Molecular testing for the BRAFV600E mutation in FNA thyroid nodule specimens increases diagnostic value when applied in a BRAFV600E mutation-prevalent population. However, when using this potentially powerful technique, we must consider both its strengths and its weaknesses.

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This study investigates the relationship between selected predictors of achievement in playing unrehearsed music (sight reading) and the changing complexity of sight reading tasks. The question under investigation is, how different variables gain or lose significance as sight reading stimuli become more difficult. Fifty-two piano major graduates and undergraduates took part in an experiment which consisted of five different levels of sight reading complexity. Predictor variables were divided into three categories: (i) general cognitive skills (e.g. working memory capacity); (ii) elementary cognitive skills (e.g. reaction time); and (iii) expertise-related skills (e.g. accumulated sight reading or inner hearing). Regression analyses indicate that when sight reading stimuli is easy, general pianistic expertise is sufficient to be able to excel. However, with increasing task difficulty, psychomotor speed (as indicated by trilling speed), speed of information processing, inner hearing and sight reading expertise become more important. When sight reading complexity reaches its highest level, sight reading expertise still remains important, but psychomotor speed becomes the dominant predictor. Results indicate (i) that psychomotor speed and speed of information processing have a 'bottleneck' function and (ii) that there is a critical time window up to the age of 15 when sight reading expertise has to be acquired. It is concluded that with increasing task demands, sight reading ability is determined by both practice dependent skills and skills which are also assumed to be limited by innate abilities such as psychomotor movement speed. Thus we explain sight reading achievement as the result of specific combinations of different categories of skills which change with the demands of a task.

BackgroundConcern regarding the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of long-term survivors of thyroid cancer has risen due to the rapid increase in the incidence of thyroid cancer, which generally has an excellent prognosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the status of HRQOL in disease-free survivors of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) and to evaluate the important determinants of HRQOL.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study in which we interviewed consecutive disease-free survivors of DTC. Three different validated questionnaires ("EORTC QLQ-C30" for various functional domains, the "brief fatigue inventory (BFI)" and the "hospital anxiety and depression scale" (HADS)) were used. Data from a large, population based survey of 1,000 people were used as a control.ResultsThe response rate for the questionnaires was 78.9% (316/401). Disease-free survivors of DTC showed a decreased HRQOL in all five functional domains (physical, role, cognitive, emotional, and social) on the EORTC QLQ-C30 compared with controls (P < 0.01). BFI and HADS-anxiety scores also showed greater distress in disease-free survivors of DTC than in controls (P < 0.05). A multiple regression analysis for the determinants of HRQOL showed that the HADS-anxiety, HADS-depression, and BFI scores were the most significant components of decreased HRQOL.ConclusionsAlthough disease-free survivors of DTC are expected to have disease-specific survival comparable to the general population, they experience a significantly decreased HRQOL. Anxiety, depression, and fatigue were the major determinants of the decreased HRQOL. Supportive psychological care should be integrated into the management of long-term survivors of DTC.