The purpose of the present study was

to identify the prefrontal sub-regions responsible for deficits in idea fluency using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), which is more practical than other imaging methods, and to investigate the relationships between lesions and idea fluency deficits and social dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia Eighteen outpatients with schizophrenia and 16 healthy subjects were recruited for this case-controlled study Using 24-channel NIRS, we measured changes in hemoglobin concentration in the prefrontal cortical surface area during idea and letter fluency tests The analyses revealed that schizophrenia patients generally exhibited a smaller increase in the concentration of oxyhemoglobin in the

frontopolar selleck region than the controls during both the tests. However, the areas in which reduced activations were demonstrated in the patients differed remarkably between the idea and letter fluency tests reduced activations were observed in the ventral region during the former test and in the dorsal region of the frontopolar cortex during the latter test The reduced activations in each sub-region appeared to affect the related cognitive impairment, since the patients showed significant poorer performances than the controls on both the tests Moreover, hypoactivity during idea fluency was significantly correlated with poor social functioning as assessed using the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) in the patient group The results of the present study suggest that the ventral region within MK-0518 the frontopolar cortex is responsible for divergent thinking, which is associated with poor social functioning in patients with schizophrenia (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved”
“Progress on child mortality and undernutrition has seen widening inequities and a concentration of child deaths and undernutrition in the most deprived communities, threatening the achievement of the Millennium

Development Goals. Conversely, a series of recent process and technological innovations have provided effective and efficient options to reach the most deprived populations. These trends raise the possibility that the perceived trade-off between equity and efficiency no longer applies for child health-that prioritising services for the poorest and most marginalised AG-014699 mouse is now more effective and cost effective than mainstream approaches. We tested this hypothesis with a mathematical-modelling approach by comparing the cost-effectiveness in terms of child deaths and stunting events averted between two approaches (from 2011-15 in 14 countries and one province): an equity-focused approach that prioritises the most deprived communities, and a mainstream approach that is representative of current strategies. We combined some existing models, notably the Marginal Budgeting for Bottlenecks Toolkit and the Lives Saved Tool, to do our analysis.