Barbara Kostecka

Cel pracy: Celem badania była ocena obecności objawów zaburzeń związanych z seksualnością (ZzS) w grupie kobiet z nadwagą i otyłością oraz związku tych objawów z nieadaptacyjnymi postawami i przekonaniami na temat jedzenia, nasileniem objawów lękowych i depresyjnych, spożywaniem alkoholu, trudnościami w regulacji emocjonalnej oraz jakością życia.Metoda: Grupę badaną (GB) stanowiły 44 kobiety z nadwagą/otyłością, grupę kontrolną (GK) – 51 kobiet z prawidłową masą ciała w wieku 18-40 lat. Zastosowano: Kwestionariusz Seksuologiczny, Test Postaw Wobec Jedzenia, Kwestionariusz Przekonań Dotyczących Jedzenia, Test Rozpoznawania Problemów Alkoholowych, Szpitalną Skalę Lęku i Depresji oraz Kwestionariusz Oceny Jakości Życia.Wyniki: W GB zaobserwowano większą ilość objawów ZzS, w tym objawów dysfunkcji seksualnych i objawów zaburzeń preferencji seksualnych w porównaniu do GK. Pomimo licznych podobieństw, w GB zaobserwowano więcej istotnych statystycznie korelacji między ZzS a badanymi zmiennymi, szczególnie w obszarze trudności w regulacji emocjonalnej. W GB istotna dla ZzS okazała się obecność negatywnych i permisywnych przekonań żywieniowych, a w GK – przekonań pozytywnych. Ilość objawów ZzS okazała się ponadto istotnym predyktorem jakości życia.Wnioski: Otrzymane wyniki wskazują na związek nadmiernej masy ciała z większą ilością objawów ZzS oraz związek objawów ZzS z poziomem zmiennych klinicznych i jakością życia. Niezbędne są dalsze badania eksplorujące mechanizmy zaobserwowanych zależności.

Introduction: The Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) is one of questionnaires for the measurement of treatment success, which is widely used in patients after vestibular schwannoma treatment.Aim: This study aimed to adapt the GBI originally written in English to Polish conditions and to evaluate its psychometric properties.Material and methods: The Polish version of the GBI used in this study was prepared by a bilingual translator, and its accuracy was ensured by back-translation. To identify the structure of the Polish version of the GBI, exploratory factor analysis was performed. The reliability was determined using Cronbach’s α. To verify the validity, correlation analysis was conducted between the domains of GBI and other questionnaires.Results: The results of confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the original 3-factor model is not a good fit for the data. The exploratory factor analysis was performed and identified 4 factors. The total variance of the 4-factor solution was 66.25%. The Cronbach’s α calculated for the total GBI reached 0.91. Our analysis confirmed significant weak or moderate correlations between tools for the measurement of general QoL (AQoL-8D: r = 0.411; p = 0.000) and health-related QoL (PANQOL: r = 0.367; p = 0.000; a tool dedicated for patients with VS), well-being (WHO-5: r = 0.432; p = 0.000), hearing and tinnitus (STS: r = –0.217; p = 0.016).Conclusions: This study reports the first adaptation of the GBI for patients with VS to Polish conditions. The results demonstrated that the Polish version of the GBI is a reliable and valid questionnaire that can be used to measure treatment success.

Introduction . Our previous research showed that the gamma knife surgery (GKS) is a highly effective treatment for intracanalicular vestibular schwannomas (IVS). In the current study, we aimed to evaluate long‐term quality of life (QoL) as a follow‐up to the assessment of baseline clinical and demographic parameters in the original study. Moreover, QoL outcomes were compared with norms for the general population and for patients who underwent different ear, nose, and throat (ENT) procedures. Materials and Methods . The follow‐up study included 92 patients (59 women and 33 men; mean age, 61.71 ± 12.55 years; range: 32‐85 years) with unilateral IVS who underwent GKS. Patients completed the Assessment of Quality of Life , Penn Acoustic Neuroma Quality‐of‐Life, Glasgow Benefit Inventory, and WHO‐5 Well‐being Index questionnaires as well as a demographic survey. Neurosurgical parameters were assessed using the Koos and House‐Brackmann scales and the results of audiological examinations. Results and Conclusions . QoL scores were within or above the norm in 38% of patients. There were significant differences in terms of comorbidities and emotional well‐being between patients with QoL scores within or above the norm and patients with QoL scores below the norm. Comorbidities were more common in patients with QoL scores below the norm, and they influenced reported QoL ( p = 0.009). Patients with QoL scores within or above the norm reported better emotional well‐being than those with QoL scores below the norm. Long‐term QoL outcomes were satisfactory, consistent with the results of the original study. Although GKS is a complex procedure, patients reported higher QoL than those using hearing aids and the same QoL as those after ENT surgery or reassurance. However, they reported a slightly lower QoL than patients taking ENT medications. GKS appears to be a promising treatment option for patients with IVS.

Background: There are limited data on the role of body image in patients with type 2 diabetes. The purpose of this study was to compare body self-esteem in this group with norms for the general Polish population and to investigate the relationship between body self-esteem and the psychological and clinical characteristics of the course of diabetes. Methods: A group of 100 consecutive adult patients with type 2 diabetes (49 women and 51 men) aged 35 to 66 years were assessed using the Body Esteem Scale (BES), World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5), Problem Areas in Diabetes Scale (PAID), and Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D). Results: In comparison to norms for the general population, women with type 2 diabetes had lower body self-esteem only in the dimension of Physical Condition (M = 30.71; SD = 7.11 versus M = 32.96; SD = 5.69; P = 0.003), whereas men in the dimensions of Physical Condition (M = 42.43; SD = 9.43 versus M = 48.30; SD = 8.42; P P = 0.015). There were moderate or weak positive correlations between the overall BES score and/or its dimensions and subjective well-being, and negative correlations between the overall BES score and/or its dimension and the severity of depression symptoms, level of glycated hemoglobin (HbA_1c), body mass index (BMI), and diabetes-related distress among women. Among men, BES scores were positively correlated with well-being, and negatively, with BMI and diabetes-related distress. A correlation of r = 0.39 between BES scores and HbA_1c levels was relatively high compared with values for other psychosocial factors. Both in women and men, a high Physical Condition score was a significant predictor of better well-being, less severe depression, and milder diabetes-related distress. Among men, it was also a significant predictor of lower BMI, whereas among women, BMI was predicted by Weight Concern. Conclusions: Persons with diabetes seem to have lower body self-esteem than the general population, which is significantly associated with clinical and psychological characteristics of the diabetes course. The observed differences and relationships are gender-specific.

Objective: The possible role of abnormal disgust processing in the development and course of anorexia nervosa (AN) has been emphasized in theoretical models and research. However, disgust toward external stimuli and self‐disgust have not yet been investigated together in a clinical sample of AN patients. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to measure these constructs and examine their role in shaping eating pathology in AN patients and healthy controls (HCs), considering comorbid depressive and anxiety psychopathology. The study also aimed at testing the possible mediational roles of both disgust types in the associations between comorbid psychopathology and eating disorders (EDs) characteristics.Method: Altogether, 63 inpatients with AN and 57 HCs partook in the study. Participants completed the Eating Disorder Inventory‐3, State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory‐II, Disgust Scale–Revised and Self‐Disgust Scale.Results: AN patients manifested higher self‐disgust and disgust sensitivity than HCs. In addition, self‐disgust predicted the severity of EDs characteristics and mediated the links of depressive symptoms and trait anxiety with EDs characteristics in both groups.Discussion: Our findings imply the putative role of self‐disgust in the development of EDs psychopathology in HCs and in its maintenance in AN patients.

Objective: The empirical literature describes the role of the oxytocinergic system in emotion perception (EP). Variants in the oxytocin (OXT) and oxytocin receptor genes have been associated with mental disorders, including anorexia nervosa (AN), that are characterized by difficulties in socioemotional functioning. Our study aimed to examine whether variability within the genes related to OXT pathways may play a role in facial EP in inpatients with AN.Method: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the following genes: oxytocin receptor (rs2254298, rs53576), OXT (rs6133010), OXT‐arginine‐vasopressin (rs2740204), CD38 (rs6449197, rs3796863), and human leucyl/cystinylaminopeptidase (rs4869317) were genotyped in 60 AN female inpatients and 60 healthy control females (HCs). Associations between genetic polymorphisms and EP as well as clinical symptoms were examined.Results: The AN group showed decreased EP abilities compared with HCs. SNPs of rs2740204, rs6133010, and rs53576 were associated with differences in EP in women with AN and in HCs. The SNP of rs4869317 was associated with the level of eating disorders symptoms in HCs.Conclusions: The OXT system may be involved in EP difficulties in AN. SNPs within genes related to OXT pathways may influence EP abilities. The leucyl/cystinylaminopeptidase rs4869317 SNP may be involved in the development of eating disorders psychopathology.

The aim of this article is to shed the light on the phenomenology of distorted body image in Anorexia Nervosa (AN). Even though body image disturbance has already been identified as one of the central components of AN (as evident in diagnostic tools criteria such as those of DSM-5 or ICD-10), it does not receive enough clinical attention in the therapeutic process. In this literature review, we will investigate empirical body of evidence addressing the relationship between distorted body image and AN pathology. Furthermore, the authors propose to introduce a Body Image Therapy programme to assist treatment as usual (TAU) in targeting AN psychopathology. Similar treatment programs have been already implemented at facilities in Great Britain and in the USA. In Poland, however, little is known about Body Image Therapy. For the purpose of better understanding of distorted body image in AN, following topics are being discussed: phenomenology and prevalence of distorted body image in AN psychopathology, its role in the aetiology and maintenance of eating disorder symptoms, neurobiological view on body image as well as recommended treatment options.

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to develop an updated evidence-based database of binge eating disorder (BED) to bring clinicians closer to their nosological position in the classification of mental illnesses and disorders, etiopathogenesis, progression, prognosis and treatment offer....