A comparison of perception of ADHD among diagnosed children and their parents

Although research on youngsters’ and parents’ experience of ADHD has grown in recent years, little is known about their subjective perception of ADHD as a disorder. Previous studies on subjective perceptions of individuals with ADHD have examined only one or two facets of such perceptions simultaneously. However, theories of illness perception suggest that such perception consists of at least five constructs (see the Common-Sense Model of Illness Representations or CSM; Leventhal et al., 1997, 1984). The present thesis sought to address this research gap by applying CSM in the context of ADHD. The thesis aimed to 1)obtain a comprehensive understanding of perception of ADHD among diagnosed youngsters and their parents, 2)examine the predictive ability of the perceptions on their coping and emotional well-being, 3)compare parents- and offspring perceptions, and 4)examine the predictive ability of discrepant perception on their coping and emotional well-being. The systematic review of literature shows that disproportional research attention has been paid to the perceived effectiveness of treatment compared to other illness beliefs. The empirical study utilizing cross-sectional design included 61 dyads of adolescents with ADHD (10 to 18 years) and their parents, who were recruited from clinic, support groups and educational consultancy. Findings show that several illness beliefs (e.g., coherence, timeline), which have been under-researched, are predictors of adolescents’ coping. Adolescents see ADHD as less threatening and less biologically based than parents. Several discrepant illness beliefs (e.g., timeline, cause) seem to predict adolescents’ coping and quality of life. Different perceptions of impact were related to parents’ elevated stress. Overall, the present study provided initial evidence for the utility of CSM in youngsters of ADHD and their parents that may have significant implications for psycho-education, clinical practice and ongoing research

Friction pressure drop measurements and flow distribution analysis for LEU conversion study of MIT Research Reactor

Thesis (S.M. and S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2008.Page no. "2" used twice. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 147-150 [i.e. p. 148-151]).The MIT Nuclear Research Reactor (MITR) is the only research reactor in the United States that utilizes plate-type fuel elements with longitudinal fins to augment heat transfer. Recent studies on the conversion to low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel at the MITR, together with the supporting thermal hydraulic analyses, propose different fuel element designs for optimization of thermal hydraulic performance of the LEU core. Since proposed fuel design has a smaller coolant channel height than the existing HEU fuel, the friction pressure drop is required to be verified experimentally. The objectives of this study are to measure the friction coefficient in both laminar and turbulent flow regions, and to develop empirical correlations for the finned rectangular coolant channels for the safety analysis of the MITR. A friction pressure drop experiment is set-up at the MIT Nuclear Reactor Laboratory, where static differential pressure is measured for both flat and finned coolant channels of various channel heights. Experiment data show that the Darcy friction factors for laminar flow in finned rectangular channels are in good agreement with the existing correlation if a pseudo-smooth equivalent hydraulic diameter is considered; whereas a new friction factor correlation is proposed for the friction factors for turbulent flow. Additionally, a model is developed to calculate the primary flow distribution in the reactor core for transitional core configuration with various combinations of HEU and LEU fuel elements.by Susanna Yuen-Ting Wong.S.M.and S.B

The need for a definition of big data for nursing science: A case study of disaster preparedness

© 2016 by the author; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. The rapid development of technology has made enormous volumes of data available and achievable anytime and anywhere around the world. Data scientists call this change a data era and have introduced the term âBig Dataâ, which has drawn the attention of nursing scholars. Nevertheless, the concept of Big Data is quite fuzzy and there is no agreement on its definition among researchers of different disciplines. Without a clear consensus on this issue, nursing scholars who are relatively new to the concept may consider Big Data to be merely a dataset of a bigger size. Having a suitable definition for nurse researchers in their context of research and practice is essential for the advancement of nursing research. In view of the need for a better understanding on what Big Data is, the aim in this paper is to explore and discuss the concept. Furthermore, an example of a Big Data research study on disaster nursing preparedness involving six million patient records is used for discussion. The example demonstrates that a Big Data analysis can be conducted from many more perspectives than would be possible in traditional sampling, and is superior to traditional sampling. Experience gained from the process of using Big Data in this study will shed light on future opportunities for conducting evidence-based nursing research to achieve competence in disaster nursing.Link_to_subscribed_fulltex

A prospective randomized, open-label trial comparing the safety and efficacy of dose sparing intradermal 2010/2011 trivalent influenza vaccine delivered by two different devices

Poster Abstract Session - Influenza Vaccines: no. 533BACKGROUND: We performed intradermal 2010/11 trivalent influenza vaccination (TIV) in adult subjects delivered by two different intradermal (ID) devices, using 20% and 60% of the standard dose and compared the immunogenicity and safety with full dose intramuscular (IM) immunization. METHODS: This is a prospective randomized trial conducted from December 2010 to March 2011, comprising chronically ill adults. Subjects were randomly assigned …postprin

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy v. group psychoeducation for people with generalised anxiety disorder: randomised controlled trial

Background: Research suggests that an 8-week mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) course may be effective for generalised anxiety disorder (GAD). Aims: To compare changes in anxiety levels among participants with GAD randomly assigned to MBCT, cognitive–behavioural therapy-based psychoeducation and usual care. Method: In total, 182 participants with GAD were recruited (trial registration number: CUHK_CCT00267) and assigned to the three groups and followed for 5 months after baseline assessment with the two intervention groups followed for an additional 6 months. Primary outcomes were anxiety and worry levels. Results: Linear mixed models demonstrated significant group × time interaction (F(4,148) = 5.10, P = 0.001) effects for decreased anxiety for both the intervention groups relative to usual care. Significant group × time interaction effects were observed for worry and depressive symptoms and mental health-related quality of life for the psychoeducation group only. Conclusions: These results suggest that both of the interventions appear to be superior to usual care for the reduction of anxiety symptoms

PHIL and Squid Embolization of Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformation: A Retrospective Case Series of 23 Patients

Precipitating hydrophobic injectable liquid (PHIL; MicroVention, Aliso Viejo, CA, USA) and Squid (Balt, Irvine, CA, USA) are 2 newer liquid embolic agents used in endovascular embolization of cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM). This study aims to investigate and compare the effectiveness and safety profile of the 2 newer liquid embolic agents in the embolization of cerebral AVM. This is a retrospective study on all patients diagnosed with cerebral AVM undergoing endovascular embolization with liquid embolic agents PHIL and Squid admitted to the Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery in Prince of Wales Hospital from January 2014 to June 2021. Twenty-three patients with cerebral AVM were treated with 34 sessions of endovascular embolization with either PHIL or Squid (17 sessions each) liquid embolic agents with a male to female ratio of 2.3:1 (male 16; female 7) and mean age of 44.6 (range, 12 to 67). The mean total nidus obliteration rate per session was 57% (range, 5% to 100%). Twenty-one patients (91.3%) received further embolization, stereotactic radiosurgery, or surgical excision after initial endovascular embolization. There were 2 morbidities (1 neurological and 1 non-neurological, 6%) and no mortalities (0%). All patients had static or improvement in modified Rankin Scale at 3 to 6 months at discharge. PHIL and Squid are effective and safe liquid embolic agents for endovascular embolization of cerebral AVM, achieving satisfactory nidal obliteration rates and patient functional outcomes

The Predicted Proteomic Network Associated with the Antiarthritic Action of Qingfu Guanjieshu in Collagen-II-Induced Arthritis in Rats

Qingfu Guanjieshu (QFGJS) is an herbal preparation for treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Previous studies revealed that QFGJS significantly inhibited experimental arthritis and acute inflammation, accompanied by reduction of proinflammatory cytokines and elevation of anti-inflammatory cytokines. This study aims to identify the targeted proteins and predict the proteomic network associated with the drug action of QFGJS by using 2D gel and MALDI-TOF-MS/MS techniques. Thirty female Wistar rats were evenly grouped as normal and vehicle- and QFGJS-treated CIA rats. The antiarthritic effect of QFGJS was examined with a 19-day treatment course, and the knee synovial tissues of animals from each group were obtained for 2D gel and MALDI-TOF-MS/MS analysis. Results showed that QFGJS significantly ameliorated collagen II-induced arthritis when administrated at 2.8 g/kg body weight for 19 days. 2D gel image analysis revealed 89 differentially expressed proteins in the synovial tissues among the normal and vehicle- and QFGJS-treated CIA rats from over 1000 proteins of which 63 proteins were identified by MALDI-TOF-MS/MS analysis, and 32 proteins were included for classification of functions using Gene Ontology (GO) method. Finally, 14 proteins were analyzed using bioinformatics, and a predicted proteomic network related to the anti-arthritic effect of QFGJS was established, and Pgk1 plays a central role

Structure-function study of maize ribosome-inactivating protein: implications for the internal inactivation region and the sole glutamate in the active site

Maize ribosome-inactivating protein is classified as a class III or an atypical RNA N-glycosidase. It is synthesized as an inactive precursor with a 25-amino acid internal inactivation region, which is removed in the active form. As the first structural example of this class of proteins, crystals of the precursor and the active form were diffracted to 2.4 and 2.5 Å, respectively. The two proteins are similar, with main chain root mean square deviation (RMSD) of 0.519. In the precursor, the inactivation region is found on the protein surface and consists of a flexible loop followed by a long α-helix. This region diminished both the interaction with ribosome and cytotoxicity, but not cellular uptake. Like bacterial ribosome-inactivating proteins, maize ribosome-inactivating protein does not have a back-up glutamate in the active site, which helps the protein to retain some activity if the catalytic glutamate is mutated. The structure reveals that the active site is too small to accommodate two glutamate residues. Our structure suggests that maize ribosome-inactivating protein may represent an intermediate product in the evolution of ribosome-inactivating proteins. © 2007 The Author(s).published_or_final_versio

Replication and Meta-analysis of the Association between BDNF Val66Met Polymorphism and Cognitive Impairment in Patients Receiving Chemotherapy.

Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) adversely affects cancer patients. We had previously demonstrated that the BDNF Val66Met genetic polymorphism is associated with lower odds of subjective CRCI in the multitasking and verbal ability domains among breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. To further assess our previous findings, we evaluated the association of BDNF Val66Met polymorphism with subjective and objective CRCI in a temporally separate cohort of patients and pooled findings from both the original (n = 145) and current (n = 193) cohorts in a meta-analysis. Subjective CRCI was assessed using FACT-Cog. Objective CRCI was evaluated using computerized neuropsychological tests. Genotyping was carried out using Sanger sequencing. The association of BDNF Val66Met genotypes and CRCI was examined with logistic regression. A fixed-effect meta-analysis was conducted using the inverse variance method. In the meta-analysis (n = 338), significantly lower odds of CRCI were associated with Met allele carriers based on the global FACT-Cog score (OR = 0.52, 95% CI 0.29-0.94). Furthermore, Met allele carriers were at lower odds of developing impairment in the domains of memory (OR = 0.34, 95% CI: 0.17-0.70), multitasking (OR = 0.33, 95% CI: 0.18-0.59), and verbal ability (OR = 0.46, 95% CI: 0.24-0.88). Consistent with the previous study, lower odds of subjective CRCI among patients with the BDNF Met allele was observed after adjusting for potential confounders in the multitasking (OR = 0.30, 95% CI: 0.14-0.67) domain. In conclusion, carriers of the BDNF Met allele were protected against global subjective CRCI, particularly in the domains of memory, multitasking, and verbal ability. Our findings further contribute to the understanding of CRCI pathophysiology