scholarly journals Depression and mania symptoms mediate the relationship between insomnia and psychotic-like experiences in the general population.

2021 ◽  
pp. 100019
Author(s):  
Andrea Ballesio ◽  
Alessandro Musetti ◽  
Andrea Zagaria ◽  
Tommaso Manari ◽  
Maria Filosa ◽  
...  
Autism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 136236132110206
Author(s):  
Vanessa H Bal ◽  
Ellen Wilkinson ◽  
Megan Fok

It is essential to recognize the strengths and talents of autistic individuals. Previous studies of extraordinary talents (i.e. skills that stand out relative to the general population) have combined individuals with different skills (e.g. calendrical calculation, drawing) into one group. There has been limited investigation of talents in specific areas and even less consideration of personal strengths (i.e. skills that stand out relative to that person’s other abilities, but not the general population). We extend this literature by examining the relationship between parent-reported talents and strengths and performance on standardized cognitive tests in 1470 children (4–18 years) from the Simons Simplex Collection with autism and IQ above 70. Almost half (46%) had at least one parent-reported talent and an additional 23% without extraordinary talents had at least one personal strength. Children with parent-reported talents and strengths had different cognitive profiles than children with no reported skill in visuospatial, drawing, computation, or music. Those highlighted for their memory abilities had somewhat more even verbal and nonverbal abilities, relative to children whose memory was not emphasized as a special skill. These results emphasize the importance of exploring strengths separately by domain and a need for more research in this area. Lay abstract Previous research has suggested that focusing on impairments can be detrimental to the well-being of autistic individuals, yet little research has focused on strengths and positive qualities in autism. Some studies explored “savant skills” (herein referred to as “extraordinary talents”), that is, skills that stand out compared to the general population. These often group everyone who has a specific talent, rather than exploring subgroups with strengths in specific areas. There has been even less research focused on personal strengths (i.e. skills that stand out relative to the individual’s other abilities, but not the general population). To expand this research, we use a sample of 1470 children (ages 4–18 years) from the Simons Simplex Collection without cognitive impairment to examine the relationship between having a parent-reported skill in a specific area and performance on a standardized cognitive test. Almost half (46%) had at least one parent-reported talent and an additional 23% without extraordinary talents had at least one personal strength. Children with these parent-reported skills had different patterns of performance on these standardized tests than children without skills in that area (i.e. visuospatial, drawing, computation, reading, and memory). Specific skills in computation or reading were associated with higher overall performance on the standardized tests. These results emphasize the importance of considering strengths separately by area, rather than combining individuals with different types of strengths. The high number of children with skills in this study underscores the need for more research in this area, particularly using instruments focused on understanding the nuances of these strengths. It is important for future studies to consider these skills in children with cognitive impairment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norie Saito ◽  
Masato Furuhashi ◽  
Masayuki Koyama ◽  
Yukimura Higashiura ◽  
Hiroshi Akasaka ◽  
...  

AbstractFatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) is secreted from adipose tissue and acts as an adipokine, and an elevated circulating FABP4 level is associated with metabolic disorders and atherosclerosis. However, little is known about the causal link between circulating FABP4 level and mortality in a general population. We investigated the relationship between FABP4 concentration and mortality including cardiovascular death during a 12-year period in subjects of the Tanno-Sobetsu Study, a population-based cohort (n = 721, male/female: 302/419). FABP4 concentration at baseline was significantly higher in female subjects than in male subjects. All-cause death occurred in 123 (male/female: 74/49) subjects, and 34 (male/female: 20/14) and 42 (male/female: 26/16) subjects died of cardiovascular events and cancer, respectively. When divided into 3 groups according to tertiles of FABP4 level at baseline by sex (T1–T3), Kaplan–Meier survival curves showed that there were significant differences in rates of all-cause death and cardiovascular death, but not cancer death, among the groups. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard model analysis with a restricted cubic spline showed that hazard ratio (HR) for cardiovascular death, but not that for all-cause death, significantly increased with a higher FABP4 level at baseline after adjustment of age and sex. The risk of cardiovascular death after adjustment of age, sex, body mass index and levels of brain natriuretic peptide and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in the 3rd tertile (T3) group (HR: 4.96, 95% confidence interval: 1.20–22.3) was significantly higher than that in the 1st tertile (T1) group as the reference. In conclusion, elevated circulating FABP4 concentration predicts cardiovascular death in a general population.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurshad Ali ◽  
Abu Hasan Sumon ◽  
Khandaker Atkia Fariha ◽  
Md Asaduzzaman ◽  
Rahanuma Raihanu Kathak ◽  
...  

AbstractObesity is a global health concern because of its increasing trend both in developed and developing countries. A limited number of studies have evaluated the association of liver enzymes with both general and abdominal obesity in the general population; data for the Bangladeshi population are not available yet. This study aimed to assess the relationship of serum liver enzymes activity with both general and abdominal obesity in Bangladeshi adults. In total, 540 blood samples were obtained from the participants (388 males and 152 females) and analyzed for serum levels of ALT, AST, GGT, and ALP using standard methods. General obesity was defined as body mass index (BMI) ≥ 27.5 kg/m2 and abdominal obesity was defined as waist circumference (WC) ≥ 90 cm in males and ≥ 80 cm in females. The relationship between liver enzymes and obesity was evaluated by multivariate logistic regression models. Overall, 58% of participants in the general obesity group and 55% of the participants in the abdominal obesity group had at least one or more elevated levels of liver enzymes. The prevalence of elevated liver enzymes was significantly higher in the obesity group compared to the normal BMI and WC groups (p < 0.05 for all cases). The mean level of serum ALT, AST and GGT were significantly higher in the obesity group than the normal BMI group (p < 0.05). In the WC groups, mean AST and GGT were significantly higher in the obesity group compared to the normal group (p < 0.05). In regression analysis, serum levels of ALT showed an independent and significant association with general obesity, whereas, serum GGT showed a significant association with both general and abdominal obesity. In conclusion, a high prevalence of elevated liver enzymes was observed among participants included in the present study. Of the four enzymes, serum GGT was independently associated with both general and abdominal obesity. Further studies are required to understand the complex relationship between liver enzymes and obesity in the general population.


2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Saha ◽  
J. Scott ◽  
D. Varghese ◽  
J. McGrath

Background.Population-based studies have identified that delusional-like experiences (DLEs) are common in the general population. While there is a large literature exploring the relationship between poor social support and risk of mental illness, there is a lack of empirical data examining the association of poor social support and DLEs. The aim of the study was to explore the association between social support and DLEs using a large, nationally representative community sample.Methods.Subjects were drawn from a national multistage probability survey of 8841 adults aged between 16 and 85 years. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview was used to identify DLEs, common psychiatric disorders and physical disorders. Eight questions assessed various aspects of social support with spouse/partners and other family and friends. We examined the relationship between DLEs and social support using logistic regression, adjusting for potential confounding factors.Results.Of the sample, 8.4% (n = 776) positively endorsed one or more DLEs. Individuals who (a) had the least contact with friends, or (b) could not rely on or confide in spouse/partner, family or friends were significantly more likely to endorse DLEs. The associations remained significant after adjusting for a range of potential confounding factors.Conclusions.DLEs are associated with impoverished social support in the general population. While we cannot exclude the possibility that the presence of isolated DLEs results in a reduction of social support, we speculate that poor social support may contribute in a causal fashion to the risk of DLEs.


1987 ◽  
Vol 151 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Robertson ◽  
P. J. Taylor ◽  
J. C. Gunn

The relationship between cognitive function and violence in 76 remanded prisoners, without formal psychiatric illness, was investigated. The violent group tended to be of slightly lower general ability than the non-violent group, but not abnormally so in relation to the general population; no relationship was found between specific patterns of cognitive functioning and violence. The violent group reported significantly higher levels of neurotic symptoms than the non-violent group, and were more socially deviant. To a small extent general intelligence (reasoning ability), in interaction with many other factors, may be related to a propensity for violent behaviour, but no particular aspect of cortical functioning seems to be related to violence.


2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (OCE2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lionel Noah ◽  
Gisèle Pickering ◽  
Claude Dubray ◽  
Andre Mazur ◽  
Simon Hitier ◽  
...  

AbstractIntroductionEvidence from a recent randomised controlled trial1 suggests that in severely stressed subjects with low magnesemia, supplementation with magnesium (Mg) in combination with vitamin B6 (B6) provides greater benefits than Mg alone. B6 was reported to facilitate Mg absorption and its cellular uptake and to exert synergistic effect with Mg. The current secondary analysis explored the relationship between Mg-B6 combination and erythrocyte Mg concentration, used as a biomarker of body Mg status.Material and MethodsAn 8-week, Phase IV, controlled, single-blinded, parallel-group trial (EudraCT Number 2015-003749-24) stratified by sex was conducted in adults (n = 264) with a Depression Anxiety Stress Scales - stress subscale score (DASS-42SS) > 18 and serum Mg of 0.5–0.85mmol/L, randomised 1:1 to daily oral Mg-B6 (Magne B6®, Mg 300 mg; B6 30mg) or oral Mg alone (Magnespasmyl®, Mg 300mg). Outcomes were stress score, serum Mg (mmol/L), erythrocytes Mg (mmol/L), and serum B6 (nmol/L) from baseline to Week4 and Week8. Data are given as mean(SD) values.Results & DiscussionBaseline characteristics. Baseline magnesemia was 0.80(0.04) for both groups. Erythrocyte Mg concentration for the lower quintile of the studied population (n = 53) was 0.73–1.62, below the normal range of 1.65–2.65 in general population. The mean stress score in this subgroup was higher [29.5(6.3)], but not significantly different from that in other quintiles [lowest value: 26.1(7.6)]. Baseline B6 serum level for the lower B6 quintile (5–23), below the normal range for general population, was suggestive of possible B6 deficiency.Treatment effects. Both treatments increased slightly but not significantly erythrocyte Mg level from baseline to Week8 [1.84(0.03) to 1.86(0.03), and 1.86(0.03) to 188(0.03), respectively for Mg + B6 and Mg groups]. Significant changes were observed in subjects with low erythrocyte Mg level at baseline (< 1.6), namely an increase of + 0.13(0.04–0.22) for Mg + B6 and + 0.17(0.08–0.25) for Mg groups, but with no difference between treatments. Moreover, Mg + B6 supplementation led to a significant change (p < 0.0001) in serum B6 level between baseline and Wk8 [55.9(4.8) to 370.9(11.3)], as compared to Mg alone [51.9(4.8) to 51.5(11.3)].In conclusion, both treatments significantly increased erythrocyte Mg in subjects with low Mg status. B6 supplementation did not lead to further increase in erythrocyte Mg level. We have previously shown that severely stressed population benefits from B6 supplementation in combination with Mg, however, the mechanism of the interaction between Mg and B6 remains to be elucidated.1Sponsored by Sanofi


Hypertension ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 160-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Muntner ◽  
Daichi Shimbo ◽  
Marcello Tonelli ◽  
Kristi Reynolds ◽  
Donna K. Arnett ◽  
...  

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