Katharina Scheffold

Prävalenz von Anpassungsstörung, Akuter und Posttraumati­scher Belastungsstörung sowie somatoformen Störungen bei Krebspatienten

We aimed to systematically summarize the empirical evidence on the 4-week-, 12-month-, and lifetime prevalence of adjustment disorders, acute and posttraumatic stress disorders as well as somatoform disorders in cancer patients. We evaluated 64 English or German language original papers and systematic reviews that assessed the prevalence of affective and anxiety disorders using structured clinical interviews published between 1995 and 2010. Adjusted prevalence rates were calculated using a random-intercept model. We found the following pooled adjusted 4-week prevalence rates: For adjustment disorder 12.5% (95% CI 9.9-15.7), for posttraumatic stress disorder 2.6% (95% CI 1.7-4.0), for acute stress disorder 4.8% (95% CI 2.2-10.0) and for somatoform disorders 3.1% (95% CI 1.6-5.8). Our findings show the need for further research on representative studies that take into account the range of psychosocial stressors and supportive care needs.

Perceived doctor-patient relationship and its association with demoralization in patients with advanced cancer

Advanced diseases pose a great burden on patients and go hand in hand with existential concerns. Demoralization is considered as a syndrome of existential distress with a perceived inability to cope with loss of meaning in life and feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. Professional health care providers play an important role in providing support for patients and unfavorable conversational styles in their relationship can increase patients distress. In this study, we examine the association between the patients perceived relationship to health care providers and demoralization.