Alexithymia and Its Associations With Depression, Suicidality, and Aggression: An Overview of the Literature

Hemming, Laura; Haddock, Gillian; Shaw, Jenny; Pratt, Daniel

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00203

Cited by 117 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 109 publications

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“…Higher rates of alexithymia were found in our study in comparison with published data [15,16]. Alexithymia prevalence in the general population varies between 10.0% in the German population [17] and 20.8% in the Lebanese one [18].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 58%

“…Adolescents can have an inability to show their true emotions, so they will be using coping mechanisms to temper that emotional immaturity [14]. Many other factors can be precipitating alexithymic behaviors in adolescents without having until now a clear confirmation if it's an independent phenomenon present during childhood that appears later in life or being caused by trauma or stressful life events [15].…”

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Alexithymia, aggressive behavior and depression among Lebanese adolescents: A cross-sectional study

Sfeir

Geara

Hallit

et al. 2020

Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health

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Background: For a long time, Lebanon has been considered an unstable country. This can have a negative impact on Lebanese adolescents that consequently face secondary emotional stress, leading to more mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, and alexithymia. The objective of this study was to assess the association between alexithymia, depression and aggressive behavior in a sample of Lebanese adolescents. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study, conducted between September 2018 and February 2019, which enrolled 568 young adolescents aged between 15 and 18 years using a proportionate sample from two Lebanese governorates. Out of 750 questionnaires distributed, 568 (75.73%) were completed and collected back. Results: The mean age was 15.87 ± 0.82 years, with 302 (53.2%) females; 180 (31.7%) were alexithymic, 193 (34.0%) and 181 (31.9%) had moderate (scores between (89 and 111) and high (scores ≥ 112) aggression respectively, whereas 176 (31.0%) and 149 (26.2%) had moderate (scores between 3 and 4) and high (scores ≥ 5) depression respectively. Higher levels of alexithymia were significantly associated with higher depression (Beta = 0.44), higher total aggression (Beta = 0.78), higher physical aggression (Beta = 0.24), higher verbal aggression (Beta = 0.14), higher anger (Beta = 0.22), and higher hostility (Beta = 0.19). Conclusion: The prevalence of alexithymic behaviors, as well as aggression and depression in Lebanese students appears to be very high in comparison with students worldwide. Alexithymia was significantly associated with higher depression, physical and verbal aggression, anger and hostility among adolescents. Factors underlying the high level of alexithymia remain not fully elucidated.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 58%

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alexithymia, aggressive behavior and depression among Lebanese adolescents: A cross-sectional study

Sfeir

Geara

Hallit

et al. 2020

Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Furthermore, participants were not asked about premorbid psychiatric disorders and/or personality characteristics that may act as risk factors for the development of anxiety and/or depression in the face of new stressors. Lacking an ability to describe one´s emotional experience and maintain adequate self-regulation, as is the case in alexithymia and sensory processing difficulties, have been found to be associated with depression [39][40][41][42]. Future studies should obtain more information about the existing psychological characteristics of people diagnosed and/or suspected to have COVID-19 in order to ascertain possible relationships with the onset of anxiety/depression.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioral and sociodemographic predictors of anxiety and depression in patients under epidemiological surveillance for COVID-19 in Ecuador

et al. 2020

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Ecuador has been one of the most affected countries by the Corona Virus Disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, by April 2020 this country presented the highest rates of mortality in Latin America. The purpose of the present study was to identify behaviors during confinement and sociodemographic variables associated with the mental health status of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients who were part of the epidemiological surveillance program in Ecuador that included mandatory confinement and self-isolation. A cross-sectional study was performed from March 22 th to April 18 th , 2020 using an online survey. The survey collected socio-demographic information and severity of depressive symptoms using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and anxiety symptoms through the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7. A total of 759 patients completed the questionnaire, 20.3% presented moderate to severe symptoms of depression and 22.5% moderate to severe symptoms of anxiety. Being a woman and from the Coastal region were risk factors. Exercising, maintaining daily routines, and keeping informed about the COVID-19 but limiting to an hour was associated with better mental health. Regression analysis indicated that the mentioned behaviors explained approximately 17% of the variance for depression sum scores and 11.8% of the variance for anxiety sum scores while controlling for gender and region. Understanding the association between sociodemographic variables and psychological states in patients with COVID-19 is relevant to tackle future public mental health problems and to implement health policies that are intended to palliate further psychiatric complications. Promotion of modifiable behaviors such as exercising, maintaining daily routines, and keeping informed about the COVID-19 but limiting to less than an hour is recommended.

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“…Alexithymia is a disorder of emotion regulation mechanisms that presents as a dissociation of emotional and physical responses to life events and bodily sensations [76]. Li et al…”

Section: Depression In Psoriatic Arthritis Is Multi-dimensional With mentioning

confidence: 99%

Depression in Psoriatic Arthritis: Dimensional Aspects and Link with Systemic Inflammation

Mathew

Chandran

2020

Rheumatol Ther

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Studying comorbidities in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) provides a better understanding of the extended burden of the disease. Depression and anxiety are well recognized but understudied comorbidities in patients with PsA. The prevalence of depression is significantly higher in this patient population than in the general population, with far reaching consequences in terms of long-term quality of life. Over the past few years there has been an increasing interest in the link between inflammation and depression, with several novel studies being conducted. Recent evidence suggests a significant improvement of depression in PsA patients treated with biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) as compared to conventional DMARDs. Depression in PsA is multidimensional, with recognized phenotypes, including cognitive disorder, alexithymia and anhedonia. The paucity of standardized, validated tools to screen these dimensional phenotypes remains an unmet need. Prevalence studies on depression in patients with PsA, mostly based on patient-reported outcomes, are only able to highlight the tip of the iceberg. A comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach addressing the subdomains of depression is imperative for a better understanding of depression in PsA patients, as well as to find a way forward for improving their quality of life. In this scoping review, we explore existing evidence on the burden of depression in PsA patients, the link between inflammation and depression in these patients and the screening tools used to evaluate the subdomains of depression.

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Alexithymia and Its Associations With Depression, Suicidality, and Aggression: An Overview of the Literature

Cited by 117 publications

References 109 publications

Alexithymia, aggressive behavior and depression among Lebanese adolescents: A cross-sectional study

Alexithymia, aggressive behavior and depression among Lebanese adolescents: A cross-sectional study

Behavioral and sociodemographic predictors of anxiety and depression in patients under epidemiological surveillance for COVID-19 in Ecuador

Depression in Psoriatic Arthritis: Dimensional Aspects and Link with Systemic Inflammation

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