Psychiatric Hospitalizations in Young Adults: An Observational Study in 2006-2016

Abstract

Introduction: Adolescence and early adulthood are stages of the life cycle marked by major physical, psychological and social transformations. The transition to adulthood at age 18 leads to a shift from child psychiatry to adult psychiatric care. This critical period is of utmost importance to maintain effective follow-up. The objective of this study was to evaluate the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of young adult inpatients in a psychiatric department.
Methodology: We reviewed hospital dis- charge letters of the patients (18 to 24 years old) admitted to acute Psychiatry wards in Coimbra Hospital and University Centre from June 2006 to May 2016, analyzing: age, gender, residence, ICD-10 diagnoses on admission and discharge and compulsory admissions.
Results/Discussion: There was a higher percentage of male patients. As for the geographical distribution, a larger dispersion than that of the adult population was observed, with 30% living outside the Coimbra district. Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders (34%), “behavioral changes” (21%) and “suicide attempts” (14%) were the most common diagnoses at admission. The majority of patients admitted for a suicide attempt" were diagnosed on discharge with adaptive reactions (38%), personality disorders (21%) and depressive episodes (21%). The most common diagnoses on discharge were schizophrenia (17,4%), adjustment disorders (13,9%), transient and acute psychosis (10,7%) and unspecified organic psychosis (9,6%). Only 8,5% of the patients had depressive episodes, which is in line with previous studies. 13% were compulsory admissions.
Conclusion: Young adult inpatients have distinct characteristics from the general inpatient population in psychiatric wards, of which the following stand out: male gender and a higher prevalence of psychotic disorders and compulsive hospitalizations.