Deficits in social skills and feeding behaviors associated with adults diagnosed with autistic disorder living in an institutionalized setting

Autistic disorder, a syndrome beginning in infancy and persisting into adulthood, has captured the attention of researchers and clinicians alike. Although this disorder has been studied since the mid-1940s, there is a lack of literature addressing certain adaptive skills in adults with autism. The aim of this study was to examine the differences in social and feeding skills between individuals with and without autistic disorder. Given the importance of acquiring these skills to facilitate proper adjustment and decrease potential health risks, better understanding of these behaviors in persons with autism is warranted. Participants comprised three separate groups: an autism group, a control group exhibiting psychopathology other than autism or pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), and a control group consisting of individuals not diagnosed with an Axis I disorder. The author hypothesized that there would be significant differences between the three groups on the MESSIER and the STEP, two scales designed to measure social skills and feeding related problems in individuals with developmental disabilities. In particular, the autism group was expected to show fewer strengths and greater deficits in social and feeding skills in comparison to the other groups. Furthermore, the investigator hypothesized that associated items from the MESSIER and the STEP, determined by post hoc analyses, would differ across the autism, psychopathology, and control groups, such that the correlation between mean subscale scores would be significantly higher for the autism group than for the other two groups. Analyses of the mean subscale scores on the MESSIER and the STEP did not show any significant differences across the groups

Differences across racial groups in caregiver ratings of symptoms in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders

A great deal of attention from local, federal, and international communities has been focused on autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). As the prevalence of these disorders rise, researchers continue to investigate various unanswered questions. The goal of this study was to examine the differences across racial/ethnic groups in caregiver ratings of symptoms of children diagnosed with ASDs. Results from such research will help determine whether cultural background can influence the recognition of behaviors indicative of an ASD. Culturally-sensitive clinical practice stemming from the significant findings of this research project can help to reduce the age at which minority children are diagnosed. This study compared two groups each: 1) African American and 2) Caucasian. The study focused on caregiver ratings of infants and toddlers diagnosed with ASDs. The author hypothesized that significant differences will be found in the factor structure of the Baby and Infant Screen for Children with aUtIsm Traits (BISCUIT) Parts 1 and 3. Results suggested that Caucasians and African Americans differed in the underlying factor structure of the measures. Caucasians had a two-factor solution while African Americans had a four-factor solution for the BISCUIT Part 1. For the BISCUIT Part 3, the Caucasian group maintained the three-factor solution of the original measure while African Americans yielded a two-factor solution. Implications, limitations, and future directions for this study were also discussed

Community Planning for HIV/AIDS Health Services System Transformation

HIV is a public health concern. Duval County schools Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance data on middle and high school students for 2013 reveal high-risk sexual activity; yet, one in five received no formal instructions about HIV/AIDS. Knowing one’s HIV status is pivotal for HIV prevention and treatment. HIV positive youth who seek treatment, and achieve viral suppression have optimal health outcomes and are less infectious. Northeast Florida joins the national initiative to reduce HIV infection. The City of Jacksonville, Ryan White Part-A Program, Florida Department of Health-Duval, and local HIV/AIDS organizations convened a Youth Summit. Conversations focused on how HIV prevention and treatment may integrate for seamless access and transition of youth into services. Six open- ended questions guided the summit. Three eight-member, moderated focus groups explored answers to two questions during one hour. From a healthcare access barriers perspective, structural and cognitive opportunities exist for health system integration. Almost twice as many solution strategies emerged for barriers to care and prevention-and-treatment attrition factors, compared to gaps in prevention, treatment, and health education. The Youth Summit is a first step in the journey toward a seamlessly integrated youth and adult HIV prevention, treatment, and health education system

Less Traditional – More Conceptual: Enhancing Student Learning in First-Year Biology

Over the last two decades, a number of influential reports have called for fundamental changes to undergraduate science education. Most importantly, these reports advocate a shift from traditional lecture-based teaching formats to ones that use student-focused pedagogies to encourage deep student learning about key conceptual ideas in science. Based on these reports, and the underlying research, the University of Calgary completed an extensive redesign of its first-year biology courses in 2011, resulting in two courses: Energy Flow in Biological Systems and DNA, Inheritance and Evolution. These courses focus student learning on two foundational concepts and use student-centered pedagogies to encourage the development of critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Pre/post data collected from one year of the previous introductory courses and two years of the redesigned courses were used to determine the impact of the transition to a conceptual-based curriculum and the incorporation of active learning strategies including clickers and in-class group assignments on student learning gains measured via normalized change using questions from Biological Concept Inventory, Respiration and Photosynthesis Diagnostic Question Clusters and the Conceptual Inventory of Natural Selection. Student motivations and approaches for learning (e.g. deep versus surface approaches) using the published Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) survey and the Experiences of Teaching and Learning Questionnaire (ETLQ). Data show significantly higher learning gains during the two consecutive years of implementation of the redesigned courses than those achieved in the previous format. Additionally, students reported that lecture activities allowed them being more engaged with course content. We are currently analyzing student written responses, which will provide further insight into the impact of course redesign on content knowledge and critical reasoning skills on student success

Evaluating student learning in large introductory biology courses: predictors of student success and lessons for course redesign

In 2009, the University of Calgary began an extensive redesign of its first-year biology courses based on survey feedback from both students and faculty, as well as the extensive literature showing the effectiveness of student-centered pedagogies in enhancing student learning, engagement and retention in large classes. The two newly designed courses, Energy Flow in Biological Systems and DNA, Inheritance and Evolution are concept-based courses that emphasize the integration of key concepts from biomolecules to the biosphere within a student-centered learning environment; these courses begin in Fall 2011. In order to understand the factors influencing student success in first-year biology, we have initiated a three-year mixed-methods investigation of students’ a priori knowledge, motivations, and approaches to learning. In our current first-year courses, we collected data related to changes in both student motivation and learning over the entire first year for 750 students. The strongest predictors of student success, based on grades earned in the lecture component of the course, were multiple-choice pre-test scores (

Can professional football clubs deliver a weight management programme for women: a feasibility study

Background Levels of obesity remain high in the UK. The Football Fans in Training (FFIT) randomised controlled trial (RCT) demonstrated that a 12-week, gender-sensitised weight management, physical activity and healthy eating group programme delivered through professional football clubs helped men aged 35–65 years with BMI at least 28 kg/m2 lose a clinically-significant amount of weight. We aimed to test the feasibility of a minimally-adapted FFIT programme for delivery to women by assessing recruitment and completion rates; determining if the programme content and delivery required further refinement; and evaluating the potential of FFIT for Women to deliver improvements in weight and other clinical, behavioural and psychological outcomes. Methods A feasibility study of the FFIT for Women programme including before-and-after measurements of clinical (weight, waist, body mass index [BMI], blood pressure) behavioural (self-reported physical activity, food and alcohol intake) and psychological (self-esteem, positive and negative affect, physical and mental HRQoL) outcomes at five professional football clubs. Post-programme focus groups assessed acceptability of the programme format, content and style of delivery for women. Results Recruitment across the five clubs resulted in 123 women aged 35–65 years with BMI at least 28 kg/m2 taking part in the study. The mean weight (95.3 kg) and BMI (36.6 kg/m2) of the cohort were both suggestive of high risk of future disease. Of 123 women who started the programme, 94 (76%) completed it; 72 (58.5%) returned for 12-week follow-up measurements. Participants compared FFIT for Women favourably to commercial weight loss programmes and emphasised the importance of the programme’s physical activity content. They also spoke positively about group dynamics, suggested that the approach to food was less restrictive than in other weight loss approaches, and broadly enjoyed the football setting. Mean weight loss was 2.87 kg (95% CI 2.09, 3.65, p ≤ 0.001). Mean waist reduction was 3.84 cm (2.92, 4.77, p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion In this evaluation, FFIT for Women was feasible, acceptable and demonstrated potential as a weight loss programme. Our findings suggest the programme has the potential to produce outcomes that are on a par with existing commercial and state-funded offerings

Biobehavioral effects of Tai Chi Qigong in men with prostate cancer: Study design of a three-arm randomized clinical trial.

Fatigue is often one of the most commonly reported symptoms in prostate cancer survivors, but it is also one of the least understood cancer-related symptoms. Fatigue is associated with psychological distress, disruptions in sleep quality, and impairments in health-related quality of life. Moreover, inflammatory processes and changes related to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and/or autonomic nervous system may also play a role in cancer-related fatigue. Thus, effective treatments for fatigue in prostate cancer survivors represent a current unmet need. Prior research has shown that Tai Chi Qigong, a mind-body exercise intervention, can improve physical and emotional health. Herein, we describe the protocol of the ongoing 3-arm randomized controlled Health Empowerment & Recovery Outcomes (HERO) clincal trial. One hundred sixty-six prostate cancer survivors with fatigue are randomized to a modified Tai Chi Qigong intervention (TCQ), intensity-matched body training intervention (BT), or usual care (UC) condition. Guided by biopsychosocial and psychoneuroimmunology models, we propose that TCQ, as compared to BT or UC will: i) reduce fatigue (primary outcome) in prostate cancer survivors; ii) reduce inflammation; and iii) regulate the expression of genes from two major functional clusters: a) inflammation, vasodilation and metabolite sensing and b) energy and adrenergic activation. Assessments are conducted at baseline, the 6-week midpoint of the intervention, and 1 week, 3 months, and 12 months post-intervention. If our findings show that TCQ promotes recovery from prostate cancer and its treatment, this type of intervention can be integrated into survivorship care plans as the standard of care. The study's findings will also provide novel information about underlying biobehavioral mechanisms of cancer-related fatigue. Trial registration number:NCT03326713; clinicaltrials.gov

Neurodevelopment and ages of onset in depressive disorders

How and why do clinical depressive disorders emerge in adolescence? In this Personal View, we present a neurodevelopmental theory to address causes for adolescent onsets of clinical depressive disorders. We argue that theories should account for three perplexing aspects of depressive disorders in adolescence: the episodic nature of depression; differences between sexes in rates of depression across development; and age-differentiated onsets. We consider how theories such as psychosocial acceleration, heterochronic brain development, dual-process models, glucocorticoid vulnerability hypothesis linked to early life stress, and epigenetic and genetic susceptibility might explain some aspects of adolescent depressive disorders. We argue that some synthesis between existing theories might be needed to establish a sufficient neurodevelopmental theoretical framework to explain onsets of depressive disorders in adolescence

Pulmonary artery interventions after Norwood procedure: Does type or position of shunt predict need for intervention?

ObjectivesPulmonary artery stenosis is a potential complication after Norwood palliation for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. It is unclear whether the shunt type or position in the Norwood procedure is associated with the risk of the development of pulmonary artery stenosis. We examined the risk of pulmonary artery stenosis and the need for pulmonary artery intervention in children undergoing the Norwood procedure with either the right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit or modified Blalock-Taussig shunt.MethodsA retrospective review was performed of all patients who underwent the Norwood procedure from January 1, 2003, to September 1, 2011. The data from 100 patients were reviewed, including catheterization and echocardiographic data, right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit (n = 67, right shunt position in 17 and left in 50), and right ventricle to pulmonary artery (n = 33). The primary outcome measure was the need for operative or catheter-based pulmonary artery intervention.ResultsNo patients in the right ventricle to pulmonary artery group required catheterization-based pulmonary artery interventions. Surgical pulmonary arterioplasty was performed frequently and equally in both the right ventricle to pulmonary artery and right ventricle to pulmonary artery groups at the bidirectional Glenn procedure. Catheter-based pulmonary arterioplasty was performed more frequently in the right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit group, especially when the conduit was positioned to the right side of the neoaorta. These patients had a 12.73 increased odds of a pulmonary artery intervention compared with the left to right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit (P = .04).ConclusionsConsistent with a previous multicenter randomized trial, patients who received a right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit versus a right ventricle to pulmonary artery have a greater risk of requiring pulmonary artery interventions. Patients with right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit placement to the right underwent a greater number of pulmonary artery interventions but demonstrated overall improved growth of the branch pulmonary arteries compared with the patients receiving a left-sided right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit