Patient’s Perspective on Psychiatric Drugs: A Multicenter Survey-Based Study

Objective@#We aimed to identify the expectations and preferences for medication and medical decision-making in patients with major psychiatric disorders. @*Methods@#A survey was conducted among patients with major psychiatric disorders who visited psychiatric outpatient clinics at 15 hospitals between 2016 and 2018 in Korea. The survey consisted of 12 questions about demographic variables and opinions on their expectations for medication, important medical decision-makers, and preferred drug type. The most preferred value in each category in the total population was identified, and differences in the preference ratio of each item among the disease groups were compared. @*Results@#A total of 707 participants were surveyed. In the total population, patients reported high efficacy (44.01%±21.44%) as the main wish for medication, themselves (37.39%±22.57%) and a doctor (35.27%±22.88%) as the main decision makers, and tablet/capsule (36.16%±30.69%) as the preferred type of drug. In the depressive disorders group, the preference ratio of high efficacy was significantly lower, and the preference ratio of a small amount was significantly higher than that of the psychotic disorder and bipolar disorder groups. The preference ratio of a doctor as an important decision maker in the bipolar disorder group was higher compared to the other groups. @*Conclusion@#This study revealed the preference for medications and showed differences among patients with psychiatric disorders. Providing personalized medicine that considers a patient’s preference for the drug may contribute to the improvement of drug compliance and outcomes.

Prevalence and Comorbidities of Adult Attention-deficit/ hyperactivity Disorder in a Community Sample from Korea

Objective@#Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is prevalent in adults, and psychiatric comorbidities are common in adults with ADHD. We aimed to examine the prevalence of adult ADHD with several common psychiatric conditions in a community sample in Korea and the association between adult ADHD and risk of psychiatric comorbidities. @*Methods@#This study used a cross-sectional survey design. We provided supplementary and optional self-report questionnaires, including the Korean version of the World Health Organization Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) short screening scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-9 for screening for depression, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test alcohol consumption questions, and the Korean version of the Mood Disorders Questionnaire, to Korean adults who visited one of six centers of a large private healthcare company for the National General Health Examination. @*Results@#A total of 17,799 subjects included in this study, and 430 (2.4%) were positive on the ASRS screen. ADHD was significantly associated with the 19−30-year-old age group (odds ratio [OR] = 3.938), lower income (OR = 1.298), depression (OR = 11.563), and bipolar disorder (OR = 3.162). @*Conclusion@#Adult ADHD was highly associated with depression and bipolar disorder, suggesting that clinicians should carefully evaluate and treat such psychiatric disorders in adults with ADHD symptoms.

The Willingness of Enduring Drug Side Effects in the Patients of Depressive Disorders: From the Results of Korean Nationwide Patients’ Perspectives Survey Study / 신경정신의학

Objectives@#There has been increased use of medications in treating depressive disorders.Nowadays, patient value is an important part of prescribing medications. This study examines depressive patients’ perspectives on the side effects of medications. @*Methods@#We administered questionnaires nationwide to 364 patients with depressive disorders. Intent or willingness to endure 21 side effects from the Antidepressant Side-Effect Checklist (ASEC) were examined and compared in patients who are less than mildly ill and who are more than moderately ill. @*Results@#In the population, decreased appetite, yawning, increased body temperature, dry mouth, sweating, and constipation are regarded as generally endurable side effects. In contrast, dizziness, light-headedness, nausea or vomiting, headaches, disorientation, problems with urination, and difficulty sleeping are hard to endure. There were differences between patients who are less than mildly ill and those who are more than moderately ill regarding the willingness to endure drowsiness, decreased appetite, sexual dysfunction, palpitations, and weight gain. @*Conclusion@#This nationwide study revealed a general willingness in depressed patients to endure side effects. Sensitive and premeditative discussions of patient value with regard to medications might contribute to finding successful treatments.

Emotional Recognition of Musical-Auditory and Artful-Visual Stimuli in Patients with Chronic Schizophrenia / 신경정신의학

OBJECTIVES: OThis study aimed to explore the difference in emotional recognition of musical auditory stimulation and art-related visual stimulation between subjects with and without schizophrenia. METHODS: Twenty songs and 20 paintings that evoke sad or cheerful emotions were presented to 123 patients with schizophrenia and 224 non-schizophrenic people (control group). All subjects were asked to describe the emotions they felt during each auditory stimulation and each visual stimulation. To measure the emotional responses, the Emotional Empathy Scale was used. For members of the patient group, the levels of psychopathology and thought-related disorder were evaluated by using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and the Formal Thought Disorder Rating Scale, respectively. RESULTS: The rate of correct answers to musical auditory stimulation in the schizophrenia patient group was significantly lower than that in the control group. In addition, the rate of correct answers to the art visual stimulation in the patient group was significantly lower than that in the control group. Moreover, the patient group showed lower emotional empathic ability than that shown by the control group. In the patient group, the correct answer rates to the musical and art stimulations were negatively correlated with the Formal Thought Disorder Rating Scale. CONCLUSION: Patients with schizophrenia have difficulty in achieving accurate emotional recognition of auditory and visual stimulations. This difficulty is associated with the lowered empathic ability and altered thinking disorder of patients with schizophrenia.

Suh Yang Park, who Became a Doctor as a Son of a Butcher / 의사학

Dr. Suh Yang Park was born in 1885 as a son of a butcher, which was the lowest class at that time in Korea. However, contact with western missionaries, including Dr. O. R. Avison, provided him with an understanding of western civilization. After entering Chejungwon Medical School in 1900, Dr. Park learned basic sciences, basic medical sciences like anatomy and physiology, and other Western medical specialties such as internal medicine and surgery. He graduated from medical school in 1908 and received Government Certificate from Home Office, the first in Korea in this field, which granted the right to practice medicine. His certificate number was 4th overall. As both a doctor and a talented musician, Dr. Park actively participated in the social enlightenment movement. He was quite progressive in his time, having surpassed the social limitations as a son of a butcher, as well as actively propagating his knowledge of Western civilization onto others. After graduation, he had served as a professor at the school he graduated from, until he went into exile in Manchuria in 1917 due to the annexation of Korea by Japan in 1910. There, he opened a hospital and provided medical treatment for Koreans. He also established a school for young Koreans, inspiring them with a sense of nationalism. Also, Dr. Park was an active member of various Independence Movement Organizations in Manchuria. Then in 1932, at the time when Japan took control of Manchuria, his school was closed down. As a result, Dr. Park couldn't help but stop his anti-Japanese activities. In 1936, he returned to his homeland and passed away in 1940, just five years before the liberation of Korea from Japanese occupation.