Search

This study investigated the unique contribution of motor ability to visuospatial working memory (VSWM) and neuroelectric activity in school-age children. Seventy-six children aged 8.7 ± 1.1 years participated in this cross-sectional study. We assessed aerobic fitness using the 20-m endurance shuttle run test, muscular fitness (endurance, power) using a standard test battery, and motor ability (manual dexterity, ball skills, and static and dynamic balance) using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children. A modified delayed match-to-sample test was used to assess VSWM and the P3 component of event-related potentials. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that greater aerobic fitness was associated with smaller coefficient of variation of reaction time (p = .008), greater muscular fitness was associated with higher response accuracy (p = .022), greater motor ability was associated with higher response accuracy (p .001) and increased P3 mean amplitude (p .001) after controlling for age. Furthermore, the positive associations of motor ability with response accuracy (p = .001) were independent of muscular fitness. The findings from this study provide new insight into the differential associations between health-related fitness domains and VSWM, highlighting the influence of motor ability on brain health and cognitive development during childhood.

Purpose To identify factors associated with resilience in primary caregivers of patients with advanced oral cavity cancer within the first 6 months post-treatment. Design A cross-sectional study. Methods We recruited patient-primary caregiver dyads from the outpatient radiation department of a medical center in Northern Taiwan. Patients were assessed using a set of structured questionnaires to measure performance status and demographic and clinical characteristics. Primary caregivers were measured in their social support, resilience, and care characteristics. Results Of the 148 dyads surveyed, 33.8% of primary caregivers reported moderately low to moderate resilience, and 61.5% reported low resilience. Greater resilience of primary caregivers was associated with the primary caregiver factors of younger age, lower educational level, and more affectionate social support; and greater resilience was associated with the patient factors of better performance status and older age. These factors explained 40.4% of the variance in resilience. Conclusions Patients' performance status and primary caregivers' affectionate social support strongly influence overall resilience and each domain of resilience. Clinical relevance Providing primary caregivers with sufficient social resources and a support group can help them cope with the demands of caregiving for loved ones with oral cavity cancer.

OBJECTIVE To compare the levels of social support, physical function, and social-emotional function between oral cavity cancer survivors who did or did not resume work 6 months or longer after treatment completion. METHODS This cross-sectional study examined survivors of oral cavity cancer who were treated at the outpatient radiation department of a medical center in Northern Taiwan. Questionnaires were used to collect data regarding perceived social support, physical function, social-emotional function, and return to work status after treatment. Logistic regression was conducted to determine factors related to returning to work. RESULTS We examined 174 survivors of oral cavity cancer, 55.2% of whom returned to work after treatment. Relative to survivors who returned to work, those who did not return to work reported needing greater tangible social support, having fewer positive social interactions, having poorer physical function, and having poorer social-emotional function. Multivariable analysis indicated that younger age (OR = 0.864, P < .05), higher family income (OR = 10.835, P < .05), sufficient tangible social support (OR = 0.943, P < .05), positive social interaction (OR = 1.025, P < .05), and better physical function (OR = 1.062, P < .05) were significantly associated with the return to work. CONCLUSIONS Survivors of oral cavity cancer who did not return to work had worse physical and social-emotional function and required more tangible social support and positive social interactions. Providing occupational rehabilitation and counseling for oral cavity cancer survivors may help them return to work.

Objective The purpose of this study of survivors of head and neck cancer was to evaluate the effects of a behavior change program and health education on depression, fear of social interactions, avoidance of social interactions, physical function, and social-emotional function. Methods This was a randomized controlled trial of 100 subjects, in which changes in the scores of several psychometric scales were recorded for an experimental group (behavior change program and health education) and a control group (routine care only). Assessments were performed at baseline (T0), and at 1 month (T1), 2 months (T2), and 3 months (T3) after completing the intervention. Results After the intervention, the experimental group reported significantly less fear of social interactions, less avoidance of social interactions, and better physical function than the control group. The experimental group also had less depression at T3 than at T0, although there was no such change in the control group. Analysis of physical function indicated that both groups experienced improvements from T0 to T1, slight declines from T1 to T2, and slight declines from T2 to T3; however, both groups had significantly better physical function at T3 than at T0. Conclusions Head and neck cancer patients who received a behavior change program and health education reported less fear of social interactions, less avoidance of social interactions, and improved physical function during the 3 months after this intervention.

Objective The purpose of this study of posttreatment oral cavity cancer (OCC) patients was to identify factors associated with self-reported overall body image, perceived attractiveness, and dissatisfaction with body appearance. Methods This cross-sectional study recruited patients with OCC from the outpatient radiation department of a single cancer center in Northern Taiwan. Demographic and clinical characteristics were recorded, and patients were assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS), the University of Washington Quality of Life Scale (UW-QOL), and the Body Image Scale (BIS). Results A total of 168 patients were included in this current study, 76 females and 92 males. Negative overall body image was associated with greater degree of depression, greater fear of social interactions, poorer social-emotional function, receipt of surgery, female gender, and greater avoidance of social interaction; these factors explained 49.0% of the variance in this outcome measure. Poor perceived attractiveness was associated with greater depression, greater fear of social interaction, and receipt of surgery; these factors explained 25.4% of the variance in this outcome measure. Dissatisfaction with body appearance was associated with poor social-emotional function, greater fear of social interaction, receipt of reconstruction, advanced cancer stage, and female gender; these factors explained 52.2% of the variance in this outcome measure. Conclusions This study of posttreatment OCC patients indicated that depression and fear of social interaction strongly influenced overall body image, perceived attractiveness, and dissatisfaction with body appearance.

BACKGROUND This study aimed to evaluate the role of baseline circulating tumor cells (CTCs) before and during concurrent chemoradiotherapy and attempted to determine the impacts of CTCs on the outcomes in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. METHODS CTCs were detected using a negative selection strategy and flow cytometry protocol. RESULTS We observed a significant correlation between baseline CTCs and staging (P = 0.001). The CTC counts were significantly reduced within 2-4 weeks in 47 concurrent chemoradiotherapy responders (P < 0.001). Change of CTC counts correlates with progression-free survival (PFS, P = 0.01) and overall survival (OS, P = 0.01). CTC decline status was an independent prognostic factor in PFS (P = 0.03) and OS (P = 0.05) in multivariate analyses. CONCLUSION In chemoradiotherapy responders, CTCs are significantly reduced. CTC decline within the first month indicates a longer PFS and OS, suggesting that the dynamics of CTCs could be more important than CTC number alone.

This study examined the effects of physical activity on working memory in older adults using both behavioral and neuroelectric measures. Older adults were assigned to either a higher or lower physical activity group, and event-related potentials were recorded during assessments of a modified Sternberg task. The results indicated that older adults in the higher physical activity group exhibited shorter response times, independent of the working memory load. Enhanced P3 and N1 amplitudes and a decreased P3 latency were observed in the higher physical activity group. These findings suggested that physical activity facilitates working memory by allocating more attentional resources and increasing the efficiency of evaluating the stimulus during the retrieval phase as well as engaging more attentional resources for the early discriminative processes during the encoding phase of a working memory task.

Aim The objective of this study was to investigate the mechanisms underlying the deficit in visuospatial working memory (VSWM) seen in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and to compare brain activity while performing a VSWM task in children with DCD and typically developing children. Method Behavioural performance and event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded in 24 children (12 males, 12 females; mean age 139mo, SD 4mo) with DCD (as determined by a score