Standard Assessment Methods Research Articles

Health literacy status among community in the protected area: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

Adequate health literacy is necessary for individuals as it enables them to readily acquire information, process it, and apply it to health-related decisions. Various factors including geographical area will determine the disparity in health literacy status. Communities living in protected areas have limited health literacy and health status owing to a lack of access to infrastructure and medical facilities. Existing studies have discussed health literacy among various populations disproportionately affected by certain diseases. However, research remains underdeveloped, and the causal factors are largely untested. This research aims to better understand how population living conditions especially those who are living in protected areas are affected and exposed to limited health literacy. This study will comprehensively review full-text papers published between 2013 and 2023. We will search 3 databases, PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Science, using the keyword search strategy to find articles related to the issue. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses will be used to guide the selection of relevant studies. The results will then be assessed using the standard Cochrane Quality assessment method. The outcome is addressed in light of a narrative synthesis that utilizes a theme category and focuses on each component's main conclusions. This protocol describes the planned scope and methodology for the systematic review and meta-analysis that will provide current evidence on; The status of health literacy among the community in protected areas and; The effect of Protected Areas on health literacy according to their types and characteristics. Meta-analysis of low-to-high health literacy status will benefit the development of policy recommendations for protected areas.

Fall Risk Screening and Assessment for People Living With Dementia: A Scoping Review.

Falls are the leading cause of injury and hospitalization for older adults in Canada and the second leading cause of unintentional injury deaths worldwide. For people living with dementia (PLWD), falls have an even greater impact, but the standard testing methods for fall risk screening and assessment are often not practical for this population. The purpose of this scoping review is to identify and summarize recent research, practice guidelines and gray literature which have considered fall risk screening and assessment for PLWD. Database search results revealed a dearth in the literature that can support researchers and healthcare providers when considering which option/s are the most suitable for PLWD. Further primary studies into the validity of using the various tests with PLWD are needed if researchers and healthcare providers are to be empowered via the literature and clinical practice guidelines to provide the best possible fall risk care for PLWD.

Decision-making under ambiguity after frontal lobe resection for epilepsy

PurposeDecision-making is crucial to daily life and can impact our society as well as economic conditions. Although the frontal lobes have been identified as important for decision-making, this capacity has only been studied to a limited extent in frontal lobe epilepsy and not at all after frontal lobe resection (FLR) for epilepsy. This study aimed to explore decision-making under ambiguity after FLR for epilepsy. MethodsFourteen patients having undergone FLR for epilepsy completed the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) which is a widely used tool to measure decision-making under ambiguity. Iowa Gambling Task scores included in the analysis were: total net score, separate scores from five blocks across the test, and a change score (last block of IGT minus first block). A group of healthy controls (n = 30) was used as a comparison. Associations between IGT and standardized neuropsychological methods for assessment of executive functions, self-rating questionnaires of mental health, fatigue, and behavior linked to frontal lobe dysfunction were also investigated. ResultsThe patient group performed inferior to controls at the final block of the IGT (p =.001).A group difference in IGT change scores was found (p =.005), reflectingthe absence of a positive change in performance over time for the FLR group compared to the control group. Correlations with tests of executive functions as well as self-rating scales were mainly statistically nonsignificant. ConclusionsThis study shows that patients having undergone FLR for epilepsy have difficulties with decision-making under ambiguity. The performance illustrated a failure to learn throughout the task. Executive as well as emotional deficits may impact decision-making processes in this patient group and need to be considered in further studies. Prospective studies with larger cohorts are needed.

Assessment of postoperative pain in children with computer assisted facial expression analysis

PurposeThe present study was conducted to evaluate the use of computer-aided facial expression analysis to assess postoperative pain in children. Design and methodsThis was a methodological observational study. The study population consisted of patients in the age group of 7–18 years who underwent surgery in the pediatric surgery clinic of a university hospital. The study sample consisted of 83 children who agreed to participate and met the sample selection criteria. Data were collected by the researcher using the Wong Baker Faces pain rating scale and Visual Analog Scale. Data were collected from the child, mother, nurse, and one external observer. Facial action units associated with pain were used for machine estimation. OpenFace was used to analyze the child's facial action units and Python was used for machine learning algorithms. The intraclass correlation coefficient was used for statistical analysis of the data. ResultsThe pain score predicted by the machine and the pain score assessments of the child, mother, nurse, and observer were compared. The pain assessment closest to the self-reported pain score by the child was in the order of machine prediction, mother, and nurse. ConclusionsThe machine learning method used in pain assessment in children performed well in estimating pain severity.It can code facial expressions of children's pain and reliably measure pain-related facial action units from video recordings. Application to practiceThe machine learning method for facial expression analysis assessed in this study can potentially be used as a scalable, standard, and valid pain assessment method for nurses in clinical practice.

ENDOSCOPIC SCORE INTER-READER CONCORDANCE ANALYSIS FROM A PHASE 2B STUDY IN PATIENTS WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE UC

Endoscopic assessment of disease severity is a key component of ulcerative colitis (UC) clinical studies. However, interobserver variability may contribute to bias in selecting study candidates and evaluating response rates. Scoring by blinded central readers has become the recommended standard method of assessment to minimize bias and interobserver variance.

Challenges of the Effectiveness of Traumatic Brain Injuries Biomarkers in the Sports-Related Context

Traumatic brain injury affects 69 million people every year. One of the main limitations in managing TBI patients is the lack of univocal diagnostic criteria, including the absence of standardized assessment methods and guidelines. Computerized axial tomography is the first-choice examination, despite the limited prevalence of positivity; moreover, its performance is undesirable due to the risk of radiological exposure, prolonged stay in emergency departments, inefficient use of resources, high cost, and complexity. Furthermore, immediacy and accuracy in diagnosis and management of TBIs are critically unmet medical needs. Especially in the context of sports-associated TBI, there is a strong need for prognostic indicators to help diagnose and identify at-risk subjects to avoid their returning to play while the brain is still highly vulnerable. Fluid biomarkers may emerge as new prognostic indicators to develop more accurate prediction models, improving risk stratification and clinical decision making. This review describes the current understanding of the cellular sources, temporal profile, and potential utility of leading and emerging blood-based protein biomarkers of TBI; its focus is on biomarkers that could improve the management of mild TBI cases and can be measured readily and directly in the field, as in the case of sports-related contexts.

Long-term ear-EEG monitoring of sleep - A case study during shift work.

The interest in sleep as a potential clinical biomarker is growing, but the standard method of sleep assessment, polysomnography, is expensive, time consuming, and requires a lot of expert assistance for both set-up and interpretation. To make sleep analysis more available both in research and in the clinic, there is a need for a reliable wearable device for sleep staging. In this case study, we test ear-electroencephalography. A wearable, where electrodes are placed in the outer ear, as a platform for longitudinal at-home recording of sleep. We explore the usability of the ear-electroencephalography in a shift work case with alternating sleep conditions. We find the ear-electroencephalography platform to be reliable both in terms of showing substantial agreement to polysomnography after long-time use (with an overall agreement, using Cohen's kappa, of 0.72) and by being unobtrusive enough to wear during night shift conditions. We find that fractions of non-rapid eye movement sleep and transition probability between sleep stages show great potential as sleep metrics when exploring quantitative differences in sleep architecture between shifting sleep conditions. This study shows that the ear-electroencephalography platform holds great potential as a reliable wearable for quantifying sleep "in the wild", pushing this technology further towards clinical adaptation.

Inferior Healing Rate in Isolated Meniscal Repair than that in Meniscal Repair with Concomitant ACL Reconstruction Evaluated with MRI.

Isolated meniscal repair has been suggested as one of the contributing factors in unhealed meniscal repair. The purpose of this study was to compare the healing rate between isolated meniscal repair and meniscal repair with concomitant anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) using a standardised assessment method after propensity score matching. Accuracy of the Crues' grading system for meniscal healing was validated using second-look arthroscopy as the reference standard in 17 patients. Propensity score matching (one-to-one) was performed between 26 patients who underwent isolated meniscal repair and 98 patients who underwent meniscal repair with concomitant ACLR. Patients were matched for sex, age, side and zone of the meniscal repair, and number of sutures. Healing rates at one year which were evaluated with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were compared between the two groups. The sensitivity and specificity of the Crues' grading system on multiple plane MRI for meniscal healing were 100% and 83.3%, respectively. Both the isolated meniscal repair group and the meniscal repair with concomitant ACLR group included 21 patients after propensity score matching. Baseline characteristics did not differ significantly between the two groups. The healing rate was significantly lower in the isolated meniscal repairs group (14.3%) than in the meniscal repair concomitant with ACLR group (47.6%, P=0.04). The healing rate for isolated meniscal repair using a standardised MRI assessment method was inferior to that of meniscal repair with concomitant ACLR after propensity score matching.

Utilizing Advanced Modelling for Fire Damage Assessment of Reinforced Concrete Tunnel Linings

Fire hazards can cause severe and irrecoverable damage to reinforced concrete (RC) tunnel linings. Historically, major fire events have led to months of downtime and millions of dollars of losses owing to repair costs and affected operations. The potential threat to the serviceability of transportation networks emphasizes the need to establish a standardized and effective post-fire damage assessment method to guide repairs and restore functionality. This paper proposes a fire damage assessment framework for RC tunnel linings that integrates advanced modeling with visual inspections, non-destructive testing and material sampling. The framework quantifies fire damage to RC tunnel linings in terms of surface discoloration, crack width, concrete spalling, sectional temperatures, strength loss of materials and residual displacement. A damage classification system is proposed based on a collection of international guidelines and feedback from industry experts to map damage metrics and repair strategies. A case study, using data from recent experiments, is conducted to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed framework and the benefits of the information obtained from numerical modeling. This framework can also be integrated with risk-assessment methods to optimize the fire design of tunnels with associated active and/or passive fire protection.

Comparative Study of Muscle Hardness during Water-Walking and Land-Walking Using Ultrasound Real-Time Tissue Elastography in Healthy Young People

Compared with land-walking, water-walking is considered to be beneficial as a whole-body exercise because of the characteristics of water (buoyancy, viscosity, hydrostatic pressure, and water temperature). However, there are few reports on the effects of exercise in water on muscles, and there is no standard qualitative assessment method for muscle flexibility. Therefore, we used ultrasound real-time tissue elastography (RTE) to compare muscle hardness after water-walking and land-walking. Participants were 15 healthy young adult males (24.8 ± 2.3 years). The method consisted of land-walking and water-walking for 20 min on separate days. The strain ratio of the rectus femoris (RF) and medial head of gastrocnemius (MHGM) muscles were measured before and immediately after walking using RTE to evaluate muscle hardness. In water-walking, the strain ratio significantly decreased immediately after water-walking, with p < 0.01 for RF and p < 0.05 for MHGM, indicating a significant decrease in muscle hardness after water-walking. On the other hand, land-walking did not produce significant differences in RF and MHGM. Muscle hardness after aerobic exercise, as assessed by RTE, was not changed by land walking but was significantly decreased by water walking. The decrease in muscle hardness induced by water-walking was thought to be caused by the edema reduction effect produced by buoyancy and hydrostatic pressure.

A Comprehensive Assessment Protocol for Swallowing (CAPS): Paving the Way towards Computer-Aided Dysphagia Screening

Dysphagia is one of the most common problems among older adults, which might lead to aspiration pneumonia and eventual death. It calls for a feasible, reliable, and standardized screening or assessment method to prompt rehabilitation measures and mitigate the risks of dysphagia complications. Computer-aided screening using wearable technology could be the solution to the problem but is not clinically applicable because of the heterogeneity of assessment protocols. The aim of this paper is to formulate and unify a swallowing assessment protocol, named the Comprehensive Assessment Protocol for Swallowing (CAPS), by integrating existing protocols and standards. The protocol consists of two phases: the pre-test phase and the assessment phase. The pre-testing phase involves applying different texture or thickness levels of food/liquid and determining the required bolus volume for the subsequent assessment. The assessment phase involves dry (saliva) swallowing, wet swallowing of different food/liquid consistencies, and non-swallowing (e.g., yawning, coughing, speaking, etc.). The protocol is designed to train the swallowing/non-swallowing event classification that facilitates future long-term continuous monitoring and paves the way towards continuous dysphagia screening.

Citizen science as a tool for education: First Bioblitz in Quito, Ecuador

Bioblitz is a citizen global science initiative which aims to find and identify as many species of fauna and flora as possible in a specific area during a short period of time. This activity promotes the engagement of the public to learn about the biodiversity of a particular region, often in urban areas. The objective of this study was to do the first Bioblitz in Quito (Ecuador) to (1) survey the flora and fauna of Quito, specifically in the Guangüiltagua Metropolitan Park; and (2) engage citizens in such activity. This first Bioblitz, held on December 2, 2017, was organized by Universidad Tecnológica Indoamérica and Fundación Zoológica del Ecuador. The event was attended by 15 experts, 21 students, and 29 citizens, including two children under 10 years of age. Standard biological diversity assessment methods were used for amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, insects, aquatic macroinvertebrates, and plants. A total of 18 species of birds, two of amphibians, one reptile, 21 terrestrial invertebrates, two macroinvertebrates, one mammal, and 26 plant species were identified. This experience allowed the engagement of citizens to learn about the local biodiversity in their city.

Incidence and risk factors of ipsilateral shoulder pain in patients after thoracic surgeries.

Ipsilateral shoulder pain (ISP) post-thoracotomy impairs the recovery in early postoperative period, the aetiology of which is unclear. We studied to find out the incidence and risk factors associated with ISP. We did a prospective observational study, wherein 296 patients scheduled for thoracic surgeries were enroled. Pain in the shoulder during activity was assessed using American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons standardised assessment method. All potential predictors were analysed in a multivariable penalised logistic regression model, using ISP as the outcome variable. Of the 296 patients, 118 (39.8%) patients developed ISP. Of the 296 patients, 170 patients underwent thoracotomy and 110 underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgeries. The incidence of ISP was higher in thoracotomy patients (45.29%) compared to video-assisted thoracoscopic surgeries (32.7%). Majority of patients (43.2%) were aged more than 65 years, which was statistically significant as per univariate analysis (P = .007). The incidence of ISP was the highest at 41.89% among those who had lung cancer (n = 74), with disease involving right upper lobe and left upper lobe, 29% and 25.8%, respectively. The pain severity was moderate in 27.1% of patients during shoulder movements. Among the patients who had ISP, 77.1% expressed it as dull aching, whereas 21.2% described it as stabbing in nature. The incidence of ISP in those who underwent thoracic surgery was high and dull aching in nature, of mild to moderate intensity, commonly located on the posterior aspect of the shoulder. It was more common in those who underwent thoracotomy and more than 65 years of age.

ENDOSCOPIC SCORE INTER-READER CONCORDANCE ANALYSIS FROM A PHASE 2B STUDY IN PATIENTS WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE UC

Abstract BACKGROUND Endoscopic assessment of disease severity is a key component of ulcerative colitis (UC) clinical studies. However, interobserver variability may contribute to bias in selecting study candidates and evaluating response rates. Scoring by blinded central readers has become the recommended standard method of assessment to minimize bias and interobserver variance. We present concordance rates between central and local readings from a Phase 2b study of investigational microbiome therapeutic SER-287 in patients with mild-to-moderate UC. METHODS This double-blind, placebo-controlled study screened 494 and randomized 203 adults (51.7% male; mean age 45.6 years; 83.7% white) 1:1:1 to 3 arms (Figure 1). Active UC was defined as ≥15 cm disease from the anal verge, a Three-Component Modified Mayo Score of 3-7, endoscopic subscore (ES) ≥1, and stool frequency subscore ≥1. Endoscopy was performed at screening, after induction, after exploratory maintenance or open-label, and for flare assessments. Endoscopic videos were scored by each site’s gastroenterologist (local ES), and by any 1 of 4 blinded central readers (Alimentiv; Ontario), with adjudication by a 2nd blinded central reader (Alimentiv), if necessary. If all 3 scores were discordant, the median score was designated as the final ES. Concordance between local and central readers were analyzed by timepoint and in total and quantified using weighted kappa statistics. RESULTS Concordance analyses were conducted for 608 ES comparisons between local and the 1st central reader (Local vs Central1 [LvC1]), and 337 comparisons where adjudication was necessary (Local vs Central2 [LvC2]; Central1 vs Central2 [C1vC2]). Observed concordance rates were: -LvC1: 44% (271/608, kappa = 0.61, Figure 2); -LvC2: 26% (86/337, kappa = 0.46); -C1vC2: 64% (216/337, kappa = 0.74). Concordance rates were comparable across study periods: -Screening: -LvC1: 42% (131/310, kappa = 0.59) -LvC2: 27% (48/179, kappa = 0.48) -C1vC2: 66% (118/179, kappa = 0.76) -Week 11: -LvC1: 46% (79/170, kappa = 0.61) -LvC2: 25% (22/91, kappa = 0.46) -C1vC2: 62% (56/91, kappa = 0.75) Local readers scored lower than C1 readers in 274/337 (81%) discordant cases (Figure 2), and lower than C2 in 221/251 (88%) discordant cases. The most frequent sources of discordance were L=ES2 vs C1=ES3 (153 videos) and L=ES1 vs C1=ES2 (77 videos). CONCLUSIONS In this Phase 2b study, low ES concordance highlights marked interobserver variability between local and blinded central readers. Local scores were consistently lower than central scores across all study time points. Despite low concordance rates, efficacy conclusions remain unchanged if only local ES scores were used for endpoint assessments. Objective, standardized, and consistent methods for evaluating ES are needed to better quantify disease severity and the impact of UC therapies.

Oral Somatosensory Alterations in Head and Neck Cancer Patients-An Overview of the Evidence and Causes.

Food-related sensory alterations are prevalent among cancer patients and negatively impact their relationship with food, quality of life, and overall health outcome. In addition to taste and smell, food perception is also influenced by somatosensation comprising tactile, thermal, and chemesthetic sensations; yet studies on oral somatosensory perception of cancer patients are lacking to provide patients with tailored nutritional solutions. The present review aimed to summarise findings on the oral somatosensory perception of head and neck cancer (HNC) patients and the potential aetiologies of somatosensory alterations among this population. Subjective assessments demonstrated alterations in oral somatosensory perception such as sensitivity to certain textures, spices, and temperatures. Physiological changes in oral somatosensation have been observed through objective assessments of sensory function, showing reduced localised tactile function and thermal sensitivity. Changes in whole-mouth tactile sensation assessed using texture discrimination and stereognosis ability seem to be less evident. Available evidence indicated oral somatosensory alterations among HNC patients, which may affect their eating behaviour, but more studies with larger sample sizes and standardised assessment methods are needed. Unlike other types of cancers, sensory alterations in HNC patients are not only caused by the treatments, but also by the cancer itself, although the exact mechanism is not fully understood. Prevalent oral complications, such as xerostomia, dysphagia, mucositis, and chemosensory alterations, further modify their oral condition and food perception. Oral somatosensory perception of cancer patients is an under-investigated topic, which constitutes an important avenue for future research due to its potential significance on eating behaviour and quality of life.

Application of Fuzzy TOPSIS Method as a Decision Support System for Achievement Student Selection

Achievement student selection aims to appreciate students who have achieved an achievement, both in the academic and non-academic fields. This activity is carried out in stages, starting from departments, faculties, and universities, to the national level. In the selection process, several criteria were used: GPA, scientific work, presentation, English, and achievements were featured and involved several juries to avoid subjectivity in the assessment. This study aims to get the best results from the decision support system in Achievement student election in the Mathematics Department of Jember University. Therefore, we need the fuzzy TOPSIS method to avoid and minimize problems and to make multi-criteria decision-making easier. This study's ranking results were obtained from the fuzzy TOPSIS method and standardized assessment method (based on higher education guidelines). From the four candidates who participated in this selection, the two methods give different results in the last two ranks. The fuzzy TOPSIS method ranking shows the results sequentially for candidates B, C, A, and D. In contrast, and the standardized assessment method ranking shows the results sequentially for candidates B, C, D, and A. This difference is caused by the value of the criteria factor and the weight of the candidate criteria, but the fuzzy TOPSIS method is simpler than the standardized assessment method. So that it can be recommended for the next period achievement student election at the department, faculty, or university level.

The other immuno-PET: Metabolic tracers in evaluation of immune responses to immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy for solid tumors.

Unique patterns of response to immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy, discernable in the earliest clinical trials, demanded a reconsideration of the standard methods of radiological treatment assessment. Immunomonitoring, that characterizes immune responses, offers several significant advantages over the tumor-centric approach currently used in the clinical practice: 1) better understanding of the drugs' mechanism of action and treatment resistance, 2) earlier assessment of response to therapy, 3) patient/therapy selection, 4) evaluation of toxicity and 5) more accurate end-point in clinical trials. PET imaging in combination with the right agent offers non-invasive tracking of immune processes on a whole-body level and thus represents a method uniquely well-suited for immunomonitoring. Small molecule metabolic tracers, largely neglected in the immuno-PET discourse, offer a way to monitor immune responses by assessing cellular metabolism known to be intricately linked with immune cell function. In this review, we highlight the use of small molecule metabolic tracers in imaging immune responses, provide a view of their value in the clinic and discuss the importance of image analysis in the context of tracking a moving target.

Systematic benchmarking of statistical methods to assess differential expression of circular RNAs.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are covalently closed transcripts involved in critical regulatory axes, cancer pathways and disease mechanisms. CircRNA expression measured with RNA-seq has particular characteristics that might hamper the performance of standard biostatistical differential expression assessment methods (DEMs). We compared 38 DEM pipelines configured to fit circRNA expression data's statistical properties, including bulk RNA-seq, single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) and metagenomics DEMs. The DEMs performed poorly on data sets of typical size. Widely used DEMs, such as DESeq2, edgeR and Limma-Voom, gave scarce results, unreliable predictions or even contravened the expected behaviour with some parameter configurations. Limma-Voom achieved the most consistent performance throughout different benchmark data sets and, as well as SAMseq, reasonably balanced false discovery rate (FDR) and recall rate. Interestingly, a few scRNA-seq DEMs obtained results comparable with the best-performing bulk RNA-seq tools. Almost all DEMs' performance improved when increasing the number of replicates. CircRNA expression studies require careful design, choice of DEM and DEM configuration. This analysis can guide scientists in selecting the appropriate tools to investigate circRNA differential expression with RNA-seq experiments.

Importance of Bio-electrical Impedance for Measurement of Body Fluid Status in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients on Maintenance Haemodialysis: A Narrative Review

Assessing the precise body water status in patients with renal disorders is crucial for their health. It has been reported that chronic fluid overload is present even in the early stages of renal insufficiency. If volume overload in a patient with chronic renal failure is not controlled, serious problems such as pulmonary oedema, cardiac remodelling, and diastolic heart failure can develop. Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) has emerged as one of the most useful tools, although randomised clinical studies are lacking to support its universal use. Early management of hydration may improve clinical outcomes, as it allows for personalised dialysis prescriptions and nutritional support. BIA practice is utilised as non invasive health monitoring for Body Composition (BC). BIA is a practical and inexpensive method. Moreover, BIA parameters estimated for disease prognosis analysis have been found to be reasonably predictable for both patient status and healthcare. Additionally, BIA is a simple, accurate, portable, quick, easy, and low-cost method. In patients with End-stage Renal Disease (ESRD) undergoing maintenance Haemodialysis (HD) treatment, excessive fluid volume is considered a risk factor for death. Furthermore, fluid elimination to achieve Dry Weight (DW) is a crucial component of HD treatment for ESRD patients. DW is an important concept related to patients undergoing HD. Conventional methods seem to be time-consuming and operator-dependent. BIA is a new and simple method that has been reported to accurately estimate DW. Estimating the dry weight of HD patients is a challenging task. Many tools are available, but not every HD centre has access to them. Several strategies have been used to develop a more standardised method of assessing dry weight in HD patients. The Bio-impedance Spectroscopy (BIS) device has been validated against gold standard methods of volume assessment. Body composition monitoring appears to be a helpful diagnostic tool that reasonably complements existing clinical methods in assessing the DW of HD patients. BIS identifies Fluid Overload (FO) as a virtual "Over Hydration (OH)" compartment, which is calculated from the difference between the measured extracellular volume and the predicted values based on a fixed hydration of lean and adipose tissue mass.

Anxiety-depressive symptoms in the structure of eating disorders in adolescents

To identify the features of anxiety and depressive disorders in adolescents with eating disorders (ED) in a comprehensive approach to treatment. The study included 30 middle-aged (11-14 years) and older female adolescents (15-18 years) with ED. All patients underwent psychotherapy using a cognitive-behavioral approach 2 times a week, as well as psychopharmacotherapy using SSRI antidepressants (fluvoxamine, sertraline). A standardized assessment method was used using the Children's Depression Inventory, the multivariate assessment of childhood anxiety, the Lazarus Coping Strategy Questionnaire, and the Eating Behavior Rating Scale. The clinical severity and severity of depression were significantly more often detected in girls of the older adolescent group (U=4.5, p<0.05). The highest scores in adolescents of middle and older groups were found on the scales «Decrease in mental activity due to anxiety» (1.52 and 1.64 points respectively), «Increased autonomic reactivity due to anxiety» (1.46 and 1.55 points respectively), «Anxiety related to the evaluation of others» (1.51 and 1.61 points respectively), as well as «Anxiety in relations with peers» (1.53 and 1.64 points respectively). A correlation was found between the severity of anxiety and depression and the choice of certain coping strategies (p<0.05). In both age groups, adolescents more often used maladaptive behavioral strategies. The results suggest the importance of choosing an individual way to build a cognitive-behavioral therapy plan, taking into account personal responses and the emotional status of adolescents with ED.