Several antipsychotics, but not mood stabilizers, were associated with the risk of pneumonia, which deserves our concern regarding patient safety. Some of the combinations of therapy resulted in synergy of risk.

This study investigated the prevalence of psychiatric disorders and risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder among bereaved survivors of a severe earthquake in Taiwan. A total of 120 survivors received a psychiatric interview conducted by board-certified psychiatrists. The two most prevalent disorders were PTSD (37 percent) and major depressive disorder (16 percent). The risk factors for PTSD were psychosocial stressors and initial feelings of guilt. The risk factor for major depressive disorder was female gender. Only 25 percent of the survivors with PTSD and 26 percent of those with major depressive disorder sought help at primary care clinics. These results indicate a need to develop an effective outreach strategy for dealing with psychiatric disorders among disaster victims.

No abstract

Patterns of increased all-cause and suicide mortality following an episode of self-harm are similar in Taipei City to those seen in Western countries. Designing better aftercare following non-fatal self-harm, particularly for those with underlying physical disorders or who have used lethal self-harm methods, should be a priority for suicide prevention programmes in Asia.