Noxious family environments in relation to adult and childhood caries

BackgroundThe authors tested hypotheses that more noxious family environments are associated with poorer adult and child oral health.MethodsA community sample of married or cohabiting couples (N = 135) and their elementary school–aged children participated. Dental hygienists determined the number of decayed, missing and filled surfaces via oral examination. Subjective oral health impacts were measured by means of questionnaires completed by the parents and children. The parents completed questionnaires about interparental and parent-to-child physical aggression (for example, pushing) and emotional aggression (for example, derision), as well as harsh discipline. Observers rated the couples’ hostile behavior in laboratory interactions.ResultsThe extent of women's and men's caries experience was associated positively with their partners’ levels of overall noxious behavior toward them. The extent of children's caries experience was associated positively with the level of their mothers’ emotional aggression toward their partners.ConclusionsNoxious family environments may be implicated in compromised oral health. Future research that replicates and extends these findings can provide the foundation to translate them into preventive interventions.Practical ImplicationsNoxious family environments may help explain the limitations of routine oral health preventive strategies. Interprofessional strategies that also address the family environment ultimately may prove to be more effective than are single modality approaches.     

Behavioural problems in Sydney nursing homes

The prevalence of significant behavioural disturbance in 46 Sydney nursing homes was examined. All 2445 residents were rated on a brief screening questionnaire by senior nurses, who decided that 704 (29%) displayed at least one problem behaviour for much of the time. Primary care nurses (PCNs) then rated these ‘screen-positive’ residents using the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI). In one nursing home the PCNs rated all 100 residents on the CMAI and found that 24 of 58 ‘screen-negative’ residents displayed CMAI behaviours once daily or more. Of CMAI behaviours rated as occurring daily or more often, 30% were manifested by ‘screen-negative’ residents. Prevalence figures based on ‘screen-positive’ residents are underestimates. Interrater reliability between PCNs was good. We report that at least 3.3% of residnets paced and 0.45% screamed several times an hour. Each of the following behaviours was manifested daily or more often by 10– 15% of the residents: restlessness, pacing, repetitive sentences, constant calls for help, cursing/verbal aggression and complaining. Aggressive behaviours (eg hitting, kicking, biting) were less common, and a relationship to cognitive impairment was demonstrated. Increased research on assessment and management of these behaviours is needed.     

CARBAMAZEPINE USE IN AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOUR ASSOCIATED WITH SENILE DEMENTIA

In a randomized placebo crossover controlled study, six patients meeting DSM-III-R criteria for Alzheimer's disease and exhibiting significantly aggressive behaviour were administered carbamazepine (in doses up to 600 mg daily) and placebo, with each treatment period lasting 8 weeks. Levels of aggression as measured by the RAGE scale were significantly reduced compared with placebo (p<0.05). The results suggest that carbamazepine is an effective anti-aggressive agent in patients with dementia. Recommendations for further studies are made.     

Human impulsive aggression: a sleep research perspective

Impulsive aggression is commonly associated with personality disorders, in particular antisocial and borderline personality disorders as well as with conduct disorder and intermittent explosive disorder. The relationship between impulsive aggression and testosterone is well established in many studies. One of the aims of this study was to characterize the relationship between earlier-mentioned different categorical psychiatric diagnosis describing human impulsive aggression and sleep using polysomnography and spectral power analysis. Another aim was to study the relationship between serum testosterone and sleep in persons with severe aggressive behaviour. Subjects for the study were 16 males charged with highly violent offences and ordered for a pretrial forensic psychiatric examination. The antisocials with borderline personality disorder comorbidity had significantly more awakenings and lower sleep efficiency compared with the subjects with only antisocial personality disorder. The subjects with severe conduct disorder in childhood anamnesis had higher amount of S4 sleep and higher relative theta and delta power in this sleep stage compared with males with only mild or moderate conduct disorder. The same kind of sleep architecture was associated with intermittent explosive disorder. In subgroups with higher serum testosterone levels also the amount of S4 sleep and the relative theta and delta power in this sleep stage were increased. The study gives further support to the growing evidence of brain dysfunction predisposing to severe aggressive behaviour and strengthens the view that there are different subpopulations of individuals with antisocial personality varying in impulsiveness. The differences in impulsiveness are reflected in sleep architecture as well.     

Validity and reliability of the Dutch version of the displaced aggression questionnaire

BACKGROUNDDisplaced aggression occurs when a person encounters a provoking situation, is unable or unwilling to retaliate against the original provocateur, and subsequently aggresses against a target that is not the source of the initial provocation. The displaced aggression questionnaire (DAQ) was developed to measure individual differences in the tendency to displace aggression. AIMTo develop a Dutch version of the DAQ and examine relationships between the DAQ and novel individual differences. METHODSThe Dutch version of the DAQ was created using a back-translation procedure. Undergraduate students (n = 413) participated in the current study. The questionnaires were administered online. RESULTSThe results confirmed the original three-factor structure and showed good reliability and validity. We also found differential relationships between trait displaced aggression, social anxiety and cognitive distortions. CONCLUSIONThe results may indicate that distinct patterns exist in the development of the different dimensions of trait displaced aggression. This study adds to the growing cross-cultural literature showing the robustness of trait displaced aggression in several different cultures.     

Delinquency and drug use among adolescents and emerging adults: The role of aggression,impulsivity, empathy,and cognitive distortions

Risk behaviors are well known to be higher in adolescents and emerging adults. Drug use and delinquency present several common predictive factors. The aim of the present study was to assess the contribution of individual factors (aggression, impulsivity, empathy, and cognitive distortions) to delinquent behaviors, alcohol use and cannabis consumption among adolescents and emerging adults. Participants were between 15 and 25 years of age (M = 18.64 years, SD = 2.61); 325 were adolescents (15–18 years of age, M = 16.56, SD = 1.11, 56.31% of women) and 283 were emerging adults (19–25 years, M = 21.03, SD = 1.62, 50.88% of women). They completed self-report validated questionnaires. Multiple regression analyses showed that all individual factors significantly predicted delinquency. Impulsivity and empathy significantly predicted alcohol use. Concerning cannabis use, impulsivity is the only significantly associated predictor. Moderation analysis showed that specific associations were stronger in adolescents, whereas others were stronger in emerging adults. All these variables explained 69% of the variance of delinquency, 31% of the variance of alcohol use, and 18% of the variance of cannabis use. This model demonstrated acceptable goodness-of-fit criteria. These results may have implications for prevention and intervention.     

Déclenchement de conduites agressives par stimulation electrique du tegmentum ventral du mésencephale chez le rat

Two kinds of aggressive behavior were elicited by electrical stimulation of the ventral mesencephalic tegmentum (TVM) in the rat presented with a mouse: (1) well-oriented attack behavior without marked emotional display was elicited at sites which also sustained self-stimulation; (2) poorly oriented aggression intermingled with flight attemps and marked emotional display was elictied at sites where the stimulation also induced switch-off responses. At still other sites, stimulation elicited biting responses which were clearly different from the elicited interspecies aggression. These data are in agreement with the hypothesis derived from the behavioural effects observed following TVM lesion, i.e. that the TVM is involved in mechanisms which facilitate the release of interspecies aggression.