The reported findings of the European Consultation-Liaison Workgroup (ECLW) Collaborative Study describe consultation-liaison service delivery by 56 services from 11 European countries aggregated on a C-L service level. During the period of 1 year (1991), the participants applied a standardized, reliability tested method of patient data collection, and data were collected describing pertinent characteristics of the hospital, the C-L service, and the participating consultants. The consultation rate of 1% (median; 1.4% mean) underscores the discrepancy between epidemiology and the services delivered. The core function of C-L services in general hospitals is a quick, comprehensive emergency psychiatric function. Reasons to see patients were the following. deliberate self-harm (17%), substance abuse (7.2%), current psychiatric symptoms (38.6%), and unexplained physical complaints (18.6%) (all means). A significant number of patients are old and seriously ill. Mood disorders and organic mental disorders are most predominant (17.7%). Somatoform and dissociative disorders together constitute 7.5%. C-L services in European countries are mainly emergency psychiatric services and perform an important bridge function between primary, general health, and mental health care.

The authors identified variations in the characteristics of patients referred to 56 consultationliaison (C-L) services in 11 European

An NI surveillance and control program contributed to a progressive decrease in NI rates.

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Granulomatous hepatitis associated with Coxiella burnetii acute infection has an adverse clinical course in some patients. Surprisingly, it does not respond to antibiotic but to steroids treatment. A hypersensitivity mechanism has been implicated. A case of granulomatous hepatitis complicating C. burnetii acute infection is reported, which was refractory to antibiotics but, as in four other cases previously reported, showed a complete response to steroids. This case was found to support findings that moderate doses of steroids can be useful in patients with granulomatous hepatitis complicating C. burnetii infection and showing no response to antibiotic treatment.