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BMJ Case Reports Jan 2024Vertebral artery dissections are a rare pathology that carries a high risk of stroke in a younger population. They may be caused by minor mechanisms and the index of...
Vertebral artery dissections are a rare pathology that carries a high risk of stroke in a younger population. They may be caused by minor mechanisms and the index of suspicion should be high. Treatment with anticoagulation or antiplatelets should follow if no surgical management is indicated.We describe a case of a female in her 30s who fell backward off a swing and rolled over her head and complained of continued posterior neck pain. The patient was found to have a vertebral artery dissection on MRI. The patient was then anticoagulated with high-dose apixaban and low-dose aspirin.The emergency medicine provider should be aware of possible low-impact mechanisms that can cause vertebral artery dissection and should have a high index of suspicion. If surgical management is not indicated, anticoagulation should be initiated.
Topics: Female; Humans; Affect; Anticoagulants; Aspirin; Awareness; Vertebral Artery Dissection; Adult
PubMed: 38195187
DOI: 10.1136/bcr-2023-255923 -
Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice Nov 2023
Topics: Humans; Diabetes Mellitus; Awareness; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
PubMed: 37884065
DOI: 10.1016/j.diabres.2023.110968 -
Journal of Neurophysiology Sep 2023The emergence of consciousness is one of biology's biggest mysteries. During the past two decades, a major effort has been made to identify the neural correlates of...
The emergence of consciousness is one of biology's biggest mysteries. During the past two decades, a major effort has been made to identify the neural correlates of consciousness, but in comparison, little is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying first-person subjective experience. Attention is considered the gateway of information to consciousness. Recent work suggests that the breathing phase (i.e., inhalation vs. exhalation) modulates attention, in such a way that attention directed toward exteroceptive information would increase during inhalation. One key hypothesis emerging from this work is that inhalation would improve perceptual awareness and near-threshold decision-making. The present study directly tested this hypothesis. We recorded the breathing rhythms of 30 humans performing a near-threshold decision-making task, in which they had to decide whether a liminal Gabor was tilted to the right or the left (objective decision task) and then to rate their perceptual awareness of the Gabor orientation (subjective decision task). In line with our hypothesis, the data revealed that, relative to exhalation, inhalation improves perceptual awareness and speeds up objective decision-making, without impairing accuracy. Overall, the present study builds on timely questions regarding the physiological mechanisms underlying consciousness and shows that breathing shapes the emergence of subjective experience and decision-making. Breathing is a ubiquitous biological rhythm in animal life. However, little is known about its effect on consciousness and decision-making. Here, we measured the respiratory rhythm of humans performing a near-threshold discrimination experiment. We show that inhalation, compared with exhalation, improves perceptual awareness and accelerates decision-making while leaving accuracy unaffected.
Topics: Humans; Awareness; Attention; Consciousness; Respiration; Exhalation; Decision Making
PubMed: 37529836
DOI: 10.1152/jn.00492.2022 -
PloS One 2023Within consciousness research, the most appropriate assessment of visual awareness is matter of a controversial debate: Subjective measures rely on introspections of the...
Within consciousness research, the most appropriate assessment of visual awareness is matter of a controversial debate: Subjective measures rely on introspections of the observer related to perceptual experiences, whereas objective measures are based on performance of the observer to accurately detect or discriminate the stimulus in question across a series of trials. In the present study, we compared subjective and objective awareness measurements across different stimulus feature and contrast levels using a temporal two-alternative forced choice task. This task has the advantage to provide an objective psychophysical performance measurement, while minimizing biases from unconscious processing. Thresholds based on subjective ratings with the Perceptual Awareness Scale (PAS) and on performance accuracy were determined for detection (stimulus presence) and discrimination (letter case) tasks at high and low stimulus contrast. We found a comparable pattern of thresholds across tasks and contrasts for objective and subjective measurements of awareness. These findings suggest that objective performance measures based on accuracy and subjective ratings of the visual experience can provide similar information on the feature-content of a percept. The observed similarity of thresholds validates psychophysical and subjective approaches to awareness as providing converging and thus most likely veridical measures of awareness.
Topics: Visual Perception; Awareness; Consciousness
PubMed: 37788260
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292438 -
The Lancet. Rheumatology Oct 2023The practice of blinding treatment assignment in randomised controlled trials mitigates important biases in observational studies. Unblinding, whereby study participants... (Review)
Review
The practice of blinding treatment assignment in randomised controlled trials mitigates important biases in observational studies. Unblinding, whereby study participants or investigators become aware of treatment assignments, is an important threat to the validity of trial results. Rheumatology studies might be particularly susceptible to unblinding because rheumatic disease therapies often cause high rates of idiosyncratic side-effects and frequently rely on subjective endpoints. Despite this susceptibility, the degree to which unblinding occurs in randomised controlled trials in rheumatic diseases has rarely been assessed during trials or acknowledged as a limitation. Rheumatologists should be aware of this important threat to the validity of trial results, assessments of unblinding should be undertaken, and strategies to prevent unblinding should be deployed when feasible.
Topics: Humans; Rheumatic Diseases; Rheumatology; Awareness; Research Personnel; Rheumatologists
PubMed: 38251487
DOI: 10.1016/S2665-9913(23)00191-1 -
Resuscitation Jan 2024
Topics: Humans; Resuscitation; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation; Electroencephalography; Awareness
PubMed: 38220416
DOI: 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2023.109924 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Jul 2023This paper provides an overview of cognitive radio technology and its applications in the field of civil aviation. Cognitive radio technology is a relatively new and... (Review)
Review
This paper provides an overview of cognitive radio technology and its applications in the field of civil aviation. Cognitive radio technology is a relatively new and emerging field that allows for dynamic spectrum access and efficient use of spectrum resources. In the context of civil aviation, cognitive radio technology has the potential to enable more efficient use of the limited radio spectrum available for communication and navigation purposes. This paper examines the current state of cognitive radio technology, including ongoing research and development efforts, regulatory issues, and potential challenges to widespread adoption. The potential applications of cognitive radio technology in civil aviation are also explored, including improved spectrum utilization, increased safety and security, and enhanced situational awareness. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion of future research directions and the potential impact of cognitive radio technology on the future of civil aviation. It is hoped that this paper will serve as a useful resource for researchers, engineers, and policy makers interested in the emerging field of cognitive radio technology and its potential applications in the field of civil aviation.
Topics: Aviation; Awareness; Communication; Engineering; Technology
PubMed: 37447974
DOI: 10.3390/s23136125 -
PeerJ 2023The conscious processing of body signals influences higher-order psychological and cognitive functions, including self-awareness. Dysfunctions in the processing of these...
The conscious processing of body signals influences higher-order psychological and cognitive functions, including self-awareness. Dysfunctions in the processing of these signals has been connected to neurological and psychiatric disorders characterized by altered states of self-consciousness. Studies indicate that perceiving the body through interoceptive signals (, from internal organs such as heartbeat and breathing) is distinct from perceiving the body through exteroceptive signals (, by relying on visual, tactile and olfactory cues). While questionnaires are available for assessing interoception, there are no validated self-report instruments for measuring bodily exterception. To fill this gap, we performed three studies to develop and validate a novel scale designed to assess bodily self-consciousness based on the processing of exteroceptive bodily signals. Exploratory factor analysis (Study 1, = 302) led to an 18-item questionnaire comprised of four factors. We called this instrument Exteroceptive Body Awareness questionnaire (EBA-q). Confirmatory factor analysis (Study 2, = 184) run on a second sample showed an acceptable fit for a bifactor model, suggesting researchers may use the questionnaire as a unidimensional scale reflecting exteroceptive bodily self-consciousness, or use each of its four sub-scales, reflecting "visuo-tactile body awareness", "spatial coordination", "awareness of body changes" and "awareness of clothing fit". Overall EBA-q showed good internal consistency. Convergent and divergent validity were assessed cross-validation with existing body awareness questionnaires (Study 3, = 366) and behavioral measures (Study 3, = 64) of exteroceptive and interoceptive bodily self-consciousness. Research applications are discussed within a multi-faceted model of exteroception and interoception as distinct, but at the same time interconnected, dimensions of bodily self-consciousness.
Topics: Humans; Awareness; Cognition; Self Report; Consciousness; Cues
PubMed: 37641601
DOI: 10.7717/peerj.15382 -
Journal of American College Health : J... Nov 2023Emotional eating is prevalent among college women. Deficits in interoceptive awareness, or the ability to perceive and identify internal sensations, are associated with...
Emotional eating is prevalent among college women. Deficits in interoceptive awareness, or the ability to perceive and identify internal sensations, are associated with emotional eating. Separately examining the specific components of interoceptive awareness, appetite and emotional awareness, in relation to emotional eating may improve prevention and treatment of emotional eating in college women. 143 women at an urban Northeastern university. This was a cross-sectional study using self-report measures of interoceptive awareness, appetite and emotional awareness, emotional eating, and depression. Simultaneous regression analyses examined the independent association of appetite and emotional awareness with emotional eating, controlling for depression. Consistent with hypotheses, lower interoceptive awareness was associated with higher emotional eating. Appetite and emotional awareness, were each uniquely associated with emotional eating independent of depression, even when entered simultaneously. Future prevention and treatment of emotional eating in college women should target improvements in appetite and emotional awareness.
Topics: Humans; Female; Appetite; Awareness; Cross-Sectional Studies; Universities; Students; Emotions
PubMed: 34469250
DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2021.1970566 -
Nutrients Dec 2023Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) has been extensively applied in nutritional assessments on the general population, and it is recommended in establishing the... (Review)
Review
Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) has been extensively applied in nutritional assessments on the general population, and it is recommended in establishing the diagnosis of malnutrition and sarcopenia. The bioimpedance technique has become a promising modality through which to measure the whole-body composition in dialysis patients, where the presence of subclinical volume overload and sarcopenic obesity may be overlooked by assessing body weight alone. In the past two decades, bioimpedance devices have evolved from applying a single frequency to a range of frequencies (bioimpedance spectroscopy, BIS), in which the latter is incorporated with a three-compartment model that allows for the simultaneous measurement of the volume of overhydration, adipose tissue mass (ATM), and lean tissue mass (LTM). However, clinicians should be aware of common potential limitations, such as the adoption of population-specific prediction equations in some BIA devices. Inherent prediction error does exist in the bioimpedance technique, but the extent to which this error becomes clinically significant remains to be determined. Importantly, reduction in LTM has been associated with increased risk of frailty, hospitalization, and mortality in dialysis patients, whereas the prognostic value of ATM remains debatable. Further studies are needed to determine whether modifications of bioimpedance-derived body composition parameters through nutrition intervention can result in clinical benefits.
Topics: Humans; Nutrition Assessment; Renal Dialysis; Awareness; Body Composition; Body Weight
PubMed: 38201845
DOI: 10.3390/nu16010015