Effectiveness of a low support, remotely accessible, cognitive remediation training programme for chronic psychosis: cognitive, functional and cortical outcomes from a single blind randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive remediation (CR) training has emerged as a promising approach to improving cognitive deficits in schizophrenia and related psychosis. The limited availability of psychological services for psychosis is a major barrier to accessing this intervention however. This study investigated the effectiveness of a low support, remotely accessible, computerised working memory (WM) training programme in patients with psychosis. METHODS: Ninety patients were enrolled into a single blind randomised controlled trial of CR. Effectiveness of the intervention was assessed in terms of neuropsychological performance, social and occupational function, and functional MRI 2 weeks post-intervention, with neuropsychological and social function again assessed 3-6 months post-treatment. RESULTS: Patients who completed the intervention showed significant gains in both neuropsychological function (measured using both untrained WM and episodic task performance, and a measure of performance IQ), and social function at both 2-week follow-up and 3-6-month follow-up timepoints. Furthermore, patients who completed MRI scanning showed improved resting state functional connectivity relative to patients in the placebo condition. CONCLUSIONS: CR training has already been shown to improve cognitive and social function in patient with psychosis. This study demonstrates that, at least for some chronic but stable outpatients, a low support treatment was associated with gains that were comparable with those reported for CR delivered entirely on a 1:1 basis. We conclude that CR has potential to be delivered even in services in which psychological supports for patients with psychosis are limited.

On differences in the equation-of-state for a selection of seven representative mammalian tissue analogue materials.

Tissue analogues employed for ballistic purposes are often monolithic in nature, e.g. ballistic gelatin and soap, etc. However, such constructs are not representative of real-world biological systems. Further, ethical considerations limit the ability to test with real-world tissues. This means that availability and understanding of accurate tissue simulants is of key importance. Here, the shock response of a wide range of ballistic simulants (ranging from dermal (protective/bulk) through to skeletal simulant materials) determined via plate-impact experiments are discussed, with a particular focus on the classification of the behaviour of differing simulants into groups that exhibit a similar response under high strain-rate loading. Resultant Hugoniot equation-of-state data (Us-up; P-v) provides appropriate feedstock materials data for future hydrocode simulations of ballistic impact events.

Computerised working-memory focused cognitive remediation therapy for psychosis--A preliminary study.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive deficits are a core feature of schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders and are associated with decreased levels of functioning. Behavioural interventions have shown success in remediating these deficits; determining how best to maximise this benefit while minimising the cost is an important next step in optimising this intervention for clinical use. AIMS: To examine the effects of a novel working-memory focused cognitive remediation (CR) training on cognitive difficulties based on internet delivery of training and weekly telephone support. METHOD: Participants with a diagnosis of psychosis (n=56) underwent either 8 weeks of CR (approximately 20 h) or 8 weeks of treatment as usual (TAU). General cognitive ability, working memory and episodic memory were measured both pre and post intervention for all participants. RESULTS: In addition to improvements on trained working memory tasks, CR training was associated with significant improvements in two tests of verbal episodic memory. No association between CR and changes in general cognitive ability was observed. Effect sizes for statistically significant changes in memory were comparable to those reported in the literature based primarily on 1:1 training. CONCLUSIONS: The cognitive benefits observed in this non-randomised preliminary study indicate that internet-based working memory training can be an effective cognitive remediation therapy. The successes and challenges of an internet-based treatment are discussed.

Carboplatin/cyclophosphamide combination chemotherapy for advanced ovarian cancer.

The efficacy and toxicity of combination intravenous carboplatin (300 mg/m2) and cyclophosphamide (600 mg/m2) were evaluated in 70 newly diagnosed patients with advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer. Cycles were administered at 4-week intervals for a total of six cycles, and treatment was provided on an outpatient basis without prehydration or forced diuresis. During treatment, patients were assessed by physical, gynecologic, and radiologic examinations. Seventy patients with a median age of 58 years (range, 35 to 77 years) were entered into the study. Most patients had serious cystadenocarcinoma; 78% had stage III or IV disease and 91% had grade II or III histologic subtype. Optimal debulking surgery was performed in only 46% of patients. The overall response rate to carboplatin/cyclophosphamide combination chemotherapy was 81%, with 66% achieving a clinical complete response. The median survival for all patients was 19+ months. For patients who had undergone optimal debulking surgery, median survival was 26 months, compared with a median survival of 13+ months for those who had undergone suboptimal surgery. Treatment was well tolerated by most patients. Significant nausea and vomiting (World Health Organization grades 2 to 3) occurred in only 6% of 377 cycles of therapy. Myelosuppression was mild, with leukopenia (WBC count less than or equal to 2 x 10(9)/L) observed in only 11 of 295 cycles (4%) and thrombocytopenia (less than or equal to 100 x 10(9)/L) in 17 of 279 cycles (6%). Nadir levels generally occurred on day 21 of each cycle. Symptomatic anemia requiring transfusion occurred in 18 of 290 cycles (6%). Moderate alopecia, necessitating use of a hairpiece, occurred in six patients; no signs or symptoms of neurotoxicity, ototoxicity, or nephrotoxicity were observed in any patient. Renal function was normal on follow-up investigation, which was performed a median of 5 months after completion of treatment. This study demonstrates that carboplatin/cyclophosphamide combination chemotherapy is well tolerated in women with advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer, and produces overall response rates and median survival times similar to those obtained with cisplatin-containing regimens.

Modern anesthetic techniques for thoracic operations.

Continuing advances in anesthesiology enable surgeons to perform more and more complex operations. Nowhere is this relation more important than for the patient undergoing thoracic surgery. Specialized anesthetic techniques including safe lung separation, the maintenance of oxygenation during selective one-lung ventilation, and effective postoperative analgesia allow procedures such as lung volume reduction surgery and lung transplantation to be performed routinely. This paper reviews modern clinical practices in the field of thoracic anesthesia.

The relationship between tracheal width and left bronchial width: Implications for left-sided double-lumen tube selection.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if there is a relationship between tracheal width (TW) and left bronchial width (LBW). DESIGN: Three-dimensional chest computed tomography (CT) scans were used to reconstruct major airways for measurement of TW and LBW. SETTING: Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, California. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one adult patients undergoing chest CT scans. INTERVENTIONS: Cursors were used to directly measure internal diameter from coronal images of the trachea at midclavicular level and the left main bronchus at a level 1 cm below the carina. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: TW and LBW, but not the LBW-to-TW ratio, were significantly larger in men than in women. The LBW-to-TW ratio was consistent for men (0.75 +/- 0.09) and women (0.77 +/- 0.10). CONCLUSIONS: LBW is proportional to TW. If LBW cannot be measured directly but TW can, the ratio of LBW to TW can be used to predict LBW. An appropriate-sized left double-lumen tube can then be selected for the patient.