Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology
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Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol · Apr 2012
Depressive symptoms and suicide in 56,000 older Chinese: a Hong Kong cohort study.
To examine dose-response associations between depressive symptoms and suicide and modification effects of sex, age and health status in older Chinese. ⋯ Depressive symptoms predict higher suicide risk in older Chinese in a dose-response pattern. These associations were not attenuated by adjustment for health status, suggesting that depressive symptoms in older people are likely to be an independent causal factor for suicide. The GDS score showed no threshold in predicting suicide risk, suggesting that older people with low GDS scores deserve further attention and those with very high scores need urgent intervention.
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Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol · Apr 2012
Predicting community violence from patients discharged from acute mental health units in England.
To investigate the validity of risk factors and established risk measures in predicting community violence in an acute mental health sample up to 20 weeks post-discharge. ⋯ The risk factors and risk measures that have been found to be predictive in forensic samples are also predictive in acute mental health samples, although the effects are not as large. Future research needs to be conducted with a larger sample to include investigation of differences in risk factors based on gender and social support. Services and clinicians need to consider how to integrate findings into useful frameworks to support decisions and contribute to managing risk. This should assist in identifying interventions aimed at preventing community violence.
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Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol · Apr 2012
Perceived needs, self-reported health and disability among displaced persons during an armed conflict in Nepal.
Most internally displaced persons (IDPs) live in low-income countries and have experienced war. Few studies have assessed their psychosocial needs and disability. We carried out a comprehensive assessment of perceived needs, self-reported health, and disability among IDPs in Nepal and examined factors associated with disability. ⋯ The reporting of findings only about psychiatric symptoms is insufficient in studying the mental health of displaced and potentially traumatized populations living in low-income countries. Assessments of perceived needs and factors associated with disability give a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying needs among crisis populations, and this can inform intervention programs. Depression and anxiety should be treated effectively to avoid disability.