European gay fathers via surrogacy: Parenting, social support, anti-gay microaggressions, and child behavior problems

The present study investigated child behavior problems, parenting styles, coparenting, and couple relationship satisfaction in 67 European gay father families via surrogacy and 67 European heterosexual parent families via unassisted conception, all with children aged 1.5-10 years (M = 3.57 years, SD = 2.09). The two family groups were matched for child age and gender. In the gay father group only, the associations between family anti-gay microaggressions, family/friend support, and other main variables also were explored. Children of gay fathers had fewer externalizing and internalizing problems compared to children of heterosexual parents. Also, gay fathers reported more effective parenting styles, greater coparenting quality, and higher couple relationship satisfaction compared to heterosexual parents. Overall, child externalizing problems (i.e., aggression, rule-breaking) and internalizing problems (i.e., anxiety, depression) were more strongly associated with being raised in a heterosexual parent family, more authoritarian parenting, and lower positive coparenting. Specific to the gay father sample, anti-gay microaggressions experienced by family members were associated with more child internalizing problems, lower positive coparenting, and lower social support from family and friends. These results refute concerns about possible detrimental effects on child development of surrogacy conception or of being raised by gay fathers. The results further suggest that family therapists treating child behavior problems should focus mainly on improving the coparenting relationship, reducing authoritarian/punitive parenting styles, and (for gay father families specifically) coping with anti-gay microaggressions and lack of social support outside the nuclear family.

The desire for more children among Israeli lesbian, gay, and heterosexual couples who became parents through assisted reproduction

The present online questionnaire-based study compared 72 lesbian mothers by donor insemination (within 36 families), 78 gay fathers by gestational surrogacy (within 39 families), and 72 heterosexual parents by assisted reproduction (without donated eggs and/or sperm; within 36 families), on their desire to have more children and their ideal number of children. All participants self-identified as cisgender, lived in Israel, and had a mean number of two children. The study also explored the predictors of participants' desire for more children. Multilevel modeling analyses indicated that, when participants' actual number of children was controlled for, lesbian and gay parents did not differ from heterosexual parents on their desire for more children and their ideal number of children. Parents' younger age, greater positivity, and lower attribution of responsibility to children for misbehavior, in addition to a lower discrepancy between their actual and ideal number of children, were associated with greater desire for more children. The results suggest that lesbian and gay parenthood may mark an entrance to the Israeli familistic "mainstream," which, in turn, may decrease differences in parenthood aspirations as a function of sexual orientation. The study contributes to the scant literature on the desire for more than one child among parents in diverse family configurations. It further provides family researchers and policy makers with vital information on the most influential factors associated with the desire for more children among lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parents. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Attitudes towards same-sex parenting in Italy: the influence of traditional gender ideology

This study aimed to examine the role of gender ideology, religiosity and political conservatism on attitudes toward same-sex parenting in Italy at a time when same-sex parent families are undergoing attacks from ideological campaigns opposing non-traditional gender roles and families. We collected data from 4,187 heterosexual respondents about attitudes towards two-father and two-mother parenting, homonegativity, attitudes toward traditional masculinity and femininity, religious involvement and political conservatism. We conducted multiple group structural equation model analyses to test whether sex moderated any of the estimated associations among variables. Results showed that traditional beliefs about femininity were directly associated with negative attitudes towards two-mother and two-father parenting, while traditional beliefs about masculinity had a significant direct effect only on two-father parenting. Homonegativity partially mediated the association between religiosity, political conservatism and traditional beliefs about masculinity and femininity on negative attitudes toward both types of same-sex parenting. Gender differences were found for the indirect effects of political conservatism and religiosity on attitudes towards same-sex parenting. The theoretical contributions and implications of the findings are discussed.

Humor Associated With Positive Outcomes in Individual Psychotherapy

Considerable anecdotal evidence points to the usefulness of humor in the therapeutic process, but empirical evidence is lacking. The purpose of this study, conducted in Belgium, was to search for an association between humor and therapy outcomes in a population of 110 adult psychotherapy clients who attended at least 10 therapy sessions. Clients and their therapist evaluated the frequency and intensity of humorous events, as well as therapy effectiveness, therapeutic alliance, perceived hope, and pleasure in participating in therapy sessions. A strong positive correlation was observed between humor and therapy effectiveness, from both client (r_s=0.40; p<0.001) and therapist perspectives (r_s=0.37; p<0.001). The link between humor and therapy effectiveness remained significant in subgroups of clients with more severe illness, although these clients reported less humor in their therapy sessions. Further research is needed to determine whether humor enhances outcomes or whether positive outcomes trigger occurrence of humor.

[Hospital anxiety and depression]

OBJECTIVE

The study investigate the presence of depressive disorders in patient who are taken in general hospital, to prevent and reduce the risk of developing a psychological pathology (anxious-depressive symptoms).

METHODS

We used two tests: 1. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) by Goldberg, a self-report questionnaire, consisting of 12 items, used to estimate the probability of detecting non-psychotic mental disorders and problems in every day's activity. 2. Personal Health Questionnaire (PHQ), a self-report questionnaire, consisting of 10 items. It is a new tool for detecting individuals with ICD-10 depressive disorders, used to estimate the probability to individuate the presence of major depression symptoms, and minor depression symptoms. Tests have been administered to 140 subjects (males' experimental group, 32 subjects; males' control group, 20 subjects; females' experimental group 58 subjects; females' control group, 30 subjects) from eight departments of university hospital, medical faculty, and social services.

RESULTS

It can be noted that with GHQ-12, the presence of non-psychotic mental disorders does not come out: just the females' group, experimental and control, shows some problems with insomnia and stress. On the other hand, with PHQ, the presence of no great entity depressive symptoms comes out for all groups. In the experimental groups the quantity of depressive symptoms is greater than in the control groups.

CONCLUSIONS

We have find the presence of a number of depressive symptoms into a hospitalized population. It is known that detecting such symptoms is important for protection and care of depressive disorders in hospitalized and non-hospitalized populations.

Receptor activator of NF(Kappa)B ligand/osteoprotegerin (RANKL/OPG) system and osteopontin (OPN) serum levels in a population of apulian postmenopausal women

AIM

Osteoporosis is a bone disease, characterized by a reduction of bone resistance; in postmenopausal period bone metabolism is imbalanced. Several parameters have been proposed as markers of bone metabolism; the attention have been recently placed on the receptor of activator of NF(Kappa)B ligand receptor (RANKL) and osteoprotegerin (OPG), namely RANKL/OPG system. The aim of this paper is to evaluate changes in postmenopausal women in serum concentration of OPG, RANKL, and their ratio (i.e. RANKL/OPG ratio), osteopontin (OPN), bone-type alcaline phosphatase (BAP), serum-N-Telopeptide of type I collagen (serum-NTX); and their correlations with bone mineral density (BMD).

METHODS

An Apulian population group of 163 native postmenopausal women were followed at the Osteoporosis Centre of Policlinico of Bari (Southenrn Italy). Patients were classified into 3 separate groups, according to T-score: osteoporotic, osteopenic and control group. Serum concentrations of OPG, RANKL, RANKL/OPG ratio, BAP and NTX have been calculated.

RESULTS

No differences were found in OPG and BAP values. Significant correlations were found in the osteopenic group between OPG and RANKL (negative), and between RANKL and OPN or serum-NTX, OPN and serum-NTX or RANKL/OPG ratio, BAP and serum-NTX, serum-NTX and RANKL/OPG ratio (positive). In the other groups a significant correlation was observed between BAP and NTX.

CONCLUSIONS

In postmenopausal women, important modifications of bone metabolism markers (i.e. RANKL, OPG and OPN) could be due to serious engagement of bone turnover, especially in the pre-osteoporotic phase. Low bone density in postmenopausal women should be identified as soon as possible, and urgent measures are needed to reverse the process. Parameters namely RANKL e OPG may become an important index for the evaluation of the activity of drugs against osteoporosis, old and new like AMG 162 (anti-RANKL action).

[The strange case of a patient affected by acromegaly with osteoporomalacia without hypogonadism]

Acromegaly is a rare disease that, in the majority of cases, is due to the presence of a benign growth hormone (GH)-producing tumor of the pituitary. Growth hormone has profound effects on linear bone growth, bone metabolism, and bone mass. In acromegaly, the skeletal effects of chronic GH excess have been mainly addressed by evaluating bone mineral density (BMD). Most data were obtained in patients with active acromegaly, and apparently high or normal BMD was observed in the absence of hypogonadism. The Autors describe a case of patient affected by acromegaly without hypogonadism with serious osteoporosis and biological signs of osteomalacia.

Osteoporosis in adult with Marfan syndrome: casuality or causality?

Marfan syndrome (MFS) is an inherited connective tissue disorder transmitted as an autosomal dominant trait. Recent studies indicate that decreased bone mineral density (BMD) occurs in the spine, femoral necks and greater trochanters of some adults and children with MFS. Since there is uncertainty regarding the BMD status of patients with MFS, the authors present a case report on a female patient with MFS and alteration of phosphocalcic metabolism.

[Postmenopausal osteoporosis: risk factors and possible therapies]

Risk factors for osteoporosis and the therapies (including those still being validated) utilisable in the primary and secondary management of patients with declared osteoporosis or those at risk of the disease are reviewed. The role of oestrogens in the pathogenesis of postmenopausal osteoporosis is well documented and replacement hormonal therapy prevents the rapid bone loss that accompanies the menopause, albeit with the well-known limitations. A valid alternative would seem to be provided by a diet rich in phyto-oestrogens which as they are natural SERMs, are able to produce effects similar to the oestrogens. The drugs of the new generation are also taking on an increasingly important role in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis, although it is reasonable to think that in order to define them as effective and innocuous it will be necessary to await the conclusion of ongoing trials and an adequate number of years.

[Tumor markers in some chronic inflammatory diseases in rheumatology: a statistical evaluation]

BACKGROUND

Since tumor markers can be high in the course of many inflammatory diseases, the aim of this study is to verify if it also occurs in the course of rheumathologic chronic inflammatory diseases, and if there is any statistical correlation between tumor markers and inflammatory indices.

METHODS

Seventy-nine patients (51 females and 28 males) with rheumatologic chronic inflammatory diseases, aged 17-92 years, were studied, all of them took 4 mg of prednisone. alphaFP, CEA, TPA, CA19.9, CA15.3, CA72.4, CA125, ferritina, beta2 microglobuling, betaHCG, and free and total PSA in males, were evaluated as tumor markers; and VES, PCR and Fibrinogen, as inflammatory indices.

RESULTS

The results obtained showed that there is a significative correlation between ferritin, beta2 microglobulin, TPA and PCR, and between free and total PSA and Fibrinogen.

CONCLUSIONS

PCR is a very good index of an active disease and it can be helpful, along with tumor markers, in the monitoring of chronic inflammatory diseases.

[Sex hormones and male osteoporosis. A physiologic prospective for prevention and therapy]

BACKGROUND

Male osteoporosis is often an underestimate and non-acknowledged pathology because it is less frequent then post-menopausal women osteoporosis. The causes of osteoporosis in males were reviewed, considering the importance of the assessment of sexual hormones, even without symptoms of hypogonadism.

METHODS

Sixty-two patients ranging in age from 45 to 75 years, males, were studied. None of them had assumed steroids nor other drugs causing osteoporosis. These patients have been subjected to bone mineral analysis (BMA) together with the following sexual hormones: LH, FSH, total testosterone, free testosterone, SHBG, estrone, estradiol. Two methods of BMA have been employed (Norland 2780 and UBA 575 Walker and Sonix).

RESULTS

When osteoporosis or osteopenia were present, always there were modifications of sex hormones values. Statistic evaluation (linear regression, Pearson coefficient, Multiple regression, Backward Stepwise Multiple Regression), showed that there was a significant association between total testosterone and osteoporosis.

CONCLUSIONS

Total testosterone resulted the most predictive sex hormone for the loss of bone mass; therefore, it is important to evaluate sex hormones in males with osteoporosis, for a correct and "physiological" therapy.

[Biochemical markers of bone turnover and YKL 40 in ankylosing spondylitis. Relation to disease activity]

BACKGROUND

YKL-40 is a glycoprotein produced by chondrocytes and synovial cells. The plasmatic levels of this metabolite increase in some pathologies such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthrosis, so much so that it can be considered an effective marker of disease activity and in the therapeutic monitoring of these diseases. It has been interesting to dose a group of both male and female subjects affected by seronegative spondylarthritis, comparing this parameter with the disease activity indexes and with the bone turnover markers.

METHODS

The study has been carried out on 48 subjects (26 males and 22 females) between 17 and 68 years affected by spondylarthritis, diagnosed in conformity with ARA standards. None of the patients carried out basic treatment or by glycocorticoids, and 22 patients took FANS when required. In these subjects the disease activity markers (VES, PCR, fibrinogen, mucoprotein) and some of the classic bone remodelling markers (blood calcium and phosphates, calciuria, phosphaturia, Ca++, Ntx, osteocalcine, bone isoenzyme of alkaline phosphatase, hydroxyproline, procollagen and YKL-40) were dosed.

RESULTS

The comparison between different parameters pointed out that the highest values are obtained in subjects of most advanced age with the highest phlogosis indexes, without any correlation with sex. The quite interesting comparison shows a correlation between the bone remodelling indexes and YKL-40, being particularly remarkable when the disease is more aggressive or during relapse.

CONCLUSIONS

It is then possible to confirm that, though preliminary, these data may suggest evaluations on wider case histories to research YKL-40 as a surgical monitoring marker in seronegative poliarthritis.

[Splenic pseudocystic. Report of a case]

Splenic pseudocysts represent 70 to 80% of the non parasitic cysts of this organ. Malaria, infectious mononucleosis, tuberculosis and t. pallidum infection are predisposing factors. Cystic characteristics are determined by CT-SCAN and ultrasound. Final diagnosis is achieved by hystological examination. This is a case report.