SCL-25 and recognition of mental disorders reported by primary health care physicians

A marked proportion of primary care patients have mental disorders and problems that remain unrecognized by the patients and their general practitioners. There is furthermore a great variation in the physicians’ ability to detect mental disorders. The aim of the present study was to find out the overall prevalence of mental disorders among patients receiving primary health care. The material consisted of 1000 randomly selected adult patients attending primary care facilities in Turku. The mental disorders were assessed by using the Symptom Checklist (SCL-25) and by general practitioners. According to the SCL-25, one fourth of the sample had a mental disorder. Only two fifths of them could be identified by the general practitioners.     

Interventions to promote optimal health outcomes in children with Type 1 diabetes—are they effective?

The incidence of Type 1 diabetes is increasing worldwide, imposing enormous public health costs, as well as profoundly affecting individual quality of life. There is evidence that psychological problems are increased in children with diabetes and this morbidity is often associated with poor metabolic control. Specific risk factors for this dual morbidity are emerging from empirical studies. The next challenge is to identify effective interventions for use with children at risk for adverse mental and physical health outcomes. The intervention literature is reviewed. It is noted that most studies have used diabetes-specific, unstandardized interventions in groups of adolescents, with few interventions trialled with younger children. No study has targeted a specific psychological disorder such as behaviour problems or depression, both of which are known to be increased in children with diabetes and for which effective standardized interventions are available. Attention is drawn to methodological limitations in many of the studies conducted to date and suggestions made to reduce these in future interventions attempting to reduce the burden of illness in children with diabetes.     

40岁以上高龄妊娠与分娩结局分析(附56例临床报告)

目的 探讨40岁以上妊娠妇女对分娩的影响.方法 回顾性分析1995年12月～2005年12月分娩的40岁以上孕妇56例及同期妊娠的18～34岁孕妇100例,后者为对照组.结果 高龄组不孕史、习惯性流产和子宫肌瘤发生率高于对照组(P＜0.01或P＜0.0 5);高龄组剖宫产率(78.6%)比对照组(38%)高(P＜0.01).但两组的新生儿出生体重、新生儿窒息、新生儿畸形和围生儿死亡率则没有明显差异(P＞0.05).结论 40岁以上妇女妊娠的并发症及剖宫产率增高,但只要重视和加强管理,积极预防和治疗合并症,母儿预后较好.     

Patterns of asbestosis in New Jersey.

Hospital discharge data from New Jersey were used to identify cases of asbestosis for the 8 years 1979-1986. Multiple admissions were deleted so that each individual was counted once at the time of his/her first hospitalization with an asbestosis diagnosis. White males had the highest age-adjusted average annual discharge rate of 19.3 cases/100,000 population, followed by black males (12.3 cases/100,000) and white females (1.2 cases/100,000). The discharge rate was positively associated with age in each race/sex category. The relationship between rates for black males and white males depended on age: under 65 years, the rates were almost equal, and at 65 years and older, the white rates were nearly twice the black rates. There were two areas of the state where the rates were highest: the north-central and southwest regions. These two areas represent manufacturing and shipbuilding applications of asbestos, respectively. During the years 1979-1986, the annual percentage increase in asbestosis rates was 20% for white males, 17% for black males, and 8% for white females. Continued surveillance will reveal when the rates for asbestosis stop increasing.     

Perioperative Complications of the Agility Total Ankle Replacement in 50 Initial, Consecutive Cases

Although functional and clinical outcomes after total ankle arthroplasty have been promising, a steep learning curve has been recognized. In addition, the performance of concomitant hindfoot realignment procedures is controversial. The purpose of this study was to report on a single surgeon's experience with the first 50 total ankle arthroplasty procedures. We wanted to define the characteristics of the learning curve and whether the rate of complications was increased in patients who required complex reconstruction for preexistent foot and ankle deformities. This was a retrospective study of 50 cases with an average follow-up of 24.2 months. The patient population consisted of 18 men and 30 women with an average age of 57.6 years. Twenty-six percent of the cases had concomitant bony realignment procedures, while 20% had prior history of major hindfoot corrective procedures. There were 19 cases with intraoperative malleolar fractures, 12 cases that exhibited some degree of malalignment, and 6 cases of syndesmotic nonunion, and 8 ankles required early component revision. Minor wound complications that resolved with local wound care occurred in 9 cases, while 1 patient had a major wound complication requiring flap coverage. Each of these complications, other than wound complications, decreased with the surgeon's experience. Our results also indicate that the performance of major realignment procedures at the same time of implant arthroplasty is not associated with an increased incidence of complications. The results of this study suggest that total ankle arthroplasty is associated with a learning curve. Perioperative complications may potentially decrease with surgeon experience.     

良性前列腺增生合并糖尿病TUVP的围手术期处理(附37例分析)

目的 探讨提高良性前列腺增生合并糖尿病围手术期安全性的措施。方法 回顾性分析37例良性前列腺增生合并糖尿病患者经尿道前列腺汽化术（TUVP）的围手术期处理。结果 35例排尿满意，2例口服α受体阻滞剂达到满意排尿，2例并发前列腺电切综合症（TURS），1例脑血栓，2例冠心病心绞痛发作，未发生低血糖反应、糖尿病高渗性昏迷及酮症酸中毒。结论 良性前列腺增生合并糖尿病患者在围手术期密切监测其血糖，应用胰岛素严格控制血糖，TUVP术是安全有效的。     

胃肠道恶性肿瘤围手术期肠内免疫营养的临床研究

目的评价肠内免疫营养对胃肠道恶性肿瘤术后免疫功能、炎症反应、营养状态、并发症的影响，探讨I临床推广应用的理论依据。方法将90例胃肠道恶性肿瘤随机分为免疫营养组、普通营养组和对照组，术前5天和术后1、8天分别检测多项指标。结果（1）术后免疫营养组免疫指标明显高于另两组；（2）术后免疫营养组的炎性指标明显低于另两组；（3）术后免疫营养组的前白蛋白明显高于另两组；（4）术后免疫营养组的并发症明显低于另两组。结论围手术期肠内免疫营养可在术后早期提高病人的免疫功能，减轻术后应激反应，降低术后并发症的发生率，并缩短平均住院时间。     

LAPAROSCOPIC CHOLECYSTECTOMY: THE EXPERIENCE OF A COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

Background: The practice of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a community hospital is presented. The morbidity of the procedure is analysed and recommendations for improvement are made. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was introduced into this 200 bed community hospital in October 1990. All five general surgeons accredited to the hospital agreed to participate in a quality assurance programme to determine the incidence of complications and to make recommendations for improvement. Methods: The records of all 534 patients having laparoscopic cholecystectomy between October 1990 and September 1993 were reviewed, and all complications recorded. Results: Of the 534 cases reviewed in the study 470 were considered uncomplicated and 64 patients experienced a total of 85 postoperative complications. The death of one patient was caused by a pulmonary embolus and another patient experienced a myocardial infarction. Twenty patients has postoperative atelectasis or pneumonia and urinary infection or retention occurred in seven. Complications of laparoscopic cholecystectomy requiring a conversion to open cholecystectomy occurred in eight patients, biliary complications occurred in 18 and 11 patients required re-operation. Conclusions: Three areas of concern were identified. They were the incidence of major biliary injury (0.37% of all cases) and its management, the role of cholangiography. and the incidence and prophylaxis of deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. Recommendations for improvement in these areas were made.     

The treatment of hypertension

1 A 'retrospective' of the development of the drug treatment of hypertension is presented from the early days of ganglion blockers to the present time together with a review of the evidence of benefit from treatment.
2 Current issues and debates are summarised including shortfalls in the control of hypertension in populations, difficulties surrounding the measurement of blood pressure, disagreement on the levels of blood pressure to treat, the goal blood pressures to aim at, issues surrounding lifestyle measures such as the low salt diet and low intensity exercise, and treatment with diuretics and with calcium antagonists.
3 A 'perspective' is presented on some avenues for progress in the years ahead. These will include the identification of genetic markers to determine the hypertensive individuals with the greatest risk of death and of cardiovascular complications.     

Psychotropic drug intake in residents newly admitted to nursing homes

While several surveys have shown that psychotropic drugs are frequently used by nursing home residents, no studies have been performed to investigate whether the rates of drug use increase during the stay in nursing homes or whether residents have taken these drugs already before admission. Therefore, we investigated 262 residents admitted to rural and urban nursing homes in Austria for prevalence of psychotropic drug intake before admission, shortly after admission, and 6 months later. Two weeks after admission, 72.1% of the residents were being treated with psychotropics, while 6 months later 79.0% were receiving these drugs. The significantly higher rates of psychotropic drug use among the psychiatrically ill and in those suffering from sleeping problems suggest that these drugs were prescribed aptly, but residents without appropriate criteria for drug intake were often also treated with psychotropics. During 3 months before admission to nursing homes, 45.5% of the sample reported having taken psychotropics. In more than half of residents without drug intake before admission, psychotropic treatment was initiated within the first 2 weeks after admission, while during the first 6 months after admission the rate of drug use increased only slightly. This suggests that a large percentage of psychotropic intake is due to nursing home orders. Received: 20 January 1997/Final version: 21 May 1997