Evaluating technology for rehabilitation: A model for promoting programmatic research

Computer-assisted treatments are gaining in popularity yet clinical trials demonstrating efficacy are sparse. This paper describes the methods and outcomes of a project that aimed to facilitate programmatic research among investigators interested in studying MossTalk Words®, an aphasia treatment software program. As a result of this initiative, studies were conducted at several sites, leading to publications on clinically relevant factors (e.g., effectiveness for diverse populations, effectiveness when self-administered; impact of therapy intensity). This is an efficient model for promoting research that could form the basis of a larger clinical trial, a level of evidence critical in establishing treatment efficacy

Interference and facilitation effects of semantic and phonological contextual priming: A treatment case study

We report a case study of a treatment for naming using contextual production priming, a technique that combines massed repetition priming and naming with context defined by the linguistic relationship among words being trained. Our participant, 402, presented with primarily a phonological impairment, but semantic deficits were also present. Both semantic and phonological training contexts resulted in interference during training but only the semantic context facilitated learning. Additionally, each context influenced the prevalence of error type in that context (fewer semantic errors in the phonological context and fewer semantic errors in the phonological context). Implications of these findings are discussed

Informativeness Ratings of Messages Created on an AAC Processing Prosthesis

The SentenceShaperTM is an AAC processing prosthesis that supports spoken language production in aphasia. Prior research comparing narratives produced on and off the system (aided vs. unaided) found that the aided utterances were longer and showed more grammatical structure. Here we show that the “aided effect” also manifests in greater informativeness of messages with functional content. Thirteen unfamiliar listeners used direct magnitude estimation to rate the informativeness of functional narratives produced by five chronic aphasic participants on and off the SentenceShaper. In support of an aided effect, the narratives of four participants were judged more informative in the aided condition

“The Words Get Stuck in My Brain. It Helps Me Get Them Out:” Perspectives on an AAC Aid from Persons with Aphasia

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices carry risk of avoidance or abandonment by persons with aphasia (PWA). Practice in a controlled setting can offset such risks and establish the context for attitudes assessment as a prelude to real-world deployment. This paper reports on an attitudes assessment carried out with seven PWA following extended practice with SentenceShaper To Go, a high flexibility AAC aid now featuring portability. Aphasia-tailored individual interviews were conducted and analyzed by qualitative methods. Results elucidate attitudes towards this AAC aid and, by extension, others with similar properties

Facilitation of Verb Retrieval Skills in Aphasia: A Comparison of Two Approaches

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Enacting a Culture of Access in Our Conference Spaces

The article offers information on periodical\u27s rhetoric and writing studies conference held in September 2020. Topics discussed include prioritizing access in the service of love, justice, connection and liberation; proposing expansive frameworks for access in designing accessible writing classrooms and professional events; and major principles of definition of access, which reflect access\u27s complexity and liberatory potential such as dynamic, relational and intersectional

Genetic information: important but not "exceptional"

Much legislation dealing with the uses of genetic information could be criticised for exceptionalising genetic information over other types of information personal to the individual. This paper contends that genetic exceptionalism clouds the issues, and precludes any real debate about the appropriate uses of genetic information. An alternative to “genetically exceptionalist” legislation is to “legislate for fairness”. This paper explores the “legislating for fairness” approach, and concludes that it demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of both how legislation is drafted, and how it is interpreted. The uncomfortable conclusion is this: policy-makers and legislators must tackle head-on the difficult policy questions concerning what should and should not be done with genetic information. Only by confronting this crucial issue will they achieve a workable legislative solution to the problems caused by genetic information

Convergent cerebrospinal fluid proteomes and metabolic ontologies in humans and animal models of Rett syndrome

MECP2 loss-of-function mutations cause Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder resulting from a disrupted brain transcriptome. How these transcriptional defects are decoded into a disease proteome remains unknown. We studied the proteome of Rett cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to identify consensus Rett proteome and ontologies shared across three species. Rett CSF proteomes enriched proteins annotated to HDL lipoproteins, complement, mitochondria, citrate/pyruvate metabolism, synapse compartments, and the neurosecretory protein VGF. We used shared Rett ontologies to select analytes for orthogonal quantification and functional validation. VGF and ontologically selected CSF proteins had genotypic discriminatory capacity as determined by receiver operating characteristic analysis in Mecp2(-/y) and Mecp2(−/+). Differentially expressed CSF proteins distinguished Rett from a related neurodevelopmental disorder, CDKL5 deficiency disorder. We propose that Mecp2 mutant CSF proteomes and ontologies inform putative mechanisms and biomarkers of disease. We suggest that Rett syndrome results from synapse and metabolism dysfunction

Diagnostic accuracy of multiplex respiratory pathogen panels for influenza or respiratory syncytial virus infections: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza viruses are important global causes of morbidity and mortality. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of the Luminex NxTAG respiratory pathogen panels (RPPs)™ (index) against other RPPs (comparator) for detection of RSV and influenza viruses. Studies comparing human clinical respiratory samples tested with the index and at least one comparator test were included. A random-effect latent class meta-analysis was performed to assess the specificity and sensitivity of the index test for RSV and influenza. Risk of bias was assessed using the QUADAS-2 tool and certainty of evidence using GRADE. Ten studies were included. For RSV, predicted sensitivity was 99% (95% credible interval [CrI] 96-100%) and specificity 100% (95% CrI 98-100%). For influenza A and B, predicted sensitivity was 97% (95% CrI 89-100) and 98% (95% CrI 88-100) respectively; specificity 100% (95% CrI 99-100) and 100% (95% CrI 99-100), respectively. Evidence was low certainty. Although index sensitivity and specificity were excellent, comparators' performance varied. Further research with clear patient recruitment strategies could ascertain performance across different populations.Protocol Registration: Prospero CRD42021272062