Electrophysiological correlates of hanseniasis.

Sensory nerve action potentials (SNAPs) and compound nerve action potentials (CNAPs) were recorded from 25 normal subjects and 21 hanseniasis patients following electrical stimulation of the median nerve at the wrist. The various nerve conduction parameters from the affected nerves of the patients were compared with those from the clinically normal nerves of patients as well as data from healthy individuals. Analysis of the data and clinical correlation studies indicate the suitability of amplitudes of the SNAPs and CNAPs rather than the nerve conduction velocities in better characterizing the neuropathy of the patients.

Issues in the use of manintenance electroconvulsive therapy.

This case report on the use of Maintenance Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT-M) presents certain observations and raises some issues in the use of the method. The report offers wider indication for ECT-M, including schizophrenia and bipolar disorders and younger patients. It raises the issues that die duration of use of ECT-M can be short rather than indefinite and that in the post ECT-M period, drug maintenance using the same drugs which were ineffective pre-ECT-M can be used effectively.

Eating disorders in India.

Data on the nature and extent of major eating disorders, anorexia nervosa and bulimia is lacking in non-white, native populations of the developing world, leaving a gap in understanding the determinants of these disorders. In a study on 210 medical students examined by a two-stage survey method, 31 subjects were found to have distress relating to their eating habits and body size not amounting to criterion-based diagnosis of eating disorders. The characteristics of this eating distress syndrome are described in relation to the major eating disorders.

Nature and treatment of delusional parasitosis: a different experience in India.

Background: Delusional parasitosis has been described as a rare syndrome, often involving elderly women who respond poorly to treatment except to pimozide.

Method: Nineteen cases of delusional parasitosis given antipsychotic treatment other than pimozide were followed up and the responses assessed in a structured manner.

Results: The frequency of the syndrome was higher than generally reported and the patients were younger and had been ill for a shorter period.

Physical harbingers of relapse in schizophrenia.

This is a case report of a patient with schizophrenic disorder, followed up prospectively over a period of six years through four episodes of illness. Her experience of a focal physical symptom as a consistent prodromal feature of each relapse forms the focus of the report as such a clinical phenomenon has not been recorded before. The possible reason for such presentation and the value of identifying the prodromal symptoms in the control of relapse are discussed.

Intellectual and motor functions in school children from severely iodine deficient region in Sikkim.

High prevalence of endemic goitre (54%) and endemic cretinism (3.5%) exist in Sikkim. The level of intellectual functioning and motor performance were assessed in 90 school children in the age group of 10 to 12 years selected randomly from four severely iodine-deficient villages.

Electroconvulsive therapy in catatonia associated with pneumothorax.

Recent advances in the method of application and monitoring of Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has facilitated its use even in the presence of serious physical illness. This case report b of a patient in catatonic stupor who developed an acute respiratory crisis, and in whom the use of ECT led to quick recovery not only from the psychiatric state but also helped recovery from the medical illness. The report highlights the need to use ECT, if indicated, in the presence of serious medical illness without hesitation.

Mania following hypnotherapy.

Switches into mania have been observed in unipolar and bipolar depressed patients following physical treatments as well as cognitive therapy. Such a phenomenon has not been observed with hypnotherapy and its occurrence in a depressive patient is reported here and discussed.

Delusional parasitosis of body orifices - a cultural variant?

Predominant or specific involvement of the eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, anus and urethra (the body orifices) has not previously been reported in the literature on delusional parasitosis. Their involvement in the cases reported here is discussed in the context of the Hindu religio-cultural belief system which attaches special significance to these organs in the personal quest for physical, mental and spiritual purity. The involvement of the ears, in particular, appears to be influenced by native healing methods.

The nonspecific symptom screening method a replication study.

Methods have been developed to screen non psychotic disorders in general health clinics based only on non-specific and somatic symptoms. One such method developed in India was applied in a heterogenous group of patients in a different clinical setting. The validity of nonspecific symptom screening method for non psychotic illness was replicated in this study.

Age estimation in the elderly: relevance to geriatric research in developing countries.

The accurate estimation of age is an important area in geriatric research. The lack of suitable records in developing countries coupled with illiteracy makes this process difficult. Fifty patients were studied in order to assess their age by means of a checklist which contained significant personal and historical events.

Finger - pulse volume during co(2) induced panic States.

Changes in Fingure-Pulse Volume (FPV) during CO(2) inhalation were studied in patients diagnosed as having Anxiety disorder with history of panic attacks. Waxing and Waning of the FPV was observed in all the cases after CO(2) inhalation, and this pattern was significantly intensified during panic attacks during the study. The significance and the mechanism underlying the same is discussed.

Finger pulse volume in patients with panic attacks.

To study the peripheral blood flow in patients with panic attacks during "Stress" conditions, nine patients with history of panic attacks were subjected to mental stress of arithmetic calculation and room-air voluntary hyperventilation. Finger Pulse Volume (FPV) was significantly altered during the period following mental activity in untreated patients when compared to controls and patients under treatment. There was also an increase in FPV in untreated patients at rest and during recovery after mental stress when compared to the treated patients.

Alcoholism and psoriasis-an immunological relationship.

Studies on association of psychiatric diseases and immunopathology has been an area of recent research activities. Alcohol has been implicated in some immune mediated disorders. Observation of occurrence of psoriasis, an immune mediated skin disorder in alcoholic patients has not been reported anywhere in literature.

Pranayama and brain correlates.

Many yogic methods emphasis control and suspension of breath as important components of the path to transcendence. However, the Pranayamas are varied and their role of both improve the physical aspects of breathing and for calming the mind, the latter being very important in the management of many phycosomatic disorders. Different types of Pranayama seem to influence the brain functioning in specific ways.

The nonspecific symptom screening method. Detection of nonpsychotic morbidity based on nonspecific symptoms.

Detection of nonpsychotic morbidity in primary care patients presenting with nonspecific and somatic symptoms has been difficult because of several factors related to the patients, primary care clinicians, and working conditions of the over-crowded clinic. The available standardized screening questionnaires do not overcome many of these difficulties when used for routine clinical purposes. A screening method based only on nonspecific symptoms, which could be easily incorporated into the routine initial clinical work-up of a patient, was developed in this study and has been found to have good validity and reliability for screening nonpsychotic morbidity.

Claimed simulation of insanity. A coping strategy in mania.

The coping strategy of claimed simulation of insanity observed at the onset of psychotic episodes in a manic patient is reported here. There is a need for systematic research on coping strategies in affective psychosis in order to develop techniques to help contain or prevent relapses.

Characteristics of non-psychotic morbidity in a primary care population.

The prevalence of non-psychotic 'minor' mental morbidity in primary care setting is high. They often go undetected due to several factors in the patient and the clinician. Studying personal, social and clinical characteristics of non-psychotic patients attending a general hospital outpatient department several factors could be identified which might be helpful in screening of such patients.

Effect of yogasana practice on systolic time intervals.

Therapeutic values of yoga practices are well documented in the ancient Indian literature. In this study an attempt has been made to see the effect of Yogasana practice on cardiac functions by measuring systolic time intervals (STI). The asanas studied are Sirsasana, Sarvangasana, Halasana, Paschimottanasana and Bhujangasana.

Organic pseudo-pseudodementia - a case report.

A case of right anterior thalamic infarction which presented with a picture of pseudo-pseudodementia of the type described by Lishman is presented here and discussed with relevance to diagnosis and management of such unusual clinical problems.

Non-specific symptoms and screening of non-psychotic morbidity in primary care.

Much of the non-psychotic mental morbidity in primary care goes undetected by the primary care health personnel. This is often because of the non-specific somatic nature of the presenting complaints of these patients and the difficulty on the part of the primary care physician to elicit specific emotional symptoms to screen psychiatric problems. This paper describes the development of the 7-item Primary care Psychiatric Questionnaire (PPQ.

Nonpsychotic morbidity in a general hospital: early detection based on presenting complaint.

Patients with nonpsychotic minor mental morbidity frequently present with nonspecific somatic symptoms in primary health care settings. This often leads to inappropriate medical management. In this study a group of nonpsychotic psychiatric patients in a general hospital clinic presented with nonspecific somatic complaints as the reason for seeking medical attention (presenting complaint).

Clinical relationship between nonspecific and specific symptoms in non-psychotic morbidity.

The phenomenon of non-specific somatic symptom presentation by patients with non-psychotic mental morbidity attending primary care clinics is a well recorded one. The nature of clinical relationship of these symptoms to specific psychiatric phenomena was studied in a group of non-psychotic patients attending a primary care general hospital clinic. It was seen that both types of symptoms occur with equal frequency in these patients.