Randomized Controlled Trial of a Perceptual Training Game for Tinnitus Therapy.

Objective: Abnormal executive top-down control of attention may result in, or be a consequence of, tinnitus. On the basis of a study indicating the feasibility of a game designed to treat tinnitus, a Phase II controlled trial of an auditory attention training game was undertaken.

Materials And Methods: Measures of tinnitus, as well as behavioral and electrophysiological measures of attention, were compared before and after 20 consecutive days of 30-minute training sessions using a game developed with LabVIEW™ software (National Instruments Corp.

Modification of the SF-36 for a headache population changes patient-reported health status.

Background: Using standard quality of life and disability measures may not accurately capture these constructs in specific health populations such as headache patients. Modifying the wording of standard measures such as the Short-Form 36 (SF-36) should be considered in order to make them more applicable to specific patient populations.

Objective: To investigate the possibility that headache patients may not consider their headaches when responding to SF-36 questions pertaining to health, physical health, pain, and bodily pain.

Understanding the role of culture in pain: Māori practitioner perspectives relating to the experience of pain.

Aims: As there is growing interest in the role of cultural diversity within healthcare settings it is important to determine how culture can influence such things as pain. A person's culture can impact not only how they perceive and experience pain but also how they interact with healthcare professionals and adhere to advice provided. To better assess and treat pain in different cultures the perspectives and experiences of that culture must be taken into consideration and therefore the present study was undertaken to better understand Māori perspectives of pain.

Understanding the role of culture in pain: Māori practitioner perspectives of pain descriptors.

Aims: There is growing interest in the role of cultural diversity within healthcare settings yet minority ethnic groups are underrepresented in the healthcare literature, including the literature on pain. To better assess and treat pain in different cultures the perspectives and experiences of that culture must be taken into consideration and therefore the present study was undertaken to better understand Māori perspectives of pain.

Methods: Māori healthcare providers and kaumātua (tribal leaders/elders) completed questionnaires relating to the experience of pain and were asked to provide feedback regarding the suitability of words and phrases typically used to describe symptoms of pain and pain-related disability.

Memory related dysregulation of hippocampal function in major depressive disorder.

Hippocampal abnormalities have frequently been associated with major depressive disorder (MDD), however evidence of a functional hippocampal deficit has remained illusive. Here, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is employed in conjunction with an associative memory paradigm to investigate functional irregularities of the hippocampus during the encoding process. The use of a focussed analytical approach and a behavioural task targeted to hippocampal function confirmed the hypothesis that the normal modulation of hippocampal activation by encoding strength is dysregulated in MDD.

Adolescent physical activity: does implementation intention have a role?

Background: The current study tested the utility of an integrated social cognitive model to predict physical activity (PA) intentions and behavior in New Zealand adolescents.

Method: Seventy-two adolescents (mean age = 16.92, SD = 0.

Factors associated with depression in patients referred to headache specialists.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between selected demographic characteristics and clinical features in patients with headache and depression.

Methods: We studied demographic and clinical data collected at the time of consultation for 712 new patients with headache referred to five headache specialty clinics in Canada. Data were analyzed as part of the Canadian Headache Outpatient Registry and Database (CHORD) Project.

Demographics and clinical features of patients referred to headache specialists.

Objective: To examine demographic characteristics and clinical features of headache patients referred to neurologists specializing in headache in Canada.

Methods: Demographic and clinical data were collected at the time of consultation for 865 new headache patients referred to five headache-specialty clinics in Canada. The Headache Impact Test (HIT-6) and Migraine Disability Questionnaire (MIDAS) were used to measure headache impact and disability.

Effectiveness of a multidisciplinary treatment program for chronic daily headache.

Background: Chronic daily headache (CDH: headache on fifteen days a month or more) is one of the most common forms of chronic pain. The relative efficacy of different treatment methods for these patients needs to be determined.

Objective: To compare treatment outcomes for patients with CDH treated in a traditional office-based pharmacological treatment program with a second group treated in a multidisciplinary management program.

Migraine frequency and intensity: relationship with disability and psychological factors.

Background: Migraine can be disabling, but it varies greatly in frequency and intensity between individuals. It is not clear which clinical features have the greatest impact on a migraineur's quality of life.

Objective: To determine the influence of headache intensity and frequency on headache-related disability.

Environmental conditions influence hippocampus-dependent behaviours and brain levels of amyloid precursor protein in rats.

Sprague-Dawley rats were reared in enriched (EC; group housing, exposure to stimulating objects, frequent handling) or restricted (RC; individual housing, no exposure to stimulating objects, minimal handling) environments starting on day 23 of life. At six months of age, they underwent behavioural tests to assess 'cognitive' and 'stimulus-response' memory, selective attention, and inflammatory pain processing. Alterations in synapses and cell survival may occur as a result of environment differences; therefore we assessed the brain levels of several proteins implicated in neurite outgrowth, synaptogenesis, and cell survival.

Platelet-activating factor antagonists decrease the inflammatory nociceptive response in rats.

Rationale: Platelet-activating factor (PAF) is a membrane-derived phospholipid mediator that has biological effects on a variety of cells and tissues. A variety of stimuli, including those producing inflammation, promote the synthesis and release of PAF from various cell types. Evidence suggests that PAF exerts cellular actions through a plasma membrane receptor as well as via intracellular (microsomal) PAF binding sites.

Additional evidence for the involvement of the basal ganglia in formalin-induced nociception: the role of the nucleus accumbens.

Identification of the brain areas that contribute to pain is an essential undertaking towards understanding persistent pain. Areas of the basal ganglia have been proposed to play important roles in nociception as previous studies have determined the involvement of the substantia nigra pars compacta and the dorsolateral striatum in pain. The purpose of the present study was therefore to expand upon these findings by determining the involvement of other areas of the basal ganglia such as the nucleus accumbens shell and core in formalin-induced nociception.