Bruxism is defined as 'diurnal or nocturnal parafunctional activity including clenching, bracing, gnashing, and grinding of the teeth'. Bruxism and clenching are two of the most common contributing factors in patients with temporomandibular disorders and craniofacial pain disorders. Even though many studies report the high prevalence of bruxism, its cause is still not clear. Occlusal interference has been regarded as a major etiologic factor. Nowadays, psychological stress and sleeping disorders are generally regarded as major possible etiologic factors. More than likely, the cause is multifactoral and overlapping, which makes it difficult for the practitioner to apply comprehensive and effective management strategies. Although dentists and psychologists generally believe that effective treatment is best achieved with a better understanding of the etiology of a given disorder, for now treatment for this type of disorder must proceed without a clear understanding of etiology. To overcome this obstacle, evidence-based comprehensive management protocols based on accumulated scientific findings should be provided. In this presentation, epidemiology, etiology, and the characteristics of bruxism are reviewed. Diagnostic procedures and management strategies focused on occlusal appliances and behavioral approaches are also discussed.
Braces ; Bruxism* ; Dentists ; Diagnosis* ; Epidemiology ; Facial Pain ; Humans ; Prevalence ; Psychology ; Stress, Psychological ; Temporomandibular Joint Disorders

OBJECTIVETo explore the relationship between nurse occupational stress and salivary alpha- amylase (SAA).

METHODSEvaluation of occupational stress was conducted in 131 nurses. The activity of SAA was determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

RESULTSThe activity of SAA in nurses varied with age and working years. The baseline, work period, recovery, average activities of >35 age group were less than those of ≤ 30 age group; work period, recovery, average activities of ≤ 10 years group were higher than other two groups; there was no statistical difference between SAA vitalities of different degree groups (P>0.05). In nurses with high scores for job demands, the activity of SAA in working period was significantly higher than that in nurses with low scores (P < 0.05). The baseline SAA activity in nurses with high scores for role conflict and ambiguity was significantly higherthan thatin nurses with low scores (P < 0.05). The baseline SAAactivity was positively correlated with workload, role conflict, and role ambiguity (P < 0.05). The activity of SAA in working period was negatively correlated with task control, decision control, and technology utilization (P < 0.05), and was positively correlated with quantitative load, load change, work monotony, and workload (P < 0.05). The activity of SAA in recovery period was negatively correlated with task control, decision control, resource control, and technology utilization (P < 0.01). The average activity of SAA was negatively correlated with task control, decision control, resource control, technology utilization, opportunity for participating in decision-making, and promotion (P < 0.05), and was positively correlated with quantitative load, load change, workload, and role ambiguity (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe occupational stress in 131 nurses is correlated with the activity of SAA, which can be used as an objective biomarker for identification and evaluation of occupational stress.

Biomarkers ; Humans ; Nurses ; psychology ; Occupational Diseases ; epidemiology ; Salivary alpha-Amylases ; analysis ; Stress, Psychological ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; Work ; Workload

OBJECTIVES: Stress is considered a causal factor in many diseases, allergic disease being one of them. The prevalence of allergic disease is increasing in Korea, but the relationship between allergic symptoms and stress is not empirically well known. We aimed to evaluate the relationship between allergy-related symptoms and stress in children and adolescents. METHODS: We investigated 698 children and adolescents living in Gwangyang Bay, Korea, using a multi-stage cluster sampling method. Using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood and the Psychosocial Well-being Index, these subjects were surveyed on allergy-related symptoms and psychosocial stressors in their lives, respectively. We used a multivariate logistic analysis for odds ratios for the complaint rate of allergic symptoms, after adjusting for age, gender, household income, body mass index, and residence. RESULTS: After adjustments, lifetime rhinitis (odds ratio [OR], 1.024), rhinoconjunctivitis (OR, 1.090), diagnosis of itchy eczema (OR, 1.040), treatment of itchy eczema (OR, 1.049), 12-month allergic conjunctivitis (OR, 1.026), diagnosis of allergic conjunctivitis (OR, 1.031), and treatment of allergic conjunctivitis (OR, 1.034) were found to be significantly associated with stress. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the notion that there is a relationship between stress and allergic symptoms in children and adolescents. Further research into any causal relationship between stress and allergies, as well as preventative public health plans for decreasing stress in children and adolescents are needed.
Adolescent ; Child ; Cluster Analysis ; Conjunctivitis, Allergic/diagnosis/psychology/therapy ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Eczema/diagnosis/psychology/therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity/diagnosis/epidemiology/*psychology ; Interviews as Topic ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Questionnaires ; Republic of Korea ; Rhinitis/diagnosis/psychology ; *Stress, Psychological

PURPOSE: Bell's phenomenon (BP), which may disturb screening examinations for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), is known to present infrequently in premature babies. Stress associated with the examinations can influence expression of BP. The authors of the present study evaluated BP during examinations for ROP. METHODS: The present study included 102 eyes of 51 premature babies. Expression of BP was assessed at 3 steps of the examination in the following order: after insertion of a speculum, after illumination of an indirect ophthalmoscope and after scleral depression. The relationship between the expression of BP and the gestational age at the examination was analyzed in each step of the examination. RESULTS: The frequency of BP after the speculum insertion and the illumination was 77% to 92% in infants 32 weeks of age or younger, and decreased significantly to 16% to 57% in infants 42 weeks of age or older (p < 0.005). BP after the scleral depression had no significant association with the gestational age. Frequency of BP increased significantly as the steps of the examination proceeded (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: BP was frequent in premature infants during ROP examination in spite of neurological immaturity. The examiner should take BP into consideration, which frequently occurs in younger infants.
Gestational Age ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; *Infant, Premature ; Korea/epidemiology ; Mass Screening/adverse effects/*methods/psychology ; Ophthalmoscopy/*psychology ; Retinopathy of Prematurity/*diagnosis/epidemiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Stress, Psychological/*epidemiology/etiology ; Vision Screening/adverse effects/*psychology

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of life style characteristics on the prevalence risk of metabolic syndrome (MS). METHODS: A total of 581 adults were recruited from a cardiovascular outpatient clinic. A newly developed comprehensive life style evaluation tool for MS patients was used, and patient data related to the MS diagnosis were reviewed from the hospital records. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of MS was 53.2%, and the mean of MS score was 2.6 for patients at a cardiovascular outpatient clinic (78% of the patients had hypertension). Dietary habits among the life style characteristics had significant influence on the prevalence risk of MS and MS scores. And also interestingly, the classification and regression tree (CART) model suggested that the high prevalence risk groups for MS were older adults (61.5< or =age<79.4), and adults between 48.5 and 61.5 yr of age with bad dietary habits. CONCLUSION: This study indicates that nurses should focus on dietary habits of patients (especially patients classified as high prevalence risk for MS) for improvement and prevention of MS prevalence risk.
Age Factors ; Aged ; Alcohol Drinking ; Demography ; Female ; Food Habits ; Humans ; *Life Style ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome X/diagnosis/epidemiology/*psychology ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Prevalence ; Risk ; Smoking ; Stress, Psychological

Objective personality tests, such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), might be more sensitive to reflect subclinical personality and be more state-dependent in an individual's lifetime, so they are good scales to predict the psychological distress regarding certain states. The aim of this study was to identify the specific pattern between body mass index (BMI) and psychological distress using the objective personality test. For this study, we investigated BMI and the Korean Military Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MPI). A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted with 19-yr-old examinees who were admitted to the Military Manpower Administration in Korea from February 2007 to January 2010. Of 1,088,107 examinees, we enrolled 771,408 subjects who were psychologically apparent healthy possible-military-service groups. Afterwards, we reviewed and analyzed directly measured BMI and MPI results. In terms of the validity scales, the faking-good subscale showed an inverted U-shaped association, and faking-bad and infrequency subscales showed a U-shaped association with BMI groups. In terms of the neurosis scales, all clinical subscales (anxiety, depression, somatization, and personality disorder) also showed a U-shaped association with BMI groups. For the psychopath scales, the schizophrenia subscale showed a U-shaped association, and the paranoia subscale showed a near-positive correlation with BMI. In conclusion, a specific U-shaped pattern was observed between BMI and the MPI in 19-yr-old men in Korea. Underweight and obesity are related to psychological distress, so supportive advice and education are needed to them.
Adult ; *Body Mass Index ; Causality ; Comorbidity ; Computer Simulation ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Men's Health ; Models, Biological ; Models, Psychological ; Multiphasic Screening/methods ; Obesity/*epidemiology/psychology ; Personality Inventory/*statistics & numerical data ; Prevalence ; Reproducibility of Results ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Risk Factors ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Stress, Psychological/diagnosis/*epidemiology/*psychology ; Thinness/*epidemiology/psychology ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: A natural disaster negatively affects children's emotional and behavioral adjustment. The purpose of this paper was to examine the prevalence, symptoms, and correlates of PTSD after the occurrence of Typhoon Rusa. METHOD: 261 elementary school children living in Kimcheon, which was a devastated rural area in South Korea by Typhoon Rusa, were selected. Data were collected 4 months after the disaster using the PTSD Reaction Index categories recommended by Frederick, severity of PTSD. RESULT: 12.3% of the children had either moderate or severe PTSD symptoms; 22.7% reported mild symptoms; and the remaining 65% had sub-clinical symptoms of PTSD. The most frequent symptom was recurrenct fear(67.0%). 13% to 17.2% of children exhibited difficulty in concentration, sleep disturbance, and guilt feeling. The regression model of severity of PTSD was composed of the level of exposure to traumatic experiences, grade in school, gender, negative coping style, and social support, and explained 34.3% for PTSD symptoms. Exposure to traumatic experiences was the strongest factor of all predictors. CONCLUSION: Emotional support from friends and coping style were correlated with PTSD severity. School-based interventions that emphasizes coping with disaster related problems and problem-solving may prove to be useful, and may aid in building close and supportive ties with teachers, classmates, and friends.
Adaptation, Psychological ; Attitude to Health ; Child ; *Child Psychology ; *Disasters ; Female ; Friends/psychology ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Humans ; Korea/epidemiology ; Life Change Events ; Male ; Models, Psychological ; Prevalence ; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales ; Regression Analysis ; Rural Health ; School Health Services ; Self Care/methods/psychology ; Severity of Illness Index ; Social Support ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/diagnosis/epidemiology/*etiology/psychology ; Survivors