High levels of Patient Self Advocacy may confound clinical research in understudied patient populations.

Objective: To examine the levels of patient self-advocacy in a sample of participants with Chiari Malformation (CM) and to explore how they relate to clinical outcomes.

Methods: As part of a larger clinical trial addressing chronic pain in patients with CM, 111 participants completed the Patient Self Advocacy Scale (PSAS), the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI).

Results: PSAS scores indicated a moderately high level of patient self-advocacy (Mean = 3.

Differences in presurgical MMPI-3 scores across trajectories of recovery from spine surgery.

Approximately 30% of patients who undergo spinal surgery for chronic back pain continue to experience significant pain and disability up to 2 months following surgery. Prior studies have identified mental health variables including depression and anxiety as predictors of poorer postsurgical outcomes using screening instruments, but no studies have examined long-term outcomes using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-3 (MMPI-3), a commonly used tool used in presurgical psychological evaluations (PPE). Using group-based trajectory modeling and a sample of 404 spine surgery evaluees, the present study examined the trajectories of changes in disability scores from presurgery through 3, 12, and 24 months postsurgery.

Patient comfort discussing sensitive behavioral health topics.

Background: : Following implementation of routine screening for depression in primary care, screening for other behavioral health issues is expanding. However, prior to implementing additional screening it is important to consider patient comfort answering sensitive questions related to behavioral health topics to determine screening acceptability and effectiveness.

Methods: : A self-report survey was completed by U.

The role of catastrophizing in chronic cyclical pelvic pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Dysmenorrhea (painful menstrual cramps) is one of the most common gynecological complaints in women and girls. Dysmenorrhea may be a condition itself or a result of another medical condition, including endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain. Research examining the relationship between menstrual pain ratings and catastrophizing has produced mixed results.

Questionable utility of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) in detecting cognitive impairment in individuals with comorbid PTSD and SUD.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is frequently comorbid with substance use disorder (SUD) in individuals seeking treatment for substance use. Further, SUD and PTSD are individually associated with cognitive impairment (CI) and poor treatment outcomes. Despite the frequent use of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) as a screening tool for CI, the validity of the MoCA has not been established in individuals with comorbid SUD-PTSD.

Depression, anxiety, and stress in pregnancy and postpartum: A longitudinal study during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: Symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress in pregnant women are generally highest in the first trimester and then decrease throughout pregnancy, reaching their lowest point in the postpartum period. Pregnant women are a high-risk population for mortality and mental health symptoms due to COVID-19. However, the extent to which the chronic stress of the COVID-19 pandemic alters the trajectory of depression, anxiety and stress symptoms in pregnant/postpartum women is unknown.

50 Years After Political Protest Violence, Posttraumatic Growth is Associated with PTSD and Anxiety but not Depression or Sleep Difficulties.

Rates of, and relationships between, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic growth (PTG) decades after a single-incident trauma remain unclear. During a two-month period surrounding the 50th anniversary of the political protest violence at Kent State University on May 4, 1970, 132 individuals completed measures of PTG, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and sleep difficulties. Participants were, on average, 19 years old (SD = 3.

Maternal, but not paternal, ratings of child preinjury functioning predict child posttraumatic stress.

Pretrauma internalizing and externalizing behaviors have been found to predict posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (PTSS) in children following injury. However, child in-hospital self-report of pretrauma symptoms may be impacted by their injury and associated medical care (e.g.

The 50th anniversary of May 4, 1970 is associated with elevations of distress but no increase in mental health symptoms.

Anniversaries of traumatic events are associated with increased symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety, especially in individuals with prior mental health symptoms. However, research has largely focussed on 1-year anniversaries, and it is unclear whether symptom exacerbation persists for more distal, or milestone, anniversaries. Symptoms typically decrease over time after traumatic events, but major anniversaries may be associated with increases in mental health symptoms.

Universal screening and trauma informed care: Current concerns and future directions.

There is a growing awareness of the prevalence and negative health effects associated with traumatic events, including childhood abuse and adversity, intimate partner violence, adult sexual assault, and exposure to combat and community violence. Health care systems have attempted to address this link by becoming trauma informed through universal trauma precautions and screening protocols. We review several clinical and methodological concerns associated with universal trauma screening in adult health care settings including: deciding which traumas to assess in which populations, integrating retrospective recall with current functioning to facilitate referrals, and guarding against adverse patient reactions and insurance discrimination.

Patient preferences on sharing private information in dental settings.

Background: The authors conducted a study to understand patients' preferences and comfort levels in discussing personal medical, behavioral, and social information with their oral health care providers.

Methods: A self-report survey was completed by US adults 18 years and older (N = 387) using Amazon Mechanical Turk, an online research portal for survey-based research. The survey assessed comfort discussing demographics, physical health, behavioral health, oral health, and living conditions with oral health providers.

Beliefs about the causes of hypertension and associations with pro-health behaviors.

Objective: To describe behavioral and genetic beliefs about developing hypertension (HTN) by sociodemographic factors and self-reported HTN status, and among those with a history of HTN, evaluate associations between HTN-related causal beliefs and behavior change attempts.

Method: Data from the 2014 Health Information National Trends Survey were evaluated. HTN causal beliefs questions included (a) "How much do you think health behaviors like diet, exercise, and smoking determine whether or not a person will develop high blood pressure/HTN?"; and (b) "How much do you think genetics, that is characteristics passed from one generation to the next, determine whether or not a person will develop high blood pressure/HTN?" Multivariate logistic regressions evaluated associations between HTN causal beliefs and behavior change attempts including diet, exercise, and weight management.