Journal of Affective Disorders Reports最新文献

{"title":"Does interoceptive sensibility mediate the relationship between alexithymia and sleep quality?","authors":"Emma Ryan,&nbsp;Sinéad Smyth","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100884","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100884","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sleep is a significant transdiagnostic factor, a lack of which can result in various psychological, cognitive, and physical impacts. Since the presence of alexithymic traits have been linked to both sleep and interoception, and because of evidence revealing bidirectional relationships between interoception and sleep, the current study aimed to examine these intricate connections. Specifically, we investigated (1) the factors influencing interoceptive sensibility (IS) (a component of interoception), and (2) whether IS mediates the relationship between alexithymia and sleep quality. Two-hundred-and-sixty participants completed a cross-sectional survey online. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that alexithymia, positive affect, and negative affect accurately predicted variance in participants’ IS scores. There were significant, negative relationships between <em>alexithymia, sleep quality,</em> and <em>negative affect</em> and IS, and a significant positive relationship between <em>positive affect</em> and IS. Participants’ caffeine consumption, age and sex did not predict variance in IS scores. Finally, IS mediated the relationship between alexithymia and sleep quality in this population. These findings provide insight into the importance of emotional and physiological health within the context of sleep health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100884"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143395278","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Heightened demand for mental health information resources during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Germany: A retrospective longitudinal analysis of helpline calls","authors":"Jil Zippelius ,&nbsp;Simon Schreynemackers ,&nbsp;Ulrich Hegerl ,&nbsp;Hanna Reich","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100885","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100885","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic precipitated disruptions and limitations in medical services which led to changes in help-seeking behaviour. There was a surge the demand for crisis hotlines. The “Info-Telefon Depression”, a hotline primarily focused on offering information about depressive disorders rather than crisis intervention. This study investigated the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on hotline usage trends through a time-series analysis.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Based on longitudinal data from 2018 to 2022 predictive models were developed for caller trends on the Info-Telefon Depression. These predictive models were validated by comparing the anticipated caller volumes with actual observations. Unique weekly seasonality parameters were assigned to the lockdown phases to capture anticipated variations in calling patterns. Furthermore, rolling back cross-validation was employed to iteratively assess mean absolute errors over one-month periods during the pre-phase, the SARS-CoV-2-phase and the post-phase to explore variations in forecast quality across these timeframes.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>There were 56 more calls observed during the first lockdown phase than anticipated by the forecast model, a statistically significant finding (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.005). During the second lockdown phase, the difference was even greater (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.005) with 262 calls more than expected. The modelling accuracy of the prophet models has differences between the phases indicating that the SARS-CoV-2-phase has a different dynamic.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The study demonstrated that information-seeking behaviour changed during the pandemic, especially during the lockdown phases. In the event of health crises, more resources must be allocated to meet the increased demand for mental health services. Further research needs to explore the pandemic preparedness and crisis readiness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100885"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143377888","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Self-assessed depressive symptoms in adolescents comparing two Swedish cohorts born 15 years apart","authors":"Carl Wikberg ,&nbsp;Pia Augustsson ,&nbsp;Marcus Praetorius Björk ,&nbsp;Tord Ivarsson ,&nbsp;Gudny Sveinsdottir ,&nbsp;Eiríkur Örn Arnarson ,&nbsp;W. Edward Craighead ,&nbsp;Ina Marteinsdottir ,&nbsp;Josefine Lilja","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100878","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100878","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Depression in adolescence is a significant global health concern, notably in Sweden where recent trends suggest an increase in depressive symptoms among adolescents. This study aims to explore changes in the prevalence of self-reported depressive symptoms among Swedish high school students over the past two decades, utilizing the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI).</div></div><div><h3>Method</h3><div>A cohort study was conducted with two adolescent groups aged 13–16 years old, born nearly twenty years apart. The first cohort (<em>n</em> = 80), recruited in 2004, and the second (<em>n</em> = 617), recruited between 2019 and 2020, were both assessed using the CDI. The study employed a comparative analysis, using independent samples <em>t</em>-tests, ANOVA, and the Mann-Whitney U test for item-specific comparisons.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The analysis revealed no significant differences in total CDI scores between the 2004 and 2019/20 cohorts. However, the later cohort exhibited higher scores on three CDI items (\"Nothing is fun at all,\" \"I am bad all the time,\" \"I can never be as good as other kids\") and in the sub-domain of self-deprecation. Sex differences were observed, with girls scoring higher than boys in both cohorts.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>There is no statistically significant increase in self-assessed levels of depressive symptoms among adolescents when comparing the 2004 and 2019–20 cohorts. However, there are higher scores in specific areas of the CDI in the later cohort, particularly among young women. This study underscores the need for continuous, structured assessments of adolescent mental health, considering societal changes and trends.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100878"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143260142","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Study on the prediction model of non-suicidal self-injury behavior risk during hospitalization for adolescent inpatients with depression based on medical data.","authors":"Yanyan Zhang,&nbsp;Huirong Guo,&nbsp;Yali Wang,&nbsp;Junru Wang,&nbsp;Yuming Ren","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100883","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100883","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Purpose</h3><div>To develop a predictive model for identifying risk factors of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) during hospitalization in adolescents. By analyzing 1242 inpatient records, we explored NSSI risk factors in depressed adolescents and established a clinical predictive nomogram.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We collected electronic medical records from the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2021 to May 2023. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression with tenfold cross-validation was used for variable selection. Multivariable logistic regression was then applied to build the predictive model. A nomogram was developed based on the selected variables and validated using a calibration plot, receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), and decision curve analysis (DCA). External validation was also performed.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Six predictors were identified: sex, self-injury within 1 month before hospitalization, current course, history of attempted suicide, with suicide idea, and history of self-injury. The nomogram showed satisfactory discrimination in both the training (AUC 0.927; 95% CI: 0.844-0.905) and validation (AUC 0.907; 95% CI: 0.879-0.902) sets. Decision curve analysis(DCA) indicated clinical utility when the risk threshold was between 15% and 83%, with external validation confirming this range as 17% to 80%.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>We developed a nomogram to predict NSSI risk in hospitalized adolescent inpatients with depression. The nomogram demonstrated favorable calibration and discrimination, aiding clinicians in identifying at-risk inpatients and facilitating timely interventions, providing a reference for future prevention.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100883"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143171407","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ambulance attendances involving personality disorder – investigation of crisis-driven re-attendances for mental health, alcohol and other drug, and suicide-related events","authors":"JH Broadbear ,&nbsp;RP Ogeil ,&nbsp;M McGrath ,&nbsp;DS Scott ,&nbsp;Z Nehme ,&nbsp;F Moayeri ,&nbsp;D Lubman ,&nbsp;S Rao","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100882","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100882","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Mental health crises experienced by people with personality disorder often necessitate emergency service involvement. Ambulance services are frequently first responders. Acute crisis presentations of people experiencing personality disorder can be a source of anxiety and frustration for emergency workers, especially when they recur frequently. This study evaluated the utilisation of ambulance services for mental health, alcohol and other drug, and suicide-related events in association with personality disorder, to understand how system responses can be improved.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We conducted a retrospective study of coded electronic patient care records from the Victorian-arm of the National Ambulance Surveillance System between January 2012 and May 2019. Records where ‘borderline personality disorder’ or ‘other personality disorders’ was noted were assessed using patient demographics, presentation, outcome, and re-presentation frequency, in comparison with attendances for ‘other mental health conditions’.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>76,929 attendances for 9,632 people with borderline and/or other personality disorder were identified. Most presentations involved suicide attempts, suicidal ideation, non-suicidal self-injury, and drug and alcohol harms. Most attendances (87.9%) were transported to emergency departments. Re-attendance was common; 8.3% of people accounted for 49.6% of all attendances involving personality disorder.</div></div><div><h3>Limitations</h3><div>The study data likely underrepresent the prevalence of personality disorder in ambulance attendances, as a diagnosis was noted by paramedics only if it was considered relevant to the attendance and volunteered at the scene.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Two-thirds of service users noted to have personality disorder required ambulance services three or more times per year, highlighting the need for evidence-based alternatives to reduce the incidence of mental health crises and reliance on emergency services. These findings are a valuable reminder to emergency clinicians that they are primarily seeing service users who have the most severe presentations, and may serve as a bulwark against therapeutic nihilism.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100882"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143171405","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prolonged grief and posttraumatic stress in parents who lost a child in a road traffic accident: A latent class analysis","authors":"I. van Dijk ,&nbsp;P.A. Boelen ,&nbsp;J. de Keijser ,&nbsp;L. Reitsma ,&nbsp;L.I.M. Lenferink","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100879","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100879","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The traumatic loss of a child in a road traffic accident (RTA) can lead to mental health issues in parents, such as symptoms of prolonged grief (PG) and posttraumatic stress (PTS). Latent class analysis (LCA) provides insights into different responses to such losses.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Using LCA, 148 parents that were bereaved at least twelve months earlier, were categorized into latent classes based on similar response patterns. Associations between class membership and sociodemographic and loss-related variables and self-directed anger were examined.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Two symptom patterns emerged: a 'High PG/Moderate PTS' pattern (73.2 %) and a 'Moderate-High PG/Low PTS' pattern (26.8 %). Mothers and those with more self-directed anger were more likely to present with the first symptom pattern.</div></div><div><h3>Limitations</h3><div>Inclusion of parents undergoing therapy for clinically relevant symptoms, small sample size, no differentiation between parents of minor and adult children, and including only four PTS symptoms are limitations that may have influenced the identified symptom patterns.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Parents who lost a child in a RTA seem at risk for developing psychological symptoms, with PG being more predominant than PTS. The study highlights the possible value of addressing modifiable factors such as self-directed anger in therapeutic interventions for PG and PTS after traumatic loss of a child.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100879"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143260141","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Electrodermal activity and skin temperature characteristics related to stress and depression: A 4-week observational study of office workers","authors":"Yuki Ishikawa ,&nbsp;Tatsuki Sugio ,&nbsp;Kiko Shiga ,&nbsp;Keisuke Izumi ,&nbsp;Kazumichi Minato ,&nbsp;Momoko Kitazawa ,&nbsp;Sayaka Hanashiro ,&nbsp;Ryo Takemura ,&nbsp;Hiroyuki Uchida ,&nbsp;Taishiro Kishimoto","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100877","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100877","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Mental health problems, particularly depression, significantly impact the working-age population and incur substantial socioeconomic costs. Electrodermal activity (EDA) and skin temperature, measurable through wearable devices, have emerged as potential biomarkers of depression. However, there is a lack of long-term observational studies in real-world settings.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>This 4-week observational study analyzed data from 147 office workers across 11 Japanese companies. Participants wore wearable devices during working hours for four weeks to collect EDA and skin temperature data. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and stress was assessed using the 10-item version of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). The associations between electrodermal activity, skin temperature, and depressive/stress states were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U test and logistic regression analysis.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Participants with PHQ-9 scores ≥5 showed higher median skin conductance and median tonic signal, although these differences lost statistical significance after Bonferroni correction. Logistic regression analysis revealed a negative correlation between age and both PHQ-9 and PSS-10 scores (OR=0.525, 0.646). The mean and standard deviation of skin temperature showed a positive association with depressive symptoms (OR=1.687, 1.733), while normalized EDASymp showed a negative association (OR=0.564).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>This study suggests that EDA and skin temperature, measured by wearable devices, may be associated with depressive symptoms among office workers. These physiological indicators could be utilized for mental health monitoring and early intervention in the workplace. Further validation with larger samples, and long-term follow-up studies, are warranted.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100877"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143350948","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Socioeconomic correlates of mental health in Moldova: A nationally representative door-to-door survey","authors":"J.M. van Baar ,&nbsp;C. Ciofu ,&nbsp;F. Thompson ,&nbsp;A.I. Luik ,&nbsp;O. Mereanu ,&nbsp;J. Kramer ,&nbsp;F. Schouten ,&nbsp;V. Condrat ,&nbsp;L. Voorham ,&nbsp;J. Chihai ,&nbsp;L. Shields-Zeeman","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100876","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100876","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background and Objectives</h3><div>The mental health system in Moldova is transitioning toward a community-based model, which requires data on population mental health. This is the first mental health survey among a representative sample of the adult population.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A stratified multistage sample (n = 1826) was collected using in-person door-to-door interviewing during July and August of 2022. The main outcome measures were depression symptoms (PHQ-2), anxiety symptoms (GAD-2), loneliness (UCLA-3), and mental well-being (WHO-5). Multivariable regression models were used to compare outcomes across age, gender, ethnicity, education, employment, and household income groups.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Prevalence was 19.8% for depression, 25.5% for anxiety, and 16.1% for loneliness. Average well-being was 69.6 out of 100. Women reported higher prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms, more loneliness, and lower well-being than men. Older individuals reported higher prevalence of anxiety, more loneliness, and lower well-being than younger individuals. Individuals with low household income reported higher prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms, more loneliness, and lower well-being than those with higher income, even when adjusting for education and employment.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>The study provides new data-supported insights into the target populations most at need of mental health support in Moldova (women, older adults, and those with low income) and provides baseline data for population mental health that can inform and guide future policy and research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100876"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143171853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Suicide risk estimation in bipolar disorder using N200 and P300 event-related potentials and machine learning: A pilot study","authors":"Chaewon Lee ,&nbsp;Kathleen M. Gates ,&nbsp;Jinsoo Chun ,&nbsp;Raed Al Kontar ,&nbsp;Masoud Kamali ,&nbsp;Melvin G. McInnis ,&nbsp;Patricia Deldin","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100875","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100875","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Individuals with bipolar disorder (BD) face an elevated suicide risk. While machine learning (ML) has been used to estimate suicide risk in BD, early predictors like demographics, past attempts, and self-reports are limited by their inability to provide individualized risk estimation, overemphasis on past attempters, and susceptibility to personal biases, underscoring the need for effective, objective markers. Event-related potentials (ERPs), widely studied in suicide research, remain unexplored in ML applications for BD. This pilot study applies ML to N200 and P300 ERP components from a response inhibition paradigm to estimate suicide risk in BD.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We collected N200 and P300 peak amplitude and latency data from 57 Type I BD individuals (22 attempters and 35 non-attempters). Our two-stage ML approach employed adaptive Lasso logistic regression for feature selection, followed by deep neural network (DNN) modeling for classification. For post-hoc analysis, we used explainable AI to interpret ERP feature importance in top-performing DNN predictions.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Key features were exclusively identified from latency data. Notably, N200 latency DNN models effectively distinguished attempters from non-attempters, achieving AUCs of 78.2–89.3 %. Explainable AI pinpointed a right visual hemifield Go stimuli-induced ERP from the left-parietal site as the most predictive.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Our ERP-ML approach showed promising preliminary results, with N200 latency identified as a potential suicide marker in BD. Larger samples are required to validate these results. While findings are sample-specific, the methodological approach may have broader applicability and could inform future research to refine clinical strategies for detecting high-risk BD individuals.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100875"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143171851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Incidence of alexithymia in worsening symptoms and quality of life of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus patients (SLE)","authors":"Fabio Rapisarda ,&nbsp;Concetta Mezzatesta ,&nbsp;Antonina Butticè ,&nbsp;Alessandro Raffa ,&nbsp;Stefano Boca","doi":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100874","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100874","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Background and Objectives&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;div&gt;Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease affecting connective tissues, with the potential to impact various organs and systems, thereby limiting the quality of life for affected individuals given that it influences their psychological well-being. Indeed, various stress-inducing factors can lead to alterations in emotional regulation, often presenting, as difficulties in identifying and describing emotions, such as those associated with alexithymia. The aim of the present study is to investigate a potential correlation between the incidence of alexithymia and the worsening of symptoms, subsequently influencing the quality of life in individuals with SLE.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Materials and Methods&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;div&gt;For the realisation of the study a sample of 53 Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients, 47 females and 6 males, aged 16–59 years, was examined and compared with a control group (55 healthy subjects, aged 20–65). The group of patients was recruited within the Connetiviti outpatients’ clinic of the UOC (Complex Oparational Unit) of Rheumatology of the Paolo Giaccone University Polyclinic in Palermo, consisting of healthy subjects and/or with known diagnoses identified within non-clinical contexts, chosen randomly (statistical sense) in order to better represent the general population of the territorial context.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Specific psycho-diagnostic measures were administered: &lt;em&gt;Toronto Alexithymia Scale&lt;/em&gt; (TAS-20), &lt;em&gt;Response Evaluation Measure&lt;/em&gt; (REM-71),&lt;em&gt;Attachment Style Questionnaire&lt;/em&gt; (ASQ), &lt;em&gt;Eysenck Personality Inventory&lt;/em&gt; (EPI),&lt;em&gt;Symptom Check list&lt;/em&gt; (SCL-90), &lt;em&gt;Short Form&lt;/em&gt; (SF-36). The selection of these instruments allowed us to assess attachment styles, the presence of maladaptive personality traits, defence mechanisms employed, in order to define any symptoms indicative of a psychiatric diagnosis, and evaluate the quality of life in relation to the severity of the pathology.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Results&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;div&gt;Comparisons between the two groups revealed significant differences in the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients, compared to the control group, about the difficulty in identifying feelings and distinguishing them from the bodily sensations accompanying emotional activation, the use of conversion as a defence mechanism and the production of positive symptoms.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Moreover, in the same group, the difficulty in identifying emotions was correlated with quality of life, since those who have difficulty identifying emotions have a poorer quality of life.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Further analysis regarding the construct of alexithymia, within the patient group alone, revealed a tendency towards somatisation and the use of immature defence mechanisms, including conversion, acting out, projection, dissociation and displacement, highlighting a tendency to act out and project emotional suffering.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Furthermore, there app","PeriodicalId":52768,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Affective Disorders Reports","volume":"20 ","pages":"Article 100874"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143171406","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}