Assessment practices of clinical neuropsychologists in the United States and Canada: a survey of INS, NAN, and APA Division 40 members.

The present study surveyed assessment practices and test usage patterns among clinical neuropsychologists. Respondents were 747 North American, doctorate-level psychologists (40% usable response rate) affiliated with Division 40 of the American Psychological Association (APA), the National Academy of Neuropsychology (NAN), or the International Neuropsychological Society (INS). Respondents first provided basic demographic and practice-related information and reported their most frequently utilized instruments.

Somatoform disorders after temporal lobectomy.

Objective: Depression, anxiety, and psychosis are the most frequent psychiatric disorders after epilepsy surgery. The only new-onset somatoform disorder reported postoperatively is conversion disorder. We identified 10 patients who developed somatoform disorder other than nonconversion epileptic seizures after anterior temporal lobectomy.

Induction of remission of severe and refractory rheumatoid arthritis by allogeneic mixed chimerism.

This report describes the first allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) performed for the indication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We used nonmyeloablative allogeneic HSCT to treat a 52-year-old woman who had treatment-refractory RA and a poor prognosis (24 swollen and 38 involved joints). She was treated with fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, CAMPATH-1H, and CD34-selected HSCT (8 million CD34+ donor cells/kg); the donor was the patient's HLA-matched, rheumatoid factor-negative sister.

Group psychoeducation as treatment for psychological nonepileptic seizures.

There is no consensus for the type(s) of treatment(s) that may be effective or ineffective for psychological nonepileptic seizures (PNES). We provided an open-ended group psychotherapy program to 10 patients with PNES, including a disorder-specific psychoeducation treatment component in the first 10 weeks. Seizure frequency and questionnaire responses were examined pre- and posttreatment in all 7 of 10 individuals who completed the majority of the psychoeducational sessions.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.

The goals of this work were to: (1) determine the prevalence of clinically significant obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), (2) characterize the differences in self-reported OC symptoms in patients with TLE and a normative control group, and (3) compare the severity of OC symptoms in right and left hemisphere TLE patients. Patients with TLE (n=30) were administered the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (OCI). As a group, patients with TLE had a higher prevalence of OC symptoms than the nonpatient normative sample.

Auxiliary subunit regulation of high-voltage activated calcium channels expressed in mammalian cells.

The effects of auxiliary calcium channel subunits on the expression and functional properties of high-voltage activated (HVA) calcium channels have been studied extensively in the Xenopus oocyte expression system, but are less completely characterized in a mammalian cellular environment. Here, we provide the first systematic analysis of the effects of calcium channel beta and alpha(2)-delta subunits on expression levels and biophysical properties of three different types (Ca(v)1.2, Ca(v)2.

Surgical-site infection rates and risk factor analysis in coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

Background: The Victorian Infection Control Surveillance Project (VICSP) is a multicenter collaborative surveillance project established by infection control practitioners. Five public hospitals contributed data for patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.

Objective: To determine the aggregate and comparative interhospital surgical-site infection (SSI) rates for patients undergoing CABG surgery and the risk factors for SSI in this patient group.

Use of the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised (BVMT-R) in neuropsychological evaluation of epilepsy surgery candidates.

Many commonly used measures of figural reproduction have been found to be relatively insensitive to the effects of right temporal lobe dysfunction. More positive findings are present in studies using measures of figural learning over repeated trials. This study examined the use of a commercially available measure of figural learning in a sample of epilepsy patients undergoing presurgical neuropsychological testing.

Neuropsychological testing for assessment of treatment effects: methodologic issues.

Neuropsychological (NP) testing is now recognized as an important method for evaluating treatment effects. However, there are limitations to how these tests are currently used in most drug treatment protocols. Changes in cognition are typically defined in statistical terms, with little knowledge as to whether the observed differences are meaningful in any other sense.

A single Gbeta subunit locus controls cross-talk between protein kinase C and G protein regulation of N-type calcium channels.

The modulation of N-type calcium channels is a key factor in the control of neurotransmitter release. Whereas N-type channels are inhibited by Gbetagamma subunits in a G protein beta-isoform-dependent manner, channel activity is typically stimulated by activation of protein kinase C (PKC). In addition, there is cross-talk among these pathways, such that PKC-dependent phosphorylation of the Gbetagamma target site on the N-type channel antagonizes subsequent G protein inhibition, albeit only for Gbeta(1)-mediated responses.

Self-harm patients who take early discharge from the accident and emergency department: how do they differ from those who stay?

There is evidence that patients presenting at a hospital Accident and Emergency (A&E) department with self-harm are considerably more likely than many others to discharge themselves before their assessment or treatment are complete. This paper reports a study that is part of a broader analysis of all self-harm presentations to a hospital A&E department over a five-year period. Self-harm patients who chose to remain for assessment and treatment were compared with those who chose to discharge themselves prematurely.

Scleroderma renal crisis: new insights and developments.

Scleroderma renal crisis (SRC) was once a uniformly fatal complication of systemic sclerosis (SSc). With the introduction of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors as treatment, outcomes have improved significantly, though 39% to 50% of SSc patients who develop SRC continue to have poor outcomes, including permanent dialysis and death. Early recognition and treatment with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors are important in the effective management of SRC, though given the continuing morbidity and mortality caused by SRC, they are clearly not sufficient.

High-dose versus low-dose D-penicillamine in early diffuse systemic sclerosis trial: lessons learned.

Objectives: To review important findings, or lessons, that were learned about measures of response, design, conduct, and analysis of a randomized, controlled trial (RCT), even though the trial failed to demonstrate efficacy of d-penicillamine.

Methods: One hundred thirty-four patients with early (< or =18 months), diffuse systemic sclerosis (SSc) were entered into an RCT (high-dose [822 mg daily] vs low-dose [120 mg every other day] D-penicillamine) and were followed up regularly for up to 4 years. Because analysis failed to show efficacy for D-penicillamine in early diffuse SSc, all data were pooled for additional secondary analyses.

Facial closure: interrelationship with facial discrimination, other closure tests, and subjective contour illusions.

Findings from previous research have argued for the dissociation of two visual-perceptual tasks traditionally thought to be mediated by the nondominant hemisphere (i.e. perceptual closure and facial discrimination).

Acute effects and recovery time following concussion in collegiate football players: the NCAA Concussion Study.

Context: Lack of empirical data on recovery time following sport-related concussion hampers clinical decision making about return to play after injury.

Objective: To prospectively measure immediate effects and natural recovery course relating to symptoms, cognitive functioning, and postural stability following sport-related concussion.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Prospective cohort study of 1631 football players from 15 US colleges.

Cumulative effects associated with recurrent concussion in collegiate football players: the NCAA Concussion Study.

Context: Approximately 300 000 sport-related concussions occur annually in the United States, and the likelihood of serious sequelae may increase with repeated head injury.

Objective: To estimate the incidence of concussion and time to recovery after concussion in collegiate football players.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Prospective cohort study of 2905 football players from 25 US colleges were tested at preseason baseline in 1999, 2000, and 2001 on a variety of measures and followed up prospectively to ascertain concussion occurrence.

Several structural domains contribute to the regulation of N-type calcium channel inactivation by the beta 3 subunit.

Calcium channel beta subunits are essential regulatory elements of the gating properties of high voltage-activated calcium channels. Co-expression with beta(3) subunits typically accelerates inactivation, whereas co-expression with beta(4) subunits results in a slowly inactivating phenotype. Here, we have examined the molecular basis of the differential effect of these two subunits on the inactivation characteristics of Ca(v)2.

Neuropsychological testing of high school athletes. Preliminary norms and test-retest indices.

This study provides preliminary norms and test-retest indices on a brief battery of neuropsychological tests administered to a sample of 60 male and 40 female high school athletes. Forty-eight subjects completed retesting 8 weeks later. Analyses of baseline scores indicate that girls outperform boys on selected measures of processing speed and executive functions [Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III (WAIS-III) Digit Symbol, Trails B, and Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWAT)].

Comparison of ceftibuten transport across Caco-2 cells and rat jejunum mounted on modified Ussing chambers.

Ceftibuten uptake into Caco-2 cells and intestinal brush border membrane vesicles is mediated by the dipeptide transport system (PEPT1). The apical to basolateral transport characteristics of ceftibuten across Caco-2 cells and rat jejunum mounted on a modified Ussing chamber was examined. Mannitol was used as a paracellular marker along with trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TEER) for monitoring tight junction permeability.