communication disorders

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) refer to a complex group of neurodevelopmental disorders causing difficulties with communication and interpersonal relationships, as well as restricted and repetitive behaviours and interests. As early identification, diagnosis, and intervention provide better long-term outcomes, early markers of ASD have gained increased research attention. This review examines evidence that auditory processing enhanced by social interest, in particular auditory preference of speech directed towards infants and young children (i...

The brain-gut-microbiota axis comprises an extensive communication network between the brain, the gut, and the microbiota residing there. Development of a diverse gut microbiota is vital for multiple features of behavior and physiology, as well as many fundamental aspects of brain structure and function. Appropriate early-life assembly of the gut microbiota is also believed to play a role in subsequent emotional and cognitive development. If the composition, diversity, or assembly of the gut microbiota is impaired, this impairment can have a negative impact on host health and lead to disorders such as obesity, diabetes, inflammatory diseases, and even potentially neuropsychiatric illnesses, including anxiety and depression...

INTRODUCTION: It has recently been warned that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show a deficit in emotional competence and emotional intelligence, specifically in their ability to emotional recognition. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A systematic review of the scientific literature in reference to the emotional recognition of facial expressions in children with ADHD is presented in order to establish or rule the existence of emotional deficits as primary dysfunction in this disorder and, where appropriate, the effect size of the differences against normal development or neurotypical children...

This article uses Marc Lewis' work as a springboard to discuss the socio-political context of the brain disease model of addiction (BDMA). The claim that promotion of the BDMA is the only way the general public can be persuaded to withhold blame and punishment from addicts is critically examined. After a discussion of public understandings of the disease concept of addiction, it is pointed out that it is possible to develop a scientific account of addiction which is neither a disease nor a moral model but which the public could understand...

BACKGROUND: Activation of dendritic cells (DCs) is necessary to initiate immune responses. Angiotensin II (Ang II) has been reported to have a proinflammatory and immunomodulatory function. However, the role of Ang II in regulation of DCs and the underlying mechanisms remain illdefined. METHODS: The effects of Ang II on the proliferation, maturation, phagocytosis, migration, and communication with T cells of DCs were analysed utilizing MTT, flow cytometry, ELISA, transwell assay and mixed lymphocyte culture...

BACKGROUND: Primary care providers are well positioned to respond to the opioid crisis by providing buprenorphine/naloxone (B/N) through shared medical appointments (SMA). While quantitative research has been previously conducted on SMAs with B/N, we conducted a qualitative assessment from the patients' point of view, considering whether and how group visits provide value for patients. METHODS: Twenty-five participants with opioid use disorder (OUD) who were enrolled in a weekly B/N group visit at a family medicine clinic participated in either of two one-hour-long focus groups, which were conducted as actual group visits...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of wheat cellulose particles (testa triticum tricum purify, Fiberform) in the treatment of internal hemorrhoid. METHODS: A multicenter randomized controlled clinical trial was adopted. From October 2015 to July 2016, 60 patients with internal hemorrhoid were enrolled from three medical centers, including Department of Anorectum, Shuguang Hospital of Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Department of Anorectum, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Department of Anorectum, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine...

BACKGROUND: In the era of new information and communication technologies, the Internet is being increasingly accessed for health-related information. Indeed, recently published patient surveys of people with autoimmune disorders confirmed that the Internet was reported as one of the most important health information sources. Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia launched in 2001, is generally one of the most visited websites worldwide and is often consulted for health-related information...

Elucidation of the molecular details of allosteric communication between distant sites in a protein is key to understanding and manipulating many biological regulatory processes. Although protein disorder is acknowledged to play an important thermodynamic role in allostery, the molecular mechanisms by which this disorder is harnessed for long distance communication are known for a limited number of systems. Transcription repression by the E. coli biotin repressor, BirA, is allosterically activated by binding of the small molecule effector biotinoyl-5'-AMP...

Autism Spectrum Disorders are characterized by difficulties in communicating and cooperating with other people. Impairment in Theory of Mind (ToM), the ability to infer what another person is thinking, may contribute to these social deficits. The present study assesses the relationship between autistic traits and decision-making in a socioeconomic game environment that measures ToM and cooperation. We quantified participant strategy during game play with computer agents that simulated aspects of ToM or fixed strategy agents with static behaviors or heuristics...

The popularization of information spreading in online social networks facilitates daily communication among people. Although much work has been done to study the effect of interactions among people on spreading, there is less work that considers the pattern of spreading behaviour when people independently make their decisions. By comparing microblogging, an important medium for information spreading, with the disordered spin glass system, we find that there exist interesting corresponding relationships between them...

The superior temporal sulcus (STS) forms a key region for social information processing and disruptions of its function have been associated with socio-communicative impairments characteristic of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Task-based fMRI was applied in 15 adults with ASD and 15 matched typical-controls (TC) to explore differences in activity and effective connectivity of STS while discriminating either 'intact' versus 'scrambled' biological motion point light displays (explicit processing) or responding to a color-change while the 'intact' versus 'scrambled' nature of the stimulus was irrelevant for the task (implicit processing)...

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a non-communicable, metabolic disorder that affects 416 million individuals worldwide. Type 2 diabetes contributes to a vast 85-90% of the diabetes incidences while 10-15% of patients suffer from type 1 diabetes. These two predominant forms of DM cause a significant loss of functional pancreatic β-cell mass causing different degrees of insulin deficiency, most likely, due to increased β-cell apoptosis. Treatment options involve the use of insulin sensitisers, α-glucosidase inhibitors, and β-cell secretagogues which are often expensive, limited in efficacy and carry detrimental adverse effects...

BACKGROUND: In French Guiana, a French overseas territory in South America, 6 to 10 thousands undocumented persons work illegally in gold mining sites in the Amazonian forest. Precarious life conditions lead to poor health but few data exist on the health status of illegal gold miners in French Guiana. The objective of this article was to describe the sociodemographic and health status of this vulnerable population. METHOD: A prospective cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2015 on gold mine supply sites at the border between French Guiana and Suriname...

BACKGROUND: The potential harm from exposure to nonessential metals, particularly mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb), has been the focus of research for years. Initial interest focused on relatively high exposures; however, recent evidence suggests that even background exposures might have adverse consequences for child development. Identifying the extent of these consequences is now a priority. METHODS: We assessed blood Pb and Hg levels in a biracial sample of 9-11 year-old children (N = 203)...

Considerable research links chronic pain to autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysfunction, specifically low heart rate variability (HRV) mediated by reduced parasympathetic activity. However, little is known about factors that influence ANS function in chronic pain. The ANS is the primary pathway for brain-gut communication, making it of particular interest in gastrointestinal disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome, characterized by functional abdominal pain (FAP). We evaluated the relation of sex, pain severity, and psychological stress to ANS function in adolescents/young adults from a database of pediatric FAP and control participants enrolled 8 years earlier in a prospective study of pain...

Social media use has become pervasive in the lives of emerging adults. Although social media may provide individuals with positive opportunities for communication and learning, social media sites also may provide an outlet for youth conduct problems, such as bullying, harassment, and intentional hostility and aggression toward others. Yet, the relationship between social media use and conduct problems remains unclear. This study investigated the association between conduct disorder (CD) symptoms before age 15 and social media use during emerging adulthood in a large, nationally representative sample...

Primary care (PC) patients have low rates of engagement in evidence-based psychotherapy for PTSD due to a variety of patient- and system-level barriers. We conducted a hybrid effectiveness-implementation study of a referral management system, called coordinated and alternative pathway to engagement (CAPE), to address barriers to receiving evidence-based treatment for PTSD. CAPE included the delivery of 1 session of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) within PC to identify and change treatment-seeking beliefs, phone contacts to assist veterans in attending appointments, and PC staff trainings on how to implement clinical practice guidelines for PTSD in PC...

OBJECTIVE: Zoophilia is a rare paraphilic disorder with intense sexual urges involving animals. Autism is characterised by impairments in social communication and repetitive, restricted behaviours (RRB). Reported cases of zoophilia are limited worldwide, and zoophilia in autism is rarer. METHOD: This is a case report describing this unique and relatively unrecognised association in a male adolescent from Sri Lanka. RESULTS: A 17-year-old boy diagnosed with autism has average intelligence and academic capabilities...

A recent project entitled CATALISE used the Delphi method to reach a consensus on terminology for unexplained language problems in children. 'Developmental language disorder' (DLD) was the term agreed by a panel of 57 experts. Here I reflect on points of difficulty that arose when attempting to reach a consensus, using qualitative information from comments made by panel members to illustrate the kinds of argument used. One issue of debate was the use of labels, in particular the term 'disorder', which was seen as having both pros and cons...