• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.9-16
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• 1999

Objectives. Few studies have attempted to explain the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and obesity in Korea Especially the studies on same race with different SES at same time are good for SES influence estimation. The present study highlights the influence of SES of parents on adolescent obesity. The subjects are the same race, but live in different areas, with different SES, Seoul and Yangpung in Korea, and Yanbian in China. Methods. The cross-sectional study was conducted in Mar-Jun 1996. We carried out anthropometry, 24 hour-recall diet survey, self-reported questionnaire about sociodemographic characteristics and physical activity. For SES indicators, we used income and education of parents. Results. The relationship between SES of parents, defined as educational status, and obesity in boys in Korea and China is direct, but not significant. The relationship is inverse and nonsignificant among Korean girls, However, for the Korean girls in severe obesity, the relationship is significant. For the Korean-Chinese girls, there is an inverse relationship between the education level and obesity but a direct relationship between the income level of parents and obesity. For the Korean adolescent, there are a direct association between the SES of parents and the nutrients factors such as energy, protein, and fat intake. The energy expenditure of adolescent has no relationship with SES of parents. Conclusion. Among boys, the higher the SES, the greater the risk of obese. Among girls in Korea and Korean-Chinese, on the other hand, the lower the educational status of parents, the greater the risk of obese.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.46-55
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• 2022

Objectives Many studies have reported noticeable increases in the proportion of employees working either relatively short or relatively long hours. Such trends have been accompanied by an increasing concern that how much subjective mental well-being of employees would be influenced by their hours of work. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between work hours and clinically relevant depressive symptoms with demographic variables adjusted. Methods Participants were employees of a total of 56 private companies and local government organizations in Korea, aged 19 to 65 years. A self-report questionnaire that included items on working hour, job stress, levels of depression, and socio-demographic factors was administered to 15360 Korean employees, with 14477 valid responses. Hierarchical linear regression analyses, adjusted for sociodemographic factors, job related demographic factors, job stress, were used additionally to estimate the association between working hours and depressive scores. Results We found that working more than 40 hours per week correlated positively with the level of depressive symptoms after adjusting for demographic variables and the level of job stress. Furthermore, working 40 or fewer hours per week correlated negatively with the level of depressive symptoms. Being younger (β = -0.078, β = -0.099), being a female (β = 2.770, β = 1.268), and possessing a lower level of education (β = -0.315, β = -1.125) were significantly associated with higher level of depressive symptoms in all respondents. Conclusions Both of working excessively long or short hours is significantly associated with the prevalence of depressive symptoms. Establishing proper office hours for employees is critical to improving the quality of working conditions and maintaining good mental health in the workplace.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.30-38
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• 2024

Background: Although Korea ranks first in the suicide rate of elderly individuals, there is limited research on those who attempt suicide, with preventive measures largely based on population-based studies. We compared the demographic and clinical characteristics of elderly individuals who attempted suicide with those of younger adults who visited the emergency department after suicide attempts and identified the factors associated with lethality in the former group. Methods: Individuals who visited the emergency department after a suicide attempt from April 1, 2017, to January 31, 2020, were included. Participants were classified into two groups according to age (elderly, ≥65 years; adult, 18-64 years). Among the 779 adult patients, 123 were elderly. We conducted a chi-square test to compare the demographic and clinical features between these groups and a logistic regression analysis to identify the risk factors for lethality in the elderly group. Results: Most elderly participants were men, with no prior psychiatric history or suicide attempts, and had a higher prevalence of underlying medical conditions and attributed their attempts to physical illnesses. Being sober and planning suicide occurred more frequently in this group. In the elderly group, factors that increased the mortality rate were biological male sex (p<0.05), being accompanied by family members (p<0.05), and poisoning as a suicide method (p<0.01). Conclusion: Suicide attempts in elderly individuals have different characteristics from those in younger adults and are associated with physical illness. Suicides in the former group are unpredictable, deliberate, and fatal. Therefore, tailored prevention and intervention strategies addressing the characteristics of those who are elderly and attempt suicide are required.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.128-135
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• 2014

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of social skills training (SST) for children in two different community settings, an elementary school and a child community center. Methods : Two separate groups of 15 children (10 boys and 5 girls) and 13 children (4 boys and 9 girls) participated in a SST program twice per week at an elementary school and a child community center, respectively. Age range of participants was from 8 to 10 years. Sixty-minute-long sessions of SST were continued twice per week for 4 weeks. Korean-Child Behavior Checklist (K-CBCL), Conner's Rating Scales, Korean-Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale (K-ARS), Social Skills Rating System (SSRS), and Matson's Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY) were evaluated by their parents before and after the SST program. Results : Pre-and-post analysis of SST indicated no significant statistical differences in the elementary school group. However, the child community center group showed significantly increased scores for total social ability (p<.05) and decreased scores for attention problem (p<.05) on the K-CBCL. In addition, scores of MESSY were significantly increased (p<.05). These differences between the two groups were still significant after controlling pre-SST scores ; and difference of SST scores between the two groups disappeared after SST. Conclusion : Results suggest that SST in the community setting is an effective tool for prevention of social deficits and problems in attention by promoting social function and attention.

• Mood & Emotion
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.30-36
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• 2011

Purpose : Anxiety disorder and depressive disorder are often comorbid with each other, and the comorbidity is associated with poorer psychiatric outcome, resistance to treatment, increased risk for suicide, greater chance for recurrence. We aimed to investigate the comorbidity of anxiety disorder in Korea. Method : Subjects were total of 867 depressed patients recruited CRESCEND-K multicenter trial. We used SCID (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM - IV) to find comorbidity of anxiety disorders in depressed patient. Results : Of 867 patients, total 8.2% had anxiety disorder. Proportion of anxiety disorder Not Otherwise Specified was 3.5%, panic disorder was 1.7%, generalized anxiety disorder was 1.1%, post traumatic stress disorder was 0.9%, obsessive compulsive disorder was 0.6%, social phobia was 0.4%. Conclusion : In this study, anxiety disorder in depression were measured at a low comorbidity rate in compare to previous studies. Selection bias, use of antidepressants at registration, severity of depression symptoms, and point of SICD administration seems to have affected these results. It is probable that comorbidity evaluation would be more precise if shorter, structured interviews such as M. I.N.I.-Plus were used during first clinical interview for depression diagnosis.

• 대한예방의학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.548-548
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• 2002

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2023

The onset of many lifelong mental illnesses is during childhood and adolescence. There has been an increase in these conditions among children and adolescents especially, during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is essential to promote mental health literacy (MHL) as a preventive and universal intervention for children and adolescents. Positive mental health status in adolescence is related to an increased level of MHL, and various MHL programs at schools have been reported to be effective for adolescent students worldwide. Recently, MHL programs have been developed in South Korea to be used by schoolteachers. There is a need for active dissemination and development of future programs. For continuous and effective education, it is desirable to include MHL education in regular school curricula.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.145-153
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• 2007

Objectives: This study was focused on the influence of chronic aircraft noise exposure on children's continuous performance, intelligence and reading skill. Methods: We enrolled 586 children in 4-6th grade of 7 primary schools near air base in Korea. Continuous performance was measured using the computerized ADS program. We analyzed 477-512 children on the visual continuous performance test, auditory continuous performance test, intelligence test, and reading and the vocabulary test. Intelligence was measured using vocabulary, digit span, block design, and digit symbol tests of K-WISC-III. Results: The commission error and variability deviation of auditory continuous performance test and reading test were significantly higher among children in schools with the helicopter noise and the fighting plane noise compared to children in the low noised schools. Conclusion: There was a possibility that chronic aircraft noise exposure was associated with impairment of the school performance. The result of our study also shows chronic aircraft noise was associated with reading ability.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.181-187
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• 2016

Objectives: This study investigated the relationship between depression, attachment and addiction problems in runaway youths. Methods: We sent a questionnaire package to 187 runaway youths in 18 adolescent shelters. The questionnaire package collected their sociodemographic data and included the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Inventory of Parent Attachment (IPA), Korean Internet Addiction Self-Scale (K-Scale), Korean version of Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, and Korean version of the $Fagerstr{\ddot{o}}m$ Test for Nicotine Dependence. Results: The percentage of youth with depression was 28.8% (N=54). In the depression group, there were significantly more problematic alcohol users (53.06%, p=.0199) and significantly lower IPA scores (p=.0064). There was a significant negative correlation between depression and a IPA, and significant positive correlation between depression and the K-Scale. Conclusion: These results suggest that runaway youths with depression have more problematic alcohol drinking and attachment problems.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.146-154
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• 2004

Objective:Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD) is the most common childhood psychiatric disorder, affecting 3-5% of school-aged children. Although the biological basis of ADHD is unknown, family studies provide strong evidence that ADHD has a genetic basis. Recent genetic studies have suggested associations between ADHD and serotonin 1B(5HT1B) receptor gene G861C polymorphism. The aim of this study is to test for the association between ADHD and 5HT1B receptor gene G861C polymorphism in Korean population. Method:We processed DNA extraction and genotyping. 106 Korean children with ADHD and their parents were analyzed using the transmission disequilibrium test(TDT) and haplotype-based haplotype relative risk (HHRR). And the ADHD children were compared with 212 age and gender matched normal controls. Results:There was no statistical difference of distributions between ADHD cases and controls. We did not observe any preferential transmission of alleles of 5HT1B receptor gene G861C polymorphism in ADHD. Conclusions:Though there is the possibility of failing to detect small genetic effects, our results show no evidence of an association between ADHD and 5HT1B receptor gene G861C polymorphism in the Korean population and indicate that it is unlikely that the 5HT1B receptor is implicated in the susceptibility to ADHD.