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PubMed1977

Neuropsychological correlates of chronic alcoholism and aging.

Independent investigations of alcoholism and aging have demonstrated significant parallels between the two phenomena suggesting the possibility of "premature aging" as a result of alcoholism. To test this hypothesis a cross-sectional design was utilized with three groups of 20 male subjects: young normal (mean age 31 years), young alcoholics (mean age 33 years), and elderly normal (mean age 71 years). Eleven objective measures, selected from a battery of sensory and perceptual motor tests routinely used to evaluate cerebral dysfunction in hospitalized patients, were compared for the three groups. The results indicated a definite general decline in neuropsychological functioning with aging and suggested a similar trend with alcoholism. The tendency seen with alcoholism was least apparent with regard to fundamental sensory-motor functions and the perceptual functions of vision and audition and most apparent with regard to short term memory and abstract reasoning, i.e., higher mental processes. The results provided support for the hypothesis that chronic alcoholism causes premature aging of neuropsychological functions and possibly the brain.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

The psychological function of out-of-body experiences. So who needs the out-of-body experience?

What psychological needs are served by the out-of-body experience (OBE)? On the basis of a review of the literature in rather diverse areas several hypotheses on this issue are formulated in terms of Murray's conceptual system of manifest needs. A simple survey of the need profiles of students reporting OBEs provides support for only one of the hypotheses, namely, that such individuals are concerned with and attentive to their mental processes. Unanticipated by the literature was the finding that people reporting OBEs exhibit low levels of need for achievement and need for deference. If a sophisticated theory of the OBE is to be developed much more research must be conducted into the psychological, parapsychological, and neurophysiological correlates of the phenomenon.

Achievement↗
PubMed1999

The neuropathology of schizophrenia.

This review of brain changes in schizophrenia provides the neuropathologist with a conceptual framework to understand this disease. Numerous conflicting reports describe structural, functional, neurochemical, and neuropathological alterations in brains of schizophrenic patients. A core clinical manifestation of schizophrenia is disruption of thought; a mental process that is poorly localized in the brain and influenced by multiple neural systems. Schizophrenia has variable clinical presentations, natural history, and response to medication that imply a pathologically heterogenous group of diseases. Recent studies suggest that schizophrenia may involve cortical, limbic, and subcortical structures as well as multiple neurotransmitter systems. Schizophrenia may result from a perinatal insult in a genetically predisposed individual that produces neuronal alterations that manifest during final synaptic reorganization and myelination of early adulthood.

Aging↗
PubMed1988

Characterizing patient dysfunction in Alzheimer's-type dementia.

Although Alzheimer's-type dementia (ATD) is characterized by global intellectual deterioration, few systematic efforts have been made to characterize overall dysfunction of ATD patients. The Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) was administered to ATD patients and family members to determine the concurrent validity of family member assessments of functional status. Using the Mini-Mental State score and modified Dementia Rating Scale as validation criteria, family member SIP scores showed consistently higher correlations with the Mini-Mental State and modified Dementia Rating Scale than did patient scores. Comparing family member SIP scores for ATD and nondemented patients revealed that ATD patients maintained high levels of psycho-social dysfunction at both initial evaluation and 1-year follow-up. By contrast, ATD patients showed high levels of physical dysfunction relative to nondemented patients only at follow-up. Physical deterioration over time is also suggested by comparison of ATD patient initial and follow-up scores. This study documents the well-known psychosocial dysfunction in ATD and emphasizes the importance of physical dysfunction as the disease progresses.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1979

Psychological correlates of stress-induced cortisol and growth hormone releases in neurotic patients.

The mirror drawing test was performed in 23 neurotic patients and plasma cortisol (Fk) and growth hormone (GH) were measured serially throughout the test. The patient's personality was assessed by the Minnesota Multiphastic Personality Inventory and related to the endocrine findings. The results indicated that 1) Fk and GH have different personality correlates; 2) the Fk responders tend to be more "defensive" trying to maintain good "self-control" over inner mental processes; 3) high GH level seems to be associated with personality features such as exaggeration, hostility, and a distorted thinking process; 4) psychoendocrine control mechanisms for Fk and GH tend to offset, rather than enhance, each other.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Chronic neurocognitive effects of critical illness.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Until relatively recently critical care practitioners have focused on survival of their patients and not long-term outcomes. An increasing body of research has examined patient outcomes beyond discharge from the intensive care unit and hospital. One area of focus is neurobehavioral outcomes including neurocognitive sequelae and neuropsychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety. Cognitive functions are brain-based or mental activities that involve acquiring, storing, retrieving, and using information and include domains such as memory, attention, executive function, mental processing speed, spatial abilities, and general intelligence. It is known from other medical specialties that impaired cognitive function can have a broad, substantial, and long-lasting impact on a patient's life. This paper examines the current evidence for neurocognitive impairments in survivors of critical illness. RECENT FINDINGS: Recent studies support the hypothesis that critical illness can lead to significant impairments in neurocognitive function. Current work indicates that the neurocognitive impairments can last for months or years after a patient arrives home and may have important consequences for quality of individual and family life and for ability to return to work as well as substantial economic costs. The mechanisms of neurocognitive impairments are not fully understood, but in acute respiratory distress syndrome hypoxemic burden appears important. SUMMARY: Among the potential consequences of critical illness are now included neurocognitive impairments. Future research should include the search for strategies for the early identification of neurocognitive impairments, mechanisms of brain injury, and therapeutic modalities designed to prevent or decrease neurocognitive morbidity.

Anesthesia↗
PubMed2005

Catatonia causing permanent cognitive impairment: a case study.

OBJECTIVE: We describe a case of psychogenic malignant catatonia resulting in permanent cognitive impairment. BACKGROUND: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric syndrome characterized by catalepsy, negativism, mutism, muscular rigidity, and mannerisms, often accompanied by autonomic instability and fever. Little is known about the long-term cognitive consequences of the syndrome. METHOD: Medical history includes neurologic examination, neuropsychological evaluation, electroencephalographic data, magnetic resonance imaging, sodium amytal interview, and treatment with electroconvulsive therapy. RESULTS: Selective deficits in executive function and an anterograde amnesia were evident a week post-ECT treatment and continued to be present at follow-up after 2 years and 8 months. CONCLUSION: The permanent cognitive impairments are considered in the context of catatonia as a frontal lobe syndrome.

Amobarbital↗
PubMed2005

Macaques (Macaca nemestrina) recognize when they are being imitated.

This study investigated whether monkeys recognize when a human experimenter imitates their actions towards an object. Two experimenters faced 10 pigtailed macaques, who were given access to an interesting object. One experimenter imitated the monkeys' object-directed actions, the other performed temporally contingent but structurally different object-directed actions. Results show a significant visual preference for the imitator during manual object manipulations, but not mouthing actions. We argue that the ability to match actions could be based on both visual-visual and kinaesthetic-visual matching skills, and that mirror neurons, which have both visual and motor properties, could serve as a neural basis for recognizing imitation. However, imitation recognition as assessed by visual preference does not necessarily imply the capacity to attribute imitative intentionality to the imitator. The monkeys might implicitly recognize when they are being imitated without deeper insight into the mental processes of others.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Generating 'tiger' as an animal name or a word beginning with T: differences in brain activation.

Positron emission tomography was used to investigate differences in regional cerebral activity during word retrieval in response to different prompts. The contrast of semantic category fluency and initial letter fluency resulted in selective activation of left temporal regions; the reverse contrast yielded activation in left frontal regions (BA44/6). A further comparison between types of category fluency demonstrated a more anterior temporal response for natural kinds and more posterior activation for manipulable manmade objects. These results support behavioural data suggesting that category fluency is relatively more dependent on temporal-lobe regions, and initial letter fluency on frontal structures; and that categorical word retrieval is not a uniformly distributed function within the brain. This is compatible with the category-specific deficits observed after some focal lesions.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Mutual information of population codes and distance measures in probability space.

We studied the mutual information between a stimulus and a system consisting of stochastic, statistically independent elements that respond to a stimulus. Using statistical mechanical methods the properties of the mutual information (MI) in the limit of a large system size N are calculated. For continuous valued stimuli, the MI increases logarithmically with N and is related to the log of the Fisher information of the system. For discrete stimuli the MI saturates exponentially with N. We find that the exponent of saturation of the MI is the Chernoff distance between response probabilities that are induced by different stimuli.

Brain↗
PubMed2003

Single-shot MR imaging using trapezoidal-gradient-based Lissajous trajectories.

A novel single-shot trapezoidal-gradient-based Lissajous trajectory is described and implemented on a 3-tesla magnetic resonance (MR) scanner. A feature of this trajectory is that its sampling points are located on a nonequidistant rectangular grid, which permits the usage of one-dimensional optimal algorithms to increase the robustness and speed of image reconstruction. Another advantage of the trajectory is that two images with different effective echo times can be obtained within a single excitation, which might be used for fast T2* mapping, in functional MR imaging scanning of brain activity associated with mental processes. Potential artifacts in reconstructed images were investigated and methods for suppressing these artifacts were developed. Experiments on normal subjects at rest and during brain activation were performed to demonstrate the feasibility of the new sequence.

Algorithms↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Comparison of path visualizations and cognitive measures relative to travel technique in a virtual environment.

We describe a between-subjects experiment that compared four different methods of travel and their effect on cognition and paths taken in an immersive virtual environment (IVE). Participants answered a set of questions based on Crook's condensation of Bloom's taxonomy that assessed their cognition of the IVE with respect to knowledge, understanding and application, and higher mental processes. Participants also drew a sketch map of the IVE and the objects within it. The users' sense of presence was measured using the Steed-Usoh-Slater Presence Questionnaire. The participants' position and head orientation were automatically logged during their exposure to the virtual environment. These logs were later used to create visualizations of the paths taken. Path analysis, such as exploring the overlaid path visualizations and dwell data information, revealed further differences among the travel techniques. Our results suggest that, for applications where problem solving and evaluation of information is important or where opportunity to train is minimal, then having a large tracked space so that the participant can walk around the virtual environment provides benefits over common virtual travel techniques.

Cognition↗
PubMed2000

Subjectivity and unconsciousness.

Concepts of the unconscious were crucial to both Jung's and Freud's thinking. Psychoanalytic and analytical psychological views of the unconscious are compared and contrasted, and both are critically reviewed. It is suggested that we need to revise our conceptualization so as to take better account of the role of the analyst's expectations and inferences, and therefore of his or her subjectivity, whenever he or she makes a clinical judgement that unconscious mental processes are in operation. Some technical implications of a revised definition of unconsciousness are considered, especially indications for self-disclosure by an analyst of his or her own experience of events within the treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Pax Iliev: law, life and care in transition.

The presentation proceeds from a clinical case of domestic violence, its management in terms of professional roles and institutional involvement and the analysis of the dynamic mental processes. It is argued that regimes of total control abolish legal systems and leave a void behind. In the course of transition to civil society, rule by intimidation and threat at a local community level is the rule. Suffering and trauma are intense and health systems necessarily become involved. A pattern of decontextualizing depression may be common and revealing of institutional defence mechanisms at work. Continuous affirmation of procedures of good practice, e.g. supervision, gives a chance for the preservation of institutional sanity and professional ethics.

Bulgaria↗
PubMed1982

Neurogenic and psychological factors in coronary heart disease: an introductory overview.

Some of the major nervous and psychological factors affecting the functioning of the heart are briefly reviewed. Emphasis is placed on the autonomic nervous system and its response to stressful situations. Possible pathways by which mental processes and behaviour might influence cardiovascular pathology and sudden death are outlined. Differences observed in the pattern of response are emphasized, as are the factors upon which these differences depend. The Type A behaviour pattern is considered and the importance of marital and social support is also discussed.

Autonomic Nervous System↗
PubMed2004

Keeping it short: a comparison of methods for brief picture presentation.

Research has shown that backward masking is a powerful tool for studying unconscious mental processes. Whereas studies have traditionally presented stimuli using cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitors or mechanical shutters together with slide projectors, recent studies (mainly in functional magnetic resonance imaging, fMRI) have begun to use methods based on liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and thin-film transistor (TFT) technology. However, because of differences in technology, all methods may not be equally suited for masking. When methods were compared for their accuracy in presenting pictures at short durations, LCD and TFT presentations had poor accuracy, but shutter and CRT presentations had better accuracy. Because CRTs interfere with the imaging process in fMRI, we recommend the use of mechanical shutters. However, our results may not generally apply to all displays, so we advise researchers to validate the presentation parameters of their displays. The procedure described here may be useful for that purpose.

Consciousness↗
PubMed2004

The old and thee, uh, new: disfluency and reference resolution.

Most research on the rapid mental processes of on-line language processing has been limited to the study of idealized, fluent utterances. Yet speakers are often disfluent, for example, saying "thee, uh, candle" instead of "the candle." By monitoring listeners' eye movements to objects in a display, we demonstrated that the fluency of an article ("thee uh" vs. "the") affects how listeners interpret the following noun. With a fluent article, listeners were biased toward an object that had been mentioned previously, but with a disfluent article, they were biased toward an object that had not been mentioned. These biases were apparent as early as lexical information became available, showing that disfluency affects the basic processes of decoding linguistic input.

Eye Movements↗