A Pediatric Patient with Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Comorbid Depression and Substance Abuse.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), depression, and substance abuse problems share similar symptomatology and have significant interplay. An underlying diagnosis of OSA can often be overlooked in patients with significant psychiatric illness and polysubstance use. Pediatric OSA is often associated with adenotonsillar hypertrophy and frequently requires surgical intervention for resolution of symptoms.

Covid19 impact screening of patients undergoing medication treatment for opioid use disorder.

Populations with addiction are considered at-risk for both medical and financial effects of the COVID19 outbreak. Patients receiving medication treatment for opioid use disorder (MOUD) were screened to assess need, vulnerability factors and potential clinical impact of the pandemic for referral and allocation of resources. : A 31-item quality improvement survey of COVID19-related factors (e.

Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) on Go/NoGo Performance Using Food and Non-Food Stimuli in Patients with Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a neurodevelopmental genetic disorder characterized by multiple system involvement with hypotonia, poor suck with feeding difficulties, growth and other hormone deficiencies, intellectual disability, and behavioral problems with childhood onset of hyperphagia resulting in obesity, if not externally controlled. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been increasingly shown to modulate cognitive and behavioral processes in children and adults, including food-intake behaviors in patients with PWS. This study further reports the positive effects of brief tDCS sessions on Go/NoGo task performance involving food and non-food stimuli images, alterations in N2 brain amplitude, and genetic subgroup differences (maternal disomy 15, UPD; 15q11-q13 deletion, DEL) before and after tDCS as assessed by event-related potentials (ERPs) in 10 adults with PWS.

Relationship Between Body Habitus and Aggression Subtypes Among Healthy Young Adults from the American Midwest.

This study examined associations between body habitus and functions of aggression, in a sample of 474 college students from the Midwestern region of the United States (age range = 18-25y; 73% Caucasian). Two instruments of aggression, the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire from Dodge & Coie 1987 (DC) and Raine et al. 2006 (RPQ) were given as self-assessments.

Young adult predictors of alcohol dependence to age 53: a 44-year prospective cohort study of Danish men.

Aims: To examine if (1) there is a positive association between drinking volume in young men and life-time risk of alcohol dependence (AD) and (2) there are other associations between young adulthood factors and life-time risk of AD.

Design: Prospective cohort study of sons of fathers with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and matched low-risk controls without paternal AUD. Setting and participants A total of 204 men, who were assessed at baseline in 1979 at age 19-20 years, were followed through record linkage with Danish registers and consecutive psychiatric interviews at the ages of 33, 43 and 53 years.

Impostorism in American medical students during early clinical training: gender differences and intercorrelating factors.

Objectives: This study examined the incidence and severity of impostorism in third-year medical students as they transitioned from the preclinical to clinical phases of training.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in third-year medical students (N=215).  Respondents completed a voluntary, anonymous, 60-item survey that included the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale and the Perceived Stress Scale.

Impostorism in third-year medical students: an item analysis using the Clance impostor phenomenon scale.

Introduction: Impostorism, feelings of distrust in one's abilities and accomplishments despite evidence to the contrary, is frequent in medical students and negatively affects student wellness.

Methods: The aspects of impostorism that were most prevalent in medical students during the transition from the preclinical to clinical phases of their training were assessed using an anonymous, voluntary 60-item survey that included the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) and a 2-item burnout assessment administered in October-November 2018. Ratings of individual CIPS items were compared between items for the entire sample and in subpopulations of students.

Sex-Dimorphic Interactions of Genotype and Child Maltreatment Predispose College Students to Polysubstance Use.

Polysubstance use (PSU) is highly prevalent among college students. Recent evidence indicates that PSU is based on gene x environment (G×E) interactions, yet the specific biosocial factors underlying this problem remain elusive. We recently reported that lifetime use of tobacco and cannabis in college students is influenced by the interaction of the X-linked (monoamine oxidase A) gene and child maltreatment.

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa): Friend or Foe?

Increased use of the opioid-related plant kratom as an alternative treatment for opioid withdrawal symptoms has raised concerns regarding its potential for abuse and severe adverse effects. A review of the literature was performed to characterize kratom's pharmacology, clinical efficacy, and adverse effects to increase understanding and evaluate potential use as an alternative treatment for opioid dependence. Kratom use initiated as self-medication for an opioid use disorder or pain syndrome in the absence of effective alternatives is associated with a risk of kratom dependence, withdrawal, and life-threatening toxicity.

Age Distribution, Comorbidities and Risk Factors for Thrombosis in Prader-Willi Syndrome.

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is an imprinting disorder caused by lack of expression of the paternally inherited 15q11.2-q13 chromosome region. The risk of death from obesity-related complications can worsen with age, but survival trends are improving.

Diphenylbutylpiperidine Antipsychotic Drugs Inhibit Prolactin Receptor Signaling to Reduce Growth of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma in Mice.

Background & Aims: Prolactin (PRL) signaling is up-regulated in hormone-responsive cancers. The PRL receptor (PRLR) is a class I cytokine receptor that signals via the Janus kinase (JAK)-signal transducer and activator of transcription and mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways to regulate cell proliferation, migration, stem cell features, and apoptosis. Patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) have high plasma levels of PRL.

Venous Thromboembolism in Prader-Willi Syndrome: A Questionnaire Survey.

Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) monitors the ongoing health and welfare of individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) through active communication with members by membership surveys and data registries. Thromboembolism and blood clots have emerged in clinical studies as significant risk factors for injury and death in PWS. A 66-item questionnaire was developed by a panel of PWS medical and scientific experts, with input from Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) leadership, so as to probe their membership on the frequency, risk, and protective factors for venous thromboembolism, pulmonary embolism, and related findings.

Time to remission analysis for major depressive disorder after repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS).

We previously examined the efficacy of rTMS for major depressive disorder in an applied clinical practice. Clinical response was related to severity of depression as well as the rTMS instrument utilized suggesting a relationship to instrument or magnetic field parameters and individual factors. The effectiveness of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in the treatment of major depressive disorder was further evaluated using Log-Rank statistics for time to remission outcomes.

Relationship between body mass and clinical response to repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for major depressive disorder.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been proven to be efficacious in the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). We previously examined the effectiveness of rTMS for MDD in an applied clinical setting, AwakeningsKC Clinical Neuroscience Institute (CNI) and found high remission rates for patients diagnosed with MDD following rTMS treatment. An unexpected relationship with body composition and rTMS unit was discovered.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) using different TMS instruments for major depressive disorder at a suburban tertiary clinic.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a neurostimulatory technique used to modulate orbital frontal corticostriatal (OFC) activity and clinical symptomatology for psychiatric disorders involving OFC dysfunction. We examined the effectiveness of rTMS in the treatment of major depressive disorder in an applied clinical setting (Awakening KC CNI) to assess efficacy and optimize rTMS parameters within clinical practice. A retrospective review of medical records was carried out on patients with major depressive disorder undergoing rTMS therapy at Awakenings KC Clinical Neuroscience Institute (CNI), a suburban tertiary psychiatric clinic.

GeneAnalytics Pathways and Profiling of Shared Autism and Cancer Genes.

Recent research revealed that autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and cancer may share common genetic architecture, with evidence first reported with the gene. There are approximately 800 autism genes and 3500 genes associated with cancer. The VarElect phenotype program was chosen to identify genes jointly associated with both conditions based on genomic information stored in GeneCards.

STARTLE RESPONSE ANALYSIS OF FOOD-IMAGE PROCESSING IN PRADER-WILLI SYNDROME.

Background: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a complex genetic neurodevelopmental disorder with endocrine disturbances, hyperphagia and often life-threatening obesity as key features. We investigated emotional-processing of food and eating behavior in PWS using startle response-modulation. Startle eyeblink response is an involuntary reflex activated by the autonomic nervous system in response to sudden or disturbing auditory/visual stimuli which may be modulated by the emotional valence of concurrently viewed visual stimuli.

Tobacco and cannabis use in college students are predicted by sex-dimorphic interactions between MAOA genotype and child abuse.

Background: Postsecondary students in Western countries exhibit a high prevalence of cannabis and tobacco use disorders. The etiology of these problems is contributed by several psychosocial factors, including childhood adversity and trauma; however, the mechanisms whereby these environmental determinants predispose to the use of these substances remain elusive, due to our poor knowledge of genetic and biological moderators. Converging evidence points to the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene as a moderator of the effects of lifetime stress on the initiation of substance use.

A descriptive study on selected growth parameters and growth hormone receptor gene in healthy young adults from the American Midwest.

Context: The first study of growth hormone receptor (GHR) genotypes in healthy young adults in the United States attending a Midwestern university and impact on selected growth parameters.

Objective: To describe the frequency of GHR genotypes in a sample of healthy young adults from the United States attending a university in the Midwest and analyze the relationship between GHR genotypes and selected growth parameters.

Design: Saliva was collected from 459 healthy young adults (237 females, 222 males; age range = 18-25 y) and DNA isolated for genotyping of GHR alleles (fl/fl, fl/d3, or d3/d3).

Growth hormone receptor (GHR) gene polymorphism and scoliosis in Prader-Willi syndrome.

Objective: A growth hormone receptor (GHR) gene polymorphism impacts sensitivity to endogenous and exogenous growth hormone (GH) to moderate growth and development. Increased sensitivity may accelerate spinal growth and contribute to scoliosis, particularly in GH-deficient and treated populations such as Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). Therefore, we examined the relationship between GHR genotype and scoliosis (case and control) in PWS cohorts.

Duplication of 19p13.3 in 11-Year-Old Male Patient with Dysmorphic Features and Intellectual Disability: A Review.

We present a clinical report of an 11-year-old male patient with an interstitial duplication of 19p13.3 (829 kb in size) at genomic coordinates 3,804,495-4,033,722 bp (hg19) identified by chromosomal microarray analysis and review the literature from nine published reports adding knowledge regarding this chromosomal anomaly and clinical outcomes. The size of the duplication ranged from 0.

Functional analysis of schizophrenia genes using GeneAnalytics program and integrated databases.

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a chronic debilitating neuropsychiatric disorder with multiple risk factors involving numerous complex genetic influences. We examined and updated a master list of clinically relevant and susceptibility genes associated with SCZ reported in the literature and genomic databases dedicated to gene discovery for characterization of SCZ genes. We used the commercially available GeneAnalytics computer-based gene analysis program and integrated genomic databases to create a molecular profile of the updated list of 608 SCZ genes to model their impact in select categories (tissues and cells, diseases, pathways, biological processes, molecular functions, phenotypes and compounds) using specialized GeneAnalytics algorithms.

Survival trends from the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) 40-year mortality survey.

PurposePrader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a complex genetic disorder characterized by hyperphagia and morbid obesity with increased cardiopulmonary and hyperphagia-related mortality. Survival trends in PWS were evaluated to assess the impact of modern interventions on mortality risk.MethodsThe Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) 40-year mortality syndrome-specific database of 486 death reports was utilized to examine survival trends in PWS and cohort effects for recent deaths (years 2000-2015, N=331) relative to deaths prior to 2000 (N=94).