Adoption: from chaos to normalcy.

This article acknowledges the risk factors and psychological demands of the adopted child and adoptive parents. Despite many biologic and psychosocial obstacles, most adoptions are considered successful because most of the adopted children do not encounter long-term psychological difficulties.

Symptoms of stress disorder and depression among trauma counselors after an airline disaster.

Psychological symptoms of 21 therapists who provided counseling to individuals affected by the crash of a commercial airliner were compared with those of 20 therapists from the same mental health center who did not participate in the disaster relief efforts. A symptoms checklist instrument was completed by both groups at four, eight, and 12 weeks after the crash. At four and eight weeks, the trauma counselors experienced significantly more symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder and depression than the therapists in the control group.

At mother's mercy: the nightmare of Munchausen syndrome by proxy.

Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a form of child abuse in which a parent simulates or produces illness in a child for the purpose of engaging in a supportive relationship with a physician or other health care provider. The child suffers from the parent's actions and is subjected to significant morbidity due to extensive medical diagnostic procedures ordered by the unsuspecting physician. The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of this disorder with respect to presentation, pathogenesis, and recognition.