36 research outputs found
Should the definition of the term "children born of war" and vulnerabilities of children from recent conflict and post-conflict settings be broadened?
Traumatization and mental distress in long-term prisoners in Europe
This article investigates the prevalence of traumatization and mental distress
in a sample of 1055 male European long-term prisoners as part of a wider study
of the living conditions of prisoners serving sentences of at least five years
in Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Lithuania,
Poland, Spain and Sweden. Data were collected in a written survey using the
Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale (PDS), the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) as
well as questions on attempted suicide and auto-aggressive behaviour.
Participants experienced a mean of three traumatic events, with 14 per cent
developing a Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) subsequently. In each
national sample, more than 50 per cent of the participants were in need of
treatment because of psychological symptoms and nearly one-third had attempted
suicide
Impact of War Trauma and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder on Psychopathology in Croatian and German Patients with Severe Mental Illness
Aim To explore posttraumatic stress symptoms and current
psychopathology in a binational sample of Croatian
and German participants with severe mental illness.
Methods We studied 178 inpatients from the Greifswald
University (German patients, n = 89) and University Hospital
Zagreb and Ivan Barbot Neuropsychiatric Hospital (Croatian
patients, n = 89) with either major depression (n = 150),
schizophrenia (n = 26), or bipolar disorder (n = 2). Measurements
included Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale and the
Symptom Check List-90-R. Participants were matched according
to age, sex, and diagnosis.
Results Croatians reported significantly more war traumatic
events (64/82 vs 5/74, Ï2
1 = 77.142, P < 0.001) and significantly
more Croatians met the criteria for posttraumatic
stress disorder (55/89 vs 27/89, Ï2
1 = 17.73, P < 0.001). They
also suffered from a higher level of psychopathological
distress as they scored significantly higher at all Symptom
Check List-90-R revised version subscales (P < 0.001). The
regression models demonstrated that predictors of general
psychopathological distress were war trauma (P < 0.001),
posttraumatic stress disorder (P < 0.001), and diagnosis
(P = 0.01).
Conclusion This is the first study comparing the impact
of war trauma on psychopathology of participants with
severe mental illness between two nations. Our results
clearly indicate the importance of trauma assessment in
subjects with severe mental illness, particularly in postconflict
setting
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Respondent-driven sampling to assess mental health outcomes, stigma and acceptance among women raising children born from sexual violence-related pregnancies in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo
Objectives: Assess mental health outcomes among women raising children from sexual violence-related pregnancies (SVRPs) in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and stigma toward and acceptance of women and their children. Design: Participants were recruited using respondent-driven sampling. Setting: Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo in 2012. Participants: 757 adult women raising children from SVRPs were interviewed. A woman aged 18 and older was eligible for the study if she self-identified as a sexual violence survivor since the start of the conflict (âŒ1996), conceived an SVRP, delivered a liveborn child and was currently raising the child. A woman was ineligible for the study if the SVRP ended with a spontaneous abortion or fetal demise or the child was not currently living or in the care of the biological mother. Intervention Trained female Congolese interviewers verbally administered a quantitative survey after obtaining verbal informed consent. Outcome measures Symptom criteria for major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and suicidality were assessed, as well as stigma toward the woman and her child. Acceptance of the woman and child from the spouse, family and community were analysed. Results: 48.6% met symptom criteria for major depressive disorder, 57.9% for post-traumatic stress disorder, 43.3% for anxiety and 34.2% reported suicidality. Women who reported stigma from the community (38.4%) or who reported stigma toward the child from the spouse (42.9%), family (31.8%) or community (38.1%) were significantly more likely to meet symptom criteria for most mental health disorders. Although not statistically significant, participants who reported acceptance and acceptance of their children from the spouse, family and community were less likely to meet symptom criteria. Conclusions: Women raising children from SVRPs experience symptoms of mental health disorders. Programming addressing stigma and acceptance following sexual violence may improve mental health outcomes in this population
F-labeled glycoconjugate of PD156707 for imaging ET A receptor expression in thyroid carcinoma by positron emission tomography
Abstract: Disturbances of the endothelin axis have been described in tumor angiogenesis and in highly vascularized tumors, such as thyroid carcinoma. Consequently, the endothelin (ET) receptor offers a molecular target for the visualization of the endothelin system in vivo by positron emission tomography (PET). We therefore endeavoured to develop a subtype-selective ET A receptor (ET A R) radioligand by introduction of a glycosyl moiety as a hydrophilic building block into the lead compound PD156707. Employing click chemistry we synthesized the triazolyl conjugated fluoroglucosyl derivative 1 that had high selectivity for ET A R (4.5 nM) over ET B R (1.2 ”M)
Norwegische 'Wehrmachtskinder': Psychosoziale Aspekte, IdentitÀtsentwicklung und Stigmatisierung
Am 09. April 1940 ĂŒberfielen deutsche Truppen Norwegen. Neun Monate spĂ€ter kamen die ersten 'Wehrmachtskinder' zur Welt. Im Laufe des Krieges wurden 72 Heime des 'Lebensborn' (ein von der SS getragener Verein zur Erhöhung der Geburtenrate 'arischer' Kinder) in Norwegen gegrĂŒndet, so viele wie in keinem anderen durch das NS-Regime besetzten Land; darunter befand sich das erste auĂerhalb des damaligen Deutschen Reiches gelegene. In den Archiven des Lebensborn wurden knapp 8000 Kinder registriert. SchĂ€tzungen gehen davon aus, dass wĂ€hrend der deutschen Okkupationszeit in Norwegen 10000 bis 12 000 Kinder geboren wurden, deren VĂ€ter den deutschen Truppen angehörten und deren MĂŒtter norwegische StaatsbĂŒrgerinnen waren. Die 'Wehrmachtskinder' trugen ein doppeltes Stigma: Sie waren hĂ€ufig unehelich geboren und waren durch die Beziehung mit dem Feind entstanden. Aus Zeitzeugnissen geht hervor, dass ihr soziales Umfeld sie diskriminierte und ausgrenzte; sie wurden verhöhnt und zum Teil körperlich und seelisch misshandelt. Auch von staatlicher Seite widerfuhren Ihnen unterschiedliche Repressalien.
Die geistes- und sozialwissenschaftlichen FĂ€cher haben die UmstĂ€nde und Bedingungen der norwegischen 'Wehrmachtskinder' bereits Ende des letzten Jahrhunderts als Forschungsgegenstand aufgegriffen. Die psychosozialen FĂ€cher haben dieses Thema jedoch erst kĂŒrzlich begonnen zu bearbeiten. Im Rahmen des hier vorgestellten Forschungsvorhabens werden erstmalig mittels eines umfangreichen Fragebogens die psychosozialen Konsequenzen des Aufwachsens als 'Wehrmachtskind' im Nachkriegsnorwegen erfasst. Das Projekt ist in eine bereits etablierte internationale und interdisziplinĂ€re Forschungsstruktur zu den 'Kinder[n] des Krieges' eingebunden (www.childrenbornofwar.org), wobei an den UniversitĂ€ten Leipzig und Greifswald die psychosoziale Belastung von Besatzungskindern in Deutschland parallel untersucht wird. Eine Besonderheit der norwegischen Situation sind die umfangreichen AktivitĂ€ten des 'Lebensborn', der wĂ€hrend des Krieges fĂŒr viele Wehrmachtskinder und deren MĂŒtter eine wichtige Rolle spielte.On 9 April 1940, German troops invaded Norway. Nine months later the first 'Wehrmacht children' were born. In the course of the war, 13 'Lebensborn' homes were established in Norway, more than in any other country occupied by the Nazis and including the first ever of these homes to be set up outside the former German Reich. (The Lebensborn was an SS-initiated association dedicated to raising the number of 'Aryan' births via extramarital relations between people living up to Nazi standards of health and racial purity). In the archives of the Lebensborn almost 8,000 children were registered. It is estimated that 10,000 to 12,000 children were born during the German occupation of Norway whose fathers belonged to the German troops and whose mothers were Norwegian nationals. 'Wehrmacht children' labored under a dual stigma. They were (often) born out of wedlock and they were the fruit of relations with the enemy. Socially they were discriminated and marginalized. They were ridiculed and, in many cases, physically and mentally abused. These children also suffered a variety of reprisals from the state. Initial investigations of the biographies and careers of the 'Wehrmacht children' in Norway date back to the end of the last century, most of them undertaken by scholars working in the humanities and the social sciences. Recently, the psychosocial sciences have also taken up this issue. The research project discussed here is the first to investigate the psychosocial consequences of growing up as a 'Wehrmacht child' in post-war Norway. The project is part of an established international and interdisciplinary research network named 'Children Born of War' (www.childrenbornofwar.org). The Universities of Leipzig and Greifswald have conducted a parallel study on occupation-born German children after WWII. A special feature of the Norwegian situation is the extensive activity of the 'Lebensborn', which played an important role for many 'Wehrmacht children' and their mothers during the war
Loneliness and lack of belonging as paramount theme in identity descriptions of Children Born of War
Objective
Children Born of War (CBOW) are an international and timeless phenomenon that exists in every country involved in war or armed conflict. Nevertheless, little is known on a systematic level about those children, who are typically fathered by a foreign or enemy soldier and born to a local mother. In particular, the identity issues that CBOW often report have remained largely uninvestigated. In the current qualitative study we began filling this gap in the scientific literature by asking how CBOW construct their identity in self-descriptions.
Method
We utilized thematic content analysis of N = 122 German CBOWs' answers to an open-ended questionnaire item asking how they see themselves and their identity in the context of being a CBOW.
Results
We identified five key themes in CBOW' identity accounts. Loneliness and lack of belonging appeared as a paramount aspect of their self-descriptions next to narratives about belonging and positive relationship. On a less interpersonal basis, we found fighting and surviving and searching for truth and completion overarching aspects of their identities. There were also few accounts growing up unaffected by the fact of being born a CBOW. Although all themes portray different perspectives, they all (but the last one) clearly indicate the impeded circumstances under which CBOW had to grow up.
Conclusions
Integrating our findings with existing interdisciplinary literature regarding identity, we discuss implications for future research and clinical and political practice
Ictal SPECT in patients with rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder
Rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder is a rapid eye movement parasomnia clinically characterized by acting out dreams due to disinhibition of muscle tone in rapid eye movement sleep. Up to 80â90% of the patients with rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder develop neurodegenerative disorders within 10â15 years after symptom onset. The disorder is reported in 45â60% of all narcoleptic patients. Whether rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder is also a predictor for neurodegeneration in narcolepsy is not known. Although the pathophysiology causing the disinhibition of muscle tone in rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder has been studied extensively in animals, little is known about the mechanisms in humans. Most of the human data are from imaging or post-mortem studies. Recent studies show altered functional connectivity between substantia nigra and striatum in patients with rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder. We were interested to study which regions are activated in rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder during actual episodes by performing ictal single photon emission tomography. We studied one patient with idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder, one with Parkinsonâs disease and rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder, and two patients with narcolepsy and rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder. All patients underwent extended video polysomnography. The tracer was injected after at least 10 s of consecutive rapid eye movement sleep and 10 s of disinhibited muscle tone accompanied by movements registered by an experienced sleep technician. Ictal single photon emission tomography displayed the same activation in the bilateral premotor areas, the interhemispheric cleft, the periaqueductal area, the dorsal and ventral pons and the anterior lobe of the cerebellum in all patients. Our study shows that in patients with Parkinsonâs disease and rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorderâin contrast to wakefulnessâthe neural activity generating movement during episodes of rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder bypasses the basal ganglia, a mechanism that is shared by patients with idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder and narcolepsy patients with rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder