Association of supply sources of alcohol and alcohol-related harms in adolescent drinkers: the baseline characteristics of a high school cohort across Thailand

BACKGROUND

The main objective of this study was to investigate the association between parental supply of alcohol, alcohol-related harms, and the severity of alcohol use disorder in Thai 7th grade middle school students.

METHODS

A cross-sectional descriptive study obtained the baseline data from the project named the Thailand Parental Supply and Use of Alcohol, Cigarettes & Drugs Longitudinal Study Cohort in Secondary School Students in 2018. The sample size was 1187 students who have ever sipped or drank alcohol in the past 12 months. Pearson's Chi square, binary logistic regression, and ordinal logistic regression are applied in the analysis.

RESULTS

A single source of parental supply is not significantly associated with any alcohol-related harm and the severity of alcohol use disorder, while parental supply with peers and siblings supply of alcohol plays an important role in both outcomes. The increasing number of sources of alcohol supply increases the risk of alcohol-related harm and the severity of alcohol use disorder. Other risk factors found in both associations included binge drinking, alcohol flushing, low household economic status, distance from the student's family, and poor academic performance. Gender, exposure to alcohol ads on social media and location of residency were not associated with alcohol-related harms or severity of alcohol use disorder.

CONCLUSIONS

The results did not support parental guidance in teaching or giving children a drink or sip of alcohol within family to prevent related harms when drinking outside with their peers.

Mental problems and risk factors for depression among medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

Prevalence of depression is high among medical students and several mental problems are identified as risk factors. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic causes difficulties that could adversely affect mental health. However, data concerning prevalence of mental problems, and whether or not these problems remain risk factors for depression during the COVID-19 pandemic in medical students are scarce. To investigate the prevalence of depression, social media addiction, game addiction, sleep quality, eating disorder risk, and perceived stress among Thai medical students, risk factors for depression were investigated. Online surveys via our faculty's learning portals were advertized to medical students who engaged online learning and 224 respondents provided complete data. Study-related medical students' data were collected using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 for depression, the Social-Media Addiction Screening Scale for social media addiction, the Game Addiction Screening Test for game addiction, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index for sleep quality, the Eating Attitudes Test for eating disorder risk, and the Perceived Stress Scale for perceived stress. Depression was reported in 35.7% of medical students, social-media addiction in 22.3%, game addiction in 4.5%, eating disorder risk in 4.9%, poor sleep quality in 80.8%, and moderate-to-high perceived stress in 71.4%. The independent predictors of depression were lower grade point average, social media addiction, and moderate-to-high perceived stress. A high prevalence of depression, stress, and poor sleep was found among medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Medical students who are stressed, have lower grades, and/or who are addicted to social media warrant depression screening.

Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Parenting Programs in Reducing Parenting Stress in Parents of Children and Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective: To systematically evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based parenting programs in reducing parenting stress in parents of children and adolescents with ADHD.Materials and Methods: Studies published in English or Thai before February 2020 were identified through the PubMed, Embase, and Thai-Journal Citation Index databases. Studies were included if they used mindfulness-based parenting interventions for parents of children and adolescents with ADHD, and parenting stress was measured. The risk of bias was evaluated with the Cochrane risk-of-bias assessment tool for randomized trials, and with theROBIN-I tool for non-randomized studies.Results: Six studies were included. The 2 randomized controlled trials reported significant reductions in parenting stress in the intervention groups compared with the control groups at post-test, and this effect was maintained at the 8-week follow-up of one of the studies. However, the 4 pre-experimental studies reported conflicting results. Two reported significant reductions in parenting stress from pre- to post-intervention, with one of those studies reporting a further reduction in parental stress at the 6-week follow-up. In contrast, another study reported a significant reduction in parental stress from pre- to post-intervention for fathers but not mothers; this effect was maintained at the 8-week follow-up. The fourth study reported no significant changes in parental stress from preto post-intervention. A meta-analysis of 3 studies demonstrated no significant changes in parenting stress from pre- to post-intervention.Conclusion: The effectiveness of mindfulness-based parenting programs in reducing parenting stress in parents of children and adolescents with ADHD is still inconclusive, although promising. Further studies are needed.

The validity and reliability of the PHQ-9 in screening for post-stroke depression

BACKGROUND

Depression affects about 30% of stroke survivors within 5 years. Timely diagnosis and management of post-stroke depression facilitate motor recovery and improve independence. The original version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) is recognized as a good screening tool for post-stroke depression. However, no validation studies have been undertaken for the use of the Thai PHQ-9 in screening for depression among Thai stroke patients.

METHODS

The objectives were to determine the criterion validity and reliability of the Thai PHQ-9 in screening for post-stroke depression by comparing its results with those of a psychiatric interview as the gold standard. First-ever stroke patients aged ≥45 years with a stroke duration 2 weeks-2 years were administered the Thai PHQ-9. The gold standard was a psychiatric interview leading to a DSM-5 diagnosis of depressive disorder and adjustment disorder with a depressed mood. The summed-scored-based diagnosis of depression with the PHQ-9 was obtained. Validity and reliability analyses, and a receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, were performed.

RESULTS

In all, 115 stroke patients with a mean age of 64 years (SD: 10 years) were enrolled. The mean PHQ-9 score was 5.2 (SD: 4.8). Using the DSM-5 criteria, 11 patients (9.6%) were diagnosed with depressive disorder, 12 patients (10.5%) were diagnosed with adjustment disorder with a depressed mood. Both disorders were combined as a group of post-stroke depression. The Thai PHQ-9 had satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha: 0.78). The algorithm-based diagnosis of the Thai PHQ-9 had low sensitivity (0.52) but very high specificity (0.94) and positive likelihood ratio (9.6). Used as a summed-scored-based diagnosis, an optimal cut-off score of six revealed a sensitivity of 0.87, specificity of 0.75, positive predictive value of 0.46, negative predictive value of 0.95, and positive likelihood ratio of 3.5. The area under the curve was 0.87 (95% CI: 0.78-0.96).

CONCLUSIONS

The Thai PHQ-9 has acceptable psychometric properties for detecting a mixture of major depression and adjustment disorder in post-stroke patients, with a recommended cut-off score of ≥6 for a Thai population.

Bystanders' behaviours and associated factors in cyberbullying

Background

Cyberbullying is presently an alarming problem worldwide due to its impact on the emotions, behaviour and psychological well-being of not only the victims, but the bullies themselves and also bystanders.

Aim

This study aims to investigate bystanders' behaviours in cyberbullying and associated factors.

Methods

This research is a cross-sectional study of 578 secondary school students in Bangkok, Thailand. Simple random sampling was used to select four secondary schools. Data were collected through online questionnaires which included four sections: (1) demographic data, (2) bystanders' behaviour in cyberbullying (cyberbullying experience and attitude towards cyberbullying were included in this section), (3) parental attachment (Inventory of Parent Attachment-Revised), and (4) self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale-Revised).

Results

It was found that most occurrences of bystanders' behaviour were: (a) willing to intervene or help victims (34.6%), (b) ignoring the cyberbullying (28%) or (c) partaking in cyberbullying (26.3%). Participants who either were victims of cyberbullying or knew of cyberbullying happening to friends or relatives and had high parental attachment would intervene more than those who never had such experiences. Participants who knew of cyberbullying happening to the general public had tendencies towards ignoring the cyberbullying. Participants who indicated they were bullies and had positive attitude towards joining in tended to partake in the cyberbullying more than those who were not.

Conclusion

Factors relating to the behaviours of bystanders in cyberbullying should be further explored to provide support in the discouragement of ignoring and averting participation in cyberbullying. Secure parental attachment is one important factor that should be instilled during childhood years.

Validity and Reliability of the Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale-Thai Version (MDAS-T) for Assessment of Delirium in Palliative Care Patients

Background

Delirium, a neuropsychiatric syndrome that occurs throughout medical illness trajectories, is frequently misdiagnosed. The Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale (MDAS) is a commonly used tool in palliative care (PC) settings. Our objective was to establish and validate the Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale‐Thai version (MDAS‐T) in PC patients.

Materials and Methods

The MDAS was translated into Thai. Content validity, inter‐rater reliability, and internal consistency were explored. The construct validity of the MDAS‐T was analyzed using exploratory factor analysis. Instrument testing of the MDAS‐T, the Thai version of the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM‐ICU‐T), and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition as the gold standard was performed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the optimal cutoff score. The duration of each assessment was recorded.

Results

The study enrolled 194 patients. The content validity index was 0.97. The intraclass correlation coefficient and Cronbach's α coefficient were 0.98 and 0.96, respectively. A principal component analysis indicated a homogeneous, one‐factor structure. The area under the ROC curve was 0.96 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.93–0.99). The best combination of sensitivity and specificity (95% CI) of the MDAS‐T were 0.92 (0.85–0.96) and 0.90 (0.82–0.94), respectively, with a cutoff score of 9, whereas the CAM‐ICU‐T yielded 0.58 (0.48–0.67) and 0.98 (0.93–0.99), respectively. The median MDAS‐T assessment time was 5 minutes.

Conclusion

This study established and validated the MDAS‐T as a good and feasible tool for delirium screening and severity rating in PC settings.

Implications for Practice

Delirium is prevalent in palliative care (PC) settings and causes distress to patients and families, thereby making delirium screening necessary. This study found that the MDAS‐T is a highly objective and feasible test for delirium screening and severity monitoring in PC settings and can greatly improve the quality of care for this population.

Delirium is often misdiagnosed. This article reports on the value of assessment tools for diagnosis of delirium, in particular the Memorial Delirium Assessment Scale, which was translated into Thai for purposes of this study.

Rapid Rechallenge with Clozapine Following Pronounced Myocarditis in a Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia Patient

Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic which is often effective in patients who fail to respond to other antipsychotics, but its use carries substantial risk. Myocarditis is one of the life-threatening adverse effects, which occurs in about 1% of exposed patients. Rechallenge with clozapine is controversial, particularly shortly after the occurrence of the myocarditis, and when there is clear and convincing evidence of cardiac damage. Aggressive use of clozapine, however, may be critical for the recovery of patients early in the course of their illness. Here we report a successful case of clozapine rechallenge following an initial aggressive dosage titration in an inpatient setting.

A systematic review of the ability of urine concentration to distinguish antipsychotic- from psychosis-induced hyponatremia

Life-threatening hyponatremia in psychotic patients is common and typically is attributable to either antipsychotic medication or to acute psychosis in those with the polydipsia-hyponatremia syndrome. The preferred treatment for one situation may worsen the hyponatremia if caused by the other situation. Hence it is critical to distinguish between these two possibilities. Case reports and series were identified through electronic databases. Fifty-four cases of hyponatremia without recognized causes in psychotic patients were divided into those with dilute (<plasma osmolality) or concentrated (>plasma osmolality) urine. The distribution of urine concentration and measures likely to be associated with psychotic illness and its treatment were compared in both groups. Naranjo׳s scale was utilized to determine the probability hyponatremia was drug-induced. Urine osmolality fit a bimodal distribution (intersection 219mOsm/kg) better than a unimodal distribution. 'Probable' drug-induced cases occurred 6.8 (95%CI=1.6-28.9) times more often in those with concentrated urine. Acute psychotic exacerbations occurred 4.5 (95%CI=0.4-54.1) times more often in those with dilute urine. These findings, as well as several other trends in the data, indicate that measures of urine concentration can help distinguish between antipsychotic-induced and psychosis-induced hyponatremia.

Rapid Re-challenge with Clozapine Following Pronounced Myocarditis in a Treatment-Resistance Schizophrenia Patient

Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic which is often effective in patients who fail to respond to other antipsychotics, but its use carries substantial risk. Myocarditis is one of the life-threatening adverse effects which occurs in about 1% of exposed patients. Re-challenge with clozapine is controversial, particularly shortly after the occurrence of the myocarditis and when there is clear and convincing evidence of cardiac damage. Aggressive use of clozapine, however, may be critical for the recovery of patients early in the course of their illness. Here we report a successful case of clozapine rechallenge following an initial aggressive dosage titration in an inpatient setting.