Migration, whether legal or illegal, is a growing phenomenon in Tunisia and can bring significant mental health challenges. Migrants often experience a decompensation of pre-existing psychiatric disorders, the development of new mental health issues, or travel driven by a delusion, known as “pathological travel.” These concerns emphasize the need for specialized psychiatric and social care for this vulnerable group, who endure considerable stress throughout their migration. However the quality of care can also depend on the support from their home countries, where stigma and identification issues with consulates can limit their access to help.

To study the different psychiatric pathologies observed among this population and to determine the number of cases of pathological travel.

It’s a retrospective study. We reviewed the files of all patients who were hospitalized in the Avicenne Psychiatric Department of Razi Hospital between January 2022 and December 2023.

We identified 19 patients and found 17 files. There were 11 men and 6 women, with an average age of 33 years (ranging from 20 to 54 years). The majority have a university-level education (52%) and with a history of psychiatric illness (58%). In total, 41.2% were from the Maghreb, 41.2% from Africa, 11.7% from Europe, and 5.9% from the Americas. The causes of migration to Tunisia were, for economic reasons (29%), for studies (11%), for seeking treatment for a pre-existing psychiatric condition (11%), marriage to a Tunisian partner (11%) and as part of a pathological travel (34%). In 35% of cases, the migration was clandestine and illegal. The reason for hospitalization was behavioral disorder in 64.8%, incoherent speech in 29.4% and suicide attempt in 5.8%. Among our patients, 28% have bipolar disorder, 17% have schizophrenia, 11% have brief psychotic disorder, 5% have depression, 5% have schizoaffective disorder, 5% have delusional disorder, and 5% alcohol use disorder. The diagnoses for the rest of patients were unspecified. In terms of social support we were able to contact the families in 62% of the cases. We succeeded in getting a response from the consulate of the native country in 17% and we collaborated with an International Organization in 5%.

Our study shows the complex psychiatric needs of migrants in Tunisia, with a range of mental health disorders, including cases of pathological travel. Economic reasons and clandestine migration were common factors. Despite efforts, social support remains limited, with minimal consular and organizational collaboration, economic challenges, emphasizing the need for stronger international and social support systems.

None Declared

Climate change and pollution are deeply interconnected phenomena that pose significant risks to overall health, given their proven impact on the functionality of various human organs and systems. With increasing urbanization, global toxicity is expected to rise in the near future. It is therefore crucial to understand how environmental pollution affects mental health, particularly in rapidly growing urban areas.

This systematic literature review aims to explore the biological mechanisms linking exposure to environmental pollutants, climate change, and the onset and/or exacerbation of severe mental disorders.

A search was conducted in the PubMed, Scopus, and APA PsycInfo databases, following PRISMA guidelines. Studies on humans and animal models examining the association between environmental pollutants, climate change, and mental disorders were included. A total of 48 articles were considered, comprising studies on humans (16 studies) and animal models (31 studies), along with one article that included both models.

Human studies revealed that exposure to particulate matter (PM 2.5 and PM10) increases the risk of depression and psychotic relapses through mechanisms involving inflammation, oxidative stress, and disruption of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. In animal models, pollution was shown to impact brain function by activating inflammatory responses, causing oxidative stress, damaging the hippocampus, and dysregulating neurotransmitters. Additionally, one study highlighted that climate change is associated with mood disorders by inducing changes in gene expression and psychophysical adaptation responses.

The findings indicate that environmental pollutants and climate change can affect human mental health through complex biological pathways. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for developing prevention and intervention strategies. The One Health approach, which recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health, is crucial for addressing the challenges posed by climate change and pollution.

None Declared

Forensic psychiatry transcends legal and cultural boundaries across Europe, but specialization and training remain inconsistent. With freedom of movement in most European countries, psychiatrists accredited in one country can practice in others if they meet language requirements. Therefore, harmonizing psychiatric education and practice is crucial and aligns with the European Federation of Psychiatry Trainees (EFPT)’s goals.

This study aims to map the current state of forensic psychiatry education across Europe, focusing on its recognition as a specialty on its own or subspecialty, training structure, and financial implications. It also assesses whether general adult psychiatry (GAP) and child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP) trainees receive adequate forensic psychiatry education, identifying gaps and variations across countries.

Data was collected via an online survey distributed to European National Trainee Association (NTA) representatives in the EFPT through Google Forms in August 2024. Responses from non-European countries and incomplete entries were excluded. The final dataset was analyzed using SPSS 24.

A total of 29 participants, including 24 GAP trainees (82.8%), 2 CAP trainees (6.9%), and 3 specialists (10.3%), from 20 European countries responded to the survey. Forensic psychiatry was recognized either as a specialty or subspecialty in 13 counctries (65%) with 20 (69%) of participants confirming its recognition. 38% reported forensic training lasts less than 1 year or lacks a formal program. Financial support varied as well, with some countries offering full subsidies, while others required trainees to cover costs. Forensic psychiatry was included in the training of 66.7% of GAP trainee and 50% of CAP trainees, though the depth of exposure differed. Notable gaps were found particularly in risk assessment, expert witness training, and competency evaluations.

This study reveals significant variation in the recognition, structure, and delivery of forensic psychiatry training across Europe. While some countries offer well-defined programs, discrepancies in accessibility and comprehensiveness persist. These findings highlight the need for standardized curricula to ensure consistent training. Enhancing forensic psychiatry education is crucial for preparing future psychiatrists and ensuring high-quality psychiatric contributions in legal contexts and harmonization of forensic training across Europe.

None Declared

Individuals in contact with the criminal justice system are at higher risk of suicide than the general population (Carter et al. EClinicalMedicine 2022, 44, 101266). Research to date has concentrated on the prison population with little evidence on the risk of suicide and self-harm for those defendants within the Court system including those referred to the Court Mental Health Liaison and Diversion Services. Court Mental Health Liaison and Diversion services were developed in England to support vulnerable people when they first come into contact with the criminal justice system.

The main aim of the study was to analyse the existing service data to examine rates of self-harm behavior and suicide ideation of those defendants presenting to the Court Mental Health Liaison and Diversion Services across five Magistrates Courts (lower courts) in London, England. In addition, a further aim was to establish if risk factors such as mental illness and substance misuse but also other vulnerabilities such as neurodevelopmental disorders are associated with the risk for self-harm behaviour or suicide along with demographic factors of age, gender and ethnicity.

The study analysed service level data of five London Magistrates’ Courts covering a timeframe from September 2015 to April 2017. During this time 9088 attendees were referred to the Court Mental Health & Liaison Diversion service covering the five courts. Attendees were screened for current risk of suicide ideation and self-harm behaviour as part of the mental health assessment. Data examined was from the National Health Service (NHS) minimum mental health data set which reflects current clinical and custody records and is obtained from frontline court and health service staff.

An overall rate of 14.2% for self-harm behaviour and/or suicide ideation was found for attendees presenting to five London Court Liaison and Diversion Services over a 20-month time frame. Aside from autism and bipolar affective disorder, the current large study showed a significant association between self-harm behaviour and suicide ideation with several mental disorders. The study found no significant differences for risk of self-harm behaviour and suicide ideation relating to gender or ethnicity.

This group of defendants presented with high levels of severe mental illness, substance and alcohol misuse and neurodevelopmental disorder which increased the individual vulnerability to express suicidal ideation as has been found in smaller studies. The wider criminal justice services need to examine the current approach to screening for risk of suicide ideation and self-harm behaviour given the high rates of completed suicide within the prison population compared to the general population.

J. McCarthy Grant / Research support from: £674,000, E. Chaplin Grant / Research support from: £674,000, C. Allely: None Declared, A. Forrester Grant / Research support from: £674,000.

Violence is a major global health concern among patients with schizophrenia. However, the triggers of violent behavior remain unclear. In previous studies, familial risk factors are believed to be associated with mental disorders and violence. The relationship between parental bonding or childhood adversity and psychopathologic behavior (such as violence) has rarely been evaluated.

The study aimed to explore the relationship between violent behavior and childhood experience and to determine the role of the early child-parent bond in violence risk in patients with schizophrenia.

The study enrolled 287 patients with schizophrenia and 100 healthy controls. Patients were divided into 3 groups: patients with homicidal history (Group A), patients with violent behavior and without homicidal history (Group B) and patients without violent behavior (Group C). Childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ), parental bonding instrument (PBI) and modified overt aggression scale (MOAS) were used to explore the violent behavior and childhood experience. All individuals participated voluntarily and provided informed consent. This study was approved by the ethics committee of the Academy of Forensic Science.

The findings indicated the proportion of males to be higher in the patient groups than in the healthy controls, especially in the group with homicidal history. Patients had a significantly higher prevalence of sexual abuse, emotional abuse and emotional neglect than the healthy controls. The emotional abuse and emotional neglect were found to be positively and negatively related to MOAS scores. Maternal over protection was found to be negatively related to the MOAS scores. On the CTQ subscales, emotional neglect was significantly associated with violence risk (OR=1.13, 95% CI=1.04–1.22). On the PBI subscales, maternal and paternal care (0.84, 0.74–0.94 and 1.30, 1.13–1.49) and over protection (1.18, 1.07–1.29 and 0.87, 0.81-0.95) were found to be significantly associated with violence risk. Maternal and paternal over protection were significantly associated with homicide risk (0.87, 0.78-0.97 and 1.10, 1.01-1.20).

The schizophrenia patients with violence might suffer lower paternal care and emotional abuse during the childhood. In terms of violence in schizophrenia patients, paternal over protection and maternal care might be a protective factor and emotional neglect, maternal over protection and paternal care might be a risk factor. In terms of homicide in schizophrenia patients, paternal over protection might be a risk factor and maternal over protection might be a protective factor. Therefore, childhood trauma and parental care and over protection could be a potential reference indicator for assessing violence risk in patients with schizophrenia.

X. Ling: None Declared, S. Wang: None Declared, N. Li: None Declared, Q. Zhang: None Declared, H. Li Grant / Research support from: This study was supported by National Key R & D Program of China [grant number 2022YFC3302001], National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number 81801881], Science and Technology Committee of Shanghai Municipality [grant numbers 20DZ1200300, 21DZ2270800, 19DZ2292700].

In Spain, involuntary admission due to mental disorder requires judicial authorization, which can be prior or, in cases of urgency, immediately subsequent. The courts routinely request an independent medical expert opinion in these cases.

Our aim was to determine the current results of these evaluations and the characteristics of the patients assessed.

Retrospective study from January 1 to June 30, 2023 in the city of Barcelona. The source of information were the case records at the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences of Catalonia. The inclusion criteria were: psychiatric involuntary admission, urgent, and assessment by the forensic doctor assigned to the courts. Sociodemographic, clinical and forensic data were collected.

In the 181 days between January 1 and June 30, 2023, 1,151 forensic medical assessments of urgent hospitalizations were recorded in Barcelona (on average 6.4 per day). Of these, 849 (73.8%) were included. In all of them, the forensic medical report concluded that hospitalization was rightly indicated. The admissions were carried out in 14 different health centers. The psychiatric acute inpatient wards of the city’s main general hospitals received the vast majority of cases. The patients were mostly men (n=483; 56.9%). The average age was 38.2 years (s.d. 16.99), with no differences between sexes. 13.5% (n=115) were minors, with female predominance (n=79; 68.7%). 6.9% (n=59) were 65 years of age or older, also with a female predominance (n=39; 66.1%). In minors, affective disorders (n=37; 32.7%) or eating behavior disorders (n=32; 28.3%) stood out, while in the group from 18 to 65 years of age the main diagnostic group were psychotic disorders (n =491; 73.1%). The latter were also the majority after 65 years of age (n=35; 59.3%), followed by affective disorders (n=16; 27.1%). Globally, psychotic disorders were the most frequent diagnostic group for both men (n=346; 71,9%) and women (n=188; 51,8%). Affective or eating behaviour disorders accounted for 35,8% of women (n=130) and 18,3% of men (n=88).

The forensic assessment of the medical indication of urgent involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations coincides with the clinical assessment. Patients with this measure show differential characteristics according to age in terms of gender and diagnosis. More men are involuntarily admitted than women for most of the adult stage, while the reverse is true at both extremes of the lifespan. Also, involuntarily admitted women show a higher frequency of mood or eating behaviour disorders than men.

None Declared

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has become one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Psychosocial factors play a significant role in the pathogenesis of CVD. Social isolation and loneliness, two important aspects of social determinants, have been shown to be associated with adverse health outcomes. However, it remains unclear whether social isolation and loneliness increase the risk of CVD and exacerbate CVD development.

This study aims to investigate 1) whether social isolation and loneliness are associated with CVD; 2) whether the associations between social isolation and loneliness and CVD are consistent with causal effects; and 3) whether social isolation exacerbates CVD development.

We capitalized on a large sample of individual-level data from the UK Biobank. Participants’ levels of social isolation and loneliness were assessed via questionnaires. 6 cardiovascular diseases (atrial fibrillation, heart failure, hypertension, myocardial infarction, peripheral vascular disease, and stroke) were included by linking hospital admission data and death registry records. We used Cox proportional hazards models to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) of social isolation and loneliness with the risk of CVD. Additionally, we employed two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis to estimate the causal relationships between social isolation, loneliness, and CVD. Finally, we evaluated the impact of social isolation on the clinical outcomes of myocardial infarction in mice. We determined infarct size using histology and heart function using echocardiography.

During a median follow-up of 12.6 years, after adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and lifestyle factors, most isolated group was associated with an increased risk of 4 out of 6 cardiovascular diseases compared to the least isolated group: heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, stroke, myocardial infarction, and hypertension. Loneliness increased the risk of all 6 cardiovascular diseases. Two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis showed that fewer leisure or social activities was associated with an increased risk of stroke (OR 1.01; 95% CI 1.00-1.02). Loneliness was associated with an increased risk of heart failure (OR 1.70; 95% CI 1.13-2.57), myocardial infarction (OR 1.02; 95% CI 1.00-1.04), and atrial fibrillation (OR 1.00; 95% CI 0.99-1.00). Further, compared to group-housed mice, socially isolated mice showed significantly reduced cardiac ejection function, increased myocardial fibrosis and cardiomyocyte apoptosis after myocardial infarction.

Potential causal relationships were identified between genetic liability to social isolation, loneliness and the incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Social isolation may exacerbate the progression of myocardial infarction. The results of this study emphasize the adverse impact of social disconnections on the incidence and development of cardiovascular diseases.

None Declared

Loneliness can manifest in various aspects of life, including personal and professional contexts. Although most of studies on loneliness are focused on general loneliness without the specification on any context, the study of workplace loneliness has garnered increased attention in recent years and researchers explore how loneliness in professional settings affects labor satisfaction, productivity and mental health of workers. However, few studies have directly compared workplace and non-workplace loneliness, particularly in terms of their prevalence, agreement with each other, risk factors, and consequences

The aim of this study is to (1) evaluate prevalences and concordance between workplace and non-workplace loneliness, (2) compare sociodemographic risk factors between workplace and non-workplace loneliness, (3) compare working conditions-related risk factors between the two contexts of loneliness, and (4) compare their impact on absenteeism, depression, anxiety and substance use disorder.er.

A representative sample of the employee residing in Spain (n=5400) was surveyed using computer-assisted web interviews (CAWI). Logistic regression models were constructed to compare the effects of risk factors for workplace and non-workplace loneliness (including sociodemographic factors, and factors related to working conditions), as well as the impact of workplace and non-workplace loneliness on absenteeism, and symptoms of depression, anxiety, and substance use disorder.

40,7% of active workers report experiencing workplace loneliness, while 42.0% report non-workplace loneliness. The level of concordance between both types of loneliness is low (k=0.36). Both types are more prevalent among younger workers and migrated people. Other sociodemographic risk factors (being female, non-married, and non-heterosexual) were significantly associated with non-workplace loneliness. Meanwhile, risk factors related to working conditions -particularly working under stress and labor precariousness- were associated with both types of loneliness, which showed an independent impact on absenteeism, depression, anxiety, and substance use disorder.

Most of social determinants of workplace loneliness are rooted in the work environment, indicating that effective interventions should focus on addressing labor conditions and precariousness to improve both workplace and non-workplace loneliness and their impacts on absenteeism and mental health.

None Declared

Selective reporting of outcome data (SOR) refers to trialists selecting results for publication based on the results of a subset of the initially measured outcomes. SOR for specific, potentially very profitable, treatments, particularly in key junctures such as in the period leading to or immediately preceding approval, has not been examined.

We examined the prevalence and types of SOR for three of the most prominent psychedelic drugs, either approved by regulators or considered very close to approval: esketamine, psilocybin and MDMA.

We used a publicly available inception cohort (https://osf.io/yfv9n) of intervention trials of psychedelic drugs that were registered on clinicaltrials.gov by March 2023. We selected randomized trials in participants with symptoms, a diagnosis or risk of mental disorders. Trials had to assess the efficacy of esketamine, psilocybin or MDMA, alone or in combination with other treatments, compared to any control or active intervention, and include at least one efficacy outcome.

We identified 98 randomized trials, 56 of which had a clinicaltrials.gov status of completed, terminated or unknown as of July 2024. Sixteen of 56 (28.5%) had no publication available as well as no results posted on clinicaltrials.gov. Of these sixteen, seven were described as completed in the registry (three had a completion date in 2022, two in 2023). Another 8 trials we described as unknown, with anticipated completion dates ranging from 2021 to 2023. For 29 trials (51%) we could identify peer-reviewed publications. Five other trials had only been published as conference posters or company press-releases. Of the 29 trials matched with publications, the primary outcome measure had been changed in 2 (7%), with an outcome initially registered as secondary upgraded to primary. There were changes regarding the timepoint of assessment for the primary outcome in 7 trials (24%): in 4 trials the timepoint had been changed, while in 3 trials, the publication only reported on a subset of the timepoints registered for the primary outcome.

Selective reporting and non-reporting of study results are present in trials of the most prominent psychedelic drugs, but given the scarce information contained in clinical trial registries, they are difficult to assess. Full access to all time-stamped versions of trial protocols and statistical analysis plans would be necessary to gauge the extent and types of SOR, including changes to the analysis method.

None Declared

Although mental health problems are common in the workplace, discrimination against mental health is still prominent. Characteristics of one’s own occupation can influence aspects of stigma and attitudes to mental health problems in the workplace context, but there are limited studies examining differences in them between occupational groups.

We investigated occupational differences in mental health stigma, and attitudes to both mental and physical health in the workplace.

Data from the British Social Attitudes 2015 survey were used. Logistic regression models were conducted to investigate associations between occupational categories and stigma as measured by desire for social distance, as well as attitudes towards mental and physical health in the workplace. Occupational categories were based on the National Statistics Socio-economic Classification. Measures for attitudes to mental and physical health in the workplace include whether paid work is good for mental and physical health, how soon one should return to work following depression, whether work can help speed recovery from depression, whether one’s medical history should affect their promotion, including depression, schizophrenia and diabetes. Desire for social distance from people with depression and schizophrenia was measures using unlabelled vignettes.

We found occupational differences in attitudes towards mental and physical health in the workplace, but not in levels of stigma. People in lower supervisory and technical (group 4), semi-routine and routine (group 5) occupations were more likely to have negative attitudes towards mental and physical health in the workplace compared to managerial and professional occupations (group 1). Both occupation groups were less likely than group 1 to believe that paid work is good for mental health (group 4: odds ratio (OR) = 0.38, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.24-0.61; group 5: OR = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.24-0.49). They were also less likely to believe that people with depression should return to work when they can do some or most of the job (group 4: OR = 0.67, 95% CI = 0.48-0.94; group 5: OR = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.41-0.66). People in group 5 were less likely to believe that paid work is good for physical health (OR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.53 to 0.89) and that having schizophrenia should not affect promotion at work (OR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.62-0.97) than group 1.

Our study reinforced the importance of job characteristics on attitudes to mental health in the workplace. First, employers need to invest more in improving their employees’ well-being. Second, governments should provide more support and resources for small companies to help them develop mental health policies and practices. Third, modifications need to be made to improve job control for employees and to ensure enough reasonable adjustments can be made.

G. Cheung: None Declared, A. Ronaldson: None Declared, C. Henderson Consultant of: C.H. has received consulting fees from Lundbeck and educational speaker fees from Janssen.

Psychiatric disorders,such as anxiety,depression,bipolar disorder and schizophrenia,remain major global health challenges. Although prevalence has not recently increased, mental health care struggles with early diagnosis, real-time monitoring and personalized treatment. Traditional methods, relying on self-reports and clinical assessments,often miss the dynamic nature of these conditions.AI and wearable technology offer a new approach, enabling continuous data collection and real-time analysis to improve early detection and optimize patient care

This study aims to assess the role of AI-driven wearables in diagnosing,monitoring and managing psychiatric disorders by:

Evaluating AI’s effectiveness in predicting psychiatric episodes using wearable sensor data

Exploring clinical applications to improve patient outcomes

Identifying challenges and ethical considerations in the broader use of this technology in mental healthcare

A systematic review of studies(2018-2023)on AI and wearable technology in psychiatry was conducted using PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar.Studies were selected based on their focus on AI-driven wearables for predicting or managing psychiatric conditions.These devices typically captured physiological and behavioral data,such as heart rate variability,sleep patterns and movement.The accuracy of AI algorithms in predicting psychiatric episodes was compared to traditional methods,with statistical analysis used to assess outcomes

The review showed that AI-driven wearable devices significantly improved early detection and prediction of psychiatric episodes,with accuracy rates over 80% for depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.Wearables,combined with AI algorithms, effectively monitored physiological data like heart rate and sleep patterns,providing real-time insights for personalized, timely interventions.For example,changes in sleep and activity levels,alongside heart rate variability,strongly predicted depressive episodes.In patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder,AI detected mood swings early by analyzing behavioral data from wearables,enabling stabilization.Wearables also helped monitor medication adherence and reduced relapse rates in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia by identifying early signs of psychotic episodes

AI-driven wearable technology has the potential to transform psychiatric care by enabling continuous monitoring and personalized interventions.These tools enhance early detection and prediction of psychiatric episodes,offering a more dynamic approach than traditional methods.However,challenges such as data privacy, ethical concerns and the lack of regulatory frameworks must be addressed before widespread clinical use.Further research is needed to refine AI algorithms,validate the long-term effectiveness of wearables and ensure patient safety through regulations and privacy protections

None Declared

Many people experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime. Although such traumatic events can precipitate psychiatric disorders, many individuals exhibit high resilience by adapting to such events with little disruption or may recover their baseline level of functioning after a transient symptomatic period.

To investigate the prevalence and correlates of low resilience in patients before discharge from psychiatric acute care facilities.

Respondents for this study were recruited from nine psychiatric in-patient units across Alberta. Demographic and clinical information were collected via a REDCap online survey. The brief resilience scale (BRS) was used to measure low resilience. A chi-square analysis followed by a binary logistic regression model was employed to identify significant predictors of low resilience.

Overall, 1004 participants took part in this study; 360 (35.9%) were less than 25 years old, 269 (34.7%) were above 40 years old, and most participants were females 550 (54.8%) and Caucasians 625 (62.3%). The prevalence of low resilience in this cohort was (555/1004, 55.3%). Respondents who identified as female were one and a half times more likely to show low resilience (OR=1.564; 95% C.I.=1.79-2.10), while individuals with ‘other gender’ identity were three and a half times more likely to evidence low resilience (OR=3.646; 95% C.I.=1.36-9.71) compared to male gender persons. Similarly, Caucasians were two and one-and-a-half times respectively more likely to present with low resilience compared with respondents who identified as Black people (OR=2.21; 95% C.I.=1.45-3.70) and Asians (OR=1.589; 95% C.I.=1.45-2.44). Additionally, persons with a diagnosis of depression were more than two times and four times, respectively, more likely to present with low resilience than those with bipolar disorder (OR=2.567; 95% C.I.=1.72-3.85) and those with schizophrenia (OR=4.081;95% C.I.= 2.63-6.25)

Several demographic and clinical factors were identified as predictors of likely low resilience. The findings may facilitate the identification of vulnerable groups to enable their increased access to support programs that may enhance resilience.

None Declared

Burnout is a longstanding issue among educators and has been associated with psychological and physical health problems such as depression, and insomnia.Chronic stress has been associated with burnout, defined by three dimensions of overpowering exhaustion (emotional exhaustion), cynicism (feelings of cynicism and detachment from work), and inefficacy (a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment) which conceptualize the individual stressful experience in a social context.

To assess the prevalence and predictors of the three dimensions of burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of professional accomplishment) among elementary and high school teachers.

This is a quantitative cross-sectional study with data collected via an online survey. The Maslach Burnout Inventory-Educator Survey (MBI-ES), the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS) and the Perceived Stress Scale were used, respectively, to assess burnout, resilience and stress among teachers. Data was collected between September 1st, 2022 and August 30th, 2023. SPSS (version 28, IBM Corp) was used for the data analysis.

Overall, 1912 educators received a link to the online survey via a text message, and 780 completed the burnout survey questions, resulting in a response rate of 41%. The prevalence of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of professional accomplishment were 76.9%, 23.2%, and 30.8%, respectively. Participants with high-stress symptoms were 6.88 times more likely to experience emotional exhaustion (OR = 6.88; 95% CI: 3.31–14.29), 2.55 times (OR = 2.55; 95% CI: 1.65–3.93) more likely to experience depersonalization and 2.34 times (OR = 2.34; 95% CI: 1.64–3.35) more likely to experience lack of professional fulfilment. Additionally, respondents with low resilience were 3.26 times more likely to experience emotional exhaustion symptoms (OR = 3.26; 95% CI: 2.00–5.31),) than those with high resilience. Males were about 2.4 times more likely to present with depersonalization compared to female teachers, whilst those who indicated their marital status as partnered or cohabiting and those who selected “other” were 3.5 and 7.3 times respectively more likely to present with depersonalization compared with those who were single. Finally, Physical Education were 3.8 times more likely to present with depersonalization compared with English teachers.

The current study highlights the predictive effects of low resilience and high stress on the three dimensions of burnout among teachers in Canada. Interventions aimed at addressing systemic stress and fostering resilience are needed to reduce burnout among teachers.

None Declared

Psychiatry has historically underserved Indigenous people. Earlier, cross-cultural psychiatry assumed that psychiatric disorders were universal and varied little across cultures. This approach has not worked well for Indigenous people who may have different views of mind and mental health. For example, Indigenous philosophy tend to explain the world and states of mental health from a storied approach encompassing relations to land, spiritual beings, ancestors, and the community which can result in different conclusions from conventional psychiatry.

We wanted to explore what modifications in their approach practicing psychiatrists have made to be successful in Indigenous communities and to determine what was common among how communities in which they worked conceptualized mind and mental health.

We interviewed psychiatrists working in Indigenous communities regarding what was effective and how they had changed their practice to work in those communities and how those communities had changed them. We used the iterative processing of constructivist grounded theory to find commonalities in their responses. We present from rural and remote Indigenous settings in Canada (Saskatchewan and Northern Ontario), New Zealand, and Maine (USA).

We found a modified approach to psychiatric services that emphasized Indigenous values and that determined positive aspects of the client’s history as well as problem areas and engaged the client in therapy from the beginning of the evaluation. Some key concepts that emerged from qualitative analysis of interviews and case histories using constructivist grounded theory as a method of analysis included (1) reframing the person’s self-story within a threat-power-meaning network, (2) working with stories about the spirit of the suffering, (3) exploring right relationships and meaningful conduct, (4)acknowledging the intergenerational transmission of suffering. Physicians came to understand that the client sets their goals and defines what recovery means for them in discussion with their family and important community members including elders. This led to a different understanding of what privacy meant to clients. Indigenous cultures encountered were different but appeared to share some similarities including a highly relational approach to defining the self, a collectivist mindset in which the needs of the group can supersede the needs of the individual, a reliance upon stories for transmission of knowledge and culture, and a commitment to a biopsychosocial and spiritual approach.

Psychiatry can form effective collaborative relationships with Indigenous communities requring modifications in the usual worldview and orientation to how psychiatry is practiced.

None Declared

In Eastern Cameroon, the psychological needs of both Central African refugees and host communities are significant. Following psychological group interventions over a two-month period, many participants expressed a desire to continue the support process. To meet this need, a self-support protocol was implemented to encourage participants to maintain and strengthen their emotional and social bonds.

The aim of this intervention was to enable participants to continue engaging in psychological support autonomously, enhancing their well-being, resilience, and coping mechanisms. The program sought to provide tools for ongoing emotional regulation and peer support, addressing the psychosocial challenges identified during the initial psychological care.

A flexible, peer-led protocol was developed and implemented after group psychological sessions. Participants were invited to form their own self-support groups, with a recommended size of up to 10 members, meeting weekly for approximately 90 minutes. The structure was intentionally loose to promote autonomy, creativity, and peer leadership. Two initial sessions were facilitated by psychosocial supervisors, while subsequent meetings were primarily observed to assess group evolution. Key dimensions such as emotional well-being, resilience, and social cohesion were measured pre- and post-intervention.

The qualitaive analysis revealed increased cohesion and social connection between group members, especially between refugees and host communities. Participants reported feeling empowered and valued the emotional stability gained through the exercises introduced during the program. However, the evaluation also highlighted challenges, such as maintaining motivation without ongoing supervision and the need for economic opportunities to sustain long-term engagement.

This self-support protocol demonstrated the feasibility and positive impact of peer-led psychological care in contexts with limited resources. The program reinforced emotional resilience, social cohesion, and mutual support, but future iterations should consider integrating economic empowerment initiatives and more structured follow-up to ensure sustained participation.

None Declared

In humanitarian settings, populations face extreme adversity, and women in the perinatal period are particularly vulnerable, often at heightened risk of depression. This impacts not only their mental health but also their ability to care for themselves and their newborns, presenting a serious challenge for maternal and nfant well-being.

This project aimed to reduce the risk of perinatal depression while strengthening infant care practices and parenting skills, ensuring that mothers, despite living in distressing and hostile environments, can be in the best possible state of mind to care for their babies.

As part of Action contre la Faim’s psychosocial support projects, we adapted the WHO’s “Thinking Healthy” (TH) protocol specifically for low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC), focusing on cultural sensitivity and the unique challenges of the intervention areas. The standard manual was condensed into three sessions, with additional cultural adaptations and the inclusion of two projective sessions (protolanguage approach) to allow women more freedom to express their specific challenges. The protocol was delivered to groups of up to eight women, separated based on whether they were pregnant or breastfeeding to better target their unique needs. Due to logistical and security constraints, the TH protocol required further adaptation to fit each context’s specific limitations.

Over the past three years, the adapted TH protocol has been implemented in three countries across Central Africa, including both humanitarian crisis zones and more stable developmental settings. The programme reached approximately 5,000 preganant women, mothers, and their babies. It was delivered not only in healthcare centres but also directly in communities and internally displaced person (IDP) camps, providing wider access. Results demonstrated significant reductions in psychological distress and depressive symptoms, with improved mother-infant interactions. The programme also helped train healthcare workers, including midwives, enhancing local capacity for long-term support. Quantitative and qualitative results, along with details of cultural adaptations, will be presented.

The adaptation of the Thinking Healthy protocol for low-resource, high-stress environments proved to be an effective and scalable approach for addressing perinatal depression. By tailoring the intervention to fit the cultural and logistical realities of Central Africa, we were able to provide meaningful support to thousands of families. The programme not only reduced depressive symptoms but also fostered stronger maternal-infant bonds and built local healthcare capacity. This model can serve as a reference for implementing mental health interventions in similar contexts globally.

None Declared

While various fields and work areas have been impacted due to COVID-19, undergraduate students appear to have compounded stress. We sought to investigate the variables that predict meaning in life for Omani college students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study investigated the personal and academic factors associated with the presence and search for meaning in life among college students in Oman.

A cross-sectional study was conducted in April 2021. A self-reported survey comprising the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) and a sociodemographic questionnaire was completed by 970 students at the National University of Science and Technology in Oman. We used multiple linear regression to explore the independent predictors.

Compared with engineering students, medical students were found to have a higher degree of both the presence of meaning in life as well as the search for meaning in life (p-value 0.001), and with each advancing academic year, the presence of meaning in life was found to be lower (p-value = 0.002). Students with chronic physical disease had a lower degree of presence of meaning in life and a lower degree of search for meaning in life (p = 0.001) compared with those without chronic disease. In addition, mental illness was associated with a lower degree of presence of meaning in life (p-value 0.001) and financial strain was associated with a lower degree of presence of meaning in life (p-value = 0.001).

In conclusion, no prior research demonstrated higher levels of meaning in life among medicine major students compared to those in engineering or pharmacy majors. Moreover, other academic, socio-economic, and health-related factors correlated with individuals’ sense of meaning & search in life. Therefore, psychologists and psychiatrists should consider these diverse factors when designing interventions to support individuals in exploring and enhancing their meaning in life, considering their unique needs and contexts.

None Declared

Patients suffering from severe mental disorders have a reduced life expectancy of approximately 10-25 years compared to the general population. This mortality gap is mainly due to physical comorbidities among which metabolic disorders play a significant role.

In our study we used the Body Mass Index (BMI), an indicator of general health that can be easily calculated in daily clinical practice, to investigate how weight and the different psychopathological and psychosocial dimensions mutually influence each other in patients with mental disorders.

This naturalistic observational multicenter study was carried-out in 7 Italian university centers (Universities of Campania “L. Vanvitelli,” Catania, Magna Graecia of Catanzaro, Cattolica del Sacro Cuore of Rome, Padova, Sapienza University of Rome, and Tor Vergata of Rome). Patients were recruited if they: 1) had diagnosis of bipolar disorder (BD) or major depressive disorder (MDD) according to DSM-5 criteria; 2) had an age between 18 and 65 years; 4) were in a stable phase of the disease (total score < 9 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and a score of ≤11 on the Young Mania Rating Scale). Affective temperaments were assessed with the Munster Temperament Evaluation of the Memphis, Pisa, Paris, and San Diego, impulsivity with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, and suicidal ideation with the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale.

A total of 598 patients were recruited, of which 60.9% affected by DB and 39.1% by MDD. Univariate analyzes revealed an association between higher BMI and male gender (p<0.001), BD diagnosis (p<0.001), high levels of impulsivity (p<0.05), presence of psychotic symptoms during the acute phases of illness (p<0.05), greater number of hospitalizations (p<0.01), cigarette smoking (p<0.05) and depressive temperament (p<0.001). Furthermore, patients treated with lithium (p<0.05), antiepileptics (p<0.05) and first-generation antipsychotics (p<0.001) had a significantly higher BMI compared to those not taking the aforementioned pharmacological treatments.

The results of our study highlight a strong link between BMI and some clinical outcomes in patients with affective disorders. The routinary assessment of these outcomes would be useful for the early identification of potential metabolic comorbidities as well as to identify patients at higher risk to develop a worse outcome.

None Declared

There is strong clinical evidence that patients with depression have high probabilities to present a cardiovascular disease and vice versa. Thus, it is important to accurately identify these patients in order to provide the optimal management of the comorbid conditions.

To identify patients who have depression and cardiovascular disease using social and molecular biomarkers which are routinely collected in the clinical practice.

Data from 502,379 participants in the UK Biobank were utilized in this work. A subset of the participants has a mental assessment using questionnaires about the presence of depression. CVD assessment was also available for the majority of the patients. In total, 126,033 participants had clinical assessment of both depression and CVD. From these, 8,925 patients had both comorbid conditions. An automated medical data curation tool described in a previous study was utilized to detect and mitigate data inconsistencies and elevate the input data integrity and usability. Hybrid boosting ensembles, including the XGBoost algorithm with a customized hybrid loss function was trained on the curated data, to reduce training and testing loss and to avoid overfitting effects. Dropout rates from deep learning theory were used in the hybrid loss function to further reduce biases during the decision-making process by controlling for the shape of the loss function. Random downsampling with replacement was also applied to match the control and target populations due to the increased class imbalance (ratio?) and with respect to the pre-defined set of confound factors. Additional classifiers including bagging classifiers were used for comparison purposes. The classification performance was assessed based on stratified 10-fold cross validation, where various metrics like the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and area under the ROC curve scores were estimated. Advanced feature selection methods from coalition game theory, including the Shapley additive explanation (SHAP) exploratory analysis was utilized to identify predictors with positive or negative impact to have both the comorbid conditions These explanations were based on the classification outcomes from specific training and testing instances.

The XGBoost classifier had the best performance among all tested classifiers. The results were 0.85, 0.88, 0.81 and 0.92 for the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and AUC, respectively. The figure 1, presents the explainability analysis for the selected biomarkers. As shown, there are simple social questions, but also some blood biomarkers which can be used for the identification of the patients with both the comorbid conditions of depression and CVD.

Image 1:

We developed an AI-based approach which can diagnose depression and CVD to patients in a cost effective way with accuracy of 85% and AUC equal to 0.92.

None Declared

Severe psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BIP) and anorexia nervosa (AN), are frequently comorbid with lung function decline and asthma. Despite considerable heritability, the genetic relationships between severe psychiatric and respiratory comorbidities are inconclusive.

We aimed to thoroughly investigate the shared genetic architecture between three severe psychiatric disorders (SCZ, BIP and AN) and lung function (forced expiratory volume/forced vital capacity ratio) or doctor-diagnosed asthma based on available genome-wide association studies.

We performed linkage disequilibrium score regression analyses (LDSC) and MiXeR to quantify the genetic overlap. A conditional/conjunctional false discovery rate (cond/conjFDR) approach was employed to detect shared genomic loci. Functional annotations, gene mapping and gene-based enrichment analyses were adopted to explore shared biological mechanisms. Web-based cell-type-specific enrichment analysis (WebCSEA) was employed to identify the cell types enriched for shared genes across tissues. Transcriptome analyses were conducted via S-PrediXcan to prioritize biologically plausible shared genes in relevant tissues.

Despite weak or null genetic correlations identified by LDSC, MiXeR analyses demonstrated extensive moderate polygenic overlap (~400 to 800 shared variants) across all pairs of psychiatric and respiratory phenotypes. The cond/conjFDR approach detected a total of 378 unique loci jointly associated with severe psychiatric disorders and lung function or asthma, harboring a mix of concordant and antagonistic variants. Gene-based enrichment analyses applied to the 4,105 genes mapped to shared loci highlighted cell types including type II pneumocytes and macrophages in lung and monocytes in blood as well as biological processes involving the interferon (IFN) JAK-STAT pathway and natural killer cell activation, suggesting common immune mechanisms. Furthermore, when stratified by respiratory outcome, genes shared with asthma were enriched for immunity-related pathways, whereas genes shared with lung were enriched for non-immune mechanisms, indicating divergent shared etiology. A total of 22 shared genes identified by conjFDR approach were prioritized as biologically plausible in transcriptome analyses.

This study reveals the complicated shared genetic etiology between severe psychiatric disorders and lung function or asthma and implicates overlapping immune and non-immune mechanisms. Our findings suggest that individuals with severe psychiatric disorders should be screened for lung function decline and asthma in clinical settings.

None Declared