Psychoform and somatoform dissociation and PTSD in deaf adults

Assessing the Recognition of Social Interactions Through Body Motion in the Routine Care of Patients with Post-Lingual Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Background: Body motion significantly contributes to understanding communicative and social interactions, especially when auditory information is impaired. The visual skills of people with hearing loss are often enhanced and compensate for some of the missing auditory information. In the present study, we investigated the recognition of social interactions by observing body motion in people with post-lingual sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). Methods: In total, 38 participants with post-lingual SNHL and 38 matched normally hearing individuals (NHIs) were presented with point-light stimuli of two agents who were either engaged in a communicative interaction or acting independently. They were asked to classify the actions as communicative vs. independent and to select the correct action description. Results: No significant differences were found between the participants with SNHL and the NHIs when classifying the actions. However, the participants with SNHL showed significantly lower performance compared with the NHIs in the description task due to a higher tendency to misinterpret communicative stimuli. In addition, acquired SNHL was associated with a significantly higher number of errors, with a tendency to over-interpret independent stimuli as communicative and to misinterpret communicative actions. Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest a misinterpretation of visual understanding of social interactions in individuals with SNHL and over-interpretation of communicative intentions in SNHL acquired later in life.

Mental Health Status of Children After the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident

The disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant after the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, might have affected the mental health status of children. To assess the mental health status, we measured the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) in 15 274 children (aged 4-15 years). The proportions of those who scored above the cutoff (≥16) of SDQ, reflecting the clinical range of the mental health status, were 25.0% (aged 4-6 years), 22.0% (aged 7-12 years, and 16.3% (aged 13-15 years), which were higher than that in the usual state (9.5%). We also explored the possibility that the distribution on the Fukushima prefectural map of the proportions of those who scored above the cutoff (≥16) of SDQ might correspond with the environmental radiation levels, but there was no significant correlation.

Hearing impairment and nightmares: a theoretical insight

The aim of this article is to address the issue of nightmares in the deaf population, given that there are no documented studies on this matter to the best of our knowledge. The study of nightmares in the deaf population is of high relevance given their specific characteristics (impossibility of verbalisation) and the lack of studies with this population. Nightmares are dreams of negative content that trigger an awakening associated with a rapid return to a full state of alert and a persistent feeling of anxiety and fear, which may cause significant distress. Various studies show that the deaf population has dreams with more negative imagery and emotions, are more exposed to interpersonal traumas and have higher rates of dissociation, than hearing people. These concepts seem to be connected given that, in the presence of traumatic events, dissociation may act as a defence mechanism and nightmares may operate as an adaptive coping strategy.

[Deaf patients in psychiatry]

Prelingual deafness has multiple and far reaching consequences for the development of language, cognition and the psychosocial dimension. Almost one of a thousand of the population is affected. Barriers in communication limit access to knowledge and participation in society. The use of sign language connects deaf people socio-culturally. This review shows discrepancies between high prevalence rates of mental health disorders with complex psychiatric challenges and barriers to mental health care. The UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities obliges to counteract these discrepancies. Services with specialised signing professionals and the use of interpreters can improve access to mental health care.