Clause-initial AND usage in a cross-sectional and longitudinal corpus of school-age children's narratives

Abstract Young children adopt an event-chaining strategy when storytelling, frequently linking clauses with and. The current study tested whether age-related changes in clause-initial and usage might index narrative structure development in the Eugene Children's Story Corpus (ECSC), which includes 180 structured spontaneous narratives elicited yearly for three years from 60 children, aged five to seven at study onset. The narratives were segmented into clauses to quantify clause-initial and usage. Adult judgments of narrative coherence and cohesiveness were elicited as measures of narrative structure. Mean length of utterance (MLU) and clause (MLC) were used as measures of language complexity. Results indicated developmental increases in all measures, but only and-connected dependent clause usage increased with cross-sectional and longitudinal age. Only MLC predicted the relative frequency of clause-initial and regardless of children's age. These results suggest children's frequent use of and to connect events reflects immature language; its association with flat narrative structure is likely epiphenomenal.

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Attitudes Towards Digital Health Technology: Introducing the Digital Health Scale

10.1101/2021.09.03.21262482 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ridley Cassidy

Keyword(s):

Digital Health ◽

Health Technology ◽

Healthcare Services ◽

Older Individuals ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Frequent Use ◽

Age Related ◽

Frequency Of Use ◽

The Uk ◽

Digital Healthcare

Objective: The study sought to investigate the relationship between attitude towards digital health technology and age, gender and frequency of use of digital health technology and to consider whether age, gender and frequency of use present potential barriers to accessing future healthcare in the UK. Differences in technological affinity are likely to lead to differences in the adoption of digital health technology and subsequent inequalities in healthcare between older and younger people and between men and women. Design: The study represents an example of a technology adoption study employing a survey-based cross sectional correlational design. Attitude towards digital health technology was measured using the 20 item Digital Health Scale. Age, gender, frequency of use of health technology and employment status data were gathered using a demographics questionnaire. The opportunity sample (N = 247) included volunteer participants aged 16-84 years (M = 31.7, SD = 19.35, 156 females and 91 males). Results: Results indicated a significant negative correlation between age and positive attitude towards digital health technology (r = -0.24, p < .01). Gender differences in attitudes towards digital health technology were non-significant (p > .05). Significant differences in frequency of use were also found, where occasional and frequent use resulted in more positive attitudes than never having used digital health technology (p < 0.05) and participants reporting frequent use were significantly older than those reporting never or occasional use (p < .05) Conclusion: Findings identified age, but not gender, as a significant factor in attitude towards digital health technology, suggesting that continued and increased reliance on digital technology in healthcare may lead to age, but not gender, related inequalities in access to healthcare in the UK. That frequent users of digital health technology were also older, highlights the greater demand for healthcare services by older individuals and is further evidence for the potential of digital healthcare to lead to age related inequalities in access to and provision of healthcare. Recommendations for successful application of digital healthcare technology are considered in the light of these findings.

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Classifying Disfluencies in Preschool- and School-Age Spanish–English Bilinguals Who Do Not Stutter: An Exploratory Study

Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups ◽

10.1044/2019_persp-19-00164 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 119-130

Author(s):

Raúl Rojas ◽

Farzan Irani

Keyword(s):

Exploratory Study ◽

Evidence Base ◽

Medium Effect ◽

Bilingual Children ◽

Linear Regression Models ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Total Percentage ◽

Narrative Production ◽

Language Measures ◽

Mean Length Of Utterance

Purpose This exploratory study examined the language skills and the type and frequency of disfluencies in the spoken narrative production of Spanish–English bilingual children who do not stutter. Method A cross-sectional sample of 29 bilingual students (16 boys and 13 girls) enrolled in grades prekindergarten through Grade 4 produced a total of 58 narrative retell language samples in English and Spanish. Key outcome measures in each language included the percentage of normal (%ND) and stuttering-like (%SLD) disfluencies, percentage of words in mazes (%MzWds), number of total words, number of different words, and mean length of utterance in words. Results Cross-linguistic, pairwise comparisons revealed significant differences with medium effect sizes for %ND and %MzWds (both lower for English) as well as for number of different words (lower for Spanish). On average, the total percentage of mazed words was higher than 10% in both languages, a pattern driven primarily by %ND; %SLDs were below 1% in both languages. Multiple linear regression models for %ND and %SLD in each language indicated that %MzWds was the primary predictor across languages beyond other language measures and demographic variables. Conclusions The findings extend the evidence base with regard to the frequency and type of disfluencies that can be expected in bilingual children who do not stutter in grades prekindergarten to Grade 4. The data indicate that %MzWds and %ND can similarly index the normal disfluencies of bilingual children during narrative production. The potential clinical implications of the findings from this study are discussed.

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Age related volume of cadaver-prostates in Bangladesh

Ibrahim Medical College Journal ◽

10.3329/imcj.v4i2.6501 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 74-77

Author(s):

Rukshana Ahmed ◽

Shamim Ara

Keyword(s):

Prostate Gland ◽

Age Groups ◽

Clinical Settings ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Medical College ◽

Age Related ◽

Group A ◽

Key Words Prostate ◽

The Mean ◽

Group B

Pathological changes in the prostate gland occur commonly with advancing age including inflammation, atrophy, hyperplasia and carcinoma and a change in volume is also evident. Estimation of volume of prostate may be useful in a variety of clinical settings. A cross-sectional descriptive study was designed to see the changes in volume of the prostate with advancing age and done in the Department of Anatomy, Dhaka Medical College, Dhaka from August 2006 to June 2007. The study was performed on 70 post-mortem human prostates collected from the unclaimed dead bodies that were under examination in the Department of Forensic Medicine, Dhaka Medical College, Dhaka. The samples were divided into three age groups; group A (10-20 years), group B (21-40 years) and group C (41-70 years). Volume of the sample was measured by using the ellipsoid formula. The mean ± SD volume of prostate was 7.68 ± 3.64 cm3 in group A, 10.61 ± 3.99 cm3 in group B and 15.40 ± 6.31 cm3 in group C. Mean difference in volume between group A and group C, group B and group C were statistically significant (p<0.001). Statistically significant positive correlation was found between age and volume of prostate (r = + 0.579, p < 0.001). Key Words: Prostate; volume; Bangladeshi. DOI: 10.3329/imcj.v4i2.6501Ibrahim Med. Coll. J. 2010; 4(2): 74-77

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Mealtime Environment and Control of Food Intake in Healthy Children and in Children with Gastrointestinal Diseases

Children ◽

10.3390/children8020077 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 77

Author(s):

Katerina Sdravou ◽

Elpida Emmanouilidou-Fotoulaki ◽

Athanasia Printza ◽

Elias Andreoulakis ◽

Athanasios Evangeliou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Intake ◽

Gastrointestinal Disease ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Gastrointestinal Diseases ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Frequent Use ◽

Child Autonomy ◽

And Control ◽

Mealtime Environment

Parental feeding practices and mealtime routine significantly influence a child’s eating behavior. The aim of this study was to investigate the mealtime environment in healthy children and children with gastrointestinal diseases. We conducted a cross-sectional case–control study among 787 healthy, typically developing children and 141 children with gastrointestinal diseases, aged two to seven years. Parents were asked to provide data on demographics and describe their mealtime environment by answering to 24 closed-ended questions. It was found that the majority of the children had the same number of meals every day and at the same hour. Parents of both groups exerted considerable control on the child’s food intake by deciding both when and what their child eats. Almost one third of the parents also decided how much their child eats. The two groups differed significantly in nine of the 24 questions. The study showed that both groups provided structured and consistent mealtime environments. However, a significant proportion of children did not control how much they eat which might impede their ability to self-regulate eating. The presence of a gastrointestinal disease was found to be associated with reduced child autonomy, hampered hunger cues and frequent use of distractions during meals.

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Patient Use of Dietary Supplements, Home Monitoring, or Genetic Testing for Nonneovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Journal of VitreoRetinal Diseases ◽

10.1177/2474126421989228 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 247412642198922

Author(s):

Brittany C. Tsou ◽

T.Y. Alvin Liu ◽

Jun Kong ◽

Susan B. Bressler ◽

J. Fernando Arevalo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Testing ◽

Macular Degeneration ◽

Dietary Supplements ◽

Home Monitoring ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Supplement Use ◽

Age Related ◽

Disease Study

Purpose: This work evaluated the use and type of dietary supplements and home monitoring for nonneovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD), as well as the prevalence of genetic testing among patients with AMD. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted of 129 participants older than 50 years who completed self-administered questionnaires regarding usage and type of dietary supplements and home monitoring, as well as the participants’ use of genetic testing for AMD. Results: Of 91 participants with AMD, 83 (91.2%) took vitamins, including 55 (60.4%) who used an Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) or AREDS2 formulation. Of 38 without AMD, 31 (81.6%) took vitamins (difference from participants with AMD = 9.6% [95% CI, 0%-23.2%]), including 2 on an AREDS formulation. Among 82 participants with AMD who were AREDS candidates (intermediate or advanced AMD in 1 or both eyes), 51 (62.2%; 95% CI, 51.7%-72.7%) took an AREDS or AREDS2 formulation, and 31 (37.8%) did not (5 were unsure). Additionally, 50 (61.0%; 95% CI, 50.4%-71.6%) AREDS candidates did some type of home monitoring. Only 1 (1.2%; 95% CI, 0%-3.6%) underwent genetic testing for AMD. Among 9 with AMD who were not AREDS candidates, 4 (44.4%) used an AREDS formulation, 4 (44.4%) did not, and 1 (11.1%) was unsure; only 1 (11.1%) of these 9 performed home monitoring. Conclusions: Despite similar results from past surveys and AREDS2 data supporting supplement use in 2013 and home monitoring in 2014, these findings suggest about one-third of AREDS candidates do not do so, providing further support for improving education regarding appropriate supplement and home monitoring usage. Genetic testing for AMD also appears infrequent.

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SAT0415 AGE RELATIONSHIP WITH ULTRASOUND ARTICULAR AND ENTHESEAL INVOLVEMENT IN PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS: CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases ◽

10.1136/annrheumdis-2020-eular.5902 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 79 (Suppl 1) ◽

pp. 1160.2-1161

Author(s):

I. Fairushina ◽

D. Abdulganieva ◽

E. Kirillova ◽

R. Abdrakipov

Keyword(s):

Psoriatic Arthritis ◽

Disease Activity ◽

Power Doppler ◽

Severity Index ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Blood Biomarkers ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Age Related ◽

Hs Crp ◽

Axial Involvement

Background:Detection of subclinical enthesitis and synovitis in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is prevalent and ultrasound (US) examination is informative tool for it diagnosing. Aging positively affects degenerative changes.Objectives:To study relationship between US articular and entheseal findings with age in patients with PsA.Methods:57 patients were enrolled to study with fulfilled PsA criteria (CASPAR, 2009). Data collection: demographical, clinical (current psoriasis, axial involvement, enthesitis, dactylitis), US (synovitis count (by Grey Scale), Power Doppler(PD)+ synovitis), thickening and hypoechogenicity at enthesis, PD+ enthesitis, entheses with structural components); biological (high sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP), Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR).US examination included 798 joints and 3078 entheses (bilateral shoulders, acromioclavicular joints, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles; entheses at the projection of these joints (total number - 54). US entheseal findings were fixed according to consensus-based US definition and scoring for enthesitis in spondyloarthritis and PsA (OMERACT US)1.Results:In all 57 patients: male - 25 (43.9%), mean age 43.4±10.3(SD) years (y), PsA duration was 7 (3;10) y, Ps duration 10 (8; 22) y; 53 (41.1%) had axial involvement, 42 (73.7%) dactylitis, 8 (14%) clinical enthesitis, and 56 (98.2 %) skin psoriasis, Psoriasis Activity and Severity Index score 6.4 (2;14.4), Disease Activity in PsA score 18.1 (10.2;26.1), hsCRP 10.1(2.4;21.4), ESR 20 (11.3;31.5).Synovitis count increased with age noticeably (r=0.508, p<0.01), and weak correlation of PD+ synovitis (r=0.262, p=0.049) and age was found. The entheseal thickening and hypoechogenicity and structural findings increased with age respectively (r=0.345, p=0.009; r=0.337, p=0.01). There was no correlation between PD+ enthesitis and age. The assosiation between PD+ enthesitis and blood biomarkers of inflammation (hs-CRP (r=0.364, p=0.008); ESR (p=0.358, p=0.008) was found.Conclusion:Our study found significant relationship between age and US synovitis. Association between age and US entheseal involvement was noted. Only PD+ enthesitis was not related with age in comparison with other US entheseal findings. The presence of PD US signal at enthesitis in association with increased inflammatory blood biomarkers can be evaluated as the sign of disease activity regardless of age and not as age-related lesion in PsA patients.References:[1]Balint PV, Terslev L, Aegerter P et al. Reliability of a consensus-based ultrasound definition and scoring for enthesitis in spondyloarthritis and psoriatic arthritis: an OMERACT US initiative. Ann Rheum Dis.;2018;77(12):1730-1735.Disclosure of Interests:None declared

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103 Periodontal Health and Sarcopenia: Cross-Sectional Evidence From A Cohort of 2040 Twin Volunteers

Age and Ageing ◽

10.1093/ageing/afab030.64 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 50 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. i12-i42

Author(s):

M B Zazzara ◽

P M Wells ◽

R C E Bowyer ◽

M N Lochlainn ◽

E J Thompson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mixed Model ◽

Linear Mixed Model ◽

Frailty Index ◽

Muscle Quality ◽

Low Grade ◽

Periodontal Health ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Age Related ◽

European Working ◽

Generalised Linear Mixed Model

Abstract Introduction Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the periodontium, ultimately leading to looseness and/or loss of teeth. Sarcopenia refers to age-related reduction in muscle mass and strength. Similar to periodontitis, chronic low-grade inflammation is thought to play a key role in its development. In addition, both increase in prevalence with advancing age. Despite known associations with other diseases involving a dysregulated inflammatory response, for example rheumatoid arthritis,, the relationship between periodontitis and sarcopenia, and whether they could be driven by similar processes, remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to explore the association between periodontitis and sarcopenia. Methods Observational study of 2040 adult volunteers [age 67.18 (12.17)] enrolled in the TwinsUK cohort study. Presence of tooth mobility and number of teeth lost were used to assess periodontal health. A binary variable was created to define periodontitis. Measurements of muscle strength, muscle quality/quantity and physical performance were used to assess sarcopenia. A categorical variable was created according to the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP2) consensus, to define sarcopenia (1: probable; 2: positive; 3: severe). Generalised linear mixed model analysis used on complete cases and age-matched (n = 1,288) samples to ascertain associations between periodontitis and sarcopenia. Results No significant association was found between periodontitis and sarcopenia in both the complete cases analysis and age-matched analysis. Results were consistent when analysis was adjusted for potential confounders including body mass index, frailty index, Mini Mental State Examination smoking, nutritional status and educational level. Conclusions This study found no significant association between periodontitis and sarcopenia in a cohort of 2040 adults. Although both periodontitis and sarcopenia have been linked to a dysregulated immune response and demonstrate an increase in prevalence with increasing age, our work is inconclusive due to the plethora of possible aetiopathogenetic pathways.

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Association of Human Plasma Metabolomics with Delayed Dark Adaptation in Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Metabolites ◽

10.3390/metabo11030183 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (3) ◽

pp. 183

Author(s):

Kevin M Mendez ◽

Janice Kim ◽

Inês Laíns ◽

Archana Nigalye ◽

Raviv Katz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Amino Acids ◽

Fatty Acid ◽

Macular Degeneration ◽

Dark Adaptation ◽

Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Age Related ◽

Vitreoretinal Disease

The purpose of this study was to analyze the association between plasma metabolite levels and dark adaptation (DA) in age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This was a cross-sectional study including patients with AMD (early, intermediate, and late) and control subjects older than 50 years without any vitreoretinal disease. Fasting blood samples were collected and used for metabolomic profiling with ultra-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Patients were also tested with the AdaptDx (MacuLogix, Middletown, PA, USA) DA extended protocol (20 min). Two measures of dark adaptation were calculated and used: rod-intercept time (RIT) and area under the dark adaptation curve (AUDAC). Associations between dark adaption and metabolite levels were tested using multilevel mixed-effects linear modelling, adjusting for age, gender, body mass index (BMI), smoking, race, AMD stage, and Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) formulation supplementation. We included a total of 71 subjects: 53 with AMD (13 early AMD, 31 intermediate AMD, and 9 late AMD) and 18 controls. Our results revealed that fatty acid-related lipids and amino acids related to glutamate and leucine, isoleucine and valine metabolism were associated with RIT (p < 0.01). Similar results were found when AUDAC was used as the outcome. Fatty acid-related lipids and amino acids are associated with DA, thus suggesting that oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction likely play a role in AMD and visual impairment in this condition.

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Modeling Hearing Loss Progression and Asymmetry in the Older Old: A National Population-Based Survey

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.693 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 214-215

Author(s):

Rahul Sharma ◽

Anil Lalwani ◽

Justin Golub

Keyword(s):

Hearing Loss ◽

Pure Tone ◽

Population Level ◽

Population Based ◽

National Database ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Adult Lifespan ◽

Pure Tone Average ◽

Age Related ◽

Public Datasets

Abstract The progression and asymmetry of age-related hearing loss has not been well characterized in those 80 years of age and older because public datasets mask upper extremes of age to protect anonymity. We aimed to model the progression and asymmetry of hearing loss in the older old using a representative, national database. This was a cross-sectional, multicentered US epidemiologic analysis using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Study (NHANES) 2005-2006, 2009-2010, and 2011-2012 cycles. Subjects included non-institutionalized, civilian adults 80 years and older (n=621). Federal security clearance was granted to access publicly-restricted age data. Outcome measures included pure-tone average air conduction thresholds and the 4-frequency pure tone average (PTA). 621 subjects were 80 years old or older (mean=84.2 years, range=80-104 years), representing 10,600,197 Americans. Hearing loss exhibited constant acceleration across the adult lifespan at a rate of 0.0052 dB/year2 (95% CI = 0.0049, 0.0055). Compounded over a lifetime, the velocity of hearing loss would increase five-fold, from 0.2 dB loss/year at age 20 to 1 dB loss/year at age 100. This model predicted mean PTA within 2 dB of accuracy for most ages between 20 and 100 years. There was no change in the asymmetry of hearing loss with increasing age over 80 years (linear regression coefficient of asymmetry over age=0.07 (95% CI=-0.01, 0.24). In conclusion, hearing loss steadily and predictably accelerates across the adult lifespan to at least age 100, becoming near-universal. These population-level statistics will guide treatment and policy recommendations for hearing health in the older old.

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