The Relationship Between Low Vision and Musculoskeletal Complaints. A Case Control Study Between Age-related Macular Degeneration Patients and Age-matched Controls with Normal Vision

AbstractIntroductionAge-related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) patients often describe complaints from neck and scapula area muscles and a decreased postural control. In clinical assessment, these complaints are considered to be due to old age.PurposeThis study focuses on low-vision patients with ARMD, comparing them to age-matched controls without any eye disease, in order to evaluate if the linkage between self-rated visual complaints and musculoskeletal complaints is more prominent when low vision is present.MethodsIn a cross-sectional study, 24 ARMD patients, aged 65 to 85, were compared to a group of 24 controls without visual problems having a similar age distribution. Visual acuity, the need for magnification plus other optical and visual parameters were assessed. Visual, musculoskeletal and balance/proprioceptive complaints were collected by means of a self-rating questionnaire. The Visual Functioning Questionnaire - Near Activities Subscale (VFQ–NAS) was used to evaluate visual function and related complaints.ResultsThe correlation between visual complaints and musculoskeletal complaints yielded significant values of the correlation coefficient when performed separately within each group, as well as when calculated on the entire data set [ARMD, Spearman's rho (ρ)=0.60, P=0.002; control group ρ=0.59, P=0.004; both groups together ρ=0.50 P<0.001]. Stepwise multiple regression analysis supported the hypothesized effect of vision (Visual complaints + Minimum readable typefaces) on musculoskeletal complaints, (r2=0.42, P<0.05).ConclusionsThe results in this study support the hypothesis that a relationship exists between visual and musculoskeletal problems

Salivary cortisol levels and stress in adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities participating in the Structured Water Dance Intervention: A randomised controlled crossover trial

The Structured Water Dance Intervention (SWAN) is a dance-oriented aquatic group activity directed to give opportunities for the joy of movement, relaxation, and reduced stress. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of SWAN on salivary cortisol and stress in adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD). A total of 34 adults with PIMD at four habilitation centres in Sweden completed the SWAN intervention. The intervention was administered for 40 min once a week during a 12-week period. Saliva cortisol was collected in the morning and evening at baseline one week before the intervention, thrice during the intervention period, and one week after the intervention. Moreover, in connection with the SWAN sessions, the participants’ level of stress was also assessed by the accompanying assistants. The results showed that salivary cortisol and participants stress decreased significantly, directly after the SWAN sessions compared with measures directly before sessions. The study demonstrates that adults with PIMD have diurnal salivary cortisol patterns consistent with those observed in adults without disability and that the SWAN reduces salivary cortisol levels and stress in people with PIMD; this justifies that SWAN could be considered in the choice of interventions to reduce stress in adults with PIMD. Trial registration: This study is registered 09/04/2019 on ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT03908801)

Influence of mental health service provision on the perceived quality of life among psychiatric outpatients: associations and mediating factors

ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between perceived mental health service provision and quality of life (QoL) as perceived by patients in psychiatric outpatient care.MethodsA total of 373 adult patients registered at 15 psychiatric outpatient clinics in three regions in central and southern Sweden were included in the study. Survey data were collected using a questionnaire on mental health service provision, symptom severity, recovery, clinical diagnosis, sociodemographics (serving as independent variables) and QoL (serving as the dependent variable). Three aspects of mental health service provision were used: patients’ perceived quality of care, perceived staff-patient interaction, and patient reported psychiatric treatments. Structural equation modelling was used to model the relationship among the variables.ResultsVariables in mental health service provision showed few direct associations with patients’ perceived QoL. Instead, the associations of mental health service provision on QoL were mainly mediated through symptom severity and recovery. These relationships were retained after adjusting for sociodemographic variables and clinical diagnoses. The final model achieved excellent goodness of fit (χ2 = 49.502, p = 0.230, RMSEA = 0.020, CFI = 0.997 and a SRMR = 0.024).ConclusionThis study shows that mental health service provision is associated with patients’ perceived QoL; however, this association is mostly indirect and mediated by reduced symptom severity and increased recovery. This finding can help inform the design of future interventions to enhance service provision to improve patients’ QoL

Spanish adaptation of the quality in psychiatric care-outpatient (QPC-OP) instrument community mental health patients' version: psychometric properties and factor structure

Background: Health systems in the field of mental health are strongly committed to community models that allow patients to be attended in their own environment. This helps them to maintain their family and social ties while trying to avoid costly hospital admissions. The patients' perspective is a key component in the assessment of the quality of psychiatric care and can even determine their adherence to the devices where they are treated. However, there are few instruments with adequate psychometric properties for the evaluation of the quality of psychiatric care in community mental health. The Quality in Psychiatric Care - Outpatient (QPC-OP) instrument has adequate psychometric properties to assess the quality of psychiatric care from the patients' perspective. The aim of this study was to adapt and validate the Spanish version of the QPC-OP instrument. Methods: A translation and back‑translation of the instrument was carried out. To examine its psychometric properties, the instrument was administered to 200 patients attending various community mental health services. To assess test‑retest reliability, the instrument was readministered after 7‑14 days (n = 98). Results: The Confirmatory Factor Analysis revealed a structure of 8 factors identical to the original version, with an adequate model fit. The internal consistency coefficient (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.951. The intraclass correlation coeff icient was 0.764 (95% IC: 0.649 - 0.842), and higher than 0.70 in 5 of the 8 factors. Additionally, an EFA was performed and revealed that the instrument could behave in a unifactorial or four factor manner in the sample analyzed. Conclusions: Results show that the Spanish version of the QPC-OP instrument is valid and reliable for the assessment of quality of psychiatric care in the community setting

A Spanish adaptation of the Quality in Psychiatric Care Inpatient (QPC-IP) instrument: Psychometric properties and factor structure

Background and aim: Western countries share an interest in evaluating and improving quality of care in the healthcare field. The aim was to develop and examine the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Spanish version of the Quality in Psychiatric Care-Inpatient (QPC-IP) instrument. Methods: A psychometric study was conducted, translating the QPC-IPS instrument into Spanish, revision of the instrument by a panel of experts, and assessing its psychometric properties. 150 psychiatric inpatients completed the QPC-IP. Test-retest reliability was assessed by re-administering the questionnaire to 75 of these patients. Results: After conducting pilot testing and a cognitive interview with 30 inpatients, it was determined that the QPC-IPS was adequate and could be self-administered. A Cronbach's alpha of 0.94 was obtained for the full instrument and values of 0.52-0.89 for the various dimensions of the questionnaire. Test re test reliability: The Intraclass Correlation Coefficient for the full questionnaire was 0.69, while for the individual dimensions values between 0.62 and 0.74 were obtained, indicating acceptable temporal stability. Convergent validity was analysed using 10-point numerical satisfaction scale, giving a positive correlation (0.49). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed six factors consistent with the original scale. The Spanish version yielded adequate results in terms of validity and reliability. Conclusion: Our findings provide evidence of the convergent validity, reliability, temporal stability and construct validity of the Spanish QPC-IP for measuring patient quality in psychiatric care in Spanish hospitals. Hospital administrators can use this tool to assess and identify areas for improvement to enhance quality in psychiatric car

Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Spanish Quality in Psychiatric Care Forensic Inpatient Staff (QPC-FIPS) instrument

Quality in Psychiatric Care-Forensic Inpatient Staff (QPC-FIPS) is an instrument of Swedish origin validated to measure the perception of the quality of mental health care provided by forensic psychiatry professionals. The aim of this study was to cross-culturally adapt the QPC-FIPS instrument and to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the instrument. A psychometric study was carried out. For validity, content validity, convergent validity and construct validity were included. For reliability, the analysis of internal consistency and temporal stability was included. The sample consisted of 153 mental health professionals from four Forensic Psychiatry units. The adapted Spanish version of the QPC-FIPS scale was configured with the same number of items and dimensions as the original. The psychometric properties, in terms of temporal stability and internal consistency, were adequate and the factor structure, such as the homogeneity of the dimensions of the Spanish version of the QPC-FIPS, was equivalent to the original Swedish version. We found that the QPC_FIPS-Spanish is a valid, reliable and easy-to-apply instrument for assessing the self-perception of professionals regarding the care they provide

Facial EMG reactions to facial expressions : a case of facial emotional contagion?

The purpose of this study is to explore whether subjects exposed to stimuli of facial expressions respond with facial electromyographic (EMG) reactions consistent with the hypothesis that facial expressions are contagious. This study further examines whether males and females differ in facial EMG intensity. Two experiments demonstrated that subjects responded with facial EMG activity over the corrugator supercilii, the zygomatic major, the lateral frontalis, the depressor supercilii, and the levator labii muscle regions to stimuli of sad, angry, fearful, surprised, disgusted and happy faces, that, to large extent, were consistent with the hypothesis that facial expressions are contagious. Aspects of gender differences reported in earlier studies were found, indicating a tendency for females to respond with more pronounced facial EMG intensity

Use of music for mood regulation in adolescents with intellectual disabilities : A case control study

Functions connected to mood and emotion regulation are often reported as the most frequent and important functions of music, particularly during adolescence. However, less is known on how adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID) use music for emotion regulation. The aim of this study was therefore to explore how adolescents with intellectual disabilities (n = 30) use music for mood regulation in comparison to adolescents without ID (n = 34). We assessed the seven mood-regulation strategies of the Music in Mood Regulation questionnaire, personality traits, mood, and a number of variables regarding music listening. The result showed that personality and mood were associated with the use of music for mood regulation and that adolescents with ID were less specific in their use of mood regulation strategies than adolescents without intellectual disabilities, even when adjusting for gender differences. In conclusion, the present study shows that personality traits in addition to mood is related to differences in usage of music for mood regulation among adolescents with and without intellectual disability. The study provides initial insights into the use of music and the relationships between personality, mood, and music in mood regulation in adolescents with intellectual disabilities

The Quality in Psychiatric Care&ndash;Inpatient Staff Instrument: A Psychometric Evaluation

Much work has focused on the development of instruments that measure the quality of care, but few studies have been published for staff assessment of the quality of care provided by inpatient psychiatric care. Therefore, an instrument is needed to measure the quality of care from the perspective of facility staff. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Quality in Psychiatric Care-Inpatient Staff (QPC-IPS) instrument. A sample of 104 staff at seven wards in four regions in Sweden completed the QPC-IPS, which consists of 30 items covering six dimensions of quality. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the proposed six factor structure of the QPC-IPS. Internal consistency for the full QPC-IPS was adequate, but poor for some of the dimensions. Staff ratings of the quality of care were generally high. The highest rating was for the Support dimension and the lowest for the Secure environment dimension