Anxiolytic Effects of Chronic Intranasal Oxytocin on Neural Responses to Threat Are Dose-Frequency Dependent.

Introduction: Anxiety disorders are prevalent mental conditions characterized by exaggerated anxious arousal and threat reactivity. Animal and human studies suggest an anxiolytic potential of the neuropeptide oxytocin (OT), yet, while a clinical application will require chronic administration protocols, previous human studies have exclusively focused on single-dose (acute) intranasal OT effects.

Objective: To facilitate the translation of the potential anxiolytic mechanism of OT into clinical application, we determined whether the anxiolytic effects of OT are maintained with repeated (chronic) administration or are influenced by dose frequency and trait anxiety.

Hepatitis E virus is highly resistant to alcohol-based disinfectants.

Background & Aims: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the most common cause of acute viral hepatitis worldwide and is mainly transmitted via the fecal-oral route or through consumption of contaminated food products. Due to the lack of efficient cell culture systems for the propagation of HEV, limited data regarding its sensitivity to chemical disinfectants are available. Consequently, preventive and evidence-based hygienic guidelines on HEV disinfection are lacking.

Clinical applications of acellular dermal matrices: A review.

Introduction: The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays an integral role in wound healing. It provides both structure and growth factors that allow for the organised cell proliferation. Large or complex tissue defects may compromise host ECM, creating an environment that is unfavourable for the recovery of anatomical function and appearance.

Quantification of the trans-synaptic partners neurexin-neuroligin in CSF of neurodegenerative diseases by parallel reaction monitoring mass spectrometry.

Background: Synaptic proteins are increasingly studied as biomarkers for synaptic dysfunction and loss, which are early and central events in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and strongly correlate with the degree of cognitive decline. In this study, we specifically investigated the synaptic binding partners neurexin (NRXN) and neuroligin (Nlgn) proteins, to assess their biomarker's potential.

Methods: we developed a parallel reaction monitoring mass spectrometric method for the simultaneous quantification of NRXNs and Nlgns in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of neurodegenerative diseases, focusing on AD.

Radiation exposure during angiographic interventions in interventional radiology - risk and fate of advanced procedures.

Purpose: Advanced angiographic procedures in interventional radiology are becoming more important and are more frequently used, especially in the treatment of several acute life-threatening diseases like stroke or aortic injury. In recent years, technical advancement has led to a broader spectrum of interventions and complex procedures with longer fluoroscopy times. This involves the risk of higher dose exposures, which, in rare cases, may cause deterministic radiation effects, e.

[Transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT)].

Transurethral resection of bladder tumors (TURBT) is the standard of care for the diagnostics and primary treatment of bladder tumors. These are removed by fragmentation using loop diathermy. The resection area is coagulated for hemostasis.

Outcomes and costs of ureteroscopy, extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy, and percutaneous nephrolithotomy for the treatment of urolithiasis: an analysis based on health insurance claims data in Germany.

Purpose: Comparisons of ureteroscopy (URS), extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (SWL), and percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) for urolithiasis considering long-term health and economic outcomes based on claims data are rare. Our aim was to analyze URS, SWL, and PCNL regarding complications within 30 days, re-intervention, healthcare costs, and sick leave days within 12 months, and to investigate inpatient and outpatient SWL treatment as the latter was introduced in Germany in 2011.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study based on German health insurance claims data included 164,203 urolithiasis cases in 2008-2016.

[Evolution and place of the ethical issue in intensive care in 2021].

The particularities and complexity of intensive care, the human issues, the constant proximity to death and the dilemmas of conscience with which the teams are confronted make the reflection and the ethical approach a major qualitative component in the therapeutic choices and decisions.

Development, psychometric evaluation and cognitive debriefing of the rheumatoid arthritis symptom and impact questionnaire (RASIQ).

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease often associated with persistent pain. There is a need for a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) that is rooted in the patient experience and psychometrically validated. We describe the development of the Rheumatoid Arthritis Symptom and Impact Questionnaire (RASIQ), a novel PROM with potential to record key symptoms and impacts of RA with a 24-h recall period.

Chronic cluster headache: A study of the telencephalic and cerebellar cortical thickness.

Purpose: Previous studies on brain morphological alterations in chronic cluster headache revealed inconsistent findings.

Method: The present cross-sectional explorative study determined telencephalic and cerebellar cortex thickness alterations in a relatively wide sample of chronic cluster headache patients (n = 28) comparing them to matched healthy individuals.

Results: The combination of two highly robust state-of-the-art approaches for thickness estimation (Freesurfer, CERES), strengthened by functional characterization of the identified abnormal regions, revealed four main results: chronic cluster headache patients show 1) cortical thinning in the right middle cingulate cortex, left posterior insula, and anterior cerebellar lobe, regions involved in nociception's sensory and sensory-motor aspects and possibly in autonomic functions; 2) cortical thinning in the left anterior superior temporal sulcus and the left collateral/lingual sulcus, suggesting neuroplastic maladaptation in areas possibly involved in social cognition, which may promote psychiatric comorbidity; 3) abnormal functional connectivity among some of these identified telencephalic areas; 4) the identified telencephalic areas of cortical thinning present robust interaction, as indicated by the functional connectivity results, with the left posterior insula possibly playing a pivotal role.

A distributed fMRI-based signature for the subjective experience of fear.

The specific neural systems underlying the subjective feeling of fear are debated in affective neuroscience. Here, we combine functional MRI with machine learning to identify and evaluate a sensitive and generalizable neural signature predictive of the momentary self-reported subjective fear experience across discovery (n = 67), validation (n = 20) and generalization (n = 31) cohorts. We systematically demonstrate that accurate fear prediction crucially requires distributed brain systems, with important contributions from cortical (e.

Impact of medical imaging on the epigenome - low-dose exposure in the course of computed tomography does not induce detectable changes of DNA-methylation profiles in peripheral blood cells.

Background: Computed tomography (CT) is a main contributor to artificial low-dose exposure. Understanding the biological effects induced by CT exposure and their dependency on the characteristics of photon spectra is essential for knowledge-driven risk assessment. In a previous gene expression study, we have identified upregulation of , , , and after ex vivo exposure with single-energy CT and dual-energy CT (DECT).

Case report: The physiology of a preventable tragedy -Near death in a hot tub.

Hyperthermia in children is a known risk within enclosed vehicles. Exposure to an overheated hot tub poses a real risk in children due to unique pediatric physiology. Medical and aquatic professionals should understand the risk and mitigation strategies.

Dysregulated anterior insula reactivity as robust functional biomarker for chronic pain-Meta-analytic evidence from neuroimaging studies.

Neurobiological pain models propose that chronic pain is accompanied by neurofunctional changes that mediate pain processing dysfunctions. In contrast, meta-analyses of neuroimaging studies in chronic pain conditions have not revealed convergent evidence for robust alterations during experimental pain induction. Against this background, the present neuroimaging meta-analysis combined three different meta-analytic approaches with stringent study selection criteria for case-control functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments during acute pain processing with a focus on chronic pain disorders.

Individual Differences in Tendencies Toward Internet Use Disorder, Internet Literacy and Their Link to Autistic Traits in Both China and Germany.

Recent evidence demonstrates that Internet Use Disorder tendencies (IUD; formerly known as Internet Addiction) are associated with higher tendencies toward autistic traits. In the present study, we aimed to further explore this association between IUD tendencies and autistic traits in a large cohort of German and Chinese subjects (total = 1,524; mostly student background) who completed the short Internet-Addiction-Test, the Autism-Spectrum-Quotient, and the Internet-Literacy-Questionnaire. Moreover, the present research also enabled us to study potential differences in the investigated variables between the Chinese and German cultures.

Significant others? Social groups, income expectations, and redistributive preferences.

While inequality between individuals is known to be an important determinant of redistributive preferences, research on inequality between groups has increased only recently. This paper argues that individuals infer income expectations from the economic standing of their social group, in particular groups based on characteristics determined at birth, such as sex, race, or parents class. High group incomes can lead individuals to oppose redistribution, even if they are currently poor.

On the Speed Sensitivity Parameter in the Lognormal Model for Response Times and Implications for High-Stakes Measurement Practice.

In high-stakes testing, often multiple test forms are used and a common time limit is enforced. Test fairness requires that ability estimates must not depend on the administration of a specific test form. Such a requirement may be violated if speededness differs between test forms.

Comparing group means with the total mean in random samples, surveys, and large-scale assessments: A tutorial and software illustration.

In many disciplines of the social sciences, comparisons between a group mean and the total mean is a common but also challenging task. As one solution to this statistical testing problem, we propose using linear regression with weighted effect coding. For random samples, this procedure is straightforward and easy to implement by means of standard statistical software.

Intranasal vasopressin like oxytocin increases social attention by influencing top-down control, but additionally enhances bottom-up control.

The respective roles of the neuropeptides arginine vasopressin (AVP) and oxytocin (OXT) in modulating social cognition and for therapeutic intervention in autism spectrum disorder have not been fully established. In particular, while numerous studies have demonstrated effects of oxytocin in promoting social attention the role of AVP has not been examined. The present study employed a randomized, double-blind, placebo (PLC)-controlled between-subject design to explore the social- and emotion-specific effects of AVP on both bottom-up and top-down attention processing with a validated emotional anti-saccade eye-tracking paradigm in 80 healthy male subjects (PLC = 40, AVP = 40).

Opportunistic CT screening of osteoporosis on thoracic and lumbar spine: a meta-analysis.

Background: Osteoporotic fractures are a major contributor to late life morbidity and mortality, and impose a substantial societal cost, yet osteoporosis remains substantially underdiagnosed and undertreated. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to assess the pooled diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of computed tomography (CT) images for diagnosing osteoporosis in patients who meet WHO dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) osteoporosis criteria using specific Hounsfield unit (HU) values as a threshold.

Methods: Systematic literature searches in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Google Scholar were performed from the earliest available date through 1 July 2018, restricted to publications in English.

Chemerin regulates normal angiogenesis and hypoxia-driven neovascularization.

Chemerin is a multifunctional protein initially characterized in our laboratory as a chemoattractant factor for leukocyte populations. Its main functional receptor is CMKLR1. We identified previously chemerin as an anti-tumoral factor inhibiting the vascularization of tumor grafts.

Longitudinal Qualitative Study of Career Decision-making of First-Year Medical Students: Why Neurology (or Not)?

Objective: The growing shortage of neurologists is in part due to suboptimal recruitment. Little is known about students' decision making regarding a career in neurology, particularly early in training. Using a longitudinal qualitative approach, we aimed to understand factors that influence first-year medical students' decisions about neurology.

Fix Your Leaky Pipeline: Support Women in Pursuit of Advanced Degrees.

Completing a doctoral program is a daunting journey for any individual. Working full-time and juggling personal demands make the journey more complex. This monograph explores the unique motivations women who travel this path possess, identifies barriers in completion of a doctoral program for women, and tells the story of one group of women who developed a working model for a supportive writing group.

Atezolizumab-induced Autoimmune Diabetes in a Patient with Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Case Report.

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are a class of immunotherapy drugs used increasingly in the treatment of multiple types of cancer. Major side effects include immune-related adverse effects, potentially resulting in damage to normal tissue across multiple different organ systems.

Case Report: A 74-year-old woman with a history of triple negative metastatic breast cancer treated with the ICI atezolizumab presented with new-onset autoimmune diabetes in diabetic ketoacidosis.