The neural and cognitive processes underlying the flexible allocation of attention undergo a protracted developmental course with changes occurring throughout adolescence. Despite documented ...age-related improvements in attentional reorienting throughout childhood and adolescence, the neural correlates underlying such changes in reorienting remain unclear. Herein, we used magnetoencephalography (MEG) to examine neural dynamics during a Posner attention-reorienting task in 80 healthy youth (6–14 years old). The MEG data were examined in the time-frequency domain and significant oscillatory responses were imaged in anatomical space. During the reorienting of attention, youth recruited a distributed network of regions in the fronto-parietal network, along with higher-order visual regions within the theta (3–7 Hz) and alpha-beta (10–24 Hz) spectral windows. Beyond the expected developmental improvements in behavioral performance, we found stronger theta oscillatory activity as a function of age across a network of prefrontal brain regions irrespective of condition, as well as more limited age- and validity-related effects for alpha-beta responses. Distinct brain-behavior associations between theta oscillations and attention-related symptomology were also uncovered across a network of brain regions. Taken together, these data are the first to demonstrate developmental effects in the spectrally-specific neural oscillations serving the flexible allocation of attention.
•The development of cortical dynamics supporting attention reorienting were examined.•Theta and alpha-beta range oscillations were observed across a distributed network.•Marked age-related increases in prefrontal theta oscillations were observed.•Greater attention symptomology related to lower theta during attention reorienting.
Abstract Repetitive negative thinking (RNT) has been implicated in several disorders (e.g., Clark, 2005 ). However, little research has examined how RNT influences other risk factors of ...psychopathology, such as attentional control. This study used prospective methodology to determine if relationships among various RNT styles and symptoms of psychological disorders are indirectly influenced by facets of attentional control. The sample included 376 participants who completed measures of RNT (worry, rumination, anticipatory processing, obsessions, intrusive thoughts and panic cognitions), psychopathology (generalized anxiety disorder, depression, social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and panic disorder), and attentional control at two time points. Several relationships between RNT forms and symptom levels were indirectly predicted by the focusing subscale of attentional control; however, the patterns of these relationships differed based on the disorder. The shifting subscale did not indirectly predict any relationship. Therefore, it appears that low focusing may be a particular risk factor for the development of later RNT and/or psychopathology symptoms.
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that leads to poor social function. Oxytocin (OXT), a neuropeptide involved in social cognition, is a potential therapeutic agent for alleviating ...social dysfunction. Therefore, we investigated the effects of intranasal oxytocin (IN-OXT) on emotional processes in experimental interactive social contexts in individuals with SCZ.
In a male-only parallel randomized placebo-controlled double-blind trial, we investigated the effects of IN-OXT (24 IU) on visual fixation on pictures of faces and emotion recognition in an interactive ball-tossing game that probed processing of social and nonsocial stimuli.
Intranasal oxytocin enhanced the recognition of emotions during an emotion-based ball-tossing game. This improvement was specific to the game that included social cue processing. Intranasal oxytocin did not affect eye gaze duration or gaze dwell time on faces in these patients.
An acute low dose of IN-OXT had a modest effect on social cue processing and was limited to emotion recognition. Higher doses and long-term trials targeting emotional processing in SCZ may lead to improved social function.
The Social Anxiety Questionnaire (SAQ) is a 10-item measure of social anxiety developed to comprehensively and concisely target the mechanisms described in Clark and Wells’ model of social anxiety ...and address the breadth of social anxiety symptoms which may not all be encompassed in existing questionnaires. The aim of the current studies is to independently investigate the factor structure of the SAQ (i.e.,
Study 1
and
2
) and determine its predictive validity and utility (i.e.,
Study 3
and
4
). Data were collected across 4 studies to evaluate the factor structure and utility. Overall, the results suggest that a total summed score of the SAQ appeared to capture unique aspects of social anxiety that may not be captured using a single measure and appears to provide utility in experimental manipulations of theoretical maintenance factors. The current study was limited by a convenience sample and future research should continue to document the psychometric properties and clinical utility of this novel measure of social anxiety. The SAQ may show promise in both correlational and experimental research but future research should consider further evaluation of its utility.
Exercise during pregnancy is safe and beneficial; however, most pregnant women do not meet evidence-based exercise recommendations. Further, data on pregnant women’s physical activity are largely ...limited to women living in urban environments. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to examine beliefs and behaviors regarding exercise during pregnancy in pregnant and postpartum women living in rural communities. Methods. Surveys were distributed in healthcare settings and via social media to pregnant and postpartum (< 3 months) women living in rural communities. Results. Seventy-five women (28.1 ± 5.4 year) participated. Nearly all believed light (96%) and moderate (89%) intensity exercise are safe to perform during pregnancy, while fewer agreed vigorous intensity (52%) or resistance (40%) exercise is safe. Most (88%) believed women can continue their exercise regimen, and 73% believed that previously inactive women can begin training while pregnant. Only one-third of women met recommendations for cardiorespiratory exercise. The majority (66%) never engaged in vigorous exercise, and most (73%) did not participate in resistance exercise. Conclusion. Pregnant women in rural communities participate in light intensity exercise, but are largely not meeting guidelines for aerobic or resistance training. Knowledge related to safe exercises, particularly resistance training, during pregnancy is limited. Targeted education and programmatic planning are needed in this population regarding exercise guidelines.
•Uncertain evaluative threat distractors result in a reduced ERN amplitude.•Worry was associated with higher ERN amplitude post manipulation.•Negative evaluative threat distractors did not ...demonstrate a significant influence on ERN amplitude.
Recent research suggests atypical error-monitoring is important to understanding pathological anxiety. Because uncertainty is a transdiagnostic factor associated with anxiety and related disorders, recent research has begun to examine the influence of uncertainty in error-monitoring. Moreover, task irrelevant threat has been shown to influence cognitive performance in individuals with maladaptive anxiety. The current study aims to merge these literatures by examining the influence of task-irrelevant uncertain evaluative threat on error-monitoring using an event-related brain potential, the error-related negativity (ERN). Considering extensive literature indicating a relationship between worry and the ERN, worry was included as a continuous predictor in the analyses. Participants were randomly assigned to either a condition of negative or uncertain evaluative threat to determine their influence on error-monitoring in a Flankers task. Results for the ERN suggest that the ERN was significantly reduced only for the uncertain evaluative threat condition. The current study suggests that uncertain evaluative threat distractors result in a subsequent reduction in error-monitoring. This is consistent with literature suggesting that anxiety impairs inhibition of attentional processing of task irrelevant threatening information. This study adds to the burgeoning literature on the malleability of the ERN. Future research is needed to determine the mechanisms underlying this effect.
OBJECTIVESThe objective of our study was to determine if phenazopyridine reduces void trial (VT) failure rates after prolapse surgery.
METHODSA single-institution randomized controlled trial was ...conducted comparing a second dose of phenazopyridine 200 mg on postoperative day 1 versus no additional phenazopyridine in women undergoing prolapse surgery. All subjects (including controls) received 200 mg of phenazopyridine preoperatively for ureteral patency verification. The intervention group received a second dose of phenazopyridine 200 mg the morning of postoperative day 1. The primary outcome was assessed using a standardized VT. Secondary outcomes included pain, opioid usage, urinary tract infections, and prolonged or recurrent urinary retention. An intent-to-treat analysis was performed with a χ test to compare failure rates between the intervention and control groups.
RESULTSWe enrolled 152 women, and 76 were randomized to each group. There was no difference in VT failures between the 2 groups—34% failed without phenazopyridine on postoperative day 1, and 42% failed with phenazopyridine on postoperative day 1 (P = 0.326). Subject characteristics were similar across both groups. Pain scores immediately before the VT were 3 out of 10 in both groups (P = 0.206), with no difference in opioid consumption (P = 0.750). There were no differences in the rate of urinary tract infections or prolonged or recurrent urinary retention between the groups (P = 0.304 and P = 0.745).
CONCLUSIONSWhile previous studies suggested an improvement in immediate postoperative voiding with phenazopyridine, our randomized controlled trial does not support this.
Treatments for anxiety and related disorders target exaggerated escape/avoidance as a core feature, but current methods fail to improve escape/avoidance habits for many treatment-seeking individuals. ...To support developing tools that increase treatment efficacy by targeting mechanisms more directly, the current work examined potential distinctions in the neurophysiologies of escape and avoidance and tested how clinical anxiety affects these neurophysiologies.
Twenty-five treatment-seeking individuals with varied principal diagnoses (e.g., generalized anxiety disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder) and 20 non-treatment-seeking control subjects participated. In the study task, approximately 5.25-second cues predicted aversive images that could be avoided (blocked by a button press before image onset), escaped (ended by a button press after image onset), or not controlled. To examine neural processing and defensive response modulation, anticipatory event-related potentials were derived, and startle reflexes were probed throughout each cue.
Multidimensional profiles were observed such that 1) anticipatory event-related potential enhancement was only reliable during avoidance preparation, and event-related potentials potentially reflected perceived/instrumental control; and 2) startle reflexes were inhibited during avoidance preparation, relatively enhanced during escape preparation, and further enhanced during uncontrollable anticipation, thus potentially reflecting fear-related activation. Treatment-seeking status, then, did not affect cortical processing, but it did moderate context-dependent fear (if individuals with severe depression were excluded) such that treatment-seeking individuals without depression showed exaggerated startle during escape, but not avoidance, preparation.
Data suggest a specific effect of anxiety on fear system activation during preparation to escape aversion. This effect warrants further investigation as a precision target for interventions that directly modulate the specific underlying neural circuitry.
Abstract Self-focused attention is thought to be a key feature of social anxiety disorder. Yet few studies have used event-related potentials (ERPs) to examine whether socially anxious individuals ...display greater monitoring of their performance and attention to their errors. Similarly, only a few studies have used ERPs to examine how social anxiety is related to processing of performance feedback. Individuals with high ( n = 26) and low ( n = 28) levels of social anxiety completed a trial-and-error learning task. Self-focus was manipulated using false heart-rate feedback during a random subset of trials. Performance feedback was given using emotional and neutral faces in a positive context (correct = happy face; incorrect = neutral face) and negative context (correct = neutral face; incorrect = disgust face) in order to investigate biased interpretation and attention to feedback. Socially anxious subjects displayed enhanced amplitude of the ERN and CRN, suggesting greater response monitoring, and enhanced Pe amplitude, suggesting greater processing of errors relative to the low social anxiety group. No group differences were observed with respect to feedback processing. Before learning stimulus–response mappings in the negative context, the FRN was larger for self-focus compared to standard trials and marginally larger for socially anxious subjects compared to controls. These findings support cognitive models and suggest avenues for future research.
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