Automatic versus volitional orienting and the production of the inhibition-of-return effect.

A single, to-be-ignored peripheral flash (i.e., cue) reflexively attracts an orienting response (oculomotor/attention/head turn) that ultimately causes reaction time delays to target stimuli that later arise at this cued location, in relation to when the target appears at a new position (i.e., the inhibition-of-return [IOR] effect). The basic question posed here dealt with whether an IOR effect is also produced following volitional orienting. Results from paired cue-trial stimulations, one a distractor and one a target (nonsalient/salient) event, positioned more or less symmetrically on either side of fixation, supported the net vector model of IOR (R. Klein, J. Christie, & E. P. Morris, 2005). Automatic orienting did not yield an IOR effect at the stimulated positions. When the need to later report cue-trial target location was added, an IOR effect appeared at distractor-occupied, but not at target-occupied, locations. Seemingly, an IOR effect can follow volitional orienting. In this instance, the IOR process seems capable of undergoing modulation; however, such modulation was not evident following automatic orienting.

Smoking zones versus smoke-free zones on Canadian postsecondary campuses: Which zone is more effective, adhered to and preferred?

INTRODUCTION: This study aims to determine if smokers at post-secondary campuses are more likely to adhere to smoke-free zones (areas where smoking is not permitted) or smoking zones (areas where smoking is permitted) based on preference and effectiveness. METHODS: A self-reported survey was developed and administered at two postsecondary institutions; Western University (smoke-free zones) and Fanshawe College (smoking zones). Smokers were asked how often they use these zones, which zone is preferred and which zone they think is more effective. A chi-squared analysis was performed to determine if there were differences in the frequency of responses. RESULTS: A total of 239 surveys were collected, 119 from Western and 120 from Fanshawe. Of these, 87% of respondents at Fanshawe were aware of where they could smoke on campus, and 67% reported that they mostly or always used these spaces. At Western, significantly fewer respondents knew where to smoke (57%), and only 30% reported mostly or always using appropriate zones (p<0.05). More participants at Fanshawe indicated that they had been told by someone in authority where they could smoke (36%) compared to Western (19%, p<0.05). At Fanshawe, 63% of respondents stated that smoking zones mostly or always effectively indicated where it was appropriate to smoke on campus compared to only 18% at Western (p<0.05). Both groups indicated they preferred the zone they currently had. Finally, more participants from Fanshawe intend to quit smoking within 6 months (61% from Fanshawe vs 49% from Western, p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Smoking zones on post-secondary campuses may be more effective and adhered to by smokers than smoke-free zones.

Anthropometric and body composition changes in smokers vs abstainers following an exercise-aided pharmacotherapy smoking cessation trial for women.

INTRODUCTION: Post-cessation weight gain contributes to smoking relapse, especially for women. Furthermore, excess weight in the form of android or visceral fat is associated with metabolic health problems. For this study, a secondary analysis was conducted in 2015 to determine whether quitting status, achieved through a 14 week supervised exercise-aided nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) cessation program [Getting Physical on Cigarette Trial-2009 to 2013; Prapavessis, et al., 2016], affects anthropometric and body composition parameters in female smokers (N = 413, M age = 42.39 years). METHODS: Anthropometric (weight and BMI) and body composition (% total body fat, % android fat, lean mass and visceral fat) indices were assessed at baseline and end of treatment. Smoking status was confirmed weekly from expired breath carbon monoxide. Adherence to exercise and NRT patch was calculated from the number of exercise sessions attended and patches worn to the number of exercise sessions offered and patches supplied, respectively. RESULTS: Factorial (smoking status) ANCOVAs controlling for baseline anthropometric and body composition parameters as well as adherence to exercise and NRT revealed significant differences in weight (p = .033; ɳp2 = 0.017) and BMI (p = .020; ɳp2 = 0.020) at week 14. This equated to abstainers weighing 1.26 kg more and having a 0.52 higher BMI than smokers. No significant differences were found for any of the body composition parameters at week 14 (ɳp2 range from 0.001-0.007). CONCLUSIONS: Abstainers gain modest weight compared to smokers. This weight gain is related to increases in lean mass and not total, android, or visceral fat.

Informing population-specific smoking policy development for college campuses: An observational study.

INTRODUCTION: In Canada, young adults have the highest smoking rates among all other population groups and specifically college students are at a higher risk. To implement effective policies that can prevent smoking and increase cessation, a population-specific approach is recommended. METHODS: Smoking and non-smoking young adults enrolled in a college program were recruited. Participants who did not smoke were asked to complete questionnaires about their demographics, college experience and the college environment. Additionally, they completed The Perceived Stress Scale and The Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression Scale. Students who were current smokers completed the same questionnaires with the addition of one questionnaire about their smoking behaviors. Percentages, means and standard deviations were used to describe the variables of interest and a chi-squared analysis was performed, when possible, to test the difference in response frequency between smoking and non-smoking participants. RESULTS: Differences were observed between smoking (n=65) and non-smoking students (n=214). Specifically, smokers were more likely to have a family member that smoked and to participate in binge drinking. Both groups indicated that they are unaware of campus smoking regulations; however smokers were more opposed to implementing smoke-free policies. CONCLUSIONS: College students are unaware of campus smoking regulations. The descriptive information and differences observed between smoking and non-smoking students in this study should be taken into consideration when developing future smoking regulations/policies on college campuses.

Feasibility of an exercise intervention for fatigued breast cancer patients at a community-based cardiac rehabilitation program.

PURPOSE: Exercise is beneficial to quality of life after cancer treatment, yet few cancer survivors meet exercise guidelines. Our study sought to determine the feasibility of an oncology rehabilitation exercise program embedded within a cardiac rehabilitation program. METHODS: Patients who rated their fatigue >4/10 after completion of adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer were screened for eligibility and the outcomes were assessed (Piper Fatigue Scale, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast [FACT-B], Edmonton Symptom Assessment System, body composition, stress test, and physical activity measurement [accelerometer]). Participants received individualized exercise prescription. Following the 16-week program, repeat assessment plus patient acceptance and satisfaction survey was completed. The primary end point was the composite of accrual rate >25%, program adherence >80%, and mean compliance with accelerometer use >80%. RESULTS: Twenty of 24 screened patients consented to the study and completed the baseline assessment. Adherence was 30.3%. Mean accelerometer use was 3.88/7 days (78%). Fatigue at baseline was rated at 4.82/10, and at 3.59 (p = 0.09) after the intervention. Overall well-being (FACT-B) score changed from 92.7 to 98.3 (p = 0.05). There were no significant changes in body composition (except for bone mineral content), aerobic exercise capacity, or activity patterns. CONCLUSION: Although the primary outcome was not met, our study indicates that an oncology exercise rehabilitation program can be incorporated into an existing cardiac rehabilitation program. Based on feedback received, we propose that in order to achieve exercise goals, frequent, encouraging, and tailored feedback and group sessions to foster a sense of community may additionally be needed to strengthen adherence to a prescribed exercise program.

The effect of acute exercise on cigarette cravings while using a nicotine lozenge.

RATIONALE: It is imperative that smoking cessation aids effectively alleviate cigarette craving and withdrawal symptoms because their intensity has shown to predict relapse. The nicotine lozenge and a single session of exercise have both been shown to provide relief from craving for smokers who have stopped smoking. These two efficacious monotherapies have distinct mechanic pathways, and applying them concurrently may provide additive-craving relief benefit. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine whether an acute bout of moderate-intensity exercise provides additional craving relief to the nicotine replacement lozenge in recently quit smokers. RESULTS: Thirty smokers who had abstained from smoking for 15 h were randomized to either the experimental (exercise and lozenge, n = 15) or control (lozenge alone, n = 15) condition. Craving was assessed before (baseline), during (10 and 20 min), and after (10, 20, 30, and 40 min) treatment. RESULT: A significant condition by time interaction effect was found for craving (F(6, 23) = 2.70, p = 0.039, Wilks' Λ = 0.59, η ρ (2) = 0.41). While both conditions demonstrated reductions in craving, the reduction was significantly greater for the experimental group. CONCLUSION: These findings demonstrate that an acute bout of exercise provides additional craving relief to the nicotine lozenge in recently quit smokers. We recommend smokers who attempt to quit employ both cessation aids simultaneously to maximize reductions in cravings.

Examining Practitioners' Assessments of Perceived Aesthetic and Diagnostic Quality of High kVp-Low mAs Pelvis, Chest, Skull, and Hand Phantom Radiographs.

This study investigated the usefulness of the dose optimization strategy of increased tube voltage (kVp) and decreased tube current-exposure time product (mAs) (or high kVp-low mAs) by examining practitioners' assessments of perceived aesthetic and diagnostic quality of direct digital radiographs acquired using this strategy. Ninety-one practitioners (radiologists, radiology residents, radiographers, and radiography students) from eight clinical sites in Ontario examined three types of radiographs ("standard" image, +20 kVp image, and +30 kVp image) for anthropomorphic pelvis, chest, skull, and hand phantoms and rated (on a five-point scale) each image in regard to its perceived aesthetic quality, perceived diagnostic quality, and visualization of anatomic structures. Our primary findings are that for the pelvis, skull, and hand-although not the chest-images acquired using standard technical factors were rated significantly higher in diagnostic and aesthetic quality than those acquired using the high kVp-low mAs strategy. Despite this, both standard and dose-optimized images of the pelvis, skull, and hand were rated to be of acceptable diagnostic quality for clinical use. In conclusion, for the pelvis, skull, and hand, an increase of 20 kVp was an effective strategy to reduce dose while still acquiring images of diagnostic quality.

Impact of a smoking cessation lifestyle intervention on vascular mechanics in young women.

We tested the hypotheses that smoking-induced changes in vascular mechanics would be detected earlier in the lumped properties of peripheral vascular beds, which include the properties of microvasculature, than in the local properties of central conduits, and that such changes are reversible with lifestyle changes that include smoking cessation and exercise. Vascular measures were made in 53 young (18-40 years) female smokers and 25 age-matched non-smokers. Twenty-two of the smokers were tested before and after a 14-week smoking cessation program and, of these, 13 were tested again after 52 weeks of smoking cessation. Compared with non-smokers, lumped forearm vascular bed compliance (C: mL/mm Hg) was lower, while lumped viscoelasticity (K: mm Hg/(mL·min)) and resistance (R: mm Hg/(mL·min)) were higher in the smoker group. Neither the carotid-to-toe pulse wave velocity nor local carotid artery elasticity indices were different between groups. Compared with non-smokers, brachial artery distensibility was less, and other markers of stiffness higher, in the smoker group. At 14 and 52 weeks of smoking cessation, forearm vascular R was reduced and C was increased while K was unchanged. The changes in C and R occurred while maintaining a constant R×C value, which represents a dynamic time constant. Thus, early changes in K were observed in the forearm vascular bed of smokers, which were not reflected in the local properties of central conduit vessels. Forearm C, but not K, was reversed following smoking cessation, a finding that may represent a persistent effect of smoking on the intercellular matrix of the vessel wall.

The effects of acute exercise on tobacco cravings and withdrawal symptoms in temporary abstinent pregnant smokers.

INTRODUCTION: Smoking during pregnancy is common, and quitting at any point during pregnancy can yield benefits to both the fetus and mother. Smoking cessation is typically followed by withdrawal symptoms and a strong desire to smoke, both of which are likely to contribute to relapse. Research has shown that a bout of exercise minimizes cravings and tobacco withdrawal symptoms (TWS) after temporary abstinence in smokers, but these findings have not been replicated in pregnant smokers. This study examined the effect of 20min of exercise on cravings (primary outcome) and TWS (secondary outcomes) among temporary abstinent, inactive pregnant smokers. METHODS: Thirty female smokers (Mean(M) age=25.7years, Standard Deviation(SD)=5.5; M weeks pregnant=18.2, SD=5.3; Fagerstrom Test for Cigarette Dependence=3.3, SD=2.2; M 9.3 cigarettes/day, SD=4.7; M hours abstained=17.2, SD=2.8) were randomized to 20 min of mild-to-moderate intensity exercise (EC; n=14) or passive (PC; n=16) condition. Cravings and TWS were assessed immediately before, during (at 10 min), immediately post, and at 10, 20, and 30 min post-condition. RESULTS: A 2 (condition)×6 (time) repeated measures ANOVA revealed that the EC significantly (p<0.05) reduced cravings (ή(2)=0.46) compared with the PC, across time. Non-significant, but nevertheless, large effects were evident favouring the EC over time for TWS restlessness (ή(2)=0.34), stress (ή(2)=0.24), irritability (ή(2)=0.21), tension (ή(2)=0.15), and depression (ή(2)=0.14). CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with previous research, this study reveals that in pregnant smokers, a bout of exercise is associated with a reduction in cravings and similar patterns exist for TWS. Therefore, exercise may have the potential to assist in the initial stages of smoking cessation attempts during pregnancy.

Recently inhibited responses are avoided for both masked and nonmasked primes in a spatial negative priming task.

Responding to the location of a target is delayed when the target arises at a position previously occupied by a distractor (ignored-repetition trial), relative to when it occurs at a formerly unoccupied location (control trial) [i.e., the spatial negative priming (SNP) effect]. Speculation has held that recently inhibited (distractor) responses resist future execution (i.e., execution resistance [ER]), and thus cause SNP. Evidence for ER has been reported for identity-based tasks using masked prime distractor events. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential impact of ER on response selection in an SNP task for both nonmasked (traditional) and masked primes. We employed a modified SNP task that included nonmasked and masked target-only and distractor-only visual primes (first trial), along with forced choice and free choice probes (second trial). On free choice trials, a selection bias against the prime-distractor-assigned response was evident (same-hand competition, for both nonmasked and masked primes). This selection avoidance was held to reflect ER operating with inhibited prime distractor responses. Further, inhibitory aftereffect patterns were the same for nonmasked and masked distractor primes, and masking target primes transformed a positive to a negative aftereffect, as predicted by the self-inhibition model of mask function set out by Schlaghecken and Eimer (Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 11, 463-468, 2004).

Prime-trial processing demands and their impact on distractor processing in a spatial negative priming task.

A spatial negative priming (NP) paradigm was used where trials were presented in pairs, first the 'prime' and then the 'probe', and where participants responded manually to a target's location. In Experiment 1, three prime-trial types were used: distractor-plus-target, predictable distractor-only, and unpredictable distractor-only, with prime-probe trial onset delays of 2, 5 or 10 s (NP longevity). In Experiment 2, the latter two prime-trials were employed with onset delays of 75 and 750 ms (distractor response activation-inhibition sequence). With the exception of the 10 s onset delay, the spatial NP effect data (NP size, longevity, distractor response activation-inhibition sequence) was the same for all three prime-trial types. Thus, the varying processing demands associated with each of the prime-trial types (e.g., selection, intervening response) did not alter prime distractor processing so that they differentially contributed to the spatial NP process. The three prime-trial types can be used interchangeably, within limits, to study the NP process.