Mental development in infants with cleft lip and/or palate.

OBJECTIVE: Investigated mental development in infants and toddlers with cleft lip and/or palate (CLP). DESIGN: This was a retrospective analysis of developmental scores on qualified children between 4 and 36 months of age. Cross-sectional analysis included children in four age groups (6, 12, 18, and 24 months); longitudinal analysis included children at mean age 9.1 (range = 4 to 15) months at Time 1 and 24 months (range = 16 to 36) at Time 2. PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional analysis included 180 children (59% male participants) in four diagnostic groups (cleft lip only [CL], cleft lip and palate [CLP], cleft palate only [CP], and Pierre Robin). The longitudinal sample included 85 children (64% male children) in the same diagnostic groups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mental Scale (MDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. RESULTS: Mean MDIs were in the average range but decreased significantly between youngest and oldest groups in both cross-sectional (F(3,179) = 4.9, p<.01) and longitudinal samples (F(1,84) = 6.87, p<.01). There was a significant difference among cleft types (F(3,179) = 3.5, p<.025). Infants with CL obtained the highest scores, and infants with Pierre Robin Sequence obtained the lowest. Perceptual-motor development in the first year of life was predictive of developmental status at age 2. CONCLUSIONS: The number of children with CLP who may be at risk for developmental problems during the second year of life is greater than would be expected. Children at greatest risk may demonstrate early delays in acquisition of perceptual-motor skills during the first year of life.

Psychosocial correlates of voluntary HIV antibody testing in college students.

Although past research has examined correlates of HIV testing, much of it has focused on demographic differences between tested and nontested individuals. The present study examined psychosocial differences between individuals seeking a voluntary HIV test at a college student health center and individuals who have never had an HIV test. Variables included in the model were four components of the health belief model (perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived barriers), as well as perceived norms, consideration of future consequences, and risky sexual behavior. Results suggest that individuals seeking an HIV test perceived more benefits of having a test, tended to perceive fewer barriers to having a test, were higher in consideration of Future Consequences, and engaged in riskier sexual behavior than individuals never having had an HIV test. Implications for both HIV testing interventions and the health belief model are discussed.

Social skills of preschoolers with and without craniofacial anomalies.

The study compared the social skills of preschoolers with and without craniofacial anomalies (CFA). Fifty-two children completed self-perception and facial expression tasks and a social skills interview. Parents and teachers also rated the children's social skills. Children with CFA gave less friendly responses to hypothetical social situations and were rated as less attractive by graduate students. Girls with CFA reported above average self-perceptions. Patients and teachers rated the children with CFA as having a level of social skills equal to the children without CFA. Different factors were predictive of level of social skills for CFA and control children.

Effect of parental factors on social skills of preschool children with craniofacial anomalies.

This study investigated the parenting stress and style and the social networks of parents with preschool children with and without craniofacial anomalies (CFA), and the effect of these factors on the child's level of social skill. Fifty-two families participated in the study. No differences were found between the CFA and control groups on level of parenting stress, parenting style, or social network characteristics. However, parents with children with visible defects found their social support networks more helpful, and advocated a more nurturing parenting style. For the CFA group, parenting stress predicted child level of social skill. These results underscore the importance of investigating the interaction between parent and child factors.

Complete amino acid sequence of the major component myoglobin from the humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae.

The complete primary structure of the major component myoglobin from the humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, was determined by specific cleavage of the protein to obtain large peptides which are readily degraded by the automatic sequencer. Over 80% of the amino acid sequence was established from the three peptides resulting from the cleavage of the acetimidated apomyoglobin at the three arginine residues with trypsin. The further digestion of the central cyanogen bromide peptide with trypsin and S. aureus strain V8 protease enabled the determination of the remainder of the covalent structure. This myoglobin differs from that of sperm whale, Physeter catodon, at 12 positions, and dwarf sperm whale, Kogia simus, at 14 positions, finback whale Balaenoptera physalus at 3 positions, minke whale, Balaenoptera acutorostrata at 2 positions, and California gray whal Eschrichtius gibbosus, at 1 position. All of the substitutions observed in this sequence fit readily into the three-dimensional structure of sperm whale myoglobin.