Ariel University

ICD-11 presents updated descriptions for single episode and recurrent depressive disorder. A depressive episode (DE) is integral to these disorders and contrasting descriptions of the structure of DE symptoms are presented in ICD-11 and the Clinical Descriptions and Diagnostic Requirements for ICD-11 (CDDR). The former presents symptoms as unidimensional while the latter suggests symptoms are multidimensional reflecting affective, cognitive-behavioural, and vegetative clusters. This study examined if the latent structure of the DE symptoms is better represented by a one- or three-factor model. Data were collected from general population samples from the United Kingdom (UK: N=975) and Ukraine (N=2050). DE symptoms were measured using the International Depression Questionnaire, and the latent structure of the DE symptoms was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis. The three-factor model of DE symptoms outlined in the CDDR performed substantially better than the one-factor model and was a close fit to the UK and Ukrainian data. This model was invariant for sex in each nation. Prevalence estimates based on a three-factor model were similar to those based on the ICD-11 requirements, and similarly sized sex differences were observed. The multidimensional description of the DE symptoms outlined in the CDDR better represented data from two culturally distinct samples. Discrepancies in how DE symptoms are described in ICD-11 and the CDDR should be resolved to facilitate future research efforts.

This longitudinal study examines the relationship between prewar status-quo bias (SQB) and emotional measurements taken during the Isarel-Hamas War. A sample of 1,053 Israeli participants (ages 25–66; 50% females) was surveyed before and during the war, using the war’s onset as a natural experiment to explore the association of SQB with various measures of subjective well-being and anxiety. The findings indicate that despite stable levels of global life evaluation and meaning in life, the war triggered significant shifts in the affective component of subjective well-being, namely, positive and negative emotions. The results show that prewar SQB levels were concurrently positively associated with negative emotions and negatively associated with positive emotions (in addition to global life evaluation and meaning in life). However, a longitudinal effect was found only for negative emotions during the war, even after controlling for prewar negative emotions and other demographic and war-related variables. Similar results were obtained for anxiety: prewar SQB longitudinally predicted higher levels of anxiety during war, after adjusting for a proxy measure of prewar anxiety and other covariates. This indicates that prewar SQB levels are strongly associated with concurrent variation in negative emotions during national trauma, beyond prior levels. The results have substantial economic implications, suggesting that interventions aimed at reducing SQB (e.g., education that empowers individuals to transcend their familiar boundaries and adapt to adverse changes) may enhance emotional resilience in crisis situations, offering valuable insights for policymakers to improve societal well-being in times of upheaval.

Emotion regulation and attachment styles are interrelated and are critical factors in psychopathology and treatment outcomes, particularly in youths with suicidal behavior receiving psychiatric inpatient care. This study examined the influence of emotion regulation and attachment style on psychiatric hospitalization duration among adolescents admitted due to suicidal ideation or behavior. Participants included 79 Israeli adolescents (mean age 15.35 years, 87.3% female) admitted to a tertiary psychiatric inpatient unit following a suicidal crisis. Data was collected using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), the Experience in Close Relationships Scale (ECR), the Screen for Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS). Data were analyzed using correlation and multiple regression analyses. Analysis revealed that greater emotion regulation difficulties predicted longer hospitalization duration (β = 0.41, p < 0.001), while avoidant attachment style was associated with shorter hospitalization duration (β = -0.35, p < 0.001). Notably, the level of suicidality as well as psychopathology symptoms (depression and anxiety) did not predict hospitalization duration. These findings underscore the important role of emotion regulation and attachment style in determining treatment duration in suicidal adolescents, beyond the severity of psychopathology and suicidality, suggesting their unique contribution to treatment planning. Clinical interventions targeting emotion regulation and attachment styles could enhance inpatient care effectiveness, offer a more personalized treatment approach and potentially reducing hospitalization duration.

Prenatal education improves maternal and neonatal outcomes. Ultrasound-guided visual biofeedback provides real-time visualization of fetal head movement, enabling expectant mothers to refine their pushing techniques. Pelvic floor muscle training may improve the ability to contract and relax the pelvic floor during labor. When used during the second stage of labor, US-BF has been shown to confer obstetrical benefits. Implementing prelabor ultrasound-guided visual biofeedback can further improve motor learning and optimize pushing effectiveness during the second stage of labor. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of pelvic floor physiotherapist-led prelabor ultrasound-guided visual biofeedback for improving obstetrical outcomes. A single-blinded randomized controlled trial was conducted in a community clinic. The study was approved by the Ariel University Human Ethics Committee (20211128) and registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT05258786). Nulliparous women at term with singleton pregnancies in vertex presentation were randomized into three groups: (1) Intervention: Prelabor transperineal and transabdominal ultrasound-guided visual biofeedback for pelvic floor muscle training and second-stage pushing training, (2) Control: Verbal instructions for pelvic floor muscle training and second-stage pushing, and (3) Routine Care: Standard prenatal education. In-person training sessions were held at an outpatient physiotherapy clinic between 37 and 39 weeks of gestation. Within the intervention group, pushing efficacy was assessed using the angle of progression, and pelvic floor muscle contraction efficacy was assessed using bladder base displacement across the pre-, during-, and post-biofeedback phases. Obstetric outcomes, including second-stage duration, mode of delivery, perineal integrity, and postpartum urinary retention, were retrieved from medical records. Stress urinary incontinence was assessed using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire–Short Form before delivery and at two and eight weeks postpartum. Out of 161 randomized women, 120 completed the study. In the intervention group, pushing efficacy showed a significant quadratic pattern, improving during biofeedback and declining after visual feedback was withdrawn (p = 0.007), while pelvic floor muscle contraction efficacy remained largely unchanged. Compared to the combined control and routine care groups, the intervention group had significantly lower rates of operative vaginal delivery (p = 0.050), higher rates of an intact perineum (p = 0.025), and lower rates of postpartum urinary retention requiring catheterization (p = 0.039). No significant differences were found in second-stage duration, cesarean delivery rates, or stress urinary incontinence outcomes. Physiotherapist-led prelabor ultrasound-guided visual biofeedback for second-stage pushing and pelvic floor muscle training was feasible and associated with improved obstetrical outcomes. These findings suggest a promising direction for enhancing prelabor education and maternal preparation. The study was approved by the ethical review board (Ariel University Human Ethics Committee Noa Ben Ami − 20211128, Ariel University, Israel) and registered on ClinicalTrials.gov on February 18, 2022 (ID: NCT05258786). Prior to enrolment, informed consent was obtained from all participants. All procedures were conducted in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee, and the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its subsequent amendments.

Collisions between over-height vehicles and low-clearance bridges cause infrastructure damage and pose safety risks. Existing detection systems rely primarily on optical sensors, which suffer from performance degradation in adverse weather conditions. This paper presents an alternative approach based on a 94 GHz millimeter-wave radar that achieves velocity-independent height measurement. The proposed technique exploits the ratio of Doppler shifts from two scattering centers on a vehicle, specifically the roof and the wheel-road interface. This ratio depends only on the measurement geometry, as the unknown vehicle velocity cancels algebraically, enabling direct height computation without speed measurement. The paper provides a closed-form height estimation model, analyzes the trade-off between frequency resolution and geometric constancy during integration, and presents experimental validation using a scaled laboratory testbed. An optical tracking system is used solely for ground-truth validation in the laboratory and is not required for operational deployment. Results across six test cases with heights ranging from 20 cm to 46 cm demonstrate an average absolute error of 0.60 cm and relative errors below 3.3 percent. A scaling analysis for representative full-scale geometries indicates that at highway speeds of 80 km/h, integration times in the millisecond range (approximately 3-18 ms for representative 20-50 m measurement standoff) are feasible; warning distance can be extended independently by upstream radar placement. The expected advantage in fog, rain, and dust is based on established W-band propagation characteristics; dedicated adverse-weather and full field validation (including multipath, clutter, and multi-vehicle scenarios) remain future work.