Adolescent neighborhood quality predicts adult dACC response to social exclusion

Neuroimaging studies using the social-exclusion paradigm Cyberball indicate increased dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and right insula activity as a function of exclusion. However, comparatively less work has been done on how social status factors may moderate this finding. This study used the Cyberball paradigm with 85 (45 females) socio-economically diverse participants from a larger longitudinal sample. We tested whether neighborhood quality during adolescence would predict subsequent neural responding to social exclusion in young adulthood. Given previous behavioral studies indicating greater social vigilance and negative evaluation as a function of lower status, we expected that lower adolescent neighborhood quality would predict greater dACC activity during exclusion at young adulthood. Our findings indicate that young adults who lived in low-quality neighborhoods in adolescence showed greater dACC activity to social exclusion than those who lived in higher quality neighborhoods. Lower neighborhood quality also predicted greater prefrontal activation in the superior frontal gyrus, dorsal medial prefrontal cortex and the middle frontal gyrus, possibly indicating greater regulatory effort. Finally, this effect was not driven by subsequent ratings of distress during exclusion. In sum, adolescent neighborhood quality appears to potentiate neural responses to social exclusion in young adulthood, effects that are independent of felt distress.     

Predictors of condom use behaviour among male street labourers in urban Vietnam using a modified Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills (IMB) model

HIV risk in vulnerable groups such as itinerant male street labourers is often examined via a focus on individual determinants. This study provides a test of a modified Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills (IMB) model to predict condom use behaviour among male street workers in urban Vietnam. In a cross-sectional survey using a social mapping technique, 450 male street labourers from 13 districts of Hanoi, Vietnam were recruited and interviewed. Collected data were first examined for completeness; structural equation modelling was then employed to test the model fit. Condoms were used inconsistently by many of these men, and usage varied in relation to a number of factors. A modified IMB model had a better fit than the original IMB model in predicting condom use behaviour. This modified model accounted for 49% of the variance, versus 10% by the original version. In the modified model, the influence of psychosocial factors was moderately high, whilst the influence of HIV prevention information, motivation and perceived behavioural skills was moderately low, explaining in part the limited level of condom use behaviour. This study provides insights into social factors that should be taken into account in public health planning to promote safer sexual behaviour among Asian male street labourers.     

Cognition in breast cancer survivors: A pilot study of interval and continuous exercise

Objectives

The current study investigated the effects of two exercise interventions on cognitive function amongst breast cancer survivors.

Trabecular Bone Score Reference Values for Children and Adolescents According to Age,Sex, and Ancestry

Trabecular bone score (TBS) is used for fracture prediction in adults, but its utility in children is limited by absence of appropriate reference values. We aimed to develop reference ranges for TBS by age, sex, and population ancestry for youth ages 5 to 20 years. We also investigated the association between height, body mass index (BMI), and TBS, agreement between TBS and lumbar spine areal bone mineral density (aBMD) and bone mineral apparent density (BMAD) Z-scores, tracking of TBS Z-scores over time, and precision of TBS measurements. We performed secondary analysis of spine dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans from the Bone Mineral Density in Childhood Study (BMDCS), a mixed longitudinal cohort of healthy children (n = 2014) evaluated at five US centers. TBS was derived using a dedicated TBS algorithm accounting for tissue thickness rather than BMI. TBS increased only during ages corresponding to pubertal development with an earlier increase in females than males. There were no differences in TBS between African Americans and non-African Americans. We provide sex-specific TBS reference ranges and LMS values for calculation of TBS Z-scores by age and means and SD for calculation of Z-scores by pubertal stage. TBS Z-scores were positively associated with height Z-scores at some ages. TBS Z-scores explained only 27% and 17% of the variance of spine aBMD and BMAD Z-scores. Tracking of TBS Z-scores over 6 years was lower (r = 0.47) than for aBMD or BMAD Z-scores (r = 0.74 to 0.79), and precision error of TBS (2.87%) was greater than for aBMD (0.85%) and BMAD (1.22%). In sum, TBS Z-scores provide information distinct from spine aBMD and BMAD Z-scores. Our robust reference ranges for TBS in a well-characterized pediatric cohort and precision error estimates provide essential tools for clinical assessment using TBS and determination of its value in predicting bone fragility in childhood and adolescence. © 2022 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).     

Burden of illness among patients with severe aplastic anemia who have had insufficient response to immunosuppressive therapy: a multicenter retrospective chart review study

Annals of Hematology - This study assessed treatment patterns and healthcare resource utilization (HRU) of patients with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) with insufficient response to immunosuppressive...     

Postoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio variation is associated with chronic subdural hematoma recurrence

Neurological Sciences - Chronic subdural haematoma (CSDH) is one of the most common neurosurgical pathologies. The recurrence of chronic subdural haematomas is an important concern, considering...