The Experience of Insomnia in Patients With Schizophrenic Disorder: A Qualitative Study

BackgroundInsomnia is a health problem that particularly affects people with schizophrenia. Its repercussions go beyond the disorder itself and affect many areas of life. The aim of the present study is to explore the clinical symptoms and consequences of insomnia in patients diagnosed with schizophrenic disorder and the perceptions of these patients regarding the care they receive.MethodsThe study takes a qualitative approach and uses semi-structured interviews to conduct a descriptive and interpretive analysis of 3 clinically different clusters of patients. These 3 clusters have been defined by using two-step cluster analysis based on the results of the ISI (Insomnia Severity Index) and EQ-5D scales (EuroQol-5D) and the presence of certain diagnostic symptoms in a sample of 170 patients. The final sample was 31 subjects. The analysis was based on a hermeneutic analysis of the patients' narratives regarding their experiences of insomnia.ResultsThe patients' narratives show differences in the intensity and experience of insomnia depending on the severity, as well as its impact on their quality of life. Insomnia has a huge emotional impact. Participants describe ruminations and obsessive thoughts as a key factor hindering falling asleep. Some of the everyday actions they perform encourage the chronicity of insomnia. The desired health response must include interventions that are effective, such as cognitive-behavioural therapy, and powerful, such as pharmacological solutions. Psychoeducation and advice on sleep hygiene are highly valued tools as preventive strategies.ConclusionsTo know the experience of users gives us a more comprehensive understanding of insomnia complexities and brings some new intervention strategies in patients with mental disorders. It is important that health professionals intervene preventively to stop the disorder from becoming chronic.

The Sense of Smell in Logopaedic Theory and Practice

Olfactory disorders concern many diseases of laryngological, neurological, oncological and gerontological origins, and sometimes are one of the diagnostic symptoms of a serious illness. The aim of this article is to describe the sense of smell (anatomy, physiology, functions, etiology and characteristics of disorders) and, in particular, to present this sense in the context of logopedic theory and practice. Speech therapists may inter alia assess the functioning of the sense of smell on the basis of an interview with the patient or caregiver, make a general evaluation of the functioning of the sense of smell, using different olfactory samples. As part of speech therapy, speech therapists may include stimulation of the sense of smell through various exercises, e.g. odour differentiation exercises, exercises in guessing and naming different odours, exercises in differentiating odour intensity, exercises in searching the source of smell.

Incidence of Appendicitis in Adults

Background: Appendicitis is a common infection which can lead to serious illness in children as well as adults. Objective: To assess the incidence of appendicitis in adults. Study Design: Retrospective study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of General Surgery, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore from 1st January 2020 to 30th June 2021. Methodology: One hundred and eighty cases registered for abdominal pain in right iliac fossa. The appendectomy cases of adults (>45 years) were scrutinized from these cases. Demographic and clinical information was gathered from each appendicitis patient with diagnostic symptoms as well as histopathology and radiology imaging. Result: Eighty seven were confirmed acute appendicitis with 48 males and 39 females within the age group of 45-75 years. Gangrenous appendicitis was presented in 11.5% and perforated appendicitis was noticed in 31.03% of the total patients. Conclusion: The incidence of appendicitis was 48.33% in adults. Keywords: Appendectomy, Perforated, Misdiagnosis

The Management of Irritable Bowel Syndrome: The Viewpoint of Italian General Practitioners in Activity and in Training

Background: Guidelines on Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) are usually developed by specialists, with a possible translational gap in primary care. Aims: To evaluate the knowledge of IBS of Italian General Practitioners (GPs) and the difference compared to doctors in Training for General Practice (ITGPs). Methods: A questionnaire was completed by 170 GPs and 64 ITGPs. Results: The Rome Criteria and Bristol Scale are more familiar to ITGPs than GPs. The most frequently used diagnostic symptoms are abdominal pain, bowel movement frequency and bloating. GPs and ITGPs think that bloating and abdominal discomfort should be introduced into the definition of IBS. Intestinal motility disorders and psychological factors are considered to be the most probable cause of IBS. GPs report more frequently than ITGPs that the patient's request and difficulties in managing the disorder are reasons for a gastroenterological referral. Conclusions: There is still a gap between the indications provided by the experts and clinical practice, and this seems greater on the part of GPs than ITGPs. Abdominal pain and bowel frequency changes are considered the main symptoms for diagnosing IBS, but most GPs and ITGPs would like to include bloating among the diagnostic criteria. It would be highly desirable to develop commonly shared guidelines between gastroenterologists and GPs.

Root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) an emerging problem in pointed gourd in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh, India: a serious threat

Root-Knot Nematode, Meloidogyne incognita has emerged as one of the serious threats to vegetable production throughout the world due to its adaptable nature, wide host range, and ability to cause huge losses. The losses caused by a root-knot nematode, M. incognita may vary from 16 to 80%. The various diagnostic symptoms are stunted growth, yellowing, root gall formation of the vegetable crop. A survey was conducted in Sitapur district and it was revealed that root-knot nematode is one of the serious threats in pointed gourd production, approximately 20 to 50% yield was recorded and it was observed that it is one of the limiting factors and will be a serious threat. The diagnostic symptoms degree depends upon several factors such as time of infection, variety, a load of inoculums, and abiotic factors such as soil type, texture, moisture, pH, carbon content, etc. Farmers were advised to use eco-friendly approaches such as removal of weeds, summer plowing, use of organic amendments and resistant cultivar may reduce the nematode population.

Survey on Early Detection of Alzheimer's Disease using Different Types of Neural Network Architecture

Alzheimer’s disease is a condition that leads to, progressive neurological brain disorder and destroys cells of the brain thereby causing an individual to lose their ability to continue daily activities and also hampers their mentality. Diagnostic symptoms are experienced by patients usually at later stages after irreversible neural damage occurs. Detection of AD is challenging because sometimes the signs that distinguish AD MRI data, can be found in MRI data of normal healthy brains of older people. Even though this disease is not completely curable, earlier detection can aid in promising treatment and prevent permanent damage to brain tissues. Age and genetics are the greatest risk factors for this disease. This paper presents the latest reports on AD detection based on different types of Neural Network Architectures.

“Is It Overtraining or Just Work Ethic?”: Coaches’ Perceptions of Overtraining in High-Performance Strength Sports

Optimal physical performance is achieved through the careful manipulation of training and recovery. Short-term increases in training demand can induce functional overreaching (FOR) that can lead to improved physical capabilities, whereas nonfunctional overreaching (NFOR) or the overtraining syndrome (OTS) occur when high training-demand is applied for extensive periods with limited recovery. To date, little is known about the OTS in strength sports, particularly from the perspective of the strength sport coach. Fourteen high-performance strength sport coaches from a range of strength sports (weightlifting; n = 5, powerlifting; n = 4, sprinting; n = 2, throws; n = 2, jumps; n = 1) participated in semistructured interviews (mean duration 57; SD = 10 min) to discuss their experiences of the OTS. Reflexive thematic analysis resulted in the identification of four higher order themes: definitions, symptoms, recovery and experiences and observations. Additional subthemes were created to facilitate organisation and presentation of data, and to aid both cohesiveness of reporting and publicising of results. Participants provided varied and sometimes dichotomous perceptions of the OTS and proposed a multifactorial profile of diagnostic symptoms. Prevalence of OTS within strength sports was considered low, with the majority of participants not observing or experiencing long-term reductions in performance with their athletes.

Early expressions of psychopathology and risk associated with trans-diagnostic transition to mood and psychotic disorders in adolescents and young adults

Objectives The heterogeneity and comorbidity of major mental disorders presenting in adolescents and young adults has fostered calls for trans-diagnostic research. This study examines early expressions of psychopathology and risk and trans-diagnostic caseness in a community cohort of twins and non-twin siblings. Methods Using data from the Brisbane Longitudinal Twin Study, we estimated median number of self-rated psychiatric symptoms, prevalence of subthreshold syndromes, family history of mood and/or psychotic disorders, and likelihood of subsequent trans-diagnostic caseness (individuals meeting diagnostic criteria for mood and/or psychotic syndromes). Next, we used cross-validated Chi-Square Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID) analyses to identify the nature and relative importance of individual self-rated symptoms that predicted trans-diagnostic caseness. We examined the positive and negative predictive values (PPV; NPV) and accuracy of all classifications (Area under the Curve and 95% confidence intervals: AUC; 95% CI). Results Of 1815 participants (Female 1050, 58%; mean age 26.40), more than one in four met caseness criteria for a mood and/or psychotic disorder. Examination of individual factors indicated that the AUC was highest for subthreshold syndromes, followed by family history then self-rated psychiatric symptoms, and that NPV always exceeded PPV for caseness. In contrast, the CHAID analysis (adjusted for age, sex, twin status) generated a classification tree comprising six trans-diagnostic symptoms. Whilst the contribution of two symptoms (need for sleep; physical activity) to the model was more difficult to interpret, CHAID analysis indicated that four self-rated symptoms (sadness; feeling overwhelmed; impaired concentration; paranoia) offered the best discrimination between cases and non-cases. These four symptoms showed different associations with family history status. Conclusions The findings need replication in independent cohorts. However, the use of CHAID might provide a means of identifying specific subsets of trans-diagnostic symptoms representing clinical phenotypes that predict transition to caseness in individuals at risk of onset of major mental disorders.

Abnormal ERPs and Brain Dynamics Mediate Basic Self Disturbance in Schizophrenia: A Review of EEG and MEG Studies

Background: Interest in disordered sense of self in schizophrenia has recently re-emerged in the literature. It has been proposed that there is a basic self disturbance, underlying the diagnostic symptoms of schizophrenia, in which the person's sense of being a bounded individual continuous through time loses stability. This disturbance has been documented phenomenologically and at the level of cognitive tasks. However, the neural correlates of basic self disorder in schizophrenia are poorly understood.Methods: A search of PubMed was used to identify studies on self and schizophrenia that reported EEG or MEG data.Results: Thirty-three studies were identified, 32 using EEG and one using MEG. Their operationalizations of the self were divided into six paradigms: self-monitoring for errors, proprioception, self-other integration, self-referential processing, aberrant salience, and source monitoring. Participants with schizophrenia were less accurate on self-referential processing tasks and had slower response times across most studies. Event-related potential amplitudes differed across many early and late components, with reduced N100 suppression in source monitoring paradigms being the most replicated finding. Several studies found differences in one or more frequency band, but no coherent overall finding emerged in this area. Various other measures of brain dynamics also showed differences in single studies. Only some of the study designs were adequate to establish a causal relationship between the self and EEG or MEG measures.Conclusion: The broad range of changes suggests a global self disturbance at the neuronal level, possibly carried over from the resting state. Further studies that successfully isolate self-related effects are warranted to better understand the temporal-dynamic and spatial-topographic basis of self disorder and its relationship to basic self disturbance on the phenomenological level.

Two cases of special POEMS syndrome without monoclonal protein expression: a case report and literature review

POEMS (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, skin changes) syndrome is rare, with polyneuropathy and monoclonal plasma cell disorder generally considered as essential diagnostic symptoms. We report two cases of POEMS syndrome without monoclonal protein expression. The first case was a 72-year-old man who had experienced recurrent edema of the lower limbs for 2 years and abdominal distention for 2 months. The other case was a 62-year-old man with a 5-year history of recurrent numbness of the extremities and muscle weakness, which had become serious over the preceding 3 months. Both patients had various symptoms that matched those of POEMS syndrome, but neither had monoclonal protein expression. However, a diagnosis of POEMS syndrome was made in each case. Both patients were treated with lenalidomide and dexamethasone, after which their symptoms improved and laboratory test results normalized. The findings in these two cases suggest the possibility that POEMS syndrome may occur without monoclonal protein expression. The diagnostic criteria of POEMS syndrome may thus need further investigation.