A CONTEXTUAL APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING PSYCHIATRIC COMORBIDITIES IN ADOLESCENTS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER: INDIVIDUAL, PEER, AND FAMILY FACTORS

Psychiatric comorbidities are common in youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and can have a negative impact on adaptive functioning and quality of life. Research has primarily focused on individual characteristics associated with internalizing problems such as age, intelligence, and social functioning. However, developmental theory supports the notion that individual level factors are necessary but not sufficient to understand the mental health of youth with ASD. Using the Family Ecology Framework as a guide, the purpose of this study was to examine how peer and family contexts are associated with anxiety and depression symptoms of adolescents with ASD. Using data from adolescents with ASD (13-17 years old) and their primary caregivers (N = 166), this study tested a conditional process model in which youths’ social-communication skills were associated with their mental health symptoms indirectly via experiences of peer victimization, with family competence acting as a buffer against the negative impact of peer victimization on anxiety and depression symptoms. Results suggest that the peer context is important when considering the mental health of adolescents with ASD. Specifically, deficits in social-communication skills were associated with higher levels of parent-reported anxiety and depression symptoms through increased adolescent-reports of peer victimization; however, the hypothesized buffering effect of family competence was not statistically significant. Findings from this study suggest the benefits of utilizing developmentally sensitive, contextual approaches when examining psychiatric comorbidities in adolescents with ASD

The Family Affective Attitude Rating Scale in Children with Asthma: The Association between Relational Schemas and Emotional Security

The Five Minute Speech sample is a cost effective, efficient means of data collection in developmental research, but recent criticism of traditional coding methods associated with the methodology has spurred the creation of more developmentally appropriate coding systems. The purpose of this study is to examine the reliability and validity of a new coding system, The Family Affective Attitudes Rating Scale (FAARS), for use in children with chronic illness. Results did not support the use of this coding system, at least in its current form, in a pediatric asthma population. Discussion focuses on whether the FAARS may be of use when examined on an item level and directions for future research - such as profile analyses and edits to the coding system - that may better capture the experiences of parenting a child with chronic illness

Design and methods for a cluster randomized trial of the Sunless Study: A skin cancer prevention intervention promoting sunless tanning among beach visitors

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Skin cancer is the most prevalent yet most preventable cancer in the US. While protecting oneself from ultraviolet radiation (UVR) can largely reduce risk, rates of unprotected sun exposure remain high. Because the desire to be tan often outweighs health concerns among sunbathers, very few interventions have been successful at reducing sunbathing behavior. Sunless tanning (self-tanners and spray tans), a method of achieving the suntanned look without UVR exposure, might be an effective supplement to prevention interventions.</p> <p>Methods and Design</p> <p>This cluster randomized trial will examine whether a beach-based intervention that promotes sunless tanning as a substitute for sunbathing and includes sun damage imaging and sun safety recommendations is superior to a questionnaire only control group in reducing sunbathing frequency. Female beach visitors (N = 250) will be recruited from 2 public beaches in eastern Massachusetts. Beach site will be the unit of randomization. Follow-up assessment will occur at the end of the summer (1-month following intervention) and 1 year later. The primary outcome is average sunbathing time per week. The study was designed to provide 90% power for detecting a difference of .70 hours between conditions (standard deviation of 2.0) at 1-year with an intra-cluster correlation coefficient of 0.01 and assuming a 25% rate of loss to follow-up. Secondary outcomes include frequency of sunburns, use of sunless tanning products, and sun protection behavior.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Interventions might be improved by promoting behavioral substitutes for sun exposure, such as sunless tanners, that create a tanned look without exposure to UVR.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>NCT00403377</p

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Processing and Characterization of Nanoparticle Coatings for Quartz Crystal Microbalance Measurements

The quartz-crystal microbalance is a sensitive and versatile tool for measuring adsorption of a variety of compounds (e.g. small molecules, polymers, biomolecules, nanoparticles and cells) to surfaces. While the technique has traditionally been used for measuring adsorption to flat surfaces and thin ridged films, it can also be extended to study adsorption to nanoparticle surfaces when the nanoparticles are fixed to the crystal surface. The sensitivity and accuracy of the measurement depend on the users’ ability to reproducibly prepare a thin uniform nanoparticle coating. This study evaluated four coating techniques, including spin coating, spray coating, drop casting, and electrophoretic deposition, for two unique particle chemistries [nanoscale zero valent iron (nZVI) and titanium dioxide (TiO2)] to produce uniform and reproducible nanoparticle coatings for real-time quartz-crystal microbalance measurements. Uniform TiO2 coatings were produced from a 50 mg/mL methanol suspension via spin coating. Nanoscale zero-valent iron was best applied by spray coating a low concentration 1.0 mg/mL suspended in methanol. The application of multiple coatings, rather than an increase in the suspension concentration, was the best method to increase the mass of nanoparticles on the crystal surface while maintaining coating uniformity. An upper mass threshold was determined to be approximately 96 µg/cm2; above this mass, coatings no longer maintained their uniform rigid characteristic, and a low signal to noise ratio resulted in loss of measurable signal from crystal resonances above the fundamental

Kinetics of Zero Valent Iron Nanoparticle Oxidation in Oxygenated Water

Zero valent iron (ZVI) nanoparticles are versatile in their ability to remove a wide variety of water contaminants, and ZVI-based bimetallic nanoparticles show increased reactivity above that of ZVI alone. ZVI nanoparticles degrade contaminants through the reactive species (e.g., OH*, H2(g), H2O2) that are produced during iron oxidation. Measurement and modeling of aqueous ZVI nanoparticle oxidation kinetics are therefore necessary to optimize nanoparticle design. Stabilized ZVI and iron–nickel nanoparticles of approximately 150 nm in diameter were synthesized through solution chemistry, and nanoparticle oxidation kinetics were determined via measured mass change using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Under flowing aerated water, ZVI nanoparticles had an initial exponential growth behavior indicating surface-dominated oxidation controlled by migration of species (H2O and O2) to the surface. A region of logarithmic growth followed the exponential growth which, based on the Mott-Cabrera model of thin oxide film growth, suggests a reaction dominated by movement of species (e.g., iron cations and oxygen anions) through the oxide layer. The presence of ethanol or a nickel shell on the ZVI nanoparticles delayed the onset of iron oxidation and reduced the extent of oxidation. In oxygenated water, ZVI nanoparticles oxidized primarily to the iron oxide-hydroxide lepidocrocite

Müller glia are activated in the retinas of cattle inoculated with BSE.

<p>An antibody directed against glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was used to label Müller glia in retinal sections. Retinas from sham inoculated and negative control cattle had GFAP-immunoreactivity only in the optic fiber layer (asterisk), in astrocytes, and endfeet of Müller glia (Fig. 4A). Retinal sections from cattle inoculated with classical BSE had increased immunoreactivity in the optic fiber layer and in occasional thin processes of Müller glia spanning the inner plexiform layer (arrows; Fig. 4B). Sections from cattle inoculated with BSE-H (Fig. 4C) had robust immunoreactivity in the optic fiber layer and consistently in Müller glial processes (arrow), which appeared hypertrophied compared to sections from animals inoculated with classical BSE. The ages of the animals in the figure are 2.7, 6.4 and 5.7 years in A, B and C respectively. Abbreviations: OFL = optic fiber layer, GCL = ganglion cell layer; IPL = inner plexiform layer; INL = inner nuclear layer; OPL = outer plexiform layer; ONL = outer nuclear layer; OS = outer segments. Scale bars = 50 μM.</p

Changes in retinal thickness over time in animals inoculated with classical BSE and US BSE-H.

<p>Total retinal thickness was measured over time using optical coherence tomography. Animals were compared to their baseline values in 6, 12 and 15 months post inoculation (MPI), and compared to the control cohort at 12 MPI. Values in parenthesis the standard error of the mean, values in itallics in are the sample size, significant changes are indicated by shading.</p><p>* = p < 0.05;</p><p>** = p< 0.01;</p><p>*** = p< 0.0001.</p><p>Changes in retinal thickness over time in animals inoculated with classical BSE and US BSE-H.</p

Activation of microglia in retinas of cattle inoculated with BSE.

<p>An antibody directed against Iba-1 was used to label microglia in retinal sections. Microglia in retinal sections from sham inoculated and negative control cattle had a stratified appearance with processes primarily in the outer plexiform and inner plexiform layers (Fig. 5A). In sections from cattle inoculated with classical BSE, the microglia appeared to be more amoeboid in morphology (Fig. 5B) but not more numerous than was observed in negative controls. In contrast, retinal sections from cattle inoculated with BSE-H had more numerous microglia with an amoeboid morphology (Fig. 5C). The ages of the animals in the figure are 6.8, 5.9 and 5.7 years in A, B and C respectively. Abbreviations: OFL = optic fiber layer, GCL = ganglion cell layer; IPL = inner plexiform layer; INL = inner nuclear layer; OPL = outer plexiform layer; ONL = outer nuclear layer; OS = outer segments. Scale bars = 20uM</p

Changes in the electroretinograms over time in animals inoculated with classical BSE.

<p>B-wave amplitude and implicit time in dark-adapted animals with either dim (-20 dB) or bright (0 dB) flash were analyzed over time. Sample size for each time point are in italics. Values in parenthesis the standard error of the mean. MPI = months post inculcation.</p><p>* = p < 0.05;</p><p>** = p< 0.01.</p><p>Changes in the electroretinograms over time in animals inoculated with classical BSE.</p