No difference in insulin resistance and lipid levels between controls and adolescent subjects who later develop psychosis

Type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemias co-occur frequently with psychoses, but it is not known how common they are in adolescents who later develop psychosis. We investigated waist circumference, blood glucose, lipid and insulin levels and insulin resistance in the Northern Finland 1986 Birth Cohort at the age of 15/16 (N=5410). The Social Insurance Institute register and the Finnish Hospital Discharge Register were used to find the participants who developed psychosis (N=21), and they were compared with other participants. There were no differences in the cardiometabolic variables, suggesting that psychotic episode is not preceded by glucose and lipid metabolism disturbances.     

Psychometric properties of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire among nurses

AIM: This paper reports a study investigating the psychometric properties of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire among nurses. BACKGROUND: Although the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire is one of the most widely used instruments to measure the multifactor leadership theory in organizational sciences, inconsistent research findings have been reported for its psychometric properties. Little is known about these properties. METHOD: Data were gathered by postal questionnaires in 2001-2002 with nurses working in different healthcare organizations in Finland. A follow-up study was performed 1-year later. The sample consisted of 601 nurses and nurse leaders, and the follow-up study had 78 respondents. The internal consistency of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire was explored using Cronbach's alpha coefficient and item-analysis, and the test-retest reliability using Pearson product moment correlation coefficient and intra-class correlation coefficient (single measure intra-class correlation coefficient). The factor structure was studied using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. RESULTS: The internal consistencies of the leadership subscales were satisfactory. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire was fairly stable measured at the 1-year interval. Although the data fail to support the full nine-factor model, a reduced set of items from the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire appears to show evidence of the three- and six-factor structures. Exploratory factor analysis showed evidence for the three-factor structure consisting of three distinctive, yet partly related leadership subscales. Confirmatory factor analysis showed evidence for the six-factor structure. CONCLUSION: The psychometric data suggest that a modified version of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire is a highly suitable instrument to measure multidimensional nursing leadership. Validity and reliability were supported. The results can be used in studies applying the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire.     

Differential diagnosis in scrotal ultrasound. A review of 128 consecutive cases

One hundred and twenty-eight male patients were examined by ultrasound during a period of two years. The hospital records of the patients were reviewed one to three years after the first examination. The role of the ultrasound diagnosis in the differential diagnosis of suspected scrotal diseases was re-evaluated from a radiologist's point of view. Ultrasound is useful in the differentiation of intra- and extratesticular pathology, especially when palpation is difficult. All the extratesticular lesions were benign. The pathological intratesticular findings are described and pitfalls in the differential diagnosis discussed. It seems possible that the patient history greatly affects the ultrasound diagnosis when there is an intratesticular finding. Ultrasound should be used to provide reference information for the necessary follow-up studies of the effects of treatment.     

Brain structural deficits and working memory fMRI dysfunction in young adults who were diagnosed with ADHD in adolescence

When adolescents with ADHD enter adulthood, some no longer meet disorder diagnostic criteria but it is unknown if biological and cognitive abnormalities persist. We tested the hypothesis that people diagnosed with ADHD during adolescence present residual brain abnormalities both in brain structure and in working memory brain function. 83 young adults (aged 20–24 years) from the Northern Finland 1986 Birth Cohort were classified as diagnosed with ADHD in adolescence (adolescence ADHD, n = 49) or a control group (n = 34). Only one patient had received medication for ADHD. T1-weighted brain scans were acquired and processed in a voxel-based analysis using permutation-based statistics. A sub-sample of both groups (ADHD, n = 21; controls n = 23) also performed a Sternberg working memory task whilst acquiring fMRI data. Areas of structural difference were used as a region of interest to evaluate the implications that structural abnormalities found in the ADHD group might have on working memory function. There was lower grey matter volume bilaterally in adolescence ADHD participants in the caudate (p < 0.05 FWE corrected across the whole brain) at age 20–24. Working memory was poorer in adolescence ADHD participants, with associated failure to show normal load-dependent caudate activation. Young adults diagnosed with ADHD in adolescence have structural and functional deficits in the caudate associated with abnormal working memory function. These findings are not secondary to stimulant treatment, and emphasise the importance of taking a wider perspective on ADHD outcomes than simply whether or not a particular patient meets diagnostic criteria at any given point in time.     

Differentiation of adoptees at high versus low genetic risk for schizophrenia by adjusted MMPI indices.

The aim of this study was to find potential signs of genetic vulnerability to schizophrenia. The differences between adoptees at high genetic risk for schizophrenia (their biological mother had a schizophrenia spectrum disorder) and control adoptees of non-schizophrenia spectrum biological mothers were assessed. The comparisons between these groups were based on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) test's subscale scores adjusted by gender, age at MMPI assessment, age at placement into the adoptive family and social class. The subjects were a subsamples of a total of 182 tested adoptees and 136 mentally healthy adoptees in the Finnish Adoptive Family Study. The high-risk group was found to be distinguishable from the low-risk group based on deviant scores on the Hostility, Hypomania and Lie scales. These scales may measure genetic vulnerability and also possibly be indicative of psychometric deviance predicting future onset of schizophrenia.     

Psychometric properties of the Finnish 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale

The aim of this study was to examine the factor structure and the validity of the Finnish version of the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). As part of the Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort Project, the TAS-20 was presented to a sample of 5034 31-year old persons. A confirmatory factor analysis showed that the three-factor model, earlier established with the original TAS-20, was in agreement with the Finnish version of the scale. Three criteria of goodness-of-fit met the standards for adequacy of fit. For the total scale, internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.83 and for the three subscales (factors 1, 2, and 3) it was 0.81, 0.77, and 0.66, respectively. Two- and one-factor models for TAS-20 were also examined, but the other models did not perform as well as the three-factor model. The factor model also worked well with a sample of 516 students with a mean age of 24.8 years. In conclusion, the TAS-20 scale is useful in the Finnish version, too.     

Statistical methodologies in psychopharmacology: a review

There has been a greatly increased interest in statistical methods in the psychiatric research and its applications over the past few decades, in parallel with advances in computers and statistical software. This review aims to describe the main topics related to statistical methods in psychopharmacology, namely nature of statistics in medicine, problems in data analysis, statistical modelling, developments in statistical technology, statistical reporting and meta-analysis.     

Infant motor development is associated with adult cognitive categorisation in a longitudinal birth cohort study

BACKGROUND: The relationship between the age of reaching infant developmental milestones and later intellectual function within the normal population remains unresolved. We hypothesised that the age of learning to stand in infancy would be associated with adult executive function and that the association would be apparent throughout the range of abilities, rather than confined to extremes. METHODS: The Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort is based upon 12,058 live-born children in a geographic and temporally defined population. Information on age at learning to stand without support was obtained at one year. At age 33-35 a random sample of 104 subjects underwent a neuropsychological test battery including tests of executive function (cognitive categorisation), visuo-spatial memory, verbal learning and visual object learning. We investigated associations between developmental data and adult neuropsychological test scores. RESULTS: There was a significant linear relationship between age of learning to stand and adult categorisation: the earlier the attainment of the milestone, the better was the categorisation. No such relationships were observed between infant neurodevelopment and adult cognition in other neuropsychological domains. CONCLUSION: Even within the normal range of development, early development in the gross motor domain is associated with better adult executive function (in tests of categorisation). Investigation of the determinants and sequelae of normal neural development will facilitate research into a variety of neurodevelopmental disorders.