Origin of the 31P MR signal at 5.3 ppm in patients with critical limb ischemia

An unknown intense signal (P_un) with a mean chemical shift of 5.3 ppm was observed in ³¹P MR spectra from the calf muscles of patients with the diabetic foot syndrome. The aim of the study was to identify the origin of this signal and its potential as a biomarker of muscle injury. Calf muscles of 68 diabetic patients (66.3 ± 8.6 years; body mass index = 28.2 ± 4.3 kg/m²) and 12 age‐matched healthy controls were examined by (dynamic) ³¹P MRS (3 T system, ³¹P/¹H coil). Phantoms (glucose‐1‐phosphate, P_i and PCr) were measured at pH values of 7.05 and 7.51. At rest, P_un signals with intensities higher than 50% of the P_i intensity were observed in 10 of the 68 examined diabetic subjects. We tested two hypothetical origins of the P_un signal: (1) phosphorus from phosphoesters and (2) phosphorus from extra‐ and intracellular alkaline phosphate pools. 2,3‐diphosphoglycerate and glucose‐1‐phosphate are the only phosphoesters with signals in the chemical shift region close to 5.3 ppm. Both compounds can be excluded: 2,3‐diphosphoglycerate due to the missing second signal component at 6.31 ppm; glucose‐1‐phosphate because its chemical shifts are about 0.2 ppm downfield from the P_i signal (4.9 ppm). If the P_un signal is from phosphate, it represents a pH value of 7.54 ± 0.05. Therefore, it could correspond to signals of P_i in mitochondria. However, patients with critical limb ischemia have rather few mitochondria and so the P_un signal probably originates from interstitia. Our data suggest that the increased P_un signal observed in patients with the diabetic foot syndrome is a biomarker of severe muscular damage.     

Leadership position and physician visits – results of a nationally representative longitudinal study in Germany

Background

So far, studies within the occupational field have largely concentrated on working conditions and job stressors and staff members’ or subordinate health. Only a few have focused on managers in this context, but studies are missing that explicitly look at the relation between leadership position and health care use (HCU). Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the potential effects of a change in leadership position on HCU in women and men longitudinally.

Methods

Data were drawn from a nationally representative longitudinal study in Germany (German Socio-Economic Panel, GSOEP). Data from 2009 and 2013 were used. Leadership position was divided into (i) top management, (ii) middle management, (iii) lower management, and (iv) a highly qualified specialist position. The number of physician visits in the preceding 3 months were used to quantify HCU (n?=?2140 observations in regression analysis; 69% male).

Results

Adjusting for various potential confounders (e.g., age, self-rated health, chronic conditions, and personality factors), Poisson FE regression analysis revealed that changes from a highly qualified specialist position to the top management were associated with a decrease in the number of physician visits in men (β?=?.47, p?<?.05), but not in women. Gender differences (gender x leadership position) were significant.

Conclusions

Findings of this study emphasize the impact of leadership positions on the number of physician visits in men. Further study is required to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.

     

The relation between personality,informal caregiving,life satisfaction and health-related quality of life: evidence of a longitudinal study

Purpose

Personality characteristics of the caregiver might play a role in the relation between informal caregiving and health-related quality of life as well as life satisfaction. However, a limited body of research has examined this relation. This study aimed to examine the role personality characteristics of the caregiver might play in the relation between informal caregiving and well-being outcomes using a longitudinal approach.

Methods

Data were derived from the large Panel ‘Labour Market and Social Security.’ This is an annual household survey, which is conducted by order of the Institute for Employment Research covering persons and households registered as residents of Germany. The SF-12 was used to capture health-related quality of life (covering physical and mental health). A short version of the Big Five Inventory (BFI-K) was used to quantify personality factors. Life satisfaction was measured by a single-item measure. Concentrating on these factors, we used data from the third (2008/2009), sixth (2012), and ninth wave (2015). 34,548 observations were used in fixed effects regressions.

Results

Adjusting for various potential confounders, linear fixed effects regressions showed that the onset of informal caregiving reduced life satisfaction (β?=???.14, p?<?.01), but not physical and mental health. The relation between informal caregiving and life satisfaction was significantly moderated by agreeableness (p?<?.01).

Conclusions

Findings of the present study emphasized that agreeableness moderates the relationship between informal caregiving and life satisfaction. Measuring personality characteristics of the informal caregiver is important for tailoring interventional strategies in order to increase the benefit of these programs.

     

Risk of Mental Illness in Offspring of Parents With Schizophrenia,Bipolar Disorder,and Major Depressive Disorder: A Meta-Analysis of Family High-Risk Studies

Objective: Offspring of parents with severe mental illness (SMI; schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder) are at an increased risk of developing mental illness. We aimed to quantify the risk of mental disorders in offspring and determine whether increased risk extends beyond the disorder present in the parent. Method: Meta-analyses of absolute and relative rates of mental disorders in offspring of parents with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or depression in family high-risk studies published by December 2012. Results: We included 33 studies with 3863 offspring of parents with SMI and 3158 control offspring. Offspring of parents with SMI had a 32% probability of developing SMI (95% CI: 24%–42%) by adulthood (age >20). This risk was more than twice that of control offspring (risk ratio [RR] 2.52; 95% CI 2.08–3.06, P < .001). High-risk offspring had a significantly increased rate of the disorder present in the parent (RR = 3.59; 95% CI: 2.57–5.02, P < .001) and of other types of SMI (RR = 1.92; 95% CI: 1.48–2.49, P < .001). The risk of mood disorders was significantly increased among offspring of parents with schizophrenia (RR = 1.62; 95% CI: 1.02–2.58; P = .042). The risk of schizophrenia was significantly increased in offspring of parents with bipolar disorder (RR = 6.42; 95% CI: 2.20–18.78, P < .001) but not among offspring of parents with depression (RR = 1.71; 95% CI: 0.19–15.16, P = .631). Conclusions: Offspring of parents with SMI are at increased risk for a range of psychiatric disorders and one third of them may develop a SMI by early adulthood.Key words: schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, offspring, meta-analysis     

Prevalence and correlates of loneliness,perceived and objective social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Evidence from a representative survey in Germany

Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology - Our aim was to identify the prevalence and correlates of loneliness, perceived and objective social isolation in the German population during the...     

Pet ownership,loneliness, and social isolation: a systematic review

Purpose

Several publications explored a relationship between pet ownership and lower levels of loneliness and social isolation. However, to the best of our knowledge, no systematic review has yet synthesized the evidence on these associations. Thus, this systematic review aims to evaluate the findings regarding the relations between pet ownership, loneliness, and social isolation.

Methods

PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycInfo were searched in January 2022. Observational studies relying on appropriate instruments to assess the exposure and the outcome variables were included. Two reviewers independently executed study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment.

Results

n = 24 studies were included. Among adult samples, the studies examining the relationship between pet ownership and social isolation found that owning a pet was associated with lower levels of social isolation. Concerning loneliness, studies that were conducted after the outbreak of COVID-19 mostly showed that pet ownership can contribute to lower levels of loneliness, but did not reveal an overall significant association until then. In turn, the studies that examined child and adolescent samples suggest that pet ownership was related to reduced loneliness before COVID-19. Furthermore, most of the studies did not reveal any differences between dogs, cats, and other kinds of pets regarding their relationship to loneliness and social isolation.

Conclusion

All in all, only a part of the studies detected a significant association between pet ownership, loneliness and social isolation. However, the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to strengthen this relationship, so that future research is required to assess the longevity of this potential effect.

     

White matter hyperintensities: from medical comorbidities to bipolar disorders and back

White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are among the most replicated neuroimaging findings in studies of patients with bipolar disorders (BD). Despite the high rates of WMHs, their role and etiology in BD are not well understood. WMHs occur in multiple other conditions frequently co-morbid with BD. From the available studies it seems that WMHs are not a primary risk factor/endophenotype for BD. More likely, these lesions indicate the presence of medical co-morbidities with specific links to BD. Furthermore, the etiology of the WMHs in BD may represent different processes depending on age. In certain forms of BD, such as pediatric BD, WMHs may represent co-morbidity with developmental disorders. High frequency of migraine in BD and high prevalence of WMHs in migraine may suggest that a substantial proportion of WMHs in early adulthood to midlife BD subjects may be related to co-morbidity with migraine. Among elderly subjects with BD, or those with late-onset BD, WMHs are likely related to the presence of cardiovascular/metabolic disorders. With further research WMHs may enhance our knowledge about various pathological pathways involved in BD, help in decreasing the etiological heterogeneity of BD, and become useful as markers of severity or subtype of BD.