HVSMR-2.0: A 3D cardiovascular MR dataset for whole-heart segmentation in congenital heart disease.

Patients with congenital heart disease often have cardiac anatomy that deviates significantly from normal, frequently requiring multiple heart surgeries. Image segmentation from a preoperative cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) scan would enable creation of patient-specific 3D surface models of the heart, which have potential to improve surgical planning, enable surgical simulation, and allow automatic computation of quantitative metrics of heart function. However, there is no publicly available CMR dataset for whole-heart segmentation in patients with congenital heart disease. Here, we release the HVSMR-2.0 dataset, comprising 60 CMR scans alongside manual segmentation masks of the 4 cardiac chambers and 4 great vessels. The images showcase a wide range of heart defects and prior surgical interventions. The dataset also includes masks of required and optional extents of the great vessels, enabling fairer comparisons across algorithms. Detailed diagnoses for each subject are also provided. By releasing HVSMR-2.0, we aim to encourage development of robust segmentation algorithms and clinically relevant tools for congenital heart disease.

Cannabis use during pregnancy and hemodynamic responses to infant cues in pregnancy: an exploratory study.

Introduction: Cannabis is one of the most commonly used substances during pregnancy and has the potential to negatively impact parent-infant relationships. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) response to infant cues during pregnancy has been associated with subsequent positive parenting behaviors. However, PFC activation is altered in individuals who use cannabis. As the potency of cannabis has changed over the years, little is known about the specific role of cannabis use on gestational parent brain responses to infant cues. Materials and methods: Using functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) in the second trimester of pregnancy, we measured hemodynamic responses to an infant cry task and an infant faces task among individuals who were using cannabis (N = 14) and compared them with those who were not using cannabis (N = 45). For the infant cry task, pregnant individuals listened to cry sounds and matched white noise. For the infant faces task, they viewed happy, sad, and neutral faces. Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups after adjusting for multiple comparisons. Without adjusting for multiple comparisons, we found preliminary evidence for the differences in the dorsomedial PFC associated with heightened response to infant cry among individuals who use cannabis. The groups were also different in the dorsolateral PFC associated with decreased response to infant sad faces among individuals who use cannabis. Discussion: Our preliminary data suggests that cannabis use during pregnancy was associated with brain activation in the regions involved in the emotional regulation and information processes. However, the results did not survive after adjustment for multiple comparisons, thus future research with larger sample sizes is needed to confirm potential differences in brain function among cannabis-using pregnant individuals.

Interdisciplinary views of fNIRS: Current advancements, equity challenges, and an agenda for future needs of a diverse fNIRS research community.

Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an innovative and promising neuroimaging modality for studying brain activity in real-world environments. While fNIRS has seen rapid advancements in hardware, software, and research applications since its emergence nearly 30 years ago, limitations still exist regarding all three areas, where existing practices contribute to greater bias within the neuroscience research community. We spotlight fNIRS through the lens of different end-application users, including the unique perspective of a fNIRS manufacturer, and report the challenges of using this technology across several research disciplines and populations. Through the review of different research domains where fNIRS is utilized, we identify and address the presence of bias, specifically due to the restraints of current fNIRS technology, limited diversity among sample populations, and the societal prejudice that infiltrates today's research. Finally, we provide resources for minimizing bias in neuroscience research and an application agenda for the future use of fNIRS that is equitable, diverse, and inclusive.

Assessing the Effects of eHealth Tutorials on Older Adults' eHealth Literacy.

eHealth literacy is the ability to access, assess, and use digital health information. This study compared the effects of a multimedia tutorial versus a paper-based control in improving older adults' eHealth literacy from pre- to posttest. A total of 99 community-dwelling older adults (63-90 years old; mean = 73.09) participated from July 2019 to February 2020. Overall, knowledge about computer/Internet terms, eHealth literacy efficacy, knowledge about the quality of health information websites, and procedural skills in computer/Internet use improved significantly from pre- to posttest. No interaction effect was found between time and group. Participants in both groups had an overwhelmingly positive attitude toward training. Their attitudes toward training approached a statistically significant difference between the two conditions: F (1, 89) = 3.75, p = .056, partial η2 = .040, with the multimedia condition showing more positive attitudes. These findings have implications for designing effective eHealth literacy interventions for older adults.

Trait coping styles and the maternal neural and behavioral sensitivity to an infant.

During the postpartum period, new mothers experience drastic changes in their body, brain, and life circumstances. Stress from the emotional and physical demands of caring for an infant is associated with negative mood and parenting outcomes. The use of active coping strategies can increase mothers' resilience during the postpartum period. However, little is known about the association between coping styles and maternal brain responses to infant cues. In the current study, we examined the associations among trait coping style, maternal brain responses, and behavioral sensitivity in a socioeconomically diverse sample of first-time mothers (N = 59). The use of more active trait coping strategies compared to passive coping strategies was associated with increased brain responses to infant cry sounds in brain regions that are critically involved in motivation and emotion regulation-substantia nigra, anterior cingulate gyrus, and inferior frontal gyrus. Increased brain activations in the midbrain and anterior cingulate gyrus were further associated with higher levels of maternal sensitivity observed during interactions with the infant. Thus, the findings provide support for mothers' use of more active coping styles to promote neural and behavioral resilience for a positive transition to parenthood.

Biventricular strategies for neonatal critical aortic stenosis: high mortality associated with early reintervention.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the risk of reintervention after biventricular strategies to treat neonatal critical aortic stenosis, and the effect of reintervention on survival. METHODS: In a multi-institutional inception cohort of 139 neonates, the time-related risk of reintervention was analyzed using parametric multiphase competing-risk models and a modulated renewal repeated-events method. The risk factors were identified through multivariate regression and selected with bootstrap resampling for reliability. Univentricular survival predictions were generated using the Congenital Heart Surgeons' Society Univentricular Repair Survival Advantage score. RESULTS: One half of survivors required reintervention within 3 years. The risk of undergoing early reintervention decreased with successive procedures (P<.0001); however, second (n=27) and third (n=8) reinterventions were associated with a greater late risk of repeat reintervention compared with the index procedure (P=.02). The morphologic risk factors for earlier reintervention included left ventricular dysfunction, fewer aortic cusps, associated subaortic or arch obstruction, and a larger tricuspid annulus. The risk of death did not improve after successive reinterventions. Therefore, the overall survival for those requiring repeated reinterventions was compromised by the cumulative procedural risk of death. The most important risk factor for death after the first reintervention (P<.01) was a shorter interval from the index biventricular procedure, particularly if less than 30 days. Fifteen neonates required reintervention within 30 days of the index biventricular procedure (9 deaths, 60%). For the same 15 neonates, the survival predictions using published models estimated fewer than one half the number deaths with index univentricular repair strategies (4/15, 27%, P=.03). CONCLUSIONS: Success of index biventricular procedures has important survival implications: early reintervention implies a poor prognosis and might reflect incorrect management decisions. The morphologic characteristics can help identify such neonates, and univentricular repair might, instead, be preferable.