Do psychological interventions reduce symptoms of depression for patients with bipolar I or II disorder? A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Psychological therapies may play an important role in the treatment of bipolar disorders. Several meta-analyses that examine the effectiveness of psychotherapies for patients with bipolar disorder include conclusions about the impact upon bipolar depression. However, these tend not to consider differences in depression outcome depending upon whether the therapy primarily targets acute depression, nor severity of baseline depression. This may affect the conclusions drawn about the effectiveness of these therapies for acute bipolar depression treatment. OBJECTIVES: This meta-analysis explored the effectiveness of psychological therapies in reducing bipolar depression, in particular examining whether: (1) the effect of therapy is greater when baseline depressive symptoms are more severe, and (2) the effect of therapy is greater when the primary focus of the therapy is the treatment of acute bipolar depression? DATA SOURCES: A systematic search was conducted using the following electronic databases; Cochrane Controlled Register of Trials (1996), MEDLINE (1966 onwards), EMBASE (1980 onwards), PsycINFO (1974 onwards), Scopus, Web of Science and Clinical Trials Registries (listed at:https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/international/clinical-trial-registries/index.html). ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Eligible studies were randomized controlled trials evaluating a psychological intervention for adults diagnosed with Bipolar I or II disorder. The comparators were usual care, wait-list, placebo, active treatment control. Post-treatment depression status was required to be measured continuously using a validated self- or observer- report measure, or categorically by a validated diagnostic instrument or clinical diagnosis by a suitably qualified person. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Titles and abstracts were screened, followed by full texts. Two reviewers conducted each stage until agreement was reached, and both independently extracted study information. Means, standard deviations (SDs) and number of participants were retrieved from articles and used to perform a meta-analysis. The primary outcome was depressive symptom score. RESULTS: The database search identified 6388 studies. After removing the duplicates, 3298 studies remained, of which, 28 studies were included in the qualitative review and 22 in the meta-analysis. Effect sizes range from -1.99 [-2.50, -1.49] to 0.89 [-0.12, 1.90]. There was low quality evidence of a significant effect on symptoms of depression for cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy. Trials of psychoeducation, mindfulness-based therapy, family therapy and interpersonal and social rhythm therapy showed no evidence of any effect on depression. We found no significant relationship between baseline depression score and depression outcome post-treatment when we controlled for therapy type and comparator. The result also showed that the effect sizes for studies targeting acute depression to be tightly clustered around a small overall effect size. CONCLUSIONS: Some psychological therapies may reduce acute bipolar depression although this conclusion should be viewed with caution given the low quality of evidence. More research using similar therapy types and comparators is needed to better understand the relationship between depression status at baseline and outcome.

When a private community neurology practice executes home sleep apnea testing: benefits identified and lessons learned in a retrospective observational study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the feasibility and utility of a private community neurology practice-initiated home sleep apnea testing (HSAT) program. METHODS: A private community neurology practice conducted HSAT on patients clinically identified as high risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). An academic board-certified sleep specialist performed all study interpretations. The presence and severity of OSA and its association with patient demographics (eg, sex, age) and comorbid health conditions relevant to OSA were evaluated. RESULTS: During 2011-2014, 147 consecutive patients clinically identified as highly "at risk for OSA" during their neurological visit underwent HSAT. Sixty-one percent (n=89) of patients had a "positive" study with evidence of an apnea-hypopnea index of greater than 5 events per hour. Of those, 37% (n=54) had mild OSA and 24% (n=35) had moderate-severe OSA. OSA was more common among men (54%, n=48) and in individuals with a previous documented history of depression (33%, n=48) and hypertension 44% (n=64). OSA treatment was ordered in 44% (n=39) of patients by the neurologists or by a sleep specialist. Twenty-four percent (n=21) of all patients studied were referred to a sleep specialist. CONCLUSION: Implementation of HSAT in a (nonsleep) private community neurology practice in collaboration with an academic sleep program is recommended. Based on this observational study, community-based neurological practices and board-certified sleep specialists should consider teaming up to develop HSAT collaborative programs to open new sleep care access pathways for neurological patients often at risk for sleep apnea.

Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: an ongoing challenge for WOC nursing.

Infection is a common complication of chronic wounds that delays healing. Community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has emerged as a common pathogen and major impediment to healing affected chronic wounds. Community-acquired methicillin-resistant S aureus is virulent, highly communicable, and difficult to eradicate. Treatment options include incision and drainage, debridement, and systemic antimicrobials. Early aggressive wound management and appropriate antibiotic therapy are considered essential to successful treatment. Facility-specific protocols should be developed to minimize the spread of this organism to the general population, with particular attention focused on protecting patients burdened with chronic wounds. This article reviews current knowledge of community-acquired methicillin-resistant S aureus, focusing on its impact on persons with chronic wounds.

Management of Parkinson's disease in older women.

Elderly women with Parkinson's disease (PD) represent a specific patient population that may benefit from individualized treatment strategies. PD has been shown to occur approximately twice as often in men than in women, resulting in theories regarding estrogen being protective against the disease and as a potential treatment strategy. Given women's longer life expectancy, they are more likely to reach an age where antiparkinsonian medications are associated with side-effects. This paper will review medical and surgical treatments as well as the relationship of gender and age with respect to the management of PD.

Development of a risk assessment tool for intraoperative pressure ulcers.

This article discusses the current literature related to intraoperative and preoperative risk factors for pressure ulcer development. Although surgical patients have a high risk of pressure ulcer development, the intraoperative period of patient care has often been missed as a time of increased risk. Pressure ulcers, which may originate in the operating room, may be incorrectly blamed on postoperative areas of care resulting from delay of pressure ulcer demarcation. In the literature review, current risk assessment tools do not adequately address intraoperative risk factors. A risk assessment tool that incorporates the specific variables relevant to the preoperative and intraoperative environment is proposed based on existing literature. A pilot study of the tool was done testing for intrarater reliability.