Chicago Conference Update and NODID Research Update

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The update is also available in PDF format: http://www.nodid.org/pubs/dpdresearch.pdf (There is an error in this document, and that the papers that are listed in the referenced research section should read that the paper from Psychiatry Research will be the first paper and presented during the Sunday panel discussion, and the paper for the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry will be presented on Monday.)

Also, our first research article is available at no cost, as the publisher of Psychiatry Research offered the first issue free on the Internet. You can view it here: http://www.nodid.org/simeonkozin.pdf

First, regarding the Conference. Before you commit to attending, make sure you review the conference program, and make sure it is worth your money. We will be having an informal gathering with Dr. Simeon on Monday, and the main focuses on depersonalization will be our papers. In my opinion, one of the more important presentations will be on Sunday, which will co-hosted by Dr. Simeon, and discuss the future of dissociative disorders in the DSM-V, and also how the research article above is part of the evidence to suggest that we need a stronger and more accurate diagnosis for DPD. Also note, the Paper Seminar for our second paper, not yet in press, is part of many seminars given during the length of the conference, however it is an important one, and looking at the schedule it doesn't have much competition in my biased opinion. If you are attending just to hear a 20 minute presentation of the paper, and the cost to attend the day and a hotel is stretching your budget... don't worry, individuals will report on it when they come back. We will also have a recording of the seminar in mp3 format. However, to use this opportunity to meet other individuals with DPD from this board and Dr. Simeon, and go out after the conference with people who have the same condition and feelings as you is a tremendous opportunity. If you don't want to pay for the seminar, but live in Chicago, I think individuals can organize a post-conference get-together, and I lived in Central Downtown at both the Chicago Loop and Gold Coast areas for 2 years, and I know the place well.

Okay, now for the information that I have contained the the pdf file above.

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The National Organization for Drug-Induced Disorders

Recent Accomplishments to Improve the Diagnostic Criteria and Understanding of Depersonalization Disorder

Dear Community,

NODID?s research is an integral part of the body of evidence that demonstrates the severity of depersonalization disorder and argues for an improved diagnosis for DPD. Our two publications present strong evidence for improving the diagnostic criteria of DPD, and with such a large participant turnout (394 people took our survey), that DPD will continue to be included in the next edition of the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). The following is a quote from the recent ISSTD (International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation) Newsletter regarding the importance of maintaining this type of research:

?As we all know, there are powerful forces that attempt to deny the existence of the dissociative disorders, attacking both the patients and their therapists; up until now, the fact that the DSM ?officially? recognizes the existence of the dissociative disorders has been one of the main bulwarks in our fight to advocate for these patients. If the DSM-V committee were to downgrade the status of the dissociative disorders, or to define them out of existence, the consequences for our field would be catastrophic...

?Our goal is not only to offer advice to the APA as it revises the DSM, but also to present the APA with powerful new research that will upgrade the accuracy of the DSM?s diagnostic criteria and, most importantly, forcefully argue against any attempts to diminish or marginalize the importance of the dissociative disorders.

All those who are interested in learning more, or in offering their input, are invited to attend the panel discussion in Chicago entitled ?DSM-V in only IV more years: An update on ISSTD?s research efforts?. The co-chairs of the Research Planning Committee are Daphne Simeon and Vedat Sar.?

-- Brad Foote, MD, ISSTD SEIZING DSM-V OPPORTUNITY, ISSTD Newsletter, Vol 26, Issue 5)

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Before you become anxious about this catastrophic scenario described by the author of that article ? one where the American Psychological Association downgrades or negatively alters the existence of depersonalization disorder in the DSM version V ? this is not a likely scenario. Dr. Simeon?s group, the members of the Institute of Psychiatry of London, and other researchers have produced significant evidence against such a possibility. To quote our first paper, ?two large cohorts have described impressively consistent nosology for depersonalization disorder (Baker et al., 2003; Simeon et al., 2003a). However, this progress has not yet been reflected in more refined symptom descriptions, which would facilitate a more sensitive and accurate detection of the disorder.? However, NODID?s first paper does analyze a set of factors that the DSM-V Task Force will consider when making more refined symptom descriptions for depersonalization disorder.

Regarding the Conference in Chicago

Dr. Daphne Simeon is the co-chair of the ISSTD?s DSM-V Research and Planning Committee, the group working to provide evidence for maintaining the inclusion of dissociative disorders in the DSM-V and to better define the diagnostic criteria for depersonalization disorder. Two members of the ISSTD are members of the DSM-V task force for dissociative disorders; they will be listening to the recommendations of this committee.

Dr. Simeon will be presenting our research as one part of the emerging evidence supporting the need for improved diagnostic criteria of depersonalization disorder. Our first paper will be part of an important panel discussion that will include Dr. Simeon and the President of the ISSTD. The panel discussion is scheduled on Sunday at 1:45, and is guaranteed to have a large audience at the conference. All of the study?s participants, the dpselfhelp.com web site, and our supporters should really feel empowered by this ? your participation in this research has a very tangible role in forming the DPD diagnosis, and individuals attending this conference will get to see this first hand. The amazing turnout for our study is a significant factor in the validity of our research; there were 394 participants in our study, which is a testament to the importance of DPD, and improves the statistical basis for our conclusions in the study. The quantity of participants made this the largest study of its kind on DPD, and our paper contains a significant amount of new information that we systematically analyzed for the disorder.

Additionally, Dr. Simeon will be presenting our second paper during a paper seminar at 8:30 AM on Monday. We are one of four papers that will be discussed during a 1 ? hour long Paper Seminar. The paper conference will provide a look at how depersonalization disorder affects individuals on many levels, and will address if drug-induced DPD results were different than non-drug (spoiler: no statistical difference between the groups except one element, duration of disorder, but we discuss reasons why this difference exists in the populations that took this survey). This new paper has recently obtained an important endorsement from a very rigorous international peer-review board, and we are overjoyed to announce that our second paper was recently accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, the most-read journal in the field (Psychiatrist.com; see below), and clinicians around the world will see the results of our study.

?The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry continues to be ranked as the most-read and 6th most-cited psychiatric journal in the world (according to the Focus Readership Study, June 2007, and Citation Index, July 2007, respectively). The Journal mails to about 35,184 recipients,* and over 20,000 allied mental health professionals have requested daily receipt of informational e-mails about our journals and Web CME activities.
*Source: BPA Circulation Statement, June 2007?

(Psychiatrist.com, bold emphasis added by me)

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NODID?S REFERENCED RESEARCH

* FIRST PAPER (SUNDAY): Daphne Simeon, David Stephen Kozin, Karina Segal, Brenna Lerch, Roxanne Dujour and Timo Giesbrech, De-constructing depersonalization: Further evidence for symptom clusters, Psychiatry Research, Volume 157, Issues 1-3, 15 January 2008, Pages 303-306

* SECOND PAPER (MONDAY) Daphne Simeon, David Kozin, Karina Segal, Brenna Lerch , Is depersonalization disorder initiated by drug use any different? A survey of 394 adults, Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, (Accepted: October 12, 2008; in press)

NODID?s research has a tremendous opportunity to influence the mental health community?s view of depersonalization disorder, and we want to thank all of you for your generous support during its creation and for our future. We are excited that members from this message board will be attending the conference, and will see how the research directly affects the way clinicians from around the world will view DPD. This conference will have members from over 40 different countries, and more importantly, the publication?s presence in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry will insure its impact on how doctors will view DPD in the future.

Sincerely,

David