• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.115-122
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• 2000

The development of molecular biology has brought many changes in psychiatry. Molecular biology makes us possible to know the cause of mental disorders that provide the way to prevent the disorders, and to develop various accurate diagnostic and treatment methods for mental disorders. The author discusses the concept, cause, and treatment of mental disorders in the aspect of molecular biology. Importing the methods of molecular biology into psychiatry, we can anticipate to get a number of the goals of psychiatric genetics, including identification of specific susceptibility genes, clarification of the pathophysiological processes whereby these genes lead to symptoms, establishment of epigenetic factors that interact with these genes to produce disease, validation of nosological boundaries that more closely reflect the actions of these genes, and development of effective preventive and therapeutic interventions based on genetic counseling, gene therapy, and modification of permissive or protective environmental influences. In addition to their capacity to accelerate the discovery of new molecules participating in the nervous system's response to disease or to self-administered drugs, molecular biological strategies can also be used to determine how critical a particular gene product may be in mediating a cellular event with behavioral importance. Molecular biology probably enables us discover the environmental factors of mental disorders and allow rational drug design and gene therapies for mental disorders, by isolation of gene products that facilitate a basic understanding of the pathogenesis of these disorders. A specific genetic linkage may suggest a novel class of drugs that has not yet been tried. With respect to gene therapy, the hypothetical method would use a gene delivery system, most likely a modified virus, to insert a functional copy of a mutant gene into those brain cells that require the gene for normal function.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.400-411
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• 2002

This study was performed to identify the drug use and reuse relating characteristics and reuse relating factors in illegal drug users. Subjects consisted of 88 illegal drug users. Some of them were confined in a mental hospital or National Forensic Psychiatric Hospital located in Chung-nam province, others on attending a drug abuse prevention program in Seoul Probational Institute. Data were collected during the period from February 1, 2002 to February 25, 2002, and analyzed by SAS program. version 6.12. for Wilcoxon rank sum test, Pearson Correlation, Multiple regression. Results were as follows; 1. Drug use characteristics were as follows. $19.3\%$ was has drug family history and $20.7\%$ was has alcohol family history. Main drug was Phillopon$44.3\%$, inhalants $35.2\%$, LSD et al $22.7\%$. Drug use rate of months was everyday $31.2\%$, every other day $24.4\%$. 2. $100\%$ has experienced abstinence and reuse. Abstinence period was less than 12 months in $49.4\%$ and reuse period was less than 6 months in $58.6\%$. 3. Drug use and reuse characteristics related to general characteristics was identified as below. Abstinence period of male was longer than that of female. Person who have drug family history experienced more drugs and person who have family alcohol history started earlier. 4. Reuse periods was correlated with abstinence periods, age. And abstinence period was correlated with age and outcome that following reuse. 5. The multiple regression was used to identify the relating factors that influence reuse period and abstinence period. At the state of controlling abstinence period. inhalants users have 10.07 days shorter reuse period than others. And abstinence period had lengthened age, bad health status, early initiate age, and long reuse period.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.65-76
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• 1996

Natural sleep pattern and its physiology in childhood are much different from those in adulthood. Several aspects of clinical evaluation for sleepiness in childhood are more difficult than in adulthood. These difficulties are due to several factors. First, excessive sleepiness in childhood do not always develop functional impairments. Second, objective test such as MSLT may not be reliable since it is hard to be certain that the child understand instructions. Third, sleepiness in children is often obscured by irritability. paradoxical hyperactivity, or behavioral disturbances. Anseguently, careful clinical evaluation is needed for the sleepy children. Usual causes of sleepiness in children are the disorders that induce insufficient sleep such as sleep apnea syndrome, schedule disorder, underlying medical and psychiatric disorder, and so forth. After excluding such factors, we can diagnose the hypersomnic disorders such as narcolepsy, Kleine-Levin syndrome, and idiopathic central nervous system hypersomnia. Among the variety of those causes of sleepiness, I reviewed the clinical difference of narcolepsy and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome in childhood compared with in adulthood. Recognition of the childhood narcolepsy is difficult because even severely sleepy children often do not develop pathognomic cataplexy and associated REM phenomena until much later. Since childhood narcolepsy give srise to many psychological, academical problem. Practicers should be concerned about these aspects. Childhood obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is different from adult obstructive sleep apnea syndrome too. Several aspects such as pathophysiology. clinical feature, diagnostic criteria, complication, management, and prognosis differ from those in the adult syndrome. An important feature of childhood obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is the variety of severe complications such as behavioral disorders, cognitive impairment, cardiovascular symptoms, developmental delay, and ever death. Fortunately, surgical interventions like adenotosillectomy or UPPP are more effective for Childhood OSA than adult form. CPAP is a "safe, effective, and well-tolerated" treatment modality too. So if early detection and proper management of childhood OSA were done, the severe complication would be prevented or ever cured.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.104-110
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• 2008

Objective : Brief screening for anxiety symptoms in clinical practice can further facilitate the diagnosis and evaluation of anxiety disorders. This study examined the factorial validity of the Korean version of the State-Trait Inventory (STAI)-Form X, one of the most frequently used self-report questionnaires for anxiety. Methods : Data from the STAI and Beck Depression Inventory were obtained from a consecutive sample of 200 outpatients diagnosed with DSM-IV anxiety disorders at a psychiatric unit of a university hospital. The factor structures of the State and Trait Scales were assessed using exploratory factor analysis. Results : Three-factor components, including 'State anxiety present', 'State anxiety absent' and 'Selfconfidence', were extracted from the State Scale, explaining 59% of the total variance. A four-factor solution involving 'Trait anxiety and depression present', 'Trait anxiety and depression absent', 'Anxiety proneness' and 'Stability' (59% of total variance) was extracted from the Trait Scale. The internal consistency of the STAI and factors were satisfactory. There were significant correlations between depressive symptoms and factors of the STAI. Conclusion : The STAI-form X showed factorial validity for Korean patients with anxiety disorders. However, our finding that this anxiety scale also measures depressive symptoms should be interpreted with caution.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.28-34
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• 1998

Objective: This study was designed to evaluate the etiological factors of the PTSD(post traumatic stress disorder) by examining the relationship between severity of physical trauma and subsequent the severity of PTSD symptom in traffic accident related PTSD patients. Method: Subjects were 21 psychiatric inpatients with history of traffic accident related PTSD(DSM-IV criteria), the purpose of evaluation of mental disability and no evidence of organic brain leisons. The severity of physical trauma was assessed by McBride number of nonpsychiatric department and the presence / absence of loss of conciousness. The severity of PTSD symptom was assessed by Hovens' self rating inventory for PTSD. And then we evaluated the correlation between these two factors. And we also evaluated relationship between severity of PTSD symtom and clinical variables. Results : There were no significant relationship between McBride number of nonpsychiatric department severity and symptomatic severity(r= 0.17, p<0.05), the presence / absence of loss of conciousness and symptomatic severity(p>0.05). And significant relationship between symptomatic severity and clinical varibles such as sex, education level, marital status(p<0.05). Conclusions : These data did not support data of previous studies that traumatic severity was correlated with symptom severity but, suggested that other variables affecting the severity of PTSD symptom is more important indirectly. And that the 'trauma' in PTSD is psychological meaning rather than physical meaning is also suggested.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2019

Purpose: This study examined the clinical characteristics of severe elderly poisoning patients to determine the factors that can prevent them. Methods: Data were collected from patients over 65 years of age presenting to the emergency center with poisoning from 2013 to 2018. Their medical records were analyzed retrospectively, and patients with a poisoning severity score of three or more were defined as the severe poisoning group. The risk factors were evaluated by univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: This study analyzed 292 patients, of whom 37 (12.7%) belonged to the severe poisoning group. The severe poisoning group showed a significantly higher association with pesticide poisoning and intentional suicide attempts. Loneliness and somatization were the cause of the suicidal ideas. No significant differences in age, sex, drinking, ingestion time, poisonous materials other than pesticides, and neuropsychological consultation were observed between the two groups. Conclusion: The severe elderly poisoning patients were the result of intentional poisoning for suicide. Loneliness and somatization were the most influential causes of suicidal poisoning. Therefore, psychiatric screening and frequent medical treatment for elderly people are required to prevent severe poisoning in elderly patients.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.16-23
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• 2022

Objectives: Early detection of developmental issues in infants and necessary intervention are important. To identify the comorbid conditions, a comprehensive evaluation is required. The study's objectives were to 1) generate scale items by identifying and eliciting concepts relevant to young children (12-71 months) with developmental delays, 2) develop a comprehensive screening tool for developmental delay and comorbid conditions, and 3) assess the tool's validity and cut-off. Methods: Multidisciplinary experts devised the "Infant Comprehensive Evaluation for Neurodevelopmental Delay (ICEND)," an assessment method that comes in two versions depending on the age of the child: 12-36 months and 37-71 months, through monthly seminars and focused group interviews. The ICEND is composed of three parts: risk factors, resilience factors, and clinical scales. In parts 1 and 2, there were 41 caretakers responded to the questionnaires. Part 3 involved clinicians evaluating ten subscales using 98 and 114 questionnaires for younger and older versions, respectively. The Child Behavior Checklist, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, Infant-Toddler Social Emotional Assessment, and Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants and Children were employed to analyze concurrent validity with the ICEND. The analyses were performed on both typical and high-risk infants to identify concurrent validity, reliability, and cut-off scores. Results: A total of 296 people participated in the study, with 57 of them being high-risk (19.2%). The Cronbach's alpha was positive (0.533-0.928). In the majority of domains, the ICEND demonstrated a fair discriminatory ability, with a sensitivity of 0.5-0.7 and specificity 0.7-0.9. Conclusion: The ICEND is reliable and valid, indicating its potential as an auxiliary tool for assessing neurodevelopmental delay and comorbid conditions in children aged 12-36 months and 37-71 months.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.870-878
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• 2021

This study aimed to identify how social contact, depression, and anxiety influence suicidal ideation of the elderly related to general characteristics. The objects were 198 elderly living in Mungyeong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do. The data were collected from 2, March to 15, April 2021. Collected data were analyzed by t-tests, ANOVA, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and multiple stepwise regression analysis using SPSS 24.0. Findings revealed 1) Pearson's correlation coefficient indicated significant association among social contact, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation 2) Multiple regression analysis showed that the influencing factors have 44.9% of explanation power in suicidal ideation of the elderly: depression(β=.430, p< .001), perceived financial status(β=-.198, p<.001), psychiatric treatment history (β=-.182, p=.002), and social contact (β=-.155, p=.007) in order. The conclusion of this study indicates that we need to pay interdisciplinary attention to the mental health of the elderly in the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on the findings, health professionals should provide elderly persons with comprehensive and appropriate management to prevent suicidal ideation upon factors. Additionally, there should be establishing a system to access and ensure social contact for the elderly.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.128-138
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the factors influencing the wellness of call center employees. Methods: From December 2018 to October 2019, a cross-sectional study was conducted with 155 workers recruited from the call centers in Seoul, South Korea. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. The questionnaires were used to measure the following scales: Korean occupational stress scale, emotional labor scale, work-life balance scale and wellness scale. Using the SPSS 26.0 program, the descriptive statistics, independent t-test, ANOVA, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis were conducted. Results: The mean score of the wellness level of call center employees was 3.05 out of a maximum of 5.00. More wellness level of call center employees was associated with gender, psychiatric diagnosis, and call characteristics. A multiple regression analysis indicated that the total scores on the wellness scale were predicted by call characteristics, occupational stress and work-life balance, with an explanatory power of 42.2%. Conclusion: Study findings show that it is necessary to promote wellness in call center workers with differentiated strategies according to call characteristics, occupational stress and work-life balance. This implies that it is necessary to understand the call characteristics and patterns of workers and to provide an innovative wellness program tailored to individual characteristics for an effective management of the emotional labor and occupational stress.

• Mood & Emotion
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.57-63
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• 2011

Objectives : This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of depression within two weeks after stroke. Methods : A total of 362 stroke patients were recruited. Depression (major and minor depressive disorders) was diagnosed by applying DSM-IV criteria. Data on socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, education, marital state, living state, religion, occupation, income, life event, and social support), stroke severity (NIHSS), disability (BI), stroke hemisphere and location, vascular risk and disease, and previous history of stroke and depression were obtained. Results : Depression was present in 90 (24.9%) patients: major depression 29 (8%) and minor depression 61 (16.9%) patients. In the univariate analyses, depression was associated with older age, higher number of stressful life event, poorer social support, severe disability, anterior stroke location, previous history of stroke and depression. In the multivariate analyses, depression was independently associated with higher number of stressful life events and poorer social support. Conclusion : Depression was common and was determined by premorbid levels of stress and social support in stroke patients at acute stage. More intensive psychiatric care and intervention is needed for the high risk group.