Mental Health Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic Long-Term Exposure in Italian Dermatologists.

The present study aimed at assessing the consequences of prolonged exposure to COVID-19 distress on mental health in non-frontline health care workers. For this purpose, we have conducted a survey on 425 Italian dermatologists, in the period February-March 2021. The psychopathological symptoms, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSD), as well as resilience, have been evaluated. The main factors that influence the physician's psychological health have been also investigated. Our study showed that the physicians older than 40 years, as well as those who lived this period in company, reported more personal resources, better managing the distress. Resilience, COVID-19 beliefs, COVID-19 working difficulties, and age were the common predictors of the severe psychopathological symptoms. An interesting result is that the lower level of resilience was the most powerful predictor of a more severe depression, as well as of a higher severity of generalized anxiety disorder, but not of COVID-19 PTSD. The fear of COVID-19 was the most powerful predictor of COVID-19 PTSD. Home conditions and previous SARS-CoV2 infection constituted significant predictors of severe depressive symptoms, but not of anxiety and COVID-19 PTSD. These results are useful in a better understanding of protective and risk factors involved in COVID-19 long-term distress exposure.

Objective and subjective clinical effects of a Nd:YAG 532-nm frequency-doubled long-pulsed diode pumped laser system on photoaging of the face: a retrospective study on color signs, texture and rhytids.

BACKGROUND: Pulsed 532-nm lasers have been widely used in the treatment of vascular and pigmented conditions of aged skin. In addition to lesion clearance, many patients report color and texture improvements to the skin. These improvements are often difficult to appreciate from photographic analysis alone, but are significant to the patient's impression of treatment success. OBJECTIVE: To grade and compare objective and subjective results of treatments with a 532-nm frequency-doubled pulsed Nd:YAG laser using criteria of skin color, skin texture, and wrinkles based on a blinded retrospective analysis of photographs compared with results from patient questionnaires. METHODS: Clinical before and after pictures from 20 patients (skin types I-IV) treated for diffuse vascular and pigmented lesions were selected for evaluation. A blinded grading was performed using criteria of skin color, skin texture, and wrinkles. Patients were asked by questionnaire to also grade improvement using the same criteria. The results of the blinded and patient grading were reported and compared using a chi-squared analysis. RESULTS: Clinical improvements recorded by blinded photographic evaluation and patient evaluation agreed with no statistically significant differences. Both the blinded observers and patients recorded remarkable improvement in the color signs of photoaging, slight to moderate improvement in skin texture and fine wrinkles, and negligible improvement of medium depth and deep wrinkles. CONCLUSION: The 532-nm pulsed laser is a safe and effective device for the treatment of the visible signs of photoaging of skin types I-III. In addition to improvements in color defects, objectively and subjectively significant improvements in texture and fine wrinkles can be expected. Little to no improvement in medium to deep wrinkles can be anticipated.