bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reversal of muscle fatigue during 16 h of heavy intermittent cycle exercise
Authors: Green H. J. , Duhamel T. A. , Ferth S. , Holloway G. P. , Thomas M. M. , Tupling A. R. , Rich S. M. , Yau J. E.
Published: November 2004

This study examined the effects of extended sessions of heavy intermittent exercise on quadriceps muscle fatigue and weakness. Twelve untrained volunteers (10 men and 2 women), with a peak oxygen consumption of 44.3 ± 2.3 ml·kg−1·min−1, exercised at ∼91% peak oxygen consumption for 6 min once per hour for 16 h. Muscle isometric properties assessed before and after selected repetitions (R1, R2, R4, R7, R12, and R15) were used to quantitate fatigue (before vs. after repetitions) and weakness (before vs. before repetitions). Muscle fatigue at R1 was indicated by reductions ( P < 0.05) in peak twitch force (135 ± 13 vs. 106 ± 11 N) and by a reduction ( P < 0.05) in the force-frequency response, which ranged between ∼53% at 10 Hz (113 ± 12 vs. 52.6 ± 7.4 N) and ∼17% at 50 Hz (324 ± 27 vs. 270 ± 30 N). No recovery of force, regardless of stimulation frequency, was observed during the 54 min between R1 and R2. At R2 and for all subsequent repetitions, no reduction in force, regardless of stimulation frequency, was generally found after the exercise. The only exception was for R2, where, at 20 Hz, force was reduced ( P < 0.05) by 18%. At R15, force before repetitions for high frequencies (i.e., 100 Hz) returned to R1 (333 ± 29 vs. 324 ± 27 N), whereas force at low frequency (i.e., 10 Hz) was only partially ( P < 0.05) recovered (113 ± 12 vs. 70 ± 6.6 N). It is concluded that multiple sessions of heavy exercise can reverse the fatigue noted early and reduce or eliminate weakness depending on the frequency of stimulation.
Circumferential vascular deformation after stent implantation alters wall shear stress evaluated with time-dependent 3D computational fluid dynamics models
Authors: LaDisa John F. , Olson Lars E. , Guler Ismail , Hettrick Douglas A. , Kersten Judy R. , Warltier David C. , Pagel Paul S.
Published: November 2004

The success of vascular stents in the restoration of blood flow is limited by restenosis. Recent data generated from computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models suggest that stent geometry may cause local alterations in wall shear stress (WSS) that have been associated with neointimal hyperplasia and subsequent restenosis. However, previous CFD studies have ignored histological evidence of vascular straightening between circumferential stent struts. We tested the hypothesis that consideration of stent-induced vascular deformation may more accurately predict alterations in indexes of WSS that may subsequently account for histological findings after stenting. We further tested the hypothesis that the severity of these alterations in WSS varies with the degree of vascular deformation after implantation. Steady-state and time-dependent simulations of three-dimensional CFD arteries based on canine coronary artery measurements of diameter and blood flow were conducted, and WSS and WSS gradients were calculated. Circumferential straightening introduced areas of high WSS between stent struts that were absent in stented vessels of circular cross section. The area of vessel exposed to low WSS was dependent on the degree of circumferential vascular deformation and axial location within the stent. Stents with four vs. eight struts increased the intrastrut area of low WSS in vessels, regardless of cross-sectional geometry. Elevated WSS gradients were also observed between struts in vessels with polygonal cross sections. The results obtained using three-dimensional CFD models suggest that changes in vascular geometry after stent implantation are important determinants of WSS distributions that may be associated with subsequent neointimal hyperplasia.
How to Reduce Uncertainty in a Context of Innovation: The Case of IBM's Negotiation of its European Works Council
Authors: Le Flanchec Alice
Published: November 2004

Uncertainty is one of the natural consequences of innovation. Regardless of the particular area, innovation leads to unknown situations ranging from the creation of high-tech new products to profound modification of economic and social structures. This uncertainty creates difficulties for negotiation processes because it becomes almost impossible to anticipate all the consequences of any agreement. Consequently, innovation tremendously enhances the uncertainty of a negotiator with regard to his own interests. Uncertainty about the opponent's interests and behavior is of course another major concern and has been dealt with extensively by many authors. This paper deals with the very different concept of uncertainty regarding one's own interests. It analyzes the impact of this form of uncertainty in the negotiation process, examining the 1997–1999 negotiations at IBM over the implementation of a European Works Council. We show that when a negotiator is uncertain about his own interests, he is less inclined to consider positions located in his uncertainty zone. This occurs as soon as he discoevers an acceptable outcome outside of this zone, even when the agreement is little differentthan the status quo. The negotiator will persist in such a strategy even though alternative agreements located in the uncertainty zone could be more advantageous for one or even both parties. In order to enlarge the zone of potential agreements between parties, a negotiator should undertake one further step: exploration of his own uncertainty zone. We demonstrate that the adoption of such a strategy, is innovative in and of itself, requiring a pro-active and creative attitude on the part of negotiators in order to discover appropriate uncertainty reduction mechanisms.
Glow discharge plasma brazing of Fe–Ni alloy in vacuum
Authors: Wang Y. , Zhao P. , Xu Z.
Published: November 2004

A novel vacuum brazing technique, termed glow discharge plasma brazing, is investigated. During the brazing process, the heating temperature of base metals is proportional to the square of the operating barometric pressure and the operating voltage, and the temperature distribution of the base metals is easily regulated by means of suitable measures. The ion beam from the glow discharge anode can efficiently sputterclean the surface of the base metals and the filler metal, which improves the wetting and spreading properties of the filler metal. Unlike the traditional vacuum brazing process, a high quality braze of Fe–Ni alloy is achieved at lower vacuum (a pressure of 5– 30 Pa or higher) by using the glow discharge brazing method. The brazing technique has a promising application in industry.
Three-dimensional turbulent weld pool convection in gas metal arc welding process
Authors: Jaidi J. , Dutta P.
Published: November 2004

A three-dimensional model has been developed to study turbulent fluid flow and heat transfer in a gas metal arc weld pool. The phase change process during melting and solidification is modelled using the enthalpy–porosity technique. Mass and energy transports by droplet transfer are considered through a thermal analysis of the electrode. The droplet heat addition into the molten pool is considered to be in the form of a volumetric heat source distributed in an imaginary cylindrical cavity within the weld pool (‘cavity’ model). A two-equation k-∊ model capable of addressing turbulent weld pool convection, taking into account the morphology of the phase change, is presented. The weld pool dynamics and geometry (shape and size) in a moving gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process are studied and the effects of enhanced diffusivities on the turbulent weld pool are discussed. The predicted weld pool geometry using laminar and turbulent models is also compared with corresponding experimental post-weld sections.
Effect of δ-ferrite on impact properties of supermartensitic stainless steel heat affected zones
Authors: Carrouge D. , Bhadeshia H.K.D.H. , Woollin P.
Published: November 2004

The work presented in this paper focuses on the effect of the presence of non-equilibrium δ-ferrite on the impact properties of a supermartensitic stainless steel. To generate homogeneous δ-ferrite containing microstructures the material was, in the first part of the present study, subjected to a series of high temperature furnace heat treatments. Three microstructures possessing variable ferrite content and different grain sizes were generated. Charpy impact results indicate that the presence of 14% δ-ferrite in a martensitic matrix of 60 μm prior austenite grain size, raises the ductile to brittle transition temperature (DBTT) by about 50°C compared with a fully martensitic microstructure of 80 μm. For a similar grain size, reducing the amount of δ-ferrite from 14 to 2% restored the DBTT to a level comparable to that of the tempered parent material. A Gleeble simulator was used to create the range of microstructures found in a weld heat affected zone (HAZ). Testing of the simulated HAZ indicated that toughness was not significantly affected by the presence of δ-ferrite. The DBTT was comparable to that of the parent material and lower than that of the heat treated specimens containing 14% δ-ferrite.
High sensitivity 1H-NMR spectroscopy of homeopathic remedies made in water
Authors: Anick David J
Published: November 2004

Background

The efficacy of homeopathy is controversial. Homeopathic remedies are made via iterated shaking and dilution, in ethanol or in water, from a starting substance. Remedies of potency 12 C or higher are ultra-dilute (UD), i.e. contain zero molecules of the starting material. Various hypotheses have been advanced to explain how a UD remedy might be different from unprepared solvent. One such hypothesis posits that a remedy contains stable clusters, i.e. localized regions where one or more hydrogen bonds remain fixed on a long time scale. High sensitivity proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy has not previously been used to look for evidence of differences between UD remedies and controls.

Methods

Homeopathic remedies made in water were studied via high sensitivity proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. A total of 57 remedy samples representing six starting materials and spanning a variety of potencies from 6 C to 10 M were tested along with 46 controls.

Results

By presaturating on the water peak, signals could be reliably detected that represented H-containing species at concentrations as low as 5 μM. There were 35 positions where a discrete signal was seen in one or more of the 103 spectra, which should theoretically have been absent from the spectrum of pure water. Of these 35, fifteen were identified as machine-generated artifacts, eight were identified as trace levels of organic contaminants, and twelve were unexplained. Of the unexplained signals, six were seen in just one spectrum each. None of the artifacts or unexplained signals occurred more frequently in remedies than in controls, using a p < .05 cutoff. Some commercially prepared samples were found to contain traces of one or more of these small organic molecules: ethanol, acetate, formate, methanol, and acetone.

Conclusion

No discrete signals suggesting a difference between remedies and controls were seen, via high sensitivity 1H-NMR spectroscopy. The results failed to support a hypothesis that remedies made in water contain long-lived non-dynamic alterations of the H-bonding pattern of the solvent.
A Real‐Time Tracking, Notification, and Web‐based Enrollment System for Emergency Department Research
Authors: Quinn James , Durski Kris
Published: November 2004

The authors describe the development of a real‐time tracking, notification, and Web‐based enrollment system designed specifically to facilitate emergency department research. The system was developed in a cooperative arrangement between an emergency medicine researcher and a medical information software company. The system design and utilization are described as well as the security measures to ensure compliance with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations and database security.
Discrete Event Simulation of Emergency Department Activity: A Platform for System‐level Operations Research
Authors: Connelly Lloyd G. , Bair Aaron E.
Published: November 2004

Objectives: This article explores the potential of discrete event simulation (DES) methods to advance system‐level investigation of emergency department (ED) operations. To this end, the authors describe the development and operation of Emergency Department SIMulation (EDSIM), a new platform for computer simulation of ED activity at a Level 1 trauma center. The authors also demonstrate one potential application of EDSIM by using simulated ED activity to compare two patient triage methods. Methods: The Extend DES modeling package was used to develop a model of ED activity for a five‐day period in July 2003. Model input includes staffing levels, facility characteristics, and patient data drawn from electronic patient tracking databases, billing records, and a detailed review of 674 ED charts. The accuracy of model output was tested by comparing predicted and known patient service times. The EDSIM model was then used to compare the fast‐track triage approach with an alternative acuity ratio triage (ART) approach whereby patients were assigned to staff on an acuity ratio basis. Results: The EDSIM model predicts average patient service times within 10% of actual values. The accuracy of individual patient paths, however, was variable. In the authors' model, 28% of individual patient treatment times had an absolute error of less than one hour, and 59% less than three hours. A preliminary comparison of two triage methods showed that the ART approach reduced imaging bottlenecks and average treatment times for high‐acuity patients, but resulted in an overall increase in average service time for low‐acuity patients. Conclusions: The EDSIM model provides a flexible platform for studying ED operations as they relate to average treatment times for ED patients, but the model will require further refinement to predict individual patient times. A comparative study of triage methods suggests that ART provides a mix of benefits and drawbacks, but further investigation will be required to substantiate these preliminary findings.
Twisted gastrulation promotes BMP signaling in zebrafish dorsal-ventral axial patterning
Authors: Little Shawn C. , Mullins Mary C.
Published: November 2004

In vertebrates and invertebrates, the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)signaling pathway patterns cell fates along the dorsoventral (DV) axis. In vertebrates, BMP signaling specifies ventral cell fates, whereas restriction of BMP signaling by extracellular antagonists allows specification of dorsal fates. In misexpression assays, the conserved extracellular factor Twisted gastrulation (Tsg) is reported to both promote and antagonize BMP signaling in DV patterning. To investigate the role of endogenous Tsg in early DV patterning, we performed morpholino (MO)-based knockdown studies of Tsg1 in zebrafish. We found that loss of tsg1 results in a moderately strong dorsalization of the embryonic axis, suggesting that Tsg1 promotes ventral fates. Knockdown of tsg1 combined with loss of function of the BMP agonist tolloid (mini fin) or heterozygosity for the ligand bmp2b (swirl) enhanced dorsalization, supporting a role for Tsg1 in specifying ventral cell fates as a BMP signaling agonist. Moreover,loss of tsg1 partially suppressed the ventralized phenotypes of mutants of the BMP antagonists Chordin or Sizzled (Ogon). Our results support a model in which zebrafish Tsg1 promotes BMP signaling, and thus ventral cell fates, during DV axial patterning.
Six1 promotes a placodal fate within the lateral neurogenic ectoderm by functioning as both a transcriptional activator and repressor
Authors: Brugmann Samantha A. , Pandur Petra D. , Kenyon Kristy L. , Pignoni Francesca , Moody Sally A.
Published: November 2004

Cranial placodes, which give rise to sensory organs in the vertebrate head,are important embryonic structures whose development has not been well studied because of their transient nature and paucity of molecular markers. We have used markers of pre-placodal ectoderm (PPE) (six1, eya1) to determine that gradients of both neural inducers and anteroposterior signals are necessary to induce and appropriately position the PPE. Overexpression of six1 expands the PPE at the expense of neural crest and epidermis,whereas knock-down of Six1 results in reduction of the PPE domain and expansion of the neural plate, neural crest and epidermis. Using expression of activator and repressor constructs of six1 or co-expression of wild-type six1 with activating or repressing co-factors(eya1 and groucho, respectively), we demonstrate that Six1 inhibits neural crest and epidermal genes via transcriptional repression and enhances PPE genes via transcriptional activation. Ectopic expression of neural plate, neural crest and epidermal genes in the PPE demonstrates that these factors mutually influence each other to establish the appropriate boundaries between these ectodermal domains.
Scale invariance in jet streams: ER‐2 data around the lower‐stratospheric polar night vortex
Authors: Tuck A. F. , Hovde S. J. , Bui T. P.
Published: November 2004

High altitude ER‐2 aircraft observations in both hemispheres of the lower‐stratospheric polar night jet stream reveal generalized scale invariance. The scaling exponent has systematic correlation with wind shear and temperature gradient showing across‐jet persistence, along‐jet anti‐persistence, and an overall average value ≈5/9. The analysis provides a natural connection between generalized scale invariance and traditional large‐scale dynamical meteorology. For one mission in the southern hemisphere composite variograms could be constructed for nitrous oxide and ozone, from which it was deduced that the former is a true passive scalar in the lower stratosphere, while sources and sinks are operative for the latter. Copyright © 2004 Royal Meteorological Society
Sensitivities of an intense Mediterranean cyclone: Analysis and validation
Authors: Homar Victor , Stensrud David J.
Published: November 2004

On 10 and 11 November 2001 a deep cyclone moved northward across the western Mediterranean. Severe floods affected Algeria on 10 November and a mesoscale‐sized region of strong damaging winds occurred over the Balearics and eastern Spain during the first hours of 11 November. These large intense cyclones, originating over north Africa and moving northward, are occasionally observed in the region. Numerical simulations of these types of events are potentially hampered by the lack of observations over the Mediterranean Sea, north Africa and the Atlantic Ocean. To evaluate more accurately the regions in which the model simulations are influenced by this lack of data, the MM5 adjoint system is used to determine the most sensitive areas within the initial conditions of the simulation of this 10–11 November event. Limitations of available adjoint models, such as their linear character, suggest that a test of the applicability of MM5 to the case under analysis is needed. In this study, the evaluation is performed by means of the tangent linear model and, despite finding that the adjoint has an acceptable accuracy, important nonlinear effects are found and attributed to the moist processes. The study tracks backward in time the sensitivities shown at different simulation times using parameters chosen to characterize the cyclone's intensity at 0000 UTC 11 November. Results reveal that the areas that show the largest sensitivities are located over north Africa for the 12 h and 24 h simulations, whereas south‐western and western Europe emerge as areas with important sensitivities for the longer 36 h and 48 h simulations. Subsynoptic details regarding the shape and intensity of an upper‐level trough, as well as a low‐level cold front, are highlighted by the adjoint runs as the structures which influence most strongly the baroclinic development of the intense Mediterranean cyclone and the damaging surface winds it produces. The usefulness of the sensitivity fields in the nonlinear simulations is confirmed by perturbing the control model's initial conditions using the adjoint results as guidance. This analysis helps to quantify the limitations of the linear estimation when applied to the full nonlinear model, focusing on the nonlinearities introduced by the moist physics parametrizations. Copyright © 2004 Royal Meteorological Society
RNA chaperone activity of large ribosomal subunit proteins from Escherichia coli
Authors: SEMRAD KATHARINA , GREEN RACHEL , SCHROEDER RENÉE
Published: November 2004

The ribosome is a highly dynamic ribonucleoprotein machine. During assembly and during translation the ribosomal RNAs must routinely be prevented from falling into kinetic folding traps. Stable occupation of these trapped states may be prevented by proteins with RNA chaperone activity. Here, ribosomal proteins from the large (50S) ribosome subunit of Escherichia coli were tested for RNA chaperone activity in an in vitro trans splicing assay. Nearly a third of the 34 large ribosomal subunit proteins displayed RNA chaperone activity. We discuss a possible role of this function during ribosome assembly and during translation.
Systematic review of the efficacy of cognitive behaviour therapies for childhood and adolescent anxiety disorders
Authors: Cartwright‐Hatton Sam , Roberts Chris , Chitsabesan Prathiba , Fothergill Claire , Harrington Richard
Published: November 2004

Purpose: To review the effectiveness of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) as a treatment for anxiety disorders of childhood and adolescence.

Method: Studies were included if they treated young people (under 19 yrs) with diagnosed anxiety disorder (excluding trials solely treating phobia, PTSD or OCD), had a no‐treatment control group, and used diagnosis as an outcome variable. A search of the literature, incorporating electronic databases, hand search and expert consultation, yielded 10 randomized controlled trials that were appropriate for inclusion.

Results: The outcome of interest was remission of anxiety disorder. Employing conservative criteria, the remission rate in the CBT groups (56.5%) was higher than that in the control groups (34.8%). The pooled odds ratio was 3.3 (CI = 1.9–5.6), suggesting that CBT has a significant effect.

Conclusions: CBT is useful for the treatment of anxiety in children over the age of 6 years. However, we still know little about the treatment of younger children or about the comparative efficacy of alternative treatments. Most of the trials were efficacy trials, and have limited generalizability. Reporting of many aspects of the trials was weak.
Personality characteristics in obsessive‐compulsive disorder and individuals with subclinical obsessive‐compulsive problems
Authors: Fullana Miquel Àngel , Mataix‐Cols David , Trujillo José Luis , Caseras Xavier , Serrano Francisco , Alonso Pino , Menchón Josep M. , Vallejo Julio , Torrubia Rafael
Published: November 2004

Objective: To assess the relationship between normal personality traits and obsessive‐compulsive (OC) phenomena in individuals with subclinical OC problems and patients whose problems met diagnostic criteria for obsessive‐compulsive disorder (OCD).

Method: In Study 1, 25 healthy volunteers with high scores on the Padua Inventory (PI) and 28 controls with low scores on the PI were compared on the Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire (SPSRQ), the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), and measures of depression and state anxiety. In Study 2, 56 treatment‐seeking participants meeting DSM‐IV criteria for OCD and 40 healthy volunteers of similar sociodemographic characteristics were compared on the same measures.

Results: Both individuals with subclinical OC problems and OCD patients scored significantly higher than their respective control groups on sensitivity to punishment, neuroticism and psychoticism. OCD patients, but not individuals with subclinical OC problems, scored lower in extraversion than their respective controls. Neuroticism was the strongest predictor of high scores on the PI in Study 1, while psychoticism was the strongest predictor of the presence of an OCD diagnosis in Study 2.

Conclusion: Healthy participants with high scores on OC measures and OCD patients share various personality traits but can also be distinguished according to the level of extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism.
Obesity and the Role of Food Marketing: A Policy Analysis of Issues and Remedies
Authors: Seiders Kathleen , Petty Ross D.
Published: November 2004

The Centers for Disease Control has declared obesity a public health epidemic: More than 30% of U.S. adults are obese, and obesity now equals smoking as the leading preventable cause of disease and death. The authors explore policy issues associated with the accelerated growth of obesity in the U.S. population, particularly policy related to the debated influence of food marketing practices on obesity. The authors discuss possible market failures that influence consumer food choices and address the role of existing informational and regulatory policies in moderating the alleged threat of food marketing practices to public health. They consider various types of policy remedies that have been proposed as ways to reduce societal obesity costs, and they offer an agenda for further research to address knowledge gaps that represent barriers to effective public policy decisions.
Meta-Analyses of the Effectiveness of Warning Labels
Authors: Argo Jennifer J. , Main Kelley J.
Published: November 2004

The authors use a series of meta-analyses to demonstrate the impact of warning labels across five dimensions of effectiveness: attention, reading and comprehension, recall, judgments, and behavioral compliance. Subsequent moderator analyses indicate that attention is moderated by vividness-enhancing characteristics, warning location, and familiarity but not by product type. None of the moderating variables affect either reading and comprehension or recall. Product type moderates judgments, and familiarity and cost of compliance moderate behavioral compliance. The authors discuss public policy implications and avenues for further research.
Using information on unconstrained student demand to improve university course schedules
Authors: Thompson Gary M.
Published: November 2004

We examine how using information on unconstrained demand can improve operational decisions. Specifically, we examine the widespread problem of developing course schedules in not‐for‐profit university settings. We investigate the potential benefit of incorporating, into the scheduling process, information on the unconstrained demand of students for courses. Prior to this study, the status quo in our college, like that in a large proportion of university settings, was building the course schedule to avoid time conflicts between required courses and to minimize time conflicts between designated groups of courses, such as electives in a particular area. Compared to the status quo approach, we find that, based on three semester's worth of actual data, an approach that explicitly considers students’ course preferences improves a student‐based metric of schedule quality on the order of over 4% (which is the equivalent, in our setting, of improving service for over 20% of students).
PDGF induces osteoprotegerin expression in vascular smooth muscle cells by multiple signal pathways
Authors: Zhang Jifeng , Fu Mingui , Myles David , Zhu Xiaojun , Du Jie , Cao Xu , Chen Yuqing E
Published: November 2004

Osteoprotegerin (OPG) is a key regulator of osteoclastogenesis. Recent reports suggest that OPG may function as a protector of arterial calcification and survival of endothelial cells. However, the role and expression of OPG in vascular wall is unclear. Here we report that OPG was highly expressed in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) but not in endothelial cells. Platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF), basic fibroblast growth factor, angiotensin II, tumor necrosis factor α and interleukin‐1β upregulated OPG expression in VSMC. Moreover, inhibition of phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/Akt or P38‐signal pathway abrogated PDGF‐induced OPG expression. Our results suggest that OPG may be an important determinant of vascular homeostasis.
The importance of being modular
Authors: SEUREN PIETER A. M.
Published: November 2004

William Croft,Radical Construction Grammar: syntactic theory in typological perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Pp. xxviii+416.

My reason for writing this review article is that I want to highlight a particular basic opposition in linguistic theory and methodology. On the one hand, we have what is usually called COGNITIVISM, represented in the book under review by the new theory of Radical Construction Grammar, henceforth RCG. On the other hand, there is a variety of schools, together forming a large majority in the field, whose theoretical overlap may be characterized by the term MODULARITY. I argue against cognitivism and in favour of the modularity view, and I am using the book under review as an opportunity to define the issue and put forward the arguments.
Personality characteristics of women before and after recovery from an eating disorder
Authors: KLUMP KELLY L. , STROBER MICHAEL , BULIK CYNTHIA M. , THORNTON LAURA , JOHNSON CRAIG , DEVLIN BERNIE , FICHTER MANFRED M. , HALMI KATHERINE A. , KAPLAN ALLAN S. , BLAKE WOODSIDE D. , CROW SCOTT , MITCHELL JAMES , ROTONDO ALESSANDRO , KEEL PAMELA K. , BERRETTINI WADE H. , PLOTNICOV KATHERINE , POLLICE CHRISTINE , LILENFELD LISA R. , KAYE WALTER H.
Published: November 2004

Background. Previous studies of personality characteristics in women with eating disorders primarily have focused on women who are acutely ill. This study compares personality characteristics among women who are ill with eating disorders, recovered from eating disorders, and those without eating or other Axis I disorder pathology.

Method. Female participants were assessed for personality characteristics using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI): 122 with anorexia nervosa (AN; 77 ill, 45 recovered), 279 with bulimia nervosa (BN; 194 ill, 85 recovered), 267 with lifetime histories of both anorexia and bulimia nervosa (AN+BN; 194 ill, 73 recovered), 63 with eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS; 31 ill, 32 recovered), and 507 without eating or Axis I disorder pathology.

Results. Women ill with all types of eating disorders exhibited several TCI score differences from control women, particularly in the areas of novelty-seeking, harm avoidance, self-directedness, and cooperativeness. Interestingly, women recovered from eating disorders reported higher levels of harm avoidance and lower self-directedness and cooperativeness scores than did normal control women.

Conclusions. Women with eating disorders in both the ill and recovered state show higher levels of harm avoidance and lower self-directedness and cooperativeness scores than normal control women. Although findings suggest that disturbances may be trait-related and contribute to the disorders' pathogenesis, additional research with more representative community controls, rather than our pre-screened, normal controls, is needed to confirm these impressions.
Self-monitoring in patients with schizophrenia
Authors: KNOBLICH GÜNTHER , STOTTMEISTER FRANK , KIRCHER TILO
Published: November 2004

Background. The present study investigated whether a failure of self-monitoring contributes to core syndromes of schizophrenia.

Method. Three groups of patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia (n=27), with either prominent paranoid hallucinatory or disorganization syndrome, or without these symptoms, and a matched healthy control group (n=23) drew circles on a writing pad connected to a PC monitor. Subjects were instructed to continuously monitor the relationship between their hand movements and their visual consequences. They were asked to detect gain changes in the mapping. Self-monitoring ability and the ability to automatically correct movements were assessed.

Results. Patients with either paranoid-hallucinatory syndrome or formal thought disorder were selectively impaired in their ability to detect a mismatch between a self-generated movement and its consequences, but not impaired in their ability to automatically compensate for the gain change.

Conclusions. These results support the claim that a failure of self-monitoring may underlie the core symptoms of schizophrenia.
Depression in elderly homecare patients: patient versus informant reports
Authors: McAVAY GAIL J. , BRUCE MARTHA L. , RAUE PATRICK J. , BROWN ELLEN L.
Published: November 2004

Background. This study compares patient and informant reports of depressive disorders in a community sample of elderly medical homecare patients. The associations between specific patterns of agreement/disagreement and other patient and informant characteristics are examined.

Method. A random sample of 355 elderly medical homecare patients and their informants were interviewed using the current mood section of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID).

Results. Thirty-seven patients (10·4%) reported a depressive disorder (major or subsyndromal) that was also identified by their informant while 27 (7·6%) patients self-reported depression that the informant did not identify. There were 250 patients (70·4%) who were not depressed according to both patient and informant report and 41 patients (11·5%) were identified as depressed by informant report alone. Patients identified as depressed by informant report alone were similar to patients who self-reported depression on a number of the sociodemographic and clinical correlates of depression, but had significantly poorer performance on items assessing orientation and short-term recall. These patients also had poorer functioning in a number of domains (social, cognitive, and functional) when compared with patients who were not depressed according to both the patient and informant. Finally, patients with younger informants were more likely to be identified as depressed by their informant.

Conclusions. Obtaining informant reports of depression may be a useful method for detecting clinically significant cases of late-life depression that would otherwise be missed when relying only on patient report.
Interpersonal and role-related schema influence the relationship with the dominant ‘voice’ in schizophrenia: a comparison of three models
Authors: BIRCHWOOD MAX , GILBERT PAUL , GILBERT JEAN , TROWER PETER , MEADEN ALAN , HAY JUSTIN , MURRAY ELEANOR , MILES JEREMY N. V.
Published: November 2004

Background. Auditory hallucinations in psychosis often contain critical evaluations of the voice-hearer (for example, attacks on self-worth). A voice-hearer's experience with their dominant voice is a mirror of their social relationships in general, with experiences of feeling low in rank to both voices and others being associated with depression. However, the direction of the relationship between psychosis, depression and feeling subordinate is unclear.

Method. Covariance structural equation modelling was used with data from 125 participants diagnosed with schizophrenia to compare three ‘causal’ models: (1) that depression leads to the appraisal of low social rank, voice power and distress; (2) that psychotic illness leads to voice activity (frequency, audibility), which in turn leads to depression and the appraisal of voices' power; (3) our hypothesized model, that perceptions of social rank and social power lead to the appraisal of voice power, distress and depression.

Results. Findings supported model 3, suggesting that the appraisal of social power and rank are primary organizing schema underlying the appraisal of voice power, and the distress of voices.

Conclusions. Voices can be seen to operate like external social relationships. Voice content and experience can mirror a person's social sense of being powerless and controlled by others. These findings suggest important new targets for intervention with cognitive and social therapy.
Interaction of genetic risk and adoptive parent communication deviance: longitudinal prediction of adoptee psychiatric disorders
Authors: WAHLBERG KARL-ERIK , WYNNE LYMAN C. , HAKKO HELINÄ , LÄKSY KRISTIAN , MORING JUHA , MIETTUNEN JOUKO , TIENARI PEKKA
Published: November 2004

Background. In the Finnish Adoptive Family Study of Schizophrenia, adoptee thinking disorders have been shown to be a joint effect of genetic liability for schizophrenia spectrum disorders and adoptive rearing-parent communication patterns. However, longitudinal predictions of clinical psychiatric disorders of the adoptees have not been reported.

Method. Adoptees (n=109) who had no DSM-III-R disorder at initial assessment (median age 18 years) were selected from the total sample of the Finnish Adoption Study of Schizophrenia. They were defined as at high versus low genetic risk based upon the lifetime diagnoses of their biological, adopting-away mothers – schizophrenia spectrum disorder versus no spectrum disorder. At initial assessment, adoptive rearing parents were independently evaluated from tape-recorded Rorschach protocols scored as manifesting either high or low Communication Deviance (CD), a composite index of communication patterns that distract and befuddle listeners. Adoptees were independently re-diagnosed after a median interval of 14 years and followed-up from national registers for an additional 7 years.

Results. The main effects of genetic liability (G) and CD of the adoptive parents (E), each taken separately, predicted significantly for psychiatric disorders of the adoptees as adults. However, when G, E, and their joint interaction effect were entered into the same logistic model, only the interaction effect was significant. The sample included seven adoptees with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, but a separate analysis to predict them was non-significant.

Conclusion. Genetic liability for schizophrenia spectrum disorder and an adoptive family rearing variable interact, predicting longitudinally and significantly to broadly defined adoptee psychiatric disorder.
Asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders among young persons in the community
Authors: GOODWIN RENEE D. , FERGUSSON DAVID M. , HORWOOD L. JOHN
Published: November 2004

Background. The objectives of the study were to examine linkages between asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders in a birth cohort of over 1000 young persons studied to the age of 21 years. Specifically, the study aimed to ascertain the extent to which associations between asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders could be explained by non-observed fixed confounding factors.

Method. Asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders were measured prospectively over the course of a 21-year longitudinal study. Fixed effects logistic regression models were used to determine the relationship between asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders, adjusting for potentially confounding factors.

Results. Asthma in adolescence and young adulthood was associated with increased likelihood of major depression (OR 1·7, 95% CI 1·3–2·3), panic attacks (OR 1·9, 95% CI 1·3–2·8), and any anxiety disorder (OR 1·6, 95% CI 1·2–2·2). Associations between asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders were adjusted for confounding factors using a fixed effects regression model which showed that, after control for fixed confounding factors, asthma was no longer significantly related to major depression (OR 1·1), panic attacks (OR 1·1), or any anxiety disorder (OR 1·2). Additional post hoc analyses suggested that exposure to childhood adversity or unexamined familial factors may account for some of the co-morbidity of asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders.

Conclusions. These results confirm and extend previous findings by documenting elevated rates of depressive and anxiety disorders among young adults with asthma, compared with their counterparts without asthma, in the community. The weight of the evidence from this study suggests that associations between asthma and depressive and anxiety symptoms may reflect effects of common factors associated with both asthma and depressive and anxiety disorders, rather than a direct causal link. Future research is needed to identify the specific factors underlying these associations.
Co-morbidity and stability of melancholic features in DSM-IV major depressive disorder
Authors: MELARTIN TARJA , LESKELÄ ULLA , RYTSÄLÄ HEIKKI , SOKERO PETTERI , LESTELÄ-MIELONEN PAULA , ISOMETSÄ ERKKI
Published: November 2004

Background. The descriptive validity of the melancholic features specifier of the DSM-IV major depressive disorder (MDD) is uncertain. Little is known about its relationship to psychiatric co-morbidity, stability across episodes, or strength in predicting course of illness.

Method. The Vantaa Depression Study (VDS) is a prospective, naturalistic cohort study of 269 patients with a new episode of DSM-IV MDD who were interviewed with SCAN and SCID-II between 1 February 1997 and 31 May 1998, and again at 6 and 18 months. Ninety-seven (36%) MDD patients met DSM-IV criteria for the melancholic features specifier, and were contrasted with 172 (64%) subjects with a non-melancholic MDD. The duration of the index episode was examined using a life chart.

Results. We found no difference in rates of any current co-morbid Axis I or II disorders between melancholic and non-melancholic depressed patients. Of those who had melancholic features at the index episode and subsequent episodes during the 18-month follow-up, only 22% (5/23) presented melancholic features during the latter. The non-melancholic subtype switched to melancholic in 25% (8/32) of cases. Differences in the course of melancholic and non-melancholic depression were very minor.

Conclusions. The descriptive validity of the DSM-IV melancholic features specifier may be questionable in MDD. There appear to be no major differences in current co-morbidity, or course of depression between melancholic and non-melancholic patients. The consistency of DSM-IV melancholic features across episodes appears weak.
Psychological health of Australian veterans of the 1991 Gulf War: an assessment using the SF-12, GHQ-12 and PCL-S
Authors: McKENZIE D. P. , IKIN J. F. , McFARLANE A. C. , CREAMER M. , FORBES A. B. , KELSALL H. L. , GLASS D. C. , ITTAK P. , SIM M. R.
Published: November 2004

Background. Elevated rates of psychological morbidity and symptomatology have been widely reported in 1991 Gulf War veterans. The present study used brief self-report instruments to compare the psychological health of Australian Gulf War veterans with that of a randomly sampled military comparison group.

Method. The 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12), 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist – Specific (PCL-S) and Military Service Experience (MSE) questionnaire were administered to 1424 male Australian Gulf War veterans and 1548 male Australian Defence Force members who were operational at the time of the Gulf War conflict, but were not deployed there.

Results. The Gulf War veterans exhibited poorer psychological health, as measured by the above three instruments, than the comparison group members. For Gulf War veterans, the number of stressful experiences, as measured by the MSE questionnaire, was correlated with scores on the three instruments. SF-12 mental health component summary scores and PCL-S caseness, but not GHQ-12 caseness, differed significantly between Gulf War veterans and comparison group members who had been on at least one active deployment.

Conclusions. More than a decade after the 1991 Gulf War, Australian Gulf War veterans are exhibiting higher levels of current (past month) psychological ill-health, as measured using the GHQ-12 and PCL-S, as well as lower mental health status, as measured by the SF-12, than the comparison group. Although not a replacement for formal psychiatric diagnosis, instruments such as those above may aid in the assessment of veterans' psychological health.
Phonotactic probabilities in young children's speech production
Authors: ZAMUNER TANIA S. , GERKEN LOUANN , HAMMOND MICHAEL
Published: November 2004

This research explores the role of phonotactic probability in two-year-olds' production of coda consonants. Twenty-nine children were asked to repeat CVC non-words that were used as labels for pictures of imaginary animals. The CVC non-words were controlled for their phonotactic probabilities, neighbourhood densities, word-likelihood ratings, and contained the identical coda across low and high phonotactic probability pairs. This allowed for comparisons of children's productions of the same coda consonant in low and high phonotactic probability environments. Children were significantly more likely to produce the same coda in high phonotactic probability non-words than in low phonotactic probability non-words. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that phonotactic probability is a predictor of coda production in English. Moreover, this finding provides further evidence for the role of the input and distribution of sound patterns in the ambient language as a basis for phonological acquisition.
The acquisition of relative clause comprehension in Hebrew: a study of SLI and normal development
Authors: FRIEDMANN NAAMA , NOVOGRODSKY RAMA
Published: November 2004

Comprehension of relative clauses was assessed in 10 Hebrew-speaking school-age children with syntactic SLI and in two groups of younger children with normal language development. Comprehension of subject- and object-relatives was assessed using a binary sentence-picture matching task. The findings were that while Hebrew-speaking children with normal development comprehend right-branching object relatives around the age of 6;0, children with syntactic SLI are still at chance level in object relatives by age 11;0. The four-year-olds were also at chance on object relatives. Comprehension of subject relatives was good in the SLI group, similar to the six-year-olds, and significantly better than the four-year-olds. The syntactic impairment is interpreted as a selective deficit to non-canonical sentences that are derived by movement.
Entering the policy debate: An economic evaluation of groundwater policy in flux
Authors: Livingston Marie Leigh , Garrido Alberto
Published: November 2004

This is an age of transition in groundwater policy. The ownership and control of aquifers, changing groundwater quality, and the impact of groundwater on the environment command the attention of policy makers around the globe. Substantial pressure exists for change in the laws and regulations governing groundwater, which are critical to the management of this critical resource. The objective of this paper is to contribute to the practical policy debate from an economic perspective. This study begins by outlining the basic stages of change in groundwater policy and their economic relevance. A set of physical, economic, and institutional indicators are suggested that may help to understand various country issues. The indicators are used to describe some actual experiences in groundwater policy in the United States and Spain that are examined for insights into common policy questions. This study suggests that the public authority to initiate groundwater policy innovations often results from the physical ties between surface and groundwater. In contexts rich with spatial and temporal externalities the situation is more complex, but this increases the social benefits that result from successful reform. A credible threat of losing rights is often necessary to create enough incentives to firm existing rights. Reductions in overall use are better achieved through purchasing and retiring rights, rather than through compensation for nonuse. Finally, the policy issues important to groundwater are often more fundamental than pricing alone. These insights may help policy makers adapt to emerging groundwater management problems.