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ObjectiveTo delineate the etiology, symptomatology, and treatment of sickle cell intrahepatic cholestasis (SCIC). Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most frequently inherited hematologic disease, and SCIC is one rare and often fatal complication and comorbid disease. The literature contains only a small number of case reports involving SCIC and hence limited guidance can be obtained.

We evaluated the effects of menstrual types inclusive of PMS on reports of chronic pain intensity and psychopathology in twenty-eight women (mean age 38.93 ± 13.51) with Sickle Cell disease (SCD).

•The present study examined how the quality and quantity of emotional and instrumental social support relate to stress and depression among older African Americans.•Better quality emotional social support was associated with less stress and depression, while higher levels of stress and depression were associated with receiving more social support.•Improving quality of emotional social support may help to further reduce emotional distress.

•Cognitive reserve can be built via formal education or other enriching activities.•Proxies of reserve may function differently due to racial health disparities.•For white participants, years of education was the strongest predictor of reserve.•For black participants, education quality and cognitive enrichment predicted reserve.

BackgroundThere is evidence that birth weight is positively associated with education, but it remains unclear whether this association is explained by familial environmental factors, genetic factors or the intrauterine environment. We analysed the association between birth weight and educational years within twin pairs, which controls for genetic factors and the environment shared between co-twins.MethodsThe data were derived from nine twin cohorts in eight countries including 6116 complete twin pairs. The association between birth weight and educational attainment was analysed both between individuals and within pairs using linear regression analyses.ResultsIn between-individual analyses, birth weight was not associated with educational years. Within-pairs analyses revealed positive but modest associations for some sex, zygosity and birth year groups. The greatest association was found in dizygotic (DZ) men (0.65 educational years/kg birth weight, p=0.006); smaller effects of 0.3 educational years/kg birth weight were found within monozygotic (MZ) twins of both sexes and opposite-sex DZ twins. The magnitude of the associations differed by birth year in MZ women and opposite-sex DZ twins, showing a positive association in the 1915–1959 birth cohort but no association in the 1960–1984 birth cohort.ConclusionAlthough associations are weak and somewhat inconsistent, our results suggest that intrauterine environment may play a role when explaining the association between birth weight and educational attainment.

Compared with other racial/ethnic groups, African Americans have higher rates of chronic conditions and suffer a disproportionate burden of disability. We aimed to examine the effects of social support on physical functioning among older African Americans.

Race differences in chronic conditions and disability are well established; however, little is known about the association between specific chronic conditions and disability in African Americans. This is important because African Americans have higher rates and earlier onset of both chronic conditions and disability than white Americans.

African Americans are disproportionately affected by hypertension. The goal here was to better understand the relationship between well-being and environmental factors and their influence on hypertension. It was hypothesized that there would be a positive association among perceived stress, depression, and hypertension mediated by social support.

The unpredictable nature of sickle cell disease (SCD) and its social and environmental consequences can produce an unhealthy and almost exclusive focus on physical functioning. At the upper range of this focus on health concerns is somatization. In the current study, using 156 adult patients (55.13% female, 86) with SCD, mean age 35.59 ± 12.73, we explored the relationship of somatization to pain. We found somatization to be predictive of pain severity and current pain intensity as well as a range of averaged indices of pain over time (p < .0001). We further found somatization to be predictive of a range of negative psychological experiences to include depression, anxiety, and hostility (p< .0001). We interpret these data to suggest that patients with SCD who have a propensity to focus exclusively on their health or are more sensitive to minor changes in their health status (somatization) may also be more likely to report greater concerns about their health and higher ratings of pain.

Few studies have examined traits or behaviors that may predispose some African Americans to poor cardiovascular health outcomes. While several models of personality exist, the 5-factor model (FFM) is arguably the best representation of personality and provides a useful framework for the study of personality and health. Among personality characteristics associated with health risks among African Americans, a high-effort coping style called John Henryism is among the most thoroughly examined. It is not clear if personality coping and health are connected in a meaningful way. The present study utilized data from the Baltimore Study of Black Aging (BSBA) to examine whether personality was linked to John Henryism, how personality might be linked to cardiovascular health, and how John Henryism might mediate the relationship between personality and cardiovascular health. The sample consisted of 234 older African Americans (mean age, 67 years), 28% of which were men. Regressions were used to examine the questions. The results indicated that those who are more neurotic report more cardiovascular health problems, and that openness and conscientiousness were significant predictors of active coping. The mediation analysis results suggest that coping style did not mediate the relationship between personality and reports of cardiovascular health problems. These findings highlight the importance of personality in accounting for cardiovascular health in African Americans.

There is a strong relationship between suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and depression. Rates of successful suicides are relatively high among the chronically ill compared to other populations but are reduced with treatment. Depression and suicide rates also often differ among blacks as compared to other populations. Using survey methods, we evaluated self-reported rates of depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts in 30 male and 37 female black patients with sickle cell disease (SCD). SCD is a condition characterized by chronic, unpredictable pains and psychosocial distress. Thirtysix percent of the sample self-reported depression in the past 30 days, while 22 percent of the sample exhibited scores on the Beck Depression Inventory indicative of mild or greater depression (mean BDI, 8.31 ± 7.79). Twenty-nine percent of patients indicated an episode of suicidal ideation and 8%, a suicidal attempt in their lifetime. Thirty-three percent reported treatment by a mental health professional.

Blacks experience disproportionately elevated rates of tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. Blacks experience delayed smoking initiation relative to other racial/ethnic groups, highlighting the importance of examining smoking correlates occurring in late adolescence/early adulthood.

Participation in genetic studies is often limited by a volunteer's reluctance to donate blood samples. We wished to determine if alternate, less painful, methods to venipuncture could be used to collect cells to provide DNA for genotyping, and whether the cells could be grown in culture for extraction of DNA. Volunteers in the study were comprised of two groups. Nine individuals from a university campus were recruited to provide samples for initial experiments. A second group of 710 twins and singletons from North Carolina and of African‐American descent were a part of an ongoing study of age‐related traits and participated in collection of buccal swabs via the mail. A protocol was generated that maximizes the recovery of DNA from buccal swabs, which are easier to handle than saline rinses. The DNA recovered is stable over several years, allowing genotype tests at a future date. Attempts to encourage growth of buccal epithelial cells recovered from swabs in tissue culture proved unsuccessful. Buccal swabs work well for the collection of DNA, especially from nonclinic‐based volunteers, and can be sent via the mail to the laboratory for DNA extraction. Thus, an inexpensive and efficient method exists for genetic studies of population‐based samples. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 15:637–642, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Participation in genetic studies is often limited by a volunteer's reluctance to donate blood samples. We wished to determine if alternate, less painful, methods to venipuncture could be used to collect cells to provide DNA for genotyping, and whether the cells could be grown in culture for extraction of DNA. Volunteers in the study were comprised of two groups. Nine individuals from a university campus were recruited to provide samples for initial experiments. A second group of 710 twins and singletons from North Carolina and of African-American descent were a part of an ongoing study of age-related traits and participated in collection of buccal swabs via the mail. A protocol was generated that maximizes the recovery of DNA from buccal swabs, which are easier to handle than saline rinses. The DNA recovered is stable over several years, allowing genotype tests at a future date. Attempts to encourage growth of buccal epithelial cells recovered from swabs in tissue culture proved unsuccessful. Buccal swabs work well for the collection of DNA, especially from nonclinic-based volunteers, and can be sent via the mail to the laboratory for DNA extraction. Thus, an inexpensive and efficient method exists for genetic studies of population-based samples. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 15:637–642, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Objective:To investigate the genetic and environmental influences on body‐fat measures including waist circumference (WC), waist‐to‐hip ratio (WHR), and body mass index (BMI) among African‐American men and women. Research Methods and Procedures:Measurements were taken as part of the Carolina African American Twin Study of Aging. This sample currently comprises 146 same‐sex African‐American twins with an average age of 50 years (range, 22 to 88 years). This analysis included 26 monozygotic and 29 dizygotic men and 45 monozygotic and 46 dizygotic women. Maximum likelihood quantitative genetic analysis was used. Results:In men, additive genetic effects accounted for 77% of the variance in WC, 59% in WHR, and 89% in BMI. In women, additive genetic effects accounted for 76% of the variance in WC, 56% in WHR, and 73% in BMI. The remaining variance in both men and women was attributed to unique environmental effects (WC, 21%; WHR, 36%; BMI, 11% in men and WC, 22%; WHR, 38%; BMI, 27% in women) and age (WC, 2%; WHR, 5% in men and WC, 2%; WHR, 6% in women). When BMI was controlled in the analysis of WC and WHR, it accounted for a portion of the genetic and environmental variance in WHR and over one‐half of the genetic and environmental variance in WC. Discussion:There are both genetic and environmental influences on WC, WHR, and BMI, and independent of BMI, there are genetic and environmental effects on WC and WHR among both genders. The results from this African‐American twin sample are similar to findings among white twin samples.

Basketball coaches often call a timeout just before the opposing player shoots a free-throw during the last five minutes of a close game. Their intent is to lower the opposing player's free-throw percentage. This study examined the effectiveness of this strategy in critical game situations. Play-by-play records of 1237 men's NCAA Division I games played between 1977 and 1989 were reviewed. We identified 350 verifiable timeout situations. Opposing coaches called 250 timeouts before an opponent shot a free-throw. As the score differential and time remaining in the game decreased, coaches relied on this strategy more frequently to try to control the outcome of the game. This strategy was not effective in reducing free-throw percentage, suggesting that coaches need to reconsider the strategy.

The present study of gender differences in hemispheric processing involved identification of tachistoscopically presented images of varying complexity. A computerized tachistoscopic program was administered to 24 men and 34 women. Time to identify contour and detailed pictures presented to the left or right cerebral hemisphere was recorded. Mean reaction time for contour pictures was significantly faster than for detailed pictures, and mean reaction time to the right hemisphere was significantly faster than that to the left hemisphere. The mean reaction time for men to identify pictures exposed to the left hemisphere was significantly slower than that for exposure to the right hemisphere for women. The mean reaction time for both men and women to identify contour pictures exposed to the right hemisphere was significantly faster than the mean time to identify detailed pictures presented to the left hemisphere. The interaction of gender, hemisphere, and complexity was also significant in that mean reaction times for men to identify detailed pictures presented to the left hemisphere were slower than the times for women to identify contour pictures presented to the right hemisphere. The results are discussed in relation to theories about hemispheres, gender, and differences in picture features.

This article discusses the utility of the Visually Degraded Stimulus Task developed in 1986 by Vokey, Baker, Hayman, and Jacoby. The program provides 30 line drawings that can be presented in complete form prior to receiving incomplete forms of the same or similar drawings In the incomplete form, a small percentage of a drawing can be added with each touch of the computer space bar. By this means the percentage of drawing required for identification can be obtained. In this article, difficulty levels of incomplete picture identification are provided for each drawing under conditions of no previous viewing (no prime), previous viewing in an alternate form (conceptual prime), and previous viewing of the same drawings (exact prime). Modifications to the microprocessor computer program are provided to increase its usefulness as a means of testing priming effects in visual memory. Program applications are provided for the study of memory and neuropsychology

Health disparities between African Americans and Whites have persisted in the United States. Researchers have recently hypothesized that the relatively poor health of African Americans may be caused, in part, by African American overrepresentation in the criminal justice system.

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