R. Sant'Angelo, Italy
AUSL ROMAGNA Mental Health DepartmentPresenter of 5 Presentations
EPP0322 - Immediate psychological effects of covid-2019 in Emilia Romagna, Italy
ABSTRACT
Introduction
The epidemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2, which began in Wuhan city in December 2019, quickly spread to various countries around the world. On march Italy had already become the second country after China in terms of number of infections and deaths and Emilia Romagna was the second region in Italy by number of cases after Lombardy.
On 11th of March 2020 through the "Stay at home" decree, the entire nation was sheltered-in-place (SIP).
Objectives
Main objective is to understand immediate psychological effects on sheltered in place persons living in Emilia Romagna.
Methods
This study is based on a cross-sectional online survey conducted anonymously in the period between the tenth and seventeenth day of SIP.
We used Zung Anxiety Self-Assessment Scale, Insomnia Severity Index and Perceived Stress Scale 4. SPSS 21.0 was used for data analysis.
Results
We collected data on 651 individuals. About 38% of the sample reported having sleep problems; 31% of the population has a minimal-moderate level of anxiety while 4% marked-severe; finally, 54% of the interviewees perceive a moderate level of stress while 31% high. The MANOVAs showed that anxiety is influenced by gender, age, level of education and occupational status. Greater levels of stress are shown by individuals who declared the fear of contracting the virus and the concern of financial loss.
Conclusions
Our results could be used as a “psychological baseline” meanwhile the outbreak of COVID-19 is still ongoing. Despite the few days of SIP, we found the presence of a significant incidence and pervasive prevalence of psychological distress.
EPP0333 - TV or not TV? Health information, anxiety and stress during the initial stage of COVID-19 epidemic in Italy.
ABSTRACT
Introduction
With the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been the dissemination of an enormous amount of information, through multiple channels, from different sources and with an often unverifiable basis (infodemic). In recent years, there has been debate in the literature about the possibility that different information channels (social media vs traditional media) can determine a more or less extensive emotional contagion regardless of the severity and direct exposure to the stressful event and more precisely through a 'secondhand' exposure to events.
Objectives
We want to investigate whether the information channel or the amount of time dedicated to the update is associated with greater psychological sequelae.
Methods
This study is based on a cross-sectional online survey conducted anonymously in the period between the tenth and seventeenth day of shelter in place in Italy. We used Zung Anxiety Self-Assessment Scale and Perceived Stress Scale 4. SPSS 21.0 was used for data analysis.
Results
We collected data on 1047 individuals. In our sample, the Internet was the primary health information channel (55%) followed by TV (36%). Most TV and internet users spend about 1-3 hours a day for the update. There was no correlation between the time spent or the information channel used and higher levels of stress and anxiety.
Conclusions
In our opinion, this relationship between the time spent receiving information or the most widely used information channel and psychological disorders is not clear. Is it the news channel causing an emotional contagion or are the most anxious people looking for news anywhere and anytime?
EPP1158 - Eye-movements deficits in schizophrenia: a metanalysis of evidence
ABSTRACT
Introduction
Although eye-movement disorders are one of the most replicated deficits in the psychiatric literature, the strong heterogeneity of results is still an unexplained issue that could be effectively addressed with a quantitative review of evidence.
Objectives
For this reason, a large-scale metanalytic study comprising more than 200 studies was conducted to analyse the presence of eye-movement deficits in schizophrenia patients, as compared to healthy controls.
Methods
To this aim, saccadic eye movements were grouped based on the type of task required (e.g., standard, predictive) and the quantification method used (e.g., number, duration, amplitude). For each sub-group separate meta-analysis were computed. Cohen’s d was used as measure of effect size. Risk of bias within and between studies and heterogeneity were also analysed.
Results
Results indicated low Cohen’s d with the exception of the number of correct antisaccades – where schizophrenia patients reportedless correct anti-saccadesthan healthy controls - and antisaccades error rate – where schizophrenia patients reported a higher number of errors than healthy controls.
Conclusions
Antisaccades emerged as better suited to differentiate between patients and healthy controls, thus making them the most promising candidate as a possible biomarker for schizophrenia.
O187 - Neuropsychological profile and correlation with outcomes in patients admitted to SPDC
ABSTRACT
Introduction
Literature showed that patients suffering from disorders belonging to the schizophrenic (SZ) and bipolar (DB) spectrum have a qualitatively similar but quantitatively different neurocognitive impairment that correlates with the outcomes. However, the majority of former studies are conducted on patients in remission phase.
Objectives
This study aims to compare cognitive functions between SZ and DB in the acute phase and their possible correlations with treatment outcomes.
Methods
In a prospective longitudinal study conducted at the SPDC Ausl unit of Romagna - Cesena, 57 SZ and 82 DB took part in the study. The diagnosis was based on the SCID5 CV and SCID5 DP. Symptom severity was assessed with BPRS and HONOS both at the beginning and at the end of hospitalization. Executive functions were measured with Tower of London (ToL) and Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (MCST), attention with Attentive Matrices (MA) and Stroop Test (ST), non-verbal logic skills with Colored Matrices by Raven (PM47). The statistical analyzes applied are ANOVA and logistic regression.
Results
The cognitive tests did not reveal significant differences between SZ and DB. The logistic regression analysis showed that the scores obtained at the MCST and MA positively correlate with the efficacy of the treatment for both groups.
Conclusions
Cognition in DB and SZ patients was similarly impaired, supporting recent theories that placed diagnoses on a continuum of severity. Moreover, the results indicated that also in the acute phase the best predictors of the outcome were flexibility in problem solving strategies and visuospatial attention.
O245 - Phase space dynamics of eye-movement deficits in psychiatric patients
ABSTRACT
Introduction
Eye movement deficits in psychiatric patients have often been investigated with linear models, which fail to fully capture the complex dynamics characterizing eye movements.
Objectives
The present work aims to investigate the deficits in fixational eye movements in psychiatric patients according as non-linear chaotic dynamic.
Methods
We recruited 191 patients (91 males, average age 45 years) diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression and personality disorder. The control sample consisted of 22 healthy subjects (12 males, mean age 41 years). Fixational eye movements were recorded with the Eytribe infrared system and off-line analyzed using Matlab. The dynamics of fixation eye movements were investigated using a phase space graph, which refers to chaotic system analysis. This analysis allows to evaluate how the changes in space during fixation as a function of their speed.
Results
A major difference emerged: psychiatric patients showed larger and faster eye movements gravitating around a single point of density, while control subjects exhibited slower and smaller eye movements with multiple drifts and microtremors.
Conclusions
In conclusion, the dynamics of fixational eye movements in psychiatric patients seemed to be characterized by poorer efficiency in space exploration. These differences could be attributed to a worse coordination between the perceptual and the oculomotor system.