The impact of implementing a psychiatric emergency hotline on the reduction of acute hospitalizations in a Swiss tertiary hospital.

Background: Inpatient treatment is not the most beneficial treatment setting for many patients with psychiatric disorders and overcrowding is a recurrent problem for psychiatric hospitals. Therefore, it is important to develop strategies to limit avoidable inpatient treatment. This study sought to evaluate the impact of an emergency hotline that was developed to better manage psychiatric patients, particularly for identifying those requiring a hospital admission.

[Pandemic COVID-19: what about patients with mental health disorders?].

The COVID-19 pandemic represents a major challenge for the general population. What about people already suffering from mental health problems? We describe the results of a regular survey conducted on patients undergoing treatment in an outpatient psychiatric clinic. The goal was to determine their experience of the first wave of the pandemic, its impact on the meaning of their lives and their spirituality and the types of support (medical and other) they receive.

[Does Barrett's esophagus regress after effective treatment of gastro-esophageal reflux?].

Regression and disappearance of Barrett's esophagus are a rare event of which there are only three well documented cases in the literature. Two cases are described in this study.

[Drug-induced esophagitis and its complications. Retrospective study of 30 case reports and review of 650 published cases (1970-1987)].

Prevalence and incidence of drug-related esophagitis are probably underestimated. The condition can often be diagnosed on the basis of history alone. Tetracyclines and emepronium bromide were implicated in most published cases.

[Non-ulcer dyspepsia and Campylobacter pylori].

Dyspepsia, defined as chronic vague upper abdominal symptoms, is a common condition. The pathogenesis of this syndrome remains poorly understood. The etiologic role of Campylobacter pylori and associated gastritis remain controversial though this organism colonizes the gastric antrum in one third to one half of patients with non-ulcer dyspepsia.

[Screening for colorectal tumors using fecal occult blood studies].

Guaiac tests such as Hemoccult are widely used but are affected by several factors. Occult blood testing does uncover subclinical colorectal cancer often at early stage, but a favorable effect on survival remains to be proven. The sensitivity for the detection of malignancies is from moderate to good, but it is poor for benign polyps.

[Is the measurement of carcinoembryonic antigen still indicated in digestive cancers?].

Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is not useful for detecting asymptomatic cancer. Its sensitivity and specificity are not high. For some cancers, antigen levels at the time of diagnosis provide more precise prognosis than staging alone.

[Inflammatory diseases of the digestive system and pregnancy: clinical case and review of the literature].

This paper reports the fertility with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), effects of IBD on pregnancy and conversely, effects of treatment on the mother and the child. Fertility is minimally, if at all, compromised. The foetus is likely to survive in spite of active disease.

Peripheral venous pulsatility detected by Doppler method for diagnosis of right heart failure.

This study shows that peripheral venous flow detected by Doppler ultrasound becomes synchronously pulsatile with heart beats as soon as central venous pressure (CVP) is above 7 mm Hg. CVP was above 7 mm Hg in 13 among 46 patients. Clinical signs of right heart failure were detectable in only 7 of these 13 patients (sensitivity 54%), whereas peripheral venous flow was pulsatile in 12 of them (sensitivity 92%).