Subtle Impairments (subtle + impairment)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


The antecedents of non-affective psychosis in a birth-cohort, with a focus on measures related to cognitive ability, attentional dysfunction and speech problems

ACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 4 2010
J. Welham
Welham J, Scott J, Williams GM, Najman JM, Bor W, O'Callaghan M, McGrath J. The antecedents of non-affective psychosis in a birth-cohort, with a focus on measures related to cognitive ability, attentional dysfunction, and speech problems. Objective:, Adults with non-affective psychosis show subtle deviations in a range of developmental trajectories as children and adolescents. Method:, Based on a birth-cohort (n = 3801), we examined the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPTV) at age 5, and Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices (RSPM) and Wide Range Achievement Test reading scale (WRAT-R) at age 14. Items related to speech problems and attentional dysfunction were available from maternal- or self-report. At age 21, we identified 60 cohort members who were screen-positive for non-affective psychosis (SP-NAP). Results:, Impaired performance on the PPVT and RSPM (but not WRAT-R) predicted SP-NAP for males only. Male cohort members in the highest quartile for attentional dysfunction at ages 5 and 14 were about 5,8 times more likely to develop SP-NAP. SP-NAP in males was significantly associated with speech problems at age 14. Conclusion:, Males who develop non-affective psychoses have subtle impairments in cognitive capacity prior to the development of their psychotic disorder. [source]


Cognitive performance of male adolescents is lower than controls across psychiatric disorders: a population-based study

ACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2004
M. Weiser
Objective:, Psychiatric patients, as well as humans or experimental animals with brain lesions, often concurrently manifest behavioral deviations and subtle cognitive impairments. This study tested the hypothesis that as a group, adolescents suffering from psychiatric disorders score worse on cognitive tests compared with controls. Method:, As part of the assessment for eligibility to serve in the military, the entire, unselected population of 16,17-year old male Israelis undergo cognitive testing and screening for psychopathology by the Draft Board. We retrieved the cognitive test scores of 19 075 adolescents who were assigned any psychiatric diagnosis, and compared them with the scores of 243 507 adolescents without psychiatric diagnoses. Results:, Mean test scores of cases were significantly poorer then controls for all diagnostic groups, except for eating disorders. Effect sizes ranged from 0.3 to 1.6. Conclusion:, As group, adolescent males with psychiatric disorders manifest at least subtle impairments in cognitive functioning. [source]


Changes in Protein, Carbohydrate, and Fat Metabolism with Aging: Possible Role of Insulin

NUTRITION REVIEWS, Issue 1 2000
Paolo Tessari M.D.
Age is associated with modifications of body composition, i.e., an increase in body fat mass and a decrease in protein mass. Because insulin controls substrate disposal and production, these changes could theoretically be related to changes in either insulin action or secretion on the various substrates. On the basis of available evidence, insulin action on whole-body amino acid and protein metabolism seems not to be impaired in the aged. Decreased synthesis of contractile and mitochondrial proteins in muscle, associated with decreased gene expression, was described in humans. Decreased physical activity apparently represents an important factor responsible for decreased muscle protein synthesis and mass in the elderly. Exercise in the elderly may acutely revert these changes, although its chronic effects are still uncertain. In addition, the possible interaction between insulin and exercise in the maintenance of muscle mass needs to be specifically investigated in aged people. Higher free fatty acid (FFA) absolute flux and oxidation rates were observed in healthy elderly subjects in both the fasting state and following hyperinsulinemia, but not when normalized over fat mass. This suggests that FFA kinetics reflect the established changes in fat mass. Insulin sensitivity on glucose metabolism is usually normal in the aged, despite subtle impairments in insulin secretion, hepatic uptake, and onset of action. Finally, data support the operation of the Randle cycle (i.e., inverse relationships between fat and glucose oxidation) in the elderly [source]


Value of the intravenous and oral glucose tolerance tests for detecting subtle impairments in insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function in former gestational diabetes

CLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGY, Issue 2 2008
A. Tura
Summary Objective, Women with former gestational diabetes mellitus (fGDM) often show defects in both insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function but it is not clear which defect plays the major role or which appears first. This might be because fGDM women are often studied as a unique group and not divided according to their glucose tolerance. Different findings might also be the result of using different tests. Our aim was to study insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function with two independent glucose tolerance tests in fGDM women divided according to their glucose tolerance. Design and patients, A total of 108 fGDM women divided into normal glucose tolerance (IGT; N = 82), impaired glucose metabolism (IGM; N = 20) and overt type 2 diabetes (T2DM; N = 6) groups, and 38 healthy control women (CNT) underwent intravenous (IVGTT) and oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT). Measurements, Insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function were assessed by both the IVGTT and the OGTT. Results, Both tests revealed impaired insulin sensitivity in the normotolerant group compared to controls (IVGTT: 4·2 ± 0·3 vs. 5·4 ± 0·4 10,4 min,1 (µU/ml),1; OGTT: 440 ± 7 vs. 472 ± 9 ml min,1 m,2). Conversely, no difference was found in beta-cell function from the IVGTT. However, some parameters of beta-cell function by OGTT modelling analysis were found to be impaired: glucose sensitivity (106 ± 5 vs. 124 ± 7 pmol min,1 m,2 mm,1, P = 0·0407) and insulin secretion at 5 mm glucose (168 ± 9 vs. 206 ± 10 pmol min,1 m,2, P = 0·003). Conclusions, Both insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function are impaired in normotolerant fGDM but the subtle defect in beta-cell function is disclosed only by OGTT modelling analysis. [source]