Experimental Provocation Research Articles

Evidence that personalized racial stress procedures elicit a stress response and increases alcohol craving among Black adults with alcohol use disorder: A laboratory pilot study

BackgroundThe objective of this study was to pilot test newly developed personalized imagery procedures to investigate the impact of racial stress on alcohol craving and emotional and physiological response in Black adults with alcohol use disorder (AUD). MethodsTwenty Black adults (45% women, meanage=37.05, SDage=13.19) with AUD participated in two sessions. In the first, participants described a stressful personal event involving their race and a neutral relaxing situation and these descriptions were used to develop scripts for the subsequent laboratory exposure session. The second session was an experimental provocation session in which participants reported on alcohol craving and emotional response before and after imagined exposure to stress and neutral conditions using personalized racial stress and neutral/relaxing scripts. Conditions were randomized and counterbalanced across subjects, and heart rate and blood pressure were assessed before and after each image. ResultsAlcohol craving and negative emotions significantly increased, and positive emotions decreased following the racial stress script relative to the neutral/relaxing script. We found no differences in physiological response. Exploratory analyses found that increase in alcohol craving was correlated with racial identity exploration but not racial identity commitment, men reported greater reductions in anger than women in the neutral condition only, and income was correlated with fear in the racial stress condition only. ConclusionsThis study provides evidence that personalized racial stress procedures elicit a stress response and increases alcohol craving and emotional response but not physiological response among Black adults with AUD. These findings warrant replication in a larger study.

Psychological Acceptance of Sustainable Architecture in Lithuania: A Qualitative Study

The concept of sustainable development has been applied to the field of architecture since the end of the 20th century and has become an official paradigm for planning, design, and construction policies. However, a lot of researchers notice the lack of attention to cultural, place-based, and aesthetic aspects in the field of sustainable architecture. Moreover, the efforts to implement sustainability ideas sometimes lead to very unusual designs that can even be provocative experiments, and may sometimes lead to conflicting assessments in the general public. This study investigates the architectural language of sustainable design and how the aesthetics of sustainable architecture are distinguished and psychologically accepted by people. An online sociological survey was prepared and conducted, the results of which were analysed by general statistical calculations. The study analysed respondents' preferences towards sustainability in architecture, opinion towards sustainable architecture trends, and their features. The results of the study are illustrated by comparing opinion between professionals in the field of architecture and general public.

Trust Land

Abstract In the wake of civil rights struggles, a rural area in Southwest Georgia became a global stage for rehearsing some of the world's most provocative experiments with community and land tenure. An interracial intentional community, a Nation of Islam farm, the first community land trust, and a wave of cooperative experiments moving through the South in the late 1960s and 1970s found fertile ground around Albany, Georgia. Reflecting solidarity between the civil rights, Pan-African, Nonaligned, and Tricontinental movements, associations with prominent international activists also linked this area in the US South to decolonizing efforts in the Global South just prior to a neoliberal turn. Within these networks, victims of white supremacy modeled approaches to survival that are now broadly relevant to today's social and climate justice work. The story offers spatial tools and surprising histories to ground and energize a fresh wave of activism that looks to collective forms of urban and rural landholding to address racism, whiteness, inequality, reparations, and climate change.

Comment on Wardzinski et al. Mobile Phone Radiation Deflects Brain Energy Homeostasis and Prompts Human Food Ingestion. Nutrients 2022, 14, 339.

Wardzinski and colleagues present the findings of an experimental provocation study, in which the effect of a 25 min exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted by a mobile phone on food consumption is studied [...].

Measurement Invariance and Item Response Theory Analysis of the Taylor Aggression Paradigm.

The Taylor Aggression Paradigm (TAP) is a widely used laboratory aggression task, yet item response theory analyses of this task are nonexistent. To estimate these aspects of the TAP, we combined data from nine laboratory studies that employed the 25-trial version of the TAP (combined N = 1,856). One- and four-factor solutions for the TAP data exhibited evidence of measurement invariance across gender (men vs. women) and experimental provocation (negative vs. positive social feedback), as well as negligible instances of differential item functioning. As such, psychometric properties of the TAP were invariant across binary representations of gender and experimental provocation. Furthermore, trials following low and high provocation were the least informative and those following moderate provocation were the most informative. Scoring approaches to the TAP may benefit from giving greater weight to trials following moderate provocation. Overall, we find great utility in applying item response theory approaches to behavioral laboratory tasks.

Immunology

Folklore tells us that some basic immunology may have been understood long before Jenner's discovery that intentionally infecting people with cowpox made them immune to smallpox. Some Chinese, Indian, and African cultures deliberately and successfully infected their people in order to protect them. While these techniques apparently worked, nobody really knew why. But this book provides some answers. Author Daniel Davis, a riveting storyteller, declares, “In all of human biology, the process that's been studied the most, details excavated the deepest, is the body's response to a cut or an infection.”There is much to be learned and enjoyed in this book. The reader will encounter thought-provoking descriptions of historical research leading to an understanding of the mechanisms of the immune system. George Bernard Shaw once noted that “science can never solve one problem without raising ten more problems.” This grand tale of immunology supports Shaw's quote as it traces many paths of research that led to a clearer understanding of the immune system, often showing conflicting ideas and clashes between scientists seeking to identify the molecules that trigger immune reactions in the body. Descriptions of the step-by-step techniques used in provocative experiments follow the thoughts of scientists as they ask questions and seek answers, sometimes reaching dead ends, other times reaching new ideas, and feeling excitement from these accomplishments, despite often facing skepticism from other scientists.When people think about human body systems, most think of the nervous, cardiovascular, respiratory, and several other systems, without thinking of the immune system. But there is so much to be learned about this vital system. This book's stories include the disease-fighting genetic legacy shared by insects and humans; the importance of dendritic cells in immune responses; the significant roles of pattern-recognition receptors, T cells, B cells, interferon, cytokines, hormones, hybridomas, monoclonal antibodies, metabolites, and genetic engineering; the London research carried out in a building that had appeared as a psychiatric hospital in the motion picture Batman Begins; the reasons why one type of virus can block the growth of another virus; the effects of fever on the immune system; how the immune system connects to circadian rhythms; the ways that aging affects the immune system; why vaccinations are more effective when given at a particular time of day; and the ways that the immune system is a factor in space flight. Explanations of how virus strains are selected for each year's influenza vaccines and why influenza is much worse for some people than for others are also featured. Not surprisingly, it seems that the immune system works best if we get lots of sleep, avoid stress, and stay young.Though the immune system usually protects us, it sometimes attacks healthy cells. This can result in autoimmune conditions. Over 50 of these conditions are known, among which are diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. This detailed account reveals an intense amount of research that includes the importance of the gut microbiome to autoimmunity. An interesting aside also describes a connection to the Manhattan Project.Immunotherapy is now being intensively studied as a way of fighting cancer. Much has already been accomplished, and some people with late-stage melanoma have survived for two to 10 years beyond expectations. While there is still no cure for cancer, research involving the immune system shows great promise for someday leading to a cure.The book is not without touches of humor, including the scientist who, like Snow White, enjoyed whistling while he worked, though his preference was for whistling opera music. Enjoy the story of the invisible gorilla. Meet the scientist who was a Playboy bunny and later named her dog as the coauthor of a research paper published in a prominent scientific journal.Scientist Albert Szent-Györgyi once noted that the trick is “to see what everybody else has seen, but to think what nobody else has thought.” Readers will find this book, which includes over 50 pages of notes documenting text information, to be fascinating, entertaining, and superbly well written. It paints a profound picture of the intense assemblage of inquiry, reflection, experimentation, cooperation, creativity, repetition, revision, and conclusion that are vital aspects of new scientific discoveries. The book would be a valuable resource for college-level biology instructors as well as an asset for students in an immunology class.

Intravenous Endothelin-1 Infusion Does Not Induce Aura or Headache in Migraine Patients With Aura.

To investigate whether intravenously infused provokes migraine aura and migraine headache in migraine patients with aura. Migraine with aura has been associated with endothelial dysfunction and increased stroke risk. The initiating mechanism of migraine aura symptoms is not known. Experimental provocation of migraine headache using vasoactive peptides has provided tremendous advances in the understanding of migraine pathophysiology but substances that can induce migraine aura have not been identified. Endothelin-1 (ET-1), an endogenous, potent vasoconstrictor peptide released from the vascular endothelium, has been proposed to trigger migraine aura. This hypothesis is based on reports of increased plasma ET-1 levels early during the migraine attacks and the observation that ET-1 applied to the cortical surface potently induces the cortical spreading depolarization, the underlying electrophysiological phenomenon of migraine aura, in animals. Further, endothelial damage due to, for example, carotid puncture and vascular pathology is known to trigger aura episodes. We investigated whether intravascular ET-1 would provoke migraine aura in patients. Using a two-way crossover, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind design, we infused high-dose (8ng/kg/minutes for 20minutes) intravenous ET-1 in patients with migraine with typical aura. The primary end-point was the difference in incidence of migraine aura between ET-1 and placebo. Experiments were carried out at a public tertiary headache center (Danish Headache Center, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Denmark). Fourteen patients received intravenous ET-1. No patients reported migraine aura symptoms or migraine headache during or up to 24hours following the ET-1 infusion. Four patients reported mild to moderate headache only on the ET-1 day, 3 patients reported moderate headache on the placebo day, and 1 patient reported mild headache on both days. No serious adverse events occurred during or after infusion. Provocation of migraine aura by procedures or conditions involving vascular irritation is unlikely to be mediated by ET-1.

Beyond the aggregate score: Using multilevel modeling to examine trajectories of laboratory-measured aggression.

Aggression is often measured in the laboratory as an iterative "tit-for-tat" sequence, in which two aggressors repeatedly inflict retaliatory harm upon each other. Aggression researchers typically quantify aggression by aggregating across participants' aggressive behavior on such iterative encounters. However, this "aggregate approach" cannot capture trajectories of aggression across the iterative encounters and needlessly eliminates rich information in the form of within-participant variability. As an alternative approach, I used multilevel modeling (MLM) to examine the slope of aggression across the 25-trial Taylor Aggression Paradigm as a function of trait physical aggression and experimental provocation. Across two preregistered studies (combined N = 392), participants exhibited a modest decline in aggression. This decline reflected a reciprocal strategy, in which participants responded to an initially-provocative opponent with greater aggression that then decreased over time to match their opponent's declining levels of aggression. Against predictions, trait physical aggression and experimental provocation did not affect participants' overall trajectories of aggression. Yet, exploratory analyses suggested that the participants' tendency to reciprocate their opponent's aggression with more aggression was greater at higher levels of trait physical aggression and attenuated among participants who had already been experimentally provoked by their opponent. These findings (a) illustrate several advantages of an MLM approach as compared with an aggregate approach to iterative laboratory aggression paradigms; (b) demonstrate that the magnifying effects of trait aggression and experimental provocation on laboratory aggression are stable over brief time-frames; and (c) suggest that modeling the opponent's behavior on such tasks reveals important information.

Comment on " In Vivo [18F]GE-179 Brain Signal Does Not Show NMDA-Specific Modulation with Drug Challenges in Rodents and Nonhuman Primates".

Schoenberger and colleagues ( Schoenberger et al. ( 2018 ) ACS Chem. Neurosci. 9 , 298 - 305 ) recently reported attempts to demonstrate specific binding of the positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracer, [18F]GE-179, to NMDA receptors in both rats and Rhesus macaques. GE-179 did not work as expected in animal models; however, we disagree with the authors' conclusion that "the [18F]GE-179 signal seems to be largely nonspecific". It is extremely challenging to demonstrate specific binding for the use-dependent NMDA receptor intrachannel ligands such as [18F]GE-179 in animals via traditional blocking, due to its low availability of target sites ( Bmax'). Schoenberger and colleagues anesthetized rats and Rhesus monkeys using isoflurane, which has an inhibitory effect on NMDA receptor function and thus would be expected to further reduce the Bmax'. The extent of glutamate release achieved in the provocation experiments is uncertain, as is whether a significant increase in NMDA receptor channel opening can be expected under anesthesia. Prior data suggest that the uptake of disubstituted arylguanidine-based ligands such as GE-179 can be reduced by phencyclidine binding site antagonists, if injection is performed in the absence of ketamine and isoflurane anesthesia, e.g., with GE-179's antecedent, CNS 5161 ( Biegon et al. ( 2007 ) Synapse 61 , 577 - 586 ), and with GMOM ( van der Doef et al. ( 2016 ) J. Cereb. Blood Flow Metab. 36 , 1111 - 1121 ). However, the extent of nonspecific uptake remains uncertain.

Validating a Standardized Approach to the Taylor Aggression Paradigm

The Taylor Aggression Paradigm (TAP) is a frequently used laboratory measure of aggression. However, the flexibility inherent in its implementation and analysis can undermine its validity. To test whether the TAP is a valid aggression measure irrespective of this flexibility, we conducted two preregistered studies (Study 1 n = 177, Study 2 n = 167) of a standardized version of the TAP. Across both studies, TAP scores showed agreement with other laboratory aggression measures, were magnified by an experimental provocation manipulation, and were associated with traits typically linked to aggressive behavior. Mixed evidence was found for the external and discriminant validity of the task. Individual responses largely loaded onto a single component, suggesting that the aggregate scoring approach accurately represents the underlying data structure. These results provide preliminary support for the internal validity of this TAP approach and highlight the utility of preregistration in psychometric research.

CGRP in Human Models of Migraine.

Over the past three decades, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) has emerged as a key molecule. Provocation experiments have demonstrated that intravenous CGRP infusion induces migraine-like attacks in migraine with and without aura patients. In addition, these studies have revealed a heterogeneous CGRP response, i.e., some migraine patients develop migraine-like attacks after CGRP infusion, while others do not. The role of CGRP in human migraine models has pointed to three potential sites of CGRP-induced migraine: (1) vasodilation via cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and possibly cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP); (2) activation of trigeminal sensory afferents, and (3) modulation of deep brain structures. In the future, refined human experimental studies will continue to unveil the role of CGRP in migraine pathogenesis.

Mapping Compulsivity in the DSM-5 Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders: Cognitive Domains, Neural Circuitry, and Treatment.

Compulsions are repetitive, stereotyped thoughts and behaviors designed to reduce harm. Growing evidence suggests that the neurocognitive mechanisms mediating behavioral inhibition (motor inhibition, cognitive inflexibility) reversal learning and habit formation (shift from goal-directed to habitual responding) contribute toward compulsive activity in a broad range of disorders. In obsessive compulsive disorder, distributed network perturbation appears focused around the prefrontal cortex, caudate, putamen, and associated neuro-circuitry. Obsessive compulsive disorder-related attentional set-shifting deficits correlated with reduced resting state functional connectivity between the dorsal caudate and the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex on neuroimaging. In contrast, experimental provocation of obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms reduced neural activation in brain regions implicated in goal-directed behavioral control (ventromedial prefrontal cortex, caudate) with concordant increased activation in regions implicated in habit learning (presupplementary motor area, putamen). The ventromedial prefrontal cortex plays a multifaceted role, integrating affective evaluative processes, flexible behavior, and fear learning. Findings from a neuroimaging study of Pavlovian fear reversal, in which obsessive compulsive disorder patients failed to flexibly update fear responses despite normal initial fear conditioning, suggest there is an absence of ventromedial prefrontal cortex safety signaling in obsessive compulsive disorder, which potentially undermines explicit contingency knowledge and may help to explain the link between cognitive inflexibility, fear, and anxiety processing in compulsive disorders such as obsessive compulsive disorder.

CGRP in human models of primary headaches

Objective To review the role of CGRP in human models of primary headaches and to discuss methodological aspects and future directions. Discussion Provocation experiments demonstrated a heterogeneous CGRP migraine response in migraine patients. Conflicting CGRP plasma results in the provocation experiments are likely due to assay variation; therefore, proper validation and standardization of an assay is needed. To what extent CGRP is involved in tension-type headache and cluster headache is unknown. Conclusion Human models of primary headaches have elucidated the role of CGRP in headache pathophysiology and sparked great interest in developing new treatment strategies using CGRP antagonists and antibodies. Future studies applying more refined human experimental models should identify biomarkers of CGRP-induced primary headache and reveal whether CGRP provocation experiments could be used to predict efficacy of CGRP antagonists in migraine patients.

Effects of personalised exposure on self-rated electromagnetic hypersensitivity and sensibility – A double-blind randomised controlled trial

BackgroundPrevious provocation experiments with persons reporting electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS) have been criticised because EHS persons were obliged to travel to study locations (seen as stressful), and that they were unable to select the type of signal they reported reacting to. In our study we used mobile exposure units that allow double-blind exposure conditions with personalised exposure settings (signal type, strength, duration) at home. Our aim was to evaluate whether subjects were able to identify exposure conditions, and to assess if providing feedback on personal test results altered the level of self-reported EHS. MethodsWe used double-blind randomised controlled exposure testing with questionnaires at baseline, immediately before and after testing, and at two and four months post testing. Participants were eligible if they reported sensing either radiofrequency or extremely low frequency fields within minutes of exposure. Participants were visited at home or another location where they felt comfortable to undergo testing. Before double-blind testing, we verified together with participants in an unblinded exposure session that the exposure settings were selected were ones that the participant responded to. Double-blind testing consisted of a series of 10 exposure and sham exposures in random sequence, feedback on test results was provided directly after testing. Results42 persons participated, mean age was 55years (range 29–78), 76% were women. During double-blind testing, no participant was able to correctly identify when they were being exposed better than chance. There were no statistically significant differences in the self-reported level of EHS at follow-up compared to baseline, but during follow-up participants reported reduced certainty in reacting within minutes to exposure and reported significantly fewer symptoms compared to baseline. ConclusionOur results suggest that a subgroup of persons exist who profit from participation in a personalised testing procedure.

Can migraine aura be provoked experimentally? A systematic review of potential methods for the provocation of migraine aura.

Background The nature of the migraine aura and its role in migraine pathophysiology is incompletely understood. In particular, the mechanisms underlying aura initiation and the causal relation between aura and headache are unknown. The scientific investigation of aura in patients is only possible if aura can be triggered. This paper reviews potential methods for the experimental provocation of migraine aura. Methods We systematically searched PubMed for studies of experimental migraine provocation, including case reports of patients with aura and reports of the occurrence of aura following exposure to any kind of suspected trigger. Results We identified 21 provocation studies, using 13 different prospective provocation methods, and 34 case reports. In the prospective studies, aura were reported following the administration of intravenous and sublingual glyceryl trinitrate, visual stimulation, physical activity, calcitonin gene-related peptide infusion, chocolate ingestion, and the intravenous injection of insulin. In addition, carotid artery puncture has consistently been reported as a trigger of aura. Conclusions No safe and efficient method for aura provocation exists at present, but several approaches could prove useful for this purpose.

EP 89. Experimental provocation of “ice-cream headache” by ice cubes and ice water

Introduction Ice-cream headache, now called “Headache attributed to ingestion or inhalation of cold stimulus” (HICS), is characterized by a short-lasting frontal or temporal pain induced in susceptible people by passage of cold material over the palate and/or posterior pharyngeal wall ( Headache Classification Committee, 2013 ). A number of studies have investigated HICS by different experimental approaches. These studies either used ice cubes, ice water or ice cream. In the present study two protocols (ice cubes and ice water) were tested towards their efficiency of HICS provocation and whether clinical features differ in those protocols. Subjects 77 healthy volunteers without any other primary headache disorder were included into this study. 44/77 (57%) volunteers had a previous history of HICS. Methods Two protocols for provoking HICS were tested. (1) Solid ice test ( Selekler et al., 2004 ): Volunteers were asked to press a trapezoid ice cube to the hard palate (contact time 90 s, temperature −16 °C). (2) Ice water test: Volunteers were asked to drink 200 mL of ice water (temperature 0 °C) as fast as possible. Subsequently the clinical features of the provoked headaches were inquired. Results The ice water stimulus provoked HICS significantly more often than the ice cube stimulus (OR 7.75, 95% CI 3.39–17.72, p 0.001 , χ 2 ). Latency and duration of HICS during the ice water protocol were shorter than during the ice cube protocol. Headache character was different between ice cube stimulation and ice water stimulation ( Table 1 ). Localisation did not differ between the two protocols ( Fig. 1 ). A second headache attack followed in 10/39 (26%) volunteers after ice water intake. Lacrimation occurred more often in volunteers with HICS than in volunteers without HICS. Conclusion The ice water stimulus provoked HICS significantly more often than the ice cube stimulus. HICS provoked by ice water had a shorter latency, shorter duration, different pain character and higher pain intensity than HICS provoked by ice cubes. Spatial extent, spatial summation and a high intake speed, achieved by drinking ice water, seem to be more important than temperature alone for HICS induction. The different properties of the cold stimuli might also explain the different latencies of HICS occurrence between the two protocols. Another explanation might be that there are two types of HICS (an early onset short lasting and a late onset longer lasting type) as proposed previously ( Bird et al., 1992 ). The present findings of two subsequent HICS in the same volunteers and differences of pain quality between ice cube stimulation and ice water stimulation support and extend this notion. Lacrimation during HICS indicates strong activation of the trigeminal autonomic reflex in HICS.

Experimental provocation of 'ice-cream headache' by ice cubes and ice water.

Background There are various studies on experimentally provoked 'ice-cream headache' or 'headache attributed to ingestion or inhalation of a cold stimulus' (HICS) using different provocation protocols. The aim of this study was to compare two provocation protocols. Methods Ice cubes pressed to the palate and fast ingestion of ice water were used to provoke HICS and clinical features were compared. Results The ice-water stimulus provoked HICS significantly more often than the ice-cube stimulus (9/77 vs. 39/77). Ice-water-provoked HICS had a significantly shorter latency (median 15 s, range 4-97 s vs. median 68 s, range 27-96 s). There was no difference in pain localisation. Character after ice-cube stimulation was predominantly described as pressing and after ice-water stimulation as stabbing. A second HICS followed in 10/39 (26%) of the headaches provoked by ice water. Lacrimation occurred significantly more often in volunteers with than in those without HICS. Discussion HICS provoked by ice water was more frequent, had a shorter latency, different pain character and higher pain intensity than HICS provoked by ice cubes. The finding of two subsequent HICS attacks in the same volunteers supports the notion that two types of HICS exist. Lacrimation during HICS indicates involvement of the trigeminal-autonomic reflex.

No Effects of Acute Exposure to Wi-Fi Electromagnetic Fields on Spontaneous EEG Activity and Psychomotor Vigilance in Healthy Human Volunteers.

Mobile equipment use of wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) signal modulation has increased exponentially in the past few decades. However, there is inconclusive scientific evidence concerning the potential risks associated with the energy deposition in the brain from Wi-Fi and whether Wi-Fi electromagnetism interacts with cognitive function. In this study we investigated possible neurocognitive effects caused by Wi-Fi exposure. First, we constructed a Wi-Fi exposure system from commercial parts. Dosimetry was first assessed by free space radiofrequency field measurements. The experimental exposure system was then modeled based on real geometry and physical characteristics. Specific absorption rate (SAR) calculations were performed using a whole-body, realistic human voxel model with values corresponding to conventional everyday Wi-Fi exposure (peak SAR10g level was 99.22 mW/kg with 1 W output power and 100% duty cycle). Then, in two provocation experiments involving healthy human volunteers we tested for two hypotheses: 1. Whether a 60 min long 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi exposure affects the spectral power of spontaneous awake electroencephalographic (sEEG) activity (N = 25); and 2. Whether similar Wi-Fi exposure modulates the sustained attention measured by reaction time in a computerized psychomotor vigilance test (PVT) (N = 19). EEG data were recorded at midline electrode sites while volunteers watched a silent documentary. In the PVT task, button press reaction time was recorded. No measurable effects of acute Wi-Fi exposure were found on spectral power of sEEG or reaction time in the psychomotor vigilance test. These results indicate that a single, 60 min Wi-Fi exposure does not alter human oscillatory brain function or objective measures of sustained attention.

Is There a Connection Between Electrosensitivity and Electrosensibility? A Replication Study.

Among people with idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF), a better than random detection ability for a 50-Hz 0.5-mT magnetic field (MF) and a propensity to experience more symptoms than controls was reported in a previous study. The current study aimed to replicate and clarify these results using a modified experimental design. Participants of the provocation experiment were 49 individuals with self-reported IEI-EMF and 57 controls. They completed the questionnaires (symptom expectations, Somatosensory Amplification Scale--SSAS, radiation subscale of the Modern Health Worries Scale--MHWS Radiation) and attempted to detect the presence of the MF directed to their right arm in 20 subsequent 1-min sessions. Symptom reports were registered after each session. Individuals with IEI-EMF as opposed to the control group showed a higher than random detection performance (d' index of signal detection theory), while no difference in their bias (β index) toward the presence of the MF was found. Predictors of reported symptoms were self-reported IEI-EMF and believed as opposed to actual presence of the MF. People with IEI-EMF reported significantly more symptoms particularly in the believed presence of the MF. IEI-EMF was closely related to MHWS Radiation and SSAS scores. People with IEI-EMF might be able to detect the presence of the MF to a small extent; however, their symptom reports are connected to perceived exposure.

Good syndrome and polymyositis

Good syndrome (GS) was first described by Dr Robert Good in 1954 in an adult patient with thymoma and immunodeficiency. [1] Good R.A. Agammaglobulinaemia—a provocative experiment of nature. Bull Univ Minn. 1954; 26: 1-19 Google Scholar The immunodeficiency found in GS typically demonstrates low to absent B cells in the peripheral blood, hypogammaglobulinemia, and defects in cell-mediated immunity in patients 40 to 70 years of age. 2 Stiehm E.R. Ochs H.D. Winkelstein J.A. Immunologic Disorders in Infants & Children. WB Saunders, Philadelphia, PA2004 Google Scholar , 3 Kelleher P. Misbah S.A. Review: What is Good’s syndrome? immunological abnormalities in patients with thymoma. J Clin Pathol. 2003; 56: 12-16 Crossref PubMed Scopus (194) Google Scholar , 4 Joven M.H. Palalay M.P. Sonido C.Y. Case report and literature review on Good's syndrome, a form of acquired immunodeficiency associated with thymomas. Hawaii J Med Public Health. 2013; 72: 56-62 PubMed Google Scholar Infections associated with both B- and T-cell defects are common. [5] Tarr P.E. Sneller M.C. Mechanic L.J. et al. Infections in patients with immunodeficiency with thymoma (Good syndrome): report of 5 cases and review of the literature. Medicine. 2001; 80: 123-133 Crossref PubMed Scopus (197) Google Scholar