Journal of affective disorders
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Anxiety and depression following traumatic brain injury (TBI) are associated with poorer outcomes. A brief self-report questionnaire would assist in identifying those at risk, however validity of such measures is complicated by confounding symptoms of the injury. This study investigated the validity of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), in screening for clinical diagnoses of anxiety and mood disorders following TBI. ⋯ The DASS, DASS21 and HADS demonstrated validity as screening measures of anxiety and mood disorders in this TBI sample. The findings support use of these self-report questionnaires for individuals with TBI to identify those who should be referred for clinical diagnostic follow-up.
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The presence of a comorbid borderline personality disorder (BPD) may be associated with an increase of suicidal behaviors in patients with depressive and anxiety disorders. The aim of this study is to examine the role of borderline personality traits on recurrent suicide attempts. ⋯ Persons with a lifetime diagnosis of dysthymia combined with borderline personality traits especially difficulties in coping with anger seemed to be at high risk for recurrent suicide attempts. For clinical practice, it is recommended to screen for comorbid borderline personality traits and to strengthen the patient's coping skills with regard to anger.
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The structural and functional abnormalities of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) have been reported in panic disorder (PD). Patients with PD have shown decreased gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) concentration in the ACC. The GABA concentration in the ACC was found to be associated with default mode network (DMN) activity in normal human subjects. Therefore, it was hypothesized that the DMN would show abnormal activity in PD. ⋯ Increased functional connectivity in the two medial nodes of the resting-state default mode network, the ACC and the precuneus, might play an important role in the pathophysiology of panic disorder. The treatment aimed to normalize the functional connectivity between ACC and precuneus might have clinical benefits in PD.
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This study examined functioning of the Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal (HPA) axis, a neurobiological stress system centrally implicated in depression, as a predictor of treatment response to Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents (IPT-A; Mufson et al., 2004. Interpersonal psychotherapy for depressed adolescents. (second ed.). New York, Guilford Press). ⋯ This is the first study to examine HPA functioning as a predictor of depressed adolescents' response to a psychotherapeutic intervention. If replicated with larger samples, these results have important implications for advancing the use of neurobiological markers to personalize psychotherapeutic interventions for depressed adolescents.
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Comparative Study
Validation of screening tools for antenatal depression in Malawi--a comparison of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and Self Reporting Questionnaire.
The detection of antenatal depression in resource-limited settings such as Malawi, Africa, is important and requires an accurate and practical screening tool. It is not known which questionnaire would be most suitable for this purpose. ⋯ The Chichewa versions of the EPDS and SRQ both show utility as brief screening measures for detection of antenatal depression in rural Malawi.