The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the treated incidence of psychotic disorders in South London.

Evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychotic disorders is so far scarce. We conducted an incidence study to ascertain rates of first-episode psychosis (FEP) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in South London. We screened clinical records of individuals living in the London boroughs of Southwark and Lambeth who were referred to the early intervention services before (from 1/3/2019 to 28/2/2020) and during (from 1/3/2020 to 28/2/2021) the COVID-19 pandemic. We used the Office for National Statistics to determine the population at risk. We computed crude and sex-age standardised FEP incidence per 100,000 person-years. We used Poisson regression to calculate the incidence rate ratio (IRR) across the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 321 incident cases of FEP were identified during the COVID-19 pandemic, accounting for a crude rate of 69.8 (95% CI 62.1-77.4) per 100,000 person-years. The crude rate for the year before was 47.5 (95% CI 41.2-53.8). The incidence variation between the two years accounted for an adjusted IRR of 1.45 (95% CI 1.22-1.72). The pandemic was accompanied by a 45% spike in the rates of first-episode psychosis. This finding should inform public health research and demonstrate the need for adequate resources for secondary care.

Neuronal Antibodies in Children with or without Narcolepsy following H1N1-AS03 Vaccination.

Type 1 narcolepsy is caused by deficiency of hypothalamic orexin/hypocretin. An autoimmune basis is suspected, but no specific antibodies, either causative or as biomarkers, have been identified. However, the AS03 adjuvanted split virion H1N1 (H1N1-AS03) vaccine, created to protect against the 2009 Pandemic, has been implicated as a trigger of narcolepsy particularly in children. Sera and CSFs from 13 H1N1-AS03-vaccinated patients (12 children, 1 young adult) with type 1 narcolepsy were tested for autoantibodies to known neuronal antigens including the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and contactin-associated protein 2 (CASPR2), both associated with encephalopathies that include disordered sleep, to rodent brain tissue including the lateral hypothalamus, and to live hippocampal neurons in culture. When sufficient sample was available, CSF levels of melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) were measured. Sera from 44 H1N1-ASO3-vaccinated children without narcolepsy were also examined. None of these patients' CSFs or sera was positive for NMDAR or CASPR2 antibodies or binding to neurons; 4/13 sera bound to orexin-neurons in rat brain tissue, but also to other neurons. MCH levels were a marginally raised (n = 8; p = 0.054) in orexin-deficient narcolepsy patients compared with orexin-normal children (n = 6). In the 44 H1N1-AS03-vaccinated healthy children, there was no rise in total IgG levels or in CASPR2 or NMDAR antibodies three weeks following vaccination. In conclusion, there were no narcolepsy-specific autoantibodies identified in type 1 narcolepsy sera or CSFs, and no evidence for a general increase in immune reactivity following H1N1-AS03 vaccination in the healthy children. Antibodies to other neuronal specific membrane targets, with their potential for directing use of immunotherapies, are still an important goal for future research.

Diagnosis of an intraoperative aortic dissection by transesophageal echocardiography during routine coronary artery bypass grafting surgery.

UNLABELLED: Acute aortic dissection during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), though rare, causes significant morbidity and mortality. We report a case of postcardiopulmonary bypass aortic dissection in a 73-yr-old man who presented for CABG. The diagnosis was made by transesophageal echocardiography and allowed immediate treatment of the potentially lethal complication. IMPLICATIONS: Acute aortic dissection during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), though rare causes frequent morbidity and mortality. We report a case of postcardiopulmonary bypass aortic dissection in a 73-yr-old man who presented for CABG. Diagnosis made by transesophageal echocardiography allowed immediate treatment of the potentially lethal complication.