The fatigue impact scale for daily use in patients with hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus chronic infections.

INTRODUCTION: Fatigue is an important clinical finding in the hepatitis virus chronic infection. However, the absence of scales to measure fatigue, translated and validated for Brazilian Portuguese, prevents access to information essential in clarifying specific clinical conditions in this population. AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of the fatigue impact scale for daily use (D-FIS), in Brazilian Portuguese, for patients with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) chronic infection. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, the authors evaluated the D-FIS in 101 outpatients, followed at the reference hospital. The Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview Brazilian (MINI PLUS) was used to identify psychiatric disorders, and the Short Form Health Survey 36-item (SF-36) to evaluate the self-reported quality of life. We also examined the impact of fatigue on the quality of life of this group of patients. RESULTS: Relevant psychometric D-FIS results were: floor effect proved to be 1%; skewness was 0.46; item homogeneity was 0.59 and SEM (SD = 8.51) was 2.4. The Cronbach's alpha was 0.920 and item total correlation yielded coefficients ranging from 0.65 (item 1) to 0.85 (item 3). In a linear regression model, fatigue and depression influenced the self-reported quality of life. CONCLUSION: This study presents that the fatigue scale for daily use in Brazilian Portuguese can be considered a useful tool to verify the presence of fatigue in patients with the hepatitis viruses B and C.

Parameters associated with chronic spontaneous urticaria duration and severity: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Although some authors have already evaluated the predictive value of various parameters regarding the duration of chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), it remains uncertain which ones have importance in clinical practice as prognostic factors that indeed enable prediction. Similarly, some authors have investigated parameters that might be related to severe cases of CSU. However, the results of studies evaluating several parameters as markers of disease severity are fragmented. Thus, we performed a systematic review to summarize the findings of studies investigating the parameters associated with CSU duration and severity. METHODS: Two authors independently searched PubMed until June 2012 for observational retrospective or prospective studies addressing clinical or laboratory parameters associated with disease duration or severity in CSU patients. RESULTS: We found 1,136 potentially relevant published papers related to the subject, 34 of which were included in the systematic review. A total of 16, 6 and 12 articles evaluated CSU parameters on severity, duration or both, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that disease severity might predict CSU duration. Similarly, evidence suggests that plasma levels of prothrombin fragment 1 + 2, D-dimer and C-reactive protein may function as markers of CSU severity.

Systemic lupus, folie a trois and homicide.

Folie a trois is a syndrome characterized by the transfer of delusional ideas from one person to two other persons. This condition rarely ends in the murder of any involved and we are unaware of where the primary case had the diagnosis of acute psychosis in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We present a case report of folie a trois resulting in murder, secondary to acute psychosis in SLE.

Impact of sustained virologic response on quality of life in chronic HVC carriers.

INTRODUCTION: It is known that patients with chronic hepatitis C have a lower health-related quality of life (HRQOL) than the general population and evidence suggests that the hepatitis C virus (HCV) could exert direct neuropathic action on HRQOL. From this perspective, the virus clearance should be accompanied by improvement in HRQOL. Thus, we sought to review systematically the evidence in the literature and perform a meta-analysis of HRQOL changes caused by sustained virologic response (SVR). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The PubMed was searched using the keywords Hepatitis C, Quality of Life and Therapy. The reviewers came to a consensus on articles that were selected to full reading and those that should be included in the study and a meta-analysis was performed of mean change difference between responders and non-responders. RESULTS: Eleven studies were included in the systematic review and four in the metaanalysis. Of these, nine studies showed more favorable outcome for responders, and they had a better outcome even in studies that evaluated only cirrhotic patients, previous non-responders, relapsers, patients in first treatment and patients unaware of treatment response. Moreover, the meta-analysis showed that the general health and vitality domains had statistically significant mean change difference between responders and non-responders, presenting a summary effect of 6.3 (CI 95% 2.5-10.0) and 7.8 (CI 95% 3.4- 12.1) respectively. CONCLUSION: There is evidence indicating that SVR is accompanied by an improvement in HRQOL and patients reaching SVR have clinically relevant improvement in domains of general health and vitality.

Protective ventilation and outcomes of critically ill patients with COVID-19: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 5% of COVID-19 patients develop respiratory failure and need ventilatory support, yet little is known about the impact of mechanical ventilation strategy in COVID-19. Our objective was to describe baseline characteristics, ventilatory parameters, and outcomes of critically ill patients in the largest referral center for COVID-19 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, during the first surge of the pandemic. METHODS: This cohort included COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care units (ICUs) of an academic hospital with 94 ICU beds, a number expanded to 300 during the pandemic as part of a state preparedness plan. Data included demographics, advanced life support therapies, and ventilator parameters. The main outcome was 28-day survival. We used a multivariate Cox model to test the association between protective ventilation and survival, adjusting for PF ratio, pH, compliance, and PEEP. RESULTS: We included 1503 patients from March 30 to June 30, 2020. The mean age was 60 ± 15 years, and 59% were male. During 28-day follow-up, 1180 (79%) patients needed invasive ventilation and 666 (44%) died. For the 984 patients who were receiving mechanical ventilation in the first 24 h of ICU stay, mean tidal volume was 6.5 ± 1.3 mL/kg of ideal body weight, plateau pressure was 24 ± 5 cmH2O, respiratory system compliance was 31.9 (24.4-40.9) mL/cmH2O, and 82% of patients were ventilated with protective ventilation. Noninvasive ventilation was used in 21% of patients, and prone, in 36%. Compliance was associated with survival and did not show a bimodal pattern that would support the presence of two phenotypes. In the multivariable model, protective ventilation (aHR 0.73 [95%CI 0.57-0.94]), adjusted for PF ratio, compliance, PEEP, and arterial pH, was independently associated with survival. CONCLUSIONS: During the peak of the epidemic in Sao Paulo, critically ill patients with COVID-19 often required mechanical ventilation and mortality was high. Our findings revealed an association between mechanical ventilation strategy and mortality, highlighting the importance of protective ventilation for patients with COVID-19.

Characteristics and outcomes of patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU in a university hospital in São Paulo, Brazil - study protocol.

OBJECTIVES: We designed a cohort study to describe characteristics and outcomes of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in the largest public hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil, as Latin America becomes the epicenter of the pandemic. METHODS: This is the protocol for a study being conducted at an academic hospital in Brazil with 300 adult ICU beds dedicated to COVID-19 patients. We will include adult patients admitted to the ICU with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 during the study period. The main outcome is ICU survival at 28 days. Data will be collected prospectively and retrospectively by trained investigators from the hospital's electronic medical records, using an electronic data capture tool. We will collect data on demographics, comorbidities, severity of disease, and laboratorial test results at admission. Information on the need for advanced life support and ventilator parameters will be collected during ICU stay. Patients will be followed up for 28 days in the ICU and 60 days in the hospital. We will plot Kaplan-Meier curves to estimate ICU and hospital survival and perform survival analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model to identify the main risk factors for mortality. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04378582. RESULTS: We expect to include a large sample of patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU and to be able to provide data on admission characteristics, use of advanced life support, ICU survival at 28 days, and hospital survival at 60 days. CONCLUSIONS: This study will provide epidemiological data about critically ill patients with COVID-19 in Brazil, which could inform health policy and resource allocation in low- and middle-income countries.

Characteristics and outcomes of patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU in a university hospital in São Paulo, Brazil - study protocol

OBJECTIVES: We designed a cohort study to describe characteristics and outcomes of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in the largest public hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil, as Latin America becomes the epicenter of the pandemic. METHODS: This is the protocol for a study being conducted at an academic hospital in Brazil with 300 adult ICU beds dedicated to COVID-19 patients. We will include adult patients admitted to the ICU with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 during the study period. The main outcome is ICU survival at 28 days. Data will be collected prospectively and retrospectively by trained investigators from the hospital's electronic medical records, using an electronic data capture tool. We will collect data on demographics, comorbidities, severity of disease, and laboratorial test results at admission. Information on the need for advanced life support and ventilator parameters will be collected during ICU stay. Patients will be followed up for 28 days in the ICU and 60 days in the hospital. We will plot Kaplan-Meier curves to estimate ICU and hospital survival and perform survival analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model to identify the main risk factors for mortality. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04378582. RESULTS: We expect to include a large sample of patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU and to be able to provide data on admission characteristics, use of advanced life support, ICU survival at 28 days, and hospital survival at 60 days. CONCLUSIONS: This study will provide epidemiological data about critically ill patients with COVID-19 in Brazil, which could inform health policy and resource allocation in low- and middle-income countries.

Hepatitis C virus infection as a traumatic experience.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether individuals consider their HCV infection to be a potentially traumatic experience. Additionally, we investigated its association with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the impact of PTSD diagnosis on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in HCV infected subjects. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 127 HCV-infected outpatients recruited at a University Hospital in Salvador, Brazil. All subjects answered an orally-administered questionnaire to gather clinical and socio-demographic data. We investigated traumatic experiences and the subject's perception of the disease using the Trauma History Questionnaire. PTSD and other psychiatric diagnoses were assessed through the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview-Brazilian Version 5.0.0 (M.I.N.I. PLUS). HRQoL was assessed using Short-Form 36 (SF-36). RESULTS: Approximately 38.6% of the patients considered hepatitis C to be a traumatic experience. Of these, 60.7% had a PTSD diagnosis. PTSD was associated with significant impairment in quality of life for individuals in seven SF-36 domains as shown bymultivariate analysis: Role-Physical (ß: -24.85; 95% CI: -42.08; -7.61), Bodily Pain (ß: -19.36; 95% CI: -31.28; -7.45), General Health (ß: -20.79; 95% CI: -29.65; -11.92), Vitality (ß: -11.92; 95% CI: -20.74; -3.1), Social Functioning (ß: -34.73; 95% CI: -46.79; -22.68), Role-Emotional (ß: -26.07; 95% CI: -44.61; -7.53), Mental Health (ß: -17.46; 95% CI: -24.38; -10.54). CONCLUSION: HCV is frequently a traumatic experience and it is strongly associated with PTSD diagnosis. PTSD significantly impaired HRQoL.

Post-traumatic stress disorder as a comorbidity: impact on disease outcomes.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with many psychiatric and nonpsychiatric comorbidities. Growing evidence suggests that PTSD as a comorbidity may impair drug adherence, quality of life and sleep quality, as well as increase rehospitalization rates, disease relapses, intensity of symptoms, morbidity and mortality. The aim of this article is to examine the literature regarding the effects of PTSD comorbidity on physical and mental health.

Estudos de associação genética no transtorno obsessivo-compulsivo / Genetic association studies in obsessive-compulsive disorder

INTRODUÇÃO: O caráter familial do transtorno obsessivo-compulsivo (TOC) já é bem estabelecido. Ele segue o modelo complexo de transmissão genética que envolve a influência de diversos genes de pequeno efeito em interação com o ambiente. MÉTODOS: Foi realizada uma revisão sistemática de estudos de associação genética com o TOC por meio de busca de artigos publicados até 2012 nas bases de dados: PubMed, Embase e SciELO, usando os termos MeSH, seus associados ou sinônimos para "obsessive-compulsive disorder", "gene" e "genetic association studies". RESULTADOS: Foram selecionados 105 artigos cujos principais resultados foram agrupados em grupos de genes relacionados a serotonina, dopamina, glutamato, GABA, substância branca, hormônios, sistema imune e outros genes (MAO-A, BNDF, COMT). CONCLUSÃO: Há grande variabilidade nos achados de estudos de associação entre os diversos genes candidatos estudados e o TOC. Genes relacionados às vias glutamatérgicas são candidatos promissores, porém não há associação conclusiva entre nenhum dos genes candidatos estudados e o TOC. Estudos de associação com grande tamanho amostral, avaliação de subgrupos mais homogêneos do fenótipo e metanálises ainda são necessários.

BACKGROUND: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) segregates in families. It follows a complex model of genetic transmission, which involves the influence of several small effect genes interacting with the environment. METHODS: A systematic review of genetic association studies in OCD was performed. Articles published until 2012 were searched in the databases PubMed, Embase and SciELO using the terms of MeSH and its associates or synonyms for "obsessive-compulsive disorder", "gene" and "genetic association studies". RESULTS: We selected 105 papers and described their main results grouped as genes related to: serotonin, dopamine, glutamate, GABA, white matter, immune system, hormones and other genes. CONCLUSION: There is high variability between findings of association studies among the several candidate genes studied in OCD. Glutamate-related genes are promising candidates for OCD, but there is no conclusive association between any of the candidate genes studied and OCD. Association studies with large sample size, evaluation of more homogeneous subgroups of phenotype and meta-analyses are still needed.