Corrigendum: The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 in Chinese Hospital Workers: Reliability, Latent Structure, and Measurement Invariance Across Genders.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00247.].

Educational environments in Asian medical schools: A cross-national comparison between Malaysia, Singapore, and China.

INTRODUCTION: Perceptions of the educational environment (EE) represent an important source of information on medical students' learning experience. Understanding and addressing these perceptions can help inform initiatives designed to improve the learning experience and educational outcomes, while comparison of student perceptions across medical schools can provide an added perspective. The aim of the study was to compare the EEs of three Asian medical schools: Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and University College Dublin Malaysia Campus, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Singapore and Xiangya School of Medicine, China. METHODS: Medical students in the clinical years (N = 1063) participated in a cross-sectional study using the Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. RESULTS: There were significant differences between the three medical schools in the total DREEM scores (F [2, 1059] = 38.29, p < .001), but all were in the category "more positive than negative" (mean score 135.42, range 128.97-142.44). Highest DREEM scores were noted in year 5 at RUMC (139.79 ± 79), year 3 at YLL (145.93 ± 14.52), and year 4 at XSM (138.56 ± 18.91). Variations in total and subscale DREEM scores were also found between clinical years in each medical school. DISCUSSION: Total DREEM scores at the three medical schools are similar to those reported from other undergraduate settings. However, significant variations occurred in perceptions of the EE, as students progressed through the clinical years. Greater attention to the learning environment and the curriculum may improve students' educational experience.

Changes in sensorimotor regions of the cerebral cortex in congenital amusia: a case-control study.

Perceiving pitch is a central function of the human auditory system; congenital amusia is a disorder of pitch perception. The underlying neural mechanisms of congenital amusia have been actively discussed. However, little attention has been paid to the changes in the motor rain within congenital amusia. In this case-control study, 17 participants with congenital amusia and 14 healthy controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while resting with their eyes closed. A voxel-based degree centrality method was used to identify abnormal functional network centrality by comparing degree centrality values between the congenital amusia group and the healthy control group. We found decreased degree centrality values in the right primary sensorimotor areas in participants with congenital amusia relative to controls, indicating potentially decreased centrality of the corresponding brain regions in the auditory-sensory motor feedback network. We found a significant positive correlation between the degree centrality values and the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia scores. In conclusion, our study identified novel, hitherto undiscussed candidate brain regions that may partly contribute to or be modulated by congenital amusia. Our evidence supports the view that sensorimotor coupling plays an important role in memory and musical discrimination. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, China (No. WDX20180101GZ01) on February 9, 2019.

Psychometric Properties of a Simplified Chinese Version of the Secondary Trauma Questionnaire in a Potentially Traumatized Study Sample.

BACKGROUND: Screening for secondary traumatic stress (STS) is lacking in China. It is unclear whether Western models of STS can be adapted satisfactorily for use in non-Western regions. The 20-item Secondary Trauma Questionnaire (STQ) is a self-report measure of traumatic stress symptoms in individuals who have been influenced indirectly by suicide or violent injury of people important to the respondents. METHODS: Here, we assessed the psychometric properties of a newly developed Chinese version of the STQ in a potentially traumatized sample (N = 875) composed of doctors, nurses, teachers, civic administration staff, and social workers in China. We performed reliability and validity analyses. Subsequently, we split the total sample into two subsamples for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) for measurement invariance analyses. RESULTS: The full scale demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.95-0.97), convergent validity, discriminant validity, and factorial validity. CFA affirmed a one-factor structure; the configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariances of the STQ were acceptable across genders. CONCLUSION: The present results indicate that the STQ is a reliable and valid self-report assessment for use with potentially traumatized people in China, and further supports the notion that the STQ is amenable to additional future cross-cultural adaptation.

Corrigendum: The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 in Chinese Hospital Workers: Reliability, Latent Structure, and Measurement Invariance Across Genders.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00247.].

The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 in Chinese Hospital Workers: Reliability, Latent Structure, and Measurement Invariance Across Genders.

The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) is an instrument in the assessment of mental health status. The current study recruited 1,532 Chinese hospital workers [74.4% female; mean age = 31.97 (SD = 9.70) years] to examine the reliability, latent structure, and measurement invariance of the DASS-21 between genders. The Cronbach's α values were greater than 0.90 for total score. This study examined four possible models of the DASS-21 using the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in Chinese hospital workers. The results from CFA revealed that the latent structure of the DASS-21 in medical staffs is best represented by a one-factor model. Then we used the one-factor model to examine measurement invariance across genders by using a multiple-group categorical CFA. All values of root mean square error approximation (RMSEA) were less than 0.08, all Comparative Fix Index (CFI) and Tucker-Lewis Index values were greater than 0.90, all ΔCFI (changes in CFI) values were less than 0.010, and ΔRMSEA (the changes in RMSEA) were less than 0.015. These findings supported the gender invariance of the DASS-21 among Chinese hospital workers.

Effect of Positive Psychological Intervention on Posttraumatic Growth among Primary Healthcare Workers in China: A Preliminary Prospective Study.

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is defined as positive psychological change in the wake of highly challenging circumstances. Healthcare workers in particular are more vulnerable to stressors and trauma than the general population. The current study examined the use and effectiveness of a novel positive psychological intervention based on Chinese traditional culture to improve PTG in hospital healthcare workers. The intervention was provided to 579 healthcare workers at hospitals in Guilin, Shenzhen and Xiangtan. Scores on the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) and its subscales were significantly higher after intervention than before (p < 0.001). Of the five aspects of PTG, the aspect of "new possibilities" benefited the most from intervention (Cohen's d = 0.45). PTG in women, nurses and college graduates increased to a greater extent than other participants after intervention. It was concluded that our novel intervention is effective at improving PTG in medical staff.

[Association between androgenetic alopecia and metabolic syndrome: a meta-analysis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between androgenetic alopecia (AGA) and metabolic syndrome (MS). METHODS: Literature on association between AGA and MS up to December 26, 2013 was searched from PubMed, Web of Knowledge, Scopus, Cochrance library, SinoMed, CNKI, Wanfang and VIP databases, and the studies met the eligibility criteria were selected. Meta-analysis was performed by using StataSE 12.0 software to determine the association between AGA and MS. RESULTS: Four case-control studies and 2 cross-sectional studies met the eligibility criteria, including 950 AGA subjects and 3056 control subjects were entered the analysis. Meta-analysis showed that AGA was significantly correlated with MS (OR=2.70, 95%CI: 1.67-4.37, P<0.01). Stratification analysis showed that AGA was significantly correlated with MS in male (OR=2.30, 95%CI: 1.33-3.98, P<0.01) and female subjects (OR=4.61, 95%CI: 1.26-16.94, P<0.05); and AGA was significantly correlated with MS in European (OR=5.29, 95%CI: 2.86-9.80, P<0.01) and Asian subjects (OR=1.92, 95%CI: 1.18-3.10, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Based on the available data, AGA may be a risk factor for MS, indicating that AGA patients would be a targeting population for screening of metabolic syndrome.

Event-related potentials in response to emotional words in patients with major depressive disorder and healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: Dysfunctional cognitive processing and abnormal brain activation in response to emotional stimuli have long been recognized as core features of the major depressive disorder (MDD). The aim of this study was to examine how Chinese patients with MDD process Chinese emotional words presented to either the left (LH) or right hemisphere (RH). METHODS: Reaction time (RT) and the late positive component of the event-related potential were measured while subjects judged the valence (positive or negative) of emotional words written in Chinese. RESULTS: Compared to healthy controls, patients with MDD exhibited slower RTs in response to negative words. In all subjects, the RTs in response to negative words were significantly faster than RTs in response to positive words presented to the LH, as well as significantly faster than responses to negative words presented to the RH. Compared to healthy controls, MDD patients exhibited reduced activation of the central and left regions of the brain in response to both negative and positive words. In healthy controls, the posterior brain areas were more active than the anterior brain areas when responding to negative words. CONCLUSION: All individuals showed faster RTs in response to negative words compared to positive words. In addition, MDD patients showed lateralization of brain activity in response to emotional words, whereas healthy individuals did not show this lateralization. Posterior brain areas appear to play an especially important role in discriminating and experiencing negative emotional words. This study provides further evidence in support of the negative bias hypothesis and the emotional processing theory.

P300 differences exist between Tourette's syndrome with and without attention deficiency and hyperactivity disorder in children.

OBJECTIVE: To study the characteristics of P300 in Tourette's syndrome (TS) with and without attention deficiency and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). METHOD: Auditory evoked P300 were recorded in 19 TS only (TS-ADHD) children, 15 TS with ADHD (TS + ADHD) children and 20 unaffected control subjects, and their waveforms, amplitudes, latencies and topographies were compared at Fz, Cz, C3, C4 and Pz. RESULTS: The TS + ADHD group showed shorter latencies than control subjects at all electrode sites (P<0.05 or 0.01), and the TS-ADHD group at CZ and PZ (P<0.05); however, there was no significant difference between control subjects and the TS-ADHD group. The TS-ADHD group showed smaller amplitudes than the control group at all electrode sites (P<0.05), and the TS + ADHD group at Cz (P<0.05); however, there were no significant differences between control subjects and the TS + ADHD group. There was no significant difference in the prevalence of abnormal waveforms between the control, TS, TS-ADHD and TS + ADHD groups, but there were significant differences in the variability of localization of P300 between the control and the TS group (P=0.003), control and TS + ADHD groups (P=0.000), and the TS-ADHD and TS + ADHD groups (P=0.039). P300 in the TS + ADHD group tended to spread out to the left and that of the TS-ADHD group tended to spread out to the right. CONCLUSIONS: P300 differences exist between TS-ADHD and TS + ADHD in children. These suggested that establishment different development defects or delay of communications between different structures rather than a delay in maturation of the structures themselves may be involved in TS + ADHD and TS-ADHD children and ADHD symptoms in TS patients are likely a trait rather than adventitious or acquired within the TS syndrome.

[Motor cortex by real-time imaging process functional MRI during finger movements].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the techniques of RTIP-fMRI scanning and the correspondence between structure and functional changes of motor cortex during self-paced finger movements by RTIP-fMRI in normal volunteers. METHODS: The 15 healthy volunteers were studied by RTIP-fMRI, and the activation tasks consisted of self-paced finger movements performed with the right and the left hands. Image postprocessing was done on the workstation by "correlation coefficient" algorithm analysis method, IAC and SPM software. RESULTS: There was a good correspondence between the anatomical landmarks of the somatotopical organization of primary motor areas in the 15 volunteers; during the finger tasks, the functional changes occurred in the contralateral primary motor-somatosensory cortex (M1/S1), the supplementary motor area (SMA), and the ipsilateral primary motor cortex. CONCLUSION: RTIP, a promising new technique, can localize the motor cortex accurately. It is superior to any other fMRI techniques, and may be used widely in the function research of the brain.