scholarly journals Is Depression “Evolutionary” or Just “Adaptive”? A Comment

2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher F. Sharpley ◽  
Vicki Bitsika

Some recent explanations of depression have suggested that it may be “evolutionary” in that there are advantages to the depressed individual which arise from some aspects of depressive symptomatology. While the depressive behaviour of withdrawal from the adverse environment may provide some immediate benefits to the depressed individual, thus making it potentially “adaptive” in the short-term, this does not fit the biological definition of “evolutionary”. In fact, depression does not meet two of the three required criteria from natural selection in order to be evolutionary. Therefore, while some depressive behaviour may be advantageous for the depressed individual, and is therefore “adaptive” in an immediate sense, it cannot be accurately described as “evolutionary”. Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobunori Takahashi ◽  
Shuji Asai ◽  
Tomonori Kobayakawa ◽  
Atsushi Kaneko ◽  
Tatsuo Watanabe ◽  
...  

AbstractThis study aimed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness and safety profiles of baricitinib and explore factors associated with improved short-term effectiveness in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in clinical settings. A total of 113 consecutive RA patients who had been treated with baricitinib were registered in a Japanese multicenter registry and followed for at least 24 weeks. Mean age was 66.1 years, mean RA disease duration was 14.0 years, 71.1% had a history of use of biologics or JAK inhibitors (targeted DMARDs), and 48.3% and 40.0% were receiving concomitant methotrexate and oral prednisone, respectively. Mean DAS28-CRP significantly decreased from 3.55 at baseline to 2.32 at 24 weeks. At 24 weeks, 68.2% and 64.1% of patients achieved low disease activity (LDA) and moderate or good response, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that no previous targeted DMARD use and lower DAS28-CRP score at baseline were independently associated with achievement of LDA at 24 weeks. While the effectiveness of baricitinib was similar regardless of whether patients had a history of only one or multiple targeted DMARDs use, patients with previous use of non-TNF inhibitors or JAK inhibitors showed lower rates of improvement in DAS28-CRP. The overall retention rate for baricitinib was 86.5% at 24 weeks, as estimated by Kaplan–Meier analysis. The discontinuation rate due to adverse events was 6.5% at 24 weeks. Baricitinib significantly improved RA disease activity in clinical practice. Baricitinib was significantly more effective when used as a first-line targeted DMARDs.


1997 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 9-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Behrman ◽  
Robert F. Orlikoff

Sophisticated, computer-based instrumentation has become increasingly available to the voice clinician. Yet substantial questions remain regarding its clinical necessity and usefulness. A theoretical model based on the scientific method is developed as a framework that can be used to guide the clinician in the selection and application of instrumental measures. Using the process of hypothesis testing, instrumentation is presented as an integral component of clinical practice. The uses of instrumental measures, and their relevance to long- and short-term treatment goals, are addressed. Clinical examples are presented to illustrate the incorporation of instrumentation and the scientific method into assessment and treatment.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S528-S529
Author(s):  
A. D’Agostino ◽  
S. Covanti ◽  
M. Rossi Monti ◽  
V. Starcevic

IntroductionOver the past decade, emotion dysregulation has become a very popular term in the psychiatric and clinical psychology literature and it has been described as a key component in a range of mental disorders. For this reason, it has been recently called the “hallmark of psychopathology” (Beauchaine et al., 2007). However, many issues make this concept controversial.ObjectivesTo explore emotion dysregulation, focusing on problems related to its definition, meanings and role in many psychiatric disorders.AimsTo clarify the psychopathological core of emotion dysregulation and to discuss potential implications for clinical practice.MethodsA literature review was carried out by examining articles published in English between January 2003 and June 2015. A search of the databases PubMed, PsycINFO, Science Direct, Medline, EMBASE and Google Scholar was performed to identify the relevant papers.ResultsAlthough, there is no agreement about the definition of emotion dysregulation, the following five overlapping, not mutually exclusive dimensions were identified: decreased emotional awareness, inadequate emotional reactivity, intense experience and expression of emotions, emotional rigidity and cognitive reappraisal difficulty. These dimensions characterise a number of psychiatric disorders in different proportions, with borderline personality disorder and eating disorders seemingly more affected than other conditions.ConclusionsThis review highlights a discrepancy between the widespread clinical use of emotion dysregulation and inadequate conceptual status of this construct. Better understanding of the various dimensions of emotion dysregulation has implications for treatment. Future research needs to address emotion dysregulation in all its multifaceted complexity.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


2001 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 842-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa A. Suzuki ◽  
Mary B. McRae ◽  
Ellen L. Short

Sue’s proposed model is based on a critique of the Eurocentric assumptions underlying current clinical practice and reflects his innovative thinking and unique synthesis of past research. The specific areas addressed in this article focus on an examination of the multidimensional model of cultural competence (MDCC) and issues related to the definition of competence and its measurement. Areas of needed elaboration in the model include complexities related to power hierarchies (i.e., authority, authorization, and leadership) and implications for training and practice. Particular emphasis is placed on the complexities of cultural competence and the important contributions of Sue’s MDCC as an important step in making cultural competence a reality in the practice of counseling psychology.


Stroke ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charith Cooray ◽  
Thomas Gu ◽  
Allan J Fox ◽  
Elias Johansson

Introduction: Carotid near-occlusion is a severe carotid stenosis causing distal artery collapse of varying degree. Near-occlusion is often divided into a “full collapse” group with a threadlike distal lumen, and the often overlooked “without full collapse” group with a normal-appearing, albeit small, distal lumen. By this division by appearance, symptomatic near-occlusion with full collapse has been reported to have worse short-term prognosis than those without full collapse, no other division has been assessed for prognosis. The aim of this study was to assess if a measurement based definition of full collapse might improve prognostic discrimination. Methods: 99 consecutive patients with symptomatic near-occlusion diagnosed on CT-angiography were included. The risk of preoperative recurrent ipsilateral ischemic stroke within 28 days of presenting event was assessed with Kaplan-Meier analysis, censoring at revascularization. We assessed residual stenosis diameter, distal ICA diameter, ICA-ratio (side-to-side), and ICA-ECA ratio as risk markers. Results: By appearance, the 28-day risk of stroke tended to be higher for full collapse (27%, 11/42) than without full collapse (11%, 6/57), p=0.054 (figure). The best new definition of full collapse was distal ICA diameter ≤2.0 mm and/or ICA ratio ≤0.47. 10 patients were reclassified by this new definition compared to appearance definition, 5 in each direction. By the new definition, 28-day risk of stroke was higher in full collapse (34%, 14/42) than without full collapse (5%, 3/57), p<0.001 (fig 1B). Conclusions: Compared to the appearance based definition, our new definition of separating near-occlusions into with and without full collapse yields similar groups sizes but better prognostic discrimination. This new definition could be used as inclusion criteria in future treatment trials.


2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 241-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabine Mönch ◽  
Michael Netzel ◽  
Gabriele Netzel ◽  
Undine Ott ◽  
Thomas Frank ◽  
...  

Different sources of folate may have different bioavailability and hence may impact the standard definition of folate equivalents.


Author(s):  
Mike Sosteric ◽  
Susan Hesemeier

<p> For some, “learning objects" are the “next big thing” in distance education promising smart learning environments, fantastic economies of scale, and the power to tap into expanding educational markets. While learning objects may be revolutionary in the long term, in the short term, definitional problems and conceptual confusion undermine our ability to understand and critically evaluate the emerging field. This article is an attempt to provide an adequate definition of learning objects by (a) jettisoning useless theoretical links hitherto invoked to theorize learning objects, and (b) reducing the definition of learning objects to the bare essentials. The article closes with suggestions for further research and further refinement of the definition of learning objects. </P>


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lachlan Kent ◽  
George Van Doorn ◽  
Britt Klein

This study uses a combined categorical-dimensional approach to depict a hierarchical framework for consciousness similar to, and contiguous with, factorial models of cognition (cf., intelligence). On the basis of the longstanding definition of time consciousness, the analysis employs a dimension of temporal extension, in the same manner that psychology has temporally organised memory (i.e., short-term, long-term, and long-lasting memories). By defining temporal extension in terms of the structure of time perception at short timescales (&lt; 100 s), memory and time consciousness are proposed to fit along the same logarithmic dimension. This suggests that different forms of time consciousness (e.g., experience, wakefulness, and self-consciousness) are embedded within, or supported by, the ascending timescales of different modes of memory (i.e., short-term, long-term, etc.). A secondary dimension is also proposed to integrate higher-order forms of consciousness/emotion and memory/cognition. The resulting two-dimensional structure accords with existing theories of cognitive and emotional intelligence.


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