A prospective study of loss of consciousness in epilepsy using virtual reality driving simulation and other video games.

Patients with epilepsy are at risk of traffic accidents when they have seizures while driving. However, driving is an essential part of normal daily life in many communities, and depriving patients of driving privileges can have profound consequences for their economic and social well-being. In the current study, we collected ictal performance data from a driving simulator and two other video games in patients undergoing continuous video/EEG monitoring. We captured 22 seizures in 13 patients and found that driving impairment during seizures differed in terms of both magnitude and character, depending on the seizure type. Our study documents the feasibility of a prospective study of driving and other behaviors during seizures through the use of computer-based tasks. This methodology may be applied to further describe differential driving impairment in specific types of seizures and to gain data on anatomical networks disrupted in seizures that impair consciousness and driving safety.

Airpuff startle probes: an efficacious and less aversive alternative to white-noise.

Fear-potentiated startle (FPS) is an increasingly popular psychophysiological method for the objective assessment of fear and anxiety. Studies applying this method often elicit the startle reflex with loud white-noise stimuli. Such intense stimuli may, however, alter psychological processes of interest by creating unintended emotional or attentional artifacts. Additionally, loud acoustic probes may be unsuitable for use with infants, children, the elderly, and those with hearing damage. Past studies have noted robust and reliable startle reflexes elicited by low intensity airpuffs. The current study compares the aversiveness of white-noise (102 dB) and airpuff (3 psi) probes and examines the sensitivity of each probe for the assessment of fear-potentiated startle. Results point to less physiological arousal and self-reported reactivity to airpuff versus white-noise probes. Additionally, both probes elicited equal startle magnitudes, response probabilities, and levels of fear-potentiated startle. Such results support the use of low intensity airpuffs as efficacious and relatively non-aversive startle probes.

Simultaneous bilateral femoral head and neck ostectomy for the treatment of canine hip dysplasia.

Simultaneous bilateral femoral head and neck ostectomy (FHO) was performed on 15 dogs for severe bilateral hip dysplasia. A follow-up survey was performed 6 to 48 months after surgery to assess the postoperative recovery and activity levels of the operated dogs. All dogs had normal activity levels and were pain free according to their owners. Owner satisfaction regarding the outcome of the surgery was high. Simultaneous bilateral FHO was a viable surgical option for the treatment of painful bilateral hip disease in dogs, especially when other surgical options were not indicated or were cost prohibitive.

The seductive allure of neuroscience explanations.

Explanations of psychological phenomena seem to generate more public interest when they contain neuroscientific information. Even irrelevant neuroscience information in an explanation of a psychological phenomenon may interfere with people's abilities to critically consider the underlying logic of this explanation. We tested this hypothesis by giving naïve adults, students in a neuroscience course, and neuroscience experts brief descriptions of psychological phenomena followed by one of four types of explanation, according to a 2 (good explanation vs. bad explanation) x 2 (without neuroscience vs. with neuroscience) design. Crucially, the neuroscience information was irrelevant to the logic of the explanation, as confirmed by the expert subjects. Subjects in all three groups judged good explanations as more satisfying than bad ones. But subjects in the two nonexpert groups additionally judged that explanations with logically irrelevant neuroscience information were more satisfying than explanations without. The neuroscience information had a particularly striking effect on nonexperts' judgments of bad explanations, masking otherwise salient problems in these explanations.