Studies on <Emphasis Type="Italic">Syntaxin 12</Emphasis> and Alcohol Preference Involving C57BL/6J and DBA/2J Strains of Mice

C57BL/6J and DBA/2J inbred mouse strains have been extensively studied for the genetic dissection of alcohol-related phenotypes. We have previously found Syntaxin 12 to be associated with alcohol preference in C57BL/6J and DBA/2J due to its strain-specific and ethanol responsive expression in the male brain. In the current study, we combined genetic and expression analyses to assess the segregation of Syntaxin 12 c.*1370G>A polymorphism with its strain-specific expression and alcohol preference in an F ₂ population (N = 427) derived from C57BL/6J and DBA/2J strains. Syntaxin 12 c.*1370G>A polymorphism was found to segregate with alcohol preference in the B6D2F2 population and a correlation was identified between Syntaxin 12 expression and alcohol preference in the selected B6D2F2 males (r = −0.473, r ² = 0.22). We followed up our analysis in the BXD RI lines using resources from WebQTL and the Mouse Phenome Database. Our study detected significant associations of Syntaxin 12 molecular variants with its level of expression and alcohol preference in B6D2F2 males. Overall, our findings support a role for Syntaxin 12 as a potential contributor to alcohol preference in mice. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Edited by Stephen Maxson.     

Evidence of increased non-verbal behavioral signs of pain in adults with neurodevelopmental disorders and chronic self-injury

The role of pain in relation to self-injurious behavior (SIB) among individuals with intellectual disabilities is not well understood. Some models of SIB are based on altered endogenous opioid system activity which could result in elevated pain thresholds. In this study, non-verbal behavioral signs indicative of pain as measured by the Non-Communicating Children's Pain Checklist (NCCPC) were compared between matched individuals with (N=35) and without (N=35) chronic self-injurious behavior (SIB) and neurodevelopmental disorders. Significant (p<.01) between group differences (SIB Group>Control Group) were found for the NCCPC Total Score, and for the Vocal, Social/Personality, and Eating/Sleeping subscales of the NCCPC. These results are not consistent with models of SIB in which pain sensitivity is assumed to be attenuated because of opioid system activity and are suggestive of intact and possibly amplified pain expression.     

Neuropathic pain and foot drop related to nerve injury after short duration surgery and caudal analgesia

Caudal anesthesia is the most common type of regional anesthetic technique performed in children. The incidence of neurologic adverse events is extremely rare. A postoperative complication of a mild but permanent neurologic deficit after administration of a caudal anesthetic in a previously well 9-year-old boy who required emergency scrotal exploration for a testicular torsion is reported. The caudal injection provided good postoperative analgesia, which probably resulted in the patient remaining in the same position overnight. This may have contributed to the development of the neurologic deficit, probably owing to a compressive neuropathy. We suggest that, as anesthesiologists obtaining informed consent for anesthetic interventions, we now need to inform guardians/carers of pediatric patients who are to receive caudal analgesia of the extremely small material risk of neurologic damage after caudal anesthesia. Additionally, the anesthetic community may need to consider revising postoperative care instructions to prevent the future occurrence of this rare outcome, particularly if using additives that prolong analgesic block duration.     

Understanding and managing cancer of unknown primary

As a nurse, it is important to understand, and to be able to meet, the informational needs of patients and their family caregivers. Comprehensive information can help to reduce the fear of a challenging diagnosis. In the case of cancer of unknown primary (CUP) it may be helpful to understand some of what is unknown as well as what is known of this phenomenon, which represents some 5% of cancer diagnoses (Pentheroudakis et al, 2007b). Drawing on the literature, this article focuses on definitions, characterization, categorization and treatment of CUP.     

Impact of an education programme for staff working with children undergoing painful procedures

AIM: Needle phobia is very common in children, particularly in those with chronic illness who may have to endure many painful procedures. A programme developed to educate paediatric healthcare professionals working with children undergoing painful procedures was evaluated to identify: (1) whether the education programme led to an increase in participating clinicians' knowledge and confidence; and (2) the effectiveness of the education programme in changing practice for patient care. METHOD: Five senior house officers undertook the one-hour training provided by the hospital play specialist. Questionnaires were completed by the clinicians at the beginning and end of the programme. Nurses reported on the clinicians' adherence to best practice. Twenty-one children who had undergone painful procedures were interviewed with their parents to assess their levels of pain, distress, satisfaction and coping style. RESULTS: Participants had increased their knowledge of how to work with children undergoing painful procedures. The main changes in knowledge reported by the clinicians were involving the nurse and the play specialist, preparing the equipment out of sight of the child and using distraction techniques. Parents and children reported low levels of distress during painful procedures, high levels of satisfaction with the procedure and listed a number of coping strategies that helped the child, and the parent, to cope during the procedure. Staff reports indicated that the protocol for painful procedures and that techniques such as distraction were being used in the majority of cases to help the child to cope. CONCLUSION: There are useful pain control techniques that can be taught relatively quickly by nursing staff to paediatric healthcare professionals that do make a substantial difference to the care of children.