Outcome of Involuntary Mental Health Assessment in a Psychiatric Department in Greece.

Despite their controversiality, involuntary admissions in psychiatric departments remain a central issue in mental health care. The present study aims to identify demographic and clinical factors possibly associated with emergency involuntary psychiatric assessment and its outcome in Greece. This study was carried out in the psychiatric department of the University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis (UGHA) from 1 March 2018 to 28 February 2019.

Univariable associations between a history of incarceration and HIV and HCV prevalence among people who inject drugs across 17 countries in Europe 2006 to 2020 - is the precautionary principle applicable?

BackgroundPeople who inject drugs (PWID) are frequently incarcerated, which is associated with multiple negative health outcomes.AimWe aimed to estimate the associations between a history of incarceration and prevalence of HIV and HCV infection among PWID in Europe.MethodsAggregate data from PWID recruited in drug services (excluding prison services) or elsewhere in the community were reported by 17 of 30 countries (16 per virus) collaborating in a European drug monitoring system (2006-2020; n = 52,368 HIV+/-; n = 47,268 HCV+/-).

Using latent profile analysis to understand burnout in a sample of Greek teachers.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to identify burnout profiles in Greek secondary school teachers using latent profile analysis.

Methods: Burnout was measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) in a sample of 460 teachers.

Results: In partial agreement with the literature, latent profile analysis revealed four profiles: Burnout (high on all three dimensions of the MBI), Engagement (low on all three), Overextended (high on exhaustion only) and Ineffective (high on inefficacy only).

Validating Dissociative Experience Scale (DES) in a Greek sample.

This study aimed to validate the Greek version of the Dissociative Experience Scale (DES). A sample of 340 psychiatric outpatients and controls was selected. Part of the sample went through a retest procedure after a two-week period.

The use of multi-national web surveys for comparative analysis: Lessons from the European Web Survey on Drugs.

Background: Most comparative drug policy analyses utilise measures of drug use, often from general population surveys (GPS). However, the limitations of GPS are well-recognised, including the small numbers of people who use illicit drugs sampled. Web surveys offer a potential solution to such issues.

Monitoring quality and coverage of harm reduction services for people who use drugs: a consensus study.

Background And Aims: Despite advances in our knowledge of effective services for people who use drugs over the last decades globally, coverage remains poor in most countries, while quality is often unknown. This paper aims to discuss the historical development of successful epidemiological indicators and to present a framework for extending them with additional indicators of coverage and quality of harm reduction services, for monitoring and evaluation at international, national or subnational levels. The ultimate aim is to improve these services in order to reduce health and social problems among people who use drugs, such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, crime and legal problems, overdose (death) and other morbidity and mortality.

The role of procalcitonin and IL-6 in discriminating between septic and non-septic causes of ALI/ARDS: a prospective observational study.

Background: The aim was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of a single plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) PCT and IL-6 measurement in discriminating septic from non-septic causes of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and forecasting clinical outcomes.

Methods: One hundred patients were enrolled within 48 h of ALI/ARDS recognition. Demographic, clinical data, severity indices were recorded and PCT and IL-6 concentrations were measured in plasma and BALF.

Evaluation of the role of the new INNOVANCE PFA P2Y test cartridge in detection of clopidogrel resistance.

Light transmittance aggregometry (LTA) has been extensively used in monitoring clopidogrel therapy. However, the availability of simple and rapid point-of-care platelet function assays is of great clinical importance. Thus, the manufacturer of the Platelet Function Analyzer (PFA)-100 System has recently produced the INNOVANCE PFA P2Y test cartridge.

Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism and circulating ACE levels are not associated with outcome in critically ill septic patients.

Background: In critically ill patients independent studies have shown contradictory findings regarding the prognostic significance of the D/D genotype of the I/D angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) polymorphism. The study aim was to evaluate the effect of both ACE I/D polymorphism and ACE serum levels on the clinical outcomes of critically ill septic patients.

Methods: This study recruited 186 Caucasian patients with sepsis, severe sepsis or septic shock.

The role of the Platelet Function Analyzer (PFA)-100 and platelet aggregometry in the differentiation of essential thrombocythemia from reactive thrombocytosis.

Introduction: The most crucial component of all diagnostic criteria for essential thrombocythemia (ET) has been the exclusion of reactive thrombocytosis (RT). Our aim was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of the PFA-100 collagen-epinephrine (CEPI) cartridge test and epinephrine-induced aggregometry individually, but mainly combined, in the differentiation of ET from RT.

Materials And Methods: 26 patients with ET and 25 with RT were studied.

Health service staff's attitudes towards patients with mental illness.

Introduction: Stereotypes and prejudices against patients with mental illness are widespread in many societies. The aim of the present study is to investigate such attitudes among the staff and medical students, including employees and trainees, in a general university hospital.

Method: Six hundred individuals (361 employees, 231 students) completed the following questionnaires: Level of Contact Report (LCR), Authoritarianism Scale (AS), and Opinion about Mental Illness (OMI), a scale yielding five factors (social discrimination, social restriction, social care, social integration, and aetiology).