The
first two of these decision aids were evaluated in a small pilot study. Choice of operation, knowledge and decisional conflict and satisfaction were compared with outcomes in an historical control group.
Results:
Women reported favorably on the decision aids. The numbers in the pilot group were too small to allow definitive conclusions to be drawn, but suggested a possible reduction in decisional conflict, and possibly increase in decisional satisfaction, knowledge and choice of axillary Epacadostat solubility dmso clearance (rather than sentinel node biopsy) in the intervention group.
Conclusion:
These decision aids could improve decision making for the surgical treatment of early breast cancer. A prospective randomized, control trial is needed to further evaluate the impact of these decision aids, particularly in the case of nodal surgery.”
“Purpose: To investigate changes in hippocampal functional connectivity and structural measures of hippocampal damage in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with intact spatial memory, a cognitive domain frequently affected in progressive MS.
Materials and Methods: The study protocol was approved by the institutional
ethics review board; all subjects gave written informed consent prior to participation. Twenty-five MS patients with intact spatial memory function were compared with 30 age-and sex-matched controls. Hippocampal JQ1 volume differences, based on manually drawn masks, were evaluated by using the Student t test. Additionally, focal hippocampal
lesions and mean diffusivity were obtained as descriptive measures of structural hippocampal damage. Multiple regression analyses of the resting-state functional magnetic resonance (MR) imaging data were performed for each subject by using hippocampal time series. Between-group analyses were conducted with a mixed-effects model, corrected for multiple comparisons by a cluster defining threshold level of z = 2 and a corrected cluster size Epigenetics inhibitor significance level of P < .05.
Results: Right hippocampal volume was significantly lower in MS patients as compared with controls (P < .01). Left hippocampal volume was also lower in MS patients compared with controls, but not significantly so (P = .09). Resting-state functional connectivity between the hippocampus and its anatomic input or target areas, including the anterior cingulate gyrus, thalamus, and prefrontal cortex, were significantly decreased in MS patients. Decreased hippocampal functional connectivity was more pronounced in a subgroup of MS patients with hippocampal atrophy, although subtle decreases of functional connectivity were also found in patients with normal hippocampal volume.
Conclusion: In MS patients, substantial abnormalities of hippocampal functional connectivity are already present before spatial memory function is impaired, especially in those patients with more pronounced hippocampal atrophy.