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Although there is growing interest in mental health problems in university students there is limited understanding of the scope of need and determinants to inform intervention efforts.
Aims
To longitudinally examine the extent and persistence of mental health symptoms and the importance of psychosocial and lifestyle factors for student mental health and academic outcomes.
Method
Undergraduates at a Canadian university were invited to complete electronic surveys at entry and completion of their first year. The baseline survey measured important distal and proximal risk factors and the follow-up assessed mental health and well-being. Surveys were linked to academic grades. Multivariable models of risk factors and mental health and academic outcomes were fit and adjusted for confounders.
Results
In 1530 students surveyed at entry to university 28% and 33% screened positive for clinically significant depressive and anxiety symptoms respectively, which increased to 36% and 39% at the completion of first year. Over the academic year, 14% of students reported suicidal thoughts and 1.6% suicide attempts. Moreover, there was persistence and overlap in these mental health outcomes. Modifiable psychosocial and lifestyle factors at entry were associated with positive screens for mental health outcomes at completion of first year, while anxiety and depressive symptoms were associated with lower grades and university well-being.
Conclusions
Clinically significant mental health symptoms are common and persistent among first-year university students and have a negative impact on academic performance and well-being. A comprehensive mental health strategy that includes a whole university approach to prevention and targeted early-intervention measures and associated research is justified.
Out of hours, there is only one on-site junior doctor. First year psychiatry trainees (CT1s) and GP trainees may have no prior experience in psychiatry. On-call shifts are therefore potentially daunting for new trainees.
Objectives
Expand the resources available for trainees when on-call.
Methods
We issued questionnaires to CT1s asking if they would have appreciated more information about on-call scenarios and in what format.
Based on the questionnaire results we implemented some changes. These were:
– a printed “pocket-guide” summarising common on-call scenarios;
– a training video on common on-call scenarios.
The handout was given to new trainees in February 2016 and in August 2016. The video was shown to new trainees in August 2016. Trainees provided feedback on the resources.
Results
Of 24 CT1s, 15 (63%) were “neutral” or “disagreed” that they had felt prepared for on-calls.
CT1s wanted additional resources, especially a paper handout or phone download.
Feedback on the “pocket-guide” from trainees in February 2016 (n = 8) was positive (62.5% reported increased confidence in on-call situations). Feedback is also being collected from trainees who received the guide in August 2016.
Trainees in August 2016 (n = 36) liked the video – no trainees “disagreed” with statements asking if the video had been useful.
The video improved the confidence of trainees about on-call situations by an average of 2.8 points.
Conclusions
We have expanded available resources relating to on-calls and improved confidence. Further improvements would include making resources more easily available in downloadable formats.
Disclosure of interest
The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.
Item 9 of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) queries about thoughts of death and self-harm, but not suicidality. Although it is sometimes used to assess suicide risk, most positive responses are not associated with suicidality. The PHQ-8, which omits Item 9, is thus increasingly used in research. We assessed equivalency of total score correlations and the diagnostic accuracy to detect major depression of the PHQ-8 and PHQ-9.
Methods
We conducted an individual patient data meta-analysis. We fit bivariate random-effects models to assess diagnostic accuracy.
Results
16 742 participants (2097 major depression cases) from 54 studies were included. The correlation between PHQ-8 and PHQ-9 scores was 0.996 (95% confidence interval 0.996 to 0.996). The standard cutoff score of 10 for the PHQ-9 maximized sensitivity + specificity for the PHQ-8 among studies that used a semi-structured diagnostic interview reference standard (N = 27). At cutoff 10, the PHQ-8 was less sensitive by 0.02 (−0.06 to 0.00) and more specific by 0.01 (0.00 to 0.01) among those studies (N = 27), with similar results for studies that used other types of interviews (N = 27). For all 54 primary studies combined, across all cutoffs, the PHQ-8 was less sensitive than the PHQ-9 by 0.00 to 0.05 (0.03 at cutoff 10), and specificity was within 0.01 for all cutoffs (0.00 to 0.01).
Conclusions
PHQ-8 and PHQ-9 total scores were similar. Sensitivity may be minimally reduced with the PHQ-8, but specificity is similar.
A double-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled trial was conducted to determine whether routine pre-operative analgesia is beneficial in reducing post-operative ear pain following bilateral myringotomy and tube placement.
Methods
Forty-five children (aged 3–15 years) were randomised to receive either pre-operative analgesics (paracetamol and ibuprofen) (n = 21) or placebo (n = 24). All children underwent sevoflurane gas induction with intranasal fentanyl (2 mcg/kg) to reduce the incidence of emergence agitation. Post-operative pain scores were measured using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale. Median pain scores taken 90 minutes post-surgery, and the highest pain score recorded prior to 90 minutes, were analysed.
Results
There were no statistical differences between the median pain scores at 90 minutes or subsequent need for rescue analgesia. Emergence agitation did not occur in any child. Inadvertent ear trauma, use of an intravenous cannula or airway adjunct did not affect pain scores.
Conclusion
Routine pre-operative analgesia does not reduce pain scores in the early post-operative period. Simple analgesics are effective for rescue analgesia in the minority of cases.
Different diagnostic interviews are used as reference standards for major depression classification in research. Semi-structured interviews involve clinical judgement, whereas fully structured interviews are completely scripted. The Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), a brief fully structured interview, is also sometimes used. It is not known whether interview method is associated with probability of major depression classification.
Aims
To evaluate the association between interview method and odds of major depression classification, controlling for depressive symptom scores and participant characteristics.
Method
Data collected for an individual participant data meta-analysis of Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) diagnostic accuracy were analysed and binomial generalised linear mixed models were fit.
Results
A total of 17 158 participants (2287 with major depression) from 57 primary studies were analysed. Among fully structured interviews, odds of major depression were higher for the MINI compared with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) (odds ratio (OR) = 2.10; 95% CI = 1.15–3.87). Compared with semi-structured interviews, fully structured interviews (MINI excluded) were non-significantly more likely to classify participants with low-level depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 scores ≤6) as having major depression (OR = 3.13; 95% CI = 0.98–10.00), similarly likely for moderate-level symptoms (PHQ-9 scores 7–15) (OR = 0.96; 95% CI = 0.56–1.66) and significantly less likely for high-level symptoms (PHQ-9 scores ≥16) (OR = 0.50; 95% CI = 0.26–0.97).
Conclusions
The MINI may identify more people as depressed than the CIDI, and semi-structured and fully structured interviews may not be interchangeable methods, but these results should be replicated.
Declaration of interest
Drs Jetté and Patten declare that they received a grant, outside the submitted work, from the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, which was jointly funded by the Institute and Pfizer. Pfizer was the original sponsor of the development of the PHQ-9, which is now in the public domain. Dr Chan is a steering committee member or consultant of Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Lilly, MSD and Pfizer. She has received sponsorships and honorarium for giving lectures and providing consultancy and her affiliated institution has received research grants from these companies. Dr Hegerl declares that within the past 3 years, he was an advisory board member for Lundbeck, Servier and Otsuka Pharma; a consultant for Bayer Pharma; and a speaker for Medice Arzneimittel, Novartis, and Roche Pharma, all outside the submitted work. Dr Inagaki declares that he has received grants from Novartis Pharma, lecture fees from Pfizer, Mochida, Shionogi, Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma, Daiichi-Sankyo, Meiji Seika and Takeda, and royalties from Nippon Hyoron Sha, Nanzando, Seiwa Shoten, Igaku-shoin and Technomics, all outside of the submitted work. Dr Yamada reports personal fees from Meiji Seika Pharma Co., Ltd., MSD K.K., Asahi Kasei Pharma Corporation, Seishin Shobo, Seiwa Shoten Co., Ltd., Igaku-shoin Ltd., Chugai Igakusha and Sentan Igakusha, all outside the submitted work. All other authors declare no competing interests. No funder had any role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis and interpretation of the data; preparation, review or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication.
Despite lessons learned from the recent Ebola epidemic, attempts to survey and determine non-health care worker, industry-specific needs to address highly infectious diseases have been minimal. The aircraft rescue and fire fighting (ARFF) industry is often overlooked in highly infectious disease training and education, even though it is critical to their field due to elevated occupational exposure risk during their operations.
Supervisors perceived Frontline respondents to be more willing and comfortable to encounter potential highly infectious disease scenarios than the Frontline indicated. More than one-third of respondents incorrectly marked transmission routes of viral hemorrhagic fevers. There were discrepancies in self-reports on the existence of highly infectious disease orientation and skills demonstration, employee resources, and personal protective equipment policies, with a range of 7.5%-24.0% more Supervisors than Frontline respondents marking activities as conducted.
Conclusions
There are deficits in highly infectious disease knowledge, skills, and abilities among ARFF members that must be addressed to enhance member safety, health, and well-being. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;12:675-679)
Elevated levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) have been associated with the development of common mental disorders, such as depression, but its role in symptom resolution is unclear.
Method
We examined the association between IL-6 and symptom resolution in a non-clinical sample of participants with psychological distress.
Results
Relative to high IL-6 levels, low levels at baseline were associated with symptom resolution at follow-up [age- and sex-adjusted risk ratio (RR) = 1.15, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06–1.25]. Further adjustment for covariates had little effect on the association. Symptomatic participants with repeated low IL-6 were more likely to be symptom-free at follow-up compared with those with repeated high IL-6 (RR = 1.21, 95% CI 1.03–1.41). Among the symptomatic participants with elevated IL-6 at baseline, IL-6 decreased along with symptom resolution.
Conclusions
IL-6 is potentially related to the mechanisms underlying recovery from symptoms of mental ill health. Further studies are needed to examine these mechanisms and to confirm the findings in relation to clinical depression.
This paper brings together the work of the GI Solvency II Technical Provisions working party. The working party was formed in 2009 for the primary purpose of raising awareness of Solvency II and the impact it would have on the work that reserving actuaries do. Over the years, the working party’s focus has shifted to exploring and promoting discussion of the many practical issues raised by the requirements and to promoting best practice. To this end, we have developed, presented and discussed many of the ideas contained in this paper at events and forums. However, the size of the subject means that at no one event have we managed to cover all of the areas that the reserving actuary needs to be aware of. This paper brings together our thinking in one place for the first time. We hope experienced practitioners will find it thought provoking, and a useful reference tool. For new practitioners, we hope it helps to get you up-to-speed quickly. Good luck!
We describe the efficacy of enhanced infection control measures, including those recommended in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2012 carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) toolkit, to control concurrent outbreaks of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) and extensively drug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (XDR-AB).
Design
Before-after intervention study.
Setting
Fifteen-bed surgical trauma intensive care unit (ICU).
Methods
We investigated the impact of enhanced infection control measures in response to clusters of CPE and XDR-AB infections in an ICU from April 2009 to March 2010. Polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the presence of blaKPC and resistance plasmids in CRE. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was performed to assess XDR-AB clonality. Enhanced infection-control measures were implemented in response to ongoing transmission of CPE and a new outbreak of XDR-AB. Efficacy was evaluated by comparing the incidence rate (IR) of CPE and XDR-AB before and after the implementation of these measures.
Results
The IR of CPE for the 12 months before the implementation of enhanced measures was 7.77 cases per 1,000 patient-days, whereas the IR of XDR-AB for the 3 months before implementation was 6.79 cases per 1,000 patient-days. All examined CPE shared endemic blaKPC resistance plasmids, and 6 of the 7 XDR-AB isolates were clonal. Following institution of enhanced infection control measures, the CPE IR decreased to 1.22 cases per 1,000 patient-days (P = .001), and no more cases of XDR-AB were identified.
Conclusions
Use of infection control measures described in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2012 CRE toolkit was associated with a reduction in the IR of CPE and an interruption in XDR-AB transmission.
The Millimetre Astronomy Legacy Team 90 GHz (MALT90) survey aims to characterise the physical and chemical evolution of high-mass star-forming clumps. Exploiting the unique broad frequency range and on-the-fly mapping capabilities of the Australia Telescope National Facility Mopra 22 m single-dish telescope1, MALT90 has obtained 3′ × 3′ maps towards ~2 000 dense molecular clumps identified in the ATLASGAL 870 μm Galactic plane survey. The clumps were selected to host the early stages of high-mass star formation and to span the complete range in their evolutionary states (from prestellar, to protostellar, and on to
$\mathrm{H\,{\scriptstyle {II}}}$
regions and photodissociation regions). Because MALT90 mapped 16 lines simultaneously with excellent spatial (38 arcsec) and spectral (0.11 km s−1) resolution, the data reveal a wealth of information about the clumps’ morphologies, chemistry, and kinematics. In this paper we outline the survey strategy, observing mode, data reduction procedure, and highlight some early science results. All MALT90 raw and processed data products are available to the community. With its unprecedented large sample of clumps, MALT90 is the largest survey of its type ever conducted and an excellent resource for identifying interesting candidates for high-resolution studies with ALMA.
Except for a single case report, musical ear syndrome in cochlear implantees has not been studied. We aimed to study the prevalence and nature of musical ear syndrome among adult cochlear implant patients, as well as the effect on their emotional well-being.
Study design, patients and intervention:
A cross-sectional survey of patients aged 18 years and above who had received cochlear implants for profound hearing loss between 1997 and 2010.
Results:
Of the 82 patients studied, 18 (22 per cent) were found to have experienced musical ear syndrome. Seven and 11 patients had musical ear syndrome prior to and after cochlear implantation, respectively. The character of musical ear syndrome symptoms was described as instrumental music (n = 2), singing (6) or both (10). Fourteen patients reported an adverse emotional effect, with three expressing ‘intolerance’.
Conclusions:
In this study, 22 per cent of cochlear implantees experienced musical ear syndrome. These symptoms affected patients' emotional state, but most coped well. Musical ear syndrome can occur prior to and after cochlear implantation.
An enormous solar tornado was observed by SDO/AIA on 25 September 2011. It was mainly associated with a quiescent prominence with an overlying coronal cavity. We investigate the triggering mechanism of the solar tornado by using the data from two instruments: SDO/AIA and STEREO-A/EUVI, covering the Sun from two directions. The tornado appeared near to the active region NOAA 11303 that produced three flares. The flares directly influenced the prominence-cavity system. The release of free magnetic energy from the active region by flares resulted in the contraction of the active region field. The cavity, owing to its superior magnetic pressure, expanded to fill this vacated space in the corona. We propose that the tornado developed on the top of the prominence due to the expansion of the prominence-cavity system.
We describe the largest outbreak of hepatitis B virus infection reported to date in the UK. Between July 2001 and December 2005, 237 cases were identified in Avon, South West England. The likely route of transmission was injecting drug use in 44% (104/237) and heterosexual intercourse in 30% (71/237) of cases. A case-control study in injectors showed that injecting crack cocaine [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 23·8, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3·04–186, P<0·001] and sharing injecting paraphernalia in the year before diagnosis (aOR 16·67, 95% CI 1·78–100, P=0·010) were strongly associated with acute hepatitis B. In non-IDUs number of sexual partners and lack of consistent condom use were high compared to a national sample. We describe the control measures implemented in response to the outbreak. This outbreak has highlighted the problems associated with the low uptake from the national hepatitis B vaccination policy which targets high-risk groups, the difficulties of identifying those at risk of acquiring hepatitis B infection through heterosexual sex, and injecting crack cocaine as a risk factor for hepatitis B.