bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Indications of paediatric keratoplasty in north China
Authors: Shi Weiyun , Jin Huixiang , Li Suxia , Liu Mingna , Xie Lixin 
Published: November 2007

AbstractPurpose:  To analyse indications of paediatric keratoplasty in north China and provide information for the prevention of corneal blindness.Methods:  A retrospective study was carried out in 371 children (410 eyes) aged 14 years or younger who underwent corneal transplantation at Shandong Eye Institute between 1994 and 2005. Data of preoperative diagnoses, aetiological factors and rural or urban backgrounds were evaluated.Results:  The study included 259 boys and 112 girls, with a mean age of 7.8 ± 4.3 years (range 2.5 months to 14 years). Of the 410 eyes, 99 eyes (24.2%) had mechanical trauma, and 93 (22.7%) had infectious keratitis. Congenital corneal opacity developed in 53 eyes (12.9%), chemical or thermal burn in 42 eyes (10.2%) and keratoconus in 37 eyes (9.0%). There were twice as many children from a rural background as those from urban background, and an even higher proportion in the category of infectious keratitis (4.8:1). Regraft was performed in 42 eyes, of which 17 had an original diagnosis of chemical or thermal burn.Conclusions:  Mechanical trauma and infectious keratitis are the most common indications of paediatric keratoplasty, as well as childhood corneal blindness, in north China. Regraft occurs more often in children with ocular burns.
The effect of propolis in experimental Acanthamoeba keratitis
Authors: Vural Ayse , Polat Zubeyde Akin , Topalkara Aysen , Toker Mustafa Ilker , Erdogan Haydar , Arici Mustafa Kemal , Cetin Ali 
Published: November 2007

AbstractPurpose:  To examine the effect of propolis in a rat model of Acanthamoeba keratitis and to determine its in vitro cytotoxicity in cultured corneal epithelial cells.Methods:  Eighteen Wistar albino rats were used. Cultured corneal epithelial cells obtained from two healthy rats for in vitro cytotoxicity of propolis. Corneal stromal inoculation was performed in 16 rats with amoebic culture containing 1 × 106 amoeba/mL. Rats with Acanthamoeba keratitis 5 days later after the inoculation were divided randomly into four groups, and eight eyes of each group were treated with study drugs. The propolis, chlorhexidine (CHX), propolis plus CHX and control eyes were treated with topical propolis, 0.002% CHX, propolis plus 0.002% CHX and lubricant eye drops, respectively. The study drugs were instilled every one hour for 10 days. All eyes were examined and keratitis graded by slit‐lamp biomicroscopy on days 2, 5 and 10 during the administration of the study drugs. After the completion of keratitis grading, all the 16 rats were humanely killed and their corneas were excised and used for Acanthamoeba culture to evaluate presence of Acanthamoeba growth after treatment 14 days later.Results:  Concentrations of propolis higher than 7.81 mg/mL cause damage to corneal epithelial cells in the experiment of in vitro cytotoxicity of propolis on corneal epithelial cells. The keratitis grade on day 2 in the CHX eyes was significantly lower than that in the control eyes (P < 0.05). The keratitis grades on days 5 and 10 in the propolis, CHX and propolis plus CHX eyes were significantly lower compared with those on days 5 and 10 in the control eyes (P < 0.05). In the propolis eyes, the keratitis grade on day 5 was significantly lower than that on day 2 (P < 0.05), and it was significantly lower on day 10 compared with that on day 5 (P < 0.05). In the CHX and propolis plus CHX eyes, the keratitis grade on day 10 was significantly lower compared with that on days 2 and 5 (P < 0.05). In the control eyes, there was no significant difference in the keratitis grades on days 2, 5 and 10 (P > 0.05). The culture positivity at Acanthamoeba growth after treatment experiment in the propolis, CHX and propolis plus CHX eyes was significantly lower than that in the control eyes (P < 0.05).Conclusions:  We suggest that propolis had amoebicidal properties in this rat model of Acanthamoeba keratitis. Further investigations to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of the individual fractions of the resin could yield more information about its mechanism of action in treating this disease.
The role of psychophysiology in forensic assessments: Deception detection, ERPs, and virtual reality mock crime scenarios
Authors: Mertens Ralf , Allen John J.B. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractFew data are available to address whether the use of ERP‐based deception detection alternatives have sufficient validity for applied use. The present study was designed to replicate and extend J. P. Rosenfeld, M. Soskins, G. Bosh, and A. Ryan's (2004) study by utilizing a virtual reality crime scenario to determine whether ERP‐based procedures, including brain fingerprinting, can be rendered less effective by participant manipulation by employing a virtual reality crime scenario and multiple countermeasures. Bayesian and bootstrapping analytic approaches were used to classify individuals as guilty or innocent. Guilty subjects were detected significantly less frequently compared to previous studies; countermeasures further reduced the overall hit rates. Innocent participants remained protected from being falsely accused. Reaction times did not prove suitable for accurate classification. Results suggested that guilty verdicts from ERP‐based deception detection approaches are likely to be accurate, but that innocent (or indeterminate) verdicts yield no useful interpretation in an applied setting.
Combining structural and functional neuroimaging data for studying brain connectivity: A review
Authors: Rykhlevskaia Elena , Gratton Gabriele , Fabiani Monica 
Published: November 2007

AbstractDifferent brain areas are thought to be integrated into large‐scale networks to support cognitive function. Recent approaches for investigating structural organization and functional coordination within these networks involve measures of connectivity among brain areas. We review studies combining in vivo structural and functional brain connectivity data, where (a) structural connectivity analysis, mostly based on diffusion tensor imaging is paired with voxel‐wise analysis of functional neuroimaging data or (b) the measurement of functional connectivity based on covariance analysis is guided/aided by structural connectivity data. These studies provide insights into the relationships between brain structure and function. Promising trends involve (a) studies where both functional and anatomical connectivity data are collected using high‐resolution neuroimaging methods and (b) the development of advanced quantitative models of integration.
Beta (∼16 Hz) frequency neural oscillations mediate auditory sensory gating in humans
Authors: Hong L. Elliot , Buchanan Robert W. , Thaker Gunvant K. , Shepard Paul D. , Summerfelt Ann 
Published: November 2007

AbstractThe brain's oscillatory activities in response to sensory input are likely signals representing different stages of sensory information processing. To understand these signals, it is critical to establish the specificity of the timing and frequency of oscillations associated with sensory and sensory‐related cognitive processing. We used a simple paired auditory stimulus paradigm for sensory gating and sought to identify time‐ and frequency‐specific oscillatory components contributing to sensory gating. Using a discrete wavelet decomposition technique we separated single‐trial time‐frequency components of evoked potentials elicited by the first of two stimuli. Regression analyses were then used to identify the components most relevant to the suppression of the second evoked potential response. The results suggested that beta oscillation indexed a neural process associated with the strength of sensory gating.
ERPs reveal subliminal processing of fearful faces
Authors: Kiss Monika , Eimer Martin 
Published: November 2007

AbstractTo investigate whether facial expression is processed in the absence of conscious awareness, ERPs were recorded in a task in which participants had to identify the expression of masked fearful and neutral target faces. On supraliminal trials (200 ms target duration), in which identification performance was high, a sustained positivity to fearful versus neutral target faces started 140 ms after target face onset. On subliminal trials (8 ms target duration), identification performance was at chance level, but ERPs still showed systematic fear‐specific effects. An early positivity to fearful target faces was present but smaller than on supraliminal trials. A subsequent enhanced N2 to fearful faces was only present for subliminal trials. In contrast, a P3 enhancement to fearful faces was observed on supraliminal but not subliminal trials. Results demonstrate rapid emotional expression processing in the absence of awareness.
Membrane‐permeable Bcl‐xL prevents MPTP‐induced dopaminergic neuronal loss in the substantia nigra
Authors: Dietz Gunnar P. H. , Stockhausen (née Peters) Kerstin V. , Dietz Birgit , Falkenburger Björn H. , Valbuena Paola , Opazo Felipe , Lingor Paul , Meuer Katrin , Weishaupt Jochen H. , Schulz Jörg B. , Bähr Mathias 
Published: November 2007

AbstractThe anti‐apoptotic Bcl‐xL is a promising agent to prevent neurodegeneration in Parkinson’s disease, which is characterized by a demise of dopaminergic neurons. We linked Bcl‐xL to a peptide that allows its delivery across biological membranes and the blood–brain barrier. We tested the fusion protein in two models of Parkinson’s Disease. Cell‐permeable Bcl‐xL protected neuroblastoma cells from the selective neurotoxin 1‐methyl‐4‐phenylpyridinium. Furthermore, its systemic application in aged mice protected dopaminergic neurons following administration of MPTP as revealed by counting of tyrosine hydroxylase‐immunoreactive neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Hence, we present that a cell‐permeable form of an anti‐apoptotic protein can be delivered to CNS neurons through its systemic application, and we provide the proof that the delivery of this protein to the CNS neurons effectively prevents neuronal cell death in models of chronic neurodegenerative diseases.
Adrenoleukodystrophy initially presenting with symptoms of dementia
Authors: TAMAGAKI Chiharu , MURATA Akira , OHARA Tokio , SAKATA Tetsuji , TAKASE Katsunori , OKUGAWA Gaku , NOBUHARA Kenji , KINOSHITA Toshihiko 
Published: November 2007

AbstractThere is growing consensus that dementia caused by white matter alterations is called ‘white matter dementia’. Because the symptoms of adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) are associated with diffuse white matter dysfunction, ALD is categorized as white matter dementia. Herein, we describe the case of a 47‐year‐old man affected by ALD whose symptoms first appeared a few years earlier in the form of deteriorating personality and memory disturbances, heralded by neurological symptoms. On neuroimaging, a discrepancy was found between magnetic resonance imaging and single photon emission computed tomography in the early stage of the disease process. We suggest that this discrepancy may be an important finding in the diagnosis of early stage white matter dementia.
Progressive prosopagnosia at a very early stage of frontotemporal lobar degeneration
Authors: NAKACHI Ryoko , MURAMATSU Taro , KATO Motoichiro , AKIYAMA Tomoko , SAITO Fumie , YOSHINO Fumihiro , MIMURA Masaru , KASHIMA Haruo 
Published: November 2007

AbstractBackground:  The present paper describes a patient with a right temporal lobe variant (RTLV) of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD).Methods:  The study was undertaken when the patient was completely independent in her environment and had not complained of any cognitive problems.Results:  Under general neuropsychological assessment, the patient showed no notable deficit other than a difficulty in recognizing famous people by looking at photographs of their faces. Subsequent in‐depth evaluation indicated prosopagnosia: the patient presented with an impaired ability to recognize the faces of famous people and family members, whereas her visuospatial abilities were intact. Because the patient was able to recognize familiar people by their voices, the impairment was not a general loss of knowledge about people, but an inability to access this knowledge from visual stimuli (i.e. via the visual modality). The patient also exhibited a ‘within‐category’ learning deficit; however, her ability to learn from ‘across‐category’ visual stimuli remained intact.Conclusions:  Overall, the results of the present study support the proposed model of RTLV of FTLD, where the first sign would be the disruption of face recognition components, leading to a selective form of associative prosopagnosia. Further, the co‐occurrence of face and ‘within‐category’ object learning deficits favor an interpretation in which a more generalized deficit occurs ‘earlier’ in the sequence of events associated with the object recognition process.
Psychosocial factors and completed suicide in personality disorders
Authors: Heikkinen M. E. , Isometsä E. T. , Henriksson M. M. , Marttunen M. J. , Aro H. M. , Lönnqvist J. K. 
Published: November 2007

The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationships between personality disorders (PD) and various psychosocial factors in a random sample (n= 229) of suicides with psychological autopsy‐based DSM‐III‐R diagnoses representing the total 1‐year suicide population in Finland.Background social factors and social interaction factors for 56 suicide victims with a PD diagnosis were compared with those of 56 age‐ and sex‐matched non‐PD suicide victims. The groups were similar with regard to marital status, socio‐economic status, parental divorce, broken home before the age of 16 years, parental suicide attempts, and proportion of subjects living with parents. The PD suicide victims had more commonly had a companion of the opposite sex, lived alone, and resided in an urban area, but had less often experienced parental psychiatric hospitalization during their childhood. Although the groups did not differ with regard to complaints of loneliness before suicide, the lonely PD suicide victims had experienced more interpersonal loss and/or conflict than the lonely non‐PD suicide victims. The PD suicide victims were very similar with regard to psychosocial factors, irrespective of sex, age, Axis‐I comorbidity, or the cluster type of the PD. Only living alone was more common in young PD suicide victims, and male PD subjects had less often had confidants or friends with whom they shared common interests.
Depression Scale (DEPS) in schizophrenia
Authors: Huttunen J. , Taiminen T. , Kähkönen J. , Tuominen K. , Salokangas R. K. R. 
Published: November 2007

Objective: To explore the applicability of the Depression Scale (DEPS), a screening instrument for detecting depression in primary health care, in schizophrenia.Method The DEPS was compared with the Calgary Depression Scale (CDS) among 63 patients with schizophrenia.Results: Using the CDS as a gold standard, the positive and negative predictive values of the DEPS for the diagnosis of depression were 41 % and 97%, respectively. The correlation between the total CDS scores and the total DEPS scores was 0.73.Conclusion: The DEPS appears to be useful for screening depression among schizophrenic patients, but the positive diagnosis must he confirmed with a clinical interview.
Autism: not an extremely rare disorder
Authors: Gillberg C. , Wing L. 
Published: November 2007

Objective: To study autism over time in order to ascertain whether there has been an increase in its prevalence in recent years. Method: All English language papers on the prevalence of autism were reviewed. Ten of the studies retrieved were not used in the final analysis because they did not meet full criteria for inclusion in the review. The remaining 20 studies, published between 1966 and 1997, were subdivided into US studies (n = 2) and non‐US studies (n= 18), and the latter group was subdivided into four 8‐year periods.Results: The early studies yielded prevalence rates of under 0.5 in 1000 children, whereas the later ones showed a mean rate of about 1 in 1000. There was a marked difference in prevalence rates between those studies that included some children born before 1970 (low rates) and those that included only children born in 1970 and after (high rates). This is probably due to the lower rates obtained by use of criteria strictly based on Kanner's description of his syndrome. The US studies reported atypically low rates. There was a highly significant estimated increase with calendar year in the non‐US studies (3.8%, per year).Conclusion: It is concluded that autism is considerably more common than was previously believed. The possible reasons for the higher reported rates are discussed.
Duration of untreated psychosis and 12‐month outcome in first‐episode psychosis: the impact of treatment approach
Authors: Carbone S. , Harrigan S. , McGorry P. D. , Curry C. , Elkins K. 
Published: November 2007

Carbone S, Harrigan S, McGorry PD, Curry C, Elkins K. Duration of untreated psychosis and 12‐month outcome in first‐episode psychosis: the impact of treatment approach.Acta Psychiatr Scand 1999: 100: 96–104. © Munksgaard 1999.Objective: Early intervention research is examining whether reducing the duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) leads to improved outcome from first‐episode psychosis. Another key influence may be the quality of treatment after initiation of care. This study examined the effect of phase‐specific treatment on 12‐month outcome for different categories of DUP.Method: A total of 250 first‐episode psychosis cases were followed up 12 months after stabilization. The sample consisted of two historically sequential cohorts treated in the same region within different service models, one of which was more intensive and phase‐specific. Outcome was compared according to four predefined categories of DUP.Results: Only patients with a mid‐range DUP of 1–6 months who were treated within the phase‐specific model experienced significantly better outcomes than patients treated within the previous model.Conclusion: These data suggest that there may be a limited window of opportunity in which to influence outcome. However, the complexity of this relationship is emphasized.
Depression, negative symptoms, social stagnation and social decline in the early course of schizophrenia
Authors: Häfner H. , Löffler W. , Maurer K. , Hambrecht M. , Heiden W. an der 
Published: November 2007

Häfner H, Löffler W, Maurer K, Hambrecht M, an der Heiden W. Depression, negative symptoms, social stagnation and social decline in the early course of schizophrenia.Acta Psychiatr Scand 1999: 100: 105–118. © Munksgaard 1999.Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate when social consequences in schizophrenia emerge, and what conditions give rise to the social disadvantage evident in people suffering from schizophrenia.Method: Early course in schizophrenia was studied in a population‐based sample of 232 first illness‐episode cases retrospectively from onset to first admission, and in a representative subsample of 115 patients prospec‐tively at six cross‐sections over a period of 5 years. Data on non‐specific and negative symptomatology and social development was compared with data from an age‐ and sex‐matched control group drawn from the normal population.Results: In total, 73% of the patients showed a prodromal phase of several years. First signs were depressive and negative symptoms. In 57% of cases social disability emerged 2 to 4 years before first admission. Social consequences depended on the level of social development at onset. An early onset involved social stagnation, and a late onset was associated with social decline. Men's poorer social outcome was determined by their lower level of social development at onset and socially adverse illness behaviour. The 5‐year symptom‐related course showed no gender difference. At 81′% the lifetime prevalence of depressive mood until first admission was several times higher in schizophrenics than in healthy controls. Early depression predicted a lower subsequent score for affective flattening. Suicide indicators were predicted by lack of self‐confidence and feelings of guilt early in the illness.Conclusion: Taking into account a prodromal phase of several years on average before first hospital admission, early detection, case identification and intervention are urgently needed. The intervention must be targeted at syndromes such as early depression, negative symptoms and certain forms of cognitive and social impairment.
Neurological abnormalities in schizophrenic patients: a prospective follow‐up study 5 years after first admission
Authors: Madsen A. L. , Vorstrup S. , Rubin P. , Larsen J. K. , Hemmingsen R. 
Published: November 2007

Madsen AL, Vorstrup S, Rubin P, Larsen JK, Hemmingsen R. Neurological abnormalities in schizophrenic patients: a prospective follow‐up study 5 years after first admission. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1999: 100: 119–125. © Munksgaard 1999.Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the temporal stability of neurological abnormalities in first‐episode schizophrenic patients, and to clarify the relationships between such abnormalities and psychopathology.Method: A total of 18 schizophrenic patients, 11 non‐schizophrenic patients and 10 healthy volunteers were examined neurologically at first admission and 5 years later.Results: A significant increase in the number of neurological abnormalities was seen in schizophrenic patients with genetic predisposition and in patients with a non‐remitting course of disease. Birth complications had an impact on the occurrence of neurological abnormalities at first admission.Conclusion: The association between a deteriorating course of disease and neurological impairment supports the theory that any possible impairment of the brain in schizophrenia is aggravated during the first 5 years of disease.
Does the place of treatment influence the quality of life of schizophrenics?
Authors: Rössler W. , Salize H. J. , Cucchiaro G. , Reinhard I. , Kernig C. 
Published: November 2007

Rossler W, Salize HJ, Cucchiaro G, Reinhard 1, Kernig C. Does the place of treatment influence the quality of life of schizophrenics? Acta Psychiatr Scand 1999: 100: 142–148. © Munksgaard 1999.Objective: Chronically mentally ill patients in community mental health care report a better quality of life (QOL) than those in long‐term hospital care, which suggests that the treatment setting per se influences their QOL.Method: In a region where both treatment settings are of a comparable high standard, we assessed the QOL of 96 schizophrenic patients from these two treatment settings, and the factors which most influenced their QOL.Results: Community‐care patients reported a better QOL than long‐term hospital‐care patients. However, when other factors influencing QOL were included in a regression analysis, the place of treatment was no longer significant, but rather the social support, the severity of the illness, educational level and certain illness concepts.Conclusion: It is probably not the place per se which influences the QOL, but apart from personal, sociodemographic and illness‐related factors, the amount of social support that is provided in different settings.