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Background/aim: The number of elderly people (≥65 years old) is increasing both in Turkey and internationally due to improved living conditions and decreased mortality rates. Knowing the characteristics of elderly patients admitted to emergency departments can provide guidance for diagnosis and treatment approaches. In this study, we analyzed the characteristics of very old patients (4≥85 years old) admitted to the emergency department and put together data for use in forward planning in healthcare services.Materials and methods: This retrospective study included all patients aged ≥85 years admitted to the Adult Emergency Department of Gazi University Medical Faculty Hospital between 01.01.2014 and 31.12.2014. Data concerning the patients' age, sex, date of admission, weekday or weekend admission, reason for admission, length of stay, number of readmissions, admission from within or outside the province, and whether they were hospitalized or not were evaluated.Results: In this study, 1105 admissions of 780 patients aged ≥85 years to the emergency department were analyzed. The median age of the patients was 87 years and 59% were female. The most frequent admissions were in January (11.4%). Most patients (63.1%) were admitted only once to our emergency department within the study period. A total of 40.5% of patients were hospitalized in the clinics or intensive care units. The rate of mortality at first admission was 1.5% (12 patients). The most common complaints at admission were infection (13.3%) and soft tissue traumas (crashes, sprains, fractures, dislocations) related to the musculoskeletal system (11.8%). Readmissions were more frequent in males. It was seen that male patients were more frequently admitted due to deterioration of general health status and genitourinary system symptoms, despite pain being more common among women.Conclusion: Due to the changing population structure, emergency staff in Turkey as well as internationally encounter old and very old patients more frequently. It is now imperative that emergency departments acquire the necessary infrastructure, human resources, knowledge, and equipment needed to meet the needs of these patients.
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OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of childhood trauma on psychopathology in 57 patients with first-episode schizophrenia. METHOD: Psychopathology was assessed by Brief Psychiatric Research Scale (BPRS), Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS) and Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) at first admission. Childhood trauma was assessed by Childhood Abuse Questionnaire and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) after discharge. RESULTS: Frequencies of childhood sexual abuse (CSA), emotional abuse (CEA) and physical abuse (CPA) were reported by 29.8%, 40.9% and 13.6% of the patients respectively. Histories of childhood emotional neglect (CEN) and physical neglect were found in 29.5% and 20.5% of the patients respectively. The patients reporting CSA had higher SAPS scores at admission, and had more suicide attempts before admission. The patients with history of CEA had more hallucinations and delusions of mind reading at admission. CPA, CEA and mean scores of CTQ correlated with the number of siblings. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that childhood trauma may alter the presentation of schizophrenia in first admission.