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Anesthesia outcomes and related risk factors have been studied for more than 100 years. Varying sample sizes and research methods have been used, with research findings that were open to multiple interpretations. Research with closed malpractice claims demonstrates that American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status II patients undergoing elective procedures are most likely to experience damaging events intraoperatively with resultant postoperative adverse outcomes. The process of care, including clinical decision making, contributes to adverse outcomes. Clinical decision making can be difficult to assess and measure. In this study, the cognitive psychology framework of information-processing theory and literature pertaining to the use of heuristics, or rules of thumb, and clinical biases, were used to analyze cases from the AANA Foundation closed malpractice claims database. This database contains more than 300 files involving St Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company-covered CRNAs from across the United States. These files were analyzed by 10 CRNA investigators on the AANA Closed Claims research team. Variables such as inadequate preinduction activities, e.g., incomplete preanesthetic assessments, and use of cognitive biases and inaccurate probability estimation were associated with adverse outcomes in this research sample. Teaching of decision science in basic and continuing nurse anesthesia education is advocated.
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We have found that pulse wave delay increases linearly with +Gz experienced by conscious subjects and that G-tolerance limits, as measured using conventional light bars, occur repeatedly at the same pulse wave delays or delta delay. When protective modalities such as anti-G suits or supinating seats are used, the delta delays increase at a slower rate as a function of +Gz. G-tolerance thresholds occur at higher +Gz levels with protection but the delta pulse wave delays reach the same value for all tolerance levels. This parameter can be used to warn expert systems of the approach of G-LOC during actual flight and/or provides an objective measure of G protection provided by new or modified anti-G equipment. Therefore, this tool can be used in the research setting to evaluate the efficacy of G-protective equipment in an objective manner.
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PURPOSE: To identify cognitive and noncognitive variables as predictors of the admission into medical school of African American college students who have participated in summer academic enrichment programs (SAEPs). METHOD: The study sample comprised 309 African American college students who participated in SAEPs at the Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine from 1980 to 1989 and whose educational and occupational statuses were determined by follow-up tracking. A three-step logistic regression was used to analyze the data (with alpha = .05); the criterion variable was admission to medical school. The 17 predictor variables studied were one of two types, cognitive and noncognitive. The cognitive variables were (1) Scholastic Aptitude Test mathematics (SAT-M) score, (2) SAT verbal score, (3) college grade-point average (GPA), (4) college science GPA, (5) SAEP GPA, and (6) SAEP basic science GPA (BSGPA). The noncognitive variables were (1) gender, (2) highest college level at the time of the last SAEP application, (3) type of college attended (historically African American or predominately white), (4) number of SAEPs attended, (5) career aspiration (physician or another health science option) (6) parents who were professionals, (7) parents who were health care role models, (8) evidence of leadership, (9) evidence of community service, (10) evidence of special motivation, and (11) strength of letter of recommendation in the SAEP application. For each student the rating scores for the last four noncognitive variables were determined by averaging the ratings of two judges who reviewed relevant information in each student's file. RESULTS: In step 1, which explained 20% of the admission decision variance, SAT-M score, SAEP BSGPA, and college GPA were the three significant cognitive predictors identified. In step 2, which explained 31% of the variance, the three cognitive predictors identified in step 1 were joined by three noncognitive predictors: career aspiration, type of college, and number of SAEPs attended. In step 3, which explained 29% of the variance, two cognitive variables (SAT-M score and SAEP BSGPA) and two noncognitive variables (career aspiration and strength of recommendation letter) were identified. CONCLUSION: The results support the concept of using both cognitive and noncognitive variables when selecting African American students for pre-medical school SAEPs.
Quality of life is a multidimensional construct that encompasses functional behavioral and cognitive capacities, health status, emotional well-being, and psychosocial adjustment. A program of interdisciplinary investigation at the University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences Center has been directed at studying the outcome of liver transplantation with respect to the impact of such surgery on improving life quality. The data obtained have been subjected only to descriptive and univariate analyses but indicate that liver transplantation surgery results in a sharp improvement in quality of life relative to one's pretransplant status, although it does not return the recipient to their premorbid baseline. Following transplantation, a substantial reversal of identified pretransplant neuropsychological impairments also occurs, although performance does not appear to return to normal levels. Specifically, visuopractic impairments, which are the most salient neuropsychologic concomitants of hepatic encephalopathy, are still detectable 3 years after transplantation. Nonetheless, normal or near normal functioning on measures of cognitive capacity, health status, emotional well-being and social, vocational, and behavioral competency are found in liver transplant survivors.
This paper re-examines the repeatedly-offered hypothesis (Fialkowski 1978, 1986, 1987, 1988) that hominid brain expansion was largely a side effect of evolutionary response to increased heat stress under conditions of primitive hunting, and resulted in a preadaptation to enhanced cognitive abilities. Fialkowski's hypothesis, previously shown to be based on data that are seriously inaccurate, continues to be presented in a manner that precludes testing. Consequently, however interesting these ideas may be, they are beyond the conventional domain of anthropology as a legitimate subdiscipline of modern science.
The developmental disorders of childhood autistic, developmental language, reading (dyslexia), and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorders-manifest with deficits in the traditional behavioral domains of cognition, language, visual-spatial function, attention, and socialization. However, none of these disorders has been associated with characteristic discrete focal lesions or recognized encephaloclastic processes. Developmental cognitive neuroscientists must therefore begin with the spectrum of sometimes divergent behaviors occurring within these disorders and work backward in an attempt to identify the responsible anomalous neural systems. Since the advent of "brain imaging" two decades ago, much effort has focused on identifying brain-behavior correlates in these disorders. The results of these neuropathologic, structural, and functional neuroimaging studies are presented and the reasons for the often divergent findings are discussed. As we approach the end of the Decade of the Brain, current neuroimaging techniques give us the technology for the first time to apply a fundamental cognitive approach to brain-behavior relationships in the developmental disorders, to eliminate the conglomeration of "apples and camels" phenomenon. Researchers are working together to create comparable protocols and to adhere to methods that can be replicated across sites. The future prospects for a greater understanding of the developmental disorders are now much brighter with neuroimaging technology.
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is becoming fashionable as a diagnosis, representing a state of cognitive decline associated with negligible functional loss. MCI is important as it often precedes Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recognizing MCI may lead to preventive strategies that can delay the onset of AD. Many patients who transition into andropause report problems with their memory. There is strong evidence from basic sciences and epidemiological studies that both estrogens and androgens play a protective role in neurodegeneration. The evidence from small prospective clinical trials lends support to the role of hormones in improving cognitive function. The improvement in cognitive function with hormones is subtle and often not measurable on standard neuropsychological batteries. Patients have reported memory improvements in both declarative and procedural domains after being on hormonal replacement. Functional changes and vascular changes can be detected after hormonal replacement with more sophisticated imaging of the brain like positron emission tomography (PET) scans. We hypothesize androgens and perhaps selective androgen receptor modulators as future treatment options for MCI in aging males.
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is becoming fashionable as a diagnosis, representing a state of cognitive decline associated with negligible functional loss. MCI is important as it often precedes Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recognizing MCI may lead to preventive strategies that can delay the onset of AD. Many patients who transition into andropause report problems with their memory. There is strong evidence from basic sciences and epidemiological studies that both estrogens and androgens play a protective role in neurodegeneration. The evidence from small prospective clinical trials lends support to the role of hormones in improving cognitive function. The improvement in cognitive function with hormones is subtle and often not measurable on standard neuropsychological batteries. Patients have reported memory improvements in both declarative and procedural domains after being on hormonal replacement. Functional changes and vascular changes can be detected after hormonal replacement with more sophisticated imaging of the brain like PET scans. We hypothesize androgens and perhaps selective androgen receptor modulators as future treatment options for MCI in aging males.
This article reviews the functional studies that have been carried out on transgenic and knockout animals that are relevant to Alzheimer's disease (AD). The discussion focuses upon the functional characterisation of these strains, particularly upon factors that affect synaptic processes that are thought to contribute to memory formation, including hippocampal long-term potentiation. We examine the use of transgenes associated with amyloid precursor protein and presenilin-1, their mutations linked to early onset familial AD, and the recent attempts to establish double transgenic strains that have an AD-like pathology which occurs with a more rapid onset. The development of new transgenic strains relevant to Alzheimer's disease has rapidly outpaced their characterisation for functional deficits in synaptic plasticity. To date most studies have focused on those transgenes linked to the minority of familial early onset rather than late-onset sporadic AD cases, and have focused on those changes linked to the induction of the early-phase of hippocampal long-term potentiation. Future studies will need to address the question of whether the development of AD pathology can be reversed or at least halted and this will be aided by the use of conditional transgenics in which genes linked to AD can either be switched on or off later in development. Furthermore, it remains to be resolved whether the deficits in synaptic function are specific to the hippocampus and whether deficits affect late-phase long-term potentiation. Nonetheless, the recent advances in genome sciences and the development of transgenic technology have provided a unique opportunity to study how genes associated with human cognitive dysfunction alter synaptic transmission between neurones in the mammalian brain.
Cognitive neuroscience is making rapid strides in areas highly relevant to education. However, there is a gulf between current science and direct classroom applications. Most scientists would argue that filling the gulf is premature. Nevertheless, at present, teachers are at the receiving end of numerous 'brain-based learning' packages. Some of these contain alarming amounts of misinformation, yet such packages are being used in many schools. What, if anything, can neuroscientists do to help good neuroscience into education?
Within a social cognitive framework, the present study evaluated condom use behaviour in a sample of students at the Faculties of Social Sciences and Arts, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. The study population comprised 262 (62.1%) males and 160 (37.9%) females with a mean age of 24.1 years (SD = 4.5) and mean educational level of 17.36 years (SD = 5.8). Results show that 422 students (representing 55.2%) were sexually active within three months before the study. Seventy seven per cent of students reported ever using a condom, 89% of females reported condom use by a partner, while 70% of males had used condoms during sex with a partner. Regarding the frequency of use, more males (30%) than females (11%) had never used condom. We conclude that the majority of sexually active university students in the study do not use condom. However, the females reported greater consistency of use of condom when compared to the males. Condom use behaviour in this sample did not differ markedly from other college student samples.
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With the increasing use of computers in the classroom and the advancement of information technology, a requirement to investigate and evaluate different strategies for the presentation of verbal information in interactive and dynamic visualizations has risen to a high level of importance. There is a need for research efforts that apply cognitive load theory (CLT), cognitive learning strategies, and established principles of multimedia design to conduct empirical research that will add to our knowledge of designing and developing dynamic visualizations for teaching and learning anatomy. The impact of improved teaching and learning of anatomical sciences and the development of a set of guiding principles to facilitate the design and development of effective dynamic visualizations represent a significant achievement for medical education with wide application. This theoretical paper presents the foundations of CLT, cognitive learning strategies, and principles of multimedia design to guide the needed research on dynamic visualizations.
An adaptive system is capable of functioning despite some degree of environmental uncertainty. This requires an ability to identify relevant states of the environment, to adjust the value of internal variables so as to maintain a characteristic pattern of activity and, of course, to respond appropriately to environmental stimuli. Biological systems have responded to this challenge by developing information processing systems that are highly compatible with their functions. In this paper we analyze the relationship between dynamics and information processing in biological systems and refer to basic principles of biological information processing. An important trend that can be observed is that the specialization of information processing functions increases with the complexity of the environment faced by the systems. At the level of human populations, man-made organizations in particular, our study suggests that the design of computer-based information systems must be sensitive to the existing biological infrastructure if they are to effectively extend the cognitive and computational capabilities of organizations.
Carper's 1978 article in the premiere issue of Advances in Nursing Science encouraged nurses to consider four fundamental patterns of knowing. Through illustrations from literature and the performing arts, the authors address Carper's patterns of knowing in the context of an emerging philosophical shift. First, they critique the major strengths and limitations of the article. Next, they explore an emerging philosophical shift in nursing from Carper's epistemological focus to ontological reflections on ways of being. Finally, they discuss the significance of the emerging philosophical shift and the ways of being for the science-art of nursing.