Plos One
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Therapist experience and knowledge acquisition in internet-delivered CBT for social anxiety disorder: a randomized controlled trial.
Guided internet-delivered cognitive behavior therapy (ICBT) has been tested in several trials on social anxiety disorder (SAD) with moderate to large effects. The aims of this study were threefold. First, to compare the effects of ICBT including online discussion forum with a moderated online discussion forum only. Second, to investigate if knowledge about SAD increased following treatment and third to compare the effects of inexperienced versus experienced therapists on patient outcomes. ⋯ We conclude that guided ICBT reduce symptoms of SAD, increase knowledge about SAD and that therapist experience does not make a difference apart from the finding that experienced therapist may require less time to guide patients.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Efficacy of memantine for agitation in Alzheimer's dementia: a randomised double-blind placebo controlled trial.
Agitation in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is common and associated with poor patient life-quality and carer distress. The best evidence-based pharmacological treatments are antipsychotics which have limited benefits with increased morbidity and mortality. There are no memantine trials in clinically significant agitation but post-hoc analyses in other populations found reduced agitation. We tested the primary hypothesis, memantine is superior to placebo for clinically significant agitation, in patients with moderate-to-severe AD. ⋯ Memantine did not improve significant agitation in people with in moderate-to-severe AD. Future studies are urgently needed to test other pharmacological candidates in this group and memantine for neuropsychiatric symptoms.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
PTEN as a prognostic and predictive marker in postoperative radiotherapy for squamous cell cancer of the head and neck.
Tumor suppressor PTEN is known to control a variety of processes related to cell survival, proliferation, and growth. PTEN expression is considered as a prognostic factor in some human neoplasms like breast, prostate, and thyroid cancer. ⋯ These results suggest that PTEN may serve as a potent prognostic and predictive marker in postoperative radiotherapy for high-risk squamous cell cancer of the head and neck.
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Comparative Study
Predictors of HIV and syphilis among men who have sex with men in a Chinese metropolitan city: comparison of risks among students and non-students.
Men who have sex with men (MSM) are at a substantial risk of HIV, given rising HIV prevalence in urban China. Adolescent and adult students often take HIV-related risk as part of sexual exploration. We compared the risks of HIV and syphilis infections and risky sexual behaviors between student and non-student among urban MSM. ⋯ Student MSM have lower HIV and similar syphilis prevalence compared with non-student MSM. However, due to a shorter duration of sexual experience and high prevalence of at-risk sexual behaviors among student MSM, HIV risk might be quite high in students as in non-students.
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People with epilepsy are at increased risk for sudden death. The most prevalent cause of sudden death in the general population is sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) due to ventricular fibrillation (VF). SCA may contribute to the increased incidence of sudden death in people with epilepsy. We assessed whether the risk for SCA is increased in epilepsy by determining the risk for SCA among people with active epilepsy in a community-based study. ⋯ Epilepsy in the general population seems to be associated with an increased risk for SCA.