OBJECTIVE: We examined the clinical significance of moderate and severe selective eating (SE).Two levels of SE were examined in relation to concurrent psychiatric symptoms and as a risk factor for the emergence of later psychiatric symptoms. Findings are intended to guide health care providers to recognize when SE is a problem worthy of intervention.METHODS: A population cohort sample of 917 children aged 24 to 71 months and designated caregivers were recruited via primary care practices at a major medical center in the Southeast as part of an epidemiologic study of preschool anxiety. Caregivers were administered structured diagnostic interviews (the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment) regarding the child's eating and related selfregulatory capacities, psychiatric symptoms, functioning, and home environment variables. A subset of 188 dyads were assessed a second time ∼24.7 months from the initial assessment.RESULTS: Both moderate and severe levels of SE were associated with psychopathological symptoms (anxiety, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) both concurrently and prospectively. However, the severity of psychopathological symptoms worsened as SE became more severe. Impairment in family functioning was reported at both levels of SE, as was sensory sensitivity in domains outside of food and the experience of food aversion.

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Background Individuals with extreme food avoidance such as Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) experience impairing physical and mental health consequences from nutrition of insufficient variety or/and quantity. Identifying mechanisms contributing to food avoidance is essential to develop effective interventions. Anxiety figures prominently in theoretical models of food avoidance; however, there is limited evidence that repeated exposures to foods increases approach behavior in ARFID. Studying disgust, and relationships between disgust and anxiety, may offer novel insights, as disgust is functionally associated with avoidance of contamination from pathogens (as may occur via ingestion) and is largely resistant to extinction. Method This exploratory, cross‐sectional study included data from 1,644 adults who completed an online questionnaire. Participant responses were used to measure ARFID classification, picky eating, sensory sensitivity, disgust, and anxiety. Structural equation modeling tested a measurement model of latent disgust and anxiety factors as measured by self‐reported frequency of disgust and anxiety reactions. Mediational models were used to explore causal ordering. Results A latent disgust factor was more strongly related to severity of picky eating (B ≈ 0.4) and ARFID classification (B ≈ 0.6) than the latent anxiety factor (B ≈ 0.1). Disgust partially mediated the association between anxiety and picky eating and fully mediated the association between anxiety and ARFID. Models testing the reverse causal ordering demonstrated poorer fit. Findings suggest anxiety may be associated with food avoidance in part due to increased disgust. Conclusions Disgust may play a prominent role in food avoidance. Findings may inform novel approaches to treatment.

This study examines the long-term cognitive and academic outcomes of 11 individuals with infantile onset Pompe disease (IOPD) (median age = 11 years, 1 month, range = 5 years, 6 months through 17 years of age) treated with enzyme replacement therapy from an early age. All participants (7 males, 4 females) were administered individual intelligence tests (Wechsler or Leiter scales or both), a measure of their academic skill levels (Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement), and a screening measure of visual-motor integration ability (Beery-Buktenica). Consistent with our earlier findings, median IQ scores for the entire group on the Wechsler (median = 84) and Leiter (median = 92) scales continue to fall at the lower end of the average range compared to same-aged peers. The median scores for the group on a measure of visual-motor integration (median = 76), visual perception (median = 74) and motor coordination (median = 60) were below average. Two distinct sub-groups emerged based on participants’ average or below average performance on the majority of academic sub-tests. Those participants with below average academic skills (n = 6) demonstrated average nonverbal cognitive abilities on the Leiter, but had weaknesses in speech and language skills and greater medical involvement. Their profiles were more consistent with a learning disability diagnosis than an intellectual disability. Two of these participants showed a significant decline (15 and 23 points, respectively) on repeated Wechsler scales, but one continued to earn average scores on the Leiter scales where the verbal and motor demands are minimal. Participants with average academic skills (n = 5) demonstrated average cognitive abilities (verbal and nonverbal) on the Wechsler scales and less medical involvement. Their speech and language skills appeared to be more intact. However, both groups earned below average median scores on the Beery-Buktenica motor coordination task. This study highlights the importance of using appropriate tests to capture both verbal and nonverbal abilities, considering each individual’s motor skills, speech and language abilities, hearing status and native language. This will allow for a more accurate assessment of whether there is a learning disability or an intellectual disability. Long-term outcomes may be related to the stability of an individual’s expressive and/or receptive language abilities over time. Changes in the speech and language domain may account for the decline in IQ observed in some IOPD long-term survivors, reflecting a learning disability rather than a decline in overall cognition or an intellectual disability. These observations, in conjunction with neuroimaging, will further our understanding of the neurocognitive profile of long-term IOPD survivors.

The adsorption and decomposition of diethylgermane, GeH2(C2H5)2 (or GeH2Et2), on the Si(100)-(2×1) surface is investigated with the intent of elucidating the surface processes leading to the deposition of epitaxial Ge thin films from gaseous Ge-containing sources. Low GeH2Et2 exposures to Si(100) at 110 K result in dissociative adsorption of the molecule with both ethyl groups transferring to the silicon surface. Heating of the sample to higher temperatures results in the decomposition of the adsorbed ethyl groups. GeH2 is the other adsorption product which also decomposes at higher temperatures to atomic Ge. The final reaction products are H2, C2H4, and atomic Ge. The ethylene produced is consistent with a β-hydride elimination reaction.