The Grenada Learning and Memory Scale: Psychometric features and normative data in Caribbean preschool children.

Objective: Neuropsychological assessment of preschool children is essential for early detection of delays and referral for intervention prior to school entry. This is especially pertinent in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which are disproportionately impacted by micronutrient deficiencies and teratogenic exposures. The Grenada Learning and Memory Scale (GLAMS) was created for use in limited resource settings and includes a shopping list and face-name association test.

A third kind of episodic memory: Context familiarity is distinct from item familiarity and recollection.

Unlabelled: Episodic memory is accounted for with two processes: 'familiarity' when generally recognizing an item and 'recollection' when retrieving the full contextual details bound with the item. Paradoxically, people sometimes report contextual information as familiar but without recollecting details, which is not easily accounted for by existing theories. We tested a combination of item recognition confidence and source memory, focusing upon 'item-only hits with source unknown' ('item familiarity'), 'low-confidence hits with correct source memory' ('context familiarity'), and 'high-confidence hits with correct source memory' ('recollection').

Spare the rod, spoil the child: measurement and learning from an intervention to shift corporal punishment attitudes and behaviors in Grenada, West Indies.

Childrearing practices in the Caribbean and other postcolonial states have long been associated with corporal punishment and are influenced by expectations of children for respectfulness and obedience. Evidence across settings shows that physical punishment of young children is both ineffective and detrimental. Saving Brains Grenada (SBG) implemented a pilot study of an intervention based on the Conscious Discipline curriculum that aimed to build adult caregivers' skills around non-violent child discipline.

Does Intra-Uterine Exposure to the Zika Virus Increase Risks of Cognitive Delay at Preschool Ages? Findings from a Zika-Exposed Cohort from Grenada, West Indies.

Maternal infection with Zika virus (ZIKV) is associated with a distinct pattern of birth defects, known as congenital Zika syndrome (CZS). In ZIKV-exposed children without CZS, it is often unclear whether they were protected from in utero infection and neurotropism. Early neurodevelopmental assessment is essential for detecting neurodevelopmental delays (NDDs) and prioritizing at-risk children for early intervention.

Prevention of mental illness within public health: An analysis of progress via systematic literature review and a pathway forward.

Primary prevention is the cornerstone of public health. Prevention is especially important for chronic diseases of significant burden such as mental illnesses because many of them have limited treatment options, an onset in childhood or in adolescence, and are linked to adverse childhood experiences requiring a focus on early childhood and maternal-child health (MCH). Despite this need, there appears to be a paucity of research into prevention of mental illnesses within public health.

Factors Associated with Chikungunya Infection among Pregnant Women in Grenada, West Indies.

Neonates are vulnerable to vector-borne diseases given the potential for mother-to-child congenital transmission. To determine factors associated with chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infection among pregnant women in Grenada, West Indies, a retrospective cohort study enrolled women who were pregnant during the 2014 CHIKV epidemic. In all, 520/688 women (75.

A Community-based Responsive Caregiving Program Improves Neurodevelopment in Two-year Old Children in a Middle-Income Country, Grenada, West Indies.

Many young children in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are at risk of developmental delays. Early child development (ECD) interventions have been shown to improve outcomes, but few interventions have targeted culturally normative violence such as corporal punishment (CP). We partnered with an existing community-based ECD organization in the LMIC of Grenada to implement a parallel controlled-trial single-blind responsive caregiving intervention that educates parents about the developing brain and teaches alternatives to corporal punishment while building parental self-regulation skills and strengthening social-emotional connections between parent and child.

Improving neurodevelopment in Zika-exposed children: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: While microcephaly is a significant adverse outcome of prenatal exposure to the Zika virus (ZIKV), subtle malformations of cortical development (MCD) have been observed in Zika-exposed children (ZEC), including delays in language, cognition, and motor domains, and visual acuity deficits. Interventions within the first 1,000 days of life can significantly improve developmental outcomes. This study examined a 12-week Responsive Caregiving Intervention on neurodevelopmental outcomes in 24-30-month-old ZEC.

Academic and Social Impact of Menstrual Disturbances in Female Medical Students: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: The stressful academic schedule of medical students poses an obvious challenge to their daily lifestyle. Psychosomatic discomfort poses a significant risk for inaccurate self-medication for ameliorating menstrual complications and feeling better, thus directly impacting personal and academic wellbeing.

Objective: The impact of menstrual disturbances on academic life is not extensively explored.

Adaptation of the INTERGROWTH-21st neurodevelopment assessment (INTER-NDA) to the context of the English-speaking Caribbean.

Background: Adaptation of standardized early child development (ECD) assessments to low- and middle-income countries can be challenging because of culture-specific factors relating to language, content, context, and tool administration, and because the reliance of these tests on specialist healthcare professionals limits their scalability in low resource settings.

Methods: We report the cross-cultural adaptation of an international, standardized ECD instrument, the INTERGROWTH-21st Project Neurodevelopment Assessment (INTER-NDA), measuring cognitive, language, motor and behavioural outcomes in 2-year-olds, from a UK-based English-speaking population to the English-speaking Caribbean. Children aged 22-30 months were recruited from a pre-existing randomized controlled neurodevelopment intervention study in Grenada, West Indies.

Neurodevelopment in normocephalic children with and without prenatal Zika virus exposure.

Objective: Zika virus (ZIKV) targets neural stem cells in the developing brain. However, the majority of ZIKV-exposed children are born without apparent neurological manifestations. It remains unclear if these children were protected from ZIKV neurotropism or if they harbour subtle pathology that is disruptive to brain development.

A Systematic Review of Severe Neurological Manifestations in Pediatric Patients with Coexisting SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

SARS-CoV-2 infection in children produces mild respiratory symptoms or no symptoms at all in most cases. Some pediatric patients develop a severe complication associated with high mortality, the multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). In both scenarios, there are reports of neurological manifestations.

Yoga for Healthy Aging: Science or Hype?

Yoga, one of the world's oldest health systems is receiving new attention for claims that it can contribute to healthy aging. Until recently, scientific evidence for its efficacy has relied heavily on small and poorly-designed research, but this is changing. Multiple, well-designed studies provide data showing that yoga practice has positive effects on cellular aging, mobility, balance, mental health, and prevention of cognitive decline-all areas of concern for older adults.

Mitigating medical student stress and anxiety: Should schools mandate participation in wellness intervention programs?

Purpose: Medical students are at increased risk of poor mental health and need to regularly engage in preventive programs to maintain well-being. However, many do not and it remains an open question whether these programs should be mandatory. We implemented a RCT to examine the effectiveness of assigning medical students to a wellness intervention on adherence to engagement in the assigned intervention and on psychological and academic outcomes.

A Meta-Analysis of Hippocampal and Amygdala Volumes in Patients Diagnosed With Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), an illness characterized by multiple personality states, has long been a controversial diagnosis within the psychiatric community. Demonstrating a neuroanatomical basis for the disorder may help to resolve the controversy. Current literature on the neuroanatomy associated with DID has focused on the hippocampus and amygdala and are inconclusive.

Focal epilepsy features in a child with Congenital Zika Syndrome.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne, single-stranded DNA flavivirus that is teratogenic and neurotropic. Similar to the teratogenic effects of other TORCH infections, ZIKV infection during pregnancy can have an adverse impact on fetal and neonatal development. Epilepsy is detected in 48-96% of children with Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS) and microcephaly.

Epilepsy surveillance in normocephalic children with and without prenatal Zika virus exposure.

Children with Congenital Zika Syndrome and microcephaly are at high risk for epilepsy; however, the risk is unclear in normocephalic children with prenatal Zika virus (ZIKV) exposure [Exposed Children (EC)]. In this prospective cohort study, we performed epilepsy screening in normocephalic EC alongside a parallel group of normocephalic unexposed children [Unexposed Children (UC)]. We compared the incidence rate of epilepsy among EC and UC at one year of life to global incidence rates.

Pre and postnatal exposure to Chikungunya virus does not affect child neurodevelopmental outcomes at two years of age.

Background: The 2005-06 chikungunya virus (CHIKV) outbreak in La Réunion suggested that mothers could transmit CHIKV to their neonates while viremic during the intrapartum period, and more than half of the infected neonates showed impaired neurodevelopment at two years of age. However, data sparsity precluded an overview of the developmental impact of vertical infection within the whole prenatal period.

Objective & Methods: The current study assessed two-year old children born to mothers who were infected during the 2014 CHIKV outbreak in Grenada to determine the neurodevelopmental impact of perinatal CHIKV infection throughout gestation.

Auricular Acupuncture Associated with Reduced Waist Circumference in Overweight Women-A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Obesity and subsequent ill health have reached epidemic proportions in developed countries, and many developing countries are on the same trajectory. Weight loss and sustaining a healthy weight have posed a significant challenge for individuals, patients, health-care providers, and public health experts. The literature suggests that dietary advice and lifestyle changes alone have limited sustainable impact for those who are seeking to achieve a healthy weight.

Maltreatment history, trauma symptoms and research reactivity among adolescents in child protection services.

Objective: There is a well-documented link between child maltreatment and poor health across the lifespan. This provides a strong case for ongoing research with youth involved in the child welfare system to reduce negative outcomes and support resilience while being inclusive of youth voices. However, detailed inquiries about maltreatment history and health consequences may cause re-experiencing of events and psychological distress for study participants.

Absence of Adolescent Obesity in Grenada: Is This a Generational Effect?

Low- and middle-income countries are affected disproportionately by the ongoing global obesity pandemic. Representing a middle income country, the high prevalence of obesity among Grenadian adults as compared to US adults is expected as part of global obesity trends. The objective of this study was to determine if Grenadian adolescents have a higher prevalence of overweight compared to their US counterparts, and if a disparity exists between urban and rural adolescents.

Sexual Violence in America: Public Funding and Social Priority.

We compared lifetime risk, annual incidence, and annual economic burden of sexual violence with other major public health issues in the United States: cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS. With public funding data from 2013, we examined how much public funding is allocated to these public health issues as a proxy of the social priority of addressing each of them. Although sexual violence is as prevalent as and more costly than are these other major public health issues, it receives a fraction of the public funds that they receive.

Transitive inference reasoning is impaired by focal lesions in parietal cortex rather than rostrolateral prefrontal cortex.

Transitive inference reasoning involves the examination and comparison of a given number of relational pairs in order to understand overall group hierarchy (e.g., A>B, B>C, C>D; therefore is A>D?).