PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate symptoms experienced by patients who reported fever at the emergency room (ER) and to identify any existing cluster of symptom related to fever. METHODS: The study used a retrospective and descriptive design with secondary data analysis. Data were abstracted from 665medical records of patients with fever who visited ER from September 1, 2015 to August 31, 2016 at a tertiary hospital. RESULTS: The most frequently reported symptoms included cold (43.9%), myalgia (24.1%), headache (16.2%), general weakness (15.3%), respiratory symptoms (12.3%), gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms (12.0%), mental change (4.5%), sweating(1.8%), and warmth (0.9%). Analysis of the symptoms related to fever revealed seven symptom clusters; Cluster 1 (n=190) included cold (100%) and myalgia (28.9%); Cluster 2 (n=37), headache (100%) and myalgia (32.4%); Cluster 3 (n=33), GI symptoms (100%), general weakness, headache, and cold; Cluster 4 (n=34), cold (100%), myalgia, headache, and respiratory symptoms; Cluster 5 (n=241), respiratory symptoms (10.8%); Cluster 6 (n=76): myalgia (75.0%) and general weakness, and Cluster 7 (n=54), cold (87.0%), general weakness, and respiratory symptoms. CONCLUSION: The results of this comprehensive symptom assessment are hoped to be helpful in developing better symptom management for ER patients with fever than before. Further research is warranted to verify the symptom clusters of this study in different clinical settings.
Emergencies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Fever ; Headache ; Hope ; Humans ; Myalgia ; Retrospective Studies ; Statistics as Topic ; Symptom Assessment ; Tertiary Care Centers

This study investigated gender differences in symptom profiles of major depressive disorder (MDD) in the Korean general population. Data were pooled from the series of nationwide Korean Epidemiologic Catchment Area surveys conducted in 2001, 2006 and 2011, respectively. Of the 18,807 participants, 507 (397 women and 110 men) were diagnosed with MDD within the prior 12 months. In agreement with previous studies, women with MDD appeared to be more vulnerable to experiencing atypical depressive episodes defined as depression with two or more symptoms of fatigue, increased appetite and hypersomnia (P < 0.001). In terms of individual symptoms, female gender was significantly related with higher prevalence of fatigue (P = 0.008), hypersomnia (P = 0.001), noticeable psychomotor retardation (P = 0.029) and suicidal attempts (P = 0.016) with adjustment for birth cohort effect, partner status, and employment status. In the same analysis, men with MDD appeared more vulnerable to decreased libido than women (P = 0.009). This is the first report to demonstrate gender differences in symptomatology of MDD in the general Korean population, and the results are comparable to previous investigations from western societies. Assumingly, the intercultural similarity in female preponderance to atypical depression might reflect the common biological construct underlying the gender difference in mechanism of MDD. In clinical settings, gender differences of MDD should be carefully considered, because these features could be related with treatment response and drug side effects.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Depression/*diagnosis/*epidemiology/psychology ; Depressive Disorder, Major/*diagnosis/*epidemiology/psychology ; Employment/psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Fatigue/*epidemiology/psychology ; Female ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Reproducibility of Results ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Risk Assessment ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Sex Distribution ; Sex Factors ; Spouses/psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Symptom Assessment/*statistics & numerical data ; Young Adult

INTRODUCTION: Respiratory virus (RV) infections have been implicated in acute exacerbation cardiopulmunary conditions. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of RV infections in patients admitted to the cardiology unit with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) in a tertiary hospitals in Singapore. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a single-centre, prospective observational study. A total of 194 adults (aged >21) admitted to the Singapore General Hospital with ADHF were recruited. A nasopharyngeal swab was taken for multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection of influenza virus, rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus (HPIV), human coronavirus (HcoV), adenoviurs, human bocavirus (HboV), human metapneumovirus (hMPV), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RESULTS: Twenty-five (13%) had RVs detected by RV multiplex PCR. There comprised 9 rhinoviruses (36%), 4 influenza A viruses (16%), 3 HPIV (12%), 3 HCoV (12%), 2 adenoviruses (8%), 1 human HBoV (4%), 1 hMPV (4%), and 1 RSV (4%). Symptoms-wise, cough was significantly more common in the PCR-positive group (48% vs 24%, = 0.02). There were no statistically significant differences in laboratory investigations (haemoglobin, leukocytes, platelets, creatine kinase, creatine kinase-muscle/brain, troponin T), and radiology findings between RV PCR-positive and -negative groups. The PCR-positive group did not have increased mortality or length of hospital stay. CONCLUSION This study identified a considerable burden of RVs in our ADHF cohort, and highlights the need for prevention of RVs in this group of patients. We also recognised the difficulty with clinical diagnosis of RVs in ADHF patients.
Adult ; Comorbidity ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Female ; Heart Failure ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; statistics & numerical data ; Male ; Nasopharynx ; virology ; Outcome Assessment (Health Care) ; Prospective Studies ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; epidemiology ; therapy ; virology ; Singapore ; epidemiology ; Survival Analysis ; Symptom Flare Up ; Viruses ; classification ; isolation & purification ; pathogenicity