Industrial Psychiatry Journal最新文献

Background: Substance abuse is a significant public health concern in India, often leading to social stigma, poor support for treatment, difficulties in interpersonal relationships, challenges in securing employment, and strained family dynamics.

Aim: To investigate the factors influencing nurses' attitudes toward patients with substance use disorders.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional quantitative study recruited 272 participants through a total enumeration sampling technique, including registered nurses working in a Tertiary Hospital, who met the inclusion criteria. Data were collected using the Brief Substance Abuse Attitude Survey (BSAAS), and appropriate statistical tests were applied.

Results: The study reported a mean BSAAS score of 77.15 ± 17.07, indicating predominantly positive attitudes. A statistically significant negative correlation was found between age and attitude scores (r = -0.05, P ≤ 0.05), suggesting that older nurses had slightly less positive attitudes. Similarly, greater work experience (r = -0.05, P ≤ 0.05) was associated with lower attitude scores. In-service and continuing education showed a weak positive correlation (r = 0.02, P ≤ 0.05), indicating minimal impact.

Conclusion: Indian nurses generally exhibited a moderately positive attitude toward patients with substance use disorders. Regular sensitization through targeted training programs is recommended to enhance nurses' attitudes.

Background: Anxiety disorders (ADs) are frequently underrecognized by individuals experiencing symptoms and clinicians, despite their notable prevalence in tertiary care settings (12.9%-28.9%).

Aim: To assess the current prevalence and socio-clinical correlates of ADs in the psychiatric outpatient department of a quaternary care hospital.

Materials and methods: A total of 400 adult outpatients were recruited from September 2016 to October 2017. Diagnoses were made using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders-IV-TR criteria via the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview Plus version 5.0.0, along with a semi-structured interview. Patients diagnosed primarily with an AD were further assessed using the Clinical Global Impression-Severity scale and the Sheehan Disability Scale. Prevalence rates and associations were analyzed using Pearson's Chi-square or Fisher's Exact Test, with significance set at 5%.

Results: The current prevalence of ADs was 12.75%. Of these, 75% were male and 67% were married. Most belonged to the 18-30 (37.3%) and 31-45 (47.1%) age groups. A majority (57%) came from a middle socio-economic background, and 69% lived in urban areas. Comorbidity was notable, with 57% of individuals with ADs also having common mental disorders, and 46% exhibiting coexisting ADs.

Conclusion: The study highlights a substantial prevalence of ADs in a quaternary care psychiatric outpatient setting.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) leads to one of the highest death rates among noncommunicable diseases and often leads to psychiatric comorbidities such as depression and anxiety, resulting in impaired quality of life.

Aim: To determine prevalence and severity of anxiety and depression in CKD patients and assess their impact on health-related quality of life (QoL).

Materials and methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 96 CKD patients attending the nephrology clinic in tertiary care hospital. Each patient's sociodemographic and clinical details (including CKD stage and serum creatinine) were recorded. They were evaluated using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), and the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) for QoL. Descriptive statistics, Spearman's rho for correlations, Jonckheere-Terpstra (J-T) test for trend across ordered groups, and binary logistic regression were used.

Results: 84.4% of participants had mild anxiety, while 50% had mild to moderate depression. All domains of SF-36 QoL survey were negatively correlated with HAM-A and HAM-D scores. The J-T test showed a statistically significant decreasing trend in median SF-36 domain scores with increasing severity of anxiety and depression (P ≤ 0.05 for all domains). In regression analysis, advanced CKD stage and poor QoL were associated with higher odds of anxiety and depression, whereas better QoL had a protective effect.

Conclusions: CKD patients frequently experience mild anxiety and mild to moderate depression, which are associated with significantly lower QoL. Regular psychiatric evaluation and management in CKD are crucial to improve patient outcomes and overall quality of life.

Background: Pregabalin, a Gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) analog, is widely prescribed for neuropathic pain, anxiety disorders, and epilepsy. However, its potential for misuse has raised significant public health concerns globally. The misuse of pregabalin is increasingly reported in our part of the world, where substance abuse is already a growing issue due to social, political, and psychological vulnerabilities.

Aim: This study aimed to assess the profile and prevalence of pregabalin abuse among patients visiting a de-addiction center in Kashmir.

Material and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 43 patients admitted to a de-addiction center in Kashmir over 3 months. Data on sociodemographics, substance use patterns, and reasons for misuse were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire.

Results: Out of the 43 patients, 19 (44.2%) reported pregabalin as the primary substance abused, while 24 (55.8%) reported it as a secondary substance. Males constituted 93% of the sample, with the majority (72.1%) aged 18-35 years. Polysubstance use was observed in 65% of patients, primarily involving opioids (51.2%) and synthetic drugs such as tramadol and codeine (39.5%). Common reasons for abuse included anxiety relief (55.8%), pain relief (37.2%), and recreational use (30.2%).

Conclusion: Pregabalin abuse is an emerging issue in Kashmir, often associated with polysubstance use and psychiatric comorbidities. Urgent steps are needed to regulate its availability, raise awareness regarding its abuse potential, and improve access to mental health services in the region.

The rise of social media, while revolutionizing the way one communicates, has also produced a rampant issue of cyberbullying with severe aftermaths, including emotional harm, social exclusion, and even suicide in some cases. Efforts have been ongoing to stop this, yet cyberbullying continues its growth through anonymity and ready accessibility provided by online resources. Deep learning techniques appeared to be the most promising, as they allow for recognizing cyberbullying through analyzing textual content and images and various user behaviors, yielding more accurate and comprehensive detection procedures than the traditional ones applied. Among the models using transformer-based and recurrent neural networks, there are perfect models for detecting harassment and threats, impersonation, and cyberbullying. Multimodal data, including emojis and sentiment analysis, have been added to improve detection accuracy as they capture subtle nuances in online communication. However, challenges persist in terms of difficulties in annotating data, slang, and context-dependent interpretations of cyberbullying. The anonymity of users further complicates the identification of perpetrators. This short communication discusses the potential of deep learning in tackling cyberbullying, underlining recent progress, challenges, and the need for further research and collaboration between academia, industry, and policymakers to produce more effective, ethical, and culturally sensitive solutions for cyberbullying detection worldwide.

Background: Substance dependence (SuD) has emerged as a focal point of concern among healthcare professionals, particularly those specializing in mental health. Hence, exploring the psychological factors linked to SuD is crucial.

Aim: To evaluate the role of alexithymia, emotion regulation strategies (ERS), psychological well-being (PSW), and internet addiction (IA) in individuals with SuD and those without SuD.

Materials and methods: The study employed a cross-sectional design, enrolling 75 male individuals diagnosed with SUD and 75 male participants without SuD from the general population, aged between 18 and 40 years, selected using a purposive sampling technique. The assessment tools utilized in this study included the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Drug Abuse Screening Tool (DAST), Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and Ryff's Psychological Well-Being Scale.

Results: The findings indicated that alexithymia was found to be more prevalent in individuals with SuD in comparison to those without SuD. Those with SuD tended to utilize expressive suppression to regulate their emotions, while individuals without SuD tended to employ cognitive reappraisal as an ERS. PSW was lower in individuals with SuD as opposed to those without SuD. Individuals with SuD exhibited higher levels of IA compared to their non-SuD counterparts. Additionally, the results indicated that among all variables, Alexithymia significantly positively predicted the severity of SuD, which was measured using the DAST accounting for 70% of the variance in severity of SuD among individuals with SuD.

Conclusions: The research emphasizes significant psychological distinctions between individuals with and without SuD, with alexithymia serving as a crucial predictor of the severity of dependence.

Background: Gaming disorder is a rapidly developing public health problem that can lead to detrimental psychological effects.

Aim: The study aimed to assess the association between gaming disorders and psychosocial correlates among adolescents in selected schools of New Delhi.

Materials and methods: A web-based cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 111 adolescents using total enumerative sampling technique from November to December 2021 in selected schools of New Delhi. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires, consisting of sociodemographic questions, IGDS-SF9, PSQI, ICQ, DASS-21, and IPPA. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Descriptive statistics were used to find out frequencies, percentages, and so on. Pearson Chi-square test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used to determine the association between the variables.

Results: The mean age (in years) of study participants was found to be 16.19 ± 2.49. Most of the adolescents were male (56.8%), belonged to nuclear families (61.3%), and were residents of the urban area (75.7%). The prevalence of gaming disorder was found to be 17.1% in adolescents. A statistically significant association was found between gaming disorder and depression (P < 0.001), anxiety (P < 0.001), stress (P < 0.001), sleep quality (P < 0.001), and relationship with father (P < 0.05). Additionally, there was no significant relationship found between gaming disorder and relationship with mother and interpersonal competence among adolescents.

Conclusion: Adolescents were experiencing depression, anxiety, stress, and poor sleep quality as a result of gaming disorder. Therefore, combined efforts of parents, teachers, doctors, and counsellors are required to help adolescents in coping with psychosocial issues.

Background: Suicidality is a major public health concern, particularly among individuals with Major depressive disorder (MDD). While perfectionism, self-esteem, and body image dissatisfaction have each been linked to suicidality, their combined effects remain underexplored.

Aim: The study assessed whether self-esteem and body image dissatisfaction mediate the link between perfectionism and suicidality in depressed young adults.

Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 80 young adults (aged 18-35) diagnosed with MDD at a tertiary care center in India. Participants were assessed using validated scales. Correlational analyses, multiple regression, and serial mediation were employed to evaluate direct and indirect relationships.

Results: Perfectionism correlated positively with body image concern (r = 0.68) and suicidality (r = 0.69) and negatively with self-esteem (r = -0.69). Self-esteem was negatively associated with body image concern (r = -0.72) and suicidality (r = -0.51). Body image concern positively correlated with suicidality (r = 0.59). Perfectionism (B = 0.5523, P = 0.001) and body image concern (B = 0.2633, P = 0.041) significantly predicted suicidality. Mediation analysis showed a significant total (c = 0.0649) and direct (c' =0.0333) effect of perfectionism on suicidality. The hypothesized mediation pathway was not significant, but the reverse pathway (perfectionism → self-esteem → body image → suicidality) was statistically significant (effect size = 0.0101).

Conclusion: Perfectionism was associated with increased suicidality, with body image dissatisfaction acting as a key mediating factor. While self-esteem did not directly mediate this link, it may influence suicidality indirectly through its impact on body image.

Students of Health professions education suffer higher rate of mental illness compared to age-matched peers. Stigma, worries about confidentiality, poor accessibility are barriers to help-seeking among students. To overcome these, we started a Distress and Suicide Prevention Help (DASH) for the students of the University in May 2019. This study aimed to collect feedback on utilization of DASH service. An anonymous cross-sectional survey using a Google form was carried out among service users. The treating consultant retrieved service users' contacts from hospital records. The investigator-designed questionnaire consisted of fifteen Likert scale questions and three open-ended questions related to the DASH service. Sixty-two service users were approached, of whom 31 users responded [8 males, 23 females, response rate 50%]. Anxiety, sadness, and difficulty in concentration were the most common presenting complaints. Adjustment disorder, MDD, and anxiety disorder were the most common diagnoses. Overall experience was rated as good to extremely good by 93.5% (n = 29) of the respondents. Eighty-seven percent (n = 27) of respondents found the consultations helped reduce distress. The most frequent response on the qualitative question "Explain how the DASH service helped mitigate your distress?" was "it helped reduce their distress" [16/30 responses, 53.3%]. Other responses to this question were a lack of worry about confidentiality, easy approachability, a non-judgmental stance, and good rapport with consultants. DASH service users' experience was positive and helpful in mitigating distress. Assuring maintenance of confidentiality, ensuring timely availability, a safe-environment, and diversity in communication channels amongst service users can encourage help-seeking behavior amongst students.

Background: Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest, negatively affects how an individual is, and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. The primary treatment modality used in depression is a combination of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. Predictors of response to treatment in depressed patients are found to be a significant issue in their recovery, mainly the sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological variables.

Aim: This study aims to find out the role of psychological variables in the prediction of the treatment outcome of depressed patients.

Materials and methods: 60 depressed patients (moderate and severe level) having the first episode were selected as per ICD-10 DCR criteria through purposive sampling and inclusion criteria.

Results: Cognitive variables like attention have been found to have a positive role in the treatment recovery of depressed patients. No other cognitive variable, coping strategies, or personality factors have been found to have any predictive role in the treatment response of depression.

Conclusion: More researches need to be conducted to help fully elucidate the relationship between cognitive variables, coping strategies, and personality factors and their predictive role in treatment outcomes of depression.