Articles: disease.
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Int J Psychiatry Med · Jan 2001
The development and evaluation of the brief depression screen in medically ill disability claimants.
There is literature demonstrating elevated prevalence of depression in primary care. Yet there remains a need for a brief depression screen designed and evaluated specifically for use among medically ill patients. Our objective was to develop and validate a brief, unobtrusive screen for depression among severely medically ill long-term disability claimants. ⋯ The Brief Depression Screen was developed and evaluated for use with severely ill long-term disability claimants. In practice, a positive screen for depression is to be followed with a comprehensive diagnostic assessment that could be conducted by a trained clinician. Further research is warranted to determine whether the identification and treatment of depression in disability claimants with non-psychiatric medical illnesses will facilitate return to work, even in the presence of comorbid medical illnesses.
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Eur. J. Intern. Med. · Dec 2000
Differential diagnosis between community-acquired pneumonia and non-pneumonia diseases of the chest in the emergency ward.
Background: The differential diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia and some non-pneumonia diseases involving the chest may sometimes be cumbersome. Adding some objective variables to the diagnostic strategy may be helpful. We evaluated the main objective variables that are usually available in the emergency ward and that may be valuable in this differential diagnosis. ⋯ In the multivariate analysis, only C-reactive protein remained in the equation. Conclusions: C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, leukocyte count, and temperature were measurable variables that proved to be useful in the differential diagnosis between community-acquired pneumonia and non-pneumonia diseases. C-reactive protein appears to be the most suitable for this purpose.
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J Health Serv Res Policy · Oct 2000
ReviewConditions for which onset or hospital admission is potentially preventable by timely and effective ambulatory care.
To identify, using a consensus development process, a list of common conditions likely to be ambulatory care sensitive (ACS); i.e. conditions for which practicable improvements in access to timely and effective ambulatory care in the English National Health Service would either reduce the incidence of the condition or avoid substantial proportions of current hospital admissions. ⋯ Although a consensus-based list of ACS conditions cannot be definitive, the clear view of the panels was that the scope for avoiding admission through better ambulatory care is very substantial.