Objectives-To assess anxiety, depression, and social adjustment in patients awaiting coronary artery bypass surgery.Design-Patient completed questionnaire study.Setting-Regional cardiothoracic centre. Patients-109 questionnaires were sent to patients on the waiting list of two cardiothoracic surgeons. Sixty eight (62%) were returned and 15 (22%) of the respondents were women. figure relates to the medical knowledge of the 1980s rather than the 1990s and it has become clear that a figure of operations/million population/year (27 000-36 000 operations) is a more realistic reflection of modern cardiological practice.2 This sudden increase in demand and associated decline in the mortality of the procedure3 will mean pressure on the waiting lists for both coronary arteriography and coronary artery surgery. Waiting for surgery has been reported as one of the main sources of stress for this group of patients and a period of intense psychological adjustment.4 Our study was designed to assess aspects of anxiety, depression, and social functioning in these patients.
Patients and methodsPatients awaiting routine coronary artery bypass grafting under the care of two consultants were sent a series of questionnaires designed to assess anxiety, depression, impairment of social functioning, and severity of cardiac symptoms.There were 109 patients on the lists and 68 (62%) returned the questionnaires. Among these respondents 15 (22%) were women compared with eight (19%) of the non-respondents. The average age of the respondents was 61 years and that of the non-respondents 62 years. The time each patient had been waiting for surgery was taken from the time they had been accepted for surgery and placed on the waiting list until the day the questionnaires were posted. The average time on the waiting list was 6-4 (range 1.5-22-2) months for the respondents and 5-8 (range 2 1-20-2) months for the non-respondents.
The treatment of impotence in diabetic men with vacuum tumescence therapy was studied in a specialist clinic. Of 54 diabetic men referred with impotence, seven declined treatment, three chose self-injection with papaverine, and 44 chose vacuum therapy. Patients underwent autonomic function testing (heart rate response to respiration), measurement of penile blood flow (duplex Doppler scanning), and estimation of serum prolactin and testosterone levels. After 2 months, 33 men (75%) were able to have satisfactory intercourse using vacuum therapy. Three others could produce a satisfactory erection with vacuum therapy but their partners found it unacceptable. Eight men (18%) were unable to have satisfactory intercourse; six of these were later treated by self-injection. The median frequency of use of vacuum therapy was 5.5 (1-26) times a month. Outcome was independent of penile blood flow, autonomic function or endocrine status. Impotent diabetic men should be given counselling and offered a choice of the available treatments. Vacuum tumescence therapy is an effective and simple treatment which requires little investigation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.