Recent genome-wide association studies of schizophrenia reported a novel risk variant, rs2312147 at vaccinia-related kinase 2 gene (VRK2), in multiple Asian and European samples. However, its effect on the brain structure in schizophrenia is little known. We analyzed the brain structure of 36 schizophrenia patients and 18 healthy subjects with regard to rs2312147 genotype groups. Brain magnetic...

AIM To determine the change in cognitive function in very elderly men with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) over a 3-year period relative to age-and education-matched controls. METHODS In this hospital-based, prospective case-control study, we evaluated a consecutive series of 110 very elderly men with COPD and 110 control subjects who were hospitalized between January and Decembe...

Data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey were used to calculate weighted norms for the written version of the Symbol Digits Modalities Test (SDMT) by gender, 5-year age groups and four levels of educational attainment. The sample comprised 14,456 Australians (47% male; age range 15-100), of whom 25% reported a tertiary qualification, 30% reported a technic...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) as a tool for identifying pediatric-onset MS patients at risk for cognitive impairment. BACKGROUND The SDMT is a brief measure of cognitive processing speed that is often used in adult MS patients. Approximately one-third of pediatric-onset MS patients have cognitive impairment and there is a need for an effective screening instrum...

BACKGROUND Recent evidence shows that functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can detect activation in white matter (WM). Such advances have important implications for understanding WM dysfunction. A key step in linking neuroimaging advances to the evaluation of clinical disorders is to examine whether WM activation can be detected at the individual level during clinical tests associated w...

background and aim: the double dichotic digit test (ddt) is a simple test for assessing and screening auditory processing system. the purpose of this study was to develope a double ddt, in persian language and find its basic norm values in girls aged 7 to 11 years. methods: the persian version of double ddt is composed of 3 different 25 numerical lists. numbers in each list were recorded dichot...

Cognitive decline occurs with age and may be slowed by dietary measures, including increased intake of dietary phytochemicals. However, evidence from large and long-term studies of flavonol intake is limited. Dietary intakes of flavonols were assessed from a large biracial study of 10,041 subjects, aged 45-64, by analysis of a food frequency questionnaire administered at visit 1 of triennial vi...

BACKGROUND Sex differences may exist in cognitive faculties and neuromuscular strategies for maintaining joint stability. The purpose of this study was to assess whether preparatory and reactive knee stiffening strategies are affected differently in males and females exposed to sex-biased cognitive loads. METHODS 20 male and 20 female volunteers were tested for knee joint stiffness and quadri...

Recent evidence has demonstrated the importance of kidney function in healthy aging. We examined the association between kidney function and change in cognitive function in 3,907 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study who were recruited from 4 US communities and studied from 1992 to 1999. Kidney function was measured by cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFRcys). C...