Premotor cortical beta synchronization and the network neuromodulation of externally paced finger tapping in Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by the disruption of repetitive, concurrent and sequential motor actions due to compromised timing-functions principally located in cortex-basal ganglia (BG) circuits. Increasing evidence suggests that motor impairments in untreated PD patients are linked to an excessive synchronization of cortex-BG activity at beta frequencies (13-30 Hz). Levodopa and subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) suppress pathological beta-band reverberation and improve the motor symptoms in PD. Yet a dynamic tuning of beta oscillations in BG-cortical loops is fundamental for movement-timing and synchronization, and the impact of PD therapies on sensorimotor functions relying on neural transmission in the beta frequency-range remains controversial. Here, we set out to determine the differential effects of network neuromodulation through dopaminergic medication (ON and OFF levodopa) and STN-DBS (ON-DBS, OFF-DBS) on tapping synchronization and accompanying cortical activities. To this end, we conducted a rhythmic finger-tapping study with high-density EEG-recordings in 12 PD patients before and after surgery for STN-DBS and in 12 healthy controls. STN-DBS significantly ameliorated tapping parameters as frequency, amplitude and synchrony to the given auditory rhythms. Aberrant neurophysiologic signatures of sensorimotor feedback in the beta-range were found in PD patients: their neural modulation was weaker, temporally sluggish and less distributed over the right cortex in comparison to controls. Levodopa and STN-DBS boosted the dynamics of beta-band modulation over the right hemisphere, hinting to an improved timing of movements relying on tactile feedback. The strength of the post-event beta rebound over the supplementary motor area correlated significantly with the tapping asynchrony in patients, thus indexing the sensorimotor match between the external auditory pacing signals and the performed taps. PD patients showed an excessive interhemispheric coherence in the beta-frequency range during the finger-tapping task, while under DBS-ON the cortico-cortical connectivity in the beta-band was normalized. Ultimately, therapeutic DBS significantly ameliorated the auditory-motor coupling of PD patients, enhancing the electrophysiological processing of sensorimotor feedback-information related to beta-band activity, and thus allowing a more precise cued-tapping performance.

Clarifying the association of social anxiety with cognitive variables: The role of self-esteem, self-perception, fears of positive and negative evaluation, and post-event processing.

Theoretical models of social anxiety disorder (SAD) have identified several cognitive factors (fear of negative evaluation [FNE], self-perception, self-esteem, and post-event processing [PEP]) that play a role in the maintenance of the disorder. The current study aimed at testing both the cognitive factors addressed in these different models and the fear of positive evaluation (FPE) in the same construct. A non-clinical emerging adulthood sample (N = 325) were subjected to structural equation modeling (SEM). The results of the SEM showed that FPE, FNE, and self-concepts (self-esteem and self-perception) were significantly associated with social anxiety. Effect sizes indicated that the variables that most affected social anxiety were FPE, self-perception, FNE, and self-esteem, respectively. However, although it was significant in the conceptual model, the direct effect of social anxiety on PEP was not significant in the full model. On the other hand, the present findings add further support to the roles of negative self-perception and low self-esteem in social anxiety. Moreover, FPE may not be just delayed/postponed FNE. Considering the effect size of FPE on social anxiety, targeting it when appropriate in treatment may reduce the severity of social anxiety.

He did it! Or did I just see him on Twitter? Social media influence on eyewitness identification.

Eyewitness identification is fallible, and suggestive post-event information is known to facilitate error; however, whether social media valence affects identification decisions is unknown. After viewing crime videos of various race perpetrators, participants saw post-event Twitter photos of the perpetrator or a foil that varied in valence. Participants attempted identification from a lineup including both individuals and rated the confidence and source (i.e., video, Twitter) of their selection. Results showed that Twitter photos of the perpetrator increased the likelihood of accurate identification and related confidence, whereas seeing the foil reduced the likelihood of a correct identification and related confidence. Remembering the perpetrator from the crime influenced correct identification, while remembering other incorrect sources (e.g., Twitter) only lead to misidentification. Twitter valence and perpetrator race did not impact outcomes. Results suggest that difficulty in identifying a perpetrator is underpinned by source monitoring confusion which is exacerbated by viewing social media that includes innocent suspects.

Comprehensive analysis of everolimus-induced adverse events using the Japanese real-world database.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVES: As for adverse events (AEs) caused by everolimus, findings from clinical trials and post-marketing surveillance have reported interstitial lung disease, hyperglycaemia, cardiovascular disease, etc. However, these reports are limited to incidence, and detailed studies on the risk of occurrence, time to onset and post-event clinical outcomes are only related to hyperglycaemia. The purpose of this study was to perform a comprehensive analysis of adverse events during everolimus therapy in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) using the Japanese Adverse Event Report database. METHODS: Data reported between April 2004 and June 2021 in the Japanese Adverse Drug Event Report database were extracted for use. The reported odds ratio, time to onset and post-event course were analysed for the top 30 adverse events reported. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Among the top 30 adverse events, 23 adverse event signals were detected and classified into seven categories: lung-related AEs, haematological-related AEs, cancer progression, blood glucose-related AEs, hepatic-related AEs, renal-related AEs and others. The lung-related adverse events category was the most common, and the proportion of fatal outcomes after the occurrence of two adverse events related to infectious pneumonia was more than 10%. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: A comprehensive survey of adverse events associated with everolimus administration using the pharmacovigilance database revealed that pulmonary and haematological AEs are frequently reported. The results suggest that attention should be paid to the occurrence of lung disorders because they may lead to fatal outcomes.

Social phobic beliefs mediate the relationship between post-event processing regarding the worst socially aversive experience and fear of negative evaluation.

The experience of socially aversive events is proposed to be a critical etiological factor in the development of social anxiety symptoms even though the experience itself is also common among healthy individuals. Rather than the event itself, accompanying factors such as maladaptive processing might be associated with higher levels of social anxiety symptoms. One-hundred-seventy-four individuals participated in this online-survey comprising questionnaires regarding social anxiety symptoms and retrospective reports concerning maladaptive processing of the worst socially aversive event. Structural equation modelling was used to analyze the hypothesized mediation of maladaptive processing and fear of negative evaluation by intrusive re-experiencing and social phobic beliefs. The positive association between retrospectively evaluated maladaptive processing after the worst socially aversive event and fear of negative evaluation was mediated by social phobic beliefs but not by intrusive re-experiencing. These results point towards the relevance of further investigating processing strategies after socially aversive events as a potential influencing factor for SAD development. Trial registration. The trial was registered at the German Clinical Trial Register (DRKS00021502) on June 3rd, 2020. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-022-02805-9.

Retrieval-induced forgetting in a social task.

Clinical researchers suggest that post-event thinking functions to negatively bias event recall for socially anxious participants. We used a repeated retrieval paradigm to examine the effects of post-event retrieval on memory for social information. Undergraduate participants (n = 214) engaged in an impromptu public speaking task and received a standardised mixture of positive and negative feedback on their speech. Participants in the experimental condition were instructed to repeatedly retrieve the negative feedback items whereas participants in the control condition completed a control task. Both groups were asked to recall the feedback after five minutes and after one week. Results indicated that the experimental group displayed the hypothesised retrieval-induced forgetting effect. In addition, repeated retrieval predicted valence change in that participants recalled the non-retrieved positive feedback items less positively over time. The retrieval-practice effects were distinct from self-reported post-event processing. Contrary to clinical theories, social anxiety did not moderate retrieval-induced forgetting or recall bias. Instead, all participants displayed retrieval-related negatively biased recall.

Decentring as a moderator of the associations of anticipatory and post-event processing with social anxiety.

Recent studies have shown that decentring protects against social anxiety, but no research to date has explored the way it interacts with cognitive risk factors for social anxiety. The present study aimed to examine decentring as a moderator of the association of anticipatory and post-event processing with social anxiety. An unselected student sample (N = 444) completed questionnaires assessing anticipatory/post-event processing, decentring, and social anxiety. The data were analysed with structural equation modelling and the latent moderated structural equations (LMS) method. Results supported the moderating role of decentring in the relationship of anticipatory processing and social anxiety, but did not find evidence of moderation for the association of post-event processing and social anxiety, after accounting for the role of anticipatory processing. Limitations and clinical implications for the protective effects of decentring on social anxiety are discussed.

Stopping crime? The effect of crime re-enactments on eyewitness memory.

Crime re-enactments broadcast on television encourage witnesses to provide information regarding unsolved crimes. However, given that eyewitness memory can be altered through exposure to post-event information, it is possible that crime re-enactments may influence the memory of eyewitnesses. The current studies examined the effects of crime re-enactments on eyewitness memory. In two experiments (Experiment 1 with a distractor task, Experiment 2 without a distractor task), participants were shown one of three versions of a crime video that differed in their ambiguity. One week later half of the participants viewed a crime re-enactment. All participants then completed a guided free- and cued-recall task regarding the original event. Across both studies, exposure to the re-enactment did not improve eyewitness memory; instead, participants who viewed the re-enactment were more likely to accept the misinformation in the re-enactment. The findings shed light on potential issues with using crime re-enactments to elicit eyewitness accounts.

Automated Indoor Image Localization to Support a Post-Event Building Assessment.

Image data remains an important tool for post-event building assessment and documentation. After each natural hazard event, significant efforts are made by teams of engineers to visit the affected regions and collect useful image data. In general, a global positioning system (GPS) can provide useful spatial information for localizing image data. However, it is challenging to collect such information when images are captured in places where GPS signals are weak or interrupted, such as the indoor spaces of buildings. The inability to document the images' locations hinders the analysis, organization, and documentation of these images as they lack sufficient spatial context. In this work, we develop a methodology to localize images and link them to locations on a structural drawing. A stream of images can readily be gathered along the path taken through a building using a compact camera. These images may be used to compute a relative location of each image in a 3D point cloud model, which is reconstructed using a visual odometry algorithm. The images may also be used to create local 3D textured models for building-components-of-interest using a structure-from-motion algorithm. A parallel set of images that are collected for building assessment is linked to the image stream using time information. By projecting the point cloud model to the structural drawing, the images can be overlaid onto the drawing, providing clear context information necessary to make use of those images. Additionally, components- or damage-of-interest captured in these images can be reconstructed in 3D, enabling detailed assessments having sufficient geospatial context. The technique is demonstrated by emulating post-event building assessment and data collection in a real building.

It hurts but I still need it: a qualitative investigation of post-event processing in social anxiety disorder.

BACKGROUND: It has been proposed that both positive and negative metacognitive beliefs sustain engagement in post-event processing (PEP). However, it is unknown: (1) whether individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) actually derive the benefits from PEP that they expect; (2) if this is not the case, how their positive beliefs are maintained; and (3) if they are aware of the counterproductive effects of PEP, why they still perform PEP. AIMS: To explore the phenomenology of the processes involved in PEP from the perspective of SADs, in order to address the research questions above. METHOD: Twenty-one participants suffering from SAD received individual semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Analysis revealed three main themes: (1) 'Only, safe and useful way to improve myself': SADs feel the need to improve their social performance, and they believe that PEP is the only, safe, and private way to do so, which is an underlying motive for them to do PEP; (2) 'It hurts more than helps me': however, through PEP, they do not seem to obtain the benefit that they expect, or only find a variety of counterproductive outcomes; (3) 'Better safe than sorry': they sometimes find makeshift solutions to improve their social performance during PEP, which may maintain their PEP as a form of intermittent reinforcement. They weigh up such costs and benefits, and choose to perform PEP while feeling conflicted about PEP. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that: (1) SADs rarely obtain the benefits from PEP that they expect; (2) their positive metacognitive beliefs are maintained by solutions they sometimes find during PEP; and (3) SADs choose to perform PEP while feeling conflicted; while PEP ironically maintains and exacerbates negative self-beliefs/images, it is the only safe and useful way to improve their social performance. These findings support and expand on the theories of PEP.

Perpetuating factors of social anxiety: a serial mediation model.

BACKGROUND: There is evidence that individuals with high levels of social anxiety utilize more safety behaviours and experience more post-event processing than those with lower levels of social anxiety. There are also data to suggest that the relationship between safety behaviour use and social anxiety symptoms is mediated by perceived control of one's anxiety. Furthermore, it has been suggested that post-event processing influences anticipatory anxiety for a future social situation. AIM: A direct link between the perpetuating factors of social anxiety described above has not been established in the literature. The aim of the current study was to test a model examining the relationship between these constructs. METHOD: Participants first completed a battery of questionnaires. They then participated in an impromptu, 3-minute speech and were informed they would be videotaped. Following the speech, participants completed measures of anxiety and were instructed to return the following week. During the second session, they were informed they would deliver an additional speech and provided ratings of their anxiety in anticipation of delivering the second speech. RESULTS: The results of a serial mediation support that greater levels of social anxiety lead to less perceived control over one's anxiety, leading to increased safety behaviour use. The increase in safety behaviours led to an increase of post-event processing which resulted in greater anticipatory anxiety for a future speech task. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides novel evidence for the importance of perceived control in the genesis of social anxiety, which has implications for treatment.

A Short-Term Longitudinal Investigation of Hookups and Holistic Outcomes Among College Students.

Majority of college students hook up at least once during their time in school. The literature on casual sex encounters among college students is growing, though most studies are cross-sectional and individual studies focus on few outcomes at a time, leaving piecemeal and mixed results. The current longitudinal study clarifies prior work by analyzing how post-event process (PEP), an understudied construct within the hookup literature, and emotional (i.e., positive or negative) hookup reactions interact to predict a breadth of outcomes, representing holistic student well-being. The inclusion of PEP reframes the current literature to consider PEP as a predictor variable of hookup outcomes, as moderated by emotional hookup reactions. This is consistent with literature indicating emotional experiences affect PEP across a variety of incidents. Participants (N = 377, 87.6% female) completed self-report measures at 2-month intervals. We tested relationships between the main and interaction effects of PEP and emotional hookup reactions as a moderation regression analyses on anxiety, academic engagement, religious coping, and psychological flourishing. The main effect of PEP predicted more anxiety and less negative religious coping, negative hookup reactions predicted more anxiety, and positive hookup reactions predicted more flourishing. Regarding interaction effects, high levels of positive hookup reactions and PEP were associated with less anxiety, less academic engagement, more negative religious coping, and less psychological flourishing; high levels of negative hookup reactions and PEP were associated with less anxiety and more negative religious coping and were unrelated to academic engagement or flourishing over two months.

The mediating role of state maladaptive emotion regulation in the relation between social anxiety symptoms and self-evaluation bias.

Although social anxiety symptoms are robustly linked to biased self-evaluations across time, the mechanisms of this relation remain unclear. The present study tested three maladaptive emotion regulation strategies - state post-event processing, state experiential avoidance, and state expressive suppression - as potential mediators of this relation. Undergraduate participants (N = 88; 61.4% Female) rated their social skill in an impromptu conversation task and then returned to the laboratory approximately two days later to evaluate their social skill in the conversation again. Consistent with expectations, state post-event processing and state experiential avoidance mediated the relation between social anxiety symptoms and worsening self-evaluations of social skill (controlling for research assistant evaluations), particularly for positive qualities (e.g. appeared confident, demonstrated social skill). State expressive suppression did not mediate the relation between social anxiety symptoms and changes in self-evaluation bias across time. These findings highlight the role that spontaneous, state experiential avoidance and state post-event processing may play in the relation between social anxiety symptoms and worsening self-evaluation biases of social skill across time.

Depersonalization Under Academic Stress: Frequency, Predictors, and Consequences.

BACKGROUND: Based on the assumptions that depersonalization symptoms are relevant for test anxiety maintenance, we examined their frequency, psychological predictors, association with anxiety symptoms, and association with test performance. SAMPLING AND METHODS: In Study 1, 203 students rated their test anxiety severity and depersonalization in their last oral examination. In Study 2, we assessed test anxiety 1 week before an oral examination, depersonalization, safety behaviors, self-focused attention, and negative appraisals of depersonalization directly after the examination, and post-event processing 1 week later among 67 students. RESULTS: In Study 1, 47.3% reported at least one moderate depersonalization symptom. In Study 2, test anxiety and negative appraisals of depersonalization significantly predicted depersonalization. Depersonalization was linked to a higher intensity of safety behaviors and post-event processing but not to self-focused attention. It was not related to performance. CONCLUSION: Results are limited by the non-random sampling and the small sample size of Study 2. However, by showing that depersonalization contributes to the processes the maintenance of test anxiety, the findings confirm that depersonalization - normally understood as an adaptive mechanism to cope with stressful events - can become maladaptive.

Cannabis-Related Problems and Social Anxiety: The Mediational Role of Post-Event Processing.

BACKGROUND: Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug in the US, and is associated with a range of psychological, social, and physical health-related problems. Individuals who endorse elevated levels of social anxiety are especially at risk for experiencing cannabis-related problems, including cannabis use disorder, despite not using cannabis more often than those with more normative social anxiety. Identification of mechanisms that underlie the relationship between social anxiety and cannabis-related problems may inform treatment and prevention efforts. Post-event processing (PEP, i.e., cognitively reviewing past social interactions/performances) is a social anxiety-related phenomenon that may be one such mechanism. OBJECTIVES: The current study sought to test PEP as a mediator of the relationship between social anxiety and cannabis-related problems, adjusting for cannabis use frequency. METHOD: Cannabis-using (past 3-month) undergraduate students recruited in 2015 (N = 244; 76.2% female; 74.2% Non-Hispanic Caucasian) completed an online survey of cannabis use, cannabis-related problems, social anxiety, and PEP. RESULTS: Bootstrap estimate of the indirect effect of social anxiety through PEP was significant, suggesting PEP is a mediator of the social anxiety-cannabis-related problems relationship. Conclusions/Importance: Treatment and prevention efforts may benefit from targeting PEP among individuals with elevated social anxiety and cannabis-related problems.

Computer-Aided Approach for Rapid Post-Event Visual Evaluation of a Building Façade.

After a disaster strikes an urban area, damage to the façades of a building may produce dangerous falling hazards that jeopardize pedestrians and vehicles. Thus, building façades must be rapidly inspected to prevent potential loss of life and property damage. Harnessing the capacity to use new vision sensors and associated sensing platforms, such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) would expedite this process and alleviate spatial and temporal limitations typically associated with human-based inspection in high-rise buildings. In this paper, we have developed an approach to perform rapid and accurate visual inspection of building façades using images collected from UAVs. An orthophoto corresponding to any reasonably flat region on the building (e.g., a façade or building side) is automatically constructed using a structure-from-motion (SfM) technique, followed by image stitching and blending. Based on the geometric relationship between the collected images and the constructed orthophoto, high-resolution region-of-interest are automatically extracted from the collected images, enabling efficient visual inspection. We successfully demonstrate the capabilities of the technique using an abandoned building of which a façade has damaged building components (e.g., window panes or external drainage pipes).

Multi-purpose ECG telemetry system.

BACKGROUND: The Electrocardiogram ECG is one of the most important non-invasive tools for cardiac diseases diagnosis. Taking advantage of the developed telecommunication infrastructure, several approaches that address the development of telemetry cardiac devices were introduced recently. Telemetry ECG devices allow easy and fast ECG monitoring of patients with suspected cardiac issues. Choosing the right device with the desired working mode, signal quality, and the device cost are still the main obstacles to massive usage of these devices. METHODS: In this paper, we introduce design, implementation, and validation of a multi-purpose telemetry system for recording, transmission, and interpretation of ECG signals in different recording modes. The system consists of an ECG device, a cloud-based analysis pipeline, and accompanied mobile applications for physicians and patients. The proposed ECG device's mechanical design allows laypersons to easily record post-event short-term ECG signals, using dry electrodes without any preparation. Moreover, patients can use the device to record long-term signals in loop and holter modes, using wet electrodes. In order to overcome the problem of signal quality fluctuation due to using different electrodes types and different placements on subject's chest, customized ECG signal processing and interpretation pipeline is presented for each working mode. RESULTS: We present the evaluation of the novel short-term recorder design. Recording of an ECG signal was performed for 391 patients using a standard 12-leads golden standard ECG and the proposed patient-activated short-term post-event recorder. In the validation phase, a sample of validation signals followed peer review process wherein two experts annotated the signals in terms of signal acceptability for diagnosis.We found that 96% of signals allow detecting arrhythmia and other signal's abnormal changes. Additionally, we compared and presented the correlation coefficient and the automatic QRS delineation results of both short-term post-event recorder and 12-leads golden standard ECG recorder. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed multi-purpose ECG device allows physicians to choose the working mode of the same device according to the patient status. The proposed device was designed to allow patients to manage the technical requirements of both working modes. Post-event short-term ECG recording using the proposed design provide physicians reliable three ECG leads with direct symptom-rhythm correlation.

The association between ruminative thinking and negative interpretation bias in social anxiety.

Cognitive models propose that both, negative interpretations of ambiguous social situations and ruminative thoughts about social events contribute to the maintenance of social anxiety disorder. It has further been postulated that ruminative thoughts fuel biased negative interpretations, however, evidence is rare. The present study used a multi-method approach to assess ruminative processing following a social interaction (post-event processing by self-report questionnaire and social rumination by experience sampling method) and negative interpretation bias (via two separate tasks) in a student sample (n = 51) screened for high (HSA) and low social anxiety (LSA). Results support the hypothesis that group differences in negative interpretations of ambiguous social situations in HSAs vs. LSAs are mediated by higher levels of post-event processing assessed in the questionnaire. Exploratory analyses highlight the potential role of comorbid depressive symptoms. The current findings help to advance the understanding of the association between two cognitive processes involved in social anxiety and stress the importance of ruminative post-event processing.

Shame as a predictor of post-event rumination in social anxiety.

Evidence shows that people with high social anxiety levels ruminate about distressing social events, which contributes to the maintenance of social anxiety symptoms. The present study aimed to explore the role of shame in maintaining post-event rumination (PER) following a negative social event (an impromptu speech with negative feedback) in a student sample (N = 104). Participants reported negative rumination related to the event one day and one week after the speech. PER measured one day after the speech was not associated with social anxiety symptoms and state anxiety. One week later, participants with clinically relevant social anxiety symptoms experienced greater PER. State shame was the only significant predictor of PER in a regression equation that also included social anxiety symptoms, state anxiety and self-evaluation of performance. Possible explanations and implications are discussed in light of cognitive models of social anxiety.

The Development and Evaluation of the Psychometric Properties of the Negative Beliefs about Post-Event Processing Scale.

BACKGROUND: Although negative beliefs have been found to be associated with worry symptoms and depressive rumination, negative beliefs have yet to be examined in relation to post-event processing and social anxiety symptoms. AIMS: The purpose of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Negative Beliefs about Post-Event Processing Questionnaire (NB-PEPQ). METHOD: A large, non-referred undergraduate sample completed the NB-PEPQ along with validation measures, including a measure of post-event processing and social anxiety symptoms. RESULTS: Based on factor analysis, a single-factor model was obtained, and the NB-PEPQ was found to exhibit good validity, including positive associations with measures of post-event processing and social anxiety symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: These findings add to the literature on the metacognitive variables that may lead to the development and maintenance of post-event processing and social anxiety symptoms, and have relevant clinical applications.