-
Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders Jan 2022Phosphatase and tensin homologue (PTEN) is a cancer suppressor gene. Constitutional mutations affecting this gene are associated with several conditions, collectively... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Behavioural and psychological features of PTEN mutations: a systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis of the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder characteristics.
BACKGROUND
Phosphatase and tensin homologue (PTEN) is a cancer suppressor gene. Constitutional mutations affecting this gene are associated with several conditions, collectively termed PTEN hamartoma tumour syndromes (PHTS). In addition to hamartomas, PTEN aberrations have been associated with a range of non-tumoural phenotypes such as macrocephaly, and research indicates possibly increased rates of developmental delay and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) for people with germline mutations affecting PTEN.
METHOD
A systematic review of literature reporting behavioural and psychological variables for people with constitutional PTEN mutations/PHTS was conducted using four databases. Following in-depth screening, 25 articles met the inclusion criteria and were used in the review. Fourteen papers reported the proportion of people with PTEN mutations/PTHS meeting criteria for or having characteristics of ASD and were thus used in a pooled prevalence meta-analysis.
RESULTS
Meta-analysis using a random effects model estimated pooled prevalence of ASD characteristics at 25% (95% CI 16-33%), although this should be interpreted cautiously due to possible biases in existing literature. Intellectual disability and developmental delay (global, motor and speech and language) were also reported frequently. Emotional difficulties and impaired cognitive functioning in specific domains were noted but assessed/reported less frequently. Methods of assessment of psychological/behavioural factors varied widely (with retrospective examination of medical records common).
CONCLUSIONS
Existing research suggests approximately 25% of people with constitutional PTEN mutations may meet criteria for or have characteristics of ASD. Studies have also begun to establish a range of possible cognitive impairments in affected individuals, especially when ASD is also reported. However, further large-scale studies are needed to elucidate psychological/behavioural corollaries of this mutation, and how they may relate to physiological/physical characteristics.
Topics: Autism Spectrum Disorder; Germ-Line Mutation; Humans; Mutation; PTEN Phosphohydrolase; Prevalence; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 34983360
DOI: 10.1186/s11689-021-09406-w -
Clinical Psychology Review Jun 2021Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common mental health condition that requires exposure to a traumatic event. This provides unique opportunities for prevention... (Review)
Review
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common mental health condition that requires exposure to a traumatic event. This provides unique opportunities for prevention that are not available for other disorders. The aim of this review was to undertake a systematic review and evaluation of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of interventions designed to prevent PTSD in adults. Searches involving Cochrane, Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, PILOTS and Pubmed databases were undertaken to identify RCTs of pre-incident preparedness and post-incident interventions until May 2019. Six pre-incident and 69 post-incident trials were identified that could be included in meta-analyses. The overall quality of the evidence was low. There was emerging evidence that some interventions may be helpful but an absence of evidence for any intervention that can be strongly recommended for universal, selected or indicated prevention before or within the first three months of a traumatic event. The strongest results were found for cognitive-behavioural therapy with a trauma focus (CBT-T) in individuals with a diagnosis of acute stress disorder which supports calls to detect and treat individuals with significant symptoms rather than providing blanket preventative interventions. Further research is required to optimally configure existing interventions with some evidence of effect and to develop novel interventions to address this major public health issue.
Topics: Adult; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Humans; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
PubMed: 33857763
DOI: 10.1016/j.cpr.2021.102004 -
Brain Sciences Feb 2022Developmental dyslexia (DD) is a specific learning disorder concerning reading acquisition that may has a lifelong negative impact on individuals. A reliable estimate of... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Developmental dyslexia (DD) is a specific learning disorder concerning reading acquisition that may has a lifelong negative impact on individuals. A reliable estimate of the prevalence of DD serves as the basis for diagnosis, intervention, and evidence-based health resource allocation and policy-making. Hence, the present meta-analysis aims to generate a reliable prevalence estimate of DD worldwide in primary school children and explore the potential variables related to that prevalence.
METHODS
Studies from the 1950s to June 2021 were collated using a combination of search terms related to DD and prevalence. Study quality was assessed using the STROBE guidelines according to the study design, with study heterogeneity assessed using the statistic, and random-effects meta-analyses were conducted. Variations in the prevalence of DD in different subgroups were assessed via subgroup meta-analysis and meta-regression.
RESULTS
The pooled prevalence of DD was 7.10% (95% CI: 6.27-7.97%). The prevalence in boys was significantly higher than that in girls (boys: 9.22%, 95%CI, 8.07-10.44%; girls: 4.66%, 95% CI, 3.84-5.54%; < 0.001), but no significant difference was found in the prevalence across different writing systems (alphabetic scripts: 7.26%, 95%CI, 5.94-8.71%; logographic scripts: 6.97%, 95%CI, 5.86-8.16%; > 0.05) or across different orthographic depths (shallow: 7.13%, 95% CI, 5.23-9.30%; deep: 7.55%, 95% CI, 4.66-11.04%; > 0.05). It is worth noting that most articles had small sample sizes with diverse operational definitions, making comparisons challenging.
CONCLUSIONS
This study provides an estimation of worldwide DD prevalence in primary school children. The prevalence was higher in boys than in girls but was not significantly different across different writing systems.
PubMed: 35204003
DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12020240 -
PloS One 2016Developmental regulation theories claim that continuing to pursue a goal when it becomes blocked contributes to poorer wellbeing. This consequence is expected to lead to... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Developmental regulation theories claim that continuing to pursue a goal when it becomes blocked contributes to poorer wellbeing. This consequence is expected to lead to the use of self-regulation strategies in the form of higher disengagement from the goal and higher reengagement in other meaningful goals. The use of these strategies is expected to lead to better wellbeing. A systematic-review and meta-analyses were conducted to test the major predictions of developmental regulation theories for blocked parenthood goal and to investigate possible moderator variables, particularly type and degree of blockage. A total of eight meta-analyses were performed using random-effects models. Moderation was tested with subgroup analysis. After searching eight databases, 4977 potential relevant manuscripts were identified but only six met inclusion criteria. From the eight meta-analyses conducted, only two were significant. In line with prediction, higher goal blockage was related to higher negative mood and reengagement in other life goals was associated to higher positive mood (p < .001). From a total of eight subgroup analyses performed, results showed that disengaging had a positive impact on wellbeing for people experiencing an unanticipated type of blockage (i.e., infertility) but not for those with an anticipated one (i.e., postponing parenthood; X2 = 4.867, p = .03). From the total of twelve sensitivity analyses performed only one suggested that results might differ. The association between disengagement and mood varied according to study quality. When only average studies were included this association was negative, although non-significant. The evidence obtained did not fully support developmental regulation theories for the pursuit of parenthood goal, but primary research had too many methodological limitations to reach firm conclusions. Future studies aimed at investigating blocked parenthood goal are required to evaluate the value of developmental regulation theories.
Topics: Achievement; Adaptation, Psychological; Female; Goals; Health Status; Humans; Infertility; Male; Mental Health; Parents; Self-Control
PubMed: 27336597
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157649 -
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews Aug 2022Parental socialization may influence the development of children's autonomic nervous system (ANS), a key stress-response system. However, to date no quantitative... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Parental socialization may influence the development of children's autonomic nervous system (ANS), a key stress-response system. However, to date no quantitative synthesis of the literature linking parenting and child ANS physiology has been conducted. To address this gap, we conducted a pre-registered meta-analysis. A systematic review of the literature identified 103 studies (n = 13,044 participants) with available effect sizes describing the association between parenting and either parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) or sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity in children. The overall analysis revealed non-significant associations between parenting and child ANS physiology on average. However, moderation analyses revealed a positive association between more positive parenting and higher resting PNS activity that was stronger when a study was experimental rather than correlational, and when the sample included children with a clinical condition. In conclusion, well-controlled experimental studies show that positive parenting is associated with the development of higher resting PNS activity, an effect that may be stronger among children who are at elevated developmental risk.
Topics: Autonomic Nervous System; Child; Humans; Parasympathetic Nervous System; Parenting; Rest; Sympathetic Nervous System
PubMed: 35716874
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104734 -
International Journal of Environmental... Apr 2023Childhood obesity is considered a major public health problem. To help prevention and intervention programs targeting families with obese children, this paper is aimed... (Review)
Review
Childhood obesity is considered a major public health problem. To help prevention and intervention programs targeting families with obese children, this paper is aimed at synthesizing multifactorial and transactional data resulting from studies and reviews assessing relational factors between the child and his or her parents and the child's obesity risk, including the child's and CG's attachment quality, parental feeding practices, and family routines. It is also aimed at assessing the mediation of these links by specific self-regulatory capacities across different developmental periods (0-2, 2-8, and 8-18 years old). The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were applied in the review methodology. Ten papers were analyzed, including seven empirical studies and three reviews proposing etiological models of childhood obesity. The quality of empirical studies was assessed, and a synthetical model of the results was proposed. This literature review showed that the caregiver's (CG) and the child's attachment quality, along with controlling or permissive feeding practices, and few family routines are mostly mediated by appetite dysregulation and emotional regulation strategies with the development of child obesity. New research topics are proposed to understand other facets of childhood obesity, as well as how to better prevent and treat it.
Topics: Humans; Child; Male; Female; Pediatric Obesity; Family Practice; Feeding Behavior; Appetite; Emotional Regulation
PubMed: 37107778
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20085496 -
Frontiers in Neurology 2022Tension-type headache (TTH) is the most prevalent headache in the clinical practice, leading to impaired social activities, work-related disability, and heavy financial...
BACKGROUND
Tension-type headache (TTH) is the most prevalent headache in the clinical practice, leading to impaired social activities, work-related disability, and heavy financial burdens. Previous studies have described possible inducement, potential pathophysiology, and clinical management of TTH; however, due to the lack of attention, literature involving bibliometric analysis is sporadic. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the current hotspots and future directions of the TTH field by bibliometric analysis.
METHODS
By using CiteSpace and VOSviewer, literature regarding TTH between 2002 and 2021 from the Web of Science database was summarized and extracted. Annual publication trend, the most productive countries/regions and institutions, distribution of categories, co-citation of journals and references, and co-occurrence of keywords were analyzed.
RESULTS
A total of 3,379 publications were included in the final visualization, indicating a stable trend in current research and a lack of breakthroughs over the past decades. These studies were mainly conducted in 120 countries/regions led by the United States and more than 600 institutions. Four eternal core themes were identified in TTH, including neurosciences, nursing, developmental psychology, and general/internal medicine. ranked first, with the highest number of literature, and is the most influential journal in this area. Keyword analysis demonstrated that the similarities and differences between migraine and TTH, epidemiological studies, clinical double-blind trials, and potential populations have become key issues in the TTH field.
CONCLUSION
TTH has received less attention and breakthroughs in the past 20 years. To promote coordinated development between regions to fight headaches, cooperation and exchanges between countries and institutions are essential in the future. Relevant studies about headaches in children and adolescents, inducing factors such as emotional triggers and sleep disorders, concomitant diseases, possible pathogenesis, and headache treatments, are in the spotlight in recent years. This study offers a powerful roadmap for further research in this field.
PubMed: 36119709
DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.980096 -
Children (Basel, Switzerland) Dec 2023This study aimed to determine, through a systematic review, the relationship between Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and the presence of psychopathology in children... (Review)
Review
This study aimed to determine, through a systematic review, the relationship between Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and the presence of psychopathology in children and adolescents, and to determine the existence of differences in terms of internalising and externalising psychological problems between the RAD group and groups with other disorders or with typical development. Following the PRISMA methodology, a search was carried out in the Web of Science, PubMed and Scopus databases. The search yielded 770 results, of which only 25 met the inclusion criteria. The results indicate a relationship between the presence of RAD and/or disinhibited social engagement disorder (DSED), with the presence of internalising and externalising problems. These difficulties are more present in children with RAD compared to children without personal difficulties, or children with DSED, children with autism, children with intellectual disabilities or children with hyperactivity. It can be concluded that the presence of RAD has negative consequences on the mental health of children and adolescents, with these being greater in the inhibited group than in the disinhibited group, and with respect to children with autism or hyperactivity.
PubMed: 38136094
DOI: 10.3390/children10121892 -
Autism & Developmental Language... 2022The ability to communicate is a fundamental skill required to participate in school. Students with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) have persistent and significant... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
The ability to communicate is a fundamental skill required to participate in school. Students with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) have persistent and significant language difficulties that impact daily functioning. However, the impact of DLD on the academic achievement of primary and secondary school-aged students has received limited attention.
METHODS
A systematic review of the empirical research published between 2008 and 2020 was undertaken to identify studies that have examined the academic achievement of school-aged students with DLD within curriculum areas. A total of 44 studies were identified that met inclusion criteria for review.
RESULTS
Students with DLD demonstrated difficulties with academic achievement across all measured curriculum areas compared to their typically developing peers. Most studies focused on literacy skills, including reading, spelling, writing and narratives.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
The performance of students with DLD was heterogeneous with individual students demonstrating relative strengths in some areas of academic achievement. The implications of these results for educational practices and future research are discussed.
PubMed: 36382072
DOI: 10.1177/23969415221099397 -
Journal of Applied Research in... Sep 2018The aim of the study was to conduct the first systematic review investigating the prevalence of loneliness in people with intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD)... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
The aim of the study was to conduct the first systematic review investigating the prevalence of loneliness in people with intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD) and the interventions targeting loneliness.
METHOD
A search across five databases was conducted (May 2016-June 2016). One reviewer (A. P.) selected the articles for inclusion and assessed their risk of bias using a standardized tool. The second reviewer (A. H.) examined the list of included/excluded articles and the ratings of the studies.
RESULTS
Five prevalence studies met the inclusion criteria and provided an average loneliness prevalence of 44.74%. Only one intervention study was included, and it demonstrated that there was not any significant group difference for loneliness outcomes (p = .21). The majority of the studies had a weak quality rating.
CONCLUSION
The systematic review evidenced that loneliness is a common experience in people with IDD and there is a need to extend current research.
Topics: Developmental Disabilities; Humans; Intellectual Disability; Loneliness
PubMed: 29441708
DOI: 10.1111/jar.12432