Identifying pathways between psychiatric symptoms and psychosocial functioning in the general population.

The present study aims to identify pathways between psychiatric network symptoms and psychosocial functioning and their associated variables among functioning clusters in the general population. A cross-sectional web-based survey was administered in a total of 3,023 individuals in Brazil. The functioning clusters were derived by a previous study identifying three different groups based on the online Functioning Assessment Short Test. Networking analysis was fitted with all items of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System for depression and for anxiety (PROMIS) using the mixed graphical model. A decision tree model was used to identify the demographic and clinical characteristics of good and low functioning. A total of 926 (30.63%) subjects showed good functioning, 1,436 (47.50%) participants intermediate functioning, and 661 (21.86%) individuals low functioning. Anxiety and uneasy symptoms were the most important nodes for good and intermediate clusters but anxiety, feeling of failure, and depression were the most relevant symptoms for low functioning. The decision tree model was applied to identify variables capable to discriminate individuals with good and low functioning. The algorithm achieved balanced accuracy 0.75, sensitivity 0.87, specificity 0.63, positive predictive value 0.63 negative predictive value 0.87 (p<0.001), and an area under the curve of 0.83 (95%CI:0.79-0.86, p<0.01). Our results show that individuals who present psychological distress are more likely to experience poor functional status, suggesting that this subgroup should receive a more comprehensive psychiatric assessment and mental health care.

IMPACTS OF COVID-19 ON HUMAN RIGHTS: PERCEPTIONS OF RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF RIO DE JANEIRO

The concept of human rights is not consensual, however, it persists in the moral, political and legal culture of the modern world. The State has always occupied an ambiguous and dialectical place, sometimes being directly or indirectly responsible for the offense, sometimes responsible for the protection of rights. In addition to the aspect of legitimacy, the Covid-19 pandemic led to a much more serious problem related to the policy adopted by the Brazilian Government and its effects. In order to know the perception of residents of the city of Rio de Janeiro on aspects related to the impacts of Covid-19 on 5 basic rights: health, education, freedom to come and go, work and income, and voting, a survey of the type web survey. To reach the respondents, the snowball method was used, having as a starting point the contact list of the study authors. As a result, most respondents identified the five rights mentioned as Human Rights and revealed that they believe that: 1) public authorities are responsible for limiting rights;2) the restriction of any of the aforementioned rights is justifiable during the pandemic;3) the impact of limitations on rights on lower socioeconomic classes was greater;4) are dissatisfied with the performance of the Federal Government regarding the measures adopted;and, finally, 5) who are complying with the rules of social isolation at the same time that other residents of the city of Rio de Janeiro are not. © 2022 AIUB Office of Research and Publication. All rights reserved.

Predictors of receiving COVID-19 vaccine among adult population in Iran: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Vaccination is one of the best ways to stop the transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In this regard, uunderstanding the features related to the intention of different populations to receive the COVID-19 vaccine is essential for an effective vaccination program. This study aimed to investigate the vaccination intention predictors in the general adult population of Iran. METHODS: A cross-sectional, web-based survey was conducted on social networks, including Telegram, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to investigate predictors associated with the intention to receive COVID-19 vaccines, including sociodemographic characteristics, trust, worry, sources of information, and conspiracy beliefs. The main outcomes included unwillingness, undecidedness, and intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. RESULTS: Out of 780 respondents, 481 (61.6%) reported an intention to be vaccinated, 214 (27.4%) expressed their undecided status, and 85 (10.9%) reported unwillingness to receive any type of COVID-19 vaccine. A higher age (OR undecided = 0.97, 95% CI (0.96-0.99)), (OR unwilling = 0.97, 95% CI (0.95-0.99)); exposure with COVID-19 (OR unwilling = 0.82, 95% CI (0.76-0.89)), (OR undecided = 0.87, 95% CI (0.83-0.93)) were positively associated with vaccination intentions. No/low trust in vaccines, institutions, concerns about the future of the pandemic, and conspiracy beliefs were strongly and negatively associated with COVID-19 vaccination intentions. CONCLUSION: Most Iranians intended to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Higher vaccine acceptance needs to consider demographic features, exposure history, confidence in vaccines, trust in institutions, concerns, and conspiracy beliefs of people.

Life and Stress of Japanese Children and Adolescents During the Prolonged Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic

This study surveyed adult web monitor enrollees about the lives of and stress experienced by Japanese children and adolescents during the prolonged coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The survey was conducted on February 10, 2022 (after the sixth wave) and August 19, 2022 (during the seventh wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan), with 231 and 217 survey participants, respectively. The questionnaire was designed so that adults could assess the frequency of exercise, and difficulties experienced by children and adolescents around them. Regarding exercise opportunities, 22% of parents of middle and high school children reported that children's exercise opportunities "stayed the same” or "increased considerably” in the first survey. Whereas, in the second survey, all parents of middle and high school children reported that children's exercise opportunities "decreased.” Regarding stress, 17% of parents of adolescents 18 years and older responded that the stress experienced was the "same as before” or "a little less than before” in the first survey, but all of these parents responded "quite a bit” to the same question in the second survey. The findings suggest that the life changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may have a significant impact on children and adolescents and may increase stress. The long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and adolescents should be further investigated. © Fuji Technology Press Ltd.

Hospital Pharmacy Response to Covid-19 Pandemic in Italy: What We Learned From the First Outbreak Wave.

BACKGROUND: When COVID-19 pandemic started, Italian hospital pharmacists faced multiple challenges and change their work practices. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe the impact of COVID-19 emergency on pharmaceutical care provided by pharmacists during the first wave of the pandemic. Issues related to pharmacist's involvement in the pandemic management were: changes in activities, support received by authorities and pharmacists' own perceived role in the Health System. METHODS: A cross-sectional study based on a web survey was conducted between May and June 2020 collecting information from pharmacists, members of Italian Society of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics. 113 (11.4%) completed the questionnaire. The cohort was divided in 2 arms: pharmacists who worked in severely COVID-19 affected areas (High Spread Regions) and those employed in less affected areas (Low Spread Regions). RESULTS: The changes in pharmacy work settings reflected the increase of logistics area and non-sterile clinical galenic, and reduction of clinical tasks. The most demanding challenge was referred to shortages of medical devices and drugs, 61/113 pharmacists reported difficulty in obtaining products compliant to quality standards. National Institutions and Regional Governments provided a greater perceived support. More than 50% of participants felt that their role did not change if compared to other health professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Despite some limitations related to their clinical activity, pharmacists played a crucial role in supplying personal protective equipment, medical devices and medications to improve health outcomes during this emergency. The results may guide pharmacists in future actions to improve the management of the pandemic.

Has the COVID-19 pandemic affected infection avoidance tendencies? Adjustment of house effects on Web survey by propensity score

This study examines whether the psychological tendencies during the new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic differed from that in normal times based on Web-based survey data from two different samples. The target of the analysis was the tendency to avoid infection. In doing so, we considered the house effects of the different survey media and attempted to compensate for them by inverse probability weighted estimation using propensity scores calculated with several covariates. The results showed that even after adjustment, infection avoidance tendencies were higher during the pandemic than normal times. We discussed the significance of adjusting for house effects in the Web-based survey and some of the limitations of this study. © 2022 Japanese Psychological Association. All rights reserved.

National trends in physical activity among adolescents in South Korea before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2009-2021.

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, several previous studies from different countries showed that physical activity (PA) decreased during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, few studies have examined the recent tendency of PA in the adolescent population. Thus, we aimed to investigate the long-term trend of PA in Korean youth and the prevalence changes between before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey (KYRBS) was collected for consecutive years between 2009 and 2021. The period was separated into prepandemic (2009-2019), early-pandemic (2020), and mid-pandemic (2021). Self-reported amount of PA was categorized into four groups (insufficient, aerobic, muscle strengthening, and both physical activities) according to World Health Organization (WHO) PA guidelines. A total of 840 488 adolescents aged 12-18 who fully responded to the survey were selected (response rate: 95.2%). The 13-year trends in the proportion of adolescents who reported aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities met or exceeded 2020 WHO exercise guidelines for adolescents plateaued (11.9% from 2009 to 2011, 14.2% from 2018 to 2019, 14.4% from 2020, and 14.0% from 2021); however, the slope decreased during the pandemic (ßdiff , -0.076; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.123 to -0.029). Proportion of sufficient aerobic exercise among adolescents sharply decreased midst the pandemic (28.0% from 2009 to 2011, 29.4% from 2018 to 2019, and 23.8% from 2020; ßdiff , -0.266; 95% CI, -0.306 to -0.226) but increased again in 2021 (26.0% from mid-COVID 19; 95% CI, 25.4-26.7). Similar patterns were observed in Metabolic Equivalent Task (MET) score (MET-min/week; 804.1 from 2018 to 2019, 720.9 from 2020, and 779.6 from 2021). The mean difference in MET score between pre-COVID and post-COVID was -55.4 MET-min/week (95% CI, -70.5 to -40.3). Through a nationwide representative study, there was no significant difference with regard to the number of Korean adolescents who achieved the PA guidelines (pre and postpandemic); however, the prevalence of recommended levels of PA needs to increase more based on the trend before the COVID-19 outbreak. The findings of this study suggest reinforcement of the importance of public health policies for Korean youths to be more physically active, especially during and after the pandemic.

Lessons for a digital future from the school of the pandemic: From distance learning to virtual reality.

The unexpected onset of the pandemic emergency placed so-called Distance Learning (DL) at the center of the academic world, affecting students and teachers across all formative steps. The DL experience has opened up the way for many queries in terms of research on the front of education, besides showcasing instances of innovation within the schooling institution, both increasingly urgent and no longer deferrable. The collective shock that started in March of 2020 was an opportunity to incentivize a leap in evolution, heavily digital in nature, within the educational system; howbeit, the generation of digital natives were already, prior to the onset of COVID-19, waiting to sense greater openness in the Italian school system toward newer technologies, in addition to less standardized, more innovative, creative and hybrid didactic formulas. In the presented study-a web survey launched in the spring of 2021-a large sample of students were invited to retrace their experience with DL, and express their relating assessments and reviews. Conducting the entirety of the study remotely turned out to be a winning data collection technique given a situation, comparable to the one experienced globally, in which face-to-face meetings had become impossible. Through in-depth analysis of the different contexts-social, cultural, technological, spatial, relational-in which the DL experience took hold, this contribution holds the purpose of illustrating the main DL adaptation profiles of the sample reached, valorizing the perceptual dimension, through the systematic comparison of online and in-person didactics. Analysis of the identified forms of adaptation created an opportunity to reconstruct the image of school that the interviewees held, how much they valued it, the trust they placed therein, the developments they predicted and desired for the institution. Focusing-responsibly, and taking stock of the possible ethical implications-on the future opportunities held by technological progress, in itself boosted by the pandemic, are located within a wider experimentation of VR-equipped classrooms, in a multidisciplinary perspective, offering a concrete solution to the needs of both students and teachers.

The Efficacy of a Brief, Altruism-Eliciting Video Intervention in Enhancing COVID-19 Vaccination Intentions Among a Population-Based Sample of Younger Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: High COVID-19 vaccine uptake is crucial to containing the pandemic and reducing hospitalizations and deaths. Younger adults (aged 20-39 years) have demonstrated lower levels of vaccine uptake compared to older adults, while being more likely to transmit the virus due to a higher number of social contacts. Consequently, this age group has been identified by public health authorities as a key target for vaccine uptake. Previous research has demonstrated that altruistic messaging and motivation is associated with vaccine acceptance. OBJECTIVE: This study had 2 objectives: (1) to evaluate the within-group efficacy of an altruism-eliciting short, animated video intervention in increasing COVID-19 vaccination intentions amongst unvaccinated Canadian younger adults and (2) to examine the video's efficacy compared to a text-based intervention focused exclusively on non-vaccine-related COVID-19 preventive health measures. METHODS: Using a web-based survey in a pre-post randomized control trial (RCT) design, we recruited Canadians aged 20-39 years who were not yet vaccinated against COVID-19 and randomized them in a 1:1 ratio to receive either the video intervention or an active text control. The video intervention was developed by our team in collaboration with a digital media company. The measurement of COVID-19 vaccination intentions before and after completing their assigned intervention was informed by the multistage Precaution Adoption Process Model (PAPM). The McNemar chi-square test was performed to evaluate within-group changes of vaccine intentions. Exact tests of symmetry using pairwise McNemar tests were applied to evaluate changes in multistaged intentions. Between-group vaccine intentions were assessed using the Pearson chi-square test postintervention. RESULTS: Analyses were performed on 1373 participants (n=686, 50%, in the video arm, n=687, 50%, in the text arm). Within-group results for the video intervention arm showed that there was a significant change in the intention to receive the vaccine (χ21=20.55, P<.001). The between-group difference in postintervention intentions (χ23=1.70, P=.64) was not significant. When administered the video intervention, we found that participants who had not thought about or were undecided about receiving a COVID-19 vaccine were more amenable to change than participants who had already decided not to vaccinate. CONCLUSIONS: Although the video intervention was limited in its effect on those who had firmly decided not to vaccinate, our study demonstrates that prosocial and altruistic messages could increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake, especially when targeted to younger adults who are undecided or unengaged regarding vaccination. This might indicate that altruistic messaging provides a "push" for those who are tentative toward, or removed from, the decision to receive the vaccine. The results of our study could also be applied to more current COVID-19 vaccination recommendations (eg, booster shots) and for other vaccine-preventable diseases. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04960228; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04960228.

Examining Anxiety Treatment Information Needs: Web-Based Survey Study

Background: Several treatments for anxiety are available, which can make treatment decisions difficult. Resources are often produced with limited knowledge of what information is of interest to consumers. This is a problem because there is limited understanding of what people want to know when considering help for anxiety. Objective: This study aimed to examine the information needs and preferences concerning treatment options for anxiety by assessing the following: what information people consider to be important when they are considering treatment options for anxiety, what information people have received on psychological and medication treatment in the past, how they received this information in the past, and whether there are any differences in information needs between specific samples and demographic groups. Methods: Using a web-based survey, we recruited participants from a peer-support association website (n=288) and clinic samples (psychology, n=113;psychiatry, n=64). Results: Participants in all samples wanted information on a broad range of topics pertaining to anxiety treatment. However, they reported that they did not receive the desired amount of information. Participants in the clinic samples rated the importance of information topics higher than did those in the self-help sample. When considering the anxiety treatment information received in the past, most respondents indicated receiving information from informational websites, family doctors, and mental health practitioners. In terms of what respondents want to learn about, high ratings of importance were given to topics concerning treatment effectiveness, how it works, advantages and disadvantages, what happens when it stops, and common side effects. Conclusions: It is challenging for individuals to obtain anxiety-related information on the range of topics they desire through currently available information sources. It is also difficult to provide comprehensive information during typical clinical visits. Providing evidence-based information on the web and in a brochure format may help consumers make informed choices and support the advice provided by health professionals.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Men Who Have Sex With Men That Practice Chemsex in France: Results From the National ERAS Web Survey.

Chemsex-the use of drugs in a sexual context-has been associated with more at-risk sexual practices and substance-related complications in men who have sex with men (MSM). To date, no study has focused on the impact of France's first coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related lockdown on the mental health and drug/alcohol use of MSM who practice chemsex. We implemented a web-based survey of 9,488 MSM living in France in June 2020 (after the country's first COVID-19 lockdown). Specifically, we first compared the subpopulation of MSM who self-reported practicing chemsex during their most recent sexual intercourse (defined as "chemsexers") with other MSM, using five outcomes: increased 1/tobacco use, 2/alcohol use, and 3/other psychoactive drug use. 4/using psychotropic medication during the lockdown, and finally 5/psychological distress. We then analyzed the outcomes' associations with the main explanatory variable "chemsexer," after adjusting for all relevant variables. Among 7,195 MSM who had sexual intercourse with a man during the previous 6 months, 359 participants (5%) were identified as "chemsexers." Multivariable analyses showed that during the first lockdown period, chemsexers were significantly more likely than non-chemsexers to have increased their use of tobacco, alcohol, and other psychoactive substances. Chemsexers were also more likely to have used psychotropic medication and to have experienced psychological distress during the previous month. Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in France and worldwide, this finding highlights the need to develop psychosocial interventions and harm reduction services for MSM chemsexers, potentially via mobile health.

Lifestyle changes and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A repeated, cross-sectional web survey.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to compare self-reported changes on lifestyle behaviors during two phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain, and to evaluate clinical and sociodemographic factors associated with lifestyles. METHODS: Two cross-sectional web surveys were conducted during lockdown (April 15-May 15, 2020) and seven months later (November 16-December 16, 2020). Lifestyle behaviors were self-reported by a multidimensional scale (SMILE-C). Two separate samples of respondents were analyzed. A multivariate regression model was performed to evaluate the association of SMILE-C scores with demographic and clinical variables. RESULTS: The sample comprised, 3412 participants from the first survey (S1) and in the S1 and 3635 from the second (S2). SMILE-C score decreased across surveys (p < 0.001). The rates of positive screenings for depression and anxiety were similar between the surveys, whereas those for alcohol abuse decreased (p < 0.001). Most participants in S2 reported that their lifestyle had not changed compared to those before the pandemic. Variables independently associated with an unhealthier lifestyle were working as an essential worker, lower educational level, previous mental disease, worse self-rated health, totally/moderate changes on diet, sleep or social support, as well as positive screenings for alcohol abuse, anxiety and depression. LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional design and recruitment by non-probabilistic methods limit inferring causality and the external validity of the results. CONCLUSIONS: Overall lifestyle worsened seven months after the lockdown in Spain. Several demographic and clinical factors were associated with lifestyle scores. The contribution of common mental disorders to unhealthier lifestyles should be considered in order to prevent the negative impact of the pandemic.

Psychological impact of the state of emergency over COVID-19 for non-permanent workers: a Nationwide follow-up study in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused mental health problems and increased unemployment due to the economic recession. This survey aimed to assess the psychological impact of the state of emergency. We estimated changes in mental health, quality of life, and unemployment experience for general workers during the first COVID-19 outbreak in Japan. METHODS: We conducted a nationwide follow-up study. During the periods of March 26 to April 6, 2020 and June 26 to July 2, 2020, we used the internet to survey general workers aged 15 to 59 years in Japan. The questionnaire items covered employment status and socioeconomic factors, and we used the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and EQ-5D-5L to assess depression and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL), respectively. The differences in outcomes of permanent and non-permanent workers were analyzed using propensity score analysis. A multiple linear regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship between unemployment and CES-D scores. RESULTS: We included 2351 subjects in the analysis. Changes in both CES-D scores and utility were not significantly different between the two groups. However, a significant difference was found regarding the rate of unemployment, which was associated with higher CES-D scores. CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrated that the mental health of non-permanent workers was not negatively affected following the state of emergency due to COVID-19 in Japan. Unemployment is an important factor that influences the mental health of general workers.

Psychosocial variables and quality of life during the COVID-19 lockdown: a correlational study on a convenience sample of young Italians.

BACKGROUND: In 2020, to limit the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19), many countries, including Italy, have issued a lengthy quarantine period for the entire population. For this reason lifestyle has changed, bringing inevitable repercussions to the Quality of Life (QoL). The present study aims to identify which psychosocial variables predict behaviors capable of affecting the QoL during the lockdown period, potentially highlighting factors that might promote well-being and health in the Italian population during the epidemic. METHODS: Between 27 April 2020 and 11 May 2020, we administered a web-survey to a sample of young Italian people (age M = 21.2; SD = 3.5; female = 57.7% of the sample). Employing variance-based structural equation modeling, we attempted to identify whether social connectedness, social support, and loneliness were variables predictive of the QoL of young Italians. We also sought to identify specific psychological factors, such as symbolic threat, realistic threat, and the threat from potentially contaminated objects, was correlated to COVID-19 fear and whether engaging in particular behaviors was likely to improve the QoL. RESULTS: Our results suggest that social connectedness and loneliness are significant predictors of QoL, while social support did not have a significant effect on QoL. Furthermore, we observed that symbolic and realistic threats and the threat from potentially contaminated objects are significant and positive predictors of COVID-19 fear. Moreover, COVID-19 fear had significant and positive relationships with the carrying out of specific behaviors, such as creative activities during the isolation period and that this related to affirming individuals' country-specific identity. Finally, COVID-19 fear is a significant predictor of behavioral factors related to the adherence to public health advice in line with national guidance regarding the containment of COVID-19; this factor, however, did not correlate with QoL. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest the importance of social context and psychological factors to help devise intervention strategies to improve the QoL during lockdown from epidemic events and, in particular, support the importance of promoting social communication and accurate information about the transmission of the virus.

Adherence to the Gluten-Free Diet during the Lockdown for COVID-19 Pandemic: A Web-Based Survey of Italian Subjects with Celiac Disease.

We aimed to assess the perceived impact of the lockdown, imposed to control the spreading of COVID-19, on the adherence of Italian celiac disease (CD) subjects to the gluten-free diet by a web-based survey. A total of 1983 responses were analyzed, 1614 (81.4%) by CD adults and 369 (18.6%) by parents/caregivers of CD children/adolescents. The compliance with the GFD was unchanged for 69% of the adults and 70% of the children, and improved for 29% of both. The factors increasing the probability to report stricter compliance were the presence of CD symptoms in the last year before the lockdown (odds ratio (OR) 1.98, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.46-2.26), a partial usual adherence to gluten-free diet (GFD) (OR 1.91, 95% CI 1.2-3.06), and having tried recipes with naturally gluten-free ingredients more than usual (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.28-1.96) for adults; the presence of CD symptoms in the last year (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.21-3.47), still positive CD antibodies (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.14-3.13), and other family members with CD (OR 2.24, 95% CI 1.3-3.85) for children/adolescents. Therefore, the lockdown led to a reported improved adherence to the GFD in one-third of the respondents, in particular in those with previous worse disease control, offering the opportunity to avoid sources of contamination/transgression and increase the use of naturally gluten-free products.