6 research outputs found
Predictors of Childhood Exposure to Parental Secondhand Smoke in the House and Family Car
Childhood exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a serious threat to public health and can be influenced by parental lifestyle habits and beliefs. Taking the above into account we aimed at locating predictors of parental induced exposure to SHS in the house and family car among 614 children who visited the emergency department of two large pediatric hospitals in Athens, Greece. The multivariate analysis revealed that the factors found to mediate household exposure to paternal SHS were the number of cigarettes smoked per day (O.R 1.13, p<0.001) while, having a non-smoking spouse had a protective effect (O.R 0.44, p=0.026). Maternally induced household SHS exposure was related to cigarette consumption. For both parents, child exposure to SHS in the family car was related to higher numbers of cigarettes smoked (p<0.001), and for fathers was also more often found in larger families. Additionally, lower educated fathers were more likely to have a spouse that exposes their children to SHS inside the family car (O.R 1.38 95%C.I: 1.04–1.84, p=0.026). Conclusively, efforts must be made to educate parents on the effects of home and household car exposure to SHS, where smoke free legislation may be difficult to apply
Post-Intensive Care Syndrome in Survivors from Critical Illness including COVID-19 Patients: A Narrative Review
Current achievements in medical science and technological advancements in intensive care medicine have allowed better support of critically ill patients in intensive care units (ICUs) and have increased survival probability. Post-intensive care syndrome (PICS) is a relatively new term introduced almost 10 years ago, defined as “new or worsening impairments in physical, cognitive, or mental health status arising after critical illness and persisting beyond acute care hospitalization”. A significant percentage of critically ill patients suffer from PICS for a prolonged period of time, with physical problems being the most common. The exact prevalence of PICS is unknown, and many risk factors have been described well. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) survivors seem to be at especially high risk for developing PICS. The families of ICU survivors can also be affected as a response to the stress suffered during the critical illness of their kin. This separate entity is described as PICS family (PICS-F). A multidisciplinary approach is warranted for the treatment of PICS, involving healthcare professionals, clinicians, and scientists from different areas. Improving outcomes is both challenging and imperative for the critical care community. The review of the relevant literature and the study of the physical, cognitive, and mental sequelae could lead to the prevention and timely management of PICS and the subsequent improvement of the quality of life for ICU survivors
Post-Intensive Care Syndrome in Survivors from Critical Illness including COVID-19 Patients: A Narrative Review
Current achievements in medical science and technological advancements
in intensive care medicine have allowed better support of critically ill
patients in intensive care units (ICUs) and have increased survival
probability. Post-intensive care syndrome (PICS) is a relatively new
term introduced almost 10 years ago, defined as “new or worsening
impairments in physical, cognitive, or mental health status arising
after critical illness and persisting beyond acute care
hospitalization”. A significant percentage of critically ill patients
suffer from PICS for a prolonged period of time, with physical problems
being the most common. The exact prevalence of PICS is unknown, and many
risk factors have been described well. Coronavirus disease 2019
(COVID-19) survivors seem to be at especially high risk for developing
PICS. The families of ICU survivors can also be affected as a response
to the stress suffered during the critical illness of their kin. This
separate entity is described as PICS family (PICS-F). A
multidisciplinary approach is warranted for the treatment of PICS,
involving healthcare professionals, clinicians, and scientists from
different areas. Improving outcomes is both challenging and imperative
for the critical care community. The review of the relevant literature
and the study of the physical, cognitive, and mental sequelae could lead
to the prevention and timely management of PICS and the subsequent
improvement of the quality of life for ICU survivors
Quality of Life, Depression, and Anxiety in Survivors of Critical Illness from a Greek ICU. A Prospective Observational Study
The physical and psychological consequences of critical illness may affect intensive care unit survivors for up to five years, and hence, health-related quality of life has emerged as an important measure of outcome in this population. We aimed at investigating the quality of life, the presence of anxiety and depression symptoms, and the correlations of clinical and psychological parameters with the quality of life scores in survivors of critical illness one year after discharge from intensive care. Widely used scales that have been validated for the Greek population were used. One thousand two hundred and seventy (1270) patients were assessed for eligibility. Inclusion criteria were age between 18 and 68 years and the presence of critical illness requiring endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation for more than three days. One hundred and four (104) patients were included in the final analysis; forty-nine age and sex-matched healthy volunteers were included for comparison. One year following intensive care unit discharge, survivors of critical illness had impaired quality of life scores, as measured with the WHOQOL-Bref, compared to healthy subjects (p < 0.001 for the physical and psychological domains, and p = 0.006 for the domain of social relationships). In addition, we found that quality of life scores were significantly lower in patients with comorbidities (p < 0.01), and correlated with the duration of ICU stay (r = −0.19, p = 0.04) and with the presence of symptoms suggestive of depression (r = −0.66, p < 0.0001) and post-traumatic stress disorder (r = −0.61, p < 0.0001). Approximately one-third of our patients scored high in the CES-D scale for depression, while the majority of them scored high in the STAI scale for anxiety symptoms
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Burnout in Healthcare Professionals During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Healthcare professionals who are directly involved in the diagnosis, treatment, and general care of patients with SARS-CoV-2 are at risk of developing adverse psychological reactions. A cross-sectional study of healthcare professionals aimed to determine the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the mental health of healthcare professionals in two of the largest referral hospitals in Athens, Greece
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Burnout in Healthcare Professionals During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Introduction: Healthcare professionals who are directly involved in the
diagnosis, treatment, and general care of patients with SARS-CoV-2 are
at risk of developing adverse psychological reactions. A cross-sectional
study of healthcare professionals aimed to determine the impact of the
SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the mental health of healthcare professionals in
two of the largest referral hospitals in Athens, Greece. Methods: The
study was conducted in the two largest SARS-CoV-2 referral hospitals in
Athens, Greece. An assessment and the interrelationship of
post-traumatic stress disorder, using the Impact of Event Scale-Revised
[IES-R]) and burnout, using the Maslach Burnout Inventory [MBI]) was
carried out. Results: A total of 162 subjects were enrolled in the
study. Fifty-six (35%) had an IES-R score > 33, suggesting
post-traumatic stress disorder. Forty-nine (30%) had an MBI score > 27.
Seventy-five (46%) had a personal accomplishment score of < 33 and 46
(28%) had a depersonalization score >10. Stepwise backward logistic
regression revealed that the only independent variable that was retained
regarding the presence of post-traumatic stress disorder was the
emotional exhaustion score of the MBI (at a cut-off of 24 in this scale,
the 95% CI of the odds ratio for the presence of post-traumatic stress
disorder was 1.077-1.173). Conclusions: In this sample of first-line
Greek healthcare professionals against SARS-CoV-2, most of them were
proven to be quite resilient to this challenge. One-third of them had
post-traumatic stress disorder, which depended on their degree of
emotional exhaustion. Healthcare professionals, as represented by this
study, performed their duties without feeling helpless and developing
adverse psychological reactions