Delusional parasitosis is characterized by the unshakeable belief of being infested with tiny (microscopic) insects. Patients spend much time trying to get rid of the bugs and suffer from these symptoms. Patients prefer to go to dermatologists because they have a strong conviction over the presence of a somatic disease and do not accept any psychiatric advice for their complaints. 'Folie a deux' or shared psychotic disorder (SPD) is a relatively rare syndrome, which has long attracted clinical attention. Delusional parasitosis is associated in 5-15% of SPD and can run within a family. We experienced delusional parasitosis as 'Folie a Deux' between a mother and her son and successfully treated them through early psychiatric intervention. We believe that attention should be drawn to DP with SPD.
Adult ; Delusions/*diagnosis/*psychology ; Ectoparasitic Infestations/psychology ; Female ; Human ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Paranoid Disorders/diagnosis/psychology ; Shared Paranoid Disorder/*diagnosis/*psychology ; Social Isolation

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors associated with social isolation in older adults using a senior welfare center. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional survey. Data was collected from June to August 2006 using a questionnaire. A total of 248 older adults responded. RESULTS: About one third (34.9%) of participants responded they felt socially isolated. There were statistically significant differences in living, religion, family and belongingness social support, loneliness, depression, family function, perceived health status, and number of chronic illnesses between socially isolated and non isolated groups. However, factors influencing social isolation were family function (OR=0.954, CI=0.926-0.982), loneliness (OR=1.042, CI=1.002-1.083), depression (OR=1.041, CI=1.002-1.081), and number of chronic illness (OR=1.657, CI=1.153-2.382). CONCLUSION: We found that some older adults were feeling socially isolated even though the senior welfare center was a good place to meet people. The findings of this study indicated that older adults suffering from social isolation need special attention and may benefit from interventions which promote health and social interactions. Further studies are needed to develop and evaluate an intervention program for this population.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Depression ; Family ; Female ; Health Status ; Humans ; Loneliness ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Questionnaires ; Social Isolation/*psychology ; Social Welfare ; Translating

Fecal incontinence is defined as either the involuntary passage of gas or stool or the inability to control the passage of fecal contents through the anus. Patients are reluctant to report fecal incontinence, resulting in underestimated prevalence. Studies have reported that its prevalence ranges from 2% to 20%. Diverse causes are involved in the generation of fecal incontinence. Fecal incontinence leads to a loss of self-esteem, social isolation, and a diminished quality of life. Antidiarrheals are useful for diarrhea with incontinence. Biofeedback therapy and exercise therapies may be helpful, particularly in patients with weak sphincters and/or impaired rectal sensation. Sacral nerve stimulation can be an option if other treatments have not been successful. Although some studies have shown the efficacy of injectable bulking agents, data on their long-term outcome and experience are lacking. Sphincteroplasty can be considered in selected patients who have failed nonsurgical measures or biofeedback therapy. A colostomy is a less preferable option. The various treatment options can be chosen with an individualized approach, depending on the causes of fecal incontinence, the action mechanism of treatment, comorbidities, general condition, and procedure-related risks.
Anal Canal ; Antidiarrheals ; Biofeedback, Psychology ; Colostomy ; Comorbidity ; Diarrhea ; Exercise Therapy ; Fecal Incontinence ; Humans ; Prevalence ; Quality of Life ; Sensation ; Social Isolation

OBJECTIVETo examine the abilities of theanine and houpu extracts (HE) to reverse behavioral indexes (separation vocalization, stress-induced analgesia and activity).

METHOD7-day-old chicks received IP injection of theanine and HE 30 min before being tested in the presence of three social companions or in isolation for 3-min observation period. Dependent measures were: a) Chicks were placed into an infrared ray device to calculate their spontaneous activities by a computer program b) record the separation vocalizations for every chick. c) In the experiment of stress-induced analgesia, 50 uL of formalin (0.1%) was injected into the plantar of the animal foot to index stress-induced analgesia (i. e. foot-lift frequency, foot-lift duration and peck frequency).

RESULTIn the experiments, isolated chicks exhibited more vocalizations (P < 0.01) and fewer pain-related behaviors than non-isolated chicks (P < 0.01). Theanine (12.5, 25, 50 mg x kg(-1)) and HE (25 mg x kg(-1)) decrease separately the tendency (dB) of the principal frequency (P < 0.05, P < 0.01); The stress induced analgesia can be reversed by theanine in 25, 50 mg x kg(-1). Both of the materials do not affect the spontaneous activities in this chick model without causing sedation.

CONCLUSIONThese results suggest that theanine and HE in the dosages may be useful in modulating anxiety states. They are seems no synergism in the chick model.

Animals ; Behavior, Animal ; drug effects ; Chickens ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use ; Glutamates ; isolation & purification ; therapeutic use ; Magnolia ; chemistry ; Phytotherapy ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Social Isolation ; psychology ; Stress, Psychological ; drug therapy ; psychology ; Time Factors

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among depression, somatic symptoms, and activities of daily living of elderly women in urban areas. METHOD: After obtaining participant's consent forms, a one-time, face-to-face, and private interview was conducted with each participant from Sep, 2006 to Jan, 2007 by trained graduate-level students. The questionnaire consisted of K-GDS, PHQ-15, Barthel Index, and Instrumental Activity of Daily Living. The collected data was analyzed with the SPSS/PC 12.0 program, which was used for frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, Pearson correlation coefficients, and multiple regression. RESULTS: The major findings of this study were as follows 1) 34.1% of participants belonged to the depression group. 2) There were significant relationships between depression and monthly income, somatic symptoms, ADL, IADL, and number of chronic disease. 3) Significant factors influencing depression were somatic symptoms, ADL, and monthly income. CONCLUSION: The results of this study give useful information for designing interventions and program development for appropriate depression management and care for elderly women.
*Activities of Daily Living ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; *Depression ; Female ; Frail Elderly/*psychology ; Health Status ; Humans ; Interpersonal Relations ; Middle Aged ; Questionnaires ; Social Isolation ; Urban Population

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the health-illness transition of patients with Young-Onset Parkinson's Disease (YOPD). METHODS: From June to November 2011, 17 patients with YOPD who visited a neurologic clinic in a tertiary hospital participated in the study. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed using the grounded theory of Strauss and Corbin. RESULTS: The core category of the participants' health-illness transition emerged as 'reshaping identity following uncontrollable changes'. The participants' health-illness transition process consisted of six phases in sequence: ego withdrawal, loss of role, frustration, change of thought, modification of life tract, and second life. Although most participants proceeded through the six phases chronologically, some returned to the frustration phase and then took up the remaining phases. CONCLUSION: The study results provide an in-depth understanding of health-illness transition experiences in the participants. These findings suggest a need to develop appropriate nursing intervention strategies according to the different phases in the health-illness transition of patients with YOPD.
*Adaptation, Physiological ; Adult ; Age of Onset ; Female ; Humans ; Interviews as Topic ; Laughter Therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Parkinson Disease/*psychology ; Patient Acceptance of Health Care ; Self Concept ; Social Isolation

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine the factors associated with HPV (Human Papillomavirus) related stigma, shame and intent to have HPV test among adult women. METHODS: Data were collected from December 1, 2009 to January 31, 2010, and participants were 324 women who visited an obstetric gynecologic clinic. They anticipated testing positive for HPV. Then HPV related stigma, shame, intent to have HPV testing and HPV knowledge were measured. Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal Wallis test and multivariate adjusted logistic regression were used for data analysis. RESULTS: The levels of stigma and shame were higher than average. Intent to have HPV test was high and HPV knowledge was low. Women who answered that HPV is not sexually transmitted had lower HPV stigma than did women who answered they didn't know (OR=0.20, 95%CI 0.06-0.68). Women with lower stigma showed lower intent to have HPV test than women with higher stigma (OR=0.46, 95%CI 0.26-0.82). CONCLUSION: Basic HPV information should be fully understood for women especially prior to HPV test. Normalizing HPV stigma is necessary for women who perceive HPV as sexually transmitted and women intending to have HPV test.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Papillomaviridae/*isolation & purification ; Papillomavirus Infections/prevention & control/*psychology/virology ; Questionnaires ; Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Viral/prevention & control/psychology ; *Shame ; *Social Stigma ; Young Adult

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of neonatal isolation stress on hyperlocomotion in complexin II knockout mouse (Cplx2(-/-)). The mice were randomly divided into 4 groups: Cplx2(-/-) with stress, Cplx2(+/+) with stress, Cplx2(-/-) without stress and Cplx2(+/+) without stress. Isolation stress was employed on the pups of stress groups from the 2nd day after the postnatal to the 21st day. The PCR was used to determine the gene type and the hyperlocomotion test was employed to detect the change of animal behavior after methamphetamine or saline injection (i.p.). The results showed that the animals of all groups increased their movement after injection of 0.2 mg/kg methamphetamine in different levels (P < 0.01), compared with those injected with saline. The Cplx2(-/-) mouse with stress revealed a significant increase in the distance of free movement after injection of 0.2 mg/kg methamphetamine compared with the knockout mouse without stress (P < 0.001). When Cplx2(-/-) mouse with stress was compared with wild type with stress, Cplx2(-/-) mouse with stress had more movement (P < 0.001), indicating that Cplx2 has effect on the hyperlocomotion as well. These results suggest an involvement of stress and Cplx2 in the movement behavior of mice.
Adaptor Proteins, Vesicular Transport ; genetics ; Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Behavior, Animal ; physiology ; Locomotion ; physiology ; Methamphetamine ; pharmacology ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Mice, Knockout ; Mice, Mutant Strains ; Nerve Tissue Proteins ; genetics ; Social Isolation ; Stress, Psychological ; psychology