Comparison of the Indicators of Psychological Stress in the Population of Hubei Province and Non-Endemic Provinces in China During Two Weeks During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Outbreak in February 2020.

BACKGROUND During February 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in Hubei Province, China, was at its height, requiring isolation of the population. This study aimed to compare the emotional state, somatic responses, sleep quality, and behavior of people in Hubei Province with non-endemic provinces in China during two weeks in February 2020.  MATERIAL AND METHODS Questionnaires were completed by 939 individuals (357 men; 582 women), including 33 from Hubei and 906 from non-endemic provinces. The Stress Response Questionnaire (SRQ) determined the emotional state, somatic responses, and behavior. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used to measure the duration of sleep and sleep quality. RESULTS There were 939 study participants, aged 18-24 years (35.89%) and 25-39 years (35.57%); 65.92% were university students. During a two week period in February 2020, the emotional state and behavior of participants in Hubei improved, but the quality of sleep did not. Health workers and business people became increasingly anxious, but other professionals became less anxious. The data showed that most people in Hubei Province developed a more positive attitude regarding their risk of infection and the chances of surviving the COVID-19 epidemic. CONCLUSIONS During a two-week period, front-line health workers and people in Hubei Province became less anxious about the COVID-19 epidemic, but sleep quality did not improve. Despite public awareness, levels of anxiety exist that affect the quality of life during epidemics, including periods of population quarantine. Therefore, health education should be combined with psychological counseling for vulnerable individuals.

Maladaptive exercise in eating disorders: lifetime and current impact on mental health and treatment seeking.

BACKGROUND: Many patients with eating disorders report exercise as a central symptom of their illness-as a way to compensate for food intake, prevent weight-gain, and/or reduce negative affect. Previous findings show associations between maladaptive exercise and more severe eating disorder pathology, higher risk for relapse, other co-morbid symptoms, and worse treatment outcome. METHODS: In this study, we included 8252 participants with eating disorders and investigated associations between maladaptive exercise (both lifetime and current) and ED pathology, illness duration, depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidal ideation, and treatment seeking patterns in individuals with lifetime maladaptive exercise. Participants were included via the Swedish site of the large global study The Eating Disorders Genetics Initiative (EDGI) and completed measures of both lifetime and current symptomatology. RESULTS: Results indicate that lifetime maladaptive exercise is associated with higher prevalence of lifetime depression and anxiety and with patients more often receiving treatment, although these results need to be investigated in future studies. Current maladaptive exercise was associated with more severe ED symptoms, and higher levels of depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive traits, and suicidal ideation. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings point to the complexities of exercise as an eating disorder symptom and the need for clearly assessing and acknowledging this, as well as tailoring interventions to treat this symptom to achieve sustainable recovery.

Many individuals with eating disorders view exercise as a crucial aspect of their illness, often using it to control weight and emotions. Research suggests that maladaptive exercise correlates with more severe eating disorder symptoms, increased risk of relapse, and poorer treatment outcomes. Analyzing data from 8252 participants with eating disorders, this study from the Swedish site of The Eating Disorders Genetics Initiative (EDGI) found that lifetime maladaptive exercise is linked to higher rates of depression and anxiety and increased treatment seeking behaviors. Current maladaptive exercise was associated with heightened eating disorder severity, depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive traits, and suicidal thoughts. These findings underscore the importance of recognizing exercise as a symptom of eating disorders and tailoring interventions accordingly for sustainable recovery.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Scientific Publications on Eating Disorder Prevention in the Past Three Decades.

BACKGROUND: Eating disorders (EDs) present a growing concern due to their widespread occurrence and chronic course, the low access to evidence-based treatment, and the significant burden they place on the patients and society. This picture justifies intensive focus on the prevention of EDs. The current study provides the first bibliometric analysis of research on the prevention of EDs, focusing on trends and contributions, to prompt further prevention research. METHODS: We conducted a bibliometric analysis of publications on the prevention of EDs using the Web of Science database, from 1993 to 2023. Focusing on universal and selective prevention strategies, our study involved a rigorous selection process, narrowing down from 10,546 to 383 relevant papers through manual screening. The analysis utilized the "bibliometrix" R package (version 4.2.2) and Python (version 3.9.6) for data processing, with VOSviewer employed for mapping collaboration networks. RESULTS: Our analysis revealed a consistent annual growth rate of 10.85% in ED prevention research publications, with significant contributions from the "International Journal of Eating Disorders" and some notable authors. The United States emerged as the dominant contributor. The analysis also highlighted key trends, including a surge in publications between 2010 and 2017, and the role of major institutions in advancing research in this field. DISCUSSION: The increasing rate of publications on the prevention of EDs is encouraging. However, the actual number of studies on the prevention of EDs are limited, and the majority of this work is performed by a few research groups. Given the high concentration of publications within a few countries and research groups, increased funding, facilitation of prevention research on a wider scale, and engagement of more researchers and further collaboration are called for.

Academic Publication of Neurodegenerative Diseases From a Bibliographic Perspective: A Comparative Scientometric Analysis.

Background: For measuring the impact in clinical and scientific research, the citation count of the articles is used in the bibliometric analysis, although there is no comprehensive summary of neurodegenerative disease research. This study intends to provide the neuroscientists and investigators with a practical reference guide to appraise the most important and influential articles written on this subject through a macroscopic view of the research activities on neurodegenerative diseases. Materials and Methods: The Clarivate Analytics Web of Science was searched in July 2020. To ensure the breadth of the search scope, the search terms were confirmed as "multiple sclerosis" (MS) or "amyotrophic lateral sclerosis" (ALS) or "Parkinson's" or "Alzheimer's" or "Huntington's" or "neurodegenerative." After excluding completely unrelated articles, the top-cited articles were collected and evaluated from special characteristics. The data analysis was performed using SPSS 18.0. The articles were characterized by citation number, publication year, topic, study type, authorship, journal, country, and institute of responding author and foundation. Results: The query identified 593,050 articles. A total of 45% of the top-cited articles were published during 2000-2009, followed by 30 articles from 1990-1999. Diagnosis and pathology were the main research categories (n = 62). Alzheimer's disease (AD) was the main study topic (n = 43). Meanwhile, the United States confirmed the tremendous impact on the field of neurodegenerative diseases. Notably, 69 of 100 articles were studied in the United States, and the National Institutes of Health sponsored 49 articles. There were only 22 articles that can be divided by evidence level. No article was categorized as level 1 evidence. In the journal list with multiple articles, seven of 15 were general journals. The 58 authors, who contributed to more than one article, have been identified by VOSviewer, and the clusters of authors reveal the evolution of research focus in neurodegenerative diseases. Conclusions: This study analyzed the bibliometric characteristics and connections of 100 top-cited articles in the field of neurodegenerative diseases in the Web of Science. Their main outcomes were as follows: First, the pathology and diagnostic researches took a major role in top-cited articles while the therapy articles are relatively less. Second, the United States confirmed the tremendous impact on the field of neurodegenerative diseases. Third, researchers also submitted their researches to general journals, not just focused on specialty journals.

Delayed-Onset PTSD and Coping Strategies of Chinese College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a pandemic, and many Chinese college students both in China and abroad were house-quarantined. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and symptoms of delayed-onset post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and coping strategies among Chinese overseas and domestic college students during this pandemic. A questionnaire was opportunistically distributed to Chinese college students studying both domestically and abroad six months after the COVID-19 outbreak. The questionnaire consisted of IES-R, SCSQ, and SSRS. The average score of delayed-onset PTSD in our population was 21.411 (full mark, 88 points), which reflected a total high level of delayed-onset PTSD symptoms. Statistical differences were shown between students who have been back to universities during the pandemic or not in the hyperarousal dimension (p = 0.016). Three coping strategies were recognized to influence the respondent's delayed-onset PTSD symptoms, and there was a significant correlation between social support and the coping strategies students chose. A moderate to high level of delayed-onset PTSD was observed among both Chinese overseas and domestic college students 6 months after the COVID-19 outbreak. The useful coping strategies and powerful social supports are significantly important to help them stay mentally healthy and alleviate delayed-onset PTSD during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Evaluation of psychological stress in scientific researchers during the 2019-2020 COVID-19 outbreak in China.

BACKGROUND: Beginning in December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused an outbreak of infectious pneumonia. The Chinese government introduced a series of grounding measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The living and working patterns of many scientific researchers also underwent significant changes during this period. METHODS: An opportunity sample (n = 251) was obtained in China using a questionnaire with 42 questions on scientific research progress and psychological stress during the COVID-19 epidemic. RESULTS: Of the 251 participants, 76.9% indicated that their research was affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, and participants who were affected by the outbreak had higher stress levels than those who were not affected. Participants who conducted COVID-19 research and indicated concern that they would fail to finish the research on time were more likely to indicate high levels of stress. Respondents indicated that extending deadlines (64.1%), receiving support from superiors for research (51.8%), and increasing benefits for researchers (51.0%) would likely relieve outbreak-related stress. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 outbreak had a major impact on the experiments of researchers in the life sciences, especially in basic and clinical medicine. It has also caused high levels of psychological stress in these populations. Measures should be taken to relieve psychological pressure on basic medical researchers and students who will soon complete their degrees (e.g., Master's and PhD candidates in graduation years).