Lithium-associated hypothyroidism: Reversible after lithium discontinuation?

Introduction

The association between lithium and thyroid dysfunction has long been known. Yet it is not known whether lithium-associated hypothyroidism is reversible, once lithium treatment has been stopped.

Objectives

To determine whether lithium-associated hypothyroidism was reversible in patients who subsequently discontinued lithium.

Methods

Retrospective cohort study in the Swedish region of Norrbotten into the effects and side- effects of lithium treatment and other drugs for relapse prevention (LiSIE). For this particular study, we reviewed medical records between 1997 and 2015 of patients treated with lithium.

Results

Of 1340 patients screened, we identified 90 patients with lithium-associated hypothyroidism who subsequently discontinued lithium. Of these, 27% had overt hypothyroidism at the time when thyroid replacement therapy was initiated. The mean delay from lithium start to thyroid replacement therapy start was 2.3 (SD 4.7) years. Fifty percent received thyroid replacement therapy within 10 months of starting lithium. Of 85 patients available for follow up, 35 (41%) stopped thyroid replacement therapy after lithium discontinuation. Six patients reinstated thyroid replacement therapy subsequently. Only one of these had overt hypothyroidism, occurring 13 days after stopping lithium and 11 days after stopping thyroid replacement therapy.

Conclusions

Lithium-associated hypothyroidism seems reversible in most patients, once lithium has been discontinued. In such cases, thyroid replacement therapy discontinuation could be attempted much more often than currently done. Based on the limited evidence of our study, we can expect hypothyroidism to recur early after discontinuation of thyroid replacement therapy if at all.

Disclosure

MO: scient adv. board member Astra Zeneca Sweden; UW: educ. activities Norrbotten Region: Astra Zeneca, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Novartis, Otsuka/Lundbeck, Servier, Shire and Sunovion. All others: none.

Psychiatric hospital utilisation following lithium discontinuation in patients with bipolar I or II disorder: A mirror-image study based on the lisie retrospective cohort

Introduction

Evidence for lithium as a maintenance treatment for bipolar disorder type II remains limited since most treatment-prevention studies focus on bipolar disorder type I or do not distinguish between types of bipolar disorder.

Objectives

To compare the impact of lithium discontinuation on hospital utilisation in patients with bipolar disorder type I or schizoaffective disorder and patients with bipolar disorder type II or other bipolar disorder.

Methods

Mirror-image study, examining hospital utilisation within two years before and after lithium discontinuation as part of LiSIE, a retrospective cohort study into effects and side-effects of lithium for the maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder as compared to other mood stabilisers.

Results

For the whole sample, the number of admissions increased from 86 to 185 admissions after lithium discontinuation, with the mean number of admissions/patient/review period doubling from 0.44 to 0.95 (p < 0.001). The number of bed days increased from 2218 to 4240, with the mean number of bed days/patient/review period doubling from 11 to 22 (p = 0.025). This increase in admissions and bed days was exclusively attributable to patients with bipolar disorder type I or schizoaffective disorder.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that due to a higher relapse risk in patients with bipolar disorder type I or schizoaffective disorder there is a need to apply a higher threshold for discontinuing lithium than for patients with bipolar disorder type II or other bipolar disorder.

Disclosure

Michael Ott has been a scientific advisory board member of Astra Zeneca Sweden, Ursula Werneke has received funding for educational activities on behalf of Norrbotten Region (Masterclass Psychiatry Programme 2014–2018 and EAPM 2016, Luleå, Sweden): Astra

Self-injurious behaviour in patients with bipolar disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder after central stimulant start– a retrospective study based on the lisie cohort

Introduction

Currently, our understanding remains limited of how co-occurring bipolar disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) should be treated.

Objectives

To evaluate the impact of central stimulant treatment on self-injurious behaviour in patients with a dual diagnosis of bipolar disorder or schizoaffective disorder and ADHD.

Methods

Retrospective cohort study (LiSIE) into effects and side-effects of lithium as compared to other mood stabilisers. Here, using a mirror-image design, we compared suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-injury events within 6 months and 2 years before and after central stimulant treatment start.

Results

Of 1564 eligible patients, 206 patients met inclusion criteria; having a dual diagnosis of bipolar disorder or schizoaffective disorder and ADHD at first central stimulant initiation. In these, suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-injury events decreased significantly within both 6 months (p = 0.004) and 2 years (p = 0.028) after central stimulant start. After multiple adjustments, this effect was preserved 2 years after central stimulant start (OR 0.63, 95% CI; 0.40 – 0.98, p = 0.041).

Conclusions

Central stimulant treatment may reduce the risk of self-injurious behavior in patients with a dual diagnosis of bipolar disorder or schizoaffective disorder and ADHD. However, to reduce the risk of manic switches, concomitant mood stabilising treatment remains warranted.

Disclosure

Michael Ott has been a scientific advisory board member of Astra Zeneca Sweden, Ursula Werneke has received funding for educational activities on behalf of Norrbotten Region (Masterclass Psychiatry Programme 2014–2018 and EAPM 2016, Luleå, Sweden): Astra

Service users' experiences of participation in decision making in mental health services

ACCESSIBLE SUMMARY

Despite the potential positive impact of shared decision making on service users knowledge and experience of decisional conflict, there is a lack of qualitative research on how participation in decision making is promoted from the perspective of psychiatric service users. This study highlights the desire of users to participate more actively in decision making and demonstrates that persons with SMI struggle to be seen as competent and equal partners in decision-making situations. Those interviewed did not feel that their strengths, abilities and needs were being recognized, which resulted in a feeling of being omitted from involvement in decision-making situations. The service users describe some essential conditions that could work to promote participation in decision making. These included having personal support, having access to knowledge, being involved in a dialogue and clarity about responsibilities. Mental health nurses can play an essential role for developing and implementing shared decision making as a tool to promote recovery-oriented mental health services.

ABSTRACT

Service user participation in decision making is considered an essential component of recovery-oriented mental health services. Despite the potential of shared decision making to impact service users knowledge and positively influence their experience of decisional conflict, there is a lack of qualitative research on how participation in decision making is promoted from the perspective of psychiatric service users. In order to develop concrete methods that facilitate shared decision making, there is a need for increased knowledge regarding the users' own perspective. The aim of this study was to explore users' experiences of participation in decisions in mental health services in Sweden, and the kinds of support that may promote participation. Constructivist Grounded Theory (CGT) was utilized to analyse group and individual interviews with 20 users with experience of serious mental illness. The core category that emerged in the analysis described a 'struggle to be perceived as a competent and equal person' while three related categories including being the underdog, being controlled and being omitted described the difficulties of participating in decisions. The data analysis resulted in a model that describes internal and external conditions that influence the promotion of participation in decision making. The findings offer new insights from a user perspective and these can be utilized to develop and investigate concrete methods in order to promote user's participation in decisions.

Living situation, subjective quality of life and social network among individuals with schizophrenia living in community settings

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationships between characteristics of the living situation in the community and subjective quality of life and social network among community-based individuals with schizophrenia.

METHOD

A total of 418 individuals with schizophrenia from 10 sites were interviewed with regard to quality of life, psychopathology, social network and needs for care. Characteristics of the living situation investigated were: living alone or not, living with family or not, and having an independent or a sheltered housing situation.

RESULTS

An independent housing situation was related to a better quality of life concerning living situation and living with the family to a better quality of life concerning family relations. An independent housing situation was associated with a better social network regarding availability and adequacy of emotional relations.

CONCLUSION

People with schizophrenia with an independent housing situation have a better quality of life associated with more favorable perceptions of independence, influence, and privacy. Their social network is better irrespective of whether they live alone or not, or with family or not.

The Nordic Study on schizophrenic patients living in the community. Subjective needs and perceived help

In a community sample of 418 persons diagnosed with schizophrenia, subjective needs and perceived help was measured by the Camberwell Assessment of Need (CAN). The mean number of reported needs was 6.2 and the mean number of unmet needs 2.6. The prevalence of needs varied substantially between the need areas from 3.6% ('telephone') to 84.0% ('psychotic symptoms'). The rate of satisfaction estimated as the percentage of persons satisfied with the help provided within an area varied between 20.0% ('telephone') and 80.6% ('food'). The need areas concerning social and interpersonal functioning demonstrated the highest proportion of unmet to total needs. In a majority of need areas the patients received more help from services than from relatives, but in the areas of social relations the informal network provided substantial help. In general the patients reported a need for help from services clearly exceeding the actual amount of help received. In a linear regression model symptom load (BPRS) and impaired functioning (GAF) were significant predictors of the need status, explaining 30% of the variance in total needs and 20% of the variance in unmet needs. It is concluded that the mental health system fails to detect and alleviate needs in several areas of major importance to schizophrenic patients. Enhanced collaboration between the care system and the informal network to systematically map the need profile of the patients seems necessary to minimise the gap between perceived needs and received help.

Predictors of social relations in persons with schizophrenia living in the community: a Nordic multicentre study

BACKGROUND

Deinstitutionalisation has led to persons with serious mental illness spending most of their time outside psychiatric institutions. Not much is known about their social life. The paper presents the results of structured interviews with non-institutionalised persons with schizophrenia about treatment, care and social network. The network data are analysed from three perspectives: finding predictors of the number and of the quality of social contacts, and establishing the respective variables that characterise persons with high, and those with low, scores on both the quantity and quality dimensions of social integration.

METHODS

Random samples of persons with schizophrenia receiving outpatient services in ten psychiatric centres in the four Nordic countries were interviewed. The following instruments were used: Interview Schedule for Social Interaction (ISSI), Camberwell Assessment of Needs, Lancashire Quality of Life Profile, General Assessment of Functioning (GAF) and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), in addition to a checklist covering the utilisation of different services. The ISSI provided the main data for this paper. A restricted number of possible predictors were used in General Linear Model (GLM) factorial analysis and discriminant analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 418 persons took part in the study. The overall participation rate was 55%. Social integration in terms of number of contacts was related to a high GAF score, few BPRS negative and hostility symptoms, having contact with user organisations and living in urban (in contrast to rural) areas. Availability of emotional relations was predicted by female sex, low scores on the BPRS hostility dimension, high GAF score, having contact with one's family more than once a month, and living in urban areas. Work, adequate leisure activities and GAF score discriminated between the best and worst integrated groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Living in urban areas, being female, having a high GAF score and low scores on hostility predicted better integration in terms of number of contacts and emotional relations.

Informed consent in two Swedish prisons: a study of quality of information and reasons for participating in a clinical trial

OBJECTIVES

To study the quality of informed consent in two samples of prisoners participating in a therapeutic trial.

RESULTS

All participants (n=43) were aware of the fact that they had participated in a research project, that they were free to abstain from participation, and that they were free to withdraw from participation at any time. All but six were aware of the objective of the clinical trial and all but three understood the implications of participating. Twenty individuals did not consider the pros and cons. When making their respective decisions, no one felt that they had been subjected to undue persuasion or force. Concerning the reasons for participating, a majority (n=35) supposed that participation would benefit themselves' as the primary reason. Some (n=11) considered the benefits for future patients and science. No differences concerning gender or age were discerned.

CONCLUSIONS

The results do not indicate that the informed consent procedure in general was inadequately performed. Rather, the answers provided and the subjects who withdrew indicate that participation was perceived as fully voluntary.

Comparison of key worker and patient assessment of needs in schizophrenic patients living in the community: a Nordic multicentre study

OBJECTIVE

The present study is part of a Nordic multicentre study investigating the life and care situation of community samples of schizophrenic patients. The specific aim of the present part of the study was to examine the agreement between patients and their key worker concerning the presence of met and unmet needs in a number of life domains, and help or support given in these domains.

METHOD

The comparisons were based on 300 matched pairs of assessments of need using the Camberwell Assessment of Need interview.

RESULTS

The results showed that key workers identified slightly more needs, 6.17 vs. 5.76, a significant difference. There was a moderate or better agreement on the presence of a need in 17 of 22 life domains investigated, but in only 11 life domains concerning the presence of an unmet need. Disagreement concerning whether the patient was given the right kind of help or support was even more substantial.

CONCLUSION

It is concluded that key workers and patients disagree particularly concerning unmet needs and that this is potentially related to a number of factors associated with the key worker and patient. It is also concluded that further research is needed to increase the knowledge concerning the sources of this disagreement if need assessment is to become a valid basis for service planning and individual treatment planning.

Predictors for readmission risk of new patients: the Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry

OBJECTIVE

Predictors for readmission risk were investigated in this study, which forms part of the Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry.

METHOD

Included were a total of 837 consecutive 'new' patients (not in contact with the psychiatric services for at least 18 months) admitted to in-patient stay during a period of 1 year to seven psychiatric hospitals in four Nordic countries.

RESULTS

Multivariate survival analyses showed that younger age predicted increased readmission risk. Stratifying on gender, diagnostic group and sector revealed a general pattern concerning age which was the only consistent main effect. Living alone and unemployed increased readmission risk in the non-psychosis group, while receipt of aftercare decreased readmission risk in the psychosis group. A curvilinear relationship was found between availability of psychiatric resources and readmission risk: an intermediate amount of resources was associated with increased risk.

CONCLUSION

Our findings support a hypothesis that readmission risk is multifactorially determined and that interactions have to be considered.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry--length of in-patient stay

OBJECTIVE

Length of stay (LOS) of 'first' in-patient episodes was investigated in this study, which is part of the Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry.

METHOD

A total of 837 consecutive 'new' patients (not in contact with the psychiatric services for at least 18 months) admitted as in-patients during a period of 1 year to seven psychiatric hospitals in four Nordic countries were included.

RESULTS

Survival analyses showed considerable differences in LOS between the hospitals, and the factors analysed in this study could not explain this variance. Older age, being female, having no children at home, psychosis, planned admission and out-patient contacts were all associated with increased LOS.

CONCLUSION

Stratifying on gender, diagnostic group and hospital revealed a general pattern of associations except for age.

Research ethics committees: a comparative study of assessment of ethical dilemmas

Research ethics committees (REC) constitute an important instrument for the regulation of biomedical research involving human beings. The purposes of this work were to study the ethical reasoning in RECs and to ascertain whether the composition of RECs has any bearing on the decisions subsequently made by them. We used a postal questionnaire, containing authentic cases of research ethical dilemmas, sent to the ten RECs in Sweden (n = 124) and to comparison groups consisting of 200 randomly selected medical researchers, 200 randomly selected healthcare politicians and 200 randomly selected district nurses. The average response rate was 68%. A difference was found in how REC members assess a project in comparison with researchers, healthcare politicians and district nurses. Differences depended on the type of project assessed. The study indicates that membership in RECs may exert a normative influence on its members. It is proposed that this investigation should be followed up by a study with a qualitative design.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry: rates of compulsory care and use of compulsory admissions during a 1-year follow-up

BACKGROUND

As part of a Nordic comparative study on contact rates of new patients and use of services in seven catchment areas, rates of compulsory care and use of compulsory admissions were explored and analyzed. The total cohort comprised 2834 patients.

RESULTS

A total of 219 patients, 7.7%, were subject to compulsory care during the follow-up. The proportion of compulsorily admitted patients of all admitted patients ranged from 6% to 58% in the seven psychiatric services, and the rate of compulsory care per 1,000 inhabitants, from 0.14 to 0.99. The diagnostic subgroup most commonly committed to inpatient care was functional psychosis, comprising around 50% of all compulsory admissions. The strongest predictor of being compulsorily admitted was the specific psychiatric service the patient was in contact with, followed by having a psychosis diagnosis. High consumption of care was also associated with compulsory care, while social variables played only a minor role in predicting compulsory care.

CONCLUSIONS

There was a great variation in rates of compulsory care. No consistent rural-urban pattern in rates of commitment was found. It is discussed whether a formal referral procedure to the psychiatric service is associated with higher rates of compulsory care.

Predictors of subjective quality of life in schizophrenic patients living in the community. A Nordic multicentre study

As part of a Nordic multi-centre study investigating the life and care situation of community samples of schizophrenic patients the aim of the present part of the study was to examine the relationship between global subjective quality of life and objective life conditions, clinical characteristics including psychopathology and number of needs for care, subjective factors such as satisfaction with different life domains, social network, and self-esteem. A sample of 418 persons with schizophrenia from 10 sites was used. The results of a final multiple regression analysis, explaining 52.3% of the variance, showed that five subjective factors were significantly associated with global subjective quality of life, together with one objective indicator, to have a close friend. No clinical characteristics were associated with global subjective quality of life. The largest part of the variance was explained by satisfaction with health, 36.3% of the variance, and self-esteem, 7.3% of the variance. It is concluded that the actual relationship between objective life conditions and subjectively experienced quality of life still remains unclear. Furthermore, it seems obvious that personality related factors such as self-esteem, mastery and sense of autonomy also play a role in the appraisal of subjective quality of life, which implies that factors like these are important to consider in clinical and social interventions for patients with schizophrenia in order to improve quality of life for these persons.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorised psychiatry: repeated emergency admissions to inpatient care during a 1-year follow-up

The emergency admissions to hospital care in six psychiatric services in four Nordic countries were explored as a part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorised psychiatry. One year treated incidence cohorts were used, with the total cohort comprising 2,454 patients. Of the 803 patients who were admitted to inpatient care during a 1-year follow-up, 82% had at least one emergency admission and 23% repeated emergency admissions. The definition for the repeated emergency admissions was at least two admissions during the follow-up. The mean length of stay in emergency inpatient care per treatment episode for this patient subgroup was 28 days. Their emergency inpatient episodes constituted 30% of all inpatient days during the follow-up. However, the variations between the services and diagnostic subgroups were large. The results of a logistic regression analysis indicated that the following variables predicted repeated emergency admissions: inpatient care at index contact, emergency outpatient contacts or no planned hospital admissions during the follow-up, psychiatric service, age under 45 years, and a diagnosis of psychosis, personality disorder or dependency. The repeated emergency admissions were related to the existence of a special service unit for abusers but not to the rates of outpatient staff or acute beds in the services, to geographical distances, referral practice or existence of emergency services.

When others decide: reasons for allowing patients with Alzheimer's disease to participate in nontherapeutic research

The quality of information given to family members of patients with Alzheimer's disease was studied. The patients had participated in a pharmacological investigation. The relatives were generally satisfied with the information given, and perceived it as adequate. The reasons given for allowing the patients to participate in the investigation were mainly altruistic.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry: continuity of care related to characteristics of the psychiatric services and the patients

The problem addressed in this paper is how continuity of care is related to characteristics of psychiatric services, previous events in a patient's pattern of care and patient characteristics. The present paper is a part of a Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry in seven catchment areas in four Nordic countries. One-year-treated-incidence cohorts were used. Each patient was followed for 1 year after the first contact with the psychiatric service. Continuity of care was measured by the time from discharge from hospital to the first subsequent day-patient or outpatient contact. Notable findings were large differences in the continuity of care in the seven services, high proportions of discharges without any aftercare contacts and long time lags between discharges and aftercare contacts in most of the catchment areas. A Cox regression analysis revealed that aftercare following hospitalisation seems to be more probable if the outpatient services are located geographically close to the patients, if the hospitalisation lasted between 2 and 4 weeks, if there was a community care contact shortly before the hospital admission and if the patient is not retired and not divorced. Staff resources were not related to continuity of care.

Informed consent in clinical training--patient experiences and motives for participating

The purpose of this study was to assess patients' attitudes to and experiences of participating in the clinical training of medical students. Samples of patients (n = 582) selected at random from six different departments (gynaecology, psychiatry, internal medicine, paediatrics, urology and a health care centre with general practitioners) were interviewed by means of a questionnaire. The patients were selected from those who had consulted the actual departments in the last six months of 1995. Four hundred and forty-one patients (76%) answered the questionnaire. Seventy-one per cent of all patients had experience of participating; of these 41% had estimated that they had once or several times participated without being informed. Eighty per cent felt aggrieved if they were not informed. On average 88% were, in principle, positive to participating. Of those who were, in principle, negative a majority had negative experiences of participating. Elderly patients tended to accept participating more often without being informed. Almost all patients seemed to be positive to participating in the education of medical students, although a silent precondition might be that patients should be informed and given the opportunity to abstain.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry: patients who use only psychiatric in-patient care in comprehensive community-based services--a 1-year follow-up study

In the present paper a sample of patients using psychiatric in-patient care only is characterized and analysed with regard to characteristics of the psychiatric services. This paper forms part of the Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry, designed to investigate contact rates and use of psychiatric care by new patients in 7 catchment areas in 4 Nordic countries during a 1-year follow-up. One-year treated incidence cohorts were used. The logistic regression analysis revealed that the variable 'psychiatric service' was one of the statistically significant determinants of using only in-patient care during the follow-up. The diagnostic groups with the highest probability of using only in-patient care were dependencies and functional psychoses. The following factors were associated with a high risk of using only in-patient care: older age, being referred by another psychiatrist, having received previous psychiatric in-patient care, male sex, being retired, and not living with one's parents or a partner. Patients who used only in-patient care had fewer admissions and days in in-patient care than others during the 1-year follow-up period. Lack of 24-hour emergency services in out-patient care correlated positively with the use of only in-patient care.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry: contact rates and use of services for patients with a functional psychosis

As part of a Nordic comparative study on contact rates of new patients and use of services in seven catchment areas, contact rates and use of services for patients with a functional psychosis during a 1-year follow-up period were investigated. The highest contact rates were found in two large city catchment areas in Stockholm and Copenhagen. Compared to other patients in the cohorts, patients with a functional psychosis were more often found to be unemployed and living alone. They also showed more extensive service use in terms of both voluntary and compulsory admissions, and in the use of day-care facilities. In addition, they were more often multiple users of in-patient care (> or =3 admissions during the follow-up period). Large differences in service use among patients with a functional psychosis were discovered between the catchment areas, with the most extensive use of voluntary in-patient care and day-care facilities in Frederiksberg. Patients most frequently had compulsory admissions in Bodö and least frequently had them in Frederiksberg. Out-patient services were most frequently used in Stockholm. Correlations between levels of resources and use of services for patients with a functional psychosis were in general low, except for the rates of short-term beds, which showed a strong and significant correlation with the number of days in voluntary in-patient care (r=0.89).

Factors associated with referral to psychiatric care by general practitioners compared with self-referrals

BACKGROUND

The gatekeeper function of the general practitioner (GP) in the pathway to specialized psychiatric services was investigated in this study, which is part of the Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry. The question addressed in this paper is whether different sociodemographic and clinical factors as well as factors related to service utilization are associated with referral from the GP compared with self-referrals (including referrals from relatives).

METHODS

The study comprised a total of 1413 consecutive patients, admitted during 1 year to five psychiatric centres in four Nordic countries. The centres included in this study were those that accepted non-medical referrals. Only new patients (not in contact with the service for at least 18 months) were included.

RESULTS

Increasing age was the only sociodemographic factor significantly associated with referral by the GP. The clinical factors (psychosis, being totally new to psychiatry and being in need of in-patient treatment) and some treatment characteristics (planned out-patient treatment and involuntary in-patient treatment), were all significantly associated with referral by the GP. Some indication was found that self-referred patients have shorter episodes of care.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings were remarkably stable across the different centres indicating a general pattern. This study extends previous work on the role of GPs in the pathway to specialized psychiatric services and indicates that the GP has an important gatekeeper function for the most disabled patients.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry. Part V. Contact rates, contact patterns and care level at index contact

As part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry in seven Nordic catchment areas, a prospective investigation of contact rates of new patients and pathways to the psychiatric services was performed. The results showed that there was more than a twofold difference between the services in the total contact rates. Regarding diagnostic groups, contact rates for neurosis were predominant in three of the services, while adjustment disorders, dependencies and personality disorders were predominant in other the services. The contact rate of functional psychosis, as well as the ratio of psychotic patients to the total contact rate were highest in two catchment areas serving inner parts of big cities. The most common way of getting into contact with the services was by self-referral, 39.4% of total referrals, followed by primary care referrals, although there were large differences between the services. Psychotic patients made contact with the services to a significantly less extent by self-referral. The majority of patients were treated in outpatient care at entry to the services, with a large variation between the services. It was also found that inpatient care at index contact was predicted by clinical characteristics-a diagnosis of psychosis and a history of former inpatient care-as well as by social characteristics-male, widowed or divorced, sick pension/old age pension.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry. Utilization of psychiatric hospital care related to amount and allocation of resources to psychiatric services

As a part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry, utilization of inpatient care was related to resources and dynamic qualities of psychiatric services in seven catchment areas in four Nordic countries. One-year treated incidence cohorts were used. Each patient was followed for 1 year after first contact with the psychiatric service. Data were collected concerning number of beds and staff, number of long-term patients and turnover rate of patients in inpatient care. Findings gave some support to the earlier reports that the utilization of inpatient care is determined by the supply of available beds. Highly staffed community services did not themselves reduce the use of inpatient services, but availability of day care services seemed to reduce utilization of inpatient care among psychotic patients.

The Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry. III. Accessibility of psychiatric services, degree of urbanization and treated incidence

As part of a Nordic Comparative Study on Sectorized Psychiatry, accessibility of psychiatric services and degree of urbanization in seven catchment areas were related to treated incidence. One-year treated incidence cohorts were used. Accessibility was assessed according to referral practice, existence of a round the clock emergency service and geographical location of the services. Accessibility was surprisingly weakly associated with treated incidence. Easy access to the psychiatric services was not related to a high treated incidence of less severe psychiatric problems at the expense of patients suffering from severe illness. Geographical distance to the services did not predict the demand for services. A positive correlation was found between the degree of urbanization and treated incidence of psychoses but not of other diagnostic groups.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry. Part IV. The influence of patient social characteristics on treated incidence

As part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry, sociodemographic characteristics (gender, age and marital status) were studied in relation to treated incidence in eight diagnostic subgroups. One-year incidence cohorts in seven sectorized psychiatric services were used. Women with a neurosis diagnosis had a significantly higher relative probability of contact with all services. Men with a dependence diagnosis had a significantly higher relative probability of contact with four of the seven services. Older people had a significantly higher relative risk for affective psychosis in six of the seven centres, and younger individuals had a significantly higher relative risk for personality disorders in six of the seven centres. Unmarried people showed a higher relative risk for functional psychosis and personality disorders in five of the seven services.

Clinical cancer research--some aspects on doctors' attitudes to informing participants

With the aim to investigate the information policy of oncologists when recruiting patients for clinical trials a postal questionnaire was sent to 412 members of the Swedish Society of Oncology (response rate 74%). Depending on the situation, 20-40% of the doctors perceive that randomization before consent is an acceptable procedure. A majority of the physicians maintain that cancer patients are able to cope with adequate information but 45% of the doctors fear that the patients may withdraw from participating if they are adequately informed. It seems to be important to study the relationship between the quality of information given to participants and the motives they have for accepting or declining to participate.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry. II. Resources of the psychiatric services and treated incidence

As a part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry, treated incidence was related to the resources and dynamic qualities of psychiatric services in 7 catchment areas. One-year treated incidence cohorts were used. Data was collected concerning number of beds and staff, number of long-term patients and turnover rate of patients in the services and availability of specialized services. A positive correlation was found between rates of outpatient staff and treated incidence. No statistically significant correlation was found between the dynamic qualities of the services and treated incidence. Treated incidence of dependence was the highest in a center that had a special service unit for abusers. Special services for young and old people were not clearly reflected in treated incidence in respective patient groups.

The Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry. I. Treated point prevalence and characteristics of the psychiatric services

Comparative studies relating characteristics of psychiatric services to rates of treated prevalence are scarce. As part of a Nordic comparative study on sectorized psychiatry, a point-prevalence study was performed in 5 sectorized psychiatric services with comprehensive service facilities for a defined population under responsibility. The rates of treated prevalence on a census day were related to a number of characteristics of the respective services and to accessibility of care. The results showed a great variation in one-day point prevalence in the 5 services, with almost fourfold differences. There were also marked differences in the diagnostic distribution of the cohorts. A positive correlation was found between number of beds and point prevalence, measured both as total point prevalence and impatient prevalence. The rates of beds and psychiatrists were most strongly related to the prevalence of patients with organic disorders and functional psychoses. A closed referral system was associated with a lower level of treated prevalence.

The attitudes of patients and physicians towards placebo treatment--a comparative study

Placebo treatment in clinical practice can be given either in order to comply with the wishes of the patient, or with the purpose of doing good and not causing harm. In the former instance, the procedure may be in accordance with the interests of the patient, yet be in conflict with the interests of the medical profession. In the latter instance, the procedure presupposes that in most cases the patient has not been informed of the nature of the treatment; this type of procedure may jeopardize a trusting patient-doctor relationship. Therefore, it is of interest to investigate both the extent to which patients and physicians feel they can accept placebo treatment and a paternalistic attitude, and in which particular situations. In order to shed some light on this matter, we compiled a questionnaire built around three case histories which problematize placebo treatment and paternalistic acts. The questionnaire was distributed to 100 patients and 100 physicians. 83 patients and 94 physicians responded. The results show that patients and physicians do not automatically follow specific group interests. Physicians are more inclined to respect the patient's option to refuse medical treatment than the patients are inclined to respect a physician's professional autonomy. Patients appear more to be paternalistic in their judgements than physicians, but one cannot rule out the possibility that the answers of the physicians reflect the fact that placebo treatment represent a socially undesirable behaviour. We conclude that theoretical and normative analyses of the perspective of the actors ought to be supplemented by empirical research.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Utilization and patterns of care in comprehensive psychiatric care organizations. A review of studies and some methodological considerations

This article reviews and analyzes studies on the utilization of care and patterns of care in psychiatric care organizations with a defined catchment area responsibility. Eight studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The main results of the studies were reviewed with regard to distribution of utilization, typical patterns of care, sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics and, when appropriate, organizational characteristics related to utilization. The results show that a small proportion of patients use a large proportion of resources. Sociodemographic factors such as living alone or having no occupation in some of the studies predicted a higher utilization. Only one study reported sex differences, men being more common among heavy users. In most of the studies a psychosis diagnosis predicted a higher utilization. A history of prior contacts with psychiatric care predicted a higher utilization in 2 studies. It is concluded that future studies should make efforts to develop standardized models of classification of patterns of care to enhance possibilities of comparisons. Cost, as a common unit for summarizing and comparing resource utilization, has not been used, but is viewed as a highly relevant measure. Furthermore, measures of utilization should be separated from evaluations of outcome or quality of care. However, the latter is a neglected area that should also be promoted in studies of utilization of psychiatric care to create knowledge of the relationship of utilization to outcome.

Informed consent: study of quality of information given to participants in a clinical trial

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether the participants in a clinical trial had perceived adequate information about the trial according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki.

DESIGN

About 18 months after the end of a gynaecological clinical trial the participants received a questionnaire by post, which focused on the quality of the information given to them before entering the trial. Neither researchers nor participants were aware in advance that the trial would become the subject of this follow up investigation.

SETTING

Eight different centres in Sweden.

SUBJECTS

43 women out of the 53 who completed the trial (mean (range) age 23 (16 to 35) years) returned the questionnaire.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Adequacy of the information (based on requirements of the Declaration of Helsinki) to enable the following: understanding of the aims of the study; awareness of what participation meant; and awareness of the possibility of withdrawing from participation at any time. Motives for agreeing to participate, and a subjective evaluation of the given information were also recorded.

RESULTS

All but one of the participants had been aware that they were taking part in a research project. Five women stated that they had not been aware that a second laparoscopy was performed only for research reasons. Seven women reported that they had not been aware of the meaning of participating in the project and 17 that they had had no information about the possibility of withdrawing from the study whenever they wanted. In the subjective rating 22 women considered the information given as good or very good. There was a systematic variation in the quality of the given information among the eight centres.

CONCLUSION

Although all but one of the participants had been aware that they were taking part in a clinical trial, the quality of the information understood and recalled by participants varied, and in many cases clearly did not meet the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki. Variations among centres in participants' perception of information suggest that deficiencies in perception may be caused by informers rather than the participants.

Ethics and preventive medicine

Today different issues of medical ethics are in focus of the debate. A theoretical sequence starting at a "prepathogenic" level, ending in terminal care, is delineated to clarify the different characteristics of medical interventions. In this article we will discuss some ethical problems concerning interventions in the first parts of this sequence. Preventive measures at the population level are contrasted to the situation when the patient feels ill and calls for an intervention. Certain elements of paternalism are often interwoven in preventive medicine and health promotion.-The field of preventive medicine calls for a vivid theoretical and ethical discussion, which can mean better opportunities for effective prevention.