Case study of the prediction of elective surgery durations in a New Zealand teaching hospital.

We present an elective surgery redesign project involving several New Zealand hospitals that is primarily data-driven. One of the project objectives is to improve the predictions of surgery durations. We address this task by considering two approaches: (a) linear regression modelling, and (b) improvement of the data quality.

Effects of social subordination and oestradiol on resting-state amygdala functional connectivity in adult female rhesus monkeys.

Preclinical studies demonstrate that chronic stress modulates the effects of oestradiol (E2) on behaviour through the modification of the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) neuronal structure. Clinical studies suggest that alterations in amygdala functional connectivity (FC) with the mPFC may be associated with stress-related phenotypes, including mood and anxiety disorders. Thus, identifying the effects of stress and E2 on amygdala-mPFC circuits is critical for understanding the neurobiology underpinning the vulnerability to stress-related disorders in women.

Exploring the limits of network topology estimation using diffusion-based tractography and tracer studies in the macaque cortex.

Reconstructing the anatomical pathways of the brain to study the human connectome has become an important endeavour for understanding brain function and dynamics. Reconstruction of the cortico-cortical connectivity matrix in vivo often relies on noninvasive diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) techniques but the extent to which they can accurately represent the topological characteristics of structural connectomes remains unknown. We addressed this question by constructing connectomes using DWI data collected from macaque monkeys in vivo and with data from published invasive tracer studies.

Heritability of the human connectome: A connectotyping study.

Recent progress in resting-state neuroimaging demonstrates that the brain exhibits highly individualized patterns of functional connectivity-a "connectotype." How these individualized patterns may be constrained by environment and genetics is unknown. Here we ask whether the connectotype is familial and heritable.

Correlated Gene Expression and Anatomical Communication Support Synchronized Brain Activity in the Mouse Functional Connectome.

Cognition and behavior depend on synchronized intrinsic brain activity that is organized into functional networks across the brain. Research has investigated how anatomical connectivity both shapes and is shaped by these networks, but not how anatomical connectivity interacts with intra-areal molecular properties to drive functional connectivity. Here, we present a novel linear model to explain functional connectivity by integrating systematically obtained measurements of axonal connectivity, gene expression, and resting-state functional connectivity MRI in the mouse brain.

Development of large-scale functional networks from birth to adulthood: A guide to the neuroimaging literature.

The development of human cognition results from the emergence of coordinated activity between distant brain areas. Network science, combined with non-invasive functional imaging, has generated unprecedented insights regarding the adult brain's functional organization, and promises to help elucidate the development of functional architectures supporting complex behavior. Here we review what is known about functional network development from birth until adulthood, particularly as understood through the use of resting-state functional connectivity MRI (rs-fcMRI).

The Rhesus Monkey Connectome Predicts Disrupted Functional Networks Resulting from Pharmacogenetic Inactivation of the Amygdala.

Contemporary research suggests that the mammalian brain is a complex system, implying that damage to even a single functional area could have widespread consequences across the system. To test this hypothesis, we pharmacogenetically inactivated the rhesus monkey amygdala, a subcortical region with distributed and well-defined cortical connectivity. We then examined the impact of that perturbation on global network organization using resting-state functional connectivity MRI.

Network Structure among Brain Systems in Adult ADHD is Uniquely Modified by Stimulant Administration.

Current research in connectomics highlights that self-organized functional networks or "communities" of cortical areas can be detected in the adult brain. This perspective may provide clues to mechanisms of treatment response in psychiatric conditions. Here we examine functional brain community topology based on resting-state fMRI in adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD; n = 22) and controls (n = 31).

Longitudinal analysis of the developing rhesus monkey brain using magnetic resonance imaging: birth to adulthood.

We have longitudinally assessed normative brain growth patterns in naturalistically reared Macaca mulatta monkeys. Postnatal to early adulthood brain development in two cohorts of rhesus monkeys was analyzed using magnetic resonance imaging. Cohort A consisted of 24 rhesus monkeys (12 male, 12 female) and cohort B of 21 monkeys (11 male, 10 female).

Hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy in medium-sized to large arteriovenous malformations.

We have reviewed treatment results in terms of obliteration and complications in 24 patients with medium to large sized cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) (mean volume 18.5±8.9cm(3); range: 10-42) treated with hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (HSRT).

Triple aim program: assessing its effectiveness as a hospital management tool.

According to a recent national survey of Hospital chief executive officers, financial challenges are their top concern, especially government reimbursement. Moreover, the patient faces greater deductibles forcing hospitals to prioritize price transparency. The Triple Aim program is a tool available to hospital management to help address these challenges.

Feedback-driven trial-by-trial learning in autism spectrum disorders.

Objective: Impairments in learning are central to autism spectrum disorders. The authors investigated the cognitive and neural basis of these deficits in young adults with autism spectrum disorders using a well-characterized probabilistic reinforcement learning paradigm.

Method: The probabilistic selection task was implemented among matched participants with autism spectrum disorders (N=22) and with typical development (N=25), aged 18-40 years, using rapid event-related functional MRI.

Structural and functional connectivity of the human brain in autism spectrum disorders and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: A rich club-organization study.

Attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are two of the most common and vexing neurodevelopmental disorders among children. Although the two disorders share many behavioral and neuropsychological characteristics, most MRI studies examine only one of the disorders at a time. Using graph theory combined with structural and functional connectivity, we examined the large-scale network organization among three groups of children: a group with ADHD (8-12 years, n = 20), a group with ASD (7-13 years, n = 16), and typically developing controls (TD) (8-12 years, n = 20).

Bridging the gap between the human and macaque connectome: a quantitative comparison of global interspecies structure-function relationships and network topology.

Resting state functional connectivity MRI (rs-fcMRI) may provide a powerful and noninvasive "bridge" for comparing brain function between patients and experimental animal models; however, the relationship between human and macaque rs-fcMRI remains poorly understood. Here, using a novel surface deformation process for species comparisons in the same anatomical space (Van Essen, 2004, 2005), we found high correspondence, but also unique hub topology, between human and macaque functional connectomes. The global functional connectivity match between species was moderate to strong (r = 0.

Structural and functional rich club organization of the brain in children and adults.

Recent studies using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) have proposed that the brain's white matter is organized as a rich club, whereby the most highly connected regions of the brain are also highly connected to each other. Here we use both functional and diffusion-weighted MRI in the human brain to investigate whether the rich club phenomena is present with functional connectivity, and how this organization relates to the structural phenomena. We also examine whether rich club regions serve to integrate information between distinct brain systems, and conclude with a brief investigation of the developmental trajectory of rich-club phenomena.

Dietary omega-3 fatty acids modulate large-scale systems organization in the rhesus macaque brain.

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for healthy brain and retinal development and have been implicated in a variety of neurodevelopmental disorders. This study used resting-state functional connectivity MRI to define the large-scale organization of the rhesus macaque brain and changes associated with differences in lifetime ω-3 fatty acid intake. Monkeys fed docosahexaenoic acid, the long-chain ω-3 fatty acid abundant in neural membranes, had cortical modular organization resembling the healthy human brain.

The complications and the position of the Codman MicroSensor™ ICP device: an analysis of 549 patients and 650 Sensors.

Background: Complications of and insertion depth of the Codman MicroSensor ICP monitoring device (CMS) is not well studied.

Objective: To study complications and the insertion depth of the CMS in a clinical setting.

Methods: We identified all patients who had their intracranial pressure (ICP) monitored using a CMS device between 2002 and 2010.

Inferring functional connectivity in MRI using Bayesian network structure learning with a modified PC algorithm.

Resting state functional connectivity MRI (rs-fcMRI) is a popular technique used to gauge the functional relatedness between regions in the brain for typical and special populations. Most of the work to date determines this relationship by using Pearson's correlation on BOLD fMRI timeseries. However, it has been recognized that there are at least two key limitations to this method.

Reward circuit connectivity relates to delay discounting in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent psychiatric disorder that has poor long-term outcomes and remains a major public health concern. Recent theories have proposed that ADHD arises from alterations in multiple neural pathways. Alterations in reward circuits are hypothesized as one core dysfunction, leading to altered processing of anticipated rewards.

Hypnotic intervention in a 7-year-old thumbsucker: a case study.

Thumbsucking is a common habit among younger children. Usually, the child outgrows this habit by age 6. When a child over the age of 6 continues to suck his or her thumb, it can be a cause of potential harm due to peer pressure, ridicule, and shunning.

Concise synthesis and CDK/GSK inhibitory activity of the missing 9-azapaullones.

A remarkably concise, chromatography-free route to the parent compound of the paullone family of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors is reported. A similar strategy allowed the synthesis of the hitherto missing 9-azapaullone and its protonated, N-oxidised and N-alkylated derivatives. Screening studies identified an active and strongly selective inhibitor of CDK9/cyclin T.

Antipsychotic medication dispensing and risk of death in veterans and war widows 65 years and older.

Objective: To establish the instantaneous relative risk (RR) of death associated with individual antipsychotic drugs, carbamazepine and sodium valproate for those 65 years and older.

Methods: Subjects dispensed antipsychotic drugs, sodium valproate or carbamazepine in 2003 or 2004 were analyzed as incident (N = 16,634) or prevalent (N = 9,831) users. Survival curves, mortality rates, and Cox proportional hazards models over two time periods were used to explore risk of death.

Risk of death associated with antipsychotic drug dispensing in residential aged care facilities.

Objective: To establish the instantaneous relative risk (RR) associated with the dispensing of individual antipsychotic drugs, carbamazepine and valproate for those > or = 65 years who resided in an aged care facility.

Method: The risk of death for incident users of antipsychotic drugs, carbamazepine and valproate in 2003 or 2004 who resided in an aged care facility was established using mortality rates and Cox proportional hazards models over two time periods. The regression models were adjusted for age, gender, medical and psychotropic drug dispensing, and a measure of overall medical comorbidity.

Antipsychotic medication dispensing and associated odds ratios of death in elderly veterans and war widows, 2001.

Objectives: To explore the odds ratios (ORs) of death associated with antipsychotic (AP) medications dispensed to elderly subjects.

Method: Subjects were veterans and war widows 65 years and older dispensed an AP drug in 2001 in NSW or ACT. For all subjects, dispensing records for AP medication, benzodiazepines, lithium, carbamazepine, sodium valproate and antidepressant medication were extracted and combined with age, gender and date of death.

Acetabular retroversion as a rare cause of chronic hip pain: recognition of the "figure-eight" sign.

While well-recognized in the orthopedic literature as a cause of chronic hip pain, acetabular retroversion has not been specifically described in the radiologic literature. Acetabular retroversion represents a particular form of hip dysplasia characterized by abnormal posterolateral orientation of the acetabulum. This pathophysiology predisposes the individual to subsequent anterior impingement of the femoral neck upon the anterior acetabular margin and fibrous labrum.