Hand preference patterns in expert basketball players: Interrelations between basketball-specific and everyday life behavior

In the present study we examined the interrelation of everyday life handedness and hand preference in basketball, as an area of expertise that requires individuals being proficient with both their nondominant and dominant hand. A secondary aim was to elucidate the link between basketball-specific practice, hand preference in basketball and everyday life handedness. Therefore, 176 expert basketball players self-reported their hand preference for activities of daily living and for basketball-specific behavior as well as details about their basketball-specific history via questionnaire. We found that compared to the general population the one-hand bias was significantly reduced for both everyday life and basketball-specific hand preference (i.e., a higher prevalence of mixed-handed individuals), and that both concepts were significantly related. Moreover, only preference scores for lay-up and dribbling skills were significantly related to measures of basketball-specific practice. Consequently, training-induced modulations of lateral preference seem to be very specific to only a few basketball-specific skills, and do not generalize to other skills within the domain of basketball nor do they extend into everyday life handedness. The results are discussed in terms of their relevance regarding theories of handedness and their practical implications for the sport of basketball.

Esthetic, Functional, and Everyday Life Assessment of Individuals with Cleft Lip and/or Palate

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the level of satisfaction of individuals with cleft lip and/or palate (CLP) and their parents concerning the esthetic and functional treatment outcomes, the impact of the cleft on everyday life, and potential associations with treatment outcome satisfaction. SUBJECTS AND METHODS The sample consisted of 33 patients (7 CP, 20 unilateral CLP, and 6 bilateral CLP; median age: 17.1, range: 9.0-33.1 years) and 30 parents, who responded to a questionnaire in an interview-guided session. All participants received their orthodontic treatment at the Department of Orthodontics in the University of Athens. RESULTS Patients and their parents were quite satisfied with esthetics and function. Patients with UCLP primarily were concerned about nose esthetics (BCLP about lip esthetics and CP about speech). Increased satisfaction was associated with decreased influence of the cleft in everyday life (0.35 < rho < 0.64, P < 0.05). Parents reported significant influence of the cleft on family life, while patients did not. CONCLUSIONS Despite the limited sample size of subgroups, the main concerns of patients with different cleft types and the importance of satisfying lip, nose, and speech outcomes for an undisturbed everyday life were quite evident. Thus, the need for targeted treatment strategies is highlighted for individuals with cleft lip and/or palate.

Life style habits such as alcohol consumption and physical activity in relation to serum apoB / apoA-I ratio amongst 64-year-old women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance.

OBJECTIVES To investigate how life style factors such as alcohol consumption and physical activity relate to the serum apoB / apoA-I ratio in a cohort of middle-aged women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance. DESIGN Observational, cross-sectional cohort study. SETTING Research laboratory at a University Hospital. SUBJECTS A screened cohort of 64-year-old postmenopausal women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance, ranging from diabetes (n = 232), impaired (n = 212) and normal (n = 191) glucose tolerance. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE ApoB / apoA-I ratio in relation to alcohol consumption and physical activity as assessed by questionnaires. RESULTS Alcohol consumption and regular physical activity at high levels were inversely associated with the serum apoB / apoA-I ratio independently of confounding factors such as obesity, lipid-lowering treatment, degree of glucose tolerance and hormone replacement therapy. Alcohol seemed related to the apoB / apoA-I ratio mainly through increasing apoA-I, whereas physical activity seemed mainly related to lowering of apoB. Alcohol consumption above a daily intake of 8.9 g, i.e. less than a glass of wine was accompanied by a decrease in apoB / apoA-I ratio. CONCLUSIONS Amongst these 64-year-old women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance, a moderate alcohol intake and regular physical exercise leading to sweating were associated with lower apoB / apoA-I ratio and these effects seem to be additive.

Ship Newspapers and Passenger Life Aboard Transoceanic Steamships in the Late Nineteenth Century

Despite the many technological innovations that had for some time contributed to a significant reduction of global travel times, intercontinental ship passages in the late nineteenth century were no quick affair. Depending on the route, such journeys could last between a few weeks and several months. During this time, crew and passengers shared the narrow space of the ship—largely isolated from the rest of the world and basically suspended between origin and destination. On many long-distance steamers, the production and consumption of ship newspapers became one possible means of whiling away the time in transit for the passengers. In this article, we seek to demonstrate how these extraordinary publications can serve as lenses not only on shipboard life but actually on historical actors of globalisation in a more general context. First, we seek to highlight why and how ship newspapers played an important role in the shaping of the peculiar social space of the passenger ship. We will then give a brief overview of the context in which these newspapers were produced and what kind of news they contained. In a third step, we will introduce two brief examples of topics discussed in ship newspapers and outline possible fields of research on which ship newspapers will be able to shed new light.

Alcohol consumption and binge drinking in young adult childhood cancer survivors

Background This study compared frequency of alcohol consumption and binge drinking between young adult childhood cancer survivors and the general population in Switzerland, and assessed its socio-demographic and clinical determinants. Procedure Childhood cancer survivors aged <16 years when diagnosed 1976–2003, who had survived >5 years and were currently aged 20–40 years received a postal questionnaire. Reported frequency of alcohol use and of binge drinking were compared to the Swiss Health Survey, a representative general population survey. Determinants of frequent alcohol consumption and binge drinking were assessed in a multivariable logistic regression. Results Of 1,697 eligible survivors, 1,447 could be contacted and 1,049 (73%) responded. Survivors reported more often than controls to consume alcohol frequently (OR = 1.7; 95%CI = 1.3–2.1) and to engage in binge drinking (OR = 2.9; 95%CI = 2.3–3.8). Peak frequency of binge drinking in males occurred at age 24–26 years in survivors, compared to age 18–20 in the general population. Socio-demographic factors (male gender, high educational attainment, French and Italian speaking, and migration background from Northern European countries) were most strongly associated with alcohol consumption patterns among both survivors and controls. Conclusions The high frequency of alcohol consumption found in this study is a matter of concern. Our data suggest that survivors should be better informed on the health effects of alcohol consumption during routine follow-up, and that such counseling should be included in clinical guidelines. Future research should study motives of alcohol consumption among survivors to allow development of targeted health interventions for this vulnerable group.

Associations between alcohol consumption and selected cytokines in a Swiss population-based sample (CoLaus study)

To assess the associations between alcohol consumption and cytokine levels (interleukin-1beta - IL-1β; interleukin-6 - IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α - TNF-α) in a Caucasian population.

Brain tumors in children and adolescents and exposure to animals and farm life: a multicenter case-control study (CEFALO)

The etiology of brain tumors in children and adolescents is largely unknown, and very few environmental risk factors have been identified. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between pre- or postnatal animal contacts or farm exposures and the risk of childhood brain tumors (CBTs), since infectious agents may pose a risk factor and a proposed mechanism is transferral of infectious agents from animals to humans.

Self-reported alcohol consumption and its association with adherence and outcome of antiretroviral therapy in the Swiss HIV Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Alcohol consumption leading to morbidity and mortality affects HIV-infected individuals. Here, we aimed to study self-reported alcohol consumption and to determine its association with adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and HIV surrogate markers. METHODS: Cross-sectional data on daily alcohol consumption from August 2005 to August 2007 were analysed and categorized according to the World Health Organization definition (light, moderate or severe health risk). Multivariate logistic regression models and Pearson's chi(2) statistics were used to test the influence of alcohol use on endpoints. RESULTS: Of 6,323 individuals, 52.3% consumed alcohol less than once a week in the past 6 months. Alcohol intake was deemed light in 39.9%, moderate in 5.0% and severe in 2.8%. Higher alcohol consumption was significantly associated with older age, less education, injection drug use, being in a drug maintenance programme, psychiatric treatment, hepatitis C virus coinfection and with a longer time since diagnosis of HIV. Lower alcohol consumption was found in males, non-Caucasians, individuals currently on ART and those with more ART experience. In patients on ART (n=4,519), missed doses and alcohol consumption were positively correlated (P<0.001). Severe alcohol consumers, who were pretreated with ART, were more often off treatment despite having CD4+ T-cell count <200 cells/microl; however, severe alcohol consumption per se did not delay starting ART. In treated individuals, alcohol consumption was not associated with worse HIV surrogate markers. CONCLUSIONS: Higher alcohol consumption in HIV-infected individuals was associated with several psychosocial and demographic factors, non-adherence to ART and, in pretreated individuals, being off treatment despite low CD4+ T-cell counts.

Mice generated by in vitro fertilization exhibit vascular dysfunction and shortened life span

Children conceived by assisted reproductive technologies (ART) display a level of vascular dysfunction similar to that seen in children of mothers with preeclamspia. The long-term consequences of ART-associated vascular disorders are unknown and difficult to investigate in healthy children. Here, we found that vasculature from mice generated by ART display endothelial dysfunction and increased stiffness, which translated into arterial hypertension in vivo. Progeny of male ART mice also exhibited vascular dysfunction, suggesting underlying epigenetic modifications. ART mice had altered methylation at the promoter of the gene encoding eNOS in the aorta, which correlated with decreased vascular eNOS expression and NO synthesis. Administration of a deacetylase inhibitor to ART mice normalized vascular gene methylation and function and resulted in progeny without vascular dysfunction. The induction of ART-associated vascular and epigenetic alterations appeared to be related to the embryo environment; these alterations were possibly facilitated by the hormonally stimulated ovulation accompanying ART. Finally, ART mice challenged with a high-fat diet had roughly a 25% shorter life span compared with control animals. This study highlights the potential of ART to induce vascular dysfunction and shorten life span and suggests that epigenetic alterations contribute to these problems.