The Natural History of Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy in an Irish Population and Assessment for Prognostic Biomarkers.

In this study we have assessed the clinical and genetic characteristics of an Irish Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) cohort and assessed for useful biomarkers of visual prognosis. We carried out a retrospective review of clinical data of patients with genetically confirmed LHON presenting to an Irish tertiary referral ophthalmic hospital. LHON diagnosis was made on classic clinical signs with genetic confirmation.

One year of psychiatric presentations to a hospital emergency department during COVID-19.

Objectives: To examine the impact of the first full year of the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated restrictions on the volume and nature of psychiatric presentations to an emergency department (ED) in a large academic hospital.

Methods: Anonymised clinical data on psychiatric presentations to the ED were collected for the 52-week period from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and compared with corresponding 1 year periods in 2019 and 2018.

Results: There was a significant increase in psychiatric presentations overall to the ED during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to previous years, in contrast to a reduction in total presentations for all other specialties.

Impact of initial COVID-19 restrictions on psychiatry presentations to the emergency department of a large academic teaching hospital.

Objectives: To determine if the initial COVID-19 societal restrictions, introduced in Ireland in March 2020, impacted on the number and nature of psychiatry presentations to the emergency department (ED) of a large academic teaching hospital.

Methods: We examined anonymised clinical data of psychiatry presentations to the ED during the initial 8-week period of COVID-19 restrictions. Data from corresponding 8-week periods in 2018 and 2019 were also extracted for comparison.