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Pilot Investigation (pilot + investigation)
Selected AbstractsNaltrexone Selectively Elevates GABAergic Neuroactive Steroid Levels in Heavy Drinkers With the ASP40 Allele of the OPRM1 Gene: A Pilot InvestigationALCOHOLISM, Issue 8 2010Lara A. Ray Background:, Preclinical studies have implicated GABAergic neurosteroids in behavioral responses to alcohol. Naltrexone is thought to blunt the reinforcing effects of alcohol, and a few studies have found that the effects of naltrexone are moderated by the Asn40Asp polymorphisms of the OPRM1 gene. The present study seeks to integrate these lines of research by testing (i) the moderating role of the functional Asn40Asp polymorphism of the OPRM1 gene on naltrexone-induced alternations in GABAergic neurosteroid levels, namely (3,,5,)-3-hydroxypregnan-20-one (allopregnanolone, ALLO); and (ii) the combined effects of naltrexone or genotype with alcohol administration on neurosteroid levels in a sample of at-risk drinkers. Methods:, Participants were 32 (9 females) nontreatment-seeking heavy drinkers who completed a placebo-controlled laboratory study of naltrexone (50 mg/d for 3 days) and provided complete sets of serum samples for ALLO assays before and after alcohol administration under both naltrexone and placebo conditions. Results:, Naltrexone treatment raised ALLO levels among carriers of the Asp40 allele, but not homozygotes for the Asn40 allele. The Asn40Asp polymorphism did not moderate effects of naltrexone on cortisol levels. Ethanol infusion modestly reduced ALLO levels in all subjects, independent of genotype or naltrexone exposure. Conclusions:, Naltrexone increased ALLO levels among individuals with the Asn40Asp allele suggesting a potential neurosteroid contribution to the neuropharmacological effects of naltrexone among Asp40 carriers. [source] Do mood disorders alter crying? a pilot investigationDEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 5 2008Jonathan Rottenberg Ph.D. Abstract Clinical commentators widely interpret crying as a sign of depressed mood. However, there is virtually no empirical data on this topic, and the evidence that mood disorders alter crying is surprisingly weak. This study compared mood disordered patients to a nonpsychiatric reference group on the frequency, antecedents, and consequences of crying behavior using a well-validated questionnaire measure of crying. Forty-four outpatients diagnosed with three forms of mood pathology were age and gender matched to a reference group of 132 participants sampled to be representative of the Dutch population. Both groups completed the Adult Crying Inventory, which provides estimates of the self-reported frequency, antecedents, and consequences of crying behavior. Depression severity and psychiatric symptom severity data were also collected from patients. Compared with the reference group, patients with mood pathology reported increased cry proneness to negative antecedents. By contrast, patients and controls did not differ in reported cry proneness to positive antecedents. Patients reported less mood improvement after crying than did controls. Among male patients, but not female patients, depression severity was associated with increased crying proneness and increased crying frequency. This pilot investigation suggests that mood disorders increase the frequency of negative emotional crying, and may also alter the functions of this behavior. Mood disorders may influence male crying to a greater extent than female crying. Future directions designed to clarify the causal pathways between mood disorders and alterations in crying behavior are discussed. Depression and Anxiety 0:1,7, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Satisfaction with dementia care,giving in Nigeria,a pilot investigationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 3 2006Richard UwakweArticle first published online: 27 FEB 200 No abstract is available for this article. [source] Dental nomograms for benchmarking based on the study of health in Pomerania data setJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PERIODONTOLOGY, Issue 12 2004C. Schwahn Abstract Aim: Benchmarking is a means of setting goals or targets. On an oral health level, it denotes retaining more teeth and/or improving the quality of life. The goal of this pilot investigation was to assess whether the data generated by a population-based study (SHIP 0) can be used as a benchmark data set to characterize different practice profiles. Material and Methods: The data collected in the population-based study SHIP (n=4310) in eastern Germany were used to generate nomograms of tooth loss, attachment loss, and probing depth. The nomograms included twelve 5-year age strata (20,79 years) presented as quartiles, and additional percentiles of the dental parameters for each age group. Cross-sectional data from a conventional dental office (n=186) and from a periodontology unit (n=130, Greifswald) in the study region as well as longitudinal data set of a another periodontology unit (n=135, Kiel) were utilized in order to verify whether the given practice profile was accurately reflected by the nomogram. Results: In terms of tooth loss, the data from the conventional dental office agree with the median from the nomogram. For attachment loss and probing depth, some age groups yielded slight but not uniform deviations from the median. Cross-sectional data from the periodontology unit Greifswald showed attachment loss higher than the median in younger but not in older age groups. The probing depth was uniformly less than the median and tended toward the 25th percentile with increasing age. The longitudinal data of the Unit of Periodontology in Kiel showed a pronounced trend towards higher percentiles of residual teeth, meaning that the patients retained more teeth. Conclusion: The profile of the Pomeranian dental office does not deviate noticeably from the population-based nomograms. The higher attachment loss of the Unit of Periodontology in Greifswald in younger age strata clearly reflects their selection because of periodontal disease; the combination of higher attachment loss and decreased probing depth may reflect the success of the treatment. The tendency of attachment loss towards the median with increasing age may indicate that the Unit of Periodontology in Greifswald does not fulfill its function as a special care unit in the older subjects. The longitudinal data set of the Unit of Periodontology in Kiel impressively reflects the potential of population-based data sets as a means for benchmarking. Thus, nomograms can help to determine the practice profile, potentially yielding benefits for the dentist, health insurance company, or , as in the case of the special care unit , public health research. [source] A pilot study of the immediate effects of mirror feedback on sitting postural control in normal healthy adultsPHYSIOTHERAPY RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL, Issue 4 2008Martin Watson Background and Purpose.,The remediation of postural control problems is a common feature of many physiotherapy interventions. Provision of augmented visual feedback through use of mirror-reflected body image is one means by which therapists can purportedly facilitate patients' postural correction abilities. Despite the historic place of this treatment modality within the physiotherapist's armamentarium, the strategy has however received very limited investigation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the extent to which availability of reflected body image influences the normal subjects' postural control abilities when in a sitting position.,Method.,A pilot investigation was undertaken, utilizing a sample of convenience comprising 18 healthy female subjects (mean age 20.8 years). All subjects underwent testing of their sitting postural control abilities in two separate conditions: with and without mirror feedback. A full length therapy mirror, as typically found in many rehabilitation departments, was used where appropriate to provide the reflected body image. Testing was carried out three times for each condition (six tests in total), obtaining average performance across three tests for each condition. Test order for each subject for the six tests was varied using a Latin square procedure to control for learning effect. Measurement of the subjects' postural control abilities was achieved by Balance Performance Monitor using a seat plate monitor and evaluating body sway path (mm). Postural control was challenged during testing by asking the subjects to maintain a standardized complex sitting position.,Results.,Group mean sway path with mirror feedback was lower than without: means 165.72,mm (standard deviation [SD] = 40.52,mm) versus 244.74,mm (SD = 68.48,mm). This suggested improved postural control ability when the subjects were able to view their reflected body image during testing. A related t test (t = 4.873, n = 18) showed differences between the two conditions to be statistically significant (p < 0.001), 95% confidence interval = 44.80,mm,113.23,mm.,Conclusion.,This relatively unsophisticated evaluation of mirror feedback nonetheless suggested a potential intervention effect. The precise mechanism(s) by which this strategy might effect changes in postural control ability, as well as the likely carryover of the effect and its replication in individuals with movement control problems, are all issues requiring further investigation. Nonetheless, these results provide provisional support for the notion that mirror feedback is a potentially useful strategy in the training of postural control. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Transcranial magnetic stimulation for the deficit syndrome of schizophrenia: A pilot investigationPSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 3 2005PERMINDER SACHDEV md, franzcp Abstract, In an open study, four subjects with a stable deficit syndrome of schizophrenia received high frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (15 Hz at 90% of motor threshold, 1800 pulses each session, daily for 20 sessions over 4 weeks) over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Subjects showed a significant reduction in negative symptoms and improvement in function, with no change in positive symptoms. This improvement was maintained at the 1 month follow up. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation as a treatment of the deficit syndrome of schizophrenia is feasible, safe and may be beneficial. A systematic study in randomized control trials would be appropriate. [source] | ||||||||||