In mass casualty scenarios, patients with apparent hemodynamic and respiratory stability might have occult life-threatening injuries. These patients could benefit from more accurate triage methods. This study assessed the impact of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) on the accuracy of secondary triage conducted at an advanced medical post (AMP) to enhance the detection of patients who, despite their apparent clinically stable condition, could benefit from immediate life-saving interventions or priority earlier transport to definitive care.

A mass casualty simulated event consisting of a bomb blast in a remote area was conducted with 10 simulated casualties classified as YELLOW at the primary triage scene; patients were evaluated by 4 physicians at an AMP. Three patients had, respectively, hemoperitoneum, pneumothorax, and hemothorax. Two of the four physicians were provided the use of POCUS.

All 4 physicians were able to suspect hemoperitoneum, but only physicians utilizing POCUS detected pneumothorax and hemothorax.

This study suggests that POCUS-enhanced secondary MCI triage at an AMP may represent an effective methodology to accurately detect nonapparent injuries that require time-dependent priority transport or life-saving interventions. Further studies with larger samples conducted in varied MCI scenarios are warranted.

Self-perceived health (SPH) is an epidemiologically used variable, recognized as a subjective yet predictive indicator of mortality (Bopp et al. Plos One 2012; 7:e30795) SPH, among other subjective indicators, such as quality of life, contributes to understanding an individual’s overall experience and well-being. While health information, including medical diagnoses given by physicians, forms a substantial part of an individual’s subjective health (Falconer & Quesnel-Vallée, 2017; 190 227-236) the World Health Organization (WHO, 2014) defines health not only by the absence of somatic diseases but also encompasses components of social and mental well-being.

This study aims to explore factors associated with a poorer level of self-perceived health in inpatients due to non-psychiatric conditions with a focus on mental health and substance use-related factors.

We recruited 800 patients during their hospital stay for various pathologies in cardiology, pneumology, internal medicine, and gastroenterology units. Self-reported sociodemographic variables and well-being-related variables, such as SPH, were collected during admission. The MINI Neuropsychiatric Interview was administered to screen for psychiatric conditions, the ASSIST scale assessed the risk related to the use of various substances. Data on the frequency and quantity of substance use, in the three months prior to admission, were also recorded by timeline follow-back. Information on the severity of somatic comorbidity was gathered using the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Non-parametric tests compared SPH in different groups, and variables showing significant differences were included in a multivariate linear regression analysis. This study obtained approval from the ethics committee.

Significant and clinically relevant differences were found in the SPH of patients with anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, and bipolar disorders. These patients reported lower SPH than those without these comorbidities. Patients scoring medium or high risk on the ASSIST scale for tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis also demonstrated lower SPH compared to those with low-risk scores. In the multivariate analysis, accounting for confounding factors, including comorbidity severity, patients with depressive disorders maintained statistically significant lower levels of SPH (ß = -13.391, p < 0.001), as did those with bipolar disorders (ß = -6.096, p = 0.019).

Patients with anxiety, depressive, or bipolar disorders, as well as those with higher-risk use of tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis, exhibited lower SPH. After adjusting for other relevant factors, such as diagnosed somatic pathology, patients with affective disorders continued to score lower in SPH levels. Proper attention and management of psychiatric comorbidities and substance use are crucial in medical hospital settings.

M. Pons-Cabrera Employee of: This work has been funded by Contractes Clínic de Recerca “Emili Letang - Josep Font” 2021 granted by Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, E. Caballería-Lamora: None Declared, L. Navarro-Cortés: None Declared, M. Balcells-Oliveró: None Declared, L. Pintor-Pérez: None Declared, H. López-Pelayo: None Declared

Significant and measurable cognitive symptoms are present at the onset of the disorder and these remain stable in the subsequent period between 2 and 5 years. Their deterioration increases with the course of the disease. Attention, concentration, psychomotor speed and resolution of conceptual tasks are usually affected and are more significant in the presence of positive symptoms.

Sometimes, the typical positive or negative symptoms of the disease do not adequately reflect the severity of cognitive impairment. Measuring this deterioration can be very relevant when evaluating the severity and the prognosis of the disorder.

31-year-old male with a previous diagnosis of schizophrenia of 4 years of evolution. He gets a maintained treatment with amisulpiride 400mg with an apparent good response. A single hospitalization at the onset of the disease. An assassination attempt on his mother is done by suffocation with a pillow and observing a significant cognitive impairment despite an apparent control of the symptoms of schizophrenia.

An exhaustive neuropsychological evaluation is carried out, observing a very important cognitive deterioration that had not been previously detected and allowing a pharmacological adjustment of the underlying disease with global improvement of the patient.

It is very important to evaluate the patient as a whole without forgetting the frequent cognitive damage that these patients can have. An intense neuropsychological study can be very useful to evaluate the prognosis and adequate treatment of the patient in order to reduce serious risks.

None Declared

Autobiographical memory is known to be disturbed in schizophrenia. In addition, a leading theory of auditory hallucinations (AVH) is that they are intrusive – typically negative – autobiographical memories that are misinterpreted as perceptions.

The aim of this study was to examine the brain functional correlates of recall of negatively emotionally valanced autobiographical memories in patients with schizophrenia, with a longer term aim of comparing patients with and without AVH.

11 patients meeting DSM-5 criteria for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and 10 age, sex and estimated premorbid IQ-matched healthy controls have so far taken part.

Participants underwent functional MRI in a 3T scanner while performing a task requiring them to recall autobiographical memories in response to individually tailored pairs of cue words. The cue words were based on autobiographical memories previously elicited in an interview with each patient and were designed to evoke the same memory. The cue words were presented in 10 20-second blocks interspersed with blocks where the subjects viewed cue words that did not evoke autobiographical memories. Brain activations were examined in three contrasts of interest: memory evoking words vs baseline, neutral words vs baseline and memory evoking vs neutral words.

Pre-processing and analysis were carried out with the FEAT module included in the FSL software. Statistical analysis was performed by means of a General Linear Model (GLM) approach.

In the memory evoking vs baseline contrast the patients showed hypoactivation in the medial frontal cortex compared to the healthy controls (Figure 1). There were no differences in activation between the patients and the controls comparing the memory evoking and neutral cues.

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The finding of hypoactivation in the medial frontal cortex compared to low level baseline in patients with schizophrenia suggests dysfunction in the default mode network, which is known to activate during recall of autobiographical memories.

These preliminary results suggest that recall of negative autobiographical memories in patients with schizophrenia is associated with reduced activity in the default mode network. A planned larger sample of patients and controls will be used to examine activations in patients with and without AVH.

None Declared

Stigma describes prejudicial attitudes, negative stereotypes, and discrimination targeting a subgroup. Various forms of stigma have been identified in the literature, including self-stigma. Self-stigma or internalized stigma occurs when stigmatized individuals become aware of the negative stereotypes and apply these to themselves. Self-stigma may be a barrier to career development and employment in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). However, there are few data available on the presence of self-stigma among young adults with ASD in Chile to inform local interventions and policies.

To analyze self-stigma and its relation with career development and employment in young adults with ASD in Chile.

A mixed-method observational study was conducted to analyze self-stigma and its association with career development and employment among young adults with ASD in two regions of Chile. For the quantitative analysis, self-stigma was assessed using the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) scale, and employment information was collected. For the qualitative analysis, in-depth interviews were conducted. Data from the interviews were digitalized and transcribed, and the analysis was conducted using ATLAs.ti following the principles of Glaser and Strauss’s Grounded Theory. All participants provided written informed consent, and the study was approved by the local Institutional Review Board.

Overall, 356 participants were included in the quantitative analysis (mean age: 27.8 [SD 6.2] years, 44.7% women, 14.8% with regular employment). The mean ISMI for the total sample was 2.34 (SD = 0.62). By triangulating this information with the qualitative analysis (n=27), it was observed that young adults with ASD frequently experience self-stigma attitudes. Through the in-depth interviews, we identified barriers and facilitators for the development of self-stigma. Also, we identified that negative self-perceptions among young adults with ASD may be a barrier to seeking career development opportunities and employment in this population.

The current study shows self-stigma is present in young adults with ASD in Chile, and this may impact negatively their career development and employment.

None Declared

Psychotic patients often require pharmacological treatment, which may prove ineffective, leading to treatment-resistant psychosis necessitating the use of clozapine. However, the emergence of side effects can result in discontinuation, potentially triggering a relapse of psychotic symptoms. One significant side effect is antipsychotic-induced weight gain which, over time, can lead to adverse metabolic events. Recent translational research is evaluating the impact of prenatal factors on the metabolic outcomes of psychotic patients, using a surrogate marker of the intrauterine milieu such as birth weight (BW).

We aim to evaluate the changes in leptin, adiponectin, and insulin levels in patients with treatment-resistant psychosis who initiate clozapine treatment due to persistent psychotic symptoms.

Subjects older than 18 years with a diagnostic of a major mental disorder and initiating clozapine were enrolled in this 18-months longitudinal study. Neurohormones levels, including leptin, adiponeptin, and insulin were measured at baseline, 8 and 18 months during follow-up. Statistical analysis were conducted by using a fixed-effects model.

A total of 23 subjects initiating clozapine were evaluated during the initial mandatory 18-week period. Neurohormones, specifically leptin and adiponectin, were measured at three time points: baseline, 8 weeks, and 18 weeks. The changes in leptin levels were significantly associated with birth BW with sex differences, being inversely correlated only in females. Adiponectin was significantly associated with BW, being inversely correlated in males. Conversely, there was no observed association between insulin levels and BW.

Our findings highlight the significance of prenatal factors in influencing the subsequent evolution of neurohormones in individuals initiating clozapine treatment. This suggests that subjects with lower BW tend to exhibit elevated neurohormone values, emphasizing the role of prenatal events in this context.

None Declared

Routine patient care data are increasingly used for biomedical research, but such “secondary use” data have known limitations, including their quality. When leveraging routine care data for observational research, developing audit protocols that can maximize informational return and minimize costs is paramount.

For more than a decade, the Latin America and East Africa regions of the International epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) consortium have been auditing the observational data drawn from participating human immunodeficiency virus clinics. Since our earliest audits, where external auditors used paper forms to record audit findings from paper medical records, we have streamlined our protocols to obtain more efficient and informative audits that keep up with advancing technology while reducing travel obligations and associated costs.

We present five key lessons learned from conducting data audits of secondary-use data from resource-limited settings for more than 10 years and share eight recommendations for other consortia looking to implement data quality initiatives.

After completing multiple audit cycles in both the Latin America and East Africa regions of the IeDEA consortium, we have established a rich reference for data quality in our cohorts, as well as large, audited analytical datasets that can be used to answer important clinical questions with confidence. By sharing our audit processes and how they have been adapted over time, we hope that others can develop protocols informed by our lessons learned from more than a decade of experience in these large, diverse cohorts.

The main role of prolactin is associated mainly with lactogenesis but additionally it participates in several endocrinological and metabolic processes. The prolactin level may be increased with some antipsychotics such as risperidone, paliperidone, and amisulpride increasing the risk of Bone Mineral Mass (BMM) decrease leading to osteopenia and osteoporosis.

To determine the loss of BMM associated with antipsychotic-related iatrogenic hyperprolactinemia (iHPRL) in a sample of patients suffering of chronic psychotic mental disorder and treated with antipsychotics at least for one year.

A cross-sectional observational and epidemiological study in a sample of 140 patients (males 56.9%; females 43.1%; mean age 48 years), receiving antipsychotics was carried out. After giving informed consent, personal data, prolactin level, antipsychotic use and lifestyle were collected. An evaluation of BMM with a central DEXA Scan was performed. The bone mineral density considering the subject´s age and the peak bone mass in the neck of the femur, hip and in the lumbar vertebrae (L1-L4) was obtained. Inclusion criteria: presence of psychotic disorder, age between 18-65 years and treatment with an antipsychotic at least for one year. Statistical analysis was carried out using the statistical software SPSS version 26.0. A significance level α=0.05 was considered throughout the study.

45 out of 140 patients (32,13%) had some BMM lost (osteopenia). The prevalence of osteoporosis was 5.71% (n=8). The median prolactin level in the sample was 46.1 ng/dL ± 33.1. Patients with hyperprolactinaemia showed a higher frequency of osteopenia/osteoporosis (50% with mild iHPRL and 48% with moderate/severe iHPRL) than those with normal prolactin levels (25.7%). A strong and significant relationship between the presence of osteoporosis and the treatment with risperidone was found (p=0.007).

Osteopenia and osteoporosis are associated with hyperprolactinemic antipsychotic. Risperidone was related with a significant increased osteoporosis risk. The rutinary and systematic control of the BMM is crucial in these patients to avoid progressive bone demineralization. Managing strategies should be individualized to avoid bone demineralization and to preserve physical health.

None Declared

Frequent attenders to emergency services are challenging and costly. We report the case of a woman in her mid-twenties who stands out for a total of 1447 emergency visits.

Our primary objective was to describe the emergency visits of our patient. Secondary objectives were to assess her use of other healthcare services and to calculate her health expenditure.

This is a clinical case report. We reviewed the patient’s electronic medical records for sociodemographic and clinical data. We obtained detailed information of psychiatric ED visits (length, most frequent times and days) regarding the second most-visited hospital. We assessed the efficacy of hospitalizations in reducing ED visits with a paired samples t Test, comparing the number of visits 30 days pre- and post-hospitalization. We estimated the health expenditure using the regional public health system prices, including three direct costs: emergency visits, hospitalizations and ambulance transportation. We obtained written informed consent from the patient’s legal guardian.

A 26-year-old woman from Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain), diagnosed with mild intellectual disability, made 1447 emergency visits between 2009 and 2021 (figure 1). 946 visits (65%) took place in psychiatric emergency departments (EDs), whilst 353 (24%) in non-psychiatric EDs and 148 (10%) in urgent primary care. She attended 24 hospitals (ranking number one the closest to the patient’s home, with 387 visits) and seven primary care centers, distributed across 17 cities in Catalonia. Most visits were self-referred, being the main presenting problems anxiety and instrumental suicidal behaviour. Saturday was her favorite day for hospital visits (24,1%), while she seeked care on Tuesdays much less often (4.5%). She made 73.5% of consultations between 1pm and 6pm, with a median length per visit of 2.8 hours (range 0.33-20.9 hours). Regarding other therapeutic approaches, she attended day hospitals, psychiatric rehabilitation programs and family therapy, among others (figure 2), for which she showed low adherence and scarce benefit. She had ten acute hospitalizations, interventions that did not reduce ED visits (t=-0.9835, p=0.36). Health expenditure reached 410.035€.

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Image 2:

The most common definition of frequent attendance is a patient who has five or more visits per year. Many times, but not always, repeat visits are also inappropriate. The case we report is a grotesque example of both frequent and inappropriate attendance, which has been resistant to all kinds of interventions and has quality-of-care, financial and ethical implications. As of today, it is still a pending case. Maybe it is worth considering residential treatment?

None Declared

Previous studies suggest that adults with mental disorders (MD) or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are more likely to be unemployed than those without MD. However, it is unclear whether working adults with MD or ASD perceive the same effort-reward balance as their counterparts without MD or ASD.

To analyze labor conditions and to identify factors associated with effort-reward imbalance among young adults with ASD, MD and those from the general population (GP).

A qualitative and quantitative study design is being conducted to analyze the rates of employment among young adults with ASD, and to identify factors associated with employment rates (Fondecyt ID11201028.). As part of this study, we conducted a quantitative analysis in young adults 16 to 30 years of age in two regions of Chile between August and October, 2022. Young adults with MD and ASD were compared with adults of similar age recruited from the GP. We applied a questionnaire to collect data on participant’s sociodemographic information, autonomy level and employment status. We applied the short Spanish version of the effort–reward imbalance (ERI) and overcommitment (OC) questionnaire, which has been widely used in Latin American countries.

Chi-square test was used and the Kruskal Wallis H Test was applied to compare among groups. The statistical significance was set at P<0.05.

Overall, 422 participants were included in the analysis (mean age 22±3.2, 64.2% women, 65.2% students, and 4.4% unemployed). Of the total respondents, 22% of young adults from GP, 17.8% with MD, and 4.8% with ASD were working at the moment of the survey. Regarding autonomy level, a higher proportion of participants with ASD needed support (36.4%), compared with 9.7% and 0.8% of young adults with MD and GP, respectively. Of the population who reported working (n=125), about 56.0% have a permanent job, and 44% a seasonal or occasional job. The median value for the effort–reward ratio was 0.96 (range 0.4–1.8), with no significant differences between the groups. Of those participants working, 44.3% showed an ERI ratio higher than 1, which was higher in participants with ASD (60%). ERI-esteem was significantly different (P=0.01) among ASD (7.0; range 5-8), MD (6.0; range 2-8) and PG (6.0; range 2-8). In the OC questionnaire, young adults with ASD were more likely to think about work (P=0.01) and having trouble sleeping at night due to work issues (P=0.03) than GP and MD groups.

The ASD group showed higher overcommitment and a considerable proportion of subjects at risk of effort-reward imbalance at work, were more likely to think about work at home, and had trouble sleeping thinking about work. Our preliminary results highlight the importance of considering the working conditions of young adults diagnosed with ASD and the need to provide them with enough support to promote labor inclusion.

None Declared

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a serious and chronic mental disease of mood. Lithium is used for treatment and studies have demonstrated that it is the most efficient drug, reducing suicide risk in a high percentage of patients. However, this drug has well known side effects, such as kidney damage. Lithium could cause chronic kidney disease, specially with the presence of other risk factors.

Observational and retrospective study of creatinine levels and glomerular filtration rates observed in blood analysis (follow-up period of 11 years). Sample size of 263 patients diagnosed of BD I and BD II in treatment with lithium. We used socio-demographic (age, sex) and clinic variables (diabetes mellitus, hypertension, use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and/or diuretics) to generate bivariate and multivariate analysis.

Our main objective is to analyze the deterioration of kidney function and the development of chronic kidney disease that chronic treatment with lithium can induce in patients with BD. Our secondary objective is to determine variables which could promote the development of chronic kidney disease, and to assess if these variables could be considered as risk factors during the treatment with lithium.

11,3 % of patients in our study developed chronic kidney disease during monitoring. The deterioration of GFR in patients in treatment with lithium was significantly associated with female sex and NSAIDs consumption. A trend towards statistical significance was found regarding the use of diuretics (p=0,060). No statistical significance was found between diabetes mellitus, hypertension or type of BD and the deterioration of kidney function in our sample. An inverse association was found between the GFR decline and the age but no statistical significance was demonstrated.

We conclude that female sex and use of NSAIDs are predicting factors of GFR decline in patients with BD in chronic treatment with lithium. We must take into account these drugs or even avoid concomitant treatment (lithium and NSAIDs) in order to prevent chronic kidney disease. In addition to it, we should recommend careful use of diuretics during treatment with lithium because of risk of dehydration. Diabetes mellitus and hypertension have universally been associated to increase risk of development of chronic kidney disease. However, we have not found statistical significance in our study. Therefore, research should be done in order to determine specific risk factors in this group of patients and, consequently, optimize their treatment.

None Declared

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued new warnings about the possible effects of the repeated or prolonged use of general anaesthesia and sedatives on the brain development of children under 4 years old during surgeries or paediatric procedures.

To evaluate the possible long-term neurotoxic impact the exposure to general anaesthesia has on the paediatric population from 0 to 4 years, which is the period during which the brain develops.

Initially, a search for observational studies that described the risk of neurotoxicity and alterations in the long-term cognitive development of children exposed to general anaesthesia before 4 years of age, was performed in PubMed between 2016 and 2020.

Finally, 5 retrospective cohort studies comparing children exposed and not exposed to general anaesthesia were included in this study. None of these showed significant differences in their main study variables. However, three of this studies found significant differences in some of the secondary variables such as speed of processing, motor skills, internalization of behaviour and learning, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In vitro and in vivo studies of anesthetics have shown serious neurotoxic effects in the developing brain. However, the clinical relevance of these findings for children undergoing anesthesia remains unclear.

Most of these studies suggest a strong relationship between exposure to anesthesia in children aged 0 to 4 years, this being greater after multiple exposures. Despite these results, many of these articles conclude that further research is needed on this topic.

None Declared

Dysthymia is a chronic mood disorder with similar but less severe features than major depressive disorder. Compared to the latter, major depressive episodes of dysthymic disorder are more spaced, less intense, and more persistent.

The most effective treatment is usually the combination of serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant drugs with behavioral, cognitive, interpersonal and group psychotherapies.

The reality is that there are few clearly effective treatments to treat this disorder which makes the symptoms even more chronic which has a negative impact on the functionality of patients with clear influence at a personal and work level. Without treatment, dysthymia sometimes progresses to major depression, called “double depression” what can be a most serious problem.

Finding new lines of treatment or management in these patients seems to be essential because of the inability that can occur in some of them and the high demand they can produce.

A 45-year-old woman diagnosed of dysthymia has been followed for more than 10 years. Multiple visits to the emergency room and several outpatient mental health services. absenteeism and great repercussion in the family environment. Many side effects to antidepressants and a benzodiazepine overuse tendency. She has been receiving psychotherapeutic treatment for many years with little effectiveness. Worsening of the symptoms with the appearance of obsessiveness around what is happening to her

Several alternative treatments are tested for the management of anxious depressive and obsessive symptoms being Aripiprazole 10mg the only effective one with almost complete recovery of symptoms. The patient returns to work and significantly improves her family situation.

Dysthyma is a disorder with difficult pharmacological and psychological management. Trying different little-used treatments can open up a different view about the disorder.

The use of serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant drugs is not always effective and the risk posed by using benzodiazepines for long time forces us to look for other treatments for the control of the main symptoms The use of aripiprazole at moderate doses may be a good new way to control symptoms.

None Declared

The covid pandemic has become a unique phenomenon in world history with great impact on mental health.

A great growth of anxious depressive pathology in relation to the Covid situation has appeared with the need to increase the psychiatric approach in the general population

A 58-year-old woman with no personal medical story of interest is referred to the high-resolution Covid program due to severe depressive symptoms: intense apathy, abulia, anhedonia, weight loss, insomnia and important social distancing after the beginning of the confinement due to the Covid Pandemic. 4 psychotherapy sessions are performed, with a maximum duration of 45 minutes. It is necessary to add antidepressant medication with sertraline up to 100mg to improve psychotherapeutic work.

A complete recovery of symptoms is achieved even their severity with normalization of daily life.

Small psychotherapeutic interventions have been shown, even with critically ill patients, to be very effective in helping patients regain their baseline status.

No significant relationships.

Psychiatric illnesses are related with a reduced life expectancy and an increase of mortality rates (around 60%) mainly associated with cardiovascular diseases [1]. The high prevalence of obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus and tobacco use among these patients undoubtelly predispose to the impairment in physical health and mortaility increase. Regular physical activity in the general population is associated with a decrease in cardiovascular risk but litle is know about iss influence in some chronic and severe mental disorders like schizophrenia [2].

To quantify the physical activity performed by a sample of subjects with psychosis, borth males and female, compared to a control group.

A sample composed of 141 patients with schizoprenia was compared to 103 healthy subjects as a control group. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ) scale was applied to all participants. The time (minutes) of physical activity performed in a week (METs) was collected by each participant [3].

The differences in the total physical activity Mets for the patients with schizophrenia were highly significant (p = 0.001), showing a lower degree of physical activity compared to the control group. A higher and significant percentage of sedentary lifestyle among the psychiatric group (64.5%), compared to 35.5% in the control group was found.

The group of pateints with Schizophrenia showed a significant higher sedentary lifestile including less physical activity. This finding could be highly related with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and deterioration of the physical health.

No significant relationships.