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- Bohman, Hannes
(författare)
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Adolescents with Depression Followed up : Prognostic Significance of Somatic Symptoms and Their Need of In-Patient Care
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- A dualist approach that distinguishes between mind and body is still the norm in Western medicine. Although we now know that physical and mental health are related in adults, little is known about if, or with what mechanisms, mental illnesses or depression early in life, will affect future physical and psychological health. In-between mental and somatic disorders there are somatic symptoms without medical explanation. These are symptoms that cause much suffering and impairment which are costly for society. Still little is known what they are, how they should be treated and what consequences they have for adolescents when they grow up. This study aims to investigate the long-term relationship between mental and somatic disease and the outcome of adolescents with functional somatic symptoms.The thesis is based on a 15-year follow-up study of a population-based investigation of adolescent depression. In 1991–1993 first year students in upper secondary school (age 16–17) in Uppsala, Sweden, were screened for depression (n=2300). Adolescents with positive screening and selected peers with negative screening (n=631) were assessed regarding mental health and somatic symptoms. At around age 31, the participants were followed-up in personal interviews (n=369) and national registers (n=609). Outcomes regarding mental DSM-IV diagnosis, in-patient ICD-10 disease diagnosis from the patient register, and blood vessel wall thickness were assessed.The most important finding is the unexpected poor short and long-term outcome in adolescents with somatic symptoms. The result proves the need for better treatment. The strong prediction of functional somatic symptoms for mental disorder, independent of adolescent depression, suggests that somatic symptoms and depression symptoms are different expressions of a common disorder. Female adolescents with depression need more psychiatric and somatic in-patient care but the males do not. Instead, they have considerably more in-patient stays due to alcohol and drug abuse. The males might be taken care of outside the health care system and seem to need special attention. In women with adolescent and recurrent adult depression there is an association with premature aging of the carotid wall. These women are at risk of developing early cardio-vascular disease and need early interventions.
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| 2. |
- Birkeland, Anna-Lena, 1955-
(författare)
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Psychosocial aspects of living with congenital heart disease : child, family, and professional perspectives
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: The vast majority of infants born with congenital heart disease (CHD) reach adulthood because of the developments in cardiology in recent decades. This thesis aims to describe the psychosocial situation of child/adolescent cardiac patients and their families, investigate the situation faced by parents and siblings initially and over time, investigate the approaches paediatric cardiologists use in encountering the family, and describe the teamwork occurring in paediatric cardiology teams (PCTs) in Sweden.Theoretical framework: The theoretical framework was based on a quality of life model applied to children, a stress-coping model, and a psychosocial approach including support, profession, and teamwork.Methods: The research combines quantitative data collection/analysis and qualitative research interviews/content analysis.Results: Complexity: The three grades of medical complexity differed regarding the number and severity of psychosocial symptoms, the children with the most complex CHD having the most severe symptoms. The most frequent symptoms in the whole patient group regarding various spheres were: healthcare and treatment-related needs in the external sphere, family symptoms in the interpersonal sphere, and mental/psychosomatic symptoms in the personal sphere.Coping: Being informed of a child’s/sibling’s heart disease has emotional consequences, so information, communication, and support are essential. Breaking the news of a child’s disease can be described as a turning point still significant after ten years. The professionalism of the doctor’s approach in breaking the news is crucial.Profession: Among paediatric cardiologists, how to break bad news to a family is an important concern, evident in findings regarding the significance of trust and confidence and the use of various emotional positions. Paediatric cardiologists commonly wish to be skilled at handling this situation, and attaining the needed skills calls for reflection, education, and sharing experience.Team: PCTs in Sweden aim and try to work in a structured way. In PCTs, there is a need for leadership, resource coordination, coaching, and a forum for joint reflection. Dependence on the physician on the team was identified in all PCTs. The challenge of managing increasing complexity at both the family and system levels requires interprofessional teams.Conclusions: These studies illustrate the psychosocial complexity and the need of psychosocial support. Emotional consequences, communication, information and support are essential both for the children, parents/families and for the professionals. To manage this complexity organizational alteration action plans are required. There is a need for a forum to stimulate dialogue and common reflection in the local PCT and at the regional and national centres.
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| 3. |
- Zashikhina, Anna, 1980-
(författare)
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Juvenile chronic physical illness in Northern Russia : Studies on mental health, health-related quality of life, and family functioning
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background Chronic physical illness (CPI) is a prolonged, rarely cured condition, which often causes impairment of activities of a child’s or adolescent’s daily living. This thesis encompasses three cohorts of patients with CPI – diagnosed with diabetes, asthma or epilepsy. Psychological disturbances and difficulties experienced by young patients with CPI are common, and changes in the family environment are inevitable. Hence, from a health care perspective, three cohorts of CPI can give a frame of reference to guide our understanding on the psychological health of adolescents with CPI, and the disease impact on their life; to determine target groups for psychological interventions, and to identify important directions for health care development.Objectives The overall aim of the study was to assess the psychological well-being of adolescents with CPI in Northern Russia, as well as to identify factors of potential risk or protective significance for adolescents’ well-being.Methods The questionnaires covering different aspects of psychological well-being as behavior-emotional problems, depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as well as family functioning were answered by the adolescents with CPI and their mothers, including the Child Behavior Check-List (CBCL) and Youth Self-Report (YSR); Beck Depression Inventory (BDI); The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale; I think I am; Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory for Adolescents (QOLIE-AD-48); Diabetes Quality of Life Questionnaire for Youths (DQOLY); Pediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ); Self-report Family Inventory (SFI); and Socio-Economic Status (SES) questions. Disease related clinical information was withdrawn from the pediatric outpatient clinic. The sample consisted of 148 adolescents with CPI identified from Arkhangelsk pediatric outpatient clinic records and their mothers. Comparative data were obtained from a group of 301 schoolchildren and their mothers.Results Results in Paper I showed certain differences in mental health of adolescents with CPI compared to healthy counterparts indorsed by mother’s reports alone, while self-reports by adolescents with CPI didn’t show any discrepancy in the level of behavior/emotional problems and depression compared to healthy peers. Most pronounced symptoms were found in adolescents with asthma and epilepsy associated with disease severity and gender. In the results of Paper II there were no significant differences found in self/mother reported family functioning of the total group with CPI versus controls. The perception of family functioning differed between the CPI groups and was associated to certain disease-related and non-disease factors. Paper III showed that adolescents with diabetes and asthma maintain positive self-esteem similar to or even higher than that of their healthy counterparts. Adolescents with epilepsy reported lower self-esteem compared to other CPI groups or controls. A diversity of factors contributed to self-esteem variation within the CPI groups. Paper IV provides evidence that adolescents with CPI maintained relatively moderate to high levels of HRQoL. The domains affecting HRQoL were related to both disease-specific (severity) and non-disease factors (gender and SES).Conclusions In the scope of the present thesis we assessed and described psychological well-being and family functioning of adolescents with chronic illnesses. Our results demonstrate generally low levels of behavior-emotional problems, depressive symptoms, and relatively high self-esteem, positive health-related quality of life, and successful family functioning in adolescent with CPI in Northern Russia. However, we conclude that there is a risk of mental health problems, particularly of internalizing nature, in adolescents with asthma and epilepsy. The significant risk factors associated with psychological well-being mediated by family functioning in CPI groups were single-parent household, child age, disease severity, child gender, family SES, and changes in the family life. High family competence and successful family functioning are indisputable protective factors for psychological well-being in adolescents with CPI.
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