An Observational Study in the Real Clinical Practice of the Treatment of Noninfectious Uveitis.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to describe the characteristics of patients with uveitis associated with an immunologic or idiopathic disease that requires immunosuppressive treatment and the response to such treatments in real clinical practice. METHODS: An observational, descriptive, longitudinal, and retrospective study of a cohort of patients diagnosed with noninfectious uveitis was performed. To assess the response to treatment, we evaluated the change in visual acuity, vitritis, and the presence of macular edema. RESULTS: We included 356 patients. Overall, 12% required treatment with systemic corticosteroids, and 66 patients (18.5%) required immunosuppressive/biological treatment, with methotrexate being the most used (55%). Immunosuppressive drugs were used in 59 cases (in 56 patients, as the first choice of treatment and for 3 patients as the second choice after treatment with biologics). Treatment with biologics was the first choice in 10 patients out of 66 (15%), and 34 (48%) required them at some time during the disease, with adalimumab being the most commonly used. Thirty-five patients (53%) needed to switch drugs due to a lack of response to the first one. There were no differences between different drugs in the resolution of vitritis and improvement in vision. CONCLUSIONS: The use of systemic corticosteroids and immunosuppressive/biologics was necessary for a high number of patients with noninfectious uveitis. In our series, tocilizumab was significantly more effective in the resolution of macular edema.

[Impact of systemic therapies on SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroprevalence in patients with immune-mediated diseases]. / Impacto de las terapias sistémicas en la seroprevalencia de anticuerpos contra el SARS-CoV-2 en pacientes con enfermedades inmunomediadas.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMID) treated with biologic (bDMARDs) or synthetic targeted disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (tsDMARDs). METHODS: An observational, descriptive, prospective and cross-sectional study of analytical prevalence analysis was conducted in patients with IMID with bDMARDs or tsDMARDs. Seroprevalence was compared by measuring immunoglobulinG (IgG) against SARS-CoV-2 between October/2020 and May/2021. RESULTS: A total of 550 IMID's patients were studied, all of them on treatment with bDMARDs or tsDMARDs. The seroprevalence of the total patient group was 16% (88/550). Patients receiving therapy with tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibitors (TNFi) had a higher seroprevalence compared to other biologic and synthetic targeted therapies (OR: 1.792 [95%CI: 1.088-2.951]; P=.021). The influence on seroprevalence of concomitant use with b/tsDMARDs of conventional synthetic DMARDs (csDMARDs) was also analyzed. A lower seroprevalence was demonstrated in the group of patients treated with TNFi and methotrexate together, compared with those on TNFi monotherapy, 10.1 vs 24.1% (OR: 0.355 [95%CI: 0.165-0.764]; P=.006). No significant differences were found with the other DMARDs. Regarding IMIDs, no differences in seroprevalence were identified between the different disease groups. CONCLUSION: Patients on treatment with TNFα inhibitors have better humoral response compared to the other b/tsDMARDs. However, when associated with methotrexate the seroprevalence decreases significantly.

Seroprevalencia del SARS-CoV-2 en los pacientes con enfermedades inmunomediadas en tratamiento con terapias biológicas y sintéticos dirigidos / Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases treated with biological and synthetic targeted therapies

INTRODUCCIÓN: La seroprevalencia del SARS-CoV-2 en las enfermedades inflamatorias inmunomediadas (IMID) sigue siendo fuente de controversia. OBJETIVO: Comparar la seroprevalencia de anticuerpos (Ac) anti SARS-CoV-2 en pacientes con IMID en tratamientos con fármacos antirreumáticos modificadores de la enfermedad biológicos (FAMEb) o sintéticos dirigidos (FAMEsd) frente a un grupo de personas sin IMID. MÉTODOS: Estudio de pacientes con IMID y tratamientos con FAMEb y FAMEsd y de individuos sin IMID. Mediante la técnica de inmunoensayo por quimioluminiscencia indirecta, se determinaron las serologías IgG frente al SARS-CoV-2 entre octubre/2020 y mayo/2021. RESULTADOS: Se estudiaron 1.100 sujetos, 550 pacientes con IMID y 550 personas sin IMID. Se observó una seroprevalencia de 16% (88/550) en los pacientes frente a 19,3% (106/550) en el grupo de personas sin IMID, sin significación estadística (OR 0,790 [IC 95% 0,558-1,118]). Comparando los tratamientos con FAMEb o FAMEsd, se observó una tendencia a una menor seroprevalencia con rituximab, en relación con los individuos sin IMID (OR 0,296 [IC 95% 0,0871,007]). Asimismo, se encontró menor seroprevalencia en los pacientes que además de su FAMEb recibían tratamiento con metotrexato, en comparación con el grupo de personas sin IMID (OR 0,432 [IC 95% 0,223-0,835]). CONCLUSIONES: Las IMID en tratamiento con FAMEb o FAMEsd no influyen en la seroprevalencia frente al SARS-CoV-2 de los pacientes. El tratamiento concomitante con metotrexato disminuye de forma significativa la seroprevalencia en estos pacientes.

BACKGROUND: The seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in immunemediated inflammatory diseases (IMID) remains controversial. AIM: To compare the seroprevalence of antibodies (Ab) to SARS-CoV-2 in patients with IMID receiving treatment with biological diseasemodifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARD) or targeted synthetic (tsDMARD) versus a group of people without IMID. METHODS: Study of patients with IMID and treatments with bDMARD and tsDMARD and individuals without IMID. IgG serology against SARS-CoV-2 was measured using the two-step sandwich immunoassay technique by indirect chemiluminescence between October 2020 and May 2021. RESULTS: A total of 1100 subjects were studied, 550 patients with IMID and 550 persons without IMID. A seroprevalence of 16% (88/550) was observed in patients versus 19.3% (106/550) in the group of people without IMID, without statistical significance (OR 0.790 [95% CI 0.558-1.118]). Comparing the treatments with bD- MARD or tsDMARD, there was a tendency to lower seroprevalence with rituximab, in relation to individuals without IMID (OR 0.296 [95% CI 0.087-1.007]). In addition, lower seroprevalence was found in patients who received methotrexate treatment in addition to their bDMARD, compared to the group of individuals without IMID (OR 0.432 [95% CI 0.223-0.835]). CONCLUSIONS: IMIDs in treatment with bDMARDs or tsDMARDs do not influence the seroprevalence against SARS-CoV-2 in patients. Concomitant treatment with methotrexate significantly decreased seroprevalence in these patients.

The Real-World Study of Immunogenicity and Safety of the Adjuvant Recombinant Vaccine against Varicella Zoster Virus in Patients with Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases Treated with Janus Kinase Inhibitors.

Background. The risk of herpes zoster reactivation is increased in immunocompromised patients, especially in those with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) on Janus kinase inhibitor (JAKi) treatment. The recombinant subunit herpes zoster vaccine (RZV) is a non-live vaccine, recently approved for this subgroup of patients, which shows high rates of vaccine effectiveness, with few adverse effects reported in clinical trials. Purpose. The aim of this real-world study was to determine the immunogenicity and safety of RZV in IMID patients on JAKi treatment. Methods. The increase in the concentration of anti-gE antibody for varicella zoster virus post-vaccination, compared to the pre-vaccination concentration, was analyzed to test the humoral immune response. Adverse effects after the first and second vaccine doses were registered. Results. In total, 49 patients were analyzed, and a fourfold increase in antibody concentration was achieved in almost 40% of subjects, with only one serious local adverse effect. Discussion. The resulting immunogenicity was lower than that observed in clinical trials, probably due to the presence of immune disease and immunosuppressive treatment, and to the fact that this was a real-world study. No differences in response according to age, previous virus zoster reactivation, or concomitant treatments were found. Conclusions. RZV was well tolerated and reached the immune response objective in 40% of patients. These results reinforce the importance of including RZV vaccination for immunosuppressed patients. Real-world studies regarding vaccine effectiveness are still needed in order to gain a full understanding of the response to RZV in this group of patients.

Sex-specific differences in neuromuscular activation of the knee stabilizing muscles in adults - a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: The rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the most common injuries of the knee. Women have a higher injury rate for ACL ruptures than men. Various indicators for this sex-specific difference are controversially discussed. AIM: A systematic review of the literature that compares surface electromyography (EMG) values of adult female and male subjects to find out if there is a difference in neuromuscular activation of the knee stabilizing muscles. METHODS: This systematic review has been guided and informed by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Studies which examined sex-specific differences with surface EMG measurements (integral, root mean squares, mean values, analysis of time and amplitude) of the knee stabilizing muscles were retrieved via searches from the databases PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, CENTRAL and SPORTDiscus. The risk of bias of included studies was assessed with the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) study quality assessment tool. A synthesis of results was performed for relevant outcomes. RESULTS: Fifteen studies with 462 healthy participants, 233 women (mean age 21.9 (± 2.29) years) and 299 men (mean age 22.6 (± 2.43) years), were included in the systematic review. The methodological quality of the studies was mostly rated "fair" (40%). A significantly higher activity of the muscles vastus lateralis and vastus medialis was found in females, in three studies. Two studies found significantly lower neuromuscular activity in the muscles biceps femoris and semitendinosus in females. All other included studies found no significant differences or reported even contradicting results. CONCLUSION: The controversial findings do not allow for a concluding answer to the question of a sex-specific neuromuscular activation. Further research with higher statistical power and a more homogeneous methodical procedure (tasks and data normalisation) of the included studies may provide insight into possibly existing sex-specific differences in neuromuscular activation. This systematic review could help to improve the methodical design of future studies to get a more valid conclusion of the issue. TRIAL REGISTRATION: CRD42020189504.

Assessing Differences between Clinical Isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus from Cases of Proven Invasive Aspergillosis and Colonizing Isolates with Respect to Phenotype (Virulence in Tenebrio molitor Larvae) and Genotype.

The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus, the cause of invasive aspergillosis (IA), is a serious risk to transplant patients and those with respiratory diseases. Host immune suppression is considered the most important factor for the development of IA. Less is known about the importance of fungal virulence in the development of IA including the significance of variation between isolates. In this study, isolates of A. fumigatus from cases diagnosed as having proven IA or colonisation (no evidence of IA) were compared in assays to measure isolate virulence. These assays included the measurement of radial growth and protease production on agar, sensitivity to UV light and oxidative stressors, and virulence in Tenebrio molitor (mealworm) larvae. These assays did not reveal obvious differences in virulence between the two groups of isolates; this provided the impetus to conduct genomic analysis. Whole genome sequencing and analysis did not allow grouping into coloniser or IA isolates. However, focused analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms revealed variation in three putative genes: AFUA_5G09420 (ccg-8), AFUA_4G00330, and AFUA_4G00350. These are known to be responsive to azole exposure, and ccg-8 deletion leads to azole hypersensitivity in other fungi. A. fumigatus virulence is challenging, but the findings of this study indicate that further research into the response to oxidative stress and azole exposure are required to understand the development of IA.

Incidence of COVID-19 in 902 Patients With Immunomediated Inflammatory Diseases Treated With Biologics and Targeted Synthetic Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs-Findings From the BIOCOVID Study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the incidence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among patients with immunomediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) treated with biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs and tsDMARDs) and to evaluate the influence of either IMIDs or related therapies on the incidence and evolution of COVID-19. METHODS: This observational, cross-sectional study was conducted from January 31, 2020, to May 15, 2020. Data of 902 patients were obtained from clinical records in hospitals, primary care units, and community pharmacies. Inclusion criteria were adults with IMIDs treated with bDMARDs or tsDMARDs who started therapy 3 months prior to study commencement. Patients with poor adherence to treatments were excluded. COVID-19 was classified as "definitive" (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 polymerase chain reaction [PCR]-positive), "possible" (characteristic symptoms and negative PCR), and "suspected" (characteristic symptoms but PCR not performed). RESULTS: COVID-19 was diagnosed in 70 patients (11 definitive, 19 possible, and 40 suspected). The cumulative incidence of definitive COVID-19 was 1.2%. When considering all cases, the incidence was 7.8%. Patients on biosimilars tumor necrosis factor blockers were more likely to have a diagnosis of COVID-19 (odds ratio, 2.308; p < 0.001). Patients on anti-B-cell therapies had a lower incidence of infections (p = 0.046). Low rates of hospitalization (14.3%), pneumonia (14.3%), death (2.9%), or thrombosis (2.9%) were observed, and 94.3% of patients recovered. CONCLUSIONS: The cumulative incidence of confirmed cases of COVID-19 was similar to the general population, with generally low hospitalization, intensive care management, and mortality rates. COVID-19 incidence was less frequent in patients with more severe immunosuppression.

Connecting teachers' classroom instructions with children's metacognition and learning in elementary school.

Many children have difficulties with accurate self-monitoring and effective regulation of study, and this may cause them to miss learning opportunities. In the classroom, teachers play a key role in supporting children with metacognition and learning. The present study aimed to acquire insights into how teachers' cognitive and metacognitive strategy instruction, as well as teacher-directed and child-centered instructional practices are related to children's self-monitoring accuracy, regulation of study, and learning performance. Twenty-one teachers and 308 children (2nd and 4th grade elementary school) participated. Teachers instructed a secret code task, children had to learn the match between letters of the alphabet and corresponding symbols. Teachers were observed and audio-recordings were made of their instructions. Then, children were asked to (a) make restudy selections, (b) complete a test, and (c) self-monitor test performance. Although teachers both addressed cognitive and metacognitive strategies, they more often instructed children about cognitive strategies. Further, teaching practices were more often teacher-directed than child-centered. Although there were no relations between teachers' instructions for metacognitive strategies and children's outcome measures, teaching cognitive strategies was positively associated with children's performance and self-monitoring accuracy. However, teaching cognitive strategies did not predict effective restudy selections. Rather, child-centered instructions (i.e., giving children autonomy to regulate their own learning) positively predicted children's restudy, and further, children's self-monitoring was more accurate in classrooms where teachers more often used child-centered instructional practices. This seems to imply that not only the content of the instructions itself, but particularly the way these are given, affects children's metacognition.

Comparing metacognitive monitoring between native and non-native speaking primary school students.

Metacognitive monitoring is a significant predictor of academic achievement and is assumed to be related to language competencies. Hence, it may explain academic performance differences between native and non-native speaking students. We compared metacognitive monitoring (in terms of resolution) between native and non-native speaking fourth graders (~ 10 year olds) in two studies. In Study 1, we matched 30 native and 30 non-native speakers and assessed their monitoring in the context of a paired-associates task, including a recognition test and confidence judgements. Study 1 revealed that recognition and monitoring did not differ between native and non-native speaking children. In Study 2, we matched 36 native and 36 non-native speakers and assessed their monitoring with the same paired-associates task. Additionally, we included a text comprehension task with open-ended questions and confidence judgments. We replicated the findings of Study 1, suggesting that recognition and monitoring do not necessarily differ between native and non-native speakers. However, native speaking students answered more open-ended questions correctly than non-native speaking students did. Nevertheless, the two groups did not differ in monitoring their answers to open-ended questions. Our results indicate that native and non-native speaking children may monitor their metacognitive resolution equally, independent of task performance and characteristics. In conclusion, metacognitive monitoring deficits may not be the primary source of the academic performance differences between native and non-native speaking students.

Exploring psychometric properties of children' metacognitive monitoring.

Two independent data sets assessing children's metacognitive monitoring abilities were used to explore the psychometric properties of classical and often-used monitoring measures in primary school age. Theoretically, monitoring is an overarching skill that helps individuals evaluate task mastery, strategy use, and correctness of performance. Monitoring skills are increasingly targeted when addressing individual differences in scholastic achievement and intervention approaches to foster students' self-regulated learning early on. In such contexts, knowledge about central psychometric properties is essential. Results of both studies revealed high internal consistency of prospective and retrospective monitoring judgments. When equivalent item sets (in terms of item difficulty) were considered (Study 1), split-half reliabilities were also satisfying. However, analyses revealed that the monitoring judgments' reliability depends on the reliability of the first-order task (recognition memory test). Retesting children of Study 2 after six months revealed considerable fluctuations in the monitoring measures. Among the included monitoring measures, reliabilities of within-person correlations (Gammas) between performance and confidence and recognition response times and confidence were poorest. Results are discussed in the context of the underlying theoretical construct and implications for research and practice.

Impact of Biological Therapies on the Immune Response after Pneumococcal Vaccination in Patients with Autoimmune Inflammatory Diseases.

Patients with different autoimmune inflammatory diseases (AIID) on biological therapy are at risk of pneumococcal disease. Adults with inflammatory arthropathies, connective tissue diseases, psoriasis, or inflammatory bowel disease on biological therapy such as anti-TNFα, rituximab, tocilizumab, abatacept, or anakinra were included in this study. Patients completed a protocol combining the pneumococcal vaccines PCV13 and PPV23. Immune response against pneumococcal serotypes 1, 3, 7F, 14, 19A, and 19F were assessed evaluating functional antibodies by an opsonophagocytosis killing assay (OPKA). In this study, 182 patients with AIID completed the sequential vaccination protocol. Patients on etanercept tended to achieve OPKA titers against a larger number of serotypes than the rest of patients on other biological therapies, while adalimumab was associated to a lower number of serotypes with OPKA titers. Rituximab was not associated with a worse response when compared with the rest of biological agents. Not glucocorticoids, nor synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, interfered with the immune response. OPKA titers against serotype 3 which is one of the most prevalent, was obtained in 44% of patients, increasing up to 58% in those on etanercept. Hence, almost 50% of patients on biological therapy achieved functional antibodies after the administration of a complete pneumococcal vaccination protocol.

Developmental Improvements and Persisting Difficulties in Children's Metacognitive Monitoring and Control Skills: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Perspectives.

This study investigated age-dependent improvements of monitoring and control in 7/8- and 9/10-year-old children. We addressed prospective (judgments of learning and restudy selections) and retrospective metacognitive skills (confidence judgments and withdrawal of answers). Children (N = 305) completed a paired-associate learning task twice, with a 1-year delay. Results revealed improvements in retrospective, but not in prospective monitoring and control. Furthermore, control remained suboptimal, seemingly a consequence of overoptimistic monitoring. Both age groups showed stronger monitoring-based control at the second compared to the first assessment. The comparison with a cross-sectional sample (N = 144) revealed that improvements in retrospective monitoring can be mainly attributed to naturally occurring development, whereas retrospective control seemed to improve due to increased task familiarity.

Measuring Choroid Thickness as a Marker of Systemic Inflammation in Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is an inflammatory disease, and choroidal thickness (CT) has been proposed and evaluated as a potential marker of systemic inflammation associated with AS and other inflammatory diseases. This study compared CT measurements taken from patients with severe AS disease activity without eye inflammation with those taken from healthy subjects. METHODS: This cross-sectional, multicenter study compared CT in 44 patients with high AS disease activity, and no history of eye inflammation with CT in 44 matched healthy subjects aged between 18 and 65 years. In the AS group, the correlation between CT and C-reactive protein, human leukocyte antigen (HLA) B27 positivity, disease duration, and disease activity was calculated. RESULTS: Mean CT values of patients with AS were significantly higher in the right eye, the left eye, and the thickest choroid eye. The right eye mean CT was 338.3 ± 82.8 µm among patients with AS and 290.5 ± 71.2 µm among healthy subjects (p = 0.005). The left eye mean CT was 339.5 ± 84.7 µm for patients with AS and 298.4 ± 68.9 µm for healthy subjects (P = 0.015). The thickest choroid eye CT was 358.4 ± 82.1 µm among patients with AS and 314.1 ± 65.2 µm among healthy subjects (P = 0.006). We did not find a significant correlation between CT and disease activity, C-reactive protein, human leukocyte antigen B27 positivity, or disease duration. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with active AS but without a history of eye inflammation had a thicker choroid than healthy subjects. This finding suggests that CT is a marker of systemic inflammation in patients with inflammatory disease, regardless of known eye symptoms.

Serological response to influenza vaccine in patients with autoimmune inflammatory diseases: Results of RIER study. / Respuesta serológica en pacientes con enfermedades inflamatorias autoinmunes tras la vacunación de la gripe: resultados del estudio RIER.

BACKGROUND: Influenza vaccine is recommended for patients with autoimmune inflammatory diseases (AIID) on biological therapy. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether serological response to Influenza vaccine obtained in patients on biological therapy is similar to that achieved in patients on synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and that obtained in healthy controls. METHODS: We designed a cohort study in which patients with AIID, 68 on biological therapy and 46 on synthetic DMARDs, as well as 48 healthy controls, were included and vaccinated during the 2015-2016 influenza season. ELISA was used to measure Influenza antigen (Ag) A and B antibodies, before and after vaccination. RESULTS: After vaccination, 88.24% of patients on biologics, 71.74% of those on synthetic DMARDs and 89.58% of healthy controls, presented detectable antibodies against antigen A, while 42.65% of subjects on biologics, 41.30% of those on DMARDs and 54.17% of healthy subjects were seropositive against Ag B. We did not find statistical differences. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, biological therapy is not associated with worse serological response.

Evaluation of the immune response to hepatitis B vaccine in patients on biological therapy: results of the RIER cohort study.

To evaluate the response to hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine in patients on biological therapy. Adults with autoimmune inflammatory diseases on biological therapy such as anti-TNFα, rituximab, tocilizumab, abatacept, or anakinra were included. Hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) was measured by ELISA before and after vaccination. Seroconversion was considered when an anti-HBs titer > 10 mIU/mL was achieved. The effect of treatment on the immunoprotective state was studied. The response was compared with that obtained in patients on synthetic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and healthy controls. A total of 187 patients on biologicals, 48 on synthetic DMARDs, and 49 on healthy controls were analyzed. More than 80% of patients on biologics responded to the vaccine but required more boosters and second vaccine series. Patients who achieved seroconversion were younger than those who did not (47.10 ± 12.99 vs. 53.18 ± 10.54 years, p = 0.012). Being on etanercept or golimumab was associated with seroconversion, while being on rituximab was not. Seroconversion was achieved in 93.75% of patients on synthetic DMARDs and 97.96% of healthy controls. The seroconversion rate in the biologics group was lower than in the synthetic DMARD group (p = 0.043) and tended to be lower than in the healthy group (p = 0.056). In patients on biological therapy, a high rate of HBV vaccine response can be achieved when a complete vaccination schedule is administered. Vaccination while not on biological agents reduces the requirement for boosters and revaccination. Key points: • Patients on biological therapy can achieve high rates of immune response to HBV vaccine when complete vaccination schedules are administered. • However, to achieve such a high seroconversion rate, more boosters and second vaccination series are required. • This supports the proposal already made to provide HBV vaccination to all patients with an autoimmune inflammatory disease after the diagnosis is made and not when the use of a biological treatment is under consideration.

Development of Children's monitoring and control when learning from texts: effects of age and test format.

This study investigated elementary school children's development of monitoring and control when learning from texts. Second (N = 138) and fourth (N = 164) graders were tested in the middle (T1) and end (T2) of the school year. The study focused on the cross-sectional and longitudinal development of monitoring and control, and aimed to investigate the development of metacognition for two test formats. After reading expository texts, children completed a comprehension test consisting of open-ended and true-false questions. They monitored their test performance by making confidence judgments, and controlled performance by deciding whether to maintain or withdraw their given answers. Overall, monitoring and control accuracy was higher for open-ended questions than for true-false questions. For open-ended questions, results indicated higher metacognitive accuracy for fourth graders than second graders. No such age effects were found for monitoring and control for true-false questions. Longitudinally, children of both age groups improved their monitoring and control accuracy from T1 to T2, for open-ended and true-false questions. For both test types, improvement mainly occurred for the monitoring and controlling of incorrect, rather than correct answers. Additionally, the results indicated inter-individual stability of performance, but no stability of monitoring and control accuracy over time. The findings indicate that developmental as well as task-related factors affect children's metacognitive accuracy.

Choroidal Thickness Is a Biomarker Associated With Response to Treatment in Ankylosing Spondylitis.

OBJECTIVE: Choroidal thickness (CT) has been evaluated as a marker of systemic inflammation in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). This study evaluates the CT of AS patients before and after 6 months of biological treatment. METHODS: This longitudinal multicenter study evaluated CT in 44 AS patients. The correlations between CT and C-reactive protein (CRP) with disease activity indices were calculated. The concordance between CT and CRP was determined. We assessed factors associated with response to treatment. Clinically important improvement was defined as a decrease in Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score of 1.1 points or greater. RESULTS: Forty-four eyes in patients aged 18 to 65 years were included. Mean CT values were significantly higher at baseline than after 6 months of treatment (baseline: 355.28 ± 80.46 µm; 6 months: 341.26 ± 81.06 µm; p < 0.001). There was a 95% concordance between CT and CRP at baseline and 6 months. Clinically important improvement was associated with lower baseline CT and age as independent factors (odds ratios, 0.97 [95% confidence interval, 0.91-0.93; p = 0.009] and 0.81 [95% confidence interval, 0.7-0.95; p = 0.005]), with baseline CT of less than 374 µm (sensitivity 78%, specificity 78%, area under the curve 0.70, likelihood ratio 3.6). CONCLUSIONS: Choroidal thickness decreased significantly after 6 months of biological treatment in all treatment groups. Choroidal thickness and CRP had a 95% concordance. A high CT was associated with a risk of biological treatment failure. Choroidal thickness can be considered a useful biomarker of inflammation and a factor associated with response to treatment in AS.

The role of children's metacognitive experiences for cue utilization and monitoring accuracy: A longitudinal study.

Although the literature consistently documents strong improvements in metacognitive skills over the elementary school years, relatively little is known about the mechanisms fueling these developments. One factor that is being discussed in the literature and targeted in the present approach is cue utilization. Cue utilization quantifies the degree to which an individual uses mnemonic experiences during task mastery to inform monitoring processes. In the present study, retrieval fluency as a valid and ubiquitous cue during recognition was assessed by recording children's choice latencies in a recognition test and by relating these to confidence ratings. A sample of second graders and fourth graders was assessed 3 times over one year in terms of their recognition performance, the time needed to select an alternative, and their monitoring accuracy. Results revealed age differences in monitoring accuracy, cue utilization, and cue validity. Moreover, while monitoring accuracy increased over time in both age groups, cue utilization increased only in the younger children. Analyses were completed by an individual differences approach showing that cue utilization is a factor driving recognition improvements over time, underlining the importance of metacognitive experiences for development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).