Masahiro Shono

Effects of child abuse history on borderline personality traits, negative life events, and depression: A study among a university student population in Japan

To simultaneously examine the impact of childhood abuse history on borderline personality traits, negative life events, and depression, undergraduate students (N=243) were studied by questionnaire surveys with one week intervals. Neglect and emotional abuse as well as sexual maltreatment predicted borderline personality traits and baseline depression. Baseline depression as well as the impact of negative life events occurring the week prior predicted depression a week later. However, after considering the baseline depression level, child abuse history failed to predict the follow-up depression level. Borderline personality traits did not moderate these findings. Childhood emotional and sexual abuse history may influence depression and borderline personality traits.

The effects of adult attachment and life stress on daily depression: a sample of Japanese university students

To investigate the relationship among adult attachment style, life stress, and daily depression, a sample of 437 undergraduate students was prospectively studied. Insecure adult attachment and perceived life stress were related to their daily depressive mood. Further analyses using both multiple hierarchical regression and structural equation models (SEM) demonstrated that adult attachment style and perceived life stress independently predicted depression and had no interactive effects on daily depression. The impact of adult attachment on depression was not contingent upon the presence of life stress and securely attached participants were less impacted by depression than insecurely attached ones. These results suggest that adult attachment can play an important role in mental health intervention and may be helpful when it comes to preventing and treating depression.

Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome among Quarry Workers in Vietnam

Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome among Quarry Workers in Vietnam: Makoto Futatsuka, et al. Department of Public Health, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kumamoto University—Few studies have focused on the health effects of vibrating tools on workers in the tropical area. Work conditions and health effects related to rock drill operation were studied in 102 quarry workers, including 73 rock drill operators in Vietnam. We aimed to clarify (1) risk of vibration exposure, (2) occurrence of vibration‐induced white finger (VWF), and (3) characteristics of handarm vibration syndrome (HAVS). Total weighted r.m.s. acceleration of the Chinese ‐or Russian‐made rock drills, was 45–55 m/s2. According to work observation studies, daily exposure time to vibration was 160–210 min. ISO5349 predicted that this exposure level would be associated with a high risk of HAVS in workers. We found no clear evidence of VWF. There may be several reasons why no worker exhibited VWF: (1) warmer work conditions, (2) younger and less experienced workers, (3) seasonal changes in work operations, and (4) healthy worker effect. On the other hand, 5–10% of rock drill operators might be suffering from moderate HAVS which was sensori‐neural type dominant. There may be some characteristic features of HAVS among quarry workers in the tropical area.

Effects of coping styles and stressful life events on depression and anxiety in Japanese nursing students: A longitudinal study

Nursing students face stressful situations during a clinical training. This two-wave (between June and December 2004) study explored the relationship between the coping styles and stressful life events in terms of the occurrence of depression and anxiety among 97 Japanese female nursing students before (Time 1) and after (Time 2) a clinical training. In a structural equation modelling, Time 2 depression was significantly predicted by Time 1 depression and stressful life events whereas Time 2 anxiety was predicted by Time 1 anxiety, stressful life events and emotion-oriented coping. Moreover, Time 1 depression predicted the impact of stressful life events and Time 1 anxiety predicted emotion-oriented coping.

Efficacy of cyclophosphamide combined with prednisolone in patients with AA amyloidosis secondary to rheumatoid arthritis

Secondary amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis is an uncommon yet important complication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is one of the most relentless of the extra-articular features of RA, and suitable treatments have not yet been found. We studied the efficacy of cyclophosphamide (CYC) combined with prednisolone (PSL) in amyloidotic patients who had serum amyloid A (SAA) 1.3 genotype, which is a risk factor for secondary amyloidosis in Japanese RA patients. Fifteen RA patients who were SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygotes with biopsy-confirmed AA amyloidosis were treated with a combination of CYC and PSL. Laboratory variables of C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), serum albumin (Alb), serum creatinine (Cre) and Lansbury’s index were carried out by statistical analysis of changes between before and during the medication. According to the Mann–Whitney rank test, CRP, RF, ESR, Alb and Cre levels improved significantly with the combination treatment (p<0.05). Also, paired t-tests showed significance in Lansbury’s index between before and during the medication (p=0.007). CYC combined with PSL ameliorated not only laboratory markers but also clinical rheumatoid activity in patients with amyloidosis secondary to RA, whose genotypes were SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygous. CRP, ESR, RF, Alb and Cre will be surrogate markers of therapeutic efficacy. The combination of CYC and PSL appears to be beneficial for Japanese RA patients who are SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygous carriers, associated with secondary AA amyloidosis.

Apolipoprotein E ϵ2 allele and early onset schizophrenia

Abstract To explore the role of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) in schizophrenia, we investigated ApoE phenotypes in a group of patients with schizophrenia. Serum samples were obtained from 122 schizophrenic patients and 126 controls in Japan and were examined using isoelectric focusing/immunoblotting. This experiment showed a trend toward a decreased frequency of ApoE ϵ 4 in schizophrenia and no link between ApoE ϵ 4 and familial schizophrenia or early onset schizophrenia. On the other hand, a decreased frequency of ApoE ϵ 2 in early onset schizophrenia was detected. These results suggest that ApoE ϵ 2 protects against early onset schizophrenia, and that ApoE ϵ 4 is not involved in the development of schizophrenia in Japanese.

The Inventory of Personality Organisation: its psychometric properties among student and clinical populations in Japan

BackgroundThe Inventory of Personality Organisation (IPO) is a self-report measure that reflects personality traits, as theorised by Kernberg.MethodsIn study 1, the Japanese version of the IPO was distributed to a population of Japanese university students (N = 701). The students were randomly divided into two groups. The factor structure derived from an exploratory factor analysis among one subsample was tested using a confirmatory factor structure among another subsample. In study 2, the factor-driven subscales of the IPO were correlated with other variables that would function as external criteria to validate the scale in a combined population of the students used in study 1 and psychiatric outpatients (N = 177).ResultsIn study 1 the five-factor structure presented by the original authors was replicated in exploratory factor analyses in one subgroup of students. However, this was through reduction of the number of items (the number of the primary items was reduced from 57 to 24 whereas the number of the additional items was reduced from 26 to 13) due to low endorsement frequencies as well as low factor loadings on a designated factor. The new factor structure was endorsed by a confirmatory factor analysis in the other student subgroup. In study 2 the new five subscales of the Japanese IPO were likely to be correlated with younger age, more personality psychopathology (borderline and narcissistic), more dysphoric mood, less psychological well-being, more insecure adult attachment style, lower self-efficacy, and more frequent history of childhood adversity. The IPO scores were found to predict the increase in suicidal ideation in a weeks time in a longitudinal follow-up.ConclusionAlthough losing more than 40% of the original items, the Japanese IPO may be a reliable and valid measure of Kernbergs personality organisation for Japanese populations.

The Resilience Scale: A Duplication Study in Japan

To examine the factor structure, construct, and predictive validity of the Resilience Scale (RS), Japanese uni- versity students (N = 504 to 547) were examined. The RS has a good internal consistency and a single factor structure. Students high in resilience were less likely to be depressed or suicidal; more likely to adopt task-oriented coping but less likely to adopt emotion-oriented coping; more likely to have secure attachment with an opposite-sex partner; less likely to have shame feeling but more likely to have pride feeling; more likely to show healthy narcissistic personality traits but less likely to show identity diffusion; more likely to report their parents as high in care and low in overprotection; and more likely to report receiving punishment as a child. The RS is shown to be a significant predictor of the depressive se- verity two weeks later after controlling for demographic variables, baseline depression, and negative life events, which occurred during the previous week. Thus, the RS is a valid measure in a Japanese student population.

Psychological well-being, depression, and anxiety in Japanese university students

Background: In order to further investigate the relationship of psychological well‐being with depression and anxiety. Method: Students from five universities were solicited to participate in this study and 545 students with a mean age of 20.1 (SD = 2.2) years were finally accessed to analysis. Result: All six dimensions—autonomy (AU), environment mastery (EM), personal growth (PG), positive relationships with others (PR), purpose in life (PL), and self‐acceptance (SA)—of the Scales of Psychological Well‐being Inventory (SPWB) were moderately negatively correlated with depression and anxiety as measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Furthermore, due to a good fit with the present data, the model of SPWB on depression and anxiety was consistent with the theory of psychological well‐being and indicated that HADS depression was predicted by EM, PR, and SA, while HADS anxiety was predicted by AU, EM, PG, PR, and SA. Conclusion: SPWB is a reliable measure of well‐being for Japanese young adults, and the negative affectivity such as depression and anxiety is to some extent determined by the lack of psychological well‐being. Depression and Anxiety, 2009.

Correlation between forearm bone mineral density and body composition in Japanese females aged 18–40 years

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between forearm bone mineral density (BMD), body mass index (BMI), and body composition focusing on body fat percentage (BF%) in Japanese females 18 to 40 years old.MethodsSubjects were 2,280 females 18–40 years old. Anthropometric measurements were taken, and a medical history was obtained by questionnaire, including age at the time of the study and age at menarche. BF% was measured by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Forearm BMD was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The correlations of BMD with BMI and BF% were analyzed using a structural equation model.ResultsThe standardized regression coefficients for the path from BMI to BMD and the path from BF% to BMD were 0.538 and −0.184 respectively. The squared multiple correlation of BMD was 0.146. In addition, the standardized regression coefficient for the path from BMI to BF% was 0.896.ConclusionThe results showed a positive correlation between BMD and BMI and an inverse correlation between BMD and BF%. At the same time, it was noted that BF% increased with BMI. This indicated that BMD is dependant on BF% in subjects who have a similar BMI. Therefore, this study concluded that it is necessary to take body composition measurements into account when examining the relationship between BMI and BMD, especially in young females.