The way of functioning in everyday life and the style of coping with the challenges encountered, including the situations of financial difficulties, are shaped by various adaptation mechanisms ...conditioned by the state of psychophysical health, as well as social and cultural factors. They are related to the intrapsychic features, among which the personality plays a key role.
The research sample consisted of 2 groups - 50 patients with mobility impairment resulting from chronic pathologies of the locomotor system hospitalized in the Department of General and Neuro Rehabilitation, Institute of Rural Health in Lublin, and 50 healthy people. The research was carried out using the NEO-FFI Personality Inventory, Perceived Stress Scale, Self-Esteem Scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Impulsiveness Inventory and the APSZ Questionnaire.
In the group of patients with impaired mobility resulting from chronic pathologies of the locomotor system, the leading correlate of the tendency to seek help in the situation of indebtedness was extraversion. In the healthy group, the leading correlates of the tendency to undertake this type of activity were the intensity of perceived stress, neuroticism, self-esteem, self- efficacy and empathy.
In the group of patients with impaired mobility resulting from chronic diseases of the locomotor system, extroversion was the factor conducive to seeking help in the situation of indebtedness. In the group of healthy people, self-esteem, self- efficacy and empathy were the factors conducive to taking such actions, whereas intensity of perceived stress and neuroticism were the risk factors.
Depression, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is a more and more frequent illness of the contemporary man. According to some predictions, at the current increasing rate of falling ill ...with depression, by 2020 it might become the second biggest cause of deaths amongst adults. The growing scale of the problem does not refer to adults only, but is increasingly affecting children and teenagers. The lack of precise and explicit research into statistics about depression amongst children and teenagers causes considerable divergence. It is estimated that in the case of children, morbidity amounts to 2%, while it varies from 8% up to 20% amongst teenagers. In percentage terms it does not seem alarming, but if you look at the issue in numbers, according to GUS data for 2014, the number of children (aged 0 to 12) totals 100,500,however, amongst young people (aged 13–18) the number reaches about 1,345,000. Facing such numbers, one should admit that this is not a marginal phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to depict the character of depressive disorders amongst children and teenagers, giving general the features of depression and concentrating in particular on the ones typical of children and teenagers. It will allow us to create the profile of a young man stricken with such disorders. Moreover, the author will try to portray basic mistakes, especially those of home environment, in identifying and in the approach to people suffering from depression and he will also frame the vision of specific forms of support, which are necessary in the struggle with depression.
Depresja według Światowej Organizacji Zdrowia (WHO) jest coraz częściej występującą chorobą współczesnego człowieka. Według niektórych prognoz – przy obecnym wzroście zachorowań na depresję – już w ...2020 roku może się ona stać drugą przyczyną zgonów wśród osób dorosłych. Narastająca skala problemu nie obejmuje tylko osób dorosłych, ale coraz częściej dotyka dzieci i młodzież. Brak precyzyjnych i jednoznacznych badań powoduje, iż w danych mówiących o depresji wśród dzieci i młodzieży istnieją spore rozbieżności. Szacuje się, iż wśród dzieci zachorowalność wynosi około 2%, natomiast wśród nastolatków od 8% do 20%. Procentowo nie wygląda to niepokojąco, ale, gdy się spojrzy na zagadnienie w liczbach – według danych GUS za 2014 rok – dzieci (w wieku od 0 do 12) to około 100 500, natomiast wśród młodzieży (13–18 lat) to około 1 345 000. Wobec takich liczb należy stwierdzić, iż nie jest to zjawisko marginalne. Celem niniejszego artykułu jest nakreślenie specyfiki zaburzeń depresyjnych wśród dzieci i młodzieży, poprzez podanie ogólnych cech depresji, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem tych, które są charakterystyczne dla dzieci i nastolatków, co pozwoli stworzyć sylwetkę młodego człowieka dotkniętego takimi zaburzeniami. Ponadto autor będzie się starał ukazać podstawowe błędy – szczególnie otoczenia rodzinnego – w rozpoznawaniu oraz podejściu do osób cierpiących na depresję, a także nakreśli wizję konkretnych form wsparcia, które jest niezbędne w zmaganiach z depresją.
Depression, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is a more and more frequent illness of the contemporary man. According to some predictions, at the current increasing rate of falling ill with depression, by 2020 it might become the second biggest cause of deaths amongst adults. The growing scale of the problem does not refer to adults only, but is increasingly affecting children and teenagers. The lack of precise and explicit research into statistics about depression amongst children and teenagers causes considerable divergence. It is estimated that in the case of children, morbidity amounts to 2%, while it varies from 8% up to 20% amongst teenagers. In percentage terms it does not seem alarming, but if you look at the issue in numbers, according to GUS data for 2014, the number of children (aged 0 to 12) totals 100,500, however, amongst young people (aged 13–18) the number reaches about 1,345,000. Facing such numbers, one should admit that this is not a marginal phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to depict the character of depressive disorders amongst children and teenagers, giving general the features of depression and concentrating in particular on the ones typical of children and teenagers. It will allow us to create the profile of a young man stricken with such disorders. Moreover, the author will try to portray basic mistakes, especially those of home environment, in identifying and in the approach to people suffering from depression and he will also frame the vision of specific forms of support, which are necessary in the struggle with depression.
The problem of occupational burnout, which is the subject of numerous studies in pedagogy, psychology and social psychology, affects a large part of our society. This issue calls for a question about ...the reasons for this state of affairs and, at the same time, for seeking effective and innovative ways to overcome its pathogenic effects on individual and social life. The reasons for the burnout phenomenon can be seen both on the side of the unit and on the side of the environment. The most frequent reasons are: specificity of own expectations, experience of the crisis of values, personality traits, seniority, domestic and economic situation, and others. The sense of optimism and sense of humor, self-esteem and self-esteem belonging to the valuable personal resources of the individual and remedial strategies in situations of occupational stress are important to minimizing symptoms of burnout.
Background. Atherosclerotic plaques in carotid arteries (APCA) are a prevalent condition with severe potential complications. Studies continuously search for innovative biomarkers for APCA, including ...those participating in cellular metabolic processes, cell adhesion, immune response, and complement activation. This study aimed to assess the relationship between APCA presence and a broad range of cardiometabolic biomarkers in the general population. Methods. The study group consisted of consecutive participants of the population study Bialystok PLUS. The proximity extension assay (PEA) technique from the Olink Laboratory (Uppsala, Sweden) was used to measure the levels of 92 cardiometabolic biomarkers. Results. The study comprised 693 participants (mean age 48.78 ± 15.27 years, 43.4% males, N = 301). APCA was identified in 46.2% of the participants (N = 320). Of the 92 biomarkers that were investigated, 54 were found to be significantly linked to the diagnosis of APCA. After adjusting for the traditional risk factors for atherosclerosis in multivariate analysis, the only biomarker that remained significantly associated with APCA was FCGR2A. Conclusion. In the general population, the prevalence of APCA is very high. A range of biomarkers are linked with APCA. Nonetheless, the majority of these associations are explained by traditional risk factors for atherosclerosis. The only biomarker that was independently associated with APCA was the FCGR2A.
Body composition, especially an increased amount of fat mass and decreased lean body mass, is connected with metabolic complications. Thyroid hormones can influence body composition pattern. To date, ...scarce data defining the relationships between thyroid hormones and parameters of body composition using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), especially in cohort studies, are available. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the relationships among serum concentrations of (thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroid hormones, and distribution of fat tissue assessed using the DXA method in a euthyroid cohort from the Białystok PLUS study. We examined 582 euthyroid subjects who were divided into lean (body mass index (BMI) < 25 kg/m2) and overweight/obese (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2) (84 lean men, 182 overweight/obese men, 160 lean women, and 156 overweight/obese women). Serum concentrations of TSH, free T3 (fT3), and free T4 (fT4) were assessed, and DXA was performed. We observed lower serum levels of fT4 (p = 0.03) and higher serum levels of fT3 (p = 0.04) in overweight/obese vs. lean men, whereas serum levels of TSH did not differ between these groups (p = 0.38). In lean men, we only observed a relationship between serum levels of TSH and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) (r = −0.24, p = 0.02). In overweight/obese men, we found that serum levels of fT3 were positively connected with total fat mass (r = 0.16, p = 0.02), android fat mass (r = 0.15, p = 0.03), and gynoid fat mass (r = 0.17, p = 0.01), but not with VAT (r = 0.03, p = 0.63). We did not observe differences in serum levels of TSH, fT3, and fT4 between lean and overweight/obese women. Additionally, we did not notice relationships between serum levels of thyroid hormones and fat in different regions estimated by DXA in lean and overweight/obese women (all p > 0.05). We concluded that the serum concentration of TSH is connected with VAT in lean men, whereas, in overweight/obese men, higher fT3 is connected with an increased fat amount. These associations are absent in women.
Natriuretic peptides (NPs), including brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), are neurohormones involved in the regulation of water-sodium balance and the maintenance of cardiovascular homeostasis. A higher ...concentration of NPs is observed in females, but the mechanism behind this difference has not been fully elucidated.
Randomly chosen 255 volunteers from the general population were examined. Overall, 196 people without severe cardiovascular disease were included (mean age 48 years, 35.7% male). A comprehensive assessment was performed, including anthropometric measurements, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), total testosterone (TT) and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) concentration, transthoracic echocardiography (ECHO), and body composition analysis by direct dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). The univariate analysis adjusted by the known affecting factors determined which measurements were independently associated with NT-proBNP concentration.
NT-proBNP concentration was positively associated with gynoid fat mass, gynoid/total fat (G/TF) mass index, SHBG and negatively with android/gynoid (A/G) fat mass index, TT and calculated free testosterone (CFT) concentrations. Furthermore, body composition parameters remained independently associated with NT-proBNP levels even after adjusting for CFT and SHBG.
In the population without severe cardiovascular disease, the NT-proBNP concentration is independently associated with lower availability of testosterone and higher gynoid fat distribution, which may explain higher NPs levels in females.
Despite knowledge of classical coronary artery disease (CAD) risk factors, the morbidity and mortality associated with this disease remain high. Therefore, new factors that may affect the development ...of CAD, such as the gut microbiome, are extensively investigated. This study aimed to evaluate gut microbiome composition in CAD patients in relation to the control group. We examined 169 CAD patients and 166 people in the control group, without CAD, matched in terms of age and sex to the study group. Both populations underwent a detailed health assessment. The microbiome analysis was based on the V3–V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene (NGS method). Among 4074 identified taxonomic units in the whole population, 1070 differed between study groups. The most common bacterial types were Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Furthermore, a higher Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio in the CAD group compared with the control was demonstrated. Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, independent of age, sex, CAD status, LDL cholesterol concentration, and statins treatment, was related to altered phosphatidylcholine concentrations obtained in targeted metabolomics. Altered alpha-biodiversity (Kruskal–Wallis test, p = 0.001) and beta-biodiversity (Bray–Curtis metric, p < 0.001) in the CAD group were observed. Moreover, a predicted functional analysis revealed some taxonomic units, metabolic pathways, and proteins that might be characteristic of the CAD patients’ microbiome, such as increased expressions of 6-phospho-β-glucosidase and protein-N(pi)-phosphohistidine-sugar phosphotransferase and decreased expressions of DNA topoisomerase, oxaloacetate decarboxylase, and 6-beta-glucosidase. In summary, CAD is associated with altered gut microbiome composition and function.
Left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD) is caused by a decreased left ventricle relaxation and is associated with an increased risk of symptomatic heart failure (HF) and excessive mortality.
To ...evaluate the frequency and factors related to LVDD in the population with chronic coronary syndromes (CCS).
200 patients (mean age 63.18 ± 8.12 years, 75.5% male) with CCS were included. LVDD was diagnosed based on the recent echocardiography guidelines.
LVDD was diagnosed in 38.5% of CCS population. From the studied factors, after adjustment for age, sex, and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), LVDD associated positively with android/gynoid (A/G) fat mass ratio, left ventricular mass index (LVMI), and negatively with Z-score and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). In stepwise backward logistic regression analysis, the strongest factors associated with LVDD were pulse wave velocity value, handgrip strength and waist to hip ratio (WHR).
LVDD is common among CCS patients and it is associated with parameters reflecting android type fat distribution regardless of NT-proBNP and high-sensitivity troponin T concentrations. Deterioration in diastolic dysfunction is linked with increased aortic stiffness independently of age and sex. Further studies evaluating the effects of increasing physical fitness and lowering abdominal fat accumulations on LVDD in CCS patients should be considered.
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