The effect of an odd-one-out visual search task on attentional bias, body size adaptation, and body dissatisfaction.

Body image disturbance is a both a risk factor for, and a symptom of, many eating disorders and refers to the misperception of and dissatisfaction with one's own body. Women with high body dissatisfaction have been shown to direct more attention to low body mass index (BMI) bodies, which results in the overestimation of body size via body size adaptation. Therefore, attention may have a causal role in body image disturbance. We conducted a novel training visual search task with 142 young adult women who we trained to attend to either high or low BMI bodies. We assessed the effects of this training on attention to bodies of different sizes, body size adaptation, and body dissatisfaction. Women trained to attend to low BMI bodies decreased their perceptions of a 'normal' body size via adaptation from pre- to post-training (p < 0.001); however, women trained to attend to high BMI bodies showed no change in their perception of a 'normal' body size. We found no lasting effects of the training on attention to body size or body dissatisfaction; however, our visual search task showed poor internal consistency as a measure of attention. These findings indicate that attention to low BMI bodies may exacerbate body image disturbance in women. However, more reliable measures of attentional are required to confirm this finding.

The relationship between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to thin bodies in Malaysian Chinese and White Australian women: a dot probe study.

Studies suggest that an attentional bias to thin bodies is common among those with high levels of body dissatisfaction, which is a risk factor for, and symptom of, various eating disorders. However, these studies have predominantly been conducted in Western countries with body stimuli involving images of White people. In a preregistered study, we recruited 150 Malaysian Chinese women and 150 White Australian women for a study using standardized images of East Asian and White Australian bodies. To measure attentional bias to thin bodies, participants completed a dot probe task which presented images of women who self-identified their ethnicity as East Asian or as White Australian. Contrary to previous findings, we found no evidence for an association between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to thin bodies. This lack of association was not affected by participant ethnicity (Malaysian Chinese versus White Australian) or ethnic congruency between participants and body stimuli (own-ethnicity versus other-ethnicity). However, the internal consistency of the dot probe task was poor. These results suggest that either the relationship between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to thin bodies is not robust, or the dot probe task may not be a reliable measure of attentional bias to body size.

Is body dissatisfaction related to an attentional bias towards low weight bodies in non-clinical samples of women? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Body dissatisfaction is defined as the negative subjective evaluation of one's body and is considered a risk factor for, and symptom of, eating disorders. Some studies show women with high body dissatisfaction display an attentional bias towards low weight bodies; however, this finding is not consistent, and results are yet to be systematically synthesised. We conducted a qualitative and quantitative synthesis of cross-sectional studies investigating the relationship between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to low weight bodies in non-clinical samples of women. We searched PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ProQuest, and OpenGrey for studies up until September 2022. We identified 34 eligible studies involving a total of 2857 women. A meta-analysis of 26 studies (75 effects) found some evidence from gaze tracking studies for a positive association between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to low weight bodies. We found no evidence for an association from studies measuring attention using the dot probe task, electroencephalogram (EEG) recording, or the modified spatial cueing task. The results together provide partial support for the positive association between body dissatisfaction and attentional bias to low weight bodies in women. These findings can be used to inform future attentional bias research.

The effect of attention on body size adaptation and body dissatisfaction.

Attentional bias to low-fat bodies is thought to be associated with body dissatisfaction-a symptom and risk factor of eating disorders. However, the causal nature of this relationship is unclear. In three preregistered experiments, we trained 370 women to attend towards either high- or low-fat body stimuli using an attention training dot probe task. For each experiment, we analysed the effect of the attention training on (i) attention to subsequently presented high- versus low-fat body stimuli, (ii) visual adaptation to body size, and (iii) body dissatisfaction. The attention training had no effect on attention towards high- or low-fat bodies in an online setting (Experiment 1), but did increase attention to high-fat bodies in a laboratory setting (Experiment 2). Neither perceptions of a 'normal' body size nor levels of body dissatisfaction changed as a result of the attention training in either setting. The results in the online setting did not change when we reduced the stimulus onset-asynchrony of the dot probe task from 500 to 100 ms (Experiment 3). Our results provide no evidence that the dot probe training task used here has robust effects on attention to body size, body image disturbance or body dissatisfaction.

Information content of household-stratified epidemics.

Household structure is a key driver of many infectious diseases, as well as a natural target for interventions such as vaccination programs. Many theoretical and conceptual advances on household-stratified epidemic models are relatively recent, but have successfully managed to increase the applicability of such models to practical problems. To be of maximum realism and hence benefit, they require parameterisation from epidemiological data, and while household-stratified final size data has been the traditional source, increasingly time-series infection data from households are becoming available. This paper is concerned with the design of studies aimed at collecting time-series epidemic data in order to maximize the amount of information available to calibrate household models. A design decision involves a trade-off between the number of households to enrol and the sampling frequency. Two commonly used epidemiological study designs are considered: cross-sectional, where different households are sampled at every time point, and cohort, where the same households are followed over the course of the study period. The search for an optimal design uses Bayesian computationally intensive methods to explore the joint parameter-design space combined with the Shannon entropy of the posteriors to estimate the amount of information in each design. For the cross-sectional design, the amount of information increases with the sampling intensity, i.e., the designs with the highest number of time points have the most information. On the other hand, the cohort design often exhibits a trade-off between the number of households sampled and the intensity of follow-up. Our results broadly support the choices made in existing epidemiological data collection studies. Prospective problem-specific use of our computational methods can bring significant benefits in guiding future study designs.

Spreading of healthy mood in adolescent social networks.

Depression is a major public health concern worldwide. There is evidence that social support and befriending influence mental health, and an improved understanding of the social processes that drive depression has the potential to bring significant public health benefits. We investigate transmission of mood on a social network of adolescents, allowing flexibility in our model by making no prior assumption as to whether it is low mood or healthy mood that spreads. Here, we show that while depression does not spread, healthy mood among friends is associated with significantly reduced risk of developing and increased chance of recovering from depression. We found that this spreading of healthy mood can be captured using a non-linear complex contagion model. Having sufficient friends with healthy mood can halve the probability of developing, or double the probability of recovering from, depression over a 6-12-month period on an adolescent social network. Our results suggest that promotion of friendship between adolescents can reduce both incidence and prevalence of depression.

Prophylactic radiotherapy against heterotopic ossification following internal fixation of acetabular fractures: a comparative estimate of risk.

OBJECTIVE: Radiotherapy (RT) is effective in preventing heterotopic ossification (HO) around acetabular fractures requiring surgical reconstruction. We audited outcomes and estimated risks from RT prophylaxis, and alternatives of indometacin or no prophylaxis. METHODS: 34 patients underwent reconstruction of acetabular fractures through a posterior approach, followed by a 8-Gy single fraction. The mean age was 44 years. The mean time from surgery to RT was 1.1 days. The major RT risk is radiation-induced fatal cancer. The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) method was used to estimate risk, and compared with a method (Trott and Kemprad) specifically for estimating RT risk for benign disease. These were compared with risks associated with indometacin and no prophylaxis. RESULTS: 28 patients (82%) developed no HO; 6 developed Brooker Class I; and none developed Class II-IV HO. The ICRP method suggests a risk of fatal cancer in the range of 1 in 1000 to 1 in 10,000; the Trott and Kemprad method suggests 1 in 3000. For younger patients, this may rise to 1 in 2000; and for elderly patients, it may fall to 1 in 6000. The risk of death from gastric bleeding or perforation from indometacin is 1 in 180 to 1 in 900 in older patients. Without prophylaxis risk of death from reoperation to remove HO is 1 in 4000 to 1 in 30,000. CONCLUSION: These results are encouraging, consistent with much larger series and endorse our multidisciplinary management. Risk estimates can be used in discussion with patients. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: The risk from RT prophylaxis is small, it is safer than indometacin and substantially overlaps with the range for no prophylaxis.

Measuring the effect of influenza A(H1N1)pdm09: the epidemiological experience in the West Midlands, England during the 'containment' phase.

The West Midlands was the first English region to report sustained community transmission during the 'containment' phase of the influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 pandemic in England. To describe the epidemiological experience in the region, West Midlands and national datasets containing laboratory-confirmed A(H1N1)pdm09 virus cases in the region during the 'containment' phase were analysed. The region accounts for about 10·5% of England's population, but reported about 42% of all laboratory-confirmed cases. Altogether 3063 cases were reported, with an incidence rate of 56/100 000 population. School-associated cases accounted for 25% of cases. Those aged <20 years, South Asian ethnic groups, and residents of urban and socioeconomically deprived areas were disproportionately affected. Imported cases accounted for 1% of known exposures. Regional R 0 central estimates between 1·41 and 1·43 were obtained. The West Midlands experience suggests that interpretation of transmission rates may be affected by complex interactions within and between sub-populations in the region.

Modelling HIV in the injecting drug user population and the male homosexual population in a developed country context.

In many high income countries men who have sex with men (MSM) and injecting drug users (IDUs) are the two groups with the highest HIV prevalence. Yet these two groups are not mutually exclusive, and those MSM who are also IDUs (MSM-IDUs) may be particularly vulnerable to HIV infection. This may be particularly relevant to the IDU population in countries, like the UK, with a much lower HIV prevalence amongst IDUs than MSM, as the MSM-IDUs could provide a route of HIV infection into the IDU population. In this research two alternative modelling approaches that describe the transmission dynamics of HIV within the IDU, MSM, and heterosexual populations are proposed. These models are constructed with two aims. The first is to investigate the possible impact of interventions that target HIV transmission in the MSM and IDU populations, and the second aim is to investigate the impact of the model structure on the model results. An examination of the assortativity of mixing between risk groups is also undertaken. The models are parameterised for England and Wales. While the MSM-IDU population is small, targeting MSM-IDUs was the most efficient intervention strategy in terms of cases averted per 100 individuals targeted with the intervention. Sensitivity analysis showed that variations in the assumed assortativity of mixing between the population groups in both models have a large impact on model results. This means that to generate quantitatively robust estimates for the impact of different intervention strategies it will be necessary to obtain estimates for assortativity values through empirical work.

Household structure and infectious disease transmission.

One of the central tenets of modern infectious disease epidemiology is that an understanding of heterogeneities, both in host demography and transmission, allows control to be efficiently optimized. Due to the strong interactions present, households are one of the most important heterogeneities to consider, both in terms of predicting epidemic severity and as a target for intervention. We consider these effects in the context of pandemic influenza in Great Britain, and find that there is significant local (ward-level) variation in the basic reproductive ratio, with some regions predicted to suffer 50% faster growth rate of infection than the mean. Childhood vaccination was shown to be highly effective at controlling an epidemic, generally outperforming random vaccination and substantially reducing the variation between regions; only nine out of over 10 000 wards did not obey this rule and these can be identified as demographically atypical regions. Since these benefits of childhood vaccination are a product of correlations between household size and number of dependent children in the household, our results are qualitatively robust for a variety of disease scenarios.

Plasma pharmacokinetics of a liver-selective nitric oxide-donating diazeniumdiolate in the male C57BL/6 mouse.

1. The single-dose plasma pharmacokinetics of O(2)-vinyl 1-(pyrrolidin-1-yl)diazen-1-ium-1,2-diolate (V-PYRRO/NO) following intravenous (i.v.) and intraperitoneal (i.p.) bolus administration to the male C57BL/6 mouse was studied in an effort to characterize the disposition of the agent and to serve as a basis for the design of in vivo efficacy studies. 2. Plasma V-PYRRO/NO concentrations declined rapidly in a bi-exponential manner after i.v. administration of 5 mg kg(-1) body weight to mouse. The terminal half-life was 9.4 min and the mean residence time was 3.4 min. 3. V-PYRRO/NO was absorbed rapidly following i.p. administration, with peak plasma concentrations being observed 3 min after injection. Levels then declined with a terminal half-life of 11.7 min. The bioavailable fraction from the i.p. compartment was 19%, indicating a high first-pass effect. 4. The results provide additional evidence for a liver-selective metabolism of this nitric oxide-donating prodrug.

Identification of the principal circulating metabolite of a synthetic 5,4'-diaminoflavone (NSC 686288), an antitumor agent, in the rat.

During the course of our study to develop analytical methodology for quantitating the investigative antitumor agent 5-amino-2-(4-amino-3-fluorophenyl)-6,8-difluoro-7-methyl-4H-1-benzopyran -4-one (DAF; NSC 686288) in plasma, a significant concentration of a metabolite was observed in a post-dosed rat. The results of electron-ionization (EI) mass spectrometric analysis of the metabolite suggested that N-acetylation had occurred, but, interestingly, that only one of the compound's two primary amino groups had been transformed. Comparing the mass spectra and gas chromatographic retention times of a mono-acetylated sample of DAF and that of the metabolite showed both to be the same. A retro-Diels-Alder (RDA) fragmentation of the B ring of DAF results in formation of two abundant product ions, each retaining one of the amino groups. The EI mass spectrum of mono-N-acetamido-d3 DAF shows loss of ketene-d2, leading to formation of an -NHD group. The ensuing RDA fragmentation easily identifies which of the two product ions contains the deuterium, thereby allowing us to assign the site of N-acetylation as the amino group on ring C (the 4' position) of DAF.

No effect of low-dose aspirin for the prevention of heterotopic bone formation after total hip replacement: a randomized trial of 2,649 patients.

2,649 patients scheduled for elective total hip replacement were recruited to the Heterotopic Bone Formation Sub-study of the Pulmonary Embolism Prevention Trial. Heterotopic bone formation was determined by radiographic examination and associated late postoperative outcomes were assessed by telephone interview. Heterotopic bone formation was observed in 627 (31%) of 2,048 radiographic examinations. There was no detectable effect of low-dose aspirin on the risks of heterotopic bone formation (RR 0.98; 95% CI 0.85-1.12), late postoperative pain (RR 1.10; 95%CI 0.91-1.35) or late postoperative impaired function (RR 1.03; 95% CI 0.94-1.12). The balance of benefits and risks of low-dose aspirin is determined by its effects on vascular events and bleeding, since it has no major effects on heterotopic bone formation or associated clinical outcomes.

Unsymmetric nonpeptidic HIV protease inhibitors containing anthranilamide as a P2' ligand.

A series of novel unsymmetrical anthranilamide-containing HIV protease inhibitors was designed. The structure-activity studies revealed a series of potent P2-P3' inhibitors that incorporate an anthranilamide group at the P2' position. A reduction in molecular weight and lipophilicity is achieved by a judicious choice of P2 ligands (i.e., aromatic, heteroaromatic, carbamate, and peptidic). A systematic investigation led to the 5-thiazolyl carbamate analog 8 m, which exhibited a favorable Cmax/EC50 ratio (> 30), plasma half-life (> 8 h), and potent in vitro antiviral activity (EC50 = 0.2 microM).

Helicopter transport of trauma victims: does a physician make a difference?

We studied the impact of physician presence on helicopter transportation of trauma victims during two periods; when physicians were part of the flight team and when they were not. Our data failed to demonstrate that physician participation in flights had an impact on patient outcome. The groups were comparable in average distance traveled, initial Trauma Scores, number of organ systems injured, and the final Injury Severity Scores. Each group showed an improved survival over that predicted by comparison with the Multiple Trauma Outcome Study cohort. No difference was found in the number of procedures performed at the scene, en route, or on arrival at the hospital. Untreated injuries were slightly higher in the physician-present group. It appears that experienced nurses and paramedics, operating with well-established protocols, can provide aggressive care that yields equal outcome results compared with those of a flight team that includes a physician.

Perforated peptic ulcer--a seasonal disease?

All hospital admissions for perforated peptic ulcer in the State of Western Australia from 1971 to 1981 inclusive were used to study the seasonal fluctuation, prevalence and mortality. This represented 1187 admissions. A significant seasonal peak was found during November, December and January. There was a marked reduction in admissions in the last three years, i.e. 1979-81, representing a 35% drop from previous levels. The overall mortality was 6.6%, but was 1.8% in patients less than 65 years, and 17.3% in patients 65 years or older.

Acute pancreatitis in identical twins.

Identical twins, 34-years-old at the time, developed abdominal pain of similar character while at a holiday resort. Both had drunk a greater amount of alcohol than usual, approximately eight 200-mL glasses of beer. The symptoms in one twin forced him to present to hospital where his plasma amylase level was found to be 2300 u/L. The other had the same symptoms, but did not present to hospital; however, when the symptoms later recurred, he also was found to have pancreatitis. Acute pancreatitis occurring simultaneously in identical twins has been reported only on one previous occasion.