The role of personality variables and social support in distress and perceived health in patients following myocardial infarction

Objectives: (1) To investigate whether patients with low versus high social support and satisfaction with support report less distress and health complaints following a first myocardial infarction (MI). (2) To examine whether personality traits mediate social support and its effect on distress and health complaints. Methods: A questionnaire was distributed to 112 consecutive patients with a first MI 4–6 weeks postinfarction. Objective clinical measures were obtained from the patients' medical records. Results: Patients with low social support were at increased risk of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Patients less satisfied with support were at increased risk of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and reported more health complaints. Generally, larger effect sizes were found for satisfaction with support compared with social support per se in relation to distress and health complaints. Neuroticism was identified as an independent predictor of all types of distress and health complaints when including both traits and social support variables in multivariable analyses, adjusted for demographic and clinical variables. Satisfaction with support only remained an independent predictor of depression. Conclusion: These results suggest that personality traits may mediate social support and its effect on distress and health complaints. Hence, it may be important to include personality variables when investigating social support in relation to distress and health. In clinical practice, screening for particular personality traits could identify patients at risk of distress and recurrent cardiac events.     

计算机辅助教学在机能实验教学中的应用

机能实验室普遍采用生物信号采集系统计算机辅助教学，教学水平明显提高，但计算机辅助实验教学也给我们带来了新的问题与挑战。本文结合广州医学院6年的教学实践，分别从生物信号采集系统的选择、教材与实验项目的选择、教师及技术人员的管理、网络化实验室及开放实验室等五个方面介绍了我们的经验。     

与和谐社会相适应的大学生社会责任感的构建

社会责任感是大学生道德素质的重要组成部分，是当代大学生综合素质的薄弱环节。大学教育必须高度重视并切实加强这一环节，从社会、学校、家庭等各方面查找原因，有针对性地采取措施，培养和构建大学生社会责任感，提高大学生综合素质，以适应建设社会主义和谐社会伟大目标的需要。     

老年人睡眠质量与孤独及社会支持的相关性研究

目的了解广州市社区老年人睡眠质量与孤独及社会支持的关系。方法应用匹兹堡睡眠质量指数量表(PSQI)、UCLA孤独量表、社会支持评定量表(SSRS)对131名老年人进行问卷调查。结果PSQI总分平均分为(6.94±3.81)分,孤独平均分为(39.11±11.49)分,社会支持总分平均分为(35.65±8.05)分。孤独与PSQI总分及因子睡眠时间、睡眠效率、催眠药物的评分正相关;社会支持总分与PSQI总分及因子睡眠质量、入睡时间、睡眠时间、睡眠效率、睡眠障碍的评分负相关。结论孤独和社会支持对老年人的睡眠质量有重要影响,减轻老年人的孤独感和增加社会支持对改善睡眠质量有积极意义。     

幼儿园教师的社会支持及其相关因素

目的了解幼儿园教师社会支持状况,为维护幼儿教师的心理健康提供参考。方法采用领悟社会支持量表,通过分层整群抽样,对河北省11所幼儿园437名教师进行调查分析。结果工作年限、职称、婚姻、劳动合同关系在量表总分、家内支持因子上的差异有显著性:工作年限长的感受到的社会支持高于工作年限短的(66.60±7.77)分;(63.23±9.62)分,有职称的高于无职称的(66.93±7.80)分;(64.21±9.02)分,已婚的高于未婚的(66.32±8.24)分;(64.09±9.00)分,正式工高于临时工(66.45±8.19)分;(63.99±9.00)分。子女在家内支持因子上评分差异有显著性:有子女的高于无子女的(23.35±3.59)分;(22.07±4.32)分。职称在家外支持因子方面差异有显著性:有职称的高于无职称的(43.47±5.89)分;(42.16±6.30)分。在家内支持因子上,月收入与职称之间存在交互作用(F=3.45,P<0.05)。结论幼儿教师的社会支持受到工作年限、职称、子女、婚姻、收入、劳动合同关系等因素的影响。     

生命质量的跨文化研究现状

生命质量目前已广泛应用于社会各领域,成为不可或缺的重要指标和评定工具。随着医学和卫生保健国际交流的广泛化,生命质量的跨文化研究成为新的研究热点。对当前国际上活跃的生命质量跨文化研究项目进行阐明,并分析存在的问题。     

A Multi-Level Analysis Examining how Smoking Friends, Parents, and Older Students in the School Environment are Risk Factors for Susceptibility to Smoking Among Non-Smoking Elementary School Youth

The purpose of this study was to examine how social models for smoking are related to smoking susceptibility among a sample of non-smoking elementary school students. The Tobacco Module of the School Health Action, Planning and Evaluation System (SHAPES) was administered to 6,431 students (grades 6 to 8) in 57 elementary schools in the province of Ontario, Canada. Multi-level logistic regression analysis was used to examine how smoking friends, parents, and the prevalence of smoking among grade 8 students at a school were related to smoking susceptibility among the 2,478 non-smoking grade 6 and 7 students. Findings indicate that non-smoking grade 6 and 7 students are more likely to be susceptible to smoking if they have (a) smoking friends, (b) a mother who smokes, or (c) two or more close friends who smoke and attend a school with a relatively high smoking rate among the grade 8 students. Sub-populations of non-smoking youth may be at increased risk for smoking because of the elementary school they attend. Future school-based smoking prevention programs might benefit from targeting prevention programming activities to the schools that are putting students at the greatest risk for smoking.     

A patient-based questionnaire to assess outcomes of foot surgery: Validation in the context of surgery for hallux valgus

Background: A patient-based outcome measure with good measurement properties is urgently needed for use in clinical trials of foot surgery. Methods: We evaluated an existing foot pain and disability questionnaire (the Manchester Foot Pain and Disability Questionnaire) for its suitability as an outcome measure in the context of hallux valgus corrective surgery. Interviews with patients led to initial changes, resulting in 20 candidate questionnaire items with five response categories each. These were tested in a prospective study of 100 patients (representing 138 foot operations) undergoing hallux valgus corrective surgery. Analysis of underlying factor structure, dimensionality, internal reliability, construct validity and responsiveness of the questionnaire items in relation to (i) SF-36 general health survey and (ii) American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) hallux clinical scale resulted in a final 16 item questionnaire (the ‘Manchester-Oxford Foot Questionnaire’ (MOXFQ)), consisting of three domains/scales: ‘Walking/standing’ (seven items), ‘Pain’ (five items) and ‘Social interaction’ (four items) each having good measurement properties. All three domains were unidimensional. Conclusions: The new 16-item MOXFQ has good measurement properties in the context of outcomes assessment of surgery for hallux valgus. Future studies should assess the MOXFQ in the context of surgery for other foot and ankle conditions.     

Neo-Marxist class position and socioeconomic status: Distinct or complementary determinants of health?

Although the relationship between socioeconomic status and health has received careful attention from health researchers over the past half-century, the means by which income, education and occupational prestige are accumulated in society have received relatively short shrift in the health literature. This article explores the degree to which neo-Marxist conceptualizations of class position are ‘upstream’ determinants of health and well-being. Utilizing data from a survey sample of randomly selected and full-time employed residents of 25 communities in the Canadian province of British Columbia, it evaluates the usefulness of class position distinctions derived from the work of Erik Olin Wright as predictors of physical and mental health before and after controlling for socioeconomic status.