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AbstractBackground:To date, little research has been published on the prominence of the various psychiatric symptoms that result from exposure to a natural disaster. In our study of stress-related symptoms among Norwegian tourists who were repatriated after the 2004 southeast Asian tsunami, we evaluated to what extent symptom scores differed between individuals who were exposed to the disaster and those who were not. Methods:Participants (n = 899) completed a questionnaire via post 6 months after the disaster. The participants were categorized according to their level of exposure to the disaster: danger exposed (caught or chased by the waves), nondanger exposed (other disaster-related stressors) and not exposed. Symptoms were assessed by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), the Post Traumatic Symptom Scale (PTSS-10), and the Impact of Event Scale – Revised (IES-R). We used z-transformation of symptom scores (Z-scores) to evaluate the extent to which symptom scores among disaster-exposed individuals differed from those in the nonexposed reference group. Results:The IES-R revealed the greatest differences between nonexposed and disaster-exposed individuals. Hyperarousal was the most prominent symptom cluster that related to disaster exposure, followed by intrusion and then avoidance. Symptoms of anxiety, social dysfunction, withdrawal, somatization and feelings of guilt were more closely linked to exposure than were symptoms of depression. Conclusions:Our results indicate that symptoms of hyperarousal may be more closely linked to acute exposure to a natural disaster such as a tsunami than other symptoms of psychological distress.Copyright © 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract  Our aim was to study autonomic function in patients with Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) without constipation and psychiatric comorbidity. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) (representing cardiac vagal activity), skin conductance (representing sympathetic activity) and heart rate were measured at baseline and as a response to emotional stress and rectal discomfort in 33 women with IBS and 21 healthy women. Baseline heart rate was higher in the patients than in the healthy volunteers. Both groups had decreased RSA and increased heart rate and skin conductance level when exposed to emotional stress, but the autonomic responses did not differ significantly between the groups. At discomfort threshold the patients had increased heart rate response and skin conductance amplitude when compared to the healthy volunteers. Correlations between autonomic responses and the depression subscale of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression (HAD) score differed markedly between the diarrhea-predominant IBS patients and the IBS patients with alternating stool habits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

: Background To evaluate hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) in somatic (all admissions other than psychiatric) and psychiatric patients admitted to a tertiary university hospital in Oslo, before and after reorganization of the Norwegian healthcare system in 2002. : Methods Point prevalence studies were conducted four times per annum and over the period from 1995 to 2007. : Results A total of 57 360 patients were studied over the whole time period: 80.5% in somatic wards and 19.5% in psychiatric wards. The HAI rate was 6.9%, of which 8.1% were somatic and 1.9% psychiatric. 13.4% of operated patients had HAI, including 6.2% due to surgical wound infections. In somatic wards, 0.6–1% were re-admitted with HAI, 15.2–23% had infections and 18–23% used antibiotics. There was a reduction in HAI until 2002. From 2003 on, HAI increased (P = 0.010) in somatic wards (P = 0.002), in non-operated patients (P = 0.024) and in extra costs. In 2002, the Norwegian healthcare system was reorganized. This reorganization led to a 30% increase in somatic patients treated from 2003 to 2007 (P = 0.054), 27% increase in the total workload per work position (P = 0.024) and 23.5% decrease in internal service work. : Conclusion A declining trend of HAI was observed from 1995 to 2002 at the tertiary university hospital in Norway. In 2002, the Norwegian healthcare system was reorganized. From 2003 to 2007, HAI increased significantly as did the number of somatic patients and workload at our hospital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The survival of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients has increased significantly since the introduction of combination antiretroviral therapy, leading to the development of important long-term complications including cardiovascular disease (CVD) and renal disease. Microalbuminuria, an indicator of glomerular injury, is associated with an increased risk of progressive renal deterioration, CVD and mortality. However, the prevalence of microalbuminuria has barely been investigated in HIV-infected individuals. Methods. Based on three prospective urine samples in an unselected nonhypertensive, nondiabetic HIV-positive cohort (n = 495), we analysed the prevalence of microalbuminuria and compared the Caucasian share with that of a nonhypertensive, nondiabetic population-based control group (n = 2091). Significant predictors for microalbuminuria were analysed within the HIV-positive cohort. Results. The prevalence of microalbuminuria was 8.7% in the HIV-infected cohort, which is three to five times higher than that in the general population. HIV-infected patients with microalbuminuria were older, and had higher blood pressure, longer duration of HIV infection, higher serum beta 2-microglobulin, higher serum creatinine and a reduced glomerular filtration rate of ≤90 mL/min, compared with those with normal albumin excretion. In multivariate analysis, systolic blood pressure, serum beta 2-microglobulin and duration of HIV infection were found to be independent predictors of microalbuminuria. Conclusions. Our findings indicate that in addition to haemodynamic effects, inflammatory activity may be implicated as a cause of the development of microalbuminuria. With respect to the increasing risk of developing CVD or renal diseases and mortality, the high prevalence of microalbuminuria in HIV-infected individuals warrants special attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]