Browsing by Author "Barbosa, Fernando"
Now showing 1 - 10 of 76
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Abnormal habituation of the auditory event-related potential P2 component in patients with schizophreniaPublication . Mazer, Prune; Macedo, Inês; Paiva, Tiago O.; Ferreira-Santos, Fernando; Paison, Rita; Barbosa, Fernando; Almeida, Pedro; Silveira, Celeste; Cunha-Reis, Cassilda; Marques-Teixeira, JoãoAuditory event-related potentials (ERP) may serve as diagnostic tools for schizophrenia and inform on the susceptibility for this condition.Particularly, the examination of N1 and P2 components of the auditory ERP may shed light on the impairments of information processing streams in schizophrenia. However, the habituation properties (i.e., decreasing amplitude with the repeated presentation of an auditory stimulus) of these components remain poorly studied compared to other auditory ERPs.
- Activities of Daily Living Inventory (ADLI): Proposal of a new instrument and preliminary dataPublication . Pinto, Joana O.; Pontes, Diogo; Dores, Artemisa R; Peixoto, Bruno; Barbosa, FernandoThe evaluation of Activities of Daily Living (ADL) has become a critical issue in neuropsychology, but existing instruments for evaluating ADL have some limitations. This work aims to propose a new instrument to evaluate ADL, the ADL Inventory (ADLI), for which we present preliminary data. The ADLI was developed based on a comprehensive model of the stages of test development and following a combined framework of the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health and the American Occupational Therapy Association models. Besides sociodemographic information, ADLI includes 144 items, organized into four sections: (a) basic ADL; (b) IADL; (c) advanced ADL; and (d) factors influencing functionality. The main characteristics of ADLI are: having self- and informant-report forms; including items focused on different sensory and neurocognitive functions; individualizing the progression along items considering the person’s functionality; considering the impact of several factors on functionality; and using a large response scale. Preliminary data of predictive and convergent validity for ADLI are presented. The preliminary study comprised 15 older adults. The Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination – III, the Barthel Index, and the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) Scale were applied to determine the predictive and convergent validity of ADLI.
- Altered environmental perception by parental stress and depression vulnerability: impact on mothers and offspringPublication . Alves, Renata L.; Portugal, Camila C.; Lopes, Igor M.; Oliveira, Pedro; Alves, Cecília J.; Barbosa, Fernando; Summavielle, Teresa; Magalhães, Ana; Summavielle, TeresaDepressive mothers often find the mother-child interaction to be challenging. Parental stress may further impair mother-child attachment, which may increase the risk of negative developmental consequences. We used rats with different vulnerability to depression (Wistar and Kyoto) to investigate the impact of stress (maternal separationMS) on maternal behaviour and adolescent offspring cognition. MS in Kyoto dams increased pup-contact, resulting in higher oxytocin levels and lower anxiety-like behaviour after weaning, while worsening their adolescent offspring cognitive behaviour. Whereas MS in Wistar dams elicited higher quality of pup-directed behaviour, increasing Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) in the offspring, which seems to have prevented a negative impact on cognition. Hypothalamic oxytocin seems to impact the salience of the social environment cues (as negative for Kyoto) leading to different coping strategies. Our findings highlight the importance of contextual and individual factors in the understanding of the oxytocin role in modulating maternal behaviour and stress regulatory processes.
- Amygdala activation in response to 2D and 3D emotion-inducing stimuliPublication . Dores, Artemisa Rocha; Barbosa, Fernando; Monteiro, Luís; Leitão, Miguel; Reis, Mafalda; Coelho, Carlos M.; Ribeiro, Eduardo; Carvalho, Irene P.; Sousa, Liliana; Castro-Caldas, AlexandreStudying changes in brain activation according to the valence of emotion-inducing stimuli is essential in the research on emotions. Due to the ecological potential of virtual reality, it is also important to examine whether brain activation in response to emotional stimuli can be modulated by the three-dimensional (3D) properties of the images. This study uses functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging to compare differences between 3D and standard (2D) visual stimuli in the activation of emotion-related brain areas. The stimuli were organized in three virtual-reality scenarios, each with a different emotional valence (pleasant, unpleasant and neutral). The scenarios were presented in a pseudo-randomized order in the two visualization modes to twelve healthy males. Data were analyzed through a GLM-based fixed effects procedure. Unpleasant and neutral stimuli activated the right amygdala more strongly when presented in 3D than in 2D. These results suggest that 3D stimuli, when used as “building blocks” for virtual environments, can induce increased emotional loading, as shown here through neuroimaging.
- An fMRI paradigm based on Williams inhibition test to study the neural substrates of attention and inhibitory controlPublication . Dores, Artemisa Rocha; Barbosa, Fernando; Carvalho, Irene P.; Almeida, Isabel; Guerreiro, Sandra; da Rocha, Benedita Martins; Cunha, Gil; Castelo Branco, Miguel; de Sousa, Liliana; Castro Caldas, AlexandreThe purpose of this study is to present an fMRI paradigm, based on the Williams inhibition test (WIT), to study attentional and inhibitory control and their neuroanatomical substrates. We present an index of the validity of the proposed paradigm and test whether the experimental task discriminates the behavioral performances of healthy participants from those of individuals with acquired brain injury. Stroop and Simon tests present similarities with WIT, but this latter is more demanding. We analyze the BOLD signal in 10 healthy participants performing the WIT. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, the inferior prefrontal cortex, the anterior cingulate cortex, and the posterior cingulate cortex were defined for specified region of interest analysis. We additionally compare behavioral data (hits, errors, reaction times) of the healthy participants with those of eight acquired brain injury patients. Data were analyzed with GLM-based random effects and Mann-Whitney tests. Results show the involvement of the defined regions and indicate that the WIT is sensitive to brain lesions. This WIT-based block design paradigm can be used as a research methodology for behavioral and neuroimaging studies of the attentional and inhibitory components of executive functions.
- An international cross-sectional investigation on social media, fitspiration content exposure, and related risks during the COVID-19 self-isolation periodPublication . Cataldo, Ilaria; Burkauska, Julius; Dores, Artemisa Rocha; Carvalho, Irene P.; Simonato, Pierluigi; De Luca, laria; Gómez-Martínez, Maria Ángeles; Rebeca, Alejandra; Ventola, Melero; Demetrovics, Zsolt; Szabo, Attila; Ábel, Krisztina Edina; Shibata, Mami; Kobayashi, Kei; Fujiwara, Hironobu; Arroyo-Anlló, Eva Maria; Martinotti, Giovanni; Barbosa, Fernando; Griskova-Bulanova, Inga; Pranckeviciene, Aiste; Bowden-Jones, Henrietta; Esposito, Gianluca; Corazza, OrnellaWith the global COVID-19 pandemic, governments from many countries in the world implemented various restrictions to prevent the SARS-Cov-2 virus's spread, including social distancing measures, quarantine, in-home lockdown, and the closure of services and public spaces. This led to an in-creased use of social media platforms to make people feel more connected, but also to maintain physical activity while self-isolating. Concerns about physical appearance and the desire to keep or reach a muscular and toned ideal body, might have further reinforced the engagement in fitness-related social media activities, like sharing progresses in training achievements or following more fitness contents on popular profiles. To better understand the underlying relation among these factors, the present study investigates 729 responses to the Exercise Addiction Inventory (EAI), the Appearance Anxiety Inventory (AAI), the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS) and their association to social media usage and compares the results cross-culturally in five countries (Spain, Lithuania, United Kingdom, Japan, and Hungary). Findings highlight significant differences between males and females, espe-cially in regard to the time spent online (U = 477.5, p = 0.036). Greater levels of appearance anxiety were associated with the exposure to fitness-related contents on social media. These results strongly confirm the previously highlighted association between fitspiration media and body image anxiety predominantly in females. Clinical implications and future considerations in terms of prevention and treatment in a situation of global emergency are also discussed.
- At-distance neurocognitive rehabilitation during COVID-19 pandemic: A first glance of patients’ perspectives about the process and an online platformPublication . Geraldo, Andreia ; Dores, Artemisa R; Carvalho, Irene P.; Guerreiro, Sandra; Castro-Caldas, Alexandre; Barbosa, FernandoDespite the use of digital communication technologies in neurocognitive rehabilitation has been widely used in face-to-face interventions, the difficulties of using ICT-based tools to provide rehabilitation services and the unfamiliarity of the neuropsychologists with internet interventions limited the use of these kinds of interventions in their clinical practices. The lockdown and mitigating measures associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, on the other hand, forced the use of at-distance and online interventions as a means to mitigate the impact of those measures on the mental health and rehabilitation processes of people with neurological disorders. Overall, little is known about the perspectives of patients with acquired neurological conditions about rehabilitation services delivered at distance. Therefore, the main goal of this study was to explore the perceptions that patients with neurological disorders have on at-distance online neurocognitive rehabilitation, namely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixteen patients with acquired neurological conditions attending an online neurocognitive rehabilitation program in a Portuguese rehabilitation center filled in an online questionnaire during the mandatory lockdown. The results of this study highlight the potential of delivering rehabilitation services at distance, presenting its advantages and limitations from patients’ perspectives, as well as suggestions for improving both neurorehabilitation processes and the online rehabilitation platform used.
- Auditory event-related potentials in children with benign epilepsy with centro-temporal spikesPublication . Tomé, David; Sampaio, Mafalda; Mendes-Ribeiro, José; Barbosa, Fernando; Marques-Teixeira, JoaoBenign focal epilepsy in childhood with centro-temporal spikes (BECTS) is one of the most common forms of idiopathic epilepsy, with onset from age 3 to 14 years. Although the prognosis for children with BECTS is excellent, some studies have revealed neuropsychological deficits in many domains, including language. Auditory event-related potentials (AERPs) reflect activation of different neuronal populations and are suggested to contribute to the evaluation of auditory discrimination (N1), attention allocation and phonological categorization (N2), and echoic memory (mismatch negativity – MMN). The scarce existing literature about this theme motivated the present study, which aims to investigate and document the existing AERP changes in a group of children with BECTS. AERPs were recorded, during the day, to pure and vocal tones and in a conventional auditory oddball paradigm in five children with BECTS (aged 8–12; mean = 10 years; male = 5) and in six gender and age-matched controls. Results revealed high amplitude of AERPs for the group of children with BECTS with a slight latency delay more pronounced in fronto-central electrodes. Children with BECTS may have abnormal central auditory processing, reflected by electrophysiological measures such as AERPs. In advance, AERPs seem a good tool to detect and reliably reveal cortical excitability in children with typical BECTS.
- A avaliação multidomínio da eficácia de programas de reabilitação neurocognitiva suportados nas novas tecnologias digitaisPublication . Pinto, Joana O.; Geraldo, Andreia; Peixoto, Bruno; Castro-Caldas, Alexandre; Barbosa, Fernando; Dores, Artemisa RochaO envolvimento das novas tecnologias digitais nos processos de estimulação e reabilitação neurocognitiva (RNC) tem potenciado a eficácia e eficiência dos serviços de RNC, nomeadamente através de uma maior personalização aos perfis funcionais de cada indivíduo. Apesar disso, os protocolos de avaliação da eficácia destes processos baseiam-se maioritariamente em resultados de instrumentos tradicionais que não fornecem informação específica sobre as alterações que produzem quer no funcionamento cerebral per se, quer no seu funcionamento multissensorial. Desta forma, o projeto de investigação em curso foca-se na avaliação da eficácia de programas de RNC suportados nas novas tecnologias digitais, em diferentes patologias neurológicas utilizando protocolos de avaliação constituídos por medidas de resultado multidomínio. Os protocolos incluem medidas de: avaliação neuropsicológica tradicional, do estado emocional, qualidade de vida, funcionalidade, neurofisiologia (i.e., conectividade funcional), e das funções sensoriopercetivas
- Computer-based neuropsychological rehabilitationPublication . Dores, Artemisa Rocha; Barbosa, Fernando; Guerreiro, Sandra; Almeida, Isabel; Carvalho, Irene PalmaresNeurocognitive rehabilitation of people with acquired brain injury (ABI) is a part of neuropsychological rehabilitation that has gained increased interest in response to the growing incidence of this type of injury and to the possibility of post-injury survival, often associated with physical and cognitive deficits, as well as emotional and behavioral changes. These problems call for the need of innovative interventions that can overcome the limitations of traditional approaches to ABI.