BACKGROUND: The discourse over the relative importance of emotional intelligence (EQ) and cognitive intelligence (IQ) in predicting life success has been a contentious debate over the past few decades. OBJECTIVES: This study examines the interplay between IQ and EQ among gifted Filipino medical students in the University of the Philippines' Integrated Liberal Arts and Medicine (INTARMED) program, who are faced with the dual pressures of being intellectually gifted and coping with the demands of medical education at a young age. METHODOLOGY: Using a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, 76 participants were administered with standardized tests to measure their EQ and IQ levels. This was followed by in-depth interviews to explore their self-perceptions of intellectual giftedness and emotional competence. RESULTS: Results show that participants have high intellectual ability but with an average level of emotional intelligence, suggesting that while these students excel academically, their emotional competencies might not be as developed. Notably, a weak but significant correlation between IQ and EQ scores was identified, indicating that higher cognitive abilities may be associated with slightly elevated emotional skills. Qualitative findings highlighted the internal conflict between self-perception and societal stereotypes of giftedness, alongside challenges in social interaction and low stress tolerance amidst high adaptability. CONCLUSION Findings of this study emphasize the crucial role of emotional intelligence in coping with stress and social expectations, particularly in high-pressure academic environments like medical school. This study contributes to the ongoing discourse on IQ vs. EQ debate by providing empirical evidence on the complex relationship between cognitive and emotional intelligence. It underscores the need for a more nuanced understanding of success, beyond traditional academic achievements, advocating for the integration of emotional competence training within the medical curriculum to better prepare students for the challenges ahead in their medical profession.
Human ; Emotional Intelligence

Background: and Purpose Recent studies suggested an increased incidence of cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the volume of CVT hospitalization and in-hospital mortality during the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the preceding year. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study of 171 stroke centers from 49 countries. We recorded COVID-19 admission volumes, CVT hospitalization, and CVT in-hospital mortality from January 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021. CVT diagnoses were identified by International Classification of Disease-10 (ICD-10) codes or stroke databases. We additionally sought to compare the same metrics in the first 5 months of 2021 compared to the corresponding months in 2019 and 2020 (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04934020). Results: There were 2,313 CVT admissions across the 1-year pre-pandemic (2019) and pandemic year (2020); no differences in CVT volume or CVT mortality were observed. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT volumes compared to 2019 (27.5%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 24.2 to 32.0; P<0.0001) and 2020 (41.4%; 95% CI, 37.0 to 46.0; P<0.0001). A COVID-19 diagnosis was present in 7.6% (132/1,738) of CVT hospitalizations. CVT was present in 0.04% (103/292,080) of COVID-19 hospitalizations. During the first pandemic year, CVT mortality was higher in patients who were COVID positive compared to COVID negative patients (8/53 [15.0%] vs. 41/910 [4.5%], P=0.004). There was an increase in CVT mortality during the first 5 months of pandemic years 2020 and 2021 compared to the first 5 months of the pre-pandemic year 2019 (2019 vs. 2020: 2.26% vs. 4.74%, P=0.05; 2019 vs. 2021: 2.26% vs. 4.99%, P=0.03). In the first 5 months of 2021, there were 26 cases of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT), resulting in six deaths. Conclusions During the 1st year of the COVID-19 pandemic, CVT hospitalization volume and CVT in-hospital mortality did not change compared to the prior year. COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with higher CVT in-hospital mortality. During the first 5 months of 2021, there was an increase in CVT hospitalization volume and increase in CVT-related mortality, partially attributable to VITT.