Vocal Health Knowledge Status and Attitudes of Professional and Amateur Performing Artists in Greece.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the vocal health literacy level and attitudes of professional and amateur performing artists in Greece and identify possible gaps and limitations that should be addressed in the future. METHODS: This mixed-methods study took place in two successive stages. The first stage involved 4 focus groups with professional and amateur actors and singers. The focused discussions of this stage, which were moderated by one otolaryngologist and one speech and language therapist, provided necessary information for the design of the structured questionnaire used during the second stage of the study (online survey). The online questionnaire included questions about responders' knowledge and attitudes of vocal health. Although not compulsory, the Greek version of the Singing Voice Handicap Index (SVHI) was also part of the online survey. RESULTS: The online questionnaire was validly answered by 305 respondents during a 10-month period (May 2020 to March 2021). Considerable knowledge gaps were observed regarding anatomy, physiology, and vocal disorders management. The vast majority of participants (94.1%) had at some point experienced problems with their voice. Gastroesophageal reflux (21.6%), vocal nodules (12.5%), and vocal polyps (3.9%) were the most frequently mentioned diagnoses in our sample. A small proportion of participants (9.5%) stated that they have never visited an ENT, while 84.3% have never seen a speech and language therapist. The total scores on the SVHI in our sample were compatible to the ones in previous studies targeting healthy professional and amateur artists (range 0-116, mean 32, SD 24.7). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides insights into Greek performing artists' knowledge and attitudes regarding vocal health and may pave the way towards improving vocal health awareness among performing artists.

Epidemiology of antenatal depression among women with high-risk pregnancies due to obstetric complications: a scoping review.

PURPOSE: Antenatal depression is a common mental health problem among pregnant women that negatively affects maternal and neonatal outcomes. Women with obstetric complications, defined as high-risk pregnancies, seem to be at particularly increased risk for developing depressive symptomatology. The purpose of this study was to review the prevalence of antenatal depression among pregnant women with obstetric complications and to identify possible associated factors. METHODS: A literature search was performed in the PubMed database and a scoping review was conducted to identify studies with data on the prevalence of antenatal depression and associated factors among high-risk pregnancies due to obstetric complications. The included studies were written in English and published up to 31/12/2018. RESULTS: The prevalence of antenatal depression among pregnant women with high-risk pregnancies ranges from 12.5 to 44.2% among the reviewed studies. The associated factors significantly associated with antenatal depression include maternal age, maternal education, dwelling place, relationship with the partner, previous psychiatric diagnosis, perceived stress, antenatal attachment, abortion thoughts, smoking, diabetes, parity, number of pregnancies, gestational age, threatened preterm labour, preeclampsia and oligohydramnios. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate a high prevalence of depressive disorders in women with obstetric complications, suggesting the need for more rigorous screening among this population. The identification of associated factors also merits clinical attention. Further research is warranted to develop evidence-based effective screening strategies and relevant interventions.