Pattern of encounters to emergency departments for suicidal attempts in France: Identification of high-risk days, months and holiday periods.

INTRODUCTION: Seasonal change in patterns of suicidal attempts is not well known in France and may differ from other western countries. We aimed to determine the peak times (days, months and holiday periods) of suicidal attempts in France. METHODS: We carried out a multicentre retrospective epidemiological study, using data from the Organization for Coordinated Monitoring of Emergencies (OSCOUR®) network. We aggregated daily data from January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2019. Variations in suicidal attempts on specific days were investigated by comparing their frequencies (ad hoc Z-scores). RESULTS: 114,805,488 ED encounters were recorded including 233,242 ED encounters regarding suicidal attempts. Men accounted for 45.7%. A significantly higher frequency of ED encounters for suicidal acts were found on Sundays in the months of May-June for both sexes and on New Year's Day for all genders and age groups. An increased risk was also noted on July 14th (National Day) and June 22nd (Summer Solstice). A protective effect was noted on the day after Valentine's Day, on Christmas Day and Christmas time (in particular December 24 and 26). CONCLUSION: Sundays, June, New Year's Day were at increased risk of suicidal attempts in France requiring a strengthening of prevention.

Trends and characteristics of attempted and completed suicides reported to general practitioners before vs during the COVID-19 pandemic in France: Data from a nationwide monitoring system, 2010-2022.

BACKGROUND: Most studies published to date have investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicidal acts using hospital data. Trends from primary care in a country such as France are crucial, as individuals may not consult hospital services after suicide attempts (SAs) but rather see their general practitioner (GP). OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate whether the incidence and characteristics of SAs and completed suicides (CSs) reported to French GPs were different during the COVID-19 pandemic than those of before. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a retrospective observational study using data from a nationwide monitoring system, the French Sentinel Network (FSN). All SAs and CSs reported by GPs to the FSN from January 1, 2010, to March 10, 2022 were included. The annual incidence rates (IRs) and the characteristics of SAs and CSs during the pandemic (March 11, 2020, to March 10, 2022) were compared to those of before. In total, 687 SAs and 169 CSs were included. The IRs remained stable for SAs and CSs before and during the pandemic (overlap in confidence intervals). The mean IRs were 52 (95%CI = 44; 57) per 100,000 inhabitants for SAs during the pandemic versus 47 [36; 57] during the pre-pandemic period (p = 0.49), and 5 (95%CI = 2; 9) for CSs versus 11 [6; 16] (p = 0.30). During the pandemic, SA were slightly different from those before in terms of age and occupational status (young/students and older/retirees over-represented), history of consultation and expression of suicidal ideas to GP (more frequent), and CS in terms of occupational status (students over-represented) (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic had no major effect on the overall incidence of SAs and CSs reported to French GPs. However, more suicidal acts were reported among younger and older individuals. Suicidal patients and GPs have adapted by improving the expression of suicidal ideas.

Seasonal changes and decrease of suicides and suicide attempts in France over the last 10 years.

The objective of this study was to examine the evolution of suicides and suicide attempts over the last 10 years in France. We analyzed the number of deaths by suicide and suicide attempts in metropolitan France (2009-2018) from French national databases, on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Seasonal variation in suicide rates was modeled using a cosinor function. Based on this model, we determined the association of suicides and suicide attempts with geographic characteristics, age, gender, means used and psychiatric disorders. The number of suicides and suicide attempts decreased over the last ten years in France (mean decrease of 14.49% and 11.69% per year). We observed a significant and recurrent seasonal pattern of suicides and suicide attempts in France, with a peak in spring. The suicide and suicide attempt rates were higher in the northern departments of France. Suicides were more frequent for men (75%) and middle-age individuals (45-54 years old), while suicide attempts were more frequent for women (62%) and young adults and middle-age individual (15-19 and 40-49 years old). Nearly two-thirds of the patients who attempted suicide suffered from comorbid psychiatric disorders. Mood disorders was the most frequent comorbid psychiatric disorder (54%). Voluntary drug intoxication was the most common means of suicide attempt (80%), and hanging was the most common means of suicide (54%). The number of suicides and suicide attempts decreased in France over the last 10 years, with large and recurrent seasonal variations. These findings could be used to alert and adjust prevention policies, as well as developing preventive strategies such as chronotherapeutics.

Psychiatric hospitalisations for people who are incarcerated, 2009-2019: An 11-year retrospective longitudinal study in France.

Background: Despite the poor mental health status of people who are incarcerated, few studies have examined the number of psychiatric hospitalisations in this population. Since 2010, France has progressively opened nine full-time inpatient psychiatric wards exclusively for people who are incarcerated, called "specially adapted hospital units" (unités hospitalières spécialement aménagées, UHSAs, 440 beds). This study aimed to present the annual rates of psychiatric hospitalisations and primary psychiatric diagnoses among people who are incarcerated in France from 2009 to 2019. Methods: We used discharge reports from the French national hospital database to describe longitudinal retrospective administrative data of psychiatric hospitalisations for people in jail and prison between 2009 and 2019, the age, sex, and principal diagnoses of these patients, the proportion of voluntary versus involuntary care, and the interactions between UHSAs and other facilities. Findings: Between Jan 1, 2009, and Dec 31, 2019, 32,228 (92.2% men, n = 29,721; 7.8% women, n = 2 507) incarcerated people were hospitalised for psychiatric care (64,481 stays). The main diagnoses were psychotic disorders (27.4%), personality disorders (23.2%), and stress-related disorders (20.2%). The annual number of incarcerated people hospitalised in psychiatric care increased from 3263 in 2009 to 4914 in 2019. The gradual increase in the activity of UHSAs (300 hospitalisations in 2010 versus 3252 in 2019) was not associated with a reduction in the rate of hospitalisation of incarcerated people in local psychiatric hospitals. Interpretation: The creation of psychiatric hospitals specifically dedicated to the prison population has not stopped the hospitalisation of people who are incarcerated at psychiatric hospitals. These findings suggest that access to psychiatric hospitalisation remains problematic for people who are incarcerated in France. Funding: There was no funding source for this study.

Psychiatric Hospitalizations of People Found Not Criminally Responsible on Account of Mental Disorder in France: A Ten-Year Retrospective Study (2011-2020).

Background: Criminal responsibility is a key concept in the criminal sanctioning of people diagnosed with mental health disorders who have committed crimes. In France, based on the recommendations of one or more expert psychiatrists, a judge can declare a person not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCRMD) if, at the time of the offense, the person was presenting a psychiatric disorder that abolished or altered his/her capacity for discernment and/or ability to control his/her actions. In such a case, the judge also generally orders an involuntary psychiatric hospitalization. The objectives of this study were to (1) describe longitudinal retrospective administrative data of psychiatric hospitalizations for people found NCRMD, (2) identify the age, sex, and principal diagnoses of these individuals, and (3) characterize the trajectories of their psychiatric care before and after NCRMD psychiatric hospitalization. Methods: We used discharge reports from the French national hospital database called Programme de médicalisation des systèmes d'information (PMSI) to gather longitudinal data that describe psychiatric hospitalizations for people found NCRMD between 2011 and 2020, the age, sex, and principal diagnoses of these patients, the length of their hospitalization, and the trajectories of their psychiatric care before and after their NCRMD psychiatric hospitalization. Results: We identified 3,020 patients who were hospitalized for psychiatric care after having been found NCRMD between 2011 and 2020. The number of admissions on these grounds has remained stable over this period, ranging from 263 in 2011 to 227 in 2021. They were mostly young men diagnosed with a psychotic disorder (62%). The majority (87%) were hospitalized in general psychiatric hospitals, and only 13% were admitted to maximum-security units (Unités pour malades difficiles, UMD). The median duration of hospitalization for these patients was 13 months. Our results show that 73% of the patients had already been hospitalized prior to their NRCMD hospitalization. The rehospitalization rate within 5 years of discharge from NCRMD psychiatric hospitalization was 62%. Conclusion: We conducted the first study investigating the psychiatric hospital treatment of people declared NCRMD in France. There is an urgent need for further studies to investigate the clinical characteristics of these patients.

Non-presentation at hospital following a suicide attempt: a national survey.

BACKGROUND: A few previous studies suggest that a large number of individuals do not present at hospital following a suicide attempt, complicating recurrence prevention and prevalence estimation. METHODS: Data were extracted from a regular phone survey in representative samples of the French population aged 18-75 years old. Five surveys between 2000 and 2017 collected data about the occurrence of a previous suicide attempt and subsequent care contacts. A total of 102,729 individuals were surveyed. Among them, 6,500 (6.4%) reported a lifetime history of suicide attempt. RESULTS: Following their last suicide attempt, 39.3% reported they did not present to hospital (53.4% in 18-24 year-olds), with limited changes in rates with time. Risk factors for non-presentation were being male [adjusted odds ratio = 1.3, 95% confidence interval (1.1-1.5)], living with someone [1.2 (1.0-1.4)], being a non-smoker [1.4 (1.2-1.6)], and being younger at time of attempt [0.97 (0.96-0.98) per year]. Of those who did not present to hospital, only 37.7% reported visiting a doctor or a psychiatrist/psychologist after their act v. 67.1% in those who presented to hospital (as a second health contact). In both cases, half disclosed their act to someone else. Prevalence rates of suicide attempts reported in community were 4.6 times higher than those in hospital administrative databases. CONCLUSIONS: This survey at a national level confirmed that a large proportion of individuals does not go to the hospital and does not meet any health care professionals following a suicidal act. Assessment of unmet needs is necessary.

Self-reported fears and mental health in elementary school children across Europe.

Fears are common in the general population and particularly among children. The number of fear subtypes (animals, natural environment, situational, blood-injection-injury or other type) has been shown to be associated with psychopathology. Furthermore, there is evidence suggesting that some subtypes may be more often associated with mental disorders than others. The present study uses data from a large cross sectional survey, the School Children Mental Health in Europe (SCMHE) study, conducted in eight European countries on children ages 6 through 13-years-old attending elementary school (n = 9613). Fear subtypes and self-reported mental health were assessed using the Dominic Interactive (DI), a self-administered computerized image-based questionnaire. The findings show that the number of fear subtypes is strongly associated with self-reported internalizing and externalizing problems. In addition, adjusting for the number of subtypes, fear of animals was less likely than other fears to be associated with psychopathology. The findings support the notion that children who report excessive and generalized fear should be targeted for prevention, consistent with research identifying childhood onset generalized specific phobia as a probable precursor to subsequent psychopathology.

Impact of meteorological factors on alcohol use disorders: A study in emergency departments.

No data exist on the influence of meteorological factors on alcohol use disorders (AUD). The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between meteorological factors and AUD. All patients who were admitted to an emergency department (ED) in the Paris-region for an alcohol-related condition were included using the Oscour® database over the period January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2019. Meteorological data were collected by Météo-France (French Weather service). All data were aggregated by week. We performed Pearson correlations between weather variables and the number of ED visits for AUD. We observed 98,748 ED visits for alcohol-related conditions over the study period. We found significant positive correlations between the number of alcohol-related ED visits and the mean temperature (r = 0.55; p = 1.87e -5, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 0.33, 0.72) and the duration of sunlight (r = 0.42; p = .0015, 95% CI = 0.17, 0.62). Negative correlations were also found significant with rain (r = -0.40; p = .0014, 95% CI = -0.62, -0.18), humidity (r = -0.41; p = .0023, 95% CI = -0.62, -0.16) and wind speed (r = -0.40; p = .0031, 95% CI = -0.60, -0.14). Emergency visits for AUD seem to increase with the temperature and duration of sunlight, and decrease with rain, humidity and wind speed. Further studies are needed on a larger scale and taking into account potential confounding factors to confirm these findings.

Utilization of Hospital-Level Mental Health Care Services for Inmates in France: A Transversal Study.

OBJECTIVES: No study has assessed utilization of hospital-level mental health care for French prisoners. In particular, the impact of unités hospitalières spécialement aménagées (UHSAs; "specially equipped hospital units"), the full-time inpatient psychiatric wards for inmates created in 2010, remains unknown. The aim of this study was to describe the overall patterns of psychiatric hospitalization for detained people in France during 2016. METHODS: The study was conducted by using a national psychiatric hospital discharge database. The authors identified incarcerated people who were hospitalized in UHSAs, general psychiatric hospitals, maximum-security unités pour malades difficiles (UMDs; "units for difficult patients"), and day treatment hospitals for inmates known as services médico-psychologiques régionaux (SMPRs; "regional medical-psychological services"), from January 1 to December 31, 2016. RESULTS: In 2016, 4,392 incarcerated patients (7,027 admissions) were hospitalized (92% males). Overall, 1,944 patients were hospitalized in UHSAs, 1,787 in general psychiatric hospitals, 97 in UMDs, and 1,465 in SMPRs. That year, 815 patients (19%) were admitted to at least two different facilities. The mean cumulative length of stay per patient was 86.7 days (95% confidence interval=80.1-93.3; median=27 days), with longer durations of stay in UMDs and SMPRs than in UHSAs and general psychiatric hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the recent creation of UHSAs, the hospitalization of inmates in general psychiatric hospitals remains frequent in France. Future research should consider the value of further developing UHSAs.

Management in primary care at the time of a suicide attempt and its impact on care post-suicide attempt: an observational study in the French GP sentinel surveillance system.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to describe primary care management at the time of a suicide attempt (SA) and after the SA. METHODS: An observational (cross-sectional) study was conducted among 166 sentinel GPs within France (a non-gatekeeping country) between 2013 and 2017 for all GP's patients who attempted suicide. MEASUREMENTS: frequency of patients 1) managed by the GP at the time of the SA, 2) addressed to an emergency department (ED), 3) without care at the time of the SA, and 4) managed by the GP after the SA and factors associated with GP management at the time of and after the SA. RESULTS: Three hundred twenty-one SAs were reported, of which N = 95 (29.6%) were managed by the GP at the time of the SA, N = (70.5%) were referred to an ED, and N = (27.4%) remained at home. Forty-eight (14.9%) patients did not receive any care at the time of the SA and 178 (55.4%) were managed directly by an ED. GPs were more likely to be involved in management of the patient at the time of the SA if they were younger (39.2% for patients < 34 years old; 22.9% for those 35 to 54 years old, and 30.3% for those more than 55 years old p = 0.02) or the SA involved a firearm or self-cutting (51.9%) versus those involving drugs (23.7%); p = 0.006). After the SA, GPs managed 174 patients (54.2%), more often (60%) when they provided care at home at the time of the SA, p = 0.04; 1.87 [1.07; 3.35]. No other factor was associated with management by GPs after the SA. CONCLUSIONS: The study faced limitations: data were not available for patients managed solely by specialists during their SA and results may not be generalisable to countries with a stronger gatekeeping system. We concluded that GPs are involved in the management of patients at the time of a SA for a third of patients. EDs are the major provider of care at that time. Half patients consulted GPs after the SA and connections between GPs and ED upon discharge should be improved.

[Suicide in prison: Epidemiology and prevention]. / Le suicide en prison : épidémiologie et dispositifs de prévention.

Suicide is one of the most important causes of death in prison around the world. In France, suicide rate for prisoners is 18.5 suicides per 10,000 inmates: seven times more common than in the general population. Among the risk factors identified in the literature, those most strongly associated with suicide in prison are physical isolation in custody, psychiatric history and history of suicide attempts. The prevention of suicide in prison involves several measures including treatment of psychiatric disorders, improvement of living conditions in custody, social support of prisoners and use of specific tools and programs by prison supervisors. No program for prevention of suicidal recurrence has ever been implemented. We propose to adapt « VigilanS ¼, a program already applied in the general population, to the prison population.

Factors Associated with Parent-Child Discrepancies in Reports of Mental Health Disorders in Young Children.

The study compares parent and child reports of child mental health to determine the relationship between parent-child disagreement and parental psychological and attitudinal factors, and to determine how parent-child disagreement is associated with the use of specialized services. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1268 children aged 6-11 years using the Dominic Interactive and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Psychological distress and negative parental attitudes were associated with greater reporting of mental health problems, leading to greater parent-child agreement on symptom presence, and to parental over-reporting of symptoms. Parent/child agreement was associated with 43.83% of contact with a mental health provider for externalizing and 33.73% for internalizing problems. The contribution of key parental psychological and attitudinal factors in parent-child disagreement on child mental health status may prove helpful in improving the identification of children in need of specialized services.

Self-reported mental health in children ages 6-12 years across eight European countries.

Worldwide, approximately one in eight children or adolescents suffers from a mental disorder. The present study was designed to determine the self-reported prevalence of mental health problems in children aged 6-11 years across eight European countries including Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey. Data were drawn from 6245 children participating in the School Children Mental Health in Europe (SCHME) study and a large cross-sectional survey in France. Self-reported child mental health was assessed using the Dominique Interactive (DI). Overall, 22.0% of children were identified per their own evaluation as having at least one mental disorder, ranging from 16.4% in the Netherlands to 27.9% in Bulgaria. The prevalence of internalizing disorders was 18.4% across countries and ranged from 11.8% in the Netherlands to 24.3% in Turkey. The prevalence of externalizing disorders was lower with an average of 7.8%, ranging from 3.5% in Turkey to 10.5% in Bulgaria. Combining samples across European countries, 1 in 5 children reported internalizing problems and 1 in 12 children externalizing problems. The net completion rates of 4.1-74.3% preclude conclusions about national differences in prevalence rates.

Use of medical administrative data for the surveillance of psychotic disorders in France.

BACKGROUND: Psychotic disorders are among the most severe psychiatric disorders that have great effects on the individuals and the society. For surveillance of chronic low prevalence conditions such as psychotic disorders, medical administrative databases can be useful due to their large coverage of the population, their continuous availability and low costs with possibility of linkage between different databases. The aims of this study are to identify the population with psychotic disorders by different algorithms based on the French medical administrative data and examine the prevalence and characteristics of this population in 2014. METHODS: The health insurance system covers the entire population living in France and all reimbursements of ambulatory care in private practice are included in a national health insurance claim database, which can be linked with the national hospital discharge databases. Three algorithms were used to select most appropriately persons with psychotic disorders through data from hospital discharge databases, reimbursements for psychotropic medication and full insurance coverage for chronic and costly conditions. RESULTS: In France in 2014, estimates of the number of individuals with psychotic disorders were 469,587 (54.6% males) including 237,808 with schizophrenia (63.6% males). Of those, 77.0% with psychotic disorders and 70.8% with schizophrenia received exclusively ambulatory care. Prevalence rates of psychotic disorders were 7.4 per 1000 inhabitants (8.3 in males and 6.4 in females) and 3.8 per 1000 inhabitants (4.9 in males and 2.6 in females) for schizophrenia. Prevalence of psychotic disorders reached a maximum of 14 per 1000 in males between 35 and 49 years old then decreased with age while in females, the highest rate of 10 per 1000 was reached at age 50 without decrease with advancing age. No such plateau was observed in schizophrenia. DISCUSSION: This study is the first in France using an exhaustive sample of medical administrative data to derive prevalence rates for psychotic disorders. Although only individuals in contact with healthcare services were included, the rates were congruent with reported estimates from systematic reviews. The feasibility of this study will allow the implementation of a national surveillance of psychotic disorders essential for healthcare management and policy planning.

Exposure to psychotropics in the French older population living with dementia: a nationwide population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the level of psychotropic chronic exposure in all patients living with dementia. The aim of the study was to quantify chronic psychotropic exposure in older adults with dementia compared with the general population of the same age. METHODS: This prospective cohort study was conducted in France between 2009 and 2011. Aged at least 65 years, 10,781,812 individuals (440,215 of them with dementia) either community based or nursing home residents were included. The numbers of single or combined prescriptions, per year for antipsychotics, antidepressants, anxiolytics, or hypnotics were measured. RESULTS: Of patients with dementia, 15.5% are exposed to antipsychotics compared with 2.2% of the age-matched population (relative risk [RR] = 6.44, 95% confidence interval [CI] [6.39-6.48]), 39.5% to antidepressants compared with 12.6% (RR = 4.10, 95% CI [.4.07-4.12]), and 39.6% to anxiolytics or hypnotics compared with 26.9% (RR = 1.74, 95% CI [1.72-1.75]). Among older adults with dementia, 13.8% simultaneously consumed at least three psychotropics. All class age of older patients with dementia is more exposed to all psychotropics except for long-acting benzodiazepines. During the study period, chronic anxiolytic/hypnotic and antipsychotic exposure slightly decreased in population with dementia while chronic exposure to antidepressant drugs tended to increase. CONCLUSION: This nationwide, population-based, drug-used study showed for the first time that older patients with dementia are chronically overexposed not only to antipsychotics but also to psychotropics.

Increase in psychotropic drug deliveries after the Xynthia storm, France, 2010.

INTRODUCTION: During the night of February 27 and the early morning of February 28, 2010, 15 coastal municipalities situated in two French departments, Vendée and Charente-Maritime, were violently stricken by a severe windstorm named "Xynthia." This storm caused the death of 12 individuals in Charente-Maritime and 29 people in Vendée. Houses, agricultural fields, and shellfish companies were severely flooded with seawater. Several thousand people temporarily had to leave their homes. The objective of this study was to estimate the short-term mental health impact of Xynthia, in terms of psychotropic drug delivery, on the resident population of the 15 coastal municipalities severely hit by the flooding. METHODS: The French national health insurance database was used to calculate a daily number of new psychotropic treatments from September 1, 2008 through December 24, 2010. New treatments were calculated for each of the following European Pharmaceutical Marketing Research Association (EphMRA) classes: tranquilizers (N05C), hypnotics (N05B), and antidepressants (N06A). A period of three weeks following the storm was defined as the exposure period. A generalized additive model with a Poisson distribution that allows for over-dispersion was used to analyze the correlation between the Xynthia variable and the number of new psychotropic treatments. RESULTS: With a relative risk (RR) of 1.54 (95% CI, 1.39-1.62) corresponding to an estimate of 409 new deliveries of psychotropic drugs during the three weeks following the storm, this study confirms the importance of the psychological impact of Xynthia. This impact is seen on all three classes of psychotropic drugs studied. The impact is greater for tranquilizers (RR of 1.78; 95% CI, 1.59-1.89) than for hypnotics (RR of 1.53; 95% CI, 1.31-1.67) and antidepressants (RR of 1.26; 95% CI, 1.06-1.40). The RR was higher for females than for males. CONCLUSION: This study shows the importance of the psychological impact of the storm as observed clinically by health workers who intervened in the field during the aftermath of Xynthia. It confirms that administrative databases can be used to show a health impact of a disaster even at a local level. This is one more step in the direction of a comprehensive strategy of collecting information to allow the assessment of the health impact of an extreme event, the detection of vulnerable populations, and the orientation of the short-, mid- and long-term public health response.

[The current state of mental health surveillance in France]. / État des lieux de la surveillance de la santé mentale en France.

UNLABELLED: The purpose of health surveillance is to contribute to health planning, information and prevention. Surveillance involves repeated data collections based on epidemiological studies and follow-up of data collected from medical-administrative databases. This paper provides an overview of mental health surveillance in France and examines the relevance and limitations of the collected data. METHOD: The prevalence of major depressive episodes (MDE) in the general population was recently examined in seven studies. Among these studies, the Health Barometers involved two data collections at a five-year interval using the same method. Mortality and hospitalization data are important for suicide and suicide attempt (SA) surveillance. Health insurance databases provide key information about psychotropic drug use and serious psychiatric illnesses defined as long-term. RESULTS: The prevalence of 12­month MDE remained stable at 7.8% between 2005 and 2010. Mortality data show a suicide rate of 16 per 100,000 inhabitants. Hospital data show that the rate of hospitalization for SAs is approximately ten times that of suicide. Data from emergency wards indicate that approximately 220,000 SAs are admitted to hospital emergency services every year. Currently, depressive disorders are the primary reason for new admissions under the ALD23. DISCUSSION: A comparison of data from different sources is required to provide a basis for mental health surveillance in France and to help identify those populations that need to be targeted as a matter of priority by prevention measures.

Psychotropic drug use among older people in general practice: discrepancies between opinion and practice.

BACKGROUND: The use of psychotropic drugs has increased over recent years in France. GPs are the first prescribers, especially for older patients. AIM: To analyse discrepancies between GPs' opinions and practice when prescribing psychotropic drugs to older patients. SETTING: Postal surveys sent to GPs all over mainland France. DESIGN OF STUDY: Cross-sectional postal study. METHOD: A questionnaire collected data on characteristics of GPs' practices, their opinions about psychotropic drug consumption in older people, and a full description of their last older patient receiving a psychotropic drug and seen last by the GP on that particular day. RESULTS: A total of 350 participating GPs saw 2498 patients aged > or =65 years. Among these patients, the prevalence of psychotropic use was 32.1% (803/2498) for anxiolytics/hypnotics, and 17.5% for antidepressants (438/2498). A total of 91% of GPs agreed that it was possible to reduce or stop psychotropic drugs for these patients. Characteristics of 339 patients taking psychotropic drug were reported: 85.8% (291/339) received at least one anxiolytic/hypnotic and 56.9% (193/339) received at least one antidepressant; there were prescribed for more than 1 year in 68.4% (199/291) and 43.5% (84/193) of the cases respectively. GPs stated that it was possible to reduce or stop anxiolytic/hypnotic drugs for only 27% (79/291) of these patients. Barriers to doing this were patients' refusal (79%), and the absence of any local offer of psychotherapy (73%) or alternative therapy (70%). CONCLUSION: A mismatch exists between GPs' intent (91%) and practice (27%) regarding reduction of psychotropic prescription in individuals aged > or =65 years. The barriers encountered should be examined further to help physicians improve management of psychotropic prescription.

The associations between headaches and psychopathology: a survey in school children.

BACKGROUND: Headaches are common in childhood and significantly impact children's quality of life. On the contrary to the adolescent and adult population, there are few data on the associations between headaches and psychopathology in young children. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between child headaches, emotional and behavioral difficulties in children aged 6-11 years old. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2004 in 100 primary schools from a large French region, with 2341 children aged 6-11 years old randomly selected. Child headache status, comorbid physical conditions, and socioeconomic characteristics were collected in parent-administered questionnaires. Child psychopathology outcomes were assessed using child- and parent-reported standardized instruments: respectively, the Dominic Interactive and the Strengths and the Difficulties Questionnaire. Associations were estimated using logistic regression models. RESULTS: Response rates to the parent questionnaire and the Dominic Interactive were 57.4% and 95.1%, respectively. The final sample size was 1308 children. Eleven percent of the children already experienced frequent headaches in their lifetime, with no difference by age or gender. Headaches were associated with parent-reported emotional problems (OR=1.76; 95% CI: 1.03-3.01) and self-reported general anxiety disorder (OR=1.99; 1.13-3.52). Comorbid physical conditions ≥2 appeared as an independent factor significantly associated with headaches (OR =1.75; 95% CI: 1.13-2.73). Inversely, low parental punitive behaviors were less frequently associated with headaches (OR=0.41; 95% CI: 0.18-0.94). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest some associations between headaches, emotional disorders, and comorbid physical conditions in young children aged 6-11 years old. Those results should be considered in the treatment approaches of childhood headaches and from the etiological aspect.

Do teachers have more health problems? Results from a French cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: Although only a few studies have been published on teachers' health, certain ideas are widely accepted, such as for example, the preconceived notion that teachers suffer from an excessively high rate of mental health problems. The objective of this study is to compare teachers' mental and physical health to that of a control group. METHODS: A cross-sectional postal survey was conducted among a sample of 3,679 teachers and 1,817 non-teachers aged 20 to 60 years old. RESULTS: No lifetime prevalence of any psychiatric disorder (with the exception of undifferentiated somatoform disorder in men) or mean scores of psychological distress were found to be significantly higher in teachers. However, multiple analyses, adjusted for all confounding variables, revealed a higher risk of lifetime anxiety disorders in male teachers. On the other hand, significant differences were observed for some physical ailments: a higher lifetime prevalence of rhinopharyngitis/laryngitis in both male and female teachers, of conjunctivitis and lower urinary tract infection in male teachers and of bronchitis, eczema/dermatitis and varicose veins in female teachers. No significant difference was found for chronic pain between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Teachers do not seem to have poorer mental health. However, their physical condition is characterized by a higher prevalence of health problems related to the ENT tract, and to a lesser extent, depending on the gender, to skin, eyes, legs and lower urinary tract.