BACKGROUND: Although the suicide rate in Korea is the highest in the world, only limited studies have been done on suicide and its associated factors. In this regard, we studied a conceptual model and the relationships and interactions of activity of daily living (ADL), social support, depression, and suicidal ideation among elderly women in Korea. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study, subjects included 194 community-dwelling elderly women. Their ADL, multi-dimensional scale of perceived social support (MSPSS), depression, and suicidal ideation (SI) were examined. The t-test, ANOVA test, Pearson's correlation coefficient, multiple regression analysis, and structural equation modeling were utilized in data analysis. RESULTS: There were significant correlations between SI and economic status, social support, and depression. Depression was correlated with not only SI but also ADL (r=0.195, P=0.006) and social support (r=-0.337, P<0.001). Absolute fit indices demonstrated that the research model had a good model fit. There were significant factor loading values from depression to SI (standardized estimate=0.157, P=0.023) and from social support to SI (standardized estimate=-0.308, P<0.001). There were two indirect effects from social support to SI and from ADL to SI. The mediating factor of these two indirect effects was depression. CONCLUSIONS: Suicidal ideation in the elderly needs to be prevented; and more attention should be given to this end. Social support programs encouraging family participation are greatly effective in prevention of senior citizens' suicidal ideation.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged* ; Depression ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Negotiating ; Statistics as Topic ; Suicidal Ideation* ; Suicide

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to test effects of a cognition activation program on ADL, cognitive functions, depression, and QOL in the institutionalized elderly. METHODS: The subjects were 40 elders who were admitted to a nursing home, with 20 of them in the experimental group and the other 20 in the control group. Data were collected from September 1 to December 17, 2012. The experimental group participated in a 12 week intervention program. ADL, cognitive functions, depression, and QOL were measured before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed by t-test and regression analysis of the SPSS and AMOS programs. RESULTS: ADL (t=2.468, p=.017), depression (t=-2.625, p=012), and QOL (t=2.428, p=.020) were more significantly improved in the experimental group than in the control group, but there were no statistical differences in cognitive function between the two groups. Cognitive functions had positive effects on ADL (CR=-2.263, p=.024) and depression affected QOL (CR=-7.248, p<.001). CONCLUSION: The intervention program had positive effects on ADL, depression, and QOL except cognition. Cognitive functions of elders dramatically decrease after age 85, and it takes too much time to improve it. Therefore the program for the improvement of cognitive functions should be provided as early as possible.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged ; Cognition* ; Depression ; Humans ; Clinical Trial ; Korea* ; Nursing Homes ; Quality of Life

No abstract available.
Hair Follicle* ; Hair* ; Nevus*

BACKGROUND: Although oral health in the elderly significantly affects their physical health and quality of life, there have only been limited studies on the relationship between oral health and quality of life. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between oral health, ADL, depression and quality of life in the elderly in Korea, and to provide data to assist the development of health promotion programs in this population. METHODS: Study subjects included 201 community dwelling elders recruited during December 1 to 31, 2013. Data collected included socio-demographics, oral health (OHIP-14), activity of daily living (ADL), depression status (GDS-SF) and quality of life (QOL). For data analysis, ANOVA test, t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis were performed using the SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 20.0. RESULTS: Average score of OHIP was 0.71, depression was 6.34 and QOL was 2.12. There were significant differences in OHIP according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018) and disease staus (F=3.08, P=0.048). Also there were statistically significant differences in the depression status according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001) and economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018), and in QOL according to education (F=7.01, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.87, P=0.009) and disease (F=11.04, P<0.001). ADL influenced OHIP and depression, OHIP influenced depression and depression influenced QOL. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health in the elderly should be considered in developing health programs for quality of life.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged* ; Depression* ; Education ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Korea ; Oral Health* ; Quality of Life* ; Statistics as Topic

BACKGROUND: Although oral health in the elderly significantly affects their physical health and quality of life, there have only been limited studies on the relationship between oral health and quality of life. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between oral health, ADL, depression and quality of life in the elderly in Korea, and to provide data to assist the development of health promotion programs in this population. METHODS: Study subjects included 201 community dwelling elders recruited during December 1 to 31, 2013. Data collected included socio-demographics, oral health (OHIP-14), activity of daily living (ADL), depression status (GDS-SF) and quality of life (QOL). For data analysis, ANOVA test, t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis were performed using the SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 20.0. RESULTS: Average score of OHIP was 0.71, depression was 6.34 and QOL was 2.12. There were significant differences in OHIP according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018) and disease staus (F=3.08, P=0.048). Also there were statistically significant differences in the depression status according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001) and economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018), and in QOL according to education (F=7.01, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.87, P=0.009) and disease (F=11.04, P<0.001). ADL influenced OHIP and depression, OHIP influenced depression and depression influenced QOL. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health in the elderly should be considered in developing health programs for quality of life.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged* ; Depression* ; Education ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Korea ; Oral Health* ; Quality of Life* ; Statistics as Topic

BACKGROUND: According to the 2013 statistics, The prevalence rate of depression of women was twice compare to man. Especially, about 53% of depression patients were women over age 40. So this study was conducted to analyze whether women's depression is influenced by their socio-demographic characteristics, life stress, and social support. METHODS: This study was a descriptive survey, and data were collected during the period from the 1st to 31st of August in 2015, using a self-reporting questionnaire from 196 women aged between 40 and 60 who were sampled from an urban area through convenient sampling. RESULTS: First, among the sub-factors of life stress, health-related & role conflict stress were highest. And life stress was higher when social support was low. Second, social support was higher when exercise was done regularly. Lastly, the results of structural equation modeling analysis showed that life stress and social support had a significant effect on depression. Life stress had a significant direct effect on social support, and social support had a significant direct effect on depression. Life stress had an indirect effect on depression through the medium of social support, and their explanatory power was R2=0.68 and R2=0.64, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed that depression was in a very close relationship with life stress and social support. This finding suggests that future health policies for managing middle-aged women's depression should focus on reducing life stress and reinforcing their social support.
Depression* ; Female ; Health Policy ; Humans ; Prevalence ; Stress, Psychological

BACKGROUND: Although oral health in the elderly significantly affects their physical health and quality of life, there have only been limited studies on the relationship between oral health and quality of life. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between oral health, ADL, depression and quality of life in the elderly in Korea, and to provide data to assist the development of health promotion programs in this population. METHODS: Study subjects included 201 community dwelling elders recruited during December 1 to 31, 2013. Data collected included socio-demographics, oral health (OHIP-14), activity of daily living (ADL), depression status (GDS-SF) and quality of life (QOL). For data analysis, ANOVA test, t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis were performed using the SPSS 20.0 and AMOS 20.0. RESULTS: Average score of OHIP was 0.71, depression was 6.34 and QOL was 2.12. There were significant differences in OHIP according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018) and disease staus (F=3.08, P=0.048). Also there were statistically significant differences in the depression status according to education (F=7.49, P=0.001) and economic status (F=4.08, P=0.018), and in QOL according to education (F=7.01, P=0.001), economic status (F=4.87, P=0.009) and disease (F=11.04, P<0.001). ADL influenced OHIP and depression, OHIP influenced depression and depression influenced QOL. CONCLUSIONS: Oral health in the elderly should be considered in developing health programs for quality of life.
Activities of Daily Living ; Aged ; Depression ; Education ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Korea ; Oral Health ; Quality of Life ; Statistics as Topic

Objective: This study aimed to identify the central symptoms of late-life depression using network analysis and the item response theory. Methods: A total of 3,472 older adults were enrolled and the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15) was used to evaluate the depressive symptoms. To identify the central symptoms and the network structures among the individual symptoms, the analyses of symptom network structures and item response theory were performed. Results: Among items on the GDS-15, “Happy,” “Hopeless,” “Empty,” “Bored,” “Worthless,” and “Good spirits” showed significantly higher strength centrality than the other symptoms. Among all the edges, the edge between “Empty” and “Bored” was the strongest; however, these two symptoms were not connected strongly to other symptoms. In the analysis of item response theory, “Empty,” “Bored,” “Hopeless,” “Worthless,” “Happy,” “Helpless,” and “Satisfied” presented a very high value on the discrimination parameter. Conclusion Our study identified the central symptoms and the network structures among symptoms listed on the GDS-15. Most of central symptoms identified by network analysis and item response theory coincided. Our results suggest that these central symptoms need to be prioritized as highly comorbid symptoms and can contribute to the development of a brief screening tool for the elderly.

The iron uptake and utilization pathways play a critical role in allowing human pathogens, including Cryptococcus neoformans, the causative agent of fatal meningoencephalitis, to survive within the mammalian body by competing with the host for iron. Here we show that the iron regulon is also required for diverse environmental stress responses and that in C. neoformans, it is regulated by the high-osmolarity glycerol response (HOG) pathway. Between CFO1 and CFO2, two ferroxidase genes in the iron regulon, CFO1 but not CFO2 was induced during oxidative and osmotic stress. Interestingly, we found that the HOG pathway repressed basal expression of both CFO1 and CFO2. Furthermore, when the HOG pathway was blocked, CFO2 also responded to oxidative and osmotic stress and the response of CFO1 was increased. We also established that CFO1 plays a major role in responding and adapting to diverse environmental stresses, including oxidative and genotoxic damage, osmotic fluctuations, heavy metal stress, and stress induced by cell membrane destabilizers. Therefore, our findings indicate that in C. neoformans, the iron uptake and utilization pathways are not only required for iron acquisition and survival, but also play a significant role in the environmental stress response through crosstalk with the HOG pathway.
Cell Membrane ; Ceruloplasmin* ; Cryptococcus neoformans* ; Glycerol ; Humans ; Iron ; Meningoencephalitis ; Osmotic Pressure ; Regulon

Objectives: ：Although subclinical depression symptoms are associated with suicidal idea, most research have focused on clinical depression such as major depressive disorder or dysthymia. The aim of this study is to investigate network structure of depressive symptom and to reveal which symptoms are associated with suicidal ideation. Methods: ：We used part of data from the seventh Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants were between 19 and 65 years of age (N=8,741). Network analysis with Isingfit model is used to reveal network structure of depressive symptoms and most central symptom and edges assessed by patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9). Results: ：The most two central symptoms were psychomotor activity and suicidal ideation. The strongest edge was psychomotor activity-suicidal ideation. Suicidal ideation also has strong association with depressive mood and worthlessness. Conclusions ：These results suggest that psychomotor activity and suicidal ideation can serve as treatment target for subclinical depression and psychomotor activity, worthlessness and depressed mood may be important factor for early intervention of suicidal ideation.