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Potential limitations in assessment practices with children who have severe mental retardation have been identified in the literature. The purpose of the study was to investigate the extent to which practicing school psychologists use alternative methods as opposed to standardized/norm-referenced measures in the assessment of children suspected or identified as having moderate to severe/profound mental retardation. As part of a larger survey, assessment practices of school psychologists with children functioning in the more severe level of mental retardation were reported by 202 school psychologists. Results suggest that school psychologists use norm-referenced measures at all grade/age levels. Various other types of methods were also noted by 0.5 to 35.8% of the respondents, with the highest frequency of alternative approaches employed at the preschool level. Implications for assessment practices with children with moderate to severe/profound mental retardation and for the training of school psychologists in alternative methods of evaluation consistent with the need to link assessment to intervention are discussed.

An important area of inquiry in the assessment of intelligence lies in the area of giftedness. If proper educational decisions are to be made for children referred for gifted services, it is imperative that educational and psychological service providers understand factors influencing the response patterns of children with high levels of academic aptitude. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate four models of intellectual abilities using confirmatory factor analytic methods and data obtained on a sample of 197 children referred for services in an experimental gifted program. Although all four models provided results indicative of a plausible fit, a model posited on a revised version of Horn and Cattell's theory of fluid-crystallized abilities provided the broadest understanding of the cognitive functioning of children referred for gifted services.

The records of 979 preschool children were used to determine if differences in early childhood development can be accounted for by differences in performance on three measures of the Early Screening Profiles. A 2 × 2 × 3 (Race × Gender × Maternal education) MANOVA design was used for analysis with Cognitive/Language, Self-Help/Social, and Motor Profile standard scores as the three dependent variables. No statistically significant multivariate three-way or two-way interactions were observed. Univariate follow-ups to statistically significant main effects for race and maternal education that yielded statistically significant F values (a = .01) produced the following: (a) children classified as white scored significantly higher than children classified as black on both the Cognitive and Motor Profiles; (b) children for whom mothers reported high or medium levels of formal education scored higher than children for whom mothers reported low levels of formal education on the Cognitive Profile; and (c) children for whom mothers reported medium levels of formal education scored significantly higher than children for whom mothers reported low levels of formal education on the Motor Profile.

Fifty percent of all cancers occur in individuals over age 60. Participation in their own antineoplastic therapy is particularly important for persons in this age group. The authors offer information on the normal aging process, the management of side effects and line complications, and the use of infusion pumps. The goal of a well-planned program for self-administration is to provide the optimum in care for elderly persons suffering from cancer.

Purpose Patients with the salt-avid state of congestive heart failure (CHF) have been found to have hypozincemia of uncertain origin(s), which may reduce antioxidant defenses provided by Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD). In rats with aldosteronism, urinary Zn excretion is increased, leading to hypozincemia and reduced plasma Cu/Zn-SOD activity. Whether spironolactone (Spiro), an aldosterone receptor antagonist, would restore plasma Zn levels and Cu/Zn-SOD activity in rats with established hypozincemia remains uncertain. Methods and Results Uninephrectomized Sprague-Dawley rats received aldosterone (0.75 μg/h) plus 1% NaCl in their drinking water (ALDOST) for 1, 4, and 6 weeks. In a separate group that received ALDOST for 6 weeks, Spiro was begun at week 3 and continued to week 6 (A+Spiro), in a treatment study format. Unoperated, untreated, age-/gender-matched rats served as controls. Plasma Zn and Cu/Zn-SOD activity were monitored at weeks 1, 4, and 6 ALDOST and at week 6 of A+Spiro. We found (mean ± SEM) plasma Zn levels were reduced (p Conclusions In aldosteronism, the hypozincemia and reduced plasma Cu/Zn-SOD activity that appear due to hyperzincuria can each be corrected by treatment with an aldosterone receptor antagonist, Spiro. The proven utility of Spiro in the management of patients with CHF may include its favorable impact in controlling urinary Zn excretion and restoring serum Zn and antioxidant defenses toward normal levels.

Purpose Zn and Se are micronutrients that play numerous biologic roles in many tissues, including their contribution to antioxidant defenses provided by oxidoreductases Cu/Zn-superoxide dismutase and Se-glutathione peroxidase. Dietary deficiencies of Zn and Se have each been associated with the appearance of a dilated, often reversible, cardiomyopathy. Preliminary studies in 40 African Americans (AAs) with heart failure suggested the presence of hypozincemia in 60% and hyposelenemia in 82% (J Invest Med 2006;54 Suppl 1:S302). Herein we report on serum Zn and Se levels in 75 AAs: 61 with CHF and 14 without heart failure. Methods and Results In AAs followed at the Regional Medical Center in Memphis, we monitored serum Zn (normal 75-140 μg/dL) and Se (normal 85-125 μg/L): 20 (12 M, 8 F; 53.5 ± 2.7 years) were hospitalized with decompensated failure of protracted (D ≥ 4 weeks) duration and 23 (16 M, 7 F; 49.7 ± 2.6 years) were inpatients with CHF of shorter duration (D 1-2 wks) due to either a dilated or ischemic cardiomyopathy with reduced ejection fraction ( Hypozincemia and hyposelenemia were respectively prevalent in AAs: 70% and 100% with D ≥ 4 weeks, 74% and 96% with D 1-2 weeks, 61% and 94% with Comp failure, and 79% and 100% Cont. Conclusions Hypozincemia and especially hyposelenemia are prevalent in AAs with either compensated or decompensated heart failure and those without heart failure. The origins of Zn and Se dyshomeostasis in AA living in Memphis remain to be elucidated.

Purpose Hypozincemia has been found in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) and may contribute to the appearance of oxidative stress through reduced activity of Cu/Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD), an antioxidant defense oxidoreductase. In rats with aldosteronism, urinary Zn excretion is increased leading to reduced plasma Zn levels. Mechanisms responsible for the hyperzincuria remain unclear. An acidification of urine with increased ammonia excretion accompanies aldosteronism and leads to its characteristic metabolic alkalosis. Herein we tested the hypothesis that urinary acidification contributes to hyperzincuria and could be attenuated by cotreatment with acetazolamide, a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor that increases urinary HCO3 excretion and pH. Methods and Results Twenty-four-hour urinary Zn excretion and urine pH were monitored together with serum pH and plasma Zn and Cu/Zn-SOD activity in three groups of Sprague-Dawley rats: unoperated, untreated, age-/gender-matched controls and uninephrectomized rats receiving aldosterone (0.75 μg/h) and 1% NaCl in drinking water (ALDOST) alone or together with acetazolamide cotreatment (75 mg/kg body weight/day by gavage) for 4 weeks. In contrast to controls (mean ± SEM), with ALDOST (p Conclusions The hyperzincuria that accompanies aldosteronism and that contributes to hypozincemia and reduced Cu/Zn-SOD activity is related to urinary acidification, which can be attenuated by a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, acetazolamide.

Purpose Elevated serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) was previously reported in 8 African Americans (AAs) consecutively hospitalized in February 2005 with congestive heart failure (CHF) (Am J Med Sci 2006;331:30). The contribution of hypovitaminosis D to the appearance of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) was not addressed. Melanin is a natural sunscreen. Methods and Results Herein we report on SHPT (PTH > 65 pg/mL) and hypovitaminosis D (25(OH)D 30 ng/mL). We found (mean ± SEM): Conclusions Hypovitaminosis D is prevalent among AAs, with or without heart failure, whereas SHPT was confined to those with CHF where [Ca2+]o and [Mg2+]o balance can be compromised by chronic aldosteronism and loop diuretic. The potential for macro- and micronutrient supplements in the overall management of AA with heart failure is called into question.

This study investigated how rotation of dot-matrix characters influenced human performance, measured by the response time in a random search task. Factors that influence the extent of dot-matrix pattern distortion were identified, and their effects were investigated. Significant effects were found in angle of rotation (p=0.0046; 0 to 180 degrees in a 5-degree increment), target character's distance from the center of rotation (p

A survey of test usage for adult assessment was responded to by 402 professionals. Based on the responses of 313 individuals who assess adults, the following instruments were the most popular in each domain: WAIS-R or WAIS (intelligence), WRAT-R or WRAT (achievement), MMPI (personality), Vineland (adaptive behavior), and Strong-Campbell (vocational interest). There was a tendency for the most popular instruments to be seen as providing the information of greatest importance, although Draw-A-Person was a clear exception to that finding. Other questions in the survey explored the respondents! perceptions of the strong and weak aspects of intelligence tests, the purposes for which intelligence tests are used, and the domains that are in greatest need of new instruments.

Ambient white noise (80 dB), compared with quiet (52-dB) testing conditions, improved the performance of elderly and younger subjects on simple addition. Reliable age-related interactions were found on health measures of systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as heart rate. Heightened sensory conditions reduced the physiological measures of arousal in the younger group, whereas significant cardiovascular reactivity was found among the older group. The results are suggestive of the potential for increased cardiovascular risk as a function of sensory stimulation in the elderly despite improvements on cognitive tasks. Additional research is needed to evaluate the multidimensional effects of extended sensory stimulation on the elderly.

15 Educable Mentally Retarded children, aged 6 1/2 to 8 1/2 yr., were tested on the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities and the Stanford-Binet (1972 norms). All children were tested over a 6-mo. period in public schools located in Northeast Georgia. Since 8 of the 15 children obtained General Cognitive Indexes below the norms presented in the McCarthy manual, extrapolated scores were assigned to increase the precision of the comparison. Although the two scores correlated significantly, the mean Index with IQ was significantly lower than the mean IQ for this sample of educable mentally retarded children. The implications of the findings were discussed.

Although extrapolated IQs are available for Wechsler's intelligence scales, extrapolated values for the General Cognitive Index of the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities have not been presented. This study derived regression equations from the normative sample data and computed estimated composite raw scores corresponding to the indexes above 150 and below 50. Extrapolated values are useful for estimating a child's present level of functioning; however, because extrapolated values are not based on empirical data, they should be viewed as estimates and used with caution.

In recent years, a great deal of research concerning adaptive behavior scales has been conducted. This article reviews adaptive behavior research in the following areas: the relationship between adaptive behavior and intelligence and school achievement, the relationship between different measures of adaptive behavior, predictive aspects, declassification, group differences in adaptive behavior, the relationship between parents' and teachers' ratings, factorial dimensions, the effects of training and intervention, and stability and interrater reliability.