Failure cue priming and impaired cognitive performance—analyses of avoidance motivation as a mediator and fear of failure as a moderator.

The present research investigates whether and how learned symbols for failure reduce task performance. We tested the effect of number priming in two countries with different learning histories for numbers. Priming numbers associated with failure (6 in Germany and 1 in Switzerland) were hypothesized to reduce performance. As expected, in Switzerland, priming with the failure number 1 reduced performance (Study 1), whereas in Germany, priming with the failure number 6 impaired performance in analogy tasks (Study 2). Study 2 additionally analyzed the mechanism and showed that the relationship between failure number priming and performance was mediated by evoked avoidance motivation and that dispositional fear of failure moderated this mediation.

Effects of Gender on the Incidence of Cardiac Tamponade Following Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: Results from a Worldwide Survey in 34,943 AF Ablation Procedures.

BACKGROUND -Cardiac tamponade is the most dramatic complication observed during atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation and the leading cause of procedure-related mortality. Female gender is a known risk factor for complications during AF ablation; however, it is unknown whether women have a higher risk of tamponade. METHODS AND RESULTS -A systematic Medline search was used to locate academic electrophysiologic (EP) centers that reported cases of tamponade occurring during AF ablation. Centers were asked to provide information on cases of acute tamponade according to gender and their mode of management including any case of related mortality. Nineteen EP centers provided information on 34,943 ablation procedures involving 25,261 (72%) males. Overall 289 (0.9%) cases of tamponade were reported: 120 (1.24%) in females and 169 (0.67%) in males (odds ratio 1.83, P<0.001). There was a reciprocal association between center volume and the occurrence of tamponade with substantial lower risk in high volume centers. Most cases of tamponade occurred during catheter manipulation or ablation; females tended to develop more tamponades during transseptal catheterization. No gender difference in the mode of management was observed. However, 16% cases of tamponade required surgery with lower rates in high volume centers. Three cases of tamponade (1%) culminated in death. CONCLUSIONS -Tamponade during AF ablation procedures is relatively rare. Women have an almost twofold higher risk for developing this complication. The risk of tamponade among women decreases substantially in high volume centers. Surgical back-up and acute management skills for treating tamponade are important in centers performing AF ablation.

3D Face Reconstruction from 2D Pictures: First Results of a Web-Based Computer Aided System for Aesthetic Procedures

The human face is a vital component of our identity and many people undergo medical aesthetics procedures in order to achieve an ideal or desired look. However, communication between physician and patient is fundamental to understand the patient’s wishes and to achieve the desired results. To date, most plastic surgeons rely on either “free hand” 2D drawings on picture printouts or computerized picture morphing. Alternatively, hardware dependent solutions allow facial shapes to be created and planned in 3D, but they are usually expensive or complex to handle. To offer a simple and hardware independent solution, we propose a web-based application that uses 3 standard 2D pictures to create a 3D representation of the patient’s face on which facial aesthetic procedures such as filling, skin clearing or rejuvenation, and rhinoplasty are planned in 3D. The proposed application couples a set of well-established methods together in a novel manner to optimize 3D reconstructions for clinical use. Face reconstructions performed with the application were evaluated by two plastic surgeons and also compared to ground truth data. Results showed the application can provide accurate 3D face representations to be used in clinics (within an average of 2 mm error) in less than 5 min.

Shying away: An observer-based microprocess analysis of experiential avoidance and resource activation in outpatients with generalized anxiety spectrum disorder

Despite long-standing calls for patient-focused research on individuals with generalized anxiety spectrum disorder there is little systematized knowledge about the in-session behaviors of these patients. The primary objective of this study was to describe of in-session trajectories of the patients' level of explication (as an indicator of an elaborated exposure of negative emotionality) and the patients' focus on their own resources and how these trajectories are associated with post-treatment outcome. In respect to GAD patients, a high level of explication might be seen as an indicator of successful exposure of avoided negative emotionality during therapy sessions. Observers made minute-by-minute ratings of 1100 minutes of video of 20 patients-therapists dyads. The results indicated that a higher level of explication generally observed at a later stage during the therapy sessions and the patients' focus on competencies at an early stage was highly associated with positive therapy outcome at assessment at post treatment, independent of pretreatment distress, rapid response of well-being and symptom reduction, as well as the therapists' professional experience and therapy lengths. These results will be discussed under the perspective of emotion regulation of patients and therapist's counterregulation. It is assumed that GAD-Patients are especially skilled in masking difficult emotions. Explication level and emotion regulation are important variables for this patient group but there's relation to outcome is different.

Drought avoidance and the effect of local topography on trees in the understorey of Bornean lowland rain forest

The water relations of two tree species in the Euphorbiaceae were compared to test in part a hypothesis that the forest understorey plays an integral role in drought response. At Danum, Sabah, the relatively common species Dimorphocalyx muricatus is associated with ridges whilst another species, Mallotus wrayi, occurs widely both on ridges and lower slopes. Sets of subplots within two 4 -ha permanent plots in this lowland dipterocarp rain forest, were positioned on ridges and lower slopes. Soil water potentials were recorded in 1995-1997, and leaf water potentials were measured on six occasions. Soil water potentials on the ridges (-0.047 MPa) were significantly lower than on the lower slopes (-0.012 MPa), but during the driest period in May 1997 they fell to similarly low levels on both sites (-0.53 MPa). A weighted 40-day accumulated rainfall index was developed to model the soil water potentials. At dry times, D. muricatus (ridge) had significantly higher pre-dawn (-0.21 v. -0.57 MPa) and mid-day (-0.59 v. -1.77 MPa) leaf water potentials than M. wrayi (mean of ridge and lower slope). Leaf osmotic potentials of M. wrayi on the ridges were lower (-1.63 MPa) than on lower slopes (-1.09 MPa), with those for D. muricatus being intermediate (-1.29 MPa): both species adjusted osmotically between wet and dry times. D. muricatus trees were more deeply rooted than M. wrayi trees (97 v. 70 cm). M. wrayi trees had greater lateral root cross-sectional areas than D. muricatus trees although a greater proportion of this sectional area for D. muricatus was further down the soil profile. D. muricatus appeared to maintain relatively high water potentials during dry periods because of its access to deeper water supplies and thus it largely avoided drought effects, but M. wrayi seemed to be more affected yet tolerant of drought and was more plastic in its response. The interaction between water availability and topography determines these species' distributions and provides insights into how rain forests can withstand occasional strong droughts.

Orthodontic retention procedures in Switzerland.

OBJECTIVE To survey retention procedures used in orthodontic practices in Switzerland. MATERIAL AND METHODS A questionnaire previously developed by Renkema et al. (2009) was sent to 223 Swiss orthodontists. The questionnaire comprised six parts, mainly containing multiple-choice questions. Information as to background education of the individual orthodontist, retention in general, frequency of different types of removable or bonded retainers that were used, retention pro- tocol, and the type and size of the wire used for bonded retainers was assessed. RESULTS The overall response rate was 65 percent. Most orthodontists placed a bonded retainer in the upper and lower arch, except when the upper arch was expanded during treatment or when extractions were performed in the upper arch, in which case they placed a combination of fixed and removable retainers. Opinions varied with regard to how many hours the removable retainers should be worn and the duration of the retention phase. As far as bonded retainers were concerned, 87 percent of the orthodontists preferred life-long retention. Ninety-three percent of the orthodontists considered that the development of a guide- line on retention procedures would be useful. CONCLUSIONS The choice of retention procedures is mostly based on orthodontists personal preference. A further research into the long-term effectiveness of individual retention protocols is needed.

Hospital trends of admissions and procedures for acute leg ischaemia in England, 2000-2011.

INTRODUCTION Acute leg ischaemia (ALI) is a common vascular emergency for which new minimally invasive treatment options were introduced in the 1990s. The aim of this study was to determine recent hospital trends for ALI in England and to assess whether the introduction of the new treatment modalities had affected management. METHODS Routine hospital data covering ALI were provided by Hospital Episode Statistics for the years 2000 to 2011 and mortality data were obtained from the Office for National Statistics. All data were age standardised, reported per 100,000 of the population, and stratified by age band (60-74 years and ≥75 years) and sex. RESULTS Hospital admissions have risen significantly from 60.3 to 94.3 per 100,000 of the population, with an average annual increase of 6.2% since 2003 (p<0.001). The rise was greater in the older age group (from 79.9 to 134.4 vs 49.3 to 73.0) and yet procedures for ALI have shown a significant decrease since 2000 from 14.3 to 12.4 per 100,000 (p=0.013), independent of age and sex. Open embolectomy of the femoral artery remains the most common procedure and the proportion of endovascular interventions showed only a small increase. Only a few deaths were attributed to ALI (range: 95-150 deaths per year). CONCLUSIONS Hospital workload for ALI has increased, particularly since 2003, but this trend does not appear to have translated into increased endovascular or surgical activity.