Loss of control and inability to abstain: the measurement of and the relationship between two constructs in male alcoholics

The constructs “loss of control” and “inability to abstain” have been used extensively in alcohol research. Examination of the literature, however, reveals inconsistencies in the ways researchers have operationalized and measured these constructs and a dearth of empirical investigation of the validity of the constructs. The current study examines a number of methods of operationalizing loss of control and inability to abstain and investigates the relationship of the two constructs with each other. Ninety-seven male alcoholics who participated in an outpatient conjoint alcoholism treatment study provided data on pre-treatment alcohol consumption and self-report measures of lifetime drinking behavior. Nine interview or questionnaire items that best approximated items used in the literature to measure inability to abstain and loss of control were chosen for analysis. Items measuring both constructs were highly intercorrelated and were associated more strongly with quantity rather than frequency of alcohol consumption, suggesting significant overlap between the constructs. None of the items were associated with a particular drinking pattern. The results provide support for a unitary dimension of impaired control, as used in the alcohol dependence syndrome, and suggest that the value of loss of control and inability to abstain as distinct and meaningful constructs should be reconsidered.     

RESPIRATORY AND HYPNOTIC EFFECTS OF NITRAZEPAM, DIAZEPAM AND PENTOBARBITONE AND THEIR SOLVENTS IN THE RABBIT AND THE MOUSE

Nitrazepam and diazepam only cause significant depression ofrespiratory rate and loss or righting reflex, in mice, at lethaldoses. In sub-lethal doses they induce a stage of deep but rousablesleep which is quite distinct from the intermittent dozing ofcontrol mice and the comatose state of mice injected with pentobarbitone.However, the respiratory effects of nitrazepam and diazepamin high doses in mice and low doses in rabbits are modifiedby the presence of solvent. Furthermore the solvent itself causesa loss of righting reflex in mice and the lethal dose of nitrazepamand diazepam is greatly reduced when the drugs are administeredin solvent     

Caroli''s Disease

A case of monolobar localization of Caroli's disease with intrahepatic cholesterol gallstones is described. The patient was successfully treated with left hepatic resection. Residual intrahepatic cholesterol gallstones causing frequent cholangitis dissolved with chenodeoxycholic acid treatment.     

The natural history of trichilemmal cysts

The histological features of 149 trichilemmal cysts removed from sixty-five patients are reviewed and related to the clinical findings. These cysts, which may be solitary or multiple, gradually increase in size and number, and may produce daughter cysts by budding. When a breach occurs in the wall, inflammatory cells pour in but do not replace the cyst wall. This event may be followed by healing from the margins of the breach, by marsupialization to the overlying epidermis and thus natural resolution, or by proliferation to produce a pseudo-epitheliomatous change which can be confused with a well differentiated squamous cell carcinoma.     

Senile Macular Degeneration – The Effects and Management

The previous paper in this series on the effects and management of senile macular degeneration (SMD) detailed the optometric low vision treatment available for alleviating the visual disabilities caused by SMD. This final paper in the series indicates that low vision care cannot be considered the responsibility of any one profession. Thus, the roles of other rehabilitation professionals in minimizing the visual disabilities and visual handicaps of persons with SMD are discussed in detail.     

Initial Differences in Postpartum Attachment Behavior in Breastfeeding and Bottle-Feeding Mothers

Nurses frequently assume that breastfeeding mothers are more attached to their infants than bottle-feeding mothers. The researchers observed 15 breastfeeding and 15 bottle-feeding mothers using the Avant maternal-infant attachment tool. The scores of the two groups were compared and no significant differences were found. The study results and limitations of this study and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Factors Influencing the Feeding of First-Born Infants

ABSTRACT. Influences on the choice and use of an infant feeding method by primigravidae were studied from late pregnancy until six months after delivery. Data were collected by home interviews and postal questionnaires, and from hospital case-notes. Three-quarters of the women had chosen a method before their first hospital visit and most adhered to their choice. Mothers named midwives and health visitors more often than other health professionals as appropriate for discussions about feeding. However, there was little evidence of the influence of health professionals apart from an association between hospital feeding practices and duration of breast feeding. The major influences on mothers were socio-cultural. Findings suggest that breast feeding can be encouraged by a wide dissemination of information, by enabling mothers to discuss feeding with their preferred professional, by respecting an early choice of method, and by encouraging demand feeding which should begin soon after delivery.     

Iron in an Australian population: Too little or too much?

In many countries in the world, iron deficiency is clearly a much greater problem than iron overload. In Australia the situation is less clear. A large population study undertaken in the Liver Unit of the University of Queensland Department of Medicine and the Queensland Institute of Medical Research under the direction of Professors June Halliday and Lawrie Powell has shed some light on this question. The study originally started out with the hypothesis that the genetic disease haemochromatosis was common in the Australian population and, therefore, significant num- bers of Australians had too much iron.     

The Development of Large Immature Mononuclear Cells in Mixed Leukocyte Cultures

1. When leukocytes from two normal, unrelated subjects are mixed together and cultured, some of them transform into large basophilic cells thatcan synthesize DNA and undergo mitosis.

2. The stimulus for this change is the presence of two sets of leukocytes.Foreign erythrocytes, plasma or platelets have no effect.

3. Studies with mixtures of leukocytes from pairs of identical and nonidentical twins indicate that the reaction may be related to genetic differencesbetween the two subjects.

4. It is suggested that the reaction in leukocyte mixtures may be relatedto homograft immunity.

Submitted on July 10, 1963 Accepted on September 17, 1963     

Familial Steatorrhoea with Calcification of the Basal Ganglia and Mental Retardation

Four children, two boys and fraternal twin girls, of a sibshipof 16 suffered from malabsorption, mental retardation with calcificationof the basal ganglia, and episodes of pseudo-obstruction. Thesimilarity of clinical features and investigations suggesteda congenital disorder and its frequency indicated an autosomalrecessive mode of inheritance. Histological studies of the wholealimentary canal removed at necropsy showed degenerate changesin the argyrophobe cells. These cells produce the transmittersubstance acetyl choline which initiates the smooth-muscle contraction.Their loss could explain the dilated bowel with attacks of pseudo-obstruction.Similar changes in brain-cells might explain this associationof malabsorption and mental retardation.