Is executive impairment associated with schizophrenic syndromes? A meta-analysis

Original article can be found at: http://journals.cambridge.org/ Copyright Cambridge University Press. DOI: 10.1017/S0033291708003887A key neuropsychological proposal in schizophrenia is that negative and disorganization symptoms are associated with different patterns of impairment on executive tasks. Reporting correlations between positive, negative or disorganization symptoms and any type of executive test were meta-analysed. The influence of moderating factors was also examined, including age, treatment and stage of illness and whether symptoms were relapsing or persistent. The magnitudes of the correlations were compared with those for general intellectual impairment. Pooled correlations between executive impairment and both negative symptoms and disorganization were significant in the small-to-moderate range. That for positive symptoms (‘reality distortion’), however, was close to zero. The pattern of correlations among different executive tests differed significantly for negative symptoms and disorganization. Patients with stable clinical pictures showed significantly higher correlations with executive impairment than those with relapsing and remitting illnesses. Both negative symptoms and disorganization also correlated significantly with general intellectual function as indexed by current IQ. Meta-analysis supports the view that negative symptoms and disorganization are associated with partially dissociable patterns of executive impairment. However, co-existent general intellectual impairment has been an important confounding factor in the studies to date.Peer reviewe

?A confession of ignorance?: deaths from old age and deciphering cause-of-death statistics in Scotland, 1855?1949

A large amount of the research undertaken in an attempt to discover the reasons underlying the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century mortality decline in Britain has relied on the statistics published by the Registrars General. The processes by which individual causes of death are recorded and then processed in order to create the statistics are not, however, well understood. In this article, the authors build on previous work to piece together a time series of causes of death for Scotland, which removes many of the discontinuities encountered in the published statistics that result from the Registrar General deciding to update the nosology, or classification system, which was being used to compile his figures. Having regrouped individual causes of death to ?smooth? the time series, the authors use the new groups to examine the changing causes of death in Scotland for selected age groups, before turning to undertake a detailed examination of mortality amongst those aged 55 or more. The authors find that when deaths from ?old age? in the latter age group are separated from other ?ill-defined? causes, it becomes obvious that there was a ?rebranding? of cause of death. The authors then use individual-level data from two Scottish communities to further dissect the roles played by ?informants? and ?doctors? in this rebranding, in order to see how these roles may have altered over time and what the consequences might be for one's view of how mortality changed in Scotland between 1855 and 1949. Finally, the authors argue that their findings have important implications for some of historical demography's most prominent theories: the McKeown thesis and the theory of epidemiological transition

Youth organizations, social mobility and health in middle age: evidence from a Scottish 1950s prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND: Informal educational programmes focused on youth development appear to improve health and well-being at time of involvement. Less is known about long-term effects. We investigate their impact on self-reported general health in mid-life using the Aberdeen Children of the 1950s (ACONF) cohort. METHODS: We use a subset (n = 1333) of the ACONF cohort, born 1950–56, in Aberdeen Scotland, who took part in Family and Reading Surveys in 1964 and a follow-up questionnaire in 2001. We explore exposure to youth development focused clubs in childhood on self-reported general health around age 50 mediated by adult socioeconomic position. Logistic regression and mediation analysis were used to report odds ratios and natural direct and indirect effects, respectively, on multiply imputed data. RESULTS: Being a member of the Scouts/Guides (G&S) was associated with a 53% (95% confidence interval 1.03–2.27) higher odds of ‘excellent’ general health in adulthood compared to children attending ‘other clubs’. Indirect effects of G&S and Boys’/Girls’ Brigade (B&GB) on general health acting via higher socioeconomic position show positive associations; 12% and 6% higher odds of ‘excellent’ general health in adulthood compared to children attending ‘other clubs’, respectively. Comparison of indirect with direct effects suggests 27% of this association is mediated through a higher adult socioeconomic position in adulthood. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest a beneficial association between attending G&S and B&GB clubs in childhood and adult general health. As these organizations are volunteer-led, this may represent a cost-effective method for improving population health

Chapter 16 Volcanic hazard vulnerability on São Miguel Island, Azores

AbstractIn recent years much progress has been made in researching a wide variety of extreme events on São Miguel. In addition there are a number of volcano-related risks that impact upon the people of São Miguel. Some of these may occur both before and during volcanic emergencies (e.g. earthquakes), whilst others render São Miguel dangerous even when its volcanoes are not erupting (e.g. flooding, landslides, tsunamis and health impacts, especially the effects of CO2seepage into dwellings). In this chapter we first define what vulnerability means to the people of São Miguel, and relate this to the cultural and economic characteristics of the island. The following aspects of vulnerability are discussed: (a) physical (i.e. housing, settlement and the characteristics of evacuation routes and plans); (b) demographic and economic; and (c) social and cultural and perceptual (i.e. whether people have an accurate cognition of risk). Particular areas of concern relate to housing: the identification of isolated dwellings that would be difficult to evacuate; the vulnerability/resilience of evacuation routes following recent infrastructure improvements; characteristics of the island's transient population; management of livestock under emergency conditions; local leadership roles; and educational outreach.</jats:p

Vanishing value chains, industrial districts and HRM in the Brazilian automotive industry

Industrial districts in the Brazilian automotive industry have facilitated just-in-time production, functional flexibility, and compatibility of HR practices since the 1980s. However, this model has been threatened by global over-capacity and the rise of low cost suppliers in South Korea and China. This paper develops literature on proximity dynamics though exploring the influence of global supply chains on HRM in industrial districts. The more specific research questions are: How viable are industrial districts in the context of global crises? And how is this viability bound up with the awareness of HR practices down the supply chain? The findings indicate that the industrial districts model is under threat. In the context of global supply chains, automotive majors have shifted costs onto their suppliers, disrupting established relationships, and moreover, they often lack knowledge of the employment practices of distant suppliers. Yet, in times of political and economic uncertainty, worker rights might be best served by geographical and cognitive proximity

Volcanic hazard vulnerability on Sao Miguel Island, Azores

"In recent years much progress has been made in researching a wide variety of extreme events on S. Miguel. In addition there are a number of volcano-related risks which impact upon the people of S. Miguel. Some of these may occur both before and during volcanic emergencies (e.g. earthquakes), whilst others render S. Miguel dangerous even when its volcanoes are not erupting (e.g. flooding, landslides, tsunamis and health impacts, especially the effects of CO2 seepage into dwellings). In this chapter we first define what vulnerability means to the people of São Miguel, and relate this to the cultural and economic characteristics of the island. The following aspects of vulnerability are discussed: a. physical (i.e. housing, settlement and the characteristics of evacuation routes and plans); b. demographic and economic; c. social and cultural and perceptual (i.e. do people have an accurate cognition of risk). Particular areas of concern relate to housing; the identification of isolated dwellings which would be difficult to evacuate; the vulnerability/resilience of evacuation routes following recent infrastructure improvements; characteristics of the island's transient population; management of livestock under emergency conditions; local leadership roles and educational outreach.

English indices of deprivation 2010 : technical report

The English indices of deprivation 2010 is the third release in a series of statistics produced to measure multiple forms of deprivation at the small spatial scale. It updates the indices of deprivation 2007 and 2004, retaining broadly the same methodology, domains and indicators. This report outlines the conceptualisation underpinning the model of multiple deprivation used and describes the indicators and domains that make up the indices

Environmental and social determinants of acute rheumatic fever:a longitudinal cohort study

Acute rheumatic fever (ARF), an auto-immune response to a group A Streptococcus infection and precursor to rheumatic heart disease (RHD), remains endemic in many socio-economically disadvantaged settings. A Global Resolution on ARF and RHD was recently adopted at the 71st World Health Assembly where governments committed to improving efforts to prevent and control ARF and RHD. To inform these efforts, the objectives of this study were to examine associations between childhood ARF in the UK between 1958 and 1969 and a range of environmental and social factors. Of 17 416 children from the nationally representative birth cohort of the National Child Development Study, ARF was reported in 23 children during early childhood (between birth and the 7-year follow-up) and in 29 additional children during middle childhood (between the 7- and 11-year follow-ups). Risk factors associated with ARF in both early and middle childhood were: a large family size; attendance at a private nursery or class; a history of nephritis, kidney or urinary tract infections; and a history of throat or ear infections. Risk factors for ARF in early childhood alone were families with fathers in a professional or semi-professional occupation and families who moved out of their local neighbourhood. Risk factors in late childhood alone included overcrowding and free school meals. These data suggest that prevention strategies in ARF endemic settings may be enhanced by targeting, for example, new members entering a community and children in environments of close contact, such as a nursery or shared bedrooms

The impact of neighbourhood crime on mental health: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Growing evidence indicates that the residential neighbourhood contributes to the complex aetiology of mental disorders. Although local crime and violence, key neighbourhood stressors, may be linked to mental health through direct and indirect pathways, studies are inconclusive. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthetize the evidence on the association between neighbourhood crime and individual-level mental health problems. Method: We searched 11 electronic databases, grey literature and reference lists to identify relevant studies published before September 14, 2020. Studies were included if they reported confounder-adjusted associations between objective or perceived area-level crime and anxiety, depression, psychosis or psychological distress/internalising symptoms in non-clinical samples. Effect measures were first converted into Fisher's z-s, pooled with three-level random-effects meta-analyses, and then transformed into Pearson's correlation coefficients. Univariate and multivariate mixed-effects models were used to explore between-study heterogeneity. Results: We identified 63 studies reporting associations between neighbourhood crime and residents’ mental health. Pooled associations were significant for depression (r = 0.04, 95% CI 0.03–0.06), psychological distress (r = 0.04, 95% CI 0.02–0.06), anxiety (r = 0.05, 95% CI 0.01–0.10), and psychosis (r = 0.04, 95% CI 0.01–0.07). Moderator analysis for depression and psychological distress identified stronger associations with perceived crime measurement and weaker in studies adjusted for area-level deprivation. Importantly, even after accounting for study characteristics, neighbourhood crime remained significantly linked to depression and psychological distress. Findings on anxiety and psychosis were limited due to low number of included studies. Conclusions: Neighbourhood crime is an important contextual predictor of mental health with implications for prevention and policy. Area-based crime interventions targeting the determinants of crime, prevention and service allocation to high crime neighbourhoods may have public mental health benefits. Future research should investigate the causal pathways between crime exposure and mental health, identify vulnerably groups and explore policy opportunities for buffering against the detrimental effect of neighbourhood stressors.Fil: Baranyi, Gergö. University of Edinburgh; Reino UnidoFil: Di Marco, Martín Hernán. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Sociales. Instituto de Investigaciones "Gino Germani"; ArgentinaFil: Russ, Tom C.. University of Edinburgh; Reino UnidoFil: Dibben, Chris. University of Edinburgh; Reino UnidoFil: Pearce, Jamie. University of Edinburgh; Reino Unid

Estimating the incidence, prevalence and true cost of asthma in the UK: secondary analysis of national stand-alone and linked databases in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales-a study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Asthma is now one of the most common long-term conditions in the UK. It is therefore important to develop a comprehensive appreciation of the healthcare and societal costs in order to inform decisions on care provision and planning. We plan to build on our earlier estimates of national prevalence and costs from asthma by filling the data gaps previously identified in relation to healthcare and broadening the field of enquiry to include societal costs. This work will provide the first UK-wide estimates of the costs of asthma. In the context of asthma for the UK and its member countries (ie, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales), we seek to: (1) produce a detailed overview of estimates of incidence, prevalence and healthcare utilisation; (2) estimate health and societal costs; (3) identify any remaining information gaps and explore the feasibility of filling these and (4) provide insights into future research that has the potential to inform changes in policy leading to the provision of more cost-effective care. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Secondary analyses of data from national health surveys, primary care, prescribing, emergency care, hospital, mortality and administrative data sources will be undertaken to estimate prevalence, healthcare utilisation and outcomes from asthma. Data linkages and economic modelling will be undertaken in an attempt to populate data gaps and estimate costs. Separate prevalence and cost estimates will be calculated for each of the UK-member countries and these will then be aggregated to generate UK-wide estimates. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Approvals have been obtained from the NHS Scotland Information Services Division's Privacy Advisory Committee, the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage Collaboration Review System, the NHS South-East Scotland Research Ethics Service and The University of Edinburgh's Centre for Population Health Sciences Research Ethics Committee. We will produce a report for Asthma-UK, submit papers to peer-reviewed journals and construct an interactive map