Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and cognitive ability in early childhood.

Background: Prenatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) has been associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in children, but evidence remains mixed regarding sex differences in this association.

Objective: To examine the prospective association between prenatal PBDE exposure and cognitive ability in young children, as well as potential sex differences.

Methods: The study was conducted in a multi-site Canadian pregnancy cohort recruited in 2008-11.

Reduction in ambulatory distance from childhood through adolescence: The impact of the number and length of steps.

Background: The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between ambulatory distance with steps/day and increased step length as children age.

Methods: This is a prospective cohort study. Forty-five children from the QUALITY cohort were assessed at childhood (baseline) and seven years later during adolescence (follow-up).

Mice with an RGS-insensitive Gα protein show growth hormone axis dysfunction.

Mice carrying an RGS-insensitive Gαi2 mutation display growth retardation early after birth. Although the growth hormone (GH)-axis is a key endocrine modulator of postnatal growth, its functional state in these mice has not been characterized. The present study was undertaken to address this issue.

Profile of circulating microRNAs in myalgic encephalomyelitis and their relation to symptom severity, and disease pathophysiology.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex chronic disease, rooted in multi-system dysfunctions characterized by unexplained debilitating fatigue. Post-exertional malaise (PEM), defined as the exacerbation of the patient's symptoms following minimal physical or mental stress, is a hallmark of ME/CFS. While multiple case definitions exist, there is currently no well-established biomarkers or laboratory tests to diagnose ME/CFS.

Impacts of an Interdisciplinary Developmental Follow-Up Program on Neurodevelopment in Congenital Heart Disease: The CINC Study.

This study investigates the impact of an early systematic interdisciplinary developmental follow-up and individualized intervention program on the neurodevelopment of children with complex congenital heart disease (CHD) who required cardiac surgery. We prospectively enrolled 80 children with CHD: 41 were already followed at our neurocardiac developmental follow-up clinic from the age of 4 months, while 39 were born before the establishment of the program and therefore received standard health care. We conducted cognitive, motor, and behavioral assessments at 3 years of age.

Breastfeeding duration in infancy and dietary intake in childhood and adolescence.

Although several studies have focused on associations between breastfeeding and child obesity, few have focused on associations with dietary intake. We examined associations between breastfeeding duration in infancy and dietary intake in childhood and explored whether associations are still observed in adolescence. The QUALITY (QUebec Adipose and Lifestyle InvesTigation in Youth) cohort includes 630 children aged 8-10 years at baseline (T1) who have at least one parent with obesity.

Factors associated with discharge destination following inpatient functional rehabilitation in patients with traumatic spinal cord injury.

Study Design: Retrospective review of data from a prospective database of a Level 1 trauma center.

Objectives: This project aims to identify factors collected during the acute and rehabilitative care following a traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) associated with success and failure to return home after inpatient intensive functional rehabilitation (IFR).

Setting: Level 1 trauma center specialized in TSCI care in Montreal, Canada.

Patient outcomes in idiopathic scoliosis are associated with biological endophenotypes: 2020 SOSORT award winner.

Purpose: Bracing is the treatment of choice for idiopathic scoliosis (IS), unfortunately factors underlying brace response remain unknown. Clinicians are currently unable to identify patients who may benefit from bracing, and therefore, better molecular stratification is critically needed. The aim of this study is to evaluate IS patient outcomes at skeletal maturity in relation to biological endophenotypes, and determine specific endophenotypes associated to differential bracing outcomes.

Acute inspiratory muscle exercise effect on glucose levels, glucose variability and autonomic control in patients with type 2 diabetes: A crossover randomized trial.

Inspiratory muscle exercise (IME) can be an alternative to conventional exercise. We aimed to evaluate the effect of IME on glucose, glucose variability, and autonomic cardiovascular control in type 2 diabetes. Fourteen diabetic subjects were randomly assigned to IME with 2% maximal inspiratory pressure (PImax) or 60% PImax wearing a continuous glucose monitoring system for three days.

Functional Brain Connectivity of Language Functions in Children Revealed by EEG and MEG: A Systematic Review.

The development of language functions is of great interest to neuroscientists, as these functions are among the fundamental capacities of human cognition. For many years, researchers aimed at identifying cerebral correlates of language abilities. More recently, the development of new data analysis tools has generated a shift toward the investigation of complex cerebral networks.

Duration of neonatal oxygen supplementation, erythropoiesis and blood pressure in young adults born preterm.

Background: Although erythropoiesis is impaired and anaemia frequent in neonates born preterm, haematopoiesis in adults born preterm has not been previously studied.

Objective: We, thus, aimed to evaluate haemoglobin and erythropoietin levels in young adults born preterm, to identify neonatal events associated with erythropoiesis in adulthood and to examine the relationships of haemoglobin levels with respiratory function and blood pressure.

Methods: We assessed a cohort of 101 young adults (ages 18-29) born preterm (≤29 weeks of gestation), in comparison to 105 full-term controls.

Visual contrast sensitivity in school-age Guadeloupean children exposed to chlordecone.

Recent evidence suggests that prenatal exposure to chlordecone, a persistent organochlorine pesticide that was used intensively in the French West Indies, affects infant neurodevelopment. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the association between prenatal and postnatal chlordecone exposures on visual contrast sensitivity in 285 children aged from 7.1 to 8 years old (mean age = 7.

Decreasing pressure injuries and acute care length of stay in patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injury.

Objectives: Identifying factors associated with the occurrence of pressure injuries (PI) during acute care and with longer length of stay (LOS), focusing on modifiable factors that can be addressed and optimized by the acute rehabilitation team.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: A single Level-1 trauma center specialized in SCI care.

The Functional Impact of the Absence of a Bulbocavernosus Reflex in the Postoperative Period After a Motor-Complete Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.

Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of the absence of a bulbocavernosus reflex in the postoperative period on the neurological and functional recovery 6-12 mos after a motor-complete traumatic spinal cord injury.

Design: A retrospective review of a prospective database was completed among 66 patients. The functional and neurological statuses between individuals with and without a bulbocavernosus reflex were compared.

Gross Motor Development of Children with Congenital Heart Disease Receiving Early Systematic Surveillance and Individualized Intervention: Brief Report.

: This retrospective study aims to describe the gross motor development of children aged 4 to 24 months with congenital heart disease (CHD) enrolled in a systematic developmental follow-up program and to describe the frequency of physical therapy sessions they received between 4 and 8 months of age. : Twenty-nine infants with CHD underwent motor evaluations using the AIMS at 4 months, and the Bayley-III at 12 and 24 months. : Based on AIMS, 79% of 4-month-old infants had a gross motor delay and required physical therapy.

Can anthropometry and physical fitness testing explain physical activity levels in children and adolescents with obesity?

Objectives: As time with patients and resources are increasingly limited, it is important to determine if clinical tests can provide further insight into real-world behaviors linked to clinical outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine which aspects of anthropometry and physical fitness testing are associated with physical activity (PA) levels among youth with obesity.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

A validated composite model to predict risk of curve progression in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Background: In adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), the continuous search for effective prognostication of significant curve progression at the initial clinical consultation to inform decision for timely treatment and to avoid unnecessary overtreatment remains a big challenge as evidence of the multifactorial etiopathogenic nature is increasingly reported. This study aimed to formulate a composite model composed of clinical parameters and circulating markers in the prediction of curve progression.

Method: This is a two-phase study consisting of an exploration cohort (120 AIS, mean Cobb angle of 25°± 8.

Defining criteria for optimal lumbar curve correction following the selective thoracic fusion surgery in Lenke 1 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: developing a decision tree.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the range of optimal versus suboptimal rates of spontaneous lumbar Cobb correction (SLCC%) and the factors predicting such outcomes in a cohort of Lenke 1 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) after posterior spinal fusion surgery.

Methods: Seventy-one consecutive Lenke1 B and C AIS patients with a fusion level to L1 and higher with two-year follow-up were included. Thoracic kyphosis (T1-T4 and T4-T12 TK), lumbar lordosis (L1-S1 LL), thoracic and lumbar Cobb angles, thoracic and lumbar apical vertebral rotations and translations (AVR and AVT), pelvic incidence, sacral slope, and sagittal and frontal balances were measured at preoperative, early postoperative, and two-year follow-up.

Perchlorate in human milk samples from the maternal-infant research on environmental chemicals study (MIREC).

Perchlorate is a low molecular weight highly soluble anion. It occurs naturally in the environment, primarily near potash deposits and in arid regions. The determination of perchlorate in human milk is of interest in vulnerable populations such as infants and pregnant women.

Patterns and predictors of functional recovery from the subacute to the chronic phase following a traumatic spinal cord injury: a prospective study.

Study Design: Prospective cohort study.

Objectives: To determine the extent of functional recovery between 6 and 12 months following a traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) and to identify individuals achieving a small clinical functional improvement during this period.

Setting: A single level-1 trauma center specialized in SCI care.

A Differential Hypofunctionality of Gαi Proteins Occurs in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis and Correlates with the Risk of Disease Progression.

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis is the most prevalent spine deformity and the molecular mechanisms underlying its pathophysiology remain poorly understood. We have previously found a differential impairment of melatonin receptor signaling in AIS osteoblasts allowing the classification of patients into three biological endophenotypes or functional groups (FG1, FG2 and FG3). Here, we provide evidence that the defect characterizing each endophenotype lies at the level of Gαi proteins leading to a systemic and generalized differential impairment of Gi-coupled receptor signaling.

Heart failure drug proscillaridin A targets MYC overexpressing leukemia through global loss of lysine acetylation.

Background: Cardiac glycosides are approved for the treatment of heart failure as Na/K pump inhibitors. Their repurposing in oncology is currently investigated in preclinical and clinical studies. However, the identification of a specific cancer type defined by a molecular signature to design targeted clinical trials with cardiac glycosides remains to be characterized.