Publications by authors named "Sonia Lech"

Background: Dementia management presents a significant challenge for individuals affected by dementia, as well as their families, caregivers, and health care providers. Digital applications may support those living with dementia; however only a few dementia-friendly applications exist.

Objective: This paper emphasizes the necessity of considering multiple perspectives to ensure the high-quality development of supportive health care applications.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Out-of-home mobility and social participation have been identified as resources to postpone frailty. We aim to examine the mediating role and specific contribution of social out-of-home activities in frailty prevention. Data from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) waves six (w6), seven (w7), and eight (w8) were used.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aim: Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) by veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) during refractory cardiac arrest presents significant medical and psychological challenges for healthcare providers. Beyond managing cardiac arrest and preparing for potential coronary angiography, the ECMO circuit must be assembled and primed under strictly sterile conditions, contributing to additional psychological stress and potential delays in ECMO cannulation. This pragmatic study thought to evaluate whether pre-assembled and pre-primed ECMO circuits (pre-primed group) maintain sterility over a 21-day period, expedite ECMO initiation in ECPR patients and alleviate the psychological burden on the ECPR team, compared to newly assembled and primed ECMO circuits (on-demand group).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Although asexuality became a growing research subject over the last decade, data on the mental health of individuals identifying as asexual is still rare. The key objective of the present study was to examine depressive symptoms among individuals identifying as asexual. Data of LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Trans*, Queer, Inter*, Asexual and/or + indicating others within the community) and cisgender heterosexual individuals was collected through an online survey during the COVID-19 lockdowns in Germany.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: For older adults with care needs, evidence for the effectiveness of psychotherapy on depression is scarce.

Methods: In PSY-CARE, a pragmatic randomized controlled trial,  = 197 home-living older adults with depression and care needs were randomized into outpatient psychotherapy or an active control condition. Residential psychotherapists offered age-sensitive cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy (at-home if needed).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Understanding the clinical features of myocarditis in various age groups is required to identify age-specific disease patterns.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine differences in sex distribution and clinical outcomes in patients with myocarditis of various ages.

Methods: Patients with acute or chronic myocarditis in 3 centers in Berlin, Germany from 2005 to 2021 and in the United States (National Inpatient Sample) from 2010 to 2019 were included.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study assessed the impact of statin therapy on all-cause mortality in nursing home residents, both with and without dementia, using data from a German health insurance provider over four years.
  • Researchers found that statin users, regardless of dementia status, had a lower risk of dying compared to non-users, with significant results (HR 0.80 for those with dementia and HR 0.73 for those without).
  • The findings suggest that continuing statin therapy in nursing home residents with dementia may be beneficial for reducing mortality risk.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Primary care physicians (PCP) play a key role in the care of people living with dementia. However, the implementation and practicability of the German S3 Dementia Guideline in primary care remain unclear. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate an intervention for improving guideline-based dementia care in primary care.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Percutaneous left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) has emerged as a non-pharmacological alternative for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) not suitable for anticoagulation therapy. Real-world data on peri-procedural outcomes are limited. The aim of this study was to analyze outcomes of peri-procedural safety and healthcare resource utilization in 11,240 adult patients undergoing LAAC in the United States between 2016 and 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Homeless patients in psychiatric hospitals are a scarcely studied and there is lack of knowledge about factors associated with homelessness and in-patient treatment.

Aims: To determine the change over time in the number of homeless psychiatric in-patients and to examine factors associated with homelessness.

Method: Retrospective data analysis of 1205 selected electronic patient files on psychiatric in-patient treatment in a university psychiatric hospital in Berlin, Germany.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Health literacy is gaining importance as it concerns the ability of individuals to encounter the complex demands of health in modern societies. Little is known about the environmental associations of health literacy in high-income countries. This study aims to (i) analyse urban-rural differences in health literacy and further (ii) investigate the interrelations of associated factors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Measures against the COVID-19 pandemic led to restrictions in ambulatory health care in Germany. While the restrictions have been described from claims data, the patients' perspective has been missing. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-, inter- and asexual persons (LGBTIA) might have been particularly affected by these restrictions because of their vulnerability.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: Few studies and almost exclusively from the USA have recently investigated mobile phone and computer use among users of psychiatric services, which is of high relevance regarding the increasing development of digital health applications and services.

Objective, Design And Setting: In a cross-sectional patient survey, we examined (a) rates and purposes of mobile phone, computer, internet and social media use, and (b) the role of social and clinical predictors on rates of utilisation among psychiatric inpatients in Berlin, Germany.

Participants And Results: Descriptive analyses showed that among 496 participants, 84.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the globe and is associated with significant clinical and humanitarian burden. The desire for parenthood has been described to be positively correlated with psychological well-being: An unfulfilled wish for parenthood is associated with impaired mental health, and the wish for parenthood is a predictor for the development of depressive symptoms. While higher rates of anxiety and depression have been reported in individuals with minoritized sexual identities (compared to heterosexual individuals) during the COVID-19 pandemic, the specific impact of the pandemic and its social restriction measures on this population is poorly understood.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: While life-space mobility is key for wellbeing, social participation and access to health care, vulnerable older adults face physical and mental barriers that may restrict mobility. The present exploratory study examined associations between physical functional limitations, depressive symptoms, life-space mobility and outpatient health care utilization.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from 197 community-dwelling older adults with care needs and clinical depression was collected.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Depression is the most common mental health burden worldwide. Primary care physicians (PCPs) play a key role in the care provision for people with depression. The first objective of the present study was to examine the health care situation of depression in primary care, focusing on the cooperation between PCPs and mental health specialists.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

During the COVID-19 pandemic, physical distancing measures to prevent transmission of the virus have been implemented. The effect of physical distancing measures on loneliness especially for vulnerable groups remained unclear. Thus, we aimed to investigate loneliness in relation with depressive symptoms among lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, inter, asexual, and queer (LGBT) persons compared with cis-heterosexual persons during the pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Depression is highly prevalent in nursing home residents living with moderate to severe dementia. However, assessing depressive symptoms in residents with dementia can be challenging and may vary by rater perspective. We aimed to investigate the concordance of, and factors associated with self- and informant-rated depressive symptoms in nursing home residents with dementia.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: General practitioners (GPs) play a key role in the care of people with dementia (PwD). However, the role of the German Dementia Guideline in primary care remains unclear. The main objective of the present study was to examine the role of guideline-based dementia care in general practices.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to examine the effects of a tablet-based intervention versus conventional activity sessions on nursing home residents with dementia, focusing on their apathy and quality of life.
  • Conducted in Germany, the trial involved 162 residents randomly assigned to either the tablet-based intervention (80 participants) or traditional activity sessions (82 participants) over eight weeks.
  • Results showed slight reductions in apathy across both groups, with no significant differences between the two; however, the tablet-based group reported reduced usage of psychotropic medication and indicated improvements in quality of life.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Preliminary empirical data indicates a substantial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on well-being and mental health. Individuals with minoritized sexual and gender identities are at a higher risk of experiencing such negative changes in their well-being. The objective of this study was to compare levels of well-being among cis-heterosexual individuals and individuals with minoritized sexual and gender identities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Beackground: Older adults with mental health problems may benefit from psychotherapy; however, their perceived need for treatment in relation to rates of non-utilization of outpatient psychotherapy as well as the predisposing, enabling, and need factors proposed by Andersen's Model of Health Care Utilization that account for these differences warrant further investigation.

Methods: We used two separate cohorts (2014 and 2019) of a weighted nationwide telephone survey in Germany of German-speaking adults with N = 12,197 participants. Across the two cohorts, 12.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF