Medicine
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This repository contains the published and unpublished research of the Faculty of Medicine by the staff members of the faculty
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Item The validation of the Sinhala version of the Kessler psychological distress scale (K10) to screen for psychiatric morbidity(Sri Lanka Medical Association, 2008) Wijeratne, L.T.; Williams, S.S.; Peris, M.U.P.K.; de Silva, N.R.; Hapuarachchi, H.A.C.; Perera, K.P.J.; Kawamura, N.; Wickremasinghe, A.R.BACKGROUND: The Kessler psychological distress scale (K10), used in epidemiological surveys, measures psychological distress. High scores in community surveys are associated with anxiety and affective disorders, and to a lesser extent, with other psychiatric disorders. OBJECTIVE: To validate the Sinhala translations of the long (K10) and short (K.6) versions of the Kessler psychological distress scale. DESIGN, SETTING AND METHODS: The English version of K10 was translated into Sinhala. Content and face validity was assessed by experts. The scales were pre-tested and modified accordingly. The Sinhala versions of K6 and K10, and the Structured Clinical Interview Schedule were administered to 20 adults with major psychiatric illnesses diagnosed by two clinicians independently, and to a random sample of 25 apparently normal people from the community. SPSS (Version 11) was used for the analysis. RESULTS: The ROC curve for the K10 contained 96.1% of the area under the curve of 0.961 (95% CI 90.4%-100%). A cut off score of 22 for the K10 yielded a sensitivity of 93.8% and a specificity of 82.6%. The ROC curve for the K6 contained 90.1% (95% CI 80.5% - 99.7%) of the area under the curve. For the K6, a cut off score of 13 gave a sensitivity of 88.2% and a specificity of 72%, The total number of days that the patient could not attend to regular work and responsibilities was significantly correlated with both the K10 (p=0.041) andK6 (p=0.023). CONCLUSION: The Sinhala version of the K10 and K6 questionnaires can be used to screen for psychological distress.Item Effects of hospitalization in children of parents working in foreign countries(SAARC Psychiatric Federation, 2013) Kuruppuarachchi, K.A.L.A.; Wijeratne, L.T.; Gunasekera, D.P.S.; Karunasekera, K.A.W.INTRODUCTION: Increasing number of females in Sri Lanka leave their families to work in the Middle East. This leads to disruption in the family structure and the attachment process. Effects of this can be long lasting and is likely to be seen at events that can be considered stressful in a child’s life. Admission to hospital has been shown to be a stressful experience for children. METHODOLOGY: Behavioural problems in hospitalized children who have one or more parent working in the Middle East were compared with hospitalized children who are not separated from their parents. The prevalence of deteriorating school performance and failure to gain weight were also compared in the two groups. RESULTS: Behaviours such as irritability, aggression, poor sleep and low mood were seen more in children who had one or more parent working in the Middle East. Deteriorating school performance and weight loss were also seen more in this group. CONCLUSION: Long term separation from a parent results in acute behavioural problems seen at times of stress as well as more long-term effects.Item Psychosocial Impact of Puberphonia(Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, 2014) Premarathna, M.S.S.; Wijeratne, L.T.; Perera, I.; Wickremasinghe, A.R.The persistence of adolescent voice even after puberty in the absence of an organic cause is known as puberphonia. This condition is commonly seen in males. Voice plays an important role in the socialization process. The pychosocial effects of puberphonia has not been explored extensively. Aims of the study were to identify psycho-social challenges faced by young adults with puberphonia and coping strategies used to overcome these challenges. The study was carried out as a descriptive cross-sectional study. A self-administered questionnaire consisting of 20 questions was used. The first part of the questionnaire inquired about functional communication and social participation and second part focused on emotional responses. All participants filled out the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 30) and also took part in individual interviews to gather in depth information. Conversing over the telephone was a problem for 87% while 73% experienced difficulties when talking to same age girls. 60% reported difficulties in work place or place of education. 77% had difficulties in social situations. Only 20% experienced difficulties when interacting with family members. More adolescent participants reported that puberphonia was a problem than the young adult participants. When considering the coping strategies, 73% didn’t talk to others when they are in a group. 60% avoided talking to strangers while 20% communicated using gestures and signs. 10% communicated by writing on paper and 87% used text messages to communicate. 70% of the participants showed psychological distress in the GHQ. Psychosocial difficulties are common in people with puberphonia. Different coping strategies are used to overcome these difficulties. Adolescents are more affected than young adults. It is important to identify these issues and provide psychological counseling for those who need support.Item Validation of Kessler's psychological distress scale among the Sinhalese population in Sri Lanka(SAARC Psychiatric Federation, 2011) Wijeratne, L.T.; Williams, S.S.; Rodrigo, M.D.A.; Peiris, M.U.P.K.; Kawamura, N.; Wickremasinghe, A.R.OBJECTIVE: Kessler's psychological distress scales, KlO and K6 are short rating scales designed to screen psychiatric morbidity in the population. Despite being increasingly popular elsewhere, they have not been validated in Sri Lanka. We examined the validity of these scales among the Sinhala speaking population in the Gampaha district of Sri Lanka. DESIGN: The English language version of the KiD and K6 questionnaire were translated into Sinhala using standard methods. The KiD and K6 scores for 27 healthy and 37 psychiatrically ill individuals were compared with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM disorders (SClD) outcome categories. RESULTS: The KiD and K6 were sensitive and specific in detecting mental illness, especially depression. Those with schizophrenia had scores similar to healthy individuals. We suggest cut offs of 12 for KiD and 7 for K6 having 9D% sensitivity and 81% specificity for both scales. INTERPRETATION: KiD and K6 are valid screening tools for non-psychotic psychiatric illness among the Sinhala speaking population in Sri Lanka. They can be used in psychiatric epidemiological studies.