The aim of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of two well-established measures of sociocultural influence and internalization of the thin/low body fat ideal and muscular ideal. Data from 6272 emerging adults (68.9 % female), aged 18-30 years from Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Italy, Japan, Spain, and the U.S. were included in this study. Participants completed measures of pressure from mother, fathers, peers, and media, to both increase muscles and lose weight, as well as internalization of the thin/low body fat ideal and muscular ideal. Overall, support for partial invariance was found across the scales. In addition, group level differences were found between countries as well as along demographic factors including gender, age, body mass index, and socioeconomic status. These findings make an important contribution by identifying these scales as useful tools that will support future cross-country and cross-cultural examinations of explanatory models of the development of body image and eating concerns grounded within sociocultural theories.The aim of this study was to examine the cross-country invariance of five well-established measures of body weight and shape concern-related attitudes and behaviors (i.e., drive for leanness, drive for muscularity, strategies to increase muscle, strategies to lose weight, and weight and shape concerns). A secondary objective was to examine the effects of several sociodemographic factors (age, BMI, socioeconomic status, and gender) on item and latent factor scores of these constructs. A total of 6272 emerging adults (4218 women; Mage = 21.46, SD = 3.11) from Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Italy, Japan, Spain, and the U.S. completed a self-report online survey as part of a larger study. Overall, support for partial invariance both across countries and in terms of the considered sociodemographic factors was found for reduced versions of the five measures. Significant differences in latent means were found across countries, these being of greater magnitude for drive for leanness and strategies to lose weight. The considered sociodemographic factors (most notably BMI and gender) were associated with the latent mean scores of the assessed constructs. The present study contributes to current literature by providing cross-cultural invariant versions of several measures of relevance in the field of body image.Research has indicated that the taking and viewing of idealized selfies can result in negative body image outcomes. Given the negative consequences associated with selfie activities, it is important to explore factors that relate to idealized self-presentation on social media. Combining insights of sociocultural, social comparison, and objectification theory, we distinguished and examined four different pathways linking appearance media exposure to selfie-behavior (i.e., selfie taking/posting and selfie-investment and manipulation) via internalization and social media comparison. Additionally, we examined the protective role of positive peer body talk. A sample of 949 Belgian adolescents aged 14-18 (Mage = 15.45, SD = 1.37) participated in an online survey. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/d-lin-mc3-dma.html Structural equation analyses showed that appearance-related media exposure was positively related to selfie-taking and -posting via internalization and social media comparison. Both internalization and social media comparison were positively related to selfie manipulation and selfie-investment. Additionally, results indicated a protective role of positive peer body talk against thin/athletic-ideal internalization. For adolescents who engaged in more positive body talk, watching appearance-related media content resulted in less thin/athletic-ideal internalization. Overall, the findings emphasize the crucial role of peers -and more specifically peer validation -in reinforcing and criticizing dominant appearance ideals and shaping the way adolescents present themselves online. Although most patients with Rathke's cleft cysts (RCCs) remain asymptomatic throughout their lives, visual impairment in RCCs usually indicates surgical interventions, including endoscopic drainage of the cyst. We report a case of RCC with unique findings in the optic nerve root (ONR) by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A 58-year-old man admitted to our hospital complained of progressive left visual impairment. Preoperative computed tomography MRI revealed a suprasellar cystic lesion that extended anteriorly, and the bilateral ONRs were lateralized with the cyst and were partially enhanced with gadolinium administration. The cyst content was drained, and the cyst wall was partially removed by endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery. Postoperatively, the patient was administered corticosteroid intravenously for 3 days, and his visual acuity improved dramatically. Postoperative MRI revealed that the volume of the cyst decreased, and the position of the bilateral ONRs normalized. Additionally, enhancement of the ONRs with gadolinium administration was not observed. Histological examination of the surgical specimen revealed a ciliated single-layer columnar epithelium with inflammatory cell infiltration. To our knowledge, we report the first case of a patient with RCC with ONR enhancement with gadolinium administration on MRI. This unique finding might prove that inflammation is one of the causes of visual impairment in RCC as in optic neuritis. To our knowledge, we report the first case of a patient with RCC with ONR enhancement with gadolinium administration on MRI. This unique finding might prove that inflammation is one of the causes of visual impairment in RCC as in optic neuritis. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected patient care across specialties. Ramifications for neurosurgery include substantial disruptions to surgical training and changes in nonurgent patient presentations to the emergency department. This study quantifies the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the number of emergency department patients who were referred to the neurosurgery department for further consultation and treatment and identifies and describes trends in the characteristics of these visits. A retrospective review was performed of neurosurgical consultations at a single high-volume institution for 28 call-day periods before and after the official announcement of the pandemic. Primary outcomes included consultations per call-day, patient presentation category, and patient admission. The neurosurgical service was consulted regarding 629 patients (367 male patients) during the study period, with 471 (75%) and 158 (25%) patients presenting before and after the announcement of the COVID-19 pandemic, respectively.