Predictors of positive growth after traumatic brain injury : a longitudinal study

Primary objective: To investigate long-term positive psychological growth in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and to relate growth to injury characteristics and early outcomes. Research design: Longitudinal study. Method and Procedure: Long-term follow-up of a group of TBI survivors recruited between 1991-1995. In 2004, 240 of the 563 original participants were invited to take part in a follow-up study. At follow-up, survivors completed the Positive Changes in Outlook Questionnaire (CiOP) along with a structured interview/questionnaire which permitted a Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOSE) score to be assigned. Results: 165 TBI survivors completed both questionnaire and CiOP. 103(62%) participants had suffered severe TBI, 24(15%) moderate and 38(23%) mild. Mean length of follow-up was 11.5 years post-injury (range 9-25 years). On the GOSE at follow-up, 43(26%) had severe disability; 72(44%) moderate disability; and 50(30%) good recovery. Scores on the CiOP indicated positive psychological growth in over half of the sample, as evidenced by agreement with items such as “I don’t take life for granted anymore” and “I value my relationships much more now”. CiOP total scores did not correlate with any injury or early outcome variables. However, at long-term follow-up there was a negative correlation between positive growth and anxiety and depression. Conclusion: Survivors of mild, moderate and severe TBI showed evidence of long-term positive changes in outlook

The Case of the Confused Giver

Although the federal gift, estate and income taxes are all part of the same revenue code, and in it the term gift frequently occurs, it does not mean the same thing for all purposes. It has to be considered in the particular context in which it appears, complicating the taxpayer\u27s problem beyond all reason

Probate Legislation Enacted by the 1955 Session of the Washington Legislature

The purpose of this survey is to focus attention on changes in the probate law of the state as a result of the 1955 session of the legislature. Five separate Acts amending or adding to the law of probate were adopted. These Acts are chapters 98, 141, 154 and 205 of the Laws of 1955 and chapter 7 of the Laws of 1955 (Extraordinary Session). In the aggregate they embody a substantial number of changes, most of which are simple procedural amendments. A few of the amendments present secondary questions of some difficulty. It is not the purpose of this survey to attempt elaborate discussion of any such complicated problems. For the most part these questions are peculiar to the Washington statute and not categorically answerable on the basis of existing authorities. Consequently the existence of such questions will be noted leaving their ultimate solution to the future. (Parts of this article were prepared by the authors for the larger article, Washington Legislation—1955, which appeared in 30 Wash. L. Rev. 195-223. The Article was deemed to be of sufficient interest to justify printing it outside of the special issue for which it was written.

Intensity of resistance training via self-reported history is critical in properly characterizing musculoskeletal health

Background: Intensity of resistance training history might be omitted or poorly ascertained in prescreening or data questionnaires involving musculoskeletal health. Failure to identify history of high-versus low-intensity training may overlook higher effect sizes with higher intensities and therefore diminish the precision of statistical analysis with resistance training as a covariate and bias the confirmation of baseline homogeneity for experimental group designation. The purpose was to determine the degree to which a single question assessing participant history of resistance training intensity predicted differences in musculoskeletal health. Methods: In the first research aim, participants were separated into groups with a history (RT) and no history (NRT) of resistance training. The second research aim evaluated the history of resistance training intensity on muscular strength, lean mass, and bone mineral density (BMD), RT participants were reassigned into a low- (LIRT) or high-intensity resistance training group (HIRT). 83 males and 87 females (19.3 ± 0.6 yrs., 171.1 ± 9.9 cm, 67.1 ± 10.5 kg, 22.9 ± 2.8 BMI, 26.2 ± 7.2% body fat) completed handgrip dynamometry (HG) and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans (DXA) for BMD and bone mineral-free lean mass (BFLM). Results: A 3-group method (NRT, LIRT, HIRT) reduced type-I error compared with the 2-group method (NRT, RT) in characterizing the likely effects of one’s history of resistance training. For the second aim, HIRT had significantly (p \u3c 0.05) greater HG strength (76.2 ± 2.2 kg) and arm BFLM (6.10 ± 0.16 kg) than NRT (67.5 ± 1.3 kg; 4.96 ± 0.09 kg) and LIRT (69.7 ± 2.0 kg; 5.42 ± 0.14 kg) while also showing significantly lower muscle quality (HG/BFLM) than NRT (13.9 ± 0.2 vs. 12.9 ± 0.3). HIRT had greater BMD at all sites compared to NRT (whole body = 1.068 ± 0.008 vs. 1.120 ± 0.014; AP spine = 1.013 ± 0.011 vs. 1.059 ± 0.019; lateral spine = 0.785 ± 0.009 vs. 0.846 ± 0.016; femoral neck = 0.915 ± 0.013 vs. 0.970 ± 0.022; total hip = 1.016 ± 0.012 vs. 1.068 ± 0.021 g/cm2) while LIRT revealed no significant skeletal differences to NRT. Conclusions: Retrospective identification of high-intensity history of resistance training appears critical in characterizing musculoskeletal health and can be ascertained easily in as little as a single, standalone question. Both retrospective-questionnaire style investigations and pre-screening for potential participation in prospective research studies should include participant history of resistance training intensity

Heavy episodic drinking is associated with poorer bone health in adolescent and young adult women

Objective: Osteoporosis is a costly bone disease characterized by low bone mineral density (BMD) that primarily affects postmenopausal women. One factor that may lead to osteoporosis is a failure to reach peak bone mass (PBM) in early adulthood. In older adults and animal models, heavy episodic drinking (HED) has been found to predict failure to reach PBM. However, this relationship has yet to be investigated in adolescent human females. Method: Female college students (N = 87; 60% White) reported age at menarche, hormonal contraceptive use, physical activity, smoking habits, and HED history via an online survey and then received a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry bone scan to assess both lean body mass and BMD at the lumbar spine. Results: Frequent HED (having four or more drinks within 2 hours on 115 or more occasions since the start of high school, which is approxi mately equal to 1.6 episodes per month over this period) was associated with decreased vertebral BMD even when variables most commonly associated with bone health (lean body mass, physical activity, age at menarche, smoking, and oral contraception use) were controlled for. However, early HED initiation (beginning HED at age 15 years or younger) was not significantly related to BMD. Conclusions: This is the first study to assess the impacts of early HED initiation and frequent HED during adolescence on the bone health of young women. Results suggest frequency of HED before reaching PBM, but not age at initiation, may be negatively related to skeletal health during young adulthood. These findings encourage research into the association between HED and BMD in late adolescence

Bone mineral density, energy availability, and dietary restraint in collegiate cross-country runners and non-running controls

Purpose: Weight-bearing activities such as running have been shown to be osteogenic. However, investigations have also shown that running may lead to site-specific deficiencies in bone mineral density (BMD) as well as overall low BMD. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate and compare the BMD of female and male collegiate cross-country runners with non-running controls. In addition, energy availability and disordered eating attitudes and behaviors were assessed. Methods: BMD of 60 collegiate cross-country runners and 47 BMI and age-matched non-running controls were measured via DXA scans. Participants completed a Block 2014 Food Frequency Questionnaire and Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire. Results: Controlling for fat-free mass (FFM), male runners showed greater BMD at the femoral neck (0.934 ± 0.029 vs. 0.866 ± 0.028 g cm2, p \u3c 0.05), total hip (1.119 ± 0.023 vs. 1.038 ± 0.021 g cm2, p \u3c 0.05), and whole body (1.119 ± 0.023 vs. 1.038 ± 0.021 g cm2, p \u3c 0.05) than male controls. The female runners had greater whole-body BMD than female controls (1.143 ± 0.018 vs. 1.087 ± 0.022 g cm2, p \u3c 0.05). Runners scored significantly higher than controls in dietary restraint (1.134 ± 1.24 vs. 0.451 ± 0.75, p \u3c 0.05), male runners were significantly higher than male controls in eating concern (1.344 ± 1.08 vs. 0.113 ± 0.27, p \u3c 0.05) and female runners were significantly higher than male runners in shape concern (1.056 ± 1.27 vs. 0.242 ± 0.31, p \u3c 0.05). Forty-two percent of the male runners and 29% of female runners had an energy availability of less than 30 kcals kg−1FFM. Conclusion: It appears that distance running has beneficial effects on whole-body BMD and site-specific areas. Further research is warranted to further clarify the health effects of eating behaviors and EA of distance runners

Towards Space-like Photometric Precision from the Ground with Beam-Shaping Diffusers

We demonstrate a path to hitherto unachievable differential photometric precisions from the ground, both in the optical and near-infrared (NIR), using custom-fabricated beam-shaping diffusers produced using specialized nanofabrication techniques. Such diffusers mold the focal plane image of a star into a broad and stable top-hat shape, minimizing photometric errors due to non-uniform pixel response, atmospheric seeing effects, imperfect guiding, and telescope-induced variable aberrations seen in defocusing. This PSF reshaping significantly increases the achievable dynamic range of our observations, increasing our observing efficiency and thus better averages over scintillation. Diffusers work in both collimated and converging beams. We present diffuser-assisted optical observations demonstrating $62^{+26}_{-16}$ppm precision in 30 minute bins on a nearby bright star 16-Cygni A (V=5.95) using the ARC 3.5m telescope---within a factor of $\sim$2 of Kepler's photometric precision on the same star. We also show a transit of WASP-85-Ab (V=11.2) and TRES-3b (V=12.4), where the residuals bin down to $180^{+66}_{-41}$ppm in 30 minute bins for WASP-85-Ab---a factor of $\sim$4 of the precision achieved by the K2 mission on this target---and to 101ppm for TRES-3b. In the NIR, where diffusers may provide even more significant improvements over the current state of the art, our preliminary tests have demonstrated $137^{+64}_{-36}$ppm precision for a $K_S =10.8$ star on the 200" Hale Telescope. These photometric precisions match or surpass the expected photometric precisions of TESS for the same magnitude range. This technology is inexpensive, scalable, easily adaptable, and can have an important and immediate impact on the observations of transits and secondary eclipses of exoplanets.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 30 pages, 20 figure

The Upsides and Downsides of the Dark Side: A Longitudinal Study Into the Role of Prosocial and Antisocial Strategies in Close Friendship Formation

Resource control theory (RCT) posits that both antisocial and prosocial behaviors combine in unique ways to control resources such as friendships. We assessed students (N = 2,803; 49.7% male) yearly from junior (grades 8–10) to senior high school (11–12) on antisocial (A) and prosocial (P) behavior, peer nominated friendship, and well-being. Non-parametric cluster analyses of the joint trajectories of A and P identified four stable profiles: non-strategic (moderately low A and P), bi-strategic (moderately high on A and P), prosocial (moderately low A and moderately high on P), and antisocial (moderately low on P, and very high on A). There were clear benefits to youth using bi-strategic strategies in junior high: they attracted relatively high levels of opposite sex friendship nominations. However, this benefit disappeared in senior high. There were also clear costs: bi-strategic youth experienced relatively low well-being, and this effect was significantly more pronounced for females than males. Prosocial youth were the only ones who maintained both high friendship numbers and high well-being throughout high school. We discuss the cost/benefit trade-offs of different resource control strategies