List of Titles

Extension and replication of an internet-based treatment program for panic disorder

- Richards, Jeffrey, Alvarenga, Marlies

Authors: Richards, Jeffrey , Alvarenga, Marlies
Date: 2002
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Vol. 31, no. 1 (2002), p. 41-47
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Description: This study describes an internet-based intervention for people with panic disorder that consisted of a 5-module program. Participants accessed the program for 5-8 weeks and were then re-assessed 3 months later. Use of the program was associated with reductions in severity of panic disorder and in catastrophic misinterpretation of ambiguous panic body sensations in 9 people with this anxiety disorder. There were also non-significant trends for body vigilance to decrease over the course of the study. Further investigations of the efficacy of this medium for the treatment of panic disorder and the associated mechanisms of change are warranted.
Description: 2003000077

Interpretation of ambiguous interoceptive stimuli in panic disorder and nonclinical panic

- Richards, Jeffrey, Austin, David, Alvarenga, Marlies

Authors: Richards, Jeffrey , Austin, David , Alvarenga, Marlies
Date: 2001
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Cognitive Therapy and Research Vol. 25, no. 3 (2001), p. 235-246
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Description: Cognitive bias in the misinterpretation of ambiguous interoceptive stimuli has been demonstrated in panic disorder. This study investigated whether this cognitive bias also occurs in people with nonclinical panic who are at risk of developing panic disorder. The responses of 25 people with nonclinical panic were compared to those of 20 people with panic disorder and 69 nonpanic controls on a measure of interpretive bias, the Brief Body Sensations Interpretation Questionnaire. There was evidence for interpretive cognitive bias for ambiguous interoceptive stimuli among the nonclinical panickers which did not differ from that of the people with panic disorder, but which differed from the nonpanic controls. High anxiety sensitivity predicted interpretive bias toward both interoceptive and external stimuli. Results therefore suggest that interpretive cognitive bias for ambiguous interoceptive stimuli may be a risk factor for the development of panic disorder.

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Anxiety and Depression After a Cardiac Event: Prevalence and Predictors

- Murphy, Barbara, Le Grande, Michael, Alvarenga, Marlies, Worcester, Marian, Jackson, Alun

Authors: Murphy, Barbara , Le Grande, Michael , Alvarenga, Marlies , Worcester, Marian , Jackson, Alun
Date: 2020
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Frontiers in Psychology Vol. 10, no. (2020), p.
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Description: Introduction: Patients who are anxious or depressed after an acute cardiac event are at increased risk of a subsequent event and premature death. It is therefore important to identify these patients early in order to initiate supportive or even preventive measures. In the present study, we report on the prevalence of anxiety and depression during the first 12 months after an acute cardiac event, and the patient characteristics predictive of increased anxiety and depression risk in early and late convalescence. Methods: We recruited a sample of 911 patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), acute coronary syndrome (ACS), and/or unstable angina (UA), and/or undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABGS). Patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) close to the time of their event, and again during early (2–4 months post-event) and late (6–12 months post-event) convalescence. Using HADS-A and HADS-D cut-offs of 8+, prevalence rates for anxiety, depression, and comorbid anxiety and depression were determined for each timepoint. Chi-square tests and odds ratios were used to identify baseline patient characteristics associated with increased anxiety and depression risk over 12 months. Results: Anxiety rates were 43, 28, and 27% at the time of the event, early, and late convalescence. Depression rates were 22, 17, and 15%, respectively. Factors consistently associated with increased anxiety and depression risk were history of depression, financial strain, poor self-rated health, low socioeconomic status, younger age (<55 years), and smoking. Obesity, diabetes, and social isolation (living alone or being unpartnered) were identified as important albeit less significant risk factors. Neither sex nor event type were predictive of anxiety or depression. Conclusion: This large patient sample provided the opportunity to identify rates of anxiety and depression during the 12 months after a cardiac event and key patient characteristics for increased risk. These risk factors are easily identifiable at the time of the event, and could be used to guide the targeting of support programs for patients at risk. © Copyright © 2020 Murphy, Le Grande, Alvarenga, Worcester and Jackson.

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Protocol for the development and validation of a measure of persistent psychological and emotional distress in cardiac patients : the cardiac distress inventory

- Jackson, Alun, Rogerson, Michelle, Le Grande, Michael, Thompson, David, Ski, Chantal, Alvarenga, Marlies, Amerena, John, Higgins, Rosemary, Raciti, Michela, Murphy, Barbara

Authors: Jackson, Alun , Rogerson, Michelle , Le Grande, Michael , Thompson, David , Ski, Chantal , Alvarenga, Marlies , Amerena, John , Higgins, Rosemary , Raciti, Michela , Murphy, Barbara
Date: 2020
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: BMJ Open Vol. 10, no. 6 (2020), p.
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Description: Introduction Distress is experienced by the majority of cardiac patients, yet no cardiac-specific measure of distress exists. The aim of this project is to develop and validate the Cardiac Distress Inventory (CDI). Using the CDI, health professionals will be able to identify key clusters of psychological, emotional and social concern to address with patients, postcardiac event. Methods and analysis An item pool will be generated through: identification of items by a multidisciplinary group of clinician researchers; review of generic and condition-specific distress measures; focus group testing with cardiac rehabilitation professionals; feedback from patients. The COSMIN (COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments) criteria will be used to inform the development of the methodology for determining the CDI's psychometric properties. The item pool will be tested with 400 cardiac patients and responses subjected to exploratory factor analysis, Rasch analysis, construct validity testing and latent class analysis. Receiver operating characteristic analysis will be used to identify the optimal CDI cut-off score for distinguishing whether a person experiences clinically significant distress. Ethics and dissemination Approved by the Monash Health Human Research Ethics Committee (approval number - RES-19-0000631L-559790). The CDI will be made available to clinicians and researchers without charge. The CDI will be translated for use internationally. Study findings will be shared with cardiac patient support groups; academic and medical communities via publications and presentations; in the training of cardiac secondary prevention professionals; and in reports to funders. Authorship for publications will follow the uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

Handbook of Psychocardiology

- Alvarenga, Marlies, Byrne, Don

Authors: Alvarenga, Marlies , Byrne, Don
Date: 2016
Type: Text , Book
Relation: Springer Nature Living Reference
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Description: This handbook brings togetherthe full weight of contemporary evidence bearing on what is now commonly termed "psycho-cardiology". It focuses on the role of psycho-social factors in the genesis and clinical management of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The book constitutes a critically reviewed compendium of current knowledge in the area, coupled with guides to evidence-based best practice in the field of psycho-cardiology. The following categories are covered:Social/demographic risk for CVD, Personality and CVD risk, Stress and CVD risk, Psychopathology (particularly affective disorders) and CVD risk, The psychological management of those with clinical CVD, Psychology in the prevention of CVD. The book integrates the evidence into a compelling argument that clinicians, researchers and those in public health will discount the role of psychological factors in regard to CVD at their own peril. And importantly for clinicians charged with the care of patients with CVD, the bookposes the argument that failure to recognize the links between psychological factors and CVD may well be at the considerable peril of those patients under their care.

Anxiety and cardiovascular disease: Epidemiology and proposed mechanisms

- Alvarenga, Marlies, Byrne, Don

Authors: Alvarenga, Marlies , Byrne, Don
Date: 2016
Type: Text , Book chapter
Relation: Handbook of Psychocardiology Chapter 10 p.
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Description: Anxiety disorders tend to be highly prevalent in heart disease, particularly amongst patients recovering from acute cardiac events. Yet, the role of anxiety in heart disease has not received as much attention in the literature as has depression. Epidemiologic studies indicate that there is an increased risk of sudden death and myocardial infarction in patients experiencing panic anxiety. Pathophysiologic correlates of anxiety appear to contribute to an increased cardiac risk, leading to the appreciation that anxiety disorders might in fact constitute a risk to life as exemplified by the cardiovascular disease link. Explanatory mechanisms of cardiac risk point to a link between anxiety and heart disease being mediated by stress giving way to increased cardiac sensitivity and reactivity. The present chapter reviews the psychobiological link between anxiety and heart disease. It also supports an integrative approach for the analysis of psychogenic heart disease, that cardiac patients can benefit from cardiologists educating them about the influence of psychosocial factors on their cardiac conditions and that further research is required on the development of specific psychologically based therapies which tap into the proposed pathophysiological mechanisms associated with the mind-heart nexus.

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Buffering the fear of COVID-19 : social connectedness mediates the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and psychological wellbeing

- Humphrey, Ashley, March, Evita, Lavender, Andrew, Miller, Kyle, Alvarenga, Marlies, Mesagno, Christopher

Authors: Humphrey, Ashley , March, Evita , Lavender, Andrew , Miller, Kyle , Alvarenga, Marlies , Mesagno, Christopher
Date: 2022
Type: Text , Journal article
Relation: Behavioral Sciences Vol. 12, no. 3 (2022), p.
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Description: Social connections are crucial for an individual’s health, wellbeing, and overall effective functioning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, one major preventative effort for reducing the spread of COVID-19 involved restricting people’s typical social interactions through physical distancing and isolation. The current cross-sectional study, conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, explored the relationship among fear of COVID-19, social connectedness, resilience, depressive symptomologies, and self-perceived stress. Participants (N = 174) completed an anonymous, online questionnaire, and results indicated that social connectedness mediated the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and psychological wellbeing. In contrast, the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and psychological wellbeing was not mediated by resilience. These findings highlight the important role that social connections and resilience play in buffering against negative psychological wellbeing outcomes, especially during a pandemic. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

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