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Takashi Miyachi,1 Kyoko Nomura,2 Sachiko Minamizono,2 Kazuki Sakai,1 Toyoto Iwata,2 Yuta Sugano,1 Shun Sawaguchi,3 Kouhei Takahashi,3 Kazuo Mishima4 1Department of Medicine, Akita University Graduate School of Medicine, Akita, Japan; 2Department of Environmental Health Science and Public Health, Akita University Graduate School of Medicine, Akita, Japan; 3Japan Health Insurance Association, Akita Branch, Akita, Japan; 4Department of Neuropsychiatry, Akita University Graduate School of Medicine, Akita, JapanCorrespondence: Kyoko NomuraDepartment of Environmental Health Science and Public Health, Akita University Graduate School of Medicine, 1– 1– 1 Hondo, Akita, 010-8543, JapanTel +81-18-884-6086Fax +81-18-836-2609Email nomurakyoko@gmail.comPurpose: Truck drivers with insomnia are at a high risk of traffic accidents. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of insomnia and identify its associated factors among truck drivers in Japan.Methods: Participants were 2927 male truck drivers younger than 65 years old. Self-administered questionnaires were used to assess insomnia symptoms, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, drinking, smoking habits, body mass index, caffeine intake, as well as daily driving hours, consecutive days away from home, and driving distance. Insomnia symptoms included difficulty initiating sleep, maintaining sleep and early morning awakening. Insomnia was defined when any of these symptoms were observed with daily tiredness.Results: The prevalence of insomnia among the subjects was 13.3% (n=356), of which 13.5% had difficulty initiating sleep, 78% had difficulty maintaining sleep, and 26.4% had early morning awakening. After adjusting for covariates, drinking habits, daily driving hours, and STAI score were significantly and linearly associated with insomnia; the adjusted odds ratio (OR) of drinking habits for insomnia was 1.74 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.23– 2.47] for heavy drinkers compared to non-drinkers (trend p< 0.001); the adjusted OR of daily driving hours was 1.87 (95% CI, 1.00– 3.49) for 12 hours or longer in a day compared to < 8 hours in a day (trend p< 0.001); the adjusted OR of STAI quartiles was 5.30 (95% CI, 3.66– 7.67) for the highest quartile compared to the lowest quartile (trend p< 0.001).Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that insomnia is prevalent among truck drivers in Japan, and its risk factors include drinking habits, daily driving hours, and anxiety.Keywords: insomnia, truck driver, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, STAI, working environment, lifestyle

Masako Suzuki,1 Atsurou Yamada,1 Norio Watanabe,1 Tatsuo Akechi,1 Fujika Katsuki,2 Takeshi Nishiyama,3 Masayuki Imaeda,4 Taishi Miyachi,4 Kazuo Otaki,5 Yumiko Mitsuda,6 Akino Ota,6 Toshi A Furukawa7 1Department of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan; 2Department of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, Nagoya City University School of Nursing, Nagoya, Japan; 3Clinical Trial Management Center, Nagoya City University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan; 4Department of Neonatology and Pediatrics, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan; 5Kazuo Mental Clinic, Toyohashi, Japan; 6Toyokawa Sakura Hospital, Toyokawa Japan; 7Department of Health Promotion and Human Behavior, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine/School of Public Health, Kyoto, Japan Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of group psychoeducation to relieve the psychological distress of mothers of children with high-functioning pervasive developmental disorders (HFPDD) and to improve the behaviors of the children. Methods: Seventy-two mothers of preschool outpatients with HFPDD were randomly assigned to a four-session brief group psychoeducational program (GP). The sessions were held every second week in addition to the usual treatment (GP + treatment as usual [TAU] group), or to a TAU-alone group. The primary outcome was self-reported symptoms of maternal mental health as assessed using the 28-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) at 21 weeks post-randomization (week 21). The GHQ-28 at the end of the intervention (week 7), Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) for the behavior of the children, the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI), and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) were carried out at weeks 7 and 21. We tested the group effects with the interaction between the intervention and the evaluation points. Results: The GHQ-28 score at week 21 was significantly higher in the GP + TAU group as compared to that in the TAU-alone group, indicating a greater improvement in the TAU-alone group. There was no evidence that GP + TAU led to a greater improvement of maternal mental health than TAU-alone at week 7. Similarly, no evidence was obtained to indicate that GP + TAU led to a reduction in the ABC or ZBI scores by week 7 or 21. The adjusted scores for the RF (role emotional) and MH (mental health) subscales of the SF-36 at week 21 were also significantly lower in the GP + TAU group, indicating a similar tendency to that of the change of the GHQ-28 score at week 21. Conclusion: The psychoeducational program did not alleviate maternal distress, aberrant behaviors of the children, or caregiver burden. Keywords: family psychoeducation, pervasive developmental disorder, problem-solving therapy, parenting stress