Validation and cultural adaptation of a Greek Version of Pediatric Eating Assessment Tool 10 (PEDI - EAT - 10) in Greek-Cypriot Parents

PURPOSE

The Pediatric Eating Assessment Tool (PEDI-EAT-10) is a parents/caregivers screening tool that assesses pediatric patients at risk of penetration and/or aspiration symptoms. The aim of this study was the validation of PEDI-EAT-10 in the Greek language.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 222 parents/caregivers of children with (n = 122) and without (n = 100) feeding and/or swallowing disorders, with age range 3 - 12 years. The children were selected from Cypriot schools and health settings. All parents filled out the PEDI-EAΤ-10 questionnaire and after its initial completion, it was re-administered after 2 weeks.

RESULTS

A statistically significant difference was observed in the PEDI-EAT-10 total mean scores between the study's two groups [t (220) = 9.886, p < 0.001]. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach's alpha= 0.801) with very good split-half reliability equal to 0.789. A significant and strong test-retest reliability was computed (r = 0.998, p < 0.001). The PEDI-EAT-10 cutoff point was 11.00 (AUC: 0.869, p < 0.001) for children with feeding and/or swallowing disorders in accordance with the PAS scale.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, the Greek version of PEDI-EAT-10 is shown to be a valid and reliable screening tool for the assessment of the pediatric population with a risk of dysphagia.

The Processing of Lexical Ambiguity: Evidence from Child and Adult Greek

The aim of the study is to examine the effect of sentential context on lexical ambiguity resolution in Greek adults and typically developing children. Context and word frequency are factors that can affect lexical processing, however, the role of them has not been thoroughly examined in Greek. To this aim, we assessed sentence context effects in homonym meaning activation in monolingual speakers of Greek, children and adults, using a cross-modal priming paradigm. Additionally, all participants conducted a verbal working memory task and an inhibition task so as to examine whether the use of sentential context for lexical ambiguity resolution relates to age and/or cognitive processing capacity. The data analysis showed (a) major processing differences between adults and children due to ambiguity and sentential context, (b) children's processing times affected by cognitive skills while adults' processing unaffected, and (c) visual word recognition intact for all participants.

Discrimination of Second Language Vowel Contrasts and the Role of Phonological Short-Term Memory and Nonverbal Intelligence

Although extensive research has focused on the perceptual abilities of second language (L2) learners, a significant gap persists in understanding how cognitive functions like phonological short-term memory (PSTM) and nonverbal intelligence (IQ) impact L2 speech perception. This study sets out to investigate the discrimination of L2 English monophthongal vowel contrasts and to assess the effect of PSTM and nonverbal IQ on L2 speech perception. The participants consisted of adult monolingually-raised Greek speakers, who completed an AX discrimination test, a digit span test, and a nonverbal intelligence test. A control group of English speakers also completed the AX test. Data were analyzed using Bayesian regression models. The results revealed that Greek speakers exhibited below chance discrimination for the majority of L2 vowel contrasts, consistently underperforming in comparison to the control group. Intriguingly, the study did not provide substantial evidence in favor of more accurate discrimination of L2 contrasts by Greek participants with high PSTM compared to those with low PSTM. However, the study yielded compelling evidence indicating that Greek participants with higher IQ demonstrated superior accuracy in discriminating most L2 contrasts compared to their lower IQ counterparts. The limited influence of PSTM on speech perception suggests the need for further exploration, considering the potential impact of test methodologies and the intricate interplay of other confounding factors. Furthermore, the study uncovers a noteworthy relationship between nonverbal IQ and L2 speech perception, likely linked with the association of high IQ with enhanced attentional capacities, information processing abilities, and learning skills-all of which are pivotal for accurate speech perception.

Temporal, spectral and amplitude characteristics of the Greek fricative /s/ in hearing-impaired and normal-hearing speech

Fricatives, and especially sibilants, are very frequently misarticulated by speakers with hearing loss. Misarticulations can result in phonemic contrast weakening or loss, compromising intelligibility. The present study focuses on the examination of acoustic characteristics of the Greek alveolar fricative /s/, an articulatorily demanding sound, produced by young adult speakers with profound hearing impairment and with normal hearing. An array of variables was examined using mixed-effects and random forest models aiming to assess the effectiveness of various measures in differentiating hearing-impaired and normal-hearing /s/ production. Significant differences were found in spectral and amplitude measures, but not in temporal measures. In hearing-impaired speech, spectral slope and RMS amplitude had significantly lower values, indicating a more distributed spectrum, suggestive of decreased flow velocity through the fricative constriction. Also, a trend for concentration of energy at lower frequencies was observed suggesting more posterior fricative articulation than normal. Moreover, measures capturing the variation of frequency and amplitude over time revealed different patterns of sibilance development across time than normal, denoting the production of a less well-formed or less sibilant /s/ by speakers with hearing impairment. The investigation of contextual effects on /s/ in hearing-impaired speech showed increased spectral variance, negative skewness and lower kurtosis in the labial (rounded) context /u/ in relation to the nonlabial contexts /i/ and /a/, indicating a more diffuse, less compact spectrum with concentration at high frequencies. Findings are discussed in relation to previous literature on fricative production by speakers with hearing impairment and normal hearing in Greek and other languages.

The interaction between Greek affiliation and religiosity on problem drinking in college students

Objective: Greek affiliation is associated with increased problem drinking in college, while religiosity typically offers protective benefits. The current study examined the interaction between Greek status and religiosity-both public (e.g., religious attendance) and private (e.g., prayer frequency)-on problem drinking. Participants and Methods: Undergraduates (N = 477) completed an online survey battery in late spring 2019, at the end of their freshman year. Results: Analyses focused on prayer frequency were not significant; however, the two-way interaction between Greek affiliation and religious attendance was significant. There was no difference in problem drinking across Greek and non-Greek students when religious attendance was low. As frequency of religious attendance increased, Greek students engaged in increased problem drinking compared to non-Greek students. Conclusions: Greek involvement may undermine the protective authority of religious practices on problem drinking, in part through moral licensing, whereby morally sound behaviors (i.e., religious attendance) may justify past or future problem drinking.

Speech disfluencies in bilingual Greek-English young adults

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to investigate the frequency and types of disfluencies in Greek-English bilingual adults across naturalistic speech samples and compare frequency and types of disfluencies between the participants' L1 and L2.

METHODS

Participants in the study included 26 Greek-English bilingual young adults. All participants were sequential bilinguals, whose first language was Greek and second language was English. Two speech samples were collected in each language, a conversational and a narrative sample, which were subsequently analyzed for the frequency and types of disfluencies.

RESULTS

Results indicated that participants produced more typical disfluencies in English compared to Greek across speaking samples. The most frequent types of disfluencies were filled pauses and vowel prolongations (without tension or struggle) across speaking samples and languages.

CONCLUSION

Our results revealed differences in the types and frequencies of disfluencies produced in participants' native compared to their second language. Results add to the growing body of literature addressing the manifestation of speech disfluencies in bilingual speakers.

Translation and cultural adaptation of the Greek integrated palliative care outcome scale (IPOS): challenges in a six-phase process

AIM

To translate and culturally adapt IPOS to the Greek population.

METHODS

A four phases- sequential study, which included verification of conceptual equivalence, double forward- backward translations and conceptual cognitive debriefing. Focus group interviews used 'think aloud' and 'verbal probing' techniques. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed using predefined categories. Purposely sampled from two oncology and palliative care units in Athens.

RESULTS

The Integrated Palliative Care Outcome Scale was well accepted by both patients and health professionals. Overall comprehension and acceptability of the scale were good. The comprehension and judgement challenges identified in the pre-final version were successfully resolved in the cognitive interviewing phase. Five out of the seventeen translated items of the scale were modified after cognitive debriefing. Comprehension difficulties were identified with specific terms (e.g., energy/feeling depressed) and with some answer options. Severity of symptoms and not their impact was a common difficulty. A judgement challenge was reported in relation to 7-days recall and fluctuation of symptoms. Layout concerns in relation to length of questions were also stated. All questions were considered important and none as inappropriate.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrated face and content validity and acceptability of the Integrated Palliative Care Outcome Scale in the Greek context. Cognitive Interviewing proved valuable in refining concepts within the specific cultural context.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

The IPOS outcome measure tool is now being used routinely in a palliative care service in Athens and is currently used to evaluate service outcomes.

Domain Specific and Cross Domain Associations between PASS Cognitive Processes and Academic Achievement

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of intelligence-operationalized in terms of Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive (PASS) processing skills-in reading and mathematics. Two hundred and forty-two Grade 6 Greek-speaking students (114 boys and 128 girls, Mage = 135.65 months, SD = 4.12 months) were assessed on PASS processes, speed of processing (Visual Matching), reading (Wordchains and CBM-Maze), and mathematics (Mathematics Achievement Test and Mathematics Reasoning Test). The results of the hierarchical regression analyses showed that, after controlling for family's socioeconomic status and speed of processing, Attention and Successive processing predicted reading and Planning and Simultaneous processing predicted mathematics. Taken together, these findings suggest that different PASS processes may account for individual differences in reading and mathematics.

Psychometric Properties of the Greek Version of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10) in a Sample of Nurses

Resilience has been defined as one's ability to maintain a mental health state and overall well-being when undergoing grave stress or facing significant adversity. Numerous resilience-investigating research tools have been developed over the years, with the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), a self-rated tool presenting valuable psychometric properties, remaining one of the most prominent. We aimed to translate and validate the brief CD-RISC-10 in a convenience sample of 584 nurses in Greece's secondary and tertiary health care system. We conducted a confirmatory factor analysis and known-groups validity test and estimated the reliability of the CD-RISC-10. Our confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the scale had a unifactorial structure since all the model fit indices were very good. Moreover, the reliability of the CD-RISC-10 was very good since the acquired Cronbach's alpha and McDonald's omega were 0.924 and 0.925, respectively. Therefore, the Greek version of the CD-RISC-10 confirmed the factor structure of the original scale and had very good validity and reliability.

Associations of ARMS2 and NR3C2 genes polymorphisms with central serous chorioretinopathy in a Greek population

BACKGROUND

Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) is characterized by serous detachment of the central neurosensory retina and it is one of the most common retinal disorders. Various genetic polymorphisms have been associated with CSCR development.

METHODS

The aim of our study was to investigate the potential association between ARMS2 (rs10490924) and NR3C2 (rs2070951 and rs5522) genes polymorphisms and CSCR development in a well defined Greek cohort for the first time in literature. We enrolled, in our case-control study, 48 CSCR patients and 137 controls. The ARMS2 (rs10490924) and NR3C2 (rs2070951 and rs5522) genes polymorphisms were analyzed using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) assays.

RESULTS

In our study, we found significant associations between ARMS2rs10490924 and NR3C2rs2070951 single nucleotide polymorphisms and CSCR development. Specifically, the GTrs10490924 genotype frequency of the ARMS2 gene was found to be significantly associated with risk of CSCR and T allele of rs10490924ARMS2 gene was also found to increase risk for CSCR. The genotype frequency GC and CC of rs2070951NR3C2 gene were observed more frequently in CSCR patients than controls and C allele of rs2070951NR3C2 gene was also observed more frequently in CSCR patients than controls. Rs5522 of NR3C2 gene polymorphism was not found to be significantly associated with CSCR.

CONCLUSION

Our findings showed, for the first time in a Greek population, that SNPs in the ARMS2 and NR3C2 genes are significantly associated with risk of CSCR. The results of this study support the involvement of extracellular matrix (ARMS2 gene) and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in the pathogenesis of CSCR.

Greek validation of the user version of the Mobile Application Rating Scale (uMARS)

OBJECTIVE

The original user version of the Mobile Application Rating Scale (uMARS) is an English-language questionnaire that was designed to allow non-expert app users to assess the quality of health apps. We aimed to translate into the Greek language and validate the uMARS.

METHODS

This was a qualitative prospective study. The World Health Organization translation process was followed and a readily available and free-of-charge app was used for the validation process. Internal consistency and reliability were tested twice within one month by 91 Greek medical students.

RESULTS

The total uMARS score showed excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.86). The internal consistencies of its subscales were also very high (engagement alpha = 0.71; functionality alpha = 0.71; aesthetics alpha = 0.67; information alpha = 0.63), with the notable exception of the satisfaction alpha, which was 0.61. The uMARS total score demonstrated almost perfect agreement levels in most of the subscales according to the r_WG index from baseline to 1 month.

CONCLUSIONS

The Greek uMARS is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the quality of mobile apps.

Psychometric properties of a Greek translation of the Functionality Appreciation Scale (FAS) in adults from the Republic of Cyprus

The Functionality Appreciation Scale is a widely used instrument for the measurement of an individual's appreciation of their body for what it can do and is capable of doing (i.e., functionality appreciation). In the present study, we examined the psychometric properties of a novel Greek translation of the FAS in Cypriot adults. A total of 448 women and 345 men from the Republic of Cyprus completed the FAS, as well as validated measures of body appreciation, appearance evaluation, and symptoms of disordered eating, and self-esteem. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a unidimensional model of FAS scores, with all 7 items retained. Scores achieved scalar invariance across gender, with the gender difference in FAS scores not reaching significance. FAS scores were also found to have adequate composite reliability and convergent (significant associations with body appreciation, appearance evaluation, and symptoms of disordered eating) and concurrent validity (significant associations with self-esteem). Finally, functionality appreciation predicted self-esteem once the effects of all other variables had been accounted for, supporting incremental validity. Overall, these results suggest that the Greek FAS is a psychometrically valid tool for the assessment of functionality appreciation in adults from Cyprus.

On the distribution and interpretation of voice in Greek anticausatives

This paper provides experimental evidence in support of the view that Greek does not have three productive morphological classes of anticausative verbs, but only two: the class of verbs that bear non-active voice morphology and the class of verbs that are morphologically active. Across two experiments, native Greek speakers are found to prefer for each anticausative verb either non-active or active voice morphological marking, in the presence or absence of explicit contextual information. It is also shown experimentally that native speakers prefer an interpretation that involves a specific cause for all anticausatives, especially when the existence of such a cause is favored by the contextual setting. Our empirical findings are consistent with the view that the Voice Phrase that is realized as non-active voice morphology in Greek anticausatives is expletive. From a theoretical perspective, we analyze the expletiveness of this Voice projection as the result of semantic redundancy: the Voice head of Greek anticausatives combines with a v head that encodes a redundant cause meaning component and is, therefore, interpreted merely as introducing an identity function.

Validation of the Greek Version of the State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS)

Both shame and guilt are self-conscious negative emotions claiming self-representations and self-awareness. Growing evidence indicates that these pessimistic emotions are associated to stress and stress-related disorders. The aim of this study was to translate and investigate the validity and reliability of the State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS) in a Greek adult population sample. A total of 181 adults (63% women) participated in the study. To validate the SSGS, correlations with the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were also examined. Exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the factors of the Greek version of the SSGS. In addition, for greater validity, comparisons were made according to sex, marital status and level of education. The reliability assessment revealed that the index of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was above the acceptable margin (0.7) for the three subscales (shame; 0.717, guilt; 0.770, pride; 0.874). The Greek version of the 15-item State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS) demonstrated good psychometric properties and could be proven useful for the assessment of shame, guilt, and pride.

Translation and Validation of the Influenza Vaccination Acceptance (MoVac-Flu) and Vaccination Advocacy (MoV-ad) Short Scales, in a Greek Sample of Health Professionals

Background and Purpose: To translate and validate the influenza vaccination acceptance (MoVac-flu) and vaccination advocacy (MoV-ad) scales, in a sample of Greek health professionals (HPs). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in eight representative secondary hospitals in Greece. A total of 296 HPs were administered the scales. Results: The internal consistency of the Gr-MoVac-flu and the Gr-MoV-ad scale was high, and Cronbach's alpha was .92 for each scale. The Gr-MoVac-flu and the Gr-MoV-ad scales are not unidimensional and demonstrated two-factor structures respectively. Conclusions: The MoVac-flu and the MoV-ad scale are highly convergent validity tools that could provide rich understanding of HPs' decision to uptake and to advocate for vaccination.

Psychometric properties of a Greek translation of the Intuitive Eating Scale-2 (IES-2) in adults from Cyprus

The construct of intuitive eating is commonly assessed using the 23-item, 4-factor Intuitive Eating Scale-2 (IES-2; Tylka & Kroon Van Diest, 2013). In this study, we assessed the psychometric properties of a novel Greek translation of the IES-2 in adults from Cyprus. In Study 1 (N = 626), an exploratory factor analysis indicated that the IES-2 should be conceptualized as consisting of six factors that showed complete invariance across women and men. Study 2 (N = 793), using exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM) and beifactor analysis (B-ESEM), indicated that the 6-factor B-ESEM model had adequate fit and evidenced complete invariance across sex once the correlated uniqueness of negatively worded IES-2 items was accounted for. This final model evidenced adequate composite reliability, and a global G-factor evidenced adequate convergent, concurrent, and discriminant validity. In contrast, the IES-2 S-factors showed more equivocal patterns of validity, with some S-factors showing less-than-adequate associations with body image variables, self-esteem, symptoms of disordered eating, and fruit and vegetable intake. In general, these results provide satisfactory evidence of the psychometric properties of the Greek IES-2 in adults from Cyprus, but also suggest that models of IES-2 scores may vary across national or cultural contexts.

Psychometric properties of the Greek version of Affective Lability Scale - Short Form (ALS-18) in a sample of adults with neurodevelopmental disorders

Affect dysregulation refers to maladaptive patterns of emotional regulation that impair daily life functioning, common in many psychiatric disorders. It is expressed with the form of affective lability, an emotional construct composed of frequent and intense fluctuations in emotion in response to both pleasant and unpleasant events or the interpretations of events. The Affective Lability Scale (ALS) is a widely used self-reporting questionnaire that measures the tendency of emotions to shift from one to another as well as their tendency to oscillate between depression and elation and between depression and anxiety. The original scale had 54 items, but a shorter form of 18-items (ALS-18) was created, with three domains: anxiety-depression shift, depression-elation shift and anger shift. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the ALS-18 Greek version. The translation was conducted by two of the authors. The study took place in the 1st Department of Psychiatry of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Eginition hospital. A sample of 108 adults was included in the survey in two groups, neurodevelopmental disorder group (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or autism spectrum disorder) and controls. They all completed ALS-18, The State - Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAIT), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The ALS-18 had satisfactory internal consistency; Cronbach's α value was 0.91 for the total scale and 0.89 for Anxiety/Depression, 0.86 for Depression/Elation and 0.85 for Anger. The three-factor structure was replicated in our data. The internal consistency reliability of all the ALS-18 factors in our study could be considered satisfactory with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.85 or above for all factors. Significantly higher mean values were found for all the subscales, Anxiety/Depression, Depression/Elation and Anger, in NDD subjects as compared to controls, showing good discriminative ability. The ALS factors discriminated well between clinical and non-clinical sample. The present study reveals that the Greek version of ALS-18 presents good psychometric properties, showing good internal consistency reliability as well as concurrent and discriminative validity. It has an elevated score in NDD and thus, our results indicate that affective lability could and maybe should, be a target integrated in therapeutic strategies.

Phonological delay of segmental sequences in a Greek child's speech

This paper investigates persistent elements of protracted phonological development (PPD) at ages 5;10 and 6;3 in a monolingual Greek girl's speech following earlier articulation intervention (3;6) and post-intervention assessment (4;3). The re-assessment data examined here, five months apart, were elicited using the Phonological Assessment for Greek (PAel). Results reveal interesting idiosyncratic patterns in the production of segmental sequences (VV, CC) in complex syllables and longer words, with a striking imbalance between singletons and sequences, which holds especially true for inconsistency in the acquisition of /ɾ/ across CV, CC, and C.C contexts. Phonological delay surfaces as chronological mismatches, idiosyncratic forms and, most notably, disparity between segmental and structural development.

Standardization of presurgical language fMRI in Greek population: Mapping of six critical regions

BACKGROUND

Mapping the language system has been crucial in presurgical evaluation especially when the area to be resected is near relevant eloquent cortex. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) proved to be a noninvasive alternative of Wada test that can account not only for language lateralization but also for localization when appropriate tasks and MRI sequences are being used. The tasks utilized during the fMRI acquisition are playing a crucial role as to which areas will be activated. Recent studies demonstrated that key language regions exist outside the classical model of "Wernicke-Lichtheim-Geschwind," but sensitive tasks must take place in order to be revealed. On top of that, the tasks should be in mother tongue for appropriate language mapping to be possible.

METHODS

For that reason, in this study, we adopted an English protocol that can reveal six language critical regions even in clinical setups and we translated it into Greek to prove its efficacy in Greek population. Twenty healthy right-handed volunteers were recruited and performed the fMRI acquisition in a standardized manner.

RESULTS

Results demonstrated that all six language critical regions were activated in all subjects as well as the group mean map. Furthermore, activations were found in the thalamus, the caudate, and the contralateral cerebellum.

CONCLUSION

In this study, we standardized an fMRI protocol in Greek and proved that it can reliably activate six language critical regions. We have validated its efficacy for presurgical language mapping in Greek patients capable to be adopted in clinical setup.

Validation of a Greek Sentence Repetition Task with Typically Developing Monolingual and Bilingual Children

This study provides a preliminary validation of a Greek Sentence Repetition Task (SRT) with a sample of 110 monolingual and bilingual typically developing (TLD) children and examines the test's ability to distinguish between Greek monolingual children and age-matched Albanian-Greek bilinguals using a Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) analysis. This is the first study to report on the psychometric evaluation of a Greek SRT and its discriminatory ability with typical populations. Since most language assessments are standardized with monolinguals and bilingual children tend to underperform on these compared to monolinguals, it is essential to establish the level of bilingual TLD children's ability on the same tests before moving on to diagnose language impairment in bilinguals. Results showed that the Greek SRT had very high validity and reliability scores, with Accuracy measures being more reliable than Grammaticality measures. The school-age monolingual and bilingual TLD children reached different cut-off scores on this task.

The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale: Translation and Validation in the Greek Language in Adolescents

Self-esteem constitutes a characteristic which can influence the person in many dimensions, depending on the perception positive or negative, which the individual has for himself/herself. The most usable tool for measuring self-esteem is the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES). In order to be validated in the Greek language in adolescents, the RSES was completed by 204 high school students, aged 12 to 18 years, at a private school in the suburbs of the region of Attica in Greece. Additional questionnaires were administered simultaneously, i.e., the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories, Third Edition (CFSEI-3) and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). The reliability and validity results of the RSES indicated satisfactory internal reliability index (Cronbach's a .89 and .80). The RSES showed good concurrent validity. Statistically significant relationships with academic performance and PANAS were observed. The Greek version of the RSES is short, easy to administer, and comprehensible by the teenagers and can be used for the measurement of self-esteem in adolescents in Greece.

The Epic of the Thalamus in Anatomical Language

Understanding the origin of Greek and Latin words used as metaphors to label brain structures gives a unique window into how scientific and medical knowledge was produced, preserved, and transmitted through generations. The history of the term thalamus exemplifies the complex historical process that led to the current anatomical terminology. From its first mention by Galen of Pergamon in the 2nd century A.D. to its definitive and current use by Thomas Willis in 1664, the thalamus had an epical journey through 1500 years across Europe, the Middle East, and the North of Africa. The thalamus was confusingly described by Galen, in the Greek language, as a chamber to the brain ventricles. The term thalamus was transferred from Greek to Syriac through the translations of Galen’s books done in Baghdad and also from Syriac to Arabic. Then, it was translated in Europe during the Middle Ages from the Arabic versions of Galen’s books to Latin. Later, during the Early Renaissance, it was translated again to Latin directly from the Greek versions of Galen’s books. Along this epical journey through languages, the term thalamus switched from referring to a hollow structure connected to brain ventricles to naming a solid structure at the rostral end of the brainstem. Finally, the thalamus was translated from Latin to modern languages, where it is used, until today, to name a nuclear complex of subcortical gray matter in the lateral walls of the third ventricle.

Variants in clock genes could be associated with lower risk of type 2 diabetes in an elderly Greek population

OBJECTIVES

Recent evidence has linked circadian rhythm dysregulation to an increased risk of metabolic disorders. This study explores a potential association between variation in genes regulating the endogenous circadian timing system (clock genes) and the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in a sample of Greek elderly people.

STUDY DESIGN

Variants within and upstream or downstream of PPARA, PPARD, CLOCK/TMEM165, PER1, PER2 and PER3 genes were genotyped in 716 individuals with T2D (A) and 569 normoglycemic controls (B), and allele frequencies were compared between the groups in a case control study design.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Samples were genotyped on Illumina Human PsychArray. Permutation test analysis was implemented to determine statistical significance. To avoid the possibility of subjects with prediabetes being included in the control group, people with HbA1c <5.7% and fasting glucose <100 mg/dl comprised group C (n = 393), for whom a separate analysis was performed (secondary analysis).

RESULTS

A protective role against T2D was identified for 14 variants in the PPARA gene. The rs7291444, rs36125344, rs6008384 in PKDREJ, located upstream of PPARA, and rs2859389 in UTS2, located upstream of PER3, demonstrated a protective role against T2D in both analyses. In contrast, rs6744132, located between HES6 and PER2, was positively correlated with T2D risk. Only in the secondary analysis, rs2278637 in VAMP2, located downstream of PER1, and rs11943456 in CLOCK/TMEM165 were found to confer protection against T2D. In a recessive model analysis of all groups, PPARD variants exhibited a protective role against disease.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest a possible implication of clock genes in T2D susceptibility. Further studies are needed to clarify the mechanisms that connect circadian rhythm dysfunction and T2D pathogenesis.

Geographical Characterization of Olive Oils from the North Aegean Region Based on the Analysis of Biophenols with UHPLC-QTOF-MS

Olive oil is famous due to the nutritional properties and beneficial health effects. The exceptional properties of virgin (VOO) and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) are credited to the bioactive constituents of their polar fraction, the phenolic compounds. The concentration and composition of biophenols can be influenced by the geographical origin, the cultivar, as well as several agronomic and technological parameters. In this study, an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole-time of flight tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF-MS) method was used to determine biophenols in Greek EVOOs from five islands originating from the North Aegean Region (Chios, Fournoi, Ikaria, Lesvos, and Samos) through target and suspect screening. In total, 14 suspect and 5 target compounds were determined in the analyzed EVOOs. The quantitative and semiquantitative results were compared to investigate discriminations between different regions. Significant differences were found between the islands based on the overall phenolic content and the concentration levels of individual compounds, as well. In the case of Lesvos, the territory was separated in subdivisions (zones), and each zone was studied individually.

The supralaryngeal articulation of stress and accent in Greek

It is well reported that articulatory movements comprising prominence units are longer, larger and faster than their non-prominent counterparts. However, it is unclear whether these effects arise at the level of lexical stress or accent or both, reflecting a hierarchy of prominence, i.e., being stronger when induced by accent as opposed to stress. It is also uncertain whether prominence-induced kinematic effects are invariant across positions of stress within the word, types of focus the accent denotes, and positions of words in the phrase. We conduct an electromagnetic articulography (EMA) study to assess the supralaryngeal kinematic correlates of prominence in Greek across three stress positions (antepenultimate, penultimate, ultimate; i.e., all possible stress positions in Greek), two accentual conditions (accented and de-accented) and two phrasal positions (phrase-medial and phrase-final). Focus type is also considered, with the accentual conditions coming from two types of focus (broad and narrow), while the de-accented conditions are by default unfocused. Our results indicate that stressed syllables involve longer, larger and faster gestures than their unstressed counterparts, regardless of the position of stress within the word. Notably, variation in velocity is accounted for by variation in displacement. Presence of accent does not further expand the stressed gestures, although it is related to minimal kinematic changes across the whole word, the exact profile of which depends on stress position. With the exception of final vowel duration, focus type is not systematically encoded in these kinematic effects. Finally, interactions are detected between the kinematic profile of prominence and that of boundaries. Implications of our findings for the hierarchy of prominence and cross-linguistic differences are discussed, and a gestural account of prominence and boundaries is put forward.

Validity and reliability of the Greek version of the semistructured Schedule Clinical Interview for personality disorders (SCID-II)

The semistructured Schedule of Clinical Interview for Personality Disorders (SCID-II) is a useful tool for measuring personality disorders according to DSM criteria. Personality traits and their assessment are culturally sensitive. Because of this, it is important for clinicians and researchers to have a clearer view of the performance of such instruments in their own culture. Despite the fact that the SCID-II interview has been translated to the Greek language, the psychometric properties of this version have yet to be tested. To address this need, we conducted this study to assess the validity and reliability of the SCID-II interview in its DSM-III-R version in the Greek population. A total of 32 patients, 13 men and 19 women, were involved in this study. Sixteen patients were interviewed three times by three different interviewers. The first two interviewers used the Greek version of the SCID-II, and the third interviewer used the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE), which was used as the gold standard. Of the remaining 16 patients, 14 were interviewed with the SCID-II by two interviewers, and 2 were unable to complete the interview and were excluded from the study. A total of 69 interviews were performed. The internal consistency of the interview was acceptable, with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.623. The SCID-II also demonstrated good reliability. Cohen's Kappa score ranged between 0.375 for histrionic disorder and 1.000 for defeatism and antisocial personality disorder. Pearson's correlation coefficient was also very strong for both the individual criteria score and the overall diagnosis between the interviewers. There was an exception for the not otherwise specified personality disorder, where there was no agreement in any of the reliability measures between the interviewers. The interview validity was high when measured against the gold standard. The specificity of the SCID-II ranged from 79-100%, with the expectation of not otherwise specified personality disorder being 66%. The overall sensitivity was moderate and ranged from 0-100%. The Greek version of the SCID-II is a reliable, valid and easy-to-use instrument that can be adopted by various mental health professionals for clinical as well as research purposes.

Outpatient Management of COVID-19 Disease: A Holistic Patient-Centered Proposal Based on the Greek Experience

Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has become a worldwide pandemic and affected more than 227 countries or territories, resulting in more than 179 million cases with over 3.890.00 deaths, as of June 25, 2021. The Hellenic Thoracic Society (HTS) during the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic released a guidance document for the management of patients with COVID-19 in the community and in hospital setting. In this review, with guidance the HTS document, we are discussing the outpatient management of COVID-19 patients, including the preventive measures, the patients' isolation and quarantine criteria of close contacts, the severity and risk stratification, including the decisions for advanced hospitalization, and the disease management at home in patients with mild disease and after hospital discharge for those with more severe disease.

Translation and Validation of the TANGO Nocturia Screening Tool into Greek

Purpose

The present study aimed to translate the Targeting the individual's Aetiology of Nocturia to Guide Outcomes Questionnaire (TANGO) into the Greek language to create TANGO-Gr. A relative reliability study in prospective samples of community dwellers and rehabilitation centre residents was undertaken in order to validate the translation. In terms of nocturia severity, these groups were considered to be representative of patients at both ends of the scale, and therefore suitable validation purposes.

Patients and Methods

The prospective descriptive study took place between 07 and 09/2020. Fifty residents in a rehabilitation centre and thirty-seven community dwellers were included in the study. All participants had more than one episode of nocturia per night. They were asked to complete the newly translated TANGO-Gr Questionnaire twice (test-retest procedure). TANGO-Gr includes three possible answers ("yes", "no", and "DK/NA") to facilitate increased validity. The study group evaluated the socio and demographic characteristics, the level of independence and the comprehensive frailty of all participants.

Results

Both groups satisfactorily completed questionnaire responses. The overall Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.753 (community-dwelling people: 0.776; rehabilitation centre residents: 0.531). A test-retest statistical analysis to determine reliability found an overall median Kappa of 0.88 (IQR: 0.79-0.94) in community dwellers and 0.91 (IQR: 0.84-1.00) in rehabilitation centre residents, thereby confirming an almost perfect respective agreement.

Conclusion

The validity of the newly translated TANGO-Gr Questionnaire was proven. It should be considered to be a reliable, self-administered screening tool suitable for clinical practice, and therefore invaluable for Greek-speaking people. The study also determined that certain environment-related variables may contribute to nocturia in rehabilitation centre populations, which is a finding which invites further study.

Cue reliability, salience and early comprehension of agreement: Evidence from Greek

Previous studies across languages (English, Spanish, French) have argued that perceptual salience and cue reliability can explain cross-linguistic differences in early comprehension of verbal agreement. Here we tested this hypothesis further by investigating early comprehension in Greek, where markers have high salience and reliability (compared to Spanish and English) predicting early comprehension, as in French. We investigated two and three-year-old Greek-speaking children's ability to distinguish third person singular and plural agreement in a picture-selection task. We also examined the frequency of these morphemes in child-directed speech to address input effects. Results showed that three-year-olds are sensitive to both singular and plural agreement, earlier than children acquiring English and Spanish, but later than French, and despite singular agreement being more frequent than plural agreement in the child corpus. These findings provide further support for the role of salience and reliability during early acquisition, while highlighting a potential effect of morpheme position.

"Greek KOOS-Child: a valid, disease specific, diagnostically accurate and responsive PROM in children with knee-related pathology"

PURPOSE

The Knee Injury Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS)-Child questionnaire is one of the frequently child-friendly measures used in pediatric studies. The aim of this study was to transculturally adapt the Greek version of KOOS-Child and evaluate its clinimetric properties in children with knee disorders.

METHODS

Children visiting the Outpatients Orthopaedic Clinic of a Greek Paediatric General Hospital were considered eligible if they were aged 8-14 years, had a knee soft tissue injury and associated physical limitations. The transcultural adaptation was based on a multistage backward translation approach. Participants completed the KOOS-Child at their first visit to the orthopedic specialist (baseline), 2 weeks and 3 months after baseline. Content validity of the KOOS-Child was evaluated using general QoL measures (KIDSCREEN and Kid-KINDL) and construct validity was explored by correlating relevant items. Responsiveness was evaluated according to the children's response on the given orthopeadic treatment.

RESULTS

Sample consisted of 59 children (30 males), aged: 11 ± 1.8 years. The KOOS-Child showed high internal consistency (Cronbach's a: 0.80-0.96). Adequate convergent validity with > 75% relevant a priori hypotheses was confirmed. Construct validity was moderate to strong (Pearson's r correlations between related KOOS and Kid-KINDL subdimensions: 0.54-0.62). KOOS and KIDSCREEN subdimensions correlations were fair (Pearson's r correlations: 0.32-0.65). KOOS-Child's diagnostic accuracy was high. Factor analysis extracted height factors accounting for 76.15% of the total variance, confirmed by the scree plot. Responsiveness was moderate to high with Cohen's d from 0.6 to 1.4.

CONCLUSION

The Greek version of the KOOS-Child demonstrated excellent internal consistency, good construct validity, diagnostic accuracy and interpretability as well as good responsiveness. The measure could be used across Greek children with orthopaedic knee problems. Generalisability of findings is limited due to the relatively limited cohort.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

II.

Comparison of the Greek Version of the Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment Screen and Standardised Mini-Mental State Examination

INTRODUCTION

Short cognitive screening instruments (CSIs) are widely used to stratify patients presenting with cognitive symptoms. The Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment (Qmci) screen is a new, brief (<5mins) CSI designed to identify mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which can be used across the spectrum of cognitive decline. Here we present the translation of the Qmci into Greek (Qmci-Gr) and its validation against the widely-used Standardised Mini-Mental State Examination (SMMSE).

METHODS

Consecutive patients aged ≥55 years presenting with cognitive complaints were recruited from two outpatient clinics in Greece. All patients completed the Qmci-Gr and SMMSE and underwent an independent detailed neuropsychological assessment to determine a diagnostic classification.

RESULTS

In total, 140 patients, median age 75 years, were included; 30 with mild dementia (median SMMSE 23/30), 76 with MCI and 34 with subjective memory complaints (SMC) but normal cognition. The Qmci-Gr had similar accuracy in differentiating SMC from cognitive impairment (MCI & mild dementia) compared with SMMSE, area under the curve (AUC) of 0.84 versus 0.79, respectively; while accuracy was higher for the Qmci-Gr, this finding was not significantly different, (p = .19). Similarly, the Qmci-Gr had similar accuracy in separating SMC from MCI, AUC of 0.79 versus 0.73 (p = .23).

CONCLUSIONS

The Qmci-Gr compared favorably with the SMMSE. Further research with larger samples and comparison with other instruments such as the Montreal Cognitive Assessment is needed to confirm these findings but given its established brevity, it may be a better choice in busy clinical practice in Greece.

Validation of the Empathy Quotient (EQ) - Greek version

The original English language Empathy Quotient (EQ) is a self-reporting questionnaire that measures the construct of empathy in adults of normal intelligence. The EQ is sensitive to gender, and neurodevelopmental disorders. The EQ has been translated to many languages all over the world. The EQ - Greek version may be available through open access from www.autismresearchcentre.com. Aim of the present study was to validate the EQ- Greek version.The study took place in the 1st and 2nd Departments of Psychiatry of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), "Eginition" and "Attikon" Hospitals respectively, and in the Korydallos Prison Psychiatric Clinic in Athens. Two groups completed the original 60 items version. One group consisted of general population and volunteer students from post graduate training programs (normal control group, N= 127) and the other group of patients recruited from the Adult Neurodevelopmental Disorders Unit of the 1st Department of Psychiatry of NKUA, the outpatients' clinic of the 2nd Department of Psychiatry of NKUA and the Korydallos Prison Psychiatric Clinic (patient group, N=196). Three versions of the EQ were examined: the EQ-40, EQ-28 and EQ-15. All versions showed very good internal validity: Cronbach's a value was 0.902, 0.892 and 0.793 respectively. They all showed good test-retest variability: the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient was 0.928, 0.924 and 0.855 respectively. Concurrent validity examined by the correlation analysis with the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) showed non-significant correlations between the EQ and the IRI. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) indicated a one-factor structure for the three versions. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) for the one-factor structure showed a good fit for all the three versions. CFA for the three-factor structures (Cognitive Empathy, Emotional Empathy, Social Skills) showed also a good fit for EQ-28 and the EQ-15. When the EQ-40 was used as a measure of empathy in a single dimension in adults, the EQ discriminated the normal control group from the patients' group. The mean EQ score for the total sample was 35.84 with the lowest scoring being among Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) patients. As expected, females scored higher than males (p<0.001). To conclude, the Greek version of EQ showed good psychometric properties and could serve as a useful tool for clinicians to assess empathy in clinical populations and especially in subjects with ASD and other neurodevelopmental disorders.

Status of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Greece and its Approach on COVID-19 Pandemic

Although acupuncture was first introduced to Greece in about 1938, it was not until 1973 that an institution was created to teach it, where its study was limited to medical doctors (MDs). Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was not taught to non-MDs until 2004. Even today, TCM has not been integrated into the Greek health system, and in a few exceptions, TCM was mainly associated with pain management. A few private schools teach TCM theory and practice in the fields of acupuncture, moxibustion, herbology, gua sha, and tui na (Chinese massage). This study examines the use of Chinese single herbs and formulas for prevention or treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic in Greece, as well as issues with the availability of Chinese herbs and proposals for substitutes from the traditional Greek medicine point of view.

Sequential motion rate and oral reading rate: normative data for Greek and clinical implications

INTRODUCTION

The aim of the present study was to provide normative data in Greek, regarding sequential motion rate (SMR) and oral reading rate (ORR), and to show the sensitivity of both tasks to predict Parkinson's disease (PD).

METHODS

The speech rate of sixty-five healthy control participants was recorded and analyzed using speech acoustics. The speech rate of a subsample of 20 healthy control participants was compared to the speech rate of 20 pair-matched dysarthric parkinsonian participants. All participants produced the syllables /pataka/ (SMR task) as quickly as possible and read aloud a standard Greek passage (ORR task).

RESULTS

In normative data, the mean score for the SMR variable was 4.91 syllables per second (SD = 0.73) and for the ORR variable was 4.42 syllables per second (SD = 0.87). The Mann-Whitney test showed significant differences between the two groups of participants in the SMR (U = 64.000, Z = -4.60, p < .001) and ORR (U = 77.000, Z = -4.36, p < .001). Multiple binary logistic regression analysis examined the combined effect of ORR and SMR on the occurrence of the disease. The sensitivity of both tasks to predict PD was found to be 0.88 and the specificity 0.90. The optimal screening cutoff point was found to be 4.66 syllables/second for the SMR task and 2.79 syllables/second for the ORR task.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provided Greek normative data in SMR and ORR tasks. Both tasks showed high sensitivity and specificity to predict PD in the Greek sample of participants.

Dyslexia in a consistent orthography: Evidence from reading-level match design

Studies in consistent orthographies using reading-level (RL) match design have produced conflicting results, possibly because of problems with general ability and RL matching in many studies. We matched the participants on both verbal and nonverbal ability and on reading tasks with no ceiling effects and compared the performance of Grades 4 and 6 Greek-speaking children with dyslexia to those of chronological age (CA) and RL matched control groups across a variety of tasks associated with dyslexia (phonological awareness, rapid naming, phonological memory, and orthographic processing). The results showed that although both Grade 4 and Grade 6 dyslexics performed poorer than the CA groups in most tasks, they did not perform poorer than the RL group in any of the tasks included. We conclude with a discussion of the theoretical ramifications of the results and the appropriateness of the RL match design in studying dyslexia in consistent orthographies.

Target and Suspect HRMS Metabolomics for the Determination of Functional Ingredients in 13 Varieties of Olive Leaves and Drupes from Greece

The huge interest in the health-related properties of foods to improve health has brought about the development of sensitive analytical methods for the characterization of natural products with functional ingredients. Greek olive leaves and drupes constitute a valuable source of biophenols with functional properties. A novel ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time of flight tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF-MS) analytical method was developed to identify biophenols through target and suspect screening in Greek olive leaves and drupes of the varieties: Koroneiki, Throumbolia, Konservolia, Koutsourelia, Kalamon, Petrolia, Amigdalolia, Megaritiki, Mastoeidis, Agouromanakolia, Agrilia, Adramitiani and Kolovi. The method's performance was evaluated using the target compounds: oleuropein, tyrosol and hydroxytyrosol. The analytes demonstrated satisfactory recovery efficiency for both leaves (85.9-90.5%) and drupes (89.7-92.5%). Limits of detection (LODs) were relatively low over the range 0.038 (oleuropein)-0.046 (hydroxytyrosol) and 0.037 (oleuropein)-0.048 (hydroxytyrosol) for leaves and drupes, respectively For leaves, the precision limit ranged between 4.7 and 5.8% for intra-day and between 5.8 and 6.5% for inter-day experiments, and for drupes, it ranged between 3.8 and 5.2% for intra-day and between 5.1 and 6.2% for inter-day experiments, establishing the good precision of the method. The regression coefficient (r²) was above 0.99 in all cases. Furthermore, the preparation of herbal tea from olive leaves is suggested after investigating the optimum infusion time of dried leaves in boiling water. Overall, 10 target and 36 suspect compounds were determined in leaves, while seven targets and thirty-three suspects were identified in drupes, respectively.

Cardiovascular risk factors among 3712 Greek seafarers

BACKGROUND

Global concern on seafarers' health and its potential cost is widely evident across the shipping industry. Seafarers are at increased cardiovascular risk since it is common to have risk factors associated with that risk such as hyperlipidaemia, obesity and smoking. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of the main risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), i.e. hyperlipidaemia, smoking and obesity, in Greek seafarers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

During pre-embarkation medical examination, seafarers undergo an interview with a physician, physical examination and laboratory tests. The parameters studied included hyperlipidaemia, identified as low density lipoprotein > 150 mg/dL, tobacco use or severe obesity, as defined by body mass index > 35 kg/m2.

RESULTS

A total of 3712 seafarers have been examined. Seafarers had overall rates of 3% hyperlipidaemia, 4% tobacco use and 0.2% severe obesity, with similar distributions in all age groups. Our study shows that Greek seafarers have lower risk for CVD, as low rates of obesity, tobacco use, and hyperlipidaemia are observed. The related literature is discussed. Unhealthy eating patterns are the rule and contribute to CVD. Shipping management could improve diet on board; however, smoking falls rather under individual control.

CONCLUSIONS

We conclude that, despite the low rates of hyperlipidaemia, smoking and obesity among Greek seafarers compared to other nations, campaigns for promoting awareness of the phenomenon and on the potential health impact of these conditions should be promoted.

A Comparison of the Greek ACE-III, M-ACE, ACE-R, MMSE, and ECAS in the Assessment and Identification of Alzheimer's Disease

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to adapt the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-III (ACE-III) and Mini-Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (M-ACE) into Greek and then to examine the convergent validity against their predecessors Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination-Revised (ACE-R) and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) in a Greek population. Moreover, a primary aim was to appraise the utility of each screen by conducting a comparison of the psychometric properties of ACE-III, M-ACE, ACE-R, MMSE, and the Edinburgh Cognitive and Behavioural Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Screen (ECAS) in detecting Alzheimer's disease (AD).

METHODS

Forty patients with AD were recruited and matched with 38 controls. Bayesian Pearson's correlation analysis was conducted to examine the convergent validity. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was implemented to appraise the sensitivity and specificity of the tests in detecting AD.

RESULTS

The ACE-III, M-ACE, and the ECAS scores robustly correlated with ACE-R and MMSE. The ACE-III and the ECAS-ALS Non-Specific score were the most sensitive and specific tools in detecting AD, closely followed by ECAS Total score and M-ACE. Only ECAS Total score correlated with the duration of disease. The ECAS scores were more resilient to ceiling effects than the other screens. M-ACE produced fewer ceiling effects than MMSE.

CONCLUSION

The Greek ACE-III and M-ACE were successfully adapted and showed good convergent validity against their predecessors. They showed very good psychometric properties in detecting AD and may be considered in hectic clinical settings. ECAS Total score and ECAS-ALS Non-Specific showed comparable psychometric properties in the detection of AD and may be considered in polypathological clinics where motor impairments are common.

Prokaryotic names: the bold and the beautiful

In recent years, names of ∼170 new genera and ∼1020 new species were added annually to the list of prokaryotic names with standing in the nomenclature. These names were formed in accordance with the Rules of the International Code of Nomenclature of Prokaryotes. Most of these names are not very interesting as specific epithets and word elements from existing names are repeatedly recycled. The rules of the Code provide many opportunities to create names in far more original ways. A survey of the lists of names of genera and species of prokaryotes shows that there is no lack of interesting names. The annotated selection presented here proves that at least some authors have exploited the possibilities allowed by the rules of the Code to name novel organisms in ways that are more attractive. I here call upon all colleagues who describe new taxa to devote more thought to the naming of new genera and species. It takes some effort, and it requires proper use of the lexicon of Classical Greek and Latin as well as an understanding of the Code and the guidelines of its orthography appendix. Creation of attractive names will boost the general interest in prokaryotic nomenclature.

Impaired Verb-Related Morphosyntactic Production in Multiple Sclerosis: Evidence From Greek

Background

A recent systematic review found that language deficits are not very common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). However, there are significant gaps in our knowledge about language abilities in MS. For instance, morphosyntactic production has not been explored adequately thus far. This study investigated verb-related morphosyntactic production in MS focusing on Greek, a morphologically rich language.

Methods

A sentence completion task tapping into the production of subject-verb agreement, time reference/tense, and grammatical aspect was administered to 39 Greek-speaking individuals with MS [25 individuals with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS group) and 14 individuals with secondary progressive MS (SPMS group)]. The task included only regular verbs. Generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to investigate the ability of individuals with MS to produce the above-mentioned morphosyntactic categories.

Results

Overall, the RRMS and SPMS groups performed significantly worse than their matched control groups. Moreover, all four groups performed significantly worse on grammatical aspect than on subject-verb agreement and time reference. The difference between subject-verb agreement and time reference was not significant in any of the four groups. The overall performances of the RRMS and SPMS groups did not differ significantly.

Conclusion

Individuals with MS are impaired in verb-related morphosyntactic production. Moreover, the pattern of performance of individuals with MS is identical to that exhibited by neurologically healthy individuals. Thus, the production performance of individuals with MS on verb inflection differs from that of healthy controls quantitatively but not qualitatively.

Phonological awareness and sonority in Greek children: developmental data and clinical perspectives

Phonological awareness is closely related to reading acquisition and it is often the focus of the therapy services provided by speech-language pathologists and special education teachers. In this study, we investigate whether sonority theory can account for the developmental patterns of phoneme awareness skills in Greek. To that end, 40 preschool and first grade children carried out an offline metaphonological task that involved the initial consonant deletion of two-consonant clusters. Overall, children's performance was in line with the sonority sequencing principle (SSP); consonant clusters that display a maximal rise in sonority were easier to manipulate compared to clusters with minimal sonority difference or SSP-violating clusters. Affricates generated the highest number of errors, a finding that strengthens the singleton status of /ts/ and /dz/ in Greek. Increased error rates were also found for /ps/, /pç/, /ks/, a fact attributed to both to their spelling and sonority characteristics. Conclusively, it is claimed that the developmental error patterns reported in this study can be used to inform appraisal and treatment protocols of phonological awareness in Greek, by organizing metaphonological tasks based on the presumed level of difficulty of the items tested and/or treated.

Case marking and word order in Greek heritage children

This study examined the linguistic and individual-level factors that render case marking a vulnerable domain in English-dominant Greek heritage children. We also investigated whether heritage language (HL) children can use case-marking cues to interpret (non-)canonical sentences in Greek similarly to their monolingual peers. A group of six- to twelve-year-old Greek heritage children in New York City and a control group of age-matched monolingual children living in Greece participated in a production and a picture verification task targeting case marking and (non-)canonical word order in Greek. HL children produced syncretic inflectional errors, also found in preschool monolingual children. In the comprehension task, HL children showed variable performance on the non-canonical OVS but ceiling performance on the SVO conditions, which suggests influence from English. Linguistic factors such as case transparency affected comprehension, whereas child-level factors such as proficiency and degree of (early) use of Greek influenced performance on both modalities.

Effects of parental input quality in child heritage language acquisition

This study investigates the role of parental input quality on the acquisition of Greek as a heritage language in Western Canada. Focusing on subject use, we tested four groups of Greek speakers: monolingual children, heritage children, and the parents of each one of those groups. Participants completed an elicited production task designed to elicit subject placement in wide focus and embedded interrogative contexts, where postverbal subjects are preferred/required in the monolingual variety. Results gave rise to two main conclusions: first, the parental input received by heritage children may be qualitatively different from the parental input received by monolingual children, in that it contains a higher rate of deviant preverbal subjects. Second, parental input quality in addition to quantity may affect the outcome of heritage language acquisition, in that children producing a higher rate of preverbal subjects had parents whose Greek input was not only quantitatively reduced, but also richer in preverbal subjects.

Gaucher disease: Biochemical and molecular findings in 141 patients diagnosed in Greece

Gaucher disease (GD) is characterized by a marked phenotypic and genetic diversity. It is caused by the functional deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme β-glucocerebrosidase (GCase), which in most instances results from mutations in the GBA1 gene and over 500 different disease causing mutations have been described. We present the biochemical and molecular findings in 141 GD cases (14 were siblings) with the three types of the disorder diagnosed in Greece over the last 35 years. 111/141 (78%) GD patients were of Greek origin. The remaining patients were Albanian (24/141; 17%), Syrian (2/141; 1.4%), Egyptian (2/141; 1.4%), Italian (1/141; 0.7%) and Polish (1/141; 0.7%). Mutation analysis identified 28 different mutations and 37 different genotypes. Seven of the mutations were not previously reported (T231I, D283N, N462Y, LI75P, F81L, Y135S and T482K). The most frequent mutations were N370S, D409H;H255Q and L444P. Mutation D409H;H255Q was only identified in Greek and Albanian patients. Sixteen mutations, including the novel ones, were identified only in one allele. Although the N370S mutation was identified only in type 1 patients, not all of type 1 patients carried this mutation. Our results highlight the heterogeneity of Gaucher disease and support the Balkan origin of the double mutant allele D409H;H255Q.

•

Gaucher disease in Greece has an incidence estimate of 2.8/100,000 births.

•

Mutation analysis in 125 patients identified 28 different mutations and 37 different genotypes.

•

Seven of the mutations were not previously reported: T231I, D283N, N462Y, LI75P, F81L, Y135S and T482K.

•

Mutation D409H;H255Q was only identified in Greek and Albanian patients.

Child perceptions questionnaire: translation, cultural adaptation and initial validation in a Greek adolescent population with malocclusion

PURPOSE

Several studies have shown that orthodontic anomalies may affect young people's Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL). The purpose the present study was to translate in the Greek language, culturally adapt and initially validate the CPQ_11-14 ISF-16 for a Greek adolescent population with malocclusion.

METHODS

Following relevant methodological recommendations, after translation, the comprehensiveness of the Greek version of CPQ_11-14 ISF-16 (CPQ_11-14 ISF-16-GR) was verified in a pilot study of 20 Greek adolescents. The main study was undertaken in a sample of 200 adolescents that presented for an initial consultation at the Postgraduate Orthodontic Clinic. Cronbach's alpha was used to test internal consistency/reliability and Spearman's rho for criterion validity with the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14). Forty individuals completed the same questionnaires again after 3 weeks. Test-retest reliability was assessed using Intraclass Correlation Coefficient. Statistical tests were undertaken using SPSS (v. 24, IBM Corp., NY, USA).

RESULTS

The CPQ_11-14 ISF-16-GR presented high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.848 > 0.70) and very satisfactory Discrimination Index (DI = 0.47 > 0.30). Moreover, the CPQ_11-14ISF-16 showed excellent criterion validity with OHIP-14 (rho = 0.719, p < 0.001). Test-retest reliability was at high levels as well (ICC = 0.719, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The CPQ_11-14 ISF-16-GR exhibits satisfactory psychometric properties to continue the investigation of OHRQoL in Greek adolescents with malocclusion. Further testing of is required in a variety of environments to increase generalizability and investigate the particular characteristics of CPQ application in malocclusion cases.

Phonology, morphology and speech processing development in Greek-speaking children

Α psycholinguistic framework for speech processing was adopted to investigate the development of phonological and morphological skills in children learning Greek. It was investigated whether morphological items pose specific challenges in terms of speech processing. Two groups of typically developing children aged 3.0-3.5 years (N = 16) and 4.6-5.0 years (N = 22), respectively, were assessed longitudinally at three assessment points 6 months apart. A range of phonologically based and morphologically based experimental speech processing tasks was administered to address the research question, along with language comprehension and production assessments to ensure that the children were developmentally typical. Stimuli of minimal phonological difference and minimal morphological difference, respectively, were used. Phonologically based experimental stimuli were used to assess performance differences across properties such as voicing, manner and place of articulation, in addition to variation in phonotactic structure. Morphologically based experimental stimuli were used to assess the impact of characteristics such as verb tense and possessive pronouns. Stimuli were incorporated into tasks of real word and nonword auditory discrimination and repetition, to assess input and output processing. Items were matched across tasks so that comparisons could be made. On most of the matched tasks, there was no significant difference in performance accuracy between morphological and phonological conditions. Moreover, a significant relationship was found between domains. It is suggested that morphological items, compared to phonological items, do not pose specific challenges in terms of speech processing. The clinical implications of these findings for assessment and intervention are discussed.

The Intonation and Pragmatics of Greek wh-Questions

We experimentally tested three hypotheses regarding the pragmatics of two tunes (one high-ending, one flat-ending) used with Greek wh-questions: (a) the high-ending tune is associated with information-seeking questions, while the flat-ending tune is also appropriate when wh-questions are not information-seeking, in which case their function can instead be akin to that of a statement; (b) the high-ending tune is more polite, and (c) more appropriate for contexts leading to information-seeking questions. The wh-questions used as experimental stimuli were elicited from four speakers in contexts likely to lead to either information-seeking or non-information-seeking uses. The speakers produced distinct tunes in response to the contexts; acoustic analysis indicates these are best analysed as L*+H L-!H% (rising), and L+H* L-L% (flat). In a perception experiment where participants heard the questions out of context, they chose answers providing information significantly more frequently after high-ending than flat-ending questions, confirming hypothesis (a). In a second experiment testing hypotheses (b) and (c), participants evaluated wh-questions for appropriateness and politeness in information- and non-information-seeking contexts. High-ending questions were rated more appropriate in information-seeking contexts, and more polite independently of context relative to their flat-ending counterparts. Finally, two follow-up experiments showed that the interpretation of the two tunes was not affected by voice characteristics of individual speakers, and confirmed a participant preference for the high-ending tune. Overall, the results support our hypotheses and lead to a compositional analysis of the meaning of the two tunes, while also showing that intonational meaning is determined by both tune and pragmatic context.

The Edinburgh cognitive and behavioral amyotrophic lateral sclerosis screen (ECAS): sensitivity in differentiating between ALS and Alzheimer's disease in a Greek population

Objectives: (1) Adapt the ECAS into Greek, validate it in ALS patients and compare with the ALS-CBS. (2) Determine the sensitivity and specificity of ECAS in the differentiation between AD and non-demented ALS patients as compared with the ACE-III and mini-ACE. Methods: ALS patients (n = 28) were recruited and AD patients (n = 26) were matched in age, sex, and education with ALS patients (n = 24). The normative data were derived from a random sample of controls (n = 52). Bayes correlation analysis was conducted to examine convergent validity. Bayes t-test was performed to assess between groups' differences. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analyses and area under the curve (AUC) were implemented to appraise the sensitivity and specificity in the differentiation between the AD and non-demented ALS patients. Results: The ECAS and its sub-scores in addition to the behavior interview demonstrated robust correlations with the ALS-CBS. Impairment in language and verbal fluency were the most prominent deficits in the ALS patients. The most frequently reported change was apathy. The ROC analysis demonstrated that the ECAS-ALS nonspecific score (comprising memory and visuospatial domains) is the most sensitive and specific in differentiating the AD from ALS patients. The other measures expressed high sensitivity, yet a poor specificity. Conclusions: The ECAS is a multi-purpose screening tool. The ECAS-ALS specific appraises the whole spectrum of the highly prevalent cognitive impairments in ALS. The ECAS-ALS nonspecific (memory and visuospatial) is a sensitive score to detect AD related deficits and is able to differentiate the AD from the non-demented ALS patients better than the ACE-III and mini-ACE.

The Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale: translation and cross-cultural validation into Greek

AIM

Cross-cultural adaptation of the Interaction with Disabled Persons Scale (IDPS) into Greek.

METHODS

The IDPS was forward and back-translated by two bilingual physiotherapists and a Greek-English translator, respectively. Greek-speaking health professionals provided modifications in order to develop the final version of the Scale. Health professionals filled in the Greek version of the IDPS and the Caring Behaviors Inventory (for criterion validity). The factors of the Greek IDPS were extracted as well. After 8-10 days, the scale was re-distributed to the same health professionals (test-retest reliability) and to a general population sample (discriminant validity).

RESULTS

Eighty-seven health professionals (36 ± 7.6 years) and 80 general population participants (44 ± 11.6 years) participated. There was a trend for the Greek IDPS variability to predict the variability of the Caring Behaviors Inventory (r² = 0.05; p = 0.054), but the coefficient of determination was low. An explanatory factor analysis extracted four factors explaining 66.66% of the total variance, confirmed by reliability analysis. The health care professionals had a significantly lower score than the general population in the Greek IDPS (mean difference: -11.0; confidence interval: -7.3 to -14.7), indicating familiarisation with the management of people with disability. The scale reliability and internal consistency were excellent; ICC_(2,1) = 0.92 (confidence interval: 0.87-0.95) and Cronbach's α = 0.96 respectively. No ceiling or floor effects were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Substantial validity and reliability were observed for the Greek IDPS to assess Greek health professionals' attitudes towards people with disabilities.Implications for rehabilitationThe Greek IDPS version was shown to be comprehensible, and has demonstrated a sufficient amount of validity and reliability for assessing the perceptions and attitudes of Greek health professionals towards people with disabilities.Exploring attitudes towards people with disabilities in Greek-speaking populations, especially health professionals, with a scale such as the Greek IDPS is very important as it can help promote positive changes in approaches towards disability.