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To describe epidemiologic and genomic characteristics of a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak in a large skilled nursing facility (SNF), and the strategies that controlled transmission.
Design, Setting, and Participants:
Cohort study during March 22–May 4, 2020 of all staff and residents at a 780-bed SNF in San Francisco, California.
Methods:
Contact tracing and symptom screening guided targeted testing of staff and residents; respiratory specimens were also collected through serial point prevalence surveys (PPS) in units with confirmed cases. Cases were confirmed by real-time reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction testing for SARS-CoV-2; whole genome sequencing (WGS) characterized viral isolate lineages and relatedness. Infection prevention and control (IPC) interventions included restricting from work any staff who had close contact to a confirmed case; restricting movements between units; implementing surgical face masking facility-wide; and recommended PPE (isolation gown, gloves, N95 respirator and eye protection) for clinical interactions in units with confirmed cases.
Results:
Of 725 staff and residents tested through targeted testing and serial PPS, twenty-one (3%) were SARS-CoV-2-positive; sixteen (76%) staff and 5 (24%) residents. Fifteen (71%) were linked to a single unit. Targeted testing identified 17 (81%) cases; PPS identified 4 (19%). Most (71%) cases were identified prior to IPC intervention. WGS was performed on SARS-CoV-2 isolates from four staff and four residents; five were of Santa Clara County lineage and the three others were distinct lineages.
Conclusions:
Early implementation of targeted testing, serial PPS, and multimodal IPC interventions limited SARS-CoV-2 transmission within the SNF.
Transport of viscous fluid through porous media is a direct consequence of the pore structure. Here we investigate transport through a specific class of two-dimensional porous geometries, namely those formed by fluid-mechanical erosion. We investigate the tortuosity and dispersion by analyzing the first two statistical moments of tracer trajectories. For most initial configurations, tortuosity decreases in time as a result of erosion increasing the porosity. However, we find that tortuosity can also increase transiently in certain cases. The porosity-tortuosity relationships that result from our simulations are compared with models available in the literature. Asymptotic dispersion rates are also strongly affected by the erosion process, as well as by the number and distribution of the eroding bodies. Finally, we analyze the pore size distribution of an eroding geometry. The simulations are performed by combining a boundary integral equation solver for the fluid equations, a second-order stable time-stepping method to simulate erosion, and high-order numerical methods to stably and accurately resolve nearly touching eroded bodies and particle trajectories near the eroding bodies.
Currently there is no consensus regarding how long anti-psychotics medication should be continued following a first/single psychotic episode. Clinically patients often request discontinuation after a period of remission. This is one of the first double-blind randomized-controlled studies designed to address the issue.
Methods:
Patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia and related psychoses (excluding substance induced psychosis) who remitted well following a first/single-episode, and had remained well on maintenance medication for one year, were randomized to receive either maintenance therapy with quetiapine (400 mg/day), or placebo for 12 months. Relapse was defined by the presence of (i) an increase in at least one of the following PANSS psychotic symptom items to a threshold score (delusion, hallucinatory behaviour, conceptual disorganization, unusual thought content, suspiciousness); (ii) CGI Severity of Illness 3 or above; and (iii) CGI Improvement 5 or above.
Results:
178 patients were randomized. 144 patients completed the study (80.9%). The relapse rate was 33.7% (30/89) for the maintenance group and 66.3% (59/89) for the placebo group (log-rank test, chi-square=13.328, p<0.001). Relapse was not related to age or gender. Other significant predictors of relapse include medication status, pre-morbid schizotypal traits, verbal memory and soft neurological signs.
Conclusions:
There is a substantial risk of relapse if medication is discontinued in remitted first-episode psychosis patients following one year of maintenance therapy. On the contrary 33.7% of patients discontinued medication and remained well.
Medication discontinuation in remitted single episode patients after a period of maintenance therapy is a major clinical decision and thus the identification of risk factors controlling for medication status is important.
Methods:
Following a first/single episode with DSM-IV schizophrenia and related psychoses, remitted patients who had remained well on maintenance medication for at least one year were randomized to receive either maintenance therapy (with quetiapine 400 mg/day), or placebo for 12 months.
Results:
178 patients were randomized. Relapse rates were 33.7% (30/89) in maintenance group and 66.3% (59/89) in placebo group. Potential predictors were initially identified in univariate Cox regression models (p<0.1) and were subsequently entered into a multivariate Cox regression model for measuring the relapse risk. Significant predictors included patients on placebo (hazard ratio, 0.41; CI, 0.25 – 0.68; p=0.001); having more pre-morbid schizotypal traits (hazard ratio, 2.32; CI, 1.33 – 4.04; p=0.003); scoring lower in the logical memory test (hazard ratio, 0.94; CI, 0.9 – 0.99; p=0.028); and having more soft neurological signs (disinhibition) (hazard ratio, 1.33; CI, 1.02 – 1.74; p=0.039).
Conclusions:
Relapse predictors may help to inform clinical decisions about discontinuation of maintenance therapy specifically for patients with a first/single episode psychosis following at least one year of maintenance therapy.
Acknowledgement:
We are grateful to Dr TJ Yao at the Clinical Trials Center, University of Hong Kong, for statistical advice. The study was supported by investigator initiated trial award from AstraZeneca and the Research Grants Council Hong Kong (Project number: 765505).
Metabolic abnormality is common among schizophrenia patients. Some metabolic traits were found associated with subgroups of schizophrenia patients.
Objectives:
We examined a possible relationship between metabolic abnormality and psychosis profile in schizophrenia patients.
Method:
Three hundred and seventy-two chronic schizophrenia patients treated with antipsychotics for more than 2 years were assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. A set of metabolic traits was measured at scheduled checkpoints between October 2004 and September 2006.
Results:
Multiple regressions adjusted for sex showed negative correlations between body mass index (BMI) and total score and all subscales; triglycerides (TG) was negatively correlated with total score and negative syndrome, while HDLC was positively correlated with negative syndrome. When sex interaction was concerned, total score was negatively correlated with BMI but not with others; negative syndrome was negatively correlated with BMI and positively with HDLC. No metabolic traits were correlated with positive syndrome or general psychopathology.
Conclusions:
Loss of body weight is a serious health problem in schizophrenia patients with severe psychosis syndrome, especially the negative syndrome. Schizophrenia patients with severe negative syndrome may have a distinct lipid pathophysiology in comparison with those who were less severe in the domain.
Serotonin transporter (SERT) and dopamine transporter (DAT) levels differ in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who are in a depressed state in comparison with healthy controls. In addition, a family history of depression is a potent risk factor for developing depression, and inherited vulnerability to serotonergic and dopaminergic dysfunction is suspected in this. The aim of this study was to examine the availabilities of midbrain SERT and striatal DAT in healthy subjects with and without a first-degree family history of MDD.
Methods
Eight healthy subjects with first-degree relatives with MDD and 16 sex- and age-matched healthy controls were recruited. The availabilities of SERT and DAT were approximated using SPECT, employing [123I] 2-((2-((dimethylamino)methyl)phenyl)thio)-5-iodophenylamine (ADAM) and [99mTc] TRODAT-1 as the ligands, respectively. There are missing data for one participant with a first-degree family history of MDD from the ADAM study, due to a lack of the radio-ligand at the time of experiment.
Results
SERT availability in the midbrain was significantly lower in subjects with a first-degree family history of MDD than in healthy subjects. However, DAT availability was no different between two groups.
Conclusions
The results with regard to the midbrain SERT level suggest the heritability of MDD.
This paper investigates the recidivism of Mount Sinai Hospital mental health court support program in Toronto, Canada among patients involved in the criminal justice system. It also looks to find relationships between recidivism and factors including gender, age and ethnicity.
Method
Follow up periods of up to 48 months after the time of initial admission to the program was conducted and the frequency of re-offense was observed. Comparisons for the significance of risk factors were analyzed using t-tests and Chisquare tests.
Results
191 clients were admitted to the Mount Sinai Hospital Court Support Program between September 2001 and June 2007. At first admission, the mean ± s.d. age was 35.8 ± 9.8 years (range=18-74 years; n=184). The median age was 35 years. The modal age was 34 years. Of the 191 clients, 16 (8.4%) reoffended. Two of them (12.5%) had a third offense; and 1 (6.3%) had a total of four offenses within this tracking period. it appears that re-offense is more likely between 13 and 24 months. No re-offense was noted beyond the 48 months. The gender distribution was not significantly different between reoffenders and non-reoffenders. The mean age at first admission also did not differ between reoffenders and non-reoffenders. The distribution of ethnic groups among reoffenders and non-reoffenders did not differ.
Conclusions
The findings seem to indicate that recidivism has no relationship with gender, age and ethnic groups. The comprehensive and length of support services seem more important in preventing recidivism.
Deep learning using convolutional neural networks represents a form of artificial intelligence where computers recognise patterns and make predictions based upon provided datasets. This study aimed to determine if a convolutional neural network could be trained to differentiate the location of the anterior ethmoidal artery as either adhered to the skull base or within a bone ‘mesentery’ on sinus computed tomography scans.
Methods
Coronal sinus computed tomography scans were reviewed by two otolaryngology residents for anterior ethmoidal artery location and used as data for the Google Inception-V3 convolutional neural network base. The classification layer of Inception-V3 was retrained in Python (programming language software) using a transfer learning method to interpret the computed tomography images.
Results
A total of 675 images from 388 patients were used to train the convolutional neural network. A further 197 unique images were used to test the algorithm; this yielded a total accuracy of 82.7 per cent (95 per cent confidence interval = 77.7–87.8), kappa statistic of 0.62 and area under the curve of 0.86.
Conclusion
Convolutional neural networks demonstrate promise in identifying clinically important structures in functional endoscopic sinus surgery, such as anterior ethmoidal artery location on pre-operative sinus computed tomography.
Background: Status epilepticus (SE) is the most common pediatric neurological emergency. Timely treatment is crucial, yet administration of rescue medications is often delayed and under-dosed. We aim to improve SE management by ensuring that every child at risk of SE in our province has an individualized seizure action plan (SAP) outlining the steps that should be taken during SE. Methods: A survey was distributed to parents of epilepsy patients aged 1 month to 19 years. Primary outcome was percentage of patients with SAPs. Secondary outcome was parental interest in a SAP mobile application. Following chart review, univariate and multivariate analysis was performed to identify variables that predict whether patients have SAPs. Results: Of 192 participants, 61.5% have SAPs. On univariate analysis, history of prior SE and male gender increased likelihood of having a SAP. On logistic regression, Nagelkerke R2 was 0.204 and our model correctly predicted 82.2% of patients with SAPs. 83.3% of parents were interested in a SAP mobile application. Conclusions: This is one of the first studies to examine SAP prevalence in a pediatric epilepsy population. There is a need to increase the percentage of epilepsy patients with SAPs. Most parents would find a SAP mobile application valuable in their child’s management.
Interpersonal difficulties in borderline personality disorder (BPD) could be related to the disturbed self-views of BPD patients. This study investigates affective and neural responses to positive and negative social feedback (SF) of BPD patients compared with healthy (HC) and low self-esteem (LSE) controls and how this relates to individual self-views.
Methods
BPD (N = 26), HC (N = 32), and LSE (N = 22) performed a SF task in a magnetic resonance imaging scanner. Participants received 15 negative, intermediate and positive evaluative feedback words putatively given by another participant and rated their mood and applicability of the words to the self.
Results
BPD had more negative self-views than HC and felt worse after negative feedback. Applicability of feedback was a less strong determinant of mood in BPD than HC. Increased precuneus activation was observed in HC to negative compared with positive feedback, whereas in BPD, this was similarly low for both valences. HC showed increased temporoparietal junction (TPJ) activation to positive v. negative feedback, while BPD showed more TPJ activation to negative feedback. The LSE group showed a different pattern of results suggesting that LSE cannot explain these findings in BPD.
Conclusions
The negative self-views that BPD have, may obstruct critically examining negative feedback, resulting in lower mood. Moreover, where HC focus on the positive feedback (based on TPJ activation), BPD seem to focus more on negative feedback, potentially maintaining negative self-views. Better balanced self-views may make BPD better equipped to deal with potential negative feedback and more open to positive interactions.
The main objective of this study was to investigate the relationships between motivation and readiness levels for physical activity and exercise behaviour among persons with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Participants were 211 U.S. adults with chronic musculoskeletal pain from online support groups as well as specialty and primary care clinics (females = 86.7%; mean age = 43.4 years, SD = 14.4 years). The participants completed an online survey on their engagement in physical activity and exercise behaviour. Multiple one-way analyses of variance with post-hoc comparisons using the Tukey HSD test revealed significant differences between the readiness stages of change groups of preintenders, intenders, and actors in their motivation for physical activity and exercise behaviour. Specifically, the actor group of behavioural change reported higher levels of motivation beliefs for physical activity and exercise behaviour compared to preintenders and intenders. These findings suggest that people with chronic musculoskeletal pain experiencing increased motivation for physical activity and exercise behaviour are more engaged in desired behaviours than the persons with chronic pain reporting varying degrees of behavioural intentions.
Background: Childhood primary angiitis of the central nervous system (cPACNS) is a rare inflammatory disease of brain vessels. The small vessel subtype is diagnosed on brain biopsy and often presents with cognitive and behavioural changes, headaches and seizures. However, there are few reported cases of super-refractory status epilepticus. Methods: We present a case of small vessel cPACNS complicated by super-refractory status epilepticus and review the literature. Results: Our patient is a previously healthy 11-year-old boy who presented with new-onset seizures and encephalopathy in the context of fever. He developed super-refractory status epilepticus, requiring burst suppression for four weeks with various IV infusions. During this time, he was on the ketogenic diet and tried eight anti-seizure medications. Extensive investigations included brain biopsy confirming small vessel cPACNS. He was treated with IV methylprednisolone, oral steroids, IVIG, and cyclophosphamide. After prolonged rehabilitation, he recovered almost completely and has a normal neurological examination with no epileptiform activity on EEG. Conclusions: Small vessel cPACNS should be considered in the differential diagnosis of super-refractory status epilepticus. Despite being in SE for four weeks, symptomatic management of seizures and immunosuppression to treat the underlying pathology resulted in favourable neurological outcomes. This is one of the longest cases of SE in small vessel cPACNS in the literature.
Background: Epileptic encephalopathy (EE) is a severe neurological disorder characterized by treatment-resistant seizures and poor neurodevelopmental outcomes. EE is associated with mutant genes, including those that encode for γ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor subunits. We identified a novel de novo GABRA1 mutation in a patient with EE, characterized its impact on GABAA receptor function, and sought potential therapeutic options. Methods: We described the clinical and electrophysiological features of a patient with a novel de novo GABRA1 (R214C) mutation; performed functional studies; and determined the effect of diazepam and insulin on wild type and mutant GABAA receptors. Results: The patient is a 10-year-old girl with EE, treatment-resistant seizures, intellectual disability and autism. Her GABRA1 (R214C) mutation dramatically decreased whole-cell GABA-evoked currents by reducing GABAA surface receptors, decreasing single channel open time, and altering channel kinetic properties. The combination of diazepam and insulin partially repaired these effects by enhancing channel activity and increasing the number of surface receptors, respectively. Conclusions: Diazepam and insulin partially mitigated a de novo GABRA1 (R214C) mutation’s effects on GABAA receptor number and function. Given the risks of insulin use, pharmacological agents with similar mechanisms of action but fewer side effects, such as IGF-1, should be studied and considered for clinical application.
Little is known about the combined use of benzodiazepines and antidepressants in older psychiatric patients. This study examined the prescription pattern of concurrent benzodiazepines in older adults treated with antidepressants in Asia, and explored its demographic and clinical correlates.
Methods:
The data of 955 older adults with any type of psychiatric disorders were extracted from the database of the Research on Asian Psychotropic Prescription Patterns for Antidepressants (REAP-AD) project. Demographic and clinical characteristics were recorded using a standardized protocol and data collection procedure. Both univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed.
Results:
The proportion of benzodiazepine and antidepressant combination in this cohort was 44.3%. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that higher doses of antidepressants, younger age (<65 years), inpatients, public hospital, major comorbid medical conditions, antidepressant types, and country/territory were significantly associated with more frequent co-prescription of benzodiazepines and antidepressants.
Conclusions:
Nearly, half of the older adults treated with antidepressants in Asia are prescribed concurrent benzodiazepines. Given the potentially adverse effects of benzodiazepines, the rationale of benzodiazepines and antidepressants co-prescription needs to be revisited.
The treatment gap between the number of people with mental disorders and the number treated represents a major public health challenge. We examine this gap by socio-economic status (SES; indicated by family income and respondent education) and service sector in a cross-national analysis of community epidemiological survey data.
Methods
Data come from 16 753 respondents with 12-month DSM-IV disorders from community surveys in 25 countries in the WHO World Mental Health Survey Initiative. DSM-IV anxiety, mood, or substance disorders and treatment of these disorders were assessed with the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI).
Results
Only 13.7% of 12-month DSM-IV/CIDI cases in lower-middle-income countries, 22.0% in upper-middle-income countries, and 36.8% in high-income countries received treatment. Highest-SES respondents were somewhat more likely to receive treatment, but this was true mostly for specialty mental health treatment, where the association was positive with education (highest treatment among respondents with the highest education and a weak association of education with treatment among other respondents) but non-monotonic with income (somewhat lower treatment rates among middle-income respondents and equivalent among those with high and low incomes).
Conclusions
The modest, but nonetheless stronger, an association of education than income with treatment raises questions about a financial barriers interpretation of the inverse association of SES with treatment, although future within-country analyses that consider contextual factors might document other important specifications. While beyond the scope of this report, such an expanded analysis could have important implications for designing interventions aimed at increasing mental disorder treatment among socio-economically disadvantaged people.
To engage in the community and the workplace requires physical, mental, and social health and wellbeing. Health promotion is a crucial rehabilitation counselling function for the health and wellbeing of people living with chronic illness and disability (CID). This exploratory review seeks to examine theories and models of motivation applicable to health promotion interventions in rehabilitation counselling practice. Although no single theory can address all the potential variables affecting people with CID's health behaviours, Bandura's (1977) concept of self-efficacy and outcome expectancy appear to be the most common factors in the health promotion models we surveyed. Among theories of motivation, only self-determination theory specifically includes a motivation variable, autonomy (internal and external motivation). We developed a diagram to depict a model, including all the theories and models covered in this exploratory review and identify commonalities among their constructs. This diagram can be used by rehabilitation counsellors to apply theories and models of motivation in case conceptualisation, formulating clinical hypotheses, developing treatment plans, and selecting and implementing evidence-based health promotion interventions for their clients.
Based upon the Shliomis ferromagnetic fluid model and the Stokes microcontinuum theory incorporating with the Christensen stochastic model, a modified Reynolds equation of centrosymmetric squeeze films has been derived in this paper. The Reynolds equation includes the combined effects of non-Newtonian rheology, magnetic fluids with applied magnetic fields, rotational inertia forces, and surface roughness. To guide the use of the derived equation, the squeeze film of rotational rough-surface circular disks lubricated with non-Newtonian magnetic fluids is illustrated. According to the results obtained, the effects of rotation inertia decrease the load capacity and the squeeze film time of smooth circular disks. By the use of non-Newtonian magnetic fluids with applied magnetic fields, the rotational circular disks predict better squeeze film performances. When the influences of circumferential roughness patterns are considered, the non-Newtonian magnetic-fluid lubricated rotational rough disks with applied magnetic fields provide further higher values of the load capacity and the squeeze film time as compared to those of the smooth case.