Social cognition functions in persons with epilepsia

This review article aims to present and provide concise information on the social cognitive functions in people with epilepsy. Social cognition is one of the six major cognitive domains, according to DSM-V, and is crucial for interpersonal communication. Major subdomains of this domain are recognition of emotions and theory of mind (understanding of mental states (emotions, beliefs, intentions and desires) of other people). Deficits of social cognition in epilepsy have been described by various researchers and are thought to be independently related with worse quality of life of people with epilepsy. We introduce the main social cognitive functions – recognition of emotions and theory of mind, their development and commonly used cognitive tasks to evaluate them. Further we provide summarized information on the deficits in social cognition in epilepsy and discuss main demographic and clinical correlates. Last paragraphs are concerned with special features of social cognition in major types of adult epilepsy and possible future interventions

The adaptation and evaluation of psychometric properties of the Lithuanian versions of the Faux Pas Recognition and Strange Stories tests

Background. One of the main subdomains of social cognitive functions, Theory of Mind (ToM), involves the ability to understand other people’s thoughts, intentions, emotions, and predict their behaviour. ToM deficit is common in many neurological and mental disorders. So far, there have been no measures assessing ToM functions adapted to the Lithuanian-speaking population. Objective. To translate and perform a linguistic and cultural adaptation of two ToM tests – the Faux Pas Recognition test and Happé Strange Stories test – to the Lithuanian-speaking population and to evaluate their psychometric properties. Materials and methods. Both instruments were translated from English into Lithuanian and from Lithuanian into English. A total of 100 adult subjects were tested using Lithuanian test variants. The reliability and validity of the instruments were evaluated. Internal consistency was estimated by calculating the Cronbach α coefficient, the inter-rater reliability by the intraclass correlation coefficient, and the convergent construct validity by the Spearman correlation coefficient. Results. The Cronbach α coefficient for the faux pas stories of the Faux Pas Recognition test was 0.815, for the control stories 0.426, and for the Strange Stories test 0.708. The intraclass correlation coefficient of the faux pas stories of the Faux Pas Recognition test was 0.996, and that of the Strange Stories test was 0.911. There was a statistically significant weak positive correlation between the Strange Stories test and the faux pas stories ratings (r=0.355, p=0.045), but the control stories of the Faux Pas Recognition test did not statistically significantly correlate with the faux pas stories (r=0.033, p=0.745) and Happé Strange Stories test (r=0.109, p=0.282). The face and content validity of both instruments was good. Conclusions. The Faux Pas Recognition test and Happé Strange Stories test are adapted to the Lithuanian-speaking population. Both instruments can be useful in evaluating social cognitive functions

Mortality in inflammatory rheumatic diseases: Lithuanian national registry data and systematic review

Despite significant improvement in survival, rheumatic diseases (RD) are associated with premature mortality rates comparable to cardiovascular and neoplastic disorders. The aim of our study was to assess mortality, causes of death, and life expectancy in an inflammatory RD retrospective cohort and compare those with the general population as well as with the results of previously published studies in a systematic literature review. Patients with the first-time diagnosis of inflammatory RD during 2012-2019 were identified and cross-checked for their vital status and the date of death. Sex- and age-standardized mortality ratios (SMR) as well as life expectancy for patients with inflammatory RDs were calculated. The results of a systematic literature review were included in meta-standardized mortality ratio calculations. 11,636 patients with newly diagnosed RD were identified. During a total of 43,064.34 person-years of follow-up, 950 death cases occurred. The prevailing causes of death for the total cohort were cardiovascular diseases and neoplasms. The age- and sex-adjusted SMR for the total cohort was calculated to be 1.32 (1.23; 1.40). Patients with rheumatoid arthritis if diagnosed at age 18-19 tend to live for 1.63 years less than the general population, patients with spondyloarthritis for 2.7 years less, patients with connective tissue diseases for almost nine years less than the general population. The findings of our study support the hypothesis that patients with RD have a higher risk of mortality and lower life expectancy than the general population. Keywords: rheumatic diseases; mortality; standardized mortality ratio; life expectancy; systematic review

How Did the Two Years of the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect the Outcomes of the Patients with Inflammatory Rheumatic Diseases in Lithuania?

Background and objectives: the COVID-19 pandemic globally caused more than 18 million deaths over the period of 2020–2021. Although inflammatory rheumatic diseases (RD) are generally associated with premature mortality, it is not yet clear whether RD patients are at a greater risk for COVID-19-related mortality. The aim of our study was to evaluate mortality and causes of death in a retrospective inflammatory RD patient cohort during the COVID-19 pandemic years. Methods: We identified patients with a first-time diagnosis of inflammatory RD and followed them up during the pandemic years of 2020–2021. Death rates, and sex- and age-standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated for the prepandemic and pandemic periods. Results: We obtained data from 11,636 patients that had been newly diagnosed with inflammatory RD and followed up until the end of 2021 or their death. The mean duration of the follow-up was 5.5 years. In total, 1531 deaths occurred between 2013 and 2021. The prevailing causes of death in the prepandemic period were cardiovascular diseases, neoplasms, and diseases of the respiratory system. In the pandemic years, cardiovascular diseases and neoplasms remained the two most common causes of death, with COVID-19 in third place. The SMR of the total RD cohort was 0.83. This trend was observed in rheumatoid arthritis and spondyloarthropathy patients. The SMR in the group of connective-tissue diseases and vasculitis was higher at 0.93, but did not differ from that of the general population. The excess of deaths in the RD cohort during the pandemic period was negative (−27.2%), meaning that RD patients endured the pandemic period better than the general population did. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic did not influence the mortality of RD patients. Strict lockdown measures, social distancing, and early vaccination were the main factors that resulted in reduced mortality in this cohort during the pandemic years

Slaugytojo vaidmuo užtikrinant vaistų saugumą

Five aspects have the greatest impact on the safety of medicine. First and foremost, this is the ability to acknowledge one’s errors, to register them, to develop the prevention plan so that they should not occur again. For this purpose a safe and user-friendly system should be devised, which would enable the errors to be ‘depersonalised’. It is important to impart knowledge of the effect of medication to the nursing staff. Almost half the nursing staff feel a lack of such knowledge. After caution of administering medicine had decreased, due to fatigue, working overtime or night shifts, errors became more frequent, for example, medicines that are in similar packages are often mixed up. The environment of a hospital or any other health institution is of great significance to the quality of work of the nursing staff in ensuring the safety of administering medicines. According to the WHO (World Health Organisation), it is effective and good management of a hospital, proper distribution of work and qualitative communication that enables the nursing staff to avoid the largest part of medical and nursing errors.Didžiausią įtaką vaistų saugai daro penki aspektai. Visų pirma slaugos personalo gebėjimas pripažinti savo klaidas, jas registruoti, numatyti prevencijos planą, kad ateityje jos nepasikartotų. Tam turi būti sukurta saugi vaistų administravimo sistema, kuri leistų klaidas nuasmeninti. Svarbu suteikti slaugos personalui farmakologijos žinių apie vaistų poveikį, šių mokslo žinių stoką jaučia beveik pusė slaugytojų [1]. Sumažėjus vaistų administravimo atsargumui, pasitaiko ir žmogiškųjų klaidų. Dėl slaugos personalo nuovargio, viršvalandžių ar naktinio budėjimo kartais sumaišomi vaistai, kurie yra panašiose pakuotėse. Gydymo įstaigos aplinka yra svarbi kokybiškam slaugytojų darbui, užtikrinant vaistų skyrimo saugą. Didelę įtaką turi mikroklimatas – gerai sutariančios komandos darbus atlieka efektyviau. Slaugos personalas turėtų prisidėti ir prie medicininių sistemų kūrimo ir taip užtikrinti sklandų gydymo ir slaugos sistemos darbą [2]. Kad būtų išvengta klaidų, įvykstančių klinikinėje slaugoje, būtina visą gydymo procesą matyti tarpdiscipliniškai, skatinti didesnę komunikaciją tarp visų gydymo lygmenų atstovų. Informacinės technologijos galėtų padėti eliminuoti rašybos, skaitymo ar netikslaus dozavimo klaidas [2]. Eliminavus paminėtas rizikas sveikatos priežiūros įstaigose, slaugos personalas, dirbdamas savo darbą, daug geriau gebėtų administruoti vaistus ir užtikrinti vaistų skyrimo saugą. Pagal Pasaulio sveikatos organizaciją (PSO), būtent gera ligoninės vadyba, tolygus darbų pasiskirstymas ir kokybiška personalo komunikacija leidžia išvengti didžiausios dalies padaromų medicininių, slaugos klaidų. Straipsnyje aptariamos pagrindinės problemos, kylančios vaistų administravimo ir slaugymo procesuose, aptariamas slaugytojo vaidmuo vaistų skyrimo saugai