Does high perceived stress over the past month alter cortisol reactivity to the Trier Social Stress Test?

Background: Theories highlight the important role of chronic stress in remodeling HPA-axis responsivity under stress. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) is one of the most widely used measures of enduring stress perceptions, and no previous studies have evaluated whether greater perceptions of stress on the PSS are associated with cortisol hypo- or hyperactivity responses to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST).

Objective: To examine if high perceived stress over the past month, as measured by the PSS, alters cortisol and subjective acute stress reactivity to the TSST in healthy young adults.

The effects of intelligence on exposure to combat and posttraumatic stress disorder across multiple deployments.

Introduction: Past work relates intelligence quotient (IQ) to risk for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among soldiers. We gathered data over multiple deployments to assess how IQ relates to the rate of symptom development both directly and through increasing the risk for traumatic combat exposure.

Methods: Male infantry soldiers from a maneuver brigade (N = 582) were followed over the 3-year period of their mandatory military service.

Exposure therapy consortium: Outcomes of the proof-of-principle study.

Background: This paper reports on the outcomes of a proof-of-principle study for the Exposure Therapy Consortium, a global network of researchers and clinicians who work to improve the effectiveness and uptake of exposure therapy. The study aimed to test the feasibility of the consortium's big-team science approach and test the hypothesis that adding post-exposure processing focused on enhancing threat reappraisal would enhance the efficacy of a one-session large-group interoceptive exposure therapy protocol for reducing anxiety sensitivity.

Methods: The study involved a multi-site cluster-randomized controlled trial comparing exposure with post-processing (ENHANCED), exposure without post-processing (STANDARD), and a stress management intervention (CONTROL) in students with elevated anxiety sensitivity.

Oxytocin-mediated social preference and socially reinforced reward learning in the miniature fish Danionella cerebrum.

Integrative studies of diverse neuronal networks that govern social behavior are hindered by a lack of methods to record neural activity comprehensively across the entire brain. The recent development of the miniature fish Danionella cerebrum as a model organism offers one potential solution, as the small size and optical transparency of these animals make it possible to visualize circuit activity throughout the nervous system. Here, we establish the feasibility of using Danionella as a model for social behavior and socially reinforced learning by showing that adult fish exhibit strong affiliative tendencies and that social interactions can serve as the reinforcer in an appetitive conditioning paradigm.

Discovery of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa-specific small molecule targeting outer membrane protein OprH-LPS interaction by a multiplexed screen.

The surge of antimicrobial resistance threatens efficacy of current antibiotics, particularly against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a highly resistant gram-negative pathogen. The asymmetric outer membrane (OM) of P. aeruginosa combined with its array of efflux pumps provide a barrier to xenobiotic accumulation, thus making antibiotic discovery challenging.

Computer model for gait assessments in Parkinson's patients using a fuzzy inference model and inertial sensors.

Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) in the moderate and severe stages can present several walk alterations. They can show slow movements and difficulty initiating, varying, or interrupting their gait; freezing; short steps; speed changes; shuffling; little arm swing; and festinating gait. The Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) has a good reputation for uniformly evaluating motor and non-motor aspects of PD.

The global impact of scoliosis on tracheal abnormalities and ventilation needs in pediatric patients with tracheostomy tubes.

Purpose: To describe the effects of scoliosis severity on the trachea in patients with a tracheostomy tube.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective chart review of patients 21 years and younger with a tracheostomy and scoliosis between 2001 and 2019 was conducted at a single tertiary pediatric hospital. Patients with spine curvature from C6 - T3 (tracheal limits) were divided into two groups based on curvatures that were either greater than or equal to 30° (Group A) or less than 30° (Group B).

The effect of temporary CSF diversion modality on shunt-dependency following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage: A nationwide assessment.

Background: Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) carries a high economic cost and clinical morbidity in the United States. Beyond prolonged admissions and poor post-injury functional status, there is an additional cost of chronic shunt-dependent hydrocephalus for many aSAH patients. Adjuvant lumbar drain (LD) placement has been hypothesized to promote clearance of subarachnoid blood from the cisternal space, with an ultimate effect of decreasing shunt placement rates.

Comparison of self-perception in relation to the normative need for orthodontic treatment in a population of dental students in Brazil: A cross-sectional study.

Introduction: This study aimed to identify predictive factors of having a positive or negatively divergent self-perception from the normative orthodontic treatment need (N-OTN).

Methods: All eligible undergraduate students from the School of Dentistry of the XXX were recruited through convenience sampling. They were clinically evaluated to determine their N-OTN using the IOTN and were asked about their self-perceived orthodontic treatment need (S-OTN) using the same scale for both evaluations.

Female collegiate soccer players post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction utilize aberrant movement strategies to achieve similar performance to uninjured players.

Background: Female soccer athletes with a history of anterior cruciate ligament injury are more susceptible to secondary injuries and potentially worse sport performance. The purpose of this study was to determine if female soccer athletes post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction demonstrate worse jump height and reactive strength index performance and lower involved limb hip, knee, and ankle joint power and absorption, and larger joint power and absorption asymmetries compared to matched uninjured athletes.

Methods: Eleven Division I female soccer athletes post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (18.

Assessment of varus thrust using inertial measurement units.

Background: Varus thrust is common in those with knee osteoarthritis. Varus thrust is traditionally identified with visual analysis or motion capture, methods that are either dichotomous or limited to the laboratory setting. Inertial measurement unit data has been found to correlate with motion capture measures of varus thrust in those with severe knee osteoarthritis, allowing for a quantitative and accessible way of measuring varus thrust.

Is endoscopic submucosal dissection safe in the management of early-stage colorectal cancers?

Background: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is increasingly being adopted for the treatment of early-stage colorectal cancer (CRC) lesions.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with early-stage CRC treated between 2015 and 2023, using ESD and colectomy databases, categorizing them into three groups: ESD only (n ​= ​24), oncological colorectal resection (OCR) only (n ​= ​90), and OCR after ESD (n ​= ​59). We compared pathological and oncological outcomes among these groups.

Testing the generalizability of minimal group attitudes in minority and majority race children.

The minimal group effect, in which people prefer ingroup members to outgroup members even when group membership is trivially constructed, has been studied extensively in psychological science. Despite a large body of literature on this phenomenon, concerns persist regarding previous developmental research populations that are small and lack racial/ethnic diversity. In addition, it remains unclear what role holding membership within and interacting with specific racial/ethnic groups plays in the development of children's group attitudes.

Connections among family socioeconomic status, aerobic fitness, executive function, and the positive experiences of childhood physical activity.

A family's socioeconomic status (SES) can be linked to a child's physical and cognitive health, with children from low-SES families often experiencing poor developmental outcomes. Early positive childhood experiences that include structured and unstructured physical activities (SUPAs) offer a potential avenue to promote positive health and cognitive development during early childhood. However, prior to school entry, it is not well-understood whether SES is related to participation in SUPAs or how SUPAs relate to early health and cognitive indicators such as aerobic fitnessand executive function (EF).

The Historical and Clinical Foundations of the Modern Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit.

The subspecialty of neurocritical care has grown significantly over the past 40 years along with advancements in the medical and surgical management of neurological emergencies. The modern neuroscience intensive care unit (neuro-ICU) is grounded in close collaboration between neurointensivists and neurosurgeons in the management of patients with such conditions as ischemic stroke, aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, intracerebral hemorrhage, subdural hematomas, and traumatic brain injury. Neuro-ICUs are also capable of specialized monitoring such as serial neurological examinations by trained neuro-ICU nurses; invasive monitoring of intracranial pressure, cerebral oxygenation, and cerebral hemodynamics; cerebral microdialysis; and noninvasive monitoring, including the use of pupillometry, ultrasound monitoring of optic nerve sheath diameters, transcranial Doppler ultrasonography, near-infrared spectroscopy, and continuous electroencephalography.

Neurocritical Care in 2024: Where are We Headed?

Providing specialized care to critically ill neurology patients has improved outcomes for patients with neurological emergencies; however, there are still some gaps in neurocritical care (NCC) that offer opportunities for improvement. Among these gaps, improving education of the multidisciplinary NCC team, targeting individualized treatments for neurologically critically ill patients, and reducing disparities for undeserved patients as well as disadvantaged areas are priorities to advance the field. This review focuses on the current challenges neurointensivists face, including difficulties in neuroprognostication, ethical challenges in end-of-life care, and neuropalliative care.

Current Challenges in Neurocritical Care: A Narrative Review.

Neurocritical care as a field aims to treat patients who are neurologically critically ill due to a variety of pathologies. As a recently developed subspecialty, the field faces challenges, several of which are outlined in this review. The authors discuss aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, status epilepticus, and traumatic brain injury as specific disease processes with opportunities for growth in diagnosis, management, and treatment, as well as disorders of consciousness that can arise as a result of many neurological injuries.

Machine learning techniques for the prediction of indoor gamma-ray dose rates - Strengths, weaknesses and implications for epidemiology.

We investigate methods that improve the estimation of indoor gamma ray dose rates at locations where measurements had not been made. These new predictions use a greater range of modelling techniques and larger variety of explanatory variables than our previous examinations of this subject. Specifically, we now employ three types of machine learning models in addition to the geostatistical, nearest neighbour and other earlier models.

Mowing facilitated Pb accumulation in bermudagrass by mediating root radial transport.

Moderate mowing of the shoot is an effective strategy for improving Pb-contaminated soil remediation using bermudagrass. However, the mechanisms by which mowing facilitates Pb uptake and accumulation remain insufficiently understood. Root radial transport is critical in efficient heavy metal uptake and translocation in plants and is influenced by root physiological-biochemical characteristics.

Exogenous estradiol impacts anxiety-like behavior of juvenile male and female Siberian hamsters in a dose-dependent manner.

Anxiety is among the most prevalent mental health issues in children. While it is well established that gonadal steroids influence anxiety-like behavior in adulthood, a potential role in prepubertal juveniles has been overlooked because it is commonly thought that the gonads are quiescent during the juvenile period. However, the juvenile gonads secrete measurable amounts of steroids, and we have recently found that prepubertal ovariectomy decreases anxiety-like behavior of juvenile Siberian hamsters in the light/dark box test.