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Study objectives-To examine whether psychosocial factors at work are related to self rated health in post-communist countries. Design and settings-Random samples of men and women in five communities in four countries were sent a postal questionnaire (Poland, Czech Republic and Lithuania) or were invited to an interview (Hungary). Working subjects (n=3941) reported their self rated health in the past 12 months (5 point scale), their socioeconomic circumstances, perceived control over life, and the following aspects of the psychosocial work environment: job control, job demand, job variety, social support, and eVort and reward at work (to calculate a ratio of eVort/reward imbalance). As the results did not diVer by country, pooled analyses were performed. Odds ratios of poor or very poor health ("poor health") were estimated for a 1 SD increase in the scores of work related factors. Main results-The overall prevalence of poor health was 6% in men and 7% in women. After controlling for age, sex and community, all work related factors were associated with poor health (p<0.05). After further adjustment for perceived control, only two work related factors remained associated with poor health; the odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) for 1 SD increase in the eVort/reward ratio (log transformed) and job variety were 1.51 (1.29, 1.78) and 0.82 (0.73, 1.00), respectively. Further adjustment for all work related factors did not change these estimates. There were no interactions between individual work related factors, but the eVects of job control and social support at work diVered by marital status, and the odds ratio of job demand increased with increasing education. Conclusions-The continuous measure of eVort/reward imbalance at work was a powerful determinant of self rated health in these post-communist populations. Although the cross sectional design does not allow firm conclusions as to causality, this study suggests that the eVect of the psychosocial work environment is not confined to Western populations. (J Epidemiol Community Health 2001;55:624-630)

The spouse's educational level appears to have independent effects on a man's risk of mortality in both eastern and western European communities. The results strongly suggest that including characteristics of the socioeconomic status of an individual's spouse would improve studies of socioeconomic differences in health.

The aim of the study was to evaluate associations of emotional state and quality of life with lipid concentration, duration of the disease, and the way of treating the disease in males and females with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A total of 53 persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus (27 males and 26 females; mean age, 58.7±8.9 years) and 56 healthy persons (26 males and 30 females; mean age, 54.7±8.3 years) participated in the study. Emotional state was evaluated by means of Profile of Mood State and quality of life by means of WHO Brief Quality of Life Questionnaire. Emotional state and quality of life were significantly worse, tension-anxiety and fatigue-inertia were significantly higher, vigor-activity was significantly lower in male patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus than in healthy males. In females, no significant differences in emotional state and quality of life comparing type 2 diabetes mellitus group and controls were detected. In females with type 2 diabetes mellitus, emotional state and quality of life were significantly better, scores of tension-anxiety, depression dejection, anger-hostility, and fatigue-inertia were significantly lower, and score of vigor-activity was significantly higher than in males with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Some significant correlations were found. In males, vigor-activity correlated with total cholesterol level and negatively correlated with triglyceride level. In females, significant correlations were found between scores of emotional state (tension-anxiety, depression-dejection, confusion-bewilderment, and total score of emotional state) and lipid levels (total cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels). There were no significant associations of emotional state and quality of life with duration of the disease in males and females with type 2 diabetes mellitus. No significant differences in emotional state and quality of life were found between males and females with type 2 diabetes mellitus, who were treated with oral antidiabetic preparations and insulin preparations.

Background:The data of various studies indicates, that stressful life events having a strong influence to the development of depression in adolescence.Aim:To study the correlation between psychosocial stress and depression among adolescents.Methods:The subjects of the study were 1026 schoolchildren (519 boys and 507 girls) of secondary schools (ninth form pupils) of one administrative region of Lithuania. Average age of adolescents was 14,8±1,12 years. The 57-item Depression scale of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory for Adolescents (MMPI-A D) and 7-item Reeder scale were used.Results:The first four factors of depression (pessimism, hostility, somatic health, tension-anxiety) after MMPI-A D scale orthogonal varimax rotation were used in data analysis. Correlative analysis was show statistically meaning correlations between depression, the pessimism factor and the all items of psychosocial stress for the girls. The boys’ tension-anxiety factor correlated statistically meaning with all items of psychosocial stress. Comparing depressive and not depressive adolescents according Reeder scale, determined that both: depressive boys (p=0,043), and depressive girls (p< 0,0001) experienced more psychosocial stress comparing with not depressive adolescents. The stepwise regression analyses differed an importance of the items “nervous tension” (p=0,011), “stress because of communication” (p=0,014) for the girls’ depression and the items “nervous tension” (p=0,011), “physical and mental exhaustion at the end of a day” (p=0,003) for the boys’ depression.Conclusions:1.Depressive boys and girls experienced more psychosocial stress comparing with not depressive adolescents.2.Psychosocial stress is important for prognosis of depression in adolescence.