Neural Variability and Cognitive Control in Individuals With Opioid Use Disorder.

Importance: Opioid use disorder (OUD) impacts millions of people worldwide. Prior studies investigating its underpinning neural mechanisms have not often considered how brain signals evolve over time, so it remains unclear whether brain dynamics are altered in OUD and have subsequent behavioral implications.

Objective: To characterize brain dynamic alterations and their association with cognitive control in individuals with OUD.

Association Between Language, Interpreter Use, and Pediatric Surgical Outcomes.

Background: Inequities exist in pediatric surgical outcomes. Differential outcomes have been identified across racial groups, geography, and socioeconomic standing. However, the association between preferred language, interpreter use, and surgical outcomes is not well-studied in pediatric surgical literature.

The Relationship Between Gut Microbiota, Muscle Mass and Physical Function in Older Individuals: A Systematic Review.

Background: Recent evidence suggests that sarcopenia and subsequent changes in muscle mass and functional outcomes are linked to disruption to the gastrointestinal microbiota composition and/or function via the microbiota-gut-muscle axis. Despite growing interest, few studies have systemically analysed (1) the relationship between the gut microbiota, muscle mass and physical performance and (2) the effects of gut-modulating dietary interventions on these outcomes within older individuals with or without sarcopenia.

Methods: Four electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase and Scopus) were searched for articles published from the year 2004 until July 2023.

Functional MRI for bilingual epilepsy surgery patients: serving a diverse pediatric cohort.

Objective: Functional MRI (fMRI) helps with the identification of eloquent cortex to assist with function preservation in patients who undergo epilepsy surgery. Language and memory tasks can even be used effectively in clinically involved pediatric patients. Most pediatric studies report on English speaking-only cohorts from English-dominant countries, yet languages other than English (LOEs) are increasingly prevalent in countries such as the US.