Oxyhemoglobin changes in the prefrontal cortex in response to cognitive tasks: a systematic review

Purpose of the study: the aim of this study was to synthesize PFC fNIRS outcomes on the effects of cognitive tasks compared to resting/baseline tasks in healthy adults from studies utilizing a pre/post design.

Material and methods: original research studies were searched from seven databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, SCOPUS, PEDro and PubMed). Subsequently, two independent reviewers screened the titles and abstracts followed by full-text reviews to assess the studies' eligibility.

Results: eleven studies met the inclusion criteria and had data abstracted and quality assessed. Methodology varied considerably and yet cognitive tasks resulted in the ΔO₂Hb increasing in 8 of the 11 and ΔHHb decreasing in 8 of 8 studies that reported this outcome. The cognitive tasks from 10 of the 11 studies were classified as “Working Memory” and “Verbal Fluency Tasks”.

Conclusions: although, the data comparison was challenging provided the heterogeneity in methodology, the results across studies were similar.     

Comparison of the treadmill exercise score and single-photon emission computed tomographic thallium imaging in risk assessment

Background  

This study compared the prognostic value of exercise single-photon emission computed tomographic (SPECT) thallium imaging with that of treadmill exercise score in medically treated patients with coronary artery disease (CAD)     

Cognitive impairment after unilateral hemispheric injury of congenital or adult origin.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess and compare cognitive functioning in adults with unilateral hemispheric injury due to either congenital damage or an ischemic event in young adulthood. METHOD: Adults with cerebral palsy resulting from left hemispheric brain damage were compared with adults who had a unilateral stroke in either the left or the right hemisphere. Our primary interest was to determine the impact on hemispheric dominance as revealed by dichotic listening, a task that assesses the bias for preferential listening and processing of sounds. Performance also was determined on a language-related task (word finding) and a spatial task (dot localization). RESULTS: Scores on the Quick Neurological Screening Test indicated that all participants demonstrated significant neuromotor deficits, whereas scores on the Barthel Index indicated that the participants were functional in basic activities of daily living. On cognitive assessments, healthy control participants demonstrated a pronounced left-hemisphere dominance and right-ear advantage; participants with injury to the left hemisphere showed a strong shift toward a right-hemisphere and left-ear dominance. In particular, injury of congenital origin appeared to foster this neural reorganization and localization of language-related functions into the healthy hemisphere. This shift was associated with a deterioration of performance on both the language and the spatial tasks. CONCLUSION: The importance of appreciating subtle deficits after unilateral injury is important in therapy. The dichotic listening test may provide a simple and useful means for evaluating persistent unilateral brain dysfunction in the clinical setting.     

无家可归者多地点结核病传播

地点：2002-2003年，在华盛顿King县，结核病（TB）在多个收容所的人群中大规模爆发。 目的：控制结核病在多个地点的传播。设计：2002年，对收容所病人的接触者进行筛查，作结核菌素皮试（TSTs）和症状回顾。根据这些筛查的结果，确定和优选传播的地点。2003年，对暴露于这些点的队列作彻底的筛查（例如，症状回顾，TST，胸部X线检查[CXR]，痰检和痰培养）。利用PCR为基础的方法对从病人那里分离出来的结核分枝杆菌作基因分型，以快速确认爆发相关病人。 结果：2002-2003年，King县313例确诊的病人中有48例（15％）与爆发相关；通过基因分型，47例培阳病人分离出和爆发相匹配的菌株。3个收容所由于在2002年接纳的病人超过12人，所以人群中TST阳性率（约30％）高于收容所中的一般水平（7％）。用一个痰培养筛查接触者和CXR发现结核病人的敏感度相似（分别为77％和62％）。 结论：一个广泛的资源密集的途径可能有助于控制疾病的传播。这次爆发突显出无家可归者的脆弱性和在城市维持强有力的结核病规划的必要性。     

Long-Term Clinical Outcomes Following Treatment of Actinic Keratosis with Imiquimod 5% Cream

BACKGROUND: The results from four phase III, randomized, vehicle-controlled studies showed that imiquimod 5% cream (imiquimod) was safe and effective in the treatment of actinic keratosis (AK). Patients applied imiquimod or vehicle cream to AK lesions on the face or balding scalp, dosing three times per week or two times per week for 16 weeks. OBJECTIVE: To obtain long-term safety follow-up data and estimate AK recurrence in patients who completely cleared their AK lesions in the treatment area at the 8-week post-treatment visit in the phase III studies. METHODS: One hundred forty-six patients from 30 study centers in the United States were evaluated for clinical evidence of AK, and safety data were collected. RESULTS: After a median follow-up period of 16 months, 24.7% (19 of 77) of the patients administered imiquimod three times per week and 42.6% (23 of 54) of the patients administered imiquimod two times per week had a recurrence of AK (the appearance of at least one AK lesion) in the original treatment area. The median number of AK lesions present was one lesion for both patients receiving imiquimod three times and those receiving imiquimod two times per week compared with a median of six lesions at baseline in the combined three times per week and two times per week phase III studies. There were no long-term safety issues, and the skin quality seen in the imiquimod-treated patients at the end of the phase III studies was maintained. CONCLUSION: One and a half years following treatment, imiquimod continued to provide a long-term clinical benefit in a majority of patients who experienced complete clearance of their AK lesions.     

Three-dimensional reconstruction and stereometric analysis of Langerhans cells in mouse epidermis.

In the presented studies stereometric analysis and spatial reconstruction was performed on two Langerhans cell (LC) types. One was free of LC-I and the other contained LC-II Birbeck granules in the perinuclear space. The presented stereometric analysis demonstrated significant differences between the so-distinguished two cell types. Differences were observed not only in the number and distribution of Birbeck's granules but also in the areas of smooth and rough endoplasmic reticulum, in the area of vesicles surrounding Golgi apparatus, in the volume of cisterns of the apparatus, and in the ratio of cell nucleus area to its volume. Differences noted between the two cell types were of quantitative character. They might result from different stages of differentiation of the cells from their precursors in the epidermis or from distinct functional stages of the cells.     

Milgram and Tuskegee—Paradigm Research Projects in Bioethics

This paper discusses the use of the Milgram obedience experiments and the Tuskegee syphilis study in the bioethical literature. The two studies are presented and a variety of uses of them identified and discussed. It is argued that the use of these studies as paradigms of problematic research relies on a reduction of their complexity. What is discussed is thus often constructions of these studies that are closer to hypothetical examples than to the real studies.