Predictors of Dropout Among Psychosomatic Rehabilitation Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Secondary Analysis of a Longitudinal Study of Digital Training.

Background: High dropout rates are a common problem reported in web-based studies. Understanding which risk factors interrelate with dropping out from the studies provides the option to prevent dropout by tailoring effective strategies.

Objective: This study aims to contribute an understanding of the predictors of web-based study dropout among psychosomatic rehabilitation patients.

Longitudinal Evaluation of an Integrated Post-COVID-19/Long COVID Management Program Consisting of Digital Interventions and Personal Support: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The postacute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS) can be addressed with multidisciplinary approaches, including professional support and digital interventions.

Objective: This research aimed to test whether patients who received a health care facilitation program including medical internet support from human personal pilots and digital interventions (intervention group [IG] and active control group [ACG]) would experience fewer symptoms and have higher work ability and social participation than an untreated comparison group (CompG). The second objective was to compare the impact of a diagnostic assessment and digital interventions tailored to patients' personal capacity (IG) with that of only personal support and digital interventions targeting the main symptoms (ACG).

Patients' Post-/Long-COVID Symptoms, Vaccination and Functional Status-Findings from a State-Wide Online Screening Study.

(1) Background: Better understanding of post-/long-COVID and limitations in daily life due to the symptoms as well as the preventive potential of vaccinations is required. It is unclear whether the number of doses and timepoint interrelate with the trajectory of post-/long-COVID. Accordingly, we examined how many patients positively screened with post-/long-COVID were vaccinated and whether the vaccination status and the timepoint of vaccination in relation to the acute infection were related to post-/long-COVID symptom severity and patients' functional status (i.

Digital Interventions for Treating Post-COVID or Long-COVID Symptoms: Scoping Review.

Background: Patients with post-COVID/long-COVID symptoms need support, and health care professionals need to be able to provide evidence-based patient care. Digital interventions can meet these requirements, especially if personal contact is limited.

Objective: We reviewed evidence-based digital interventions that are currently available to help manage physical and mental health in patients with post-COVID/long-COVID symptoms.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on CSR Activities of Healthcare Providers.

(1) Background: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is important for every company that cares for sustainable structures. Healthcare providers especially have made social responsibility their goal. However, crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic impacted different activities within the healthcare sector including CSR and its monitoring.

[Curriculum Hannover - Web-based vs. Analogue Psychotherapeutic aftercare after Psychosomatic Rehabilitation and vs. Care as Usual].

Purpose: In order to maintain the effect achieved in the psychosomatic rehabilitation measure, psychosomatic rehabilitation aftercare is indicated for most rehabilitation patients. Due to the low availability of aftercare therapists close to home, the use of digital offers is a possibility to enable access independent of location. The aim of the study was to evaluate the therapeutic effects of web-based aftercare in comparison to face-to-face (F2F) therapy (both on the conceptual basis of the Curriculum Hannover) in the equivalence study and to no standardized aftercare (care as usual, CAU) in the superiority study.

Screening and assessment for post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS), guidance by personal pilots and support with individual digital trainings within intersectoral care: a study protocol of a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Because the clinical patterns and symptoms that persist after a COVID-19 infection are diverse, a diagnosis of post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS) is difficult to implement. The current research project therefore aims to evaluate the feasibility and the practicability of a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, and cross-sectoral treatment program consisting of a low-threshold online screening and holistic assessment for PACS. Furthermore, it aims to evaluate digital interventions and the use of so-called personal guides that may help to facilitate the recovery of PACS.

[Occupational and Health Strains of Pensioners with Reduced Earning Capacity Due to Mental or Physical Illnesses - Implications for the Health Care System].

Objective: Demographic changes with an increasing number of people receiving pensions and a decreasing number of working people paying into the pension system represent major challenges for the German social security system. In particular, it is important to support people to continue working so that there is no (premature) reduction in their earning capacity and pensioners with reduced earning capacity (disability pensioners) should be helped to return to gainful employment. The aim of this study was to investigate the differing needs of two kinds of disability pensioners, namely those with mental illness and those who were physically ill.

Distress, loneliness, and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Test of the extension of the Evolutionary Theory of Loneliness.

COVID-19 restrictions such as lockdowns or quarantines may increase the risk for social isolation and perceived loneliness. The mechanisms can be modeled by Cacioppo's Evolutionary Theory of Loneliness (ETL), which predicts that a lack of perceived social connectedness may lead, in the long-term, to mental and physical health consequences. However, the association between COVID-19 pandemic distress, mental health, and loneliness is not sufficiently understood.

[For Which Patients is Web-Based Psychotherapeutic Aftercare after Psychosomatic Rehabilitation Most Suitable?].

Objective: In order to maintain the effects achieved during the psychosomatic rehabilitation, according aftercare is indicated for most rehabilitation patients. Due to the current low supply of aftercare psychotherapists (so-called aftercare therapists) licensed by the German Pension Insurance web-based aftercare provides an equivalent alternative to analogue (in person) offers. This study clarifies which characteristics indicate that web-based aftercare is particularly recommended and how web-based formats are evaluated by participants, especially with regard to the therapeutic relationship.

Adherence With Online Therapy vs Face-to-Face Therapy and With Online Therapy vs Care as Usual: Secondary Analysis of Two Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background: Adherence to internet-delivered interventions targeting mental health such as online psychotherapeutic aftercare is important for the intervention's impact. High dropout rates limit the impact and generalizability of findings. Baseline differences may be putting patients at risk for dropping out, making comparisons between online with face-to-face (F2F) therapy and care as usual (CAU) necessary to examine.

The Mediation Effect of Phobic Anxiety on the Treatment Outcome of Activity and Participation across Age: Comparison between Online and Face-to-Face Rehabilitation Aftercare of an RCT.

The efficacy of internet and mobile-based interventions (IMIs) has been demonstrated with different mental health disorders, but little is known about the mediating effect of phobic anxiety on activity and participation and the differential effect of age. The current study tested a moderated mediation model with short-term change in phobic anxiety mediating between treatment (IMI vs. face-to-face, F2F) and long-term change in activity and participation, and age of patients moderating this mediation.

[Which Digital Services do Psychosomatic Rehabilitation Patients Use During the Corona Pandemic and do Interrelations with Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms Exist?].

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic requires numerous measures to protect against infection, such as contact reduction and adherence to hygiene and social distancing rules. The former leads to mental disorders (possibly requiring treatment) due to social isolation, the latter require adaptation in the implementation of medical therapies. With overall limited therapy capacities, the use of digital (health) applications can be of particular importance in the therapy of chronic and psychological diseases in particular.

Implementing Digital Trainings within Medical Rehabilitations: Improvement of Mental Health and Synergetic Outcomes with Healthcare Service.

The need for new technologies in healthcare services has been stressed. However, little is known about the effectiveness of digital interventions integrated in psychosomatic rehabilitation processes. Data from 724 patients from psychosomatic rehabilitation clinics were analyzed with regard to the effectiveness of digital trainings indicated by a change in symptoms related to depression, anxiety, stress, and loneliness from pre- to post-rehabilitation.

Psychosomatic Rehabilitation Patients and the General Population During COVID-19: Online Cross-sectional and Longitudinal Study of Digital Trainings and Rehabilitation Effects.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has largely affected people's mental health and psychological well-being. Specifically, individuals with a pre-existing mental health disorder seem more impaired by lockdown measures posing as major stress factors. Medical rehabilitation treatment can help people cope with these stressors.

[Fear of Coronavirus, Intention to Follow the AHA Rules and Risk Perception Regarding Visits to the Doctor: Cross-sectional Study with Patients suffering from Pre-existing Mental Illness].

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic requires containment measures such as contact restrictions and hygiene requirements. It is accompanied by psychological problems and the fear of infection or of a severe course of the disease. This paper examines the relationship between fear of infection and adherence to rules of hygiene as well as the utilization of medical services.

To What Extent is Internet Activity Predictive of Psychological Well-Being?

Background: Healthy internet activity (eg, making use of eHealth and online therapy) is positively associated with well-being. However, unhealthy internet activity (too much online time, problematic internet use/PIU, internet dependency/ID, etc.) is associated with reduced well-being, loneliness, and other related negative aspects.

The Total Incidence of Complications and the Impact of an Anticoagulation Regime on Adverse Events After Cryoballoon Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: A Single-Center Study of 409 Patients.

Aim: Data evaluating the complications of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) using second-generation cryoballoons (CB) related to different anticoagulation regimes are limited. This study evaluates the total complications and the impact of novel oral anticoagulants (NOACs) compared to phenprocoumon on adverse events in the setting of PVI using CB.

Methods And Results: PVI was performed using second-generation CB by two experienced investigators.

Cryoballoon Ablation for Pulmonary Vein Isolation in Patients With Persistent Atrial Fibrillation: One-Year Outcome Using Second Generation Cryoballoon.

Background: Data regarding the freedom from atrial fibrillation (AF) in the follow-up of persistent AF patients is limited. The second-generation cryoballoon has better cooling properties compared with first-generation cryoballon. In this study, we aimed to assess the medium-term efficacy of second-generation cryoballoon in patients with persistent AF.