Systematic Review of Pain Assessment Measures Used in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Background: Pain is a prevalent, frequent, and often persistent symptom among children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Despite its high prevalence, pain has remained understudied, and no evidence-based recommendations exist for how best to assess and treat pain in this population. Without proper assessment, clinical efforts to improve pain management in pediatric ALL will be ineffective.

FIT Teens RCT for juvenile fibromyalgia: Protocol adaptations in response to the COVID 19 pandemic.

Objective: To describe protocol adaptations to the Fibromyalgia Integrative Training for Teens (FIT Teens) randomized controlled trial in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The overarching aims of the FIT Teens multi-site 3-arm comparative effectiveness trial are to assess whether a specialized neuromuscular exercise training intervention combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is superior to CBT alone or graded aerobic exercise alone.

Design/methods: The trial was originally designed as an in-person, group-based treatment with assessments at baseline, mid- and post-treatment, and four follow-up time points.

Neural mechanisms that promote food consumption following sleep loss and social stress: an fMRI study in adolescent girls with overweight/obesity.

Study Objectives: Insufficient sleep and social stress are associated with weight gain and obesity development in adolescent girls. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) research suggests that altered engagement of emotion-related neural networks may explain overeating when under stress. The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of acute sleep restriction on female adolescents' neural responding during social evaluative stress and their subsequent eating behavior.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the PROMIS Pediatric Pain Intensity Measure in Children and Adolescents with Chronic Pain.

The goal of the current study was to enhance the measurement of the pediatric chronic pain experience through a methodologically rigorous approach. This paper outlines the development and initial validation of a pain intensity measure for pediatric patients with chronic pain using Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System methodology. Measure development incorporated feedback from children with painful conditions.

White matter integrity disparities between normal-weight and overweight/obese adolescents: an automated fiber quantification tractography study.

Obese adults have been shown to have poorer white brain matter integrity relative to normal-weight peers, but few studies have tested whether white matter integrity is compromised in overweight and obese adolescents. Also, it is unclear if age interacts with body mass to affect white matter integrity in adolescents. We used Automated Fiber Quantification, a tractography method, to compare fractional anisotropy between normal-weight and overweight/obese adolescents in the corpus callosum, corticospinal tract, cingulum, inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, and uncinate fasciculus.

Sleep duration differentially affects brain activation in response to food images in adolescents with overweight/obesity compared to adolescents with normal weight.

Study Objectives: Sleep is an important behavior that affects appetite and eating in adolescents. Our study examined food-related neural activation in brain regions associated with food reward and inhibition in adolescents under sleep-restricted and well-rested conditions.

Methods: In this within-subjects study, 52 adolescents (ages 12-18; 46% female; M age = 15.

Establishing clinical meaning and defining important differences for Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) measures in juvenile idiopathic arthritis using standard setting with patients, parents, and providers.

Background: Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) measures are used increasingly in clinical care. However, for juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), scores lack a framework for interpretation of clinical severity, and minimally important differences (MID) have not been established, which are necessary to evaluate the importance of change.

Methods: We identified clinical severity thresholds for pediatric PROMIS measures of mobility, upper extremity function (UE), fatigue, and pain interference working with adolescents with JIA, parents of JIA patients, and clinicians, using a standard setting methodology modified from educational testing.

Appropriateness of the food-pics image database for experimental eating and appetite research with adolescents.

Background: Research examining effects of visual food cues on appetite-related brain processes and eating behavior has proliferated. Recently investigators have developed food image databases for use across experimental studies examining appetite and eating behavior. The food-pics image database represents a standardized, freely available image library originally validated in a large sample primarily comprised of adults.

Pressure Pain Threshold and Anxiety in Adolescent Females With and Without Juvenile Fibromyalgia: A Pilot Study.

Objectives: Reduced pain thresholds have been documented in adult fibromyalgia, but there are no quantitative studies of altered pain sensitivity in adolescents with juvenile fibromyalgia (JFM). The current study examined differences in pressure pain sensitivity between adolescent females with JFM and healthy controls. The relationship between levels of anxiety and pain were also examined.

Neonates and Infants Discharged Home Dependent on Medical Technology: Characteristics and Outcomes.

Background: Preterm neonates and neonates with complex conditions admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) may require medical technology (eg, supplemental oxygen, feeding tubes) for their continued survival at hospital discharge. Medical technology introduces another layer of complexity for parents, including specialized education about neonatal assessment and operation of technology. The transition home presents a challenge for parents and has been linked with greater healthcare utilization.

2010 American College of Rheumatology Adult Fibromyalgia Criteria for Use in an Adolescent Female Population with Juvenile Fibromyalgia.

Objectives: To evaluate the utility of the 2010 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) adult fibromyalgia criteria for use in adolescents with juvenile fibromyalgia (JFM).

Study Design: Participants included 47 adolescent girls diagnosed with JFM (mean age = 15.3 years) and 48 age- and sex-matched adolescents (mean age = 15.

Longitudinal evaluation of patient-reported outcomes measurement information systems measures in pediatric chronic pain.

The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) initiative is a comprehensive strategy by the National Institutes of Health to support the development and validation of precise instruments to assess self-reported health domains across healthy and disease-specific populations. Much progress has been made in instrument development, but there remains a gap in the validation of PROMIS measures for pediatric chronic pain. The purpose of this study was to investigate the construct validity and responsiveness to change of 7 PROMIS domains for the assessment of children (ages: 8-18) with chronic pain--Pain Interference, Fatigue, Anxiety, Depression, Mobility, Upper Extremity Function, and Peer Relationships.

Qualitative Evaluation of Pediatric Pain Behavior, Quality, and Intensity Item Candidates and the PROMIS Pain Domain Framework in Children With Chronic Pain.

Unlabelled: As initial steps in a broader effort to develop and test pediatric pain behavior and pain quality item banks for the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), we used qualitative interview and item review methods to 1) evaluate the overall conceptual scope and content validity of the PROMIS pain domain framework among children with chronic/recurrent pain conditions, and 2) develop item candidates for further psychometric testing. To elicit the experiential and conceptual scope of pain outcomes across a variety of pediatric recurrent/chronic pain conditions, we conducted 32 semi-structured individual and 2 focus-group interviews with children and adolescents (8-17 years), and 32 individual and 2 focus-group interviews with parents of children with pain. Interviews with pain experts (10) explored the operational limits of pain measurement in children.

A Qualitative Examination of a New Combined Cognitive-Behavioral and Neuromuscular Training Intervention for Juvenile Fibromyalgia.

Objectives: Adolescents with juvenile fibromyalgia (JFM) are typically sedentary despite recommendations for physical exercise, a key component of pain management. Interventions such as cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) are beneficial but do not improve exercise participation. The objective of this study was to obtain preliminary information about the feasibility, safety, and acceptability of a new intervention--Fibromyalgia Integrative Training for Teens (FIT Teens), which combines CBT with specialized neuromuscular exercise training modified from evidence-based injury prevention protocols.

Child pain catastrophizing mediates the relation between parent responses to pain and disability in youth with functional abdominal pain.

Objectives: Functional abdominal pain (FAP) in youth is associated with substantial impairment in functioning, and prior research has shown that overprotective parent responses can heighten impairment. Little is known about how a range of parental behaviors (overprotection, minimizing, and/or encouragement) in response to their child's pain interact with child coping characteristics (eg, catastrophizing) to influence functioning in youth with FAP. In this study, it was hypothesized that the relation between parenting factors and child disability would be mediated by children's levels of maladaptive coping (ie, pain catastrophizing).

Quality of life and emotional functioning in youth with chronic migraine and juvenile fibromyalgia.

Summary: Chronic pain in children is associated with significant negative impact on social, emotional, and school functioning. Previous studies on the impact of pain on children's functioning have primarily used mixed samples of pain conditions or single pain conditions (eg, headache and abdominal pain) with relatively small sample sizes. As a result, the similarities and differences in the impact of pain in subgroups of children with chronic pain have not been closely examined.

Qualitative analysis of parent experiences with achieving cystic fibrosis nutrition recommendations.

Background: A combined behavior-nutrition approach is recommended for children with CF with growth deficits. The present study aimed to use a qualitative approach to 1) understand families' experiences using behavior-nutrition intervention strategies and 2) identify the challenges with CF management families experienced during the developmental transition between toddlerhood and early school-age.

Methods: Eight families (mean age of children=8.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor is required for normal gonadotropin responsiveness in the mouse ovary.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) mediates the toxicity of a variety of environmental chemicals. Although little is known about the physiological role of the AHR, studies suggest that it plays an important role in regulating ovulation because Ahr deficient (AhRKO) mice have a reduced number of ovulations compared to wild-type (WT) mice. The reasons for the reduced ability of AhRKO mice to ovulate are unknown.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor affects mouse ovarian follicle growth via mechanisms involving estradiol regulation and responsiveness.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a known transcription factor. Although studies indicate that Ahr-deficient (AhRKO) mice have defects in female reproduction, only a few studies have examined the role of AHR in the ovary. Previous studies have suggested, without directly testing, that AhRKO mice have slower follicular growth than wild-type (WT) mice.