The neuroscience of face processing and identification in eyewitnesses and offenders

Werner N-S, Kühnel S, Markowitsch HJ. The neuroscience of face processing and identification in eyewitnesses and offenders. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. 2013;7: 189.Humans are experts in face perception. We are better able to distinguish between the differences of faces and their components than between any other kind of objects. Several studies investigating the underlying neural networks provided evidence for deviated face processing in criminal individuals, although results are often confounded by accompanying mental or addiction disorders. On the other hand, face processing in non-criminal healthy persons can be of high juridical interest in cases of witnessing a felony and afterward identifying a culprit. Memory and therefore recognition of a person can be affected by many parameters and thus become distorted. But also face processing itself is modulated by different factors like facial characteristics, degree of familiarity, and emotional relation. These factors make the comparison of different cases, as well as the transfer of laboratory results to real live settings very challenging. Several neuroimaging studies have been published in recent years and some progress was made connecting certain brain activation patterns with the correct recognition of an individual. However, there is still a long way to go before brain imaging can make a reliable contribution to court procedures

Functional status after blast-plus-impact complex concussive traumatic brain injury in evacuated United States military personnel

Fundamental questions remain unanswered about the longitudinal impact of blast-plus-impact complex traumatic brain injuries (TBI) from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. This prospective, observational study investigated measures of clinical outcome in US military personnel evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (LRMC) in Germany after such “blast-plus” concussive TBIs. Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended assessments completed 6–12 months after injury indicated a moderate overall disability in 41/47 (87%) blast-plus TBI subjects and a substantial but smaller number (11/18, 61%, p=0.018) of demographically similar US military controls without TBI evacuated for other medical reasons. Cognitive function assessed with a neuropsychological test battery was not different between blast-plus TBI subjects and controls; performance of both groups was generally in the normal range. No subject was found to have focal neurological deficits. However, 29/47 (57%) of blast-plus subjects with TBI met all criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) versus 5/18 (28%) of controls (p=0.014). PTSD was highly associated with overall disability; 31/34 patients with PTSD versus 19/31 patients who did not meet full PTSD criteria had moderate to severe disability (p=0.0003). Symptoms of depression were also more severe in the TBI group (p=0.05), and highly correlated with PTSD severity (r=0.86, p<0.0001). Thus, in summary, high rates of PTSD and depression but not cognitive impairment or focal neurological deficits were observed 6–12 months after concussive blast-plus-impact complex TBI. Overall disability was substantially greater than typically reported in civilian non-blast concussive (“mild”) patients with TBI, even with polytrauma. The relationship between these clinical outcomes and specific blast-related aspects of brain injuries versus other combat-related factors remains unknown

Performance-Shaping Factors Affecting Older Adults' Hospital-to-Home Transition Success: A Systems Approach

Background and Objectives Facilitating older adults’ successful hospital-to-home transitions remains a persistent challenge. To address this challenge, we applied a systems lens to identify and understand the performance-shaping factors (PSFs) related older adults’ hospital-to-home transition success. Research Design and Methods This study was a secondary analysis of semi-structured interviews from older adults (N = 31) recently discharged from a hospital and their informal caregivers (N = 13). We used a Human Factors Engineering approach to guide qualitative thematic analysis to develop four themes concerning the system conditions shaping hospital-to-home transition success. Results The four themes concerning PSFs were: (a) the hospital-to-home transition was a complex multiphase process—the process unfolded over several months and required substantial, persistent investment/effort; (b) there were unmet needs for specialized tools—information and resources provided at hospital discharge were not aligned with requirements for transition success; (c) alignment of self-care routines with transition needs—pre-hospitalization routines could be supportive/disruptive and could deteriorate/be re-established; and (d) changing levels of work demand and capacity during the transition—demand often exceeded capacity leading to work overload. Discussion and Implications Our findings highlight that the transition is not an episodic event, but rather a longitudinal process extending beyond the days just after hospital discharge. Transition interventions to improve older adults’ hospital-to-home transitions need to account for this complex multiphase process. Future interventions must be developed to support older adults and informal caregivers in navigating the establishment and re-establishment of routines and managing work demands and capacity during the transition process

Tolerability of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in patients with postural tachycardia syndrome: a cross-sectional study [version 1; peer review: 2 approved]

Background: Postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a form of autonomic dysregulation. There is increasing evidence that the etiology may be immune-mediated in a subgroup of patients. Patients with POTS often experience an exacerbation of their symptoms associated with (viral) infections and often fear the same symptom aggravation after vaccination. In this report we describe the tolerability of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines against coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) and the consequences of a COVID-19 infection on POTS symptoms in our cohort of patients with neuropathic POTS. Methods: We conducted a standardized, checklist-based interview with 23 patients and recorded the acute side effects of mRNA vaccination, acute symptoms of COVID-19 infection as well as the effects of vaccination and COVID-19 infection on POTS symptoms. Results: Of all included patients, 20 patients received two mRNA vaccines without having had a previous COVID-19 infection, and five patients in total had suffered a COVID-19 infection. Of these, three had COVID-19 without and two after being vaccinated. No increased frequency of side effects after both doses of mRNA vaccines was observed. Six patients reported a mild and short-term aggravation of their POTS symptoms beyond the duration of acute vaccine side effects. All five patients who suffered a COVID-19 infection subsequently reported a pronounced and persistent exacerbation of POTS symptoms. Conclusions: Our observations suggest that mRNA vaccines are not associated with a higher frequency of acute side effects in patients with POTS. Symptom exacerbation as a consequence of mRNA vaccination seems to be less frequent and of shorter duration compared to patients who suffered a COVID-19 infection

Social dilemmas and cooperation

Social dilemmas (sometimes referred to as “problems of collective action”, “tragedy of the commons”, or “public goods problems”) are situations with strategically interdependent actors such that individually rational behavior leads to an outcome that is less desirable for each actor than had they cooperated. In this chapter, we provide an overview of models of social dilemmas and cooperation in social dilemmas that use game-theoretic tools. We first review examples of social dilemmas and formal modeling of such dilemmas. We distinguish between dilemmas that involve two actors and those that can involve more than two actors. We also discuss why the conceptualization of “social dilemma” is “theory dependent”. Second, we review mechanisms that can induce cooperation in social dilemmas. Cooperation of rational actors in a social dilemma requires that the dilemma is “embedded” in a more complex game. We discuss models for different types of embeddedness. The chapter likewise includes a sketch of models of cooperation based on social preferences and of simulation studies as an alternative to game-theoretic analysis

Social networks

Social networks affect individual behavior as well as social phenomena. Conversely, when actors can choose with whom to interact, social networks are also themselves affected by individual behavior. This chapter provides an overview of two main classes of formal theoretical models for the analysis of network effects and network formation, namely, game-theoretic models and agent-based simulation models. We first discuss models in which networks are assumed to be exogenous and focus on network effects. More specifically, we focus on models predicting effects of social networks on behavior in social dilemmas. Second, we summarize main approaches to network formation and the dynamics of networks. Third, we review models on the co-evolution of networks and behavior that provide an integrated analysis of network formation and network effects, again focusing on social dilemma problems. The chapter ends with an evaluation of the state of the art of theoretical models for social networks, including open problems and suggestions for future research

Inhaled Nitric Oxide Treatment for Aneurysmal SAH Patients With Delayed Cerebral Ischemia

BACKGROUND: We demonstrated experimentally that inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) dilates hypoperfused arterioles, increases tissue perfusion, and improves neurological outcome following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in mice. We performed a prospective pilot study to evaluate iNO in patients with delayed cerebral ischemia after SAH. METHODS: SAH patients with delayed cerebral ischemia and hypoperfusion despite conservative treatment were included. iNO was administered at a maximum dose of 40 ppm. The response to iNO was considered positive if: cerebral artery diameter increased by 10% in digital subtraction angiography (DSA), or tissue oxygen partial pressure (PtiO(2)) increased by > 5 mmHg, or transcranial doppler (TCD) values decreased more than 30 cm/sec, or mean transit time (MTT) decreased below 6.5 secs in CT perfusion (CTP). Patient outcome was assessed at 6 months with the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). RESULTS: Seven patients were enrolled between February 2013 and September 2016. Median duration of iNO administration was 23 h. The primary endpoint was reached in all patients (five out of 17 DSA examinations, 19 out of 29 PtiO(2) time points, nine out of 26 TCD examinations, three out of five CTP examinations). No adverse events necessitating the cessation of iNO were observed. At 6 months, three patients presented with a mRS score of 0, one patient each with an mRS score of 2 and 3, and two patients had died. CONCLUSION: Administration of iNO in SAH patients is safe. These results call for a larger prospective evaluation

Spectroscopy, MOST Photometry, and Interferometry of MWC 314: Is it an LBV or an interacting binary?

MWC 314 is a bright candidate luminous blue variable that resides in a fairly close binary system, with an orbital period of 60.753$\pm$0.003 d. We observed MWC 314 with a combination of optical spectroscopy, broad-band ground- and space-based photometry, as well as with long baseline, near-infrared interferometry. We have revised the single-lined spectroscopic orbit and explored the photometric variability. The orbital light curve displays two minima each orbit that can be partially explained in terms of the tidal distortion of the primary that occurs around the time of periastron. The emission lines in the system are often double-peaked and stationary in their kinematics, indicative of a circumbinary disc. We find that the stellar wind or circumbinary disc is partially resolved in the K\prime-band with the longest baselines of the CHARA Array. From this analysis, we provide a simple, qualitative model in an attempt to explain the observations. From the assumption of Roche Lobe overflow and tidal synchronisation at periastron, we estimate the component masses to be M1 $\approx 5$ M$_\odot$ and M2$\approx 15$ M$_\odot$, which indicates a mass of the LBV that is extremely low. In addition to the orbital modulation, we discovered two pulsational modes with the MOST satellite. These modes are easily supported by a low-mass hydrogen-poor star, but cannot be easily supported by a star with the parameters of an LBV. The combination of these results provides evidence that the primary star was likely never a normal LBV, but rather is the product of binary interactions. As such, this system presents opportunities for studying mass-transfer and binary evolution with many observational techniques.Comment: 26 pages, 7 figures, 5 tables, 2 appendices with 7 additional tables and 2 additional figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA