11 results on '"Christina Salama"'
Search Results
2. Functional Gains in Children Receiving Inpatient Rehabilitation After Brain Tumor Resection
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Cynthia F. Salorio, Alyssa M. Day, Stacy J. Suskauer, Beth S. Slomine, Christina Salama, and Thea L. Quinton
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Male ,030506 rehabilitation ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Time Factors ,Adolescent ,medicine.medical_treatment ,Psychological intervention ,Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation ,Neurosurgical Procedures ,Article ,03 medical and health sciences ,Young Adult ,0302 clinical medicine ,Outcome Assessment, Health Care ,Medicine ,Humans ,Child ,Retrospective Studies ,Brain tumor resection ,Inpatients ,Rehabilitation ,business.industry ,Brain Neoplasms ,Outcome measures ,Age Factors ,Retrospective cohort study ,Rehabilitation unit ,Recovery of Function ,After discharge ,Child, Preschool ,Physical therapy ,Female ,0305 other medical science ,business ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery ,Inpatient rehabilitation - Abstract
Objective To examine whether children with brain tumors treated with resection benefit from inpatient rehabilitation and to explore what factors present at admission may predict better functional outcomes. Design Retrospective cohort design. Setting Pediatric inpatient rehabilitation unit. Participants Forty patients (N=40; ages 3-21y; 42.5% female) admitted to the rehabilitation unit between 2003 and 2015 after brain tumor resection. Interventions Patients received multidisciplinary rehabilitation therapies as part of their admission to inpatient rehabilitation, including occupational, physical, and speech-language therapy. Main Outcome Measures Functional outcomes included the FIM for Children (WeeFIM) at discharge and 3-month follow-up as well as WeeFIM efficiency. Results A repeated-measures analysis of variance using patient WeeFIM Developmental Functional Quotients (DFQs) at admission, discharge, and 3-month follow-up showed significant gains in total WeeFIM DFQ scores across time. Admission WeeFIM DFQ, time from surgery to admission, and age at admission provided the strongest model for predicting discharge and 3-month follow-up WeeFIM DFQ scores. Admission WeeFIM DFQ and time from surgery to admission provided the strongest model for predicting WeeFIM efficiency. Total Neurological Predictor Scale (NPS) at admission did not add predictive power to any of the 3 models over and above patient characteristics (admission WeeFIM DFQ, age at admission, time from surgery to admission). Conclusions Patients admitted to inpatient rehabilitation after brain tumor resection made significant functional gains (as measured by the WeeFIM) during inpatient rehabilitation and continued to make significant gains 3 months after discharge. Age and timing of admission provided the strongest models for predicting patient outcomes. The NPS did not predict functional outcomes after rehabilitation when controlling for other variables known to influence rehabilitation outcomes.
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- 2021
3. Exploring the Dynamics of B Cell Subpopulations in Response to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: A Prospective Study
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Foteini Pouliasi, Christina Salamaliki, Stavros Kanaloupitis, Evgenia Verigou, Elias Liolis, Angelos Koutras, Thomas Makatsoris, Charalambos Kalofonos, Stamatis-Nick Liossis, and Elena E. Solomou
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B cells ,checkpoint inhibitors ,immunotherapy ,immune-related adverse events ,NSCLC ,carcinoma ,Technology ,Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General) ,TA1-2040 ,Biology (General) ,QH301-705.5 ,Physics ,QC1-999 ,Chemistry ,QD1-999 - Abstract
Globally, the efforts to find the best cancer treatment are demanding and very intensive. Immunotherapy has gained an important role as a second or sometimes first line of treatment for various types of cancer. PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors are an impending category of immunotherapy, and their mechanism, as well as their interaction with T cells, are well studied. However, our knowledge about any possible effect(s) of immunotherapy on B cells is limited. In this prospective study, we asked the question of any possible alterations of circulating B cells (numbers and subsets) occurring during immunotherapy in patients with cancer and of the potential correlation of such changes with the outcomes and with development of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). We enrolled 20 cancer patients who received PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors and 8 healthy donors (HD). Patients underwent regular clinical assessment and imaging using the iRECIST criteria for 6 months following immunotherapy. Peripheral blood samples were collected before and during PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor therapy, and flow cytometry analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was performed, evaluating various circulating B cell subset phenotypes, including mature naïve B cells, memory B cells, regulatory B cells (Bregs), antibody-secreting cells (ASCs), and age-related B cells (ABCs). Statistical analysis was employed to compare the differences of B cells between different groups and among sequential data within the same group. Total circulating CD19+ B cell counts remained stable across both groups (responders (R), nonresponders (NR)) and timepoints. However, there was a significant rise in mature naïve B cells and decline in memory B cells at the initiation of the treatment in the R group compared to healthy donors and to the NR group. Such changes were correlated with a good response to immunotherapy. On the contrary, higher numbers of ABCs at baseline were seen in the NR group and were correlated with resistance to treatment. As far as immune-related adverse events are concerned, no significant changes were recorded among the different B cell subpopulations evaluated in both groups. Our study provides preliminary data suggesting that B cell subset changes during immunotherapy may correlate with immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced clinical responses in patients with neoplasia. Further investigations to delineate the potential role(s) of B cells in patients undergoing immunotherapy are needed.
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- 2024
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4. Geriatric Depression Scale
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Christina Salama and Jennifer Linton Reesman
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- 2018
5. South African Adolescents' Neighborhood Perceptions Predict Longitudinal Change in Youth and Family Functioning
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Rebecca Hill LeCroix, Donald Skinner, Christina Salama, Karie Gaska, Nicholas Tarantino, Nada M. Goodrum, Lisa Armistead, and Sarah Cook
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030505 public health ,Sociology and Political Science ,Child rearing ,Family functioning ,05 social sciences ,Psychological intervention ,Human sexuality ,Prevention intervention ,Article ,Developmental psychology ,03 medical and health sciences ,Health promotion ,Developmental and Educational Psychology ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,0305 other medical science ,Life-span and Life-course Studies ,Neighborhood perceptions ,Association (psychology) ,Psychology ,Social Sciences (miscellaneous) ,050104 developmental & child psychology - Abstract
This study examined South African early adolescent youth (aged 10-14 years) and their female caregivers ( N = 99 dyads) participating in an HIV prevention intervention over a period of 8 months. We examined youth perceptions of neighborhood cohesion, safety, and collective monitoring as they related to concurrent and longitudinal associations with youth (externalizing behavior and hope about the future) and family (parent-youth relationship quality, parental involvement, and parental responsiveness to sex communication) functioning while controlling for baseline characteristics. Neighborhood perceptions were significantly associated ( p < .05) with short- and longer term outcomes. Gender differences suggested a greater protective association of perceived neighborhood conditions with changes in functioning for boys versus girls. Unexpected associations were also observed, including short-term associations suggesting a link between better neighborhood quality and poorer family functioning. We account for the culture of this South African community when contextualizing our findings and conclude with recommendations for interventions targeting neighborhood contexts.
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- 2017
6. Perceived control and communication about sex: A study of South African families
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Donald Skinner, Yoesrie Toefy, Elizabeth R. Anthony, Elizabeth C Grim, Lisa Armistead, Sarah Cook, Christina Salama, and Bradley L. Goodnight
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Adult ,Male ,Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ,Adolescent ,Sexual Behavior ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Population ,Psychological intervention ,Developing country ,Human sexuality ,Sex Education ,Developmental psychology ,South Africa ,Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,Virology ,Perception ,medicine ,Humans ,Family ,Parent-Child Relations ,Child ,education ,media_common ,education.field_of_study ,Child rearing ,Communication ,Coitus ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,Theory of planned behavior ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,Infectious Diseases ,Caregivers ,Regression Analysis ,Female ,Psychology ,Clinical psychology - Abstract
Caregiver–youth communication about sex protects youth against HIV/AIDS, and caregivers who believe that sex knowledge is important are more likely to talk to their youth about sex. However, caregivers who experience barriers to communication about sex may not talk to their youth about sex even if the caregiver believes that sex education is important. The Theory of Planned Behaviour predicts that an actor has perceived control is necessary for behavioural change. This study therefore hypothesised that caregivers’ perceived control moderates the relationship between caregiver attitudes about youth sex knowledge and caregiver–youth communication about sex. Results from a sample of 99 female South African caregivers of adolescent (10–14 year old) youth supported our hypothesis, indicating that caregiver attitudes about providing youth with sex knowledge positively predict communication about sex only when caregivers have perceived control. This finding illustrates the importance of perceived control in predicting caregiver–youth communication, and therefore has implications for family-based interventions aimed at improving caregiver–youth communication about sex.Keywords: HIV, family, caregivers, perceived control, parental attitudes, parent–child communicationAfrican Journal of AIDS Research 2014, 13(1): 31–36
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- 2014
7. Preliminary results from a family-based HIV prevention intervention for South African youth
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Yoesrie Toefy, Louis K Chow, Elizabeth R. Anthony, Lindsey Zimmerman, Tracy N. Hipp, Lisa Armistead, Sarah Cook, Christina Salama, Bradley L. Goodnight, and Donald Skinner
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Adult ,Male ,Parents ,Adolescent ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Sexual Behavior ,Population ,Psychological intervention ,HIV Infections ,Pilot Projects ,Interpersonal communication ,Health Promotion ,Sex Education ,South Africa ,Risk-Taking ,Intervention (counseling) ,Medicine ,Personality ,Humans ,Young adult ,Cultural Competency ,Parent-Child Relations ,education ,Child ,Applied Psychology ,media_common ,education.field_of_study ,Child rearing ,Parenting ,business.industry ,Communication ,Middle Aged ,language.human_language ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,language ,Female ,Xhosa ,business ,Demography ,Clinical psychology ,Follow-Up Studies - Abstract
Objectives: Approximately 5.6 million South Africans are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV; UNAIDS 2010). Prevalence among Black adolescents and young adults is particularly alarming. This pilot study of an HIV preventive intervention targeting South African youth contributes to the growing body of research on culturally competent family-based interventions. Method: A total of 99 parent-child dyads were enrolled in an experimental repeated measures study using a wait-list control group. Our 6-session intervention targeted general parenting (relationship quality parental monitoring and involvement) gender roles and parent-youth communication about sex (content and quality). Parents and youth were assessed at baseline postintervention and 6-month follow-up. Eligibility included being the primary female caregiver of a 10- to 14-year-old child with whom they spent at least 4 nights a week and being able to participate in English or Xhosa. Results: Effect sizes with this small sample met or exceeded those of other family-based HIV interventions for youth in the United States and South Africa (e.g. Bell et al. 2008; Forehand et al. 2007). Parents reports at postintervention indicated larger effect sizes for general parenting than youths reports indicated. Parents reports showed medium to large effects for all sex communication outcomes at postintervention and the 6-month follow-up. Youth reports demonstrated small to medium effects for most communication variables and these effects lasted through the 6-month follow-up period. Conclusions: Intergenerational social networks (e.g. families) hold promise for HIV prevention among South African youth. A full efficacy trial with longer-term follow-up and attention to maintenance of effects is warranted.
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- 2014
8. Depressive and conduct disorder symptoms in youth living with HIV: the independent and interactive roles of coping and neuropsychological functioning
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Corinne Ferdon, Lisa Armistead, Mary K. Morris, Christina Salama, Pamela J. Bachanas, Linda J. Koenig, and Penelope Demas
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Conduct Disorder ,Male ,Coping (psychology) ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Health (social science) ,Georgia ,Social Psychology ,Adolescent ,Personality Inventory ,HIV Infections ,Neuropsychological Tests ,Social support ,Executive Function ,Young Adult ,Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) ,Risk Factors ,Surveys and Questionnaires ,medicine ,Humans ,Sex Distribution ,Psychiatry ,Psychiatric Status Rating Scales ,Depressive Disorder, Major ,Depression ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,Beck Depression Inventory ,Neuropsychology ,Social Support ,Cognition ,medicine.disease ,Adaptation, Physiological ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Conduct disorder ,Adolescent Behavior ,Quality of Life ,Regression Analysis ,Female ,New York City ,Psychology ,Psychosocial ,Clinical psychology - Abstract
Emerging research suggests the importance of psychosocial characteristics (e.g., coping and social support) for positive adaptation among youth with behaviorally acquired HIV. However, little is known about how these traits interact with cognitive abilities to impact emotional and behavioral adjustment. This study examined whether coping skills and executive functioning interact in their association with psychological adjustment in HIV-positive youth. Data from Project Adolescents Living with HIV/AIDS (ALPHA), a study to examine psychosocial, behavioral and neuropsychological functioning of youth with behaviorally acquired HIV, were used. Fifty-nine participants, aged 14-23, diagnosed with HIV prior to age 20 and receiving care in one of two HIV clinics in Atlanta or New York City, were recruited, consented and enrolled. Participants completed measures of depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory), conduct disorder (Adolescent Symptom Index), and use of positive and negative coping strategies (Kidcope). The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) assessed abstract reasoning (categories completed) and cognitive inflexibility (perseverative errors). In this sample of HIV-positive youth, depressive symptoms were best predicted by an interactive combination of negative coping skills and poor neuropsychological functioning. Neuropsychological functioning (cognitive inflexibility) and negative coping skills were directly associated with conduct disorder symptoms. Results highlight the importance of including neuropsychological assessment in the evaluation of HIV-positive youth, particularly those with emotional or behavioral problems.
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- 2012
9. The association between poly-substance use, coping, and sex trade among black South African substance users
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April Lawson, Anne Gloria Moleko, Sarra L. Hedden, Leah J. Floyd, Christina Salama, and William W. Latimer
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Adult ,Male ,Coping (psychology) ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ,Health (social science) ,Adolescent ,Substance-Related Disorders ,Sexual Behavior ,Population ,Medicine (miscellaneous) ,Poison control ,Transactional sex ,HIV Infections ,Neuropsychological Tests ,Logistic regression ,Suicide prevention ,Article ,Drug Users ,Interviews as Topic ,South Africa ,Risk-Taking ,Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) ,Adaptation, Psychological ,medicine ,Odds Ratio ,Humans ,education ,Psychiatry ,education.field_of_study ,Chi-Square Distribution ,business.industry ,Patient Selection ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,medicine.disease ,Sex Work ,Substance abuse ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,Logistic Models ,Female ,business ,Stress, Psychological ,Demography - Abstract
The current study examined the relationship between poly-substance use and sex trade among 343 black South African substance users recruited from the Pretoria region between 2002 and 2006 (57% males; mean age 24 years). The assessment comprised a HIV-risk behavior interview, urinalysis to confirm self-report of drug use, and an HIV test. Logistic regression analyses indicated poly-substance use was positively associated with sex trade among persons using drugs to cope with stress. Results indicate the importance of considering coping strategies as modifiable psychosocial factor related to sexual risk-taking behaviors and substance use. The study’s implications and limitations are discussed.
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- 2010
10. Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Associated Scleroderma-Like Syndrome: A Report of a Pembrolizumab-Induced 'Eosinophilic Fasciitis-Like' Case and a Review of the Literature
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Christina Salamaliki, Elena E. Solomou, and Stamatis-Nick C. Liossis
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Checkpoint inhibitors ,Eosinophilic fasciitis ,Immune-related adverse event ,PD-1 inhibitor ,Pembrolizumab ,Diseases of the musculoskeletal system ,RC925-935 - Abstract
Abstract Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a promising new therapeutic strategy in oncology that aims to eliminate cancer cells by enhancing patients' immune response against tumor antigens. Despite their beneficial effects, immune checkpoint inhibitors are also responsible for a plethora of autoimmune manifestations, known as immune-related adverse events. We present a case of eosinophilic fasciitis-like disorder in an 81-year-old patient treated with the programmed death cell protein 1 inhibitor pembrolizumab for non-small-cell lung cancer. The patient developed characteristic indurated skin lesions in his limbs after 1½ years of treatment with pembrolizumab and a typical “groove sign.” Raynaud’s syndrome was absent. A full-thickness biopsy confirmed the clinical diagnosis of an “EF-like” condition. Neither peripheral eosinophilia nor eosinophilic infiltrates in the skin biopsy were found. His symptoms improved after a 2.5-month CPI discontinuation and treatment with 16 mg of methylprednisolone slowly tapered to a dose of 4 mg. Eosinophilic fasciitis is a rare immune-related adverse event of CPI treatment; our literature search identified only 12 cases that fulfill the criteria of EF in patients receiving CPIs.
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- 2020
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11. How to Make the Right Diagnosis in Neutropenia
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Elena E. Solomou, Christina Salamaliki, and Maria Lagadinou
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Neutropenia ,infections ,drugs ,differential diagnosis ,Diseases of the blood and blood-forming organs ,RC633-647.5 - Abstract
Isolated neutropenia without anemia or thrombocytopenia is a common clinical problem. The etiology of neutropenia may vary from transient bone marrow suppression, caused by self-limited viral illnesses, to previously undiagnosed congenital syndromes or serious systemic diseases. Consequently, determining the underlying cause of neutropenia and what treatment is required can be challenging. Acquired neutropenia is common and most of the times an etiologic factor can be found. Congenital neutropenia (CN) is rare, and we still have a lot to learn from mutational analysis as to the exact role of gene abnormalities in the pathogenesis of these complex diseases. This mini-review discusses a proposed approach to neutropenia in the adult patient.
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- 2021
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