Translating Guidelines to Practice: Findings From a Multidisciplinary Preventive Cardiology Programme in the West of Ireland.

Translating guidelines to practice: findings from a multidisciplinary preventive cardiology programme in the west of Ireland.

Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2013 Jul 24;
Gibson I, Flaherty G, Cormican S, Jones J, Kerins C, Walsh AM, Costello C, Windle J, Connolly S, Crowley J

The aim of this observational, descriptive study is to evaluate the impact of an intensive, evidence-based preventive cardiology programme on medical and lifestyle risk factors in patients at high risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD).Increased CVD risk patients and their family members/partners were invited to attend a 16-week programme consisting of a professional multidisciplinary lifestyle intervention, with appropriate risk factor and therapeutic management in a community setting. Smoking, dietary habits, physical activity levels, waist circumference and body mass index, and medical risk factors were measured at initial assessment, at end of programme, and at 1-year follow up.Adherence to the programme was high, with 375 (87.2%) participants and 181 (84.6%) partners having completed the programme, with 1-year data being obtained from 235 (93.6%) patients and 107 (90.7%) partners. There were statistically significant improvements in both lifestyle (body mass index, waist circumference, physical activity, Mediterranean diet score, fish, fruit, and vegetable consumption, smoking cessation rates), psychosocial (anxiety and depression scales and quality of life indices), and medical risk factors (blood pressure, lipid and glycaemic targets) between baseline and end of programme, with these improvements being sustained at 1-year follow up.These findings demonstrate how a holistic model of CVD prevention can improve cardiovascular risk factors by achieving healthier lifestyles and optimal medical management. HubMed – depression

Fatigue management in patients with IBD: a randomised controlled trial.

Gut. 2013 Jul 24;
Vogelaar L, Van’t Spijker A, Timman R, van Tilburg AJ, Bac D, Vogelaar T, Kuipers EJ, van Busschbach JJ, van der Woude CJ

To assess the effectiveness of solution-focused therapy (SFT) on fatigue and quality of life (QoL) in patients with fatigued inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).Randomised controlled trial in two Dutch hospitals. Patients with IBD with quiescent IBD and with a Checklist Individual Strength-Fatigue (CIS-fatigue) score of ?35 were enrolled. Patients were 1:1 randomised to receive SFT or care as usual (CAU) for 3 months. Patients were followed for a further 6 months after the SFT. Primary endpoint was defined as changes in fatigue and QoL during follow-up. Secondary endpoints included change in anxiety and depression, medication use, side effects to medication, disease activity, laboratory parameters (C-reactive protein, leucocytes and haemoglobin) and sleep quality.Ninety-eight patients were included, of whom 63% were women, mean age was 40.1 years. After the SFT course, 17 (39%) patients in the SFT group had a CIS-fatigue score below 35 compared with eight (18%) of patients in the CAU group (p=0.03). The SFT group also showed a greater reduction in fatigue across the first 6 months compared with the CAU group (CIS-fatigue: p=<0.001 and CIS-total: p=0.001).SFT was associated with a significant higher mean IBD questionnaire change at 3 months (p=0.020). At 9 months, no significant differences between the two groups were observed.SFT has a significant beneficial effect on the severity of fatigue and QoL in patients with quiescent IBD. However, this effect diminished during follow-up. HubMed – depression

Translation into Spanish and validation of the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) for anhedonia.

Actas Esp Psiquiatr. 2013 Jul; 41(4): 227-31
Fresán A, Berlanga C

Introduction: The inability to experience pleasure, anhedonia, is recognized as al hallmark symptom of depression. A 14-item, self-report scale developed for the assessment of hedonic capacity: the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) has proved to be a reliable and valid psychometric instrument. Objective: Because there are no versions of the scale in other languages, our objective in this study was to translate the instrument into spanish and to determine if the new version maintained the validity and reliability of its original english version. Methodology: The scale was translated into spanish and after reaching final consensus applied to a group of depressed patients participating in a pharmacological trial. The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) was also applied for comparative purposes. Results: Our results demonstrate that the SHAPS in its spanish version maintains the validity and reliability level of the original english version. A moderate internal consistency was determined by Cronbach alpha value of 0.77. Conclusion: our results demonstrate the the spanish version of the SHAPS has validity and reliability similar to its original version, and thus it represents a good alternative to evaluate anhedonia in spanish-speaking populations. HubMed – depression

Osteopontin and adiponectin: how far are they related in the complexity of psoriasis?

Arch Dermatol Res. 2013 Jul 25;
Kadry D, Hegazy RA, Rashed L

Increasing attention has been drawn towards the involvement of both osteopontin (OPN) and adiponectin in psoriasis. The relationship between them has been studied before in the context of essential hypertension. To our knowledge, whether a relation between them exists in cases of psoriasis and the metabolic status in such patients have not been investigated. We aimed to verify their possible roles and relations in psoriasis and its metabolic associations. 35 patients with psoriasis vulgaris and 35 controls were included. Patients were clinically assessed by PASI and investigated for the presence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and/or its components. Plasma levels of OPN and adiponectin were measured using ELISA. On comparing psoriatics to controls, patients showed significantly elevated levels of OPN (90.474 ± 21.22 vs 34.709 ± 13.95 ng/mL) and significantly depressed levels of adiponectin (4,586 ± 1.187 vs 5,905 ± 1.374 ng/mL), (p < 0.001). Strong negative correlation between plasma OPN and adiponectin was detected in patients (r = -0.912, p < 0.001), but not in controls. OPN elevation was related to diabetes mellitus, insulin resistance, and MetS. Adiponectin depression was related to body mass index, and MetS. This study demonstrates for the first time a significant correlation between OPN and adiponectin in psoriasis, hypothesized to be mostly attributed to the inflammatory milieu of psoriasis and MetS as well as the enhanced renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system previously documented in psoriasis. Adjuvant therapies aiming at modulating levels of OPN and adiponectin are speculated to add benefit in psoriasis treatment and protecting against its metabolic risks. HubMed – depression