COVID-19 Pandemic: Impact on psychiatric care in the United States.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Infection by the SARS-CoV2 virus leads to the COVID-19 disease which can be fatal, especially in older patients with medical co-morbidities. The impact to the US healthcare system has been disruptive, and the way healthcare services are provided has changed drastically. Here, we present a compilation of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric care in the US, in the various settings: outpatient, emergency room, inpatient units, consultation services, and the community. We further present effects seen on psychiatric physicians in the setting of new and constantly evolving protocols where adjustment and flexibility have become the norm, training of residents, leading a team of professionals with different expertise, conducting clinical research, and ethical considerations. The purpose of this paper is to provide examples of "how to" processes based on our current front-line experiences and research to practicing psychiatrists and mental health clinicians, inform practitioners about national guidelines affecting psychiatric care during the pandemic, and inform health care policy makers and health care systems about the challenges and continued needs of financial and administrative support for psychiatric physicians and mental health systems.

Hypertensive Urgency and Emergency in Alcohol Withdrawal: A Literature Review.

OBJECTIVE: To help clinicians recognize that hypertension, hypertensive urgency, and hypertensive emergency can arise in patients detoxifying from alcohol. Diagnostic and treatment implications are reviewed to help clinicians manage blood pressure in these situations. DATA SOURCES: PubMed was searched with no restrictions on publication date or study type in June 2019 using the terms (alcohol withdrawal) AND hypertension. STUDY SELECTION: Of 531 studies retrieved, all were reviewed, and articles older than 20 years were excluded. Of the remaining 158 articles, all were reviewed by full-text reading, and 17 were selected based on relevance. Seven UpToDate articles and 2 older papers were also included for relevance. DATA EXTRACTION: Various other searches were also performed; however, no relevant hits resulted when the following terms were entered: (hypertensive urgency/emergency) AND alcohol withdrawal OR detoxification; (hypertensive urgency/emergency) AND (alcohol withdrawal OR detoxification) AND treatment-resistant hypertension. RESULTS: Hypertension is typically self-limited in alcohol withdrawal syndrome; however, treatment is important to prevent hypertensive urgency or emergency. There is a paucity of data on how best to manage hypertension in patients withdrawing from alcohol, with treatment often individualized. Patients with underlying treatment-resistant hypertension may have more difficult-to-control blood pressure, especially in the first 24 hours of withdrawal. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple medications may be used to treat hypertension in the setting of alcohol withdrawal, with selection based on side effect profile and the patient's other comorbidities. In patients for whom there is concern for hypertensive urgency versus emergency, full medical evaluation is indicated to identify any potential end-organ damage.

Hypercalcemia and Psychosis: Case Report, Review of the Literature, and Management Considerations.

The objective of this article is to help clinicians make an accurate diagnosis by considering hypercalcemia as a potential cause of psychosis. A patient case is presented, along with a review of the literature dissecting the association between calcium and psychiatric symptoms. Clinical implications and suggestions for management of hypercalcemia and psychosis in the setting of primary hyperparathyroidism are provided.