It's not what you say but the way that you say it: an fMRI study of differential lexical and non-lexical prosodic pitch processing

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This study aims to identify the neural substrate involved in prosodic pitch processing. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to test the premise that prosody pitch processing is primarily subserved by the right cortical hemisphere.</p> <p>Two experimental paradigms were used, firstly pairs of spoken sentences, where the only variation was a single internal phrase pitch change, and secondly, a matched condition utilizing pitch changes within analogous tone-sequence phrases. This removed the potential confounder of lexical evaluation. fMRI images were obtained using these paradigms.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Activation was significantly greater within the right frontal and temporal cortices during the tone-sequence stimuli relative to the sentence stimuli.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study showed that pitch changes, stripped of lexical information, are mainly processed by the right cerebral hemisphere, whilst the processing of analogous, matched, lexical pitch change is preferentially left sided. These findings, showing hemispherical differentiation of processing based on stimulus complexity, are in accord with a 'task dependent' hypothesis of pitch processing.</p

Early examination of real-world uptake and second-dose completion of recombinant zoster vaccine in the United States from October 2017 to September 2019

Shingrix (Recombinant zoster vaccine, RZV) was approved in October 2017 in the United States (US) for the prevention of herpes zoster in adults aged 50 years and older. The vaccine is administered in two doses, with the second dose administration recommended between two and six months after the first dose. Examination of uptake and series completion is important to ensure appropriate use, especially at the time of vaccine introduction. This report provides demographic characteristics of patients receiving RZV between October 2017 and September 2019, first- and second-dose uptake, and a cumulative estimation of second-dose completion by month for US adults aged 50 years and older. Monthly uptake increased rapidly since October 2017; overall, 7,097,441 first doses of RZV were administered along with 4,277,636 second doses during the observed timeframe. Among people with an observed first-dose administration, 70% and 80% completed the two-dose series within six and 12 months post initial dose, respectively. This evidence suggests that RZV has rapidly been adopted by a large population in the US and most are following manufacturer or policy recommendations regarding series completion. Further analyses are needed to explore potential patient, provider, and policy-relevant characteristics associated with second-dose completion that could serve as targets for further improvement

Herpes Zoster Incidence and Burden in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in the United States: A Retrospective Database Analysis

   Objective Data on real-world burden of herpes zoster (HZ) in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) in the U.S. are limited. We assessed HZ in patients with and without T2D and measured the impact of HZ on healthcare resource use (HCRU) and costs. Research design and methods A retrospective cohort analysis using U.S. commercial claims data (sourced from claims incurred between January 1, 2012 and July 31, 2018). HZ incidence rates/1,000 person-years [PY] were calculated in patients with/without T2D; HZ risk was evaluated using Poisson regression to generate adjusted incidence rate ratios (aIRRs).  T2D patients with HZ were propensity score matched to patients with T2D only, and to patients with HZ without T2D. HCRU and costs were compared across cohorts during a 1-year follow-up period. Cox proportional hazards analyses evaluated factors associated with HZ-related complications.  Results Crude HZ incidence rates in patients with and without T2D were 9.8/1,000 PY and 2.6/1,000 PY respectively. T2D patients were almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with HZ (aIRR, 1.84 [95% CI: 1.82–1.85]). HZ was associated with increased HCRU and healthcare costs. At 12-months, unadjusted incremental all-cause healthcare costs for T2D patients with HZ versus T2D patients without HZ were $5,216; unadjusted incremental HZ-related healthcare costs for T2D patients with HZ versus patients with HZ without T2D were$2,726. Age was the most important predictor for HZ-related complications. Conclusions Given the increased risk of HZ and HCRU and cost burden in T2D patients, HZ prevention in T2D patients may be beneficial. </p