ABSTRACT
Objective@#Although the effects and safety of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) treatment in depressive patients are largely investigated, whether the self-administration of tDCS treatment at patient’s home is comparable to clinic-based treatment is still unknown. @*Methods@#In this single-arm, multi-center clinical trial, 61 patients with mild to moderate major depressive disorder were enrolled. tDCS treatment was delivered at the patient’s home once a day, 5 to 7 times a week for 6 weeks, and each session lasted for 30 minutes. The primary outcome was a total Beck-Depression Inventory-II score, and no concurrent antidepressants were used. @*Results@#The remission rates in both Full-Analysis (FA) (n = 61) and Per-Protocol (PP) (n = 43) groups were statistically significant (FA: 57.4% [0.44−0.70], PP: 62.8% [0.47−0.77]; percent [95% confidence interval]). The degree of depression-related symptoms was also significantly improved in 2, 4, and 6 weeks after the treatment when compared with baseline. There was no significant association between treatment compliance and remission rate in both FA and PP groups. @*Conclusion@#These results suggest that acute treatment of patient-administered tDCS might be effective in improving the subjective feeling of depressive symptoms in mild to moderate major depressive disorder patients.
ABSTRACT
Objective@#To investigate the effects of long-acting injectable 3-monthly paliperidone palmitate on the clinical and social functioning of patients with schizophrenia. @*Methods@#This study enrolled patients with schizophrenia receiving long-acting injectable 1-monthly paliperidone palmitate for at least 4 months and who subsequently received 3-monthly paliperidone palmitate. Accordingly, 418 patients were followed up for 24 weeks. Their clinical symptoms and social functioning were measured using the Clinical Global Impression-Severity of Illness and Personal and Social Performance scales. @*Results@#The Personal and Social Performance total score was significantly higher after 3-monthly paliperidone palmitate treatment than at baseline (baseline vs. week 24: 54.3 ± 18.0 vs. 61.0 ± 14.5 [mean ± standard deviation]; p ＜ 0.001; Wilcoxon signed-rank test); the proportion of patients in the mildly ill group (scores 71−100) also increased significantly (baseline vs. week 24: 16.5% vs. 20.6%; p＜ 0.001; McNemar-Bowker test). The mean Clinical Global Impression-Severity of Illness score decreased significantly (baseline vs. week 24: 3.7 ± 1.0 vs. 3.4 ± 0.9; p＜ 0.001; Wilcoxon signed-rank test), as did the proportion of patients in the severely ill group (baseline vs. week 24: 4.1% vs. 2.1%; p ＜ 0.001; McNemar-Bowker test). @*Conclusion@#Continuous 3-monthly paliperidone palmitate treatment significantly enhances the personal and social performance of patients with schizophrenia and reduces the proportion of those with severe illness. These findings suggest that long-acting injectable antipsychotic administration at intervals longer than 1 month might improve the social functioning of and promote return to activities of daily living in patients with schizophrenia.
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Objective@#The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of depressive symptoms on health-seeking behaviors using the large epidemiological study data of the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination (KNHANES). @*Methods@#Data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), which is a large-scale national survey, were used in this study. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was used to assess the depressive state of the participants. Specialized self-reported questionnaires that included questions about health-seeking behaviors were also performed. To examine the relationships between depression and health-seeking behaviors, complex sample logistic regression models with control for covariates were used. @*Results@#There was a significant association between decreased health-seeking behaviors and depressive symptoms in adults (odds ratio [OR]: 3.11, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.44–3.96). The association was found to be especially strong in males (OR: 2.63, 95% CI: 1.69–4.10) versus in females (OR: 2.49, 95% CI: 1.90–3.27). With regard to age group, younger adults (19–44 years of age) showed the highest OR (OR: 3.07, 95% CI: 2.12–4.45). @*Conclusion@#Our findings support the idea that there is a significant association between health-seeking behaviors and depressive symptoms in the Korean population. These results suggest that individuals with decreased health-seeking behaviors could be evaluated for depressive symptoms.
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Background@#This study aimed to investigate the psychosocial symptoms and experiences of bereaved parents of victims and parents of survivors of the Sewol Ferry accident five years after the accident. @*Methods@#In-depth interviews of 186 bereaved parents of victims or survivors of the Sewol Ferry accident were conducted. We elicited and categorized meaning units relevant to the psychological, cognitive, and physical traits of the participants from these interviews.Differences in responses between bereaved parents and survivors’ parents and between genders were examined using frequency analyses and χ 2 tests. @*Results@#Data were organized under seven headings: observed attitude and impression of participants, difficulties due to mental health problems, difficulties due to physical pain, difficulties in relationships, negative changes following the incident, positive changes following the incident, and help needed. Within these headings, 27 themes, 60 sub-themes, and 80 meaning units were elicited. @*Conclusion@#This study explored the psychiatric, physical, and relational problems reported by bereaved parents and those of survivors as well as major changes in their personal and social lives after the Sewol Ferry accident. Differences in responses according to gender were also identified. The results from this study could inform and facilitate the implementation of intervention measures, such as long-term psychological evaluation, to bereaved parents of victims or survivors of disasters.
ABSTRACT
Objective@#In numerous studies that have addressed transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) devices, participants visit the hospital regularly and undergo stimulation directed by health professionals. This method has the advantage of being able to deliver accurate stimuli in a controlled environment, but it does not adopt the merits of tDCS portability and applicability. Thus, it may be necessary to investigate how self-administered tDCS treatment at home affects depression-related symptoms. @*Methods@#In this randomized, single-blinded clinical trial, 58 patients with major depressive disorder were assigned to active and sham tDCS stimulation groups, and treatment responses were evaluated biweekly over six weeks. Both active and sham tDCS treatment group were treated with escitalopram. All participants were instructed the protocol and usage of at-home tDCS device, and self-administered tDCS treatment at their home. @*Results@#The beck-depression inventory score decreased significantly as treatment progressed, and the degree of symptom improvement was significantly higher in the active group than in the sham tDCS group. There were no significant differences between the two groups in other indices, including the Hamilton Depression Scale. @*Conclusion@#These results suggest that patient-administered tDCS treatment might be effective in improving subjective symptoms of depression.
ABSTRACT
The primary purpose of this review is to present an overview of relationship between human spontaneous eyeblinking and internal cognitive processes. The second purpose is to address the neural substrates of human eyeblinking based on recent studies focusing on the central dopaminergic system and to explore the significance of spontaneous eyeblinks in neuropsychiatric disorders. We reviewed recent and previous studies on eyeblink patterns under various cognitive tasks. We also reviewed neural substrates of eyeblinking, particularly based on the central dopaminergic system. This paper suggests that spontaneous eyeblinks are highly correlated with various cognitive processes and the activity of central dopaminergic system. Various neuropsychiatric disorders are related to the alteration of the occurrence of eyeblinking. Spontaneous eyeblinking is the unique human behavior that occurs regularly without conscious effort. It is known that the rate of eyeblinking is modulated by internal cognitive processes and dopamine-related neuropsychiatric disorders. Further research is required to how the temporal dynamics of spontaneous eyeblinking is correlated with the disease activity and progression.