The role of psychological characteristics of the personality of patients with colorectal cancer in the timeliness of diagnosis verification and prognosis of disease outcome.

OBJECTIVE: Colorectal cancer (CRC) has become the third most commonly diagnosed type of cancer in the world. Based on the risk factors for colorectal cancer (behavior, lifestyle), it is important to better understand the behavioral and psychological characteristics of the individual associated with timely seeking medical help, coping with the extreme situation of diagnosis, and the course of the disease. This determined the purpose of the study: identify the psychological characteristics of patients with colorectal cancer associated with the stage of diagnosis verification and the prognosis of disease outcome. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Coping, quality of life, and resilience, as well as clinical and sociodemographic variables were studied in 72 patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer. The design of the study involved studying the relationship between the stage of cancer and the prognosis of the outcome of the disease, as well as the role of psychological variables in the timeliness of diagnosis and predicting the outcome of cancer. RESULTS: The stage of verification of colorectal cancer is associated with the prognosis of the outcome of the cancer; the later colorectal cancer is verified, the more unfavorable the prognosis of the outcome of the oncological disease. Escape-avoidance coping is associated with the verification stage of colorectal cancer; pronounced avoidance is associated with the late verification stage. Coping strategies such as seeking social support, positive reappraisal, risk-taking, pain intensity, and role functioning significantly influence the prognosis of colorectal cancer outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: The psychological characteristics of the personality of patients with colorectal cancer have been identified, which, by determining the behavior of patients, affect the timeliness of diagnosis verification and the prognosis of the outcome of the disease.

Persistent and Quasipersistent Spin Textures in Halide Perovskites Induced by Uniaxial Stress.

Persistent spin textures are highly desirable for applications in spintronics, as they allow for long carrier spin lifetimes. However, they are also rare, as they require a delicate balance between spin-momentum coupling parameters. We used density functional theory simulations to predict the possibility of achieving these desirable spin textures through the application of uniaxial stress. Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite MPSnBr3 (MP = CH3PH3) is a ferroelectric semiconductor which exhibits persistent spin textures near its conduction band minimum and mostly Rashba type spin textures in the vicinity of its valence band maximum. Application of uniaxial stress leads to the gradual evolution of the valence band spin textures from mostly Rashba type to quasipersistent ones under a tensile load and to pure Rashba or quasipersistent ones under a compressive load. The material exhibits flexibility, a rubber-like response, and both positive and negative piezoelectric constants. A combination of such properties may create opportunities for flexible and rubbery spintronic devices.

First-principles property assessment of hybrid formate perovskites.

Hybrid organic-inorganic formate perovskites, AB(HCOO)3, are a large family of compounds that exhibit a variety of phase transitions and diverse properties, such as (anti)ferroelectricity, ferroelasticity, (anti)ferromagnetism, and multiferroism. While many properties of these materials have already been characterized, we are not aware of any study that focuses on the comprehensive property assessment of a large number of formate perovskites. A comparison of the properties of materials within the family is challenging due to systematic errors attributed to different techniques or the lack of data. For example, complete piezoelectric, dielectric, and elastic tensors are not available. In this work, we utilize first-principles density functional theory based simulations to overcome these challenges and to report structural, mechanical, dielectric, piezoelectric, and ferroelectric properties of 29 formate perovskites. We find that these materials exhibit elastic stiffness in the range 0.5-127.0 GPa; highly anisotropic linear compressibility, including zero and even negative values; dielectric constants in the range 0.1-102.1; highly anisotropic piezoelectric response with the longitudinal values in the range 1.18-21.12 pC/N; and spontaneous polarizations in the range 0.2-7.8 µC/cm2. Furthermore, we propose and computationally characterize a few formate perovskites that have not been reported yet.

[The impact of antiepileptic therapy on sleep disorders in women with epilepsy]. / Vliyanie protivoepilepticheskoi terapii na narusheniya sna u zhenshchin s epilepsiei.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the frequency of various sleep disorders in patients with epilepsy receiving antiepileptic therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty-four women were selected from the register of patients with epilepsy and other paroxysmal conditions. The group consisted of young and middle-aged women (36.9±13.5 years), all patients received antiepileptic therapy. To diagnose sleep disorders, we used a sequential algorithm for clinical examination supplemented by instrumental methods according to indications (polysomnography, respiratory monitoring). RESULTS: The duration of epilepsy was 15.7±7.6 years, the disease was represented by three forms: structural (n=15, 23.4%), genetic (n=32, 50%) and unspecified (n=17, 26.6%). Sleep disorders were common among female patients with epilepsy (43.7%), they are most frequently combined with genetic epilepsy (18.7%), and represented by: insomnia (43%) mild to moderately severe breathing disorders (32%) and sleep movement disorders (25%). Sleep disorders were combined with symptoms of depression in the majority of patients (71%). A 6-month follow-up evaluation of nighttime sleep parameters after treatment showed a decrease in the frequency of sleep disorders to 25%; scores on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale significantly decreased to 6.7±3.6. A change in antiepileptic therapy in patients with sleep breathing disorders resulted in a marked regression of the Apnea-Hypopnea Index (9.2±2.5 points; p=0.003). However, there were no significant changes in the severity of sleep movement disorders. CONCLUSION: Sleep disorders are common in patients with epilepsy, in most cases they are associated with mood disorders, and may regress after optimization of antiepileptic therapy.

[The psychological factors of renunciation of antitumoral therapy by women with breast cancer (international publications review)].

The article presents analytical review of studies considering problem of patient refusal from antitumoral treatment, in particular of women with breast cancer. The analysis of main results of empirical studies describes factors associated with patient refusal from treatment. Among factors affecting decision making related to patient voluntarily refuse of treatment are toxicity of treatment (nausea and vomiting), senile age, disease stage, availability and type of medical insurance, characteristics of family status. Besides objective factors, such subjective factors as beliefs, values ​​of patients are described. The deficiency of research studies concerning psychological factors of patient refusal of antitumoral treatment is established. However, patient loyalty to antitumoral treatment plays decisive role in prognosis of survival and favorable course of disease. In connection with that, studies covering such areas as psychological characteristics of personality of patients refusing of antitumoral treatment, verification of psychological factors of this voluntary refusal are required in order to organize continuum of oncological care of patients, their psychological maintenance and increasing of commitment to treatment.

[Possibilities of optimizing therapy in COVID-19 survivors with focal epilepsy]. / Vozmozhnosti optimizatsii terapii u patsientov s fokal'noi epilepsiei, perenesshikh COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of phenosanoic acid therapy on the frequency of seizures, asthenia and quality of life of adult patients with focal epilepsy who had a new coronavirus infection caused by SARS-CoV-2. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The data of 20 patients with focal epilepsy who suffered COVID-19 and received therapy with phenosanic acid (Dibufelon) were studied. The frequency of epileptic seizures, the severity of asthenia and the quality of life were evaluated according to clinical scales. RESULTS: Significant decrease in the frequency of bilateral tonic-clonic seizures and focal seizures with loss of consciousness was recorded. There was a significant improvement in the quality of life. There was no significant dynamics of asthenia against the background of taking the drug phenosanic acid in patients. CONCLUSION: The preparation of phenosanic acid can be an effective means of add-on therapy in patients with epilepsy who have undergone COVID-19.

[The psychological and environment risk factors of development of breast cancer in women residing in industrial megalopolis and rural locality].

The breast cancer hold leading position in the structure of oncological morbidity of women worldwide. The purpose of the study is to analyze contribution of psychological and environmental factors to risk of development of breast cancer in women residing in industrial metropolis and rural locality. The actuality of the study is conditioned by acquisition of new knowledge about risk factors of breast cancer. The study covered psychological factors (basic beliefs, life orientations, locus of control, coping behavior strategies, subjective assessment of quality of life, subjective age indicator, personal helplessness-independence, resilience) and environmental factor (place of urban of rural residence of women with breast cancer). The study established that in women residing in industrial metropolis the psychological risk factors are reduced indicators of basic beliefs, of quality of life and of resilience, rare application of coping strategy "Escape-Avoidance", external locus of control. Alternatively, in women residing in rural areas, psychological risk factors for breast cancer are rare application of coping strategies, reduced quality of life indicators, increased vital activity, internal level of subjective control and personal helplessness. The study results can be included in development of personalized breast cancer screening protocols and as well as considered in assessing risk of development of disease when classifying women by breast cancer risk groups.

Psychological predictors of favorable and unfavorable disease course of prostate cancer: results of a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: The statistical data on the incidence and mortality rates from prostate cancer leave gaps in understanding the causal risk factors for the unfavorable course of the disease determined the relevance of this work, determined the purpose of the study: to identify psychological predictors of favorable and unfavorable courses of prostate cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Basic beliefs, coping, quality of life, level of subjective control, resilience, life orientation, as well as socio-demographic characteristics were analyzed in 124 men with different courses of the disease. Firstly, the psychological characteristics of men with prostate cancer with a favorable or unfavorable course were compared, and secondly, psychological predictors were identified and their contribution to the course of prostate cancer was assessed. RESULTS: It has been established that high involvement as an indicator of resilience, externality in the sphere of failures, the absence of restrictions on daily life due to physical condition, and a low value of belief about control is associated with a favorable course of the disease. The involvement of a man in his own life and ongoing events, interest in his own activities, the conviction that not all events can be controlled, as well as the localization of control outside, contribute to a faster onset of remission or stabilization of the disease. CONCLUSIONS: The psychological features determine the behavior of men with prostate cancer, including the implementation of doctor's recommendations and compliance with treatment requirements, timely visits to the doctor, taking medications, which in turn determines the course of the disease and the success of treatment.

Unusual Properties of Hydrogen-Bonded Ferroelectrics: The Case of Cobalt Formate.

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites is a class of materials with diverse chemically tunable properties and outstanding potential for multifunctionality. We use first-principles simulations to predict room temperature ferroelectricity in a representative of the formate family, [NH_{2}NH_{3}][Co(HCOO)_{3}]. The ferroelectricity arises as a "by-product" of structural transition driven by the stabilization of the hydrogen bond. As a consequence the coupling with the electric field is relatively weak giving origin to large intrinsic coercive fields and making material immune to the depolarizing fields known for its detrimental role in nanoscale ferroelectrics. Insensitivity to the electric field and the intrinsic dynamics of the order-disorder transition in such material leads to the supercoercivity defined as significant increase in the coercive field with frequency. Room temperature polarization measurements provide further support for the predictions.

Negative Linear Compressibility in Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Perovskite [NH2NH3]X(HCOO)3 (X = Mn, Fe, Co).

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites [NH2NH3][X(HCOO)3] (X = Mn, Fe, Co) have a so-called "wine-rack" type of geometry that could give origin to the rare property of negative linear compressibility, which is an exotic and highly desirable material response. We use first-principles density functional theory computations to probe the response of these materials to hydrostatic pressure and predict that, indeed, all three of them exhibit negative linear compressibility above a critical pressure of 1 GPa. Calculations reveal that, under pressure, XO6 octahedra and -HCOO ligands remain relatively rigid while XO6 octahedra tilt significantly, which leads to highly anisotropic mechanical properties and expansion along certain directions. These trends are common for the three materials considered.

Negative Linear Compressibility in [NH3NH2]Co(HCOO)3 and Its Structural Origin Revealed from First Principles.

First-principles density functional theory computations are used to predict negative linear compressibility in hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite [NH2NH3][Co(HCOO)3]. Negative linear compressibility is a rare exotic response of a material to pressure associated with expansion along one or two lateral directions. Detailed structural analysis revealed that [NH2NH3][Co(HCOO)3] responds to pressure through tilting of its relatively rigid units, CoO6 polyhedra, and (HCOO)-1 ligand chain. The (HCOO)-1 units form a "wine-rack" geometry which is well described with the "strut-hinge" model. Within the model, the struts are formed by the rigid units, while hinges are their relatively flexible interconnects. Under pressure, the hinge angle increases which leads to the expansion along the direction subtended by the angle. Interestingly, at zero pressure the linear compressibilities in [NH2NH3][Co(HCOO)3] are all positive. As pressure increases, the lowest linear compressibility value turns negative and increases in magnitude. Comparison with the literature suggests that such a trend is likely to be common to this family of materials. Mechanical properties of [NH2NH3][Co(HCOO)3] are highly anisotropic.

[The cough variant asthma].

Cough variant asthma (CVA) was first described by W. Corrao. CVA was described as the isolated chronic cough as the only presenting symptom responsive to bronchodilator therapy.This phenotype of asthma is present with airway hyperresponsiveness, eosinophilic inflammation airways and bronchodilator responsive coughing without typical manifestation of asthma such as wheezing or dyspnea. CVA shares common features with classic asthma such as eosinophilic inflammation and airway remodeling. Because of that, CVA is clinically considered as a variant type of asthma.

All-Mechanical Polarization Control and Anomalous (Electro)Mechanical Responses in Ferroelectric Nanowires.

Piezoelectric and ferroelectric nanowires exhibit properties and phases that are not available in the bulk. They are extremely promising for functional nanoscale application. On the basis of atomistic first-principles-based simulations, we predict an all-mechanical polarization control in ferroelectric nanowires. We report that the application of uniaxial compressive stress to ferroelectric nanowires with poor surface charge compensation leads to a reversible phase switching between the polar phase with axial polarization and macroscopically nonpolar flux-closure phase. The phase switching is associated with anomalously large changes in polarization and piezoelectric and mechanical response. In particular, in PbTiO3 nanowires the values as large as 5400 pC/N and 140 TPa-1 are predicted for the piezoelectric coefficient and elastic constant, respectively. Remarkably, the effect persists up to the gigahertz frequency which is potentially promising for nanoscale applications, such as nanogenerators, biomedical electronics, monitoring devices, nanosensors, nanotransducers, and nanoactuators.

On respiratory manifestations of gastroesophageal reflux disease.

One of the manifestations of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is extraesophageal symptoms, in particular, from the upper and lower respiratory tract. Gastroesophageal reflux is capable of both causing respiratory symptoms independently and aggravating the course of already existing diseases of the respiratory system. The article presents available in the literature current information on the pathogenesis of GERD respiratory symptoms, their clinical course, considerations of diagnosis and treatment.

[Efficacy of Antihypertensive Therapy Combined With Psychotropic Drugs in Patients With Hypertension and Affective Disorders].

AIM: To compare effects of isolated antihypertensive therapy (AHT) and AHT combined with anxiolytic and antidepressant on parameters of 24­hour blood pressure (BP) profile, severity of affective disorders, and quality of life (QL) in patients with uncontrolled arterial hypertension (AH) and anxiety or depressive disorders. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We randomized 140 patients (age 48.6±5.9 year, 72 women) into 2 groups. During 1 year patients of each group received 2 variants of pharmacotherapy: isolated AHT and AHT combined with psychotropic medication (PM) - anxiolytic for persons with anxiety disorder and antidepressant for persons with depressive disorder (AHT+PM). Patients of group I received AHT for first 6 months and AHT+PM for remaining 6 months. Group II patients started with AHT+PM and after 6 months switched to AHT. In each group we selected subgroups of patients with prevailing anxiety (I­A, II­A) and prevailing depression (I-D, II-D). In the end of each 6 months period we compared parameters of 24­hour BP monitoring, severity of affective disorders, and QL in subgroups IA vs. II­A and ID vs. IID. Same comparisons were done for each subgroup in the end of the first and second stages of treatment. RESULTS: Starting with combination AHT provided more rapid achievement of low values of average diurnal and nocturnal systolic (S) and diastolic (D) BP, lower parameters of BP variability. In patients with comorbid depression it led to lowering of magnitude and velocity of morning increment of SBP and DBP. Only combination AHT demonstrated adequate reduction of affective disorders. Both combination and isolated AHT in 6 months resulted in significant improvement of QL, however combination AHT provided significantly better estimates of QL. CONCLUSION: In patients with AH and anxiety or depressive disorders effectiveness of AHT combined with anxiolytic or antidepressant was higher compared with isolated AHT.

Emergence of ferroelectricity in antiferroelectric nanostructures.

First-principles-based finite-temperature simulations are used to predict the emergence of ferroelectricity in antiferroelectric nanostructures made of PbZrO3. The phenomenon is expected to occur in antiferroelectric nanodots, nanowires, and thin films with good surface charge compensation and can be explained by the recently proposed surface effect. Our computations provide a microscopic insight into the equilibrium phases, phase competition, and electrical properties of PbZrO3 nanostructures. The dependence of these properties on the electrical boundary conditions and nanostructure size is investigated.

Publisher's Note: Critical Thickness for Antiferroelectricity in PbZrO_{3} [Phys. Rev. Lett. 115, 097601 (2015)].

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.115.097601.

Publisher's Note: Thermally Mediated Mechanism to Enhance Magnetoelectric Coupling in Multiferroics [Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 177205 (2015)].

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.114.177205.

Scaling law for electrocaloric temperature change in antiferroelectrics.

A combination of theoretical and first-principles computational methods, along with experimental evidence from the literature, were used to predict the existence of a scaling law for the electrocaloric temperature change in antiferroelectric materials. We show that the temperature change scales quadratically with electric field, allowing a simple transformation to collapse the set of ΔT(E) onto a single curve. This offers a unique method that can be used to predict electrocaloric behavior beyond the limits of present measurement ranges or in regions where data are not yet available.

[The micro-ecology of genital tracts in women with infertility of chlamydia nature.]

The microbiocenosis of genital tracts was examined in 78 women with infertility of chlamydia etiology and in 33 women with inflammatory diseases of organs of reproductive system. In women of examined groups differences were established between indices of contamination of genital tract with various infection agents. In female patients with infertility of chlamydia etiology increasing of rate of registration of obligate anaerobic microflora, manifestations of ureaplasmosis and mycoplasmosis were observed. In women with infertility the chlamydia infection is accompanied by development of pathological microbiocenosis which in most of female patients (39.7%) manifests as vaginosis. In the examined female patients with chronic inflammatory diseases of organs of small pelvis the disbiotic alterations of genital organs manifested as non-specific vaginitis (45.5%). The condition of micro-ecology of genital tracts in examined women with chronic inflammatory diseases is characterized by increasing of level of contamination of mucous membrane with facultative anaerobic opportunistic microorganisms with pathogenic characteristics and significant decreasing of qualitative indices of isolation rate of lactobacilli.