2 research outputs found

    Estudo das Propriedades Psicométricas da Bateria de Avaliação Frontal numa Amostra da População Portuguesa com Esclerose Múltipla

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    A Esclerose Múltipla (EM) provoca um comprometimento das funções executivas que é por vezes subdiagnosticado devido à falta de instrumentos de aplicação breve e simples. Sendo a avaliação neuropsicológica destes doentes crucial para o correto encaminhamento terapêutico, torna-se pertinente criar e validar instrumentos adequados. Objetivo: Pretendeu-se estudar as propriedades psicométricas da Bateria de Avaliação Frontal (FAB) numa amostra portuguesa de doentes com EM. Método: A subamostra clínica (SAC) compôs-se por 68 doentes com EM e a subamostra nãoclínica (SANC) por 81 indivíduos da população geral, sem doenças neurológicas diagnosticadas. A avaliação neuropsicológica foi feita através da FAB, Teste Stroop Torga (TST), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-E), Teste de Fluências Verbais Fonéticas (TFVF) e Figura Complexa de Rey (FCR). Vinte e nove sujeitos da SAC foram reavaliados com um intervalo de tempo entre quatro a oito semanas. Resultados: Na SAC, a consistência interna revelou-se baixa (a de Cronbach= 0,64), com correlações moderadas em quatro subescalas. A validade temporal foi moderada (r = 0,36) e estatisticamente com tendência à significância (p < 0,058), com correlações entre moderadas e altas em quatro subescalas. A validade convergente apresentou uma correlação alta com o MoCA-E (r = 0,58; p < 0,001) e com o TFVF (r = 0,63; p < 0,001) e uma correlação moderada com o TST (r entre 34 e 35; p < 0,01). A precisão diagnóstica revelou um valor de AUC de 0,74 ( p < 0,01), com uma sensibilidade de 71,5%, uma especificidade de 75,0% e um ponto de corte de 15,5 para detetar disfunção executiva em doentes com EM. A FAB e as subescalas da Fluência Lexical e das Séries Motoras de Luria diferenciaram as subamostras de forma estatisticamente significativa (p < 0,05; g: 0,33-0,48). Verificou-se dependência da escolaridade em ambas as subamostras (SAC: F = 5,46; p < 0,001. SANC: F = 7,75; p < 0,001). Conclusão: A FAB é uma bateria válida para avaliar as funções do lobo frontal em doentes com EM. Recomenda-se a replicação deste estudo em amostras mais representativas. / Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes impairment of executive functions that is sometimes underdiagnosed due to the lack of short-lived and straightforward instruments. Since the neuropsychological assessment of these patients is crucial for the correct therapeutic referral, it is pertinent to create and validate appropriate instruments. Purpose: The aim was to study the psychometric properties of the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) in a sample of Portuguese MS patients. Method: The clinical subsample (SAC) comprised 68 patients with MS, and the non-clinical subsample (SANC) comprised 81 individuals from the general population with no diagnosed neurological diseases. The neuropsychological assessment consisted of the FAB, Stroop Torga Test (TST), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-E), Phonetic Verbal Fluency Test (TFVF), and Rey Complex Figure (FCR). Twenty-nine SAC subjects were reevaluated within four to eight weeks. Results: In SAC, FAB's internal consistency was low (Cronbach's a = 0,64), with moderate correlations in four subscales. Temporal validity was moderate (r = 0,36) and with a tendency to statistically significant (p < 0,058), with correlations between moderate and high in four subscales. Convergent validity showed a high correlation with MoCA-E (r = 0,58; p < 0,001) and TFVF (r = 0,63; p < 0,001), and a moderate correlation with TST (r between 34 and 35; p < 0,01). Diagnostic accuracy revealed an AUC value of 0,74 (p < 0,01), with a sensitivity of 71,5%, a specificity of 75,0%, and a cutoff point of 15,5 to detect executive dysfunction in MS patients. The FAB and the Lexical Fluency and Luria Motor Series subscales significantly differentiated the subsamples (p < 0,05; g: 0,33-0,48). FAB scores varied by education in both subsamples (SAC: F = 5,46; p < 0,001. SANC: F = 7,75; p < 0,001). Conclusion: FAB is a valid battery for assessing frontal lobe functions in MS patients. Replication of this study in more representative samples is recommended

    Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)

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    In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field
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