Diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder allow for heterogeneous symptom profiles but genetic analysis of major depressive symptoms has the potential to identify clinical and etiological subtypes. There are several challenges to integrating symptom data from genetically informative cohorts, such as sample size differences between clinical and community cohorts and various patterns of missing data.

We conducted genome-wide association studies of major depressive symptoms in three cohorts that were enriched for participants with a diagnosis of depression (Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, Australian Genetics of Depression Study, Generation Scotland) and three community cohorts who were not recruited on the basis of diagnosis (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, Estonian Biobank, and UK Biobank). We fit a series of confirmatory factor models with factors that accounted for how symptom data was sampled and then compared alternative models with different symptom factors.

The best fitting model had a distinct factor for Appetite/Weight symptoms and an additional measurement factor that accounted for the skip-structure in community cohorts (use of Depression and Anhedonia as gating symptoms).

The results show the importance of assessing the directionality of symptoms (such as hypersomnia versus insomnia) and of accounting for study and measurement design when meta-analyzing genetic association data.

Dissociative symptoms can emerge after trauma and interfere with attentional control and interoception; disruptions to these processes are barriers to mind-body interventions such as breath-focused mindfulness (BFM). To overcome these barriers, we tested the use of an exteroceptive augmentation to BFM, using vibrations equivalent to the amplitude of the auditory waveform of the actual breath, delivered via a wearable subwoofer in real time (VBFM). We tested whether this device enhanced interoceptive processes, attentional control and autonomic regulation in trauma-exposed women with dissociative symptoms.

65 women, majority (82%) Black American, aged 18–65 completed self-report measures of interoception and 6 BFM sessions, during which electrocardiographic recordings were taken to derive high-frequency heart rate variability (HRV) estimates. A subset (n = 31) of participants completed functional MRI at pre- and post-intervention, during which they were administered an affective attentional control task.

Compared to those who received BFM only, women who received VBFM demonstrated greater increases in interoception, particularly their ability to trust body signals, increased sustained attention, as well as increased connectivity between nodes of emotion processing and interoceptive networks. Intervention condition moderated the relationship between interoception change and dissociation change, as well as the relationship between dissociation and HRV change.

Vibration feedback during breath focus yielded greater improvements in interoception, sustained attention and increased connectivity of emotion processing and interoceptive networks. Augmenting BFM with vibration appears to have considerable effects on interoception, attention and autonomic regulation; it could be used as a monotherapy or to address trauma treatment barriers.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) tends to co-occur with greater alcohol consumption as well as alcohol use disorder (AUD). However, it is unknown whether the same etiologic factors that underlie PTSD-alcohol-related problems comorbidity also contribute to PTSD- alcohol consumption.

We used summary statistics from large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of European-ancestry (EA) and African-ancestry (AA) participants to estimate genetic correlations between PTSD and a range of alcohol consumption-related and alcohol-related problems phenotypes.

In EAs, there were positive genetic correlations between PTSD phenotypes and alcohol-related problems phenotypes (e.g. Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) problem score) (rGs: 0.132−0.533, all FDR adjusted p < 0.05). However, the genetic correlations between PTSD phenotypes and alcohol consumption -related phenotypes (e.g. drinks per week) were negatively associated or non-significant (rGs: −0.417 to −0.042, FDR adjusted p: <0.05-NS). For AAs, the direction of correlations was sometimes consistent and sometimes inconsistent with that in EAs, and the ranges were larger (rGs for alcohol-related problems: −0.275 to 0.266, FDR adjusted p: NS, alcohol consumption-related: 0.145–0.699, FDR adjusted p: NS).

These findings illustrate that the genetic associations between consumption and problem alcohol phenotypes and PTSD differ in both strength and direction. Thus, the genetic factors that may lead someone to develop PTSD and high levels of alcohol consumption are not the same as those that lead someone to develop PTSD and alcohol-related problems. Discussion around needing improved methods to better estimate heritabilities and genetic correlations in diverse and admixed ancestry samples is provided.

The impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on mental health is still being unravelled. It is important to identify which individuals are at greatest risk of worsening symptoms. This study aimed to examine changes in depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms using prospective and retrospective symptom change assessments, and to find and examine the effect of key risk factors.

Online questionnaires were administered to 34 465 individuals (aged 16 years or above) in April/May 2020 in the UK, recruited from existing cohorts or via social media. Around one-third (n = 12 718) of included participants had prior diagnoses of depression or anxiety and had completed pre-pandemic mental health assessments (between September 2018 and February 2020), allowing prospective investigation of symptom change.

Prospective symptom analyses showed small decreases in depression (PHQ-9: −0.43 points) and anxiety [generalised anxiety disorder scale – 7 items (GAD)-7: −0.33 points] and increases in PTSD (PCL-6: 0.22 points). Conversely, retrospective symptom analyses demonstrated significant large increases (PHQ-9: 2.40; GAD-7 = 1.97), with 55% reported worsening mental health since the beginning of the pandemic on a global change rating. Across both prospective and retrospective measures of symptom change, worsening depression, anxiety and PTSD symptoms were associated with prior mental health diagnoses, female gender, young age and unemployed/student status.

We highlight the effect of prior mental health diagnoses on worsening mental health during the pandemic and confirm previously reported sociodemographic risk factors. Discrepancies between prospective and retrospective measures of changes in mental health may be related to recall bias-related underestimation of prior symptom severity.

Catheter ablation is a safe and effective therapy for the treatment of supraventricular tachycardia in children. Current improvements in technology have allowed progressive reduction in radiation exposure associated with the procedure. To assess the impact of three-dimensional mapping, we compared acute procedural results collected from the Catheter Ablation with Reduction or Elimination of Fluoroscopy registry to published results from the Prospective Assessment after Pediatric Cardiac Ablation study.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria from the Prospective Assessment after Pediatric Cardiac Ablation study were used as guidelines to select patient data from the Catheter Ablation with Reduction or Elimination of Fluoroscopy registry to compare acute procedural outcomes between cohorts. Outcomes assessed include procedural and fluoroscopy exposure times, success rates of procedure, and complications.

In 786 ablation procedures, targeting 498 accessory pathways and 288 atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia substrates, average procedural time (156.5 versus 206.7 minutes, p < 0.01), and fluoroscopy time (1.2 versus 38.3 minutes, p < 0.01) were significantly shorter in the study group. Success rates for the various substrates were similar except for manifest accessory pathways which had a significantly higher success rate in the study group (96.4% versus 93.0%, p < 0.01). Major complication rates were significantly lower in the study group (0.3% versus 1.6%, p < 0.01).

In a large, multicentre study, three-dimensional systems show favourable improvements in clinical outcomes in children undergoing catheter ablation of supraventricular tachycardia compared to the traditional fluoroscopic approach. Further improvements are anticipated as technology advances.

Among older people with cognitive impairment and mild dementia, relatively little is known about the factors that predict preferences for everyday living activities and experiences and that influence the relative importance of those activities and experiences.

Cross-sectional study.

Participants were recruited from the Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (MADRC) Clinical Core longitudinal cohort.

The sample included 62 community-dwelling older adults with cognitive impairment (Clinical Dementia Rating global score ≥ 0.5).

We used the Preferences for Everyday Living Inventory (PELI) to assess preferences for activities and lifestyle experiences among persons with cognitive impairment. Within-subjects analysis of variance was used to test for significant differences in the mean ratings of importance for four domains of the PELI (“autonomous choice,” “social engagement,” “personal growth,” and “keeping a routine”). Multiple regression models were used to relate predictors, including neuropsychiatric symptoms, to importance ratings for each domain.

Significant differences were noted in the mean importance ratings of the preferences domains: “social engagement” preferences were rated as most important, followed by “autonomous choice,” “personal growth,” and “keeping a routine.” For the “social engagement” preferences domain, female sex was significantly associated with higher importance of “social engagement,” while depressive symptoms (Geriatric Depression Scale-15 scores) were significantly associated with lower importance.

This study adds novel insight into the everyday preferences of community-dwelling older adults with cognitive impairment and highlights the impact of a number of factors, particularly level of depression, on how important various everyday experiences are perceived.

The Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Hospital for Diseases of the Throat, Ear and Nose existed in Nottingham for over 60 years, but there is little knowledge or documentation regarding its existence.

The following resources were searched to find out more about the hospital: the Nottinghamshire Archives; Manuscripts and Special Collections at the University of Nottingham Libraries; and Nottingham Central Library. Information was also obtained from the founders’ relatives.

The hospital was founded in 1886, by Dr Donald Stewart, supported by political and clerical leaders. Initially, it treated out-patients only; in-patients were admitted for surgical treatment from 1905. Suitable accommodation was purchased in 1925, on Goldsmith Street, but required much building extension and alteration. Building restrictions during and following World War II prevented expansion. The National Hospital Survey conducted in 1945 considered the clinical work undertaken to be of a minor character, and recommended closure and amalgamation with the services provided by the Nottingham General Hospital. The hospital closed in 1947.

The specialist hospital was deemed unfit and unsuitable to compete with the comprehensive service provided by the Nottingham General Hospital.

Cognitive deficits affect a significant proportion of patients with bipolar disorder (BD). Problems with sustained attention have been found independent of mood state and the causes are unclear. We aimed to investigate whether physical parameters such as activity levels, sleep, and body mass index (BMI) may be contributing factors.

Forty-six patients with BD and 42 controls completed a battery of neuropsychological tests and wore a triaxial accelerometer for 21 days which collected information on physical activity, sleep, and circadian rhythm. Ex-Gaussian analyses were used to characterise reaction time distributions. We used hierarchical regression analyses to examine whether physical activity, BMI, circadian rhythm, and sleep predicted variance in the performance of cognitive tasks.

Neither physical activity, BMI, nor circadian rhythm predicted significant variance on any of the cognitive tasks. However, the presence of a sleep abnormality significantly predicted a higher intra-individual variability of the reaction time distributions on the Attention Network Task.

This study suggests that there is an association between sleep abnormalities and cognition in BD, with little or no relationship with physical activity, BMI, and circadian rhythm.