Behavioral and brain responses to verbal stimuli reveal transient periods of cognitive integration of the external world during sleep.

Sleep has long been considered as a state of behavioral disconnection from the environment, without reactivity to external stimuli. Here we questioned this 'sleep disconnection' dogma by directly investigating behavioral responsiveness in 49 napping participants (27 with narcolepsy and 22 healthy volunteers) engaged in a lexical decision task. Participants were instructed to frown or smile depending on the stimulus type.

Learning from Acceleration Data to Differentiate the Posture, Dynamic and Static Work of the Back: An Experimental Setup.

Information on body posture, postural change, and dynamic and static work is essential in understanding biomechanical exposure and has many applications in ergonomics and healthcare. This study aimed at evaluating the possibility of using triaxial acceleration data to classify postures and to differentiate between dynamic and static work of the back in an experimental setup, based on a machine learning (ML) approach. A movement protocol was designed to cover the essential degrees of freedom of the back, and a subject wearing a triaxial accelerometer implemented this protocol.

Characteristics of Bipolar Patients with Cognitive Impairment of Suspected Neurodegenerative Origin: A Multicenter Cohort.

Bipolar disorder is associated with an increased risk of dementia with aging. Little is known regarding this association, limiting appropriate diagnosis and management. We aimed to describe the characteristics of bipolar patients with late cognitive impairment for whom the hypothesis of an underlying neurodegenerative disease had been raised.

Should adjuvant radiotherapy be administered in addition to front-line aggressive surgery (FAS) in patients with primary retroperitoneal sarcoma?

Background: As most patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas (RPS) die of local recurrence, front-line aggressive surgery (FAS) has been developed, and it seems to achieve better local control. The aim of this study was to evaluate conformal postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) in patients who had enlarged surgery.

Patients And Methods: Between 1994 and 2008, 110 patients with primary RPS mainly operated by FAS were analysed.

Dummy run and conformity indices in the ongoing EORTC low-grade glioma trial 22033-26033: First evaluation of quality of radiotherapy planning.

Purpose: Early assessment of radiotherapy (RT) quality in the ongoing EORTC trial comparing primary temozolomide versus RT in low-grade gliomas.

Materials And Methods: RT plans provided for dummy cases were evaluated and compared against expert plans. We analysed: (1) tumour and organs-at-risk delineation, (2) geometric and dosimetric characteristics, (3) planning parameters, compliance with dose prescription and Dmax for OAR (4) indices: RTOG conformity index (CI), coverage factor (CF), tissue protection factor (PF); conformity number (CN = PF x CF); dose homogeneity in PTV (U).