The significant impact of education, poverty, and race on Internet-based research participant engagement

PURPOSE: Internet-based technologies are increasingly being used for research studies. However, it is not known whether Internet-based approaches will effectively engage participants from diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. METHODS: A total of 967 participants were recruited and offered genetic ancestry results. We evaluated viewing Internet-based genetic ancestry results among participants who expressed high interest in obtaining the results. RESULTS: Of the participants, 64% stated that they were very or extremely interested in their genetic ancestry results. Among interested participants, individuals with a high school diploma (n = 473) viewed their results 19% of the time relative to 4% of the 145 participants without a diploma (P < 0.0001). Similarly, 22% of participants with household income above the federal poverty level (n = 286) viewed their results relative to 10% of the 314 participants living below the federal poverty level (P < 0.0001). Among interested participants both with a high school degree and living above the poverty level, self-identified Caucasians were more likely to view results than self-identified African Americans (P < 0.0001), and females were more likely to view results than males (P = 0.0007). CONCLUSION: In an underserved population, engagement in Internet-based research was low despite high reported interest. This suggests that explicit strategies should be developed to increase diversity in Internet-based research. Genet Med 19 2, 240–243

Role of magnetic resonance spectroscopy in cerebral glutathione quantification for youth mental health:A systematic review

AIM: Oxidative stress is strongly implicated in many psychiatric disorders, which has resulted in the development of new interventions to attempt to perturb this pathology. A great deal of attention has been paid to glutathione, which is the brain's dominant antioxidant and plays a fundamental role in removing free radicals and other reactive oxygen species. Measurement of glutathione concentration in the brain in vivo can provide information on redox status and potential for oxidative stress to develop. Glutathione might also represent a marker to assess treatment response. METHODS: This paper systematically reviews studies that assess glutathione concentration (measured using magnetic resonance spectroscopy) in various mental health conditions. RESULTS: There is limited evidence showing altered brain glutathione concentration in mental disorders; the best evidence suggests glutathione is decreased in depression, but is not altered in bipolar disorder. The review then outlines the various methodological options for acquiring glutathione data using spectroscopy. CONCLUSIONS: Analysis of the minimum effect size measurable in existing studies indicates that increased number of participants is required to measure subtle but possibly important differences and move the field forward

Spatial distribution of shore-based fishers in the greater Perth Metropolitan area over summer 2010/2011

Aerial surveys are a useful technique for estimating numbers of recreational fishers. Following the success of a pilot study to examine the spatial patterns of recreational shore-based fishing activity in the Perth Metropolitan area from April – June 2010, another survey was conducted from December 2010 – February 2011 between Lancelin – Bunbury. More than 7,000 shorebased fishers were counted during 36 aerial flights, with significantly more recorded on morning and afternoon flights, when compared to those conducted at midday. Flights on weekends/public holidays also recorded more fishers than weekdays. The spatial distribution of fishers was variable along the coast, with sandy beaches at the northern and southern sections of the study area having high counts of fishers, along with groynes in the central section. Comparisons with the previous (autumn) study revealed that the northern beaches generally had higher numbers of shore-based fishers in summer, while those in the south had more during autumn. Data from this study assists with understanding the patterns of shore-based recreational fishing occurring along the greater Perth Metropolitan coast. Such information can be used to assist in the design of future on-ground surveys, compliance and education activities

Post-Concussion and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms after Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: Shared Vulnerability Factors?

Following pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI), post-concussion symptoms (PCS) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) occur commonly; however, it is unknown to what degree they overlap. The study examined PCS and PTSS persisting 7 weeks after injury in children and adolescents ages 8-15 years with TBI (n = 89) or extracranial injury (EI; n = 40) after vehicle collisions. TBI was divided into mild, complicated-mild/moderate, and severe groups. Parents retrospectively rated children\u27s pre-injury symptoms and behavior problems, and children completed self-report measures after injury. PCS and PTSS total scores were significantly correlated in TBI and EI groups, respectively, for child (rs = 0.75; rs = 0.44), and adolescent (rs = 0.61; rs = 0.67) cohorts. Generalized linear models examined whether injury type and severity, age, sex, and pre-injury symptom ratings predicted PCS and PTSS total scores and factor scores. Specific PCS and PTSS factor scores were elevated in different TBI severity groups, with most frequent problems following mild or severe TBI. PCS did not differ by age; however, girls had more emotional symptoms than boys. Only PTSS were predicted by pre-injury externalizing behavior. Significant age by sex interactions indicated that adolescent girls had more total, avoidance, and hyperarousal PTSS symptoms than younger girls or all boys. PCS and PTSS significantly overlapped in both TBI and EI groups, highlighting shared persistent symptoms after injury. Shared vulnerability factors included female sex, milder TBI, and poorer pre-injury adjustment. Older age was a unique vulnerability factor for PTSS. Psychological health interventions after injury should be customized to address comorbid symptoms

Exploring how family carers of a person with dementia manage pre-death grief: A mixed methods study

Objectives: Many family carers of a person with dementia experience pre-death grief. We aimed to identify strategies that help carers manage pre-death grief. We hypothesised that emotion and problem focussed styles would be associated with lower, and dysfunctional coping with higher grief intensity. Methods: Mixed methods observational study using structured and semi-structured interviews with 150 family carers of people with dementia living at home or in a care home. Most participants were female (77%), caring for a parent (48%) or partner/spouse (47%) with mild (25%), moderate (43%) or severe (32%) dementia. They completed the Marwit-Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory Short Form and the Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (Brief-COPE) questionnaire. We asked carers to identify strategies used for managing grief. We recorded field notes for 150 interviews and audio-recorded additional interviews with a sub-sample of 16 participants. Results: Correlations indicated that emotion-oriented coping was associated with lower grief (R = −0.341), and dysfunctional coping with higher grief (R = 0.435), with a small association with problem-focused strategies (R = −0.109), partly supporting our hypothesis. Our qualitative themes broadly match the three Brief-COPE styles. Unhelpful strategies of denial and avoidance align with dysfunctional coping strategies. Psychological strategies (including acceptance and humour) and seeking support were consistent with emotion-focused strategies, but we did not identify a theme relating to problem-focused strategies. Conclusion: Most carers identified multiple strategies for processing grief. Carers could readily identify supports and services that they found helpful for managing pre-death grief, yet current services appear under-resourced to meet growing demand. (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03332979)

Reviews

Tolkien, Race and Cultural History: From Fairies to Hobbits. Dimitra Fimi. Reviewed by Jason Fisher. Charles Williams and his Contemporaries. Suzanne Bray and Richard Sturch, eds. Reviewed by Joe R. Christopher. In the Land of Invented Languages: Esperanto Rock Stars, Klingon Poets, Loglan Lovers, and the Mad Dreamers who Tried to Build a Perfect Language. Arika Okrent. Reviewed by Harley J. Sims. Millennial Mythmaking: Essays on the Power of Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature, Films and Games. John Perlich & David Whitt, eds. Reviewed by Priscilla Hobbs Middle-earth Minstrel: Essays on Music in Tolkien. Bradford Lee Eden, ed. Reviewed by Emily A. Moniz. Harry Potter & Imagination: The Way Between Two Worlds. Travis Prinzi. Reviewed by David D. Oberhelman. Fastitocalon: Studies in Fantasticism Ancient to Modern: Immortals and the Undead. Eds. Thomas Honneger and Fanfan Chen. Reviewed by Janet Brennan Croft. Theodor Seuss Geisel [sic]. Donald E. Pease. Reviewed by Joe R. Christopher

Comparative Analysis of the Proliferative Response of the Rat Urinary Bladder to Sodium Saccharin by Light and Scanning Electron Microscopy and Autoradiography

Three methods used to detect proliferative changes in the rat urothelium, light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and autoradiography, were compared for their sensitivity in detecting changes produced by administration of sodium saccharin. Weanling male F344 rats were fed sodium saccharin as 0, 3, 5, or 7.5% of the diet, and the bladders were evaluated after 4, 7, and 10 wks of feeding. Light microscopic changes and an increase in labeling index were seen at all time points in rats fed 7.5 % sodium saccharin, but not at the lower doses. A slight increase in labeling index was also observed at 10 wks in the 5.0% group. Scanning electron microscopic changes were evident as early as 4 wks with increasing severity at the 3, 5, and 7.5 % doses. This study demonstrates that the hyperplastic response of the urothelium to sodium saccharin administration varies with dose and time, and that observation by scanning electron microscopy is the most sensitive of the three methods evaluated for detecting these changes

Validation of a New Predictive Risk Model: Measuring the Impact of the Major Modifiable Risks of Death for Patients and Populations

Background: Modifiable risks account for a large fraction of disease and death, but clinicians and patients lack tools to identify high risk populations or compare the possible benefit of different interventions. Methods: We used data on the distribution of exposure to 12 major behavioral and biometric risk factors inthe US population, mortality rates by cause, and estimates of the proportional hazards of risk factor exposure from published systematic reviews to develop a risk prediction model that estimates an adult\u27s 10 year mortality risk compared to a population with optimum risk factors. We compared predicted risk to observed mortality in 8,241 respondents in NHANES 1988-1994 and NHANES 1999-2004 with linked mortality data up to the end of 2006

Disturbance‐mediated changes to boreal mammal spatial networks in industrializing landscapes

Funding: InnoTech Alberta. Grant Number: C2021000986; Alberta Innovates; Alberta Conservation Association; Petroleum Technology Alliance Canada. Grant Numbers: 17-ERPC-02, 18-ERPC-01, 19-ERPC-04; Algar Caribou Habitat Restoration Program. Grant Number: NXC-107980; Oil Sands Monitoring program; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Grant Numbers: RGPIN-2018–03958, Canada Research Chairs.Compound effects of anthropogenic disturbances on wildlife emerge through a complex network of direct responses and species interactions. Land‐use changes driven by energy and forestry industries are known to disrupt predator–prey dynamics in boreal ecosystems, yet how these disturbance effects propagate across mammal communities remains uncertain. Using structural equation modeling, we tested disturbance‐mediated pathways governing the spatial structure of multipredator multiprey boreal mammal networks across a landscape‐scale disturbance gradient within Canada's Athabasca oil sands region. Linear disturbances had pervasive direct effects, increasing site use for all focal species, except black bears and threatened caribou, in at least one landscape. Conversely, block (polygonal) disturbance effects were negative but less common. Indirect disturbance effects were widespread and mediated by caribou avoidance of wolves, tracking of primary prey by subordinate predators, and intraguild dependencies among predators and large prey. Context‐dependent responses to linear disturbances were most common among prey and within the landscape with intermediate disturbance. Our research suggests that industrial disturbances directly affect a suite of boreal mammals by altering forage availability and movement, leading to indirect effects across a range of interacting predators and prey, including the keystone snowshoe hare. The complexity of network‐level direct and indirect disturbance effects reinforces calls for increased investment in addressing habitat degradation as the root cause of threatened species declines and broader ecosystem change.Peer reviewe

RCT Testing Bystander Effectiveness to Reduce Violence

Introduction: Bystander-based programs have shown promise to reduce interpersonal violence at colleges, yet limited rigorous evaluations have addressed bystander intervention effectiveness in high schools. This study evaluated the Green Dot bystander intervention to reduce sexual violence and related forms of interpersonal violence in 26 high schools over 5 years. Design: A cluster RCT was conducted. Setting/participants: Kentucky high schools were randomized to intervention or control (wait list) conditions. Intervention: Green Dot−trained educators conducted schoolwide presentations and recruited student popular opinion leaders to receive bystander training in intervention schools beginning in Year 1. Main outcome measures: The primary outcome was sexual violence perpetration, and related forms of interpersonal violence victimization and perpetration were also measured using anonymous student surveys collected at baseline and annually from 2010 to 2014. Because the school was the unit of analysis, violence measures were aggregated by school and year and school-level counts were provided. Results: A total of 89,707 students completed surveys. The primary, as randomized, analyses conducted in 2014–2016 included linear mixed models and generalized estimating equations to examine the condition−time interaction on violence outcomes. Slopes of school-level totals of sexual violence perpetration (condition−time, p \u3c 0.001) and victimization (condition−time, p \u3c 0.001) were different over time. During Years 3–4, when Green Dot was fully implemented, the mean number of sexual violent events prevented by the intervention was 120 in Intervention Year 3 and 88 in Year 4. For Year 3, prevalence rate ratios for sexual violence perpetration in the intervention relative to control schools were 0.83 (95% CI=0.70, 0.99) in Year 3 and 0.79 (95% CI=0.67, 0.94) in Year 4. Similar patterns were observed for sexual violence victimization, sexual harassment, stalking, and dating violence perpetration and victimization. Conclusions: Implementation of Green Dot in Kentucky high schools significantly decreased not only sexual violence perpetration but also other forms of interpersonal violence perpetration and victimization