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Increased daylight availability reduces length of hospitalisation in depressive patients

European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience volume 266, pages 277–280 (2016)Cite this article

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Abstract

In a retrospective study, hospital stay in two hospitals was compared for depressive patients. The mean amount of accumulated light impinging the patient’s area was 86,145 lux/light period in Hospital Universitari Son Dureta and 258,909 lux/light period in Hospital Universitari Son Espases (~300 % increase). The median stay was 14 days (1q–3q 8–19, n = 101) and 11 (1q–3q 6–15, n = 106) days, respectively. The reduction was significant only for the entire group, though not for subgroups (p < 0.007). Although the light received was not individually measured, results point to a significant effect of light in the recovery time of depressive patients. Prospective studies are needed.

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Acknowledgments

We want to thank Mr Joan Tortell Marimón and to all the team of Clinical Documentation their help in the recovery of patient data.

Conflict of interest

There are no conflicts of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychiatry Department, Hospital Universitari Son Espases, Ctra. deValldemossa n°79, 07010, Palma de Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain

    Francesca Canellas, Luisa Mestre, Miriam Belber & Mary Angeles Rey

  2. Methodology Research Unit, Hospital Universitari Son Espases, Palma de Mallorca, Spain

    Guillem Frontera

  3. Universitat de les Illes Balears, Palma de Mallorca, Spain

    Ruben Rial

  4. Institut d’Investigació Sanitaria Palma (IdISPa), Palma de Mallorca, Spain

    Francesca Canellas, Guillem Frontera & Ruben Rial

Authors
  1. Francesca Canellas
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  2. Luisa Mestre
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  3. Miriam Belber
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  4. Guillem Frontera
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  5. Mary Angeles Rey
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  6. Ruben Rial
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Correspondence to Francesca Canellas.

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Canellas, F., Mestre, L., Belber, M. et al. Increased daylight availability reduces length of hospitalisation in depressive patients. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 266, 277–280 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-015-0601-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-015-0601-5

Keywords

  • Bright light
  • Depression
  • Length of hospitalisation