The Effect of Admission Functional Independence on Early Recovery in Pediatric Traumatic and Nontraumatic Brain Injury.

Objective: To examine functional independence at admission as a predictor of outcomes during an initial inpatient hospitalization for a pediatric brain injury.

Participants: A total of 531 pediatric inpatients with traumatic (n = 298) or nontraumatic (n = 233) brain injuries.

Design: Retrospective analysis of data extracted from the Uniform Data System for Medical Rehabilitation.

Should I stay or should I go? A prospective investigation examining individual factors impacting employment status among individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Background: Rates of unemployment among individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) are as high as 80%. While several factors for such high rates of unemployment have been identified, they do not account for the majority of the variance.

Objective: This study examines person-specific factors such as personality and coping, which may better account for individuals leaving the workforce.

Split-thickness skin grafting for reconstruction of auricular skin defects: a statistical analysis.

Background And Objectives: Surgical reconstruction following the removal of large malignant auricular lesions is challenging. While many options for defect closure have been described, in the elderly population usually affected flap surgery, long anesthesia times, patient compliance, and anticoagulant therapy pose additional risks. An alternative quick, simple, and effective method of defect closure is therefore highly desirable.

Delivery of screening and brief intervention for unhealthy alcohol use in an urban academic Federally Qualified Health Center.

Background: Screening and brief intervention (SBI) for unhealthy drinking has not been widely implemented in primary care partly due to reliance on physicians to perform it.

Methods: We implemented a model of nursing staff-delivered SBI for unhealthy drinking for adult patients receiving primary care at an academically-affiliated Federally Qualified Health Center in the Bronx, NY. Our model consisted of nursing staff screening all patients with the alcohol use disorders identification test consumption questions (AUDIT-C) and, if screening positive, providing BI or referral to specialty services.

Use of Confocal Microscopy to Evaluate Equine Zygote Development After Sperm Injection of Oocytes Matured In Vivo or In Vitro.

Confocal microscopy was used to image stages of equine zygote development, at timed intervals, after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) of oocytes that were matured in vivo or in vitro. After fixation for 4, 6, 8, 12, or 16 h after ICSI, zygotes were incubated with α/β tubulin antibodies and human anticentromere antibody (CREST/ACA), washed, incubated in secondary antibodies, conjugated to either Alexa 488 or Alexa 647, and incubated with 561-Phalloidin and Hoechst 33258. An Olympus IX81 spinning disk confocal microscope was used for imaging.

Neuropsychology of Multiple Sclerosis: Looking Back and Moving Forward.

The neuropsychological aspects of multiple sclerosis (MS) have evolved over the past three decades. What was once thought to be a rare occurrence, cognitive dysfunction is now viewed as one of the most disabling symptoms of the disease, with devastating effects on patients' quality of life. This selective review will highlight major innovations and scientific discoveries in the areas of neuropathology, neuroimaging, diagnosis, and treatment that pertain to our understanding of the neuropsychological aspects of MS.

Aurora A kinase phosphorylates Hec1 to regulate metaphase kinetochore-microtubule dynamics.

Precise regulation of kinetochore-microtubule attachments is essential for successful chromosome segregation. Central to this regulation is Aurora B kinase, which phosphorylates kinetochore substrates to promote microtubule turnover. A critical target of Aurora B is the N-terminal "tail" domain of Hec1, which is a component of the NDC80 complex, a force-transducing link between kinetochores and microtubules.

Barriers to and Facilitators of Help-Seeking Behavior Among Men Who Experience Sexual Violence.

Research on sexual violence and related support services access has mainly focused on female victims; there is still a remarkable lack of research on men who experience sexual violence. Research demonstrates that people who both self-identify as men and are members of sexual-orientation minority populations are at higher risk of sexual violence. They are also less likely to either report or seek support services related to such experiences.

Dual Task of Fine Motor Skill and Problem Solving in Individuals With Multiple Sclerosis: A Pilot Study.

Objectives: To (1) examine and compare dual-task performance in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and healthy controls (HCs) using mathematical problem-solving questions that included an everyday competence component while performing an upper extremity fine motor task; and (2) examine whether difficulties in dual-task performance are associated with problems in performing an everyday internet task.

Design: Pilot study, mixed-design with both a within and between subjects' factor.

Setting: A nonprofit rehabilitation research institution and the community.

Public Attitudes Toward Expanded Newborn Screening.

Purpose: There is limited research available on public knowledge and understanding of expanded newborn screening (NBS). The aims of this study were to assess current public knowledge and understanding of newborn screening disorders and procedures, perceived education needs, and preferences for the delivery of NBS information and education. An additional aim was to develop a beginning understanding of public attitudes toward screening for complex, severe, and in some cases untreatable disorders.

Evidenced-Based Cognitive Rehabilitation for Persons With Multiple Sclerosis: An Updated Review of the Literature From 2007 to 2016.

Objective: To update the clinical recommendations for cognitive rehabilitation of people with multiple sclerosis (MS), based on a systematic review of the literature from 2007 through 2016.

Data Sources: Searches of MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL were conducted with a combination of the following terms: attention, awareness, cognition, cognitive, communication, executive, executive function, language, learning, memory, perception, problem solving, reasoning, rehabilitation, remediation, training, processing speed, and working memory. One hundred twenty-nine articles were identified and underwent initial screening.

Treatment of Acute Carpal Bone Fractures.

Carpal bone fractures are common hand fractures that can be complicated by concomitant damage to surrounding structures, chronic comorbidities, or delays in diagnosis. This article provides an overview of wrist anatomy, an expedited review of the athlete's presenting condition, and a systematic approach to the evaluation of the wrist. Recommended treatment plans are based on a review of the literature and an evidence-based approach to imaging studies.

Use of Smoking Cessation Methods Among Patients Receiving Office-based Buprenorphine Maintenance Treatment.

Objectives: Provision of smoking-cessation treatment is limited in office-based buprenorphine maintenance treatment (BMT) settings. This study describes smoking and smoking-cessation behaviors among patients receiving office-based BMT.

Methods: Cross-sectional study of patients receiving office-based BMT at a community health center in the Bronx, NY.

Does Individual Stigma Predict Mental Health Funding Attitudes? Toward an Understanding of Resource Allocation and Social Climate.

Background: The uneven progression of mental health funding in the United States, and the way that the funding climate seems to be influenced by local and regional differences, raises the issue of what factors, including stigma, may impact mental health funding decisions. Criticisms that mental health stigma research is too individually-focused have led researchers to consider how broader, macro-level forms of stigma - such as structural stigma - intersect with micro-level forms of individual stigma. While some studies suggest that macro and micro stigma levels are distinct processes, other studies suggest a more synergistic relationship between structural and individual stigma.

Sensitivity to Inhibition Defines an Alternative Classification of Glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) remains a mainly incurable disease in desperate need of more effective treatments. In this study, we develop evidence that the mitotic spindle checkpoint molecule may offer a predictive marker for aggressiveness and effective drug response. A subset of GBM tumor isolates requires to suppress lethal kinetochore-microtubule attachment defects.

Role of Demographic and Clinical Factors in Cognitive Functioning of Persons with Relapsing-Remitting and Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.

Background: Age and time post-diagnosis can significantly impact cognitive and motor functions in multiple sclerosis (MS); however, studies often fail to account for these factors when assessing differences between disease courses.

Objectives: Examine differences between relapsing-remitting and progressive MS in cognition, motor function, and everyday activities, controlling for age, education, and time post-diagnosis.

Methods: Twenty-one persons with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS group), 21 with progressive MS (PMS group), and 21 healthy participants (HCs), matched on age, education, and time post-diagnosis, completed tests of cognitive abilities, motor functions, and everyday functional activities.

Cognitive fatigue in individuals with traumatic brain injury is associated with caudate activation.

We investigated differences in brain activation associated with cognitive fatigue between persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and healthy controls (HCs). Twenty-two participants with moderate-severe TBI and 20 HCs performed four blocks of a difficult working memory task and four blocks of a control task during fMRI imaging. Cognitive fatigue, assessed before and after each block, was used as a covariate to assess fatigue-related brain activation.

High HCV cure rates for people who use drugs treated with direct acting antiviral therapy at an urban primary care clinic.

Background: Though direct acting antivirals (DAAs) promise high cure rates, many providers and payers remain concerned about successful treatment for people who use drugs (PWUD), even among those engaged in opioid agonist treatment (OAT). The efficacy of DAAs among PWUD in real-world settings is unclear.

Methods: We conducted a cohort study of patients initiating HCV treatment between January 2014 and August 2015 (n=89) at a primary care clinic in the Bronx, NY.

The MSOAC approach to developing performance outcomes to measure and monitor multiple sclerosis disability.

Background: The Multiple Sclerosis Outcome Assessments Consortium (MSOAC) was formed by the National MS Society to develop improved measures of multiple sclerosis (MS)-related disability.

Objectives: (1) To assess the current literature and available data on functional performance outcome measures (PerfOs) and (2) to determine suitability of using PerfOs to quantify MS disability in MS clinical trials.

Methods: (1) Identify disability dimensions common in MS; (2) conduct a comprehensive literature review of measures for those dimensions; (3) develop an MS Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC) data standard; (4) create a database of standardized, pooled clinical trial data; (5) analyze the pooled data to assess psychometric properties of candidate measures; and (6) work with regulatory agencies to use the measures as primary or secondary outcomes in MS clinical trials.

Sociodemographic Predictors of Sex Offender Stigma: How Politics Impact Attitudes, Social Distance, and Perceptions of Sex Offender Recidivism.

Stigma toward general criminal offenders has been found to be particularly salient among community members who identify as politically conservative; however, less is known about how political identification relates to stigma toward sex offenders. This is a particularly important area of inquiry, given that criminal jurisprudence and politics legitimatize stigmatizing labels attributed to sex offenders through laws and policies that apply specifically to this group. A nonrandom sample ( N = 518) of participants living in the United States was recruited for this survey study.

Community Protection versus Individual Healing: Two Traditions in Community Mental Health.

This article identifies two major traditions that drive the mandate for a community mental health care system-community protection and individual healing. It discusses the historical antecedents of these two traditions and how these traditions relate to different visions of what the "common good" means. It then discusses how they both operate in the current US-based system, creating inherent conflicts and tensions, and gives specific examples from the personal and professional experiences of the authors.

Fronto-striatal network activation leads to less fatigue in multiple sclerosis.

Background: The fronto-striatal network has been implicated in both fatigue, a common multiple sclerosis (MS) symptom, and goal attainment, which has been shown to reduce fatigue in healthy individuals.

Objectives: To investigate whether stimulation of the fronto-striatal network through goal attainment (potential monetary gain) leads to fatigue reduction in MS and healthy control (HC) participants.

Methods: In all, 14 healthy and 19 MS participants performed a gambling task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Development and Validation of a Scale Assessing Mental Health Clinicians' Experiences of Associative Stigma.

Objective: Mental health professionals who work with people with serious mental illnesses are believed to experience associative stigma. Evidence suggests that associative stigma could play an important role in the erosion of empathy among professionals; however, no validated measure of the construct currently exists. This study examined the convergent and discriminant validity and factor structure of a new scale assessing the associative stigma experiences of clinicians working with people with serious mental illnesses.