Publications by authors named "MacKenzie Brown"

Anxiety disorders are highly comorbid with sleep disturbance and have also been associated with deficits in emotion regulation, the ability to control and express emotions. However, the extent to which specific dimensions of sleep disturbance and emotion regulation are associated with anxiety diagnosis is not well-explored. This study examined dimensions of emotion regulation and sleep disturbance that may predict greater likelihood of anxiety diagnosis using novel machine learning techniques.

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Objective: The objective of this study is to outline the training of peer coaches in the Moving Well intervention, which was designed to reduce anxiety, depression, and pain catastrophizing in patients before and after total knee replacement (TKR).

Methods: Selected peer coaches had a history of knee osteoarthritis (KOA), a TKR of 12 months or more before training, and were 60 or older. Training was primarily conducted virtually, with a later addition of one in-person session.

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Anxiety and fear are key characteristics of eating disorders (EDs). Exposure therapy is a specific type of intervention aimed at reducing fear and anxiety and is efficacious in treating a variety of anxiety and related disorders. A growing body of research suggests that exposure therapy is also efficacious for the treatment of EDs.

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Sleep disturbances are present in ~65% of individuals with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD). Although both Kundalini yoga (KY) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are effective treatment options for GAD, little is known about how these treatments compare in improving sleep for GAD and what drives these changes. Accordingly, we examined the effects of CBT, KY, and stress education (SEdu; an attention control condition) on subjective sleep quality (as measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI] and Insomnia Severity Index [ISI]) in a randomised controlled trial of 226 adults with GAD (mean age 33.

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Background: Moving Well is a behavioral intervention for patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) scheduled for a total knee replacement (TKR). The objective of this intervention is to help patients with KOA mentally and physically prepare for and recover from TKR.

Methods: This is an open-label pilot randomized clinical trial that will test the feasibility and effectiveness of the Moving Well intervention compared to an attention control group, Staying Well, to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with KOA undergoing TKR.

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Background: Peer coaching interventions are effective in helping individuals with chronic conditions understand their disease. Most peer coach training programs occur in person, which has become an obstacle during the COVID pandemic. We describe our experiences with virtual training for future peer coach interventions.

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Article Synopsis
  • Treatments for eating disorders (EDs) are only effective for about 50% of adults, partly due to the varied nature of these disorders and a lack of evidence-based options for some diagnoses.
  • A trial with 79 participants tested a 10-session personalized treatment approach that utilizes individual symptom data to tailor therapy, showing high feasibility, acceptability, and initial effectiveness in reducing ED severity.
  • Results indicated significant improvements in ED symptoms and related issues, suggesting that this personalized method could serve as a promising alternative to traditional treatments, warranting further research and randomized controlled trials.
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Space-use and demographic processes are critical to the persistence of populations across space and time. Despite their importance, estimates of these processes are often derived from a limited number of populations spanning broad habitat or environmental gradients. With increasing appreciation of the role fine-scale environmental variation in microgeographic adaptation, there is a need and value to assessing within-site variation in space-use and demographic patterns.

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Eating disorders are severe mental illnesses with the second highest mortality rate of all psychiatric illnesses. Eating disorders are exceedingly deadly because of their complexity. Specifically, eating disorders are highly comorbid with other psychiatric illnesses (up to 95% of individuals with an eating disorder have at least one additional psychiatric illness), have extremely heterogeneous presentations, and individuals often migrate from one specific eating disorder diagnosis to another.

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Eating disorders (EDs) are highly comorbid with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), with comorbidity rates as high as 41%. In the current review, we summarize the literature regarding the prevalence of ED-OCD comorbidity. We also identify and review the literature assessing shared features (i.

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There is some, but inconsistent, evidence to suggest that matching patient treatment preference enhances treatment engagement and outcome. The current study examined differential preferences and factors associated with treatment preference for 12-week group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), yoga, or stress education in 226 adults with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD; 70% female, Mean age = 33 ± 13.5).

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Objective: Fear and anxiety are key maintaining factors for eating disorder (ED) pathology. Maladaptive fears lead to ED behaviors and avoidance, which provide temporary relief, but ultimately reinforce the fear and contribute to a cycle that maintains the ED. To date, fears of food and weight gain are the most explored fears underlying ED pathology.

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Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common cause of death among people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with an estimated increased risk of 50-60% compared to the general population. Lipid-lowering strategies have been shown to lower CVD risk significantly in people with RA and hyperlipidemia. Thus, CVD risk assessment has an important role to play in reducing CVD among people with RA.

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Background: Eating disorders (EDs) are severe mental illnesses, with high morbidity, mortality, and societal burden. EDs are extremely heterogenous, and only 50% of patients currently respond to first-line treatments. Personalized and effective treatments for EDs are drastically needed.

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Article Synopsis
  • * This pilot study will compare two online therapies: a five-session imaginal exposure therapy (where participants confront their fears about eating and weight gain) versus a control writing intervention, assessing the effectiveness of each in preventing readmission.
  • * The research aims to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the treatments, analyze whether imaginal exposure is more effective at reducing eating disorder symptoms, and explore the role of fear learning as a change mechanism in addressing cognitive eating disorder pathology.
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Background: Poor quality of life, sleep problems, anhedonia, and negative metacognitions are common in anxiety and depression. To examine the nature of the relationship between these features and the role of metacognitions, anhedonia, and quality of life in anxiety and depression, we conducted a complex network analysis with items of self-report measures assessing quality of life, sleep, negative thinking styles, anxiety, and depression.

Methods: Participants were 226 treatment seeking individuals with a primary DSM-5 diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.

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In this issue of Structure, Kaelber et al. (2020) use cryo-EM and synthetic decoy maps to reveal the patterning of 10 polymerase complexes within FAKV, a Reoviridae family member containing 9 genome segments. Their findings support a model for FAKV assembly that has implications for the entire Reoviridae family.

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Background: Treatments for anxiety disorders are among the most effective in psychiatry. Yet, there is considerable room for improvement.

Aim: In this paper, we discuss the value of ecological momentary assessment as a research method and clinical tool.

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Background: Cognitive-behavioural theories of panic disorder posit that panic attacks arise from a positive feedback loop between arousal-related bodily sensations and perceived threat. In a recently developed computational model formalising these theories of panic attacks, it was observed that the response to a simulated perturbation to arousal provided a strong indicator of vulnerability to panic attacks and panic disorder. In this review, we evaluate whether this observation is borne out in the empirical literature that has examined responses to biological challenge (eg, CO inhalation) and their relation to subsequent panic attacks and panic disorder.

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Objective: We endeavored to evaluate a cohort of patients diagnosed with SCN8A-related epilepsy in a multi-disciplinary clinic and to create a bio-repository.

Methods: We recruited patients with epilepsy due to SCN8A variants at Children's National Medical Center, through family organizations, or SCN8A.net.

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The rotavirus polymerase VP1 mediates all stages of viral RNA synthesis within the confines of subviral particles and while associated with the core shell protein VP2. Transcription (positive-strand RNA [+RNA] synthesis) by VP1 occurs within double-layered particles (DLPs), while genome replication (double-stranded RNA [dsRNA] synthesis) by VP1 occurs within assembly intermediates. VP2 is critical for VP1 enzymatic activity; yet, the mechanism by which the core shell protein triggers polymerase function remains poorly understood.

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Objective: The 1990-1991 Gulf War employed more women servicemembers than any prior conflict. Gender-based differences among veterans of this era have yet to be explored. This study is among the first and most recent to stratify Gulf War veteran demographics, lifestyle factors, and self-reported diagnoses by gender.

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Background: Children with overweight/obesity are more likely to exhibit symptoms of depression and anxiety than are their peers without overweight/obesity; however, the rates and correlates of depression and anxiety symptoms among children seeking obesity treatment remain unclear.

Objectives: Examine the prevalence and associated factors of depression and anxiety symptoms among treatment-seeking children with overweight/obesity.

Methods: Children 7 to 11 years old (N = 241) and their parents completed assessments before beginning family-based behavioral weight-loss treatment.

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Background: Studies of the association between children's depressive symptoms and obesity treatment response show mixed results. Different measurement may contribute to the inconsistent findings, as children's depressive symptoms are often based on parent-report about their child rather than child self-report.

Objectives: We assessed both child- and parent-report of child depressive symptoms as predictors of children's obesity treatment response.

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