Pulse wave analysis measurements: important, underestimated and undervalued parameters in cardiovascular health problems.

Background: Central aortic stiffness is established as a reliable measure of cardiovascular disease. While pulse wave velocity (PWV) analysis measures arterial distensibility, risk profile of cardiovascular diseases can be expanded with following pulse wave analysis measurements: central aortic systolic blood pressure (CABPS), central aortic pulse pressure (CAPP), central aortic reflection magnitude (CARM), central aortic augmented pressure (CAAP) and central aortic augmentation index (CAAIx). The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical usefulness and importance of pulse wave analysis measurements in specific cardiovascular conditions and diseases, both in term of diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring. Methods: One thousand sixty-six subjects were included. According to age bracket, four cohorts were investigated-healthy subjects (NL), hypertensive patients (HP), ischemic heart disease (IHD) and valvular heart disease (VHD) patients. Arterial stiffness was analyzed through Sphygmocor XCEL Central Blood Pressure Measurement System and Sphygmocor XCEL PWV Measurement System. Furthermore we observed the pulse wave analysis measurements of 14 patients with diagnose of ADHD who were referred by a child psychiatrist, in order to investigate the initiation of methylphenidate treatment. Results: Statistically significant differences were found between NL and HP cohorts, across almost all age brackets, regarding pulse wave analysis measurements. In the risk stratification of arterial stiffness hypertension and especially central aortic blood pressure systolic (CABPS) seems a determining factor. Pulse wave analysis measurements for IHD and VHD cohort comparisons with NL counterparts, revealed non- statistically significant variations. Elevated CAAP, CAAIx and CARM within the youngest age group (0-10 years) in attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder (ADHD) patients warrant attention. Conclusions: Following such investigations, CABPS appears as a robust predominant factor in problems of arterial stiffness. Pulse wave analysis and PWV are important parameters in the evaluation and monitoring of arterial hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. There is a hypothesis that CAAP could be an important and even decisive parameter in the diagnosis of ADHD. Further investigation needed.

Neuropsychological profile of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and children with Developmental Language Disorder and its relationship with social communication.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to probe neuropsychological mechanisms of social communication in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and children with Developmental Language Disorders (DLD). Due to overlap of symptoms that include social dysfunction, diagnostic boundaries between these two developmental disorders remain unclear. This study hypothesizes that these two groups of children differ in the characteristics and in the underlying mechanisms of their social issues. METHOD: This study examines a wide range of neuropsychological domains in search of a relationship with social communication. A total of 75 children with ASD and 26 children with DLD are included. A cross-battery assessment of neuropsychological functions is conducted, and social communication is evaluated using the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS). RESULTS: The neuropsychological profile for the ASD group differs from the DLD group, with the former demonstrating higher scores on Visual Processing and Comprehension, whereas the DLD group scores higher on Fluid Reasoning, Visual Processing and Processing Speed. Correlation analysis reveals that the association between neuropsychological domains and social communication differs between the groups. DISCUSSION: Children with ASD and DLD clearly have distinctive neuropsychological profiles-their strengths and weaknesses are not equivalent. Such results motivate broad assessment of neuropsychological functions, as this assists in differentiating ASD from DLD for theragnostic purposes.

Evidence based decontamination protocols for the removal of external Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) from contaminated hair.

External contamination can cause false positive results in forensic hair testing for drugs of abuse and is therefore a major concern when hair evidence is used in court. Current literature about decontamination strategies is mainly focused on external cocaine contamination and no consensus on the best decontamination procedure for hair samples containing cannabinoids has been reached so far. In this study, different protocols with solvents, both organic as well as aqueous, were tested on blank and drug user hair for their performance on removing external cannabis contamination originating from either smoke or indirect contact with cannabis plant material. Smoke contamination was mimicked by exposing hair samples to smoke from a cannabis cigarette and indirect contact contamination by handling hair with cannabis contaminated gloves or hands. Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels in the hair samples and wash solvents were determined using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis. Aqueous surfactant solutions removed more THC contamination compared to water, but much less than organic solvents. Methanol, dichloromethane and chloroform were most efficient in removing THC contamination. Due to its lower environmental impact, methanol was chosen as the preferred decontamination solvent. After testing of different sequential wash steps on externally contaminated blank hair, three protocols performed equally well, removing all normal level and more than 99% of unrealistically high levels of external cannabis contamination. Thorough testing on cannabis users' hair, both as such and after deliberate contamination, showed that using these protocols all contamination could be washed from the hair while no incorporated THC was removed from truly positive samples. The present study provides detailed scientific evidence in support of the recommendations of the Society of Hair Testing: a protocol using a single methanol wash followed by a single aqueous SDS solution wash, followed by a Milli-Q water rinsing step, is suggested as the preferred decontamination protocol to remove external cannabis contamination from hair while preserving the incorporated compounds.

Ultratrace LC-MS/MS analysis of segmented calf hair for retrospective assessment of time of clenbuterol administration in Agriforensics.

In agriforensics, time of administration is often debated when illegal drug residues, such as clenbuterol, are found in frequently traded cattle. In this proof-of-concept work, the feasibility of obtaining retrospective timeline information from segmented calf tail hair analyses has been studied. First, an ultraperformance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) hair analysis method was adapted to accommodate smaller sample sizes and in-house validated. Then, longitudinal 1 cm segments of calf tail hair were analyzed to obtain clenbuterol concentration profiles. The profiles found were in good agreement with calculated, theoretical positions of the clenbuterol residues along the hair. Following assessment of the average growth rate of calf tail hair, time of clenbuterol administration could be retrospectively determined from segmented hair analysis data. The data from the initial animal treatment study (n = 2) suggest that time of treatment can be retrospectively estimated with an error of 3-17 days.