Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, India.
Int J Soc Psychiatry. 2012 Sep;58(5):463-9. doi: 10.1177/0020764011408543. Epub 2011 Aug 10.
Over the past decade there have been rapid advances in psychiatry genetics and there is a growing concern about the clinical and practical relevance of this knowledge. Efforts are being made to know the perspectives of patients and family members regarding family risk and genetic counselling. However, the area remains largely unexplored in psychiatric research from Asian countries.
The primary purpose of the study was to explore the perceptions related to family risk among Indian patients with bipolar disorder and their family members. The study also aimed to explore the related perceptions for etiology of bipolar disorder.
Patients with bipolar disorder type I and family members of patients with bipolar disorder type I were invited to take part in in-depth interviews after informed consent, targeting a sample of diversity. The qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis.
Eight key themes emerged: (1) higher emphasis on external or situational causes; (2) causal explanations are governed by cultural beliefs; (3) help-seeking is a shared, rather than a personal, decision; (4) the perceived genetic risk is low but worrisome; (5) worries and apprehensions are focused mainly on future generations; (6) there is a desire to modify the perceived genetic risk; (7) knowledge of precise risk can be beneficial as well as anxiety provoking; and (8) there is a need for information on preventive measures.
The study provides culture-specific perspectives on the causation of illness and explores a sensitive and personal matter of perceived family risk in an Indian sample. It emphasizes the need to further explore the perceptions of family risk in a given cultural context.
在过去的十年中，精神病学遗传学取得了快速进展，人们越来越关注这些知识的临床和实际意义。人们正在努力了解患者和家庭成员对家族风险和遗传咨询的看法。然而，在亚洲国家的精神科研究中，这一领域在很大程度上仍未得到探索。
本研究的主要目的是探讨印度双相情感障碍患者及其家庭成员对家族风险的看法。该研究还旨在探讨与双相情感障碍病因相关的看法。
在获得知情同意后，邀请双相情感障碍 I 型患者及其双相情感障碍 I 型患者的家庭成员参加深入访谈，以多样性为目标进行抽样。使用主题分析对定性数据进行分析。
出现了 8 个关键主题：（1）更强调外部或情境原因；（2）因果解释受文化信仰的支配；（3）寻求帮助是一个共同的、而不是个人的决定；（4）感知的遗传风险较低但令人担忧；（5）担忧和疑虑主要集中在后代；（6）有改变感知遗传风险的愿望；（7）了解确切风险既有好处也有焦虑；（8）需要有关预防措施的信息。
该研究提供了特定于文化的疾病病因观点，并探讨了印度样本中感知家族风险这一敏感而个人的问题。它强调了在特定文化背景下进一步探讨家族风险看法的必要性。
