Multiparental mapping of plant height and flowering time QTL in partially isogenic sorghum families.

Sorghum varieties suitable for grain production at temperate latitudes show dwarfism and photoperiod insensitivity, both of which are controlled by a small number of loci with large effects. We studied the genetic control of plant height and flowering time in five sorghum families (A-E), each derived from a cross between a tropical line and a partially isogenic line carrying introgressions derived from a common, temperate-adapted donor. A total of 724 F2:3 lines were phenotyped in temperate and tropical environments for plant height and flowering time and scored at 9139 SNPs using genotyping-by-sequencing. Biparental mapping was compared with multiparental mapping in different subsets of families (AB, ABC, ABCD, and ABCDE) using both a GWAS approach, which fit each QTL as a single effect across all families, and using a joint linkage approach, which fit QTL effects as nested within families. GWAS using all families (ABCDE) performed best at the cloned Dw3 locus, whereas joint linkage using all families performed best at the cloned Ma1 locus. Both multiparental approaches yielded apparently synthetic associations due to genetic heterogeneity and were highly dependent on the subset of families used. Comparison of all mapping approaches suggests that a GA2-oxidase underlies Dw1, and that a mir172a gene underlies a Dw1-linked flowering time QTL.

Psychological principles of burn wound pain in children. II: Treatment applications.

The pain involved in acute burn care can be excruciating and intractable. Even the best pharmacologic pain control efforts often fail to adequately control pain, especially procedure-related pain, in pediatric patients with burn injuries. Nonpharmacologic interventions have been found to be effective in reducing pain in both children and adults and can be extremely important adjuvants to standard pharmacologic analgesia in the burn care setting. In the first article in this series, we outlined psychological factors that influence the emotions, cognitions, and behaviors of children during wound care. Building on this theoretical framework, we now present a detailed discussion of the implementation of nonpharmacologic intervention strategies in the burn care setting. Because accurate measurement of discomfort is imperative for the development of interventions and for the evaluation of their efficacy, we begin with a brief review of pain measurement techniques. We follow this with suggestions for tailoring interventions to meet specific patient needs and conclude with a detailed and practical discussion of specific intervention techniques and the implementation of those techniques.

Psychological principles of burn wound pain in children. I: theoretical framework.

Burn injuries and the care of burn injuries are punishing experiences for hospitalized children. Pain, novelty, and altered reinforcement schedules elicit instinctive escape and avoidance behaviors that complicate wound care. An understanding of the psychological principles that underlie these complex, complicating behaviors paves the way for effective cognitive and behavioral interventions. In this first article of a two-part series, we use the principles of classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and control coping to describe the developmentally normal emergence of avoidance behaviors that are incompatible with burn wound care. Then, using brief case examples, we outline how classical conditioning transforms neutral stimuli into anxiety-producing, fearful stimuli, how operant behaviors are intentionally or unintentionally reinforced, and how the umbrella of reduced control in the novel hospital environment makes coping difficult for children. We conclude by discussing obstacles to effective application of cognitive and behavioral strategies for the enhancement of control and of compliance with wound care.

"The frog ate the bug and made his mouth sad": narrative competence in children with autism.

This study compares the narrative abilities of 13 children with autism, 13 children with developmental delays, and 13 typically developing children matched on language ability. Although groups did not differ in their use of causal language or internal state terms, children with autism and children with developmental delays were less likely than typical children to identify the causes of characters' internal states. Rather, they tended simply to label emotions and explain actions. Children with autism and children with developmental delays also relied on a more restricted range of evaluative devices, which both convey point of view and maintain listener involvement. In addition, the narrative abilities of children with autism were linked to performance on measures of theory of mind and an index of conversational competence, whereas this was not the case among children with developmental delays. Findings are discussed in relation to the social, cognitive, and emotional underpinnings and consequences of narrative activity.

The phenomenology of homesickness in boys.

Homesickness is the distress or impairment caused by an actual or anticipated separation from home. It is characterized by acute longing and preoccupying thoughts of home and attachment objects. This study extended previous research on the phenomenology of childhood homesickness by assessing a sample of 316 boys, ages 8-16, who were spending 2 weeks at a single-sex residential summer camp. Some 18% of the children reported moderate or high levels of homesickness; 7% reported concomitant severe depressive and anxious symptoms. Homesickness intensity was negatively correlated with separation experience and age. It was most commonly associated with depressive symptoms and internalizing behavior problems. For severely homesick boys, intensity increased over time, decreasing just prior to their return home. Preseparation assessment suggested that severely homesick boys had elevated levels of homesickness and negative emotions months before arriving at camp. One-year follow-up data suggested that the intensity of severe homesickness decreased with age and experience. However, severely homesick boys were less likely than other boys to return to camp. The results demonstrate how brief separations can affect children's well-being and attitudes about separations. Severe homesickness is distinct from separation anxiety disorder, but has elements of this and other psychopathologies. Theories of negative emotion, attachment, and coping complement emerging theories of homesickness.

Homesickness in preadolescent and adolescent girls: risk factors, behavioral correlates, and sequelae.

Examined homesickness in 117 girls ages 8 to 16 during a 2-week stay at summer camp. (Homesickness is the distress or impairment caused by an actual or anticipated separation from home. It is characterized by acute longing and preoccupying thoughts of home and attachment objects.) Elevated preseparation levels of homesickness, high expectations of homesickness, negative separation attitudes, low decision control, and little previous separation experience predicted in-camp levels of homesickness. During the separation, homesickness was associated with insecure interpersonal attitudes, negative initial impressions of the novel environment, high perceived distance from home, and low perceived control. Female surrogate caregivers rated homesick girls as having lower social status and more somatic complaints, social problems, and externalizing behavior than less homesick girls. Although the prevalence, intensity, and longitudinal course of homesickness in girls did not differ from analogous samples of boys, girls' profile of risk factors, correlates, and sequelae is unique in its mixed behavioral presentation and small correlations with age and experience.

Preliminary models of risk and protective factors for childhood homesickness: review and empirical synthesis.

Empirical research and conventional wisdom have suggested numerous risk and protective factors for the development of homesickness. Yet no study has integrated predictors and sequelae of homesickness into a testable statistical model. As a first step in developing a pathogenic model of homesickness in children, this study measured, factor analyzed, and modeled 14 predictors and 8 sequelae of homesickness. Using a sample of 293 boys, ages 8-16, spending 2 weeks at an overnight summer camp, this study tested 2 alternate models, focusing on the roles of boys' interpersonal attitudes, perceived control, and separation expectations in the subsequent development of homesickness. Results indicated that interpersonal attitudes and perceived control may predict boys' preseparation beliefs about whether they will become homesick. This "homesick disposition" combines with little prior separation experience to account for 69% of the variance in self-reported homesickness. Homesickness was not a powerful predictor of negative emotion, whereas interpersonal attitudes and perceived control predicted 70% of the variance in negative emotion. Results are discussed in the context of contemporary theories of homesickness.

Blood alcohol level and early cognitive status after traumatic brain injury.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: This archival study sought to clarify the relationship between admission blood alcohol level (BAL) after traumatic brain injury (TBI) and subsequent neuropsychological functioning. It was hypothesized that BAL would be positively correlated with impairment on basic neuropsychological tests and that this relation would weaken as time since TBI increased. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients were tested within 60 days of their TBI. Correlational analyses were used to test the relation between neuropsychological performance and admission BAL. RESULTS: As expected, BAL was unrelated to demographic variables or lag time between TBI and time of testing, Bivariate correlations showed that higher BAL predicted poorer performance on a broad range of neuropsychological tests. Patients tested less than 30 days after their TBI showed the strongest effects. CONCLUSIONS: Neuropsychological impairments detected 1-2 months after TBI may be affected by BAL at the time of hospital admission. The influence of BAL seems greatest during the first month post-injury, but may persist beyond 30 days in some areas of cognitive function. Blood alcohol at the time of injury may have a direct effect on cognitive functioning or may be a proxy for the effects of chronic alcohol use or abuse. Clinical implications are discussed.

Anxiety and closed head injury in young people.

The direct, subtle, complex, and even illusory relations between anxiety and closed head injury (CHI) in young people are frequently depreciated by professionals in paediatric rehabilitation settings. Neglecting these relations can slow recovery and complicate rehabilitation. As a brief clinical primer, this paper reviews evidence for 10 possible pathways by which closed head injury (CHI) can directly or indirectly cause, or appear to cause, anxiety in young people: (1) damage to brain structures that regulate emotion; (2) neurological damage that exacerbates pre-injury anxiety; (3) the trauma of sustaining and/or recovering from the CHI; (4) awareness of impaired cognitive functioning; (5) sustaining a CHI does not alter the progression of pre-injury anxiety; (6) emergence of anxiety is coincident but unrelated to the CHI; (7) parental stress caused by caring for an injured child transfers to the child; (8) parental stress caused by a child's disinhibited behaviour transfers to the child; (9) increased dependence/loss of functioning; and (10) impaired social cognition. Working to understand these pathways is critical to improving neuropsychological testing, rehabilitation, assessment of psychopathology, and provision of psychological services to paediatric rehabilitation patients and their families.

Brief treatment of mild-to-moderate child depression using primary and secondary control enhancement training.

Elementary school children with mild-to-moderate depressive symptoms were randomly assigned to a control group or an 8-session Primary and Secondary Control Enhancement Training program. The program focused on (a) primary control (changing objective conditions to fit one's wishes; e.g., through activity selection and goal attainment) and (b) secondary control (changing oneself to buffer the impact of objective conditions; e.g., altering depressogenic thinking, practicing mood-enhancing cognitions). At immediate posttreatment and 9-month follow-up, the treatment group showed greater reductions than the control group in depressive symptomatology on the Children's Depression Inventory and the Revised Children's Depression Rating Scale, and treated children, more than controls, shifted from above to within the normal range on both measures. Future research is needed to test treatment effects with severely depressed youths.

"You can try or you can just give up": the impact of perceived control and coping style on childhood homesickness.

Research on children's coping with homesickness during relatively uncontrollable separations has suggested that secondary control coping (i.e., adjusting oneself to fit objective conditions) is often preferred over primary control coping (i.e., modifying objective conditions to fit oneself). Related research suggests that negative affect is associated with (a) relinquishing control or using primary control to cope with uncontrollable stressors and (b) perceiving low control over stressors. The convergence of these factors was examined for the stressor of homesickness. Among 1,032 boys and girls spending 2 weeks at residential summer camps, the most frequent and effective way of coping with homesickness was to exert secondary control by engaging in a distracting physical activity. Contrary to speculation, the use of secondary control coping rose in adolescence. Congruent with empirical predictions, the most homesick children perceived low control over homesickness and separation, and coped by relinquishing control.

Commentary: quality and managed care: where is the fit?

Quality in health care is broad, complex, and not easily measured. This essay explores the many dimensions of quality in health care and shows that many understandings of it are narrowly configured to the agendas of the respective participants--providers, patients, and institutions--in today's health care arena. Also, there are many aspects of quality that defy measurement in the epidemiological sense. These are seen in the physician-patient relationship and in special clinical situations, such as the process of dying. Using the idea of quality to buttress ethical and policy decisions, particularly by managed care organizations, is often problematic, given this complexity. It is thus imperative that those so using quality be accountable that their understanding of it be arrived at by responsible means, that it addresses something meaningful, and that it not eclipse the many other dimensions of quality.

The experience and expression of homesickness in preadolescent and adolescent boys.

This study is the first prospective longitudinal and clinical investigation of homesickness in children. The moods of 329 boys ages 8-16 were assessed on a daily basis during either a 2- or 4-week period of separation from primary caregivers. Results supported 4 hypotheses: (1) homesickness was prevalent and varied in intensity. 83% of the boys reported some homesickness on at least 1 day during their stay, and 5.8% experienced severe depression and anxiety; (2) homesickness was experienced as a combination of depression and anxiety, particularly the former; (3) younger boys were at greater risk for homesickness than older boys; and (4) homesickness presented most often as internalizing behavior and was sometimes detectable to observers who knew the boys. 63% of the boys who self-reported moderate or high levels of homesickness were judged by observers to be homesick. Inconsistent with popular notions, the most homesick boys became progressively more homesick over the course of their separation, experiencing a significant drop in homesickness just before reuniting with parents. The phenomenology of homesickness is discussed, as are issues of simultaneous depression and anxiety in children.

Pauses in the narratives produced by autistic, mentally retarded, and normal children as an index of cognitive demand.

This study investigated the production of different types of speech pauses and repairs in the story narratives produced by autistic, mentally retarded, and normal children, matched on verbal mental age. Ten children in each group were asked to tell the story depicted in a wordless picture book. The narratives were analyzed for frequency of grammatical (between phrase) and nongrammatical (within phrase) pauses, and for several measures of story length and complexity. The main results were that children with autism produced significantly fewer nongrammatical pauses, and that their nongrammatical pausing was correlated with measures of story length and complexity. These findings suggest that the stories told by the autistic children reflect reduced cognitive and communicative demand. The implications of this study for future research on the use of a variety of prosodic characteristics as measures of social cognitive deficit in autism are discussed.

Development of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's proposed standard to protect workers from contracting bloodborne diseases in the workplace.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is in the process of developing a health standard to protect workers by reducing occupational exposure to hepatitis B virus, human immunodeficiency virus, and other bloodborne pathogens. This article reviews the history of the standard, the steps involved in OSHA standard development, and--most specifically--how the dental professional can participate in this process.

Seismic detection of the summit magma complex of kilauea volcano, hawaii.

Application of simultaneous inversion of seismic P-wave arrival time data to the investigation of the crust beneath Kilauea Volcano yields a detailed picture of the volcano's heterogeneous structure. Zones of anomalously high seismic velocity are found associated with the volcano's rift zones. A low-velocity zone at shallow depth directly beneath the caldera coincides with an aseismic region interpreted as being the locus of Kilauea's summit magma complex.

Post-traumatic reflex sympathetic dystrophy.

This report presents a brief review and an illustrative case summary of post-traumatic reflex sympathetic dystrophy. The manuscript is concerned with reviewing updated methods of properly diagnosing and treating such a complex condition. The case presented involves a young, healthy male patient, who after undergoing foot surgery, developed signs and symptoms of post-traumatic reflex sympathetic dystrophy.