Evaluation of habituation to visual evoked potentials using pattern reversal among migraine individuals – a cross-sectional study

BackgroundMigraine is a multifaceted chronic disease with common ocular symptoms. Habituation is the decremental response on repeated stimulations. The literature review indicates controversial results regarding habituation in migraine individuals. The present study aimed to compare the habituation response using visual evoked potential (VEP) measures among migraine and control subjects.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study performed among migraine individuals attending the Department of Medicine and Neurology, of the age group of 18–30 years at Sri Manakula Vinayagar Medical College and Hospital, Puducherry. Habituation was evaluated in the two groups, control (n = 40) and migraine (n = 40), using pattern reversal VEP. The recording was done for 15-min duration and divided into four blocks of 3.8 min each. The results were compared employing Student t-test, and p < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.ResultsOur study indicates that latency N75, N145, and P100 amplitude showed significant differences between the two groups. In the right eye, on comparing the first and fourth block P100 amplitude in the migraine group, a significant increase (p < 0.001) was observed in the fourth block. Similarly, in the left eye, the control group showed a significant decrease in the fourth block (p = 0.002), whereas the migraine group showed a significant increase (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe present study concludes that migraine individuals report deficient habituation, evaluated using pattern reversal VEP.

PSYCHOLOGICAL MEANS FOR WOMEN’S SHYNESS OVERCOMING

The article analyses psychological factors of women’s shyness and ways to overcome it. The research on shyness of 18–22-year old women has help us determine its causes; the most significant of them are insufficient self-confidence and fears of negative assessments. Women with heavy shyness are prone to solitude, have problems with their identification in the family; they evaluate, feel and experience acutely their own imperfections and take guidance from opinions of others and social acceptance; they expect usually criticism and negative assessments from other people, etc. To overcome women’s shyness, the training program was developed that covered the following aspects: the notion of shyness and the causes of its emergence, the peculiarities of shyness influence on women’s life, the methods to reduce shyness, the negative factors affecting shyness. The proposed training consisted of four units: the first block was aimed at familiarizing of its participants with the notion of shyness, its factors and possible ways of overcoming; the participants’ expectations from the training and discussion of the psychological peculiarities of shyness in women’s life were collected during the second block; the third one was aimed at development of knowledge and skills for shy behaviour regulation; the final survey, feedback and training conclusion were done during the fourth block. After the training program approbation, the participating women changed significantly to the way of improvement a number of their own assessments: shyness, introversion / extraversion, attitude to shyness as a desirable trait. Women re-evaluated their ability to overcome shyness and became more willing to work on themselves and apply efforts for changes. The following personal traits of women were also improved: openness, independence and courage, autonomy, social activity and social adaptability; such socializing institutions as school, informal organizations and the Internet have become more important for them.

The methodology of estimation of transport demand by the parameters of location of the mass gravitation centers in the urbanized territories

The methodology of estimating transport demand by the parameters of location of the mass gravitation centers in the urbanized territories is considered in the article. The basis of the methodology is a basic scheme, conditionally divided into 4 main blocks and 17 steps. The first block is aimed at collecting primary information about the center of mass gravitation under consideration, the second one is for assessing transport demand during the daily period, the third one is necessary for assessing the quality of transport services for visitors of the considered center of mass gravity, for example, the calculation of the required number of parking slots or throughput, and confusing intersections. The fourth block is necessary for estimating the transport capacity of the calculation areas, and is the source of the initial data for transport planning at the second stage (trip distribution). It is also proposed to assess the accuracy of the proposed methodology on the basis of comparing the calculated values of the intensity of transport streams on the city’s network with the actual ones. On average, the deviation was 11%, which seems to be an acceptable accuracy for enlarged transport calculations.

Neuronal Dysexcitability May Be a Biomarker of Migraine: A Visual Evoked Potential Study

We report neuronal sensitization and impaired habituation in migraine using pattern reversal visual evoked potential (PRVEP) and correlate these with clinical characteristics of migraine. Sixty-five migraineurs and 30 healthy controls were included. A detailed clinical examination was done and migraine characteristics, including migraine trigger, photophobia, phonophobia, and allodynia were noted. Consecutive 5 blocks of PRVEP were recorded averaging 100 epochs at 3 Hz stimuli. The amplitude of N75 and P100 were measured. Amplitude of first block was considered for sensitization, and impaired habituation was considered if any subsequent block was not suppressed. Migraineurs had sensitization of P100 (14.01 ± 6.02 vs 11.60 ± 5.17 µV; P = .049), but not of N75 (42.22 ± 4.79 vs 11.08 ± 4.56 µV; P = .27) compared with the controls. Impaired habituation of N75 was more marked and persisted up to fourth block of VEP recoding. Impaired habituation of P100 was significant only in the third block. Baseline N75 and P100 amplitudes were higher in females, and N75 was also higher in those with longer duration of illness. These phenomena did not correlate with visual triggers. Sensitization and impaired habituation were marked during headache. Based on the PRVEP findings, it may be concluded that migraineurs have sensitization of P100 and impaired habituation of N75 especially during headache. These phenomena may be useful for therapeutic monitoring.

Is the Universe a Hologram?

The place of discovery and generation of human knowledge has become a somewhat fuzzy area, and it is at the crossroads of equally blurred disciplines where new glimpses of the future occur. This book looks at these issues through a series of interconnected and heterodox reflections. It is much more a book of non-linear questions than one of answers, where the index consists of a list of questions with those who address the issues linked to them. In 33 dialogues, the author attempts to draw the participants, researchers and creators—each specialists—out of their “intellectual comfort zones”, and get them to delve into areas of disciplines not considered part of their usual activities, thus enabling different concepts to be discussed. For example, “intelligence”, viewed simultaneously from the perspective of neuroscience, computer science, philosophy, and Artificial Intelligence, or whether quantum physics allows for freewill. The diversity and interconnecting ideas in these conversations is wide ranging and intense. The dialogues, preceded by a foreword from Tim O’Reilly, are arranged in four blocks: I, The Physical World; II, Information, and III, Intelligence; the fourth block is a dialogue-epilogue with the artist and painter J. M. Yturralde, closing the book with a critical foray into the overlap between Art and Science, with tantalizing questions, with an artistic slant, such as the validity of the equation “Beauty ≠ Truth,” or whether we can go back in time to the past and change it.

Geospatial organization of logistics system in transport optimization problem

The recent publications of application of optimization and transport problem for planning the flows in logistic systems are analysed. A mathematical model of logistics system for optimizing transport problem in the region, which has a territorial division into separate elements, is build. The tools for formalized mathematical and geographical description and geospatial study of closed transportation problem are developed, knowledge of which includes four blocks. First block is the information about geolocalization of subjects (the location of territorial elements, placing of suppliers, placing of consumers, distance from suppliers to consumers, Boolean matrix of belonging suppliers to the territorial elements, Boolean matrix of belonging consumers to the territorial elements). The second block is implicative knowledge about georelativity for logistics flows between suppliers and consumers. The third block is implicative knowledge about geointegrity of subjects (suppliers and consumers) with logistics flows. The fourth block is the information about geofunctioning of subjects (annual suppliers sending, annual consumers receiving, annual transportation on traffic flows). The system and algorithms for computing of centers for centrography analysis of the functioning subjects of the transport problem and meaningful interpretation of these centers is made. A system of ordinary differential equations describing the dynamics of the operation of the optimization of the transportation problem during the year is build and its relation to classical transport problem is shown. Entropic characteristics of operation of the transportation problem optimization are described and studied and invariance of the total entropy on the subjects of the problem is shown. The directions for further research on this theme are proposed. Key words: geospatial organization, transport problem, optimization, centrography, dynamics, entropy.

Student perspectives of assessment by TEMM model in physiology

Assessment is the process by which the teacher and the student gain knowledge about student progress. Assessment systems should aim at evaluating the desired learning outcomes. In Melaka Manipal Medical College, (Manipal Campus), Manipal, India, the TEMM model (consisting of 4 assessment methods: Triple Jump Test, essay incorporating critical thinking questions, Multistation Integrated Practical Examination, and multiple choice questions) was introduced to 30 refresher students in the fourth block of the academic year. At the end of the block, a questionnaire was distributed to ask the students to rank the different assessments in the order of their preference with respect to seven items. Analysis of the results showed that not a single type of assessment was ranked highest for all the seven items, proving the earlier observation that a single assessment does not fulfill all aspects of assessment and that there is a need for an evaluating system with multiple ways of assessment.

INTEGRATION OF NEUROSCIENCE AND ENDOCRINOLOGY IN HYBRID PBL CURRICULUM

At the University of Missouri-Columbia, the medical school employs a problem-based learning curriculum that began in 1993. Since the curriculum was changed, student performance on step 1 of the United States Medical Licensing Examination has significantly increased from slightly below the national average to almost one-half a standard deviation above the national mean. In the first and second years, classes for students are organized in classes or blocks that are 8 wk long, followed by 1 wk for evaluation. Initially, basic science endocrinology was taught in the fourth block of the first year with immunology and molecular biology. Student and faculty evaluations of the curriculum indicated that endocrinology did not integrate well with the rest of the material taught in that block. To address these issues, basic science endocrinology was moved into another block with neurosciences. We integrate endocrinology with neurosciences by using the hypothalamus and its role in neuroendocrinology as a springboard for endocrinology. This is accomplished by using clinical cases with clear neuroscience and endocrinology aspects such as Cushing’s disease and multiple endocrine neoplastic syndrome type 1.