Medicine
-
The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) has been widely used to screen depression symptoms. The present research aimed to assess the reliability and validity of PHQ-9, besides measurement invariance of the PHQ-9 across gender and age among Chinese university students. A total of 12,957 Chinese college students from 2 universities in Henan and Hainan provinces (China) completed the questionnaires via WeChat. ⋯ Multi-group analysis across gender and age demonstrated that measurement equivalency for the 2-factor model of the PHQ-9 was established (e.g., Root mean square error of approximation < 0.08, Comparative fit index > 0.90 and Tucker-Lewis index > 0.90). The 2-factor model of the PHQ-9 without the items of "movement" and "desire to die" showed a better fit index in Chinese university students. The measurement equivalence across gender and age for the 2-factor model of the PHQ-9 can be established among Chinese university students.
-
Case Reports
Glioblastoma in the contralateral cerebral hemisphere with previous surgery for meningioma: A case report.
Meningioma and glioblastoma (GBM) are 2 common intracranial tumors with different pathophysiologies and prognoses. It is rare for these 2 kinds of tumors to occur in the same patient. Most of the similar cases reported in the literature have been treated with radiotherapy, while cases without radiotherapy are rare. In particular, GBM in the contralateral cerebral hemisphere after resection of meningioma has not been reported. ⋯ The development of GBM without radiotherapy after meningioma surgery is very rare, especially at different sites, and it is necessary to accumulate relevant cases to reveal the causes of the disease and provide more evidence for the treatment of similar patients in the future.
-
Observational Study
The cutoff value of presepsin for diagnosing sepsis increases with kidney dysfunction, a cross-sectional observational study.
As presepsin levels increase with kidney dysfunction (KD), our aim was to establish cutoff points for presepsin adapted to the level of KD in order to avoid bacterial infection overdiagnosis, antibiotic overprescription, and risk of bacterial resistance. This is a unicenter retrospective study, which included all patients admitted on an emergency basis to 2 departments of a teaching hospital during a 2-year interval to whom presepsin level was determined at the emergency department prior to admission. Serum creatinine (sCrt) was employed to estimate the severity of KD using 3 thresholds (1.5, 2, and 4 mg/dL) resulting in 4 degrees of severity: KD_1, KD_2, KD_3, KD_4. ⋯ The threshold for abnormal presepsin should be about 600, 1000, and 1300 pg/mL in patients with KD_1, KD_2, and KD_3, respectively. In patients with KD_4, presepsin has a poor discriminating power for sepsis diagnosis. If, notwithstanding, it is used for this purpose, the cutoff point should be at least at 2200.
-
Case Reports
Disseminated nontuberculous mycobacteria infection in an immunocompetent host: A case report.
Disseminated nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections are rare and occur primarily in immunocompromised hosts. Mycobacterium abscessus complex (MABC), including M abscessus subsp. massiliense (hereafter M massiliense) is a complex of rapidly growing mycobacterial (RGM) species of NTM. Here, we present a rare case of disseminated NTM infection with RGM bacteremia caused by M massiliense in an immunocompetent host. ⋯ Disseminated NTM infections with RGM bacteremia in an immunocompetent host have rarely been reported. In this case, PICC placement for more than 6 months was suspected to be an important risk factor for RGM bacteremia in an immunocompetent patient. To date, there are only insufficient case reports, moreover no clear guidelines regarding the optimal choice of antibiotics or length of treatment for disseminated NTM infection. Therefore, it is necessary to establish treatment guidelines for patients with disseminated NTM infection and bacteremia.
-
Observational Study
The importance of infectious disease specialists consulting on a weekly basis in a Japanese tertiary care hospital: A retrospective observational study.
Limited data are available regarding part-time infectious disease consultations (IDCs) and their importance in tertiary care teaching hospitals in Japan. This is a retrospective review of IDCs from June 2016 to March 2021 and describes IDC services provided by part-time infectious disease specialists once a week for 4 hours, and their impact on the quality of medical care, including antimicrobial stewardship. Data, such as the requesting department, requesting reasons, and final diagnoses, were analyzed. ⋯ DOT/1000 patient-days were reduced for meropenem and cefepime, while it increased for tazobactam/piperacillin. The DOT/1000 patient-days for the 3-antipseudomonal agents significantly decreased during this period. After implementing the QI tetanus vaccination project in the Emergency Room, the number of tetanus toxoid vaccinations per month increased.