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Arthroscopic stabilization plus thermal capsulorrhaphy for anterior instability with and without Bankart lesions: the role of rehabilitation and immobilization.

The use of thermal energy is an exciting new technology in the treatment of anterior instability with and without Bankart reconstruction. The current approach for treating anterior instability in the absence of a Bankart lesion as discussed here is to perform thermal capsular shrinkage with a monopolar RF heat probe to address laxity in the anterior capsule and the inferior glenohumeral ligaments. If a Bankart lesion is present, repair of the lesion with arthroscopic suture anchors followed by thermal capsulorrhaphy is our treatment of choice. We currently reserve open anterior reconstruction for patients with pathology inappropriate for arthroscopic techniques and in cases where arthroscopic suturing is found to be inadequate intraoperatively. Furthermore, patients who require revision and athletes who engage in contact sports are evaluated on an individual basis to ascertain if arthroscopic techniques are appropriate (CD-2.1). Nonetheless, basic science research has revealed the importance of a formal period of immobilization followed by guarded mobilization. By using the aforementioned algorithm and postoperative protocol, low recurrence rates have been achieved while at the same time maintaining motion in the functional range. Of course, further follow-up, more patient studies, and peer review publications are required to determine if thermal capsulorrhaphy can replace open procedures as the gold standard for addressing capsular laxity associated with anterior instability.

Arthroscopy↗

Changes in children's exposure as a function of age and the relevance of age definitions for exposure and health risk assessment.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to review and synthesize the existing exposure information available to support the characterization and estimation of children's environmental health risks as a function of age. METHOD: This includes a review of the existing peer-reviewed literature and reports from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) up through January 1, 2003 for information about exposure data for American children with a focus on identifying the age categories used and data gaps that limit our ability to estimate children's risks from exposure to environmental hazards. RESULTS: On the basis of this synthesis, several key data gaps emerge that suggest some areas in which exposure assessors may want to focus attention, including current breast milk consumption by infants and breastfeeding information for children over age 1 year; children's food-handling practices and how these lead to exposure (eg, by eating with dirty hands or by eating food that has dropped onto a contaminated surface); fish-intake rates for young children and for children whose families include sport fishers or whose families rely on self-caught fish for sustenance; incidental and intentional soil intake by children; soil adherence for dermal exposure; relationships between various microactivities, macroactivities, and microenvironments where children spend time; and a correlation between exposure factors and growth (ie, how children's exposure behaviors change over time). In contrast, relatively good exposure information exists for characterizing children's growth and water ingestion, and at least some exposure information exists for the wide ranges of exposures of regulatory interest. CONCLUSION: Given the currently available data, exposure assessors can estimate children's potential health risks from a number of different types of exposure, but longitudinal data are needed to reduce the significant uncertainties that arise from reliance on currently available data, and a number of dose-response challenges remain.

Aging↗

The middle schooling process: influences on science and mathematics achievement from the longitudinal study of American youth.

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to develop and test a model of middle school science and mathematics achievement with a national probability sample of 3,116 seventh-grade public school students. Eighth-grade achievement was viewed as a function of readiness attributes on entry into seventh grade and intervening parent, peer, self, and classroom affective and behavioral measures. Data were collected from students and parents over three time periods in seventh and eighth grade. Results of a revised structural model showed that prior achievement in science and math was a strong mediator of effects in the process of schooling. Grades in sixth grade, parental expectations, parent educational attainment, and motivation had moderately strong indirect effects on eighth-grade achievements. Also notable was the positive direct influence of perceptions of classroom context on science and math achievement growth and the negative direct influence of sex (in favor of girls) on science achievement growth. Cross-validation on a split-half sample did not disconfirm the model. It was concluded that while prior achievement had a dominant influence in the schooling process, other variables including parental expectations, motivation, and classroom context do contribute to the schooling process and can be a focal point for improving school success. These and other factors, though helpful, may be most effective well before the middle school years.

Achievement↗

Cognitive, psychosocial, and reported sexual behavior differences between pregnant and nonpregnant adolescents.

A wide variety of variables have been related to the occurrence of adolescent pregnancy. However, many previous studies have produced conflicting results and are univariate in nature. The purpose of this study was to assess differences in pregnant and nonpregnant adolescents on variables from three domains: cognitive, psychosocial, and reported sexual behavior. Sixty-nine pregnant adolescents and 58 comparison adolescents filled out nine questionnaires presented on microcomputers. Significant differences were found on 10 of 24 univariate tests. The strongest differences concerned areas of scholastic functioning and reported sexual behavior; pregnant teenagers were more likely than nonpregnant peers to be doing poorly in school and less likely to use contraceptives. In addition, pregnant teenagers were more likely to have a relative or friend who was an adolescent mother and to expect child rearing to be easier than did the nonpregnant adolescents. A discriminant analysis was computed which correctly classified 83% of the sample, based on variables from each of the three domains. This study has served to replicate, refute, and expand on previous findings concerning the antecedents of teenage pregnancy. More importantly, this study has empirically demonstrated the multivariate and interrelated nature of variables associated with teenage pregnancy.

Adolescent↗

Tourette syndrome: a psychoeducational presentation.

Tourette Syndrome (TS) is a neurological disorder with onset prior to age 21. The wide range of difficulties associated with TS present significant barriers to both the positive school functioning of students with TS and the ability of their teachers and peers to cope with the sometimes difficult classroom behavior which results from this syndrome. Since TS children with teachers knowledgeable about TS and its effects on learning fare better than those whose teachers are not knowledgeable, dissemination of this information to school personnel is crucial. Health teaching is a significant contribution within the nursing role. In order to ameliorate some of the stressors and academic problems experienced by children and adolescents with TS, the TS Clinic of St. Boniface General Hospital is composed of a multidisciplinary team whose mandate includes the provision of educational awareness audiovisual presentations to schools and the general community throughout Manitoba. This presentation will include the historical, psychosocial, educational, symptomatological, and treatment aspects of TS.

Humans↗

Predicting early adolescent substance use: do risk factors differ depending on age of onset?

This study was designed to identify different risk models associated with non-use, first use, and prior substance use among a group of early adolescents. A total of 582 students completed a self-report questionnaire at the beginning and end of sixth grade. Nine predictor variables were used in discriminant function analysis to classify adolescents into three groups. Five variables distinguished non-users (never used by the end of sixth grade) and new users (first used during sixth grade) from prior users (first used before sixth grade). Prior users were found to have weaker decision making skills, more susceptibility to peer pressure, more negative perceptions of school, less confidence in their skills, and an increased likelihood of being male. A second function indicated that new users were similar to prior users in that they had less positive peer relations, were more likely to come from single parent families, and had less knowledge about alcohol and drugs than did non-users. The similarities and differences between new and prior users have implications for future research and prevention programming.

Adolescent↗

Neural systems for sentence processing in stuttering.

The role of neurolinguistic factors in stuttering was investigated by determining whether individuals who stutter display atypical neural functions for language processing, even with no speech production demands. Event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were obtained while 9 individuals who stutter (IWS) and 9 normally fluent speakers (NS) read sentences silently. The ERPs were elicited by: (a) closed-class words that provide structural or grammatical information, (b) open-class words that convey referential meaning, and (c) semantic anomalies (violations in semantic expectation). In standardized tests, adult IWS displayed similar grammatical and lexical abilities in both comprehension and production tasks compared to their matched, normally fluent peers. Yet the ERPs elicited in IWS for linguistic processing tasks revealed differences in functional brain organization. The ERPs elicited in IWS were characterized by reduced negative amplitudes for closed-class words (N280), open-class words (N350), and semantic anomalies (N400) in a temporal window of approximately 200-450 ms after word onsets. The overall pattern of results indicates that alterations in processing for IWS are related to neural functions that are common to word classes and perhaps involve shared, underlying processes for lexical access.

Adolescent↗

The role of gastric accommodation in the pathophysiology of functional dyspepsia.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The pathophysiology of functional dyspepsia is not yet completely known. Several mechanisms have been suggested as having a role in symptom onset and impaired gastric accommodation to meal is one of the most frequent. This review will focus on the pathophysiological and clinical aspects of this abnormality. EVIDENCE AND INFORMATION SOURCES: Medical peer-reviewed literature was considered to elucidate the role of gastric accommodation in the pathophysiology of functional dyspepsia. STATE OF THE ART: Impaired gastric accommodation to meal is present in around 40% of patients with functional dyspepsia and it was shown to be associated with the presence of early satiety. Unfortunately, a definitive treatment of this abnormality with fundus-relaxing drugs is not yet available. PERSPECTIVES: Further studies are needed to better clarify the role of each single pathophysiological mechanism on clinical manifestations of functional dyspepsia. Research is still ongoing to offer a valid therapeutic approach.

Dyspepsia↗

Children's perceptions of popular and unpopular peers: a multimethod assessment.

Children's perceptions of popular and unpopular peers were examined in 2 studies. Study 1 examined the degree to which 4th-8th-grade boys and girls (N = 408) nominated the same peers for multiple criteria. Children viewed liked others as prosocial and disliked others as antisocial but associated perceived popularity with both prosocial and antisocial behavior. In Study 2, a subset of the children from Study 1 (N = 92) described what makes boys and girls popular or unpopular. Children described popular peers as attractive with frequent peer interactions, and unpopular peers as unattractive, deviant, incompetent, and socially isolated. In both studies, children's perceptions varied as a function of the gender, age, and ethnicity of the participants.

Achievement↗

Age-related reductions in appendicular skeletal muscle mass: association with habitual aerobic exercise status.

Appendicular skeletal muscle mass decreases with advancing age, and this is thought to be a key factor for reductions in functional independence in the elderly. We determined the potential modulatory influence of regular aerobic exercise on the age-related reductions in appendicular muscle mass. In the present cross-sectional study, we studied a total of 131 healthy men aged 20-79 years. For at least the previous 2 years subjects were either sedentary or endurance-trained. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. There were no significant group differences in height. Body mass and body surface area were lower in endurance-trained compared with sedentary men (P<0.05). In general, body fat increased with age in both groups, but was lower in endurance-trained compared with sedentary men at any age group (P<0.05). Lean body mass and maximal oxygen consumption decreased with age (P<0.05). Irrespective of expression (absolute, relative to body surface area, or relative to body mass), arm, leg, and total limb muscle mass generally decreased with age. Absolute appendicular muscle mass was not different between the two activity groups. When expressed relative to body mass or body surface area, appendicular muscle mass in the endurance-trained middle-aged and older men was significantly higher than their sedentary peers. The rate of decline in appendicular muscle mass with age was similar between the two activity groups. The results of the present cross-sectional study indicate that endurance-trained men had significantly higher appendicular skeletal muscle mass relative to body mass or body size compared with their sedentary peers. This may contribute, at least in part, to the lower incidence of functional disability observed in middle-aged and older men who exercise regularly.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

Quality assurance in graduate medical education: a peer review process.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education in the United States has recently required institutions with residency and fellowship training programmes to develop an Institutional Policy Review Document outlining how the educational quality of these programmes is monitored. Whereas departments may have assumed this responsibility in the past, this is clearly a function of the institution. The purpose of this paper is to describe a long-standing, effective, internal peer review process to assure quality education in an institution.

Education, Medical, Graduate↗

[Functional evaluation by treadmill in children and adolescent following correction of Tetralogy of Fallot].

AIM OF THE STUDY: The Authors have examined 22 children (16m and 6f), mean age 9.64 +/- 2.63 years, range 5-15, after total correction for Tetralogy of Fallot, to evaluate the response of their cardiovascular apparatus during an exercise testing on treadmill (Bruce protocol). METHODS: Parameters examined: exercise duration, maximal heart rate (HR), maximal systolic blood pressure (max BP), non invasive cardiac output at rest and at the peak of exercise (CO), arterial oxygen saturation; lung function test at rest, echocardiogram and 24 hours Holter monitoring. CONTROL GROUP: 22 healthy peers, same gender, height and weight, not practising competitive sports. RESULTS: The exercise duration was significantly lower in the first group (77.8 +/- 11.8%; 86.5 +/- 8.2%; P = 0.006). Also max HR and max BP were significantly lower (max HR: 162 +/- 12 b/m'; 187 +/- 8 b/m'; P = 0.000), (max BP: 119 +/- 9 mm Hg; 126 +/- 12 mm Hg; P = 0.042). There were no differences for CO at rest (3.70 +/- 1.09 l/m'; 3.95 +/- 1.07 l/m'). In the first group, CO at peak of exercise was lower but not significantly (6.51 +/- 2.56 l/m'; 7.95 +/- 2.77 l/m'; NS). CONCLUSIONS: These results make more complete the not invasive functional evaluation for a better follow-up of these patients and a better choice for their physical activity.

Adolescent↗

Peer group reputation and smoking and alcohol consumption in early adolescence.

Research has shown that substance use might serve beneficial, developmental functions for adolescents, in particular concerning young people's functioning in friendships and intimate relationships. Nonetheless, a major problem in these studies is that information on social functioning is based on adolescent's self-reports, which undoubtedly might lead to an overestimation of the social functions of substance use. In the present study, we collected data of 3361 early and mid-adolescents at secondary schools in the Netherlands. Information on individual student's social behavior and psychological traits were gathered by using sociometric measures. All respondents were asked to evaluate all classmates on measures, such as sociability, self-confidence, achievement, withdrawal, and aggression. Person- and variable-centered analyses clearly showed that highest levels of smoking and drinking were found in adolescents who score high on sociability and self-confidence, and relatively low on aggression-inattentiveness, achievement-withdrawal, and emotionality-nervousness. This suggests that beneficial functions of substance use are not only in the eyes of the beholder, at least not in that of the individual drinker or smoker.

Adolescent↗

The social skills problems of victims of bullying: self, peer and teacher perceptions.

BACKGROUND: A small number of prior studies have found that victims of school bullying tend to exhibit poor social skills. Few of these have examined this issue from multiple perspectives, and there has been a focus on a restricted range of social skills. AIMS: To determine the extent to which self, peers, and teachers regard victims as having poorer social skills than non-victims across 20 behaviours/competencies. SAMPLE: A convenience sample of 330 pupils aged between 9 and 11 years (162 girls and 168 boys) provided self-report and peer-report data. They were drawn from 12 classes from 6 junior schools in the UK. Additionally, 11 of the class teachers provided data. METHOD: Three separate methods were employed and in each case, participants were provided with 20 short statements that described a different social skill: (1) participants who were classified as either 'victims' or 'non-victims' (using peer nominations) rated themselves on a 3-point scale in terms of how like them each description was, (2) participants were asked to think of a victim and a non-victim in their class and to rate both of these people on each description, and (3) teachers were asked to rate a previously identified victim and a non-victim from their class on each description. RESULTS: Using a direct discriminant function analysis of the self-ratings, six of the social skills items were found to discriminate between victims and non-victims, and the discriminant function was able to correctly classify 80% of the participants. For 18 of the items, peer ratings indicated significantly more pronounced social skills problems for victims than for non-victims. Teacher ratings were significant for eight of the social skill items, and in each case, victims were rated as having greater problems. CONCLUSION: The finding that victims are perceived by three different sources to have poor social skills has important implications for interventions to support victims of bullying.

Aggression↗

Longitudinal decline in lung function: evaluation of interleukin-10 genetic polymorphisms in firefighters.

During annual medical monitoring, some firefighters are found to have rates of decline in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) far exceeding their peers. Interleukin-10 (IL-10) suppresses inflammation, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the IL-10 gene may confer variable susceptibility to more rapid decline in lung function. In 1204 firefighters with at least six annual FEV1 measurements, increased age and greater initial FEV1 were associated with more rapid decline in lung function. DNA collected from 379 of these firefighters was screened for IL-10 SNPs at -1117, -854, 919, 1668, and 1812. A statistically significant difference in decline in lung function was found based on genotyping at the 1668 SNP. Evaluation of gene polymorphisms regulating lung inflammation may help to explain some of the variation in rate of decline in lung function in firefighters.

Adult↗

Peer relationships of children with cochlear implants.

Previous research on children with cochlear implants has focused mostly on their speech perception and production. With the growing numbers of children who use the implant, it is important to assess other aspects of these children's functioning. This article offers a qualitative and quantitative analysis of interviews with parents who described their children's communication skills and peer relationships before they had the implant and afterward. Results show that the implant has the potential to improve deaf children's relationships with hearing peers. Nonetheless, children with implants still face communication obstacles, which impede their social relationships with hearing peers. Results are discussed in light of the different points of view of various "stake holders" regarding cochlear implants in children.

Journal Article↗

A component analysis of attentional problems of educationally handicapped boys.

Seventy-three educationally handicapped (EH) and 78 regular class, normally achieving (NA) boys grades 3-8 were tested with a series of measures selected to test three components of attention: coming to attention, decision making, and maintaining attention over time. EH and NA samples were subdivided into three gropus by grade level (grades 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8). Based on a teacher-completed behavioral check list, the EH group was further subdivided according to pupils perceived by teachers as hyperactive or nonhyperactive. With the exception of the youngest group, EH and NA samples did not differ from each other on CA, but regular class boys had slightly higher IQs and better reading scores than did their EH peers; EH hyperactives and EH nonhyperactives differed significantly on reading scores, the difference favoring the nonhyperactives. All pupils were individually administered the Children's Embedded Figures Test (CEFT), the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT), and the Children's Checking Task (CCT), the last designed specifically to assess ability to maintain attention over time. EH pupils did not function as efficiently or as accurately on the attentional tasks as did their normally achieving age peers. Significant differences between EH and NA samples were found for CEFT and MFFT errors, as well as for CCT errors of omission and commission. Analyses of the EH group according to hyperactive--nonhyperactive status were for the most part nonsignificant. Correlational analyses yielded low but statistically significant relationships among the attentional measures, but nonsignificant relationships between IQ and the attentional test scores. Findings were consistent with the interpretation that the three hypothesized components of attention are partially independent and thus may have differential influence on pupils performance in school.

Attention↗

Profiles of social competence among low-income African American preschool children.

Relations between children's personal attributes and peer play competence were investigated in a sample of 141 African American preschool children who participated in Head Start. Variable-oriented analyses confirmed that dispositions of temperament, emotion regulation, autonomy, and language were related to children's peer play competence in the classroom. Person-oriented analyses revealed distinctive profiles of personal attributes linked to adaptive preschool social functioning. A small group of resilient children whose profile was characterized by highly adaptable temperament, ability to approach new situations, and above average vocabulary development evidenced the greatest social competence with peers. Children who were disruptive with peers were equally divided between two profiles characterized by inattention and activity, but with differential performance on vocabulary tasks. A profile containing calm, reticent children was the group least likely to engage in disruptive peer play. Inspection of the six profiles revealed the within-group variability for this economically disadvantaged sample and illustrated the differential importance of temperament, regulation, and language constructs. Findings from the profile analyses and relations with peer competence inform the study of resilience in social development for urban African American children who participate in early intervention preschool programs.

Black or African American↗