Use of Herbal Medicines for the Treatment of Mild Mental Disorders and/or Symptoms During Pregnancy: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Little is known about the treatment of mild mental disorders and/or symptoms (MDS) during pregnancy. Our main purpose was to compare the use of herbal medicines during pregnancy in women with and without MDS. A questionnaire consisting of 21 multiple-choice questions was distributed in the participating obstetrics clinics or birth centers in the Canton of Zurich, in Switzerland, from August 2018 to March 2019; 398 questionnaires were considered in the analysis. The use of any type of herbal medicines–including pharmaceutical herbal products as well as teas–during pregnancy was reported by 358 women (out of 398, 89.9%). Of these, 272 participants used pharmaceutical herbal products, whereby ginger (49.2%), raspberry leaf (42.7%), bryophyllum (37.8%), chamomile (27.2%), lavender (22%) and iron-rich herbs (12.3%) were the ones most commonly mentioned. More than half (207/398, 52.0%) of all participants reported suffering from MDS during pregnancy; only a few took (synthetic) psychoactive medications (5/398, 1.3%). The percentage of use of pharmaceutical herbal medicines was higher among women reporting MDS than among the remaining women (90.0 vs 75.9%; p < 0.001). At the same time, the prevalence of MDS was higher among users of pharmaceutical herbal products than among non-users (59.6 vs 34.0%; p = 0.001). Specific questions on candidate herbal medicines for the treatment of mild MDS revealed that bryophyllum (mentioned by 107 women), lavender (56 women) and valerian (20 women) were used to reduce stress, restlessness, sleep disorders and others, in part with perceived good to very good effectiveness and tolerability. The large majority of the pregnant women participating in the survey make use of herbal medicines. The particularly high prevalence of MDS among herbal medicine-users and the very rare use of synthetic psychoactive medications suggest that pregnant women rely on herbal medicines for treatment of mild MDS. The reported good effectiveness and tolerability of a few candidate herbal medicines deserve particular attention.

Evaluation of Patients with Syncope in the Emergency Department: How to Adjust Pharmacological Therapy

The rate of syncope in the Emergency Department ranges between 0.9 and 1.7%. Syncope is mostly related to a underlying reflex or orthostatic mechanism. A bradycardic or a hypotensive phenotype, may be identified. The latter is the most common and could be constitutional or drug induced. Consequently, obtaining an accurate drug history is an important step of the initial assessment of syncope. As anti-hypertensive medication might be responsible for orthostatic hypotension, managing hypertension in patients with syncope requires finding an ideal balance between hypotensive and cardiovascular risks. The choice of anti-hypertensive molecule as well as the therapeutic regimen and dosage, influences the risk of syncope. Not only could anti-hypertensive drugs have a hypotensive effect but opioids and psychoactive medications may also be involved in the mechanism of syncope. Proper drug management could reduce syncope recurrences and their consequences.

628 Longitudinal Association between NREM Sleep Depth and Arousability with ADHD and Internalizing Disorders in Adolescence

Introduction Sleep depth decreases in the transition from childhood to adolescence, even in typically developing (TD) youth. However, it remains unknown whether this developmental trajectory in NREM sleep depth differs across adolescents with psychiatric/behavioral disorders. Methods We analyzed the sleep EEG of 392 subjects aged 5–12 at baseline and 12–22 at follow-up (45.2% female, 23.2% racial/ethnic minority), of whom 246 were TD adolescents (controls), 62 were diagnosed with a psychiatric/behavioral disorder and were taking stimulant, anti-depressant, anxiolytic, sedative and/or anti-psychotic medications, and 84 were un-medicated. NREM sleep depth was measured at both time points using the odds ratio product (ORP), which provides a standardized continuous EEG measure of NREM sleep depth/arousability (higher ORP reflects lighter NREM sleep). General linear models examined mean differences between groups on the percent change in ORP between baseline and follow-up (ΔORP) while adjusting for sex, race/ethnicity, age, BMI and AHI at follow-up, and PSG system, psychiatric/behavioral disorders, psychoactive medications and ORP at baseline as well as time-to-follow-up. Results Overall, medicated (80.4%, 95%CI=66.2–94.6) and un-medicated (66.1%, 95%CI=53.0–79.1) subjects showed a higher ΔORP compared to controls (52.2%, 95%CI=40.0–64.5, p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively) but did not differ between each other (p=0.134). Specifically, un-medicated subjects with ADHD (n=56) showed a higher ΔORP (77.3%, 95%CI=62.4–92.1) compared to controls (p<0.01), while subjects with ADHD on stimulant medication (n=36) did not differ (66.1%, 95%CI=48.9–93.2) from controls (p=0.268) or from un-medicated ADHD subjects (p=0.303). Subjects with internalizing disorders on psychoactive medications (n=29) showed a higher ΔORP (104.9%, 95%CI=82.8–127.0) compared to controls (p<0.01) and to un-medicated subjects (n=27) with internalizing disorders (60.1%, 95%CI=36.8–83.3, p<0.01), who did not differ from controls (p=0.772). Conclusion The greater increase in ORP in the transition to adolescence in un-medicated youth with ADHD suggests that decreased NREM sleep depth may be a biomarker of the disorder. In contrast, the greater increase in ORP in medicated youth with internalizing disorders suggests that psychoactive medications impact NREM sleep depth in these children as they transition to adolescence. These data have important implications for sleep EEG studies that include medicated and un-medicated youth with comorbid psychiatric disorders. Support (if any) NIH Awards Number R01MH118308, R01HL136587, R01HL97165, R01HL63772, UL1TR000127

Medication Related Problems

When selecting and managing psychoactive medications in older people, it is equally important to focus on avoidance of toxicity as it is to focus on efficacy. Higher psychoactive medication load is associated with increased rate and risk of all cause hospitalization. The medication classes used to treat depression and related comorbidities include antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, mood stabilizers, lithium, anxiolytics and sedative hypnotics. This discussion will examine considerations to help avoid medication related problems relevant to medications used to treat depression in the antidepressant pharmacological class.

Medication Related Problems

When selecting and managing psychoactive medications in older people, it is equally important to focus on avoidance of toxicity as it is to focus on efficacy. Higher psychoactive medication load is associated with increased rate and risk of all cause hospitalization. The medication classes used to treat depression and related comorbidities include antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, mood stabilizers, lithium, anxiolytics and sedative hypnotics. This discussion will examine considerations to help avoid medication related problems relevant to medications used to treat depression in the antidepressant pharmacological class.

Potential Antipsychotic Side Effects and Adverse Events of Assisted Living Residents With Dementia

This presentation provides the findings from a descriptive study examining the potential adverse events and side effects of antipsychotic medications prescribed to assisted living (AL) residents with dementia drawn from interviews with family members and chart review on 238 AL residents, from 91 AL communities in seven US states. We found that 85% of family reported that medication had been administered for agitation or aggression, 93% of the sample experienced at least one potential side effect, and 19% experienced five or more. The most common potential side effects were neurologic/psychological effects (89% of residents), and somnolence during the day (81%). Six percent of the sample experienced at least one potential adverse event. This work implies a need for caution when prescribing antipsychotics to older adults with dementia in AL. Medication management efforts should extend to monitoring AL residents for potential side effects and adverse events from specific psychoactive medications.

Orthostatic hypotension in older adults: the role of medications

Orthostatic hypotension (OH) is defined as an abnormal blood pressure reduction when standing and is frequently diagnosed in older adults. Pharmacological therapy is one of the main causes of orthostatic blood pressure impairment, leading to iatrogenic OH. Indeed, several medications may induce hypotensive effects and influence the blood pressure response to orthostatism. Hypotensive medications may also overlap with other determinants of OH, thus increasing the burden of symptoms and the risk of complications. Potentially hypotensive medications include both cardiovascular and psychoactive drugs, which are frequently prescribed in older patients. According to the available evidence, the antihypertensive treatment “per se” does not seem to predispose to OH, even if a higher risk is associated with polypharmacy and drug classes such as with diuretics and vasodilators. As concerns psychoactive medications, OH is a well-known adverse effect of tricyclic antidepressants, trazodone and antipsychotics. The knowledge of hemodynamic consequences of drug therapy may be helpful to improve OH treatment. A medication review is advisable in all patients presenting with OH, particularly at advanced age, aiming at optimizing medical treatment with a view to minimize the risk of iatrogenic OH.

Impact of Online Mental Health Screening Tools on Help-Seeking, Care Receipt, and Suicidal Ideation and Suicidal Intent: Evidence from Internet Search Behavior in a Large U.S. Cohort

Introduction: Most people with psychiatric illnesses do not receive treatment for almost a decade after disorder onset. Online mental health screens reflect one mechanism designed to shorten this lag in help-seeking, yet there has been limited research on the effectiveness of screening tools in naturalistic settings. Material and methods: We examined a cohort of persons directed to a mental health screening tool via the Bing search engine (n=126,060). We evaluated the impact of tool content on later searches for mental health self-references, self-diagnosis, care seeking, psychoactive medications, suicidal ideation, and suicidal intent. Website characteristics were evaluated by pairs of independent raters to ascertain screen type and content. These included the presence/absence of a suggestive diagnosis, a message on interpretability, as well as referrals to digital treatments, in-person treatments, and crisis services. Results: Using machine learning models, the results suggested that screen content predicted later searches with mental health self-references (AUC =0·73), mental health self-diagnosis (AUC = 0·69), mental health care seeking (AUC = 0·61), psychoactive medications (AUC = 0·55), suicidal ideation (AUC = 0·58), and suicidal intent (AUC = 0·60). Cox-proportional hazards models suggested individuals utilizing tools with in-person care referral were significantly more likely to subsequently search for methods to actively end their life (HR = 1·727, p = 0·007). Discussion: Online screens may influence help-seeking behavior, suicidal ideation, and suicidal intent. Websites with referrals to in-person treatments could put persons at greater risk of active suicidal intent. Further evaluation using large-scale randomized controlled trials is needed.