Age-dependent changes of thinking about verbs

We investigated the knowledge of emotional and motor verbs in children andadolescents from three age ranges (8\u201311, 12\u201315, 16\u201319 years). Participants estimatedthe verbs familiarity, age of acquisition, valence, arousal, imageability, and motor- andemotion-relatedness. Participants were familiar with theverbs in our dataset. The younger(8\u201311) attributed an emotional character to the verbs less frequently than the middle(12\u201315) and the older (16\u201319) groups. In the 8\u201311 group malesrated the verbs asemotion-related less frequently than females. Results indicate that processing verbalconcepts as emotion-related develops gradually, and after12\u201315 is rather stable. The ageof acquisition (AoA) develops late: the older (16\u201319) had a higher awareness in reportingthat they learnt the verbs earlier as compared to the estimations made by the younger(8\u201311 and 12\u201315). AoA positively correlated with attribution of emotion relatednessmeaning that emotion-related verbs were learned later. Arousal was comparable acrossages. Also it increased when attributing motor relatednessto verbs and decreasedwhen attributing emotion relatedness. Reporting the verbs\u2019 affective valence (happy vs.unhappy) changes with age: younger (8\u201311) judged the verbs generally more \u201chappy\u201dthan both the older groups. Instead the middle and the older group did not showdifferences. Happiness increased when processing the verbs as motor related anddecreased when processing the verbs as emotion related. Ageaffected imageability:the younger (8\u201311) considered the verbs easier to be imagined than the two oldergroups, suggesting that at this age vividness estimation isstill rough, while after 12\u201315 isstable as the 12\u201315 and 15\u201319 group did not differ. Imageability predicted arousal, AoA,emotion- and motor-relatedness indicating that this indexinfluences the way verbs areprocessed. Imageability was positively correlated to emotion relatedness, indicating thatsuch verbs were harder to be imagined, and negatively to motor relatedness. Imageablitypositively correlated with valence meaning that verbs receiving positive valence were alsothose that were hard to be imagined, and negatively correlated with arousal, meaning thatverbs that were harder to be imagined elicited low physiological activation. Our resultsgive an insight in the development of emotional and motor-related verbs representations

Attempts at memory control induce dysfunctional brain activation profiles in Generalized Anxiety Disorder: An exploratory fMRI study

Suppression of aversive memories through memory control has historically been proposed as a central psychological defense mechanism. Inability to suppress memories is considered a central psychological trait in several psychiatric disorders, including Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Yet, few studies have attempted the focused identification of dysfunctional brain activation profiles when patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorders attempt memory control. Using a well-characterized behavioral paradigm we studied brain activation profiles in a group of adult GAD patients and well-matched healthy controls (HC). Participants learned word-association pairs before imaging. During fMRI when presented with one word of the pair, they were instructed to either suppress memory of, or retrieve the paired word. Subsequent behavioral testing indicated both GAD and HC were able to engage in the task, but attempts at memory control (suppression or retrieval) during fMRI revealed vastly different activation profiles. GAD were characterized by substantive hypo-activation signatures during both types of memory control, with effects particularly strong during suppression in brain regions including the dorsal anterior cingulate and the ventral prefrontal cortex. Attempts at memory control in GAD fail to engage brain regions to the same extent HC, providing a putative neuronal signature for a well-established psychological characteristic of the illness

Common and different neural markers in major depression and anxiety disorders: A pilot structural magnetic resonance imaging study.

Although anxiety and depression often co-occur and share some clinical features, it is still unclear if they are neurobiologically distinct or similar processes. In this study, we explored common and specific cortical morphology alterations in depression and anxiety disorders. Magnetic Resonance Imaging data were acquired from 13 Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), 11 Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), 11 Panic Disorder (PD) patients and 21 healthy controls (HC). Regional cortical thickness, surface area (SA), volume and gyrification were measured and compared among groups. We found left orbitofrontal thinning in all patient groups, as well as disease-specific alterations. MDD showed volume deficits in left precentral gyrus compared to all groups, volume and area deficits in right fusiform gyrus compared to GAD and HC. GAD showed lower SA than MDD and PD in right superior parietal cortex, higher gyrification than HC in right frontal gyrus. PD showed higher gyrification in left superior parietal cortex when compared to MDD and higher SA in left postcentral gyrus compared to all groups. Our results suggest that clinical phenotypic similarities between major depression and anxiety disorders might rely on common prefrontal alterations. Frontotemporal and parietal abnormalities may represent unique biological signatures of depression and anxiety

Latent classes of emotional and behavioural problems in epidemiological and referred samples and their relations to DSM-IV diagnoses

Researchers\u2019 interest have recently moved toward the identification of recurrent psychopathological profiles characterized by concurrent elevations on different behavioural and emotional traits. This new strategy turned to be useful in terms of diagnosis and outcome prediction. We used a person-centred statistical approach to examine whether different groups could be identified in a referred sample and in a general-population sample of children and adolescents, and we investigated their relation to DSM-IV diagnoses. A latent class analysis (LCA) was performed on the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) syndrome scales of the referred sample (N = 1225), of the general-population sample (N = 3418), and of the total sample. Models estimating 1-class through 5-class solutions were compared and agreement in the classification of subjects was evaluated. Chi square analyses, a logistic regression, and a multinomial logistic regression analysis were used to investigate the relations between classes and diagnoses. In the two samples and in the total sample, the best-fitting models were 4-class solutions. The identified classes were Internalizing Problems (15.68%), Severe Dysregulated (7.82%), Attention/Hyperactivity (10.19%), and Low Problems (66.32%). Subsequent analyses indicated a significant relationship between diagnoses and classes as well as a main association between the severe dysregulated class and comorbidity. Our data suggested the presence of four different psychopathological profiles related to different outcomes in terms of psychopathological diagnoses. In particular, our results underline the presence of a profile characterized by severe emotional and behavioural dysregulation that is mostly associated with the presence of multiple diagnosis

How future surgery will benefit from SARS-COV-2-related measures: a SPIGC survey conveying the perspective of Italian surgeons

COVID-19 negatively affected surgical activity, but the potential benefits resulting from adopted measures remain unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in surgical activity and potential benefit from COVID-19 measures in perspective of Italian surgeons on behalf of SPIGC. A nationwide online survey on surgical practice before, during, and after COVID-19 pandemic was conducted in March-April 2022 (NCT:05323851). Effects of COVID-19 hospital-related measures on surgical patients' management and personal professional development across surgical specialties were explored. Data on demographics, pre-operative/peri-operative/post-operative management, and professional development were collected. Outcomes were matched with the corresponding volume. Four hundred and seventy-three respondents were included in final analysis across 14 surgical specialties. Since SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, application of telematic consultations (4.1% vs. 21.6%; p < 0.0001) and diagnostic evaluations (16.4% vs. 42.2%; p < 0.0001) increased. Elective surgical activities significantly reduced and surgeons opted more frequently for conservative management with a possible indication for elective (26.3% vs. 35.7%; p < 0.0001) or urgent (20.4% vs. 38.5%; p < 0.0001) surgery. All new COVID-related measures are perceived to be maintained in the future. Surgeons' personal education online increased from 12.6% (pre-COVID) to 86.6% (post-COVID; p < 0.0001). Online educational activities are considered a beneficial effect from COVID pandemic (56.4%). COVID-19 had a great impact on surgical specialties, with significant reduction of operation volume. However, some forced changes turned out to be benefits. Isolation measures pushed the use of telemedicine and telemetric devices for outpatient practice and favored communication for educational purposes and surgeon-patient/family communication. From the Italian surgeons' perspective, COVID-related measures will continue to influence future surgical clinical practice

Traces of trauma – a multivariate pattern analysis of childhood trauma, brain structure and clinical phenotypes

Background: Childhood trauma (CT) is a major yet elusive psychiatric risk factor, whose multidimensional conceptualization and heterogeneous effects on brain morphology might demand advanced mathematical modeling. Therefore, we present an unsupervised machine learning approach to characterize the clinical and neuroanatomical complexity of CT in a larger, transdiagnostic context. Methods: We used a multicenter European cohort of 1076 female and male individuals (discovery: n = 649; replication: n = 427) comprising young, minimally medicated patients with clinical high-risk states for psychosis; patients with recent-onset depression or psychosis; and healthy volunteers. We employed multivariate sparse partial least squares analysis to detect parsimonious associations between combinations of items from the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and gray matter volume and tested their generalizability via nested cross-validation as well as via external validation. We investigated the associations of these CT signatures with state (functioning, depressivity, quality of life), trait (personality), and sociodemographic levels. Results: We discovered signatures of age-dependent sexual abuse and sex-dependent physical and sexual abuse, as well as emotional trauma, which projected onto gray matter volume patterns in prefronto-cerebellar, limbic, and sensory networks. These signatures were associated with predominantly impaired clinical state- and trait-level phenotypes, while pointing toward an interaction between sexual abuse, age, urbanicity, and education. We validated the clinical profiles for all three CT signatures in the replication sample. Conclusions: Our results suggest distinct multilayered associations between partially age- and sex-dependent patterns of CT, distributed neuroanatomical networks, and clinical profiles. Hence, our study highlights how machine learning approaches can shape future, more fine-grained CT research

Enhancing Daily Living Skills in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Video Modeling: a Case Report

Introduction: children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) frequently show difficulties in developing daily living skills. Video modeling (VM) and video self modeling (VSM) are successful strategies for improving skills in ASD. Aims: (i) develop the daily living skill \u201chand washing\u201d in a child with ASD and moderate mental retardation using a VM training; (ii) investigate the efficacy of a classic VM and an experimental VSM in the target skill. Methods and procedure: the participant received a classic VM (model was a peer who had well acquired the target skill) and an experimental VSM (it was the VM video with the difference that on the face of the model was pasted a picture of the face of the participant). Results and discussion: VM lead to a rapid acquisition in the target skill, but it did not stabilized during the study. Results with VSM were lower, but follow-up phase revealed some acquisitions. VM early capitalized child\u2019s cognitive resources. Because of his poor cognitive level the child difficultly processed video information. Conclusions: the child showed some improvements in the skill trained, therefore VM could be effective in teaching skills to children with ASD. VM and its variations should be tailor made on the cognitive profile of the individuals

Autismo e Video Modeling: un progetto sperimentale con metodologia sul soggetto singolo per l’insegnamento di abilità di autonomia

Il Video Modeling (VM) è un metodo ampiamente utilizzato per favorire lo sviluppo di abilità di vita quotidiana e sociale in bambini con Disturbo dello Spettro Autistico (DSA). Tali abilità fanno riferimento ad aspetti basilari della quotidianità quali vestirsi, lavarsi i denti, curare l’igiene personale, difficoltà in queste attività sono tra i fattori che provocano maggiore stress nei caregiver. Lo sviluppo delle abilità di vita quotidiana nei bambini con DSA contribuisce pertanto al raggiungimento della loro autonomia e integrazione. Il VM promuove l’acquisizione di comportamenti desiderati attraverso l’imitazione di un modello che esegue correttamente il comportamento desiderato e che viene mostrato attraverso un video. Nel presente studio, è stato condotto un intervento di VM con un bambino di 7 anni che presentava DSA e disabilità intellettiva moderata (QI stimato =43), allo scopo di sviluppare l’abilità di autonomia “lavarsi le mani”. È stato somministrato al bambino un training di VM della durata di due settimane sull’abilità “lavarsi le mani”. Il bambino ha mostrato un rapido incremento del comportamento allenato con il VM nella fase iniziale, tuttavia tali acquisizioni non sono state mantenute durante tutto lo studio. Il VM ha permesso in parte al bambino di ottenere miglioramenti nel lavarsi le mani, consolidando alcuni comportamenti importanti per l’esecuzione del lavaggio delle mani. Per questo il VM può essere considerato uno strumento efficacie nel favorire lo sviluppo di abilità legate alla vita quotidiana in bambini con DSA