Empatía, agresividad y perdón en contextos de vulnerabilidad, hostilidad y seguridad en niños y adolescentes

Introducción: El objetivo de este artículo fue identificar las variables que mejor predicen las medidas de agresión, empatía y perdón, como también las principales diferencias en contextos vulnerables, hostiles y seguros, en una muestra de niños, niñas y adolescentes pertenecientes a una población vulnerable. Método: se realizó un estudio cuantitativo transversal con una muestra no probabilística incidental de 85 participantes, se emplearon medidas psicométricas para la empatía, agresión y perdón. Los participantes fueron convocados en una fundación de atención a víctimas para realizar una entrevista y aplicar el test. Resultados: Se encontraron efectos estadísticamente significativos entre las variables del modelo verificado, donde la empatía predice la agresión en el contexto hostil, pero no en el vulnerable y seguro. A su vez, la empatía predice el perdón en los contextos vulnerables y seguros, y la agresión predice el perdón en el modelo hostil, pero no es significativo su efecto en el contexto vulnerable y seguro. Además, la empatía tiene un papel clave en la comprensión del perdón, dado que se asocia a conductas agresivas en los contextos de hostilidad, mientras que un modelo de perdón debería ser diferencial en estos contextos. Conclusiones: Los hallazgos de este estudio brindan evidencia empírica que sustenta la importancia de la implementación de estrategias para mejorar las habilidades relacionadas con la empatía en niños y adolescentes, desde la perspectiva de la educación para la paz y el perdón. Además, se demostró que los aspectos como el clima familiar, las vulnerabilidades de los contextos de riesgo y la misma cultura, pueden determinar el desarrollo de habilidades socioemocionales que favorecen el perdón, empatía y otras capacidades interpersonales.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to identify the variables that best predict measures of aggression, empathy, and forgiveness, as well as the main differences in vulnerable, hostile and safe contexts, in a sample of children and adolescents belonging to a vulnerable population. Method: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted with a non-probabilistic incidental sample of 85 participants. Psychometric measures of empathy, aggression, and forgiveness were used. The participants were invited to a victim assistance foundation for an interview and test application. Results: Statistically significant effects were found among the variables in the verified model, where empathy predicts aggression in the hostile context, but not in the vulnerable and safe context. In turn, empathy predicts forgiveness in the vulnerable and safe contexts, and aggression predicts forgiveness in the hostile model, but its effect in the vulnerable and safe context is not significant. Furthermore, empathy plays a key role in understanding forgiveness, given that it is associated with aggressive behaviors in the hostile contexts, whereas a forgiveness model should be differential in these contexts. Conclusions: The findings of this study provide empirical evidence that supports the importance of implementing strategies to improve empathy-related skills in children and adolescents, from the perspective of peace education and forgiveness. In addition, it was shown that aspects such as family climate, vulnerabilities of risk contexts and culture itself, can determine the development of socioemotional skills that favor forgiveness, empathy, and other interpersonal skills.

Functional Penile Length After Penile Plication: "Empha-sizing" What Matters.

OBJECTIVE: To reassess penile length changes after penile plication (PP), we defined a novel measurement of functional penile length (FPL) and compared preoperative and postoperative measurements. PP reduces penile curvature in Peyronie's Disease (PD) patients, but is traditionally thought to reduce overall penile length. However, the literature on PD lacks a standardization for penile length measurement techniques, leading to high inter-study variability. METHODS: A prospectively maintained database of PD patients who underwent PP from 2018-2021 was queried. FPL was obtained by measuring the erect penis from the base of the pubis to the tip of the glans, as a straight line disregarding any curvature. Intraoperative assessment of FPL was performed before incision and immediately after surgical correction. RESULTS: Of 28 patients included, the average age was 59, average SHIM was 17, and average PDQ was 9. Curvature was unidirectional in 16 patients (57%) and bidirectional in 12 (43%). Dorsal curvature was most common (71%). The average curve severity was 37 ± 8.6 degrees. Mean FPL pre-operatively was 11.1 ± 1.4 cm and 12.5 ± 1.3 cm post-operatively. This represented an average 12.8% ± 6.6% increase in FPL following plication. All 28 patients reported subjective improvement in their curvature. CONCLUSION: Functional penile length is a useful primary surgical outcome when describing post-operative expectations for penile plication. We report an increase in FPL achieved for PD treated with PP despite conventionally being considered a shortening procedure. This can be an invaluable tool for preoperative counseling and setting expectations for penile length.

Optimizing Detection of Lymphatic Invasion in Primary Cutaneous Melanoma With the Use of D2-40 and a Paired Melanocytic Marker.

ABSTRACT: Dual immunohistochemical (IHC) staining with D2-40 and S100 improves detection of lymphatic invasion (LI) in primary cutaneous melanoma. However, limited data exist evaluating this technique using other melanocytic markers, and thus, the optimal marker for detection of LI is unestablished. To address this knowledge gap, a case-control study was performed comparing melanoma specimens from 22 patients with known lymphatic spread (LS) with a control group of 11 patients without LS. Specimens underwent dual IHC staining with D2-40 and MART-1, SOX-10, and S100 to evaluate for LI. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to estimate each stain's accuracy for detection of LI. The LS group was more likely to be ≥65 years (P = 0.04), have a tumor thickness of ≥1 mm (P < 0.01), and have ulcerated tumors (P = 0.02). Detection of LI with D2-40/MART-1 significantly correlated with LS (P = 0.03), and the D2-40/MART-1 stain was most accurate for LI based on receiver operating characteristic curve analysis (area under the curve [AUC] 0.705) in comparison with D2-40/SOX-10 (AUC 0.575) and D2-40/S100 (AUC 0.633). These findings suggest that MART-1 may be the optimal melanocytic marker to combine with D2-40 for detection of LI in melanoma. Further studies are needed to determine the utility of routinely performing these stains for histopathologic analysis of melanoma.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia and the second newborn screen.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a second newborn screen for congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) in the state of Colorado and report characteristics associated with cases identified on the first versus second screen. STUDY DESIGN: Colorado implemented newborn screening for CAH with 17-hydroxyprogesterone beginning August 2000. The first screening is performed within 72 hours of life and the second between 8 and 14 days of life. We compared infants diagnosed on the basis of the first versus second newborn screen. RESULTS: The first screen identified 29 cases of which 28 represented classical CAH. The incidence of classical CAH on the first screen was 1:24,766. The second screen identified 17 additional cases, of which 11 represented classical CAH. Combined, the incidence of classical CAH was 1:17,789. The sensitivity of the first screen was 71.79%. The false negative rate of the first screen was 28.2%. In the absence of a second screen, 1:47,824 infants would have been missed. Infants diagnosed on the first screen had higher 17-hydroxyprogesterone values compared with those diagnosed on the second screen (P = .0008). CONCLUSIONS: The use of a single newborn screen for CAH missed nearly 30% of classical CAH cases in Colorado. Addition of a second screen, therefore, can improve the operating characteristics of the newborn screening program.