Associations of health-related quality of life with depression and stigma in MERS-CoV survivors during the recovery period.

ABSTRACT: We explored factors related to health-related quality of life (HRQOL), including psychiatric symptoms and stigma related to Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, among MERS-CoV survivors during the recovery period.Sixty-three MERS-COV survivors were recruited from five hospitals for a cohort study, one year after their infection in 2015. The subjects' demographic information and medical conditions associated with MERS-CoV were recorded. HRQOL was evaluated using the Short Form-8 Health Survey (SF-8). Depression, post-traumatic stress symptoms, chronic fatigue, and perceived stigma were assessed using several questionnairesThe mean physical component summary (PCS) and mean mental component summary (MCS) of the SF-8 score were below 50 T (43.47 ±â€Š9.60, 45.74 ±â€Š10.18). Depression, chronic fatigue, posttraumatic stress symptoms and stigma were negatively correlated with the SF-8 PCS and MCS. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the PCS was associated with stigma (OR 8.66, 95% CI 1.96-38.23), whereas MCS was associated with depression (OR 26.62, 95% CI 3.56-198.85).The estimated HRQOL of MERS-CoV survivors during recovery was poor and appeared to be associated with depression and MERS-related stigma.

Association between chronic fatigue syndrome and suicidality among survivors of Middle East respiratory syndrome over a 2-year follow-up period.

Suicide is an important public health issue during the current pandemic of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). In EIDs, various symptoms persist even after recovery, and chronic fatigue is among those that are commonly reported. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of chronic fatigue syndrome on suicidality during the recovery phase among survivors of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). MERS survivors were recruited from five centers and prospectively followed up for 2 years. In total, 63 participants were registered at 12 months (T1), of whom 53 and 50 completed the assessments at 18 months (T2) and 24 months (T3), respectively. Suicidality and chronic fatigue were evaluated using the suicidality module of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) and the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), respectively. We analyzed the relationship between chronic fatigue and suicidality during the follow-up period using the generalized estimating equation (GEE). The suicidality rates were 22.2% (n = 14), 15.1% (n = 8), and 10.0% (n = 5) at T1-T3, respectively. Of the 63 participants, 29 had chronic fatigue syndrome at T1. The group that reported chronic fatigue syndrome at T1 was more likely to experience suicidality during the 2-year follow-up than the group that reported otherwise (RR: 7.5, 95% CI: 2.4-23.1). This association was present even after adjusting for potential confounders (RR: 7.6, 95% CI: 2.2-26.0). Chronic fatigue syndrome and suicide risk among emerging infectious disease (EID) survivors should be acknowledged, and effective interventions must be developed.

Development and validation study of Game Overuse Screening Questionnaire.

The aim of this study was to develop a screening questionnaire to distinguish high-risk individuals associated with game overuse from casual internet users. Reliability, validity, and diagnostic ability were evaluated for the newly developed Game Overuse Screening Questionnaire (GOS-Q). Preliminary items were assessed by 50 addiction experts online and 30 questions were selected. A total of 158 subjects recruited from six community centers for internet addiction participated in this study. Finally, 150 people were used in the analysis after excluding eight non-respondents. GOS-Q, Young's internet addiction scale, and Korean scale for internet addiction were used to assess concurrent validity. Internal consistency and item-total correlations were favorable (α= 0.96, r= 0.47-0.82). Test-retest reliability was moderate in size (r= 0.74). GOS-Q showed superior concurrent validity, and the highest correlation with Y-Scale (r= 0.77). The construct validity was marginally supported by a six-factor model using exploratory factor analysis. The area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve was 0.945. The high-risk addiction group was effectively characterized by a cut-off point of 38.5, with a sensitivity of 0.87 and a specificity of 0.88. Overall, the current study supports the use of GOS-Q as a reliable screening tool in a variety of settings.

The effect of repeated virtual nicotine cue exposure therapy on the psychophysiological responses: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: Smoking related cues may elicit smoking urges and psychophysiological responses in subjects with nicotine dependence. This study aimed to investigate the effect of repeated virtual cue exposure therapy using the surround-screen based projection wall system on the psychophysiological responses in nicotine dependence. METHODS: The authors developed 3-dimensional neutral and smoking-related environments using virtual reality (VR) technology. Smoking-related environment was a virtual bar, which comprised both object-related and social situation cues. Ten subjects with nicotine dependence participated in 4-week (one session per week) virtual cue exposure therapy. Psychophysiological responses [electromyography (EMG), skin conductance (SC), and heart rate] and subjective nicotine craving were acquired during each session. RESULTS: VR nicotine cue elicited greater psychophysiological responses and subjective craving for smoking than did neutral cue, and exposure to social situation cues showed greater psychophysiological responses in SC and EMG than did object-related cues. This responsiveness decreased during the course of repeated therapy. CONCLUSION: The present study found that both psychophysiological responses and subjective nicotine craving were greater to nicotine cue exposure via projection wall VR system than to neutral cues and that enhanced cue reactivity decreased gradually over the course of repeated exposure therapy. These results suggest that VR cue exposure therapy combined with psychophysiological response monitoring may be an alternative treatment modality for smoking cessation, although the current findings are preliminary.

Prevalence, correlates, and comorbidity of 12-Month tobacco dependence among ever-smokers in South Korea, during 1984-2001.

The rate of dependence among ever-users of a drug indicates the risk of developing dependence once an individual has been exposed to the drug. This is the first study to investigate 12-month tobacco dependence (TD) among ever-smokers in a community-based population. Analyses were based on two national studies of representative samples aged 18-64 in 1984 (n=5,025) and in 2001 (n=6,275), conducted with household visits and face-to-face interviews. The rates of 12-month TD among ever-smokers in men showed no significant difference between 51.6% in 1984 and 50.6% in 2001. On the contrary, the rates in women significantly increased from 33.3% in 1984 to 52.8% in 2001. After adjusting for the sociodemographic variables, 'male gender' was significantly associated with 12-month TD among eversmokers in 1984, but not in 2001. 'Unmarried' was significantly associated in 2001 but not in 1984. 'Alcohol dependence' was the only psychiatric disorder associated with 12-month TD in both study years. In conclusion, 12-month TD was found in about 50% of ever-smokers, and gender differences between the rates of 12-month TD which was observed in 1984 disappeared in 2001. Individuals with 12-month TD showed higher comorbidity with alcohol dependence than ever-smokers without TD.