Howard B. Lee

An Empirical Evaluation of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) with Survivors of a Natural Disaster

Controlled studies of treatments effective with victims of natural disasters are almost nonexistent. This is a small study conducted under difficult conditions to test the effectiveness of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) in treating trauma related reactions following Hurricane Andrew. The results were positive in that EMDR produced significant improvement over wait list controls in perceived posttraumatic avoidance behaviors and thoughts as measured by changes in the Impact of Event Scale and significant improvement in subjective aversive reactions to representative experiences of the hurricane. These results suggest and support other studies that EMDR can be an effective therapeutic intervention for trauma reactions.

Facial Nerve Outcome and Tumor Control Rate as a Function of Degree of Resection in Treatment of Large Acoustic Neuromas: Preliminary Report of the Acoustic Neuroma Subtotal Resection Study (ANSRS).

BACKGROUND Patients with large vestibular schwannomas are at high risk of poor facial nerve (cranial nerve VII [CNVII]) function after surgery. Subtotal resection potentially offers better outcome, but may lead to higher tumor regrowth. OBJECTIVE To assess long-term CNVII function and tumor regrowth in patients with large vestibular schwannomas. METHODS Prospective multicenter nonrandomized cohort study of patients with vestibular schwannoma ≥2.5 cm who received gross total resection, near total resection, or subtotal resection. Patients received radiation if tumor remnant showed signs of regrowth. RESULTS Seventy-three patients had adequate follow-up with mean tumor diameter of 3.33 cm. Twelve received gross total resection, 22 near total resection, and 39 subtotal resection. Fourteen (21%) remnant tumors continued to grow, of which 11 received radiation, 1 had repeat surgery, and 2 no treatment. Four of the postradiation remnants (36%) required surgical salvage. Tumor regrowth was related to non-cystic nature, larger residual tumor, and subtotal resection. Regrowth was 3 times as likely with subtotal resection compared to gross total resection and near total resection. Good CNVII function was achieved in 67% immediately and 81% at 1-year. Better immediate nerve function was associated with smaller preoperative tumor size and percentage of tumor left behind on magnetic resonance image. Degree of resection defined by surgeon and preoperative tumor size showed weak trend toward better late CNVII function. CONCLUSION Likelihood of tumor regrowth was 3 times higher in subtotal resection compared to gross total resection and near total resection groups. Rate of radiation control of growing remnants was suboptimal. Better immediate but not late CNVII outcome was associated with smaller tumors and larger tumor remnants. ABBREVIATIONS CNVII, cranial nerve VIIGTR, gross total resectionHB, House-BrackmannMRI, magnetic resonance imageNTR, near total resectionSTR, subtotal resection.

Functional Assessment-Based Interventions for Children At-Risk for Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Functional assessments were conducted to identify the variables maintaining disruptive behavior in eight, typically developing fifth-grade students enrolled in general education classrooms. Participants whose behavior was found to be functionally related to either task-avoidance or attention-seeking were randomly assigned to a treatment strategy that was primarily either antecedent- or consequent-based. An ABAB single-case design was employed to analyze the effects of treatment strategies. The current study also conducted a comparison of treatment strategies that were primarily antecedent- or consequent-based. Results showed that antecedent-based treatment strategies (i.e., self-monitoring and task-modification) were more effective than consequent-based treatment strategies (i.e., differential reinforcement) for increasing academic engagement and reducing disruptive behavior. Implications regarding the use of functional assessment with typically developing students at-risk for emotional and behavioral problems enrolled in general education classrooms and the effects of antecedent- and consequent-based treatment strategies as a function of behavior are discussed.

Bivalve cartilage inlay myringoplasty: An office-based procedure for closing small to medium-sized tympanic membrane perforations

Objective To determine whether bivalve inlay cartilage-perichondrium myringoplasty (BCM) is successful in closing tympanic membrane perforations in an office setting. Study Design Retrospective case review. Subjects and Methods Adult patients with chronic perforations underwent BCM under local and topical anesthesia. Success was defined as complete closure of perforation at follow-up of at least 1 month. Predictors of success were identified by comparing the success and failure groups on pre- and postoperative pure tone average (PTA), patient demographics (age, gender), and characteristics of the perforations (size, location, duration, etiology). Results A total of 145 procedures were performed and the patients were followed for 1 to 78 months. The success rate for perforations smaller than 4 mm was 75 percent. Size of the perforation, and pre- and postoperative PTAs were significantly different between the two groups. The only significant predictors of success were preoperative PTA and size of perforation. Conclusions BCM is a viable option for closure of small and medium-sized perforations in an office setting.

Modification and psychometric evaluation of the Peterson War Scale.

A measure on attitudes toward war was administered to 125 student participants at a California university to assess psychometric properties for this scale for possible use in current research. A 5-point scale was substituted for the 2-point one originally. Item analysis indicated 23 of 32 items were viable. Using Cronbach reliability coefficient α and factor analysis, the shortened measure had an internal consistency reliability of .85. Factor analysis yielded a 4-factor structure: (1) War is Bad, (2) War is Necessary, (3) Positive Aspects of War, and (4) No Justification. These results indicate this seemingly outdated measure of war attitudes remains useful for current research purposes involving measuring attitudes toward war. However, longitudinal research is necessary.

A Research Note on the Levinson and Sanford Anti-Semitism Scale

In 1944, Levinson and Sanford created a scale to measure anti-Semitism. Their data showed that the scale had sound psychometric qualities, with a reliability of .96 to .98. Shaw and Wright later stated that the scale was too long for use in some research studies. In the current study, a shorter version (32 items; 38.5% reduction) was created and examined. A high level of internal consistency reliability (ru = .98) was maintained. A test-retest reliability coefficient of .91 was obtained over four weeks. A minimum residual factor analysis with Tandem Criteria rotation found two factors. This shortened Levinson and Sanford Anti-Semitism Scale could be used in research situations with less administration and scoring time. The shorter version still requires further research in terms of validity and social desirability.

Evidence for Validity of the Revised Levinson and Sanford Anti-Semitism Scale

Jones-Wiley, Restori, Lee, and Ho (2007) updated and re-estimated the reliability and construct validity of the 1944 Levinson and Sanford Anti-Semitism Scale. Criterion validity was not adequately supported, given the small number of Jewish and Muslim participants. Two separate studies were conducted, (1)a comparison of Jewish, Muslim, and Christian religious groups on the Anti-Semitism score and (2) the correlation of political preference with the Anti-Semitism scores of college students and local community members. These two studies provide evidence supportive of the criterion validity of the revised scale.