Schirmer tear test I in dogs: results comparing placement in the ventral vs. dorsal conjunctival fornix.

OBJECTIVE: To compare Schirmer tear test I (STT I) values obtained from placement of tear strips in the ventral and dorsal conjunctival fornices in dogs. PROCEDURE: Schirmer tear test I was performed on each eye of 16 clinically normal dogs (32 eyes) in a crossover study. Initial tear strip placement site was randomized for each eye. Alternative placement site measurements were obtained after 1 week. RESULTS: The mean (± standard deviation, SD) STT I for dorsal and ventral conjunctival fornices was 20.44 (±4.46) mm/min and 23.56 (±3.98) mm/min, respectively. STT I values obtained from the ventral conjunctival fornix were significantly greater than those obtained from the dorsal conjunctival fornix (P = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: Schirmer tear test I values were significantly greater with tear strips placed in the ventral conjunctival fornix.

Exploring the benefits of unilateral nostril breathing practice post-stroke: attention, language, spatial abilities, depression, and anxiety.

OBJECTIVE: Unilateral nostril breathing (UNB) is a yogic pranayama technique that has been shown to improve verbal and spatial cognition in neurologically intact individuals. Early study of UNB in healthy individuals has shown benefits for attention and memory. This preliminary study explored whether UNB influenced various measures of attention, language, spatial abilities, depression, and anxiety in post-stroke individuals, both with and without aphasia. DESIGN: A within-subjects repeated-measures design was used to determine whether UNB improved cognitive, linguistic, and affect variables in post-stroke individuals. Within-subjects comparisons determined UNB's effects over time, and between-subjects comparison was used to determine whether changes in these variables differed between post-stroke individuals with and without aphasia. SETTING: Athens and Atlanta, Georgia. PARTICIPANTS: Eleven post-stroke individuals participated in a 10-week UNB program. Five individuals had stroke-induced left hemisphere damage with no diagnosis of aphasia (left hemisphere damage control group; LHD), and six individuals experienced left hemisphere damage with a diagnosis of aphasia (individuals with aphasia group; IWA). MEASURES: Individuals were assessed on measures of attention, language, spatial abilities, depression, and anxiety before, during, and after UNB treatment. RESULTS: UNB significantly decreased levels of anxiety for individuals in both groups. Performance on language measures increased for the individuals with aphasia. CONCLUSIONS: Significant findings for language and affect measures indicate that further investigation regarding duration of UNB treatment and use of UNB treatment alongside traditional speech-language therapy in post-stroke individuals is warranted.

Further evidence of auditory extinction in aphasia.

PURPOSE: Preliminary research (Shisler, 2005) suggests that auditory extinction in individuals with aphasia (IWA) may be connected to binding and attention. In this study, the authors expanded on previous findings on auditory extinction to determine the source of extinction deficits in IWA. METHOD: Seventeen IWA (M(age) = 53.19 years) and 17 neurologically intact controls (M(age) = 55.18 years) participated. Auditory stimuli were spoken letters presented in a free-field listening environment. Stimuli were presented in single-stimulus stimulation (SSS) or double-simultaneous stimulation (DSS) trials across 5 conditions designed to determine whether extinction is related to binding, inefficient attention resource allocation, or overall deficits in attention. All participants completed all experimental conditions. RESULTS: Significant extinction was demonstrated only by IWA when sounds were different, providing further evidence of auditory extinction. However, binding requirements did not appear to influence the IWA's performance. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that, for IWA, auditory extinction may not be attributed to a binding deficit or inefficient attention resource allocation because of equivalent performance across all 5 conditions. Rather, overall attentional resources may be influential. Future research in aphasia should explore the effect of the stimulus presentation in addition to the continued study of attention treatment.