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Current status of psychiatric research in Denmark

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2020

Erik Strömgren
Erik Strömgren*
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Hospital, DK-8240, RisskovDenmark
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Summary

Certain demographic characteristics, including the limited size and stabiliiy of the population of Denmark, account for the development of genetic, epidemiological and prospective studies in the Danish psychiatric research context. Moreover, despite the predominance of biological psychiatry, psychotherapy arouses the interest of young psychiatrists.

Research is especially concentrated in university centers such as Copenhagen, Aarhus and Odense. The Institute of Psychiatric Demography, directed by Annalise Dupont, is responsible for centralizing data concerning hospitalized patients. It lias thus been possible to carry out longitudinal studies of patients presenting manic-depressive disorders, schizophrenia and mental retardation, as well as surveys on the prevalence of suicide according to region, and genetic studies based on the observation of monozygotic twins. The studies on schizophrenia particularly deal with the incidence of cancer and the influence of life events. The cytogenetics laboratory, directed by Johannes Nielsen, is especially concerned with the follow-up of 25,000 children born in the Obstetrics Department of the Aarhus University Hospital.

There are numerous other areas of research: comparative studies of the ICD 8 and the DSM III; studies dealing with the use of lithium in affective disorders; studies on the response to and modes of action of electroconvulsive therapy; ongoing studies of neurotic patients, conducted for more than 20 years; surveys on the efficacy of psychotherapy in schizophrenic patients.

The existence of benzodiazepine receptors was discovered by the research cenrter of the St Hans Hospital in Copenhagen. Current research at this center is devoted to the study of dopamine receptors, the relations between LSD receptors and serotonine, and study of the GABA System.

Although research is thriving in Denmark at present, it is threatened by a reduction in credits; the author analyzes the reasons behind this threat.

Résumé

Résumé

Certaines caractéristiques démographiques, parmi lesquelles la taille réduite et la stabilité de la population du Danemark, sont à l'origine du développement des études génétiques, épidémiologiques et des études prospectives de la recherche psychiatrique de ce pays. Par ailleurs, malgré la prédominance de la psychiatrie biologique, la psychothérapie suscite l’intérêt des jeunes psychiatres.

La recherche est surtout concentrée dans les centres universitaires comme Copenhague, Aarhus et Odense. L'Institut de Démographie Psychiatrique, dirigé par Annalise Dupont, est un organisme dont la tâche est de centraliser les données concernant les malades hospitalisés. Ainsi ont pu être réalisées des études longitudinales de patients atteints de troubles maniaco-dépressifs, de schizophrénie, de déficience intellectuelle, ainsi que des enquêtes concernant la prévalence du suicide selon les régions et des études génétiques à partir des observations de jumeaux monozygotes. Les études consacrées à la schizophrénie concernent en particulier l'incidence du cancer et l'influence des événements vitaux. Le laboratoire de cytogénétique, dirigé par Johannes Nielsen, étudie particulièrement le suivi des 25 000 enfants nés dans le service d’obstétrique du centre hospitalo-universitaire de Aarhus.

Existent également de nombreuses autres recherches : études comparatives de l'ICD 8 et du DSM III, études consacrées à l’utilisation du lithium dans les troubles affectifs, à la réponse et au mode d'action de la sismothérapie ; étude prospective des malades névrosés portant sur plus de vingt ans, enquêtes sur l’efficacité de la psychothérapie des schizophrènes.

L’existence des récepteurs aux benzodiazépines a été découverte par le centre de recherche de l’hôpital St. Hans, de Copenhague. Actuellement les chercheurs qui y travaillent se consacrent à l'étude des récepteurs dopaminergiques, aux relations entre les récepteurs du LSD et de la sérotonine, au système GABA.

La recherche, actuellement florissante au Danemark, est cependant menacée par une réduction de crédits. L ‘auteur de l'article en analyse les raisons.

Keywords

DemographyFollow-upGeneticsResearchDémographieSuiviGénétiqueRecherche
Type
Research Article
Information
Psychiatry and Psychobiology , Volume 2 , Issue 2 , 1987 , pp. 128 - 134
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association

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