Is COVID-19 loss more associated with prolonged grief disorder than other losses?

The COVID-19 pandemic raised fears about a rise in prolonged grief rates. To determine if these fears are justified, we examined an online sample of 329 Turkish adults for their level of prolonged grief symptoms (as well as probable Prolonged Grief Disorder-PGD) and associated factors in relation to losses during the pandemic. Respondents completed measures of prolonged grief, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression.

Investigating the interplay of chronic pain intensity and psychosocial factors in adult women: A pilot study from Türkiye.

In this cross-sectional study, the authors investigated the relationships between chronic pain intensity and quality of life, pain coping strategies, and pain beliefs levels in 405 adult women. The participants with a mean age of 48.8 ± 5.

Barriers To Accessing Mental Health Services Among Syrian Refugees: A Mixed-Method Study.

Objective: Although Syrian refugees have high rates of mental health problems due to war trauma, little is known on their degree of need for and contact with mental health services. Using a population sample of Syrian refugees living in Ankara, we assessed the perceived need for and contact with mental health services, as well as the barriers to access these services.

Method: This was a cross-sectional mixed-method study of 420 Syrian refugees living in Ankara city center, using face to face interviews administered at the respondents' home by trained, Arabic-speaking interviewers.

12 Psychiatrists who Shaped Psychiatry in Turkey in the Republic's First Century.

Who are the influential figures that molded Turkish Psychiatry into what it is today? This review introduces 12 psychiatrists who shaped psychiatry in Turkey during the first century of the Republic. The article presents Rasit Tahsin, the first neuropsychiatrist who establish an academic psychiatry department in Turkey; Mazhar Osman, who had so much influence that his name became a phrase to describe the mentally ill, and still lives on with the institutions he built; Ihsan Sukru, the founder of neuropathology in Turkey, a historical figure in viral encephalitis research; Fahrettin Kerim Gokay, famous for his political career and his fight against alcohol and tobacco; Rasim Adasal, a Cretian who is a cornerstone in Ankara psychiatry and a well-known figure in Turkish society life; Abdulkadir Ozbek, who introduced psychodrama to Anatolia-his 'earth'; Leyla Zileli, who disseminated psychoanalysis from Ankara to Turkey; Orhan Ozturk, a founding figure for the Journal, the Association, and Hacettepe; Ayhan Songar, a prominent figure in society and also in state bureaucracy; Ozcan Koknel, the amiable face of psychiatry in society and a respected voice; Oğuz Arkonaç, a vigorous advocate for the establishment of contemporary psychiatry with DSM III in Bakırköy and then in Turkey; and Gunsel Koptagel-Ilal, who progressed the work in the psychosomatics as one of Turkey's first female psychiatry academics. As with any list, we acknowledge that absolute consensus is not possible; we are preparing a more extensive selection to be published as a book next year.

Differential correlates of prolonged grief and depression after bereavement in a population-based sample.

Bereavement can lead to prolonged grief disorder (PGD) as well as episodes of major depression. Studies on the prevalence of PGD and its differences from postbereavement depression have not been conclusive. This study compared the correlates of depression and prolonged grief (PG) symptoms in a population-based random sample (N = 535) using the Beck Depression Inventory, Inventory of Complicated Grief-Revised, Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), and Adult Separation Anxiety Questionnaire (ASAQ).

Seeking New Meaning in the Shadow of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Research of Spiritual Issues and Experiences among Students in Turkish Society.

Spirituality is one aspect to consider given the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the number of in-depth qualitative studies on spirituality-related issues and experiences is limited. The present study investigated the spiritual problems and experiences of students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Psychological factors responsible for low adherence to mask-wearing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to >6 million deaths. Anti-mask movements may decrease the effects of preventive measures. Psychological factors that may be related to anti-mask behaviour are not well researched.

Geriatric competency and attitudes toward older adults among Turkish undergraduate social work students.

The need for social workers educated about aging and eager to work with older adults will increase significantly as the older adult population rises rapidly. It is essential to determine the attitudes and competencies of social workers prepared to work in this field. This study aimed to evaluate Turkish undergraduate social work students' attitudes toward older adults and their geriatric social work competency.

Challenges and lessons learned in mental health research among refugees: a community-based study in Turkey.

Background: Turkey hosts nearly four million refugees and 99% live in urban areas. Research in urban settings pose different challenges and opportunities than research in refugee camps. In this article, we aimed to share the challenges and experiences we encountered in a mixed-methods study to assess mental health problems and barriers to accessing mental health care among refugees in urban areas of Turkey.

The prevalence and characteristics of misophonia in Ankara, Turkey: population-based study.

Background: Misophonia is defined as significant distress (anger, distress or disgust) when exposed to certain sounds that would not affect most people, such as lip smacking or gum chewing. Although misophonia is common, the aetiology, prevalence and effective treatments are largely unknown.

Aims: Based on our proposed diagnostic criteria, we examined the prevalence of misophonia and its relationship with clinical and demographic variables in a large representative population sample.

Mental health disorders research in the countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), 2008-17, and the disease burden: Bibliometric study.

The 57 countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation are suffering from an increasing burden from mental health disorders. We investigated their research outputs during 2008-17 in the Web of Science in order to compare them with the burden from different mental health disorders and in different countries. The papers were identified with a complex filter based on title words and journals.

Posttraumatic Stress and Depression Among Syrian Refugees Living in Turkey: Findings From an Urban Sample.

Although most of the 3.6 million Syrian refugees in Turkey live outside refugee camps, most mental health research is on camp residents and few are on those living in cities. We aimed to assess the prevalence and predictors of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression in Syrian refugees living in an urban area in Turkey.

Association of serum cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels with psychological stress in patients with vitiligo.

Background/aim: Vitiligo is a depigmentation disorder that leads to serious psychological burden in patients, who are frequently reported to have depression and anxiety. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between stress-related hormone levels and psychological stress in vitiligo.

Materials And Methods: In this study46 vitiligo patients and 46 controls were enrolled; their cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS),and cortisol/DHEAS levels were measured.

Predictors of caregiver burden in mothers of children with leukemia and cerebral palsy.

Objective: Caring for a sick child can lead to considerable burden in the caregiver. Comparative studies of burden in mothers of children with different types of disorders are rare.

Methods: We assessed levels of and risk factors for burden in mothers of children with leukemia (n: 70) or with cerebral palsy (CP) (n: 69).

[Cognitive Dysfunctions in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder].

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a condition that occurs after a traumatic event, and its diagnostic criteria include attention and memory deficits as well as symptoms of anxiety. We aimed to review the literature related to attention, memory, and executive functions in PTSD. Although studies on the subject are limited (in that there is no uniformity in terms of trauma type, selection of the control groups or types of neuropsychological tests used), most reported similar deficits in PTSD subjects in terms of memory and executive functions including attention.

Does Gender Affect the Relationship Between Anxiety Sensitivity and Social Anxiety?

Objective: Although there are studies on the effects of gender and time on social anxiety and anxiety sensitivity, there is no consensus on how these variables moderate the relationship between the two. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of the last year of medical school on social anxiety and to determine the predictors of social anxiety, focusing mainly on gender and anxiety sensitivity.

Methods: The study was conducted at two time points.

[Traumatic Stress in Emergency Medical Technicians: Protective Role of Age and Education].

Objective: Some professions carry higher risk of being traumatised; health care workers, especially those working at emergency services, are at higher risk in this respect. This study aims to examine the psychological effects of different types of work-related traumatic events on emergency health care staff and possible protective effects of factors such as age, education and experience.

Method: The targeted population was all emergency health care workers working at emergency wards and first-aid stations within the province of Nigde.

Relationship of posttraumatic growth to symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder and depression: A pilot study of Iraqi students.

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) and psychopathology are common outcomes following exposure to adversity and trauma. We examined the relationship of PTG to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression in a group of young Iraqi students with war trauma exposure. These young Iraqis had experienced an average of 13 different war-related adversities.

Posttraumatic growth after earthquake trauma is predicted by executive functions: a pilot study.

Although positive personal change after adverse events (posttraumatic growth [PTG]) is repeatedly shown to occur after a range of traumatic or distressing events, there is still a debate on the validity of the concept. Using the objective measurement of cognitive functions, we attempted to show that PTG is a scientifically valid construct in a group of earthquake survivors. This is the first study to associate PTG with cognitive functioning.

[The validity and reliability study of MBPI (Multidimensional Blood/Injury Phobia Inventory)].

Objective: This study aims to translate the 40-item MBPI (Multidimensional Blood/Injury Phobia Inventory) into Turkish and examination the reliability and validity figures of this scale.

Method: Trained interviewers assessed 477 factory workers using a battery of self-report measures including demographic information and MBPI that had been translated into Turkish by the study team. 61 of the 477 were also interviewed face-to-face by the investigator using the anxiety disorders/phobias sections of the CIDI (Composite International Diagnostic Interview).

Anxiety sensitivity: another reason to separate dental fears from blood-injury fears?

Although dental phobia is classified under the heading of blood-injury phobia, studies show differences between the two conditions in terms of frequency of fainting and gender distribution. Anxiety sensitivity (AS), which refers to discomfort and negative attributions to bodily anxiety sensations, was useful in differentiating panic anxiety from other phobic anxieties. No study has compared dental phobia with blood-injury phobia directly.

Effect of relocation and parental psychopathology on earthquake survivor-children's mental health.

Earthquakes may increase the risk for psychopathology in children because the disaster may disrupt family functioning through causing psychopathology in the parents or disrupting social network through migration, school changes, or socioeconomic status changes caused by the job losses of the parents. This study aimed to investigate the effects of parental psychopathology on the traumatic stress and depression of earthquake survivor-children 4 years after the earthquake. A convenience sample of 104 earthquake survivor-children (43 boys, 61 girls) and their parents were assessed at their homes for earthquake experience and traumatic stress symptoms.