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Frontiers in Neurology 2017Quantitative balance measurement is used in clinical practice to prevent falls. The conditions of the test were limited to eyes open, eyes closed, and sway-referenced...
BACKGROUND
Quantitative balance measurement is used in clinical practice to prevent falls. The conditions of the test were limited to eyes open, eyes closed, and sway-referenced vision. We developed a new visual perturbation to challenge balance using virtual reality (VR), measuring postural stability by a Wii Balance Board (WBB).
METHODS
In this study, we recorded balance performance of 116 healthy subjects and of 10 bilateral vestibular loss patients using VR to assess the effect of age and the effect of total loss of vestibular function. We used several conditions: eyes open (normal visual inputs), eyes closed (no visual inputs), stable visual world (vision referenced), and perturbed visual world (visual perturbation) at different amplitudes of perturbation. Balance under these visual conditions was assessed on the WBB (stable support surface) and on the WBB plus foam rubber (unstable support surface).
RESULTS
In healthy subjects, we found that the percentage of falls increased with age and with the amplitude of perturbation for both conditions: WBB or WBB + foam. Moreover, we can define a threshold for falls in each age group as the amplitude of perturbation which induced falls. For bilateral vestibular loss patients, on the WBB + foam, all of them failed with eyes closed and with perturbed visual world even at the minimal amplitude of perturbation. Finally, we observed that stable visual world induced fewer falls than eyes closed whatever the subject's group (healthy or bilateral vestibular loss) and whatever the age decade.
CONCLUSION
VR allowed us to develop a useful new tool with a wide range of visual perturbations. Rather than only two levels of visual condition (eyes open and eyes closed), the VR stimulus can be continuously adjusted to produce a visual perturbation powerful enough to induce falls even in young healthy subjects and which has allowed us to determine a threshold for falls.
PubMed: 28163693
DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2017.00005 -
Annals of Pediatric Endocrinology &... Jun 2013The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between birth characteristics based on birth weight for gestational age, timing of menarche and adult height in...
PURPOSE
The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between birth characteristics based on birth weight for gestational age, timing of menarche and adult height in girls born small for gestational age (SGA).
METHODS
Thirty subjects born from 1988 through 1999 whose birth weight below 10th percentile for their gestational ages were recruited based on hospital chart reviews. The age of each subject at menarche was recorded, and the subject's heights and bone age were assessed.
RESULTS
The adult height of the girls born SGA was significantly lower than the normal adult height and slightly shorter than their target height. The adult height was associated with the birth weight for gestational age. The age at menarche was not different with the menarche timing of the general population.
CONCLUSION
More attention may need to be paid to the growth outcomes of SGA patients whose birth weight is lower for their gestational age than other SGA subjects.
PubMed: 24904856
DOI: 10.6065/apem.2013.18.2.76 -
Children (Basel, Switzerland) May 2021Childhood and adolescence represent critical periods where beverage and food consumption behaviors are learned and developed. Mexican mothers' presence and influence are...
Childhood and adolescence represent critical periods where beverage and food consumption behaviors are learned and developed. Mexican mothers' presence and influence are instrumental in shaping such behaviors. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and risk associations of maternal factors for unhealthy patterns of beverage intake. This study analyzed data from a population-based cross-sectional study of healthy children and adolescents from Mexico City. Data of subject's total water intake (TWI) and its' sources were collected using two 24-h recall surveys. Patterns of beverage intake were constructed based on the guidance system of beverage consumption in the US. Maternal factors of interest included age, body mass index (BMI), mother's educational level (MEL), socioeconomic status (SES), and belongingness to the paid workforce (BPW). Data of 1532 subject-mother dyads informed that 47% of subjects did not meet the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations for TWI, and 94.6% showed an unhealthy beverage intake pattern, mainly consisting in a lower intake of water and a higher intake of caloric beverages with some nutrients; and calorically sweetened beverages. The major sources of hydration were caloric beverages with some nutrients (i.e., whole milk, fruit water, and flavored milk). The highest risk association for an unhealthy beverage intake pattern was seen in those subjects with mothers in the cluster with lower SES, lower MEL, lower proportion of BPW, higher BMI, and younger age (OR = 9.3, 95% CI 1.2-72.8, = 0.03). Thus, there is a remarkably high prevalence of an unhealthy pattern of beverage intake, and specific maternal factors may be implicated as enablers of such behaviors, which is also addressable for future interventions.
PubMed: 34067968
DOI: 10.3390/children8050385 -
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 2022Brain age has historically been investigated primarily at the whole brain level. The ability to deconstruct the brain into its composite parts and explore brain age at...
BACKGROUND
Brain age has historically been investigated primarily at the whole brain level. The ability to deconstruct the brain into its composite parts and explore brain age at the sub-structure level offers unique advantages. These include the exploration of dynamic and interconnected relationships between different brain structures in healthy and pathologic aging. To achieve this, individual brain structures can be rendered as surface representations on which morphologic analysis is carried out. Combining the advantages of deep learning with the strengths of surface analysis, we investigate the aging process at the individual structure level with the hypothesis being that pathologic aging does not uniformly affect the aging process of individual structures.
METHODS
MRI data, age at scan time and diagnosis of dementia were collected from seven publicly available data repositories. The data from 17,440 unique subjects were collected, representing a total of 26,276 T1-weighted MRI accounting for longitudinal acquisitions. Surfaces were extracted for the cortex and seven subcortical structures. Deep learning networks were trained to estimate a subject's age either using several structures together or a single structure. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis to assess the difference between the predicted and actual ages for all structures between healthy subjects, individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD). We then performed a longitudinal analysis to assess the difference in the aging pace for each structure between stable healthy controls and healthy controls converting to either MCI or ADD.
FINDINGS
Using an independent cohort of healthy subjects, age was well estimated for all structures. Cross-sectional analysis identified significantly larger predicted age for all structures in patients with either MCI and ADD compared to healthy subjects. Longitudinal analysis revealed varying degrees of involvement of individual subcortical structures for both age difference across groups and aging pace across time. These findings were most notable in the whole brain, cortex, hippocampus and amygdala.
CONCLUSION
Although similar patterns of abnormal aging were found related to MCI and ADD, the involvement of individual subcortical structures varied greatly and was consistently more pronounced in ADD patients compared to MCI patients.
PubMed: 36081894
DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.895535 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2016The present study examines the processing of subject-verb (SV) number agreement with coordinate subjects in pre-verbal and post-verbal positions in Greek. Greek is a...
The present study examines the processing of subject-verb (SV) number agreement with coordinate subjects in pre-verbal and post-verbal positions in Greek. Greek is a language with morphological number marked on nominal and verbal elements. Coordinate SV agreement, however, is special in Greek as it is sensitive to the coordinate subject's position: when pre-verbal, the verb is marked for plural while when post-verbal the verb can be in the singular. We conducted two experiments, an acceptability judgment task with adult monolinguals as a pre-study (Experiment 1) and a self-paced reading task as the main study (Experiment 2) in order to obtain acceptance as well as processing data. Forty adult monolingual speakers of Greek participated in Experiment 1 and a hundred and forty one in Experiment 2. Seventy one children participated in Experiment 2: 30 Albanian-Greek sequential bilingual children and 41 Greek monolingual children aged 10-12 years. The adult data in Experiment 1 establish the difference in acceptability between singular VPs in SV and VS constructions reaffirming our hypothesis. Meanwhile, the adult data in Experiment 2 show that plural verbs accelerate processing regardless of subject position. The child online data show that sequential bilingual children have longer reading times (RTs) compared to the age-matched monolingual control group. However, both child groups follow a similar processing pattern in both pre-verbal and post-verbal constructions showing longer RTs immediately after a singular verb when the subject was pre-verbal indicating a grammaticality effect. In the post-verbal coordinate subject sentences, both child groups showed longer RTs on the first subject following the plural verb due to the temporary number mismatch between the verb and the first subject. This effect was resolved in monolingual children but was still present at the end of the sentence for bilingual children indicating difficulties to reanalyze and integrate information. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that (a) 10-12 year-old sequential bilingual children are sensitive to number agreement in SV coordinate constructions parsing sentences in the same way as monolingual children even though their vocabulary abilities are lower than that of age-matched monolingual peers and (b) bilinguals are slower in processing overall.
PubMed: 27242577
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00648 -
Journal of Optometry 2021Stereopsis is a valuable feature of human visual perception which is critically impaired in amblyopia, but can be improved through perceptual learning (PL). This article...
BACKGROUND
Stereopsis is a valuable feature of human visual perception which is critically impaired in amblyopia, but can be improved through perceptual learning (PL). This article aims to determine the variables affecting the outcomes and intensity of a stereoacuity stimulation program.
METHODS
Re-analysis of a previous study in stereodeficient subjects with a history of amblyopia. Sixteen subjects (12 females, 4 males) aged between 7 and 14 received stereopsis stimulation through a PL program at home. A correlation analysis evaluated whether treatment intensity or percentage improvement were related to age or baseline stereoacuity measurements. Further analysis was performed to assess whether the type of amblyopia conditioned the PL treatment (Fischer Statistical Test).
RESULTS
No significant correlation was found between age and percentage improvement (rho=-0.08, p=0.749), nor was age correlated with treatment intensity (rho=0.170, p=0.544). However, a correlation did exist between baseline stereoacuity levels and treatment intensity (rho=0.734, p=0.001). Baseline stereoacuity and percentage improvement had a negative correlation (rho=-0.748, p=0.005), while treatment intensity showed only a weak association with the type of amblyopia (p=0.064).
CONCLUSIONS
Present results suggest that perceptual learning in stereodeficient subjects is not influenced by either the subject's age or the type of amblyopia. Baseline stereoacuity, on the other hand, seems to be a predicting factor for perceptual learning outcomes. According to our study, subjects with poor basal stereoacuity needed more sessions to improve and their percentage improvement was lower. However, due to the reduced size of the sample, the results should be considered with caution.
Topics: Adolescent; Amblyopia; Child; Depth Perception; Female; Humans; Male; Vision, Binocular; Visual Acuity; Visual Perception
PubMed: 32561200
DOI: 10.1016/j.optom.2020.03.001 -
Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic... Sep 2017Presbyopia is an age related loss of lens accommodation resulting in inability to read and/write or to do near work. Though literacy level may be low in rural female...
INTRODUCTION
Presbyopia is an age related loss of lens accommodation resulting in inability to read and/write or to do near work. Though literacy level may be low in rural female population of South India, but household works like sewing, sorting grains and operating mobile phones must be difficult due to presbyopia.
AIM
To determine the awareness of presbyopia in rural females; also, to determine the knowledge levels regarding presbyopia, spectacle coverage and reasons for not wearing spectacles.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted at SDM College of Medical Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, India, on 1000 female subjects of age group 35 years and above coming from rural area (around Dharwad). They were examined and open-ended questionnaire was used to record subject's awareness and knowledge about presbyopia and their responses were analysed.
RESULTS
More than 2/3 of 1000 (66.7%) subjects were not aware about presbyopia. More than 50% subjects had difficulty in cleaning grains, threading needles and reading fine newspaper print. About 86.5% thought presbyopia is age related and 92.2% thought it could be treated with spectacles. In spite of high prevalence, almost 98% of the population were not willing to wear glasses among which majority (60.2%) felt that spectacles were difficult to be maintained while working. In the present study, no statistical significance between literacy and awareness was noted (p=0.46).
CONCLUSION
High prevalence of presbyopia was seen with majority of them uncorrected due to lack of awareness or unwillingness to wear glasses. We need to provide better health education regarding presbyopia among both literate and illiterate individuals. Thus, there is a need to create awareness and to provide affordable, accessible and compatible optical services to the affected population.
PubMed: 29207744
DOI: 10.7860/JCDR/2017/26125.10608 -
Acta Bio-medica : Atenei Parmensis Oct 2021Severe Acquired Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection represents an unprecedented public health problem and, at present, vaccination is the only...
INTRODUCTION
Severe Acquired Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection represents an unprecedented public health problem and, at present, vaccination is the only weapon available to combat the infection. The simplest and most immediate method to quantify the response of the subject's immune system to vaccination and / or infection is the serological assessment of the antibody titer. The objective of our study was 1) to evaluate the presence of antibody responses in a sample of healthcare workers subjected to a complete vaccination course as per ministerial provisions (double dose for negatives and single dose for ex-SARS-CoV subjects -2 positive) with Comirnaty vaccine (Pfizer / BioNTech) 2) evaluate the presence of statistically significant associations for sex, age and previous positive swab.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
the antibody levels of both nucleocapsid antibodies and anti-Sars-CoV2 Spike antibodies of the study subjects were examined with the electrochemiluminescent immunoassay (ECLIA) method developed by Roche®. The cut-off value, as suggested by the manufacturer, for anti-nucleocapsid antibodies was 1 COI, while the Ig Spike value was 0.8 I / mL. The study sample was stratified by age (≤45 years, 46-55, ≥56 years old), previous positive molecular swab, gender and IgG S1 / S2 values at the completed vaccination course (≤200, ≥200 AU / mL ). Statistical analyzes were carried out with the R software.
RESULTS
almost all of the sample (89.45%) showed IgG Spike values> 200 AU / mL with statistically significant associations in relation to sex (greater in females, p≤0.05), to previous swab positivity in the presence of a vaccine dose (n = 44; p <0.001) and at age (with greater antibody response in subjects under 45; p <0.001).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
The current study confirms what is reported in the literature. In the light of the results obtained, it could be interesting to promote studies that evaluate the antibody titers trend over time a) in women of childbearing age and postmenopausal age b) in particular categories of subjects with chronic degenerative diseases to assess the actual need for doses booster, it being understood that the immune system response is guaranteed by both cellular and humoral immunity and that the antibody titer does not faithfully reflect the protection obtained.
Topics: Antibodies, Viral; COVID-19; Female; Health Personnel; Humans; Middle Aged; SARS-CoV-2; Vaccination
PubMed: 34739458
DOI: 10.23750/abm.v92iS6.12261 -
Age (Dordrecht, Netherlands) Apr 2016Autophagy is a molecular process essential for the maintenance of cellular homeostasis, which appears to (i) decline with age and (ii) respond to physical exercise. In... (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
Autophagy is a molecular process essential for the maintenance of cellular homeostasis, which appears to (i) decline with age and (ii) respond to physical exercise. In addition, recent evidence suggests a crosstalk between autophagy and toll-like receptor (TLR)-associated inflammatory responses. This study assessed the effects of aerobic exercise training on autophagy and TLR signaling in older subjects. Twenty-nine healthy women and men (age, 69.7 ± 1.0 year) were randomized to a training (TG) or a control (CG) group. TG performed an 8-week aerobic training program, while CG followed their daily routines. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from blood samples obtained before and after the intervention, and protein levels of protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3), sequestosome 1 (p62/SQSTM1), beclin-1, phosphorylated unc-51-like kinase (ULK-1), ubiquitin-like autophagy-related (Atg)12, Atg16, and lysosome-associated membrane protein (LAMP)-2 were measured. TLR2 and TLR4 signaling pathways were also analyzed. Peak oxygen uptake increased in TG after the intervention. Protein expression of beclin-1, Atg12, Atg16, and the LC3II/I ratio increased following the training program (p < 0.05), while expression of p62/SQSTM1 and phosphorylation of ULK-1 at Ser(757) were lower (p < 0.05). Protein content of TLR2, TLR4, myeloid differentiation primary response gen 88 (MyD88), and TIR domain-containing adaptor-inducing interferon (TRIF) were not significantly modified by exercise. The current data indicate that aerobic exercise training induces alterations in multiple markers of autophagy, which seem to be unrelated to changes in TLR2 and TLR4 signaling pathways. These results expand knowledge on exercise-induced autophagy adaptations in humans and suggest that the exercise type employed may be a key factor explaining the potential relationship between autophagy and TLR pathways.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Aging; Autophagy; Biomarkers; Blotting, Western; Female; Humans; Leukocytes, Mononuclear; Male; Middle Aged; Physical Fitness; Signal Transduction; Toll-Like Receptor 4; Young Adult
PubMed: 26940016
DOI: 10.1007/s11357-016-9897-y -
Romanian Journal of Morphology and... 2021The mental foramen (MnF) is the place where the mental nerve and mental artery exit the body of the mandible, being an important landmark for dentoalveolar surgery.
BACKGROUND
The mental foramen (MnF) is the place where the mental nerve and mental artery exit the body of the mandible, being an important landmark for dentoalveolar surgery.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
For the assessment of MnF topography, we performed a direct morphometric study and two morphometric imaging studies through cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans and orthopantomography (OPG). The following locations of the MnF were investigated: anterior to the first premolar, at the first premolar level, between the two premolars, at the second premolar level, between the second premolar and the 6-year molar, and at the level of the mesial root of the 6-year molar. The data obtained were statistically analyzed by chi-squared test.
RESULTS
Through direct morphometry on dentate dry human mandibles, no statistically significant differences were found for the number of MnF located between the two premolars, at the level of the second premolar and between the second premolar and the 6-year molar, depending on age and analyzed side. The number of MnF located between the second premolar and the first molar varies statistically significantly in relation to the subject's gender but does not vary statistically significantly depending on age and side. By means of imaging morphometry through OPG, we found that the number of MnF located at the first premolar level, between the two premolars, at the second premolar level and between the second premolar and the 6-year molar varies statistically significantly in relation to the age of the patients. Using imaging morphometry trough CBCT scans, we found that the number of MnF located between the two premolars, at the second premolar level and between the second premolar and the 6-year molar varies statistically significantly according to the age of the patients. Comparing the results obtained from the three studies, we found that only according to age the number of MnF located between premolars and at the level of the second premolar varies statistically significantly.
CONCLUSIONS
Wide and accurate knowledge of both the MnF topography and the key anatomical landmarks used in locating it proves to be essential and clinically relevant in dentoalveolar and endodontic surgery, and for improving anesthesia techniques.
Topics: Cone-Beam Computed Tomography; Humans; Mandible; Mental Foramen; Research Subjects; Tooth Root
PubMed: 35024740
DOI: 10.47162/RJME.62.2.18