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Background: To describe the lifetime and 12-month prevalence, severity and age of onset distribution of DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) disorders and to explore the association between socio-demographic variables and economic stressors with mental disorders during the economic crisis in the general population of Murcia (Spain)., Methods and Findings: The PEGASUS-Murcia Project is a cross-sectional face-to-face interview survey of a representative sample of non-institutionalized adults in Murcia administered between June 2010 and May 2012. DSM-IV disorders were assessed by the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI 3.0). Main outcome measures were lifetime and 12-month prevalence of Anxiety, Mood, Impulse and Substance Disorders, Severity and Age of Onset. Sociodemographic variables and stressful economic life events during the preceding 12 months were entered as independent variables in a logistic regression analysis. A total of 2,621 participants (67.4% response rate) were interviewed, 54.5% female, mean age 48.6 years. Twelve-month prevalence (95%CI) of disorders: anxiety 9.7% (7.6-12.2), mood 6.6% (5.5-8.1), impulse 0.3% (0.1-1.2) and substance use 1.0% (0.4-2.4) disorders. Lifetime prevalence: anxiety 15.0% (12.3-18.1), mood 15.6% (13.5-18.1), impulse 2.4% (1.4-4.0) and substance use 8.3% (6.2-11.0) disorders. Severity among 12-month cases: serious 29.2% (20.8-39.4), moderate 35.6% (24.0-49.1) and mild severity 35.2% (29.5-41.5). Women were 3.7 and 2.5 times more likely than men to suffer 12-month anxiety and mood disorders, respectively. Substance use was more frequent among men. Younger age and lower income were associated with higher prevalence. Respondents exposed to multiple and recent economic stressors had the highest risk of anxiety disorders., Conclusions: Mental disorders in the adult population of Murcia during the economic crisis were more prevalent and serious than those in previous estimates for Spain. Prevalence was strongly associated with exposure to stressors related to the economic crisis.

Background: Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent compounds that may pose an environmental hazard to humans, food being the main source of exposure for the general population., Objective: To measure the serum concentrations of the main PCBs in subjects from the general population in Spain, and to assess potential determinants of such concentrations., Methods: Serum was obtained from blood samples of 953 subjects aged 35-64 years, residents in five Spanish regions (three from the North and two from the South), randomly selected from the EPIC-Spain cohort. Blood collection took place during 1992-1996 and four PCB congeners (118, 138, 153 and 180) were determined by means of gas chromatography with electron-capture detection (GC-ECD)., Results: The concentration of total PCBs was 459 ng/g lipids (or 3.1 microg/l); the corresponding figures for PCB 153 were 186 ng/g lipids and 1.25 microg/l. Men had higher values than women, PCB levels increased with age, and serum concentration of PCBs was higher in northern regions. Body mass index (BMI) was inversely related to PCB concentrations, and fish intake was the dietary factor showing the greatest association with serum PCBs. The pattern described was similar for each congener separately., Conclusions: We found concentrations similar to those reported in European countries where blood collection was carried during the same period. Regional differences within Spain are not fully explained by anthropometric or dietary factors. The inverse association with BMI suggests that in the mid-1990s there was still ongoing or recent exposure to PCBs in Spain.

Introduction and Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of self-reported diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidemia in a representative sample of adults (719 men and 837 women) from the south of Spain., Methods: Self-reported data were gathered using a structured questionnaire. Biometric data recorded included blood glucose, total cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations and arterial systolic and diastolic blood pressures. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of self-reported diagnoses were calculated using the biometric data as the reference standard. The degree of overall agreement was determined using Cohen's kappa coefficient., Results: The kappa values obtained indicated good agreement for self-reported diabetes (kappa=0.78), moderate agreement for hypertension (kappa=0.51), and minimal agreement for hyperlipidemia (kappa=0.27). Using the information reported, around 70% of diabetic cases were detected, along with half of hypertensive cases and 35% of hyperlipidemic cases. The specificity was high overall (>96%). The factors associated with an accurate self-reported diagnosis in subjects with disease included female sex and obesity (for hypertension), older age (for hyperlipidemia), a family history of disease (for diabetes) and having undergone blood pressure measurement (for all three conditions) or blood lipid measurement (for hypertension and hyperlipidemia) in the past year., Conclusions: The accuracy of self-reported diabetes was high, whereas that of self-reported hypertension or hyperlipidemia was lower. Further efforts are needed to increase awareness of these conditions among the population.