Psychological characteristics and physiological reactivity to acute stress in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder

Stress related to parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder can differently affect caregiver's physiological reactivity to acute stress. Here, parental stress levels, psychological characteristics, and coping strategies were assessed alongside measures of heart rate, heart rate variability, and cortisol during a psychosocial stress test in mothers of children with ASD (M‐ASD, n = 15) and mothers of typically developing children (n = 15). M‐ASD reported significantly higher levels of parental stress, anxiety, negative affectivity, social inhibition, and a larger preference for avoidance strategies. M‐ASD showed larger heart rate and cortisol responses to the psychosocial stress test. A positive relationship was found between parental stress levels and the magnitude of the cortisol stress response in both groups. The present findings indicate exaggerated physiological reactivity to acute psychosocial stress in M‐ASD and prompt further research to explore the role of individual differences in mediating the effects of parental stress on physiological stress responses.     

Isokinetic flexion strength recovery after ACL reconstruction: a comparison between all inside graft-link technique and full tibial tunnel technique

Introduction: Recently, a new minimally invasive single bundle technique for anatomic ACL reconstruction has been described, called the ‘All-Inside graft-link technique’. One of the advantages of this procedure is the reduced morbidity at the donor site as the graft choice is the quadrupled semitendinosus, thus sparing the gracilis tendon. The aim of this study was to evaluate isokinetic flexion strength recovery in patients who underwent a gracilis sparing technique compared to those with a full-tibial tunnel technique using a doubled gracilis and semitendinosus tendons (DGST) graft.

Methods: Patients were divided into two groups: Group A (22 patients) who underwent ACL reconstruction performed with an All-Inside graft-link technique; Group B (22 patients) who underwent ACL reconstruction with an Out-In technique and DGST graft. At a mean follow-up of 13 months, quadriceps and hamstring isokinetic peak torque deficits were recorded.

Results: In group A, the mean side to side peak torque flexion difference between the operated and non-operated limbs was ?3% and the mean torque at 30° was ?7.5% at high angular velocity (180°/sec); the mean peak flexion torque was 7.2% and the mean torque at 30° was 3.1% at low angular velocity (60°/sec).

In group B, the mean side to side peak flexion torque was ?3.5% and the mean torque at 30° was ?7.6% at high angular velocity (180°/sec); the mean peak flexion torque was ?7.2% and the mean torque at 30° was ?11% at low angular velocity (60°/sec).

A statistically significant difference was found between the two groups at lower angular velocity both for the mean peak flexion torque and the mean torque at 30° (p = 0.009), with better results in the study group.

Discussion/conclusion: Gracilis sparing technique is a minimally invasive technique for ACL reconstruction and yielded a significantly better flexion strength recovery at lower angular velocity compared to a full tibial tunnel technique with DGST for ACL reconstruction.     

No Influence of the Fat Mass and Obesity-Associated Gene rs9939609 Single Nucleotide Polymorphism on Blood Lipids in Young Males

The fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) rs9939609 A-allele is linked to obesity and dyslipidemia, yet the independent influence of this polymorphism on blood lipids remains equivocal. We examined the influence of the FTO rs9939609 polymorphism on fasting and postprandial blood lipids in individuals homozygous for the risk A-allele or T-allele with similar anthropometric and demographic characteristics. 12 AA and 12 TT males consumed a standardized meal after fasting overnight. Blood samples were collected at baseline (−1.5 h), before the meal (0 h), and for five hours postprandially to measure lipid, glucose, and insulin concentrations. Time-averaged total area under the curve (TAUC) values (0–5 h) were calculated and compared between genotypes. Fasting triacylglycerol (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), glucose, and insulin concentrations were similar between groups (p ≥ 0.293). TAUC for TG was similar in AAs and TTs (95% confidence interval (CI) −0.52 to 0.31 mmol/L/h; p = 0.606). Likewise, TAUC values were similar for NEFA (95% CI −0.04 to 0.03 mmol/L/h; p = 0.734), glucose (95% CI −0.41 to 0.44 mmol/L/h; p = 0.951), and insulin (95% CI −6.87 to 2.83 pmol/L/h; p = 0.395). Blood lipids are not influenced by the FTO rs9939609 polymorphism, suggesting the FTO-dyslipidemia link is mediated by adiposity and weight management is important in preventing FTO-related lipid variations.     

Vampires 2.0? The ethical quandaries of young blood infusion in the quest for eternal life

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy - Can transfusions of blood plasma slow down ageing or even rejuvenate people? Recent preclinical studies and experimental tests inspired by the technique known...     

Impact of new technologies on diabetes care

Technologies for diabetes management, such as continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems, have improved remarkably over the last decades. These developments are impacting the capacity to achieve recommended hemoglobin A1c levels and assisting in preventing the development and progression of micro- and macro vascular complications. While improvements in metabolic control and decreases in risk of severe and moderate hypoglycemia have been described with use of these technologies, large epidemiological international studies show that many patients are still unable to meet their glycemic goals, even when these technologies are used. This editorial will review the impact of technology on glycemic control, hypoglycemia and quality of life in children and youth with type 1 diabetes. Technologies reviewed include CSII, CGM systems and sensor-augmented insulin pumps. In addition, the usefulness of advanced functions such as bolus profiles, bolus calculators and threshold-suspend features will be also discussed. Moreover, the current editorial will explore the challenges of using these technologies. Indeed, despite the evidence currently available of the potential benefits of using advanced technologies in diabetes management, many patients still report barriers to using them. Finally this article will highlight the importance of future studies tailored toward overcome these barriers to optimizing glycemic control and avoiding severe hypoglycemia.