A new philosophy for schizophrenia care

INTRODUCTION: Patients with psychotic illness are frequently dissatisfied with psychiatric services although it is unclear whether this can be explained as being due to the mental disorder itself, or to the lower quality of care received by this group of patients. We explored this issue by comparing service satisfaction from different user perspectives: patients and key relatives. METHOD: The satisfaction and needs of 52 patients with schizophrenia and 66 of their relatives were assessed using the Verona Service Satisfaction Scale (VSSS). RESULTS: Patients were generally more satisfied with services than relatives, but there was a high degree of consistency between the groups regarding the aspects of the service which they were most, and least, satisfied with. CONCLUSION: Patient satisfaction surveys can be used as reliable indicators of service quality and can highlight specific strengths and shortcomings in mental health service provision. Such surveys can be very useful to help improve the quality of care for patients and their relatives.     

Research progress in rehabilitation treatment of stroke patients A bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND: Stroke presents as a transient or chronic brain dysfunction and is associated with high morbidity and high mortality. The doctors and scientists would like to argue how to enhance the validity of the rehabilitation treatment and how to further improve the level of treatment on stroke. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to quantitatively analyze the current worldwide progress in research on stroke rehabilitation treatment based on Web of Science database and ClinicalTrial.gov in the past 10 years. METHODS: We conducted a quantitative analysis of clinical trial articles regarding stroke rehabilitation published in English from 2003 to 2013 and indexed in the National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials registry and Web of Science databases. Data were downloaded on March 15, 2013. RESULTS: (1) From 2003 to 2013, 2 654 clinical trials investigating stroke were indexed in ClinicalTrials.gov. There were only 58 clinical trials registered in 2003, and there was a marked increase from 2005. A total of 605 clinical trials on the rehabilitation of stroke were conducted in the past 10 years. (2) The analysis showed that most of the trials in the field were registered by North American institutions. With respect to the Asian countries, China and Taiwan area of China also published a reasonable proportion of the trials, but comparatively speaking, the number of trials is really rare. Most of the interventions were drugs, followed by the devices, and behavioral interventions were ranked third. (3) In the past 10 years, there were 4 052 studies on stroke indexed by Web of Science database. CONCLUSION: From perspective of research progress, we found that the number of clinical trials and papers on stroke rehabilitation has increased significantly in the past 10 years, between them a remarkable positive correlation exists.     

The top cited articles on glioma stem cells in Web of Science

BACKGROUND: Glioma is the most common intracranial tumor and has a poor patient prognosis. The presence of brain tumor stem cells was gradually being understood and recognized, which might be beneficial for the treatment of glioma. OBJECTIVE: To use bibliometric indexes to track study focuses on glioma stem cell, and to investigate the relationships among geographic origin, impact factors, and highly cited articles indexed in Web of Science. METHODS: A list of citation classics for glioma stem cells was generated by searching the database of Web of Science-Expanded using the terms "glioma stem cell" or "glioma, stem cell’" or "brain tumor stem cell". The top 63 cited research articles which were cited more than 100 times were retrieved by reading the abstract or full text if needed. Each eligible article was reviewed for basic information on subject categories, country of origin, journals, authors, and source of journals. Inclusive criteria: (1) articles in the field of glioma stem cells which was cited more than 100 times; (2) fundamental research on humans or animals, clinical trials and case reports; (3) research article; (4) year of publication: 1899-2012; and (5) citation database: Science Citation Index-Expanded. Exclusive criteria: (1) articles needing to be manually searched or accessed only by telephone; (2) unpublished articles; and (3) reviews, conference proceedings, as well as corrected papers. RESULTS: Of 2 040 articles published, the 63 top-cited articles were published between 1992 and 2010. The number of citations ranged from 100 to 1 754, with a mean of 280 citations per article. These citation classics came from nineteen countries, of which 46 articles came from the United States. Duke University and University of California, San Francisco led the list of classics with seven papers each. The 63 top-cited articles were published in 28 journals, predominantly Cancer Research and Cancer Cell, followed by Cell Stem Cell and Nature. CONCLUSION: Our bibliometric analysis provides a historical perspective on the progress of glioma stem cell research. Articles originating from outstanding institutions of the United States and published in high-impact journals are most likely to be cited.     

Patient distribution in a mass casualty event of an airplane crash

Introduction

Difficulties have been reported in the patient distribution during Mass Casualty Incidents. In this study we analysed the regional patient distribution protocol (PDP) and the actual patient distribution after the 2009 Turkish Airlines crash near Amsterdam.

Methods

Analysis of the patient distribution of 126 surviving casualties of the crash by collecting data on medical treatment capacity, number of patients received per hospital, triage classification, Injury Severity Score (ISS), secondary transfers, distance from the crash site, and the critical mortality rate.

Results

The PDP holds ambiguous definitions of medical treatment capacity and was not followed. There were 14 receiving hospitals (distance from crash: 5.8–53.5 km); four hospitals received 133–213% of their treatment capacity, and 5 hospitals received 1 patient. Three hospitals within 20 km of the crash did not receive any casualties. Level I trauma centres received 89% of the ‘critical’ casualties and 92% of the casualties with ISS ≥ 16. Only 3 casualties were secondarily transferred, and no casualties died in, or on the way to hospital (critical mortality rate = 0%).

Conclusion

Patient distribution worked out well after the crash as secondary transfers were low and critical mortality rate was zero. However, the regional PDP was not followed in this MCI and casualties were unevenly distributed among hospitals. The PDP is indistinctive, and should be updated in cooperation between Emergency Services, surrounding hospitals, and Schiphol International Airport as a high risk area.     

OPEN TREATMENT OF SYNDACTYLY OF THE FOOT

The aim of reconstruction of the webs for syndactyly of the foot is cosmetic improvement, so skin grafting should be avoided. We present our long-term results of 19 feet with simple cutaneous syndactyly in 15 patients who were treated by an open technique. The bottom of the web was covered with a dorsal rectangular flap and the remaining skin defect was left open to epithelialise spontaneously. This took about 4 weeks. After a mean follow-up of 5.7 years (range 3-9), no hypertrophic scar or pigmentation of the skin had developed. Creeping of the web was seen only during the first postoperative year. The final depth of the web satisfied the families of all patients. As the aim of web reconstruction for syndactyly of the foot is purely cosmetic, we conclude that this simple method is reasonable treatment.     

Understanding the underutilization of cervical brachytherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer

PurposeTo understand the reasons behind current low utilization of brachytherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer in the United States.Methods and MaterialsA 17-item survey was e-mailed to the American Brachytherapy Society (ABS) listserv of active members in 2018. Responses of attending physicians in the United States were included in the analysis.ResultsAmong a total of 135 respondents, 81 completed the survey. Eighty-four percent agree/strongly agree that cervical brachytherapy is underutilized, and 46.9% disagree/strongly disagree that residents are receiving adequate training for brachytherapy; 75.3% agree/strongly agree that inadequate maintenance of brachytherapy skills is a major obstacle to brachytherapy use; and 71.6% agree/strongly agree that increased time requirement constitutes a major obstacle. Over 97% will recommend brachytherapy for most patients with cervical cancer if given access/time; 72.8% always perform their own brachytherapy, whereas 29.6% reported some type of barrier exists in performing brachytherapy themselves, with time required to perform brachytherapy (9.9%) being a leading factor. A quarter (24.7%) routinely refer to other radiation oncologists for brachytherapy. Even among ABS members, 37.0% reported that they would perform an intensity-modulated radiation therapy or stereotactic body radiation therapy boost in specific scenarios in potentially curable patients. The most common scenario is inability to place a uterine tandem (56.7%).ConclusionsThe underutilization of brachytherapy in cervical cancer is widely recognized by ABS members with inadequate training during residency and inadequate maintenance of skills being possible major contributing factors. Even among ABS members, there are identifiable barriers. Continued advocacy and future initiatives in enhancing access to brachytherapy training and efficiency are needed.     

Création d’une consultation psychiatrique ouverte aux préparationnaires du 5e et du 6e arrondissement de Paris : retour d’activité sur l’année 2017–2018

Part of the French post-secondary education system is the Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Écoles (High School Preparatory Classes) which consists of two intensive years (or three years sometimes) to pass the entrance examination of the Grandes Écoles. Grandes Écoles are highly selective, elite, and prestigious institutions [10]. The difficulties for these students are a higher stress (succeed the entrance examination), lack of time (all their time is dedicated to studies). The access to public psychiatric health system depends on where you live. Due to their schedule, they spend most of their time in the high school and they can’t consult in the psychological centre whom they depend [9]. In these conditions, in December 2017, public psychiatric care of the 5th and 6th districts of Paris created a psychiatric consultation in one high school opened to the students in Classes Preparatoires which signed a convention with the psychiatric ward.ObjectivesThis study aims to debrief the activity and the student profiles in the first year of this consultation.Patients and methodsThe patients are composed of students registered in Classes Préparatoires from the 5th and 6th district of Paris and who came to the psychiatric consultation, aged from 16 to 19 years old and referred by school nurses, school doctors, psychiatric ward or student himself. Retrospective study based on the activity of the consultation and medical files of psychiatrics consultations between December 2017 and July 2018.ResultsFifteen students consulted with a mean of 5.2 ± 2.9 consultations per students, eleven of them were oriented by school nurses. Eleven students benefited from a regular follow-up or an “in case of need” consultation. Five students had already received a psychotropic drug before the consultation; at the end of the year, ten of them received medication. The most prescribed category of medication are antidepressants and anxiolytics with seven patients apiece. The most represented disorders are a major depressive disorder (41%), adaptative disorder (29%), anxiety disorder (12%). Four students stopped their studies in the high school during the academic year. Two students needed to be hospitalized in the psychiatric ward of the district, they continued their education in their high school after hospitalization.ConclusionThe consultation for the Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Écoles allowed an access to a psychiatric offer next to the place those students spend most of their time, without going to an emergency structure and with a shorter waiting time compared to the psychological centre in public health system. This consultation enables the evaluation, the follow-up and the orientation of the students, including the hospitalization when it is needed but also to sustain some students in their studies. In views of requesting a psychotherapy and the usual waiting time in the psychotherapeutic centre for students which already exist, there is important need to provide increased resources for these students.