Underrepresented and Underserved Populations in Neurological Research.

Underserved and underrepresented populations have historically been excluded from neurological research. This lack of representation has implications for translation of research findings into clinical practice given the impact of social determinants of health on neurological disease risk, progression, and outcomes. Lack of inclusion in research is driven by individual-, investigator-, and study-level barriers as well as larger systemic injustices (e.g., structural racism, discriminatory practices). Although strategies to increase inclusion of underserved and underrepresented populations have been put forth, numerous questions remain about the most effective methodology. In this article, we highlight inclusivity patterns and gaps among the most common neurological conditions and propose best practices informed by our own experiences in engagement of local community organizations and collaboration efforts to increase underserved and underrepresented population participation in neurological research.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and the gut microbiome: An ecological perspective.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is an increasingly prevalent neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity. Symptoms emerge from underlying deficiencies in neurocircuitry, and recent research has suggested a role played by the gut microbiome. The gut microbiome is an ecosystem of interdependent taxa involved in an exponentially complex web of interactions, plus host gene and reaction pathways, some of which involve neurotransmitters with roles in ADHD neurocircuitry. Studies have analyzed the ADHD gut microbiome using macroscale metrics such as diversity and differential abundance, and have proposed several taxa as elevated or reduced in ADHD compared to Control. Few studies have delved into the complex underlying dynamics ultimately responsible for the emergence of such metrics, leaving a largely incomplete, sometimes contradictory, and ultimately inconclusive picture. We aim to help complete this picture by venturing beyond taxa abundances and into taxa relationships (i.e. cooperation and competition), using a publicly available gut microbiome dataset (targeted 16S, v3-4 region, qPCR) from an observational, case-control study of 30 Control (15 female, 15 male) and 28 ADHD (15 female, 13 male) undergraduate students. We first perform the same macroscale analyses prevalent in ADHD gut microbiome literature (diversity, differential abundance, and composition) to observe the degree of correspondence, or any new trends. We then estimate two-way ecological relationships by producing Control and ADHD Microbial Co-occurrence Networks (MCNs), using SparCC correlations (p ≤ 0.01). We perform community detection to find clusters of taxa estimated to mutually cooperate along with their centroids, and centrality calculations to estimate taxa most vital to overall gut ecology. We finally summarize our results, providing conjectures on how they can guide future experiments, some methods for improving our experiments, and general implications for the field.

Neurocognitive health of older adults experiencing homelessness in Oakland, California.

Background and objectives: The homeless population in the US is aging. Cognitive impairment is prevalent in this population, yet little is known about the neurologic etiologies of such impairment. Addressing this gap in knowledge is important because homeless older adults with cognitive impairment due to neurodegenerative disease may need lifelong tailored support to obtain and maintain housing. In this study, we characterized the neurocognitive health of a sample of adults who experienced homelessness for the first time after age 50 using gold standard behavioral neurology examination practices. Methods: We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study of older adults who first experienced homelessness after age 50. We recruited our sample purposively from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study of adults who were aged 50 and over and homeless when they entered the cohort. For this sub study, we enrolled a convenience sample from those who reported their first episode of homelessness after age 50. We did not exclude individuals based on history of substance use. Neurologists conducted a structured neurocognitive history intake, neurological examination, neuropsychological evaluation, and functional assessment between November 2020 and February 2021. We screened all participants for neurocognitive disorders using gold standard clinical research diagnostic criteria. Results: We evaluated 25 participants, most were men (76%) and Black (84%), with a median age of 61 years. The most common neurocognitive complaints included deficits in recent episodic memory (n = 15, 60%), executive functions (n = 13, 52%), and behavior/mood, with apathy being the most common complaint (n = 20, 80%). Neuropsychological testing revealed a high prevalence of socioemotional deficits (n = 20, 80%). Common neurological examination deficits included difficulties with coordination, such as impaired Luria task (n = 16, 64%), signs of distal peripheral neuropathy (n = 8, 32%), anosmia/hyposmia (n = 4, 21%), and signs of mild Parkinsonism (n = 5, 20%). The most common diagnoses were MCI (n = 7, 28%), bvFTD (n = 4, 16%), AD (n = 4, 16%), and DLB (n = 2, 8%). Discussion: Our findings suggest that neurocognitive concerns and examination deficits are common among older homeless adults. Specific neurocognitive disorders may be overrepresented in this population, particularly frontotemporal disorders. Longitudinal studies involving brain biomarkers are needed to characterize the neurocognitive health of this vulnerable population more precisely.

Caregiving for Patients With Frontotemporal Dementia in Latin America.

Latin America is a vast heterogeneous territory where chronic diseases such as mild cognitive impairment or dementia are becoming higher. Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) prevalence in this region is estimated to be around 12-18 cases per thousand persons. However, this prevalence is underestimated given the lack of awareness of FTD even among healthcare professionals. Family members are responsible for the care of patients with FTD at home. These caregivers deliver care despite being ill-equipped and living in the context of austerity policies and social inequities. They often face unsurmountable financial and social burdens that are specific to the region. The most important step to support caregivers in Latin America is to increase awareness of the disease at all levels. Healthcare diplomacy is fundamental to create joint efforts that push policies forward to protect caregivers of FTD patients.

Abbreviated Dietary Self-monitoring for Type 2 Diabetes Management: Mixed Methods Feasibility Study.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) can be managed through diet and lifestyle changes. The American Diabetes Association acknowledges that knowing what and when to eat is the most challenging aspect of diabetes management. Although current recommendations for self-monitoring of diet and glucose levels aim to improve glycemic stability among people with T2D, tracking all intake is burdensome and unsustainable. Thus, dietary self-monitoring approaches that are equally effective but are less burdensome should be explored. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to examine the feasibility of an abbreviated dietary self-monitoring approach in patients with T2D, in which only carbohydrate-containing foods are recorded in a diet tracker. METHODS: We used a mixed methods approach to quantitatively and qualitatively assess general and diet-related diabetes knowledge and the acceptability of reporting only carbohydrate-containing foods in 30 men and women with T2D. RESULTS: The mean Diabetes Knowledge Test score was 83.9% (SD 14.2%). Only 20% (6/30) of participants correctly categorized 5 commonly consumed carbohydrate-containing foods and 5 noncarbohydrate-containing foods. The mean perceived difficulty of reporting only carbohydrate-containing foods was 5.3 on a 10-point scale. Approximately half of the participants (16/30, 53%) preferred to record all foods. A lack of knowledge about carbohydrate-containing foods was the primary cited barrier to acceptability (12/30, 40%). CONCLUSIONS: Abbreviated dietary self-monitoring in which only carbohydrate-containing foods are reported is likely not feasible because of limited carbohydrate-specific knowledge and a preference of most participants to report all foods. Other approaches to reduce the burden of dietary self-monitoring for people with T2D that do not rely on food-specific knowledge could be more feasible.

Stray Dog Population in a City of Southern Mexico and Its Impact on the Contamination of Public Areas.

To assess the risk of zoonotic pathogen transmission as function of stray dog presence and health status, a cross-sectional study was carried out in a large city of southern Mexico that lacks comprehensive strategies for the control of stray canine populations. The photographic capture-recapture method was used to estimate the density of dogs/km2. In the same way, dog feces from 14 public parks of the city were collected to determine the prevalence and intensity of infection with gastrointestinal parasites. The canine population was estimated between 65 and 80 thousand dogs, with a population density of 1,081 dogs/km2, mostly males (71.4%). A high proportion of dogs (72.3%) were found to be in good body condition score (BCS 3). The person:dog ratio was 2.3. The likelihood of being in the BCS 2 category was lower in areas with a higher density of dogs. All feces collected from the parks contained eggs of intestinal parasites, most of them with a medium (42.9%) to high (35.7%) infection intensity, notably Ancylostoma caninum. It was recorded that cases with a low-intensity of GI infection showed polyparasitism (35.7%) associated with A. caninum. There is a large population of stray dogs that roam freely in the streets of Campeche city with access to sources of food, which is reflected by their good BCS, and dogs do not have access to preventive medicine programs (de-worming) and thus contaminate public parks with feces with significant parasitic egg loads of zoonotic importance.

Caracterización clínica y epidemiológica de fallecidos con diagnóstico necrópsico de endocarditis infecciosa 1986-2008 / Clinical and Epidemiological Characteristics of Cases of Infective Endocarditis Diagnosed at Autopsy 1986-2008

Fundamento: La endocarditis infecciosa se considera como una afección grave, debido a la agresividad del agente infeccioso que la causa, el daño valvular y la afectación multiorgánica que puede provocar. Objetivo: describir las características clínicas y epidemiológicas de la endocarditis infecciosa diagnosticada en la necropsia. Métodos: estudio descriptivo y retrospectivo, en fallecidos con diagnóstico necrópsico de endocarditis infecciosa entre 1986 y el 2008 en el Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Provincial Celia Sánchez Manduley, de Granma, Cuba. Resultados: la frecuencia de endocarditis infecciosa diagnosticada en la necropsia osciló anualmente entre 0,4 y 1,5 % en 13 376 necropsias realizadas a fallecidos mayores de 15 años. El germen más frecuente fue el estafilococo áureo. La edad media fue de 44 ± 26,2 años. La fiebre, taquicardia, palidez anémica y soplos estuvieron en más del 90 % de los casos. Síntomas por daño neurológico en más de la cuarta parte. Las instrumentaciones más observadas fueron la terapéutica endovenosa y las infecciones ginecológicas. Las quemaduras e infecciones broncopulmonares, fueron las fuentes de infección más frecuentes. La endocarditis nosocomial también estuvo presente. Conclusión: los resultados evidenciaron cambios en la epidemiología de la endocarditis infecciosa en los últimos años. Su curso se mostró, en la mayoría de los casos, agudo, con sepsis grave generalizada, falla multiorgánica y disfunción cardiaca severa.

Background: infective endocarditis is considered a serious condition due to the aggressiveness of the infectious agent that causes it, the valve damage and multiple organ involvement that can occur. Objective: to describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of infective endocarditis diagnosed at autopsy. Methods: a retrospective descriptive study of cases of infective endocarditis diagnosed at autopsy between 1986 and 2008 was conducted in the Celia Sánchez Manduley Provincial Clinical-Surgical Hospital in Granma, Cuba. Results: frequency of infective endocarditis diagnosed at autopsy ranged annually from 0.4 to 1.5% in 13 376 autopsies performed on deceased patients over 15 years. The most common pathogen was Staphylococcus aureus. Mean age was 44 ± 26.2 years. Fever, tachycardia, paleness and heart murmurs were found in over 90% of the cases. Symptoms of nerve damage were observed in more than a quarter of the cases. The most frequent sources of infection were instrumentations, particularly intravenous therapy. Nosocomial endocarditis was also found. Conclusion: the results showed changes in the epidemiology of infective endocarditis in recent years. In most cases, its course was acute, with widespread severe sepsis, multiple organ failure and severe cardiac dysfunction.

Hallazgos anatómicos en fallecidos con diagnóstico necrópsico de endocarditis infecciosa / Anatomical Findings in Patients with Infective Endocarditis Diagnosed at Autopsy

Fundamento: La endocarditis infecciosa sigue desafiando a la medicina moderna a pesar de no ser tan frecuente en la población general. La incidencia de la enfermedad depende del grupo de riesgo. La correlación de los hallazgos anátomo-patológicos con elementos clínicos y epidemiológicos, puede explicar el comportamiento actual de esta entidad. Objetivo: describir las características anatómicas en fallecidos con diagnóstico necrópsico de endocarditis infecciosa. Métodos: estudio descriptivo, de pacientes con diagnóstico necrópsico de endocarditis infecciosa entre 1986 y el 2008, en el Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Provincial Celia Sánchez Manduley, de Granma. Las variables analizadas fueron: edad, sexo, lesiones anatómicas previas, localización de las vegetaciones, infartos embólicos sistémicos y abscesos embólicos orgánicos, complicaciones evolutivas, cultivo de las lesiones y causas directas de la muerte. Resultados: la frecuencia de endocarditis infecciosa diagnosticada en la necropsia osciló anualmente entre 0,4 y 1,5 %. La endocarditis sobre válvulas nativas y sin daño previo, fue la más frecuente. Los hallazgos anatómicos fueron más frecuentes en el corazón izquierdo. La endocarditis derecha nosocomial representó casi la tercera parte de los fallecidos y se identificaron factores de riesgo. Las lesiones embolígenas a diferentes órganos, las complicaciones sistémicas y las causas directas de muerte, evidenciaron casos de endocarditis infecciosa aguda. El germen más frecuente fue el estafilococo áureo. Conclusión: el conocimiento de hallazgos anatómicos puede apoyar la comprensión del comportamiento clínico–epidemiológico. La correlación entre los hallazgos anatómicos y los clínicos fue baja, de lo que se infieren dificultades en el diagnóstico en vida.

Background: Infective endocarditis continues to challenge modern medicine despite its rare occurrence in the general population. Its incidence depends on risk groups. Correlation of anatomical and pathological findings with clinical and epidemiological elements may explain the current features of this condition. Objective: to describe the anatomical features of patients with infective endocarditis diagnosed at autopsy. Methods: A descriptive study including cases of infective endocarditis diagnosed at autopsy between 1986 and 2008 was conducted in the Provincial Clinical-Surgical Hospital Celia Sanchez, Granma. The variables analyzed were: age, sex, previous anatomical lesions, location of vegetations, multi-organ embolic infarcts and embolic abscesses, complications, culture of lesions and direct causes of death. Results: frequency of infective endocarditis diagnosed at necropsy ranged annually from 0.4 to 1.5%. Native valve endocarditis without previous damage was the most frequent. The anatomical findings were more common in the left side of the heart. Right-sided nosocomial endocarditis accounted for almost a third of the deceased patients and risk factors were identified. Embolic lesions affecting various organs, systemic complications and direct causes of death showed acute infectious endocarditis. The most common pathogen was Staphylococcus aureus. Conclusion: knowing the anatomical findings may contribute to the understanding of the clinical and epidemiological aspects of this condition. Correlation between anatomical and clinical findings was low; therefore difficulties in establishing the diagnosis during life are inferred.