Psychiatr Pol
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Continuation and maintenance electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is used to reduce the risk for relapse and recurrence of affective disorders and schizophrenic disorders. Despite the potential value of these ECT schedules, both are relatively neglected in clinical practice. This article reviews the recent research on the subject. Although most of the research are small open studies and case reports, continuation and maintenance ECT does emerge as a safe and effective treatment for relapse and recurrence-prone patients who have responded to the basic course of ECT.
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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a slowly progressive lung disorder characterised by airflow obstruction. It is one of the major causes of morbidity, disability and mortality in the older population. Comorbid psychiatric and psychological impairments (depression and anxiety, most often panic disorder) are common in COPD. They impair the quality of life in COPD severely and are often not fully explored in the clinical management of COPD patients. ⋯ It is highly possible, that psychiatric and psychological problems affect the quality of life, self-management and treatment outcome in patients with COPD.
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The authors examined psychiatrically a group of 45 patients suffering from severe COPD. The special interest of the study was the careful analysis of the time, context and content of different psychological traumas that the patients had experienced throughout their lives. ⋯ It is possible, that strictly psychological and psychiatric problems affect the course and severity of COPD in women.
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The aim of the study was the adaptation and normalization of the Eating Disorder Inventory in the group of Polish schoolgirls and patients with eating disorders. ⋯ The Polish version of EDI is a useful research instrument. Differences between bulimic and restrictive groups of patients indicates that in severe cases of restrictive type of anorexia nervosa, self-evaluation using self-report questionnaires may underestimate the severity of symptoms.
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A case of a 75-year-old woman suffering from delusional parasitosis is described. The patient was referred to the consultant psychiatrist by a dermatologist with the diagnosis of psychosis. In course of the psychiatric treatment the patient revealed the delusional parasitosis and received antipsychotic treatment resulting in full remission. ⋯ According to the contemporary ICD-10 diagnostic criteria, the delusional parasitosis is a disorder which belongs to organic hallucinosis that are usually attached to lonely, old women. In such cases, a therapeutic process using antipsychotic treatment is necessary. A liaison between dermatologist and psychiatrist is advocated.