Publications by authors named "Anne-Emmanuelle Ambresin"

This article outlines the management of transgender and non-binary adolescents at CHUV. The current rise in visibility of this topic is associated with an increased demand for intervention and at the same time with an increased generation of continuously expanding medical evidence to guide interventions. The close collaboration among various specialized adolescent health services enables an interdisciplinary evaluation of diagnostic elements and indications for potential psychological, social or medical interventions.

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Adolescence is a developmental phase that exposes young people to exploratory behaviors, including substance abuse. In Switzerland, recreational ketamine use among young people is on the rise and is likely to lead to irreversible somatic complications. Primary care physicians play an essential role in identifying ketamine users, and should offer brief interventions, risk-reduction advice and a psychosocial assessment of the situation, involving close relatives.

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The period between the ages of 0 and 25 is a crucial phase in human development, during which many aspects of physical, psychological, personality, behavioral and health development take place. Important neurobiological changes during adolescence play a key role in their natural propensity to seek reward, putting them at greater risk of different kind of addictive behaviours. In addition, childhood adversity can foster the emergence of vulnerabilities which, for some, increases the risk of addiction by the time they reach adolescence.

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There is a growing body of scientific understanding surrounding the topic of functional chronic pain. Numerous studies have highlighted a persistent low-grade inflammation within the fascial and central nervous systems, coupled with detrimental neuroplasticity involving substantial remodeling of pain pathways in the spinal cord and brain. These findings provide a more concrete basis for explaining functional chronic pain to adolescents, simplifying the establishment of trust and the justification of proposed treatments in the process.

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In the care of adolescents, health care providers often face situations raising ethical concerns or dilemmas, such as refusal of a treatment or hospitalization, or request of confidentiality while engaging in risky behaviors or facing unplanned pregnancy. This position paper provides concrete avenues as how to assess the adolescent's capacity for autonomous decision making, e.g.

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The adolescent's process of brain maturation has important consequences for their ability to reason in decision-making processes. The notion of evolving capacity, for which age is not a sufficient indicator, implies a progressive vision of the nature and degree of participation according to the level of maturity. Health professionals are at the forefront of actively promoting young people's participation, supporting their decision-making about their own health, and seeing them as true partners and agents of change.

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Training with adolescent simulated patients (ASP) is increasingly recognized as an effective form of teaching interviewing skills with adolescent patients. Beyond the acknowledged effectiveness and satisfaction of training with ASP, little is known on medical students' actual experience and specific learning needs related to simulated encounters with ASP, as well as factors influencing their learning experience.The aim of this study was an in-depth exploration of medical students' perspectives about training with ASP.

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This article summarizes the conclusion of a two-days interprofessional online workshop held under the auspices of the Brocher Foundation. The objectives were to review the impact of COVID on adolescent health and development and to generate some key responses to the situation. The pandemic has severely affected the mental health of a large proportion of adolescents and has significantly reduced access to health care.

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Adolescence and young adulthood constitute a period when exploratory behaviors can evolve into risky behaviors. Most causes of adolescent ill health are preventable; therefore, it is a priority to detect them early before they turn into health problems. Previsit multidomain psychosocial screening tools are used by professionals to detect and prioritize potentially problematic issues.

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Objectives: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adolescents have specific health care needs and are susceptible to health care disparities. Lack of skills and knowledge on the part of health care providers have a negative effect on their access to care and health outcomes. This study 1) explores the knowledge and attitudes of medical students regarding LGBT people, and 2) assesses the impact of a one-hour lecture targeting adolescent LGBT health needs.

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The authors of the published version of this article inadvertently omitted the table note of the Table 2 under the Appendix section. The complete Table 2 is shown in this article].

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Transgender, non-binary and questioning teenagers are increasingly visible. However, they face barriers in accessing appropriate care that meet their needs, both specific and regarding their general health. Primary care physicians increasingly see them in consultations but often lack elements of communication and recent knowledge that is needed to accompany them and their close ones in their -individual trajectories.

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Digital media are central in our modern society and, as such, have an impact not only on teenagers but on most of us. Adolescents are among the most observed and stigmatized in terms of screens use. The encounter between the crucial developmental phase they cross and the neurobiological changes in their brains can be relatively « noisy ».

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The authors of the published version of this article inadvertently omitted the table note of the Table 2 under the Appendix section. The complete Table 2 is shown in this article].

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Objectives: The objectives of this study were to describe the overall clinical profile (somatic and psychological health) and the care pathways of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers (UMAS) who arrived in the Swiss canton of Vaud in 2015.

Methods: This was a retrospective study based on information extracted from the medical files of 109 patients over 1 year of follow-up. All the reasons for consultation and referrals as well as the diagnoses made were noted and coded using ICD-10.

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The objective of this article is to review how primary care providers - paediatricians, family practitioners, nurse practitioners - could address the use of substances by adolescents and respond to problematic behaviours and situations. Given the highly addictive properties of nicotine, adolescents should be supported in avoiding any consumption of tobacco or quitting if they already do so. Screening and investigation of substance use is usually not difficult, provided that it is processed in a neutral and empathetic atmosphere and securing confidentiality if the adolescent asks for it.

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Objective: This study assesses the impact of a clinical refeeding guideline on weight restoration, length of stay, rate of refeeding complications, and rehospitalizations.

Method: This retrospective study included patient records of 107 participants aged 13-55 years with a diagnosis of AN, admitted for at least 7 days for renutrition before and after introduction of the refeeding guideline. Weight evolution graphs were rated by 2 clinical experts independently.

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RED-S is a clinical concept introduced in 2014 that broadens the understanding of the athlete's triad. It includes nine areas affected by energy deficiency relative to the body's needs for optimal functioning and it is known that both adolescents and athletes are at higher risk of suffering from a RED-S than the general population. We highlight that sports coaches in French-speaking Switzerland do not know of RED-S nor of its health consequences.

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Youth sports participation is often perceived as a positive contributor to physical and psychological development. However, we must acknowledge that sometimes the sports environment can be plagued by events of abuse and non-accidental violence of different types. A global and systemic approach will allow the limitation of these catastrophic events in young athletes' lives.

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