RESUMEN
Aim: The available evidence for predicting length of stay in acute psychiatric hospitals includes demographics, diagnosis, and treatment variables. This study aimed to evaluate the association between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and length of hospital stay in an acute psychiatric hospital. Methods: A total of 116 patients who were admitted to an acute psychiatric ward at Urawa Neuropsychiatric Sanatorium (Saitama, Japan) from August 2022 to December 2022 were eligible for this study. Laboratory data of lymphocytes and neutrophils were assessed on the first day of admission and NLR was calculated based on the data. Participants were categorized into two groups, high NLR and low NLR, which were set as predictor variables, as well as using NLR as a continuous variable. Multiple linear regression was performed to determine the association between NLR and length of hospital stay, adjusting for confounding factors. Results: A total of 90 participants were included in this study. The association of NLR as a continuous variable and length of hospital stay was not significant. When we categorized participants into high- and low-NLR groups, the association was significant even after adjusting by covariates (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Categorized NLR was positively associated with the length of hospital stay in patients admitted to an acute psychiatric hospital. Categorized NLR may predict the length of hospital stay for patients who are admitted to an acute psychiatric hospital.
RESUMEN
Aim: Previous studies evaluated the association between eating alone and mental health mainly in older people and adolescents. This study aimed to evaluate the association between dinner frequency with others and psychological distress during the COVID-19 outbreak among the Japanese working population. Methods: Data were acquired from a prospective online cohort study (the Employee Cohort Study in the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan) conducted in February 2021 as a cross-sectional design. Dinner frequency with others was categorized into five groups: "almost daily," "4-5 times per week," "2-3 times per week," "once per week," and "less than once per week," setting them as a predictor variable. Modified Poisson regression was performed to calculate the prevalence ratio of psychological distress with multiple imputation for missing data. Global fear and worry about COVID-19 were adjusted as a covariate. Results: A total of 1171 participants completed the questionnaire. Respondents who ate dinner with others "almost daily" had the least psychological distress than those who ate with others "4-5 times," "2-3 times," and "once per week" in the crude model (prevalence ratio (95% CI): 1 [reference], 1.34 [1.08-1.67], 1.40 [1.15-1.69], 1.44 [1.12-1.85], respectively). The association was comparable after adjusting for global fear and worry about COVID-19. Conclusions: Among those who ate dinner with others at least once a week, those who ate with others "almost daily" had the least psychological distress. The association was comparable after adjusting for global fear and worry about COVID-19. Further study is needed on why those who eat with others less than once a week may have a lower prevalence ratio of having mental distress.