Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Commonalities and Differences on Language.

Language and communication deficits characterize both autism spectrum disorder and developmental language disorder, and the possibility of there being a common profile of these is a matter of tireless debate in the research community. This experimental study addresses the relation of these two developmental conditions in the critical topic of language. Α total of 103 children (79 males, 24 females) participated in the present study. Specifically, the study's sample consisted of 40 children with autism, 28 children with developmental language disorder, and 35 typically developing children between 6 and 12 years old. All children completed language and cognitive measures. The results showed that there is a subgroup inside the autism group of children who demonstrate language difficulties similar to children with developmental language disorder. Specifically, two different subgroups were derived from the autism group; those with language impairment and those without. Both autism and language-impaired groups scored lower than typically developing children on all language measures indicating a common pathology in language ability. The results of this study shed light on the relation between the two disorders, supporting the assumption of a subgroup with language impairment inside the autism spectrum disorder population. The common picture presented by the two developmental conditions highlights the need for further research in the field.

Cognitive Restructuring vs. Defusion: Impact on craving, healthy and unhealthy food intake.

Coping with food cravings is crucial for weight management. Individuals tend to use avoidance strategies to resist food cravings and prevent overeating, but such strategies may not result in the benefits sought. This study compared the effects of two cognitive techniques (Restructuring vs. Defusion) for dealing with food cravings in terms of their impact on healthy vs. unhealthy eating behavior (i.e., consumption of chocolate and/or carrots following the intervention). Sixty-five participants (Mage = 19.65 years) received either a 30-minute face-to-face instruction on cognitive restructuring (CR) or cognitive defusion (CD) along with 15 min of practice, or 45 min of obesity education and discussion (control). To examine craving and eating choices following the intervention, participants received bags of chocolate and carrots and were asked to carry these with them at all times over the next week, exchanging the bags every 2 days. Participants in the CD group ate fewer chocolates (M = 11.74) compared to CR (M = 17.06) and Control groups (M = 29.18) during the experimental week. The groups did not differ in number of carrot pieces eaten, though the CD group ate more carrots than chocolates. CD resulted in fewer self-reported cravings compared to CR and CO groups. At a final taste test, both CD and CR groups ate significantly fewer chocolates compared to the CO group. CD appears to be an effective technique in managing food craving and to present some advantages over CR.

Use of rituximab in combination with conventional chemotherapy for the treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the head and neck.

BACKGROUND: Rituximab, an anti-CD20 chimeric monoclonal antibody that specifically depletes mature B cells, is an effective single agent in the treatment of relapsed or refractory indolent lymphomas, and has been shown to improve the survival rate of elderly patients with diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma when used in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone (CHOP). PATIENTS AND METHODS: The combined effect of rituximab and CHOP has been comparatively studied against CHOP alone in 18 elderly patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the head or neck treated in the 1st Department of Otolaryngology at Hippokration Hospital between January 1998 and January 2004. RESULTS: Response rates were 91% and 100% in patients treated with rituximab plus CHOP and with CHOP alone, respectively. Overall survival and disease-free survival rates were 91% in the rituximab plus CHOP group, compared with 83% and 60%, respectively, in the CHOP alone group (p=0.75 and p=0.24 for the differences between the groups, respectively). The rituximab plus CHOP therapy was generally well tolerated, with few adverse events reported. CONCLUSION: The results of this small case series, although not statistically significant, suggest that rituximab in combination with CHOP may represent an effective treatment option for elderly patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the head and neck.