scores on the clinician-administered Y-BOCS and its obsession subscale were significantly higher than were those on the self-report version. However, we found no significant differences in compulsion subscale scores. We also found that the discrepancies in the scores on the two versions of the Y-BOCS and its compulsion subscale were significantly positively correlated with scores for narcissistic personality traits on the SCID-II-PQ. Additionally, narcissistic personality traits had a significant effect on the discrepancy in the scores on the two versions of the Y-BOCS and its compulsion subscale in the multiple linear regression analysis. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to elucidate relationships between personality traits and discrepancies between scores on the two versions of the Y-BOCS. Although clinicians tend to rate obsessive symptoms as being more severe than do patients, clinicians may underestimate the degree to which individuals with narcissistic personality traits suffer more from subjective discomfort due to compulsive symptoms. Therefore, the effect of personality traits on symptom severity should be considered in the treatment of OCD.

Comparison of Open-Set Speech Perception Performance in Children with Cochlear Implants or Hearing Aids / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: In this study, we compared the postoperative open-set speech perception abilities of children using implants against their preoperative residual hearing abilities and also compared the performance of cochlear implant users with that of age-matched hearing aid users. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Ninety-nine prelingually deaf children who have used implants over 1 year were grouped based on the unaided pure tone audiometry (PTA) thresholds into 3 groups: CI91-100(91-100 dB HL), CI101-110 (101-110 dB HL) and CI>111 (over 111 dB HL). Ninety-eight prelingually deaf children with hearing aids were divided into 4 groups also based on the unaided PTA thresholds: HA71-80 (71-80 dB HL), HA81-90 (81-90 dB HL), HA91-100 (91-100 dB HL) and HA101-110 (101-110 dB HL). Children with implants were tested by open-set speech perception tests (Monosyllabic Word, Common Phrases) before implantation and at 6, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months after implantation. Children with hearing aids were tested once or more times using open-set speech perception tests. The open-set speech perception abilities of children with implants and hearing aids were compared before implantation and at 30 months after implantation. RESULTS: The speech perception scores of CI91-100 were higher than those of CI101-110 and CI>111 for the first 2 years of implant use (p111 at 3 years after implantation (p111 were poorer than that of HA71-80, HA81-90 and HA91-100 before implantation, but exceeded that of HA101-110 at 30 months after implantation (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Open-set speech perception performance of children with cochlear implants was better than that of hearing aid users of the corresponding hearing level and was similar to at least that of hearing aid users with PTAs of 81-90 dB HL. Therefore, some of children with severe hearing loss may become good candidates for cochlear implantation.

Open-Set Speech Preception Development in Children with Cochlear Implants / 대한이비인후과학회지

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were 1) to assess the development of open-set speech perception in prelingually deaf children who had multichannel cochlear implants implanted and 2) to document the outcomes according to age at implantation and the device type. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: The subjects for this study were 23 prelingually deaf children who received a Nucleus 22 or Nucleus 24 multichannel cochlear implants and who had been followed-up for a period of 1-4 years at Dong-A University Hospital. They had no other disabilities. Open-set speech perception was evaluated pre-operatively, postoperatively for 6 months and then on a yearly basis using the following assessment materials: Phonetically Balanced Kindergarten monosyllabic word lists, bisyllabic word lists, and Glendonald Auditory Screening Procedure(GASP) sentence subtest. Paired t-tests were performed to assess improvement in the mean scores at each interval for all children. T-tests were used to examine differences in the mean scores between two groups divided by age at implantation and the device type. RESULTS: Open-set speech perception for all subjects was improved to mean 84% for monosyllabic phonemes and 89% and 88% for bisyllabic phonemes and everyday sentences respectively at 4 years postimplantation. Open-set speech perception ability was better for children who received implantation before 5 years of age than those who did it after 5 years of age at 3 years interval and 4 years interval. The performance was also better for children who received Nucleus 24M than those who received Nucleus 22 at all intervals. CONCLUSION: The prelingually deaf children in our study showed significant open-set speech perception abilities at the time of the last postoperative evaluation. Rapid improvement was noted in open-set speech perception for the children who had Nucleus 24M implanted before 5 years of age. In order to maximize the effects of access to auditory stimuli provided by the cochlear implant on the development of open-set speech perception, a structured postoperative schedule of programming and rehabilitation is recommended in addition to the optimal educational environment.