Ataques de nervios in the Puerto Rican diagnostic interview schedule: The impact of cultural categories on psychiatric epidemiology

This paper examines the effect of the cultural category ataques de nervios on responses to the Puerto Rican Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS), a Spanish version of structured psychiatric diagnostic interview developed for the NIHM Epidemiologic Catchment Area study. An ataque de nervios scale was created from the Somatization items of the DIS to explore the effect of this culturally meaningful category of distress on responses to a standard psychiatric interview. Analysis of 1,513 cases from a representative sample of the island of Puerto Rico indicated that people reporting ataque symptoms fit the social characteristics described for ataques sufferers in the ethnographic literature. Qualitative data indicated that Puerto Ricans were reporting ataques de nervios in the panic section of the DIS. Questions are raised about the validity of the somatization and panic sections of the DIS in cross-cultural research with Hispanics.     

Toward a Puerto Rican Popular Nosology: Nervios and Ataque de Nervios

This paper is about naming illnesses—about who determines what categories are used and the implications of these determinations. The central concerns of medical/psychiatric anthropology have been to understand popular categories of and systems for classification of illness, to examine the relationship of illness categories to cultural understandings of the body, and to interpret the role of categories of illness in mediating between the personal and social spheres. At the same time, the paper also discusses the interplay of popular categories and psychiatric diagnoses. This paper examines the multiple experiences of nervios among Puerto Ricans in Puerto Rico and New York City. Our contention is that nervios is more than a diffuse idiom of distress, and that there are different categories and experiences of nervios which provide insights into how distress is experienced and expressed by Puerto Ricans and point to different social sources of suffering. The data in this paper come from the responses to a series of open-ended questions which tapped into people's general conceptions of nervios and ataques de nervios. These questions were incorporated into follow-up interviews to an epidemiological study of the mental health of adults in Puerto Rico. The results suggest ways to incorporate these different categories of nervios into future research and clinical work with different Latino groups in the United States and in their home countries.     

Comparative Phenomenology of Ataques de Nervios,Panic Attacks,and Panic Disorder

This article examines a clinicalsample of 66 Dominican and Puerto Ricansubjects who reported ataques de nerviosand also psychiatric disorder, and disentanglesthe phenomenological experiences of ataquede nervios, panic attacks, and panic disorder. In-depth cultural interviews assessed thesymptomatic phenomenology of ataqueepisodes from the local perspective as well asin terms of key panic features, such asrecurrence, rapid peaking of symptoms, and lackof provocation. Independent diagnosticassessments of panic attacks and disorder werealso used to establish the phenomenologicaloverlap between ataque and panic. Ourfindings indicate that 36 percent ofataques de nervios fulfill criteria for panicattacks and between 17 percent and 33 percentfor panic disorder, depending on the overlapmethod used. The main features distinguishingataques that fulfill panic criteria fromataques that do not include whether theepisodes were provoked by an upsetting event inthe person's life and the rapidity of crescendoof the actual attack. A key finding is thatataques often share individualphenomenological features with panic episodes,but that these features usually do not ``runtogether' during the ataque experience.This confirms previous findings thatataque is a more inclusive construct thanpanic disorder. The importance of thesefindings for the clinical diagnosis andtreatment of persons with ataques isdiscussed.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ataques De Nervios</Emphasis> In Relation to Anxiety Sensitivity Among Island Puerto Ricans

This study investigated the symptom profile of ataques de nervios (ADN) among Puerto Rican volunteers from the community who self-identified as having experienced at least one ataque. As expected, the most commonly reported ataques-specific symptoms were crying, anger, nervousness, and becoming hysterical. Comparing the responses of those with ADN to those with no history of ADN but who reported elevated anxiety sensitivity (AS) indicated that both groups were comparable on measures of depression, state and trait anxiety, and associated panic symptoms. As expected, both groups scored significantly higher on all measures than did participants with no history of ADN and low AS with the exception of the measure of state anxiety. It is unclear, however, whether the overlap in symptom severity between those with ADN and those with elevated anxiety sensitivity indicates that ADN and AS are the same or distinct conditions.     

Subtypes of Ataques de Nervios: The Influence of Coexisting Psychiatric Diagnosis

The current study assesses the relationship between presenting symptomatology of the self-labeled Hispanic popular diagnosis of ataques de nervios and the specific co-morbid psychiatric diagnoses. Hispanic subjects seeking treatment at an anxiety disorders clinic (n = 156) were assessed with a specially designed self-report instrument for both traditional ataque de nervios and panic symptoms, and with structured or semi-structured psychiatric interviews for Axis-I disorders. This report focuses on 102 subjects with ataque de nervios who also met criteria for panic disorder, other anxiety disorders, or an affective disorder. Distinct ataque symptom patterns correlated with co-existing panic disorder, affective disorders, or other anxiety disorders. Individuals with both ataque and panic disorder reported the most asphyxia, fear of dying, and increased fear during their ataques. People with ataques who also met criteria for affective disorder reported the most anger, screaming, becoming aggressive, and breaking things during ataques. Ataque positive subjects with other anxiety disorders were less salient for both panic-like and emotional-anger symptoms. The findings suggest that (a) ataque de nervios is a popular label referring to several distinct patterns of loss of emotional control, (b) the type of loss of emotional control is influenced by the associated psychiatric disorder, and (c) ataque symptom patterns may be a useful clinical marker for detecting psychiatric disorders. Further study is needed to examine the relationship between ataque de nervios and psychiatric disorders, as well as the relationship to cultural, demographic, environmental, and personality factors.     

Association of Trauma-Related Disorders and Dissociation with Four Idioms of Distress Among Latino Psychiatric Outpatients

Past research on idioms of distress among U.S. Latinos has revealed that ataque de nervios and altered perceptions, such as hearing and seeing things when alone, are independent markers of higher morbidity and mental health utilization despite having no one-to-one relationships with any single psychiatric diagnosis. It has been proposed that the idioms exert this effect because they are signs of distressing dissociative capacity associated with traumatic exposure. This study examines the relationships in an ethnically diverse Latino psychiatric outpatient sample (N = 230) among interpersonal trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder, dissociative capacity and four cultural idioms of distress associated with the popular overall category of nervios. We particularly explore how these relationships change with varied measures of traumatic exposure, including trauma severity and timing or persistence of trauma. A series of adjusted bivariate regressions assessed the matrix of associations between the idioms and the clinical variables. In this highly traumatized population, we identified a strong ‘nexus’ of associations between dissociation and three of the idioms: currently being ill with nerves, ataque de nervios and altered perceptions. These idioms were largely independent from PTSD and depression and were associated with trauma persistence and severity. A fourth idiom, being nervous since childhood, was not associated with any other variable and may represent a personality trait rather than a diagnosable condition. Our results validate the clinical utility of the construct of nervios as a set of specific idioms associated with dissociation that are useful markers of mental health need among Latinos independently of their association with clinical diagnoses.     

A revision of the Puerto Rican species of lepanthes (Orchidaceae)

Six species of the orchid speciesLepanthes are described as new. A seventh species,L. sanguined, previously known only from Jamaica, is reported from Puerto Rico. The current misspelling ofL. selenitepala, the only species of the genus previously reported from Puerto Rico, is corrected. A key to the eight Puerto Rican species ofLepanthes is presented, and the value of several interesting taxonomic characters is discussed. The possibility of apogamy in this genus is raised, and detailed biosystematic investigations are indicated as necessary for a complete understanding of the group.     

A new species of Lepanthes (Orchidaceae) from Puerto Rico

A new species,Lepanthes caritensis, is described and illustrated. There are now nine species ofLepanthes known to occur in Puerto Rico. Plant habitat and floral morphology ofL. caritensis is most similar to that ofL. sanguinea. A survey of the area where the new species is located suggests that it is rare and should be protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Una especic nueva,Lepanthes caritensis, es descrita e ilustrada para Puerto Rico. Con ésta hay ahora nueve especies deLepanthes en Puerto Rico. El hábito de la planta y la morfología de la flor deL. caritensis es más similar aL. sanguinea. Un muestreo del área donde se encuentra la nueva especie sugiere que ésta es rara y que debería ser protegida por el Federal Endangered Species Act.     

DNA Evidence of the Origin of Varroa jacobsoni Oudemans in the Americas

Randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was used to examine possible origin of Varroa jacobsoni Oudemans in the Americas. Among 64 primers screened, 2 primers provided variation which was informative for this study. All V. jacobsoni collected from the United States had the same banding pattern to that of mites collected from Russia, Morocco, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Portugal (Russian pattern). This banding pattern was different from the pattern found for mites collected from Japan, Brazil, and Puerto Rico (Japanese pattern). The Japanese pattern lacked a 766-bp band found in the Russian pattern (OPE-07). With primer OPP-03, the Russian pattern had a distinct band at 442 bp not found in the Japanese pattern. Two bands located at 675 and 412 bp were specific to the Japanese pattern. These results suggest that the V. jacobsoni of the United States is probably predominantly Russian in origin (via Europe), while the V. jacobsoni of Brazil and Puerto Rico are probably predominantly Japanese in origin.     

A new species of Litarachna (Acari,Hydrachnidia, Pontarachnidae) from a Caribbean mesophotic coral ecosystem

New records of pontarachnid mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia) from the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico are presented. Litarachna lopezae sp. n., from substrata collected from Bajo de Sico, a mesophotic coral reef ecosystem in Mona Passage off Puerto Rico, is described as new to science. The new species was collected from nearly 70 m depth, the greatest depth from which pontarachnid mites have been found until now. In addition, a Litarachna sp. was also found in association with the tube of the polychaete Sabellastarte magnifica (Shaw, 1800) at the shallow waters of north Puerto Rico.     

Genetic analysis of a novel invasion of Puerto Rico by an exotic constricting snake

The tropical island Puerto Rico is potentially vulnerable to invasion by some species of exotic snakes; however, until now no established populations had been reported. Here we report and genetically characterize the nascent invasion of Puerto Rico by an exotic constricting snake of the family Boidae (Boa constrictor) using mtDNA and microsatellite data. Over 150 individual B. constrictor have been removed from Mayagüez municipality since May 2011, and our results from the genetic analysis of 32 individuals suggest that this population was recently founded by individuals of one subspecies from a genetic lineage common to zoo and breeding collections, but that the potential propagule pool consists of two subspecies. We also suggest that anthropogenic long-distance dispersal within the island of Puerto Rico may be occurring from the established population, with implications for further establishment across the island. This study represents the first report of the naturalization of an invasive species of boid snake in Puerto Rico and will be important in determining mitigation strategies for this invasion as well as providing a basis for comparison to other on-going studies of invasive snakes.     

New microsatellite markers for the ectomycorrhizal fungus Pisolithus tinctorius sensu stricto reveal the genetic structure of US and Puerto Rican populations

The ectomycorrhizal fungus Pisolithus tinctorius has been introduced to many areas around the world as a source of inoculum for pine plantations. However, little is known about the genetic structure of fungal populations in their introduced habitats. To study the genetics of exotic P. tinctorius populations, we developed and employed seven new microsatellite markers and compared samples from Puerto Rico (exotic range) and the eastern United States (native range). Bayesian cluster analysis, neighbor joining analysis and F_ST values all strongly separated Puerto Rican populations from North American populations. Consistent with a founder effect, populations from Puerto Rico had reduced allelic richness when compared to samples from the United States. The genetic structure of P. tinctorius populations in Puerto Rico is weak to modest and is not correlated with geographic distance reflecting anthropogenic movement of inoculum with forestry practices.     

The Prevalence of Nervios and Associated Symptomatology Among Inhabitants of Mexican Rural Communities

The purpose of the present contribution is to describe the prevalence ofnervios through self-report, to identify psychological andsomatic symptoms associated with nervios, and to report thecomorbidity of nervios with mood and anxiety disorders amongMexican rural-origin adults. The data reported here were collected aspart of a larger project, whose aims were to determine the prevalence ofselected mental health problems, their sociocultural manifestation andinterpretation, and the utilization of mental health services among theinhabitants of rural communities in Mexico. A multi-stage, stratified,random sample of two regions in Mexico was obtained. The total number ofparticipants used in the analyses was 942 adults: 441 men and 501women. We found a prevalence of nervios of 15.5% in thegeneral population. When analyzed by sex, women had a significantlyhigher prevalence (20.8%) of this condition than men(9.5%). Also, all the somatic and psychological symptomsassociated with nervios had a higher prevalence among womenthan men.     

Four New Ladybug Species Belonging to Decadiomus Chapin (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) from Puerto Rico

While searching for native natural enemies attacking invasive insect pests in Puerto Rico, we found four undescribed ladybug species belonging to the Caribbean ladybug genus Decadiomus Chapin. In this article, we describe the following species from Puerto Rico: Decadiomus seini n. sp., Decadiomus ramosi n. sp., Decadiomus hayuyai n. sp., and Decadiomus martorelli n. sp. Illustrations of the dorsal habitus, shape of prosternal carinae, and drawings of male and female genitalia are presented. We also present a key for Diomini of Puerto Rico and discuss their importance as potential biocontrol agents.     

Jacquinia pauciflora (Theophrastaceae), a new species from Puerto Rico

A new species,Jacquinia pauciflora, is described from subtropical moist forest on karst hills (mogotes) in northwestern Puerto Rico.Jacquinia pauciflora is similar toJ. stenophylla Urban, from which it differs in several floral and leaf characters, but is possibly most closely related toJ. umbellata A. DC. A key to the species ofJacquinia occurring in Puerto Rico is provided.     

Pilot study of mold populations inside and outside of Puerto Rican residences

Puerto Rico has the highest asthma prevalence in the US. In the states, mold exposures have been linked to the development and exacerbation of asthma. For a pilot study of mold populations in Puerto Rico, dust and air samples were collected in January 2013 inside and outside of residences (n = 10) in the north eastern quadrant of Puerto Rico. Inside and outside (protected from rain) settled dust was collected by wiping above floor or ground-level surfaces with a Swiffer? duster cloth. Air samples were collected in five of the residences inside and five matching outside onto Malt Extract Agar and also onto G25N Agar. The dust (5 mg) was analyzed using mold-specific quantitative PCR and mold contamination estimated using the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI) metric. Air sampled (150 l) plates were incubated and resulting mold colonies enumerated. The ERMI values were significantly (p = 0.03) greater inside the homes than outside, 20.37 versus 12.55, respectively. Aspergillus penicillioides, A. sydowii, Chaetomium globosum, the Eurotium group and Penicillium crustosum and A. ustus were found in significantly greater numbers inside than outside Puerto Rican residences based on the Wilcoxon rank sum test. However, after correction for multiple comparisons using the Holms–Bonferroni test, only the Eurotium group remained significantly greater. Air samples suggested higher culturable concentrations of molds outside but the differences were not significantly different. Although this is a small study, it suggests that some people in Puerto Rico are exposed to significantly higher mold concentrations indoors than outdoors.     

A human pathogenic fungus recovered from soil for the first time in Puerto Rico

Summary 1. The value of soil studies in the determination of an area for human pathogenic fungi was well demonstrated by this study.2. The work has definitely established the presence ofH. capsulatum in Puerto Rico.3. The medical profession has since become more conscious of the presence of this organism in Puerto Rico.4. The importance of this cave, like many others, as a source of human infection is significant since many persons are known to visit the cave.This investigation was made possible by the financial support of National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland (Grant No. AI-05201-02 BM).     

Green Iguanas (Iguana iguana) in Puerto Rico: is it time for management?

Iguana iguana is native to Central and South America, and was introduced into Puerto Rico in the 1970s as a result of pet trade. The invasive biology of this reptile has not been studied in Puerto Rico, where its negative effects may threaten local biodiversity. The purposes of this study were to: (1) estimate population densities of I. iguana; (2) describe some aspects of its reproductive biology; and (3) assess its potential impacts. Visual-encounter surveys were performed at Parque Lineal in San Juan and Canal Blasina in Carolina, while nesting activity data were collected at Las Cabezas de San Juan in Fajardo. Densities of I. iguana in Puerto Rico reached a maximum of 223 individuals ha⁻¹, higher than in any known locality in its native range, and showed fluctuations related to seasonality. Our 2008–2009 observations at the nesting sites document that this population of I. iguana is a reproductively successful species, producing more than 100 egg clutches and 2,558 eggs with a 91.4% egg viability. The ability to proliferate in a low predation environment and the absence of good competitors are the major drivers of the population densities observed in Puerto Rico. We found evidence that I. iguana is threatening native biodiversity and impacting infrastructure, agriculture and human safety. Thus, a management program to control the species must soon be developed to prevent this invasive reptile from becoming more widespread and dominant in other localities around the island.     

Effects of invasive Green Iguanas (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Iguana iguana</Emphasis>) on seed germination and seed dispersal potential in southeastern Puerto Rico

Green Iguanas (Iguana iguana) are invasive in Puerto Rico due to a variety of negative economic effects, yet we know very little about their ecological impacts. Because they are herbivorous, defecate intact seeds, move through the forest, and have long gut-passage times, Green Iguanas may affect seed germination and seed dispersal. In summer 2013, a total of 258 Green Iguana scat samples were collected at the Humacao Natural Reserve in southeastern Puerto Rico. Seeds extracted from scat and collected from fruit were planted under common garden conditions using experimental treatments designed to tease apart the effects of feces, fruit, and ingestion on seed germination. Green Iguanas decreased the time for seeds to germinate in Ficus spp. by removing fruit pulp, but had no effect on germination of native Annona glabra seeds. For non-native P. pterocarpus and Pterocarpus spp., Green Iguanas produced conflicting results, decreasing the percentage of seeds germinating, but at the same time, reducing the time for seeds to germinate. Green Iguanas likely disperse most seeds beyond the canopies of parental tree at our site. Government and economic resources are being used to eradicate Green Iguana populations in Puerto Rico, but the lack of consistent effects of Green Iguanas on seed germination for the plant species consumed at our site complicates generalizing about their ecological effects and developing management plans that minimize negative effects for native plant communities. We recommend additional studies that target both species of particular concern, such as threatened native or invasive species, as well as studies of sensitive habitats in Puerto Rico.     

Polyethism in workers ofNasutitermes costalis (Holmgren)

Summary A field study of colonies ofNasutitermes costalis in a montane rain forest in Puerto Rico indicated that third stage large workers returned much more readily to nest surfaces to make repairs following a breaching disturbance than other worker types. Where no recent disturbance had been (or was an hour past) small workers, constituting (presumably) only about 24% of all workers in a nest, composed over 46% of the workers collected at the construction site. These findings are evidence of polyethism within theN. costalis worker caste.

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Résumé Une étude sur le terrain de colonies deNasutitermes costalis, dans une forêt humide d'altitude à Porto Rico, montre que les grands ouvriers du troisième stade retournent beaucoup plus facilement à la surface du nid que les autres, afin d'y effectuer des réparations à la suite d'une démolition.Quand il n'y a pas eu de perturbations récentes (ou après un délai d'une heure), les petits ouvriers constituant, sans doute, 24% de la population des ouvriers du nid, se trouvent sur la surface dans la proportion de 46% an lieu de construction.Ces résultats mettent en évidence le polyéthisme à l'intérieur de la caste des ouvriers deN. costalis.