{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,5]],"date-time":"2026-05-05T12:22:45Z","timestamp":1777983765001,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":22,"publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]],"date-time":"2026-04-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1775865600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]],"date-time":"2026-04-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1775865600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"funder":[{"name":"New Giza University"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["link.springer.com"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sci Rep"],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    Neurologists, as specialists in a high-stress field, which hold lots of mental and emotional stressors. The complexity of neurological conditions, the extended working hours, and the emotional burden of managing chronic or terminal patients contributes to a stressful work environment. Globally, studies have shown that healthcare professionals, particularly those in specialties of high demand like neurology, are at risk of depression and burnout. This study aims to assess the prevalence of depressive symptoms among neurologists in Egypt. Help identify the risk factors that contribute to these depressive symptoms. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among Egyptian neurologists working in both public and private healthcare institutions. Participants in the study completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) to assess the severity of depressive symptoms. Data on demographics, job satisfaction, shift duration, workload and overall job satisfaction were also collected and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Out of 138 neurologists surveyed, nearly half (43.5%) reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms. Those with a prior diagnosis of depression were especially affected\u2014more than 8 in 10 (82.4%, 95% CI 66.2%\u201391.7%) reported significant symptoms, compared to just over a third (37.5%, 95% CI 28.8%\u201347.1%) of those without a known history (\n                    <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009&lt;\u20090.001). Higher depression scores were also linked to early career stage and longer working hours. Over half of the neurologists with less than three years of experience (53.1%) and those working more than 80\u00a0h per week (56.3%) screened positive for moderate to severe depression. These findings highlight a high burden of depressive symptoms among Egyptian neurologists, particularly those early in their careers or with a prior history of depression, emphasizing the urgent need for targeted mental health interventions and systemic workplace reforms.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-026-44875-w","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]],"date-time":"2026-04-11T06:16:14Z","timestamp":1775888174000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Prevalence of depressive symptoms and its burden on neurological practice in urban Egypt: a cross-sectional study"],"prefix":"10.1038","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Maram Samy","family":"Nasef","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sara","family":"Abozeid","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Saifeldin A.","family":"Hassan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]]},"reference":[{"issue":"7","key":"44875_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"548","DOI":"10.1016\/S2215-0366(18)30165-2","volume":"5","author":"GS Malhi","year":"2018","unstructured":"Malhi, G. S. et al. The neurobiology of major depressive disorder: an integrated view. Lancet Psychiatry 5(7), 548\u2013561 (2018).","journal-title":"Lancet Psychiatry"},{"issue":"5","key":"44875_CR2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"391","DOI":"10.1016\/S0006-3223(00)01088-X","volume":"49","author":"CM Pariante","year":"2001","unstructured":"Pariante, C. M. & Miller, A. H. Glucocorticoid receptors in major depression: Relevance to pathophysiology and treatment. Biol. Psychiatry 49(5), 391\u2013404 (2001).","journal-title":"Biol. Psychiatry"},{"issue":"6103","key":"44875_CR3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"68","DOI":"10.1126\/science.1222939","volume":"338","author":"RS Duman","year":"2012","unstructured":"Duman, R. S. & Aghajanian, G. K. Synaptic dysfunction in depression: Potential therapeutic targets. Science 338(6103), 68\u201372 (2012).","journal-title":"Science"},{"key":"44875_CR4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"625","DOI":"10.1038\/nri3042","volume":"11","author":"MR Irwin","year":"2011","unstructured":"Irwin, M. R. & Cole, S. W. Reciprocal regulation of the neural and innate immune systems. Nat. Rev. Immunol. 11, 625\u2013632 (2011).","journal-title":"Nat. Rev. Immunol."},{"issue":"11","key":"44875_CR5","first-page":"2212","volume":"95","author":"LN Dyrbye","year":"2020","unstructured":"Dyrbye, L. N. et al. Medical licensure questions and physician reluctance to seek care for mental health conditions. Mayo Clin. Proc. 95(11), 2212\u20132222 (2020).","journal-title":"Mayo Clin. Proc."},{"issue":"22","key":"44875_CR6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2373","DOI":"10.1001\/jama.2015.15845","volume":"314","author":"DA Mata","year":"2015","unstructured":"Mata, D. A. et al. Prevalence of depression and depressive symptoms among resident physicians: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA 314(22), 2373\u20132383 (2015).","journal-title":"JAMA"},{"issue":"1","key":"44875_CR7","first-page":"7","volume":"2","author":"VD Perwitasari","year":"2024","unstructured":"Perwitasari, V. D. & Hidayat, R. Depression level among neurology resident doctors in the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Indonesia. Acta Neurol. Indones. 2(1), 7 (2024).","journal-title":"Acta Neurol. Indones."},{"issue":"34","key":"44875_CR8","first-page":"35299","volume":"26","author":"AM El-Tantawy","year":"2019","unstructured":"El-Tantawy, A. M., Raya, Y. M. & Zaki, N. F. Burnout among physicians and nursing staff working in the emergency hospital of Tanta University, Egypt. Environ. Sci. Poll. Res. 26(34), 35299\u201335305 (2019).","journal-title":"Environ. Sci. Poll. Res."},{"issue":"18","key":"44875_CR9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1377","DOI":"10.1001\/archinternmed.2012.3199","volume":"172","author":"TD Shanafelt","year":"2012","unstructured":"Shanafelt, T. D. et al. Burnout and satisfaction with work-life balance among US physicians relative to the general US population. Arch. Intern. Med. 172(18), 1377\u20131385 (2012).","journal-title":"Arch. Intern. Med."},{"issue":"3","key":"44875_CR10","first-page":"160","volume":"40","author":"PRD Putri","year":"2021","unstructured":"Putri, P. R. D., Widjaja, F. F., Harimurti, K., Kurniawan, M. & Tugasworo, D. Depression level among neurology resident doctors in the Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Indonesia. Universa Medicina 40(3), 160\u2013167 (2021).","journal-title":"Universa Medicina"},{"issue":"5","key":"44875_CR11","first-page":"296","volume":"21","author":"JP Rogers","year":"2023","unstructured":"Rogers, J. P. & McCulloch, P. Anxiety and depression in surgeons: a systematic review. Surgeon 21(5), 296\u2013303 (2023).","journal-title":"Surgeon"},{"key":"44875_CR12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"69","DOI":"10.1186\/s12888-022-03687-8","volume":"22","author":"Y Chen","year":"2022","unstructured":"Chen, Y. et al. Prevalence and predictors of depression among emergency physicians: A national cross-sectional study. BMC Psychiatry 22, 69 (2022).","journal-title":"BMC Psychiatry"},{"issue":"5","key":"44875_CR13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"557","DOI":"10.1007\/s40596-021-01490-3","volume":"45","author":"S Al-Humadi","year":"2021","unstructured":"Al-Humadi, S. et al. Depression, suicidal thoughts, and burnout among physicians during the COVID-19 pandemic: a survey-based cross-sectional study. Acad. Psychiatry 45(5), 557\u2013565 (2021).","journal-title":"Acad. Psychiatry"},{"key":"44875_CR14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2153","DOI":"10.1007\/s10389-023-01974-6","volume":"32","author":"SA Abdalgeleel","year":"2023","unstructured":"Abdalgeleel, S. A. et al. Depression and fatigue among Egyptian health care workers: Cross-sectional survey. J. Public Health 32, 2153\u20132162 (2023).","journal-title":"J. Public Health"},{"key":"44875_CR15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"110102","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jpsychores.2020.110102","volume":"133","author":"Y Liang","year":"2020","unstructured":"Liang, Y., Chen, M., Zheng, X. & Liu, J. Screening for Chinese medical staff mental health by SDS and SAS during the outbreak of COVID-19. J Psychosom. Res. 133, 110102 (2020).","journal-title":"J Psychosom. Res."},{"issue":"3","key":"44875_CR16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"163","DOI":"10.1093\/occmed\/kqr004","volume":"61","author":"K Tomioka","year":"2011","unstructured":"Tomioka, K. et al. Working hours, occupational stress and depression among physicians. Occup. Med. 61(3), 163\u2013170 (2011).","journal-title":"Occup. Med."},{"issue":"2","key":"44875_CR17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"285","DOI":"10.2307\/2392498","volume":"24","author":"RA Karasek","year":"1979","unstructured":"Karasek, R. A. Job demands, job decision latitude, and mental strain: implications for job redesign. Adm. Sci. Q. 24(2), 285\u2013308 (1979).","journal-title":"Adm. Sci. Q."},{"key":"44875_CR18","volume-title":"Stress, Appraisal, and Coping","author":"RS Lazarus","year":"1984","unstructured":"Lazarus, R. S. & Folkman, S. Stress, Appraisal, and Coping (Springer Publishing, 1984)."},{"key":"44875_CR19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"213","DOI":"10.1186\/s12909-024-05207-6","volume":"24","author":"J Wen","year":"2024","unstructured":"Wen, J. et al. Prevalence of depression and anxiety in orthopedic residents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Med. Educ. 24, 213 (2024).","journal-title":"BMC Med. Educ."},{"issue":"1","key":"44875_CR20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"27","DOI":"10.1037\/1076-8998.1.1.27","volume":"1","author":"J Siegrist","year":"1996","unstructured":"Siegrist, J. Adverse health effects of high-effort\/low-reward conditions. J. Occup. Health Psychol. 1(1), 27\u201341 (1996).","journal-title":"J. Occup. Health Psychol."},{"issue":"1","key":"44875_CR21","first-page":"91","volume":"28","author":"RM Post","year":"1992","unstructured":"Post, R. M. Kindling and the pathogenesis of bipolar disorder: Comparisons to epilepsy, relevance to treatment. Psychopharmacol. Bull. 28(1), 91\u2013103 (1992).","journal-title":"Psychopharmacol. Bull."},{"issue":"20","key":"44875_CR22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"R877","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cub.2007.08.007","volume":"17","author":"S-S Yoo","year":"2007","unstructured":"Yoo, S.-S., Gujar, N., Hu, P., Jolesz, F. A. & Walker, M. P. The human emotional brain without sleep \u2014 A prefrontal amygdala disconnect. Curr. Biol. 17(20), R877\u2013R878 (2007).","journal-title":"Curr. Biol."}],"container-title":["Scientific Reports"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-026-44875-w","content-type":"text\/html","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-026-44875-w.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-026-44875-w.pdf","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]],"date-time":"2026-04-11T07:07:11Z","timestamp":1775891231000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/s41598-026-44875-w"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]]},"references-count":22,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,12]]}},"alternative-id":["44875"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/s41598-026-44875-w","relation":{"has-preprint":[{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.21203\/rs.3.rs-6987991\/v1","asserted-by":"object"}]},"ISSN":["2045-2322"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2045-2322","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,11]]},"assertion":[{"value":"27 June 2025","order":1,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"16 March 2026","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"value":"11 April 2026","order":3,"name":"first_online","label":"First Online","group":{"name":"ArticleHistory","label":"Article History"}},{"order":1,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Declarations"}},{"value":"The authors declare no competing interests.","order":2,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Competing interests"}},{"value":"This study was conducted in accordance with the ethical standards outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and followed the guidelines of the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population for conducting research involving human subjects. Ethical approval was obtained from National Cancer Institute-Institutional Review Board (NCI-IRB), Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt. All participants provided informed consent, and confidentiality and anonymity were strictly maintained throughout the study.","order":3,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Ethics approval and consent to participate"}},{"value":"All participants were informed that the data collected during the study may be used for academic publication purposes. Written informed consent for publication was obtained from each participant, with assurances that all data would be anonymized and no personal identifiable information would be disclosed.","order":4,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Consent to publication"}}],"article-number":"12065"}}