Depression, Smoking and Smoking Cessation: A Qualitative Study.

Depression, smoking and smoking cessation: a qualitative study.

Fam Pract. 2013 Jul 8;
Clancy N, Zwar N, Richmond R

A high proportion of smokers suffer from mental health problems including depression. Despite many of them wanting to stop smoking, low mood adversely affects their ability to quit.To explore the experiences of smokers with self-reported depression, the relationship of smoking with mental health problems and the experiences of smokers while trying to quit. The study also explored what help within the primary care setting could assist in quitting.Participants were recruited from a large general-practice-based smoking cessation trial. Participants who had indicated they were suffering from depression on a self-reported baseline survey were invited to participate. Semi-structured interviews were conducted over the telephone and digitally recorded. The interviews were transcribed and analysed using a phenomenological qualitative approach.Sixteen interviews were conducted (11 females, 5 males). Mood disturbances were frequently reported as triggers for smoking and low mood was seen as a barrier to quitting. Perceived benefits of smoking when depressed were limited and for many, it was a learned response. A sense of hopelessness, lack of control over one’s life and a lack of meaningful activities all emerged as important factors contributing to continued smoking. Participants felt that their quit attempts would be aided by better mood management, increased self-confidence and motivation and additional professional support.Smoking and depression were found to be strongly interconnected. Depressed smokers interested in quitting may benefit from increased psychological help to enhance self-confidence, motivation and mood management, as well as a supportive general practice environment. HubMed – depression

Psychosocial state after bariatric surgery is associated with the serotonin-transporter promoter polymorphism.

Eat Weight Disord. 2013 Jul 9;
Defrancesco M, Liebaert J, Kemmler G, Aigner F, Niederstätter H, Parson W, Kinzl JF

Bariatric surgery is the method of choice in the treatment of morbid obesity. Different genotypes of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTT) are known to impact the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and the psychosocial state in obese individuals. In this study, we examined the influence of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism on physiologic and psychosocial measures in morbidly obese women after bariatric surgery.We investigated women 1-5 years after bariatric surgery using a semi-structured interview and the Beck Depression Inventory, the Moorhead-Ardelt Quality of life questionnaire, the NEO-Five Factor Inventory and a Resilience scale. The 5-HTTLPR polymorphism (s/s, s/l, l/l) was genotyped using mouth swabs. The influence of genotype on outcome variables was analyzed by independent t test and analysis of covariance corrected for possible confounders.64 women were enrolled in this study between January 2004 and September 2009. Significantly lower quality of life and higher depression, neuroticism and resilience scores were found in homozygous s-allele carriers of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism than in l-allele carriers. Except for neuroticism, other factors (age, education, year of surgery, weight before surgery and method of surgery) did not affect the results. We found no influence of genotype on weight loss, current weight or weight before surgery.Quality of life, mood, and resilience but not weight loss after bariatric surgery are negatively influenced by the s-allele of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism. HubMed – depression

Evaluation of the Psychometric Measures for the Postpartum Depression Screening Scale-Spanish Version for Mexican Women.

J Transcult Nurs. 2013 Jul 8;
Lara MA, Navarrete L, Navarro C, Le HN

This study assessed the reliability, validity, sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of the Spanish Postpartum Depression Screening Scale (PDSS-Spanish Version) for Mexican women. The scale was administered at 6 weeks (T1; n = 149) and between 4 and 6 months postpartum (T2; n = 156). Women also completed the Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition (BDI-II) and the mood module of the Standardized Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID). At both time points, the internal consistency value of the PDSS-Spanish Version was ? = .96. Concurrent validity was adequate, compared with the BDI-II (T1: r = .75; T2: r = .74, ps < .01) and the SCID (T1: r = .43; T2: r = .36, ps < .01). Based on receiver operator characteristic curves, cutoff scores on the PDSS-Spanish Version of 60 for depressive symptoms (BDI-II as gold standard) and 80 for major depression (SCID) showed high sensitivity (>88.9%) but low specificity (60.9% to 70.6%). More parsimonious values are obtained at a cutoff of 77 for subsyndromal depression and 95 for major depression. The choice for using different cutoff scores may depend on the purpose of using the instrument. Overall, the psychometric properties for the PDSS-Spanish Version in Mexican women are similar to the ones obtained in Hispanic women in the United States. HubMed – depression

Changes in Self-Reported Pre- to Postinjury Coping Styles in the First 3 Years After Traumatic Brain Injury and the Effects on Psychosocial and Emotional Functioning and Quality of Life.

J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2013 Jul 3;
Gregório GW, Gould KR, Spitz G, van Heugten CM, Ponsford JL

To examine the influence of self-reported preinjury coping on postinjury coping, psychosocial functioning, emotional functioning, and quality of life at 1 year following traumatic brain injury (TBI).Inpatient hospital and community.One hundred seventy-four participants with TBI.Prospective, longitudinal design. Participants were assessed at 5 time points: after emerging from posttraumatic amnesia, and at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months postinjury.Coping Scale for Adults-Short Version; Quality of Life Inventory; Sydney Psychosocial Reintegration Scale; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.High preinjury use of nonproductive coping style predicted high use of nonproductive coping, more anxiety, and lower psychosocial functioning at 1 year postinjury. Increased use of nonproductive coping and decreased use of productive coping predicted poorer psychosocial outcome at 1 year post-TBI. Use of both productive and nonproductive coping decreased in the first 6 to 12 months post-TBI relative to preinjury. Unlike productive coping, nonproductive coping reached preinjury levels within 3 years postinjury.The findings support identification of individuals at risk of relying on nonproductive coping and poorer psychosocial outcome following TBI. In addition, the results emphasize the need to implement timely interventions to facilitate productive coping and reduce the use of nonproductive coping in order to maximize favorable long-term psychosocial outcome. HubMed – depression