The effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural play therapy on the symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children aged 7–9 years

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is considered to be the most prevalent disorder of childhood and adolescence, and a variety of methods have been used in its diagnosis and treatment. This study was conducted to study the efficacy of play therapy on the symptoms of ADHD in children aged 7–9 years. Using a clinical trial design, we selected 30 study participants among individuals who had been referred to the Ebne-sina hospital, child and adolescent outpatient clinic, Mashhad, Iran, and who had been diagnosed with ADHD by psychiatrists. The 30 study participants were then divided into two groups, experimental and control, based on similar characteristics (Birth order, parents’ educational level, parents’ occupation and average of last year school marks). Pre-tests (the Rutter Parental Questionnaire and the Rutter Children Behaviour Questionnaire for teachers) were performed prior to play therapy, and all patients in both groups had been receiving medication. Following play therapy, post-tests were also conducted for both groups. Eight sessions of sham play therapy has been performed for case group. (Cognitive-behavioural play therapy has not been performed basically.) All results were evaluated using an independent t test and a comparative test. Play therapy appeared to significantly reduce the symptoms of ADHD. The significant differences found between the experimental and control groups indicate that play therapy could be used as an effective treatment method for children with ADHD.     

Serum copper and zinc concentrations in healthy children aged 3–14 years in greece

Zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) are essential trace elements in people, being required for functional activity of several enzyme systems. In this study, we determined Cu and Zn concentrations in the serum of 105 healthy children randomly selected, aged 3–14 yr, residing in a region of Greece (Thrace), and we investigated their association with children's gender, age, height, weight, and nutritional habits. The mean levels of Zn and Cu were 15.01±2.95 μmol/L and 26.18±5.47 μmol/L, respectively, with no significant difference between boys and girls. A significant positive correlation was found between age and Zn levels, and a negative one was found between age and Cu levels. Both Zn and Cu levels tended to increase with height, whereas Zn levels significantly decreased with increasing body mass indent (BMI). The consumption of meat, milk, and eggs were independent determinants for higher Zn levels, and the consumption of legumes and fruits were independent determinants for higher Cu levels. A significant negative correlation was found between Zn and Cu levels. In conclusion, our study, the first one evaluating the serum status of Cu and Zn in healthy Greek children, identified significant correlations of Zn and Cu levels with their age, height, BMI, and nutritional habits.     

The effect of sleep on motor skill learning in young badminton players aged 6–9 years

The objective of this study was to examine the effect of sleep on the acquisition of motor skills in young badminton players. Thirteen badminton players, aged 6–9 years (8.0 ± 0.3 years; mean ± SE), practiced the shuttle bouncing drill, and a skill none of the players had prior experience with. After practice sessions, shuttle bouncing performance was immediately tested and then retested 1 week later. We evaluated sleep parameters for 7 consecutive days using actigraphy. Using the median value of sleep efficiency, subjects were divided into two groups: good sleepers and poor sleepers. Good sleepers had shorter sleep latency (p < 0.05), longer wake after sleep onset (p < 0.001), longer total sleep time (p < 0.005), and higher sleep efficiency (p < 0.001) than the poor sleepers. Interestingly, improvement in shuttle bouncing performance was significantly greater in the good sleeper group than that in the poor sleeper group (p < 0.05). In addition, we found that changes in the shuttle bouncing performance positively correlated with sleep efficiency (β = 0.765, p < 0.01) and total sleep time (β = 0.588, p < 0.05) after adjusting for their badminton career. These data suggest that sleep may affect the acquisition of motor skills in young players.

     

Reaction of the gastric glands in wrestlers aged 7–32 years to threshold-power bicycle ergometer exercise

Problems of quick adaptation of the gastric glands of wrestlers to threshold-power bicycle ergometer exercise during sports and postsports ontogeny are discussed. It has been established that threshold-power bicycle ergometer exercise may suppress, stimulate, or not affect the secretion of H₂O, HCl, and pepsinogen. The pattern of these shifts is aimed at optimizing the actual level of protein hydrolysis; it depends on the age, sports experience, and qualification and is correlated with the body weight.     

The factor structure of the functional state of boys aged 13–14 years

We determined the independent factors that reflect the fundamental characteristics of the functional state (FS) in adolescents aged 13–14 years (n = 162): the sympathetic regulation and parasympathetic regulation of FS, physical working capability; the efficiency of cognitive performance; the hemodynamic basis of cognitive activity; nonspecific resistance to upper respiratory tract infections. Using the systematic approach, we investigated the physiological basis of these factors and determined the indices suitable for estimating the FS of adolescents at different stages of puberty. We observed progressive dynamics of FS parameters related to factors listed above in boys of the same chronological age at different puberty stages. Beginning from stage II to stage IV, we observed a heterochronic and nonlinear decrease in the tension of system of autonomic FS regulation, an increase in the efficiency of cognitive activity and its hemodynamic supply, as well as an improvement of anaerobic working capability.     

Self-perception of self-regulatory skills in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder aged 8–10 years

Several studies have reported a characteristic "positive illusory bias" in the self-evaluation of children with ADHD. However, results are controversial. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether children with ADHD aged 8 to 10 years can rate their self-regulatory skills accurately when assessed with an age appropriate instrument. Twenty-seven children with ADHD and 27 matched normal control children completed the Self-rating Scale of Self-regulatory Function (SelfReg), a new rating scale that has been specifically designed for this age group. As expected, children with ADHD rated themselves significantly more dysfunctional than control children. In most domains, self-ratings of children with ADHD did not diverge from parent and teacher ratings to a greater extent than self-ratings of control children, although overall results indicated a moderate tendency toward a positive bias. When a cluster analysis based on discrepancies between children's and adults' evaluations was carried out, three groups with different self-rating patterns emerged: A "positive bias" group containing exclusively children with ADHD, a "negative bias" group containing both children with ADHD and control children, and the largest group of accurate self-raters which also included children from both diagnostic groups. It is concluded that overly positive self-judgments are not a ubiquitous finding in ADHD, but may be confined to a specific subgroup of children whose specific characteristics remain to be determined.     

Reliability and validity of the Korean version of Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire in adults aged 20–39 years

Morningness–Eveningness (ME) can be defined by the difference in individual diurnal preference observed from general behavioral patterns including sleep habits. The Horne & Östberg Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) has been used for classifying ME types. We examined the reliability of a Korean version of the MEQ (Korean MEQ) and verified its validity by comparing responses on the Korean MEQ to objectively-recorded sleep–wake rhythms. After translating and back translating the MEQ from English into Korean, we examined the internal consistency of 19 items of the Korean MEQ in 91 subjects, and the test–retest reliability in 21 subjects who took the Korean MEQ twice, 4 weeks apart. The Korean MEQ was then administered to 1022 young adult subjects. A subset of 46 morning, neither, and evening type subjects took part in a validation study in which their rest-activity timing was collected by actigraphy for 7 days. Cosinor analyses on these data were done to obtain the acrophase and amplitude of the sleep–wake rhythm. Cronbach’s alpha of the total scores from the Korean MEQ was 0.77, and the test–retest reliability intra-class correlation coefficient was 0.90 (p?<?0.0001). There was a significant negative correlation between Korean MEQ score and reported sleep–wake timing among the entire cohort (p?<?0.0001). There was a significant difference in bedtime and wake time (on both work and free days), and in the mean sleep–wake rhythm acrophase, between ME types (p?<?0.01). In this study, the validity of the Korean MEQ was verified by illustrating the difference in acrophases of the sleep–wake rhythm between the ME types in young adults.     

The relationship of lean limb volume to performance in the handgrip and standing long jump tests in boys and girls, aged 11.6–13.2 years

Twenty-three girls and 19 boys performed the handgrip and standing long jump (SLJ) tests. Their total forearm and leg volumes were calculated from circumference and length measurements and the lean volumes (bone + muscle) were calculated by making allowance for skinfold thickness. Although the boys were older than the girls (12.8 and 12.4 years), there was no significant difference in their heights or body masses. The absolute performances of the boys were superior to those of the girls in both tests (handgrip 234 and 205 N and SLJ 1.53 and 1.34 m), but when jumping performance was expressed as distance x body mass, there was no significant difference. In both tests, performance in terms of unit lean limb volume showed no significant gender difference. When performance was related to lean limb volume, both boys and girls showed a linear relationship in the two tests, with no significant difference between them. This absence of a gender difference contrasts with the results of a previous study on young adults and comparison shows that the relationships between lean limb volume and performance in the two tests for both boys and girls lie just below those of the young, adult females. The difference between the girls and the young adult females was just significant in the handgrip (p less than 0.05), but not significant in the SLJ (p greater than 0.25), whereas the differences between the boys and young adult males were significant (p less than 0.01) in both tests. Thus it would appear that a gender difference in the performance of skeletal muscle develops during adolescence and possible contributory factors are discussed.     

Biogeographic relationships of African carnivoran faunas, 7–1.2 Ma

This study analyses the carnivore component of African fossil faunas from three time slices: 7–5 Ma, 4–3 Ma, and 2.5–1.2 Ma, using cluster analysis and principal coordinate analysis (PCO) of presence/absence data on genera. The faunas mostly cluster by time slice, with the exception of Laetoli (Tanzania) and Ahl al Oughlam (Morocco), which differ from all other faunas. The separation during the Late Miocene of a Chado–Libyan bioprovince from the remainder of Africa is supported. No such distinctions are present in the other time slices. Taxonomic distance is not generally correlated with geographic distance, though if Langebaanweg is removed from the 7–5 Ma time slice, the correlation at that time is significant. Comparison of these paleontological results with phylogeographic studies of modern species leads to some general comments on the analytic power of the fossil record with regard to interregional migrations.     

Prospective study of IL-18 and risk of MI and stroke in men and women aged 60–79 years: A nested case-control study

AimIL-18 is hypothesized to destabilise atherosclerotic plaques, leading to thrombotic events and epidemiologic studies suggest that IL-18 may increase risk of CHD or CVD.We examined prospective associations between levels of serum IL-18 and new CHD and stroke events in older men and women from a general population.MethodsA case-control study was nested within a prospective cohort of men and women aged 60–79 years recruited from general practices in 25 British towns in 1998–2000 and followed-up for 7.5 years for fatal and non-fatal MI and stroke. Baseline IL-18 was measured in stored serum samples of incident cases of MI (n = 364) or stroke (n = 300) and two controls per case.ResultsGeometric mean IL-18 levels were higher among the 364 MI cases than the 706 controls; 417.84 pg/mL (IQR 316.25, 537.44) compared to 386.90 pg/mL (IQR 296.54, 482.33), p(difference) = 0.002. IL-18 was positively associated with adverse lipid and inflammatory profiles. Men and women in the top third of baseline IL-18 levels had an age and sex-adjusted odds ratio (OR) for MI of 1.31 (95%CI 0.92, 1.85) compared with those in the lowest third; this attenuated to 1.05 (95%CI 0.72, 1.53) after additional adjustment for established vascular and inflammatory risk factors. Each doubling of IL-18 level was associated with an increased OR for MI 1.34 (95%CI 1.04, 1.72), which was attenuated on adjustment for established vascular and inflammatory risk factors; 1.09 (95%CI 0.83, 1.44).Geometric mean IL-18 levels did not differ between stroke cases and controls. The OR for stroke associated with the highest compared to the lowest tertile of IL-18 was 1.24 (95%CI 0.84, 1.84). Results for MI and stroke did not differ by presence of pre-existing CVD, gender or age.ConclusionsCirculating IL-18 levels were strongly associated with a range of established and novel risk factors but were not independently associated with risk of MI or stroke in our study.     

Properties of the EEG μ rhythm and its reactivity during the performance,observation, imitation,and auditory recognition of movements in children aged 4–14 years

We studied the frequency and amplitude properties of the EEG μ rhythm in children (n = 38) aged 4–14 years under the condition of visual fixation (VF) on a video image of a computer mouse, as well as the parameters of its desynchronization during the tasks involving self-controlled performance, observation, imitation, and auditory recognition of the hand circular movements (SPM, OM, IM, and ARM, respectively) with a computer mouse. We observed age-related increment in the modal frequency of μ rhythm in loci C ₃ and C _z. During the SPM process, a significant decrease in the amplitude of μ rhythm was found in loci C ₃ (26.7%) and C _z (10.3%); during the OM, in locus C _z only (9.9%). The effects of the μ rhythm desynchronization during both self-paced and observed movements might be an evidence of well-developed neural matching mechanisms that provide the processes of performing and observing similar actions in children aged 4 to 14 years. During the IM, the desynchronization of μ rhythm was significant in loci C ₃ (27.4%) and C _z (15.3%). We hypothesize that the statistically significant increase (from SPM to IM) in the depression of μ rhythm in locus C _z is likely to be an effect of a social gaming context common for the situations when children imitate the movements of adults. The index of desynchronization of μ rhythm under the studied conditions did not depend on the age of children. Possible relations of identified modulations of the μ rhythm to the activity of the mirror neuron system were also discussed.     

Investigating the effects of subthalamic Nucleus–Deep brain stimulation on the voice quality

Abstract

Introduction: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a standard surgical treatment method which is generally applied to subthalamic nucleus in Parkinson’s patients in cases where medical treatment is insufficient in treating the motor symptoms. It is known that Subthalamic Nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation (STN-DBS) treats many motor symptoms. However, the results of studies on speech and voice vary. The aim of the study is analysing the effect of STN-DBS on the characteristics of voice.

Materials/methods: A total of 12 patients, (8 male–4 female) with an age average of 58.8?±?9.6, who have been applied DBS surgery on STN included in the study. The voice recordings of the patients have been done prior to surgery and 6?months after the surgery. The evaluation of voice has been carried out through the instrumental method. The patients’ voice recordings of the /a,e,i/ vowels have been done. The obtained recordings were evaluated by the Praat programme and the effects on jhitter, shimmer, fundamental frequency (F0) and noise harmonic rate (NHR) were analysed.

Results: Numerical values of F0 of all female participants have been decreased for all of the vowels postoperatively. In the females; jhitter and fraction parameters were found to be significantly different (0.056 and 0.017, perspectively) for the vowel /e/. In addition, p values in the shimmer for vowels /e,i/ were thought to be clinically significant (.087, .079 and .076) respectively. All these changes in second measurements were found to indicate worsening vocal quality after the DBS in females. In males, there is not any significant difference observed between two measures in any of the parameters of any vowels.

Conclusions: Acoustic voice quality deteriorated after STN-DBS predominantly for females however this deterioration was not prominent audio-perceptually. This finding commented as a result of the fact that that voice quality deviance of the participants was not severe.     

The state of the cardiovascular system in children aged 8–9 in the norm and in impairments of intellectual development

The specific features of the psychophysiological regulation of the cardiovascular system in healthy 8-to 9-year-old children and in children of the same age with impairments of intellectual development are considered. An analysis of the functional heart rhythm values after mental and physical exercise is given. The directions of correctional influence on the mechanisms of functional optimization of the cardiovascular system are outlined.     

Initial data on biological activity of taiga–steppe soils in the lower reaches of the Kolyma River

Microbiological and enzyme activities of extrazonal taiga-steppe soils in the lower reaches of the Kolyma River have been studied for the first time. Contrary to north-taiga cryometamorphic soils, predominating in the area, microbial cenoses under herb–sedge petrophytic and grass–sagebrush–herb thermophytic steppes are characterized by features typical for arid soils. The saturation of the soil profile with microorganisms is greater, and the development of actinomycetes is more intensive. The enzyme complex is characterized by high activity of dehydrogenases.     

The optimal value of BMI for the lowest risk of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women aged 40–88 years

The aim of this paper is to establish the optimal values of the body mass index (BMI) which would indicate the most favourable preservation of the bone mineral density in postmenopausal women. The material consists of the data of 369 healthy women aged between 40 and 88 years (mean age 67.84, SD = 6.70) inhabitants of Wroc?aw, which were followed up between 2001 and 2006. The absolute measure of bone mineral density (BMD) of the femoral neck was assessed using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), expressed in g/(100 mm²) and was transformed to T-score values. According to the value of BMI, the women were divided into eight groups, the reference group with value between 18.0 and 21.9 kg/m² and seven other groups beginning with the value 22.0 with a 2-point interval. Postmenopausal status was defined according to the occurrence of menstruation within the last 360 days. The women with osteopenia and osteoporosis were pooled together and comprised the risk group, whereas the other women comprised the normal group (T-score values above −1.0). The adjusted odds ratio showed the highest value for intervals between 24.0 and 25.9 units of BMI, and the lowest value for interval 26.0–27.9 units of BMI. The Youden index showed the lowest value in the 26.0–27.9 BMI kg/m² interval. For our sample the optimal value of BMI, with the lowest risk of osteopenia and/or osteoporosis was the value of 26.9 kg/m². A further increase of BMI does not result in a favourable effect on the bones, it rather intensifies negative phenomena in the body resulting in the onset of many diseases.     

Dietary calcium utilization among a group of spanish boys aged 11–14 years on their usual diets

Adolescence constitutes a period of nutritional vulnerability due to increased dietary requirements for growth and development and special dietary habits. A pilot trial was performed to evaluate the dietary calcium utilization among a sample of Spanish boys on their usual diets, in which the calcium intake and consumption of dairy products were as well examined. Nutrient and food intake was recorded using a 24-h dietary recall and a 2-d food consumption record for 21 subjects aged 11-14 years. Dietary calcium utilization was assessed by means of calcium intake in food and calcium output in faeces and urine as measured by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Overall intake of dairy products was 399.3 +/- 22.1 g/d, and the single most consumed item was milk (72% of the total). An inverse relationship was found between dairy product consumption at breakfast (55% of the total) and BMI (p = 0.016, r = -0.5168). Dairy products contributed the majority of dietary calcium (66.9%). Mean calcium intake was 881.7 +/- 39.9 mg/d, 88% of the recommended value for Spanish adolescents. Net calcium absorption (271.7 +/- 51.7 mg/d) and retention (170.6 +/- 50.9 mg/d) seemed not to be sufficient to meet growth demands during puberty. The results shown that adolescents of the study absorbed 31% of dietary calcium and retained nearly 20% of the total intake, but dietary calcium intake and consumption of dairy products failed to meet recommended values. Optimizing calcium intake is of crucial importance among adolescents, to maximize calcium retention and to help prevent osteoporosis in later life.