A second look at second-order belief attribution in autism

Compared the performance of autistic and mentally retarded subjects, all of whom had passed a standard first-order test of false belief, on a new second-order belief task 12 autistic and 12 mentally retarded subjects, matched on verbal mental age (assessed by PPVT and a sentence comprehension subtest of the CELF) and full-scale IQ were given two trials of a second-order reasoning task which was significantly shorter and less complex than the standard task used in all previous research. The majority of subjects in both groups passed the new task, and were able to give appropriate justifications to their responses. No group differences were found in performance on the control or test questions. Findings are interpreted as evidence for the role of information processing factors rather than conceptual factors in performance on higher order theory of mind tasks.This study was supported by a grant from the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (1RO1 DC 01234). We thank Jason Barker for his extensive help with this study. We are also very grateful to the schools where the study was conducted including the League School, and the public school systems in the following towns in Massachusetts: Hanover, Hanson, Hingham, Milton, Plymouth, and Rockland. We offer special thanks to Alan Dewey, Mary Dollar, Sandy D'Giacomo, Herman Fishbein, William Griffin, Nancy Kearns, Judy Monahan, Debbie Newhall, Cay Riley, Robert Sherman, and Kathy Staska for their continued support of our research.     

Housing for people with aids

People with AIDS are homeless for a variety of reasons, including financial devastation, rejection based on fear of contagion or fear of the dying process, and homeless-ness prior to a diagnosis of AIDS. The author developed and directed the Shanti AIDS Residence Program in San Francisco, the first program to provide housing for people with AIDS. This model is appropriate for single, independent people able to live cooperatively with others. It provides shared living situations for three to six people per apartment, and office staff physically maintain the houses and assure that the needs for community-based home care and other services are met. Other models are proposed for people who are physically or cognitively dependent (and require physical care or supervision in addition to housing), who are socially unable to live cooperatively with others in an unstrucured living environment (e.g., active substance users or the emotionally disturbed), or who have families (e.g., mothers with dependent children or gay men who live with their lovers).     

Quality of life and Kaposi sarcoma: using preference techniques to value the health gains from treatment

The goal of this work was to investigate preference techniques to value potential health gains from treatments of Kaposi sarcoma (KS). The study was designed to take the form of face-to-face interviews with a sample of men with a history of HIV/AIDS ( n=15) or HIV/AIDS and KS ( n=17). The main outcome measure was quality of life (QoL) associated with various KS disease states expressed on a scale from 0 (death) to 1 (perfect health), obtained though time trade-off (TTO) and rating scale techniques. For cutaneous lesions only, the mean TTO preference score value was 0.27. In other words, the men were willing to trade a life expectancy of 5 years for a shorter period (1.4 years) in perfect health. More severe KS health states were rated lower (0.07-0.09). The mean rating scale value for cutaneous lesions only was 0.11 and ranged from -0.10 to -0.04 for the more severe conditions; these values were systematically lower than the TTO ( P=0.014). A large overall potential gain in QoL from treatment (partial response minus stable disease) was found for each condition to be reflected in both the TTO (from 0.31 to 0.55) and the rating scale (from 0.38 to 0.44). Respondents associate KS health states with extremely poor QoL and indicate that large gains are possible through modest treatment effects. While TTO returns higher values than the rating scale, potential gains from treatments were similar. The techniques appear to be suitable for application to QoL and economic evaluation of treatments of KS.     

Joint attention and symbolic play in young children with autism: a randomized controlled intervention study

Joint attention and symbolic play in young children with autism: a randomized controlled intervention study . Kasari C. , Freeman S. & Paparella T. ( 2006 ) Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (formerly Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines) , 47 , 611 – 620 .     

Keratoconus in monozygotic twins in New Zealand

We report on a case of keratoconus in identical twins who were brought up in Christchurch, New Zealand. Videokeratoscopy using an EyeSys^a (EyeSys Laboratories, Houston, Texas, USA) revealed not only marked differences in severity of keratoconus between the sisters, but also non-equivalent cone types. Both twin sisters reported an exacerbation of their keratoconus during pregnancy and during breast feeding. Various factors affecting the development and progression of keratoconus are discussed. (Clin Exp Optom 1995; 78: 4: 125–129)     

Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis of chromosome 12p in paraffin-embedded tissue is useful for establishing germ cell origin of metastatic tumors.

The over-representation of chromosome 12p sequences is crucial for the development of invasive testicular germ cell tumors. Testicular cancer patients may have metastatic tumors of diverse histologic types, including adenocarcinoma, undifferentiated carcinoma, sarcoma, or other malignancies that lack features of germ cell tumors. We sought to investigate the possible germ cell origin of such tumors using interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization. In all, 10 metastatic malignant somatic-type tumors from patients with histories of testicular cancer, as well as one malignant somatic-type tumor from a patient with primary mediastinal germ cell tumor were studied and included: adenocarcinoma (five cases), poorly differentiated carcinoma (one), sarcoma (four), and neuroendocrine carcinoma (one). The tumors were analyzed using fluorescence in situ hybridization using 12p spectrum green and 12 centromeric spectrum orange probes in paraffin sections. The patients ranged in age from 27 to 55 years (mean, 43). Colon and lung cancers from patients without germ cell tumors were used as controls. Adequate signals were observed in all tumors. Gain of chromosome 12p was seen in six tumors. None of the control tumors showed 12p amplification. Fluorescence in situ hybridization for 12p amplification in routinely processed surgical specimens is a useful adjuvant diagnostic tool in confirming the germ cell origin of metastatic tumors having the histologic appearance of somatic-type neoplasms.     

Crystal deposits in the human intervertebral disc: implications for disc degeneration.

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: Although crystal deposition in cartilage and synovial fluid has received much attention, crystal formation and the role that crystal deposits play are virtually unexplored in the intervertebral disc. In articular cartilage matrix, crystal deposits are associated with altered extracellular matrix (ECM) and cell phenotypic features, but crystal deposition in the human intervertebral disc has received much less attention. PURPOSE: To determine the incidence of crystal deposits in the annulus and to evaluate associated disc cell and ECM features. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING: Human intervertebral disc annulus tissue was obtained in a prospective study of the presence of crystals in the disc ECM. Human Subjects Institutional Review Board approved experimental studies. PATIENT SAMPLE: Two hundred eight sequential disc specimens were submitted from surgical disc procedures performed on individuals with herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, or recurrent disc herniation. During this same time period, three disc specimens were received from nonsurgical donors and added to the study population. OUTCOME MEASURES: Histologic features with special attention to crystal deposition. METHODS: Specimens were processed undecalcified and examined for the histologic presence of crystal deposits and ECM features around the crystals. RESULTS: The proportion of specimens containing crystals was determined to be 14.7%; crystals displayed varying sizes, morphology, and polarized light birefringence features. Pyrophosphate crystals were most common, but oxalate-like crystals were also present. ECM in crystal regions showed previously recognized alterations. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that the incidence of crystal deposits in discs is approximately 15% and is thus a relatively common occurrence. These data are important because masses of crystals not only disrupt disc ECM but may also accelerate preexisting degenerative changes via an elevation in matrix metalloproteinases (as previously recognized in cartilage). Because failure of the structural integrity of the disc can result in annular tears and subsequent disc herniation, the mechanisms of crystal formation and the relationship between crystals and disc degeneration merit further investigations.