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Clinic patients with diagnoses of either major depression or somatization disorder were given the MMPI. Women with somatization disorder had high scores on Keane's MMPI scale (PK) for posttraumatic stress disorder. Following the procedure for the MMPI-2 (46 of the 49 PK items and MMPI-2 norms), 59% of the women with somatization disorder and 21% of the women with major depression would have T scores > 65 on the MMPI-2 scale although none of them were known to have developed psychiatric disorder after exposure to a life threatening event. The PK scale has little use in the differential diagnosis of women patients with somatization disorder.

44 items on the MMPI were identified which appear to correspond to some of the symptoms in nine of the 10 groups on the Perley-Guze checklist for somatization disorder (hysteria). This list was organized into two scales, one reflecting the total number of symptoms endorsed and the other the number or organ systems with the least one endorsed symptom. Full MMPIs were then obtained from 29 women with primary affective disorder and 37 women with somatization disorder as part of a follow-up study of a consecutive series of 500 psychiatric clinic patients seen at Washington University. Women with the diagnosis of somatization disorder scored significantly higher on the somatization disorder scales created from the 44 items than did women with only major depression. These new scales appeared to be slightly more effective in identifying somatization disorder than the use of the standard MMPI scales for hypochondriasis and hysteria. Further development is needed.

The loss of a loved one is one of the most traumatic events in a person's life. In spite of this, most people cope with the loss with minimal morbidity. [...]

The article offers clinical information on bereavement-related depression in older people. Bereavement is defined as the reaction to a loss by death, which is characterized with anger, painful emotions and preoccupation with thoughts of the deceased. A study found that bereavement can lead to chronic depressive syndrome in older people. Therapeutic approaches for bereavement-related depression include psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy.

Abstract: In the late 1950s three men in the Department of Psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO, Drs. Eli Robins, Sam Guze and George Winokur, developed sets of criteria, based on published data and their own research, for the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. They also presented data on how to validate these diagnoses. They termed their endeavor, “The medical model for psychiatric disorders.” Residents were taught how to use criteria to diagnose and treat psychiatric patients. Besides clinical interviewing, the emphasis was on published data, critical literature reading and research, either basic or clinical, always using structured interviews. All residents were required to do psychiatric research, supervised by one of the full-time staff. Besides the three above, there were many other faculty members who were actively engaged in teaching and research, but they all adhered to the above model. Repetition was the most important aspect of learning. It was an exciting time to be there and that enthusiasm led to many of the trainees continuing to be committed to academic careers and the others, to a very high standard of psychiatric care. In addition, it led to the development of DSMIII and beyond, a host of validated structured interviews, a method for testing new drugs, a method for validating psychiatric diagnoses, an emphasis on the importance of genetics to psychiatry, and many important clinical findings. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Presents guidelines for psychiatrists who treat patients with bipolar disorder. Disease definition; Diagnosis of bipolar disorder; Specific features of diagnosis; Natural history and course; Epidemiology; Treatment principles and alternatives; Psychiatric management; Pharmacologic treatments; Electroconvulsive therapy; Psychotherapeutic treatments.

Studies the differences between bipolar and unipolar disorders. Clinical manifestations; Choice of treatment; Combination of drug treatment with psychotherapy; Prophylactic treatment of bipolar disorders.

This is a 13-month follow-up study of 105 two to 17 year-old children bereaved of one parent, with 85 controls. Data were gathered on physical and mental health in the children and surviving parents, the child's sex and age and the bereaved parent's sex and psychopathology being included as risk factors. Dysphoria, falling school performance and withdrawn behaviour were significantly increased in bereaved children of both sexes at all ages, while temper tantrums, bedwetting and the depressive syndrome only increased in the age and sex categories normally associated with these conditions. A global index of psychopathology was increased compared with controls on most subgroups of bereaved children (P less than 0.0001), the highest scores for both sexes being associated with having a mentally ill (usually depressed) widowed mother. The results are discussed and suggestions made for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a one-year prospective study of one hundred and five 2 to 17 year old children of a consecutive sample of young widows and widowers in the community and of the children of controls. The children's reactions to the parental death were recorded at one month and thirteen months after the event in a structured interview with the surviving parent. The interview included items of general adaption to the death, school performance, behaviour problems, symptoms relevant to psychopathological manifestations (depression, anxiety, etc.) and general health. The results indicate a significant increase of dysphoria which disappears over time (P less than 0.0001), the persistence of a minor form of depression (P less than 0.03), an increase in bedwetting (P less than 0.03), and a significant degree of impairment in school performance (P less than 0.0001). There were no significant increases in behaviour problems and severe forms of depression. The children's general health was not affected. Those results are compared to currently available data on childhood bereavement and discussed in the light of conflicting reports relating parental loss to adult psychopathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ninety-one patients with panic attacks limited historically to depressive episodes had more severe depressive symptoms and were less likely to recover during a 2-year follow-up than 417 depressed patients who did not have panic attacks. Family study data clearly distinguished another 15 patients with panic disorder and secondary depression; interviewed relatives of panic disorder patients were significantly less likely to have primary depression and significantly more likely to have various anxiety disorders. These data support the hierarchical system by which many of the contemporary diagnostic systems separate panic disorder and major depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]