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Aims: There has been increasing evidence of hormonal changes during reproductive events that lead to mood changes. However, studies on the severity of psychological problems according to the menopausal stage are limited. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the association between menopausal stages, depression and suicidality. Methods: A total of 45 177 women who underwent regular health check-ups between 2015 and 2018 at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital were included. Participants were stratified into four groups (pre-menopause, early transition, late transition and post-menopause) based on the Stages of Reproductive Aging Workshop Criteria. The Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale (CESD) was used to evaluate depressive symptoms, and the degree of depressive symptoms was classified as moderate (CESD score 16–24) or severe (CESD score ⩾ 25). To measure suicide risk, we administered questionnaires related to suicidal ideation. Results: Overall, the prevalence of CESD scores of 16–24 and ⩾ 25 was 7.6 and 2.8%, respectively. Menopausal stages were positively associated with depressive symptoms in a dose-dependent manner. Multivariable-adjusted prevalence ratios (PRs, 95% confidence intervals) for CESD scores of 16–24 comparing the stages of the early menopausal transition (MT), late MT and post-menopause to pre-menopause was 1.28 (1.16–1.42), 1.21 (1.05–1.38) and 1.58 (1.36–1.84), respectively. The multivariable-adjusted PRs for CESD scores ⩾ 25 comparing the stages of the early MT, late MT and post-menopause to pre-menopause were 1.31 (1.11–1.55), 1.39 (1.12–1.72), 1.86 (1.47–2.37), respectively. In addition, the multivariable-adjusted PRs for suicidal ideation comparing the early MT, late MT and post-menopause stages to the pre-menopause stage were 1.24 (1.12–1.38), 1.07 (0.93–1.24) and 1.46 (1.25–1.70) (p for trend <0.001), respectively. Conclusions: These findings indicate that the prevalence of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation increases with advancing menopausal stage, even pre-menopause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of depressive disorders remains high in patients with cancer and their diagnosis and treatment remain an epidemiologic concern. Without proper screening and diagnosis, the necessary care and follow-up would not be possible for these patients who need potential support to increase their quality of mental health. Hence, the screening tools for depression are prominent in diagnosing this mental health disorder; however, there are few studies conducted for assessing psychometric properties of Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) amongst the cancer patients from developing countries. We, therefore, determined psychometric properties of the BDI-II among cancer patients from Butaro Ambulatory Cancer Center (BACC). Methods: Cross-sectional study design was conducted among 425 cancer patients from the BACC, Rwanda. Confirmatory and exploratory factor (CFA) analyses were performed to compare the fit indices of three-factor and two-factor models of the BDI-II. The eligible participants were administered the BDI-II instrument. Results: Average scores of depression was 16.3 (SD=9.8). Results showed an adequate consistency (Cronbach's α=0.904) and high correlations with the subscales of this instrument. Our findings showed that the area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristics analysis of BDI-II was 0.805. Our CFA results revealed that three-factor model (χ2=1699.921, p< 0.001) represented a better model fit than the two-factor model of BDI-II (χ2=2115.397, p< 0.001). In addition, the goodness of fit indices were tested and showed that the Beck's three-factor model had a better performance than the two-factor model. Kaiser–Meyer–Olin (KMO) measure of 0.916 demonstrated that the factor structure or sampling was adequate for analysis and the Bartlett's test of sphericity was highly significant (χ2=3780, p< 0.001) and this revealed that the items of BDI-II were significantly correlated and sufficiently large. Conclusion: BDI-II presented a good reliability and validity that represent adequate psychometric properties. Its sensitivity and specificity were suitable. This psychometric measure is important in diagnosing and treating depression in cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

B Results: b The average depression and anxiety levels in patients with IBD were not clinically significant, However, 35% of UC patients and 45% of CD patients complained of feeling depressive based on the PHQ-9 scale, whereas 25% of UC patients and those with CD had depressive mood based on the HADS-D. In addition, 20% of UC patients and 14% of CD patients complained of anxiety. B Results: b The COVID-19 patients showed severer symptoms including post-traumatic symptoms, depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms than comparison groups across all four screening scales (p < .001) When it comes to high-risk group, COVID-19 patients had an increased association for high-risk group compared to comparison groups (PC-PTSD: OR = 17.31, 95% CI = 9.26-32.35 p < .001; PHQ-9: OR = 8.11, 95% CI = 4.75-13.84, p < .001; GAD-7: OR = 14.67, 95% CI = 8.59-25.07, p < .001 PHQ-15: OR = 5.68, 95% CI = 3.1-10.25, p < .001; P4: OR = 14.67, 95% CI = 8.95-25.07, p < .001). The interaction effect of early trauma exposure and a diagnosis of panic disorder on cortical... Iseul An 1, Minji Bang 2, Sang-Hyuk Lee 2 1 Department of Clinical Counseling Psychology Graduate School, CHA University, Korea 2 Depar... B Purpose: b Early trauma is a risk factor for adult psychiatric disorders. EP-1051 Morphologic alterations in subregions of amygdala in adults with major depressive disorder Hyeyoung Kim 1, Byung-Joo Ham 1, Kyu-Man Han 1, Jee Soo Lee 2, Yoon Mi Woo 2, Aram Kim 3... 1 Department of Psychiatry, Korea University College of Medicine, Korea 2 Department of Psych... B Purpose: b Previous studies comparing the amygdala volume in major depressive disorder (MDD) patients with the amygdala volume in healthy controls (HC) showed inconsistent results. [Extracted from the article]

This study examined the validity and reliability of the Korean version of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder‐7 (GAD‐7) scale. The GAD‐7 was standardized with data from 112 patients at a psychiatric outpatient clinic. The GAD‐7 revealed high internal consistency, good test‐retest reliability, and convergent validity. The ROC analysis resulted in poor sensitivity and specificity for detecting anxiety disorders in a psychiatric setting. The GAD‐7 may not be useful in diagnosing anxiety disorders in a psychiatric setting, even though it appears to be a reliable, efficient, and valid measurement tool for evaluating anxiety symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to identify occupational stress associated with the development of new‐onset anxiety symptoms and the dose–response relationship between sleep duration and the onset of anxiety symptoms. Data from 29,251 healthy employees who had undergone at least two comprehensive health examinations at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Health Screening Center were analysed. Anxiety symptoms were assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory. Occupational stress and sleep duration were measured using a self‐reported questionnaire about total sleep time and the Korean Occupational Stress Scale‐Short Form (KOSS‐SF), respectively. Flexible parametric proportional hazards model used to estimate the hazard ratios. Compared with the groups without case‐level anxiety, discomfort in an organizational climate, high job demands, job insecurity, organizational injustice and lack of reward were associated with the onset of case‐level anxiety. Compared with less than 6 hr of sleep per day, the beneficial level of sleep duration was 7 ≤ to <9 hr a day. Almost all subscales of job stress were associated with the development of anxiety symptoms. In addition, the efficacious level of sleep duration for reducing the onset of future anxiety symptoms was 7 ≤ to <9 hr a day. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: To evaluate the bidirectional relationship between blood pressure (BP) and depressive symptoms using a large prospective cohort study. Methods: Prospective cohort study was performed in 276 244 adults who participated in a regular health check-up and were followed annually or biennially for up to 5.9 years. BP levels were categorised according to the 2017 American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association hypertension guidelines. Depressive symptoms were assessed using Centre for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CESD) questionnaire and a cut-off score of ≥25 was regarded as case-level depressive symptoms. Results: During 672 603.3 person-years of follow-up, 5222 participants developed case-level depressive symptoms. The multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) [95% confidence interval (CI)] for incident case-level depressive symptoms comparing hypotension, elevated BP, hypertension stage 1 and hypertension stage 2 to normal BP were 1.07 (0.99–1.16), 0.93 (0.82–1.05), 0.89 (0.81–0.97) and 0.81 (0.62–1.06), respectively (p for trend <0.001). During 583 615.3 person-years of follow-up, 27 787 participants developed hypertension. The multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CI) for incident hypertension comparing CESD 16–24 and ⩾25 to CESD < 16 were 1.05 (1.01–1.11) and 1.12 (1.03–1.20), respectively (p for trend <0.001) and in the time-dependent models, corresponding HRs (95% CI) were 1.12 (1.02–1.24) and 1.29 (1.10–1.50), respectively (p for trend <0.001). Conclusions: In this large cohort study of young and middle-aged individuals, higher BP levels were independently associated with a decreased risk for developing case-level depressive symptoms and depressive symptoms were also associated with incident hypertension. Further studies are required to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the bidirectional association between BP levels and incident depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify gender- and age-specific occupational stress associated with depressive symptoms among Korean employees. Methods: Data of 73,014 employees aged 18 and above who had undergone comprehensive health examinations at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Health Screening Center, South Korea, in January 2012 and who were followed up until December 2017 were collected, and 63,959 (participation rate: 87.59%, men: 50,413, women: 13,546) were finally analyzed. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals of the relationship between occupational stress and depressive symptoms. In light of gender and age differences in the association between occupational stress and depressive symptoms, interaction and stratification by gender and age groups were tested. Results: During 238,630 person-years of follow-up, case-level depressive symptoms developed in 4227 participants (an incident rate of 1.8%). There were gender differences in the relationship between job stress and incident depressive symptoms. For men, high job demand, job insecurity, lack of reward, and discomfort in their organizational climate were associated with incident depressive symptoms in all age groups. Insufficient job control was associated with the development of depressive symptoms only in midlife and organizational injustice only in early adulthood. For women, the results for high job demand, organizational injustice, and discomfort in an organizational climate were associated with the onset of depressive symptoms from early adulthood to the midlife decade. Conclusion: The results suggest gender and age differences in the relationship between occupational stress and incident depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although depression has generally been explained with monoamine theory, it is far more multifactorial, and therapies that address the disease's pathway have not been developed. In this context, an understanding of neuroinflammation and neurovascular dysfunction would enable a more comprehensive approach to depression. Inflammation is in a sense a type of allostatic load involving the immune, endocrine, and nervous systems. Neuroinflammation is involved in the pathophysiology of depression by increasing proinflammatory cytokines, activating the hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal axis, increasing glucocorticoid resistance, and affecting serotonin synthesis and metabolism, neuronal apoptosis and neurogenesis, and neuroplasticity. In future, identifying the subtypes of depression with increased vulnerability to inflammation and testing the effects of inflammatory modulating agents in these patient groups through clinical trials will lead to more concrete conclusions on the matter. The vascular depression hypothesis is supported by evidence for the association between vascular disease and late-onset depression and between ischemic brain lesions and distinctive depressive symptoms. Vascular depression may be the entity most suitable for studies of the mechanisms of depression. Pharmacotherapies used in the prevention and treatment of cerebrovascular disease may help prevent vascular depression. In future, developments in structural and functional imaging, electrophysiology, chronobiology, and genetics will reveal the association between depression and brain lesions. This article aims to give a general review of the existing issues examined in the literature pertaining to depression-related neuroinflammatory and vascular functions, related pathophysiology, applicability to depression treatment, and directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development and comparison of spine-shaped phantoms generated by two different 3D-printing technologies, digital light processing (DLP) and Polyjet has been purposed to utilize in patient-specific quality assurance (QA) of stereotactic body radiation treatment. The developed 3D-printed spine QA phantom consisted of an acrylic body phantom and a 3D-printed spine shaped object. DLP and Polyjet 3D printers using a high-density acrylic polymer were employed to produce spine-shaped phantoms based on CT images. Image fusion was performed to evaluate the reproducibility of our phantom, and the Hounsfield units (HUs) were measured based on each CT image. Two different intensity-modulated radiotherapy plans based on both CT phantom image sets from the two printed spine-shaped phantoms with acrylic body phantoms were designed to deliver 16 Gy dose to the planning target volume (PTV) and were compared for target coverage and normal organ-sparing. Image fusion demonstrated good reproducibility of the developed phantom. The HU values of the DLP- and Polyjet-printed spine vertebrae differed by 54.3 on average. The PTV Dmax dose for the DLP-generated phantom was about 1.488 Gy higher than that for the Polyjet-generated phantom. The organs at risk received a lower dose for the 3D printed spine-shaped phantom image using the DLP technique than for the phantom image using the Polyjet technique. Despite using the same material for printing the spine-shaped phantom, these phantoms generated by different 3D printing techniques, DLP and Polyjet, showed different HU values and these differently appearing HU values according to the printing technique could be an extra consideration for developing the 3D printed spine-shaped phantom depending on the patient’s age and the density of the spinal bone. Therefore, the 3D printing technique and materials should be carefully chosen by taking into account the condition of the patient in order to accurately produce 3D printed patient-specific QA phantom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to optimize and evaluate self-assembled liquid crystalline nanoparticles (SALCs) prepared from phospholipids and oleic acid for enhancing the absorption of Ω-3s. We explored the structure and optimal formulation of SALCs, which are composed of Ω-3 ethyl ester (Ω-3 EE), phospholipids, and oleic acid, using a ternary diagram and evaluated the improvement in Ω-3 dissolution, permeation, and oral bioavailability. The in vitro dissolution and pharmacokinetics of Ω-3 SALCs were compared with those of Omacor soft capsules (as the reference). The shape of the liquid crystal was determined according to the composition of phospholipids, oleic acids, and Ω-3s and was found to be in cubic, lamellar, and hexagonal forms. The dissolution rates of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) obtained from Ω-3 SALCs were 1.7 to 2.3-fold higher than those of the Omacor soft capsules. Furthermore, a pharmacokinetic study in male beagle dogs revealed that Ω-3 SALCs increased the oral bioavailability of Ω-3 EE by 2.5-fold for EPA and 3.1-fold for DHA compared with the reference. We found an optimal formulation that spontaneously forms liquid crystal-based nanoparticles, improving the bioavailability of EPA and DHA, not found in the existing literature. Our findings offer insight into the impact of nanoparticle phase on the oral delivery of oil-soluble drugs and provide a novel Ω-3 EE formulation that improves the bioavailability of EPA and DHA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the Fighters' Bulletin (Tusahoebo), which was initially published by a student organization during the Gwangju People's Uprising and later became a kind of official newspaper of the struggle headquarters. Through an analysis of the contents of the Fighters' Bulletin, this study reconstructs the trajectory of the collective identity construction. The Fighters' Bulletin informed Gwangju citizens of the meaning and development of the Uprising and earnestly devoted itself to construct the collective identity of "we," defining the object and the subject of the resistance and guidelines for action. Concentrated on constructing the collective identity at the beginning, it tried to resist the stigmatic framing of the dominant discourses, to highlight the true meaning of the struggle. In the later stage of struggle, it devoted itself to investing in the emotional framing through the participants' willingness to sacrifice their lives for the struggle. It concludes that, even though the Gwangju Uprising was a failed 10-day long revolution, its collective identity, which was constructed and manifested through the Fighters' Bulletin, has been appropriated as a major framework for subsequent political struggles in South Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depression results from changes in the central nervous system (CNS) that may result from immunological abnormalities. The immune system affects the CNS through cytokines, which regulate brain activities and emotions. Cytokines affect two biological systems that are most associated with the pathophysiology of depression: The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the catecholamine/sympathetic nervous system. Neuroinflammation and cytokines affect the brain signal patterns involved in the psychopathology of depression and the mechanisms of antidepressants, and they are associated with neurogenesis and neural plasticity. These observations suggest that neuroinflammation and cytokines might cause and/or maintain depression, and that they might be useful in the diagnosis and prognosis of depression. This psychoneuroimmunologic perspective might compensate for some of the limitations of the monoamine theory by suggesting that depression is a result of a failure to adapt to stress and that inflammatory responses and cytokines are involved in this process. In this review, the interactions of cytokines with the CNS, neuroendocrine system, neurotransmitters, neurodegeneration/neurogenesis, and antidepressants are discussed. The roles of cytokines in the etiology and psychopathology of depression are examined. The use of cytokine inhibitors or anti-inflammatory drugs in depression treatment is explored. Finally, the significance and limitations of the cytokine hypothesis are discussed., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: No potential conflicts of interest. No financial support.