Effects of anxiety state on N400 event-related brain potential response to unexpected semantic stimuli.

Emotional states can influence how people use meaningful context to make predictions about what comes next. To measure whether state anxiety influences such prediction, we used the N400 event-related brain potential (ERP) response to semantic stimuli, whose amplitude is smaller (less negative) when the stimulus is more predicted based on preceding context. Participants (n = 28) were randomized to one of two groups, who underwent either an "anxious-uncertainty" procedure previously shown to increase anxiety, or a control procedure. Both before and after this procedure, participants' ERPs were recorded while they viewed category definitions (e.g., "a type of fruit"), each followed by a target word that was either a high-typicality category exemplar ("apple"), low-typicality exemplar ("cherry"), or non-exemplar ("clamp") of the category. Participants' task was to respond by pressing one of two buttons to indicate whether the target represented a member of the category. As expected, based on previous work, overall, N400 amplitudes were largest (most negative) in response to non-exemplars, intermediate to low-typicality exemplars, and smallest to high-typicality exemplars. N400 amplitudes were larger to non-exemplars after the anxious-uncertainty procedure than after the control procedure. N400 amplitudes to both types of exemplars did not differ after the anxious-uncertainty procedure versus the control procedure. The results are consistent with participants devoting more neural resources to processing contextually unexpected items under anxious states, rather than anxiety facilitating processing of expected items.

[Research advances in the correlation between chronic subjective tinnitus and anxiety state].

Tinnitus and anxiety disorder are common clinical symptoms. Comorbidity between tinnitus and anxiety state is increasing year by year. The relationship between tinnitus and anxiety state has always been a hot topic, and this paper reviews the literature on the relationship between chronic subjective tinnitus and anxiety state in recent years.

Guanxin Danshen Dripping Pills Improve Quality of Life and Cardiovascular Prognoses of CHD Patients after PCI with Anxiety or Depression (GLAD Study): A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy and safety of Guanxin Danshen Dripping Pills (GXDS) in the treatment of depression or anxiety in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS: From September 2017 to June 2019, 200 CHD patients after PCI with depression and anxiety were included and randomly divided into GXDS (100 cases) and placebo control groups (100 cases) by block randomization and a random number table. Patients in the GXDS and control groups were given GXDS and placebo, respectively, 0.4 g each time, 3 times daily for 12 weeks. The primary outcomes were scores of Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Scale (GAD-7) and the Seattle Angina Pectoris Scale (SAQ). The secondary outcomes included 12 Health Survey Summary Form (SF-12) scores and the first onset time and incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs). Other indices including blood pressure, blood lipids, microcirculation and inflammatory-related indices, etc. were monitored at baseline, week 4, and week 12. RESULTS: In the full analysis set (200 cases), after treatment, the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores in the GXDS group were considerably lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). Compared with the baseline, the total PHQ-9 scores of the experimental and control groups decreased by 3.97 and 1.18, respectively. The corrected mean difference between the two groups was -2.78 (95% CI: -3.47, -2.10; P<0.001). The total GAD-7 score in the GXDS group decreased by 3.48% compared with the baseline level, while that of the placebo group decreased by 1.13%. The corrected mean difference between the two groups was -2.35 (95% CI: -2.95, -1.76; P<0.001). The degree of improvement in SAQ score, SF-12 score, endothelin and high-sensitive C-reactive protein levels in the GXDS group were substantially superior than those in the placebo group, and the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). Similar results were obtained in the per protocol population analysis of 177 patients. Three cases of MACES were reported in this study (1 in the GXDS group and 2 in the placebo group), and no serious adverse events occurred. CONCLUSIONS: GXDS can significantly alleviate depression and anxiety, relieve symptoms of angina, and improve quality of life in patients with CHD after PCI. (Registration No. ChiCTR1800014291).

Research advances in the correlation between chronic subjective tinnitus and anxiety state / 临床耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

Tinnitus and anxiety disorder are common clinical symptoms. Comorbidity between tinnitus and anxiety state is increasing year by year. The relationship between tinnitus and anxiety state has always been a hot topic, and this paper reviews the literature on the relationship between chronic subjective tinnitus and anxiety state in recent years.

Guanxin Danshen Dripping Pills Improve Quality of Life and Cardiovascular Prognoses of CHD Patients after PCI with Anxiety or Depression (GLAD Study): A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To assess the efficacy and safety of Guanxin Danshen Dripping Pills (GXDS) in the treatment of depression or anxiety in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).@*METHODS@#From September 2017 to June 2019, 200 CHD patients after PCI with depression and anxiety were included and randomly divided into GXDS (100 cases) and placebo control groups (100 cases) by block randomization and a random number table. Patients in the GXDS and control groups were given GXDS and placebo, respectively, 0.4 g each time, 3 times daily for 12 weeks. The primary outcomes were scores of Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Scale (GAD-7) and the Seattle Angina Pectoris Scale (SAQ). The secondary outcomes included 12 Health Survey Summary Form (SF-12) scores and the first onset time and incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs). Other indices including blood pressure, blood lipids, microcirculation and inflammatory-related indices, etc. were monitored at baseline, week 4, and week 12.@*RESULTS@#In the full analysis set (200 cases), after treatment, the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores in the GXDS group were considerably lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). Compared with the baseline, the total PHQ-9 scores of the experimental and control groups decreased by 3.97 and 1.18, respectively. The corrected mean difference between the two groups was -2.78 (95% CI: -3.47, -2.10; P<0.001). The total GAD-7 score in the GXDS group decreased by 3.48% compared with the baseline level, while that of the placebo group decreased by 1.13%. The corrected mean difference between the two groups was -2.35 (95% CI: -2.95, -1.76; P<0.001). The degree of improvement in SAQ score, SF-12 score, endothelin and high-sensitive C-reactive protein levels in the GXDS group were substantially superior than those in the placebo group, and the differences between the two groups were statistically significant (P<0.05). Similar results were obtained in the per protocol population analysis of 177 patients. Three cases of MACES were reported in this study (1 in the GXDS group and 2 in the placebo group), and no serious adverse events occurred.@*CONCLUSIONS@#GXDS can significantly alleviate depression and anxiety, relieve symptoms of angina, and improve quality of life in patients with CHD after PCI. (Registration No. ChiCTR1800014291).

Study to Assess Level of Preoperative Anxiety in Patients Scheduled for Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Pre-operative anxiety is unpleasant state of tension or uneasiness that results from patient doubt and fear before an operation. This study aims at assessing level of state and trait anxiety and other associated factors among preoperative patient. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was done among 195 patients above 18 years of age planned for elective surgery the following day in different departments in tertiary care center. State and Trait Anxiety Inventory and self-designed semi structured pro-forma was used to assess anxiety and patient particulars respectively. RESULTS: There were 195 patients in study among which 93(47.7%) underwent major surgery and 102 (52.3%) underwent minor surgery. The mean State Anxiety Score was 45.89±12.502. The mean Trait Anxiety Score was 43.17±9.342. State and Trait anxiety differed significantly in male and female patients. Trait Anxiety was associated with education and marital status. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in anxiety level in patient undergoing major and minor surgery. Male and female patients differed significantly in both State and Trait Anxiety.

Assessment of the Level of Anxiety for COVID-19 Vaccinations.

Research published especially in the last decade indicates the influence of anxiety on the human decision-making process. This study analyzes the anxiety among individuals who decided to undergo vaccinations for COVID-19. The study assesses that the level of education, especially medical education, age, and gender, had an influence on the level of anxiety in terms of vaccination situations. The STAI self-assessment questionnaire was used. The study was conducted anonymously using the paper-pencil method during two rounds of vaccination; therefore, the respondent sample included mainly medical personnel and elderly people. A total of 898 questionnaires were issued. Age did not affect the trait and state of anxiety, but highly educated people tested during vaccination had a lower anxiety level. Gender had no influence on the trait but did influence the state of anxiety. Overall, women were the group that exhibited a higher level of anxiety than men. Nurses were particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of situational medication in this group.

The effect of virtual reality distraction on reducing patients' anxiety before coronary angiography: a randomized clinical trial study.

BACKGROUND: Coronary angiography is used as a qualified method to diagnose coronary heart disease. However, patients undergoing coronary angiography experience a great deal of anxiety. The present study is aimed at investigating the effect of virtual reality on anxiety before coronary angiography. In a randomized controlled trial, 60 candidates for coronary angiography were randomly assigned to two intervention and control groups from April to July 2019. Data were collected by Spielberger's situational anxiety questionnaire. The participants' anxiety level and their heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure were measured before and immediately after the intervention. The Intervention group received virtual reality intervention, and the control group was cared for based on the hospital routine. Data were entered into the SPSS version 24.0 software (SPSS Inc.) and analyzed using Chi-square, Paired samples, and independent sample t tests. RESULTS: The majority of participants were male (71.25%) and the Mean ± SD age of them in the intervention and control groups was 50.95 ± 4.120 and 52.08 ± 4.002 years, respectively. The mean score of anxiety (p < 0.01), heart rate (p = 0.001), and systolic blood pressure (p = 0.016) after the intervention in the intervention group decreased significantly. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicated the implementation of a VR distraction protocol in the patients could effectively reduce perioperative anxiety and its indices. It showed that VR is a safe method without any complications related to the device and with good acceptability. Registration code IRCT201 40515017693N3.

Restoring VTA DA neurons excitability accelerates emergence from sevoflurane general anesthesia of anxiety state.

Preoperative anxiety is common and often comes with a higher probability of worse recovery. However, the neurological mechanism of the effect of preoperative anxiety on general anesthesia and subsequent awakening remains unknown. In this study, we report an anxious state results in delayed awakening in anxiety model mice from sevoflurane general anesthesia. More profound inhibition of DA neurons in the VTA contributes to delayed awakening. Optogenetic stimulation of VTA DA neurons can reverse the delay. The results indicate that VTA DA neurons may be involved in the delay in awakening from general anesthesia caused by anxiety.

The Relationship Between Anxiety Levels, Sleep, and Physical Activity During COVID-19 Lockdown: An Exploratory Study.

Nowadays and worldwide, the attention is focused on coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and its consequences on mental health are yet to be fully understood. It is important to capture differences in anxiety levels among populations, groups, and the gender-related variation. Therefore, the present study had two main purposes: (1) to characterize the levels of state anxiety and trait anxiety by examining gender-related, sleep-related, and physical activity-related variations in a nonrepresentative sample of the Portuguese population during the first weeks of lockdown; and (2) to explore the possible relationship between trait anxiety and state anxiety and the possible role of gender as a moderator. This cross-sectional study comprised 1,332 Portuguese adults (aged 18-55 years old) recruited online during COVID-19 outbreak measures. Participants answered to sociodemographic data and the Portuguese version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Gender differences were found in both state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.385) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.467) with females presenting higher values. People reporting doing more physical activity than usual during COVID-19 lockdown presented lower levels of state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.200). People reporting more satisfaction with the quality of sleep presented lower levels of both state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.701) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.899). Variation associated with the physical activity level (low, moderate, and high) was significantly different among groups in both state anxiety (p = < 0.001) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001). When analyzing in more detail separating the levels of physical activity, participants performing moderate and high physical activity showed lower values of state and trait anxiety compared to participants with low physical activity. Participants performing high physical activity also showed lower values of state anxiety compared to participants performing moderate physical activity. Higher levels of trait anxiety were related to higher levels of state anxiety, but this association was not moderated by gender. Interventions aiming to support people psychologically during this outbreak should consider anxiety as well as gender and possible behavioral changes in sleep and physical activity, for example. Health professionals should not only consider the anxiety related to the situation we are living but also address trait anxiety to help overcome COVID-19 psychological consequences.

EEG-Based Anxious States Classification Using Affective BCI-Based Closed Neurofeedback System.

PURPOSE: Anxiety disorder is one of the psychiatric disorders that involves extreme fear or worry, which can change the balance of chemicals in the brain. To the best of our knowledge, the evaluation of anxiety state is still based on some subjective questionnaires and there is no objective standard assessment yet. Unlike other methods, our approach focuses on study the neural changes to identify and classify the anxiety state using electroencephalography (EEG) signals. METHODS: We designed a closed neurofeedback experiment that contains three experimental stages to adjust subjects' mental state. The EEG resting state signal was recorded from thirty-four subjects in the first and third stages while EEG-based mindfulness recording was recorded in the second stage. At the end of each stage, the subjects were asked to fill a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). According to their VAS score, the subjects were classified into three groups: non-anxiety, moderate or severe anxiety groups. RESULTS: After processing the EEG data of each group, support vector machine (SVM) classifiers were able to classify and identify two mental states (non-anxiety and anxiety) using the Power Spectral Density (PSD) as patterns. The highest classification accuracies using Gaussian kernel function and polynomial kernel function are 92.48 ±  1.20% and 88.60  ±  1.32%, respectively. The highest average of the classification accuracies for healthy subjects is 95.31 ±  1.97% and for anxiety subjects is 87.18 ±  3.51%. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that our proposed EEG neurofeedback-based classification approach is efficient for developing affective BCI system for detection and evaluation of anxiety disorder states.

[Effects of a standardized musical intervention on the management of pain and anxiety-state of sickle-cell adolescents]. / Effets d'une intervention musicale standardisée sur la gestion de la douleur et de l'anxiété-état des adolescents drépanocytaires.

The effect of a standardized musical intervention for adolescents with sickle cell disease was studied. Two groups were evaluated using the visual analog scale of pain and the anxiety-state inventory before and after a standardized musical intervention or breathing intervention. A significant decrease in scores was observed, most notably for the group benefiting from the standardized musical intervention. This intervention could be integrated into the overall management of adolescents with sickle cell disease.

How anxious did you feel during lockdown? The roles resilience, living environment, and gender play on the level of anxiety state during pandemic isolation.

In the unique context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, researchers and clinicians alike drew attention to the risks involved by physical and social isolation for mental health. Factors like resilience, gender, urban/rural environment, or preexisting anxiety can impact anxious states produced by home forced isolation. Based on these, we assumed that: i) there are significant differences in the level of anxiety (state) during the pandemic, depending on the living area of the subjects; ii) gender plays a moderating role in the relationship between resilience and anxiety; and iii) anxiety (trait), experiential avoidance, resilience, and family connectedness, determine the level of anxiety (state). The MemoryLab team conducted the present study on 495 subjects (n=411 women, age between 18 and 65). Of these, 350 live in large and medium urban areas, 63 in small urban areas, and 82 in rural areas. As instruments, we used The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI 2.0), The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire 2 (AAQ-2), The Aggression Questionnaire (AQ), The Family Connectedness Questionnaire, and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 10 (CD-RISC-10), as well as the standard division of living areas according to community size. Data collection took place online during the spring peak of the pandemic. According to ANOVA analysis, people living in small urban areas have a higher level of anxiety. The difference is significant compared to those living in large and medium cities and villages. Gender has no moderating role in the relationship between resilience and the anxiety state. Also, experiential avoidance, anxiety (trait), and resilience play a significant role on the level of anxiety (state), measured during social isolation. The results could be an important indicator for understanding psychological mechanisms guiding interventions to support the communities effectively.

Género y conductas ansiosas en estudiantes universitarios

Resumen Las diferencias de oportunidades de género en el campo de la ciencia y tecnología son aún una brecha, a esto se suma las probables afectaciones psicológicas, emocionales que son de interés en el estudio porque analiza y relaciona de forma objetiva las implicaciones de género y riesgos por predisposición a conductas ansiosas en estudiantes de ciencia y tecnología de la universidad. Los participantes fueron de 4to. y 5to. año, de diferentes especialidades, la muestra estuvo constituida por 368 (192 mujeres y 176 hombres), que realizan actividades de investigación. Se aplicaron el cuestionario sobre Implicaciones de género y la escala del IDARE (Inventario de Ansiedad Rasgo-Estado) para medir ansiedad. Los resultados ponen de manifiesto que las estudiantes participan más en actividades de investigación pero también obtienen mayores niveles de ansiedad "estado". Se evaluó la vida familiar, el vivir solos, con familiares, tareas dentro del hogar, participación y aportes al conocimiento científico. Los estudiantes muestran mayor ansiedad "estado" al participar en círculos de estudio, por ser parte de investigaciones financiadas, frente a la paternidad y por responsabilidad económica en el hogar. Resaltar que hay claros indicios de afectaciones (ansiedad) a la salud psicológica-emocional por segregación vertical y horizontal de género.

Abstract The differences in gender opportunities in the field of science and technology are still a gap, in addition to the probable psychological and emotional effects that are of interest in the study because it analyzes and objectively relates the implications of gender and risks for predisposition to anxious behavior in university science and technology students. The participants are 4th and 5th year, of different specialties, the sample was constituted by 368 (192 women and 176 men), who carry out research activities. Methods: Two instruments were applied: a questionnaire on Gender Implications and the IDARE scale to measure anxiety. Results show that students participate more in research activities but also obtain higher levels of "state" anxiety. Family life, living alone, with relatives, tasks within the home, participation and contributions to scientific knowledge were evaluated. Students show greater anxiety "status" when participating in study circles, as part of funded research, as opposed to paternity and economic responsibility in the home. Highlight that there are clear indications of affectations (anxiety) to psychological health emotional by vertical and horizontal segregation of gender.

Impact of Place Identity, Self-Efficacy and Anxiety State on the Relationship Between Coastal Flooding Risk Perception and the Willingness to Cope.

Inhabitants of coastal areas are constantly confronted with minor or major events such as storms, erosion or flooding. This article investigates the predictors of coping willingness among citizens exposed to coastal flooding. Coping can be defined as a set of cognitive and behavioral efforts to master, reduce or tolerate a given risk and these strategies are generally regrouped into two different categories: active coping strategies oriented toward the risk to reduce or master it, and passive coping strategies focused on the reduction of internal tensions such as anxiety or fear. In this paper, we focus especially on how place identity, perceived self-efficacy, anxiety-state and coastal flooding risk perception shape both active and passive coping willingness. Data were obtained from different areas at risk of coastal flooding located in France. The sample is composed of 315 adult participants (mean age = 47; SD = 15). Two competing models were tested using path modeling. We expected a direct relation between risk perception and the willingness to cope actively and that a higher perceived self-efficacy would increase active coping willingness. Concerning passive coping strategies, we expected that a higher anxiety-state increases passive coping willingness, and that place identity would act as a mediator and increases the relation between anxiety-state and passive coping willingness. Results suggest that place identity increased when the living place is threatened and that the use of passive coping strategies also increased. Also, we demonstrated a direct relation between risk perception and active coping willingness but it appeared that self-efficacy has no effect on this relation. Model fit indices suggest the good fit of our model and Bayesian model comparison reveals a very strong evidence of the best fit of this model compared to its saturated and independent equivalents.

The Influence of Expectancy Level and Personal Characteristics on Placebo Effects: Psychological Underpinnings.

Placebo effects benefit a wide range of clinical practice, which can be profoundly influenced by expectancy level and personal characteristics. However, research on the issue of whether these factors independently or interdependently affect the placebo effects is still in its infancy. Here, we adopted a 3-day between-subject placebo analgesia paradigm (2-day conditioning and 1-day test) to investigate the influence of expectancy levels (i.e., No, Low, and High) and personal characteristics (i.e., gender, dispositional optimism, and anxiety state) on placebo effects in 120 healthy participants (60 females). Our results showed that the reduction of pain intensity in the test phase was influenced by the interaction between expectancy and gender, as mainly reflected by greater reductions of pain intensity in females at Low expectancy level than females at No/High expectancy levels, and greater reductions of pain intensity in males than in females at High expectancy level. Additionally, the reduction of pain unpleasantness was not only modulated by the interaction between expectancy and gender, but also by the interaction between expectancy and dispositional optimism, as well as the interaction between expectancy and anxiety state. Specifically, participants who were more optimistic in Low expectancy group, or those who were less anxious in High expectancy group showed greater reductions of pain unpleasantness. To sum up, we emphasized on regulating the expectancy level individually based on the assessment of personal characteristics to maximize placebo effects in clinical conditions.

Could White Coat Ocular Hypertension Affect to the Accuracy of the Diagnosis of Glaucoma? Relationships Between Anxiety and Intraocular Pressure in a Simulated Clinical Setting.

Sixty-one healthy subjects participated in a laboratory study carried out in a simulated clinical setting. Anticipatory anxiety-state was assessed at the arrival and immediately after, with no brief phase of adaptation, measurements of intraocular pressure, heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure were collected. At the end of the procedure, anxiety-trait was also assessed. Results suggest that high levels of both anxiety-state and anxiety-trait significantly predicted a clinically relevant increase of intraocular pressure. Anxiety-state mediated the relationship between anxiety-trait and intraocular pressure, which also was found to be related with heart rate but not related to both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. These results suggest a common mechanism of regulation underlying anxiogenic variability found on both intraocular pressure and heart rate. A reduction in parasympathetic activity appears as a possible mechanism underlying to this phenomenon. This anxiety-enhanced intraocular pressure could be considered a phenomenon analogous to white coat hypertension found in the measurement of blood pressure; therefore, it probably should be taken into account in the clinical context to prevent errors in the diagnosis of glaucoma. Further research on cognitive and emotional regulation of intraocular pressure is needed to best characterize this hypothetical phenomenon.

Clinical Study on Yiqi Yangxin Dingzhi Prescription for Anxiety State of Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease / 中国中医药信息杂志

Objective To observe the effects of Yiqi Yangxin Dingzhi Prescription on anxiety state of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods Randomized, parallel controled, single-blind research plan was used. Totally 80 patients with COPD were randomly divided into observation group and control group, with 40 cases in each group. Both groups received COPD stable maintenance treatment. On this basis, observation group was given Yiqi Yangxin Dingzhi Granules, while control group was given TCM simulator, one dosage per day, twice a day. The treatment lasted for two weeks both groups. TCM symptom scores, COPD assessment test (CAT) scores, and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) scores before and after treatment in the two groups were observed. The safety indexes were monitored. Results Compared with before treatment, the TCM symptom scores, CAT scores, and HAMA scores of the two groups after treatment were significantly lower (P＜0.05). After treatment, the improvement degree of the TCM symptom total scores [(5.04±1.90) vs (2.27±1.83), the improvement degree of the CAT total score [(4.51±1.36) vs (1.81±1.47)], and the improvement degree of the HAMA total score [(5.32±2.78) vs (2.76±1.19)] in the observation group were better than the control group, with statistical significance (P＜0.05). No significant adverse events occurred in both groups. Conclusion Yiqi Yangxin Dingzhi Prescription can effectively improve the clinical symptoms of the patients with COPD and the life quality of the patients, and it has high safety.

Efectos de un programa de inteligencia emocional en la ansiedad y el autoconcepto en mujeres con cáncer de mama / Effects of an emotional intelligence program in anxiety and self-concept in women with breast cancer

El estudio tiene como objetivo evaluar los efectos de un programa de inteligencia emocional en la ansiedad y el autoconcepto en mujeres con cáncer de mama sometidas a cirugía. Se utilizó una muestra de 81 mujeres, 39 pertenecientes al grupo de intervención y 42 al grupo control. El estudio utilizó un diseño cuasiexperimental de medidas repetidas pretest-postest con grupo de control. Para evaluar el efecto del programa se administraron tres instrumentos de evaluación, el TMMS-24, Fernández-Berrocal, Extremera y Ramos (2004), la Escala de Autoconcepto AF5 (García y Musitu, 1999), y el STAI Estado de Spielberger, Gorsuch y Lushene (1982). Los resultados de los ANCOVAs postest confirman mejoras estadísticamente significativas en el grupo de intervención en las variables de claridad emocional, reparación emocional, en todas las subescalas del autoconcepto, así como, una disminución de la ansiedad en las mujeres con cáncer de mama. Por otro lado, se observó que existen interacciones entre la variable tiempo de diagnóstico y las variables dependientes.

The study aims to assess the effects of an emotional intelligence programme on anxiety and seft-concept in women with breast cancer who have undergone surgery. The study sample consists of 81 women, 39 belonging to the intervention group and 42 to the control group. The study used a cuasi-experiment design of repeated pre-test-post-test measures with control group. To evaluate the program's effect, three assessment tools were employed, TMMS-24 (Fernández-Berrocal, Extremera y Ramos, 2004), AF5 self-concept scale (García y Musitu, 1999), and STAI (Spielberger, Gorsuch y Lushene, 1982). The results of the ACNOVA postest show statistically significant improvements in the intervention group in the variables of emotional clarity, emotional reparation, in all the subscales of self-concept, as well as, a decrease in anxiety in women with breast cancer. On the other hand, it was noted that there are interactions between the variable of diagnosis time and the dependent variables.

Parenting program versus telephone support for Mexican parents of children with acquired brain injury: A blind randomized controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: Acquired brain injury (ABI) during childhood typically causes behavior problems in the child and high levels of stress in the family. The aims of this study are: (1) to investigate the effectiveness and feasibility of a parenting intervention in improving behavior and self-regulation in Mexican children with ABI compared to telephone support; (2) to investigate the effectiveness and feasibility of a parenting intervention in improving parenting skills, parent self-efficacy and decreasing parental stress in parents of children with ABI compared to telephone support. Our secondary aims are (1) to explore the impact that parent characteristics have on the intervention outcomes; (2) to investigate if changes are maintained 3 months after the intervention. METHODS: The research design is a blind randomized controlled trial (RCT). Eligible participants include children with a diagnosis of ABI, between 6 and 12 years of age, and their parents. Sixty-six children and their parents will be randomly allocated to either a parenting program group or telephone support group. The parenting program involves six face-to-face weekly group sessions of 2.5 h each. Participants in the control group receive an information sheet with behavioral strategies, and six weekly phone calls, in which strategies to improve academic skills are provided. Children and their parents are evaluated by blind assessors before the intervention, immediately after the intervention and 3-months post-intervention. DISCUSSION: This study will be the first to evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of a parenting program for Mexican parents of children with ABI. TRIAL IDENTIFIER: ACTRN12617000360314.