Differences In Clinical Symptoms Research Articles

How I think about how I feel: Personal beliefs about emotion prospectively predict suicide-related outcomes and depression symptoms

One transdiagnostic process that may be critical to depression and suicidal ideation is beliefs about the nature of one's own emotions, both concurrently and longitudinally. In a sample of community adults (n = 143), we assessed personal emotion beliefs about the degree to which one's own emotions are malleable, unique, and last a long time. There were significant associations between stronger views that one's own emotions were fixed, unique to you, and had a longer duration and higher clinical symptom severity, including higher levels of current suicidal ideation, and less adaptive emotion regulation. Mediation analyses using longitudinal data clarified that the differential engagement in emotion regulation, specifically rumination, represented the link tying specific personal emotion beliefs to clinical symptoms and that, in certain cases, the opposite pathway is also significant – differences in clinical symptoms mediated the relationship between specific personal emotion beliefs and emotion regulation (rumination) longitudinally. Additionally, personal emotion beliefs varied based on depression status, as determined using a semi-structured clinical interview. For example, individuals meeting current criteria for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) held stronger views that their emotions were unique to them compared to individuals with remitted MDD or no history of MDD. The current study's findings highlight the important role of specific personal emotion beliefs in clinical symptoms concurrently and longitudinally and mechanisms in these relationships. These results could guide future research on interventions to promote more adaptive beliefs about emotion to improve clinical outcomes.

Neurocognitive function and delusion severity in schizophrenia spectrum disorders

The role of basic neurocognitive function in delusions is unclear despite the association to difficulties in reasoning and decision-making. We investigated 812 individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) using a broad neuropsychological test battery encompassing motor and mental processing speed, working memory, learning and memory, and executive function. Premorbid and current intellectual function was assessed with NART and WASI. Delusion level and other clinical symptoms were measured with the PANSS and GAF. Hierarchical and k-means cluster analysis using standardized scores showed the presence of two separate clusters where the group with the higher delusion level (n = 291) was characterized by more severe neurocognitive deficits (>1.5 standard deviations below the healthy control mean), higher PANSS scores, lower GAF scores, and lower intelligence levels compared to the cluster with mild impairments (n = 521). We conclude that a higher delusion level is related to neurocognitive deficits across domains. Further, the validity of the two separate clusters was indicated by significant differences in clinical symptoms, everyday function, and intellectual ability. Compared to those with mild delusion levels, SSD patients with higher delusion levels seem particularly disadvantaged, with co-occurring general symptoms and lower daily function, underscoring the need for clinical and psychosocial support programs. A limitation of this study is the cross sectional design. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine the causal relationship between delusions and neurocognitive function.

Clinical characteristics, viral dynamics, and antibody response of monkeypox virus infections among men with and without HIV infection in Guangzhou, China.

Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is spreading globally and nearly half of the infected people were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the effects of HIV infection on the outcomes of MPXV infection is urgently needed. This study aimed to explore the clinical features, viral dynamics, and antibody response to MPXV infections in men who had sex with men (MSM) with and without HIV co-infection. MPXV-infected patients diagnosed by PCR were recruited in this study and were divided into MPXV and MPXV + HIV groups based on whether they were co-infected with HIV. Clinical data and samples were collected during of the hospital stay and follow up interviews. The symptoms and signs, laboratory examinations, viral shedding in various body fluids or swabs, antibody dynamics were tracked and compared between the two groups. A total of 41 MPXV patients were recruited through June 2023 to September 2023 in Guangzhou. The MPXV group and MPXV + HIV group comprised 20 and 21 MSM, respectively. Patients in the two groups exhibited similar clinical characteristics except for pruritus and eschar, both were significantly fewer in MPXV + HIV group than in MPXV only group. Among the 355 clinical samples collected, MPXV DNA was detected in 100% of scabs, 97.4% of skin swabs, and 92.3% of exudate swabs from lesions, while the positive rate was 87.5% from oropharyngeal swabs, 59% from saliva, 51.3% from anal swabs, 50% from feces, 30.6% from urine samples, 37.5% of semen, and 28.2% from sera. Dynamics analysis revealed that viral DNA was undetectable in most patients 20 days after symptom onset. IgM and IgG antibodies to MPXV were detected in all patients with 3-5 days earlier in the MPXV group than in the MPXV + HIV group. This cohort analysis based on a large outbreak among MSM in Guangzhou indicated no obvious differences in clinical symptoms, viral DNA data, but antibody responses were 3-5 days later in mpox patients with HIV infection.

Clinical features of COVID-19-related encephalitis: comparison with the features of herpes virus encephalitis and autoimmune encephalitis

IntroductionIdentifying coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related encephalitis without clear etiological evidence is clinically challenging. The distinctions between this condition and other prevalent encephalitis types remain unknown. Therefore, we aimed to explore the similarities and differences in the clinical characteristics of COVID-19-related encephalitis and other encephalitis types.MethodsAdult patients with encephalitis admitted to the neurology department at Xuanwu Hospital were enrolled and categorized into the following six groups based on the results of metagenomic next-generation sequencing and autoimmune antibody detection in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF): COVID-19-related encephalitis (n = 36), herpes simplex virus type 1 encephalitis (HSV-1 encephalitis; n = 28), human herpesvirus 3 encephalitis (HHV-3 encephalitis; n = 10), NMDAR-antibody encephalitis (n = 18), LGI1-antibody encephalitis (n = 12), and GABAB-antibody encephalitis (n = 8).ResultsThe predominant characteristics of COVID-19-related encephalitis include a low incidence of seizures (38.9%), cognitive defects (30.6%), and meningeal irritation signs (8.3%). Compared with HSV-1 and HHV-3 encephalitis, COVID-19-related encephalitis exhibited lower white blood cell count (2.5 count/mm3), protein (32.2 mg/dL), and immunoglobulin M, G, and A levels (0.09, 3.2, and 0.46 mg/dL, respectively) in the CSF tests. Abnormal imaging findings were present in only 36.1% of COVID-19-related encephalitis cases, mostly showing diffuse inflammation scattered in various parts, which differed from HSV-1 encephalitis. Additionally, COVID-19-related encephalitis exhibited significant differences in clinical symptoms and CSF white blood cell counts compared with NMDAR-antibody encephalitis; however, it showed limited differences compared with LGI1-antibody and GABAB-antibody encephalitis.DiscussionCOVID-19-related encephalitis and herpes virus or autoimmune encephalitis differ clinically. Symptoms and auxiliary examinations can be used as distinguishing tools.

THE IMPACT OF VACCINATION STATUS ON THE CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MEASLES COURSE

Measles is a dangerous and highly contagious viral disease with a tendency to spread rapidly. The incidence of measles is cyclical with outbreaks occurring every 5-6 years and is directly related to the level of vaccination against the disease. Measles can become severe clinical course and have serious, sometimes fatal consequences. The purpose of the study is to compare the clinical course of measles depending on the vaccination status of patients. We analysed medical records of 218 patients aged 18 to 55 years who were inpatients with a diagnosis of measles at the Poltava Regional Clinical Infectious Diseases Hospital. The clinical features of measles were compared based on vaccine status using descriptive statistics methods in accordance with the analysis requirements. Comparison of the clinical course of the disease depending on vaccination status did not reveal a statistically significant difference in clinical symptoms between the groups of vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. However, in the group of unvaccinated patients, a severe course of measles was significantly more often observed compared to those who were vaccinated (p = 0.003). The incidence of complications was studied and found to be lower in vaccinated individuals than in non-immune patients (p = 0.051), specifically pneumonia (p = 0.006). No cases of complications such as measles encephalitis and enterocolitis were recorded among vaccinated individuals. Thus, the course of the disease was characterised by typical clinical signs with a predominance of intoxication syndrome, the appearance of a typical rash, its stages, the presence of catarrhal and, less often, intestinal syndromes. It was found that vaccinated individuals had significantly less frequent severe measles, and the incidence of complications, including pneumonia, was was significantly lower than in unvaccinated patients.

Clinical Characterization of Veterans With Alzheimer Disease by Disease Severity in the United States.

We aimed to examine the clinical characteristics of US veterans who underwent neurocognitive test score-based assessments of Alzheimer disease (AD) stage in the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System (VAHS). Test dates for specific stages of AD were referenced as index dates to study behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) and other patient characteristics related to utilization/work-up and time to death. We identified veterans with AD and neurocognitive evaluations using the VAHS Electronic Health Record (EHR). Anxiety and sleep disorders/disturbances were the most documented BPSDs across all AD severity stages. Magnetic resonance imaging, neurology and psychiatry consultations, and neuropsychiatric evaluations were slightly higher in veterans with mild AD than in those at later stages. The overall average time to death from the first AD severity record was 5 years for mild and 4 years for moderate/severe AD. We found differences in clinical symptoms, healthcare utilization, and survival among the mild, moderate, and severe stages of AD. These differences are limited by the low documentation of BPSDs among veterans with test score-based AD stages. These data support the hypothesis that our cohorts represent coherent subgroups of patients with AD based on disease severity.

Prevalence of Powassan Virus Seropositivity Among People with History of Lyme Disease and Non-Lyme Community Controls in the Northeastern United States.

Introduction: Lyme disease (LD) affects ∼476,000 people each year in the United States. Symptoms are variable and include rash and flu-like symptoms. Reasons for the wide variation in disease outcomes are unknown. Powassan virus (POWV) is a tick-borne flavivirus that causes disease ranging from asymptomatic infection to encephalitis, neurologic damage, and death. POWV and LD geographic case distributions overlap, with Ixodes species ticks as the common vectors. Clinical ramifications of coinfection or sequential infection are unknown. Objectives: This study's primary objective was to determine the prevalence of POWV-reactive antibodies in sera samples collected from previously studied cohorts of individuals with self-reported LD history residing in the Northeastern United States. As a secondary objective, we studied clinical differences between people with self-reported LD history and low versus high POWV antibody levels. Methods: We used an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to quantify IgG directed at the POWV envelope (E) protein domain III in 538 samples from individuals with self-reported LD history and 16 community controls. The samples were also tested with an ELISA assay to quantify IgG directed at the POWV NS1 protein. Results: The percentage of individuals with LD history and possible evidence of POWV exposure varied depending on the assay utilized. We found no significant difference in clinical symptoms between those with low or high POWV IgG levels in the in-house assay. Congruence of the EDIII and NS1 assays was low with only 12% of those positive in the in-house EDIII ELISA testing positive in the POWV NS1 ELISA. Conclusions: The results highlight the difficulty in flavivirus diagnostic testing, particularly in the retrospective detection of flavivirus exposure. The findings suggest that a prospective study with symptomatic patients using approved clinical testing is necessary to address the incidence and clinical implications of LD and POWV co-infection or sequential infection.

Smoking affects symptom improvement in schizophrenia: a prospective longitudinal study of male patients with first-episode schizophrenia

Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) smoke up to three times more than general people. However, there are conflicting results regarding the relationship between tobacco smoke and clinical symptom severity in SCZ. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of smoking on clinical symptoms after antipsychotic treatment in a 12-week cohort study after controlling for confounding factors. One hundred and forty-five male patients with drug-naïve first-episode (DNFE) SCZ received antipsychotic monotherapy for 12 weeks. Symptom severity was assessed at baseline and at week 12 by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). We found no differences in clinical symptoms among male smokers with SCZ compared with male nonsmokers. However, male smokers showed greater improvement in negative symptoms after 12 weeks of treatment, controlling for age, years of education, onset age, and baseline body mass index (BMI). Our study showed that after 12 weeks of treatment with antipsychotics, male smokers showed greater improvement in negative symptoms than male nonsmokers.

Symptom and comorbidity burden in hypertensive patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is an important but frequently overlooked risk factor for hypertension (HTN). The prevalence of hypertension is high in patients with OSA, but the differences in clinical symptoms and comorbidities between patients with OSA with hypertension and those with normal blood pressure have not been fully defined. This study retrospectively analyzed OSA patients diagnosed for the first time in Lihuili Hospital Affiliated to Ningbo University from 2016 to 2020. Patients were divided into an OSA group with hypertension and an OSA group without hypertension. The sociodemographic information, clinical symptoms, comorbidities, and polysomnography results of the two groups were compared. The independent risk factors associated with hypertension in patients with OSA were explored. A total of 1108 patients with OSA initially diagnosed were included in the study, including 387 with hypertension and 721 without. Compared with OSA patients without hypertension, OSA patients with hypertension were older; had a higher body mass index (BMI) and Epworth sleepiness score (ESS); a higher incidence of nocturia; and a higher proportion of diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease, and cerebrovascular disease. Multivariate analysis showed age (odds ratio [OR]:1.06, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.04-1.08), BMI (OR:1.17, 95% CI:1.11-1.23), ESS score (OR:0.97, 95%CI: 0.94-1.00) and nocturia symptoms (OR:1.64, 95% CI:1.19-2.27) was independently associated with hypertension in OSA patients, and comorbid diabetes (OR: 3.86, 95% CI: 2.31-6.45), coronary heart disease (OR: 1.90, 95% CI:1.15-3.16), and ischemic stroke (OR: 3.69,95% CI:1.31-10.40) was independently associated with hypertension in OSA patients. Compared to OSA patients with normal blood pressure, OSA patients with hypertension had more significant daytime sleepiness, more frequent nocturnal urination, and a higher risk of diabetes, coronary heart disease, and cerebrovascular disease.

Overexpression of Aurora Kinase B Is Correlated with Diagnosis and Poor Prognosis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Aurora kinase B (AURKB) overexpression promotes tumor initiation and development by participating in the cell cycle. In this study, we focused on the mechanism of AURKB in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression and on AURKB's value as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in HCC. We used data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) to analyze AURKB expression in HCC. We found that the expression levels of AURKB in HCC samples were higher than those in the corresponding control group. R packages were used to analyze RNA sequencing data to identify AURKB-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs), and these genes were found to be significantly enriched during the cell cycle. The biological function of AURKB was verified, and the results showed that cell proliferation was slowed down and cells were arrested in the G2/M phase when AURKB was knocked down. AURKB overexpression resulted in significant differences in clinical symptoms, such as the clinical T stage and pathological stage. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, Cox regression analysis, and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis suggested that AURKB overexpression has good diagnostic and prognostic potential in HCC. Therefore, AURKB may be used as a potential target for the diagnosis and cure of HCC.

Evaluation of probiotics in the treatment of hypothyroidism in early pregnancy combined with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth.

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between hypothyroidism in early pregnancy and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) and the effect of probiotics. Patients with hypothyroidism in early pregnancy and normal pregnant women during the same period were included in the methane-hydrogen breath test to compare the incidence of SIBO, smoothed curve fit, and differences in clinical symptoms. For those who combined with SIBO, the rate of clinical symptom conversion, thyroid hormones, and changes in associated inflammatory indexes were compared after 21 days of treatment with probiotics on top of conventional levothyroxine sodium tablets. The results are as follows: (1) The incidence of combined SIBO in patients with hypothyroidism in pregnancy was 56.0%, significantly higher than the 28.0% of normal pregnant women during the same period. (2) The highest value of hydrogen plus methane gas in 90 min in pregnancy hypothyroid patients showed a significant negative correlation with FT4 (p < .001, SD = 0.169). (3) Abdominal distension symptoms were significantly increased in both groups after combined SIBO (p = .036, p = .025), and the conversion rate after treatment was 69.2% and 75.0%, respectively. (4) In hypothyroidism, pregnancy combined with SIBO, TSH, and CRP was higher before treatment (p = .001, p = .012) and decreased significantly after treatment (p = .001, p = .008). Hypothyroidism in early pregnancy is associated with SIBO, and probiotic treatment is significantly effective.

Clinical response to withdrawal of Inhaled Corticosteroids in stable mild to moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in a tertiary hospital of central Nepal

Introduction: The mainstay treatment according to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease 2023 guidelines for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is combination of long acting bronchodilators with addition of inhaled corticosteroids only in patients with increased exacerbations and an eosinophil count of ≥ 300 cells/μL. Despite the recommendations, inhaled corticosteroids are most commonly overprescribed. So, this study aims to follow patients with mild to moderate cases of this disease who are currently on inhaled corticosteroids combination therapy for clinical efficacy after its withdrawal. Methods: The study was a prospective interventional study conducted at Dhulikhel Hospital that followed individuals with mild to moderate COPD for eight weeks after a sudden ICS withdrawal. Forced Expiratory Volume in first second, modified Medical Research Council grading, COPD Assessment Tool score and number of exacerbations were assessed with follow-up either by telephone or face to face. Results: Total of 33 patients were enrolled in the study with mean age 68.9 years and standard deviation 9.3 years. Paired t-test analysis showed no significant mean difference in Forced Expiratory Volume in first second and COPD Assessment Tool values before and eight weeks after the withdrawal of Inhaled Corticosteroids. Conclusions: Our study supported the conclusion of previous larger studies that withdrawing ICS in stable mild to moderate COPD patients makes no difference in clinical symptoms and spirometry.

Coexistence of Late Diagnosed Pericardial and Diaphragmatic Ruptures Caused by Rib Fracture: Case Report

INTRODUCTION: While rib fractures due to blunt traumas are common, pericardial and diaphragmatic injuries caused by rib fractures are rarely seen. Diagnosis is challenging due to the difference in clinical symptoms which may have severe clinical consequences. &#x0D; CASE: A 58-year-old female patient who had a traffic accident was referred to our centre due to left pericardial effusion while being followed up for tibial fracture. Left diaphragmatic rupture was detected in the radiographs taken. Intraoperative pericardial rupture was observed in the operated patient. The defects were repaired primarily and the patient was discharged in good health. &#x0D; CONCLUSION: Although the diagnosis is difficult In multitraumas including thoracic trauma, especially in cases with multiple rib fractures, one should be more attentive considering the possibility of diaphragmic and pericardial ruptures.

Similarity and difference in large-scale functional network alternations between behavioral addictions and substance use disorder: a comparative meta-analysis.

Behavioral addiction (BA) and substance use disorder (SUD) share similarities and differences in clinical symptoms, cognitive functions, and behavioral attributes. However, little is known about whether and how functional networks in the human brain manifest commonalities and differences between BA and SUD. Voxel-wise meta-analyses of resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC) were conducted in BA and SUD separately, followed by quantitative conjunction analyses to identify the common and distinct alterations across both the BA and SUD groups. A total of 92 datasets with 2444 addicted patients and 2712 healthy controls (HCs) were eligible for the meta-analysis. Our findings demonstrated that BA and SUD exhibited common alterations in rs-FC between frontoparietal network (FPN) and other high-level neurocognitive networks (i.e. default mode network (DMN), affective network (AN), and salience network (SN)) as well as hyperconnectivity between SN seeds and the Rolandic operculum in SSN. In addition, compared with BA, SUD exhibited several distinct within- and between-network rs-FC alterations mainly involved in the DMN and FPN. Further, altered within- and between-network rs-FC showed significant association with clinical characteristics such as the severity of addiction in BA and duration of substance usage in SUD. The common rs-FC alterations in BA and SUD exhibited the relationship with consistent aberrant behaviors in both addiction groups, such as impaired inhibition control and salience attribution. By contrast, the distinct rs-FC alterations might suggest specific substance effects on the brain neural transmitter systems in SUD.

Evaluation of the clinical manifestations of COVID-19 in patients with aplastic anemia undergoing immunosuppressive therapy: a prospective cohort study (NICHE)

Objective: To investigate the clinical features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in patients with aplastic anemia (AA) undergoing immunosuppressive therapy (IST) . Methods: In this prospective cohort study, we collected the demographic and clinical data of patients with AA and COVID-19 from December 1, 2022, to January 31, 2023. We described the clinical features of COVID-19 among patients with AA and evaluated the effects of IST on the signs and severity of COVID-19. Results: A total of 170 patients with AA and COVID-19 were included. The common early symptoms, including fever, dizziness or headache, muscle or body aches, and sore throat, disappeared within 1-2 weeks. Approximately 25% of the patients had persistent fatigue within 2 weeks. Many patients experienced cough after an initial 1-3 days of infection, which lasted for more than 2 weeks. There were no differences in the duration of total fever episodes and maximum body temperature when patients were stratified according to whether or not they underwent IST, by IST duration, or by use of anti-lymphocyte globulin (ALG) (P>0.05). No differences were observed in the occurrence of symptoms in either the early or recovery stages when patients with AA were stratified according to whether or not they underwent IST, or by IST duration (P>0.05). However, patients who received ALG had fewer fever episodes within 1 week after infection (P=0.035) and more sore throat episodes within 2 weeks after infection (P=0.015). There were no other significant differences in clinical symptoms between patients who did and patients who did not receive ALG (P>0.05) . Conclusion: The majority of patients with AA and COVID-19 recovered within 2 weeks of noticing symptoms when treated with IST.

EFFUSIVE CONSTRICTIVE PERICARDITIS: HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE WITH CARDIAC TAMPONADE

Constrictive-effusive pericarditis (ECP) is a rare syndrome but is gaining increasing attention in the classification of pericardial diseases. The aim of this research is to identify the differences in clinical symptoms between constrictive pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade, such as chest pain, shortness of breath, blood pressure, heart rate, and other symptoms. We report the case of a 67-year-old man who had exertional dyspnea, lack of energy, fatigue, and pleuritic chest pain for the past 6 months. X-rays showed pericardial effusion and pericardial thickening with calcification indicating constrictive pericarditis. Echocardiographic examination also revealed similar findings. The patient then underwent pericardiectomy, during which the pericardial effusion was evacuated. However, after this procedure, cardiac contractions were still limited, underlying the constrictive process. This case illustrates the complexity in differentiating constrictive pericarditis from cardiac tamponade and the importance of accurate diagnosis in the management of this pericardial disease. In this case report, we discuss the clinical findings, diagnostic measures, and management implications in a patient with overt constrictive pericarditis.

CHARACTERISTICS AND RESULTS OF TREATMENT OF HYPERTRIGLYCERIDEMIA-INDUCED ACUTE PANCREATITIS AT CAN THO UNIVERSITY OF MEDICINE AND PHARMACY HOSPITAL

Background: After alcohol and gallstones, hypertriglyceridemia is the third most common cause of acute pancreatitis (AP). Hypertriglyceridemia is triglyceridemia concentration &gt;150mg/dl (1.7mmol/l). Severe hypertriglyceridemia &gt;1000mg/dl (11.3 mmol/l) is considered the cause of AP. Objectives: To compare some clinical and subclinical features and results of treatment of AP with two levels of hypertriglyceridemia &lt;11.3mmol/l and &gt;I1.3mmol/l at the Department of General Internal Medicine in Can Tho University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital. Materials and methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study of 33 patients who were admitted to the hospital with hypertriglyceridemia-induced AP. Results: Clinical symptoms and some laboratory tests did not differ between the two groups. Statistically significant differences occurred in the 2 groups as blood CRP value with p=0.009, low sodium levels 134.22±4.73mmol/l and high BMI levels 26.63±5.15kg/m2 in the group with TG ≥ 11.3 mmol/l. The rate of amylase increased 3 times in the high-TG group was 85.2%. Both groups had elevated glucose and LDH levels respectively, with 10.56±5.13 mmol/l and 310.64±206.01U/L. Ultrasound diagnosis of acute pancreatitis reached 100%, CTSI and BISAP index were high in the group with TG ≥11.3mmol/l. The days of using insulin and staying in the hospital were significantly different, with p=0.004 and p=0.014. Conclusions: Comparing the 2 groups of acute pancreatitis with blood TG &lt;11.3mmol/l and ≥11.3mmol/l, there was no difference in clinical symptoms. Mean values of sodium, BMI and blood CRP (p=0.009) were different between the two groups of acute pancreatitis. Treatment results in days of using insulin and staying in the hospital had statistically significant differences between the 2 groups.

Torture survivors who engage in advocacy in the U.S.: Review, characteristics and policy implications.

Despite facing many challenges, some survivors of torture seeking asylum in the U.S. have courageously engaged in advocacy efforts to bring attention to human rights issues relevant to their own personal experiences. This study sought to add to our understanding of the characteristics of survivors who engage in advocacy in comparison with those who do not. We analyzed demographic, social, and psychological quantitative data collected from survivors (n=730) connected to a support agency that regularly facilitates advocacy events using between-groups t-tests and regression analyses. Based on theory, clinical insights, and past research around survivor advocacy we predicted that participation in advocacy would be associated with and predicted by factors indicating lower levels of trauma-related symptoms and higher social power and stability. We found no significant difference in clinical symptoms or most demographic or social characteristics between advocacy participants (n=75) and non-participants. However, advocacy participants had spent significantly more time in the U.S. and were less likely to have had employment authorization at time of service intake, and were more likely to be male, compared to non-participants. Without controlling for other demographic factors, higher spirituality and not having been detained at entry to the U.S. also predicted advocacy participation. Our findings suggest that, despite some patterns of difference indicating greater stability and access to power (e.g., being male, having more time in the U.S., more daytime availability, a strong sense of spirituality, and less experience of detention in the U.S.), survivor-advocates are diverse and not consistently differentiated from non-advocates by specific characteristics. Thus, we find no evidence to support using psychological or demographic indicators as a "screening" criterion for selecting advocacy candidates. We contend that it is important to adopt a gender-inclusive approach in providing wider opportunities that help more survivors overcome potential (racial, socio-economic, mental health, etc.) barriers to engagement, and to pay close attention to who is being left out of advocacy opportunities.

Time perception reflects individual differences in motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease

Decreasing dopaminergic function is at the core of Parkinson's disease (PD) motor symptoms and changes in dopaminergic action are associated with many comorbid non-motor symptoms in PD. Notably, dopaminergic signaling in the striatum has been shown to play a critical role in the perception of time. We hypothesize that patients with PD perceive time differently and in accordance with their specific comorbid non-motor symptoms and clinical state. This means that individual differences in clinical symptoms may be reflected in individual differences in timing behavior. To test this hypothesis, we recruited patients with PD and compared individual differences in patients' clinical state with their ability to judge intervals of time ranging from 500 ms to 1100 ms while on and off their prescribed dopaminergic medications. We show that medication state (on vs. off medications) did not affect timing behavior, but individual differences in timing behavior are able to predict individual differences in comorbid non-motor symptoms, duration of PD diagnosis, and prescribed dopaminergic medications. We show that comorbid impulse control disorder is associated with temporal overestimation; depression is associated with decreased temporal accuracy; and increased PD duration and prescribed levodopa monotherapy are associated with reduced temporal precision and accuracy. Observed differences in time perception are consistent with hypothesized dopaminergic mechanisms thought to underlie the respective motor and non-motor symptoms in PD. In future work, time perception tasks may augment clinical diagnosis strategies, or help disentangle the neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying PD motor and non-motor symptom etiology.

Altered Relationship between Functional Connectivity and Fiber-Bundle Structure in High-Functioning Male Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by abnormalities in structure and function of the brain. However, how ASD affects the relationship between fiber-bundle microstructures and functional connectivity (FC) remains unclear. Here, we analyzed structural and functional images of 26 high-functioning adult males with ASD, alongside 26 age-, gender-, and full-scale IQ-matched typically developing controls (TDCs) from the BNI dataset in the ABIDE database. We utilized fixel-based analysis to extract microstructural information from fiber tracts, which was then used to predict FC using a multilinear model. Our results revealed that the structure-function relationships in both ASD and TDC cohorts were strongly aligned in the primary cortex but decoupled in the high-order cortex, and the ASD patients exhibited reduced structure-function relationships throughout the cortex compared to the TDCs. Furthermore, we observed that the disrupted relationships in ASD were primarily driven by alterations in FC rather than fiber-bundle microstructures. The structure-function relationships in the left superior parietal cortex, right precentral and inferior temporal cortices, and bilateral insula could predict individual differences in clinical symptoms of ASD patients. These findings underscore the significance of altered relationships between fiber-bundle microstructures and FC in the etiology of ASD.