Morphological Patterns of Indirect Choroidal Rupture on Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography.

Morphological patterns of indirect choroidal rupture on spectral domain optical coherence tomography.

Clin Ophthalmol. 2013; 7: 1503-9
Nair U, Soman M, Ganekal S, Batmanabane V, Nair K

To evaluate the morphological types of indirect choroidal rupture (ICR) using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT).This was a prospective interventional study of 18 eyes of 18 patients who presented with a history of blunt ocular trauma resulting in choroidal rupture. All patients underwent detailed ophthalmic evaluation and SD-OCT examination.Mean age of the patients was 32±9.6 years. Morphologically, two types of choroidal rupture were seen on SD-OCT. The first type seen (Type 1 ICR) was a forward protrusion of the retinal pigment epithelium-choriocapillaris (RPE-CC) layer with an acutely angled pyramid or dome shape. This was associated with either a small loss of continuity of the retinal pigment epithelium layer or elevated RPE-CC projection accompanied by a significant quantity of subretinal hemorrhage. The second type observed (Type 2 ICR) was a larger area of disruption of the RPE-CC layer, photoreceptor inner segment/outer segment junction, and external limiting membrane, with a posteriorly directed concave contour depression at that area and downward sliding of tissues into the defect. At presentation, ten eyes were observed to have Type 1 ICR and eight to have Type 2 ICR. Of the 18 eyes, one with Type 1 ICR and two with Type 2 ICR developed choroidal neovascularization (16.6%).Two distinct tomographic patterns of choroidal ruptures were identified on SD-OCT, which may allow ruptures to be classified into two morphological types. There are morphometric and clinical differences between the two types, which may help to prognosticate visual outcome and anticipate complications following choroidal ruptures. HubMed – depression

Asperger syndrome and anxiety disorders (PAsSA) treatment trial: a study protocol of a pilot, multicentre, single-blind, randomised crossover trial of group cognitive behavioural therapy.

BMJ Open. 2013; 3(7):
Langdon PE, Murphy GH, Wilson E, Shepstone L, Fowler D, Heavens D, Malovic A, Russell A

A number of studies have established that children, adolescents and adults with Asperger syndrome (AS) and high functioning autism (HFA) have significant problems with anxiety. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for anxiety in a variety of clinical populations. There is a growing interest in exploring the effectiveness of CBT for people with AS who have mental health problems, but currently there are no known clinical trials involving adults with AS or HFA. Studies with children who have AS have reported some success. The current study aims to examine whether modified group CBT for clinically significant anxiety in an AS population is likely to be efficacious.This study is a randomised, single-blind crossover trial. At least 36 individuals will be recruited and randomised into a treatment arm or a waiting-list control arm. During treatment, individuals will receive 3 sessions of individual CBT, followed by 21 sessions of group CBT. Primary outcome measures focus on anxiety. Secondary outcome measures focus on everyday social and psychiatric functioning, additional measures of anxiety and fear, depression, health-related quality of life and treatment cost. Assessments will be administered at pregroup and postgroup and at follow-up by researchers who are blinded to group allocation. The trial aims to find out whether or not psychological treatments for anxiety can be adapted and used to successfully treat the anxiety experienced by people with AS. Furthermore, we aim to determine whether this intervention represents good value for money.The trial received a favourable ethical opinion from a National Health Service (NHS) Research Ethics Committee. All participants provided written informed consent. Findings will be shared with all trial participants, and the general public, as well as the scientific community.ISRCTN 30265294 (DOI: 10.1186/ISRCTN30265294), UKCRN 8370. HubMed – depression

Potentially traumatic interpersonal events, psychological distress and recurrent headache in a population-based cohort of adolescents: the HUNT study.

BMJ Open. 2013; 3(7):
Stensland SØ, Dyb G, Thoresen S, Wentzel-Larsen T, Zwart JA

Recurrent headache co-occurs commonly with psychological distress, such as anxiety or depression. Potentially traumatic interpersonal events (PTIEs) could represent important precursors of psychological distress and recurrent headache in adolescents. Our objective was to assess the hypothesised association between exposure to PTIEs and recurrent migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) in adolescents, and to further examine the potential impact of psychological distress on this relationship.Population-based, cross-sectional cohort study. The study includes self-reported data from youth on exposure to potentially traumatic events, psychological distress and a validated interview on headache.The adolescent part of the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT), conducted in Norway.A cohort of 10 464 adolescents were invited to the study. Age ranged from 12 to 20 years. The response rate was 73% (7620), of whom 50% (3832) were girls.Data from the headache interview served as the outcome. Recurrent headache was defined as headache recurring at least monthly during the past year, and was subclassified into monthly, weekly and daily complaints. Subtypes were classified as TTH, migraine, migraine with TTH and/or non-classifiable headache, in accordance with the International Classification of Headache Disorders criteria, second edition.Multiple logistic regression analysis, adjusted for sociodemographics, showed consistently significant associations between exposure to PTIEs and recurrent headache, regardless of the frequency or subtype of headache. Increasing exposure to PTIEs was associated with higher prevalence of recurrent headache, indicating a dose-response relationship. The strength of associations between exposure to PTIEs and all recurrent headache disorders was significantly attenuated when psychological distress was entered into the regression equation.The empirical evidence of a strong and cumulative relationship between exposure to PTIEs, psychological distress and recurrent headache indicates a need for the integration of somatic and psychological healthcare services for adolescents in the prevention, assessment and treatment of recurrent headache. Prospective studies are needed. HubMed – depression

Validity, discriminative ability and reliability of the hearing-related quality of life (HEAR-QL) questionnaire for adolescents.

Laryngoscope. 2013 Jul 30;
Rachakonda T, Jeffe DB, Shin JJ, Mankarious L, Fanning RJ, Lesperance MM, Lieu JE

The prevalence of hearing loss (HL) in adolescents has grown over the past decade, but hearing-related quality of life (QOL) has not been well-measured. We sought to develop a reliable, valid measure of hearing-related QOL for adolescents, the Hearing Environments And Reflection on Quality of Life (HEAR-QL).Multi-site observational study.Adolescents with HL and siblings without HL were recruited from five centers. Participants completed the HEAR-QL and validated questionnaires measuring generic pediatric QOL (PedsQL), depression and anxiety (RCADS-25), and hearing-related QOL for adults (HHIA) to determine construct and discriminant validity. Participants completed the HEAR-QL two weeks later for test-retest reliability. We used exploratory principal components analysis to determine the HEAR-QL factor structure and measured reliability. Sensitivity and specificity of the HEAR-QL, PedsQL, HHIA and RCADS-25 were assessed. We compared scores on all surveys between those with normal hearing, unilateral and bilateral HL.233 adolescents (13-18 years old) participated-179 with HL, 54 without HL. The original 45-item HEAR-QL was shortened to 28 items after determining factor structure. The resulting HEAR-QL-28 demonstrated excellent reliability (Cronbach’s alpha= 0.95) and construct validity (HHIA: r =.845, PedsQL: r =.587; RCADS-25: r =.433). The HEAR-QL-28 displayed excellent discriminant validity, with higher area under the curve (0.932) than the PedsQL (0.597) or RCADS-25 (0.529). Teens with bilateral HL using hearing devices reported worse QOL on the HEAR-QL and HHIA than peers with HL not using devices.The HEAR-QL is a sensitive, reliable and valid measure of hearing-related QOL for adolescents.2b (Diagnostic validation study, see http://www.cebm.net/index.aspx?o=1025) Laryngoscope, 2013. HubMed – depression