Pathological laughter and crying in patients with multiple system atrophy-cerebellar type.

In the cerebellar type of multiple system atrophy (MSA-C), the burden of pathological changes involves the cerebellum and its associated brainstem structures in the basis pontis and the inferior olivary nucleus, and as a result, the clinical phenotype is dominated early on by the cerebellar dysfunction. We report our clinical and post mortem findings in a patient with MSA-C who exhibited pathological laughter in the absence of any congruent changes of mood. A review of the clinical notes of 27 other patients with MSA-C revealed a problem with pathological laughter, or crying, or both in 9 more patients. Our finding of about 36% occurrence suggests that the problem of dysregulation of emotional expression is more prevalent in MSA-C than the paucity of reports in the literature suggests. Our findings are consistent with the view that the cerebellum and its interconnected structures may be involved in the regulation of emotional expression.     

Selective attention to facial emotion and identity in schizophrenia.

The selective attention to facial emotion and identity was investigated in 12 patients with schizophrenia and 12 healthy participants. Both patients and controls were required to perform two classification tasks (according either to identity or emotion). Two separate values for identity (person A/person B) and for emotion (fear/anger) were used. When the classification task was on one dimension, the other dimension was either correlated, constant, or orthogonal (Garner WR. The Processing of Information and Structure. Potomac, MD: Erlbaum, 1974, Garner WR. Interaction of stimulus dimensions in concept and choice processes. Cognitive Psychology 1976;8:98-123). Results indicated that both patients and healthy participants had an asymmetrical pattern of performance: they were able to selectively attend to the identity of the face presented, regardless of the emotion expressed on the face, but variation in identity interfered with the classification of facial emotion. Moreover, a correlational study indicated that the identity interference on emotion classification for schizophrenic patients covaried with the severity of their negative symptoms. The selective attention competencies in schizophrenia and the independence hypothesis of emotion and face recognition are discussed in the framework of current face recognition models.     

Functional differences among those high and low on a trait measure of psychopathy.

BACKGROUND: It has been established that individuals who score high on measures of psychopathy demonstrate difficulty when performing tasks requiring the interpretation of other's emotional states. The aim of this study was to elucidate the relation of emotion and cognition to individual differences on a standard psychopathy personality inventory (PPI) among a nonpsychiatric population. METHODS: Twenty participants completed the PPI. Following survey completion, a mean split of their scores on the emotional-interpersonal factor was performed, and participants were placed into a high or low group. Functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected while participants performed a recognition task that required attention be given to either the affect or identity of target stimuli. RESULTS: No significant behavioral differences were found. In response to the affect recognition task, significant differences between high- and low-scoring subjects were observed in several subregions of the frontal cortex, as well as the amygdala. No significant differences were found between the groups in response to the identity recognition condition. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that participants scoring high on the PPI, although not behaviorally distinct, demonstrate a significantly different pattern of neural activity (as measured by blood oxygen level-dependent contrast)in response to tasks that require affective processing. The results suggest a unique neural signature associated with personality differences in a nonpsychiatric population.     

Oxytocin attenuates amygdala responses to emotional faces regardless of valence.

BACKGROUND: Oxytocin is known to reduce anxiety and stress in social interactions as well as to modulate approach behavior. Recent studies suggest that the amygdala might be the primary neuronal basis for these effects. METHODS: In a functional magnetic resonance imaging study using a double-blind, placebo-controlled within-subject design, we measured neural responses to fearful, angry, and happy facial expressions after intranasal application of 24 IU oxytocin compared with placebo. RESULTS: Oxytocin reduced right-sided amygdala responses to all three face categories even when the emotional content of the presented face was not evaluated explicitly. Exploratory whole brain analysis revealed modulatory effects in prefrontal and temporal areas as well as in the brainstem. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest a modulatory role of oxytocin on amygdala responses to facial expressions irrespective of their valence. Reduction of amygdala activity to positive and negative stimuli might reflect reduced uncertainty about the predictive value of a social stimulus and thereby facilitates social approach behavior.     

皮肤病患者焦虑水平评估及对策

目的正确评估皮肤疾病患者的焦虑水平，为制定有针对性的护理对策提供依据。方法对136例皮肤病患者采用状态-特质量表（STAI-FormY）进行心理状态评估。结果133例患者状态焦虑阳性47例，总阳性率35％，其中神经性皮炎阳性数23例，阳性率59％（23／39），天疤疮阳性数7例，阳性率58％（7／12），慢性荨麻疹阳性数8例，阳性率53％（8／15），湿疹阳性数2例，阳性率20％（2／10），带状疱疹阳性数5例，阳性率14％（5／36），过敏性紫癜阳性数2例，阳性率12％（2／16）。患者总体状态与特质焦虑评分相关性分析显示两者之间关系密切，呈直线正相关关系（r=0．81，P〈0．001）。结论住院皮肤疾病患者存在较多的焦虑状态，通过量表评估患者的焦虑程度，能较准确的找出焦虑者。     

Ethical and metaethical criteria for an emerging technology: risk assessment

This paper examines ethical criteria for the shaping of an emergingtechnology applied internationally in environmental regulation:quantitative risk assessment-risk management. The role of thephysician in its application, especially in the genetic testingthat will be employed, underlines the importance of understandingthe nature and prospects for reshaping of this technology toenable ethical practice. The Cartesian or mechanistic model(which currently dominates the technology) excludes factorsof emotion, making the connection between assessment and managementunfruitful functionally and ethically, and makes the model unresponsiveto human needs. The emotional factors, nested and mediated inthe organic hierarchy of the ecologically-defined community,constitute key psychological, social, cultural and politicalelements of the total burden of risk. Ethical criteria consistentwith an open society are suggested for reshaping the model toenable effective management.     

306名大学生错失恐惧与社交媒体倦怠的关系:睡眠质量和负性情绪的链式中介作用

目的 探讨大学生睡眠质量、负性情绪在错失恐惧与社交媒体倦怠间的中介作用。 方法 采用错失恐惧量表、社交媒体倦怠量表、匹兹堡睡眠质量指数量表、抑郁-焦虑-压力量表简体中文版对306名大学生进行调查。 结果 错失恐惧、社交媒体倦怠、睡眠质量和负性情绪之间呈两两正相关;错失恐惧能正向预测社交媒体倦怠;睡眠质量和负性情绪在错失恐惧和社交媒体倦怠之间起单独中介作用,且睡眠质量和负性情绪在错失恐惧与社交媒体倦怠之间起链式中介作用,负性情绪各维度效应皆成立。 结论 睡眠质量和负性情绪能够为错失恐惧对社交媒体倦怠的影响提供一个解释机制,大学生的错失恐惧既可以直接影响其社交媒体倦怠水平,也可以通过睡眠质量、负性情绪的独立中介效应以及睡眠质量-负性情绪的链式中介效应间接影响。     

积极、消极情感在社区老年高血压患者疾病感知与健康促进行为之间的双重中介作用

目的 探讨社区老年高血压患者疾病感知和健康促进行为的关系及积极、消极情感在两者之间的中介作用。方法 采用疾病感知问卷简化版(BIPQ)、老年人健康促进行为量表(GHP),积极、消极情感量表(PANAS)对2021年12月至2022年2月广州市3家社区卫生服务中心和1家三甲医院的高血压门诊就诊的240例老年高血压患者进行横断面调查。构建结构方程模型,并采用Bootstrap抽样法对模型进行验证。结果 社区老年高血压患者疾病感知总分为(24.74±4.45)分,健康促进行为总分为(71.78±8.70)分,积极情感总分为(20.15±3.55)分,消极情感总分为(12.16±3.11)分。相关分析显示,疾病感知、消极情感与健康促进行为呈负相关(P<0.01);积极情感与健康促进行为呈正相关(P<0.01);疾病感知与消极情感呈正相关(P<0.01),而与积极情感呈负相关(P<0.01)。双重中介结构方程模型显示：拟合优度检验(χ²/df)=1.641、近似残差均方根(RMSEA)=0.054、比较拟合指数(CFI)=0.961。积极、消极情感在...     

四川昭觉县竹核乡彝族老年精神卫生调查

以统一的流调方法和诊断标准,在500户彝族家庭中对118名60岁以上的农村老人进行了精神卫生流行病学调查。结果显示,老年期精神疾病患病率为5.08%,主要是酒精依赖。