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'Theory of mind,' the ability to make inferences about others' mental states, seems to be a modular cognitive capacity that underlies humans' ability to engage in complex social interaction. It develops in several distinct stages, which can be measured with social reasoning tests of increasing difficulty. Individuals with Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism, perform well on simpler theory of mind tests but show deficits on more developmentally advanced theory of mind tests. We tested patients with bilateral damage to orbito-frontal cortex (n = 5) and unilateral damage in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (n = 5) on a series of theory of mind tasks varying in difficulty. Bilateral orbito-frontal lesion patients performed similarly to individuals with Asperger's syndrome, performing well on simpler tests and showing deficits on tasks requiring more subtle social reasoning, such as the ability to recognize a faux pas. In contrast, no specific theory of mind deficits were evident in the unilateral dorsolateral frontal lesion patients. The dorsolateral lesion patients had difficulty only on versions of the tasks that placed demands on working memory., INTRODUCTION Humans, like many other species, use a variety of cues (facial expression, body posture, tone of voice) to predict others' behavior. An animal that recognizes another animal's threatening body [...]

Objectives. This study developed a new acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) severity system by including diagnostic, physiological, functional, and sociodemographic factors predictive of survival. Methods. Three-hundred five persons with AIDS in Boston were interviewed; their medical records were reviewed and vital status ascertained. Results. Overall median [plus or minus] SD) survival for the cohort from the first interview until death was 560 [plus or minus] 14.4 days. The best model for predicting survival, the Boston AIDS Survival Score, included die Justice score (stage 2 relative hazard [RH] = 1.25, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.80, 1.96; stage 3 RH = 1.76, 95% CI = 1.15, 2.70), a newly developed opportunistic disease score (Boston Opportunistic Disease Survival Score; stage 2 RH = 1.35, 95% CI = 0.90, 2.02; stage 3 RH = 2.10, 95% CI = 1.38, 3.18), and measures of activities of daily living (any intermediate limitations, RH = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.05, 3.21; any basic limitations, RH = 2.60, 95% CI = 1.44, 4.69). This model had substantially greater predictive power ([R.sup.2] = .17, C statistic = .68) than the Justice score alone ([R.sup.2] = .09, C statistic = .61). Conclusions. Incorporating data on clinically important events and functional status into a physiologically based system can improve the prediction of survival with AIDS. (Am J Public Health. 1997;87:567-573)

Background Population-based literature suggests severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection may disproportionately affect racial/ethnic minorities; however, patient-level observations of hospitalization outcomes by race/ethnicity are limited. Our aim in this study was to characterize coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)–associated morbidity and in-hospital mortality by race/ethnicity. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of 9 Massachusetts hospitals including all consecutive adult patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19. Measured outcomes were assessed and compared by patient-reported race/ethnicity, classified as white, black, Latinx, Asian, or other. Student t test, Fischer exact test, and multivariable regression analyses were performed. Results A total of 379 patients (aged 62.9 ± 16.5 years; 55.7% men) with confirmed COVID-19 were included (49.9% white, 13.7% black, 29.8% Latinx, 3.7% Asian), of which 376 (99.2%) were insured (34.3% private, 41.2% public, 23.8% public with supplement). Latinx patients were younger, had fewer cardiopulmonary disorders, were more likely to be obese, more frequently reported fever and myalgia, and had lower D-dimer levels compared with white patients (P <.05). On multivariable analysis controlling for age, gender, obesity, cardiopulmonary comorbidities, hypertension, and diabetes, no significant differences in in-hospital mortality, intensive care unit admission, or mechanical ventilation by race/ethnicity were found. Diabetes was a significant predictor for mechanical ventilation (odds ratio [OR], 1.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11–3.23), while older age was a predictor of in-hospital mortality (OR, 4.18; 95% CI, 1.94–9.04). Conclusions In this multicenter cohort of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in the largest health system in Massachusetts, there was no association between race/ethnicity and clinically relevant hospitalization outcomes, including in-hospital mortality, after controlling for key demographic/clinical characteristics. These findings serve to refute suggestions that certain races/ethnicities may be biologically predisposed to poorer COVID-19 outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study has been conducted to examine the economic costs of caring for persons with AIDS by using data collected from three health care providers in Massachusetts. Results showed that mean costs of health care is $9,093 per patient, with 30% of these cost due to hospital care and 40% to home health care. An analysis of out-of-pocket expenditures showed that it comprised 5% or higher of total health care cost. This suggests that costs of treatment of AIDS has a large impact on health care planning.

Medically insured AIDS patients may receive most but not all of the services they need. In a sample of 305 AIDS patients, 95% were insured, but 36% had changed insurance coverage since their diagnosis. Medicaid coverage increased from 14% to 41% and was associated with a longer history of AIDS. Preventive medication for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and zidovudine therapy were widely available to AIDS patients, but 15% reported unmet medical or dental needs. Poverty, homelessness, being female and being black seemed associated with difficulty obtaining services.

AIDS patients treated at hospitals with less experience caring for such patients may be more likely to die in the hospital than those treated at more experienced hospitals. Among 300 AIDS patients, 806 hospitalizations at 40 Massachusetts hospitals took place over a two-year follow-up period. Overall, 13.2% of the patients died in the hospital. The in-hospital mortality rate was nearly twice as high among AIDS patients treated at low-experience hospitals than among those treated at hospitals with more experience (19% and 9.8%, respectively). Patients treated at a hospital with less experience spent more time in the hospital and in the intensive care unit than those treated in a hospital with more experience. With the growth of the AIDS epidemic, more AIDS patients are being admitted to local hospitals with less experience caring for individuals with AIDS.

HIV epidemic continues among African Americans, as a result other challenges loom ahead. HIV infection in African Americans challenges all health professionals, especially African Americans health professionals, to provide the most comprehensive and state-of-the-art care possible.

Evolutionary theories of human cognition should refer to specific times in the primate or hominid past. Though alternative accounts of tool manufacture from Wynn's are possible (e.g., frontal lobe function), Wynn demonstrates the power of archaeology to guide cognitive theories. Many cognitive abilities evolved not in the 'Pleistocene hunter-gatherer' context, but earlier, in the context of other patterns of social organization and foraging.