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Background: The aim of this study was to characterize at the population level how innate features of temperament relate to experience of depressive mood and anxiety, and whether these symptoms have separable temperamental backgrounds., Methods: The study subjects were 4773 members of the population-based Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966, a culturally and genetically homogeneous study sample. Temperament was measured at age 31 using the temperament items of the Temperament and Character Inventory and a separate Pessimism score. Depressive mood was assessed based on a previous diagnosis of depressive disorder or symptoms of depression according to the Hopkins Symptom Check List - 25. Anxiety was assessed analogously., Results: High levels of Harm avoidance and Pessimism were related to both depressive mood (effect sizes; d=0.84 and d=1.25, respectively) and depressive disorder (d=0.68 and d=0.68, respectively). Of the dimensions of Harm avoidance, Anticipatory worry and Fatigability had the strongest effects. Symptoms of depression and anxiety showed very similar underlying temperament patterns., Limitations: Although Harm avoidance and Pessimism appear to be important endophenotype candidates for depression and anxiety, their potential usefulness as endophenotypes, and whether they meet all the suggested criteria for endophenotypes will remain to be confirmed in future studies., Conclusions: Personality characteristics of Pessimism and Harm avoidance, in particular its dimensions Anticipatory worry and Fatigability, are strongly related to symptoms of depression and anxiety as well as to depressive disorder in this population. These temperamental features may be used as dimensional susceptibility factors in etiological studies of depression, which may aid in the development of improved clinical practice., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the dental health behavior and self-perceived dental treatment need, in relation to depressive symptoms and symptoms of anxiety, among a general population drawn from a sample of 31-yr-old-men and women born in Northern Finland in 1966 (n = 8463). The dental health behavior included toothbrushing frequency and the frequency of dental check-ups. Depressive symptoms, as well as symptoms of anxiety, were determined on the basis of the Symptom Checklist-25 (SCL-25). The participants were also asked about their education and family income. Subjects with a high number of depressive symptoms had lower toothbrushing frequency as well as a lower frequency of dental visits than subjects with no or only a few depressive symptoms. Morover, the self-perceived dental treatment need was more common among those with a high number of depressive symptoms. Symptoms of anxiety were significantly associated with lower toothbrushing frequency. The results support the view that there is an increased risk for impaired dental health among subjects with depressive symptoms or symptoms of anxiety.

Objective: Only a few studies have dealt with the association of metabolic syndrome with depression and anxiety. We studied whether metabolic syndrome and its components are associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms in a young adult population cohort., Methods: This study forms part of the Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort Study. The study sample consists of 5,698 members of the cohort who participated in the field study in 1997 to 1998. Metabolic syndrome was defined according to the five criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were defined by the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 questionnaire., Results: Metabolic syndrome was not associated with depression or anxiety. The correlations between the components of the metabolic syndrome and psychological distress as continuous measures were low. High waist circumference (>102 cm in males and >88 cm in females) associated with depression (odds ratio, 1.30; 95% confidence interval, 1.05-1.61), but this association vanished when adjusted for gender, smoking, alcohol consumption, marital status, level of education, and physical activity., Conclusion: No clear association was found between the metabolic syndrome and psychological distress.

The purpose of this study was to determine the co-occurrence of DSM- III-R personality disorders (PDs) with mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders in a young adult population. The members of the Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort Project, living in the city of Oulu with an age of 31 years (N = 1,609) were invited to participate in a two-phase field study. The SCID I and II were used as diagnostic instruments. One hundred and seventy-seven out of 321 interviewed subjects met the criteria for mood, anxiety, or substance use disorders. Altogether 72 (41%) of the subjects with an Axis I disorder met the criteria for at least one PD. The weighted co-occurrence rate of any PD varied from 28% for mood disorders to 47% for anxiety disorders. PDs, especially those in Cluster C, are highly associated with Axis I psychiatric disorders in population.

Armfield JM, Pohjola V, Joukamaa M, Mattila AK, Suominen AL, Lahti SM. Exploring the associations between somatization and dental fear and dental visiting. 
 Eur J Oral Sci 2011; 119: 288–293. © 2011 Eur J Oral Sci While somatization has been investigated as an important variable in relation to excessive health‐service utilization, its role in relation to dental visiting and dental fear has received limited attention. It was hypothesized that an excessive focus on physical symptoms might lead somatizers to experience dental treatment as more traumatic, resulting in greater dental fear. The aims of this study were to determine whether somatization was associated with dental fear, reduced dental visiting, and symptomatic visiting. Questionnaire data were collected from 5,806 dentate Finnish adults, with somatization measured using 12 items from the Symptom Check List (SCL‐90). Dental fear was measured using a single‐item question and dental visiting was assessed by questions relating to time since last dental visit and the usual reason for dental visiting. Multinomial logistic regression analyses indicated that somatization has a statistically significant positive association with both dental fear and symptomatic dental visiting after controlling for age, gender, and education. However, the association between dental‐visiting frequency and somatization was not statistically significant. The results were consistent with the hypothesized role of somatization in the development of dental fear. Further investigation of how somatization is related to dental fear and dental‐service utilization appears warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of women who seek reduction mammaplasty, up to a third have pathological degrees of anxiety or depression, or both. The psychological aspect of reduction mammaplasty is therefore an important consideration. We did a prospective randomised clinical trial to see how reduction mammaplasty affected macromastia patients’ depression, anxiety, and self-esteem. Eighty-two patients were randomised, 40 to have the operation, and 42 patients to conservative treatment. Both groups were followed for six months. The patients completed the RBDI questionnaire (Raitasalo's modification of the short form of the Beck Depression Inventory). Twenty-nine patients in the operated group and 35 patients in the conservative group completed the study. At the second examination, the patients who had been operated on, had significantly less depression ( p<0.01) and better self-esteem ( p=0.03) than the conservative group. The proportions of depressed ( p<0.01) and anxious ( p=0.04) patients were also smaller in the group who were operated on. There is significantly less depression and anxiety after reduction mammaplasty, and patients’ self-esteem is restored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to determine the co-occurrence of DSMIII-R personality disorders (PDs) with mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders in a young adult population. The members of the Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort Project, living in the city of Oulu with an age of 31 years (N = 1,609) were invited to participate in a two-phase field study. The SCID I and II were used as diagnostic instruments. One hundred and seventy-seven out of 321 interviewed subjects met the criteria for mood, anxiety, or substance use disorders. Altogether 72 (41%) of the subjects with an Axis I disorder met the criteria for at least one PD. The weighted co-occurrence rate of any PD varied from 28% for mood disorders to 47% for anxiety disorders. PDs, especially those in Cluster C, are highly associated with Axis I psychiatric disorders in population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Information on prevalence, accumulation and variation of common mental disorders is essential for both etiological research and development of mental health service systems.Methods: A representative sample (6005) of Finland's general adult (> or = 30 years) population was interviewed in the period 2000-2001 with the CIDI for presence of DSM-IV mental disorders during the last 12 months in the comprehensive, multidisciplinary Health 2000 project.Results: Depressive-, alcohol use- and anxiety disorders were found in 6.5%, 4.5 % and 4.1% of the subjects, respectively. A comorbid disorder was present in 19% of those with any disorder. Males had more alcohol use disorders (7.3 % vs. 1.4 %) and females more depressive disorders (8.3 % vs. 4.6 %). Older age, marriage and employment predicted lower prevalence of mental disorders and their comorbidity. Prevalences of alcohol use- and comorbid disorders were higher in the Helsinki metropolitan area, and depressive disorders in northern Finland.Conclusions: Mental disorders and their comorbidities are distributed unevenly between sexes and age groups, are particularly associated with marital and employment status, and vary by region. There appears to be no single population subgroup at high risk for all mental disorders, but rather several different subgroups at risk for particular disorders or comorbidity patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two research traditions, the one on Asperger syndrome (AS) and the other on alexithymia, have produced similar findings independently of each other indicating a possible association between these two phenomena. Both conditions are also associated with impaired initiation and continuity of sleep. Twenty AS adults were compared with 10 healthy controls using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and the Basic Nordic Sleep Questionnaire. AS subjects were significantly more alexithymic and reported lower sleep quality as compared with controls. AS and alexithymia are associated although the mediating factors are unknown. It is possible that alexithymic traits predispose to anxiety, which in turn lowers the sleep quality in AS adults. Alternatively, low sleep quality might be due to AS itself. Copyright © 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to discover the differences between the primary care patients with a psychiatric disorder whose illness was detected and the patients whose disorder was not detected. Method: We collected 1000 randomly selected PC patients. We used SCL‐25 as a screening method and PSE as a diagnostic tool. Results: Ninety‐one (89.2%) of the interviewed patients received a psychiatric diagnosis. The physicians detected a disorder in 36 (36.9%). A larger part of the undetected group belonged to the highest social groups. Also the SCL‐25 mean scores differed significantly, indicating that the symptoms of the undetected cases were milder. The detected cases had higher levels of anxiety and depression, but the difference in anxiety symptoms was greater between the groups. Detection was associated with treatment. Conclusion: The GPs should also be aware of psychiatric morbidity in patients with a higher social status, a good level of education and milder symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: The aim of this study was to explore the possible association between alexithymia and anxiety in a non-clinical sample of late adolescents. Methods: The questionnaire was sent to 935 adolescents of whom 729 (78%) responded, thus forming the final sample. The mean age of the subjects was 19years (range 17–21years). The Finnish versions of the following scales were used: the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) was used to assess alexithymia, and anxiety symptoms were measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Alcohol consumption was assessed using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), and depression symptoms were evaluated using the short form of the Beck Depression Inventory, as modified by Raitasalo (RBDI). Results: The prevalence of alexithymia in the sample was 8.2%, with no statistically significant gender difference. The alexithymic subjects had significantly (p <0.001) higher mean STAI scores than the non-alexithymic subjects. A vast majority of the alexithymic subjects were highly anxious, in contrast to the low proportion among the non-alexithymic subjects. The highly anxious alexithymic subjects differed statistically and significantly from the highly anxious non-alexithymic subjects, with higher scores both in the AUDIT and the RBDI. Limitations: The results are based on self-reported material alone and the cross-sectional design used in this study precludes the assessment of causal links. Conclusions: The results suggest that anxiety symptoms are independently associated with alexithymia among late adolescents in general population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]