CHITIN Trials

The North West of Ireland has very high rates of mental health disorders and suicide. For many people, the symptoms related to these disorders start to develop during their late teens and early 20s. A number of studies have documented the increasing incidence of depression, anxiety and other disorders among the student population. Third level institutions are an excellent place to provide support and assistance to those with mental health problems but results from previous studies suggest that the current support may not be fit for purpose. 

The INhaler Compliance Assessment (INCA) device, developed by researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland (RCSI) and Trinity College Dublin (TCD), uses digital signals from inhalers to identify a patient’s inhaler technique and adherence to obtain a complete understanding of their inhaler use over time. 

Multimorbidity is the term used when a person has more than one long-term medical condition. In general practice, patients are more likely to have multimorbidity than a single condition. How patients are treated and the evidence used to draw up guidelines for doctors are usually based on a single condition, for example, research is conducted on patients with diabetes and guidelines are developed for managing patients with diabetes. However, for patients with multimorbidity, there are many challenges, one of which is the management of multiple medications. 

Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), defined as high blood sugar levels during pregnancy, is an increasing health problem for both mothers and babies which affects up to 18% of pregnancies worldwide. Women with previous GDM are seven times more likely to develop future type 2 diabetes compared to women without GDM. There is good evidence outside of pregnancy that lifestyle change (diet and physical activity) can reduce the development of type 2 diabetes in people at risk, but there are many demands on a new mother, and weight gained during pregnancy is frequently not lost afterwards.

People who have a serious mental illness can sometimes die earlier in life than those without. The medications people take for their mental illness combined with an unhealthy lifestyle (e.g. not enough physical activity and too much sitting) can contribute to this. Walking is a good way to increase physical activity in the general population and may help people with serious mental illness to be more active.