Quantifying progressive anterior overgrowth in the thoracic vertebrae of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients

Study design Anterior and posterior vertebral body heights were measured from sequential MRI scans of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients and healthy controls. Objective To measure changes in vertebral body height over time during scoliosis progression to assess how vertebral body height discrepancies change during growth. Summary of background data Relative anterior overgrowth has been proposed as a potential driver for AIS initiation and progression. This theory proposes that the anterior column grows faster, and the posterior column slower, in AIS patients when compared to healthy controls. There is disagreement in the literature as to whether the anterior vertebral body heights are proportionally greater than posterior vertebral body heights in AIS patients when compared to healthy controls. To some extent, these discrepancies may be attributed to methodological differences. Methods MRI scans of the major curve of 21 AIS patients (mean age 12.5 ± 1.4 years, mean Cobb 32.2 ± 12.8º) and between T4 and T12 of 21 healthy adolescents (mean age 12.1 ± 0.5 years) were captured for this study. Of the 21 AIS patients, 14 had a second scan on average 10.8 ± 4.7 months after the first. Anterior and posterior vertebral body heights were measured from the true sagittal plane of each vertebra such that anterior overgrowth could be quantified. Results The difference between anterior and posterior vertebral body height in healthy, non-scoliotic children was significantly greater than in AIS patients with mild to moderate scoliosis. However there was no significant relationship between the overall anterior-posterior vertebral body height difference in AIS and either severity of the curve or its progression over time. Conclusions Whilst AIS patients have a proportionally longer anterior column than non-scoliotic controls, the degree of anterior overgrowth was not related to the rate of progression or the severity of the scoliotic curve.

Childhood and adolescent antecedents of work stress and early atherosclerosis

Work stress is after musculoskeletal disorders the second most common work-related health problem in the European Union, affecting 28% of EU employees. Furthermore, a 50% excessive cardiovascular disease risk among employees with work stress is reported. High job demands combined with low job control according to the Job Demands-Job Control model, or high effort combined with low rewards according to Effort-Reward Imbalance model, are likely to produce work stress in the majority of employees. Atherosclerotic wall thickening is a validated marker of an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. This study examined the role of childhood and adolescent factors as antecedents of work stress and early atherosclerosis, and in the relationship between them. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, (the CRYF project) started in 1980 when the participants were at the age of three to 18 years. Follow-ups have been conducted every three years until 1992, after that in 1997 and 2001, and the latest is ongoing in 2008. The participants parents reported their socioeconomic position in 1980 and 1983, and their life satisfaction in 1983. Biological risk factors were measured in 1980 and 2001. Type A behaviour was reported in 1986, 1989 and 2001. In the 2001 follow-up when the participants were aged 24 to 39, work stress was assessed from responses to questionnaires on job demands-job control and effort-reward imbalance, and education. Ultrasound measurement of the carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) was used to assess atherosclerosis. There were 755, 746, 1014 and 494 participants in studies I-IV, respectively. The results showed that low parental socioeconomic position and parental life dissatisfaction during childhood and adolescence predicted higher levels of job strain 18 years later, and that education mediated the relationship between parental socioeconomic position and job strain. Childhood and adolescent family factors were not related to the effort-reward imbalance. Parental life satisfaction was associated with high rewards at work among the men, and high parental socioeconomic position was associated with high reward among the women. Among the men, the eagerness-energy component of Type A behaviour across different developmental periods predicted increased CIMT. Among the women, hard-driving component of Type A behaviour predicted decreased CIMT. Low leadership characteristic in adolescence and early adulthood was associated with both high job strain and increased CIMT, and attenuated the relationship between job strain and CIMT to non-significance in men. The current findings add to the literature on the relationship between job strain and health literature in adopting a developmental perspective. The results imply that work stress does not completely originate from work. There are childhood and adolescent environmental and dispositional effects on work stress and CIMT several years later, and these partly seem to operate through educational attainment.

Adolescent Substance abuse among young people excluded from school in Belfast

The lifestyles of young people excluded from school have received much attention recently, particularly in relation to illicit drug use. Commentators have acknowledged that they constitute a high-risk group to social disaffection and substance abuse. This paper reports on a group of 48 young people living in Belfast aged 13�14 years who are considered to be at a particularly high risk to substance abuse because they are excluded from school. The evidence in this paper suggests that many are already exhibiting potentially high-risk behaviours to problem drug use compared with their contemporaries in mainstream education. This paper examines the evidence within the context of a limited existing literature base on this group of young people. It suggests that a more focused approach is required for the development of appropriate drug-prevention strategies to meet their needs.

A Profile of Adolescent Cocaine Use in Northern Ireland.

Background: The image of cocaine as a 'party' drug used by more affluent members of society has begun to change as the levels of use of the drug rise amongst school aged young people. Methods: Cocaine use patterns amongst young people aged 13-16 years who were participating in the Belfast Youth Development Study, a longitudinal study of adolescent drug use was explored. Data was collected through an annual datasweep in participating schools. This paper includes data collected in years 3, 4 and 5 of the study. Results: The results show higher levels of cocaine use amongst this age group than reported in much of the existing harm reduction literature. Lifetime use was 3.8% at age 13-14 years, rising to 7.5% at 15-16 years. The profile indicated that adolescent cocaine users were more likely to be female, live in disrupted families and experience social deprivation which is similar to existing adolescent drug use profiles. There was also some evidence of experimental cocaine use amongst the sample. Conclusions: These findings provide further evidence for the development of age appropriate school focused harm reduction initiatives and continued monitoring of contemporary trends of use of cocaine amongst school aged young people.

Epidemiology of Adolescent Rugby Injuries: A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVE: Despite recent increases in the volume of research in professional rugby union, there is little consensus on the epidemiology of injury in adolescent players. We undertook a systematic review to determine the incidence, severity, and nature of injury in adolescent rugby union players.

DATA SOURCES: In April 2009, we performed a computerized literature search on PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (via Ovid). Population-specific and patient-specific search terms were combined in the form of MEDLINE subject headings and key words (wound$ and injur$, rugby, adolescent$). These were supplemented with related-citation searches on PubMed and bibliographic tracking of primary and review articles.

STUDY SELECTION: Prospective epidemiologic studies in adolescent rugby union players.

DATA SYNTHESIS: A total of 15 studies were included, and the data were analyzed descriptively. Two independent reviewers extracted key study characteristics regarding the incidence, severity, and nature of injuries and the methodologic design.

CONCLUSIONS: Wide variations existed in the injury definitions and data collection procedures. The incidence of injury necessitating medical attention varied with the definition, from 27.5 to 129.8 injuries per 1000 match hours. The incidence of time-loss injury (>7 days) ranged from 0.96 to 1.6 per 1000 playing hours and from 11.4/1000 match hours (>1 day) to 12-22/1000 match hours (missed games). The highest incidence of concussion was 3.3/1000 playing hours. No catastrophic injuries were reported. The head and neck, upper limb, and lower limb were all common sites of injury, and trends were noted toward greater time loss due to upper limb fractures or dislocations and knee ligament injuries. Increasing age, the early part of the playing season, and the tackle situation were most closely associated with injury. Future injury-surveillance studies in rugby union must follow consensus guidelines to facilitate interstudy comparisons and provide further clarification as to where injury-prevention strategies should be focused.

Adolescent men’s pregnancy resolution choices in relation to an unintended pregnancy: A comparative analysis of adolescent men in three countries.

This paper investigates adolescent men's pregnancy resolution choices in Australia, Ireland and Italy. It addresses two main gaps in the literature: the lack of research on (adolescent) men's views on unintended pregnancy and pregnancy resolution; and the lack of international comparative case studies on men and reproductive choices. Consistent with theories of the transformation of intimacies in society and the growth of individualization, the results suggest that adolescent men are interested in the effect of an unintended pregnancy on their individual biographies as well as the effect on their girlfriend's health and well-being. However, Australian male adolescents were much more likely to choose abortion than Italian or Irish adolescents, suggesting adolescent males have also internalized country level debates surrounding abortion. Methodologically, the paper demonstrates an innovative approach to data-collection using a computer-based interactive drama to facilitate participants' deliberation and responses. It was shown to engage a large number of adolescent men and is likely to have wider generalisability in developing international comparative research on the topic, as well as applications for health promotion.

Suicide and parasuicide: a selected review of the literature.

The increase in adolescent suicides has prompted the World Health Organization to set targets to reduce the incidence of deaths by the year 2000. In order to achieve this target further investigation into the perceptions of adolescent parasuicidal individuals is required to reduce the number of suicide attempts. Statistical evidence shows that parasuicidal individuals are commonly females who attempt suicide by taking an overdose. In the majority of cases help has been sought within the month prior to the attempt. Following an attempt many individuals feel isolated or ignored by health professionals. It appears that communication difficulties and negative attitudes by health professionals often reinforce the stigma associated with suicide. Nurses can contribute to the prevention of parasuicide/suicide by actively providing therapeutic care and counselling parasuicidal individuals to help them deal with major life events.

Reliability and factorial validity of Adolescent Time Inventory-Time Attitude (ATI-TA) Scores in Scottish and Northern Irish adolescents

The contemporary literature investigating the construct broadly known as time perspective is replete with methodological and conceptual concerns. These concerns focus on the reliability and factorial validity of measurement tools, and the sample-specific modification of scales. These issues continue to hamper the development of this potentially useful psychological construct. An emerging body of evidence has supported the six-factor structure of scores on the Adolescent Time Inventory-Time Attitudes Scale, as well as their reliability. The present study utilized data from the first wave of a longitudinal study in the United Kingdom to examine the reliability, validity, and cross-cultural invariance of the scale. Results showed that the hypothesized six-factor model provided the best fit for the data; all alpha and omega estimates were >. .70; scores on ATI-TA factors related meaningfully to self-efficacy scores; and the factor structure was invariant across both research sites. Results are discussed in the context of the extant temporal literature.

Vincristine and intestinal pseudo-obstruction in children: report of 5 cases, literature review, and suggested management.

Summary: Intestinal pseudo-obstruction is a rare complication resulting from a variety of disorders. Symptoms include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, and malnutrition. Vincristine-related pseudo-obstruction has been reported in the literature, but its description in children and recommendations for management are lacking. A review of the literature revealed 21 reported pediatric cases of vincristine-related pseudo-obstruction. Most have, however, been attributed to a drug interaction with itraconazole, accidental vincristine overdose, or liver failure. Potential genetic causes are rarely addressed. We present here 5 cases of pseudo-obstruction related to vincristine without any identifiable predisposing factors, and a suggested algorithm for management

Missed appointments in an adolescent outpatient clinic: descriptive analyses of consultations over 8 years.

Missed appointments represent an important medical and economical issue. Few studies on the subject are reported in the literature, particularly regarding adolescents. Our aim was to characterize missed and cancelled appointments in a multidisciplinary outpatient clinic for adolescents, to assess the effectiveness of a policy aimed at reducing missed appointments by introducing payment for those missed appointments not cancelled in advance, and to compare the rates between staff and resident physicians. A total of 32,816 consultations (representing 35 patients aged 12-20 years, 82.4% females) between 1999 and 200 were analysed. The missed appointment rate was 11.8% whilst another 10.9% were cancellations. Females cancelled more than males (11.3% vs. 8.4%, AOR 1.31, 99% CI 1.08-1.59), but there was no difference for missed appointments (11.6% vs. 12.3%, AOR 0.88, 99% CI 0.61-1.08). April and June to October (vacation months) were associated with more missed appointments. Globally mornings had higher rates of missed appointments than afternoons (13.6% vs. 11.2%, AOR 1.25, 99% CI 1.11-1.40). There was a slight difference in missed appointment rates between staff physicians and residents (10.4%; 11.8%, AOR 1.20, 99% CI 1.08-1.33). Missed appointment rates before and after the new policy on missed appointments were similar (1999-2003: 11.9%; 2004-2006: 11.6%, AOR 0.96, 99% CI 0.83-1.10). Conversely, cancellation rates increased from 8.4% (1999-2003) to 14.5% (2004-2006) (AOR 1.83, 99% CI 1.63-2.05). Attendance rates among adolescents show variations depending on vacation and school hours. Being attentive to these factors could help prevent missed appointments. Although having to pay for missed appointments does not increase attendance, it increases cancellations with the advantage that the appointment can be rescheduled.

Moderating effects of gender and general self-efficacy on the relationship between sensation-seeking and adolescent substance use /

This study performed a aecondvy dau analysis of information collected during the Youth Leisure Study (YLS). The purpose of this study was to examine the potential moderating influences of gender and general self-efTicacy on the relationships aoKXig sensation-seeking and various forms of substance use in adolescents. Specifically, the predictive ability of sensation seeking on five adolescents substance use outcomes (alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use; binge drinking; and number of times drunk) was examined. Moderated hierarchical multiple regression (MHMR) analyses were used to examine the relationships among study variables. The results for this study indicate that the relationships among sensation-seeking and forms of adolescent substance use are more complex than literature suggests. Main effect relationships were found consistently for sensation-seeking and general self-efficacy with each of the outcome variables. Results for gender were not consistent across the substance use outcomes. Gender was a significant predictor for marijuana use only. The moderating effects of general self-efficacy (GSE) on the sensation-seekingsubstance use relationship were inconsistent. While no significant interactions were found for tobacco or alcohol use outcomes, GSE was found to moderate the relationship between sensation-seeking and marijuana use indicating that feelings of high general selfefficacy act as a buffer or guard against marijuana use. A consistent pattern was found among the alcohol use variables (alcohol use. binge drinking, and number of times drunk). Gender was found to moderate each of these variables indicating that higher levels of sensation seeking are more predictive of higher levels of adolescent alcohol use in males only. Implications of this study on the field of education, are discussed further, and suggestions for future research are presented.

Locomotor sensitization and conditioned place preference for amphetamine in late adolescent and adult male and female rats /

reports, the players did not show an anticipatory rise in either Cortisol or testosterone prior to competition. In addition to the effects of status outcome on hormonal levels, it was also found that these hormonal responses were specific to competition. The athletes in the current study did not demonstrate any hormonal responses to the practice sessions. Last, there were significant differences in pre-game testosterone as well as in selfconfidence, cognitive, and somatic anxiety levels depending on the location at which the status contest took place. Pre-game testosterone and self-confidence levels were significantly higher prior to games played in the home venue. In contrast, pre-game somatic and cognitive anxiety levels were significantly higher prior to games played in the away venue. The current findings add to the developing literature on the relationship between hormones and competition. This was the first study to detect a moderating effect of status outcome on testosterone responses in a team sport. Furthermore, this was also the first study in humans to demonstrate that post-contest Cortisol levels were significantly higher after a loss of status. Last, the current study also adds to the sport psychology literature by demonstrating that pre-game psychological variables differ depending on where the status contest is being held: higher self-confidence at home and higher somatic and cognitive anxiety away. Taken together, the results from the current thesis may have important practical relevance to coaches, trainers and sport psychologists who are always trying to find ways to maximize performance. the cycle. The sex-specific age differences in locomotor responses to amphetamine are not due to gonadal immaturity, as females are cycling at this stage of adolescence. However, age differences may reflect the ongoing maturation of the neural substrates that that are involved in locomotor sensitizing, but not rewarding effects of amphetamine.

Adolescent girls and mathematics: classroom performance, attitudes toward mathematics and perceptions of parental attitudes /

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which gender differences exist in student attitudes toward mathematics and in their performance in mathematics at the Grade Seven and Eight level. The study also questioned how parents influence the attitudes of this grade level of male and female students toward mathematics. Historically, the literature has demonstrated gender differences in the attitudes of students toward mathematics, and in parental support for classroom performance in mathematics. This study was an attempt to examine these differences at one senior public school in the Peel Board of Education. One hundred three Grade Seven and Eight students at a middle school in the Peel Board of Education volunteered to take part in a survey that examined their attitudes toward mathematics, their perceptions of their parents' attitudes toward mathematics and support for good performance in the mathematics classroom, parental expectations for education and future career choices. Gender differences related to performance levels in the mathematics classroom were examined using Pearson contingency analyses. Items from the survey that showed significant differences involved confidence in mathematics and confidence in writing mathematics tests, as well as a belief in the ability to work on mathematics problems. Male students in both the high and low performance groups demonstrated higher levels of confidence than the females in those groups. Female students, however, indicated interest in careers that would require training and knowledge of higher mathematics. Some of the reasons given to explain the gender differences in confidence levels included socialization pressures on females, peer acceptance, and attribution of success. Perceived parental support showed no significant differences across gender groups or performance levels. Possible explanations dealt with the family structure of the participants in the study. Studies that, in the past, have demonstrated gender differences in confidence levels were supported by this study, and discussed in detail. Studies that reported on differences in parental support for student performance, based on the gender of the parent, were not confirmed by this study, and reasons for this were also discussed. The implications for the classroom include: 1) build on the female students' strengths that will allow them to enjoy their experiences in mathematics; 2) stop using the boys as a comparison group; and 3) make students more aware of the need to continue studying mathematics to ensure a wider choice of future careers.

The female coach as a role model for personal growth and development to the female adolescent athlete

Research interest on the topic of female coaches as role models has recently emerged in the coaching literature. Social learning theory (Bandura, 1963; 1977; 1986) has also emerged as an essential framework in explaining learning through modeling. Previous research has examined the coach as a role model, as well as gender differences between coaches. Several authors, with several different conclusions, have studied the significance of gender as an influencer in role modeling. Whitaker and Molstad in 1988 conducted a study focusing on the coach as a role model. What they found was when they combined the results of high school and college aged athletes; the female coach was considered to be a superior role model. The current research used a social learning theory framework to examine the benefits and intricacies of the modeling relationship between female adolescent athletes and influential female coaches. To accomplish this task, the formative experiences of thirteen adolescent female athletes were examined. Each athlete was interviewed, with each semi-structured interview focusing on extracting the salient features of a coach that the athlete identified as being the most influential in her personal development. The data from these interviews were quaHtatively analyzed using case studies. From case studies, a template emerges in which the coach/athlete relationship can be seen as an essential construct in which caring and strong role models can have lasting effects on the lives, values, and successes of adolescent female athletes.

Destigmatizing Child and Adolescent Mental Health through Group Chat: A Workshop to Support the Emotional and Social Needs of Youth

The purpose of this project was to raise awareness surrounding child and adolescent mental health in an effort to reduce preconceived stigmas in relation to this specialized field. This project presented a literature review of the current state of child and adolescent mental health in Canada today, including the prevalence and several treatment options for young people confronting mental health challenges. Consideration of the powerful role of the education system upon youth with mental health issues became evident, specifically regarding early identification and prevention. A needs assessment was conducted to gather feedback from the clinical practitioners of a Section 23 classroom within a Southern Ontario hospital. This assessment was used to develop an informational and pedagogical workshop resource to extend practitioner understanding of this pertinent issue and support the social and emotional needs of young people confronting mental heath challenges. Results of the assessment indicated the significant need for such a workshop resource, and these responses were used to guide the development of Group Chat: A Workshop to Support the Emotional and Social Needs of Youth. The latter was subsequently presented to participants, whereby evaluative questionnaires indicated the efficacy and usefulness of this workshop resource to both practitioners and students alike.