• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.94-102
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• 2010

Objectives : Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing(EMDR) is a novel, time-limited psychotherapy originally developed for treatment of psychological trauma. The effectiveness of this therapy has been validated only for posttraumatic stress disorder ; however, EMDR is often applied to other psychiatric illnesses, including other anxiety disorders and depression. This pilot study tested the efficacy of EMDR added to the routine treatment for individuals with acute stage schizophrenia. Methods : This study was conducted in the acute psychiatric care unit of a university-affiliated training hospital. Inpatients diagnosed with schizophrenia were randomly assigned to either three sessions of EMDR, three sessions of progressive muscle relaxation(PMR) therapy, or only treatment as usual(TAU). All the participants received concurrent typical treatments(TAU), including psychotropic medication, individual supportive psychotherapy and group activities in the psychiatric ward. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS), the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale were administered by a clinical psychologist who was blinded to the patients' group assignment. Results : Forty-five patients enrolled and forty patients(89%) completed the post-treatment evaluation. There were no between-group differences in the withdrawal rates of patients during the treatment or at the three-month follow-up session. All three groups improved significantly across each of the symptomatic domains including schizophrenia, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. However, a repeated measures ANOVA revealed no significant differences among the groups over time. Effect size for change in total PANSS scores was also similar across treatment conditions, but effect size for negative symptoms was large for EMDR(0.60 for EMDR, 0.39 for PMR and 0.21 for TAU only). Conclusion : These findings supported the use of EMDR in treating the acute stage of schizophrenia but the results failed to confirm the effectiveness of the treatment over the two control conditions in three sessions. Further studies with longer courses of treatment, more focused target dimensions of treatment, and a sample of outpatients are necessary.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.63-73
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• 2009

Purpose : To investigate the effects of various intracranial volume (ICV) measurement methods on the sensitivity of hippocampal volumetry and modulated voxel-based morphometry (mVBM) in female patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Materials and Methods : T1 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data for 41 female subjects (21 MDD patients, 20 normal subjects) were analyzed. Hippocampal volumes were measured manually, and ICV was measured manually and automatically using the FreeSurfer package. Gray and white matter volumes were measured separately. Results : Manual ICV normalization provided the greatest sensitivity in hippocampal volumetry and mVBM, followed by FreeSurfer ICV, GWMV, and GMV. Manual and FreeSurfer ICVs were similar in normal subjects (p = 0.696), but distinct in MDD patients (p = 0.000002). Manual ICV-corrected total gray matter volume (p = 0.0015) and Manual ICV-corrected bilateral hippocampal volumes (right, p = 0.014; left, p = 0.004) were decreased significantly in MDD patients, but the differences of hippocampal volumes corrected by FreeSurfer ICV, GWMV, or GMV were not significant between two groups (p > 0.05). Only manual ICV-corrected mVBM analysis was significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Conclusion : The method of ICV measurement greatly affects the sensitivity of hippocampal volumetry and mVBM. Manual ICV normalization showed the ability to detect differences between women with and without MDD for both methods.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.166-173
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• 1995

The author compared the anxiety and depression level between glaucoma patents and normal controls by means of STAI(State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) and BDI(Beck Depression Inventory). The subject was the 38 glaucoma patients who visited ophthalmology clinic of Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital. The results were as follows : 1) There was no statistically significant difference in BDI and STAI according to age, education, religion, marital status. 2) There was no significant difference in STAI between the glaucoma patient group and the normal control group except that the female patients showed a tendency toward higher anxiety. 3) There was a significant difference in BDI between the female glaucoma patient group and the female control group(P<.01). But in the case of male there was no significant difference in BDI. 4) Eighteen point four percent of the glaucoma patients(10.5% of male patients, 26.4% of female patients) had suspected depressive disorder, and there was a tendency toward depression in 28.9% of glaucoma patients(10.5% of male patients, 47.4% of female patients). 5) There was no significant difference in BDI and STAI according to the use of beta-blocker or the other concommitant physical diseases. 6) The patients of glaucoma were generally concerned about the possibility of blindness, and felt annoyed with the fact that they should use eye drops or oral medication everyday.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.45-54
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• 2010

Objective : This study aimed to investigate and compare the prevalence of depression and suicidality among the elderly in a rural city according to their residence type. Methods : Participants were 311 elderly people (109 male and 202 female) in Icheon City, whom trained researchers interviewed and examined Geriatric Depression Scale, Social Support Scale, Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, Activities of Daily Living, Quality of Life Scale, and Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), module C. Using these data, we analyzed participants' risk factors associated with depression and suicidality. Results : The prevalence of depression was 28.0%. The prevalence in the elderly living alone and those admitted to residential facilities was significantly higher than that among the elderly living with family. Suicidality frequency was 19.6%. The suicidality frequency among the elderly living alone and those admitted to facilities was significantly higher than that among the elderly living with family. The risk factors for depression were age, admission to a facility, and low economic status. The suicidality risk factors were living alone, admission to a facility, poor social support, and a history of headache. Conclusion : These results showed the prevalence of depression and frequency of suicidality among the elderly in such a city was quite high. The results of this study remind psychiatrists of the importance of early detection and therapeutic intervention for the elderly with a high risk of depression and suicidality.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1536-1544
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• 2018

Depression is a common, serious, and recurring mental disorder. The pathogenesis of depression involves many factors such as environmental factor, genetic factor and alteration of structure and function in neurobiological systems. Increasing evidence supports that epigenetic alteration may be associated with depression. The epigenetics is explained as the mechanisms by which environmental factor causes changes in chromatin structure and alters gene expression without changing DNA base sequence. DNA methylation and histone modification involving histone acetylation and methylation are the main epigenetic mechanisms. Animal studies have shown that stressful environment such as early life stress can leave persistent epigenetic marks in the genome, which alter gene expression and influence neural and behavioral function through adulthood. A potentially important gene in depression is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). BDNF plays a central role in depression and antidepressant action. In studies of the rodent, exposure to stress at prenatal, postnatal, and adult stages alters BDNF expression through histone modification and DNA methylation of the BDNF gene which results in anxiety and depressive-like behavior. This review discusses recent advances in the study of the epigenetic mechanisms that contribute to depression, particularly histone modification and DNA methylation of the BDNF gene, that may help in the development of new targets for depression treatment.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.237-247
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• 2021

Immune responses in the central nervous system (CNS) function as the host's defense system against pathogens and usually help with repair and regeneration. However, chronic and exaggerated neuroinflammation is detrimental and may create neuronal damage in many cases. The NOD-, LRR-, and pyrin domain―containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, a kind of NOD-like receptor, is a cytosolic multiprotein complex that consists of sensors (NLRP3), adaptors (apoptosis-associated speck like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain, ASC) and effectors (caspase 1). It can detect a broad range of microbial pathogens along with foreign and host-derived danger signals, resulting in the assembly and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Upon activation, NLRP3 inflammasome leads to caspase 1-dependent secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18, as well as to gasdermin D-mediated pyroptotic cell death. NLRP3 inflammasome is highly expressed in CNS-resident cell types, including microglia and astrocytes, and growing evidence suggests that NLRP3 inflammasome is a crucial player in the pathophysiology of several neuroinflammatory and psychiatric diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, traumatic brain injury, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and major depressive disorder. Thus, this review describes the molecular mechanisms of NLRP3 inflammasome activation and its crucial roles in the pathogenesis of neurological disorders.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.555-564
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• 2021

Thalamus is known to play an important role in the regulation of nerve function. Thalamus, located in the center of the brain, is involved in sleep, arousal, and emotional regulation, and has been reported to be associated with multiple sclerosis, essential tremors, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. In addition, it has been reported that iron deposits in the thalamus can cause depressive symptoms with age. Although there are discrepancies between studies, it can be deduced that the thalamus region has a clear effect on neurological disorders due to a strong relationship between the thalamus and neurological functions such as emotional control and processing. Through tractography analysis, the connectivity between the detailed areas of each subcortical region was investigated in the form of a matrix, showing strong connectivity and weak interhemispheric connectivity. In the 59> group, the WM connectivity of thalamus was found to be weaker than those of the two groups. Comparisons between the two groups showed that the young groups (10-39 and 40-59) had higher connection intensity than the 59> group and that statistically significant differences in 3 connection pathways were found in each hemisphere. A decrease in thalamus-related connection strength in aging has shown that it can affect emotional and neurological disorders such as anxiety and depression, and network measurements can help assess cognitive impairment across clinical conditions.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.119-130
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• 2015

This study is aimed to analyse the causes and characteristics of suicide in jeonbuk region using psychological autopsy. Psychological autopsy is a technique to get comprehensive analysis on suicidal death by collecting data from interviewing suicide victim's family, relatives, and friends added with additional data of police report, hospital records, and suicide victim's lifetime records for objective evidence. For the data from 42 cases(male 24, female 18) of suicides that occurred between May 2013 and April 2014 with agreement for psychological autopsy, we analyzed a survey that recorded by interviewers who had a consultation based on half-structured psychological interview panel. As the result, out of 42 cases, 30(71%) had previous suicidal attempts and 21(50%) had a family history of suicides. Psychiatric disorders(38%) was the most common cause of suicide followed by interpersonal problems(31%). Among psychiatric problems, depressive disorder was the most common. many suicide victims had previously received psychiatric treatments but discontinued the therapy later on. The results showed that suicide is strongly related to mental disorders and psychiatric therapy should be continued until full recovery. Preventive efforts should focus on persons who have a history of previous suicidal attempts and have a family history of suicide. Implications of these findings are discussed and directions for future research are advanced.

• The Korean Journal of Woman Psychology
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.97-113
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• 2011

The current study was conducted to explore the relations among college students' narcissistic personality, depression, and psychopathy. This study investigated how narcissistic personality and depression variables relate to psychopathy variables. For this purpose, an assessment battery consisting of Narcissistic Personality Inventory(NPI), Narcissistic Personality Disorder Scale: NPDS), BDI, Self-Reported Psychopathy Scale(SRPS), and Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised. PPI-R was administered to 1003 college students (501 males and 502 females). For comparison with the levels of pathological narcissism, the participants were devided two groups( above 33%, below 33% ) based on their scores of the NPDS, According to the results, males had more overt narcissistic personality, and females felt more depressive and psychopathic. The higher level group on the NPDS had higher scores on the NPI, BDI, SRPS and PPI-R. The students' narcissistic personality had relations to depression and psychopathy, but the results were different according to the kind of inventories(PPI-R or SRPS, NPI or NPDS). The implications and limitations of this study, as well as some suggestions for future research, were suggested.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.12
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• pp.1062-1073
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• 2023

Although depression is a common psychiatric disorder that negatively affects individuals and societies, its exact pathogenesis is not well understood. Stress is a major risk factor for depression and is known to increase susceptibility by triggering inflammation. Indeed, many preclinical and clinical studies have suggested a strong link between depression and inflammation. Depression is associated with increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin (IL-)1β, IL-6, IL-12, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interferon-γ, and decreased levels of the anti-inflammatory IL-4, IL-10, and transforming growth factor-β. Administering pro-inflammatory cytokines causes depression-like behaviors in rodents. Conversely, administering anti-inflammatory drugs appears to ameliorate depressive symptoms. Although the importance of inflammation as a mediator of depression has been demonstrated, the mechanisms by which inflammation is activated in depression remain unclear. To address this issue, recent studies have focused on the importance of stress-induced sterile inflammation. Sterile inflammation refers to the activation of inflammatory processes due to physical and/or psychological stress in the absence of pathogens. Stress promotes the release of endogenous factors known as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), thereby triggering sterile inflammation. In turn, DAMPs are recognized by pattern recognition receptors, leading to the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Here, we review the role of DAMPs in depression based on preclinical and clinical evidence on the dysregulation of sterile inflammation.