Development of attentional processes in ADHD and normal children

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a developmental disorder. Typical development of attentional processes is rapid during early childhood. ADHD results in impairment in response inhibition, error monitoring, attentional disengagement, executive attention, and delay aversion and may effect the ongoing development of these processes during childhood. We examined the development of attentional processes in children with ADHD and normal children. Two hundred forty children (120 in each group) in the age range of 6–9 years participated in the study. Four tasks: Stop-Signal, attentional disengagement, attention network, and choice delay task were administered. Stop signal reaction time, switch costs, conflict effect, and percentage choice of short delay reward was higher in ADHD group compared to normal group. Post error of slowing was less in ADHD children. Endogenous orienting effect was more in normal children compared to ADHD children. Different developmental trajectories were observed for control functions in normal children. Major development in response inhibition occurred in 7–8 years, error monitoring in 6–9 years, and attentional disengagement in 7–9 years. Late development in alerting network was observed in normal children at age 9 years. No developmental changes occurred on these control functions in ADHD children aged 6–9 years. Age related changes were observed on delay aversion between 6 and 9 years in normal children, while it changed between 6 and 7 years in ADHD children. Performance was not changed on orienting and conflict attentional networks in both the children except conflict effect reduced between 7 and 9 years in ADHD children under double cue condition. Conflict network was interacted with the alerting and orienting network in normal children; specifically conflict network interacted with the orienting network in younger children (age 6 years) and with alerting network in older children (age 9 years). In ADHD group interaction between alerting and conflict network was observed only in the double cue condition. Together these results indicated that the deficits in control processes accumulate with age in ADHD children Present study favors the conceptual view of ADHD as a stable deficit in cognitive control functions, which are implicated in the pathology of ADHD. These results have theoretical implication for the theories of executive control and ADHD

Interpretative Bias: Indicators of Cognitive Vulnerability to Depression

Objectives: The study aimed at testing the existence of interpretative bias in remitted depressives as compared to unipolar depressives and never-depressed individuals. Method: Cognitive Bias Questionnaire was administered on 10 individuals each with unipolar depression, remitted depression, and never-depressed participants. Participants were presented with vague and ambiguous vignettes of potentially problematic situation that individuals often encounter their daily lives. Each vignette is followed by four questions with four response options reflecting a depressed-distorted, depressed-nondistorted, nondepressed-distorted, or nondepressed- nondistorted option. Participants choose the response option that best represents how they would respond to the situation if it actually happened to them. Results: Unipolar depressives interpret their condition as high on depressive mood symptoms as well as distorted thoughts whereas remitted depressives interpret their condition as high on distorted thoughts alone. Conclusions: It may suggest that despite of reduction in level of symptomatic severity of depression, cognitive errors are still maintained during remission, can increase one’s vulnerability for relapse. It implies that management of depression should focus on reducing cognitive vulnerability to depression, rather than only targeting a reduction in the symptoms

Development of Task Switching and Post-Error Slowing in Children

Background: Executive control processes such as task switching and error processing have been shown to change with age. The present study explored from a developmental perspective whether shared or different mechanisms underlie these processes. Methods: The sample included 180 children (30 in each of the six age groups from 6-11 years) who were required to perform two different tasks: identification of a digit, or counting the number of digits. We computed switch costs as a function of response-repetition, stimulus-response (S-R) compatibility, and post-error-slowing. We also analyzed reaction time distributions. Results and discussion: The results showed a switch cost in the response-repetition condition, with a reduction in switch cost between 7 to 8 and 9 to 10 years of age, and an S-R compatibility effect in 6 to 9 years old children. Reaction time (RT) distributions showed that the decrement in the switch cost is due to the overall decrease in RTs in fast (5th percentile) trials in 9 to 11 year olds, and slow (95th percentile) trials in 7 to 8 and 9 to 11 years old children, in both the task switch and non-switch trials. A major reduction in RT was found between 9 to 11 years in both the response type and S-R compatibility type conditions. RT distributions for post-error trials revealed that the large decrement seen in 7 to 8 and 9 to 10 years old children is primarily due to the sudden decrease in RTs in the fast and slow trials respectively. The developmental pattern of error processing was similar to one component of task switching (switch cost of the response-repetition condition), indicating that inhibition could be a common mechanism underlying both the processes. However, the failure to maintain task set was found only with task switching. Conclusion: The development of task switching and error processing is not gradual. The developmental pattern of error processing is similar to that of the switch cost of the responserepetition condition in task switching, indicating that inhibition could be a common mechanism underlying both processes. The present results have implications for theories of executive control

Evidence on the existence and impact of corruption in state asset sales in China 1

We document evidence of corruption in Chinese state asset sales. These sales involved stakes in partially privatized firms, providing a benchmark – the price of publicly traded shares – to measure under-pricing. We document under-pricing of more than 70 percent, which is correlated with deal attributes associated with misgovernance and corruption. Sales by “disguised ” owners that misrepresenting their state ownership to elude regulatory scrutiny are discounted 5-10 percentage points more than sales by other owners; related party transactions are similarly discounted. Post-transfer profitability is higher, though uncorrelated with under-pricing, suggesting that ownership transfer improved efficiency, even when the transfers themselves were corrupted

Prevalence and Severity of Dental Fluorosis in Endemic Fluoride Areas of Haryana, India: An Epidemiologic Study

Fluor se često naziva “dvostranim mačem” zbog pozitivnog učinka u idealnim dozama i štetnoga u slučaju prevelikih količina. Njegov unos sprječava nastanak zubnog karijesa, no ako se pretjera u razdoblju kada se formira caklina može se pojaviti caklinska fluoroza. Ispitanici i postupci: Trideset sela iz dvaju područja Haryane klasificiralo se prema različitim razinama fluora u vodi za piće. Ukupno je bilo pregledano 3007 učenika iz ruralne populacije u dobi između 12 i 16 godina. Endemska koncentracija fluora u tim je područjima varirala u vrijednostima od 0,50 (ispod optimuma), 0,7 i 1,13 (blizu optimuma) te 1,51, 2,45, 5,27 i 8,50 ppm (više od optimuma). Rezultati: Ukupna prevalencija fluoroze iznosila je 54,4 posto i bila je gotovo ista kod muškaraca i žena - kod muškarca 51,9 posto, a kod žena 48,1 posto. Postotak je rastao s porastom sadržaja fluora u vodi i to od 9,35 posto uz sadržaj fluora 0,5 ppm do 100 posto uz 8,5. Zaključak: Čini se da je razina fluora od 1 do 1,2 ppm najprikladnija i da u tom slučaju izaziva minimalnu količinu estetski nepoželjne fluoroze.Introduction: Fluorine is often called as a two-edged sword because of its beneficial effects in optimal doses and harmful effects due to overdoses. Intake of fluorine does prevent dental caries but when there is excessive systemic intake of fluoride during the period of enamel formation enamel fluorosis may occur. Material and Methods: 30 villages from 2 districts of Haryana were classified according to differing levels of fluoride in the drinking water. A total of 3007 students in the age group 12 – 16 years were examined in the rural population. Endemic fluoride concentration in these areas varied from 0.50 (sub optimum), 0.87, 1.13 (near optimum), 1.51, 2.45, 5.27 &8.50 (more than optimum) ppm fluoride level. Results: The overall fluorosis prevalence was 54.4%. The fluorosis for males and females were almost the same, males having 51.9% and females having 48.1% prevalence. The percentage of fluorosis increased with increase in fluoride content in the water. The percentage of fluorosis increased from 9.35 % in 0.5 ppm to 100% in 8.5 ppm. Conclusion: It appears that 1- 1.2 ppm is the most compatible fluoride level to produce minimal amount of esthetically objectionable fluorosis

Case Report on Secondary Peritonitis Caused by Jejunum Perforation

The small intestine is third in frequency intraperitoneal organ injured after blunt trauma of abdomen. Peritonitis caused by isolated jejunum perforation is very rare. As most of these cases are accompanied with injuries with other structures in the abdomen, hence it is not suspected. Therefore failure in diagnosis and delay in treating these injuries significantly increase the morbidity and mortality of these patients. Here, we report a case of a 60 year old gentleman admitted in surgery department with severe abdominal pain, multiple episodes of vomiting followed to fast breathing and reduced consciousness. Our patient presented in septic shock, with toxic looks and clear cut rigid abdominal wall. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time we describe a case report on isolated jejunum perforation as a result of physical assault.  Journal of Gandaki Medical College Vol. 10, No. 1, 2017, Page: 57-5

Development of Parkinsonism following exposure to aripiprazole: two case reports

which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Introduction: Aripiprazole is a novel atypical neuroleptic used in the treatment of psychosis. A few recent studies have demonstrated an association between the use of aripiprazole and an exacerbation of Parkinsonism, although this relationship is poorly defined. To our knowledge, this is the first case series describing an onset of Parkinsonism in patients without prior history of Parkinson’s diseas

Effect of paper quality on the response rate to a postal survey: A randomised controlled trial. [ISRCTN32032031]

BACKGROUND: Response rates to surveys are declining and this threatens the validity and generalisability of their findings. We wanted to determine whether paper quality influences the response rate to postal surveys METHODS: A postal questionnaire was sent to all members of the British Society of Gynaecological Endoscopy (BSGE). Recipients were randomised to receiving the questionnaire printed on standard quality paper or high quality paper. RESULTS: The response rate for the recipients of high quality paper was 43/195 (22%) and 57/194 (29%) for standard quality paper (relative rate of response 0.75, 95% CI 0.33–1.05, p = 0.1 CONCLUSION: The use of high quality paper did not increase response rates to a questionnaire survey of gynaecologists affiliated to an endoscopic society

Edible crabs “Go West”: migrations and incubation cycle of Cancer pagurus revealed by electronic tags

Crustaceans are key components of marine ecosystems which, like other exploited marine taxa, show seasonable patterns of distribution and activity, with consequences for their availability to capture by targeted fisheries. Despite concerns over the sustainability of crab fisheries worldwide, difficulties in observing crabs’ behaviour over their annual cycles, and the timings and durations of reproduction, remain poorly understood. From the release of 128 mature female edible crabs tagged with electronic data storage tags (DSTs), we demonstrate predominantly westward migration in the English Channel. Eastern Channel crabs migrated further than western Channel crabs, while crabs released outside the Channel showed little or no migration. Individual migrations were punctuated by a 7-month hiatus, when crabs remained stationary, coincident with the main period of crab spawning and egg incubation. Incubation commenced earlier in the west, from late October onwards, and brooding locations, determined using tidal geolocation, occurred throughout the species range. With an overall return rate of 34%, our results demonstrate that previous reluctance to tag crabs with relatively high-cost DSTs for fear of loss following moulting is unfounded, and that DSTs can generate precise information with regards life-history metrics that would be unachievable using other conventional means

Sex-Specific Effects of Blood Pressure Lowering Pharmacotherapy for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: An Individual Participant-Level Data Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Whether the relative effects of blood pressure (BP)-lowering treatment on cardiovascular outcomes differ by sex, particularly when BP is not substantially elevated, has been uncertain. METHODS: We conducted an individual participant-level data meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of pharmacological BP lowering. We pooled the data and categorized participants by sex, systolic BP categories in 10-mm Hg increments from <120 to ≥170 mm Hg, and age categories spanning from <55 to ≥85 years. We used fixed-effect one-stage individual participant-level data meta-analyses and applied Cox proportional hazard models, stratified by trial, to analyze the data. RESULTS: We included data from 51 randomized controlled trials involving 358 636 (42% women) participants. Over 4.2 years of median follow-up, a 5-mm Hg reduction in systolic BP decreased the risk of major cardiovascular events both in women and men (hazard ratio [95% CI], 0.92 [0.89-0.95] for women and 0.90 [0.88-0.93] for men; P for interaction, 1). There was no evidence for heterogeneity of relative treatment effects by sex for the major cardiovascular disease, its components, or across the different baseline BP categories (all P for interaction, ≥0.57). The effects in women and men were consistent across age categories and the types of antihypertensive medications (all P for interaction, ≥0.14). CONCLUSIONS: The effects of BP reduction were similar in women and men across all BP and age categories at randomization and with no evidence to suggest that drug classes had differing effects by sex. This study does not substantiate sex-based differences in BP-lowering treatment