TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2009//
TI  - A typology of heroin-dependent patients based on their history of self-injurious behaviours
JO  - Psychiatry research
A1  - Pérez de Los Cobos, Jose
A1  - Trujols, Joan
A1  - Ribalta, Elisa
A1  - Pinet, C.
SP  - 169
EP  - 177
VL  - 167
IS  - 1-2
N2  - Self-injurious behaviours (SIB) can provide useful criteria for subtyping heroin-dependent patients, since SIB have been related to an opioid system dysfunction and they hinder patient management. The frequency of nine varieties of moderate/superficial SIB during active heroin use was assessed retrospectively in 164 heroin-dependent patients. A principal component analysis of SIB episodes revealed a four-component solution which accounted for 69.3% of the variance. The components were named as follows (percentage of variance explained by each component is enclosed in parentheses): 'SIB with objects' (27.3%), 'SIB by biting/scratching/hair-pulling' (18.2%), 'SIB by hitting' (12.3%), and 'SIB by picking scabs' (11.5%). A cluster analysis using the results of the principal component analysis enabled us to define three types of heroin-dependent patients, labelled: 'low-occurrence SIB cluster' (59.8%), 'high-occurrence scab-picking cluster' (31.7%) and 'high-occurrence hitting and cutting cluster' (8.5%). SIB by hitting was the most discriminatory component among clusters: its frequency was at a minimum in the low-occurrence SIB cluster, and attained a maximum in the high-occurrence hitting and cutting cluster. However, there were no differences among clusters regarding heroin-use variables. Patients from the low-occurrence SIB cluster, compared with those from the other two clusters, reported fewer episodes of SIB or suicide attempts and were diagnosed less frequently with bulimia. Patients from the high-occurrence scab-picking cluster had a very frequent history of these SIB, while the opposite was true in patients from the high-occurrence hitting and cutting cluster. Patients from this cluster probably presented staff members with the main management problems.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0165-1781
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2008.01.004
ID  - ref1
ER  -