Long lasting musical training modifies language processing: a Dichotic Fused Word Test study

Musical training modifies neural areas associated with both music and language and enhances speech perception and discrimination by engaging the right hemisphere regions classically associated with music processing. On these bases we hypothesized that participants with extended musical training could have reduced left-hemisphere dominance for speech. In order to verify this hypothesis, two groups of right-handed individuals, one with long-term musical training and one with no musical training, participated to a Dichotic Fused Word Test consisting in the simultaneous presentation of different pairs of rhyming words and pseudo-words, one to the left ear and one to the right one. Participants typically show a greater number of reports of the right ear input than of the left one. This effect, called right ear advantage (REA), reflects left-hemisphere dominance for speech processing. In our study, we expected that musicians had a reduced dichotic listening REA for linguistic stimuli. The main result of this study was the attenuation, and in some cases the complete suppression, of the dichotic effect in musicians, since most of them perceived both words, simultaneously. This finding suggests that both hemispheres may have similar verbal competence and contribute to speech processing in parallel. This contrasts with the normal brain organization in which hemispheres cooperate but are engaged in different analysis of speech. The "two words" perception also extended to pseudo-words. Thus, musical training, by shaping the language circuits, could produce the enhancement of bilateral processing of stimuli with linguistic characteristics (i.e. phonetics) independently of semantics.

Laparoscopic treatment of colovesical fistulas due to complicated colonic diverticular disease: a systematic review

Colovesical fistulas originating from complicated sigmoid diverticular disease are rare. The primary aim of this review was to evaluate the role of laparoscopic surgery in the treatment of this complication. The secondary aim was to determine the best surgical treatment for this disease. A systematic search was conducted for studies published between 1992 and 2012 in PubMed, the Cochrane Register of Controlled Clinical Trials, Scopus, and Publish or Perish. Studies enrolling adults undergoing fully laparoscopic, laparoscopic-assisted, or hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery for colovesical fistula secondary to complicated sigmoid diverticular disease were considered. Data extracted concerned the surgical technique, intraoperative outcomes, and postoperative outcomes based on the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Review Group's template. Descriptive statistics were reported according to the PRISMA statement. In all, 202 patients from 25 studies were included in this review. The standard treatment was laparoscopic colonic resection and primary anastomosis or temporary colostomy with or without resection of the bladder wall. Operative time ranged from 150 to 321 min. It was not possible to evaluate the conversion rate to open surgery because colovesical fistulas were not distinguished from other types of enteric fistulas in most of the studies. One anastomotic leak after bowel anastomosis was reported. There was zero mortality. Few studies conducted follow-up longer than 12 months. One patient required two reoperations. Laparoscopic treatment of colovesical fistulas secondary to sigmoid diverticular disease appears to be a feasible and safe approach. However, further studies are needed to establish whether laparoscopy is preferable to other surgical approaches.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy under local anaesthesia versus general anaesthesia: reliability and cost-effectiveness analysis in 153 patients with malignant melanoma

AIM

The aim of our study was to evaluate feasibility, reliability and cost-benefit balance of sentinel node (SN) biopsies conducted under local anaesthesia (LA) in patients affected by stage I-B or II cutaneous melanoma.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A retrospective analysis was carried out in 153 patients, evaluating the number of harvested lymph nodes, perioperative and postoperative complications, operating time and operating room costs, comparing interventions under LA and general anaesthesia (GA). Operations were carried out under LA in 112 cases (73%) and under GA in the remaining 41(27%).

RESULTS

The mean number of removed SN was overall higher in the GA group but was not significantly different under LA with respect to the subgroups of axillary biopsies. No difference was noted in the number of complications. Operating time was significantly shorter under LA, with significantly lower costs.

CONCLUSION

LA for groin and axillary SN biopsies can be a reliable and effective alternative to GA in melanoma patients, with shorter operating time, lower costs and without the side-effects and risks associated with GA.

Fear-object perception: does it entail the involuntary capture of attention?

The idea that fearful stimuli are automatically detected i.e. without attention, is challenged by the hypothesis that detection of threatening stimuli is facilitated by the involuntary, stimulus-driven recruitment of attentional resources. In order to clarify this question, we studied spiders detection in arachnophobic individuals by means of an iconic version of the Attentional Blink Task (AB). The experiment consisted of two tasks: 1) Probe detection within a rapid sequence of distractors, including a Critical Distractor (CD); 2) Probe detection and identification of the CD (Target). In this case, the close temporal proximity of CD-Target and Probe typically produces the so-called AB effect, that is the decrease of Probe visibility, due to competition for limited attentional resources. In both tasks, CD-Target was either a spider (50%) or an innocuous animal shape (50%), and Probe (a rabbit icon) was presented at one out of 3 possible lags from the CD-Target. At lag I (100 ms), arachnophobics, at difference with controls, exhibited an AB effect also when the spider was the CD to be ignored. Moreover, Probe detection scores were inversely correlated with spider recalls at lag I. In conclusion, our findings contrast the automatic view of threat detection, and support an attention capturing mechanism automatically driven by the fearful connotation of the stimulus.

HIV bio-behavioural survey among men who have sex with men in Barcelona, Bratislava, Bucharest, Ljubljana, Prague and Verona, 2008-2009

Data from 23 European countries show that the annual number of HIV diagnoses in men who have sex with men (MSM) increased by 86% between 2000 and 2006. This paper reports the main preliminary results of a bio-behavioural survey in MSM with a specific focus on HIV prevalence and use of United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) indicators in six cities in Southern and Eastern Europe. Time-location sampling (TLS) was used. A total number of 2,356 questionnaires and 2,241 oral fluid samples were collected (invalid samples 4.1%). The data show different socio-demographic patterns across countries regarding age, level of education, living conditions, living area and self-identity. Southern European cities had the highest percentage of people who had tested for HIV and collected the result. More than 50% of respondents in the sample from Barcelona reported having used a condom last time they had anal sex (57.2%), whilst in all other cities this proportion was below 50%. The cities with the highest HIV prevalence in MSM were Barcelona (17.0%) and Verona (11.8%) whilst lower percentages were reported in Bratislava (6.1%), Bucharest (4.6%), Ljubljana (5.1%) and Prague (2.6%). The low prevalence in Eastern European cities is encouraging. However, with the level of high-risk sexual behaviour documented and the lower frequency of HIV test seeking behaviour, there is a clear risk of an increase in HIV transmission.

Be(a)ware of spider! An attentional blink study on fear detection

We investigated whether detection of fearful stimuli is independent from attention by using an iconic version of the Attentional Blink Task in arachnophobic individuals. A colored animal icon (Target) and a black spider or butterfly icon (Probe) appeared in close temporal proximity within a stream of distractors, at one of 4 possible time lags. In one task, Probe detection was required; in another one, Target identification was also requested. In this case, competition for attentional resources produces the so-called AB effect, that is the decrease of Probe perception as a function of lag. During spider-Probe detection, arachnophobics showed a reduced AB effect with respect to the butterfly-Probe session. Their spider detection scores were also greater than ratings obtained by non-phobic controls with both Probe types. Thus, fear appears to enhance the probability of consciously perceiving the stimulus even when attention is engaged by a previous demanding event. One may assume that spider-Probe is scarcely attention demanding because detection of threat in arachnophobics is increased by rapid amygdala activation of visual areas and/or facilitated by a strong arousal-induced noradrenergic cortical input. Alternatively, an attention capturing mechanism involuntary triggered by the phobic meaning of the stimulus could be hypothesized.

Manipulation of attention in highly and low hypnotizable individuals: a study on verbal priming

This study investigated the effects of manipulation of attention on verbal priming in highly (Highs) and low (Lows) hypnotizable individuals. Priming was evaluated via the word-stem completion task (WSCT). The experimental paradigm consisted of one condition in full-attention and in two conditions with colored words in which attention was directed, respectively, only to the color and to both color and word. No significant differences between Highs and Lows were found in none of the three attentional conditions. However, during encoding in full-attention, Highs showed shorter reaction times (RTs) than Lows. This is in accord with previous evidence of faster simple and choice RTs in Highs than in Lows, and suggests hypnotizability-related differences in arousal, likely driven by a different cognitive control activity. Also, Highs' self-report of interference of color-naming on word-reading suggests possible differences between Highs and Lows in cognitive activity related to mental effort.

Hypnotizability and spatial attentional functions

Many theories of hypnotic responding have proposed that differences in hypnotic trait rely on differences in frontal attentional functions. Evidence of hypnotizability-related attentional abilities are, however, very scant. This study was designed to investigate the relationship between hypnotizability and executive control components of attention in the spatial domain. We chose the Attention Network Test that enables to analyze alerting, orienting and executive control functions by measuring reaction times (RTs) to targets cued for different locations in space. According to Posner theory, alerting, orienting and executive control effects were found in both groups. No differences between highly susceptible (Highs) and low susceptible individuals (Lows) on executive control functions were found. However, in Highs alerting was significantly smaller than in Lows and Highs were significantly faster than Lows in the no and central cue conditions. These findings suggest that Highs would be endowed with a basal higher efficiency in achieving and maintaining their readiness to respond to incoming stimuli. This relation between hypnotizability and alerting, is discussed in terms of a possible more efficient noradrenergic activity driven by frontal attentional systems.

[Development of the steady-state cortical visual evoked response in children]

Steady-state VEPs responses (pattern reversal stimulation) have been studied by the application of frequency analysis with Fourier methods. Authors examined with this method a group of children aged from 4 to 12 years, without ophthalmological or neurological pathologies. Responses evaluation is based on the number of harmonic frequency components and also on the power spectra of the first two components. Frequency analysis shows a well proportioned responses development that can be considered as a good index of visual function growth.