One-year Cohort Follow-up on the Diagnosis and Posttraumatic Symptoms in Child Sexual Assault Victims in Korea

Objective@#The victims and their families of child sexual abuse (CSA) may confront persistent psychological sequela. We aimed to investigate the psychological symptoms, diagnosis, and family functions in children and adolescents with CSA. @*Methods@#We assessed the symptom scales at 6-month intervals, and conducted diagnostic re-assessments at 1-year intervals. Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC), Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC), Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales IV (FACES-IV), and Family Communication Scale (FCS) scores were reported by children or parents. @*Results@#We found in parent-reported TSCYC, that posttraumatic stress symptoms domain scores significantly decreased with time progression. The scores decreased more in the evidence-based treatment group over time in anxiety and posttraumatic stress symptom domains of TSCC. In FACES-IV and FCS scores, indices of family function have been gradually increasing both after 6 months and after 1 year compared to the initial evaluation. Further, about 64% of the children diagnosed with psychiatric diseases, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at the initial assessment maintained the same diagnosis at follow-up. @*Conclusion@#We observed changes in psychological symptoms and family functioning in sexually abused children with time progression during 1 year. It is postulated that PTSD may be a persistent major mental illness in the victims of CSA.

Necrotizing fasciitis due to late-onset group B streptococcal bacteremia in a 2-month-old girl

Necrotizing fasciitis (NF) is a severe soft tissue infection, characterized by rapid and fulminant progression. Thus, early suspicion, and prompt medical and aggressive surgical management are important for the clinical outcomes of NF. Despite the rarity of NF in infants and group B streptococcus as its cause, a 2-month-old preterm girl presented with NF involving the suprapubic, inguinal, and lower lateral abdominal regions caused by group B streptococcus. The girl recovered after early medical and surgical management.

The Effect of Stress on Anxiety and Depressed Mood and the Mediating Effect of Resilience in Medical Residents and Interns During Coronavirus Disease-19 Event / 정신신체의학

Objectives@#: In this study, we evaluate psychological stress, symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood and resilience which medical residents and interns perceived during COVID-19 event, then investigate the associations between stress and the symptoms and mediating effect of resilience on the associations. @*Methods@#: In this study, we made a self-reporting form to evaluate psychological stress with perceived stress scale (PSS), symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood with Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HAD), and resilience with Conner-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Medical residents and interns, who worked in a hospital during COVID-19 event, filled the self-reporting forms from july, 2020 to august, 2020. We conducted a Pearson correlation coefficient and a multiple regression to confirm association between psychological stress and symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood, then mediating effect of resilience. @*Results@#: The higher stress perceived, the more symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood were reported by medical residents and interns. The higher resilience is associated with lower stress and less symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood, which resilience is proven to mediate partially the association between stress and symptoms of depressed mood. @*Conclusions@#: This study shows that resilience has a partial mediating effects on the association between stress and psychological pathology especially depressed mood, given that medical residents and interns were under psychological distress during COVID-19 event. This suggests that resilience is the key for medical trainees to overcome the future crisis like COVID-19 event.

The Effect of Second-Generation Antipsychotics Administration for 1-Year on the Platelet Activities in Patients With Schizophrenia: Retrospective Study / 정신신체의학

Objectives@#：This study was conducted to investigate the effect of 1-year administration of second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) on the platelet activity in patients with schizophrenia through a retrospective review of the medical records. @*Methods@#：The mean platelet component (MPC) value was used as an index of the platelet activity. The included subjects (N=24) were the patients who were confirmed to have taken SGAs continuously for one year after the first MPC measurement had been performed. The change of MPC was verified through a paired sample t-test. @*Results@#：The result revealed that the mean MPC value was significantly decreased from 26.5±1.4 g/dL to 25.6±1.8 g/dL after 1-year administration of SGAs from the time of the first MPC measurement. @*Conclusions@#：This study suggests that 1-year administration of SGAs may be related with increased platelet activity, and that close monitoring for risks such as cerebrovascular/cardiovascular or thromboembolic diseases may be necessary during SGAs treatment in clinical practice.

Management of Weight Gain and Obesity Associated With Antipsychotics / 정신신체의학

Objectives@#：The risk of weight gain is high when using antipsychotic drugs, and the prevalence of obesity in people with mental illness is high. Obesity management in psychiatric patients is important because obesity causes various complications and lowers treatment adherence and quality of life. @*Methods@#：In this review, we summarized the management strategies for obesity that can occur when using antipsychotic drugs through a web search. @*Results@#：Evaluate obesity-related risk factors and related indicators from the beginning of treatment, and conduct regular monitoring. If an antipsychotic drug is used and obesity is induced, a change to a drug with a low metabolic risk may be attempted. Sufficient interventions are also needed on the need to manage obesity, a healthy diet, and exercises in patients and their families. If weight loss is not achieved and obesity-related complications are associated, the use of anti-obesity drugs may be considered. Pharmacological treatment approaches should be carefully considered. @*Conclusions@#：Non-pharmacological and pharmacological therapies can be applied to manage weight gain and obesity caused by the use of antipsychotic drugs. When using anti-obesity drugs, the characteristics of mental disorders, drug safety, and drug interactions should be considered.

The Effects of COVID-19 on the Self-Harm in Children and Adolescents Observed in a University Hospital / 정신신체의학

Objectives@#：The aim of the present study is to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the incidence and severity of childhood and adolescent self-harm. @*Methods@#：Medical records were retrospectively reviewed for patients under the age of 18 who visited the emergency room of Konyang University Hospital to compare the rate of self-harm attempts and the demographic, clinical, and self-harm-related of self-harm attempters aspects before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. @*Results@#：During 11 months after the COVID-19 outbreak, the proportion of the number of children and adolescents patients with self-harm and their episodes increased significantly compared to that during 11 months be-fore the COVID-19 outbreak (χ2 =14.397, p<0.001; χ2 =24.156, p<0.001). Between about the year before and after the outbreak of COVID-19, there was a significant difference in the prior self-harm history and psychiatric history among children and adolescents who visited the emergency room and the ratio of hospitalization to other departments than department of psychiatry (p<0.05; p<0.05; p<0.05). @*Conclusions@#：In the COVID-19 situation, the proportion of children and adolescents who visited the emergency room due to self-harm and admission to other departments are increasing. And it has been shown that the inci-dence of self-harm has significantly increased in children and adolescents with a history of prior self-harm and psychiatric past history. These findings underscore the need for the psychiatric evaluation and intervention of self-harm related high-risk groups among children and adolescents in pandemic situations.

A Retrospective Study on the Effect of 1-Year Clozapine Administration on Platelet Activity in Patients with Schizophrenia or Schizoaffective Disorder / 정신신체의학

Objectives@#：Clozapine has been known to increase the possibility of developing cardio/cerebrovascular diseases, and the platelet activation has been deemed to be related to the occurrence of them. In author’s previous study, we observed the increase of platelet activity with short-term clozapine administration. This study was conducted, as a follow-up study, to investigate the effect of clozapine on the platelet activity when administered continuously for long-term period of time of 1 year. @*Methods@#：The medical records of the patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who were treated with clozapine for 1 year were retrospectively reviewed. The degree of platelet activation was assessed by measuring the mean platelet component. @*Results@#：Total of 24 patients were enrolled. 9 of them (37.5%) were male and 15 of them (62.5%) were female. In the Wilcoxon sign-ranks test, no significant change was observed between the mean platelet factor values at the beginning and at the end of one year. @*Conclusions@#：No significant changes of mean platelet activity were observed after continued administration of clozapine for 1 year. Considering the author’s previous findings that observed a prominent decrease of mean platelet component after short-term clozapine administration, the result of this study suggests the possibility that the activity of the platelet may change depending on the duration of the clozapine administration.

The Impact of Surgical Intervention on Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Very Low Birth Weight Infants: a Nationwide Cohort Study in Korea

BACKGROUND: To investigate the incidence of surgical intervention in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants and the impact of surgery on neurodevelopmental outcomes at corrected ages (CAs) of 18–24 months, using data from the Korean Neonatal Network (KNN). METHODS: Data from 7,885 VLBW infants who were born and registered with the KNN between 2013 to 2016 were analyzed in this study. The incidences of various surgical interventions and related morbidities were analyzed. Long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes at CAs of 18–24 months were compared between infants (born during 2013 to 2015, n = 3,777) with and without surgery. RESULTS: A total of 1,509 out of 7,885 (19.1%) infants received surgical interventions during neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalization. Surgical ligation of patent ductus arteriosus (n = 840) was most frequently performed, followed by laser therapy for retinopathy of prematurity and laparotomy due to intestinal perforation. Infants who underwent surgery had higher mortality rates and greater neurodevelopmental impairment than infants who did not undergo surgery (P value < 0.01, both). On multivariate analysis, single or multiple surgeries increased the risk of neurodevelopmental impairment compared to no surgery with adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of 1.6 with 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.1–2.6 and 2.3 with 95% CI of 1.1–4.9. CONCLUSION: Approximately one fifth of VLBW infants underwent one or more surgical interventions during NICU hospitalization. The impact of surgical intervention on long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes was sustained over a follow-up of CA 18–24 months. Infants with multiple surgeries had an increased risk of neurodevelopmental impairment compared to infants with single surgeries or no surgeries after adjustment for possible confounders.

Albizzia julibrissin Suppresses Testosterone-induced Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia by Regulating 5α-Reductase Type 2 – Androgen Receptor Pathway

Albizzia julibrissin (AJ) is an herbal medicine that shows low toxicity, promotes promoting blood circulation and mitigates the inflammation and has mild side effects. Benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is one of the most common diseases that occurs in older males and often results in lower urinary tract symptoms. This study was conducted to evaluate the protective effect of AJ against BPH using LNCaP cells and Sprague Dawley rats treated with testosterone. Treatment with AJ extract reduced the expression of androgen receptor (AR) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in vitro. In vivo, rats were divided into 6 groups: 1 (Normal Control); 2 (Testosterone propionate (TP) alone); 3 (TP + finasteride); 4 (TP + AJ 10 mg/kg); 5 (TP + AJ 50 mg/kg); 6 (TP + AJ 300 mg/kg). The groups treated with AJ showed reduced the relative prostate weights and BPH-related proteins were altered, with decreased AR, PSA and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) observed by western blot. Histopathological analysis revealed the therapeutic effect of AJ, with a decreased thickness of epithelial cells and reduced level of PCNA and 5α-reductase type 2. These results suggest that AJ extract could ameliorate testosterone-induced benign prostatic hyperplasia.

A Cohort Study of Children and Adolescents Victims with Sexual Abuse in Korea and Their Initial Assessment Results / 정신신체의학

OBJECTIVES: The goals of the study are how to establish the cohort systems for the children and adolescents victims with sexual abuse in Korea and to identify the risk and protective factors that influence mental health in child sexual abuse (CSA). This is initial assessment data based on the analysis of cohort variables for baseline evaluation of subjects. METHODS: We constructed the cohort systems for CSA victims recruited by Seoul Sunflower Children Center, CSA victims protection center. The initial assessment data which consisted of demographic and psychological inventories of CSA victims and their parents/families, psychiatric diagnoses were the results of statistical analysis of 65 subjects under 19 years old for 3 years 7 months. RESULTS: The initial data were followings : female participants, N=56; mean age, 11.6 (SD=4.5); the most sexual assault, molestation 71.8%; victims, family and acquaintance 87.1%; 61.5% of the subjects diagnosed with psychiatric disorder; 29.2% diagnosed with PTSD and 23.1% diagnosed with depression. Mean duration for abuse to report is 1.5 years. Mean score of IES-R-K, TSCYC-avoidant and CBCL-problematic behavior were increased above clinical cut-off. CONCLUSIONS: CSA victims tend to have high risks in mental health problem. The cohort study could provide the risk and protective factors of CSA in mental health, and construct the predictive model for mental illness in Korea.

Clinical impact of admission hypothermia in very low birth weight infants: results from Korean Neonatal Network / 소아과

BACKGROUND: Preterm infants have difficulty maintaining body temperature after birth. However, clinical guidelines advocate that neonatal body temperature should be maintained at 36.5°C–37.5°C. PURPOSE: We aimed to investigate the incidence of admission hypothermia in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants and to determine the association of admission temperature with in-hospital mortality and morbidities. METHODS: A cohort study using prospectively collected data involving 70 neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) that participate in the Korean Neonatal Network. From registered infants born between January 2013 and December 2015, 5,343 VLBW infants born at less than 33 weeks of gestation were reviewed. RESULTS: The mean admission temperature was 36.1°C±0.6°C, with a range of 31.9°C to 38.4°C. Approximately 74.1% of infants had an admission hypothermia of <36.5°C. Lower birth weight, intubation in the delivery room and Apgar score <7 at 5 minutes were significantly related to admission hypothermia. The mortality was the lowest at 36.5°C–37.5°C and adjusted odd ratios for all deaths increased to 1.38 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04–1.83), 1.44 (95% CI, 1.05–1.97) and 1.86 (95% CI, 1.22–2.82) for infants with admission temperatures of 36.0°C–36.4°C, 35.0°C–35.9°C, and <35.0°C, respectively. Admission hypothermia was also associated with high likelihoods of bronchopulmonary dysplasia, pulmonary hypertension, proven sepsis, pulmonary hemorrhage, air-leak, seizure, grade 3 or higher intraventricular hemorrhage and advanced retinopathy of prematurity requiring laser therapy. CONCLUSION: A large portion of preterm infants in Korea had hypothermia at NICU admission, which was associated with high mortality and several important morbidities. More aggressive interventions aimed at reducing hypothermia are required in this high-risk population.

A Rare Case of Lethal Prenatal-Onset Infantile Cortical Hyperostosis

Infantile cortical hyperostosis, or Caffey's disease, usually presents with typical radiological features of soft tissue swelling and cortical thickening of the underlying bone. The disease can be fatal when it presents antenatally, especially before a gestational age of 35 weeks. This fatal, premature form of the disease is known to occur in various ethnic groups around the globe, and approximately 30 cases have been reported in English literature. This paper is unique in that it is the first paper to report a lethal form of prenatal-type infantile cortical hyperostosis diagnosed in South Korea. Born at gestational age of 27 weeks and 4 days, the patient had typical features of polyhydramnios, anasarca, hyperostosis of multiple bones, micrognathia, pulmonary hypoplasia, and hepatomegaly. The patient was hypotonic, and due to pulmonary hypoplasia and persistent pulmonary hypertension, had to be supported with high frequency ventilation throughout the entire hospital course. Due to the disease entity itself, as well as prolonged parenteral nutrition, liver failure progressed, and the patient expired on day 38 when uncontrolled septic shock was superimposed. The chromosome karyotype of the patient was normal, 46, XX, and COL1A1 gene mutation was not detected.

Lung Ultrasonography for the Diagnosis of Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Late Preterm Infants: Changing Incidence – A Single Center Experience

PURPOSE: Ultrasonography is non-ionizing, easy to operate, and performed at bedside in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We investigated the incidence of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) with or without using lung ultrasound (LUS) in late preterm infants with postnatal respiratory difficulties. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of 494 late preterm infants born at 34–36 weeks' gestation at Keimyung University Dongsan Medical Center. Fifty infants with postnatal respiratory difficulties were admitted to the NICU between May 2015 to October 2015 (period I), and forty-one were between November 2015 to February 2016 (period II). The diagnosis of RDS was based on chest radiography in period I. LUS was additionally performed at bedside in period II. All infants with RDS were received exogenous surfactant therapy. RESULTS: The overall incidence of RDS with surfactant replacement therapy was decreased in period II period II (9.4%, 20/212) compared to period I (14.5%, 41/282) (P=0.088). In terms of infants with postnatal respiratory difficulties, the incidence of RDS in period II (48.8%, 20/41) was significantly lower than that in period I (82.0%, 41/50) (P=0.001). There are no difference in the rate of reintubation, repeated doses of surfactant, oxygen demand at 48 hours after birth, air leak syndrome, pulmonary hemorrhage, persistent pulmonary hypertension of newborn, and mortality (P> 0.05). CONCLUSION: We could decrease the incidence of RDS with surfactant replacement therapy by using LUS in late preterm infants with postnatal respiratory difficulties. Further prospective studies are needed to apply LUS clinically to diagnose RDS.

Clinical usefulness of serum procalcitonin level in distinguishing between Kawasaki disease and other infections in febrile children / 소아과

PURPOSE: The aims of this study were to compare serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels between febrile children with Kawasaki disease (KD) and those with bacterial or viral infections, and assess the clinical usefulness of PCT level in predicting KD. METHODS: Serum PCT levels were examined in febrile pediatric patients admitted between August 2013 and August 2014. The patients were divided into 3 groups as follows: 49 with KD, 111 with viral infections, and 24 with bacterial infections. RESULTS: The mean PCT level in the KD group was significantly lower than that in the bacterial infection group (0.82±1.73 ng/mL vs. 3.11±6.10 ng/mL, P=0.002) and insignificantly different from that in the viral infection group (0.23±0.34 ng/mL,P=0.457). The mean erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) level in the KD group were significantly higher than those in the viral and bacterial infection groups (P1.0 ng/mL was significantly higher in the nonresponders to the initial intravenous immunoglobulin treatment than in the responders (36% vs. 8%, P=0.01). CONCLUSION: PCT levels may help to differentiate KD from bacterial infections. A combination of disease markers, including ESR, CRP, and PCT, may be useful for differentiating between KD and viral/bacterial infections.

Clinical characteristics of lower respiratory infections in preterm children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia

PURPOSE: We evaluated the clinical characteristics of lower respiratory infections of preterm children with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and compared them between those with and without lower respiratory infections that of preterm patients without BPD. METHODS: This study enrolled preterm patients under 2 years old, who admitted with acute lower respiratory infection from March 2014 to May 2016. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to BPD, and we retrospectively reviewed their medical records. RESULTS: A total of 71 patients (106 cases) were enrolled; the BPD group consisited of 29 patients (54 cases) and the control group 42 patients (52 cases). Compared to the patients in the control group, those in the BPD group were older (P=0.001), had lower gestational age and birth weight (P<0.001), and showed more frequent readmission in hospital (P=0.017). The most common causative virus was human rhinovirus (hRV) in the BPD group, whereas respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in the control group. The patients in the BPD group showed a higher incidence of tachypnea, decreased aeration, and chest retraction (P<0.001, P=0.009, and P=0.026, respectively), a higher respiratory symptom score (P=0.011), a longer duration of cough and wheezy sounds (P=0.004 and P=0.009, respectively), and higher incidence and longer duration of treatment with oxygen, and mechanical ventilator support (P=0.016 and P=0.017, respectively) than those in the control group. In the BPD group, the patients with RSV showed a higher incidence of tachypnea and rales (P=0.033 and P=0.033, respectively) than those with hRV. CONCLUSION: The preterm children with BPD may have more severe clinical manifestations than those without.

The Effect of Bilateral Eye Movements on Face Recognition in Patients with Schizophrenia / 정신신체의학

OBJECTIVES: The deficit of recognition memory has been found as one of the common neurocognitive impairments in patients with schizophrenia. In addition, they were reported to fail to enhance the memory about emotional stimuli. Previous studies have shown that bilateral eye movements enhance the memory retrieval. Therefore, this study was conducted in order to investigate the memory enhancement of bilaterally alternating eye movements in schizophrenic patients. METHODS: Twenty one patients with schizophrenia participated in this study. The participants learned faces (angry or neutral faces), and then performed a recognition memory task in relation to the faces after bilateral eye movements and central fixation. Recognition accuracy, response bias, and mean response time to hits were compared and analysed. Two-way repeated measure analysis of variance was performed for statistical analysis. RESULTS: There was a significant effect of bilateral eye movements condition in mean response time(F=5.812, p<0.05) and response bias(F=10.366, p<0.01). Statistically significant interaction effects were not observed between eye movement condition and face emotion type. CONCLUSIONS: Irrespective of the emotional difference of facial stimuli, recognition memory processing was more enhanced after bilateral eye movements in patients with schizophrenia. Further study will be needed to investigate the underlying neural mechanism of bilateral eye movements-induced memory enhancement in patients with schizophrenia.

Temporary Transcutaneous Pacing in a Low Birth Weight Preterm Neonate with Congenital Complete Atrioventricular Block: A Case Report

Congenital complete atrioventricular (AV) block is a rare neonatal disease. It is a passively acquired immune-mediated injury of the conduction system, triggered by transplacental passage of maternal anti-SSA/Ro and anti-SSB/La antibodies. Management of premature infants with symptomatic complete AV block is challenging. If medical treatment with a β-adrenergic agonist and inotropic drugs is not effective, early cardiac pacing should be considered. Here we report a case of congenital complete AV block in a low birth weight, preterm neonate, who was successfully treated with temporary transcutaneous pacing immediately after birth. Temporary transcutaneous pacing may be an option for the emergent management of a low birth weight preterm neonate with congenital complete AV block prior to permanent pacemaker implantation.

Gender Differences of Direct and Relational Aggression in Children and Adolescents / 정신신체의학

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the gender differences of direct aggression and relational aggression in Korean elementary and middle school students. METHODS: Parents of 946 elementary school students(age 9.54±1.72 years, 485 boys, 461 girls) completed the Child Behavior Checklist(CBCL). Six-hundred-and-three middle school students(age 13.98±0.93 years, 301 boys, 302 girls) completed the Youth Self-Report(YSR). Independent t-test, chi-square test, and Fisher's exact test were used. RESULTS: Boys had significantly higher direct aggression scores than girls in elementary school students(p<0.001). There was no significance gender difference of relational aggression in elementary school students(p=0.235). In middle school students, boys had significantly higher direct aggression than girls(p=0.017), and girls had significantly higher relational aggression compared to the boys(p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest the presence of gender differences in manifestation of aggression subtypes in Korean elementary and middle school students. These gender differences should be taken into account in prevention and intervention approaches of aggression in children and adolescents.

The Effect of Bilateral Eye Movements on Emotional Face Recognition Memory Task / 신경정신의학

OBJECTIVES: Previous studies have shown that bilateral eye movements enhance episodic memory retrieval. However, few studies on the effect of bilateral eye movements on emotional memory have been reported. Therefore, this study was conducted in order to investigate the differences in memory retrieval between neutral and angry stimuli after bilaterally alternating eye movements. METHODS: Twenty seven healthy right-handed subjects participated in this study. The participants learned faces (angry or neutral face), and then performed a recognition memory task in relation to the faces after bilateral eye movements and central fixation. Recognition accuracy, response bias, and mean response time to hits were compared and analyzed. Two-way repeated measure analysis of variance was performed for statistical analysis. RESULTS: There was a significant effect of bilateral eye movement conditions in recognition accuracy (F=13.833, p<0.01). Statistically significant interaction effects were observed between eye movement condition and face emotion type (F=6.253, p=0.02). CONCLUSION: In this study, recognition memory for angry faces was more enhanced than that for neutral faces after bilateral eye movements. This finding suggests that bilateral eye movements can improve recognition memory for emotional stimuli more than that for neutral stimuli.

The Effect of Bilateral Eye Movements on Emotional Face Recognition Memory Task / 신경정신의학

OBJECTIVES: Previous studies have shown that bilateral eye movements enhance episodic memory retrieval. However, few studies on the effect of bilateral eye movements on emotional memory have been reported. Therefore, this study was conducted in order to investigate the differences in memory retrieval between neutral and angry stimuli after bilaterally alternating eye movements. METHODS: Twenty seven healthy right-handed subjects participated in this study. The participants learned faces (angry or neutral face), and then performed a recognition memory task in relation to the faces after bilateral eye movements and central fixation. Recognition accuracy, response bias, and mean response time to hits were compared and analyzed. Two-way repeated measure analysis of variance was performed for statistical analysis. RESULTS: There was a significant effect of bilateral eye movement conditions in recognition accuracy (F=13.833, p<0.01). Statistically significant interaction effects were observed between eye movement condition and face emotion type (F=6.253, p=0.02). CONCLUSION: In this study, recognition memory for angry faces was more enhanced than that for neutral faces after bilateral eye movements. This finding suggests that bilateral eye movements can improve recognition memory for emotional stimuli more than that for neutral stimuli.