Health-related quality of life and mental health problems after a disaster: Are chronically ill survivors more vulnerable to health problems?

Studies have shown that the chronically ill are at higher risk for reduced health-related quality of life (HRQL) and for mental health problems. A combination with traumatic events might increase this risk. This longitudinal study among 1216 survivors of a disaster examines whether chronically ill survivors had a different course of HRQL and mental health problems compared to survivors without chronic diseases. HRQL and mental health problems were measured 3 weeks, 18 months and 4 years post-disaster. Data on pre-disaster chronic diseases was obtained from the electronic medical records of general practitioners. Random coefficient analyses showed significant interaction effects for social functioning, bodily pain and emotional role limitations at T2 only. Chronically ill survivors did not consistently have a different course of general health, physical role limitations, and mental health problems. In conclusion, chronic diseases were not an important risk factor for impaired HRQL and mental health problems among survivors

Outpatient antibiotic use in Dutch infants after 10-valent pneumococcal vaccine introduction: a time-series analysis.

This population-based cohort study assesses the impact of switching from a 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) to a 10-valent PCV on outpatient antibiotic use in Dutch infants, and whether geographical vaccination coverage modifies this association

Diabetes-related distress and depressive symptoms are not merely negative over a 3-year period in Malaysian adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving regular primary diabetes care

For people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) the daily maintenance of physical and psychological health is challenging. However, the interrelatedness of these two health domains, and of diabetes-related distress (DRD) and depressive symptoms, in the Asian population is still poorly understood. DRD and depressive symptoms have important but distinct influences on diabetes self-care and disease control. Furthermore, the question of whether changes in DRD or depressive symptoms follow a more or less natural course or depend on disease and therapy-related factors is yet to be answered. The aim of this study was to identify the factors influencing changes in DRD or depressive symptoms, at a 3-year follow-up point, in Malaysian adults with T2DM who received regular primary diabetes care. Baseline data included age, sex, ethnicity, marital status, educational level, employment status, health-related quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF), insulin use, diabetes-related complications and HbA1c. DRD was assessed both at baseline and after 3 years using a 17-item Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS-17), while depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Linear mixed models were used to examine the relationship between baseline variables and change scores in DDS-17 and PHQ-9. Almost half (336) of 700 participants completed both measurements. At follow-up, their mean (SD) age and diabetes duration were 60.6 (10.1) years and 9.8 (5.9) years, respectively, and 54.8% were women. More symptoms of depression at baseline was the only significant and independent predictor of improved DRD at 3 years (adjusted β = −0.06, p = 0.002). Similarly, worse DRD at baseline was the only significant and independent predictor of fewer depressive symptoms 3 years later (adjusted β = −0.98, p = 0.005). Thus, more “negative feelings” at baseline could be a manifestation of initial coping behaviors or a facilitator of a better psychological coaching by physicians or nurses that might be beneficial in the long term. We therefore conclude that initial negative feelings should not be seen as a necessarily adverse factor in diabetes care

Are physical symptoms among survivors of a disaster presented to the general practitioner? A comparison between self-reports and GP data

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Most studies examining medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) have been performed in primary or secondary care and have examined symptoms for which patients sought medical attention. Disasters are often described as precipitating factors for MUS. However, health consequences of disasters are typically measured by means of questionnaires, and it is not known whether these self-reported physical symptoms are presented to the GP. It is also not known if the self-reported symptoms are related to a medical disorder or if they remain medically unexplained. In the present study, three research questions were addressed. Firstly, were self-reported symptoms among survivors presented to the GP? Secondly, were the symptoms presented to the GP associated with a high level of functional impairment and distress? Thirdly, what was the GP's clinical judgment of the presented symptoms, i.e. were the symptoms related to a medical diagnosis or could they be labeled MUS?</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Survivors of a man-made disaster (N = 887) completed a questionnaire 3 weeks (T1) and 18 months (T2) post-disaster. This longitudinal health survey was combined with an ongoing surveillance program of health problems registered by GPs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The majority of self-reported symptoms was not presented to the GP and survivors were most likely to present persistent symptoms to the GP. For example, survivors with stomachache at both T1 and T2 were more likely to report stomachache to their GP (28%) than survivors with stomachache at only T1 (6%) or only T2 (13%). Presentation of individual symptoms to the GP was not consistently associated with functional impairment and distress. 56 – 91% of symptoms were labeled as MUS after clinical examination.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results indicate that the majority of self-reported symptoms among survivors of a disaster are not presented to the GP and that the decision to consult with a GP for an individual symptom is not dependent on the level of impairment and distress. Also, self-reported physical symptoms such as headache, back pain and shortness of breath are likely to remain medically unexplained after the clinical judgment of a GP.</p

Assessment of digit preference in self-reported year at menopause: choice of an appropriate reference distribution

Estimated associations between self-reported age at menopause and health may be attenuated if self-report is inaccurate. In a cross-sectional study, it is not possible to assess validity or reproducibility. Instead, one can examine digit preference, e.g., overreporting of numbers ending in zero or five. Typically, analyses use equal proportions-10% probability for each digit-as the reference distribution. Depending on the age distribution of the sample and on the underlying distribution of age at the event, however, an alternative reference distribution may be more appropriate. As an illustration, the authors examined digit preference in the self-reported calendar year at the final menstrual period in cross-sectional data from 2,151 naturally postmenopausal women in the Study of Women\u27s Health Across the Nation (1995-1997), a multisite, multiethnic study of women aged 40-55 years. With chi-square tests, the distribution of terminal digit for self-reported year at the final menstrual period was compared with several reference distributions. The observed distribution was much closer to a reference distribution based on previously published data than it was to equal proportions. Future assessments of digit preference in cross-sectional studies should consider alternatives to equal proportions, particularly for samples with small age ranges and events with a restricted underlying age distribution

Diabetes-related distress and depressive symptoms are not merely negative over a 3-year period in Malaysian adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving regular primary diabetes care

For people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) the daily maintenance of physical and psychological health is challenging. However, the interrelatedness of these two health domains, and of diabetes-related distress (DRD) and depressive symptoms, in the Asian population is still poorly understood. DRD and depressive symptoms have important but distinct influences on diabetes self-care and disease control. Furthermore, the question of whether changes in DRD or depressive symptoms follow a more or less natural course or depend on disease and therapy-related factors is yet to be answered. The aim of this study was to identify the factors influencing changes in DRD or depressive symptoms, at a 3-year follow-up point, in Malaysian adults with T2DM who received regular primary diabetes care. Baseline data included age, sex, ethnicity, marital status, educational level, employment status, health-related quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF), insulin use, diabetes-related complications and HbA1c. DRD was assessed both at baseline and after 3 years using a 17-item Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS-17), while depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Linear mixed models were used to examine the relationship between baseline variables and change scores in DDS-17 and PHQ-9. Almost half (336) of 700 participants completed both measurements. At follow-up, their mean (SD) age and diabetes duration were 60.6 (10.1) years and 9.8 (5.9) years, respectively, and 54.8% were women. More symptoms of depression at baseline was the only significant and independent predictor of improved DRD at 3 years (adjusted ß = -0.06, p = 0.002). Similarly, worse DRD at baseline was the only significant and independent predictor of fewer depressive symptoms 3 years later (adjusted ß = -0.98, p = 0.005). Thus, more "negative feelings" at baseline could be a manifestation of initial coping behaviors or a facilitator of a better psychological coaching by physicians or nurses that might be beneficial in the long term. We therefore conclude that initial negative feelings should not be seen as a necessarily adverse factor in diabetes care

Symptom intensity of hospice patients : A longitudinal analysis of concordance between patients' and nurses' outcomes

Nearing death, hospice patients are increasingly unable or unwilling to self-report their symptom intensity and rely on nurses' assessments. We hypothesized that concordance between patients' and nurses' assessments of symptom intensity improves over time. METHOD: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted from January 2012 to June 2015 using dyads of patients' and nurses' reported outcome measures, collected in daily hospice practice in the first three weeks after admission. Main outcomes were symptom intensity and well-being, measured using the Utrecht Symptom Diary (USD) and USD-Professional (USD-P). Absolute concordance was the proportion of dyads with no difference in scores between USD and USD-P per week after admission. For agreement beyond chance, the squared weighted Kappa for symptom intensity, and the one-way agreement intraclass correlation coefficient for well-being were used. RESULTS: The most prevalent symptoms, fatigue, dry mouth and anorexia, also had the highest intensity scores assessed by patients and nurses. Symptom intensity was underestimated more frequently than overestimated by the nurses. The absolute concordance was fair to good (35% - 69%). Agreement beyond chance was low to fair (0.146 - 0.539) and the ICC for well-being was low (0.25 - 0.28). Absolute concordance and agreement beyond chance did not improve over time. CONCLUSION: Concordance between patients' and nurses' assessment of symptom prevalence is good and both patients and nurses reveal identical symptoms as most and least prevalent and intense. However, nurses tend to underestimate symptom intensity. Concordance between patients and nurses symptom intensity scores is poor and does not improve over time

Vitamin D intake, serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D and pulmonary function in paediatric patients with cystic fibrosis : A longitudinal approach

Pancreatic-insufficient children with cystic fibrosis (CF) receive age-group-specific vitamin D supplementation according to international CF nutritional guidelines. The potential advantageous immunomodulatory effect of serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D) on pulmonary function (PF) is yet to be established and is complicated by CF-related vitamin D malabsorption. We aimed to assess whether current recommendations are optimal for preventing deficiencies and whether higher serum 25(OH)D levels have long-term beneficial effects on PF. We examined the longitudinal relationship between vitamin D intake, serum 25(OH)D and PF in 190 CF children during a 4-year follow-up period. We found a significant relationship between total vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D (β = 0·02; 95 % CI 0·01, 0·03; P = 0·000). However, serum 25(OH)D decreased with increasing body weight (β = -0·79; 95 % CI -1·28, -0·29; P = 0·002). Furthermore, we observed a significant relationship between serum 25(OH)D and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (β = 0·056; 95 % CI 0·01, 0·102; P = 0·018) and forced vital capacity (β = 0·045; 95 % CI 0·008, 0·082; P = 0·017). In the present large study sample, vitamin D intake is associated with serum 25(OH)D levels, and adequate serum 25(OH)D levels may contribute to the preservation of PF in children with CF. Furthermore, to maintain adequate levels of serum 25(OH)D, vitamin D supplementation should increase with increasing body weight. Adjustments of the international CF nutritional guidelines, in which vitamin D supplementation increases with increasing weight, should be considered