A randomized controlled trial tested whether mindfulness training enhances inner peace in people without mental disorders. Fifty-seven participants were assigned to either mindfulness training or a wait-list control. Inner peace was measured using the experience sampling method, along with attentional focus via the Meditation Breath Attention Score and self-reported mindfulness via the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. Mindfulness training increased scores for inner peace, attentional focus, and self-reported mindfulness compared to the control group. However, changes in inner peace were not explained by changes in self-rated mindfulness or attentional focus. The findings suggest mindfulness training can improve inner peace, though only immediate effects were examined.
Higher mindfulness is linked to fewer depressive symptoms in college students, partly because it reduces shyness and improves core self-evaluation. A chain mediation model using two samples (646 and 269 students) showed that mindfulness influences depression sequentially through shyness and then core self-evaluation. The findings suggest that mindfulness practices may help prevent or treat depressive symptoms, especially in shy students, by lowering shyness and boosting self-evaluation.
Preoperative use of a combination of intranasal dexmedetomidine and esketamine reduces postoperative pain in children undergoing tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. Among 173 children, the combination group had a lower area under the curve for pain scores at rest within 24 hours (9.50) compared with dexmedetomidine alone (19.25) or saline (37.25). The combination also lowered the incidence of emergence delirium to 12.3% versus 44.8% in the control group. Heart rates were higher in the combination and control groups than in the dexmedetomidine-only group. No serious adverse events occurred.
A computational model of an extended corticothalamic network simulates how different concentrations of propofol alter states of consciousness. The model shows that oscillation spread across the cortex moves from posterior to anterior brain regions in four sequential stages, driven by differences in connections between regions. This suggests that hierarchical rhythm propagation depends on the heterogeneity of inter-regional connectivity. The model provides a millisecond-resolution simulation platform for studying how brain areas coordinate activity during consciousness and how anesthetics affect brain regions.