Descriptive and numeric estimation of risk for psychotic disorders among affected individuals and relatives: Implications for clinical practice

PSYCHIATRY RESEARCH

卷:196

Article

Austin, Jehannine C.^1,2  Hippman, Catriona²  Honer, William G.² 

[1] Univ British Columbia, Dept Med Genet, Vancouver, BC, Canada

[2] Univ British Columbia, Dept Psychiat, Vancouver, BC, Canada

关键词: Risk perception;    Genetic counseling;    Probability;    Recurrence risks;    Mental illness;    Family members;    Psychotic disorders;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.psychres.2012.02.005

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Studies show that individuals with psychotic illnesses and their families want information about psychosis risks for other relatives. However, deriving accurate numeric probabilities for psychosis risk is challenging, and people have difficulty interpreting probabilistic information; thus, some have suggested that clinicians should use risk descriptors, such as moderate or quite high, rather than numbers. Little is known about how individuals with psychosis and their family members use quantitative and qualitative descriptors of risk in the specific context of chance for an individual to develop psychosis. We explored numeric and descriptive estimations of psychosis risk among individuals with psychotic disorders and unaffected first-degree relatives. In an online survey, respondents numerically and descriptively estimated risk for an individual to develop psychosis in scenarios where they had: A) no affected family members; and B) an affected sibling. Participants comprised 219 affected individuals and 211 first-degree relatives participated. Affected individuals estimated significantly higher risks than relatives. Participants attributed all descriptors between very low and very high to probabilities of 1%, 10%, 25% and 50%+. For a given numeric probability, different risk descriptors were attributed in different scenarios. Clinically, brief interventions around risk (using either probabilities or descriptors alone) are vulnerable to miscommunication and potentially negative consequences-interventions around risk are best suited to in-depth discussion. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

【 授权许可】

Free