The Effect of an Authentic Acute Physical Education Session of Dance on Elementary Students' Selective Attention.

PubMed

Kulinna, P H; Stylianou, M; Dyson, B; Banville, D; Dryden, C; Colby, R

2018-01-01

There have been calls to test the potential benefits of different forms of physical activity (PA) to executive function, particularly in authentic settings. Hence, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an acute dance session within an existing physical education class on students' selective attention. The study employed a pre/posttest quasi-experimental design with a comparison group in one Aotearoa, New Zealand, primary school. Participants were 192 students (comparison group = 104 students) in Years 5 and 6. The intervention group participated in a dance-based physical education lesson while the comparison group continued their regular classroom work. PA during the physical education lesson was monitored using accelerometers. Selective attention was assessed at pretest and after the comparison/physical education sessions with the d2 Test of Attention. 2 × 2 ANOVA results suggested a significant time effect for all three measures, no significant group effects for any measures, and significant time by group interactions for TN and CP but not for E %. The intervention group improved significantly more than the comparison group for TN and CP. This study's findings suggest that existing school opportunities focused on cognitively engaging PA, such as dance, can improve aspects of students' selective attention.

Facebook Usage Amongst Those Who Have Received Treatment for an Eating Disorder in a Group Setting

PubMed Central

Saffran, Kristina; Fitzsimmons-Craft, Ellen E.; Kass, Andrea E.; Wilfley, Denise E.; Taylor, C. Barr; Trockel, Mickey

2017-01-01

Objective This study explored Facebook use among individuals with a history of receiving treatment for an eating disorder (ED) in a group setting (e.g., inpatient, residential, outpatient group), focusing primarily on comparisons individuals make about their bodies, eating, or exercise to those of their peers from treatment on Facebook and the relation between these comparisons and ED pathology. Method Individuals (N = 415; mean age 28.15 years ± 8.41; 98.1% female) who self-reported receipt of ED treatment in a group setting were recruited via email and social media to complete an online survey. Results Participants reported having an average of 10–19 Facebook friends from treatment and spending up to 30 minutes per day interacting on Facebook with individuals from treatment or ED-related organizations. More comparison to treatment peers on Facebook was associated with greater ED psychopathology and ED-related impairment. Conversely, positive interaction with treatment peers on Facebook was associated with lower ED psychopathology and ED-related impairment. Individuals who had been in treatment longer, more times, and more recently had more Facebook friends from treatment and ED-related organizations as well as spent more time in ED groups’ pages on Facebook. Few participants (19.5%) reported that a therapist asked about the impact of Facebook on pathology. Discussion Interactions on Facebook could affect patients’ recovery and potential for relapse. It may be helpful for treatment providers to discuss Facebook use and its potential benefits and drawbacks with patients preparing for discharge from group treatment. PMID:27302908

A Comparison of Cut Scores Using Multiple Standard Setting Methods.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Impara, James C.; Plake, Barbara S.

This paper reports the results of using several alternative methods of setting cut scores. The methods used were: (1) a variation of the Angoff method (1971); (2) a variation of the borderline group method; and (3) an advanced impact method (G. Dillon, 1996). The results discussed are from studies undertaken to set the cut scores for fourth grade…

Facebook usage among those who have received treatment for an eating disorder in a group setting.

PubMed

Saffran, Kristina; Fitzsimmons-Craft, Ellen E; Kass, Andrea E; Wilfley, Denise E; Taylor, Craig Barr; Trockel, Mickey

2016-08-01

This study explored Facebook use among individuals with a history of receiving treatment for an eating disorder (ED) in a group setting (e.g., inpatient, residential, outpatient group), focusing primarily on comparisons individuals make about their bodies, eating, or exercise to those of their peers from treatment on Facebook and the relation between these comparisons and ED pathology. Individuals (N = 415; mean age 28.15 years ± 8.41; 98.1% female) who self-reported receipt of ED treatment in a group setting were recruited via e-mail and social media to complete an online survey. Participants reported having an average of 10-19 Facebook friends from treatment and spending up to 30 min per day interacting on Facebook with individuals from treatment or ED-related organizations. More comparison to treatment peers on Facebook was associated with greater ED psychopathology and ED-related impairment. Conversely, positive interaction with treatment peers on Facebook was associated with lower ED psychopathology and ED-related impairment. Individuals who had been in treatment longer, more times, and more recently had more Facebook friends from treatment and ED-related organizations as well as spent more time in ED groups' pages on Facebook. Few participants (19.5%) reported that a therapist asked about the impact of Facebook on pathology. Interactions on Facebook could affect patients' recovery and potential for relapse. It may be helpful for treatment providers to discuss Facebook use and its potential benefits and drawbacks with patients preparing for discharge from group treatment. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2016; 49:764-777). © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mycelial compatibility and aggressiveness comparison of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum isolates from Brazil and the United States

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Variability of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum isolates collected in Brazil and the USA were determined by mycelial compatibility grouping (MCG) and inoculations of soybean cultivars. Two experiments for MCGs and two for aggressiveness were conducted with two sets of isolates. The first set included nine i...

A retrospective comparison of clinical outcomes and Medicare expenditures in skilled nursing facility residents with chronic wounds.

PubMed

DaVanzo, Joan E; El-Gamil, Audrey M; Dobson, Allen; Sen, Namrata

2010-09-01

Medicare skilled nursing facility (SNF) residents with chronic wounds require more resources and have relatively high healthcare expenditures compared to Medicare patients without wounds. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using 2006 Medicare Chronic Condition Warehouse claims data for SNF, inpatient, outpatient hospital, and physician supplier settings along with 2006 Long-Term Care Minimum Data Set (MDS) information to compare Medicare expenditures between two groups of SNF residents with a diagnosis of pressure, venous, ischemic, or diabetic ulcers whose wounds healed during the 10-month study period. The study group (n = 372) was managed using a structured, comprehensive wound management protocol provided by an external wound management team. The matched comparison group consisted of 311 SNF residents who did not receive care from the wound management team. Regression analyses indicate that after controlling for resident comorbidities and wound severity, study group residents experienced lower rates of wound-related hospitalization per day (0.08% versus 0.21%, P < 0.01) and shorter wound episodes (94 days versus 115 days, P < 0.01) than comparison group patients. Total Medicare costs were $21,449.64 for the study group and $40,678.83 for the comparison group (P < 0.01) or $229.07 versus $354.26 (P < 0.01) per resident episode day. Additional studies including wounds that do not heal are warranted. Increasing the number of SNF residents receiving the care described in this study could lead to significant Medicare cost savings. Incorporating wound clinical outcomes into a pay-for-performance measures for SNFs could increase broader SNF adoption of comprehensive wound care programs to treat chronic wounds.

Preschoolers' Causal Reasoning during Shared Picture Book Storytelling: A Cross-Case Comparison Descriptive Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Helen C.; Hurks, Petra P. M.; Kirschner, Paul A.; Jolles, Jelle

2015-01-01

This study investigates how shared picture book storytelling within a peer-group setting could stimulate causal reasoning in children aged 4½ to 6 years. Twenty-eight children from preschool classes of three schools were allocated to one of six groups (four to five children per group). Each group participated in six storytelling sessions over a…

Variable Importance in Multivariate Group Comparisons.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huberty, Carl J.; Wisenbaker, Joseph M.

1992-01-01

Interpretations of relative variable importance in multivariate analysis of variance are discussed, with attention to (1) latent construct definition; (2) linear discriminant function scores; and (3) grouping variable effects. Two numerical ranking methods are proposed and compared by the bootstrap approach using two real data sets. (SLD)

Effectiveness of the WHO SCC on improving adherence to essential practices during childbirth, in resource constrained settings.

PubMed

Kumar, Somesh; Yadav, Vikas; Balasubramaniam, Sudharsanam; Jain, Yashpal; Joshi, Chandra Shekhar; Saran, Kailash; Sood, Bulbul

2016-11-08

India accounts for 27 % of world's neonatal deaths. Although more Indian women deliver in facilities currently than a decade ago, early neonatal mortality has not declined, likely because of insufficient quality of care. The WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist (SCC) was developed to support health workers to perform essential practices known to reduce preventable maternal and new-born deaths around the time of childbirth. Despite promising early research many outstanding questions remain about effectiveness of the SCC in low-resource settings. In collaboration with the Ministry of Health SCC was modified for Indian context and introduced in 101 intervention facilities in Rajasthan, India and 99 facilities served as comparison to study if it reduces mortality. This Quasi experimental Observational intervention-comparison was embedded in this larger program to test whether a program for introduction of SCC with simple implementation package was associated with increased adherence to 28 evidence-based practices. This study was conducted in 8 intervention and 8 comparison sites. Program interventions to promote appropriate use of the SCC included orienting providers to the checklist, modest modifications of the SCC to promote provider uptake and accountability, ensuring availability of essential supplies, and providing supportive supervision for helping providers in using the SCC. The SCC was used by providers in 86 % of 240 deliveries observed in the eight intervention facilities. Providers in the intervention group significantly adhered to practices included in the SCC than providers in the comparison group controlling for baseline scores and confounders. Women delivering in the intervention facilities received on an average 11.5 more of the 28 practices included compared with women in the comparison facilities. For selected practices provider performance in the intervention group increased as much as 93 % than comparison sites. Use of the SCC and provider performance of best practices increased in intervention facilities reflecting improvement in quality of facility childbirth care for women and new-born in low resource settings.

Comparing responses to horticultural-based and traditional activities in dementia care programs.

PubMed

Jarrott, Shannon E; Gigliotti, Christina M

2010-12-01

Engaging persons with dementia in meaningful activities supports well-being; however, care staff are challenged to implement age- and ability-appropriate activities in a group setting. We compared a randomly assigned treatment group, who received horticultural therapy-based (HT-based) programming to a comparison group, who engaged in traditional activities (TA) programming, on engagement and affect. Horticultural therapy-based programming was implemented twice weekly at 4 treatment sites for 6 weeks, while regular TA were observed at comparison sites. Results revealed no differences between groups on affective domains. Levels of adaptive behavior differed between the groups, with the treatment group demonstrating higher levels of active, passive, and other engagement and the comparison group demonstrating higher levels of self-engagement. Our results highlight the value of HT-based programs and the importance of simultaneously capturing participants' affective and behavioral responses. Theoretical and practical considerations about the facilitation of and context in which the programming occurs are discussed.

Identifying the needs of critical and acute cardiac care nurses within the first two years of practice in Egypt using a nominal group technique.

PubMed

Gorman, Linda L; McDowell, Joan R S

2018-01-01

Nursing in Egypt faces many challenges and working conditions in health care settings are generally poor. Little is known about the needs of new nurses transitioning in Egypt. The literature focuses on the first year of practice and only a small body of research has explored the transition needs within acute care speciality settings. This paper reports on the important professional needs of new graduate nurses working in an acute cardiac setting in Egypt during the first two years of practice and differences between their perceived most important needs. The total population participated and two group interviews were conducted (n = 5; n = 6) using the nominal group technique. Needs were identified and prioritised using both rankings and ratings to attain consensus. Content analysis was conducted to produce themes and enable cross-group comparison. Rating scores were standardised for comparison within and between groups. Both groups ranked and rated items as important: 1) education, training and continued professional development; 2) professional standards; 3) supportive clinical practice environment; 4) manageable work patterns, and 5) organisational structure. It is important that health care organisations are responsive to these needs to ensure support strategies reflect the priorities of new nurses transitioning in acute care hospitals within Egypt. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Effects of a Goal Setting Intervention on Aerobic Fitness in Middle School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDonald, Samantha M.; Trost, Stewart G.

2015-01-01

Purpose: This study evaluated the effects of a goal setting intervention on aerobic fitness (AF) in 6 to 8 grade students. Method: Students at the intervention school received a lesson on SMART goal setting. Students in the comparison school served as a measurement-only group. AF was assessed via the PACER multi-stage shuttle run test pre and post…

Initial Field Testing for Forest Tree Improvement

Treesearch

C. B. Briscoe

1963-01-01

Initial field testing for forest tree improvement is essentially a comparison of genetic groups whether the level of comparison is of species, provenances, or individual trees. A good study design should be as economical as possible, for a given precision, and must be accurate. The latter is simply obtained by restricting the study to a specified set of conditions,...

Loving and Hating High School: Divided Opinion among Adults in a Rural University Town

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howley, Craig B.; Pickett, Diana; Brown, Peter; Kay, Laura

2011-01-01

In this report, the authors characterize the differences between those interviewed who "loved school" and "those who did not." For this comparison, they created two sets of comparison groups: (1) interviewees divided into upper and lower halves on one item, "I loved school"; and (2) the top and bottom quartiles on the…

Intervention Research and Program Evaluation in the School Setting: Issues and Alternative Research Designs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Anda, Diane

2007-01-01

This article discusses the difficulties in conducting intervention research or evaluating intervention programs in a school setting. In particular, the problems associated with randomization and obtaining control groups are examined. The use of quasi-experimental designs, specifically a paired comparison design using the individual as his or her…

Set Shifting Training with Categorization Tasks

PubMed Central

Soveri, Anna; Waris, Otto; Laine, Matti

2013-01-01

The very few cognitive training studies targeting an important executive function, set shifting, have reported performance improvements that also generalized to untrained tasks. The present randomized controlled trial extends set shifting training research by comparing previously used cued training with uncued training. A computerized adaptation of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test was utilized as the training task in a pretest-posttest experimental design involving three groups of university students. One group received uncued training (n = 14), another received cued training (n = 14) and the control group (n = 14) only participated in pre- and posttests. The uncued training group showed posttraining performance increases on their training task, but neither training group showed statistically significant transfer effects. Nevertheless, comparison of effect sizes for transfer effects indicated that our results did not differ significantly from the previous studies. Our results suggest that the cognitive effects of computerized set shifting training are mostly task-specific, and would preclude any robust generalization effects with this training. PMID:24324717

Influenza vaccine effectiveness by test-negative design - Comparison of inpatient and outpatient settings.

PubMed

Feng, Shuo; Cowling, Benjamin J; Sullivan, Sheena G

2016-03-29

Observational studies of influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) are increasingly using the test-negative design. Studies are typically based in outpatient or inpatient settings, but these two approaches are rarely compared directly. The aim of our study was to assess whether influenza VE estimates differ between inpatient and outpatient settings. We searched the literature from Medline, PubMed and Web of Science using a combination of keywords to identify published studies of influenza VE using the test-negative design. Studies assessing any type of influenza vaccine among any population in any setting were considered, while interim studies or re-analyses were excluded. Retrieved articles were reviewed, screened and categorized based on study setting, location and influenza season. We searched for parallel studies in inpatient and outpatient settings that were done in the same influenza season, in the same location, and in the same or similar age groups. For each of the pairs identified, we estimated the difference in VE estimates between settings, and we tested whether the average difference was significant using a paired t-test. In total 25 pairs of estimates were identified that permitted comparisons between VE estimates in inpatient and outpatient study settings. Within pairs, the prevalence of influenza was generally higher among patients enrolled in the outpatient studies, while influenza vaccination coverage among the test-negative control groups was generally higher in the inpatient studies. There was no heterogeneity in the paired differences in VE, and the pooled difference in VE between inpatient and outpatient studies was -2% (95% confidence interval: -12%, 10%). We found no differences in VE estimates between inpatient and outpatient settings by studies using the test-negative design. Further research involving direct comparisons of VE estimates from the two settings in the same populations and years would be valuable. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Creating peer groups for assessing and comparing nursing home performance.

PubMed

Byrne, Margaret M; Daw, Christina; Pietz, Ken; Reis, Brian; Petersen, Laura A

2013-11-01

Publicly reported performance data for hospitals and nursing homes are becoming ubiquitous. For such comparisons to be fair, facilities must be compared with their peers. To adapt a previously published methodology for developing hospital peer groupings so that it is applicable to nursing homes and to explore the characteristics of "nearest-neighbor" peer groupings. Analysis of Department of Veterans Affairs administrative databases and nursing home facility characteristics. The nearest-neighbor methodology for developing peer groupings involves calculating the Euclidean distance between facilities based on facility characteristics. We describe our steps in selection of facility characteristics, describe the characteristics of nearest-neighbor peer groups, and compare them with peer groups derived through classical cluster analysis. The facility characteristics most pertinent to nursing home groupings were found to be different from those that were most relevant for hospitals. Unlike classical cluster groups, nearest neighbor groups are not mutually exclusive, and the nearest-neighbor methodology resulted in nursing home peer groupings that were substantially less diffuse than nursing home peer groups created using traditional cluster analysis. It is essential that healthcare policy makers and administrators have a means of fairly grouping facilities for the purposes of quality, cost, or efficiency comparisons. In this research, we show that a previously published methodology can be successfully applied to a nursing home setting. The same approach could be applied in other clinical settings such as primary care.

Testing the Vision: Preschool Settings as Places for Meeting, Bonding and Bridging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thorpe, Karen; Staton, Sally; Morgan, Robert; Danby, Susan; Tayler, Collette

2012-01-01

The OECD (2006 Starting Strong II: Early Childhood Education and Care. OECD Publishing: Paris) envisions early childhood education and care settings as meeting places for diverse social groups; places that build social capital. This vision was assessed in a comparison of three preschools types: full-fee paying, subsidised-fee and publicly funded.…

A community-based Falls Management Exercise Programme (FaME) improves balance, walking speed and reduced fear of falling.

PubMed

Yeung, Pui Yee; Chan, Wayne; Woo, Jean

2015-04-01

Although effective community falls prevention programmes for the older persons have been described, challenges remain in translating proven interventions into daily practice. To evaluate the efficacy, feasibility and acceptability of a falls prevention programme that can be integrated into daily activities in a group of community-dwelling older adults with risk of falling. A cohort study with intervention and comparison groups was designed to evaluate a 36-week group-based falls prevention exercise programme (FaME) in the community setting. Participants were aged 60 years or older, had fallen in the past 12 months, had fear of falling with avoidance of activities or had deficits in balance control. Primary outcome measures included assessment of balance control and mobility; secondary outcome measures included level of physical activity, assessment of fear of falling and health-related quality of life. There were 48 and 51 participants in the intervention and comparison groups, respectively. There were improvements in measurements of balance, walking speed and self-efficacy. The drop out rate was low (14.6% and 3.9% from the intervention and comparison groups, respectively). Overall compliance in the intervention group was 79%. Factors that motivated continued participation include the regular and long-term nature of the programme helping to reinforce their exercise habits, the simplicity of movements and friendliness of the group. The FaME programme improves balance, walking speed and reduces fear of falling. It could be widely promoted and integrated into regular health and social activities in community settings.

Comparison of base composition analysis and Sanger sequencing of mitochondrial DNA for four U.S. population groups.

PubMed

Kiesler, Kevin M; Coble, Michael D; Hall, Thomas A; Vallone, Peter M

2014-01-01

A set of 711 samples from four U.S. population groups was analyzed using a novel mass spectrometry based method for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) base composition profiling. Comparison of the mass spectrometry results with Sanger sequencing derived data yielded a concordance rate of 99.97%. Length heteroplasmy was identified in 46% of samples and point heteroplasmy was observed in 6.6% of samples in the combined mass spectral and Sanger data set. Using discrimination capacity as a metric, Sanger sequencing of the full control region had the highest discriminatory power, followed by the mass spectrometry base composition method, which was more discriminating than Sanger sequencing of just the hypervariable regions. This trend is in agreement with the number of nucleotides covered by each of the three assays. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Group Comparisons in the Presence of Missing Data Using Latent Variable Modeling Techniques

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raykov, Tenko; Marcoulides, George A.

2010-01-01

A latent variable modeling approach for examining population similarities and differences in observed variable relationship and mean indexes in incomplete data sets is discussed. The method is based on the full information maximum likelihood procedure of model fitting and parameter estimation. The procedure can be employed to test group identities…

Resource Allocation and Resident Outcomes In Nursing Homes: Comparisons between the Best and Worst1

PubMed Central

Anderson, Ruth A.; Hsieh, Pi-Ching; Su, Hui-Fang

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify patterns of resource allocation that related to resident outcomes in nursing homes. Data on structure, staffing levels, salaries, cost, casemix, and resident outcomes were obtained from state-level, administrative databases on 494 nursing homes. We identified two sets of comparison groups and showed that the group of homes with the greatest percentage of improvement in resident outcomes had higher levels of RN staffing and higher costs. However, comparison groups based on best/worst average outcomes did not differ in resource allocation patterns. Additional analysis demonstrated that when controlling for RN staffing, resident outcomes in high and low cost homes did not differ. The results suggest that, although RN staffing is more expensive, it is key to improving resident outcomes. PMID:9679807

Effects of massage therapy and occlusal splint therapy on mandibular range of motion in individuals with temporomandibular disorder: a randomized clinical trial.

PubMed

Gomes, Cid André Fidelis de Paula; Politti, Fabiano; Andrade, Daniel Ventura; de Sousa, Dowglas Fernando Magalhães; Herpich, Carolina Marciela; Dibai-Filho, Almir Vieira; Gonzalez, Tabajara de Oliveira; Biasotto-Gonzalez, Daniela Aparecida

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of massage therapy compared with occlusal splint therapy on mandibular range of motion (ROM) in individuals with temporomandibular disorder (TMD) and compare the results with ROM obtained in a group of individuals without this disorder. A blinded randomized clinical trial was conducted. Twenty-eight volunteers with TMD were randomly distributed into either a massage therapy group or an occlusal splint group. Both treatments were provided for 4 weeks. Fourteen individuals without TMD were consecutively allocated to a comparison group. Fonseca anamnestic index was used to characterize TMD and allocate the volunteers to either of the intervention groups or asymptomatic comparison group. Mandibular ROM was evaluated before and after treatment using a digital caliper. Two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance with a post hoc Bonferroni testing was used for intergroup and intragroup comparisons (level of significance was set to 5%). Cohen d was used to calculate the effect size. In the intragroup analysis, significant increases in ROM were found for all measures in both the massage and occlusal splint groups (P < .05). A small to moderate clinical effect of treatment with the occlusal splint was found regarding right and left lateral excursion in comparison with the massage therapy and asymptomatic comparison groups (0.2

Individual Differences in the Cortisol Responses of Neglected and Comparison Children

PubMed Central

Sullivan, Margaret Wolan; Bennett, David S.; Lewis, Michael

2014-01-01

Neglected children’s acute hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis (HPA axis) reactivity in response to a laboratory visit was contrasted with that of a comparison group. The authors examined initial salivary cortisol response upon entering the laboratory and its trajectory following a set of tasks designed to elicit negative self-evaluation in 64 children (30 with a history of neglect and 34 demographically matched comparison children). Neglected, but not comparison, children showed higher initial cortisol responses. The cortisol response of both groups showed a decline from the sample taken at lab entry, with neglected children’s cortisol exhibiting steeper decline. The groups, however, did not differ in their mean cortisol levels at 20 and 35 min post-task. The results are interpreted in terms of the meaning of initial responses as a “baseline” and as evidence for neglected children’s heightened HPA-axis reactivity as either a reflection of differences in home levels or the consequence of stress/anxiety associated with arrival at the laboratory. PMID:22752003

Individual differences in the cortisol responses of neglected and comparison children.

PubMed

Sullivan, Margaret Wolan; Bennett, David S; Lewis, Michael

2013-02-01

Neglected children's acute hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis) reactivity in response to a laboratory visit was contrasted with that of a comparison group. The authors examined initial salivary cortisol response upon entering the laboratory and its trajectory following a set of tasks designed to elicit negative self-evaluation in 64 children (30 with a history of neglect and 34 demographically matched comparison children). Neglected, but not comparison, children showed higher initial cortisol responses. The cortisol response of both groups showed a decline from the sample taken at lab entry, with neglected children's cortisol exhibiting steeper decline. The groups, however, did not differ in their mean cortisol levels at 20 and 35 min post-task. The results are interpreted in terms of the meaning of initial responses as a "baseline" and as evidence for neglected children's heightened HPA-axis reactivity as either a reflection of differences in home levels or the consequence of stress/anxiety associated with arrival at the laboratory.

The Language Phenotype of a Small Geographically Isolated Russian-Speaking Population: Implications for Genetic and Clinical Studies of Developmental Language Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rakhlin, Natalia; Kornilov, Sergey A.; Palejev, Dean; Koposov, Roman A.; Chang, Joseph T.; Grigorenko, Elena L.

2013-01-01

This article describes the results of an epidemiological study of developmental language disorder (DLD) in an isolated rural Russian population. We report an atypically high prevalence of DLD across all age groups when contrasted with a comparison population. The results are corroborated by a set of comparisons of school-aged children from the…

Unilateral sequential endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy for palmar hyperhidrosis: a proposed technique to overcome compensatory hyperhidrosis and improve plantar hyperhidrosis.

PubMed

Youssef, Tamer; Soliman, Mosaad

2015-05-01

Although endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy (ETS) offers permanent cure of palmar hyperhidrosis (PH), compensatory hyperhidrosis (CH) often complicates the procedure. We analyzed the outcomes of a 2-month interval for unilateral sequential ETS (S-ETS) in comparison with simultaneous bilateral ETS (B-ETS), notably regarding CH and associated plantar hyperhidrosis, in treating patients with PH. Four hundred seven patients with intractable PH were randomly assigned into two groups: the B-ETS group (204 patients) and the S-ETS group (203 patients). Three hundred sixty-four patients completed the study. Complication rates were comparable for both groups. No patient died perioperatively, and no conversion was necessary. Treatment success on follow-up was 97.2% for S-ETS and 96.7% for B-ETS. The incidence of CH was decreased substantially from 131 (71.1%) patients in the B-ETS group to 22 (12.2%) patients in the S-ETS group (P<.001), with no patient suffering severe CH in the S-ETS group compared with 33 (25.5%) patients in the B-ETS group. Eighty-four (58.3%) patients in the S-ETS group had simultaneous disappearance or decreased perspiration on the soles. All patients in the S-ETS group were satisfied, whereas 37.9% of B-ETS patients were unsatisfied with their operation, mostly because of CH and recurrences. Although both sympathectomies were effective, safe, and minimally invasive methods for treatment of PH, unilateral sequential ETS appeared to be a more optimal technique in terms of reduction of CH to a minimum and improvement of associated plantar hyperhidrosis.

An Empirical Comparison of Five Linear Equating Methods for the NEAT Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suh, Youngsuk; Mroch, Andrew A.; Kane, Michael T.; Ripkey, Douglas R.

2009-01-01

In this study, a data base containing the responses of 40,000 candidates to 90 multiple-choice questions was used to mimic data sets for 50-item tests under the "nonequivalent groups with anchor test" (NEAT) design. Using these smaller data sets, we evaluated the performance of five linear equating methods for the NEAT design with five levels of…

A Comparison of Three Types of Test Development Procedures Using Classical and Latent Trait Methods.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benson, Jeri; Wilson, Michael

Three methods of item selection were used to select sets of 38 items from a 50-item verbal analogies test and the resulting item sets were compared for internal consistency, standard errors of measurement, item difficulty, biserial item-test correlations, and relative efficiency. Three groups of 1,500 cases each were used for item selection. First…

Set shifting in anorexia nervosa: an examination before and after weight gain, in full recovery and relationship to childhood and adult OCPD traits.

PubMed

Tchanturia, K; Morris, R G; Anderluh, M Brecelj; Collier, D A; Nikolaou, V; Treasure, J

2004-01-01

Deficits in set shifting tasks are present in anorexia nervosa (AN), but it is not known whether these deficits are traits independent of current disease or nutritional status or merely a temporary consequence of starvation or psychopathology. The aims of the present study were to determine if set-shifting sub-optimal performance are state or trait-related by examining set shifting in patients with current or past AN, and the extent of association of these deficits with obsessive compulsive traits and behaviours. To achieve this we examined set shifting abilities in three groups of subjects: (a) AN patients with current illness, prior to receiving treatment (AN); (b) people with past AN currently in long term recovery (ANRec) and a healthy comparison group (HC). We also longitudinally followed up a subset for the AN group who showed weight recovery in response to in patient treatment (ANWR). We administered a group of set shifting tests, which included cognitive, perceptual and motor shifting tasks. A semi-structured interview was obtained to ascertain obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) traits as a child and adult. Set-shifting difficulties were observed in the AN group, but to a lesser extent in the ANRec group. In the AN group these difficulties did not show any improvement follow re-testing after weight recovery. Performance on set shifting tasks was associated with childhood rigidity and inflexibility. Some aspects of set shifting sub-optimal performance in AN appear to be a trait rather than a state marker.

Comparison of four species-delimitation methods applied to a DNA barcode data set of insect larvae for use in routine bioassessment for use in routine bioassessment

EPA Science Inventory

Species delimitation (grouping individuals into distinct taxonomic groups) is an essential part of evolutionary, conservation, and molecular ecology. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) barcodes, short fragments of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene, are being used in environm...

Jackknifing Techniques for Evaluation of Equating Accuracy. Research Report. ETS RR-09-39

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haberman, Shelby J.; Lee, Yi-Hsuan; Qian, Jiahe

2009-01-01

Grouped jackknifing may be used to evaluate the stability of equating procedures with respect to sampling error and with respect to changes in anchor selection. Properties of grouped jackknifing are reviewed for simple-random and stratified sampling, and its use is described for comparisons of anchor sets. Application is made to examples of item…

An Evaluation of a Worksite Exercise Intervention Using the Social Cognitive Theory: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amaya, Megan; Petosa, R. L.

2012-01-01

Purpose: To increase exercise adherence among insufficiently active adult employees. Design: A quasi-experimental separate samples pre-test-post-test group design was used to compare treatment and comparison group. Setting: The worksite. Subjects: Employees (n = 127) who did not meet current American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM)…

Parental Autonomy Support and Student Learning Goals: A Preliminary Examination of an Intrinsic Motivation Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Froiland, John Mark

2011-01-01

In a seven week quasi-experimental study, parents (n = 15) of elementary school students (n = 15) learned autonomy supportive communication techniques that included helping their children set learning goals for homework assignments. Treatment vs. comparison group (n = 30) ANCOVA analyses revealed that the parents in the treatment group perceived…

Understanding How Biculturalism Contributes to Latinas' Pursuit of Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dominguez, Mariana

2013-01-01

Latina/os are the fastest growing minority group in the United States and in California, yet they have not been able to maintain an adequate educational attainment and achievement level in comparison to other ethnic groups (Marin & Marin, 1991). Typically, Latinas are not able to achieve the amount of education they set out to accomplish…

Intercomparison of OMI NO2 and HCHO air mass factor calculations: recommendations and best practices for retrievals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lorente Delgado, Alba; Klaas Boersma, Folkert; Hilboll, Andreas; Richter, Andreas; Yu, Huan; van Roozendael, Michel; Dörner, Steffen; Wagner, Thomas; Barkley, Michael; Lamsal, Lok; Lin, Jintai; Liu, Mengyao

2016-04-01

We present a detailed comparison of the air mass factor (AMF) calculation process used by various research groups for OMI satellite retrievals of NO2 and HCHO. Although satellite retrievals have strongly improved over the last decades, there is still a need to better understand and reduce the uncertainties associated with every retrieval step of satellite data products, such as the AMF calculation. Here we compare and evaluate the different approaches used to calculate AMFs by several scientific groups (KNMI (WUR), IASB-BIRA, IUP-UNI. BREMEN, MPI-C, NASA GSFC, LEICESTER UNI. and PEKING UNI.). Each group calculated altitude dependent (box-) AMFs and clear sky and total tropospheric AMFs for several OMI orbits. First, European groups computed AMFs for one OMI orbit using common settings for the choice of surface albedo data, terrain height, cloud treatment and a priori vertical profile. Second, every group computed AMFs for two complete days in different seasons using preferred settings for the ancillary data and cloud treatment as a part of a Round Robin exercise. Box-AMFs comparison showed good consistency and underlined the importance of a correct treatment of the physical processes affecting the effective light path and the vertical discretization of the atmosphere. Using common settings, tropospheric NO2 AMFs in polluted pixels on average agreed within 4.7% whereas in remote pixels agreed within 3.5%. Using preferred settings relative differences between AMFs increase up to 15-30%. This increase is traced back to the different choices and assumptions made throughout the AMF calculation, which affect the final AMF values and thus the uncertainty in the AMF calculation. Differences between state of the art cloud treatment approaches highlight the importance of an accurate cloud correction: total and clear sky AMFs in polluted conditions differ by up to 40% depending on the retrieval scenario. Based on the comparison results, specific recommendations on best practices are given and they will be used in QA4ECV community effort retrieval algorithm to be applied in past and future UV/Vis instrumentation for generating quality assured multi decadal NO2 and HCHO records.

Structural Ecosystems Therapy for HIV+ African-American women and drug abuse relapse.

PubMed

Feaster, Daniel J; Burns, Myron J; Brincks, Ahnalee M; Prado, Guillermo; Mitrani, Victoria B; Mauer, Megaly H; Szapocznik, Jose

2010-06-01

This report examines the effect of Structural Ecosystems Therapy (SET) for (n=143) HIV+ African-American women on rate of relapse to substance use relative to both a person-centered approach (PCA) to therapy and a community control (CC) group. A prior report has shown SET to decrease psychological distress and family hassles relative to these 2 comparison groups. In new analyses, SET and CC had a significant protective effect against relapse as compared with PCA. There is evidence that SET's protective effect on relapse was related to reductions in family hassles, whereas there was not a direct impact of change in psychological distress on rates of relapse. Lower retention in PCA, perhaps caused by the lack of a directive component to PCA, may have put these women at greater risk for relapse. Whereas SET did not specifically address substance abuse, SET indirectly protected at-risk women from relapse through reductions in family hassles.

Evaluation of statistical treatments of left-censored environmental data using coincident uncensored data sets. II. Group comparisons

USGS Publications Warehouse

Antweiler, Ronald C.

2015-01-01

The main classes of statistical treatments that have been used to determine if two groups of censored environmental data arise from the same distribution are substitution methods, maximum likelihood (MLE) techniques, and nonparametric methods. These treatments along with using all instrument-generated data (IN), even those less than the detection limit, were evaluated by examining 550 data sets in which the true values of the censored data were known, and therefore “true” probabilities could be calculated and used as a yardstick for comparison. It was found that technique “quality” was strongly dependent on the degree of censoring present in the groups. For low degrees of censoring (<25% in each group), the Generalized Wilcoxon (GW) technique and substitution of √2/2 times the detection limit gave overall the best results. For moderate degrees of censoring, MLE worked best, but only if the distribution could be estimated to be normal or log-normal prior to its application; otherwise, GW was a suitable alternative. For higher degrees of censoring (each group >40% censoring), no technique provided reliable estimates of the true probability. Group size did not appear to influence the quality of the result, and no technique appeared to become better or worse than other techniques relative to group size. Finally, IN appeared to do very well relative to the other techniques regardless of censoring or group size.

A rough set approach for determining weights of decision makers in group decision making.

PubMed

Yang, Qiang; Du, Ping-An; Wang, Yong; Liang, Bin

2017-01-01

This study aims to present a novel approach for determining the weights of decision makers (DMs) based on rough group decision in multiple attribute group decision-making (MAGDM) problems. First, we construct a rough group decision matrix from all DMs' decision matrixes on the basis of rough set theory. After that, we derive a positive ideal solution (PIS) founded on the average matrix of rough group decision, and negative ideal solutions (NISs) founded on the lower and upper limit matrixes of rough group decision. Then, we obtain the weight of each group member and priority order of alternatives by using relative closeness method, which depends on the distances from each individual group member' decision to the PIS and NISs. Through comparisons with existing methods and an on-line business manager selection example, the proposed method show that it can provide more insights into the subjectivity and vagueness of DMs' evaluations and selections.

Process thresholds: Report of Working Group Number 3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Williams, R. S., Jr.

1985-01-01

The Process Thresholds Working Group concerned itself with whether a geomorphic process to be monitored on satellite imagery must be global, regional, or local in its effect on the landscape. It was pointed out that major changes in types and magnitudes of processes operating in an area are needed to be detectable on a global scale. It was concluded from a review of geomorphic studies which used satellite images that they do record change in landscape over time (on a time-lapse basis) as a result of one or more processes. In fact, this may be one of the most important attributes of space imagery, in that one can document land form changes in the form of a permanent historical record. The group also discussed the important subject of the acquisition of basic data sets by different satellite imaging systems. Geomorphologists already have available one near-global basis data set resulting from the early LANDSAT program, especially images acquired by LANDSATs 1 and 2. Such historic basic data sets can serve as a benchmark for comparison with landscape changes that take place in the future. They can also serve as a benchmark for comparison with landscape changes that have occurred in the past (as recorded) by images, photography and maps.

Chronic and acute inspiratory muscle loading augment the effect of a 6-week interval program on tolerance of high-intensity intermittent bouts of running.

PubMed

Tong, Tom K; Fu, Frank H; Eston, Roger; Chung, Pak-Kwong; Quach, Binh; Lu, Kui

2010-11-01

This study examined the hypothesis that chronic (training) and acute (warm-up) loaded ventilatory activities applied to the inspiratory muscles (IM) in an integrated manner would augment the training volume of an interval running program. This in turn would result in additional improvement in the maximum performance of the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test in comparison with interval training alone. Eighteen male nonprofessional athletes were allocated to either an inspiratory muscle loading (IML) group or control group. Both groups participated in a 6-week interval running program consisting of 3-4 workouts (1-3 sets of various repetitions of selected distance [100-2,400 m] per workout) per week. For the IML group, 4-week IM training (30 inspiratory efforts at 50% maximal static inspiratory pressure [P0] per set, 2 sets·d-1, 6 d·wk-1) was applied before the interval program. Specific IM warm-up (2 sets of 30 inspiratory efforts at 40% P0) was performed before each workout of the program. For the control group, neither IML was applied. In comparison with the control group, the interval training volume as indicated by the repeatability of running bouts at high intensity was approximately 27% greater in the IML group. Greater increase in the maximum performance of the Yo-Yo test (control: 16.9 ± 5.5%; IML: 30.7 ± 4.7% baseline value) was also observed after training. The enhanced exercise performance was partly attributable to the greater reductions in the sensation of breathlessness and whole-body metabolic stress during the Yo-Yo test. These findings show that the combination of chronic and acute IML into a high-intensity interval running program is a beneficial training strategy for enhancing the tolerance to high-intensity intermittent bouts of running.

COMPARISON OF LAPAROSCOPIC SKILLS PERFORMANCE USING SINGLE-SITE ACCESS (SSA) DEVICES VS. AN INDEPENDENT-PORT SSA APPROACH

PubMed Central

Schill, Matthew R.; Varela, J. Esteban; Frisella, Margaret M.; Brunt, L. Michael

2015-01-01

Background We compared performance of validated laparoscopic tasks on four commercially available single site access (SSA) access devices (AD) versus an independent port (IP) SSA set-up. Methods A prospective, randomized comparison of laparoscopic skills performance on four AD (GelPOINT™, SILS™ Port, SSL Access System™, TriPort™) and one IP SSA set-up was conducted. Eighteen medical students (2nd–4th year), four surgical residents, and five attending surgeons were trained to proficiency in multi-port laparoscopy using four laparoscopic drills (peg transfer, bean drop, pattern cutting, extracorporeal suturing) in a laparoscopic trainer box. Drills were then performed in random order on each IP-SSA and AD-SSA set-up using straight laparoscopic instruments. Repetitions were timed and errors recorded. Data are mean ± SD, and statistical analysis was by two-way ANOVA with Tukey HSD post-hoc tests. Results Attending surgeons had significantly faster total task times than residents or students (p< 0.001), but the difference between residents and students was NS. Pair-wise comparisons revealed significantly faster total task times for the IP-SSA set-up compared to all four AD-SSA’s within the student group only (p<0.05). Total task times for residents and attending surgeons showed a similar profile, but the differences were NS. When data for the three groups was combined, the total task time was less for the IP-SSA set-up than for each of the four AD-SSA set-ups (p < 0.001). Similarly,, the IP-SSA set-up was significantly faster than 3 of 4 AD-SSA set-ups for peg transfer, 3 of 4 for pattern cutting, and 2 of 4 for suturing. No significant differences in error rates between IP-SSA and AD-SSA set-ups were detected. Conclusions When compared to an IP-SSA laparoscopic set-up, single site access devices are associated with longer task performance times in a trainer box model, independent of level of training. Task performance was similar across different SSA devices. PMID:21993938

An environmental intervention aimed at increasing physical activity levels in low-income women.

PubMed

Speck, Barbara J; Hines-Martin, Vicki; Stetson, Barbara A; Looney, Stephen W

2007-01-01

Regular physical activity is a health promotion and disease prevention behavior. Of all demographic groups, low-income women report the lowest levels of physical activity. The purpose of this study was to test an intervention aimed at reducing community environmental barriers to physical activity in low-income women. The research design was mixed methodology: (1) quantitative (quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, cohort design in which no treatment partitioning was possible) and (2) qualitative (focus groups). The setting was a church-sponsored community center centrally located in a low-income urban neighborhood. The comparison group was recruited first followed by the intervention group to control for setting. The sample consisted of 104 women (comparison group, n = 53; intervention group, n = 51) between the ages of 18 and 63 years who were residents of neighborhoods served by the community center. No between-group differences were found for physical activity behavior. Significant between-group differences in cholesterol (P = .007) and perception of physical activity (P = .033) were observed. Significant intervention group increases from pretest to posttest were found related to advanced registered nurse practitioner support, friend support, and more positive physical activity environment at the community center. Qualitative data supported and enriched the quantitative data. Physical activity levels were not significantly different between the groups. In a sample of low-income women who have multiple barriers, improving attitudes, expanding their knowledge of community resources, and providing physical activity opportunities in their neighborhoods are important intermediate steps toward initiation and maintenance of regular physical activity.

Benefits and problems of health-care robots in aged care settings: A comparison trial.

PubMed

Broadbent, Elizabeth; Kerse, Ngaire; Peri, Kathryn; Robinson, Hayley; Jayawardena, Chandimal; Kuo, Tony; Datta, Chandan; Stafford, Rebecca; Butler, Haley; Jawalkar, Pratyusha; Amor, Maddy; Robins, Ben; MacDonald, Bruce

2016-03-01

This study investigated whether multiple health-care robots could have any benefits or cause any problems in an aged care facility. Fifty-three residents and 53 staff participated in a non-randomised controlled trial over 12 weeks. Six robots provided entertainment, communication and health-monitoring functions in staff rooms and activity lounges. These settings were compared to control settings without robots. There were no significant differences between groups in resident or staff outcomes, except a significant increase in job satisfaction in the control group only. The intervention group perceived the robots had more agency and experience than the control group did. Perceived agency of the robots decreased over time in both groups. Overall, we received very mixed responses with positive, neutral and negative comments. The robots had no major benefits or problems. Future research could give robots stronger operational roles, use more specific outcome measures, and perform cost-benefit analyses. © 2015 AJA Inc.

A Comparison of a Traditional Lecture-Based and Online Supplemental Video and Lecture-Based Approach in an Engineering Statics Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Halupa, Colleen M.; Caldwell, Benjamin W.

2015-01-01

This quasi-experimental research study evaluated two intact undergraduate engineering statics classes at a private university in Texas. Students in the control group received traditional lecture, readings and homework assignments. Those in the experimental group also were given access to a complete set of online video lectures and videos…

Comparison of Two Small-Group Learning Methods in 12th-Grade Physics Classes Focusing on Intrinsic Motivation and Academic Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berger, Roland; Hanze, Martin

2009-01-01

Twelfth-grade physics classes with 344 students participated in a quasi-experimental study comparing two small-group learning settings. In the jigsaw classroom, in contrast to the cyclical rotation method, teaching expectancy as well as resource interdependence is established. The study is based on the self-determination theory of motivation,…

A Naturalistic Comparison of Group Transdiagnostic Behaviour Therapy (TBT) and Disorder-Specific Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Groups for the Affective Disorders.

PubMed

Gros, Daniel F; Merrifield, Colleen; Rowa, Karen; Szafranski, Derek D; Young, Lisa; McCabe, Randi E

2018-05-29

Transdiagnostic psychotherapies are designed to apply the same underlying treatment principles across a set of psychiatric disorders, without significant tailoring to specific diagnoses. Several transdiagnostic psychotherapy protocols have been developed recently, each of which has its own strengths and weaknesses. One promising treatment is Transdiagnostic Behaviour Therapy (TBT), in that it is one of the few transdiagnostic treatments to date shown to be effective in patients with depressive and anxiety disorders. However, TBT has only been investigated via individual psychotherapy. The present study investigated the effectiveness of a group protocol for TBT, compared with disorder-specific group psychotherapies, in a naturalistic setting. 109 participants with various diagnoses of affective disorders completed either group TBT (n = 37) or a disorder-specific group psychotherapy (n = 72). Measures included assessments of psychiatric symptomatology and transdiagnostic impairment at baseline and post-treatment. Overall, participants in the TBT group demonstrated significant improvements across all measures. When compared with disorder-specific groups, no statistical differences were observed between groups across symptoms; however, participants in the TBT group demonstrated roughly twice the treatment effect sizes in transdiagnostic impairment compared with participants in the disorder-specific groups. In addition, when participants from the most well-represented diagnosis and disorder-specific treatment (social anxiety disorder) were investigated separately, participants in the TBT group demonstrated significantly larger improvements in comorbid depressive symptoms than participants in the disorder-specific treatment. Pending replication and additional comparison studies, group TBT may provide an effective group treatment option for patients with affective disorders.

The Effect of Intravenous Infiltration Management Program for Hospitalized Children.

PubMed

Park, Soon Mi; Jeong, Ihn Sook; Kim, Kyoung Lae; Park, Kyung Ju; Jung, Moon Ju; Jun, Seong Suk

2016-01-01

This study aimed to identify the effect of IV infiltration management program among hospitalized children. This was a quasi-experimental study with history comparison group design with 2,894 catheters inserted during 3 months comparison phase and 3,651 catheters inserted during 4 months experimental phase. The intervention was composed of seven activities including applying poster, documentation of catheter insertion, parents education, making infiltration report, assessment of vein condition before inserting catheter, appropriate site selection, and documentation of catheter insertion, and assessment of peripheral catheter insertion site every shift. Data were analyzed using of X2-test, Fisher's exact test. The infiltration incidence rate was 0.9% for experimental group and 4.4% for comparison group, which was significantly different (x2=80.42, p<.001). The catheter maintenance period (p=.035) and infiltration state (p=.039) were significantly different among participants with infiltration between comparison and experimental groups. IV Infiltration management program was founded to be effective in reducing the IV infiltration incidence rate and increasing early detection of IV infiltration. Considering the effect of IV Infiltration management program, we recommend that this infiltration management program would be widely used in the clinical settings. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of normalization methods for differential gene expression analysis in RNA-Seq experiments

PubMed Central

Maza, Elie; Frasse, Pierre; Senin, Pavel; Bouzayen, Mondher; Zouine, Mohamed

2013-01-01

In recent years, RNA-Seq technologies became a powerful tool for transcriptome studies. However, computational methods dedicated to the analysis of high-throughput sequencing data are yet to be standardized. In particular, it is known that the choice of a normalization procedure leads to a great variability in results of differential gene expression analysis. The present study compares the most widespread normalization procedures and proposes a novel one aiming at removing an inherent bias of studied transcriptomes related to their relative size. Comparisons of the normalization procedures are performed on real and simulated data sets. Real RNA-Seq data sets analyses, performed with all the different normalization methods, show that only 50% of significantly differentially expressed genes are common. This result highlights the influence of the normalization step on the differential expression analysis. Real and simulated data sets analyses give similar results showing 3 different groups of procedures having the same behavior. The group including the novel method named “Median Ratio Normalization” (MRN) gives the lower number of false discoveries. Within this group the MRN method is less sensitive to the modification of parameters related to the relative size of transcriptomes such as the number of down- and upregulated genes and the gene expression levels. The newly proposed MRN method efficiently deals with intrinsic bias resulting from relative size of studied transcriptomes. Validation with real and simulated data sets confirmed that MRN is more consistent and robust than existing methods. PMID:26442135

Defining a standard set of patient-centered outcomes for men with localized prostate cancer.

PubMed

Martin, Neil E; Massey, Laura; Stowell, Caleb; Bangma, Chris; Briganti, Alberto; Bill-Axelson, Anna; Blute, Michael; Catto, James; Chen, Ronald C; D'Amico, Anthony V; Feick, Günter; Fitzpatrick, John M; Frank, Steven J; Froehner, Michael; Frydenberg, Mark; Glaser, Adam; Graefen, Markus; Hamstra, Daniel; Kibel, Adam; Mendenhall, Nancy; Moretti, Kim; Ramon, Jacob; Roos, Ian; Sandler, Howard; Sullivan, Francis J; Swanson, David; Tewari, Ashutosh; Vickers, Andrew; Wiegel, Thomas; Huland, Hartwig

2015-03-01

Value-based health care has been proposed as a unifying force to drive improved outcomes and cost containment. To develop a standard set of multidimensional patient-centered health outcomes for tracking, comparing, and improving localized prostate cancer (PCa) treatment value. We convened an international working group of patients, registry experts, urologists, and radiation oncologists to review existing data and practices. The group defined a recommended standard set representing who should be tracked, what should be measured and at what time points, and what data are necessary to make meaningful comparisons. Using a modified Delphi method over a series of teleconferences, the group reached consensus for the Standard Set. We recommend that the Standard Set apply to men with newly diagnosed localized PCa treated with active surveillance, surgery, radiation, or other methods. The Standard Set includes acute toxicities occurring within 6 mo of treatment as well as patient-reported outcomes tracked regularly out to 10 yr. Patient-reported domains of urinary incontinence and irritation, bowel symptoms, sexual symptoms, and hormonal symptoms are included, and the recommended measurement tool is the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite Short Form. Disease control outcomes include overall, cause-specific, metastasis-free, and biochemical relapse-free survival. Baseline clinical, pathologic, and comorbidity information is included to improve the interpretability of comparisons. We have defined a simple, easily implemented set of outcomes that we believe should be measured in all men with localized PCa as a crucial first step in improving the value of care. Measuring, reporting, and comparing identical outcomes across treatments and treatment centers will provide patients and providers with information to make informed treatment decisions. We defined a set of outcomes that we recommend being tracked for every man being treated for localized prostate cancer. Copyright © 2014 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Short message service reminder intervention doubles sexually transmitted infection/HIV re-testing rates among men who have sex with men.

PubMed

Bourne, C; Knight, V; Guy, R; Wand, H; Lu, H; McNulty, A

2011-04-01

To evaluate the impact of a short message service (SMS) reminder system on HIV/sexually transmitted infection (STI) re-testing rates among men who have sex with men (MSM). The SMS reminder programme started in late 2008 at a large Australian sexual health clinic. SMS reminders were recommended 3-6 monthly for MSM considered high-risk based on self-reported sexual behaviour. The evaluation compared HIV negative MSM who had a HIV/STI test between 1 January and 31 August 2010 and received a SMS reminder (SMS group) with those tested in the same time period (comparison group) and pre-SMS period (pre-SMS group, 1 January 2008 and 31 August 2008) who did not receive the SMS. HIV/STI re-testing rates were measured within 9 months for each group. Baseline characteristics were compared between study groups and multivariate logistic regression used to assess the association between SMS and re-testing and control for any imbalances in the study groups. There were 714 HIV negative MSM in the SMS group, 1084 in the comparison group and 1753 in the pre-SMS group. In the SMS group, 64% were re-tested within 9 months compared to 30% in the comparison group (p<0.001) and 31% in the pre-SMS group (p<0.001). After adjusting for baseline differences, re-testing was 4.4 times more likely (95% CI 3.5 to 5.5) in the SMS group than the comparison group and 3.1 times more likely (95% CI 2.5 to 3.8) than the pre-SMS group. SMS reminders increased HIV/STI re-testing among HIV negative MSM. SMS offers a cheap, efficient system to increase HIV/STI re-testing in a busy clinical setting.

Six weeks of unsupervised Nintendo Wii Fit gaming is effective at improving balance in independent older adults.

PubMed

Nicholson, Vaughan Patrick; McKean, Mark; Lowe, John; Fawcett, Christine; Burkett, Brendan

2015-01-01

To determine the effectiveness of unsupervised Nintendo Wii Fit balance training in older adults. Forty-one older adults were recruited from local retirement villages and educational settings to participate in a six-week two-group repeated measures study. The Wii group (n = 19, 75 ± 6 years) undertook 30 min of unsupervised Wii balance gaming three times per week in their retirement village while the comparison group (n = 22, 74 ± 5 years) continued with their usual exercise program. Participants' balance abilities were assessed pre- and postintervention. The Wii Fit group demonstrated significant improvements (P < .05) in timed up-and-go, left single-leg balance, lateral reach (left and right), and gait speed compared with the comparison group. Reported levels of enjoyment following game play increased during the study. Six weeks of unsupervised Wii balance training is an effective modality for improving balance in independent older adults.

The effect of a diabetes collaborative care management program on clinical and economic outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

McAdam-Marx, Carrie; Dahal, Arati; Jennings, Brandon; Singhal, Mukul; Gunning, Karen

2015-06-01

Clinical pharmacy services (CPS) in the primary care setting have been shown to help patients attain treatment goals and improve outcomes. However, the availability of CPS in community-based primary care is not widespread. One reason is that current fee-for-service models offer limited reimbursement opportunities for CPS in the community setting. Furthermore, data demonstrating the value of CPS in this setting are limited, making it difficult for providers to determine the feasibility and sustainability of incorporating CPS into primary care practice. To (a) evaluate the association between a pharmacist-led, diabetes collaborative drug therapy management program and patient outcomes, including glycemic control and health care costs, and (b) assess short-term economic outcomes in a primary care setting. A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted using medical record data. This study was conducted using patients with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes (T2DM), defined as HbA1c ≥ 7.0%. Outcomes were compared between patients referred to a diabetes collaborative care management (DCCM) intervention from 2009-2012 and patients who did not participate in the DCCM program. To illustrate the difference in HbA1c between the 2 cohorts over the follow-up period, mean time adjusted HbA1c values were estimated using a panel-type random effects regression model, with results plotted at 90-day intervals from index date through the end of the study period. To help control for confounding by other factors, multivariate regression models were run. A difference-in-difference model was employed to estimate the effect of the program on resource utilization and all-cause charges. A total of 303 DCCM and 394 comparison patients were included. Mean (95% CI) age was 57.4 years (55.963, 58.902) versus 59.9 years (58.613, 61.276; P < 0.001) with 48% and 44% female for DCCM and comparison patients, respectively (P = 0.49). Mean baseline HbA1c was higher for DCCM (10.3%; 10.10, 10.53) than comparison patients (8.4%; 8.26, 8.61; P < 0.001). The greatest reduction in HbA1c was seen for both groups at 9 and 12 months post-index date. At these time points, the mean time adjusted difference in HbA1c between groups was no longer significant. Multivariate modeling identified that the DCCM program was associated with a -0.44% (-0.64, -0.25; P < 0.001) lower HbA1c at follow-up relative to the comparison group controlling for potential confounders, including baseline HbA1c. Change in resource utilization from pre- to post-index date did not differ between groups. However, in the difference-in-difference multivariate analysis the difference in mean all-cause charges from the 12-month pre- to post-index periods DCCM patients experienced a smaller average increase in charges ($250) than comparison patients ($1,341; coefficient = -0.423; 95% CI = -0.779, -0.068). A pharmacist-led diabetes collaborative care management program in a patient-centered primary care setting was associated with significantly better follow-up glycemic control relative to comparison patients. Further, the data suggest that the DCCM program was associated with a less substantial increase in all-cause total costs in patients with uncontrolled T2DM relative to comparison patients, which could translate into reduced costs and improved outcomes to managed care payers.

An Analysis of the Effectiveness of the Early Reading Intervention for Self-Efficacy (E-RISE) on First, Second, and Third Grade Students in an At-Risk School Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nolan, Jeanne

2012-01-01

This research study investigated the effectiveness of an early reading intervention for self-efficacy (E-RISE) on struggling readers' efficacy and reading achievement in an at-risk elementary school setting. A total of 117 first, second, and third graders participated. The intervention group contained 39 students, and the comparison group…

The impact of a general practice group intervention on prescribing costs and patterns.

PubMed Central

Walker, Jane; Mathers, Nigel

2002-01-01

BACKGROUND: The formation of primary care groups (PCGs) and trusts (PCTs) has shifted the emphasis from individual practice initiatives to group-based efforts to control rising prescribing costs. However, there is a paucity of literature describing such group initiatives. We report the results of a multilevel group initiative, involving input from a pharmaceutical adviser, practice comparison feedback, and peer review meetings. AIM: To determine the impact of a prescribing initiative on the prescribing patterns of a group of general practices. DESIGN OF STUDY: A comparative study with non-matched controls. SETTING: Nine semi-rural/rural practices forming a commissioning group pilot, later a PCG, in Southern Derbyshire with nine practices as controls. METHOD: Practice data were collated for overall prescribing and for therapeutic categories, between the years 1997/1998 and 1998/1999 and analysed statistically. Prescribing expenditure trends were also collated. RESULTS: Although both groups came well within their prescribing budgets, in the study group this was for the first time in five years. Their rate of increase in expenditure slowed significantly following the initiative compared with that of the comparison group, which continued to rise (median practice net ingredient cost/patient unit (nic/PU) increase: Pound Sterling0.69 and Pound Sterling3.80 respectively; P = 0.03). The study group's nic/PU dropped below, and stayed below, that of the comparison group one month after the start of the initiative. For most therapeutic categories the study group had lower increases in costs and higher increases in percentage of generic items than the comparison group. Quality markers were unaffected. CONCLUSION: We suggest that practices with diverse prescribing patterns can work together effectively within a PCT locality to control prescribing costs. PMID:12030659

Mode of birth and medical interventions among women at low risk of complications: A cross-national comparison of birth settings in England and the Netherlands.

PubMed

de Jonge, Ank; Peters, Lilian; Geerts, Caroline C; van Roosmalen, Jos J M; Twisk, Jos W R; Brocklehurst, Peter; Hollowell, Jennifer

2017-01-01

To compare mode of birth and medical interventions between broadly equivalent birth settings in England and the Netherlands. Data were combined from the Birthplace study in England (from April 2008 to April 2010) and the National Perinatal Register in the Netherlands (2009). Low risk women in England planning birth at home (16,470) or in freestanding midwifery units (11,133) were compared with Dutch women with planned home births (40,468). Low risk English women with births planned in alongside midwifery units (16,418) or obstetric units (19,096) were compared with Dutch women with planned midwife-led hospital births (37,887). CS rates varied across planned births settings from 6.5% to 15.5% among nulliparous and 0.6% to 5.1% among multiparous women. CS rates were higher among low risk nulliparous and multiparous English women planning obstetric unit births compared to Dutch women planning midwife-led hospital births (adjusted (adj) OR 1.89 (95% CI 1.64 to 2.18) and 3.66 (2.90 to 4.63) respectively). Instrumental vaginal birth rates varied from 10.7% to 22.5% for nulliparous and from 0.9% to 5.7% for multiparous women. Rates were lower in the English comparison groups apart from planned births in obstetric units. Transfer, augmentation and episiotomy rates were much lower in England compared to the Netherlands for all midwife-led groups. In most comparisons, epidural rates were higher among English groups. When considering maternal outcomes, findings confirm advantages of giving birth in midwife-led settings for low risk women. Further research is needed into strategies to decrease rates of medical intervention in obstetric units in England and to reduce rates of avoidable transfer, episiotomy and augmentation of labour in the Netherlands.

Mode of birth and medical interventions among women at low risk of complications: A cross-national comparison of birth settings in England and the Netherlands

PubMed Central

Peters, Lilian; Geerts, Caroline C.; van Roosmalen, Jos J. M.; Twisk, Jos W. R.; Brocklehurst, Peter; Hollowell, Jennifer

2017-01-01

Objectives To compare mode of birth and medical interventions between broadly equivalent birth settings in England and the Netherlands. Methods Data were combined from the Birthplace study in England (from April 2008 to April 2010) and the National Perinatal Register in the Netherlands (2009). Low risk women in England planning birth at home (16,470) or in freestanding midwifery units (11,133) were compared with Dutch women with planned home births (40,468). Low risk English women with births planned in alongside midwifery units (16,418) or obstetric units (19,096) were compared with Dutch women with planned midwife-led hospital births (37,887). Results CS rates varied across planned births settings from 6.5% to 15.5% among nulliparous and 0.6% to 5.1% among multiparous women. CS rates were higher among low risk nulliparous and multiparous English women planning obstetric unit births compared to Dutch women planning midwife-led hospital births (adjusted (adj) OR 1.89 (95% CI 1.64 to 2.18) and 3.66 (2.90 to 4.63) respectively). Instrumental vaginal birth rates varied from 10.7% to 22.5% for nulliparous and from 0.9% to 5.7% for multiparous women. Rates were lower in the English comparison groups apart from planned births in obstetric units. Transfer, augmentation and episiotomy rates were much lower in England compared to the Netherlands for all midwife-led groups. In most comparisons, epidural rates were higher among English groups. Conclusions When considering maternal outcomes, findings confirm advantages of giving birth in midwife-led settings for low risk women. Further research is needed into strategies to decrease rates of medical intervention in obstetric units in England and to reduce rates of avoidable transfer, episiotomy and augmentation of labour in the Netherlands. PMID:28749944

Predictive validity of the HCR-20 for inpatient aggression: the effect of intellectual disability on accuracy.

PubMed

O'Shea, L E; Picchioni, M M; McCarthy, J; Mason, F L; Dickens, G L

2015-11-01

People with intellectual disability (ID) account for a large proportion of aggressive incidents in secure and forensic psychiatric services. Although the Historical, Clinical, Risk Management 20 (HCR-20) has good predictive validity in inpatient settings, it does not perform equally in all groups and there is little evidence for its efficacy in those with ID. A pseudo-prospective cohort study of the predictive efficacy of the HCR-20 for those with ID (n = 109) was conducted in a UK secure mental health setting using routinely collected risk data. Performance of the HCR-20 in the ID group was compared with a comparison group of adult inpatients without an ID (n = 504). Analysis controlled for potential covariates including security level, length of stay, gender and diagnosis. The HCR-20 total score was a significant predictor of any aggression and of physical aggression for both groups, although the area under the curve values did not reach the threshold for a large effect size. The clinical subscale performed significantly better in those without an ID compared with those with. The ID group had a greater number of relevant historical and risk management items. The clinicians' summary judgment significantly predicted both types of aggressive outcomes in the ID group, but did not predict either in those without an ID. This study demonstrates that, after controlling for a range of potential covariates, the HCR-20 is a significant predictor of inpatient aggression in people with an ID and performs as well as for a comparison group of mentally disordered individuals without ID. The potency of HCR-20 subscales and items varied between the ID and comparison groups suggesting important target areas for improved prediction and risk management interventions in those with ID. © 2015 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The influence of a temporary magnetic field on chicken hatching.

PubMed

Toman, Robert; Jedlicka, Jaroslav; Broucek, Ján

2002-01-01

The influence of magnetic field with the intensity of 0.07T on the hatching of the Hampshire breed chicken was investigated. The hatchability of the eggs that were influenced by magnetic field during the storage of the egg set (20-40 min) was increased in comparison with eggs that were not influenced by magnetic field (p < 0.05). In the eggs influenced by magnetic field during their incubation, the hatchability in experimental groups E1 and E2 decreased to 70.08 +/- 1.93% and 70.75 +/- 2.13%, respectively. The difference were significant (p < 0.001) in comparison with the control groups C1 and C2. The negative influence of magnetic field was manifested by lower weight of the hatched chickens in the experimental groups E1 (35.07 +/- 0.95 g) and E2 (35.94 +/- 0.97 g). The results were relevant (p < 0.05) in comparison with the control groups with the average weight of hatched chickens 41.83 +/- 1.15 g (C1) and 44.27 +/- 0.73 g (C2).

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cheng, Jing-Jy; Flood, Paul E.; LePoire, David

In this report, the results generated by RESRAD-RDD version 2.01 are compared with those produced by RESRAD-RDD version 1.7 for different scenarios with different sets of input parameters. RESRAD-RDD version 1.7 is spreadsheet-driven, performing calculations with Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. RESRAD-RDD version 2.01 revamped version 1.7 by using command-driven programs designed with Visual Basic.NET to direct calculations with data saved in Microsoft Access database, and re-facing the graphical user interface (GUI) to provide more flexibility and choices in guideline derivation. Because version 1.7 and version 2.01 perform the same calculations, the comparison of their results serves as verification of both versions.more » The verification covered calculation results for 11 radionuclides included in both versions: Am-241, Cf-252, Cm-244, Co-60, Cs-137, Ir-192, Po-210, Pu-238, Pu-239, Ra-226, and Sr-90. At first, all nuclidespecific data used in both versions were compared to ensure that they are identical. Then generic operational guidelines and measurement-based radiation doses or stay times associated with a specific operational guideline group were calculated with both versions using different sets of input parameters, and the results obtained with the same set of input parameters were compared. A total of 12 sets of input parameters were used for the verification, and the comparison was performed for each operational guideline group, from A to G, sequentially. The verification shows that RESRAD-RDD version 1.7 and RESRAD-RDD version 2.01 generate almost identical results; the slight differences could be attributed to differences in numerical precision with Microsoft Excel and Visual Basic.NET. RESRAD-RDD version 2.01 allows the selection of different units for use in reporting calculation results. The results of SI units were obtained and compared with the base results (in traditional units) used for comparison with version 1.7. The comparison shows that RESRAD-RDD version 2.01 correctly reports calculation results in the unit specified in the GUI.« less

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis (CBT-p) Delivered in a Community Mental Health Setting: A Case Comparison of Clients Receiving CBT Informed Strategies by Case Managers Prior to Therapy.

PubMed

Sivec, Harry J; Montesano, Vicki L; Skubby, David; Knepp, Kristen A; Munetz, Mark R

2017-02-01

This exploratory case comparison examines the influence of case management activities on engagement and progress in psychotherapy for clients with schizophrenia. Six clients were recruited to participate in ten sessions of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for psychosis (CBT-p). Three clients who had received Cognitive Behavioral techniques for psychosis (CBt-p, a low-intensity case management intervention) prior to receiving therapy were selected from referrals. A comparison group of three clients who had received standard case management services was selected from referrals. Cases within and across groups were compared on outcome measures and observations from case review were offered to inform future research. Delivering CBT-p services on a continuum from low- to high-intensity is discussed.

Set-size procedures for controlling variations in speech-reception performance with a fluctuating masker

PubMed Central

Bernstein, Joshua G. W.; Summers, Van; Iyer, Nandini; Brungart, Douglas S.

2012-01-01

Adaptive signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) tracking is often used to measure speech reception in noise. Because SNR varies with performance using this method, data interpretation can be confounded when measuring an SNR-dependent effect such as the fluctuating-masker benefit (FMB) (the intelligibility improvement afforded by brief dips in the masker level). One way to overcome this confound, and allow FMB comparisons across listener groups with different stationary-noise performance, is to adjust the response set size to equalize performance across groups at a fixed SNR. However, this technique is only valid under the assumption that changes in set size have the same effect on percentage-correct performance for different masker types. This assumption was tested by measuring nonsense-syllable identification for normal-hearing listeners as a function of SNR, set size and masker (stationary noise, 4- and 32-Hz modulated noise and an interfering talker). Set-size adjustment had the same impact on performance scores for all maskers, confirming the independence of FMB (at matched SNRs) and set size. These results, along with those of a second experiment evaluating an adaptive set-size algorithm to adjust performance levels, establish set size as an efficient and effective tool to adjust baseline performance when comparing effects of masker fluctuations between listener groups. PMID:23039460

How to set up a departmental comparative effectiveness research unit: one department's experience.

PubMed

McDonald, Jennifer S; Port, John D; Bender, Claire E

2014-03-01

Comparative effectiveness research (CER) is the comparison of clinical interventions in real-world settings. The purpose of this article is to discuss the experiences of a CER unit created within the radiology department of one medical institution to provide an example of how to pursue CER within the field of radiology. Medical institutions would benefit from investing in CER by creating research groups specifically devoted to this evolving field.

Comparison of Oral and Axillary Temperatures in Intubated Pediatric Patients.

PubMed

Wood, Danielle; Heitschmidt, Mary; Fogg, Louis

2018-05-10

Accurate body temperature measurement is essential in providing timely care to critically ill patients. Current practice within the Pediatric ICU (PICU) at a Midwestern academic medical center is to obtain axillary temperatures in endotracheally intubated patients. According to research, axillary temperatures have greater variance than other forms of temperature measurement. Research in adult patients show that oral temperature measurement in endotracheally intubated patients is acceptable as the heated gases from the ventilator has no significant effect on measured temperatures. This study sought to determine if the same is true in pediatrics. Oral and axillary temperatures of endotracheally intubated pediatric patients were obtained during unit prescribed vital assessment intervals. Patients were divided into neonate, infant, and children age groups with 25 sets of temperatures obtained for each group. Descriptive statistics and Bland-Altman plot interpretation were performed to determine confidence intervals for each age group. Bland-Altman plot analysis of oral and axillary routes of temperature measurement showed a high positive correlation within all age groups studied. The infant age group showed lower correlation in comparison to neonates and children. The infant age group also had an outlier of data sets with lower oral temperatures as compared to the axilla. Oral temperature measurement is a viable alternative to axillary temperature measurement in endotracheally intubated pediatric patients. Correction factors for age groups were calculated for prediction of axillary temperature based on measured oral temperature. This study serves as evidence for practice change within the studied unit. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

A rough set approach for determining weights of decision makers in group decision making

PubMed Central

Yang, Qiang; Du, Ping-an; Wang, Yong; Liang, Bin

2017-01-01

This study aims to present a novel approach for determining the weights of decision makers (DMs) based on rough group decision in multiple attribute group decision-making (MAGDM) problems. First, we construct a rough group decision matrix from all DMs’ decision matrixes on the basis of rough set theory. After that, we derive a positive ideal solution (PIS) founded on the average matrix of rough group decision, and negative ideal solutions (NISs) founded on the lower and upper limit matrixes of rough group decision. Then, we obtain the weight of each group member and priority order of alternatives by using relative closeness method, which depends on the distances from each individual group member’ decision to the PIS and NISs. Through comparisons with existing methods and an on-line business manager selection example, the proposed method show that it can provide more insights into the subjectivity and vagueness of DMs’ evaluations and selections. PMID:28234974

Neurobehavioral Integrity of Chimpanzee Newborns: Comparisons across groups and across species reveal gene-environment interaction effects

PubMed Central

Bard, Kim A.; Brent, Linda; Lester, Barry; Worobey, John; Suomi, Stephen J.

2014-01-01

The aims of this article are to describe the neurobehavioral integrity of chimpanzee newborns, to investigate how early experiences affect the neurobehavioral organization of chimpanzees, and to explore species differences by comparing chimpanzee newborns to a group of typically developing human newborns. Neurobehavioral integrity related to orientation, motor performance, arousal, and state regulation of 55 chimpanzee (raised in four different settings) and 42 human newborns was measured with the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS) a semi-structured 25-minute interactive assessment. Thirty-eight chimpanzees were tested every other day from birth, and analyses revealed significant developmental changes in 19 of 27 NBAS scores. The cross-group and cross-species comparisons were conducted at 2 and 30 days of age. Among the 4 chimpanzee groups, significant differences were found in 23 of 24 NBAS scores. Surprisingly, the cross-species comparisons revealed that the human group was distinct in only 1 of 25 NBAS scores (the human group had significantly less muscle tone than all the chimpanzee groups). The human group was indistinguishable from at least one of the chimpanzee groups in the remaining 24 of 25 NBAS scores. The results of this study support the conclusion that the interplay between genes and environment, rather than genes alone or environment alone, accounts for phenotypic expressions of newborn neurobehavioral integrity in hominids. PMID:25110465

[Analysis and characterization of Belamcanda chinensis with space mutagenesis breeding by X-ray fluorescence analysis and X-ray diffraction].

PubMed

Guan, Ying; Ding, Xi-Feng; Wang, Wen-Jing; Guo, Xi-Hua; Zhu, Yan-Ying

2008-02-01

The contents of various elements in the fourth generation Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC. with space mutagenesis breeding were analyzed and characterized. X-ray fluorescence spectrum analysis (XRF) and powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) were applied jointly. It was found that the content of K element in the space flight mutagenesis increases 1.03 and 0.31 times, Mg enhances 1.44 and 0.06 times, but Al reduces 38.5% and 85.5% respectively compared to the contents in the ground group and the comparison group, while those of Ca, Mn and Fe enhance 0.95, 0.30 and 0.29 times respectively contrasted to the ground group. Besides, there was discovered the crystal of whewellite in the Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC. and the content in the ground group is less than that of the outer space and the outer space group, which in turn is less than that of the comparison group. It is concluded that the contents of mineral elements indispensable to body in the space group are closer or superior to the comparison, group as compared to the ground group. In the present paper, a quick and simple appraising method is offered, which may be of great significance to the popularization of the planting outer space Chinese traditional medicine to filtrate more excellent breed and set up norm of quality appraisal.

Matching weights to simultaneously compare three treatment groups: Comparison to three-way matching

PubMed Central

Yoshida, Kazuki; Hernández-Díaz, Sonia; Solomon, Daniel H.; Jackson, John W.; Gagne, Joshua J.; Glynn, Robert J.; Franklin, Jessica M.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND Propensity score matching is a commonly used tool. However, its use in settings with more than two treatment groups has been less frequent. We examined the performance of a recently developed propensity score weighting method in the three treatment group setting. METHODS The matching weight method is an extension of inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) that reweights both exposed and unexposed groups to emulate a propensity score matched population. Matching weights can generalize to multiple treatment groups. The performance of matching weights in the three-group setting was compared via simulation to three-way 1:1:1 propensity score matching and IPTW. We also applied these methods to an empirical example that compared the safety of three analgesics. RESULTS Matching weights had similar bias, but better mean squared error (MSE) compared to three-way matching in all scenarios. The benefits were more pronounced in scenarios with a rare outcome, unequally sized treatment groups, or poor covariate overlap. IPTW’s performance was highly dependent on covariate overlap. In the empirical example, matching weights achieved the best balance for 24 out of 35 covariates. Hazard ratios were numerically similar to matching. However, the confidence intervals were narrower for matching weights. CONCLUSIONS Matching weights demonstrated improved performance over three-way matching in terms of MSE, particularly in simulation scenarios where finding matched subjects was difficult. Given its natural extension to settings with even more than three groups, we recommend matching weights for comparing outcomes across multiple treatment groups, particularly in settings with rare outcomes or unequal exposure distributions. PMID:28151746

Set shifting and working memory in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Rohlf, Helena; Jucksch, Viola; Gawrilow, Caterina; Huss, Michael; Hein, Jakob; Lehmkuhl, Ulrike; Salbach-Andrae, Harriet

2012-01-01

Compared to the high number of studies that investigated executive functions (EF) in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a little is known about the EF performance of adults with ADHD. This study compared 37 adults with ADHD (ADHD(total)) and 32 control participants who were equivalent in age, intelligence quotient (IQ), sex, and years of education, in two domains of EF--set shifting and working memory. Additionally, the ADHD(total) group was subdivided into two subgroups: ADHD patients without comorbidity (ADHD(-), n = 19) and patients with at least one comorbid disorder (ADHD(+), n = 18). Participants fulfilled two measures for set shifting (i.e., the trail making test, TMT and a computerized card sorting test, CKV) and one measure for working memory (i.e., digit span test, DS). Compared to the control group the ADHD(total) group displayed deficits in set shifting and working memory. The differences between the groups were of medium-to-large effect size (TMT: d = 0.48; DS: d = 0.51; CKV: d = 0.74). The subgroup comparison of the ADHD(+) group and the ADHD(-) group revealed a poorer performance in general information processing speed for the ADHD(+) group. With regard to set shifting and working memory, no significant differences could be found between the two subgroups. These results suggest that the deficits of the ADHD(total) group are attributable to ADHD rather than to comorbidity. An influence of comorbidity, however, could not be completely ruled out as there was a trend of a poorer performance in the ADHD(+) group on some of the outcome measures.

A comparison of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of nitroglycerin according to the composition of the administration set: A preliminary study.

PubMed

Kim, Choon Ok; Song, Jeongyun; Min, Ji Young; Park, Su Jung; Lee, Hye Mi; Byon, Hyo-Jin

2018-03-01

There is a risk of drug sorption into an intravenous administration set composed of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyurethane (PU), or polyolefin (PO). This has implications on the dose of the active ingredient the patient receives, and thus therapeutic success. This study aimed to determine the plasma concentration of nitroglycerin and the effect of nitroglycerin on patients based on the composition of the administration set. Using a randomized, open-labeled, 3 × 3 crossover method, 9 volunteers were assigned to 3 groups. In period I, nitroglycerin (100 μg/mL) was infused via a PVC- (group A), PU- (group B), or PO-based (group C) administration set. In period II, PU- (group A), PO- (group B), and PVC-based (group C) administration sets were used, and in period III, PO- (group A), PVC- (group B), and PU-based (group C) administration sets were used. The rate of drug administration in all periods was 12 mL/hour for 30 minutes using an infusion pump. Blood samples were collected, and the plasma concentrations of nitroglycerin were analyzed using validated high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Blood pressure was determined using a sphygmomanometer applied to the other upper arm at an interval of 5 minutes. We observed that the mean plasma concentration of nitroglycerin over time when administered using a PO-based tube was higher than that when using a PU- or PVC-based tube. When the percent change of the mean arterial pressure from baseline at each time point was compared among groups, there were statistically significant differences between PU and PO or PVC at most points during nitroglycerin infusion. Our results showed higher nitroglycerin plasma concentration and lower arterial pressure when a PO-based administration set was used than when a PVC- or PU-based administration set was used. PO-based administration sets may be more appropriate for nitroglycerin administration compared to those composed of PVC or PU.

A comparison of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of nitroglycerin according to the composition of the administration set

PubMed Central

Kim, Choon Ok; Song, Jeongyun; Min, Ji Young; Park, Su Jung; Lee, Hye Mi; Byon, Hyo-Jin

2018-01-01

Abstract Background: There is a risk of drug sorption into an intravenous administration set composed of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyurethane (PU), or polyolefin (PO). This has implications on the dose of the active ingredient the patient receives, and thus therapeutic success. This study aimed to determine the plasma concentration of nitroglycerin and the effect of nitroglycerin on patients based on the composition of the administration set. Methods: Using a randomized, open-labeled, 3 × 3 crossover method, 9 volunteers were assigned to 3 groups. In period I, nitroglycerin (100 μg/mL) was infused via a PVC- (group A), PU- (group B), or PO-based (group C) administration set. In period II, PU- (group A), PO- (group B), and PVC-based (group C) administration sets were used, and in period III, PO- (group A), PVC- (group B), and PU-based (group C) administration sets were used. The rate of drug administration in all periods was 12 mL/hour for 30 minutes using an infusion pump. Blood samples were collected, and the plasma concentrations of nitroglycerin were analyzed using validated high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Blood pressure was determined using a sphygmomanometer applied to the other upper arm at an interval of 5 minutes. Results: We observed that the mean plasma concentration of nitroglycerin over time when administered using a PO-based tube was higher than that when using a PU- or PVC-based tube. When the percent change of the mean arterial pressure from baseline at each time point was compared among groups, there were statistically significant differences between PU and PO or PVC at most points during nitroglycerin infusion. Conclusion: Our results showed higher nitroglycerin plasma concentration and lower arterial pressure when a PO-based administration set was used than when a PVC- or PU-based administration set was used. PO-based administration sets may be more appropriate for nitroglycerin administration compared to those composed of PVC or PU. PMID:29489681

Health-related quality of life of irritable bowel syndrome patients in different cultural settings.

PubMed

Faresjö, Ashild; Anastasiou, Foteini; Lionis, Christos; Johansson, Saga; Wallander, Mari-Ann; Faresjö, Tomas

2006-03-27

Persons with Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are seriously affected in their everyday life. The effect across different cultural settings of IBS on their quality of life has been little studied. The aim was to compare health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of individuals suffering from IBS in two different cultural settings; Crete, Greece and Linköping, Sweden. This study is a sex and age-matched case-control study, with n = 30 Cretan IBS cases and n = 90 Swedish IBS cases and a Swedish control group (n = 300) randomly selected from the general population. Health-related quality of life, measured by SF-36 and demographics, life style indicators and co-morbidity, was measured. Cretan IBS cases reported lower HRQOL on most dimensions of SF-36 in comparison to the Swedish IBS cases. Significant differences were found for the dimensions mental health (p < 0.0001) and general health (p = 0.05) even after adjustments for educational level and co-morbidity. Women from Crete with IBS scored especially low on the dimensions general health (p = 0.009) and mental health (p < 0.0001) in comparison with Swedish women with IBS. The IBS cases, from both sites, reported significantly lower scores on all HRQOL dimensions in comparison with the Swedish control group. The results from this study tentatively support that the claim that similar individuals having the same disease, e.g. IBS, but living in different cultural environments could perceive their disease differently and that the disease might affect their everyday life and quality of life in a different way. The Cretan population, and especially women, are more seriously affected mentally by their disease than Swedish IBS cases. Coping with IBS in everyday life might be more problematic in the Cretan environment than in the Swedish setting.

Comparison of Effectiveness of Manual Orthodontic, Powered and Sonic Toothbrushes on Oral Hygiene of Fixed Orthodontic Patients.

PubMed

Sharma, Ruchi; Trehan, Mridula; Sharma, Sunil; Jharwal, Vikas; Rathore, Nidhi

2015-01-01

Maintenance of good oral hygiene is important for patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a manual orthodontic toothbrush, powered toothbrush with oscillating head and sonic toothbrush in controlling plaque, gingivitis and interdental bleeding in patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment, and to compare their relative efficacy. Sixty subjects, who were to receive orthodontic treatment with both upper and lower fixed appliances, were randomly divided into three study groups, with 20 patients in each group. Groups I to III were given manual orthodontic, powered and sonic toothbrushes, respectively. Plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI) and interdental bleeding index were scored to assess the level of plaque accumulation, gingival health and interdental bleeding at baseline; 4 and 8 weeks recall visits after fixed appliance bonding. Paired t-tests and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were used for intragroup and intergroup comparisons. The level of statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. This study showed that a significant reduction in all the three indices scores was found from baseline to 4 and 8 weeks in group III. On intergroup comparison, no statistically significant differences were detected between the three groups for any of the parameters assessed. On intragroup comparison, sonic brushes performed superiorly in reducing gingivitis, plaque and interdental bleeding as compared to the manual orthodontic and powered brushes. On intergroup comparison, the relative comparative effectiveness was found to be similar for all the three brushes. How to cite this article: Sharma R, Trehan M, Sharma S, Jharwal V, Rathore N. Comparison of Effectiveness of Manual Orthodontic, Powered and Sonic Toothbrushes on Oral Hygiene of Fixed Orthodontic Patients. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2015;8(3):181-189.

Effect of pedometer use and goal setting on walking and functional status in overweight adults with multimorbidity: a crossover clinical trial.

PubMed

Takahashi, Paul Y; Quigg, Stephanie M; Croghan, Ivana T; Schroeder, Darrell R; Ebbert, Jon O

2016-01-01

Walking can improve functional status, and a pedometer and goal setting can increase walking and, potentially, gait speed. The efficacy of pedometer use and goal setting for increasing step counts among overweight and obese adults with multiple comorbid conditions has not been evaluated. We recruited and randomly assigned obese or overweight adults with multimorbidity to immediate pedometer use with goal setting or delayed pedometer use, using a crossover design. The primary outcome of interest was step count, with secondary outcomes of gait speed and grip strength, with comparison between the intervention and delayed pedometer groups. Mean (standard deviation [SD]) age of the 130 participants was 63.4 (15.0) years. At 2 months, mean (SD) steps for the immediate pedometer use group (n=64) was 5,337 (3,096), compared with 4,446 (2,422) steps in the delayed pedometer group (n=66) (P=0.08). Within-group step count increased nonsignificantly, by 179 steps in the immediate pedometer group and 212 steps in the delayed pedometer group after 2 months of intervention, with no significant difference between the groups. Gait speed significantly increased by 0.08 m/s (P<0.05) and grip strength significantly increased by 1.6 kg (P<0.05) in the immediate pedometer group. Pedometer use and goal setting did not significantly increase step count among overweight and obese adults with multimorbidity. The absolute step count was lower than many reported averages. Gait speed and grip strength increased with immediate pedometer use. The use of pedometers and goal setting may have an attenuated response in this population.

[Behaviour therapy and child welfare - results of an approach to improve mental health care of aggressive children].

PubMed

Nitkowski, Dennis; Petermann, Franz; Büttner, Peter; Krause-Leipoldt, Carsten; Petermann, Ulrike

2009-09-01

The Training with Aggressive Children (Petermann & Petermann, 2008) was integrated into the setting of a child welfare service. This study examined, if mental health care of aggressive children in child welfare settings can be improved, compared the effectiveness of a combination of the training and child welfare intervention after six months with effects of the TAK. 25 Children with conduct problems (24 boys, one girl) aged 7;6 to 13;0 years participated in the study. A pretest-follow up comparison of parent ratings on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) documented a large reduction of aggressive-delinquent behaviour and social problems in the training and child welfare group. Furthermore, conduct and peer relationship problems decreased essentially on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). By reducing conduct, attention and social problems, and delinquent behaviour, the therapeutic outcome of the training and child welfare group was clearly superior to training group. In comparison to the training, the combination of child welfare and training seemed to reduce a wider range of behavioural problems more effectively. This indicates that combined intervention programs can optimize mental health care of aggressive children.

Acute alcohol effects on set-shifting and its moderation by baseline individual differences: a latent variable analysis.

PubMed

Korucuoglu, Ozlem; Sher, Kenneth J; Wood, Phillip K; Saults, John Scott; Altamirano, Lee; Miyake, Akira; Bartholow, Bruce D

2017-03-01

To compare the acute effects of alcohol on set-shifting task performance (relative to sober baseline performance) during ascending and descending limb breath alcohol concentration (BrAC), as well as possible moderation of these effects by baseline individual differences. Shifting performance was tested during an initial baseline and a subsequent drinking session, during which participants were assigned randomly to one of three beverage conditions (alcohol, placebo or control) and one of two BrAC limb conditions [ascending and descending (A/D) or descending-only (D-only)]. A human experimental laboratory on the University of Missouri campus in Columbia, MO, USA. A total of 222 moderate-drinking adults (ages 21-30 years) recruited from Columbia, MO and tested between 2010 and 2013. The outcome measure was performance on set-shifting tasks under the different beverage and limb conditions. Shifting performance assessed at baseline was a key moderator. Although performance improved across sessions, this improvement was reduced in the alcohol compared with no-alcohol groups (post-drink latent mean comparison across groups, all Ps ≤ 0.05), and this effect was more pronounced in individuals with lower pre-drink performance (comparison of pre- to post-drink path coefficients across groups, all Ps ≤ 0.05). In the alcohol group, performance was better on descending compared with ascending limb (P ≤ 0.001), but descending limb performance did not differ across the A/D and D-only groups. Practising tasks before drinking moderates the acute effects of alcohol on the ability to switch between tasks. Greater impairment in shifting ability on descending compared with ascending breath alcohol concentration is not related to task practice. © 2016 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Effectiveness of a quality management program in dental care practices.

PubMed

Goetz, Katja; Campbell, Stephen M; Broge, Björn; Brodowski, Marc; Wensing, Michel; Szecsenyi, Joachim

2014-04-28

Structured quality management is an important aspect for improving patient dental care outcomes, but reliable evidence to validate effects is lacking. We aimed to examine the effectiveness of a quality management program in primary dental care settings in Germany. This was an exploratory study with a before-after-design. 45 dental care practices that had completed the European Practice Assessment (EPA) accreditation scheme twice (intervention group) were selected for the study. The mean interval between the before and after assessment was 36 months. The comparison group comprised of 56 dental practices that had undergone their first assessment simultaneously with follow-up assessment in the intervention group. Aggregated scores for five EPA domains: 'infrastructure', 'information', 'finance', 'quality and safety' and 'people' were calculated. In the intervention group, small non-significant improvements were found in the EPA domains. At follow-up, the intervention group had higher scores on EPA domains as compared with the comparison group (range of differences was 4.2 to 10.8 across domains). These differences were all significant in regression analyses, which controlled for relevant dental practice characteristics. Dental care practices that implemented a quality management program had better organizational quality in contrast to a comparison group. This may reflect both improvements in the intervention group and a selection effect of dental practices volunteering for the first round of EPA practice assessment.

Molecular diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis in cerebrospinal fluid: comparison of primer sets for Cryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii species complex.

PubMed

Martins, Marilena dos Anjos; Brighente, Kate Bastos Santos; Matos, Terezinha Aparecida de; Vidal, Jose Ernesto; Hipólito, Daise Damaris Carnietto de; Pereira-Chioccola, Vera Lucia

2015-01-01

This study evaluated the use of polymerase chain reaction for cryptococcal meningitis diagnosis in clinical samples. The sensitivity and specificity of the methodology were evaluated using eight Cryptococcus neoformans/C. gattii species complex reference strains and 165 cerebrospinal fluid samples from patients with neurological diseases divided into two groups: 96 patients with cryptococcal meningitis and AIDS; and 69 patients with other neurological opportunistic diseases (CRL/AIDS). Two primer sets were tested (CN4-CN5 and the multiplex CNa70S-CNa70A/CNb49S-CNb-49A that amplify a specific product for C. neoformans and another for C. gattii). CN4-CN5 primer set was positive in all Cryptococcus standard strains and in 94.8% in DNA samples from cryptococcal meningitis and AIDS group. With the multiplex, no 448-bp product of C. gattii was observed in the clinical samples of either group. The 695bp products of C. neoformans were observed only in 64.6% of the cryptococcal meningitis and AIDS group. This primer set was negative for two standard strains. The specificity based on the negative samples from the CTL/AIDS group was 98.5% in both primer sets. These data suggest that the CN4/CN5 primer set was highly sensitive for the identification of C. neoformans/C. gattii species complex in cerebrospinal fluid samples from patients with clinical suspicion of cryptococcal meningitis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Respiratory outcomes, utilization and costs 12 months following a respiratory syncytial virus diagnosis among commercially insured late-preterm infants.

PubMed

Palmer, Liisa; Hall, Caroline B; Katkin, Julie P; Shi, Nianwen; Masaquel, Anthony S; McLaurin, Kimmie K; Mahadevia, Parthiv J

2011-02-01

To determine, among a commercially-insured population of late-preterm infants, utilization of healthcare resources and costs during the 1 year following a diagnosis of respiratory syncytial virus lower respiratory infection (RSV LRI). Administrative claims for non-capitated, commercially-insured infants <1 year old were used to identify infants diagnosed with RSV LRI and unspecified bronchiolitis/pneumonia (UBP). Infants were stratified by the setting of diagnosis. Infants without evidence of RSV LRI or UBP were selected as a comparison group. Economic and clinical outcomes were analyzed descriptively using propensity score weighting and logged ordinary least squares models were used to examine the relationship between RSV and costs (adjusted to 2006 USD) incurred within 1 year of RSV LRI. The majority of infants were 3 months or older at the time of RSV LRI or UBP diagnosis. The rate of wheezing was significantly greater for infants in the RSV LRI and UBP cohorts relative to the comparison group (p < 0.001). Infantile asthma rates were 6-9 times higher among RSV LRI and UBP infants than the comparison group. RSV LRI and UBP infants also had significantly more emergency department visits and outpatient visits than the comparison group. The marginal healthcare costs were significantly higher for RSV LRI inpatients ($24,027) and outpatients ($2703) infants than for the comparison group (all p < 0.001). Commercially insured late-preterm infants with RSV infection are at high risk for recurrent wheezing and infantile asthma during the 1-year period after the initial episode and impose a significant economic burden to the healthcare system.

Reflections on experimental research in medical education.

PubMed

Cook, David A; Beckman, Thomas J

2010-08-01

As medical education research advances, it is important that education researchers employ rigorous methods for conducting and reporting their investigations. In this article we discuss several important yet oft neglected issues in designing experimental research in education. First, randomization controls for only a subset of possible confounders. Second, the posttest-only design is inherently stronger than the pretest-posttest design, provided the study is randomized and the sample is sufficiently large. Third, demonstrating the superiority of an educational intervention in comparison to no intervention does little to advance the art and science of education. Fourth, comparisons involving multifactorial interventions are hopelessly confounded, have limited application to new settings, and do little to advance our understanding of education. Fifth, single-group pretest-posttest studies are susceptible to numerous validity threats. Finally, educational interventions (including the comparison group) must be described in detail sufficient to allow replication.

A Comparison of Approaches for Setting Proficiency Standards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koffler, Stephen L.

This research compared the cut-off scores estimated from an empirical procedure (Contrasting group method) to those determined from a more theoretical process (Nedelsky method). A methodological and statistical framework was also provided for analysis of the data to obtain the most appropriate standard using the empirical procedure. Data were…

Collaborative Strategic Reading for Students with Learning Disabilities in Upper Elementary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boardman, Alison G.; Vaughn, Sharon; Buckley, Pamela; Reutebuch, Colleen; Roberts, Greg; Klingner, Janette

2016-01-01

Sixty fourth- and fifth-grade general education teachers were randomly assigned to teach Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR; Klingner, Vaughn, Boardman, & Swanson, 2012), a set of reading comprehension strategies, or to a business-as-usual comparison group. Results demonstrate that students with learning disabilities (LD) who received CSR…

Selection of comparison crash types for quasi-induced exposure risk estimation.

PubMed

Keall, Michael; Newstead, Stuart

2009-03-01

The objective of this study was to find a comparison crash type that best represented exposure on the road and to identify situations where the induced exposure risk estimates were likely to be biased. Counts of crash involvements were compared with distance driven estimates derived from a register of licensed motor vehicles to identify the most appropriate comparison crash type for induced exposure estimation, which is the crash type whose counts are best correlated with vehicle distance driven. The best sets of comparison crashes for disaggregations by driver age and gender and vehicle type were found to be multi-vehicle crashes in which the vehicle was damaged in the rear or multi-vehicle crashes in which the driver was adjudged to be not at fault. Likely bias of induced exposure risk estimates was identified, even for these best sets of comparison crashes, according to vehicle size (with large vehicles underrepresented) and owner age and gender (with young owners and female owners overrepresented). This research identified some important features of crash occurrence useful for making choices of comparison crash types when controlling for exposure. None of the crash types considered as comparison crashes performed perfectly. Even the crash types that seemed to best reflect exposure on the road still appeared to over- or underestimate distance driven according to owner age group, gender, and vehicle size.

A Head-to-Head Comparison of UK SF-6D and Thai and UK EQ-5D-5L Value Sets in Thai Patients with Chronic Diseases.

PubMed

Sakthong, Phantipa; Munpan, Wipaporn

2017-10-01

Little was known about the head-to-head comparison of psychometric properties between SF-6D and EQ-5D-5L or the different value sets of EQ-5D-5L. Therefore, this study set out to compare the psychometric properties including agreement, convergent, and known-group validity between the SF-6D and the EQ-5D-5L using the real value sets from Thailand and the UK in patients with chronic diseases. 356 adults taking a medication for at least 3 months were identified from a university hospital in Bangkok, Thailand, between July 2014 and March 2015. Agreement was assessed by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland-Altman plots. Convergent validity was evaluated using Spearman's rank correlation coefficients between SF-6D and EQ-5D-5L and EQ-VAS and SF-12v2. For known-groups validity, the Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis test were used to examine the associations between SF-6D and EQ-5D-5L and patient characteristics. Agreements between the SF-6D and the EQ-5D-5L using Thai and UK value sets were fair, with ICCs of 0.45 and 0.49, respectively. Bland-Altman plots showed that the majority of the SF-6D index scores were lower than the EQ-5D-5L index scores. Both the EQ-5D-5L value sets were more related to the EQ-VAS and physical health, while the SF-6D was more associated with mental health. Both EQ-5D-5L value sets were more sensitive than the SF-6D in discriminating patients with different levels of more known groups except for adverse drug reactions. The SF-6D and both EQ-5D-5L value sets appeared to be valid but sensitive to different outcomes in Thai patients with chronic diseases.

The application of Skylab altimetry to marine geoid determination

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mourad, A. G.; Gopalapillai, S.; Kuhner, M.; Fubara, D. M. (Principal Investigator)

1975-01-01

The author had identified the following significant results. The major results can be divided broadly into two groups. One group is concerned with the effects of errors inherent in the various input data, such as the orbit emphemeris, a priori geoid etc. The other consists of the results of the actual analysis of the data from the Skylab EREP passes 4, 6, 7, and 9. Results from the first group were obtained from the analysis of some preliminary data from EREP pass 9 mode 5. The second group of results consists of a set of recovered bias terms for each of the submodes of observations and a set of nine altimetry geoid profiles corresponding to the various passes and modes. Along with each of these profiles, the a priori geoid, gravity anomaly, and the bathymetric data profiles are also presented for easy comparison.

Identifying important life stages for monitoring and assessing risks from exposures to environmental contaminants: results of a World Health Organization review.

PubMed

Cohen Hubal, Elaine A; de Wet, Thea; Du Toit, Lilo; Firestone, Michael P; Ruchirawat, Mathuros; van Engelen, Jacqueline; Vickers, Carolyn

2014-06-01

In this paper, we summarize exposure-related issues to consider in determining the most appropriate age ranges and life stages for risk assessment. We then propose a harmonized set of age bins for monitoring and assessing risks from exposures to chemicals for global use. The focus is on preconception through adolescence, though the approach should be applicable to additional life stages. A two-tiered set of early life age groups is recommended. The first tier involves the adoption of guidance similar to the childhood age groups recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, whereas the second tier consolidates some of those age groups to reduce the burden of developing age-specific exposure factors for different regions. While there is no single "correct" means of choosing a common set of age groups to use internationally in assessing early life exposure and risk, use of a set of defined age groups is recommended to facilitate comparisons of potential exposures and risks around the globe, the collection of data and analyses of aggregate exposure and cumulative risk. Application of these age groups for robust assessment of exposure and risk for specific populations will require region-specific exposure factors as well as local environmental monitoring data. Copyright © 2013 World Health Organization. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The international generalisability of evidence for health policy: A cross country comparison of medication adherence following policy change.

PubMed

Sinnott, Sarah-Jo; Whelton, Helen; Franklin, Jessica Myers; Polinski, Jennifer Milan

2017-01-01

Copayments for prescriptions may increase morbidity and mortality via reductions in adherence to medications. Relevant data can inform policy to minimise such unintended effects. We explored the generalisability of evidence for copayments by comparing two international copayment polices, one in Massachusetts and one in Ireland, to assess whether effects on medication adherence were comparable. We used national prescription data for public health insurance programmes in Ireland and Medicaid data in the U.S. New users of oral anti-hypertensive, anti-hyperlipidaemic and diabetic drugs were included (total n=14,259 in U.S. and n=43,843 in Ireland). We examined changes in adherence in intervention and comparator groups in each setting using segmented linear regression with generalised estimating equations. In Massachusetts, a gradual decrease in adherence to anti-hypertensive medications of -1% per month following the policy occurred. In contrast, the response in Ireland was confined to a -2.9% decrease in adherence immediately following the policy, with no further decrease over the 8 month follow-up. Reductions in adherence to oral diabetes drugs were larger in the U.S. group in comparison to the Irish group. No difference in adherence changes between the two settings for anti-hyperlipidaemic drugs occurred. Evidence on cost-sharing for prescription medicines is not 'one size fits all'. Time since policy implementation and structural differences between health systems may influence the differential impact of copayment policies in international settings. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Report of the first Nimbus-7 SMMR Experiment Team Workshop

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, W. J.; Gloersen, P.

1983-01-01

Preliminary results of sea ice and techniques for calculating sea ice concentration and multiyear fraction from the microwave radiances obtained from the Nimbus-7 SMMR were presented. From these results, it is evident that these groups used different and independent approaches in deriving sea ice emissivities and algorithms. This precluded precise comparisons of their results. A common set of sea ice emissivities were defined for all groups to use for subsequent more careful comparison of the results from the various sea ice parameter algorithms. To this end, three different geographical areas in two different time intervals were defined as typifying SMMR beam-filling conditions for first year sea ice, multiyear sea ice, and open water and to be used for determining the required microwave emissivities.

U.S. Maternally Linked Birth Records May Be Biased for Hispanics and Other Population Groups

PubMed Central

LEISS, JACK K.; GILES, DENISE; SULLIVAN, KRISTIN M.; MATHEWS, RAHEL; SENTELLE, GLENDA; TOMASHEK, KAY M.

2010-01-01

Purpose To advance understanding of linkage error in U.S. maternally linked datasets, and how the error may affect results of studies based on the linked data. Methods North Carolina birth and fetal death records for 1988-1997 were maternally linked (n=1,030,029). The maternal set probability, defined as the probability that all records assigned to the same maternal set do in fact represent events to the same woman, was used to assess differential maternal linkage error across race/ethnic groups. Results Maternal set probabilities were lower for records specifying Asian or Hispanic race/ethnicity, suggesting greater maternal linkage error. The lower probabilities for Hispanics were concentrated in women of Mexican origin who were not born in the United States. Conclusions Differential maternal linkage error may be a source of bias in studies using U.S. maternally linked datasets to make comparisons between Hispanics and other groups or among Hispanic subgroups. Methods to quantify and adjust for this potential bias are needed. PMID:20006273

The effects and interactions of student, teacher, and setting variables on reading outcomes for kindergartners receiving supplemental reading intervention.

PubMed

Hagan-Burke, Shanna; Coyne, Michael D; Kwok, Oi-Man; Simmons, Deborah C; Kim, Minjung; Simmons, Leslie E; Skidmore, Susan T; Hernandez, Caitlin L; McSparran Ruby, Maureen

2013-01-01

This exploratory study examined the influences of student, teacher, and setting characteristics on kindergarteners' early reading outcomes and investigated whether those relations were moderated by type of intervention. Participants included 206 kindergarteners identified as at risk for reading difficulties and randomly assigned to one of two supplemental interventions: (a) an experimental explicit, systematic, code-based program or (b) their schools' typical kindergarten reading intervention. Results from separate multilevel structural equation models indicated that among student variables, entry-level alphabet knowledge was positively associated with phonemic and decoding outcomes in both conditions. Entry-level rapid automatized naming also positively influenced decoding outcomes in both conditions. However, its effect on phonemic outcomes was statistically significant only among children in the typical practice comparison condition. Regarding teacher variables, the quality of instruction was associated with significantly higher decoding outcomes in the typical reading intervention condition but had no statistically significant influence on phonemic outcomes in either condition. Among setting variables, instruction in smaller group sizes was associated with better phonemic outcomes in the comparison condition but had no statistically significant influence on outcomes of children in the intervention group. Mode of delivery (i.e., pullout vs. in class) had no statistically significant influence on either outcome variable.

Preparing for Life after High School: The Characteristics and Experiences of Youth in Special Education. Findings from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012. Volume 2: Comparisons across Disability Groups. Full Report. NCEE 2017-4018

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lipscomb, Stephen; Hamison, Joshua; Liu Albert Y.; Burghardt, John; Johnson, David R.; Thurlow, Martha

2017-01-01

It is widely recognized that the 12 percent of all youth in American public schools who have disabilities comprise a set of students with distinct capacities and needs. Federal legislation, including the most recent updates to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004, identifies different disability groups and mandates that…

Preparing for Life after High School: The Characteristics and Experiences of Youth in Special Education. Findings from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012. Volume 2: Comparisons across Disability Groups. Executive Summary. NCEE 2017-4019

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lipscomb, Stephen; Haimson, Joshua; Liu, Albert Y.; Burghardt, John; Johnson, David R.; Thurlow, Martha

2017-01-01

It is widely recognized that the 12 percent of all youth in American public schools who have disabilities comprise a set of students with distinct capacities and needs. Federal legislation, including the most recent updates to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004, identifies different disability groups and mandates that…

Equating Multidimensional Tests under a Random Groups Design: A Comparison of Various Equating Procedures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Eunjung

2013-01-01

The purpose of this research was to compare the equating performance of various equating procedures for the multidimensional tests. To examine the various equating procedures, simulated data sets were used that were generated based on a multidimensional item response theory (MIRT) framework. Various equating procedures were examined, including…

Efficacy of Using Career and Self-Construction to Help Learners Manage Career-Related Transitions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cook, A.; Maree, J. G.

2016-01-01

This article explores the extent to which an intervention programme helped learners from two contrasting educational settings manage career-related transitions. Forty-two learners from two schools were selected, using convenience and purposive sampling, to take part in an intervention programme. Two comparison groups comprised of 45 learners from…

Undergraduate Summer Research Programs and Graduate School Outcomes: Don't Ignore Rejected Program Applicants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sibulkin, Amy E.; Butler, J. S.

2015-01-01

We tracked a sample of primarily Black psychology baccalaureates' advanced degree enrollments and completions and estimated the association of those outcomes with summer research experience by merging three data sets: (a) summer research program participants, (b) a comparison group of alumni, mostly without summer research, and (c) degree…

Global Learning Communities: A Comparison of Online Domestic and International Science Class Partnerships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kerlin, Steven C.; Carlsen, William S.; Kelly, Gregory J.; Goehring, Elizabeth

2013-01-01

The conception of Global Learning Communities (GLCs) was researched to discover potential benefits of the use of online technologies that facilitated communication and scientific data sharing outside of the normal classroom setting. 1,419 students in 635 student groups began the instructional unit. Students represented the classrooms of 33…

Specifics of Course Management System Benefits for New University Faculty

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Porter, Gavin

2011-01-01

A comparison of courses that do or do not utilize a Course Management System (CMS) was undertaken from the standpoint of a new faculty member. Seven distinct advantages were found with CMS implementation including initial tutorial group set-ups, email communication, sharing of student generated products, sharing of instructor-generated products,…

Assistive Technology Competencies of Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments: A Comparison of Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhou, Li; Smith, Derrick W.; Parker, Amy T.; Griffin-Shirley, Nora

2011-01-01

This study surveyed teachers of students with visual impairments in Texas on their perceptions of a set of assistive technology competencies developed for teachers of students with visual impairments by Smith and colleagues (2009). Differences in opinion between practicing teachers of students with visual impairments and Smith's group of…

Using Small-Scale Randomized Controlled Trials to Evaluate the Efficacy of New Curricular Materials

PubMed Central

Bass, Kristin M.; Stark, Louisa A.

2014-01-01

How can researchers in K–12 contexts stay true to the principles of rigorous evaluation designs within the constraints of classroom settings and limited funding? This paper explores this question by presenting a small-scale randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to test the efficacy of curricular supplemental materials on epigenetics. The researchers asked whether the curricular materials improved students’ understanding of the content more than an alternative set of activities. The field test was conducted in a diverse public high school setting with 145 students who were randomly assigned to a treatment or comparison condition. Findings indicate that students in the treatment condition scored significantly higher on the posttest than did students in the comparison group (effect size: Cohen's d = 0.40). The paper discusses the strengths and limitations of the RCT, the contextual factors that influenced its enactment, and recommendations for others wishing to conduct small-scale rigorous evaluations in educational settings. Our intention is for this paper to serve as a case study for university science faculty members who wish to employ scientifically rigorous evaluations in K–12 settings while limiting the scope and budget of their work. PMID:25452482

Communicating Patient Status: Comparison of Teaching Strategies in Prelicensure Nursing Education.

PubMed

Lanz, Amelia S; Wood, Felecia G

Research indicates that nurses lack adequate preparation for reporting patient status. This study compared 2 instructional methods focused on patient status reporting in the clinical setting using a randomized posttest-only comparison group design. Reporting performance using a standardized communication framework and student perceptions of satisfaction and confidence with learning were measured in a simulated event that followed the instruction. Between the instructional methods, there was no statistical difference in student reporting performance or perceptions of learning. Performance evaluations provided helpful insights for the nurse educator.

[Flicker comparison of optic disc photographs: sensitivity and specificity].

PubMed

Funk, Jens; Lagrèze, Wolf; Zeyen, Thierry

2002-12-01

Examination and documentation of the optic nerve head are essential in monitoring glaucoma patients. Even minor changes in optic nerve head morphology can be visualised using the so-called flicker test: Two optic nerve head photographs, taken at consecutive examinations, are superimposed by projection. When occluding the pictures in a rapid alternating fashion, changes in optic nerve head morphology appear as motion. In this study, we evaluated sensitivity and specificity of the flicker test. A set of 33 pairs of serial optic disc slides was used as gold standard. These 33 pairs had been classified earlier by 3 independent groups of experts. 23 had been classified as "no change over time", 10 had been classified as "change". All 33 pairs were now evaluated by flicker comparison in a masked fashion. Flicker comparison usually took 1 minute per pair of slides. Sensitivity was 90 %, specificity was 65 %. The sensitivity was reasonably high. The moderate specificity was due to some cases showing "change" with the flicker comparison which might have been overlooked by the expert groups. Flicker comparison is an easy, fast and reliable technique to evaluate pairs of consecutive optic disc photographs.

Ethical sensitivity intervention in science teacher education: Using computer simulations and professional codes of ethics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holmes, Shawn Yvette

A simulation was created to emulate two Racial Ethical Sensitivity Test (REST) videos (Brabeck et al., 2000). The REST is a reliable assessment for ethical sensitivity to racial and gender intolerant behaviors in educational settings. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of the REST was performed using the Quick-REST survey and an interview protocol. The purpose of this study was to affect science educator ability to recognize instances of racial and gender intolerant behaviors by levering immersive qualities of simulations. The fictitious Hazelton High School virtual environment was created by the researcher and compared with the traditional REST. The study investigated whether computer simulations can influence the ethical sensitivity of preservice and inservice science teachers to racial and gender intolerant behaviors in school settings. The post-test only research design involved 32 third-year science education students enrolled in science education classes at several southeastern universities and 31 science teachers from the same locale, some of which were part of an NSF project. Participant samples were assigned to the video control group or the simulation experimental group. This resulted in four comparison group; preservice video, preservice simulation, inservice video and inservice simulation. Participants experienced two REST scenarios in the appropriate format then responded to Quick-REST survey questions for both scenarios. Additionally, the simulation groups answered in-simulation and post-simulation questions. Nonparametric analysis of the Quick-REST ascertained differences between comparison groups. Cronbach's alpha was calculated for internal consistency. The REST interview protocol was used to analyze recognition of intolerant behaviors in the in-simulation prompts. Post-simulation prompts were analyzed for emergent themes concerning effect of the simulation on responses. The preservice video group had a significantly higher mean rank score than other comparison groups. There were no significant differences across the remaining groups. Qualitative analyses of in-simulation prompts suggest both preservice and inservice participants are unlikely to take action in an intolerant environment. Themes emerged in the post-simulation responses indicated participants viewed the simulation as a reflective, interactive, personal, and organic environment.

Urinary incontinence in working women: a comparison study.

PubMed

Palmer, Mary H; Fitzgerald, Sheila

2002-12-01

To compare the findings of two surveys concerning the nature of urinary incontinence and management strategies used by full-time employed working women. The first study was conducted in an urban academic setting with a survey distributed to 2000 women. The second study was conducted with 500 women in a rural pottery manufacturing facility. Twenty-one percent of the women working in an academic setting (group A) and 29% (p = 0.002) of the women working in a manufacturing setting (group B) reported being incontinent of urine at least monthly. More women in group B reported antecedents mixed incontinence (i.e., antecedent to both stress and urge incontinence). More women in group B also used panty liners to manage urine loss (p = 0.003), whereas more women in group A used voiding schedules (p = 0.008) and pelvic muscle exercises (p = 0.04). More women in group A reported that they did not know if their incontinence could improve (40% vs. 1%, p = 0.00). The majority in both groups said that getting treatment was of no or little importance, yet, overwhelmingly, most women (group A 81%; group B 86%) wanted more information about incontinence. Incontinence is a prevalent condition in working women. Discrepancies exist in the nature of the urine loss and strategies used to manage incontinence. Treatment also differs for those women who report urine loss to healthcare providers. Most women want to learn more about incontinence. Secondary prevention strategies need to be tailored and tested to meet symptoms and concerns for women in different work settings.

A Comparison of Machine Learning Approaches for Corn Yield Estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, N.; Lee, Y. W.

2017-12-01

Machine learning is an efficient empirical method for classification and prediction, and it is another approach to crop yield estimation. The objective of this study is to estimate corn yield in the Midwestern United States by employing the machine learning approaches such as the support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF), and deep neural networks (DNN), and to perform the comprehensive comparison for their results. We constructed the database using satellite images from MODIS, the climate data of PRISM climate group, and GLDAS soil moisture data. In addition, to examine the seasonal sensitivities of corn yields, two period groups were set up: May to September (MJJAS) and July and August (JA). In overall, the DNN showed the highest accuracies in term of the correlation coefficient for the two period groups. The differences between our predictions and USDA yield statistics were about 10-11 %.

The psychosocial effects of a companion robot: a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Robinson, Hayley; Macdonald, Bruce; Kerse, Ngaire; Broadbent, Elizabeth

2013-09-01

To investigate the psychosocial effects of the companion robot, Paro, in a rest home/hospital setting in comparison to a control group. Randomized controlled trial. Residents were randomized to the robot intervention group or a control group that attended normal activities instead of Paro sessions. Sessions took place twice a week for an hour over 12 weeks. Over the trial period, observations were conducted of residents' social behavior when interacting as a group with the robot. As a comparison, observations were also conducted of all the residents during general activities when the resident dog was or was not present. A residential care facility in Auckland, New Zealand. Forty residents in hospital and rest home care. Residents completed a baseline measure assessing cognitive status, loneliness, depression, and quality of life. At follow-up, residents completed a questionnaire assessing loneliness, depression, and quality of life. During observations, behavior was noted and collated for instances of talking and stroking the dog/robot. In comparison with the control group, residents who interacted with the robot had significant decreases in loneliness over the period of the trial. Both the resident dog and the seal robot made an impact on the social environment in comparison to when neither was present. Residents talked to and touched the robot significantly more than the resident dog. A greater number of residents were involved in discussion about the robot in comparison with the resident dog and conversation about the robot occurred more. Paro is a positive addition to this environment and has benefits for older people in nursing home care. Paro may be able to address some of the unmet needs of older people that a resident animal may not, particularly relating to loneliness. Copyright © 2013 American Medical Directors Association, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Program effectiveness of a Restorative Whole-school Approach for tackling school bullying in Hong Kong.

PubMed

Wong, Dennis S W; Cheng, Christopher H K; Ngan, Raymond M H; Ma, Stephen K

2011-09-01

With bullying in schools high on policy makers' agendas, researchers are looking for effective strategies to tackle its disruptive effects. The present study sets out to address this issue. First, the prevalence of bullying is examined in Hong Kong High Schools, and second, the effectiveness of a Restorative Whole-school Approach (RWsA) in reducing bullying is examined in a quasi-experimental design. The RWsA emphasizes the setting up of restorative goals, clear instructions, team building, and good relationships among students, parents, and teachers. Over the course of 2 years, and across four schools, the effectiveness of this program was observed by comparing an intervention group with a partial intervention group (which did not receive the full treatment) and a control group (which received no treatment whatsoever). The group that received the RWsA treatment exhibited a significant reduction of bullying, higher empathic attitudes, and higher self-esteem in comparison to the partial intervention and the control group.

iStart smart: a primary-care based and community partnered childhood obesity management program for Chinese-American children: feasibility study.

PubMed

Chen, Jyu-Lin; Kwan, Monica; Mac, Allison; Chin, Nai-Ching; Liu, Katrina

2013-12-01

Children who are ethnic minorities, low income and live in urban neighborhoods are at higher risk for obesity. This study examined the feasibility and efficacy of a primary care-based and community partnered obesity intervention in Chinese American children. An experimental design with a historical comparison group was used to explore the feasibility of an obesity intervention for overweight Chinese American children, ages 7-12. Data were collected on weight, height, blood pressure, waist circumference, physical activity, food intake, knowledge, and self-efficacy about diet and physical activity at baseline, 2 months, and 6 months post-baseline. Significant improvements in BMI, blood pressure, and nutrition knowledge and self-efficacy were found in the intervention group. Intervention group reduced their BMI compared to the comparison group (F = 8.65, p = .004). An obesity intervention in primary care setting is feasible and demonstrates a short-term effect on weight loss in Chinese American children.

Reducing road traffic injuries: effectiveness of speed cameras in an urban setting.

PubMed

Pérez, Katherine; Marí-Dell'Olmo, Marc; Tobias, Aurelio; Borrell, Carme

2007-09-01

We assessed the effectiveness of speed cameras on Barcelona's beltway in reducing the numbers of road collisions and injuries and the number of vehicles involved in collisions. We designed a time-series study with a comparison group to assess the effects of the speed cameras. The "intervention group" was the beltway, and the comparison group consisted of arterial roads on which no fixed speed cameras had been installed. The outcome measures were number of road collisions, number of people injured, and number of vehicles involved in collisions. We fit the data to Poisson regression models that were adjusted according to trends and seasonality. The relative risk (RR) of a road collision occurring on the beltway after (vs before) installation of speed cameras was 0.73 (95% confidence interval [CI]=0.63, 0.85). This protective effect was greater during weekend periods. No differences were observed for arterial roads (RR=0.99; 95% CI=0.90, 1.10). Attributable fraction estimates for the 2 years of the study intervention showed 364 collisions prevented, 507 fewer people injured, and 789 fewer vehicles involved in collisions. Speed cameras installed in an urban setting are effective in reducing the numbers of road collisions and, consequently, the numbers of injured people and vehicles involved in collisions.

Power calculation for overall hypothesis testing with high-dimensional commensurate outcomes.

PubMed

Chi, Yueh-Yun; Gribbin, Matthew J; Johnson, Jacqueline L; Muller, Keith E

2014-02-28

The complexity of system biology means that any metabolic, genetic, or proteomic pathway typically includes so many components (e.g., molecules) that statistical methods specialized for overall testing of high-dimensional and commensurate outcomes are required. While many overall tests have been proposed, very few have power and sample size methods. We develop accurate power and sample size methods and software to facilitate study planning for high-dimensional pathway analysis. With an account of any complex correlation structure between high-dimensional outcomes, the new methods allow power calculation even when the sample size is less than the number of variables. We derive the exact (finite-sample) and approximate non-null distributions of the 'univariate' approach to repeated measures test statistic, as well as power-equivalent scenarios useful to generalize our numerical evaluations. Extensive simulations of group comparisons support the accuracy of the approximations even when the ratio of number of variables to sample size is large. We derive a minimum set of constants and parameters sufficient and practical for power calculation. Using the new methods and specifying the minimum set to determine power for a study of metabolic consequences of vitamin B6 deficiency helps illustrate the practical value of the new results. Free software implementing the power and sample size methods applies to a wide range of designs, including one group pre-intervention and post-intervention comparisons, multiple parallel group comparisons with one-way or factorial designs, and the adjustment and evaluation of covariate effects. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Comparing Two Processing Pipelines to Measure Subcortical and Cortical Volumes in Patients with and without Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.

PubMed

Reid, Matthew W; Hannemann, Nathan P; York, Gerald E; Ritter, John L; Kini, Jonathan A; Lewis, Jeffrey D; Sherman, Paul M; Velez, Carmen S; Drennon, Ann Marie; Bolzenius, Jacob D; Tate, David F

2017-07-01

To compare volumetric results from NeuroQuant® and FreeSurfer in a service member setting. Since the advent of medical imaging, quantification of brain anatomy has been a major research and clinical effort. Rapid advancement of methods to automate quantification and to deploy this information into clinical practice has surfaced in recent years. NeuroQuant® is one such tool that has recently been used in clinical settings. Accurate volumetric data are useful in many clinical indications; therefore, it is important to assess the intermethod reliability and concurrent validity of similar volume quantifying tools. Volumetric data from 148 U.S. service members across three different experimental groups participating in a study of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) were examined. Groups included mTBI (n = 71), posttraumatic stress disorder (n = 22), or a noncranial orthopedic injury (n = 55). Correlation coefficients and nonparametric group mean comparisons were used to assess reliability and concurrent validity, respectively. Comparison of these methods across our entire sample demonstrates generally fair to excellent reliability as evidenced by large intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC = .4 to .99), but little concurrent validity as evidenced by significantly different Mann-Whitney U comparisons for 26 of 30 brain structures measured. While reliability between the two segmenting tools is fair to excellent, volumetric outcomes are statistically different between the two methods. As suggested by both developers, structure segmentation should be visually verified prior to clinical use and rigor should be used when interpreting results generated by either method. Copyright © 2017 by the American Society of Neuroimaging.

When the Single Matters more than the Group (II): Addressing the Problem of High False Positive Rates in Single Case Voxel Based Morphometry Using Non-parametric Statistics.

PubMed

Scarpazza, Cristina; Nichols, Thomas E; Seramondi, Donato; Maumet, Camille; Sartori, Giuseppe; Mechelli, Andrea

2016-01-01

In recent years, an increasing number of studies have used Voxel Based Morphometry (VBM) to compare a single patient with a psychiatric or neurological condition of interest against a group of healthy controls. However, the validity of this approach critically relies on the assumption that the single patient is drawn from a hypothetical population with a normal distribution and variance equal to that of the control group. In a previous investigation, we demonstrated that family-wise false positive error rate (i.e., the proportion of statistical comparisons yielding at least one false positive) in single case VBM are much higher than expected (Scarpazza et al., 2013). Here, we examine whether the use of non-parametric statistics, which does not rely on the assumptions of normal distribution and equal variance, would enable the investigation of single subjects with good control of false positive risk. We empirically estimated false positive rates (FPRs) in single case non-parametric VBM, by performing 400 statistical comparisons between a single disease-free individual and a group of 100 disease-free controls. The impact of smoothing (4, 8, and 12 mm) and type of pre-processing (Modulated, Unmodulated) was also examined, as these factors have been found to influence FPRs in previous investigations using parametric statistics. The 400 statistical comparisons were repeated using two independent, freely available data sets in order to maximize the generalizability of the results. We found that the family-wise error rate was 5% for increases and 3.6% for decreases in one data set; and 5.6% for increases and 6.3% for decreases in the other data set (5% nominal). Further, these results were not dependent on the level of smoothing and modulation. Therefore, the present study provides empirical evidence that single case VBM studies with non-parametric statistics are not susceptible to high false positive rates. The critical implication of this finding is that VBM can be used to characterize neuroanatomical alterations in individual subjects as long as non-parametric statistics are employed.

Civil and forensic patients in secure psychiatric settings: a comparison.

PubMed

Galappathie, Nuwan; Khan, Sobia Tamim; Hussain, Amina

2017-06-01

Aims and method To evaluate differences between male patients in secure psychiatric settings in the UK based on whether they are detained under civil or forensic sections of the Mental Health Act 1983. A cohort of patients discharged from a secure psychiatric hospital were evaluated for length of stay and frequency of risk-related incidents. Results Overall, 84 patients were included in the study: 52 in the forensic group and 32 in the civil group. Civil patients had more frequent incidents of aggression, sex offending, fire-setting and vulnerability, whereas forensic patients had more frequent episodes of self-harm. Clinical implications Secure hospitals should ensure treatment programmes are tailored to each patient's needs. Civil patients require greater emphasis on treatment of their mental illness, whereas forensic patients have additional offence-related treatment needs. Regular liaison between forensic and general adult services is essential to help ensure patients can return to appropriate settings at the earliest opportunity in their recovery.

Combining evidence and values in priority setting: testing the balance sheet method in a low-income country.

PubMed

Makundi, Emmanuel; Kapiriri, Lydia; Norheim, Ole Frithjof

2007-09-24

Procedures for priority setting need to incorporate both scientific evidence and public values. The aim of this study was to test out a model for priority setting which incorporates both scientific evidence and public values, and to explore use of evidence by a selection of stakeholders and to study reasons for the relative ranking of health care interventions in a setting of extreme resource scarcity. Systematic search for and assessment of relevant evidence for priority setting in a low-income country. Development of a balance sheet according to Eddy's explicit method. Eight group interviews (n-85), using a modified nominal group technique for eliciting individual and group rankings of a given set of health interventions. The study procedure made it possible to compare the groups' ranking before and after all the evidence was provided to participants. A rank deviation is significant if the rank order of the same intervention differed by two or more points on the ordinal scale. A comparison between the initial rank and the final rank (before deliberation) showed a rank deviation of 67%. The difference between the initial rank and the final rank after discussion and voting gave a rank deviation of 78%. Evidence-based and deliberative decision-making does change priorities significantly in an experimental setting. Our use of the balance sheet method was meant as a demonstration project, but could if properly developed be feasible for health planners, experts and health workers, although more work is needed before it can be used for laypersons.

An unusual methylene aziridine refined in P2(1)/c and the nonstandard setting P2(1)/n.

PubMed

Feast, George C; Haestier, James; Page, Lee W; Robertson, Jeremy; Thompson, Amber L; Watkin, David J

2009-12-01

The unusual methylene aziridine 6-tert-butyl-3-oxa-2-thia-1-azabicyclo[5.1.0]oct-6-ene 2,2-dioxide, C(9)H(15)NO(3)S, was found to crystallize with two molecules in the asymmetric unit. The structure was solved in both the approximately orthogonal and the oblique settings of space group No. 14, viz. P2(1)/n and P2(1)/c, respectively. A comparison of these results clearly displayed an increase in the correlation between coordinates in the ac plane for the oblique cell. The increase in the corresponding covariances makes a significant contribution to the standard uncertainties of derived parameters, e.g. bond lengths. Since there is yet no CIF definition for the full variance-covariance matrix, there are clear advantages to reporting the structure in the nonstandard space-group setting.

The language of change? Characterizations of in-group social position, threat, and the deployment of distinctive group attributes.

PubMed

Livingstone, Andrew G; Spears, Russell; Manstead, Antony S R

2009-06-01

A considerable body of research has shown that group members establish and emphasize characteristics or attributes that define their in-group in relation to comparison out-groups. We extend this research by exploring the range of ways in which members of the same social category (Welsh people) deploy a particular attribute (the Welsh language) as a flexible identity management resource. Through a thematic analysis of data from interviews and two public speeches, we examine how the deployment of the Welsh language is bound up with characterizations of the in-group's wider intergroup position (in terms of power relations and their legitimacy and stability), and one's position within the in-group. We focus in particular on the rhetorical and strategic value of such characterizations for policing in-group boundaries on the one hand, and for the in-group's intergroup position on the other. We conclude by emphasizing the need to (1) locate analyses of the uses and importance of group-defining attributes within the social setting that gives them meaning and (2) to appreciate such characterizations as attempts to influence, rather than simply reflect that setting.

Comparison of Effectiveness of Manual Orthodontic, Powered and Sonic Toothbrushes on Oral Hygiene of Fixed Orthodontic Patients

PubMed Central

Trehan, Mridula; Sharma, Sunil; Jharwal, Vikas; Rathore, Nidhi

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT Introduction: Maintenance of good oral hygiene is important for patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a manual orthodontic toothbrush, powered toothbrush with oscillating head and sonic toothbrush in controlling plaque, gingivitis and interdental bleeding in patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment, and to compare their relative efficacy. Materials and methods: Sixty subjects, who were to receive orthodontic treatment with both upper and lower fixed appliances, were randomly divided into three study groups, with 20 patients in each group. Groups I to III were given manual orthodontic, powered and sonic toothbrushes, respectively. Plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI) and interdental bleeding index were scored to assess the level of plaque accumulation, gingival health and interdental bleeding at baseline; 4 and 8 weeks recall visits after fixed appliance bonding. Paired t-tests and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were used for intragroup and intergroup comparisons. The level of statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results: This study showed that a significant reduction in all the three indices scores was found from baseline to 4 and 8 weeks in group III. On intergroup comparison, no statistically significant differences were detected between the three groups for any of the parameters assessed. Conclusion: On intragroup comparison, sonic brushes performed superiorly in reducing gingivitis, plaque and interdental bleeding as compared to the manual orthodontic and powered brushes. On intergroup comparison, the relative comparative effectiveness was found to be similar for all the three brushes. How to cite this article: Sharma R, Trehan M, Sharma S, Jharwal V, Rathore N. Comparison of Effectiveness of Manual Orthodontic, Powered and Sonic Toothbrushes on Oral Hygiene of Fixed Orthodontic Patients. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2015;8(3):181-189. PMID:26628852

Online Course Increases Nutrition Professionals' Knowledge, Skills, and Self-Efficacy in Using an Ecological Approach to Prevent Childhood Obesity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stark, Christina M.; Graham-Kiefer, Meredith L.; Devine, Carol M.; Dollahite, Jamie S.; Olson, Christine M.

2011-01-01

Objective: To assess the impact of an online continuing education course on the knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy of nutrition professionals to use an ecological approach to prevent childhood obesity. Design: Quasi-experimental design using intervention and delayed intervention comparison groups with pre/post-course assessments. Setting: Online…

A Comparison Between Educational Approaches to Teaching Forestry and Tree Identification in a Resident Camp Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmitt, Robert M.; Groves, David L.

1976-01-01

Results of pre- and post-testing the tree identification skills of a group of 4-H members showed that adolescents aged 9-11 respond better to lecture demonstration teaching methods, while adolescents aged 12-14 respond better to an inquiry process that used nature trails as the primary instructional tool. (MLH)

Religious Differences in Modernization of the Family: Family Demographics Trends in Ghana

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heaton, Tim B.; Darkwah, Akosua

2011-01-01

This research examines trends in a broad set of reproductive and marital behaviors in Ghana, focusing on religious group differences. These comparisons provide evidence of how family trends are constrained by religious identity in a less developed country. Three waves of the Ghana Demographic and Health Surveys are used to track trends in the age…

Meanings for Fraction as Number-Measure by Exploring the Number Line

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Psycharis, Giorgos; Latsi, Maria; Kynigos, Chronis

2009-01-01

This paper reports on a case-study design experiment in the domain of fraction as number-measure. We designed and implemented a set of exploratory tasks concerning comparison and ordering of fractions as well as operations with fractions. Two groups of 12-year-old students worked collaboratively using paper and pencil as well as a specially…

Changing Cognitions in Parents of Two-Year-Olds Attending Scottish Sure Start Centres

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woolfson, Lisa Marks; Durkin, Kevin; King, Julia

2010-01-01

The study examined how preschool intervention programmes set up by three Scottish local authorities changed parents' cognitions. Quantitative parent outcomes were measured using Parenting Daily Hassles Scales (N = 88). A matched comparison group of parents (N = 55) recruited from the same areas of disadvantage but whose children did not attend the…

Binge Drinking & Sex in High School. NBER Working Paper No. 16132

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeSimone, Jeffrey S.

2010-01-01

This paper estimates the impact of binge drinking on sexual activity among a nationally representative set of high school students during the 1990s and 2000s. The main innovations are explicitly controlling for time-invariant preferences regarding sexual behavior and alcohol use, and eliminating non-drinkers from the comparison group. I find that…

Predictors of Job Satisfaction among Staff in Residential Settings for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: A Comparison between Three Residential Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chou, Yueh-Ching; Kroger, Teppo; Lee, Yue-Chune

2010-01-01

Background: This cross-sectional study aims to assess whether there are differences in staff job satisfaction, including organizational and individual characteristics, between three residential models for adults with intellectual disabilities (small residential home, group home and institution) and to investigate the organizational and individual…

Comparison of Children's and Adults' Vocal Ranges and Preferred Tessituras in Singing Familiar Songs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Randall S.

1991-01-01

Tests 90 children's and 100 preservice teachers' singing ranges and tonalities. Finds both sets of subjects have nearly identical singing ranges. Suggests both groups may sing in low tessituras unless reminded to lift their voices. Encourages teacher education programs to recommend that new teachers perform songs in suitable ranges for children.…

SSD for R: A Comprehensive Statistical Package to Analyze Single-System Data

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Auerbach, Charles; Schudrich, Wendy Zeitlin

2013-01-01

The need for statistical analysis in single-subject designs presents a challenge, as analytical methods that are applied to group comparison studies are often not appropriate in single-subject research. "SSD for R" is a robust set of statistical functions with wide applicability to single-subject research. It is a comprehensive package…

Age-Related Differences in Responses to a Physician's Persuasive Message in an Interpersonal Setting.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keller, Jo

A study investigated whether older persons as a group are generally more persuaded by high authority figures than are younger persons. The study employed a design that allowed for extensive comparisons among subjects of different ages in terms of their willingness to be persuaded by physicians in interpersonal situations. One hundred-twenty…

Method and apparatus for analyzing error conditions in a massively parallel computer system by identifying anomalous nodes within a communicator set

DOEpatents

Gooding, Thomas Michael [Rochester, MN

2011-04-19

An analytical mechanism for a massively parallel computer system automatically analyzes data retrieved from the system, and identifies nodes which exhibit anomalous behavior in comparison to their immediate neighbors. Preferably, anomalous behavior is determined by comparing call-return stack tracebacks for each node, grouping like nodes together, and identifying neighboring nodes which do not themselves belong to the group. A node, not itself in the group, having a large number of neighbors in the group, is a likely locality of error. The analyzer preferably presents this information to the user by sorting the neighbors according to number of adjoining members of the group.

Health-related quality of life of irritable bowel syndrome patients in different cultural settings

PubMed Central

Faresjö, Åshild; Anastasiou, Foteini; Lionis, Christos; Johansson, Saga; Wallander, Mari-Ann; Faresjö, Tomas

2006-01-01

Background Persons with Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are seriously affected in their everyday life. The effect across different cultural settings of IBS on their quality of life has been little studied. The aim was to compare health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of individuals suffering from IBS in two different cultural settings; Crete, Greece and Linköping, Sweden. Methods This study is a sex and age-matched case-control study, with n = 30 Cretan IBS cases and n = 90 Swedish IBS cases and a Swedish control group (n = 300) randomly selected from the general population. Health-related quality of life, measured by SF-36 and demographics, life style indicators and co-morbidity, was measured. Results Cretan IBS cases reported lower HRQOL on most dimensions of SF-36 in comparison to the Swedish IBS cases. Significant differences were found for the dimensions mental health (p < 0.0001) and general health (p = 0.05) even after adjustments for educational level and co-morbidity. Women from Crete with IBS scored especially low on the dimensions general health (p = 0.009) and mental health (p < 0.0001) in comparison with Swedish women with IBS. The IBS cases, from both sites, reported significantly lower scores on all HRQOL dimensions in comparison with the Swedish control group. Conclusion The results from this study tentatively support that the claim that similar individuals having the same disease, e.g. IBS, but living in different cultural environments could perceive their disease differently and that the disease might affect their everyday life and quality of life in a different way. The Cretan population, and especially women, are more seriously affected mentally by their disease than Swedish IBS cases. Coping with IBS in everyday life might be more problematic in the Cretan environment than in the Swedish setting. PMID:16566821

Differences in Adolescent Emotion Regulation and Impulsivity: A Group Comparison Study of School-Based Recovery Students.

PubMed

Russell, Beth S; Heller, Anne Thompson; Hutchison, Morica

2017-07-03

Recovery high schools (RHS) vary in organization and operating philosophy, but are designed to support the unique needs of students struggling with substance use disorders (SUD). Previous research on youth risk taking behaviors suggests emotion regulation is a key predictor of outcomes. Specifically, the ability to respond in adaptive rather than maladaptive ways is often associated with challenges of impulsivity, poor distress tolerance, and adolescent substance use. The current study considers data from RHS students in order to answer research questions concerning impulsivity and emotion regulation of youth working to change their risk trajectories in comparison to group of typically developing youth. Participants (n = 114) in the study were composed of students enrolled in 3 RHS programs and a comparison group of similar aged youth (15-20 years) without an identified SUD. Data collection occurred through an anonymous online survey set of four measures of reactivity and impulsivity, emotion regulation, and parent and peer influence, as well as an online version of the Stroop Inhibitory Control Task. Participants in the three RHS groups reported decreased emotion regulation abilities, increased impulsivity and increased peer influence when compared to the comparison group; differential effects within RHS are presented. Conclusions/Importance: Results are consistent with the extant literature that difficulty regulating emotions is associated with an increased risk for substance abuse and suggests these difficulties persist in early recovery. Results also suggest the need to better understand how different operating philosophies of programs influence student outcomes and the recovery process.

Web-based self-monitoring for weight loss among overweight/obese women at increased risk for breast cancer: the HELP pilot study.

PubMed

Cadmus-Bertram, Lisa; Wang, Julie B; Patterson, Ruth E; Newman, Vicky A; Parker, Barbara A; Pierce, John P

2013-08-01

Excess weight and physical inactivity are modifiable risk factors for breast cancer. Training women to use self-help resources over the internet has potential for reducing intervention costs and enhancing maintenance. A total of 50 overweight/obese women at increased breast cancer risk were randomized to a 12-week intervention or a comparison group. Telephone-based sessions trained participants to use web-based self-monitoring tools to set goals and track diet and exercise. The comparison group received dietary information but no training. At baseline and 12 weeks, participants were weighed and wore an accelerometer. Participants were aged 60.9 ± 0.8 years with a BMI of 33.1 ± 0.6 kg/m(2). The intervention group lost 3.3 ± 4.0 kg, whereas the comparison group gained 0.9 ± 3.4 kg (p < 0.0001). Intervention participants who found the website helpful lost 5.6 ± 0.7 kg; those who did not lost 0.8 ± 0.9 kg (p < 0.001). Change in physical activity was +70 ± 140 min/week among those who found the website helpful, -6 ± 75 min/week among those who did not, and -34 ± 207 min/week in the comparison group (p < 0.01). A program to train women to use web-based weight loss tools achieved a substantial short-term weight loss among the majority of participants. Further follow-up is needed to assess weight loss maintenance over time. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[Conduct problems in a sample of institutionalized minors with previous mistreatment].

PubMed

Carrasco-Ortiz, M A; Rodríguez-Testal, J F; Hesse, B M

2001-06-01

The present study tries to analyse the maltreatment effects and the expected relation, according to the reviewed literature, with behaviour problems in a sample of children in residential care in a protection centre in Seville county (Spain). The sample was conformed by a group of maltreated subjects in a protection setting (n = 30) and two groups of equivalent comparison (n = 30 and n = 30). The first group was conformed by subjects living in a marginal area of Sevilla, similar to the origin setting of the study group, and the second group comes from a wealthy area of this city. The behaviour problems index CBC of Achenbach (1978; 1979; Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1983) was used. No significant differences between groups in the CBC total score was found. However, significant differences were found in the extemalising dimension and in the delinquency, somatic anxiety, somatic problems, and social withdrawal dimensions. Victims of corruption presented higher scores on the CBC total score, extemalising dimension, and delinquency. Young people, victims of child maltreatment and living in an institution, showed problems of withdrawal. Victims of corruption or emotional abuse presented more psychopathological problems.

A 3D sequence-independent representation of the protein data bank.

PubMed

Fischer, D; Tsai, C J; Nussinov, R; Wolfson, H

1995-10-01

Here we address the following questions. How many structurally different entries are there in the Protein Data Bank (PDB)? How do the proteins populate the structural universe? To investigate these questions a structurally non-redundant set of representative entries was selected from the PDB. Construction of such a dataset is not trivial: (i) the considerable size of the PDB requires a large number of comparisons (there were more than 3250 structures of protein chains available in May 1994); (ii) the PDB is highly redundant, containing many structurally similar entries, not necessarily with significant sequence homology, and (iii) there is no clear-cut definition of structural similarity. The latter depend on the criteria and methods used. Here, we analyze structural similarity ignoring protein topology. To date, representative sets have been selected either by hand, by sequence comparison techniques which ignore the three-dimensional (3D) structures of the proteins or by using sequence comparisons followed by linear structural comparison (i.e. the topology, or the sequential order of the chains, is enforced in the structural comparison). Here we describe a 3D sequence-independent automated and efficient method to obtain a representative set of protein molecules from the PDB which contains all unique structures and which is structurally non-redundant. The method has two novel features. The first is the use of strictly structural criteria in the selection process without taking into account the sequence information. To this end we employ a fast structural comparison algorithm which requires on average approximately 2 s per pairwise comparison on a workstation. The second novel feature is the iterative application of a heuristic clustering algorithm that greatly reduces the number of comparisons required. We obtain a representative set of 220 chains with resolution better than 3.0 A, or 268 chains including lower resolution entries, NMR entries and models. The resulting set can serve as a basis for extensive structural classification and studies of 3D recurring motifs and of sequence-structure relationships. The clustering algorithm succeeds in classifying into the same structural family chains with no significant sequence homology, e.g. all the globins in one single group, all the trypsin-like serine proteases in another or all the immunoglobulin-like folds into a third. In addition, unexpected structural similarities of interest have been automatically detected between pairs of chains. A cluster analysis of the representative structures demonstrates the way the "structural universe' is populated.

A robust semi-parametric warping estimator of the survivor function with an application to two-group comparisons

PubMed Central

Hutson, Alan D

2018-01-01

In this note, we develop a new and novel semi-parametric estimator of the survival curve that is comparable to the product-limit estimator under very relaxed assumptions. The estimator is based on a beta parametrization that warps the empirical distribution of the observed censored and uncensored data. The parameters are obtained using a pseudo-maximum likelihood approach adjusting the survival curve accounting for the censored observations. In the univariate setting, the new estimator tends to better extend the range of the survival estimation given a high degree of censoring. However, the key feature of this paper is that we develop a new two-group semi-parametric exact permutation test for comparing survival curves that is generally superior to the classic log-rank and Wilcoxon tests and provides the best global power across a variety of alternatives. The new test is readily extended to the k group setting. PMID:26988931

“Extra Oomph:” Addressing Housing Disparities through Medical Legal Partnership Interventions

PubMed Central

Hernández, Diana

2016-01-01

Low-income households face common and chronic housing problems that have known health risks and legal remedies. The Medical Legal Partnership (MLP) program presents a unique opportunity to address housing problems and improve patient health through legal assistance offered in clinical settings. Drawn from in-depth interviews with 72 patients, this study investigated the outcomes of MLP interventions and compares results to similarly disadvantaged participants with no access to MLP services. Results indicate that participants in the MLP group were more likely to achieve adequate, affordable and stable housing than those in the comparison group. Study findings suggest that providing access to legal services in the healthcare setting can effectively address widespread health disparities rooted in problematic housing. Implications for policy and scalability are discussed with the conclusion that MLPs can shift professionals’ consciousness as they work to improve housing and health trajectories for indigent groups using legal approaches. PMID:27867247

Evaluation of facial attractiveness for patients with malocclusion: a machine-learning technique employing Procrustes.

PubMed

Yu, Xiaonan; Liu, Bin; Pei, Yuru; Xu, Tianmin

2014-05-01

To establish an objective method for evaluating facial attractiveness from a set of orthodontic photographs. One hundred eight malocclusion patients randomly selected from six universities in China were randomly divided into nine groups, with each group containing an equal number of patients with Class I, II, and III malocclusions. Sixty-nine expert Chinese orthodontists ranked photographs of the patients (frontal, lateral, and frontal smiling photos) before and after orthodontic treatment from "most attractive" to "least attractive" in each group. A weighted mean ranking was then calculated for each patient, based on which a three-point scale was created. Procrustes superimposition was conducted on 101 landmarks identified on the photographs. A support vector regression (SVR) function was set up according to the coordinate values of identified landmarks of each photographic set and its corresponding grading. Its predictive ability was tested for each group in turn. The average coincidence rate obtained for comparisons of the subjective ratings with the SVR evaluation was 71.8% according to 18 verification tests. Geometric morphometrics combined with SVR may be a prospective method for objective comprehensive evaluation of facial attractiveness in the near future.

Comparison of two European paediatric emergency departments: does primary care organisation influence emergency attendance?

PubMed

Poropat, F; Heinz, P; Barbi, E; Ventura, A

2017-03-08

To compare paediatric Emergency Department (ED) attendances and admission outcomes in two European hospitals with different paediatric primary care set-up. This is a retrospective prevalence study comparing all paediatric ED attendances during calendar years 2013 in two EDs with similar catchment area: one in Italy (Trieste) where paediatric primary care is provided by office paediatricians, the other, in the UK (Cambridge), where paediatric primary care is provided by general practitioners. Data on reason for presentation, discharge diagnosis and admission rate were collected and sub-group analysis for specific age groups (<1 year, 1-4 years, 5-15 years) was performed. Over 12 months, 20.331 children (0-15 years old) were seen in Cambridge and 18.646 in Trieste, with a very similar age distribution in both centres, except for the youngest age group: the percentage of infants seen in comparison with the total number of children attending ED was 1/3 higher in England than in Italy (15.4% vs 11.4%). The reasons for attendance were similar: under 1 year of age, the chief complaints were fever, breathing difficulties and gastrointestinal problems while in the older age groups trauma represented the commonest reason. Among discharge diagnoses, no differences were found between the two hospitals, except for faltering growth and "well child", more frequently diagnosed in English children under 5 years. The proportion of admissions was three times higher in Cambridge (14.1% vs 4.8%) with most children being admitted for infectious diseases. ED attendances in infants are more common in a primary care setting provided by general practicioner and, moreover, admission rates in all age groups are 1/3 reduced by primary care based paediatricians. Due to the methodological limits of this study, it isn't possible to evaluate whether these results depend only on paediatric primary care set-up or be determined by other confounding factors. New studies are needed to confirm this preliminary evidence.

The development of mentoring-relationship quality, future-planning style, and career goal setting among adolescents from a disadvantaged background.

PubMed

Lau, Wendy S Y; Zhou, Xiao-Chun; Lai, Simon M K

2017-03-01

Our behaviors are regulated by our perception of the future based on past experiences and knowledge. Children from a disadvantaged background might encounter obstacles more frequently when they plan their future. It is possible that a good relationship with an adult volunteer who provides assistance and guidance in the disadvantaged youth's development may facilitate their future-planning style and career goal setting. The present study investigated the role of a good mentoring relationship in promoting a disadvantaged youth's future-planning style and goal-setting ability. It focused on children from a disadvantaged background who participated in the Child Development Fund (CDF) in Hong Kong. In the study, 187 CDF participants (93 with high mentoring-relationship quality [MRQ] and 94 with low MRQ) and 208 comparison group participants were able to complete all four times of the survey. Repeated-measures analyses of covariance showed that Group main effects were observed for both future-planning style, F(2, 374) = 5.92, p < .01, and career goal-setting self-efficacy, F(2, 376) = 6.07, p < .01. Main Time effect was also found for the latter, F(3, 1128) = 7.99, p < .01. A significant Group × Time interaction effect was observed for future-planning style only, F(5.78, 1081.21) = 2.17, p < .05. Our results suggest that participants with high MRQ outperformed the comparison group in both future-planning style and career goal-setting self-efficacy. Multiple regression analyses revealed that mean MRQ score accounted for 3.9% (p < .01) of the variance in future-planning style and 4.1% (p < .01) of the variance in career goal-setting self-efficacy, supporting the role of a good mentoring relationship. Mentors have introduced new resources to the disadvantaged youths with high MRQ and have promoted the development of various skills through modeling. © 2017 The Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

A comparison of cord gingival displacement with the gingitage technique.

PubMed

Tupac, R G; Neacy, K

1981-11-01

Fifteen young adult dogs were divided into three groups representing 0, 7- and 21-day healing periods. Randomly selected cuspid teeth were used to compare cord gingival displacement and gingitage techniques for subgingival tooth preparation and impression making. Clinical and histologic measurements were used as a basis for comparison. Results indicate that (1) the experimental teeth were clinically healthy at the beginning of the experiment, (2) clinical health of the gingival tissues was controlled throughout the course of the experiment, and (3) within this experimental setting, there was no significant difference between the cord gingival displacement technique and the gingitage technique.

Examining the Hospital Elder Life Program in a rehabilitation setting: a pilot feasibility study.

PubMed

Huson, Kelsey; Stolee, Paul; Pearce, Nancy; Bradfield, Corrie; Heckman, George A

2016-07-18

The Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP) has been shown to effectively prevent delirium and functional decline in older patients in acute care, but has not been examined in a rehabilitation setting. This pilot study examined potential successes and implementation factors of the HELP in a post-acute rehabilitation hospital setting. A mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative) evaluation, incorporating a repeated measures design, was used. A total of 100 patients were enrolled; 58 on the pilot intervention unit and 42 on a usual care unit. Group comparisons were made using change scores (pre-post intervention) on outcome measures between pilot unit patients and usual care patients (separate analyses compared usual care patients with pilot unit patients who did or did not receive the HELP). Qualitative data were collected using focus group and individual interviews, and analyzed using emergent coding procedures. Delirium prevalence reduced from 10.9 % (n = 6) to 2.5 % (n = 1) in the intervention group, while remaining the same in the usual care group (2.5 % at both measurement points). Those who received the HELP showed greater improvement on cognitive and functional outcomes, particularly short-term memory and recall, and a shorter average length of stay than patients who did not. Participant groups discussed perceived barriers, benefits, and recommendations for further implementation of the HELP in a rehabilitation setting. This study adds to the limited research on delirium and the effectiveness of the HELP in post-acute rehabilitation settings. The HELP was found to be feasible and have potential benefits for reduced delirium and improved outcomes among rehabilitation patients.

Whole brain fiber-based comparison (FBC)-A tool for diffusion tensor imaging-based cohort studies.

PubMed

Zimmerman-Moreno, Gali; Ben Bashat, Dafna; Artzi, Moran; Nefussy, Beatrice; Drory, Vivian; Aizenstein, Orna; Greenspan, Hayit

2016-02-01

We present a novel method for fiber-based comparison of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) scans of groups of subjects. The method entails initial preprocessing and fiber reconstruction by tractography of each brain in its native coordinate system. Several diffusion parameters are sampled along each fiber and used in subsequent comparisons. A spatial correspondence between subjects is established based on geometric similarity between fibers in a template set (several choices for template are explored), and fibers in all other subjects. Diffusion parameters between groups are compared statistically for each template fiber. Results are presented at single fiber resolution. As an initial exploratory step in neurological population studies this method points to the locations affected by the pathology of interest, without requiring a hypothesis. It does not make any grouping assumptions on the fibers and no manual intervention is needed. The framework was applied here to 18 healthy subjects and 23 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients. The results are compatible with previous findings and with the tract based spatial statistics (TBSS) method. Hum Brain Mapp 37:477-490, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A comparison of the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings.

PubMed

Hardiman, Sharon; Guerin, Suzanne; Fitzsimons, Elaine

2009-01-01

This is the first study to compare the social competence of children with moderate intellectual disability in inclusive versus segregated school settings in the Republic of Ireland. A convenience sample was recruited through two large ID services. The sample comprised 45 children across two groups: Group 1 (n=20; inclusive school) and Group 2 (n=25; segregated school). Parents and teachers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Adaptive Behaviour Scale-School: 2nd edition. A series of 2 x 2 ANOVAs were carried out on social competence scores using educational placement type (inclusive vs segregated school) and proxy rater (parent vs teacher) as the independent variables. Key findings indicated that children in inclusive schools did not differ significantly from children in segregated schools on the majority of proxy ratings of social competence. This supports the belief that children with intellectual disabilities can function well in different educational settings. Present findings highlight the importance of utilising the functional model of ID when selecting and designing school placements for children with moderate ID.

Supporting the growth of peer-professional workforces in healthcare settings: an evaluation of a targeted training approach for volunteer leaders of the STEPS Program.

PubMed

Turner, Benjamin; Kennedy, Areti; Kendall, Melissa; Muenchberger, Heidi

2014-01-01

To examine the effectiveness of a targeted training approach to foster and support a peer-professional workforce in the delivery of a community rehabilitation program for adults with acquired brain injury (ABI) and their families. A prospective longitudinal design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a targeted two-day training forum for peer (n = 25) and professional (n = 15) leaders of the Skills to Enable People and Communities Program. Leaders completed a set of questionnaires (General Self-Efficacy Scale - GSES, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Volunteer Motivation Inventory - VMI and Community Involvement Scale - CIS) both prior to and immediately following the forum. Data analysis entailed paired sample t-test to explore changes in scores over time, and independent sample t-tests for comparisons between the two participant groups. The results indicated a significant increase in scores over time for the GSES (p = 0.047). Improvements in leaders' volunteer motivations and community involvement were also observed between the two time intervals. The between group comparisons highlighted that the peer leader group scored significantly higher than the professional leader group on the CIS and several domains of the VMI at both time intervals. The study provides an enhanced understanding of the utility of innovative workforce solutions for community rehabilitation after ABI; and further highlights the benefits of targeted training approaches to support the development of such workforce configurations.

Big fish in a big pond: a study of academic self concept in first year medical students.

PubMed

Jackman, Kirsty; Wilson, Ian G; Seaton, Marjorie; Craven, Rhonda G

2011-07-27

Big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) research has demonstrated that students in high-ability environments have lower academic self-concepts than equally able students in low-ability settings. Research has shown low academic self-concepts to be associated with negative educational outcomes. Social comparison processes have been implicated as fundamental to the BFLPE. Twenty first-year students in an Australian medical school completed a survey that included academic self-concept and social comparison measures, before and after their first written assessments. Focus groups were also conducted with a separate group of students to explore students' perceptions of competence, the medical school environment, and social comparison processes. The quantitative study did not reveal any changes in academic self-concept or self-evaluation. The qualitative study suggested that the attributions that students used when discussing performance were those that have been demonstrated to negatively affect self-concept. Students reported that the environment was slightly competitive and they used social comparison to evaluate their performance. Although the BFLPE was not evident in the quantitative study, results from the qualitative study suggest that the BFLPE might be operating In that students were using attributions that are associated with lower self-concepts, the environment was slightly competitive, and social comparisons were used for evaluation.

Comparison of student learning in the out-patient clinic and ward round.

PubMed

Davis, M H; Dent, J A

1994-05-01

In undergraduate medical education there is a trend away from ward-based teaching towards out-patient and community-based teaching. To study the potential effects of this altered emphasis on student learning, a pilot group of final-year medical students at the University of Dundee was asked to keep individual structured log-books. These contained details of patients seen during their 3-week orthopaedic attachment in both a ward and out-patient setting. A comparison of perceived learning in the two settings showed that students learned more from attending an out-patient clinic than a ward round, but did not make full use of the learning potential of either. The setting did not particularly influence the balance of learning as categorized here but only the ward round supplied experience of surgical complications. The amount of learning taking place in an out-patient clinic was influenced by student ability, measured by examination performance, but not by clinic work-load. The implications of increased use of out-patient clinics and the advantages and disadvantages of the approach employed are discussed. It is concluded that in the situation studied student learning in the outpatient setting is as good as or superior to the ward setting but should not totally replace it.

Evaluation of revised polymerase chain reaction primers for more inclusive quantification of ammonia-oxidizing archaea and bacteria.

PubMed

Meinhardt, Kelley A; Bertagnolli, Anthony; Pannu, Manmeet W; Strand, Stuart E; Brown, Sally L; Stahl, David A

2015-04-01

Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) fill key roles in the nitrogen cycle. Thus, well-vetted methods for characterizing their distribution are essential for framing studies of their significance in natural and managed systems. Quantification of the gene coding for one subunit of the ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) by polymerase chain reaction is frequently employed to enumerate the two groups. However, variable amplification of sequence variants comprising this conserved genetic marker for ammonia oxidizers potentially compromises within- and between-system comparisons. We compared the performance of newly designed non-degenerate quantitative polymerase chain reaction primer sets to existing primer sets commonly used to quantify the amoA of AOA and AOB using a collection of plasmids and soil DNA samples. The new AOA primer set provided improved quantification of model mixtures of different amoA sequence variants and increased detection of amoA in DNA recovered from soils. Although both primer sets for the AOB provided similar results for many comparisons, the new primers demonstrated increased detection in environmental application. Thus, the new primer sets should provide a useful complement to primers now commonly used to characterize the environmental distribution of AOA and AOB. © 2014 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Student generated learning objectives: extent of congruence with faculty set objectives and factors influencing their generation.

PubMed

Abdul Ghaffar Al-Shaibani, Tarik A; Sachs-Robertson, Annette; Al Shazali, Hafiz O; Sequeira, Reginald P; Hamdy, Hosam; Al-Roomi, Khaldoon

2003-07-01

A problem-based learning strategy is used for curriculum planning and implementation at the Arabian Gulf University, Bahrain. Problems are constructed in a way that faculty-set objectives are expected to be identified by students during tutorials. Students in small groups, along with a tutor functioning as a facilitator, identify learning issues and define their learning objectives. We compared objectives identified by student groups with faculty-set objectives to determine extent of congruence, and identified factors that influenced students' ability at identifying faculty-set objectives. Male and female students were segregated and randomly grouped. A faculty tutor was allocated for each group. This study was based on 13 problems given to entry-level medical students. Pooled objectives of these problems were classified into four categories: structural, functional, clinical and psychosocial. Univariate analysis of variance was used for comparison, and a p > 0.05 was considered significant. The mean of overall objectives generated by the students was 54.2%, for each problem. Students identified psychosocial learning objectives more readily than structural ones. Female students identified more psychosocial objectives, whereas male students identified more of structural objectives. Tutor characteristics such as medical/non-medical background, and the years of teaching were correlated with categories of learning issues identified. Students identify part of the faculty-set learning objectives during tutorials with a faculty tutor acting as a facilitator. Students' gender influences types of learning issues identified. Content expertise of tutors does not influence identification of learning needs by students.

Effect of five commercial mouth rinses on the microhardness of a nanofilled resin composite restorative material: An in vitro study

PubMed Central

Jyothi, KN; Crasta, Shanol; Venugopal, P

2012-01-01

Aim and Objectives: This in vitro study was designed to comparatively evaluate the effect of five commercial mouth rinses on the micro hardness of a nanofilled resin based restorative material. Materials and Methods: Fifty specimens of resin composite material (Filtek Z350XT, 3M ESPE, St.Paul, MN USA) were prepared and immersed in artificial saliva for 24 h. The base line micro hardness of specimens was recorded using Vicker's micro hardness tester (MMT – X7 Matsuzawa, Japan). The specimens were randomly distributed into five groups, each containing 10 specimens (n=10) as follows – Group I Listerine (alcohol based), Group II Periogard (alcohol based), Group III Colgate plax (alcohol based), Group IV C- prev (alcohol free), Group V Hiora(alcohol free). The specimens were immersed in 20 ml of mouth rinses and incubated for 24 h at 37°C. The post immersion micro hardness values of the specimens were recorded and the data was tabulated for statistical analysis. Kruskal–Wallis test was used for inter group comparison followed by pair wise comparison of groups using Mann–Whitney U test. The level of significance was set at P=0.05. Results: Significant reduction in the mean VHN (Vicker's micro hardness number) was observed in all the groups after exposure to the tested mouth rinses (P<0.01) and the reduction in mean VHN values were as follows: Group I 12.09, Group II 3.42, Group II 1.51, Group IV 1.03, Group V 0.57. Inter group comparison showed statistically significant reduction in micro hardness in Groups I and II compared to all other groups with P<0.001. There was no significant difference between Groups III, IV and V. Conclusion: All the mouth rinses showed a reduction in the microhardness of nanofilled resin composite material with listerine (Group I) containing maximum amount of alcohol, showing highest reduction in micro hardness value. PMID:22876004

Comparison of Program Costs for Parent-Only and Family-Based Interventions for Pediatric Obesity in Medically Underserved Rural Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janicke, David M.; Sallinen, Bethany J.; Perri, Michael G.; Lutes, Lesley D.; Silverstein, Janet H.; Brumback, Babette

2009-01-01

Purpose: To compare the costs of parent-only and family-based group interventions for childhood obesity delivered through Cooperative Extension Services in rural communities. Methods: Ninety-three overweight or obese children (aged 8 to 14 years) and their parent(s) participated in this randomized controlled trial, which included a 4-month…

Comparison of Time-Distance Local Helioseismology on GONG and MDI Data Sets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duvall, T. L., Jr.; Zhao, J.; Rajaguru, S. P.; Toner, C. G.; Kosovichev, A. G.; Thompson, M. J.; Hughes, S. J.

2003-01-01

We show first results derived from one rotation of GONG++ and MDI data analyzed independently by different groups with time-distance techniques. We focus on observations obtained during spring 2002 and especially on Carrington rotation 1988 (2002/3/30 - 2002/4/26) and measure flow components and wave speed inhomogeneities over a range of depths for different active regions.

The Emotional Impact and Ease of Recall of Warning Signs for Suicide: A Controlled Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rudd, M. David; Mandrusiak, Michael; Joiner, Thomas E., Jr.; Berman, Alan L.; Van Orden, Kimberly A.; Hollar, Daniel

2006-01-01

In light of concerns about potential iatrogenic effects of information about suicide, in the current study we examined the emotional impact of reading a list of warning signs for suicide in comparison to comparable lists for heart attacks and diabetes. All participants read two sets of warning signs, with the experimental group reading the suicide…

The Role of RAN and Reading Rate in Predicting Reading Self-Concept

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kasperski, Ronen; Shany, Michal; Katzir, Tami

2016-01-01

Social identity theory states that a person's self-concept is created from comparison with others (Walsh & Gordon, 2008). In the case of reading, oral reading is a salient feature young children have to compare themselves on to their classroom peer group. The current study was set to explore the ability of oral reading tasks such as rapid…

Self-reported health outcomes associated with green-renovated public housing among primarily elderly residents.

PubMed

Breysse, Jill; Dixon, Sherry L; Jacobs, David E; Lopez, Jorge; Weber, William

2015-01-01

Assess the benefits of green renovation on self-reported health of primarily elderly residents of a low-income public housing apartment building. Using questions from the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey, we interviewed residents at baseline and 1 year after green renovation of their 101-unit building in Mankato, Minnesota, comparing self-reported mental and physical health outcomes of 2 sets of residents (all-ages: median, 66 years, n = 40; elder: median, 72 years, n = 22) with outcomes for 2 same-aged low-income Minnesota comparison groups taken from Medicare Health Outcomes Survey participants (n = 40 and 572, respectively). Mankato apartment building residents. Green renovation including building envelope restoration; new heating, electrical, and ventilation systems; air sealing; new insulation and exterior cladding; window replacement; Energy-Star fixtures and appliances; asbestos and mold abatement; apartment gut retrofits; low volatile organic chemical and moisture-resistant materials; exercise enhancements; and indoor no-smoking policy. Self-reported health status including Activities of Daily Living and Veteran's Rand 12 (VR-12) survey results; housing condition visual assessment; indoor environmental sampling; and building performance testing. The all-ages study group's mental health improved significantly more than the comparison group's mental health on the basis of mean number of good mental health days in the past month (P = .026) and mean VR-12 mental component score (P = .023). Sixteen percent fewer all-ages study group people versus 8% more comparison group people reported falls (P = .055). The elder study group's 9% improvement in general physical health was not statistically significantly better than the elder comparison group's decline (6%) (P = 0.094). Significantly fewer people in the all-ages group reported smoke in their apartments because of tobacco products (20% vs 0%, P = .005), likely reflecting the new no-smoking policy. Green healthy housing renovation may result in improved mental and general physical health, prevented falls, and reduced exposure to tobacco smoke.

Standard Specimen Reference Set: Pancreatic — EDRN Public Portal

Cancer.gov

The primary objective of the EDRN Pancreatic Cancer Working Group Proposal is to create a reference set consisting of well-characterized serum/plasma specimens to use as a resource for the development of biomarkers for the early detection of pancreatic adenocarcinoma. The testing of biomarkers on the same sample set permits direct comparison among them; thereby, allowing the development of a biomarker panel that can be evaluated in a future validation study. Additionally, the establishment of an infrastructure with core data elements and standardized operating procedures for specimen collection, processing and storage, will provide the necessary preparatory platform for larger validation studies when the appropriate marker/panel for pancreatic adenocarcinoma has been identified.

In search of a common currency: A comparison of seven EQ-5D-5L value sets.

PubMed

Olsen, Jan Abel; Lamu, Admassu N; Cairns, John

2018-01-01

The recently published EQ-5D-5L value sets from Canada, England, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, Spain, and Uruguay are compared with an aim to identify any similarities in preference pattern. We identify some striking similarities for Canada, England, the Netherlands, and Spain in terms of (a) the relative importance of the 5 dimensions; (b) the relative utility decrements across the 5 levels; and (c) the scale length. On the basis of the observed similarities across these 4 Western countries, we develop an amalgam model, WePP (western preference pattern), and compare it with these 4 value sets. The values generated by this model show a high degree of concordance with those of England, Canada, and Spain. Patient level data were obtained from the Multi-Instrument Comparison project, which includes participants from 6 countries in 7 disease groups (N = 7,933): The WePP values lie within the confidence intervals for the value sets in Canada, England, and Spain across the whole severity distribution. We suggest that the WePP model represents a useful "common currency" for (Western) countries that have not yet developed their own value sets. Further research is needed to disentangle the differences between value sets due to preference heterogeneity from those stemming from methodological differences. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

What Drives False Memories in Psychopathology? A Case for Associative Activation

PubMed Central

Otgaar, Henry; Muris, Peter; Howe, Mark L.; Merckelbach, Harald

2017-01-01

In clinical and court settings, it is imperative to know whether posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression may make people susceptible to false memories. We conducted a review of the literature on false memory effects in participants with PTSD, a history of trauma, or depression. When emotional associative material was presented to these groups, their levels of false memory were raised relative to those in relevant comparison groups. This difference did not consistently emerge when neutral or nonassociative material was presented. Our conclusion is supported by a quantitative comparison of effect sizes between studies using emotional associative or neutral, nonassociative material. Our review suggests that individuals with PTSD, a history of trauma, or depression are at risk for producing false memories when they are exposed to information that is related to their knowledge base. PMID:29170722

What Drives False Memories in Psychopathology? A Case for Associative Activation.

PubMed

Otgaar, Henry; Muris, Peter; Howe, Mark L; Merckelbach, Harald

2017-11-01

In clinical and court settings, it is imperative to know whether posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression may make people susceptible to false memories. We conducted a review of the literature on false memory effects in participants with PTSD, a history of trauma, or depression. When emotional associative material was presented to these groups, their levels of false memory were raised relative to those in relevant comparison groups. This difference did not consistently emerge when neutral or nonassociative material was presented. Our conclusion is supported by a quantitative comparison of effect sizes between studies using emotional associative or neutral, nonassociative material. Our review suggests that individuals with PTSD, a history of trauma, or depression are at risk for producing false memories when they are exposed to information that is related to their knowledge base.

Classification of complex information: inference of co-occurring affective states from their expressions in speech.

PubMed

Sobol-Shikler, Tal; Robinson, Peter

2010-07-01

We present a classification algorithm for inferring affective states (emotions, mental states, attitudes, and the like) from their nonverbal expressions in speech. It is based on the observations that affective states can occur simultaneously and different sets of vocal features, such as intonation and speech rate, distinguish between nonverbal expressions of different affective states. The input to the inference system was a large set of vocal features and metrics that were extracted from each utterance. The classification algorithm conducted independent pairwise comparisons between nine affective-state groups. The classifier used various subsets of metrics of the vocal features and various classification algorithms for different pairs of affective-state groups. Average classification accuracy of the 36 pairwise machines was 75 percent, using 10-fold cross validation. The comparison results were consolidated into a single ranked list of the nine affective-state groups. This list was the output of the system and represented the inferred combination of co-occurring affective states for the analyzed utterance. The inference accuracy of the combined machine was 83 percent. The system automatically characterized over 500 affective state concepts from the Mind Reading database. The inference of co-occurring affective states was validated by comparing the inferred combinations to the lexical definitions of the labels of the analyzed sentences. The distinguishing capabilities of the system were comparable to human performance.

The Macrobiotus hufelandi group (Tardigrada) revisited.

PubMed

Kaczmarek, Łukasz; Michalczyk, Łukasz

2017-12-08

Species of the Macrobiotus hufelandi group are one of the most often recorded tardigrades throughout the globe. For over a century M. hufelandi has been considered cosmopolitan but in recent decades numerous species of similar morphologies have been described from various continents, which suggests that what was originally defined as a single taxon is, in fact, a complex of species. The definition of the hufelandi group is subject to a long-standing discussion and in this paper we propose a refined set of characters that are hoped to elucidate the taxonomic status of the group. In order to aid interspecific comparisons, we also propose a unified nomenclature for the crucial morphological traits and clar.

Teaching Cancer Patients the Value of Correct Positioning During Radiotherapy Using Visual Aids and Practical Exercises.

PubMed

Hansen, Helle; Nielsen, Berit Kjærside; Boejen, Annette; Vestergaard, Anne

2018-06-01

The aim of this study was to investigate if teaching patients about positioning before radiotherapy treatment would (a) reduce the residual rotational set-up errors, (b) reduce the number of repositionings and (c) improve patients' sense of control by increasing self-efficacy and reducing distress. Patients were randomized to either standard care (control group) or standard care and a teaching session combining visual aids and practical exercises (intervention group). Daily images from the treatment sessions were evaluated off-line. Both groups filled in a questionnaire before and at the end of the treatment course on various aspects of cooperation with the staff regarding positioning. Comparisons of residual rotational set-up errors showed an improvement in the intervention group compared to the control group. No significant differences were found in number of repositionings, self-efficacy or distress. Results show that it is possible to teach patients about positioning and thereby improve precision in positioning. Teaching patients about positioning did not seem to affect self-efficacy or distress scores at baseline and at the end of the treatment course.

[Music therapy as an effective method of neurorehabilitation].

PubMed

Yakupov, E Z; Nalbat, A V; Semenova, M V; Tlegenova, K A

To assess the role of music therapy in the recovery of motor, speech and autonomic functions in patients with ischemic stroke (II). Forty-five patients with II in the middle cerebral artery were examined. The patients were randomized into three groups (main, comparison and control) of 15 individuals each. With patients of the first and the second groups on the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th days of the rehabilitation period the special set of exercises with music and without that respectively was fulfilled. The third group received a basic set of physical exercises (a control group).The third group was control. Dynamics of patients' state was estimated by the NIHSS, the Rivermead Mobility Index, the Action Research Arm Test and the modified scale for speech evaluation on the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th and 10th day of disease. A study of cardiorespiratory synchronization was conducted since the 6th day of stroke. The statistically significant efficacy of music therapy was shown for all parameters. The authors suggest that neuroplasticity may underlie the mechanisms of the programs used in the study.

Driving behaviors in early stage dementia: a study using in-vehicle technology.

PubMed

Eby, David W; Silverstein, Nina M; Molnar, Lisa J; LeBlanc, David; Adler, Geri

2012-11-01

According to the Alzheimer's Association (2011), (1) in 8 people age 65 and older, and about one-half of people age 85 and older, have Alzheimer's disease in the United States (US). There is evidence that drivers with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias are at an increased risk for unsafe driving. Recent advances in sensor, computer, and telecommunication technologies provide a method for automatically collecting detailed, objective information about the driving performance of drivers, including those with early stage dementia. The objective of this project was to use in-vehicle technology to describe a set of driving behaviors that may be common in individuals with early stage dementia (i.e., a diagnosis of memory loss) and compare these behaviors to a group of drivers without cognitive impairment. Seventeen drivers with a diagnosis of early stage dementia, who had completed a comprehensive driving assessment and were cleared to drive, participated in the study. Participants had their vehicles instrumented with a suite of sensors and a data acquisition system, and drove 1-2 months as they would under normal circumstances. Data from the in-vehicle instrumentation were reduced and analyzed, using a set of algorithms/heuristics developed by the research team. Data from the early stage dementia group were compared to similar data from an existing dataset of 26 older drivers without dementia. The early stage dementia group was found to have significantly restricted driving space relative to the comparison group. At the same time, the early stage dementia group (which had been previously cleared by an occupational therapist as safe to drive) drove as safely as the comparison group. Few safety-related behavioral errors were found for either group. Wayfinding problems were rare among both groups, but the early stage dementia group was significantly more likely to get lost. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Increasing consumer demand among Medicaid enrollees for tobacco dependence treatment: The Wisconsin Medicaid Covers It campaign

PubMed Central

Keller, Paula A.; Christiansen, Bruce; Kim, Su-Young; Piper, Megan E.; Redmond, Lezli; Adsit, Robert; Fiore, Michael C.

2010-01-01

Purpose Smoking prevalence among Medicaid enrollees is higher than the general population, but use of evidence-based cessation treatment is low. We evaluated whether a communications campaign improved cessation treatment utilization. Design Quasi-experimental. Setting Wisconsin. Subjects Enrollees in the Wisconsin Family Medicaid program. The average monthly enrollment during the study period was approximately 170,000 individuals. Intervention Print materials for clinicians and consumers distributed to 13 health maintenance organizations (HMO) serving Wisconsin Medicaid HMO enrollees. Measures Wisconsin Medicaid pharmacy claims data for smoking cessation medications were analyzed before and after a targeted communications campaign. HMO enrollees were the intervention group. Fee-for-service enrollees were a quasi-experimental comparison group. Quit Line utilization data were also analyzed. Analysis Pharmacotherapy claims and number of registered quitline callers were compared pre-and post-campaign. Results Pre-campaign, cessation pharmacotherapy claims declined for the intervention group and increased slightly for the comparison group (t = 2.29, p = 0.03). Post-campaign, claims increased in both groups. However, the rate of increase in the intervention group was significantly greater than in the comparison group (t = −2.2, p = 0.04). A statistically significant increase was also seen in the average monthly number of Medicaid enrollees that registered for Quit Line services post-campaign compared to pre-campaign (F (1,22) = 7.19, p = 0.01). Conclusion This natural experiment demonstrated statistically significant improvements in both pharmacotherapy claims and Quit Line registrations among Medicaid enrollees. These findings may help inform other states’ efforts to improve cessation treatment utilization. PMID:21721965

COMPARISON OF MEDICAL COSTS AND CARE OF APPENDECTOMY PATIENTS BETWEEN FEE-FOR-SERVICE AND SET FEE FOR DIAGNOSIS-RELATED GROUP SYSTEMS IN 20 CHINESE HOSPITALS.

PubMed

Zhang, Yin-hua; He, Guo-ping; Liu, Jing-wei

2016-09-01

The objective of this study was to compare the fee-for-service and set fee for diagnosis-related group systems with regard to quality of medical care and cost to appendectomy patients. We conducted a retrospective study of 208 inpatients (from 20 hospitals) who undergone appendectomy in Changsha, China during 2013. Data were obtained from databases of medical insurance information systems directly connected to the hospital information systems. We collected and compared patient ages, length of study, and total medical costs for impatient appendectomies between patients using fee-for-service and set fee for diagnosisrelated group systems. One hundred thirty-three patients used the fee for service system and 75 used the set fee diagnosis related group system. For those using the diagnosis-related group system, the mean length of hospitalization (6.2 days) and mean number of prescribed antimicrobials (2.4) per patient were significantly lower than those of the patients who used the fee-for-service system (7.3 days and 3.0, respectively; p = 0.018; p < 0.05) and were accompanied by lower medical costs and cost of antimicrobials (RMB 2,518 versus RMB 4,484 and RMB476 versus RMB1,108, respectively; p = 0.000, p = 0.000). There were no significant differences in post-surgical complications between the two systems. The diagnosis-related group system had significantly medical costs for appendectomy compared to the fee-for-service system, without sacrificing quality of medical care.

In situ hybridization of oxytocin messenger RNA: macroscopic distribution and quantitation in rat hypothalamic cell groups

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burbach, J.P.; Voorhuis, T.A.; van Tol, H.H.

1987-05-29

Oxytocin mRNA was detected in the rat hypothalamus by in situ hybridization to a single stranded /sup 35/S-labelled DNA probe and the distribution of oxytocin mRNA-containing cell groups was studied at the macroscopic level. Specificity of hybridization was confirmed by comparison to vasopressin mRNA hybridization in parallel tissue sections. Cell groups containing oxytocin mRNA were confined to a set of hypothalamic cell groups, i.c. the supraoptic, paraventricular, anterior commissural nuclei, nucleus circularis and scattered hypothalamic islets. These cell groups displayed similar densities of autoradiographic signals indicating that the oxytocin gene is expressed at approximately the same average level at thesemore » various sites.« less

Evaluation of the Effects of Flipped Learning of a Nursing Informatics Course.

PubMed

Oh, Jina; Kim, Shin-Jeong; Kim, Sunghee; Vasuki, Rajaguru

2017-08-01

This study evaluated the effects of flipped learning in a nursing informatics course. Sixty-four undergraduate students attending a flipped learning nursing informatics course at a university in South Korea participated in this study in 2013. Of these, 43 students participated at University A, and 46 students participated at University B, as a comparison group. Three levels of Kirkpatrick's evaluation model were used: level one (the students' satisfaction), level two (achievement on the course outcomes), and level three (self-perceived nursing informatics competencies). Students of the flipped learning course reported positive effects above the middle degree of satisfaction (level one) and achieved the course outcomes (level two). In addition, self-perceived nursing informatics competencies (level three) of the flipped learning group were higher than those of the comparison group. A flipped learning nursing informatics course is an effective teaching strategy for preparing new graduate nurses in the clinical setting. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(8):477-483.]. Copyright 2017, SLACK Incorporated.

Comparing the performance of biomedical clustering methods.

PubMed

Wiwie, Christian; Baumbach, Jan; Röttger, Richard

2015-11-01

Identifying groups of similar objects is a popular first step in biomedical data analysis, but it is error-prone and impossible to perform manually. Many computational methods have been developed to tackle this problem. Here we assessed 13 well-known methods using 24 data sets ranging from gene expression to protein domains. Performance was judged on the basis of 13 common cluster validity indices. We developed a clustering analysis platform, ClustEval (http://clusteval.mpi-inf.mpg.de), to promote streamlined evaluation, comparison and reproducibility of clustering results in the future. This allowed us to objectively evaluate the performance of all tools on all data sets with up to 1,000 different parameter sets each, resulting in a total of more than 4 million calculated cluster validity indices. We observed that there was no universal best performer, but on the basis of this wide-ranging comparison we were able to develop a short guideline for biomedical clustering tasks. ClustEval allows biomedical researchers to pick the appropriate tool for their data type and allows method developers to compare their tool to the state of the art.

Effects of strongman training on salivary testosterone levels in a sample of trained men.

PubMed

Ghigiarelli, Jamie J; Sell, Katie M; Raddock, Jessica M; Taveras, Kurt

2013-03-01

Strongman exercises consist of multi-joint movements that incorporate large muscle mass groups and impose a substantial amount of neuromuscular stress. The purpose of this study was to examine salivary testosterone responses from 2 novel strongman training (ST) protocols in comparison with an established hypertrophic (H) protocol reported to acutely elevate testosterone levels. Sixteen men (24 ± 4.4 years, 181.2 ± 6.8 cm, and 95.3 ± 20.3 kg) volunteered to participate in this study. Subjects completed 3 protocols designed to ensure equal total volume (sets and repetitions), rest period, and intensity between the groups. Exercise sets were performed to failure. Exercise selection and intensity (3 sets × 10 repetitions at 75% 1 repetition maximum) were chosen as they reflected commonly prescribed resistance exercise protocols recognized to elicit a large acute hormonal response. In each of the protocols, subjects were required to perform 3 sets to muscle failure of 5 different exercises (tire flip, chain drag, farmers walk, keg carry, and atlas stone lift) with a 2-minute rest interval between sets and a 3-minute rest interval between exercises. Saliva samples were collected pre-exercise (PRE), immediate postexercise (PST), and 30 minutes postexercise (30PST). Delta scores indicated a significant difference between PRE and PST testosterone level within each group (p ≤ 0.05), with no significant difference between the groups. Testosterone levels spiked 136% (225.23 ± 148.01 pg·ml(-1)) for the H group, 74% (132.04 ± 98.09 pg·ml(-1)) for the ST group, and 54% (122.10 ± 140.67 pg·ml) for the mixed strongman/hypertrophy (XST) group. A significant difference for testosterone level occurred over time (PST to 30PST) for the H group p ≤ 0.05. In conclusion, ST elicits an acute endocrine response similar to a recognized H protocol when equated for duration and exercise intensity.

ELSID-Diabetes study-evaluation of a large scale implementation of disease management programmes for patients with type 2 diabetes. Rationale, design and conduct--a study protocol [ISRCTN08471887].

PubMed

Joos, Stefanie; Rosemann, Thomas; Heiderhoff, Marc; Wensing, Michel; Ludt, Sabine; Gensichen, Jochen; Kaufmann-Kolle, Petra; Szecsenyi, Joachim

2005-10-04

Diabetes model projects in different regions of Germany including interventions such as quality circles, patient education and documentation of medical findings have shown improvements of HbA1c levels, blood pressure and occurrence of hypoglycaemia in before-after studies (without control group). In 2002 the German Ministry of Health defined legal regulations for the introduction of nationwide disease management programs (DMP) to improve the quality of care in chronically ill patients. In April 2003 the first DMP for patients with type 2 diabetes was accredited. The evaluation of the DMP is essential and has been made obligatory in Germany by the Fifth Book of Social Code. The aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of DMP by example of type 2 diabetes in the primary care setting of two German federal states (Rheinland-Pfalz and Sachsen-Anhalt). The study is three-armed: a prospective cluster-randomized comparison of two interventions (DMP 1 and DMP 2) against routine care without DMP as control group. In the DMP group 1 the patients are treated according to the current situation within the German-Diabetes-DMP. The DMP group 2 represents diabetic care within ideally implemented DMP providing additional interventions (e.g. quality circles, outreach visits). According to a sample size calculation a sample size of 200 GPs (each GP including 20 patients) will be required for the comparison of DMP 1 and DMP 2 considering possible drop-outs. For the comparison with routine care 4000 patients identified by diabetic tracer medication and age (> 50 years) will be analyzed. This study will evaluate the effectiveness of the German Diabetes-DMP compared to a Diabetes-DMP providing additional interventions and routine care in the primary care setting of two different German federal states.

Substance use in female adolescents with eating disorders.

PubMed

Stock, Suzanne L; Goldberg, Eudice; Corbett, Shannon; Katzman, Debra K

2002-08-01

To determine the prevalence of substance use in adolescents with eating disorders, compare the results with a data set of Ontario high school students, and explore why adolescents with eating disorders do, or do not, use various substances. From January 1999 to March 2000, 101 female adolescents who met the DSM-IV criteria for an eating disorder were followed up in a tertiary care pediatric treatment center. They were asked to participate in a cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire assessing substance use and investigating reasons for use and nonuse; 95 agreed to participate and 77 completed the questionnaire (mean age, 15.2 years). The patients were divided into two groups: 63 with restrictive symptoms only, 17 with purging symptoms. The rates of drug use between subjects and their comparison groups were compared by z-scores, with the level of significance set at.05. During the preceding year, restrictors used significantly less tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis than grade- and sex-matched comparison populations, and purgers used these substances at rates similar to those of comparison subjects. Other drugs seen frequently in the purgers included hallucinogens, tranquilizers, stimulants, LSD, PCP, cocaine, and "ecstasy." Both groups used caffeine and laxatives, but few used diet pills. Restrictors said they did not use substances because they were bad for their health, tasted unpleasant, were contrary to their beliefs, and were too expensive. Purgers generally used substances to relax, relieve anger, avoid eating, and "get away" from problems. Female adolescents with eating disorders who have restrictive symptoms use substances less frequently than the general adolescent population but do not abstain from their use. Those with purging symptoms use substances with a similar frequency to that found in the general adolescent population. Because the sample size for the purging group was small, firm conclusions cannot be drawn from our analysis. Health care providers who treat adolescents with eating disorders are in a good position to identify those who use substances and may be at risk for substance abuse.

ELSID-Diabetes study-evaluation of a large scale implementation of disease management programmes for patients with type 2 diabetes. Rationale, design and conduct – a study protocol [ISRCTN08471887

PubMed Central

Joos, Stefanie; Rosemann, Thomas; Heiderhoff, Marc; Wensing, Michel; Ludt, Sabine; Gensichen, Jochen; Kaufmann-Kolle, Petra; Szecsenyi, Joachim

2005-01-01

Background Diabetes model projects in different regions of Germany including interventions such as quality circles, patient education and documentation of medical findings have shown improvements of HbA1c levels, blood pressure and occurrence of hypoglycaemia in before-after studies (without control group). In 2002 the German Ministry of Health defined legal regulations for the introduction of nationwide disease management programs (DMP) to improve the quality of care in chronically ill patients. In April 2003 the first DMP for patients with type 2 diabetes was accredited. The evaluation of the DMP is essential and has been made obligatory in Germany by the Fifth Book of Social Code. The aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of DMP by example of type 2 diabetes in the primary care setting of two German federal states (Rheinland-Pfalz and Sachsen-Anhalt). Methods/Design The study is three-armed: a prospective cluster-randomized comparison of two interventions (DMP 1 and DMP 2) against routine care without DMP as control group. In the DMP group 1 the patients are treated according to the current situation within the German-Diabetes-DMP. The DMP group 2 represents diabetic care within ideally implemented DMP providing additional interventions (e.g. quality circles, outreach visits). According to a sample size calculation a sample size of 200 GPs (each GP including 20 patients) will be required for the comparison of DMP 1 and DMP 2 considering possible drop-outs. For the comparison with routine care 4000 patients identified by diabetic tracer medication and age (> 50 years) will be analyzed. Discussion This study will evaluate the effectiveness of the German Diabetes-DMP compared to a Diabetes-DMP providing additional interventions and routine care in the primary care setting of two different German federal states. PMID:16202151

A Summary of Taxonomies of Digital System Failure Modes Provided by the DigRel Task Group

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chu T. L.; Yue M.; Postma, W.

2012-06-25

Recently, the CSNI directed WGRisk to set up a task group called DIGREL to initiate a new task on developing a taxonomy of failure modes of digital components for the purposes of PSA. It is an important step towards standardized digital I&C reliability assessment techniques for PSA. The objective of this paper is to provide a comparison of the failure mode taxonomies provided by the participants. The failure modes are classified in terms of their levels of detail. Software and hardware failure modes are discussed separately.

Using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health to identify outcome domains for a core outcome set for aphasia: a comparison of stakeholder perspectives.

PubMed

Wallace, Sarah J; Worrall, Linda; Rose, Tanya; Le Dorze, Guylaine

2017-11-12

This study synthesised the findings of three separate consensus processes exploring the perspectives of key stakeholder groups about important aphasia treatment outcomes. This process was conducted to generate recommendations for outcome domains to be included in a core outcome set for aphasia treatment trials. International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health codes were examined to identify where the groups of: (1) people with aphasia, (2) family members, (3) aphasia researchers, and (4) aphasia clinicians/managers, demonstrated congruence in their perspectives regarding important treatment outcomes. Codes were contextualized using qualitative data. Congruence across three or more stakeholder groups was evident for ICF chapters: Mental functions; Communication; and Services, systems, and policies. Quality of life was explicitly identified by clinicians/managers and researchers, while people with aphasia and their families identified outcomes known to be determinants of quality of life. Core aphasia outcomes include: language, emotional wellbeing, communication, patient-reported satisfaction with treatment and impact of treatment, and quality of life. International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health coding can be used to compare stakeholder perspectives and identify domains for core outcome sets. Pairing coding with qualitative data may ensure important nuances of meaning are retained. Implications for rehabilitation The outcomes measured in treatment research should be relevant to stakeholders and support health care decision making. Core outcome sets (agreed, minimum set of outcomes, and outcome measures) are increasingly being used to ensure the relevancy and consistency of the outcomes measured in treatment studies. Important aphasia treatment outcomes span all components of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health. Stakeholders demonstrated congruence in the identification of important outcomes which related Mental functions; Communication; Services, systems, and policies; and Quality of life. A core outcome set for aphasia treatment research should include measures relating to: language, emotional wellbeing, communication, patient-reported satisfaction with treatment and impact of treatment, and quality of life. Coding using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health, presents a novel methodology for the comparison of stakeholder perspectives to inform recommendations for outcome constructs to be included in a core outcome set. Coding can be paired with qualitative data to ensure nuances of meaning are retained.

Comparison of low-altitude wind-shear statistics derived from measured and proposed standard wind profiles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Usry, J. W.

1983-01-01

Wind shear statistics were calculated for a simulated set of wind profiles based on a proposed standard wind field data base. Wind shears were grouped in altitude in altitude bands of 100 ft between 100 and 1400 ft and in wind shear increments of 0.025 knot/ft. Frequency distributions, means, and standard deviations for each altitude band were derived for the total sample were derived for both sets. It was found that frequency distributions in each altitude band for the simulated data set were more dispersed below 800 ft and less dispersed above 900 ft than those for the measured data set. Total sample frequency of occurrence for the two data sets was about equal for wind shear values between +0.075 knot/ft, but the simulated data set had significantly larger values for all wind shears outside these boundaries. It is shown that normal distribution in both data sets neither data set was normally distributed; similar results are observed from the cumulative frequency distributions.

A Road Less Traveled By: Exploring a Decade of Ellman Chemistry

PubMed Central

Shelat, Anang A.; Guy, R. Kiplin

2009-01-01

The Ellman group has been one of the most influential in the development and widespread adoption of combinatorial chemistry techniques for biomedical research. Their work has included substantial methodological development for library synthesis with a particular focus on new scaffolds rationally targeted to biomolecules of interest and biologically relevant natural products. Herein we analyze a representative set of libraries from this group with respect to their biological and biomedical relevance in comparison to existing drugs and probe compounds. This analysis reveals that the Ellman group has not only provided new methodologies to the community but also provided libraries with unique potential for further biological study. PMID:18343129

An International Collaborative Standardizing a Comprehensive Patient-Centered Outcomes Measurement Set for Colorectal Cancer.

PubMed

Zerillo, Jessica A; Schouwenburg, Maartje G; van Bommel, Annelotte C M; Stowell, Caleb; Lippa, Jacob; Bauer, Donna; Berger, Ann M; Boland, Gilles; Borras, Josep M; Buss, Mary K; Cima, Robert; Van Cutsem, Eric; van Duyn, Eino B; Finlayson, Samuel R G; Hung-Chun Cheng, Skye; Langelotz, Corinna; Lloyd, John; Lynch, Andrew C; Mamon, Harvey J; McAllister, Pamela K; Minsky, Bruce D; Ngeow, Joanne; Abu Hassan, Muhammad R; Ryan, Kim; Shankaran, Veena; Upton, Melissa P; Zalcberg, John; van de Velde, Cornelis J; Tollenaar, Rob

2017-05-01

Global health systems are shifting toward value-based care in an effort to drive better outcomes in the setting of rising health care costs. This shift requires a common definition of value, starting with the outcomes that matter most to patients. The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM), a nonprofit initiative, was formed to define standard sets of outcomes by medical condition. In this article, we report the efforts of ICHOM's working group in colorectal cancer. The working group was composed of multidisciplinary oncology specialists in medicine, surgery, radiation therapy, palliative care, nursing, and pathology, along with patient representatives. Through a modified Delphi process during 8 months (July 8, 2015 to February 29, 2016), ICHOM led the working group to a consensus on a final recommended standard set. The process was supported by a systematic PubMed literature review (1042 randomized clinical trials and guidelines from June 3, 2005, to June 3, 2015), a patient focus group (11 patients with early and metastatic colorectal cancer convened during a teleconference in August 2015), and a patient validation survey (among 276 patients with and survivors of colorectal cancer between October 15, 2015, and November 4, 2015). After consolidating findings of the literature review and focus group meeting, a list of 40 outcomes was presented to the WG and underwent voting. The final recommendation includes outcomes in the following categories: survival and disease control, disutility of care, degree of health, and quality of death. Selected case-mix factors were recommended to be collected at baseline to facilitate comparison of results across treatments and health care professionals. A standardized set of patient-centered outcome measures to inform value-based health care in colorectal cancer was developed. Pilot efforts are under way to measure the standard set among members of the working group.

Physical activity and associated medical cost savings among at-risk older adults participating a community-based health & wellness program

PubMed Central

Li, Yajuan; Lee, Shinduk; Smith, Matthew Lee; Han, Gang; Quinn, Cindy; Du, Yuxian; Benden, Mark; Ory, Marcia G.

2018-01-01

Introduction Physical activity declines are seen with increasing age; however, the US CDC recommends most older adults (age 65 and older) engage in the same levels of physical activity as those 18–64 to lessen risks of injuries (e.g., falls) and slow deteriorating health. We aimed to identify whether older adults participating in a short (approx. 90-minute sessions) 20 session (approximately 10-weeks) health and wellness program delivered in a community setting saw improvements in physical activity and whether these were sustained over time. Methods Employing a non-equivalent group design, community-dwelling older adults were purposely recruited into either an intervention or comparison group. The intervention was a multicomponent lifestyle enhancement intervention focused on healthy eating and physical activity, including structured physical activity exercises within the class sessions. Two groups were included: intervention (survey group: n = 65; accelerometer subgroup: n = 38) and the comparison group (survey group: n = 102; accelerometer subgroup: n = 55). Measurements were made at baseline and approximately three months later to reflect immediate post-treatment period (survey, accelerometer) with long-term follow-up 6 months after baseline (survey). Adults not meeting the physical activity guidelines (i.e., 150/75 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity or MVPA) were targeted for subgroup analyses. Paired t-tests were used for bivariate comparisons, while repeated measures random coefficient models (adjusting for propensity scores using inverse probability of treatment weighted (IPTW) estimation) were used for multivariate models. Estimated medical costs associated with gains in physical activity were also measured among survey respondents in the intervention group. Results The accelerometer group contained 38 participants in the intervention group with 71% insufficiently active at baseline and 55 participants in the comparison group with 76% insufficiently active at baseline (<150 weekly MVPA minutes). The survey group contained 65 participants in the intervention group with 73.85% insufficiently active at baseline and 102 participants in the comparison group with 76.47% insufficiently active at baseline. In paired t-tests with the accelerometer group, a moderate effect size (-0.4727, p = 0.0210) indicating higher MVPA was found for intervention participants with <150 weekly MVPA at baseline. In fully adjusted analyses using propensity score matching, among the subjectively measured physical activity (survey) group, there was a differential impact from baseline to 6-month post among the intervention group with an improvement of 160 minutes among all study participants (p < .0001) versus no difference among the comparison group. For those insufficiently active at baseline, there was an improvement of 103 minutes among intervention (p < .0001) and 55 minutes among the comparison (p < .0001) with the improvement of the intervention significantly greater than that among the comparison (p = 0.0224). Further, among those insufficiently active at baseline there was a relative cost savings from baseline to 6-months over and above the estimated cost of the intervention estimated between $143 and $164 per participant. Discussion This intervention was able to reach and retain older adults and showed significant MVPA gains and estimated medical cost savings among more at-risk individuals (baseline <150 MVPA). This intervention can be used in practice as a strategy to improve MVPA among the growing population of older community-dwelling adults. PMID:29894478

Physical activity and associated medical cost savings among at-risk older adults participating a community-based health & wellness program.

PubMed

Towne, Samuel D; Li, Yajuan; Lee, Shinduk; Smith, Matthew Lee; Han, Gang; Quinn, Cindy; Du, Yuxian; Benden, Mark; Ory, Marcia G

2018-01-01

Physical activity declines are seen with increasing age; however, the US CDC recommends most older adults (age 65 and older) engage in the same levels of physical activity as those 18-64 to lessen risks of injuries (e.g., falls) and slow deteriorating health. We aimed to identify whether older adults participating in a short (approx. 90-minute sessions) 20 session (approximately 10-weeks) health and wellness program delivered in a community setting saw improvements in physical activity and whether these were sustained over time. Employing a non-equivalent group design, community-dwelling older adults were purposely recruited into either an intervention or comparison group. The intervention was a multicomponent lifestyle enhancement intervention focused on healthy eating and physical activity, including structured physical activity exercises within the class sessions. Two groups were included: intervention (survey group: n = 65; accelerometer subgroup: n = 38) and the comparison group (survey group: n = 102; accelerometer subgroup: n = 55). Measurements were made at baseline and approximately three months later to reflect immediate post-treatment period (survey, accelerometer) with long-term follow-up 6 months after baseline (survey). Adults not meeting the physical activity guidelines (i.e., 150/75 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity or MVPA) were targeted for subgroup analyses. Paired t-tests were used for bivariate comparisons, while repeated measures random coefficient models (adjusting for propensity scores using inverse probability of treatment weighted (IPTW) estimation) were used for multivariate models. Estimated medical costs associated with gains in physical activity were also measured among survey respondents in the intervention group. The accelerometer group contained 38 participants in the intervention group with 71% insufficiently active at baseline and 55 participants in the comparison group with 76% insufficiently active at baseline (<150 weekly MVPA minutes). The survey group contained 65 participants in the intervention group with 73.85% insufficiently active at baseline and 102 participants in the comparison group with 76.47% insufficiently active at baseline. In paired t-tests with the accelerometer group, a moderate effect size (-0.4727, p = 0.0210) indicating higher MVPA was found for intervention participants with <150 weekly MVPA at baseline. In fully adjusted analyses using propensity score matching, among the subjectively measured physical activity (survey) group, there was a differential impact from baseline to 6-month post among the intervention group with an improvement of 160 minutes among all study participants (p < .0001) versus no difference among the comparison group. For those insufficiently active at baseline, there was an improvement of 103 minutes among intervention (p < .0001) and 55 minutes among the comparison (p < .0001) with the improvement of the intervention significantly greater than that among the comparison (p = 0.0224). Further, among those insufficiently active at baseline there was a relative cost savings from baseline to 6-months over and above the estimated cost of the intervention estimated between $143 and $164 per participant. This intervention was able to reach and retain older adults and showed significant MVPA gains and estimated medical cost savings among more at-risk individuals (baseline <150 MVPA). This intervention can be used in practice as a strategy to improve MVPA among the growing population of older community-dwelling adults.

Computational gestalts and perception thresholds.

PubMed

Desolneux, Agnès; Moisan, Lionel; Morel, Jean-Michel

2003-01-01

In 1923, Max Wertheimer proposed a research programme and method in visual perception. He conjectured the existence of a small set of geometric grouping laws governing the perceptual synthesis of phenomenal objects, or "gestalt" from the atomic retina input. In this paper, we review this set of geometric grouping laws, using the works of Metzger, Kanizsa and their schools. In continuation, we explain why the Gestalt theory research programme can be translated into a Computer Vision programme. This translation is not straightforward, since Gestalt theory never addressed two fundamental matters: image sampling and image information measurements. Using these advances, we shall show that gestalt grouping laws can be translated into quantitative laws allowing the automatic computation of gestalts in digital images. From the psychophysical viewpoint, a main issue is raised: the computer vision gestalt detection methods deliver predictable perception thresholds. Thus, we are set in a position where we can build artificial images and check whether some kind of agreement can be found between the computationally predicted thresholds and the psychophysical ones. We describe and discuss two preliminary sets of experiments, where we compared the gestalt detection performance of several subjects with the predictable detection curve. In our opinion, the results of this experimental comparison support the idea of a much more systematic interaction between computational predictions in Computer Vision and psychophysical experiments.

The discrimination of automotive clear coats by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and comparison of samples by a chromatogram library software.

PubMed

Plage, Bernd; Berg, Anna-Dolores; Luhn, Steven

2008-05-20

The differentiation of 25 automotive clear coats was evaluated using pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS). The samples were selected from eight different groups of samples which slightly differ in their infrared spectra. Most of the samples could be differentiated by visual inspection of the pyrograms. As an objective mean for evaluation a new software based on the comparison of chromatograms was tested for automatic classification considering retention times as well as mass spectra. The database was formed by the triplicate results of the set of the 25 samples. Normally a replicate measurement of a sample yields the best fit by library search. In addition, for most groups classification with moderate fits are obtained for samples belonging to the same group. Some samples are completely rearranged forming a new group of similar samples containing five samples from three different IR groups and four samples of three other groups, respectively. Furthermore detailed visual recognition of individual pyrolysis products allows subgrouping. Therefore, most samples can be differentiated from each other by Py-GC/MS. The exception were three sample groups containing two samples each, which could not be differentiated from each other neither by library search nor by recognition of minor individual pyrolysis products.

Evaluation of anger management groups in a high-security hospital.

PubMed

Wilson, Claire; Gandolfi, Stacy; Dudley, Alison; Thomas, Brian; Tapp, James; Moore, Estelle

2013-12-01

Anger management programmes for offenders typically aim to improve the management of emotion associated with aggressive and antisocial behaviour. Such programmes have been quite extensively evaluated in prison and probation settings, but there is less published research in forensic mental health settings. This study aimed to evaluate anger management groups in a high-security hospital. Eighty-six patients were referred for a 20-session anger management intervention. Outcomes were self-reported experiences of anger and changes in institutionally documented incidents of aggression. Incident rates were retrospectively reviewed for all group graduates, where data were available, including a comparison group of graduates who acted as their own controls. Group graduates reported sustained reductions in feelings of anger and positive changes in their use of aggression in reaction to provocation. Some reduction in incidents of physical aggression was noted when group completers were compared with non-completers. Incidents of verbal aggression were observed to increase for graduates. There was also a trend towards improvement when treated men were compared with men on the waiting list. Our findings contribute to the growing evidence for anger management groups for aggressive men, although the low-base rate of incidents, typical of such a containing and therapeutic hospital setting, rendered the analysis of behavioural outcomes difficult. Anger management sessions for male forensic psychiatric patients can be effective in reducing incidents of physical aggression in response to provocation. Evaluation of treatments for anger is particularly difficult in secure and protective settings, where the aim is to keep incidents of actual physical aggression to a minimum. Further research of this kind is needed to test the value of self-reported reduction in angry feelings as an indicator of clinically useful progress. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Broda, Jill Terese

The neutron flux across the nuclear reactor core is of interest to reactor designers and others. The diffusion equation, an integro-differential equation in space and energy, is commonly used to determine the flux level. However, the solution of a simplified version of this equation when automated is very time consuming. Since the flux level changes with time, in general, this calculation must be made repeatedly. Therefore solution techniques that speed the calculation while maintaining accuracy are desirable. One factor that contributes to the solution time is the spatial flux shape approximation used. It is common practice to use the samemore » order flux shape approximation in each energy group even though this method may not be the most efficient. The one-dimensional, two-energy group diffusion equation was solved, for the node average flux and core k-effective, using two sets of spatial shape approximations for each of three reactor types. A fourth-order approximation in both energy groups forms the first set of approximations used. The second set used combines a second-order approximation with a fourth-order approximation in energy group two. Comparison of the results from the two approximation sets show that the use of a different order spatial flux shape approximation results in considerable loss in accuracy for the pressurized water reactor modeled. However, the loss in accuracy is small for the heavy water and graphite reactors modeled. The use of different order approximations in each energy group produces mixed results. Further investigation into the accuracy and computing time is required before any quantitative advantage of the use of the second-order approximation in energy group one and the fourth-order approximation in energy group two can be determined.« less

Cognitive Inflexibility and Frontal-Cortical Activation in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

PubMed Central

Britton, Jennifer C.; Rauch, Scott L.; Rosso, Isabelle M.; Killgore, William D.S.; Price, Lauren M.; Ragan, Jennifer; Chosak, Anne; Hezel, Dianne M.; Pine, Daniel S.; Leibenluft, Ellen; Pauls, David L.; Jenike, Michael A.; Stewart, S. Evelyn

2014-01-01

Objective Deficits in cognitive flexibility and response inhibition have been linked to perturbations in cortico-striatal-thalamic circuitry in adult obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Although similar cognitive deficits have been identified in pediatric OCD, few neuroimaging studies have been conducted to examine its neural correlates in the developing brain. In this study, we tested hypotheses regarding group differences in the behavioral and neural correlates of cognitive flexibility in a pediatric OCD and a healthy comparison (HC) sample. Method In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, a pediatric sample of 10- to 17-year-old subjects, 15 with OCD and 20 HC, completed a set-shifting task. The task, requiring an extradimensional shift to identify a target, examines cognitive flexibility. Within each block, the dimension (color or shape) that identified the target either alternated (i.e., mixed) or remained unchanged (i.e., repeated). Results Compared with the HC group, the OCD group tended to be slower to respond to trials within mixed blocks. Compared with the HC group, the OCD group exhibited less left inferior frontal gyrus/BA47 activation in the set-shifting contrast (i.e., HC > OCD, mixed versus repeated); only the HC group exhibited significant activation in this region. The correlation between set shifting-induced right caudate activation and shift cost (i.e., reaction time differential in response to mixed versus repeated trials) was significantly different between HC and OCD groups, in that we found a positive correlation in HC and a negative correlation in OCD. Conclusions In pediatric OCD, less fronto-striatal activation may explain previously identified deficits in shifting cognitive sets. PMID:20732630

Three-dimensional spatial grouping affects estimates of the illuminant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perkins, Kenneth R.; Schirillo, James A.

2003-12-01

The brightnesses (i.e., perceived luminance) of surfaces within a three-dimensional scene are contingent on both the luminances and the spatial arrangement of the surfaces. Observers viewed a CRT through a haploscope that presented simulated achromatic surfaces in three dimensions. They set a test patch to be ~33% more intense than a comparison patch to match the comparison patch in brightness, which is consistent with viewing a real scene with a simple lightning interpretation from which to estimate a different level of illumination in each depth plane. Randomly positioning each surface in either depth plane minimized any simple lighting interpretation, concomitantly reducing brightness differences to ~8.5%, although the immediate surrounds of the test and comparison patches continued to differ by a 5:1 luminance ratio.

Care in a birth room versus a conventional setting: a controlled trial.

PubMed Central

Klein, M; Papageorgiou, A; Westreich, R; Spector-Dunsky, L; Elkins, V; Kramer, M S; Gelfand, M M

1984-01-01

A controlled clinical trial was carried out to assess whether a birth room setting would influence the care of mothers and newborns. Of the 163 low-risk women enrolled, 49 (30%) manifested some prenatal risk and were excluded. The remaining 114 were allocated by strict alternation to a birth room or a conventional setting. Of the 56 women allocated to the birth room, 63% of the primiparas and 19% of the multiparas were later transferred. The numbers in the two settings who had oxytocin stimulation, epidural anesthesia, forceps delivery or cesarean section did not show statistically significant differences. The episiotomy rates were slightly lower in the birth room than in the conventional setting, and the rates of an intact perineum were higher in the birth room. Neither the Apgar scores nor the morbidity rates of the infants showed statistically significant differences related to the setting to which the mother had been allocated, although more infants from the conventional setting were admitted to a special care unit. Both "experimental" groups of women less often received routine perineal shaving, enemas or intravenous infusions than did an obstetrically similar nonexperimental comparison group. Despite the apparent inability in this setting for the birth room to influence the rate of major obstetric procedures (except for episiotomy) and outcomes, the authors believe that a birth room is desirable in tertiary care centres as well as in community hospitals. PMID:6388776

Local and global inhibition in bilingual word production: fMRI evidence from Chinese-English bilinguals

PubMed Central

Guo, Taomei; Liu, Hongyan; Misra, Maya; Kroll, Judith F.

2011-01-01

The current study examined the neural correlates associated with local and global inhibitory processes used by bilinguals to resolve interference between competing responses. Two groups of participants completed both blocked and mixed picture naming tasks while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). One group first named a set of pictures in L1, and then named the same pictures in L2. The other group first named pictures in L2, and then in L1. After the blocked naming tasks, both groups performed a mixed language naming task (i.e., naming pictures in either language according to a cue). The comparison between the blocked and mixed naming tasks, collapsed across groups, was defined as the local switching effect, while the comparison between blocked naming in each language was defined as the global switching effect. Distinct patterns of neural activation were found for local inhibition as compared to global inhibition in bilingual word production. Specifically, the results suggest that the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the supplementary motor area (SMA) play important roles in local inhibition, while the dorsal left frontal gyrus and parietal cortex are important for global inhibition. PMID:21440072

Reversing the similarity effect: The effect of presentation format.

PubMed

Cataldo, Andrea M; Cohen, Andrew L

2018-06-01

A context effect is a change in preference that occurs when alternatives are added to a choice set. Models of preferential choice that account for context effects largely assume a within-dimension comparison process. It has been shown, however, that the format in which a choice set is presented can influence comparison strategies. That is, a by-alternative or by-dimension grouping of the dimension values encourage within-alternative or within-dimension comparisons, respectively. For example, one classic context effect, the compromise effect, is strengthened by a by-dimension presentation format. Extrapolation from this result suggests that a second context effect, the similarity effect, will actually reverse when stimuli are presented in a by-dimension format. In the current study, we presented participants with a series of apartment choice sets designed to elicit the similarity effect, with either a by-alternative or by-dimension presentation format. Participants in the by-alternative condition demonstrated a standard similarity effect; however, participants in the by-dimension condition demonstrated a strong reverse similarity effect. The present data can be accounted for by Multialternative Decision Field Theory (MDFT) and the Multiattribute Linear Ballistic Accumulator (MLBA), but not Elimination by Aspects (EBA). Indeed, when some weak assumptions of within-dimension processes are met, MDFT and the MLBA predict the reverse similarity effect. These modeling results suggest that the similarity effect is governed by either forgetting and inhibition (MDFT), or attention to positive or negative differences (MLBA). These results demonstrate that flexibility in the comparison process needs to be incorporated into theories of preferential choice. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Determination of heat capacity of ionic liquid based nanofluids using group method of data handling technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadi, Maryam

2018-01-01

In this study a group method of data handling model has been successfully developed to predict heat capacity of ionic liquid based nanofluids by considering reduced temperature, acentric factor and molecular weight of ionic liquids, and nanoparticle concentration as input parameters. In order to accomplish modeling, 528 experimental data points extracted from the literature have been divided into training and testing subsets. The training set has been used to predict model coefficients and the testing set has been applied for model validation. The ability and accuracy of developed model, has been evaluated by comparison of model predictions with experimental values using different statistical parameters such as coefficient of determination, mean square error and mean absolute percentage error. The mean absolute percentage error of developed model for training and testing sets are 1.38% and 1.66%, respectively, which indicate excellent agreement between model predictions and experimental data. Also, the results estimated by the developed GMDH model exhibit a higher accuracy when compared to the available theoretical correlations.

Setting time and flowability of accelerated Portland cement mixed with polycarboxylate superplasticizer.

PubMed

Wongkornchaowalit, Norachai; Lertchirakarn, Veera

2011-03-01

Important limitations of mineral trioxide aggregate for use in clinical procedures are extended setting time and difficult handling characteristics. The removal of gypsum at the end stage of the Portland cement manufacturing process and polycarboxylate superplasticizer admixture may solve these limitations. Different concentrations of polycarboxylate superplasticizer (0%, 1.2%, 1.8%, and 2.4% by volume) and liquid-to-powder ratios (0.27, 0.30, and 0.33 by weight) were mixed with white Portland cement without gypsum (AWPC-experimental material). Type 1 ordinary white Portland cement mixed with distilled water at the same ratios as the experimental material was used as controls. All samples were tested for setting time and flowability according to the International Organization for Standardization 6876:2001 guideline. The data were analyzed by two-way analysis of variance. Then, one-way analysis of variance and multiple comparison tests were used to analyze the significance among groups. The data are presented in mean ± standard deviation values. In all experimental groups, the setting times were in the range of 4.2 ± 0.4 to 11.3 ± 0.2 minutes, which were significantly (p < 0.05) lower than the control groups (26.0 ± 2.4 to 54.8 ± 2.5 minutes). The mean flows of AWPC plus 1.8% and 2.4% polycarboxylate superplasticizer groups were significantly increased (p < 0.001) at all liquid-to-powder ratios compared with control groups. Polycarboxylate superplasticizer at concentrations of 1.8% and 2.4% and the experimental liquid-to-powder ratios reduced setting time and increased flowability of cement, which would be beneficial for clinical use. Copyright © 2011 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Are they half as strong as they used to be? An experiment testing whether age-related social comparisons impair older people's hand grip strength and persistence

PubMed Central

Swift, Hannah J; Lamont, Ruth A

2012-01-01

Objective To assess how age-related social comparisons, which are likely to arise inadvertently or deliberately during assessments, may affect older people's performance on tests that are used to assess their needs and capability. Design The study randomly assigned participants to a comparison with younger people or a no comparison condition and assessed hand grip strength and persistence. Gender, education, type of residence, arthritis and age were also recorded. Setting Age UK centres and senior's lunches in the South of England. Participants An opportunity sample of 56 adults, with a mean age of 82.25 years. Main outcomes measures Hand grip strength measured using a manual hand dynamometer and persistence of grip measured using a stopwatch. Results Comparison caused significantly worse performance measured by both strength (comparison =6.85 kg, 95% CI 4.19 kg to 9.5 kg, control group =11.07 kg, 95% CI 8.47 kg to 13.68 kg, OR =0.51, p=0.027) and persistence (comparison =8.36 s, 95% CI 5.44 s to 11.29 s; control group =12.57 s, 95% CI 9.7 s to 15.45 s, OR =0.49, p=0.045). These effects remained significant after accounting for differences in arthritis, gender, education and adjusting for population age norms. Conclusions Due to the potential for age comparisons and negative stereotype activation during assessment of older people, such assessments may underestimate physical capability by up to 50%. Because age comparisons are endemic, this means that assessment tests may sometimes seriously underestimate older people's capacity and prognosis, which has implications for the way healthcare professionals treat them in terms of autonomy and dependency. PMID:22619267

Mapping trees outside forests using high-resolution aerial imagery: a comparison of pixel- and object based classification approaches

Treesearch

Dacia M. Meneguzzo; Greg C. Liknes; Mark D. Nelson

2013-01-01

Discrete trees and small groups of trees in nonforest settings are considered an essential resource around the world and are collectively referred to as trees outside forests (ToF). ToF provide important functions across the landscape, such as protecting soil and water resources, providing wildlife habitat, and improving farmstead energy efficiency and aesthetics....

Immersion Classes in an English Setting: One Way for les Anglais to Learn French. Working Papers on Bilingualism, No. 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barik, Henri; And Others

The results of the evaluation of the French immersion program at a school in a unilingual English environment are described. A battery of tests was administered to a random sample of children from the kindergarten and grade one experimental French immersion classes and to a comparison group composed of children following the regular English…

Attentional Cuing in Math Word Problems for Girls At-Risk for ADHD and Their Peers in General Education Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kercood, Suneeta; Zentall, Sydney S.; Vinh, Megan; Tom-Wright, Kinsey

2012-01-01

The purpose of this theoretically-based study was to examine the effects of yellow-highlighting "relevant" words and units within math word problems. Initial differences were documented between 10 girls at-risk for ADHD and 10 comparisons on the performance of group and individual assessments of math computations and word problems, as had…

Comparison of Health-Related Measures of Two Groups of Adolescents in a Rural Southeastern County in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sands, Charles D.; Hensarling, Robert W.; Angel, James B.

2009-01-01

Objective: The purpose of this study was to establish baseline values on physiological parameters for 7-11 graders (n = 146) in a rural area of Alabama and to examine whether differences existed among the adolescents in the county. Design: Descriptive. Setting: Many adolescents in the southern portion of the United States suffer disproportionately…

Interactive and Socially Inclusive Pedagogy: A Comparison of Practitioner- and Child-Oriented Cognitive/Learning Activities Involving Four-Year-Old Children in Preschools in England

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kutnick, Peter; Brighi, Antonella; Colwell, Jennifer

2016-01-01

This study describes the social contexts in which four-year-olds undertake practitioner-assigned cognitive/learning tasks within preschools and the different experiences these contexts provide for children. Data was collected in 34 preschool settings in South East England, using a phenomenographic mapping of activities and social groupings during…

Development of type transfer functions for regional-scale nonpoint source groundwater vulnerability assessments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, Iris T.; Loague, Keith

2003-12-01

Groundwater vulnerability assessments of nonpoint source agrochemical contamination at regional scales are either qualitative in nature or require prohibitively costly computational efforts. By contrast, the type transfer function (TTF) modeling approach for vadose zone pesticide leaching presented here estimates solute concentrations at a depth of interest, only uses available soil survey, climatic, and irrigation information, and requires minimal computational cost for application. TTFs are soil texture based travel time probability density functions that describe a characteristic leaching behavior for soil profiles with similar soil hydraulic properties. Seven sets of TTFs, representing different levels of upscaling, were developed for six loam soil textural classes with the aid of simulated breakthrough curves from synthetic data sets. For each TTF set, TTFs were determined from a group or subgroup of breakthrough curves for each soil texture by identifying the effective parameters of the function that described the average leaching behavior of the group. The grouping of the breakthrough curves was based on the TTF index, a measure of the magnitude of the peak concentration, the peak arrival time, and the concentration spread. Comparison to process-based simulations show that the TTFs perform well with respect to mass balance, concentration magnitude, and the timing of concentration peaks. Sets of TTFs based on individual soil textures perform better for all the evaluation criteria than sets that span all textures. As prediction accuracy and computational cost increase with the number of TTFs in a set, the selection of a TTF set is determined by a given application.

Objective comparison of particle tracking methods.

PubMed

Chenouard, Nicolas; Smal, Ihor; de Chaumont, Fabrice; Maška, Martin; Sbalzarini, Ivo F; Gong, Yuanhao; Cardinale, Janick; Carthel, Craig; Coraluppi, Stefano; Winter, Mark; Cohen, Andrew R; Godinez, William J; Rohr, Karl; Kalaidzidis, Yannis; Liang, Liang; Duncan, James; Shen, Hongying; Xu, Yingke; Magnusson, Klas E G; Jaldén, Joakim; Blau, Helen M; Paul-Gilloteaux, Perrine; Roudot, Philippe; Kervrann, Charles; Waharte, François; Tinevez, Jean-Yves; Shorte, Spencer L; Willemse, Joost; Celler, Katherine; van Wezel, Gilles P; Dan, Han-Wei; Tsai, Yuh-Show; Ortiz de Solórzano, Carlos; Olivo-Marin, Jean-Christophe; Meijering, Erik

2014-03-01

Particle tracking is of key importance for quantitative analysis of intracellular dynamic processes from time-lapse microscopy image data. Because manually detecting and following large numbers of individual particles is not feasible, automated computational methods have been developed for these tasks by many groups. Aiming to perform an objective comparison of methods, we gathered the community and organized an open competition in which participating teams applied their own methods independently to a commonly defined data set including diverse scenarios. Performance was assessed using commonly defined measures. Although no single method performed best across all scenarios, the results revealed clear differences between the various approaches, leading to notable practical conclusions for users and developers.

Problematizing the concept of the "borderline" group in performance assessments.

PubMed

Homer, Matt; Pell, Godfrey; Fuller, Richard

2017-05-01

Many standard setting procedures focus on the performance of the "borderline" group, defined through expert judgments by assessors. In performance assessments such as Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), these judgments usually apply at the station level. Using largely descriptive approaches, we analyze the assessment profile of OSCE candidates at the end of a five year undergraduate medical degree program to investigate the consistency of the borderline group across stations. We look specifically at those candidates who are borderline in individual stations, and in the overall assessment. While the borderline group can be clearly defined at the individual station level, our key finding is that the membership of this group varies considerably across stations. These findings pose challenges for some standard setting methods, particularly the borderline group and objective borderline methods. They also suggest that institutions should ensure appropriate conjunctive rules to limit compensation in performance between stations to maximize "diagnostic accuracy". In addition, this work highlights a key benefit of sequential testing formats in OSCEs. In comparison with a traditional, single-test format, sequential models allow assessment of "borderline" candidates across a wider range of content areas with concomitant improvements in pass/fail decision-making.

Group intervention for siblings of children with disabilities: a pilot study in a clinical setting.

PubMed

Granat, Tina; Nordgren, Ingrid; Rein, George; Sonnander, Karin

2012-01-01

To study the effectiveness of a group intervention in a clinical setting designed to increase knowledge of disability and improve sibling relationship among siblings of children with disabilities. A self-selected sample of 54 younger and older siblings with typical development (ages 8-12 years) of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (9), Asperger syndrome (7), autistic disorder (13), physical disability (8) and intellectual disability (17) participated in collateral sibling groups. The Sibling Knowledge Interview (SKI) and Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (SRQ) were administered pre- and post-intervention. SKI scores increased (p < 0.001) from pre- to post-intervention when merged diagnostic groups were compared. Comparisons of SRQ pre- and post-intervention scores across diagnostic sibling groups showed significantly different (p < 0.05) score patterns. The results were encouraging and contribute to further development of interventions meeting the needs of siblings of children with disabilities. In view of the limited empirical research on group interventions for siblings of children with disabilities future work is needed to investigate the effectiveness of such interventions. Particular attention should be given to siblings of children with autism and siblings of children with intellectual disability.

Comparison of Two Post-Stroke Rehabilitation Programs: A Follow-Up Study among Primary versus Specialized Health Care

PubMed Central

Vega-Ramírez, Francisco Antonio; Rocamora-Pérez, Patricia; Aguilar-Parra, José Manuel; Padilla-Góngora, David

2016-01-01

Objective To compare home-based rehabilitation (RITH) and standard outpatient rehabilitation in a hospital setting, in terms of improving the functional recovery and quality of life of stroke patients. Study Design and Setting This was a prospective cohort study in Andalusia (Spain). Participants One hundred and forty-five patients completed the outcome data. Measures Daily activities were measured by the Barthel index, Canadian Neurological Scale (to assess mental state), Tinetti scale (balance and gait), and Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36 to compare the quality of life). Results No statistically significant differences were found between the two groups regarding the clinical characteristics of patients in the initial measurement, except for age and mental state (younger and with greater neurological impairment in the hospital group). After physical therapy, both groups showed statistically significant improvements from baseline in each of the measures. These improvements were better in RITH patients than in the hospital patients on all functionality scales with a smaller number of sessions. Conclusions Home rehabilitation is at least as effective as the outpatient rehabilitation programs in a hospital setting, in terms of recovery of functionality in post-stroke patients. Overall quality of life is severely impaired in both groups, as stroke is a very disabling disease that radically affects patients’ lives. PMID:27835673

Communication training for advanced medical students improves information recall of medical laypersons in simulated informed consent talks--a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Werner, Anne; Holderried, Friederike; Schäffeler, Norbert; Weyrich, Peter; Riessen, Reimer; Zipfel, Stephan; Celebi, Nora

2013-02-01

Informed consent talks are mandatory before invasive interventions. However, the patients' information recall has been shown to be rather poor. We investigated, whether medical laypersons recalled more information items from a simulated informed consent talk after advanced medical students participated in a communication training aiming to reduce a layperson's cognitive load. Using a randomized, controlled, prospective cross-over-design, 30 5th and 6th year medical students were randomized into two groups. One group received communication training, followed by a comparison intervention (early intervention group, EI); the other group first received the comparison intervention and then communication training (late intervention group, LI). Before and after the interventions, the 30 medical students performed simulated informed consent talks with 30 blinded medical laypersons using a standardized set of information. We then recorded the number of information items the medical laypersons recalled. After the communication training both groups of medical laypersons recalled significantly more information items (EI: 41 ± 9% vs. 23 ± 9%, p < .0001, LI 49 ± 10% vs. 35 ± 6%, p < .0001). After the comparison intervention the improvement was modest and significant only in the LI (EI: 42 ± 9% vs. 40 ± 9%, p = .41, LI 35 ± 6% vs. 29 ± 9%, p = .016). Short communication training for advanced medical students improves information recall of medical laypersons in simulated informed consent talks.

Communication training for advanced medical students improves information recall of medical laypersons in simulated informed consent talks – a randomized controlled trial

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Informed consent talks are mandatory before invasive interventions. However, the patients’ information recall has been shown to be rather poor. We investigated, whether medical laypersons recalled more information items from a simulated informed consent talk after advanced medical students participated in a communication training aiming to reduce a layperson’s cognitive load. Methods Using a randomized, controlled, prospective cross-over-design, 30 5th and 6th year medical students were randomized into two groups. One group received communication training, followed by a comparison intervention (early intervention group, EI); the other group first received the comparison intervention and then communication training (late intervention group, LI). Before and after the interventions, the 30 medical students performed simulated informed consent talks with 30 blinded medical laypersons using a standardized set of information. We then recorded the number of information items the medical laypersons recalled. Results After the communication training both groups of medical laypersons recalled significantly more information items (EI: 41 ± 9% vs. 23 ± 9%, p < .0001, LI 49 ± 10% vs. 35 ± 6%, p < .0001). After the comparison intervention the improvement was modest and significant only in the LI (EI: 42 ± 9% vs. 40 ± 9%, p = .41, LI 35 ± 6% vs. 29 ± 9%, p = .016). Conclusion Short communication training for advanced medical students improves information recall of medical laypersons in simulated informed consent talks. PMID:23374907

Mirror therapy in children with hemiparesis: a randomized observer-blinded trial.

PubMed

Bruchez, Roselyn; Jequier Gygax, Marine; Roches, Sylvie; Fluss, Joel; Jacquier, David; Ballabeni, Pierluigi; Grunt, Sebastian; Newman, Christopher J

2016-09-01

To determine the efficacy of mirror therapy in children with hemiparesis. The design was an observer-blinded parallel-group randomized controlled trial (International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number 48748291). Randomization was computer-generated, 1:1 allocation to mirror therapy or comparison groups. The settings were home-based intervention and tertiary centre assessments. Participants were 90 children with hemiparesis aged 7 to 17 years. Intervention was 15 minutes per day of simultaneous arm training, 5 days a week, for 5 weeks. The mirror therapy group used a mirror; those in the comparison group looked at their paretic limb. Assessments comprised measures of upper limb strength, function (Melbourne Assessment 2), daily performance (ABILHAND-Kids), and sensory function at weeks 0 (T0 ), 5 (T1 ), and 10 (T2 ). There were no significant differences in outcomes and their progression over time between the mirror therapy and comparison groups. Post-hoc intention-to-treat analyses showed significant improvements in both groups for grasp strength (T0 -T1 +12.6%), pinch strength (T0 -T2 +9.1%), upper limb function in terms of accuracy (T0 -T2 +2.7%) and fluency (T0 -T2 +5.0%), as well as daily performance (T0 -T2 +16.6%). Per protocol analyses showed additional improvements in dexterity (T0 -T2 +4.0%). The use of the mirror illusion during therapy had no significant effect on treatment outcomes. However, 5 weeks of daily simultaneous arm training significantly improved paretic upper limb strength, function, and daily use. © 2016 Mac Keith Press.

Phonological or orthographic training for children with phonological or orthographic decoding deficits.

PubMed

Gustafson, Stefan; Ferreira, Janna; Rönnberg, Jerker

2007-08-01

In a longitudinal intervention study, Swedish reading disabled children in grades 2-3 received either a phonological (n = 41) or an orthographic (n = 39) training program. Both programs were computerized and interventions took place in ordinary school settings with trained special instruction teachers. Two comparison groups, ordinary special instruction and normal readers, were also included in the study. Results showed strong average training effects on text reading and general word decoding for both phonological and orthographic training, but not significantly higher improvements than for the comparison groups. The main research finding was a double dissociation: children with pronounced phonological problems improved their general word decoding skill more from phonological than from orthographic training, whereas the opposite was observed for children with pronounced orthographic problems. Thus, in this population of children, training should focus on children's relative weakness rather than their relative strength in word decoding. Copyright (c) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Pediatric symptom checklist ratings by mothers with a recent history of intimate partner violence: a primary care study.

PubMed

Klassen, Brian J; Porcerelli, John H; Sklar, Elyse R; Markova, Tsveti

2013-12-01

Screening for psychosocial problems is an effective way to identify children who need further evaluation, and many brief, psychometrically strong measures exist for this purpose. More research is needed, however, about the performance of these measures in special populations who are familiar to primary care settings. The purpose of this study was to examine and compare maternal ratings on the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC) between low-income, urban mothers who had suffered intimate partner violence (IPV) in the past year (n = 23) and a demographically-matched comparison group of mothers (n = 23). Victims of violence rated their children as having significantly more problems in a number of categories (Total PSC Score, Externalizing, and Internalizing) than did mothers in the comparison group. The PSC shows promise as an adequate screening tool for psychosocial problems in the children of women who have suffered IPV, but more research is needed.

Comparative assessment of laparoscopic single-site surgery instruments to conventional laparoscopic in laboratory setting.

PubMed

Stolzenburg, Jens-Uwe; Kallidonis, Panagiotis; Oh, Min-A; Ghulam, Nabi; Do, Minh; Haefner, Tim; Dietel, Anja; Till, Holger; Sakellaropoulos, George; Liatsikos, Evangelos N

2010-02-01

Laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS) represents the latest innovation in laparoscopic surgery. We compare in dry and animal laboratory the efficacy of recently introduced pre-bent instruments with conventional laparoscopic and flexible instruments in terms of time requirement, maneuverability, and ease of handling. Participants of varying laparoscopic experience were included in the study and divided in groups according to their experience. The participants performed predetermined tasks in dry laboratory using all sets of instruments. An experienced laparoscopic surgeon performed 24 nephrectomies in 12 pigs using all sets of instruments. Single port was used for all instrument sets except for the conventional instruments, which were inserted through three ports. The time required for the performance of dry laboratory tasks and the porcine nephrectomies was recorded. Errors in the performance of dry laboratory tasks of each instrument type were also recorded. Pre-bent instruments had a significant advantage over flexible instruments in terms of time requirement to accomplish tasks and procedures as well as maneuverability. Flexible instruments were more time consuming in comparison to the conventional laparoscopic instruments during the performance of the tasks. There were no significant differences in the time required for the accomplishment of dry laboratory tasks or steps of nephrectomy using conventional instruments through appropriate number of ports in comparison to pre-bent instruments through single port. Pre-bent instruments were less time consuming and with better maneuverability in comparison to flexible instruments in experimental single-port access surgery. Further clinical investigations would elucidate the efficacy of pre-bent instruments.

A Comparative Evaluation of the Influence of Command Set Methods on Microleakage of Glass Ionomer Cement: An In Vitro Study.

PubMed

Punnathara, Sairaj; Krishnakumar, Ramalingam; Govindarajan, Mohan; Kanaran, Momeka; Philip, Sunil Thomas; Nair, Aswin Saseendran; Peter, Joby

2017-06-01

A major challenge when using glass ionomer cement in clinical situation particularly in paediatric dentistry is to overcome the problem of microleakage. Fast or command setting of Type IX glass ionomer cement using external energy source enhances the setting reaction and results in improved initial physical and mechanical properties. To compare and evaluate the influence of ultrasonic activation, halogen light irradiation and combined effect of both on microleakage of enamel adjacent to Type IX glass ionomer restorations. For forty premolar teeth, standard Class V cavities prepared were restored with GC Gold Label Type IX glass ionomer cement in vitro. The specimens were randomly divided into four groups: 1) Control group; 2) halogen group; 3) ultrasonic group; 4) ultrasonic with halogen group. The teeth were kept in distilled water for 24 hours. Teeth were exposed to 1500 thermocycles at temperature of 12°C ±2 and 60°C ±2 with alternate immersion in hot and cold water for one minute. First teeth were immersed in dye solution for four hours and then in developing solution for four hours. The samples were sectioned buccolingually through centre of the restorations and degree of dye penetration was assessed under stereomicroscope and scored. One-Way ANOVA model was constructed followed by post-hoc Tukey's test for multiple pair wise comparison of mean values. Statistically significant differences were found in microleakage among the four groups (p<0.001) with respect to dye penetration. Halogen group showed least microleakage followed by control but differences between them were statistically not significant (p>0.05). Similarly the differences between Ultrasonic plus halogen group and ultrasonic group were not significant (p>0.05). The differences between ultrasonic and halogen group were statistically significant (p<0.05). Halogen light decreases the microleakage of enamel adjacent to GC Type IX glass ionomer restorations, when used to accelerate the setting reaction of glass ionomers and can be used as command set method in paediatric dentistry.

Minority population group status and QOL change: The case of older Israelis.

PubMed

Damri, Noam; Litwin, Howard

2016-12-01

This study explores minority group status in relation to change in Quality of Life (QOL) among three population groups in Israel-Veteran Jews, Arab-Israelis and immigrants from the Former Soviet Union (FSU)-controlling for a set of known predictors. The study uses panel data from two waves (2009/10 and 2013) of the Israeli component of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, (N=1,590). A set of Ordinary Least Squares regressions is used to predict positive QOL change over the two waves. Interaction terms in a number of selected areas are considered. The results show that minority group status (Arab-Israelis and FSU immigrants) is negatively related to positive QOL change, compared to the majority group (Veteran Jews). Moreover, being employed was found to improve QOL for older FSU immigrants, underscoring the realm of work in the well-being of this population group. In comparison, it was exchange with family members that had a positive effect on QOL change among the Arab-Israelis, emphasizing the importance of that particular aspect of their lives in older age. In sum, the results highlight the risk of minority group status to well-being in late life and confirms the observation that positive QOL change correlates with characteristically different factors among different population groups.

Big Fish in a Big Pond: a study of academic self concept in first year medical students

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) research has demonstrated that students in high-ability environments have lower academic self-concepts than equally able students in low-ability settings. Research has shown low academic self-concepts to be associated with negative educational outcomes. Social comparison processes have been implicated as fundamental to the BFLPE. Methods Twenty first-year students in an Australian medical school completed a survey that included academic self-concept and social comparison measures, before and after their first written assessments. Focus groups were also conducted with a separate group of students to explore students' perceptions of competence, the medical school environment, and social comparison processes. Results The quantitative study did not reveal any changes in academic self-concept or self-evaluation. The qualitative study suggested that the attributions that students used when discussing performance were those that have been demonstrated to negatively affect self-concept. Students reported that the environment was slightly competitive and they used social comparison to evaluate their performance. Conclusions Although the BFLPE was not evident in the quantitative study, results from the qualitative study suggest that the BFLPE might be operating In that students were using attributions that are associated with lower self-concepts, the environment was slightly competitive, and social comparisons were used for evaluation. PMID:21794166

Evaluation of Cirrus Cloud Simulations using ARM Data-Development of Case Study Data Set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Starr, David OC.; Demoz, Belay; Wang, Yansen; Lin, Ruei-Fong; Lare, Andrew; Mace, Jay; Poellot, Michael; Sassen, Kenneth; Brown, Philip

2002-01-01

Cloud-resolving models (CRMs) are being increasingly used to develop parametric treatments of clouds and related processes for use in global climate models (GCMs). CRMs represent the integrated knowledge of the physical processes acting to determine cloud system lifecycle and are well matched to typical observational data in terms of physical parameters/measurables and scale-resolved physical processes. Thus, they are suitable for direct comparison to field observations for model validation and improvement. The goal of this project is to improve state-of-the-art CRMs used for studies of cirrus clouds and to establish a relative calibration with GCMs through comparisons among CRMs, single column model (SCM) versions of the GCMs, and observations. The objective is to compare and evaluate a variety of CRMs and SCMs, under the auspices of the GEWEX Cloud Systems Study (GCSS) Working Group on Cirrus Cloud Systems (WG2), using ARM data acquired at the Southern Great Plains (SGP) site. This poster will report on progress in developing a suitable WG2 case study data set based on the September 26, 1996 ARM IOP case - the Hurricane Nora outflow case. Progress is assessing cloud and other environmental conditions will be described. Results of preliminary simulations using a regional cloud system model (MM5) and a CRM will be discussed. Focal science questions for the model comparison are strongly based on results of the idealized GCSS WG2 cirrus cloud model comparison projects (Idealized Cirrus Cloud Model Comparison Project and Cirrus Parcel Model Comparison Project), which will also be briefly summarized.

Integration of physical abuse clinical decision support into the electronic health record at a Tertiary Care Children's Hospital.

PubMed

Suresh, Srinivasan; Saladino, Richard A; Fromkin, Janet; Heineman, Emily; McGinn, Tom; Richichi, Rudolph; Berger, Rachel P

2018-04-12

To evaluate the effect of a previously validated electronic health record-based child abuse trigger system on physician compliance with clinical guidelines for evaluation of physical abuse. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) with comparison to a preintervention group was performed. RCT-experimental subjects' providers received alerts with a direct link to a physical abuse-specific order set. RCT-control subjects' providers had no alerts, but could manually search for the order set. Preintervention subjects' providers had neither alerts nor access to the order set. Compliance with clinical guidelines was calculated. Ninety-nine preintervention subjects and 130 RCT subjects (73 RCT-experimental and 57 RCT-control) met criteria to undergo a physical abuse evaluation. Full compliance with clinical guidelines was 84% pre-intervention, 86% in RCT-control group, and 89% in RCT-experimental group. The physical abuse order set was used 43 times during the 7-month RCT. When the abuse order set was used, full compliance was 100%. The proportion of cases in which there was partial compliance decreased from 10% to 3% once the order set became available (P = .04). Male gender, having >10 years of experience and completion of a pediatric emergency medicine fellowship were associated with increased compliance. A child abuse clinical decision support system comprised of a trigger system, alerts and a physical abuse order set was quickly accepted into clinical practice. Use of the physical abuse order set always resulted in full compliance with clinical guidelines. Given the high baseline compliance at our site, evaluation of this alert system in hospitals with lower baseline compliance rates will be more valuable in assessing the efficacy in adherence to clinical guidelines for the evaluation of suspected child abuse.

A comparison of clinicians' access to online knowledge resources using two types of information retrieval applications in an academic hospital setting

PubMed Central

Hunt, Sevgin; Cimino, James J.; Koziol, Deloris E.

2013-01-01

Objective: The research studied whether a clinician's preference for online health knowledge resources varied with the use of two applications that were designed for information retrieval in an academic hospital setting. Methods: The researchers analyzed a year's worth of computer log files to study differences in the ways that four clinician groups (attending physicians, housestaff physicians, nurse practitioners, and nurses) sought information using two types of information retrieval applications (health resource links or Infobutton icons) across nine resources while they reviewed patients' laboratory results. Results: From a set of 14,979 observations, the authors found statistically significant differences among the 4 clinician groups for accessing resources using the health resources application (P<0.001) but not for the Infobuttons application (P = 0.31). For the health resources application, the preferences of the 4 clinical groups varied according to the specific resources examined (all P≤0.02). Conclusion: The information-seeking behavior of clinicians may vary in relation to their role and the way in which the information is presented. Studying these behaviors can provide valuable insights to those tasked with maintaining information retrieval systems' links to appropriate online knowledge resources. PMID:23405044

A comparison of clinicians' access to online knowledge resources using two types of information retrieval applications in an academic hospital setting.

PubMed

Hunt, Sevgin; Cimino, James J; Koziol, Deloris E

2013-01-01

The research studied whether a clinician's preference for online health knowledge resources varied with the use of two applications that were designed for information retrieval in an academic hospital setting. The researchers analyzed a year's worth of computer log files to study differences in the ways that four clinician groups (attending physicians, housestaff physicians, nurse practitioners, and nurses) sought information using two types of information retrieval applications (health resource links or Infobutton icons) across nine resources while they reviewed patients' laboratory results. From a set of 14,979 observations, the authors found statistically significant differences among the 4 clinician groups for accessing resources using the health resources application (P<0.001) but not for the Infobuttons application (P = 0.31). For the health resources application, the preferences of the 4 clinical groups varied according to the specific resources examined (all P≤0.02). The information-seeking behavior of clinicians may vary in relation to their role and the way in which the information is presented. Studying these behaviors can provide valuable insights to those tasked with maintaining information retrieval systems' links to appropriate online knowledge resources.

Assessment of the upper trapezius muscle temperature in women with and without neck pain.

PubMed

Dibai Filho, Almir Vieira; Packer, Amanda Carine; Costa, Ana Cláudia de Souza; Berni-Schwarzenbeck, Kelly Cristina dos Santos; Rodrigues-Bigaton, Delaine

2012-06-01

The purpose of the study was to analyze the upper trapezius muscle temperature using thermography in women with and without neck pain. Thirty-six female university students were classified through the Neck Disability Index (NDI) into 2 groups: the neck pain group comprised 18 volunteers diagnosed with mild disability, and the control group, 18 healthy volunteers. All subjects were submitted to evaluation by thermography, which registered the skin surface temperature of the upper bilateral trapezius muscle. Student t test and Mann-Whitney U test were used for the comparison between the groups, and the Spearman correlation coefficient was used for the appropriate correlations between the NDI score and the temperature values. A significance level of 5% was set. No significant difference was found between the groups regarding the temperature values of the upper left (P = .565) and right (P = .917) trapezius muscles, as well as in comparisons of temperature asymmetry (P = .542). In addition, no significant association was found between the study variables (P > .05). Women with neck pain, diagnosed with mild disability by NDI, did not present with reduction or asymmetry of upper trapezius muscle temperature when compared with a group without neck pain. Copyright © 2012 National University of Health Sciences. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Age-related invariance of abilities measured with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV.

PubMed

Sudarshan, Navaneetham J; Bowden, Stephen C; Saklofske, Donald H; Weiss, Lawrence G

2016-11-01

Assessment of measurement invariance across populations is essential for meaningful comparison of test scores, and is especially relevant where repeated measurements are required for educational assessment or clinical diagnosis. Establishing measurement invariance legitimizes the assumption that test scores reflect the same psychological trait in different populations or across different occasions. Examination of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) U.S. standardization samples revealed that a first-order 5-factor measurement model was best fitting across 9 age groups from 16 years to 69 years. Strong metric invariance was found for 3 of 5 factors and partial intercept invariance for the remaining 2. Pairwise comparisons of adjacent age groups supported the inference that cognitive-trait group differences are manifested by group differences in the test scores. In educational and clinical settings these findings provide theoretical and empirical support to interpret changes in the index or subtest scores as reflecting changes in the corresponding cognitive abilities. Further, where clinically relevant, the subtest score composites can be used to compare changes in respective cognitive abilities. The model was supported in the Canadian standardization data with pooled age groups but the sample sizes were not adequate for detailed examination of separate age groups in the Canadian sample. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Generalised Spin Dynamics and Induced Bounds of Automorphic [A]nX, [AX]n NMR Systems via Dual Tensorial Sets: An Invariant Cardinality Role for CFP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Temme, Francis P.

For uniform spins and their indistinguishable point sets of tensorial bases defining automorphic group-based Liouvillian NMR spin dynamics, the role of recursively-derived coefficients of fractional parentage (CFP) bijections and Schur duality-defined CFP(0)(n) ≡ ¦GI¦(n) group invariant cardinality is central both to understanding the impact of time-reversal invariance(TRI) spin physics, and to analysis as density-matrix formalisms over democratic recoupled (DR) dual tensorial sets, {T{ṽ}k(11.1)(SU2 × ln)}. Over abstract spin space, these tensorial sets are (ṽ) invariant-theoretic forms which lie beyond the Liouvillian graph recoupling and Racah-forms envisaged by Sanctuary [1]. This is a direct consequence of the dominance of the ln group. It leads to new views on the value of projective group actions as mappings over specialised Liouvillian carrier spaces, and on the need for the replacement of Racah-Wigner (R-W) orthogonality for distinct point sets, by criteria based on explicit properties of invariants [J. Phys.: Math. & Theor. A 41, 015210 (2008)] for multiple invariant systems. Ũ × P group actions over disjoint (L) carrier subspaces, leading to exclusively combinatorial views of the nature of quantal completeness for indistinguishable point-based tensorial sets. Such generalised invariant-theoretic approaches lie beyond the range of Lévi-Civitá generator views, or of Lévy-Leblond and Lévy-Nahas [9] with its additional cyclic-commutators defining mono-invariant DR forms. Comparison of the latter with generalised multiple-invariant techniques provides an answer to the question of precisely why [A]n≥4(X) and [AX]n≥4 NMR system spin dynamics are not ameniable to conventional R-W analysis of recoupled discrete-point tensorial systems. Our work augments earlier Hilbert space views, both of Louck and Biedenharn [21] on boson pattern projective mapping, and of Corio [19]. The roles of recent ln group action and (λ ⊢ n)-Schur combinatorial concepts, as well as of polyhedral-combinatorial modelling over invariance algebras, contribute significantly to our understanding of invariant-based techniques of Liouville dual tensorial sets for automorphic NMR spin physics.1

Evaluation and comparison of safety, convenience and cost of administering intravenous pamidronate infusions to children in the home and ambulatory care settings.

PubMed

Rush, Eric T; DeHaai, Kristi; Kreikemeier, Rose M; Lutz, Richard E

2012-01-01

The use of bisphosphonates in children to treat low bone mineral density has increased. Safety and efficacy of pamidronate has been previously demonstrated. However, little research has been done on pamidronate infusion in the home health setting for patients with metabolic bone disease. Data were collected via a survey to assess satisfaction and convenience of infusions. Adverse events were measured by collecting calcium levels before and after infusions. Infusion costs were estimated from the standard orders from one home health agency and our infusion center. We found no difference in the rates of hypocalcemia between the two groups. The survey results showed high satisfaction for both groups, with higher scores in the home health group for convenience and stress. Home health infusions showed lower cost and less absenteeism from school and work. Home health-based pamidronate infusion appears to be safe, less expensive, and is associated with high patient satisfaction.

The Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM): a review of its adoption and use.

PubMed

Miles, Susan; Swift, Louise; Leinster, Sam J

2012-01-01

The Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) was published in 1997 as a tool to evaluate educational environments of medical schools and other health training settings and a recent review concluded that it was the most suitable such instrument. This study aimed to review the settings and purposes to which the DREEM has been applied and the approaches used to analyse and report it, with a view to guiding future users towards appropriate methodology. A systematic literature review was conducted using the Web of Knowledge databases of all articles reporting DREEM data between 1997 and 4 January 2011. The review found 40 publications, using data from 20 countries. DREEM is used in evaluation for diagnostic purposes, comparison between different groups and comparison with ideal/expected scores. A variety of non-parametric and parametric statistical methods have been applied, but their use is inconsistent. DREEM has been used internationally for different purposes and is regarded as a useful tool by users. However, reporting and analysis differs between publications. This lack of uniformity makes comparison between institutions difficult. Most users of DREEM are not statisticians and there is a need for informed guidelines on its reporting and statistical analysis.

Parameter Estimation for Thurstone Choice Models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vojnovic, Milan; Yun, Seyoung

We consider the estimation accuracy of individual strength parameters of a Thurstone choice model when each input observation consists of a choice of one item from a set of two or more items (so called top-1 lists). This model accommodates the well-known choice models such as the Luce choice model for comparison sets of two or more items and the Bradley-Terry model for pair comparisons. We provide a tight characterization of the mean squared error of the maximum likelihood parameter estimator. We also provide similar characterizations for parameter estimators defined by a rank-breaking method, which amounts to deducing one ormore » more pair comparisons from a comparison of two or more items, assuming independence of these pair comparisons, and maximizing a likelihood function derived under these assumptions. We also consider a related binary classification problem where each individual parameter takes value from a set of two possible values and the goal is to correctly classify all items within a prescribed classification error. The results of this paper shed light on how the parameter estimation accuracy depends on given Thurstone choice model and the structure of comparison sets. In particular, we found that for unbiased input comparison sets of a given cardinality, when in expectation each comparison set of given cardinality occurs the same number of times, for a broad class of Thurstone choice models, the mean squared error decreases with the cardinality of comparison sets, but only marginally according to a diminishing returns relation. On the other hand, we found that there exist Thurstone choice models for which the mean squared error of the maximum likelihood parameter estimator can decrease much faster with the cardinality of comparison sets. We report empirical evaluation of some claims and key parameters revealed by theory using both synthetic and real-world input data from some popular sport competitions and online labor platforms.« less

Effect of the association between citric acid and EDTA on root surface etching.

PubMed

Manzolli Leite, Fabio Renato; Nascimento, Gustavo Giacomelli; Manzolli Leite, Elza Regina; Leite, Amauri Antiquera; Cezar Sampaio, Josá Eduardo

2013-09-01

This study aims to compare the clot stabilization on root surfaces conditioned with citric acid and ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA). Scaled root samples (n = 100) were set in fve groups: group I-control group (saline solution); group II (24% EDTA); group III (25% citric acid); group IV (EDTA + citric acid); group V (citric acid + EDTA). Fifty samples were assessed using the root surface modifcation index (RSMI). The other 50 received a blood drop after conditioning. Clot formation was assessed using blood elements adhesion index (BEAI). A blind examiner evaluated photomicrographs. Statistical analysis considered p < 0.05. Groups-III and G-V attained the best results for RSMI and BEAI in comparison to control. The worst results for clot stabilization were seen in group-II. EDTA employment before citric acid (group-IV) reduced clot formation in comparison to citric acid use alone (group-III). Root conditioning with citric acid alone and before EDTA had the best results for smear layer removal and clot stabilization. EDTA inhibited clot stabilization on root surface and must have a residual activity once it has diminished clot adhesion to root even after citric acid conditioning. Thus, EDTA can be used to neutralize citric acid effects on periodontal cells without affecting clot stabilization. Clinical signifcance: To demonstrate that citric acid use on root surfaces previously affected by periodontal disease may favor clot stabilization and may have a benefcial effect on surgical outcomes. Also, EDTA can be used to neutralize citric acid effects on periodontal cells.

Is the flexible GnRH antagonist protocol better suited for fresh eSET cycles?

PubMed

Dahdouh, Elias M; Gomes, Francisco L A F; Granger, Louis; Carranza-Mamane, Belina; Faruqi, Faez; Kattygnarath, Tiao-Virirak; St-Michel, Pierre

2014-10-01

This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of the flexible GnRH antagonist protocol in comparison with the long GnRH agonist protocol in elective single embryo transfer (eSET) practice. It was conducted in a publicly funded in vitro fertilization program. We performed a prospective cohort analysis of data from a private infertility clinic from August 2010 to August 2011. Three hundred fourteen women with normal ovarian reserve and undergoing fresh eSET cycles were included. Sixty-four women underwent follicular stimulation using a flexible GnRH antagonist protocol, and 250 underwent stimulation with a standard long mid-luteal GnRH agonist protocol. Implantation rates (35.9% in the GnRH antagonist group and 29.6% in the GnRH agonist group, P = 0.5) and ongoing pregnancy rates (32.8% in the GnRH antagonist group and 28.8% in the GnRH agonist group, P = 0.5) were equivalent in both groups. The duration of stimulation (9.8 ± 2 days vs. 10.7 ± 1.8 days, P < 0.001) and total FSH dose required (2044 vs. 2775 IU, P < 0.001) were lower in the GnRH antagonist group than in the GnRH agonist group. The number of mature oocytes (6.0 vs. 10.0, P < 0. 001) and number of embryos (5.0 vs. 7.0, P < 0.001) were also lower in GnRH antagonist group. However, the number of embryos cryopreserved was similar in both groups (median 2.0, P = 0.3). In women undergoing in vitro fertilization, the flexible GnRH antagonist protocol yields implantation and ongoing pregnancy rates that are similar to the long GnRH agonist protocol, and requires lower doses of gonadotropins and a shorter duration of treatment. The flexible GnRH antagonist protocol appears to be the protocol of choice for an eSET IVF program.

[Selenium metabolism in patients with severe multiple trauma].

PubMed

Zaĭnudinov, Z M; Shabanov, A K; Zorin, S N; Kuzovlev, A N; Mal'tsev, G Iu; Azarov, Ia B; Vorozhko, I V; Grebenchikov, O A

2014-01-01

To define a relation between the selenium level and the risk of the development of nosocomial pneumonia in patients with severe multiple trauma depending on the trauma severity and the volume of blood loss. We measured serum selenium concentration in 40 patients with severe multiple trauma. The ISS score was used to estimate the trauma severity. Patients were divided into 2 groups: group I--25 patients without pneumonia, group II--15 patients with pneumonia. The volume of blood loss was estimated in each group. The oxidative stress was estimated by means of the antioxidant index. For selected groups the significant difference (P < 0.05) in the volume of blood loss was detected. It was shown the significant decrease of selenium concentration (P < 0.05) in both groups in comparison with control for all testing time points (the 6-12 hrs, 24 hrs, 3 and 5-7 days). The mean of selenium concentration in group II was significantly lower in comparison to the group I. A significant difference of selenium concentrations (P < 0.05) between groups were detected on the 6-12 hrs and day 3 from the trauma onset. The antioxidant index was significantly lower in the group II within the 6-12 hrs, 12-24 hrs and 5-7 days (P < 0.05) in comparison to group I. The severe multiple trauma and severe blood loss lead to a selenium deficiency in the blood serum starting with the first hours from the trauma onset, which leads to the critical level of selenium concentration by the Ist day's end after trauma. It also leads to a pronounced oxidative stress that is reflected in the antioxidant index dynamics. Thus serum selenium concentration may be included in the set of the early prognostic detectors to detect infectious pulmonary complications development at severe multiple trauma, and it could be the basis for the decision to take early prophylaxis using selenium medications.

A Comparison of EQ-5D-3L Index Scores Using Malaysian, Singaporean, Thai, and UK Value Sets in Indonesian Cervical Cancer Patients.

PubMed

Endarti, Dwi; Riewpaiboon, Arthorn; Thavorncharoensap, Montarat; Praditsitthikorn, Naiyana; Hutubessy, Raymond; Kristina, Susi Ari

2018-05-01

To gain insight into the most suitable foreign value set among Malaysian, Singaporean, Thai, and UK value sets for calculating the EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire index score (utility) among patients with cervical cancer in Indonesia. Data from 87 patients with cervical cancer recruited from a referral hospital in Yogyakarta province, Indonesia, from an earlier study of health-related quality of life were used in this study. The differences among the utility scores derived from the four value sets were determined using the Friedman test. Performance of the psychometric properties of the four value sets versus visual analogue scale (VAS) was assessed. Intraclass correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plots were used to test the agreement among the utility scores. Spearman ρ correlation coefficients were used to assess convergent validity between utility scores and patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. With respect to known-group validity, the Kruskal-Wallis test was used to examine the differences in utility according to the stages of cancer. There was significant difference among utility scores derived from the four value sets, among which the Malaysian value set yielded higher utility than the other three value sets. Utility obtained from the Malaysian value set had more agreements with VAS than the other value sets versus VAS (intraclass correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plot tests results). As for the validity, the four value sets showed equivalent psychometric properties as those that resulted from convergent and known-group validity tests. In the absence of an Indonesian value set, the Malaysian value set was more preferable to be used compared with the other value sets. Further studies on the development of an Indonesian value set need to be conducted. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Statistical Significance and Baseline Monitoring.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-07-01

impacted at once........................... 24 6 Observed versus nominal a levels for multivariate tests of data sets (50 runs of 4 groups each...cumulative proportion of the observations found for each nominal level. The results of the comparisons of the observed versus nominal a levels for the...a values are always higher than nominal levels. Virtual- . .,ly all nominal a levels are below 0.20. In other words, the discriminant analysis models

A Comparison of the Academic Achievement and Perceptions of Leadership Skills and Citizenship Traits of JROTC, Student Athletes, and Other Students in an Urban High School Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams-Bonds, Carmen

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare three groups: JROTC students, student athletes, and other students, to determine if there were differences in academic achievement. Gaining an understanding of the necessary skills required to become academically successful and make healthy life choices, could provide educators working within an urban…

Changes in structure, composition, and nutrients during 15 years of hurricane-induced succession in a subtropical wet forest in Puerto Rico

Treesearch

Tamara Heartsill Scalley; Frederick N. Scatena; Ariel E. Lugo; Samuel Moya; Carlos R. Estrada Ruiz

2010-01-01

The trajectory of hurricane-induced succession was evaluated in a network of forest plots measured immediately before and 3 mo, 5, 10, and 15 yr after the direct impact of a Category 4 hurricane. Comparisons of forest structure, composition, and aboveground nutrients pools were made through time, and between species, lifehistory groups and geomorphic settings. The...

A systematic review of titles and abstracts of experimental studies in medical education: many informative elements missing.

PubMed

Cook, David A; Beckman, Thomas J; Bordage, Georges

2007-11-01

Informative titles and abstracts facilitate reading and searching the literature. To evaluate the quality of titles and abstracts of full-length reports of experimental studies in medical education. We used a random sample of 110 articles (of 185 eligible articles) describing education experiments. Articles were published in 2003 and 2004 in Academic Medicine, Advances in Health Sciences Education, American Journal of Surgery, Journal of General Internal Medicine, Medical Education and Teaching and Learning in Medicine. Titles were categorised as informative, indicative, neither, or both. Abstracts were evaluated for the presence of a rationale, objective, descriptions of study design, setting, participants, study intervention and comparison group, main outcomes, results and conclusions. Of the 105 articles suitable for review, 86 (82%) had an indicative title and 10 (10%) had a title that was both indicative and informative. A rationale was present in 66 abstracts (63%), objectives were present in 84 (80%), descriptions of study design in 20 (19%), setting in 29 (28%), and number and stage of training of participants in 42 (40%). The study intervention was defined in 55 (52%) abstracts. Among the 48 studies with a control or comparison group, this group was defined in 21 abstracts (44%). Study outcomes were defined in 64 abstracts (61%). Data were presented in 48 (46%) abstracts. Conclusions were presented in 97 abstracts (92%). Reports of experimental studies in medical education frequently lack the essential elements of informative titles and abstracts. More informative reporting is needed.

Cognitive rehabilitation therapy after acquired brain injury in Argentina: psychosocial outcomes in connection with the time elapsed before treatment initiation.

PubMed

Saux, Gastón; Demey, Ignacio; Rojas, Galeno; Feldberg, Carolina

2014-01-01

To examine the effect of cognitive rehabilitation therapy (CRT) on psychosocial outcomes in Argentinean patients with acquired brain injury (ABI), in connection with the time elapsed between injury and treatment initiation. Self-reported data from patients in a naturalistic setting was collected before and after CRT. An outpatient sample of 75 Spanish-speaking patients with cognitive disturbances secondary to ABI (49 male/26 female, age: 50.2 ± 20.1 years; education 14.3 ± 3.2 years) completed a set of scales on their daily living activities, memory self-perception, quality-of-life and mood. Single and multi-group analyses were conducted, considering pre- and post- responses and the time elapsed between injury and treatment initiation. The influence of socio-demographic moderators was controlled during comparisons. Results suggest an improvement in several psychosocial indicators after treatment. Additionally, correlations and group comparisons showed greater improvement in subjective memory and quality-of-life self-reports in patients who began treatment earlier than those who began treatment after a longer time period. Overall, results suggest that CRT is associated with positive results in different areas of the psychosocial domain and that post-injury time can mediate this effect.

Evaluating the validity of multiple imputation for missing physiological data in the national trauma data bank.

PubMed

Moore, Lynne; Hanley, James A; Lavoie, André; Turgeon, Alexis

2009-05-01

The National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB) is plagued by the problem of missing physiological data. The Glasgow Coma Scale score, Respiratory Rate and Systolic Blood Pressure are an essential part of risk adjustment strategies for trauma system evaluation and clinical research. Missing data on these variables may compromise the feasibility and the validity of trauma group comparisons. To evaluate the validity of Multiple Imputation (MI) for completing missing physiological data in the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB), by assessing the impact of MI on 1) frequency distributions, 2) associations with mortality, and 3) risk adjustment. Analyses were based on 170,956 NTDB observations with complete physiological data (observed data set). Missing physiological data were artificially imposed on this data set and then imputed using MI (MI data set). To assess the impact of MI on risk adjustment, 100 pairs of hospitals were randomly selected with replacement and compared using adjusted Odds Ratios (OR) of mortality. OR generated by the observed data set were then compared to those generated by the MI data set. Frequency distributions and associations with mortality were preserved following MI. The median absolute difference between adjusted OR of mortality generated by the observed data set and by the MI data set was 3.6% (inter-quartile range: 2.4%-6.1%). This study suggests that, provided it is implemented with care, MI of missing physiological data in the NTDB leads to valid frequency distributions, preserves associations with mortality, and does not compromise risk adjustment in inter-hospital comparisons of mortality.

TreeQ-VISTA: An Interactive Tree Visualization Tool withFunctional Annotation Query Capabilities

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gu, Shengyin; Anderson, Iain; Kunin, Victor

2007-05-07

Summary: We describe a general multiplatform exploratorytool called TreeQ-Vista, designed for presenting functional annotationsin a phylogenetic context. Traits, such as phenotypic and genomicproperties, are interactively queried from a relational database with auser-friendly interface which provides a set of tools for users with orwithout SQL knowledge. The query results are projected onto aphylogenetic tree and can be displayed in multiple color groups. A richset of browsing, grouping and query tools are provided to facilitatetrait exploration, comparison and analysis.Availability: The program,detailed tutorial and examples are available online athttp://genome-test.lbl.gov/vista/TreeQVista.

Visual Reconciliation of Alternative Similarity Spaces in Climate Modeling.

PubMed

Poco, Jorge; Dasgupta, Aritra; Wei, Yaxing; Hargrove, William; Schwalm, Christopher R; Huntzinger, Deborah N; Cook, Robert; Bertini, Enrico; Silva, Claudio T

2014-12-01

Visual data analysis often requires grouping of data objects based on their similarity. In many application domains researchers use algorithms and techniques like clustering and multidimensional scaling to extract groupings from data. While extracting these groups using a single similarity criteria is relatively straightforward, comparing alternative criteria poses additional challenges. In this paper we define visual reconciliation as the problem of reconciling multiple alternative similarity spaces through visualization and interaction. We derive this problem from our work on model comparison in climate science where climate modelers are faced with the challenge of making sense of alternative ways to describe their models: one through the output they generate, another through the large set of properties that describe them. Ideally, they want to understand whether groups of models with similar spatio-temporal behaviors share similar sets of criteria or, conversely, whether similar criteria lead to similar behaviors. We propose a visual analytics solution based on linked views, that addresses this problem by allowing the user to dynamically create, modify and observe the interaction among groupings, thereby making the potential explanations apparent. We present case studies that demonstrate the usefulness of our technique in the area of climate science.

Voxel-wise motion artifacts in population-level whole-brain connectivity analysis of resting-state FMRI.

PubMed

Spisák, Tamás; Jakab, András; Kis, Sándor A; Opposits, Gábor; Aranyi, Csaba; Berényi, Ervin; Emri, Miklós

2014-01-01

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) based brain connectivity analysis maps the functional networks of the brain by estimating the degree of synchronous neuronal activity between brain regions. Recent studies have demonstrated that "resting-state" fMRI-based brain connectivity conclusions may be erroneous when motion artifacts have a differential effect on fMRI BOLD signals for between group comparisons. A potential explanation could be that in-scanner displacement, due to rotational components, is not spatially constant in the whole brain. However, this localized nature of motion artifacts is poorly understood and is rarely considered in brain connectivity studies. In this study, we initially demonstrate the local correspondence between head displacement and the changes in the resting-state fMRI BOLD signal. Than, we investigate how connectivity strength is affected by the population-level variation in the spatial pattern of regional displacement. We introduce Regional Displacement Interaction (RDI), a new covariate parameter set for second-level connectivity analysis and demonstrate its effectiveness in reducing motion related confounds in comparisons of groups with different voxel-vise displacement pattern and preprocessed using various nuisance regression methods. The effect of using RDI as second-level covariate is than demonstrated in autism-related group comparisons. The relationship between the proposed method and some of the prevailing subject-level nuisance regression techniques is evaluated. Our results show that, depending on experimental design, treating in-scanner head motion as a global confound may not be appropriate. The degree of displacement is highly variable among various brain regions, both within and between subjects. These regional differences bias correlation-based measures of brain connectivity. The inclusion of the proposed second-level covariate into the analysis successfully reduces artifactual motion-related group differences and preserves real neuronal differences, as demonstrated by the autism-related comparisons.

Effects of Flipped Learning Using Online Materials in a Surgical Nursing Practicum: A Pilot Stratified Group-Randomized Trial

PubMed Central

Lee, Myung Kyung

2018-01-01

Objectives This study examined the effect of flipped learning in comparison to traditional learning in a surgical nursing practicum. Methods The subjects of this study were 102 nursing students in their third year of university who were scheduled to complete a clinical nursing practicum in an operating room or surgical unit. Participants were randomly assigned to either a flipped learning group (n = 51) or a traditional learning group (n = 51) for the 1-week, 45-hour clinical nursing practicum. The flipped-learning group completed independent e-learning lessons on surgical nursing and received a brief orientation prior to the commencement of the practicum, while the traditional-learning group received a face-to-face orientation and on-site instruction. After the completion of the practicum, both groups completed a case study and a conference. The student's self-efficacy, self-leadership, and problem-solving skills in clinical practice were measured both before and after the one-week surgical nursing practicum. Results Participants' independent goal setting and evaluation of beliefs and assumptions for the subscales of self-leadership and problem-solving skills were compared for the flipped learning group and the traditional learning group. The results showed greater improvement on these indicators for the flipped learning group in comparison to the traditional learning group. Conclusions The flipped learning method might offer more effective e-learning opportunities in terms of self-leadership and problem-solving than the traditional learning method in surgical nursing practicums. PMID:29503755

Effects of Flipped Learning Using Online Materials in a Surgical Nursing Practicum: A Pilot Stratified Group-Randomized Trial.

PubMed

Lee, Myung Kyung; Park, Bu Kyung

2018-01-01

This study examined the effect of flipped learning in comparison to traditional learning in a surgical nursing practicum. The subjects of this study were 102 nursing students in their third year of university who were scheduled to complete a clinical nursing practicum in an operating room or surgical unit. Participants were randomly assigned to either a flipped learning group (n = 51) or a traditional learning group (n = 51) for the 1-week, 45-hour clinical nursing practicum. The flipped-learning group completed independent e-learning lessons on surgical nursing and received a brief orientation prior to the commencement of the practicum, while the traditional-learning group received a face-to-face orientation and on-site instruction. After the completion of the practicum, both groups completed a case study and a conference. The student's self-efficacy, self-leadership, and problem-solving skills in clinical practice were measured both before and after the one-week surgical nursing practicum. Participants' independent goal setting and evaluation of beliefs and assumptions for the subscales of self-leadership and problem-solving skills were compared for the flipped learning group and the traditional learning group. The results showed greater improvement on these indicators for the flipped learning group in comparison to the traditional learning group. The flipped learning method might offer more effective e-learning opportunities in terms of self-leadership and problem-solving than the traditional learning method in surgical nursing practicums.

Determining and broadening the definition of impact from implementing a rational priority setting approach in a healthcare organization.

PubMed

Cornelissen, Evelyn; Mitton, Craig; Davidson, Alan; Reid, Colin; Hole, Rachelle; Visockas, Anne-Marie; Smith, Neale

2014-08-01

Techniques to manage scarce healthcare resources continue to evolve in response to changing, growing and competing demands. Yet there is no standard definition in the priority setting literature of what might constitute the desired impact or success of resource management activities. In this 2006-09 study, using action research methodology, we determined the impact of implementing a formal priority setting model, Program Budgeting and Marginal Analysis (PBMA), in a Canadian health authority. Qualitative data were collected through post year-1 (n = 12) and year-2 (n = 9) participant interviews, meeting observation and document review. Interviews were analyzed using a constant comparison technique to identify major themes. Impact can be defined as effects at three levels: system, group, and individual. System-level impact can be seen in the actual selection of priorities and resource re-allocation. In this case, participants prioritized a list of $760,000 worth of investment proposals and $38,000 of disinvestment proposals; however, there was no clear evidence as to whether financial resources were reallocated as a result. Group and individual impacts, less frequently reported in the literature, included changes in priority setting knowledge, attitudes and practice. PBMA impacts at these three levels were found to be interrelated. This work argues in favor of attempts to expand the definition of priority setting success by including both desired system-level outcomes like resource re-allocation and individual or group level impacts like changes to priority setting knowledge, attitudes and practice. These latter impacts are worth pursuing as they appear to be intrinsic to successful system-wide priority setting. A broader definition of PBMA impact may also suggest conceptualizing PBMA as both a priority setting approach and as a tool to develop individual and group priority setting knowledge and practice. These results should be of interest to researchers and decision makers using or considering a formal priority setting approach to manage scarce healthcare resources. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multiplicative surrogate standard deviation: a group metric for the glycemic variability of individual hospitalized patients.

PubMed

Braithwaite, Susan S; Umpierrez, Guillermo E; Chase, J Geoffrey

2013-09-01

Group metrics are described to quantify blood glucose (BG) variability of hospitalized patients. The "multiplicative surrogate standard deviation" (MSSD) is the reverse-transformed group mean of the standard deviations (SDs) of the logarithmically transformed BG data set of each patient. The "geometric group mean" (GGM) is the reverse-transformed group mean of the means of the logarithmically transformed BG data set of each patient. Before reverse transformation is performed, the mean of means and mean of SDs each has its own SD, which becomes a multiplicative standard deviation (MSD) after reverse transformation. Statistical predictions and comparisons of parametric or nonparametric tests remain valid after reverse transformation. A subset of a previously published BG data set of 20 critically ill patients from the first 72 h of treatment under the SPRINT protocol was transformed logarithmically. After rank ordering according to the SD of the logarithmically transformed BG data of each patient, the cohort was divided into two equal groups, those having lower or higher variability. For the entire cohort, the GGM was 106 (÷/× 1.07) mg/dl, and MSSD was 1.24 (÷/× 1.07). For the subgroups having lower and higher variability, respectively, the GGM did not differ, 104 (÷/× 1.07) versus 109 (÷/× 1.07) mg/dl, but the MSSD differed, 1.17 (÷/× 1.03) versus 1.31 (÷/× 1.05), p = .00004. By using the MSSD with its MSD, groups can be characterized and compared according to glycemic variability of individual patient members. © 2013 Diabetes Technology Society.

Comparison of Children With and Without ADHD on a New Pictorial Self-Assessment of Executive Functions.

PubMed

Bar-Ilan, Ruthie Traub; Cohen, Noa; Maeir, Adina

We examined the Pictorial Interview of Children's Metacognition and Executive Functions' (PIC-ME's) reliability and validity, targeting children's appraisal of their executive function (EF) in daily life. One hundred children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and 44 typically developing children (ages 5-10 yr) completed the PIC-ME. Parents completed the PIC-ME and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). Cronbach's α for the child PIC-ME was .914. A high correlation was found between the parent PIC-ME total and the BRIEF (r = .724). Comparisons between groups revealed significant differences on the parent PIC-ME (p < .0001) but none on the child PIC-ME. Children with ADHD identified a median of eight EF challenges they wanted to set as treatment goals. Results support the PIC-ME's initial reliability and validity among children with ADHD. Children were able to identify several EF challenges and engage in goal setting. Copyright © 2018 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

Students' and trained nurses' perceptions of their own interpersonal skills: a report and comparison.

PubMed

Morrison, P; Burnard, P

1989-04-01

The theoretical framework known as Six Category Intervention Analysis is described. This framework has been used in the teaching of interpersonal skills in various settings but there appears to be little or no empirical work to test out the theory. In the present study, an instrument was devised for assessing student nurses' perceptions of their interpersonal skills based on the category analysis. The findings of the study are presented and a quantitative comparison is made with the results of an earlier study of trained nurses' perceptions. Marked similarities were noted between the two sets of findings. The key trend to emerge was that both groups of nurses tended to perceive themselves as being more authoritative and less facilitative in their interpersonal relationships, in terms of the category analysis. This trend and others are discussed and suggestions made for future directions in research and training in the field of interpersonal skills in nursing. Implications for the theory of six category intervention analysis are also discussed.

Racial and ethnic comparisons of nursing home residents at admission.

PubMed

Buchanan, Robert J; Rosenthal, Mark; Graber, David R; Wang, Suojin; Kim, Myung Suk

2008-10-01

To present racial/ethnic comparisons of comprehensive profiles of nursing home residents at admission, including whites, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians/Pacific Islanders, and American Indians/Alaska Natives. More than 885,000 admission assessments recorded in the national Minimum Data Set (MDS) were analyzed. Racial and ethnic analyses of the MDS admission assessments were conducted using the software package SAS. There were significant racial/ethnic differences in gender and age, with minority residents more likely to be male and younger. African American, Hispanic, and Asian/Pacific Islanders were significantly more likely than white residents to exhibit total dependence in the self-performance of the ADLs and to have greater cognitive impairments, with Asian/Pacific Islanders the most physically dependent and cognitively impaired. The results illustrate significant and substantive differences among the racial/ethnic groups for many demographic characteristics, as well as health-related indicators and conditions. This analysis suggests that the general perspective that economically disadvantaged minorities enter nursing homes in worse condition than whites is too simplistic. More research, particularly qualitative studies of specific minority groups, will advance our understanding of why members of some racial/ethnic groups require nursing home placement sooner than other groups.

Postoperative Pain after Endodontic Treatment of Asymptomatic Teeth Using Rotary Instruments: A Randomized Clinical Trial

PubMed Central

Shahi, Shahriar; Asghari, Vahideh; Rahimi, Saeed; Lotfi, Mehrdad; Samiei, Mohammad; Yavari, Hamidreza; Shakouie, Sahar; Nezafati, Saeed

2016-01-01

Introduction: The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of two different rotary instruments on postoperative pain in teeth with asymptomatic irreversible pulpitis. Methods and Materials: A total of 78 mandibular first and second molars were divided into two groups (n=39) and their root canal preparation was carried out with either RaCe or ProTaper rotary instruments. All the subjects underwent one-visit root canal treatment and the severity of postoperative pain was evaluated using visual analog scale (VAS) at 4-, 12-, 24-, 48- and 72-h and 1-week intervals. In addition, the need for taking analgesics was recorded. Data were analyzed with the repeated-measures ANOVA and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for two-by-two comparison. Statistical significance was set at 0.05. Results: Comparison of mean pain severity between the two groups at various postoperative intervals did not reveal any significant differences (P=0.10). The difference in amount of analgesics taken by each groups was not statistically significant (P=0.25). Conclusion: There were no significant differences in the postoperative pain reported between the two groups; which indicates the clinical acceptability of both systems. PMID:26843876

ArrayVigil: a methodology for statistical comparison of gene signatures using segregated-one-tailed (SOT) Wilcoxon's signed-rank test.

PubMed

Khan, Haseeb Ahmad

2005-01-28

Due to versatile diagnostic and prognostic fidelity molecular signatures or fingerprints are anticipated as the most powerful tools for cancer management in the near future. Notwithstanding the experimental advancements in microarray technology, methods for analyzing either whole arrays or gene signatures have not been firmly established. Recently, an algorithm, ArraySolver has been reported by Khan for two-group comparison of microarray gene expression data using two-tailed Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Most of the molecular signatures are composed of two sets of genes (hybrid signatures) wherein up-regulation of one set and down-regulation of the other set collectively define the purpose of a gene signature. Since the direction of a selected gene's expression (positive or negative) with respect to a particular disease condition is known, application of one-tailed statistics could be a more relevant choice. A novel method, ArrayVigil, is described for comparing hybrid signatures using segregated-one-tailed (SOT) Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the results compared with integrated-two-tailed (ITT) procedures (SPSS and ArraySolver). ArrayVigil resulted in lower P values than those obtained from ITT statistics while comparing real data from four signatures.

The impact of structured support groups for pregnant South African women recently diagnosed HIV positive.

PubMed

Mundell, Jonathan P; Visser, Maretha J; Makin, Jennifer D; Kershaw, Trace S; Forsyth, Brian W C; Jeffery, Bridget; Sikkema, Kathleen J

2011-08-31

The authors of this study evaluated a structured 10-session psychosocial support group intervention for newly HIV-diagnosed pregnant South African women. Participants were expected to display increases in HIV disclosure, self-esteem, active coping and positive social support, and decreases in depression, avoidant coping, and negative social support. Three hundred sixty-one pregnant HIV-infected women were recruited from four antenatal clinics in Tshwane townships from April 2005 to September 2006. Using a quasi-experimental design, assessments were conducted at baseline and two and eight months post-intervention. A series of random effects regression analyses were conducted, with the three assessment points treated as a random effect of time. At both follow-ups, the rate of disclosure in the intervention group was significantly higher than that of the comparison group (p<0.001). Compared to the comparison group at the first follow-up, the intervention group displayed higher levels of active coping (t=2.68, p<0.05) and lower levels of avoidant coping (t=-2.02, p<0.05), and those who attended at least half of the intervention sessions exhibited improved self-esteem (t=2.11, p<0.05). Group interventions tailored for newly HIV positive pregnant women, implemented in resource-limited settings, may accelerate the process of adjusting to one's HIV status, but may not have sustainable benefits over time.

Quantum therapy in correction of the lipidic metabolism at acute pancreatitis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anaskin, S. G.; Vlasov, A. P.; Spirina, M. A.; Vlasova, T. I.; Muratova, T. A.; Korniletsky, I. D.; Geraskin, V. S.

2017-01-01

Attempt to establish efficiency of laser therapy in correction of a lipid metabolism at patients with acute pancreatitis was the purpose of work. There were clinical laboratory researches of 48 patients with acute heavy pancreatitis. To the first clinical group (comparison) standard therapy was carried out. To patients of the second clinical group (main) in addition to basic therapy within 10 days daily sessions of laser therapy by the device "Matrix" were held later. Radiation with the wavelength of 635 nanometers, 2 MW was used. Percutaneous laser radiation of blood was carried out to projections of a cubital vein within 30 minutes daily. Inclusion of laser therapy in complex treatment of patients with pancreatitis led to more significant positive dynamics. Reduction of weight of endotoxemia in the main group is set that was verified by decrease in level of both hydrophilic, and hydrophobic toxins. The analysis of the data obtained as a result of research in the main group revealed decrease in concentration of products of free radical oxidation of lipids in comparison with group of comparison for 12,1 - 17,3% of % (p. <. 0,05). Laser radiation of blood as a part of complex treatment led to reliable inhibition of activity of enzymes of phospholipase system in blood plasma, in particular activity of a phospholipase of A2 fell for 13,2 - 34,4% (p <0,05). Thus, inclusion of laser therapy in structure of complex treatment of sharp pancreatitis allowed to reduce significantly expressiveness of endogenous intoxication, intensity of processes of free radical oxidation of membrane lipids and activity of phospholipase systems.

Implications of immortal person-time when outcomes are nonfatal.

PubMed

Liang, Caihua; Seeger, John D; Dore, David D

2016-03-01

The amount of immortal time bias in studies with nonfatal outcomes is unclear. To quantify the magnitude of bias from mishandling of immortal person-time in studies of nonfatal outcomes. We derived formulas for quantifying bias from misclassified or excluded immortal person-time in settings with nonfatal outcomes, assuming a constant rate of outcome. In the situation of misclassified or excluded immortal person-time, the quantification includes the immortal time and corresponding events mistakenly attributed to the exposed group (misclassified) or excluded from study (excluded) that must be attributed to the comparison group. With misclassified immortal person-time, the magnitude of bias varies according to the incidence rate ratio of immortal time and comparison group as well as the rate ratio of immortal time and exposed group: toward null for both ratios less than 1, no bias for both ratios equal to 1, away from null for both ratios greater than 1. For one ratio less than 1 and the other greater than 1, the direction and magnitude of bias can be obtained from the formula provided. With excluded immortal person-time, the magnitude of bias is associated with the incidence rate ratio of immortal time and comparison group: toward null for the ratio less than 1, no bias for the ratio equal to 1, and away from null for the ratio greater than 1. Bias due to immortal person-time in studies with nonfatal outcomes can vary widely and can be quantified under assumptions that apply to many studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Priority setting for orphan drugs: an international comparison.

PubMed

Rosenberg-Yunger, Zahava R S; Daar, Abdallah S; Thorsteinsdóttir, Halla; Martin, Douglas K

2011-04-01

To describe the process of priority setting for two orphan drugs - Cerezyme and Fabrazyme - in Canada, Australia and Israel, in order to understand and improve the process based on stakeholder perspectives. We conducted qualitative case studies of how three independent drug advisory committees made decisions relating to the funding of Cerezyme and Fabrazyme. Interviews were conducted with 22 informants, including committee members, patient groups and industry representatives. (1) DESCRIPTION: Orphan drugs reimbursement recommendations by expert panels were based on clinical evidence, cost and cost-effectiveness analysis. (2) EVALUATION: Committee members expressed an overall preference for the current drug review process used by their own committee, but were concerned with the fairness of the process particularly for orphan drugs. Other informants suggested the inclusion of other relevant values (e.g. lack of alternative treatments) in order to improve the priority setting process. Some patient groups suggested the use of an alternative funding mechanism for orphan drugs. Priority setting for drugs is not solely a technical process (involving cost-effective analysis, evidence-based medicine, etc.). Understanding the process by which reimbursement decisions are made for orphan drugs may help improve the system for future orphan drugs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genetic algorithm applied to the selection of factors in principal component-artificial neural networks: application to QSAR study of calcium channel antagonist activity of 1,4-dihydropyridines (nifedipine analogous).

PubMed

Hemmateenejad, Bahram; Akhond, Morteza; Miri, Ramin; Shamsipur, Mojtaba

2003-01-01

A QSAR algorithm, principal component-genetic algorithm-artificial neural network (PC-GA-ANN), has been applied to a set of newly synthesized calcium channel blockers, which are of special interest because of their role in cardiac diseases. A data set of 124 1,4-dihydropyridines bearing different ester substituents at the C-3 and C-5 positions of the dihydropyridine ring and nitroimidazolyl, phenylimidazolyl, and methylsulfonylimidazolyl groups at the C-4 position with known Ca(2+) channel binding affinities was employed in this study. Ten different sets of descriptors (837 descriptors) were calculated for each molecule. The principal component analysis was used to compress the descriptor groups into principal components. The most significant descriptors of each set were selected and used as input for the ANN. The genetic algorithm (GA) was used for the selection of the best set of extracted principal components. A feed forward artificial neural network with a back-propagation of error algorithm was used to process the nonlinear relationship between the selected principal components and biological activity of the dihydropyridines. A comparison between PC-GA-ANN and routine PC-ANN shows that the first model yields better prediction ability.

Efficiency and Safety: The Best Time to Valve a Plaster Cast.

PubMed

Steiner, Samuel R H; Gendi, Kirollos; Halanski, Matthew A; Noonan, Kenneth J

2018-04-18

The act of applying, univalving, and spreading a plaster cast to accommodate swelling is commonly performed; however, cast saws can cause thermal and/or abrasive injury to the patient. This study aims to identify the optimal time to valve a plaster cast so as to reduce the risk of cast-saw injury and increase spreading efficiency. Plaster casts were applied to life-sized pediatric models and were univalved at set-times of 5, 8, 12, or 25 minutes. Outcome measures included average and maximum force applied during univalving, blade-to-skin touches, cut time, force needed to spread, number of spread attempts, spread completeness, spread distance, saw blade temperature, and skin surface temperature. Casts allowed to set for ≥12 minutes had significantly fewer blade-to-skin touches compared with casts that set for <12 minutes (p < 0.001). For average and maximum saw blade force, no significant difference was observed between individual set-times. However, in a comparison of the shorter group (<12 minutes) and the longer group (≥12 minutes), the longer group had a higher average force (p = 0.009) but a lower maximum force (p = 0.036). The average temperature of the saw blade did not vary between groups. The maximum force needed to "pop," or spread, the cast was greater for the 5-minute and 8-minute set-times. Despite requiring more force to spread the cast, 0% of attempts at 5 minutes and 54% of attempts at 8 minutes were successful in completely spreading the cast, whereas 100% of attempts at 12 and 25 minutes were successful. The spread distance was greatest for the 12-minute set-time at 5.7 mm. Allowing casts to set for 12 minutes is associated with decreased blade-to-skin contact, less maximum force used with the saw blade, and a more effective spread. Adherence to the 12-minute interval could allow for fewer cast-saw injuries and more effective spreading.

Using Inequality Measures to Incorporate Environmental Justice into Regulatory Analyses

PubMed Central

Harper, Sam; Ruder, Eric; Roman, Henry A.; Geggel, Amelia; Nweke, Onyemaechi; Payne-Sturges, Devon; Levy, Jonathan I.

2013-01-01

Formally evaluating how specific policy measures influence environmental justice is challenging, especially in the context of regulatory analyses in which quantitative comparisons are the norm. However, there is a large literature on developing and applying quantitative measures of health inequality in other settings, and these measures may be applicable to environmental regulatory analyses. In this paper, we provide information to assist policy decision makers in determining the viability of using measures of health inequality in the context of environmental regulatory analyses. We conclude that quantification of the distribution of inequalities in health outcomes across social groups of concern, considering both within-group and between-group comparisons, would be consistent with both the structure of regulatory analysis and the core definition of environmental justice. Appropriate application of inequality indicators requires thorough characterization of the baseline distribution of exposures and risks, leveraging data generally available within regulatory analyses. Multiple inequality indicators may be applicable to regulatory analyses, and the choice among indicators should be based on explicit value judgments regarding the dimensions of environmental justice of greatest interest. PMID:23999551

Massage therapy research review

PubMed Central

Field, Tiffany

2017-01-01

In this review, massage therapy has been shown to have beneficial effects on varying conditions including prenatal depression, preterm infants, full-term infants, autism, skin conditions, pain syndromes including arthritis and fibromyalgia, hypertension, autoimmune conditions including asthma and multiple sclerosis, immune conditions including HIV and breast cancer and aging problems including Parkinson's and dementia. Although many of the studies have involved comparisons between massage therapy and standard treatment control groups, several have compared different forms of massage (e.g. Swedish versus Thai massage), and different active therapies such as massage versus exercise. Typically, the massage therapy groups have experienced more positive effects than the control or comparison groups. This may relate to the massage therapy providing more stimulation of pressure receptors, in turn enhancing vagal activity and reducing Cortisol levels. Some of the researchers have assessed physical, physiological and biochemical effects, although most have relied exclusively on self-report measures. Despite these methodological problems and the dearth of research from the U.S., the massage therapy profession has grown significantly and massage therapy is increasingly practiced in traditional medical settings, highlighting the need for more rigorous research. PMID:27502797

Massage therapy research review.

PubMed

Field, Tiffany

2016-08-01

In this review, massage therapy has been shown to have beneficial effects on varying conditions including prenatal depression, preterm infants, full-term infants, autism, skin conditions, pain syndromes including arthritis and fibromyalgia, hypertension, autoimmune conditions including asthma and multiple sclerosis, immune conditions including HIV and breast cancer and aging problems including Parkinson's and dementia. Although many of the studies have involved comparisons between massage therapy and standard treatment control groups, several have compared different forms of massage (e.g. Swedish versus Thai massage), and different active therapies such as massage versus exercise. Typically, the massage therapy groups have experienced more positive effects than the control or comparison groups. This may relate to the massage therapy providing more stimulation of pressure receptors, in turn enhancing vagal activity and reducing cortisol levels. Some of the researchers have assessed physical, physiological and biochemical effects, although most have relied exclusively on self-report measures. Despite these methodological problems and the dearth of research from the U.S., the massage therapy profession has grown significantly and massage therapy is increasingly practiced in traditional medical settings, highlighting the need for more rigorous research. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparison of friction produced by two types of orthodontic bracket protectors

PubMed Central

Mendonça, Steyner de Lima; Praxedes Neto, Otávio José; de Oliveira, Patricia Teixeira; dos Santos, Patricia Bittencourt Dutra; Pinheiro, Fábio Henrique de Sá Leitão

2014-01-01

Introduction Fixed orthodontic appliances have been regarded as a common causative factor of oral lesions. To manage soft tissue discomfort, most orthodontists recommend using a small amount of utility wax over the brackets in order to alleviate trauma. This in vitro study aimed at evaluating friction generated by two types of bracket protectors (customized acetate protector [CAP] and temporary resin protector [TRP]) during the initial stages of orthodontic treatment. Methods An experimental model (test unit) was used to assess friction. In order to measure the friction produced in each test, the model was attached to a mechanical testing machine which simulated maxillary canines alignment. Intergroup comparison was carried out by one-way ANOVA with level of significance set at 5%. Results The friction presented by the TRP group was statistically higher than that of the control group at 6 mm. It was also higher than in the control and CAP groups in terms of maximum friction. Conclusion The customized acetate protector (CAP) demonstrated not to interfere in friction between the wire and the orthodontic bracket slot. PMID:24713564

Comparison of friction produced by two types of orthodontic bracket protectors.

PubMed

de Lima Mendonça, Steyner; Praxedes Neto, Otávio José; de Oliveira, Patricia Teixeira; dos Santos, Patricia Bittencourt Dutra; de Sá Leitão Pinheiro, Fábio Henrique

2014-01-01

Fixed orthodontic appliances have been regarded as a common causative factor of oral lesions. To manage soft tissue discomfort, most orthodontists recommend using a small amount of utility wax over the brackets in order to alleviate trauma. This in vitro study aimed at evaluating friction generated by two types of bracket protectors (customized acetate protector [CAP] and temporary resin protector [TRP]) during the initial stages of orthodontic treatment. An experimental model (test unit) was used to assess friction. In order to measure the friction produced in each test, the model was attached to a mechanical testing machine which simulated maxillary canines alignment. Intergroup comparison was carried out by one-way ANOVA with level of significance set at 5%. The friction presented by the TRP group was statistically higher than that of the control group at 6 mm. It was also higher than in the control and CAP groups in terms of maximum friction. The customized acetate protector (CAP) demonstrated not to interfere in friction between the wire and the orthodontic bracket slot.

A method for estimating cost savings for population health management programs.

PubMed

Murphy, Shannon M E; McGready, John; Griswold, Michael E; Sylvia, Martha L

2013-04-01

To develop a quasi-experimental method for estimating Population Health Management (PHM) program savings that mitigates common sources of confounding, supports regular updates for continued program monitoring, and estimates model precision. Administrative, program, and claims records from January 2005 through June 2009. Data are aggregated by member and month. Study participants include chronically ill adult commercial health plan members. The intervention group consists of members currently enrolled in PHM, stratified by intensity level. Comparison groups include (1) members never enrolled, and (2) PHM participants not currently enrolled. Mixed model smoothing is employed to regress monthly medical costs on time (in months), a history of PHM enrollment, and monthly program enrollment by intensity level. Comparison group trends are used to estimate expected costs for intervention members. Savings are realized when PHM participants' costs are lower than expected. This method mitigates many of the limitations faced using traditional pre-post models for estimating PHM savings in an observational setting, supports replication for ongoing monitoring, and performs basic statistical inference. This method provides payers with a confident basis for making investment decisions. © Health Research and Educational Trust.

Objective comparison of particle tracking methods

PubMed Central

Chenouard, Nicolas; Smal, Ihor; de Chaumont, Fabrice; Maška, Martin; Sbalzarini, Ivo F.; Gong, Yuanhao; Cardinale, Janick; Carthel, Craig; Coraluppi, Stefano; Winter, Mark; Cohen, Andrew R.; Godinez, William J.; Rohr, Karl; Kalaidzidis, Yannis; Liang, Liang; Duncan, James; Shen, Hongying; Xu, Yingke; Magnusson, Klas E. G.; Jaldén, Joakim; Blau, Helen M.; Paul-Gilloteaux, Perrine; Roudot, Philippe; Kervrann, Charles; Waharte, François; Tinevez, Jean-Yves; Shorte, Spencer L.; Willemse, Joost; Celler, Katherine; van Wezel, Gilles P.; Dan, Han-Wei; Tsai, Yuh-Show; de Solórzano, Carlos Ortiz; Olivo-Marin, Jean-Christophe; Meijering, Erik

2014-01-01

Particle tracking is of key importance for quantitative analysis of intracellular dynamic processes from time-lapse microscopy image data. Since manually detecting and following large numbers of individual particles is not feasible, automated computational methods have been developed for these tasks by many groups. Aiming to perform an objective comparison of methods, we gathered the community and organized, for the first time, an open competition, in which participating teams applied their own methods independently to a commonly defined data set including diverse scenarios. Performance was assessed using commonly defined measures. Although no single method performed best across all scenarios, the results revealed clear differences between the various approaches, leading to important practical conclusions for users and developers. PMID:24441936

Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention in Workplace Settings and Social Services: A Comparison of Literature

PubMed Central

Schulte, Bernd; O’Donnell, Amy Jane; Kastner, Sinja; Schmidt, Christiane Sybille; Schäfer, Ingo; Reimer, Jens

2014-01-01

Background: The robust evidence base for the effectiveness of alcohol screening and brief interventions (ASBIs) in primary health care (PHC) suggests that a widespread expansion of ASBI in non-medical settings could be beneficial. Social service and criminal justice settings work frequently with persons with alcohol use disorders, and workplace settings can be an appropriate setting for the implementation of alcohol prevention programs, as a considerable part of their social interactions takes place in this context. Methods: Update of two systematic reviews on ASBI effectiveness in workplaces, social service, and criminal justice settings. Review to identify implementation barriers and facilitators and future research needs of ASBI in non-medical settings. Results: We found a limited number of randomized controlled trials in non-medical settings with an equivocal evidence of effectiveness of ASBI. In terms of barriers and facilitators to implementation, the heterogeneity of non-medical settings makes it challenging to draw overarching conclusions. In the workplace, employee concerns with regard to the consequences of self-disclosure appear to be key. For social services, the complexity of certain client needs suggest that a stepped and carefully tailored approach is likely to be required. Discussion: Compared to PHC, the reviewed settings are far more heterogeneous in terms of client groups, external conditions, and the focus on substance use disorders. Thus, future research should try to systematize these differences, and consider their implications for the deliverability, acceptance, and potential effectiveness of ASBI for different target groups, organizational frameworks, and professionals. PMID:25339914

Design and verification of a pangenome microarray oligonucleotide probe set for Dehalococcoides spp.

PubMed

Hug, Laura A; Salehi, Maryam; Nuin, Paulo; Tillier, Elisabeth R; Edwards, Elizabeth A

2011-08-01

Dehalococcoides spp. are an industrially relevant group of Chloroflexi bacteria capable of reductively dechlorinating contaminants in groundwater environments. Existing Dehalococcoides genomes revealed a high level of sequence identity within this group, including 98 to 100% 16S rRNA sequence identity between strains with diverse substrate specificities. Common molecular techniques for identification of microbial populations are often not applicable for distinguishing Dehalococcoides strains. Here we describe an oligonucleotide microarray probe set designed based on clustered Dehalococcoides genes from five different sources (strain DET195, CBDB1, BAV1, and VS genomes and the KB-1 metagenome). This "pangenome" probe set provides coverage of core Dehalococcoides genes as well as strain-specific genes while optimizing the potential for hybridization to closely related, previously unknown Dehalococcoides strains. The pangenome probe set was compared to probe sets designed independently for each of the five Dehalococcoides strains. The pangenome probe set demonstrated better predictability and higher detection of Dehalococcoides genes than strain-specific probe sets on nontarget strains with <99% average nucleotide identity. An in silico analysis of the expected probe hybridization against the recently released Dehalococcoides strain GT genome and additional KB-1 metagenome sequence data indicated that the pangenome probe set performs more robustly than the combined strain-specific probe sets in the detection of genes not included in the original design. The pangenome probe set represents a highly specific, universal tool for the detection and characterization of Dehalococcoides from contaminated sites. It has the potential to become a common platform for Dehalococcoides-focused research, allowing meaningful comparisons between microarray experiments regardless of the strain examined.

Implementing a Manualized, Classroom Transition Intervention for Students With ASD in Underresourced Schools.

PubMed

Iadarola, Suzannah; Shih, Wendy; Dean, Michelle; Blanch, Erica; Harwood, Robin; Hetherington, Susan; Mandell, David; Kasari, Connie; Smith, Tristram

2018-01-01

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in public education settings experience difficulties with transitions during classroom routines, which can result in challenging behavior. Single-subject research supports techniques for transitions, but school-based approaches often require resources and training unavailable in low-resource districts, limiting implementation. We developed and evaluated the Schedules, Tools, and Activities for Transitions (STAT) program, a short-term, manualized intervention of behavioral supports to support daily routine transitions for students with ASD (K-5) in underresourced districts. We utilized a multisite, cluster-randomized, group comparison design (immediate treatment versus waitlist) with matched pairs ( n = 150 students, 57 educators). Data indicated (a) no group differences for academic engagement or classroom independence, and (b) an advantage for STAT in reducing challenging behavior and increasing teacher fidelity. Results show preliminary support for an intervention that is feasible and perceived as sustainable in real-world settings.

Conflict resolution styles: a comparison of assisted living and nursing home facilities.

PubMed

Small, Jeff A; Montoro-Rodriguez, Julian

2006-01-01

In this exploratory study, the authors investigated how interpersonal conflict is resolved in assisted living and nursing home facilities. In particular, the authors examined whether conflict resolution styles differed between type of facility and between residents and staff in each type of facility. Four focus groups were conducted--two with residents and two with staff from each type of facility. The focus groups centered on discussing the occurrence of conflict and how each participant handled it. Discourse analysis was employed to identify participants' use of three styles of conflict resolution: controlling, solution-oriented, and non-confrontational. The results indicate that staff in each care context showed a preference for the solution-oriented approach. Residents in each setting reported equal use of the non-confrontational and solution-oriented styles. The findings suggest that preferred conflict resolution styles may vary more as a function of the role of each communicator than the context of the care setting.

A comparison of offenders with intellectual disability across three levels of security.

PubMed

Hogue, Todd; Steptoe, Lesley; Taylor, John L; Lindsay, William R; Mooney, Paul; Pinkney, Lisa; Johnston, Susan; Smith, Anne H W; O'Brien, Gregory

2006-01-01

A number of authors have described, with disparate results, the prevalence of people with intellectual disability and their characteristics, in a range of offender cohorts defined by service use. These have included high security, a range of criminal justice services and community services. There is a need for research comparing cohorts of offenders with intellectual disabilities across different settings. AIM AND HYPOTHESIS: To conduct such a comparison and test the hypothesis that severity of characteristics measured will be highest in highest levels of residential security. A clinical-record-based comparison a offenders with intellectual disability in high security (n = 73), medium/low security (n = 70), and a community service (n = 69). Groups were similar in age and tested IQ levels. Early psychiatric service contact had been more likely in the lower security groups. In line with the hypothesis, more complex presentations, in particular comorbid personality disorder, was more likely in the highest security group. Both fatal and non-fatal interpersonal violence convictions were significantly related to group, with more in the high security group sustaining a conviction both at the index offence and prior to that. Over 50% of all groups had at least one conviction for a sexual offence. A regression model accounting for 78% of the variance was made up largely of disposal variables (Mental Health Act status and probation) and indications of antisocial traits (criminal damage, lifetime conviction for murder and ICD-10 personality disorder classification). The authors show that context of sampling affects most relationships between intellectual disability (ID) and offending when the methods for measuring ID are held constant. The results also present several questions on the relationship between risk, services available in an area and referral to higher security.

Cigarette prices and community price comparisons in US military retail stores.

PubMed

Poston, Walker S C; Haddock, Christopher K; Jahnke, Sara A; Smith, Elizabeth; Malone, Ruth E; Jitnarin, Nattinee

2016-09-01

Tobacco pricing impacts use, yet military retailers sell discounted cigarettes. No systematic research has examined how military retail stores use internal community comparisons to set prices. We analysed data obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request on community price comparisons used by military retail to set cigarette prices. Data on cigarette prices were obtained directly from military retailers (exchanges) from January 2013 to March 2014. Complete pricing data were obtained from exchanges on 114 military installations. The average price for a pack of Marlboro cigarettes in military exchanges was US$5.51, which was similar to the average lowest community price (US$5.45; mean difference=-0.06; p=0.104) and almost a US$1.00 lower than the average highest price (US$6.44). Military retail prices were 2.1%, 6.2% and 13.7% higher than the lowest, average and highest community comparisons, respectively, and 18.2% of exchange prices violated pricing instructions. There was a negative correlation (r=-0.21, p=0.02) between the number of community stores surveyed and exchange cigarette prices. There was no significant difference between prices for cigarettes on military installations and the lowest average community comparison, and in some locations, the prices violated Department of Defense (DoD) policy. US Marine Corps exchanges had the lowest prices, which is of concern given that the Marines also have the highest rates of tobacco use in the DoD. Given the relationship between tobacco product prices and demand, a common minimum (or floor) shelf price for tobacco products should be set for all exchanges and discount coupon redemptions should be prohibited. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Comparison of real-world effectiveness between valsartan and non-RAS inhibitor monotherapy on the incidence of new diabetes in Chinese hypertensive patients: An electronic health recording system based study.

PubMed

Shen, Tian; Wang, Jiwei; Yu, Yingjun; Yu, Jinming

2018-05-21

This study aimed to compare the real-world effectiveness of valsartan and non renin-angiotensin system (non-RAS) agent monotherapy on the incidence of new on-set diabetes (NOD) in Chinese hypertensive patients. It was based on an electronic Health Recording System database from Minhang District of Shanghai. Hypertensive patients aged ≥18 years continuously taking either valsartan or non-RAS agent monotherapy for >12 months were included. Hazard ratios (HR) of NOD events were estimated using propensity score matching method and multivariate regression. Of 29295 patients, there were 2107 in valsartan group, 21397 in CCB group, 4094 in β-blockers group and 1697 in diuretics group. Two-year follow-up revealed NOD rates of 11.09 and 14.22 per 100 persons per year in valsartan and non-RAS inhibitor groups (HR = 0.77, 95% confidence interval 0.65-0.93, P = 0.006), respectively. Among non-RAS agents, CCB group had the highest incidence of NOD (21.72 per 100 persons per year). Comparisons between CCB sub-groups revealed the highest NOD incidence for nifedipine, followed by amlodipine and felodipine. NOD incidences in β-blockers and diuretics groups (11.70 and 10.50 per 100 persons per year, respectively) were not significantly different from valsartan group. Compared with non-RAS inhibitors, particularly CCBs, valsartan could significantly reduce the incidence of NOD.

A K-means multivariate approach for clustering independent components from magnetoencephalographic data.

PubMed

Spadone, Sara; de Pasquale, Francesco; Mantini, Dante; Della Penna, Stefania

2012-09-01

Independent component analysis (ICA) is typically applied on functional magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalographic and magnetoencephalographic (MEG) data due to its data-driven nature. In these applications, ICA needs to be extended from single to multi-session and multi-subject studies for interpreting and assigning a statistical significance at the group level. Here a novel strategy for analyzing MEG independent components (ICs) is presented, Multivariate Algorithm for Grouping MEG Independent Components K-means based (MAGMICK). The proposed approach is able to capture spatio-temporal dynamics of brain activity in MEG studies by running ICA at subject level and then clustering the ICs across sessions and subjects. Distinctive features of MAGMICK are: i) the implementation of an efficient set of "MEG fingerprints" designed to summarize properties of MEG ICs as they are built on spatial, temporal and spectral parameters; ii) the implementation of a modified version of the standard K-means procedure to improve its data-driven character. This algorithm groups the obtained ICs automatically estimating the number of clusters through an adaptive weighting of the parameters and a constraint on the ICs independence, i.e. components coming from the same session (at subject level) or subject (at group level) cannot be grouped together. The performances of MAGMICK are illustrated by analyzing two sets of MEG data obtained during a finger tapping task and median nerve stimulation. The results demonstrate that the method can extract consistent patterns of spatial topography and spectral properties across sessions and subjects that are in good agreement with the literature. In addition, these results are compared to those from a modified version of affinity propagation clustering method. The comparison, evaluated in terms of different clustering validity indices, shows that our methodology often outperforms the clustering algorithm. Eventually, these results are confirmed by a comparison with a MEG tailored version of the self-organizing group ICA, which is largely used for fMRI IC clustering. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Refining the chronostratigraphy of the Karoo Basin, South Africa: magnetostratigraphic constraints support an early Permian age for the Ecca Group

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Belica, Mercedes E.; Tohver, Eric; Poyatos-Moré, Miquel; Flint, Stephen; Parra-Avila, Luis A.; Lanci, Luca; Denyszyn, Steven; Pisarevsky, Sergei A.

2017-12-01

The Beaufort Group of the Karoo Basin, South Africa provides an important chrono- and biostratigraphic record of vertebrate turnovers that have been attributed to the end-Permian mass extinction events at ca. 252 and 260 Ma. However, an unresolved controversy exists over the age of the Beaufort Group due to a large data set of published U-Pb SHRIMP (Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe) zircon results that indicate a ca. 274-250 Ma age range for deposition of the underlying Ecca Group. This age range requires the application of a highly diachronous sedimentation model to the Karoo Basin stratigraphy and is not supported by published palaeontologic and palynologic data. This study tested the strength of these U-Pb isotopic data sets using a magnetostratigraphic approach. Here, we present a composite ∼1500 m section through a large part of the Ecca Group from the Tanqua depocentre, located in the southwestern segment of the Karoo Basin. After the removal of two normal polarity overprints, a likely primary magnetic signal was isolated at temperatures above 450 °C. This section is restricted to a reverse polarity, indicating that it formed during the Kiaman Reverse Superchron (ca. 318-265 Ma), a distinctive magnetostratigraphic marker for early-middle Permian rocks. The Ecca Group has a corresponding palaeomagnetic pole at 40.8°S, 77.4°E (A95 = 5.5°). U-Pb SHRIMP ages on zircons are presented here for comparison with prior isotopic studies of the Ecca Group. A weighted mean U-Pb age of 269.5 ± 1.2 Ma was determined from a volcanic ash bed located in the uppermost Tierberg Formation sampled from the O + R1 research core. The age is interpreted here as a minimum constraint due to a proposed Pb-loss event that has likely influenced a number of published results. A comparison with the Geomagnetic Polarity Time Scale as well as published U-Pb TIMS ages from the overlying Beaufort Group supports a ca. 290-265 Ma age for deposition of the Ecca Group.

Comparison between single-diode low-level laser therapy (LLLT) and LED multi-diode (cluster) therapy (LEDT) applications before high-intensity exercise.

PubMed

Leal Junior, Ernesto Cesar Pinto; Lopes-Martins, Rodrigo Alvaro Brandão; Baroni, Bruno Manfredini; De Marchi, Thiago; Rossi, Rafael Paolo; Grosselli, Douglas; Generosi, Rafael Abeche; de Godoi, Vanessa; Basso, Maira; Mancalossi, José Luis; Bjordal, Jan Magnus

2009-08-01

There is anecdotal evidence that low-level laser therapy (LLLT) may affect the development of muscular fatigue, minor muscle damage, and recovery after heavy exercises. Although manufacturers claim that cluster probes (LEDT) maybe more effective than single-diode lasers in clinical settings, there is a lack of head-to-head comparisons in controlled trials. This study was designed to compare the effect of single-diode LLLT and cluster LEDT before heavy exercise. This was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind cross-over study. Young male volleyball players (n = 8) were enrolled and asked to perform three Wingate cycle tests after 4 x 30 sec LLLT or LEDT pretreatment of the rectus femoris muscle with either (1) an active LEDT cluster-probe (660/850 nm, 10/30 mW), (2) a placebo cluster-probe with no output, and (3) a single-diode 810-nm 200-mW laser. The active LEDT group had significantly decreased post-exercise creatine kinase (CK) levels (-18.88 +/- 41.48 U/L), compared to the placebo cluster group (26.88 +/- 15.18 U/L) (p < 0.05) and the active single-diode laser group (43.38 +/- 32.90 U/L) (p < 0.01). None of the pre-exercise LLLT or LEDT protocols enhanced performance on the Wingate tests or reduced post-exercise blood lactate levels. However, a non-significant tendency toward lower post-exercise blood lactate levels in the treated groups should be explored further. In this experimental set-up, only the active LEDT probe decreased post-exercise CK levels after the Wingate cycle test. Neither performance nor blood lactate levels were significantly affected by this protocol of pre-exercise LEDT or LLLT.

'Sportmotorische Bestandesaufnahme': criterion- vs. norm-based reference values of fitness tests for Swiss first grade children.

PubMed

Tomatis, Laura; Krebs, Andreas; Siegenthaler, Jessica; Murer, Kurt; de Bruin, Eling D

2015-01-01

Health is closely linked to physical activity and fitness. It is therefore important to monitor fitness in children. Although many reports on physical tests have been published, data comparison between studies is an issue. This study reports Swiss first grade norm values of fitness tests and compares these with criterion reference data. A total of 10,565 boys (7.18 ± 0.42 years) and 10,204 girls (7.14 ± 0.41 years) were tested for standing long jump, plate tapping, 20-m shuttle run, lateral jump and 20-m sprint. Average values for six-, seven- and eight-year-olds were analysed and reference curves for age were constructed. Z-values were generated for comparisons with criterion references reported in the literature. Results were better for all disciplines in seven-year-old first grade children compared to six-year-old children (p < 0.01). Eight-year-old children did not perform better compared to seven-year-old children in the sprint run (p = 0.11), standing long jump (p > 0.99) and shuttle run (p = 0.43), whereas they were better in all other disciplines compared to their younger peers. The average performance of boys was better than girls except for tapping at the age of 8 (p = 0.06). Differences in performance due to testing protocol and setting must be considered when test values from a first grade setting are compared to criterion-based benchmarks. In a classroom setting, younger children tended to have better results and older children tended to have worse outcomes when compared to their age group criterion reference values. Norm reference data are valid allowing comparison with other data generated by similar test protocols applied in a classroom setting.

Internet-delivered treatment for older adults with anxiety and depression: implementation of the Wellbeing Plus Course in routine clinical care and comparison with research trial outcomes.

PubMed

Staples, Lauren G; Fogliati, Vincent J; Dear, Blake F; Nielssen, Olav; Titov, Nickolai

2016-09-01

The Wellbeing Plus Course is an internet-delivered psychological intervention for older adults with anxiety or depression. To compare the effectiveness of the Wellbeing Plus Course in a public health setting (clinic group) with its efficacy in a randomised controlled trial (research group). Participants ( n =949) were Australian adults aged 60 and above. Primary outcome measures were the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7). Initial symptom severity was higher in the clinic group and course completion was lower. Both groups showed significant symptom reductions at post-treatment and were satisfied with the treatment. Results were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Within-group symptom changes were comparable between settings; there were no between-group differences on primary outcomes or satisfaction. The Wellbeing Plus Course is as effective and acceptable in routine clinical care, as it is in controlled research trials. N.T. and B.F.D developed the Wellbeing Plus Course but derived no financial benefit from it. © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2016. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license.

Antecedents and Consequences of Supplier Performance Evaluation Efficacy

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-30

forming groups of high and low values. These tests are contingent on the reliable and valid measure of high and low rating inflation and high and...year)? Future research could deploy a SPM system as a test case on a limited set of transactions. Using a quasi-experimental design , comparisons...single source, common method bias must be of concern. Harmon’s one -factor test showed that when latent-indicator items were forced onto a single

A preliminary comparison of Cantonese and American-English as taste languages.

PubMed

O'Mahony, M; Tsang, T

1980-05-01

Groups of monolingual American-English speaking Americans of Chinese descent were compared with Cantonese/American-English bilingual Chinese living in America to examine their taste descriptions for a set of aqueous solutions. Cantonese, unlike other languages, did not appear to differ greatly from American-English in its general taste descriptive strategy and depth of vocabulary, although Cantonese speakers had a tendency to use 'glutamic' as a descriptive term for monosodium glutamate.

Teaching safety at a summer camp: evaluation of a fire safety curriculum in an urban community setting.

PubMed

Chavez, Audrie A; Duzinski, Sarah V; Wheeler, Tareka C; Lawson, Karla A

2014-09-01

To evaluate the effectiveness of the Danger Rangers Fire Safety Curriculum in increasing the fire safety knowledge of low-income, minority children in an urban community setting. Data was collected from child participants via teacher/researcher administered pre-, post-, and retention tests. A self-administered questionnaire was collected from parents pre- and post-intervention to assess fire/burn prevention practices. Paired t-tests were conducted to compare pre-, post-, and retention test mean scores by grade group. McNemar's test was used to determine if there was a change in parent-reported prevention practices following the intervention. The first/second grade group and the third grade group scored significantly higher on the post- and retention test as compared to the pre-test (p<0.0001 for all comparisons). There was no significant change in scores for the pre-k/k group after the intervention. There was a significant increase in 2 of 4 parent-reported fire/burn-related prevention practices after the intervention. Fire safety knowledge improved among first to third grade children, but not among pre-kinder and kindergarten children who participated in the intervention. This study also showed that a program targeted towards children and delivered in a classroom setting has the potential to influence familial prevention practices by proxy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

International comparison of sudden unexpected death in infancy rates using a newly proposed set of cause-of-death codes.

PubMed

Taylor, Barry J; Garstang, Joanna; Engelberts, Adele; Obonai, Toshimasa; Cote, Aurore; Freemantle, Jane; Vennemann, Mechtild; Healey, Matt; Sidebotham, Peter; Mitchell, Edwin A; Moon, Rachel Y

2015-11-01

Comparing rates of sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI) in different countries and over time is difficult, as these deaths are certified differently in different countries, and, even within the same jurisdiction, changes in this death certification process have occurred over time. To identify if International Classification of Diseases-10 (ICD-10) codes are being applied differently in different countries, and to develop a more robust tool for international comparison of these types of deaths. Usage of six ICD-10 codes, which code for the majority of SUDI, was compared for the years 2002-2010 in eight high-income countries. There was a great variability in how each country codes SUDI. For example, the proportion of SUDI coded as sudden infant death syndrome (R95) ranged from 32.6% in Japan to 72.5% in Germany. The proportion of deaths coded as accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed (W75) ranged from 1.1% in Germany to 31.7% in New Zealand. Japan was the only country to consistently use the R96 code, with 44.8% of SUDI attributed to that code. The lowest, overall, SUDI rate was seen in the Netherlands (0.19/1000 live births (LB)), and the highest in New Zealand (1.00/1000 LB). SUDI accounted for one-third to half of postneonatal mortality in 2002-2010 for all of the countries except for the Netherlands. The proposed set of ICD-10 codes encompasses the codes used in different countries for most SUDI cases. Use of these codes will allow for better international comparisons and tracking of trends over time. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

A DArT marker genetic map of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) integrated with detailed comparative mapping information; comparison with existing DArT marker genetic maps of Lolium perenne, L. multiflorum and Festuca pratensis.

PubMed

King, Julie; Thomas, Ann; James, Caron; King, Ian; Armstead, Ian

2013-07-03

Ryegrasses and fescues (genera, Lolium and Festuca) are species of forage and turf grasses which are used widely in agricultural and amenity situations. They are classified within the sub-family Pooideae and so are closely related to Brachypodium distachyon, wheat, barley, rye and oats. Recently, a DArT array has been developed which can be used in generating marker and mapping information for ryegrasses and fescues. This represents a potential common marker set for ryegrass and fescue researchers which can be linked through to comparative genomic information for the grasses. A F2 perennial ryegrass genetic map was developed consisting of 7 linkage groups defined by 1316 markers and deriving a total map length of 683 cM. The marker set included 866 DArT and 315 gene sequence-based markers. Comparison with previous DArT mapping studies in perennial and Italian ryegrass (L. multiflorum) identified 87 and 105 DArT markers in common, respectively, of which 94% and 87% mapped to homoeologous linkage groups. A similar comparison with meadow fescue (F. pratensis) identified only 28 DArT markers in common, of which c. 50% mapped to non-homoelogous linkage groups. In L. perenne, the genetic distance spanned by the DArT markers encompassed the majority of the regions that could be described in terms of comparative genomic relationships with rice, Brachypodium distachyon, and Sorghum bicolor. DArT markers are likely to be a useful common marker resource for ryegrasses and fescues, though the success in aligning different populations through the mapping of common markers will be influenced by degrees of population interrelatedness. The detailed mapping of DArT and gene-based markers in this study potentially allows comparative relationships to be derived in future mapping populations characterised using solely DArT markers.

Is self disturbance the core of borderline personality disorder? An outcome study of borderline personality factors.

PubMed

Meares, Russell; Gerull, Friederike; Stevenson, Janine; Korner, Anthony

2011-03-01

To determine which constellation of clinical features constitutes the core of borderline personality disorder (BPD). The criterion of endurance was used to identify the constellation of features which are most basic, or core, in borderline personality disorder. Two sets of constellations of DSM-III features were tested, each consisting of three groupings. The first set of constellations was constructed according to Clarkin's factor analysis; the second was theoretically derived. Broadly speaking, the three groupings concerned 'self', 'emotional regulation', and 'impulse'. Changes of these constellations were charted over one year in a comparison of the effect of treatment by the Conversational Model (n = 29) with treatment as usual (n = 31). In addition, measures of typical depression (Zung) were scored before and after the treatment period. The changes in the constellations were considered in relation to authoritative opinion. The changes in the two sets of constellations were similar. In the treatment as usual (TAU) group, 'self' endured unchanged, while 'emotional regulation' and 'impulse' improved. In the Conversational Model cohort, 'self' improved, 'emotional regulation' improved more greatly than the TAU group, while 'impulse' improved but not more than the treatment as usual group. Depression scores were not particularly associated with any grouping. A group of features including self/identity disturbance, emptiness and fear of abandonment may be at the core of BPD. Correlations between the three groupings and Zung scores favoured the view that the core affect is not typical depression. Rather, the central state may be 'painful incoherence'. It is suggested that the findings have implications for the refinement and elaboration of treatment methods in borderline personality disorder.

Increasing Lean Mass and Strength: A Comparison of High Frequency Strength Training to Lower Frequency Strength Training.

PubMed

Thomas, Michael H; Burns, Steve P

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect strength training frequency has on improvements in lean mass and strength. Participants were 7 women and 12 men, age ( χ̄ = 34.64 years ± 6.91 years), with strength training experience, training age ( χ̄ = 51.16 months ± 39.02 months). Participants were assigned to one of two groups to equal baseline group demographics. High frequency training group (HFT) trained each muscle group as the agonist, 3 times per week, exercising with 3 sets per muscle group per session (3 total body workouts). Low frequency training group (LFT) trained each muscle group as the agonist one time per week, completing all 9 sets during that one workout. LFT consisted of a routine split over three days: 1) pectoralis, deltoids, and triceps; 2) upper back and biceps; 3) quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, and abdominals. Following eight weeks of training, HFT increased lean mass by 1.06 kg ± 1.78 kg, (1.9%), and LFT increased lean mass by .99 kg ± 1.31 kg, (2.0%). HFT strength improvements on the chest press was 9.07 kg ± 6.33 kg, (11%), and hack squat 20.16 kg ± 11.59 kg, (21%). LFT strength improvements on chest press was 5.80kg ± 4.26 kg, (7.0%), and hack squat 21.83 kg ± 11.17 kg, (24 %). No mean differences between groups were significant. These results suggest that HFT and LFT of equal set totals result in similar improvements in lean mass and strength, following 8 weeks of strength training.

Urban Latino children's physical activity levels and performance in interactive dance video games: effects of goal difficulty and goal specificity.

PubMed

Gao, Zan; Podlog, Leslie

2012-10-01

To examine the effects of different levels of goal specificity and difficulty on Latino children's performance and physical activity (PA) levels in an after-school program incorporating an interactive dance program (Dance Dance Revolution [DDR]; Konami Corporation). Comparison study. Rose Park Elementary School, Salt Lake City, Utah. Ninety-eight Latino children in the first through sixth grades, aged 7 to 13 years. After the pretest, the participants were randomly assigned into 1 of the following 3 goal-setting conditions: (1) easy, (2) difficult, and (3) best effort (hereinafter referred to as do-your-best goal). Participants' PA levels were measured using piezoelectric pedometers, and steps per minute were used as the outcome variable. Participants' total points for their dance on television screens were retrieved as their performance scores. These outcome variables were assessed again 8 weeks later (posttest score). The multivariate analysis of covariance yielded a significant main effect for the goal-setting condition. Follow-up tests revealed that children who set specific (easy or difficult) goals had significantly greater increased PA levels (mean scores, 10.34 for easy and 22.45 for difficult) and DDR performance (0.011 for easy and 0.67 for difficult) than those in the do-your-best group (0.83 for PA and 0.17 for performance). In addition, children's increased PA levels in the difficult-goal group were significantly higher than those in the easy-goal group. The easy- and difficult-goal groups show a significant improvement on DDR performance. The difficult- goal group also displays the highest improvement on PA levels. Strategies to enhance children's DDR performance and PA levels are discussed in relation to the extant goal-setting literature.

Predictors of child pornography offenses and child sexual abuse in a community sample of pedophiles and hebephiles.

PubMed

Neutze, Janina; Seto, Michael C; Schaefer, Gerard A; Mundt, Ingrid A; Beier, Klaus M

2011-06-01

Little is known about factors that distinguish men who act upon their self-identified sexual interest in prepubescent or pubescent children from those who do not. Even less is known about pedophiles or hebephiles who are not involved with the criminal justice system. In this study, a sample of 155 self-referred pedophiles and hebephiles was recruited from the community. All participants met DSM-IV-TR criteria for pedophilia (or paraphilia not otherwise specified for those who were sexually attracted to pubescent children). Two sets of group comparisons were conducted on sociodemographic variables and measures of dynamic risk factors. The first set was based on recent activity and compared men who had committed child pornography only or child sexual abuse offenses in the past six months with men who remained offense-free during the same period. The second set was based on lifetime offense history (excluding the most recent six months) and compared child pornography offenders with child sexual abuse offenders and men who had committed both kinds of offenses. Overall, there were more similarities than differences between groups.

In vitro study of the variable square pulse Er:YAG laser cutting efficacy for apicectomy.

PubMed

Grgurević, Josko; Grgurević, Lovro; Miletić, Ivana; Karlović, Zoran; Krmek, Silvana Jukić; Anić, Ivica

2005-06-01

Variable square pulse (VSP) Er:YAG laser should be quicker than older Er:YAG lasers. The objectives were: (1) comparison of VSP laser and mechanical handpiece efficacy for apicectomy and (2) determination of optimal pulse width/energy/frequency combination. Sixty extracted, single-rooted mature human teeth with round apical parts were instrumented, root filled, cleaned, and divided into four groups. Apical 2 mm of each root were apicectomized with mechanical handpiece and Er:YAG laser with three different settings (LaserA = 200 mJ/300 microseconds/ 8 Hz; LaserB = 200 mJ/100 microseconds/8 Hz; LaserC = 380 mJ/100 microseconds/20 Hz). Timing results were statistically compared. LaserC was the most efficient setting. Differences between groups were significant except between LaserC-Mechanical and LaserA-LaserC (P < 0.05). VSP Er:YAG laser used for apicectomy is slower by a factor of 7-31 than mechanical handpiece, but treatment outcome is acceptable. Optimal settings for apicectomy with VSP laser are 380 mJ/100 microseconds/20 Hz. Copyright 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Academic achievement over 8 years among children who met modified criteria for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder at 4-6 years of age.

PubMed

Massetti, Greta M; Lahey, Benjamin B; Pelham, William E; Loney, Jan; Ehrhardt, Ashley; Lee, Steve S; Kipp, Heidi

2008-04-01

The predictive validity of symptom criteria for different subtypes of ADHD among children who were impaired in at least one setting in early childhood was examined. Academic achievement was assessed seven times over 8 years in 125 children who met symptom criteria for ADHD at 4-6 years of age and in 130 demographically-matched non-referred comparison children. When intelligence and other confounds were controlled, children who met modified criteria for the predominantly inattentive subtype of ADHD in wave 1 had lower reading, spelling, and mathematics scores over time than both comparison children and children who met modified criteria for the other subtypes of ADHD. In some analyses, children who met modified criteria for the combined type had somewhat lower mathematics scores than comparison children. The robust academic deficits relative to intelligence in the inattentive group in this age range suggest either that inattention results in academic underachievement or that some children in the inattentive group have learning disabilities that cause secondary symptoms of inattention. Unexpectedly, wave 1 internalizing (anxiety and depression) symptoms independently predicted deficits in academic achievement controlling ADHD, intelligence, and other predictors.

Physical and Psychologic Effects of Aromatherapy Inhalation on Pregnant Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Abstract Objectives Stress reduction care is important for pregnant women to decrease obstetric complications and children's health problems after birth. The aim of this study is to clarify the physical and psychologic effects of inhalation aromatherapy on pregnant women. Essential oils with high linalool and linalyl acetate content that may be used during pregnancy were selected and among these, and the one preferred by the participant was used. Design This was a prospective, randomized, controlled trial. Settings/location This trial was performed at a gynecology outpatient department in a hospital in Kyoto, Japan. Participants The study included pregnant women in week 28 of a single pregnancy with a normal course. Interventions Participants were randomly assigned into an aromatherapy group and a control group. They were seated in the resting, seated position for 10 minutes. During the latter 5 minutes of each 10-minute session, aromatherapy inhalation was performed for the aromatherapy group. Outcome measures Before and after the intervention, the Profile of Mood States (POMS) was measured. During the trial, the heart-rate fluctuations were measured for the autonomic nervous system regulation. Results A total of 13 pregnant women participated in the trial. Seven (7) participants were assigned to the aromatherapy group and 6 participants to the control group. The results of the POMS were such that based on an intragroup comparison, significant differences were observed in the Tension-Anxiety score (p<0.05) and the Anger-Hostility score (p<0.05), and the respective improvements observed were due to aromatherapy. The results of the autonomic nervous system regulation were such that based on an intragroup comparison within the aromatherapy group, the parasympathetic nerve activity increased significantly (p<0.05). Conclusions Aromatherapy inhalation using essential oils containing linalyl acetate and linalool was found to be effective for the POMS and parasympathetic nerve activity, based on an intragroup comparison. However, based on a comparison between the groups, no substantial difference was observed; hence, further study is necessary in the future. PMID:23410527

The development of a systemic school-based intervention: Marte Meo and coordination meetings.

PubMed

Axberg, Ulf; Hansson, Kjell; Broberg, Anders G; Wirtberg, Ingegerd

2006-09-01

Antisocial behavior is often persistent, and in addition to causing suffering to children and their families, it also poses considerable costs for society. Children who display externalizing behavior in their early years run a high risk of having severe problems later in life. There is a need for treatment methods that may be used in various settings because these children constitute a group that is hard to reach with conventional treatment methods. In addition, the dropout rate from ordinary treatment is often high. In the present study, a systemic school-based model for early detection and intervention among 4-12-year-old children who displayed externalizing behavior problems was developed and examined in a nonrandomized study in the county of Skaraborg in Sweden. The intervention was collaborative and included a combination of the Marte Meo model and coordination meetings based on systemic theory and practice. Treatment effects in the group who had received the intervention were compared with a group who had received treatment as usual in their ordinary school setting. Assessments were carried out before, and 2 years after, the intervention. For the intervention group (N = 33), there was a significant decrease in the children's reported symptoms in school and in the home. No decrease in externalizing behavior was found in the comparison group (N = 16). There were no dropouts in the intervention group after the intervention had begun. The results are promising; the study demonstrates that it is possible to work effectively with many children who display externalizing behavior problems in a nonclinical setting.

Comparison of the effects of virtual reality-based balance exercises and conventional exercises on balance and fall risk in older adults living in nursing homes in Turkey.

PubMed

Yeşilyaprak, Sevgi Sevi; Yıldırım, Meriç Şenduran; Tomruk, Murat; Ertekin, Özge; Algun, Z Candan

2016-01-01

There is limited information on effective balance training techniques including virtual reality (VR)-based balance exercises in residential settings and no studies have been designed to compare the effects of VR-based balance exercises with conventional balance exercises in older adults living in nursing homes in Turkey. The objective of our study was to investigate the effects of VR-based balance exercises on balance and fall risk in comparison to conventional balance exercises in older adults living in nursing homes. A total sample of 18 subjects (65-82 years of age) with fall history who were randomly assigned to either the VR group (Group 1, n = 7) or the conventional exercise group (Group 2, n = 11) completed the exercise training. In both groups, Berg balance score (BBS), timed up & go duration, and left leg stance and tandem stance duration with eyes closed significantly improved with time (p < 0.05), but changes were similar in both groups (p > 0.05) after training, indicating that neither the exercise method was superior. Similar improvements were found in balance and fall risk with VR-based balance training and conventional balance training in older adults living in the nursing home. Both exercise trainings can be preferable by health care professionals considering fall prevention. Appropriate patient selection is essential.

In Vitro Cytotoxicity and Setting Time Assessment of Calcium-Enriched Mixture Cement, Retro Mineral Trioxide Aggregate and Mineral Trioxide Aggregate

PubMed Central

Pornamazeh, Tahereh; Yadegari, Zahra; Ghasemi, Amir; Sheykh-al-Eslamian, Seyedeh Mahsa; Shojaeian, Shiva

2017-01-01

Introduction: The present study sought to evaluate and compare biocompatibility and setting time of Retro mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA), calcium-enriched mixture (CEM) and Angelus MTA. Methods and Materials: CEM cement, Angelus MTA and Retro MTA were assessed in set and fresh states. Extracts transformed to each cavity of three 24-well plates in which 1×104 cell were seeded into each well 24 h earlier. All specimens were incubated in a humidified incubator with 5% CO2 at 37°C. Mosmann’s tetrazolium toxicity (MTT) assay was used to determine in vitro cytotoxicity on L929 mouse fibroblast cell line. Cell viability was determined at 1, 24, and 72 h after exposure. The initial setting time was measured by 113.4 g Gilmore needle testing. Then, final setting times were assessed by the 456.5 g Gilmore needle. Data comparisons were performed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's post hoc test (α=0.05). Results: All groups in both forms indicated higher cell vitality compared to positive control group (P<0.001). After 24 h, the set Retro MTA showed better biocompatibility compared to set CEM and set Angelus MTA (P<0.001). Retro MTA showed significantly lower initial and final setting time compared to CEM and Angelus MTA (P<0.001). Conclusion: Our results indicated the good cell viability values of Retro MTA and relatively short period of setting time. It seems a promising alternative material in clinical situations where accelerated setting is required. However, more clinical and in vivo investigations are needed for a clear decision making. PMID:29225646

CONSIDER - Core Outcome Set in IAD Research: study protocol for establishing a core set of outcomes and measurements in incontinence-associated dermatitis research.

PubMed

Van den Bussche, Karen; De Meyer, Dorien; Van Damme, Nele; Kottner, Jan; Beeckman, Dimitri

2017-10-01

This study protocol describes the methodology for the development of a core set of outcomes and a core set of measurements for incontinence-associated dermatitis. Incontinence is a widespread disorder with an important impact on quality of life. One of the most common complications is incontinence-associated dermatitis, resulting from chemical and physical irritation of the skin barrier, triggering inflammation and skin damage. Managing incontinence-associated dermatitis is an important challenge for nurses. Several interventions have been assessed in clinical trials, but heterogeneity in study outcomes complicates the comparability and standardization. To overcome this challenge, the development of a core outcome set, a minimum set of outcomes and measurements to be assessed in clinical research, is needed. A project team, International Steering Committee and panelists will be involved to guide the development of the core outcome set. The framework of the Harmonizing Outcomes Measures for Eczema roadmap endorsed by Cochrane Skin Group Core Outcomes Set Initiative, is used to inform the project design. A systematic literature review, interviews to integrate the patients' perspective and a consensus study with healthcare researchers and providers using the Delphi procedure will be performed. The project was approved by the Ethics review Committee (April 2016). This is the first project that will identify a core outcome set of outcomes and measurements for incontinence-associated dermatitis research. A core outcome set will reduce possible reporting bias, allow results comparisons and statistical pooling across trials and strengthen evidence-based practice and decision-making. This project has been registered in the Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials (COMET) database and is part of the Cochrane Skin Group Core Outcomes Set Initiative (CSG-COUSIN). © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

SALAD database: a motif-based database of protein annotations for plant comparative genomics

PubMed Central

Mihara, Motohiro; Itoh, Takeshi; Izawa, Takeshi

2010-01-01

Proteins often have several motifs with distinct evolutionary histories. Proteins with similar motifs have similar biochemical properties and thus related biological functions. We constructed a unique comparative genomics database termed the SALAD database (http://salad.dna.affrc.go.jp/salad/) from plant-genome-based proteome data sets. We extracted evolutionarily conserved motifs by MEME software from 209 529 protein-sequence annotation groups selected by BLASTP from the proteome data sets of 10 species: rice, sorghum, Arabidopsis thaliana, grape, a lycophyte, a moss, 3 algae, and yeast. Similarity clustering of each protein group was performed by pairwise scoring of the motif patterns of the sequences. The SALAD database provides a user-friendly graphical viewer that displays a motif pattern diagram linked to the resulting bootstrapped dendrogram for each protein group. Amino-acid-sequence-based and nucleotide-sequence-based phylogenetic trees for motif combination alignment, a logo comparison diagram for each clade in the tree, and a Pfam-domain pattern diagram are also available. We also developed a viewer named ‘SALAD on ARRAYs’ to view arbitrary microarray data sets of paralogous genes linked to the same dendrogram in a window. The SALAD database is a powerful tool for comparing protein sequences and can provide valuable hints for biological analysis. PMID:19854933

SALAD database: a motif-based database of protein annotations for plant comparative genomics.

PubMed

Mihara, Motohiro; Itoh, Takeshi; Izawa, Takeshi

2010-01-01

Proteins often have several motifs with distinct evolutionary histories. Proteins with similar motifs have similar biochemical properties and thus related biological functions. We constructed a unique comparative genomics database termed the SALAD database (http://salad.dna.affrc.go.jp/salad/) from plant-genome-based proteome data sets. We extracted evolutionarily conserved motifs by MEME software from 209,529 protein-sequence annotation groups selected by BLASTP from the proteome data sets of 10 species: rice, sorghum, Arabidopsis thaliana, grape, a lycophyte, a moss, 3 algae, and yeast. Similarity clustering of each protein group was performed by pairwise scoring of the motif patterns of the sequences. The SALAD database provides a user-friendly graphical viewer that displays a motif pattern diagram linked to the resulting bootstrapped dendrogram for each protein group. Amino-acid-sequence-based and nucleotide-sequence-based phylogenetic trees for motif combination alignment, a logo comparison diagram for each clade in the tree, and a Pfam-domain pattern diagram are also available. We also developed a viewer named 'SALAD on ARRAYs' to view arbitrary microarray data sets of paralogous genes linked to the same dendrogram in a window. The SALAD database is a powerful tool for comparing protein sequences and can provide valuable hints for biological analysis.

Comparison of mine waste assessment methods at the Rattler mine site, Virginia Canyon, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hageman, Phil L.; Smith, Kathleen S.; Wildeman, Thomas R.; Ranville, James F.

2005-01-01

In a joint project, the mine waste-piles at the Rattler Mine near Idaho Springs, Colorado, were sampled and analyzed by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Colorado School of Mines (CSM). Separate sample collection, sample leaching, and leachate analyses were performed by both groups and the results were compared. For the study, both groups used the USGS sampling procedure and the USGS Field Leach Test (FLT). The leachates generated from these tests were analyzed for a suite of elements using ICP-AES (CSM) and ICP-MS (USGS). Leachate geochemical fingerprints produced by the two groups for composites collected from the same mine waste showed good agreement. In another set of tests, CSM collected another set of Rattler mine waste composite samples using the USGS sampling procedure. This set of composite samples was leached using the Colorado Division of Minerals and Geology (CDMG) leach test, and a modified Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) leach test. Leachate geochemical fingerprints produced using these tests showed a variation of more than a factor of two from the geochemical fingerprints produced using the USGS FLT leach test. We have concluded that the variation in the results is due to the different parameters of the leaching tests and not due to the sampling or analytical methods.

Data mining and computationally intensive methods: summary of Group 7 contributions to Genetic Analysis Workshop 13.

PubMed

Costello, Tracy J; Falk, Catherine T; Ye, Kenny Q

2003-01-01

The Framingham Heart Study data, as well as a related simulated data set, were generously provided to the participants of the Genetic Analysis Workshop 13 in order that newly developed and emerging statistical methodologies could be tested on that well-characterized data set. The impetus driving the development of novel methods is to elucidate the contributions of genes, environment, and interactions between and among them, as well as to allow comparison between and validation of methods. The seven papers that comprise this group used data-mining methodologies (tree-based methods, neural networks, discriminant analysis, and Bayesian variable selection) in an attempt to identify the underlying genetics of cardiovascular disease and related traits in the presence of environmental and genetic covariates. Data-mining strategies are gaining popularity because they are extremely flexible and may have greater efficiency and potential in identifying the factors involved in complex disorders. While the methods grouped together here constitute a diverse collection, some papers asked similar questions with very different methods, while others used the same underlying methodology to ask very different questions. This paper briefly describes the data-mining methodologies applied to the Genetic Analysis Workshop 13 data sets and the results of those investigations. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Microfocus diffraction from different regions of a protein crystal: structural variations and unit-cell polymorphism

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thompson, Michael C.; Cascio, Duilio; Yeates, Todd O.

Real macromolecular crystals can be non-ideal in a myriad of ways. This often creates challenges for structure determination, while also offering opportunities for greater insight into the crystalline state and the dynamic behavior of macromolecules. To evaluate whether different parts of a single crystal of a dynamic protein, EutL, might be informative about crystal and protein polymorphism, a microfocus X-ray synchrotron beam was used to collect a series of 18 separate data sets from non-overlapping regions of the same crystal specimen. A principal component analysis (PCA) approach was employed to compare the structure factors and unit cells across the datamore » sets, and it was found that the 18 data sets separated into two distinct groups, with largeRvalues (in the 40% range) and significant unit-cell variations between the members of the two groups. This categorization mapped the different data-set types to distinct regions of the crystal specimen. Atomic models of EutL were then refined against two different data sets obtained by separately merging data from the two distinct groups. A comparison of the two resulting models revealed minor but discernable differences in certain segments of the protein structure, and regions of higher deviation were found to correlate with regions where larger dynamic motions were predicted to occur by normal-mode molecular-dynamics simulations. The findings emphasize that large spatially dependent variations may be present across individual macromolecular crystals. This information can be uncovered by simultaneous analysis of multiple partial data sets and can be exploited to reveal new insights about protein dynamics, while also improving the accuracy of the structure-factor data ultimately obtained in X-ray diffraction experiments.« less

Definitive Characterization of CA 19-9 in Resectable Pancreatic Cancer Using a Reference Set of Serum and Plasma Specimens.

PubMed

Haab, Brian B; Huang, Ying; Balasenthil, Seetharaman; Partyka, Katie; Tang, Huiyuan; Anderson, Michelle; Allen, Peter; Sasson, Aaron; Zeh, Herbert; Kaul, Karen; Kletter, Doron; Ge, Shaokui; Bern, Marshall; Kwon, Richard; Blasutig, Ivan; Srivastava, Sudhir; Frazier, Marsha L; Sen, Subrata; Hollingsworth, Michael A; Rinaudo, Jo Ann; Killary, Ann M; Brand, Randall E

2015-01-01

The validation of candidate biomarkers often is hampered by the lack of a reliable means of assessing and comparing performance. We present here a reference set of serum and plasma samples to facilitate the validation of biomarkers for resectable pancreatic cancer. The reference set includes a large cohort of stage I-II pancreatic cancer patients, recruited from 5 different institutions, and relevant control groups. We characterized the performance of the current best serological biomarker for pancreatic cancer, CA 19-9, using plasma samples from the reference set to provide a benchmark for future biomarker studies and to further our knowledge of CA 19-9 in early-stage pancreatic cancer and the control groups. CA 19-9 distinguished pancreatic cancers from the healthy and chronic pancreatitis groups with an average sensitivity and specificity of 70-74%, similar to previous studies using all stages of pancreatic cancer. Chronic pancreatitis patients did not show CA 19-9 elevations, but patients with benign biliary obstruction had elevations nearly as high as the cancer patients. We gained additional information about the biomarker by comparing two distinct assays. The two CA 9-9 assays agreed well in overall performance but diverged in measurements of individual samples, potentially due to subtle differences in antibody specificity as revealed by glycan array analysis. Thus, the reference set promises be a valuable resource for biomarker validation and comparison, and the CA 19-9 data presented here will be useful for benchmarking and for exploring relationships to CA 19-9.

Definitive Characterization of CA 19-9 in Resectable Pancreatic Cancer Using a Reference Set of Serum and Plasma Specimens

PubMed Central

Haab, Brian B.; Huang, Ying; Balasenthil, Seetharaman; Partyka, Katie; Tang, Huiyuan; Anderson, Michelle; Allen, Peter; Sasson, Aaron; Zeh, Herbert; Kaul, Karen; Kletter, Doron; Ge, Shaokui; Bern, Marshall; Kwon, Richard; Blasutig, Ivan; Srivastava, Sudhir; Frazier, Marsha L.; Sen, Subrata; Hollingsworth, Michael A.; Rinaudo, Jo Ann; Killary, Ann M.; Brand, Randall E.

2015-01-01

The validation of candidate biomarkers often is hampered by the lack of a reliable means of assessing and comparing performance. We present here a reference set of serum and plasma samples to facilitate the validation of biomarkers for resectable pancreatic cancer. The reference set includes a large cohort of stage I-II pancreatic cancer patients, recruited from 5 different institutions, and relevant control groups. We characterized the performance of the current best serological biomarker for pancreatic cancer, CA 19–9, using plasma samples from the reference set to provide a benchmark for future biomarker studies and to further our knowledge of CA 19–9 in early-stage pancreatic cancer and the control groups. CA 19–9 distinguished pancreatic cancers from the healthy and chronic pancreatitis groups with an average sensitivity and specificity of 70–74%, similar to previous studies using all stages of pancreatic cancer. Chronic pancreatitis patients did not show CA 19–9 elevations, but patients with benign biliary obstruction had elevations nearly as high as the cancer patients. We gained additional information about the biomarker by comparing two distinct assays. The two CA 9–9 assays agreed well in overall performance but diverged in measurements of individual samples, potentially due to subtle differences in antibody specificity as revealed by glycan array analysis. Thus, the reference set promises be a valuable resource for biomarker validation and comparison, and the CA 19–9 data presented here will be useful for benchmarking and for exploring relationships to CA 19–9. PMID:26431551

[Differences between adolescents with pathological Internet use in inpatient and outpatient treatment].

PubMed

Wartberg, Lutz; Moll, Bettina; Baldus, Christiane; Thomsen, Monika; Thomasius, Rainer

2017-07-01

In epidemiological studies high prevalence estimates for pathological Internet use in adolescence were reported. There are only few studies published, reporting data of adolescents seeking treatment concerning their pathological Internet use. Currently, a comparison of patients in inpatient versus outpatient treatment is not available. We investigated 74 adolescents reporting pathological Internet use with standardized questionnaires concerning problematic Internet use, psychopathological symptoms and life satisfaction. Overall, 35 adolescents were treated in an outpatient and another 39 adolescents in an inpatient setting. A substantial portion in both groups showed comorbid mental health problems. There were no differences in the degree of problematic Internet use between the two groups. However, compared to adolescents in an outpatient setting, adolescents in inpatient treatment reported longer average Internet usage times, a lower life satisfaction as well as more anxiety/depressiveness and self-esteem problems. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis Internet usage time and life satisfaction were identified as statistically significant factors for the affiliation to one of the two treatment groups. The results of the present study could be useful as a further description of this group of patients and more general to develop interventions for adolescents reporting pathological Internet use.

An extended data mining method for identifying differentially expressed assay-specific signatures in functional genomic studies.

PubMed

Rollins, Derrick K; Teh, Ailing

2010-12-17

Microarray data sets provide relative expression levels for thousands of genes for a small number, in comparison, of different experimental conditions called assays. Data mining techniques are used to extract specific information of genes as they relate to the assays. The multivariate statistical technique of principal component analysis (PCA) has proven useful in providing effective data mining methods. This article extends the PCA approach of Rollins et al. to the development of ranking genes of microarray data sets that express most differently between two biologically different grouping of assays. This method is evaluated on real and simulated data and compared to a current approach on the basis of false discovery rate (FDR) and statistical power (SP) which is the ability to correctly identify important genes. This work developed and evaluated two new test statistics based on PCA and compared them to a popular method that is not PCA based. Both test statistics were found to be effective as evaluated in three case studies: (i) exposing E. coli cells to two different ethanol levels; (ii) application of myostatin to two groups of mice; and (iii) a simulated data study derived from the properties of (ii). The proposed method (PM) effectively identified critical genes in these studies based on comparison with the current method (CM). The simulation study supports higher identification accuracy for PM over CM for both proposed test statistics when the gene variance is constant and for one of the test statistics when the gene variance is non-constant. PM compares quite favorably to CM in terms of lower FDR and much higher SP. Thus, PM can be quite effective in producing accurate signatures from large microarray data sets for differential expression between assays groups identified in a preliminary step of the PCA procedure and is, therefore, recommended for use in these applications.

Comparison of renal artery, soft tissue, and nerve damage after irrigated versus nonirrigated radiofrequency ablation.

PubMed

Sakakura, Kenichi; Ladich, Elena; Fuimaono, Kristine; Grunewald, Debby; O'Fallon, Patrick; Spognardi, Anna-Maria; Markham, Peter; Otsuka, Fumiyuki; Yahagi, Kazuyuki; Shen, Kai; Kolodgie, Frank D; Joner, Michael; Virmani, Renu

2015-01-01

The long-term efficacy of radiofrequency ablation of renal autonomic nerves has been proven in nonrandomized studies. However, long-term safety of the renal artery (RA) is of concern. The aim of our study was to determine if cooling during radiofrequency ablation preserved the RA while allowing equivalent nerve damage. A total of 9 swine (18 RAs) were included, and allocated to irrigated radiofrequency (n=6 RAs, temperature setting: 50°C), conventional radiofrequency (n=6 RAs, nonirrigated, temperature setting: 65°C), and high-temperature radiofrequency (n=6 RAs, nonirrigated, temperature setting: 90°C) groups. RAs were harvested at 10 days, serially sectioned from proximal to distal including perirenal tissues and examined after paraffin embedding, and staining with hematoxylin-eosin and Movat pentachrome. RAs and periarterial tissue including nerves were semiquantitatively assessed and scored. A total of 660 histological sections from 18 RAs were histologically examined by light microscopy. Arterial medial injury was significantly less in the irrigated radiofrequency group (depth of medial injury, circumferential involvement, and thinning) than that in the conventional radiofrequency group (P<0.001 for circumference; P=0.003 for thinning). Severe collagen damage such as denatured collagen was also significantly less in the irrigated compared with the conventional radiofrequency group (P<0.001). Nerve damage although not statistically different between the irrigated radiofrequency group and conventional radiofrequency group (P=0.36), there was a trend toward less nerve damage in the irrigated compared with conventional. Compared to conventional radiofrequency, circumferential medial damage in highest-temperature nonirrigated radiofrequency group was significantly greater (P<0.001). Saline irrigation significantly reduces arterial and periarterial tissue damage during radiofrequency ablation, and there is a trend toward less nerve damage. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.

Comparison of software packages for detecting differential expression in RNA-seq studies

PubMed Central

Seyednasrollah, Fatemeh; Laiho, Asta

2015-01-01

RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) has rapidly become a popular tool to characterize transcriptomes. A fundamental research problem in many RNA-seq studies is the identification of reliable molecular markers that show differential expression between distinct sample groups. Together with the growing popularity of RNA-seq, a number of data analysis methods and pipelines have already been developed for this task. Currently, however, there is no clear consensus about the best practices yet, which makes the choice of an appropriate method a daunting task especially for a basic user without a strong statistical or computational background. To assist the choice, we perform here a systematic comparison of eight widely used software packages and pipelines for detecting differential expression between sample groups in a practical research setting and provide general guidelines for choosing a robust pipeline. In general, our results demonstrate how the data analysis tool utilized can markedly affect the outcome of the data analysis, highlighting the importance of this choice. PMID:24300110

Comparison of software packages for detecting differential expression in RNA-seq studies.

PubMed

Seyednasrollah, Fatemeh; Laiho, Asta; Elo, Laura L

2015-01-01

RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) has rapidly become a popular tool to characterize transcriptomes. A fundamental research problem in many RNA-seq studies is the identification of reliable molecular markers that show differential expression between distinct sample groups. Together with the growing popularity of RNA-seq, a number of data analysis methods and pipelines have already been developed for this task. Currently, however, there is no clear consensus about the best practices yet, which makes the choice of an appropriate method a daunting task especially for a basic user without a strong statistical or computational background. To assist the choice, we perform here a systematic comparison of eight widely used software packages and pipelines for detecting differential expression between sample groups in a practical research setting and provide general guidelines for choosing a robust pipeline. In general, our results demonstrate how the data analysis tool utilized can markedly affect the outcome of the data analysis, highlighting the importance of this choice. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press.

Empathic responsiveness of children and adolescents with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder.

PubMed

Scheeren, Anke M; Koot, Hans M; Mundy, Peter C; Mous, Larissa; Begeer, Sander

2013-10-01

Previous studies have shown reduced empathic responsiveness to others' emotions in preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and an intellectual disability. However, age and intelligence may promote children's empathic responsiveness. Therefore, we examined the empathic responsiveness in normally intelligent school-aged children and adolescents with a clinical diagnosis of ASD (n = 151) and in a typically developing comparison group (n = 50), using structured observations and parent reports. Based on the observations, participants' responses to the emotional displays of an interviewer were surprisingly similar. However, compared with parents from the comparison group, parents of a child with ASD reported significantly fewer empathic responses, particularly when the child received a high score on the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule. Even though parents report a reduced empathic responsiveness in school-aged children and adolescents with ASD, it may be difficult to find these empathic limitations during brief observations in a structured setting. © 2013 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Comparison of gadolinium-EOB-DTPA-enhanced and diffusion-weighted liver MRI for detection of small hepatic metastases.

PubMed

Shimada, Kotaro; Isoda, Hiroyoshi; Hirokawa, Yuusuke; Arizono, Shigeki; Shibata, Toshiya; Togashi, Kaori

2010-11-01

To compare the accuracy of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (Gd-EOB-DTPA)-enhanced MRI with that of diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) in the detection of small hepatic metastases (2 cm or smaller). Forty-five patients underwent abdominal MRI at 3 T, including T1-weighted imaging (T1WI), T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), heavily T2WI (HASTE), DWI with a b-value of 500 s/mm(2) and contrast-enhanced MRI with Gd-EOB-DTPA. Two groups were assigned and compared: group A (T1WI, T2WI, HASTE and contrast-enhanced study with Gd-EOB-DTPA), and group B (T1WI, T2WI, HASTE and DWI). Two observers independently interpreted the images obtained in a random order. For all hepatic metastases, the diagnostic performance using each imaging set was evaluated by receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. A total of 51 hepatic metastases were confirmed. The area under the ROC curve (Az) of group A was larger than that of group B, and the difference in the mean Az values between the two image sets was statistically significant, whereas, there were three metastases that lay near thin vessels or among multiple cysts and were better visualised in group B than in group A. Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI showed higher accuracy in the detection of small metastases than DWI.

Comparison of metal ion release from different bracket archwire combinations: an in vitro study.

PubMed

Karnam, Srinivas Kumar; Reddy, A Naveen; Manjith, C M

2012-05-01

The metal ion released from the orthodontic appliance may cause allergic reactions particularly nickel and chromium ions. Hence, this study was undertaken to determine the amount of nickel, chromium, copper, cobalt and iron ions released from simulated orthodontic appliance made of new archwires and brackets. Sixty sets of new archwire, band material, brackets and ligature wires were prepared simulating fixed orthodontic appliance. These sets were divided into four groups of fifteen samples each. Group 1: Stainless steel rectangular archwires. Group 2: Rectangular NiTi archwires. Group 3: Rectangular copper NiTi archwires. Group 4: Rectangular elgiloy archwires. These appliances were immersed in 50 ml of artificial saliva solution and stored in polypropylene bottles in the incubator to simulate oral conditions. After 90 days the solution were tested for nickel, chromium, copper, cobalt and iron ions using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results showed that high levels of nickel ions were released from all four groups, compared to all other ions, followed by release of iron ion levels. There is no significant difference in the levels of all metal ions released in the different groups. The study confirms that the use of newer brackets and newer archwires confirms the negligible release of metal ions from the orthodontic appliance. The measurable amount of metals, released from orthodontic appliances in artificial saliva, was significantly below the average dietary intake and did not reach toxic concentrations.

Multiresolution Wavelet Analysis of Heartbeat Intervals Discriminates Healthy Patients from Those with Cardiac Pathology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thurner, Stefan; Feurstein, Markus C.; Teich, Malvin C.

1998-02-01

We applied multiresolution wavelet analysis to the sequence of times between human heartbeats ( R-R intervals) and have found a scale window, between 16 and 32 heartbeat intervals, over which the widths of the R-R wavelet coefficients fall into disjoint sets for normal and heart-failure patients. This has enabled us to correctly classify every patient in a standard data set as belonging either to the heart-failure or normal group with 100% accuracy, thereby providing a clinically significant measure of the presence of heart failure from the R-R intervals alone. Comparison is made with previous approaches, which have provided only statistically significant measures.

Traditional test administration and proactive interference undermine visual-spatial working memory performance in schizophrenia-spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Girard, Todd A; Wilkins, Leanne K; Lyons, Kathleen M; Yang, Lixia; Christensen, Bruce K

2018-05-31

Introduction Working-memory (WM) is a core cognitive deficit among individuals with Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders (SSD). However, the underlying cognitive mechanisms of this deficit are less known. This study applies a modified version of the Corsi Block Test to investigate the role of proactive interference in visuospatial WM (VSWM) impairment in SSD. Methods Healthy and SSD participants completed a modified version of the Corsi Block Test involving both high (typical ascending set size from 4 to 7 items) and low (descending set size from 7 to 4 items) proactive interference conditions. Results The results confirmed that the SSD group performed worse overall relative to a healthy comparison group. More importantly, the SSD group demonstrated greater VSWM scores under low (Descending) versus high (Ascending) proactive interference; this pattern is opposite to that of healthy participants. Conclusions This differential pattern of performance supports that proactive interference associated with the traditional administration format contributes to VSWM impairment in SSD. Further research investigating associated neurocognitive mechanisms and the contribution of proactive interference across other domains of cognition in SSD is warranted.

Women's anxiety about social and exercise settings.

PubMed

Walton, Vicki R; Finkenberg, Mel E

2002-04-01

This study involved a comparison of social physique anxiety, assessed through the application of a modified version of the Social Physique Anxiety Scale, with 28 women who were new members exercising at all-female facilities compared to 43 new female members exercising at coeducational facilities. Analyses indicated there were no significant differences in means between the groups. The scores of women attending all-female facilities were significantly more influenced by the sex of members when choosing a facility.

The Transition from Comparison of Finite to the Comparison of Infinite Sets: Teaching Prospective Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsamir, Pessia

1999-01-01

Describes a course in Cantorian Set Theory relating to prospective secondary mathematics teachers' tendencies to overgeneralize from finite to infinite sets. Indicates that when comparing the number of elements in infinite sets, teachers who took the course were more successful and more consistent in their use of single method than those who…

Neural response in obsessive-compulsive washers depends on individual fit of triggers

PubMed Central

Baioui, Ali; Pilgramm, Juliane; Merz, Christian J.; Walter, Bertram; Vaitl, Dieter; Stark, Rudolf

2013-01-01

Background: Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have highly idiosyncratic triggers. To fully understand which role this idiosyncrasy plays in the neurobiological mechanisms behind OCD, it is necessary to elucidate the impact of individualization regarding the applied investigation methods. This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study explores the neural correlates of contamination/washing-related OCD with a highly individualized symptom provocation paradigm. Additionally, it is the first study to directly compare individualized and standardized symptom provocation. Methods: Nineteen patients with washing compulsions created individual OCD hierarchies, which later served as instructions to photograph their own individualized stimulus sets. The patients and 19 case-by-case matched healthy controls participated in a symptom provocation fMRI experiment with individualized and standardized stimulus sets created for each patient. Results: OCD patients compared to healthy controls displayed stronger activation in the basal ganglia (nucleus accumbens, nucleus caudatus, pallidum) for individualized symptom provocation. Using standardized symptom provocation, this group comparison led to stronger activation in the nucleus caudatus. The direct comparison of between-group effects for both symptom provocation approaches revealed stronger activation of the orbitofronto-striatal network for individualized symptom provocation. Conclusions: The present study provides insight into the differential impact of individualized and standardized symptom provocation on the orbitofronto-striatal network of OCD washers. Behavioral and neural responses imply a higher symptom-specificity of individualized symptom provocation. PMID:23630478

The Impact of Early Involvement in a Postdischarge Support Program for Ostomy Surgery Patients on Preventable Healthcare Utilization

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

PURPOSE: To evaluate the impact of a postdischarge ostomy support program as an adjunct to nurse-led ostomy care on preventable healthcare utilization. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SUBJECTS AND SETTING: A postdischarge support program offered by an ostomy product's manufacturer provides persons living with an ostomy with patient-centered and easily accessible assistance. Individuals who underwent ostomy surgery within 18 months prior to the survey date were selected from an ostomy patient database maintained by the ostomy patient support program provider. Of 7026 surveys sent to program enrollees, 493 (7%) responded, compared with 225 (5%) out of 4149 surveys sent to individuals in a comparison group. The 2 groups were similar in demographics. A majority of the survey respondents were female (60% of program enrollees vs 55% of respondents in the comparison group). Among the program enrollees, 44% had colostomy, 43% had ileostomy, 10% had urostomy, and 4% had at least 2 types of ostomy surgery compared with 52%, 32%, 12%, and 4% of the respondents in a comparison group, respectively. METHODS: The study compared hospital readmission and emergency room (ER) visit rates attributable to ostomy complications between program enrollees and respondents in the comparison group. The event rates were measured in 2 study periods: within the first month of discharge and after the first month of discharge. Eligible individuals received an online survey that included the following domains: characteristics of ostomy surgery; readmissions and ER visits within the first month or after the first month of discharge, including reasons for preventable events; and level of health care access. Multivariate logistic regressions controlling for covariates were applied to investigate associations between program enrollment and ostomy-related readmission or ER visit rates. RESULTS: Logistic regression analyses showed that, when compared with respondents in the comparison group, program enrollees had a significantly lower likelihood of being readmitted and visiting the ER due to ostomy complications after the first month of hospital discharge and up to 18 months postdischarge (odds ratio [OR] = 0.45; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.27-0.73; and OR = 0.37; 95% CI, 0.22-0.64, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that enrolling patients in the postdischarge ostomy support program provides an effective approach to reducing preventable healthcare utilization. PMID:29189646

Is race a determinant of stillbirth recurrence?

PubMed

Sharma, Puza P; Salihu, Hamisu M; Oyelese, Yinka; Ananth, Cande V; Kirby, Russell S

2006-02-01

A history of stillbirth may result in an increased risk for recurrence, although information regarding this remains scanty. It is also uncertain whether race is a determinant of stillbirth recurrence given that the risk of stillbirth varies across racial and ethnic populations. The Missouri maternally linked cohort data set containing births from 1978 through 1997 was used. We identified the study group (women who experienced a stillbirth in the first pregnancy) and a comparison group (women who delivered a live birth in their first pregnancy) and compared the outcome (stillbirth) in the second pregnancy between the 2 groups. We analyzed 404,180 women with information on first and second pregnancies (1,979 [0.5%] in the study arm, and 402,201 [99.5%] in the comparison arm). Of the 1,929 cases of stillbirths in the second pregnancy, 45 cases occurred in mothers with a history of stillbirth (stillbirth rate = 22.7/1000) and 1,884 in the comparison group (stillbirth rate 4.7/1,000, P < .001). The adjusted risk of stillbirth was almost 5-fold as high in women with a prior stillbirth (odds ratio 4.7, 95% confidence interval 3.3-6.6). Analysis across racial groups revealed that whites had lower absolute risk for stillbirth recurrence than African Americans (19.1/1,000 compared with 35.9/1,000, P < .05). The elevated stillbirth recurrence risk was confirmed after adjusting for potential confounders (odds ratio 2.6, 95% confidence interval 1.2-5.7). History of stillbirth is associated with a 5-fold increase for subsequent stillbirth. The recurrence of stillbirth is almost tripled in African Americans as compared with whites. II-2.

Low Vision Rehabilitation for Adult African Americans in Two Settings.

PubMed

Draper, Erin M; Feng, Rui; Appel, Sarah D; Graboyes, Marcy; Engle, Erin; Ciner, Elise B; Ellenberg, Jonas H; Stambolian, Dwight

2016-07-01

The Vision Rehabilitation for African Americans with Central Vision Impairment (VISRAC) study is a demonstration project evaluating how modifications in vision rehabilitation can improve the use of functional vision. Fifty-five African Americans 40 years of age and older with central vision impairment were randomly assigned to receive either clinic-based (CB) or home-based (HB) low vision rehabilitation services. Forty-eight subjects completed the study. The primary outcome was the change in functional vision in activities of daily living, as assessed with the Veteran's Administration Low-Vision Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-48). This included scores for overall visual ability and visual ability domains (reading, mobility, visual information processing, and visual motor skills). Each score was normalized into logit estimates by Rasch analysis. Linear regression models were used to compare the difference in the total score and each domain score between the two intervention groups. The significance level for each comparison was set at 0.05. Both CB and HB groups showed significant improvement in overall visual ability at the final visit compared with baseline. The CB group showed greater improvement than the HB group (mean of 1.28 vs. 0.87 logits change), though the group difference is not significant (p = 0.057). The CB group visual motor skills score showed significant improvement over the HB group score (mean of 3.30 vs. 1.34 logits change, p = 0.044). The differences in improvement of the reading and visual information processing scores were not significant (p = 0.054 and p = 0.509) between groups. Neither group had significant improvement in the mobility score, which was not part of the rehabilitation program. Vision rehabilitation is effective for this study population regardless of location. Possible reasons why the CB group performed better than the HB group include a number of psychosocial factors as well as the more standardized distraction-free work environment within the clinic setting.

nCTEQ15 - Global analysis of nuclear parton distributions with uncertainties in the CTEQ framework

DOE PAGES

Kovarik, K.; Kusina, A.; Jezo, T.; ...

2016-04-28

We present the new nCTEQ15 set of nuclear parton distribution functions with uncertainties. This fit extends the CTEQ proton PDFs to include the nuclear dependence using data on nuclei all the way up to 208Pb. The uncertainties are determined using the Hessian method with an optimal rescaling of the eigenvectors to accurately represent the uncertainties for the chosen tolerance criteria. In addition to the Deep Inelastic Scattering (DIS) and Drell-Yan (DY) processes, we also include inclusive pion production data from RHIC to help constrain the nuclear gluon PDF. Here, we investigate the correlation of the data sets with specific nPDFmore » flavor components, and asses the impact of individual experiments. We also provide comparisons of the nCTEQ15 set with recent fits from other groups.« less

Interactions between children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and their mothers.

PubMed

Power, Thomas G; Dahlquist, Lynnda M; Thompson, Suzanne M; Warren, Robert

2003-01-01

To determine the degree to which mothers of children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) show an overprotective or highly controlling interaction style. We videotaped 84 mother-child pairs (42 JRA and 42 healthy, ages 6 to 13) while working on a collaborative problem-solving task. Based on physical therapy evaluations, children in the JRA group were assigned to "more severe" (n = 19) and "milder" (n = 22) arthritis subgroups. Results showed numerous differences between mothers of children with more severe arthritis and the other mothers (no differences between the milder arthritis and healthy comparison groups were found). Compared to mothers in the other two groups, mothers of children with more severe arthritis were more directive of their children's behavior during the task, showing higher rates of structure and rule setting, general clues, and prompting the child for an answer. Sequential analyses showed that mothers in the more severe group appeared to treat the task in a more evaluative manner, being more likely than other mothers to respond to correct answers with positive feedback and to incorrect answers with structure and rule setting. Mothers in the other groups were more likely to respond to both correct and incorrect answers with specific clues. We discuss how these differences in interactional style might impact the social development of children with JRA.

A comparison of the cooperative learning and traditional learning methods in theory classes on nursing students' communication skill with patients at clinical settings.

PubMed

Baghcheghi, Nayereh; Koohestani, Hamid Reza; Rezaei, Koresh

2011-11-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of traditional learning and cooperative learning methods on nursing students' communication skill with patients. This was an experimental study in which 34 nursing students in their 2nd semester of program participated. They were divided randomly into two groups, a control group who were taught their medical/surgical nursing course by traditional learning method and an experimental group, who were taught the same material using cooperative learning method. Before and after the teaching intervention, the students' communication skills with patients at clinical settings were examined. The results showed that no significant difference between the two groups in students' communication skills scores before the teaching intervention, but did show a significant difference between the two groups in the interaction skills and problem follow up sub-scales scores after the teaching intervention. This study provides evidence that cooperative learning is an effective method for improving and increasing communication skills of nursing students especially in interactive skills and follow up the problems sub-scale, thereby it is recommended to increase nursing students' participation in arguments by applying active teaching methods which can provide the opportunity for increased communication skills. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Does the Use of a Classification for Nursing Diagnoses Affect Nursing Students’ Choice of Nursing Interventions?

PubMed Central

Falk, Joakim; Björvell, Catrin

2012-01-01

The Swedish health care system stands before an implementation of standardized language. The first classification of nursing diagnoses translated into Swedish, The NANDA, was released in January 2011. The aim of the present study was to examine whether the usage of the NANDA classification affected nursing students’ choice of nursing interventions. Thirty-three nursing students in a clinical setting were divided into two groups. The intervention group had access to the NANDA classification text book, while the comparison group did not. In total 78 nursing assessments were performed and 218 nursing interventions initiated. The principle findings show that there were no statistical significant differences between the groups regarding the amount, quality or category of nursing interventions when using the NANDA classification compared to free text format nursing diagnoses. PMID:24199065

The Worried Well? Characteristics of Cognitively Normal Patients Presenting to a Rural and Remote Memory Clinic.

PubMed

Verity, Ryan; Kirk, Andrew; O'Connell, Megan E; Karunanayake, Chandima; Morgan, Debra G

2018-03-01

In an effort to better understand why cognitively normal patients were referred to a memory clinic, we sought to identify features of "worried well" patients to better identify those more likely to be cognitively normal. In total, 375 consecutive patients referred by primary care practitioners to a Rural and Remote Memory Clinic were categorized into two groups based on their neurologic diagnosis, "worried well" (cognitively normal, N=81) or "other" (patients with any neurologic diagnosis, N=294). Data collected included: age, sex, years of formal education, Mini-Mental Status Examination score from initial visit, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale score, Self-Rating of Memory Scale, alcohol consumption, marital status, hours per week of work, past medical history, sleep concerns, and family history of memory concerns. The two groups were compared using t-tests and χ2 tests. The same comparison was done between the same set of "worried well" patients (cognitively normal, N=81) and the subgroup of patients with a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (N=146) from the "other" group. Significant differences included younger age, more formal education, more frequently having previous psychiatric diagnosis and more self-reported alcohol consumption in the "worried well" group. The "worried well" and "Alzheimer's disease" comparison had the same significant differences as the "worried well" and "other" comparison. We observed a pattern of differences unfold between the "worried well" patients and those with cognitive disease. No one variable was pathognomonic of a "worried well" patient. However, taking all the above into account when evaluating a patient may help clinically.

Thyroid-specific questions on work ability showed known-groups validity among Danes with thyroid diseases.

PubMed

Nexo, Mette Andersen; Watt, Torquil; Bonnema, Steen Joop; Hegedüs, Laszlo; Rasmussen, Åse Krogh; Feldt-Rasmussen, Ulla; Bjorner, Jakob Bue

2015-07-01

We aimed to identify the best approach to work ability assessment in patients with thyroid disease by evaluating the factor structure, measurement equivalence, known-groups validity, and predictive validity of a broad set of work ability items. Based on the literature and interviews with thyroid patients, 24 work ability items were selected from previous questionnaires, revised, or developed anew. Items were tested among 632 patients with thyroid disease (non-toxic goiter, toxic nodular goiter, Graves' disease (with or without orbitopathy), autoimmune hypothyroidism, and other thyroid diseases), 391 of which had participated in a study 5 years previously. Responses to select items were compared to general population data. We used confirmatory factor analyses for categorical data, logistic regression analyses and tests of differential item function, and head-to-head comparisons of relative validity in distinguishing known groups. Although all work ability items loaded on a common factor, the optimal factor solution included five factors: role physical, role emotional, thyroid-specific limitations, work limitations (without disease attribution), and work performance. The scale on thyroid-specific limitations showed the most power in distinguishing clinical groups and time since diagnosis. A global single item proved useful for comparisons with the general population, and a thyroid-specific item predicted labor market exclusion within the next 5 years (OR 5.0, 95 % CI 2.7-9.1). Items on work limitations with attribution to thyroid disease were most effective in detecting impact on work ability and showed good predictive validity. Generic work ability items remain useful for general population comparisons.

To dance or not to dance? A comparison of balance, physical fitness and quality of life in older Irish set dancers and age-matched controls.

PubMed

Shanahan, J; Coman, L; Ryan, F; Saunders, J; O'Sullivan, K; Ni Bhriain, O; Clifford, A M

2016-12-01

The objective of this study is to determine if older adults regularly participating in Irish set dancing have superior balance, physical fitness and quality of life compared to age-matched controls. This study used a community-based, observational cross-sectional design. Regular set dancers (n = 39) and age-matched controls (n = 33) were recruited. Participants were assessed using the physical activity scale for the elderly (physical activity levels), mini-BESTest (balance) and senior fitness test (battery of functional fitness tests). Quality of life was also assessed using the EuroQol EQ visual analogue scale. When controlling for between-group differences in levels of physical activity (ANCOVA analysis), the dancers had significantly better balance, functional capacity and quality of life (all P < 0.05) compared to controls. No differences between the groups were observed in other measures of functional fitness. The findings of this study suggest regular participation in set dancing is associated with health benefits for older adults. These results may inform future studies prospectively examining the role of set dancing for falls prevention, emotional well-being and cognitive function in community-dwelling older adults. Copyright © 2016 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Superior perioperative analgesia with combined femoral-obturator-sciatic nerve block in comparison with posterior lumbar plexus and sciatic nerve block for ACL reconstructive surgery.

PubMed

Bareka, Metaxia; Hantes, Michael; Arnaoutoglou, Eleni; Vretzakis, George

2018-02-01

The purpose of this randomized controlled study is to compare and evaluate the intraoperative and post-operative outcome of PLPS nerve block and that of femoral, obturator and sciatic (FOS) nerve block as a method of anaesthesia, in performing ACL reconstruction. Patients referred for elective arthroscopic ACL reconstruction using hamstring autograft were divided in two groups. The first group received combined femoral-obturator-sciatic nerve block (FOS Group) under dual guidance, whereas the second group received posterior lumbar plexus block under neurostimulation and sciatic nerve block (PLPS Group) under dual guidance. The two groups were comparable in terms of age, sex, BMI and athletic activity. The time needed to perform the nerve blocks was significantly shorter for the FOS group (p < 0.005). Similarly, VAS scores during tourniquet inflation and autograft harvesting were significantly higher (p < 0.005) in the PLPS group and this is also reflected in the intraoperative fentanyl consumption and conversion to general anaesthesia. Finally, patients in this group also reported higher post-operative VAS scores and consumed more morphine. Peripheral nerve blockade of FOS nerve block under dual guidance for arthroscopic ACL reconstructive surgery is a safe and tempting anaesthetic choice. The success rate of this technique is higher in comparison with PLPS and results in less peri- and post-operative pain with less opioid consumption. This study provides support for the use of peripheral nerve blocks as an exclusive method for ACL reconstructive surgery in an ambulatory setting with almost no complications. I.

Phallometric comparison of pedophilic interest in nonadmitting sexual offenders against stepdaughters, biological daughters, other biologically related girls, and unrelated girls.

PubMed

Blanchard, Ray; Kuban, Michael E; Blak, Thomas; Cantor, James M; Klassen, Philip; Dickey, Robert

2006-01-01

This study compared the mean levels of sexual response to children produced by four groups of men with sexual offences against prepubescent girls and two comparison groups with other offences or no offences. All groups (N = 291) consisted of patients referred for clinical assessment of their sexual behavior or interests. Group assignment was determined by the victim's age and her relation to the patient: biological daughter; stepdaughter; other biologically related girl (e.g., sister, niece, granddaughter); unrelated girl; adult woman; and no known victim. The men with sexual offences had precisely one known victim each. The patients with offences may or may not have denied the act of which they were accused, but all patients denied an erotic preference for children. Sexual response to children was assessed by means of phallometric testing, a psychophysiological technique in which the individual's penile blood volume is monitored while he is presented with a standardized set of laboratory stimuli depicting male and female children and adults. The results indicated that the mean level of pedophilic response in men with offences against daughters or stepdaughters is intermediate between that in men with offences against otherwise-related or unrelated girls and that in men with no offences against girls at all.

Population Synthesis of Radio & Gamma-Ray Millisecond Pulsars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frederick, Sara; Gonthier, P. L.; Harding, A. K.

2014-01-01

In recent years, the number of known gamma-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in the Galactic disk has risen substantially thanks to confirmed detections by Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi). We have developed a new population synthesis of gamma-ray and radio MSPs in the galaxy which uses Markov Chain Monte Carlo techniques to explore the large and small worlds of the model parameter space and allows for comparisons of the simulated and detected MSP distributions. The simulation employs empirical radio and gamma-ray luminosity models that are dependent upon the pulsar period and period derivative with freely varying exponents. Parameters associated with the birth distributions are also free to vary. The computer code adjusts the magnitudes of the model luminosities to reproduce the number of MSPs detected by a group of ten radio surveys, thus normalizing the simulation and predicting the MSP birth rates in the Galaxy. Computing many Markov chains leads to preferred sets of model parameters that are further explored through two statistical methods. Marginalized plots define confidence regions in the model parameter space using maximum likelihood methods. A secondary set of confidence regions is determined in parallel using Kuiper statistics calculated from comparisons of cumulative distributions. These two techniques provide feedback to affirm the results and to check for consistency. Radio flux and dispersion measure constraints have been imposed on the simulated gamma-ray distributions in order to reproduce realistic detection conditions. The simulated and detected distributions agree well for both sets of radio and gamma-ray pulsar characteristics, as evidenced by our various comparisons.

The effects of respiratory muscle training on peak cough flow in patients with Parkinson's disease: a randomized controlled study.

PubMed

Reyes, Alvaro; Castillo, Adrián; Castillo, Javiera; Cornejo, Isabel

2018-05-01

To compare the effects of an inspiratory versus and expiratory muscle-training program on voluntary and reflex peak cough flow in patients with Parkinson disease. A randomized controlled study. Home-based training program. In all, 40 participants with diagnosis of Parkinson's disease were initially recruited in the study and randomly allocated to three study groups. Of them, 31 participants completed the study protocol (control group, n = 10; inspiratory training group, n = 11; and expiratory training group, n = 10) Intervention: The inspiratory and expiratory group performed a home-based inspiratory and expiratory muscle-training program, respectively (five sets of five repetitions). Both groups trained six times a week for two months using a progressively increased resistance. The control group performed expiratory muscle training using the same protocol and a fixed resistance. Spirometric indices, maximum inspiratory pressure, maximum expiratory pressure, and peak cough flow during voluntary and reflex cough were assessed before and at two months after training. The magnitude of increase in maximum expiratory pressure ( d = 1.40) and voluntary peak cough flow ( d = 0.89) was greater for the expiratory muscle-training group in comparison to the control group. Reflex peak cough flow had a moderate effect ( d = 0.27) in the expiratory group in comparison to the control group. Slow vital capacity ( d = 0.13) and forced vital capacity ( d = 0.02) had trivial effects in the expiratory versus the control group. Two months of expiratory muscle-training program was more beneficial than inspiratory muscle-training program for improving maximum expiratory pressure and voluntary peak cough flow in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Effectiveness of new legislation on partial sickness benefit on work participation: a quasi-experiment in Finland

PubMed Central

Kausto, Johanna; Viikari-Juntura, Eira; Virta, Lauri J; Gould, Raija; Koskinen, Aki; Solovieva, Svetlana

2014-01-01

Objectives To examine the effect of the new legislation on partial sickness benefit on subsequent work participation of Finns with long-term sickness absence. Additionally, we investigated whether the effect differed by sex, age or diagnostic category. Design A register-based quasi-experimental study compared the intervention (partial sick leave) group with the comparison (full sick leave) group regarding their pre-post differences in the outcome. The preintervention and postintervention period each consisted of 365 days. Setting Nationwide, individual-level data on the beneficiaries of partial or full sickness benefit in 2008 were obtained from national sickness insurance, pension and earnings registers. Participants 1738 persons in the intervention and 56 754 persons in the comparison group. Outcome Work participation, measured as the proportion (%) of time within 365 days when participants were gainfully employed and did not receive either partial or full ill-health-related or unemployment benefits. Results Although work participation declined in both groups, the decline was 5% (absolute difference-in-differences) smaller in the intervention than in the comparison group, with a minor sex difference. The beneficial effect of partial sick leave was seen especially among those aged 45–54 (5%) and 55–65 (6%) and in mental disorders (13%). When the groups were rendered more exchangeable (propensity score matching on age, sex, diagnostic category, income, occupation, insurance district, work participation, sickness absence, rehabilitation periods and unemployment, prior to intervention and their interaction terms), the effects on work participation were doubled and seen in all age groups and in other diagnostic categories than traumas. Conclusions The results suggest that the new legislation has potential to increase work participation of the population with long-term sickness absence in Finland. If applied in a larger scale, partial sick leave may turn out to be a useful tool in reducing withdrawal of workers from the labour market due to health reasons. PMID:25539780

A comparison of three methods of setting prescribing budgets, using data derived from defined daily dose analyses of historic patterns of use.

PubMed Central

Maxwell, M; Howie, J G; Pryde, C J

1998-01-01

BACKGROUND: Prescribing matters (particularly budget setting and research into prescribing variation between doctors) have been handicapped by the absence of credible measures of the volume of drugs prescribed. AIM: To use the defined daily dose (DDD) method to study variation in the volume and cost of drugs prescribed across the seven main British National Formulary (BNF) chapters with a view to comparing different methods of setting prescribing budgets. METHOD: Study of one year of prescribing statistics from all 129 general practices in Lothian, covering 808,059 patients: analyses of prescribing statistics for 1995 to define volume and cost/volume of prescribing for one year for 10 groups of practices defined by the age and deprivation status of their patients, for seven BNF chapters; creation of prescribing budgets for 1996 for each individual practice based on the use of target volume and cost statistics; comparison of 1996 DDD-based budgets with those set using the conventional historical approach; and comparison of DDD-based budgets with budgets set using a capitation-based formula derived from local cost/patient information. RESULTS: The volume of drugs prescribed was affected by the age structure of the practices in BNF Chapters 1 (gastrointestinal), 2 (cardiovascular), and 6 (endocrine), and by deprivation structure for BNF Chapters 3 (respiratory) and 4 (central nervous system). Costs per DDD in the major BNF chapters were largely independent of age, deprivation structure, or fundholding status. Capitation and DDD-based budgets were similar to each other, but both differed substantially from historic budgets. One practice in seven gained or lost more than 100,000 Pounds per annum using DDD or capitation budgets compared with historic budgets. The DDD-based budget, but not the capitation-based budget, can be used to set volume-specific prescribing targets. CONCLUSIONS: DDD-based and capitation-based prescribing budgets can be set using a simple explanatory model and generalizable methods. In this study, both differed substantially from historic budgets. DDD budgets could be created to accommodate new prescribing strategies and raised or lowered to reflect local intentions to alter overall prescribing volume or cost targets. We recommend that future work on setting budgets and researching prescribing variations should be based on DDD statistics. PMID:10024703

Improving parenting skills for families of young children in pediatric settings: a randomized clinical trial.

PubMed

Perrin, Ellen C; Sheldrick, R Christopher; McMenamy, Jannette M; Henson, Brandi S; Carter, Alice S

2014-01-01

Disruptive behavior disorders, such as attention-deficient/hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiant disorder, are common and stable throughout childhood. These disorders cause long-term morbidity but benefit from early intervention. While symptoms are often evident before preschool, few children receive appropriate treatment during this period. Group parent training, such as the Incredible Years program, has been shown to be effective in improving parenting strategies and reducing children's disruptive behaviors. Because they already monitor young children's behavior and development, primary care pediatricians are in a good position to intervene early when indicated. To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of parent-training groups delivered to parents of toddlers in pediatric primary care settings. This randomized clinical trial was conducted at 11 diverse pediatric practices in the Greater Boston area. A total of 273 parents of children between 2 and 4 years old who acknowledged disruptive behaviors on a 20-item checklist were included. A 10-week Incredible Years parent-training group co-led by a research clinician and a pediatric staff member. Self-reports and structured videotaped observations of parent and child behaviors conducted prior to, immediately after, and 12 months after the intervention. A total of 150 parents were randomly assigned to the intervention or the waiting-list group. An additional 123 parents were assigned to receive intervention without a randomly selected comparison group. Compared with the waiting-list group, greater improvement was observed in both intervention groups (P < .05). No differences were observed between the randomized and the nonrandomized intervention groups. Self-reports and structured observations provided evidence of improvements in parenting practices and child disruptive behaviors that were attributable to participation in the Incredible Years groups. This study demonstrated the feasibility and effectiveness of parent-training groups conducted in pediatric office settings to reduce disruptive behavior in toddlers. clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00402857.

Computational Chemistry Comparison and Benchmark Database

National Institute of Standards and Technology Data Gateway

SRD 101 NIST Computational Chemistry Comparison and Benchmark Database (Web, free access)   The NIST Computational Chemistry Comparison and Benchmark Database is a collection of experimental and ab initio thermochemical properties for a selected set of molecules. The goals are to provide a benchmark set of molecules for the evaluation of ab initio computational methods and allow the comparison between different ab initio computational methods for the prediction of thermochemical properties.

The effect of a school-based active commuting intervention on children's commuting physical activity and daily physical activity.

PubMed

McMinn, David; Rowe, David A; Murtagh, Shemane; Nelson, Norah M

2012-05-01

To investigate the effect of a school-based intervention called Travelling Green (TG) on children's walking to and from school and total daily physical activity. A quasi-experiment with 166 Scottish children (8-9 years) was conducted in 2009. One group (n=79) received TG and another group (n=87) acted as a comparison. The intervention lasted 6 weeks and consisted of educational lessons and goal-setting tasks. Steps and MVPA (daily, a.m. commute, p.m. commute, and total commute) were measured for 5 days pre- and post-intervention using accelerometers. Mean steps (daily, a.m., p.m., and total commute) decreased from pre- to post-intervention in both groups (TG by 901, 49, 222, and 271 steps/day and comparison by 2528, 205, 120, and 325 steps/day, respectively). No significant group by time interactions were found for a.m., p.m., and total commuting steps. A medium (partial eta squared=0.09) and significant (p<0.05) group by time interaction was found for total daily steps. MVPA results were similar to step results. TG has a little effect on walking to and from school. However, for total daily steps and daily MVPA, TG results in a smaller seasonal decrease than for children who do not receive the intervention. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of endogenous feline leukemia virus RNA content in feline vaccine and nonvaccine site-associated sarcomas.

PubMed

Kidney, B A; Ellis, J A; Haines, D M; Jackson, M L

2001-12-01

To determine whether feline vaccine site-associated sarcomas (VSS) contain a higher amount of endogenous FeLV (enFeLV) RNA, compared with feline nonvaccine site-associated sarcomas (non-VSS). Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues from 50 VSS and 50 cutaneous non-VSS. RNA was extracted from FFPE sections of each tumor, and regions of the long terminal repeat (LTR) and envelope (env) gene of enFeLV were amplified by use of reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The density of each RT-PCR product band for enFeLV was compared with that of a constitutively expressed gene, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). An integrated density value (IDV) was determined by use of densitometry, and the IDV ratio for enFeLV to GAPDH was calculated for each enFeLV primer set. The median (interquartile range) of the IDV ratio for the enFeLV LTR primer set was 0.52 (0.26 to 1.17) for the VSS group and 0.84 (0.21 to 1.53) for the non-VSS group. The median (interquartile range) of the IDV ratio for the enFeLV env primer set was 0.60 (0.37 to 0.91) for the VSS group and 0.59 (0.36 to 1.09) for the non-VSS group. Because the amount of enFeLV RNA within the LTR and env gene was not significantly different between the VSS and non-VSS groups, enFeLV replication or expression is unlikely to be involved in VSS development.

Is EQ-5D-5L Better Than EQ-5D-3L? A Head-to-Head Comparison of Descriptive Systems and Value Sets from Seven Countries.

PubMed

Janssen, Mathieu F; Bonsel, Gouke J; Luo, Nan

2018-06-01

This study describes the first empirical head-to-head comparison of EQ-5D-3L (3L) and EQ-5D-5L (5L) value sets for multiple countries. A large multinational dataset, including 3L and 5L data for eight patient groups and a student cohort, was used to compare 3L versus 5L value sets for Canada, China, England/UK (5L/3L, respectively), Japan, The Netherlands, South Korea and Spain. We used distributional analyses and two methods exploring discriminatory power: relative efficiency as assessed by the F statistic, and an area under the curve for the receiver-operating characteristics approach. Differences in outcomes were explored by separating descriptive system effects from valuation effects, and by exploring distributional location effects. In terms of distributional evenness, efficiency of scale use and the face validity of the resulting distributions, 5L was superior, leading to an increase in sensitivity and precision in health status measurement. When compared with 5L, 3L systematically overestimated health problems and consequently underestimated utilities. This led to bias, i.e. over- or underestimations of discriminatory power. We conclude that 5L provides more precise measurement at individual and group levels, both in terms of descriptive system data and utilities. The increased sensitivity and precision of 5L is likely to be generalisable to longitudinal studies, such as in intervention designs. Hence, we recommend the use of the 5L across applications, including economic evaluation, clinical and public health studies. The evaluative framework proved to be useful in assessing preference-based instruments and might be useful for future work in the development of descriptive systems or health classifications.

Cochlear implantation in patients with autoimmune inner ear disease including cogan syndrome: a comparison with age- and sex-matched controls.

PubMed

Wang, Jenny R; Yuen, Heng W; Shipp, David B; Stewart, Suzanne; Lin, Vincent Y W; Chen, Joseph M; Nedzelski, Julian M

2010-12-01

Evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with autoimmune inner ear disease (AIED) who have undergone cochlear implantation (CI) and compare post-CI performance in AIED to matched controls. Retrospective case control study. Study cohort was comprised of 25 adult implantees (AIED [n = 18], Cogan syndrome [n = 7]). The AIED group was defined by rapidly progressive bilateral sensorineural hearing loss leading to unusable hearing within weeks to months. Patients with Cogan syndrome, the archetypal inner ear autoimmune disease, were also examined and used for within-cohort comparison. Clinical and operative records were reviewed. Post-CI performance was assessed using open-set sentence tests. Age- and sex-matched individuals deafened by other postlingual causes were used as controls. Of 25 patients, 24 had uneventful, full electrode insertions. One AIED patient had partial insertion due to cochlear ossification and did not achieve open-set speech perception post-CI. Mean open-set sentence scores for study patients with uneventful insertions were 92.8%, 97.3%, and 96.4% at 6 months, 1 year, and ≥ 2 years, respectively. Compared to matched controls, patients deafened by autoimmune causes had significantly higher post-CI performance at all postoperative test intervals (P < .05). There was no significant difference in postimplantation performance between Cogan syndrome and AIED patients. To our knowledge this was the largest study of cochlear implantation in AIED and Cogan syndrome patients. In our experience, both groups generally attained high levels of post-CI speech perception and performed above average. Cochlear ossification affecting implantation in Cogan syndrome patients was not observed in our series, contrary to some reports.

Comparison of genetic diversity between Canadian adapted genotypes and exotic germplasm of soybean.

PubMed

Iquira, Elmer; Gagnon, Eric; Belzile, François

2010-05-01

Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) was domesticated in China and the greatest genetic diversity for this species is found in Asia. In contrast, in North America, soybean cultivars trace back to a small number of plant introductions from Asia and genetic diversity is typically quite limited. The purpose of this work was to measure and compare the genetic diversity in two sets of soybean lines. The first set (termed "local") was composed of 100 lines used in a private breeding program in Quebec. The second set (termed "exotic") was composed of 200 lines from elsewhere in the world (but mostly from Asia) and included a few lines of Glycine soja, the wild progenitor of cultivated soybean. Almost all the genotypes belonged to maturity groups between 000 and II. A total of 39 microsatellites (SSRs) were used to genotype the two collections. The number of alleles per locus was almost twice as great in the exotic set compared with the local set. Also, the number of "unique" alleles, i.e., those uniquely present in one set and absent in the other, was almost fivefold greater (191 vs. 37) in a subset of 108 exotic lines with good adaptation than among the local set. A genetic distance matrix, a UPGMA cluster analysis, and a principal coordinate analysis were conducted based on the SSR data. These analyses all indicated that the exotic set was much more diverse and formed a clearly distinct group from the local set. Interestingly, some of the lines showing the best adaptation to local conditions were quite distinctive in terms of their genotype and could potentially contribute useful novel genetic variation within the breeding program.

Evaluation of a demand-creation intervention for couples' HIV testing services among married or cohabiting individuals in Rakai, Uganda: a cluster-randomized intervention trial.

PubMed

Matovu, Joseph K B; Todd, Jim; Wanyenze, Rhoda K; Kairania, Robert; Serwadda, David; Wabwire-Mangen, Fred

2016-08-08

Uptake of couples' HIV counseling and testing (couples' HCT) services remains largely low in most settings. We report the effect of a demand-creation intervention trial on couples' HCT uptake among married or cohabiting individuals who had never received couples' HCT. This was a cluster-randomized intervention trial implemented in three study regions with differing HIV prevalence levels (range: 9-43 %) in Rakai district, southwestern Uganda, between February and September 2014. We randomly assigned six clusters (1:1) to receive the intervention or serve as the comparison arm using computer-generated random numbers. In the intervention clusters, individuals attended small group, couple and male-focused interactive sessions, reinforced with testimonies from 'expert couples', and received invitation coupons to test together with their partners at designated health facilities. In the comparison clusters, participants attended general adult health education sessions but received no invitation coupons. The primary outcome was couples' HCT uptake, measured 12 months post-baseline. Baseline data were collected between November 2013 and February 2014 while follow-up data were collected between March and April 2015. We conducted intention-to-treat analysis using a mixed effects Poisson regression model to assess for differences in couples' HCT uptake between the intervention and comparison clusters. Data analysis was conducted using STATA statistical software, version 14.1. Of 2135 married or cohabiting individuals interviewed at baseline, 42 % (n = 846) had ever received couples' HCT. Of those who had never received couples' HCT (n = 1,174), 697 were interviewed in the intervention clusters while 477 were interviewed in the comparison clusters. 73.6 % (n = 513) of those interviewed in the intervention and 82.6 % (n = 394) of those interviewed in the comparison cluster were interviewed at follow-up. Of those interviewed, 72.3 % (n = 371) in the intervention and 65.2 % (n = 257) in the comparison clusters received HCT. Couples' HCT uptake was higher in the intervention than in the comparison clusters (20.3 % versus 13.7 %; adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) = 1.43, 95 % CI: 1.02, 2.01, P = 0.04). Our findings show that a small group, couple and male-focused, demand-creation intervention reinforced with testimonies from 'expert couples', improved uptake of couples' HCT in this rural setting. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02492061 . Date of registration: June 14, 2015.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

van der Zwaan, Bob; Calvin, Katherine V.; Clarke, Leon E.

The CLIMACAP-LAMP project, completed in December 2015, was an inter-model comparison exercise that focused on energy and climate change economics issues in Latin America. The project partners – co-financed by the EC / EuropeAid (CLIMACAP part) and EPA / USAID (LAMP part) and co-coordinated by respectively the Energy research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) – report their main and detailed findings in this Special Issue of Energy Economics, exclusively dedicated to climate mitigation, low-carbon development and implications for energy and land use in Latin America. Our research endeavor included several of the mostmore » prominent regional energy modeling groups from Latin America, as well as a representative set of global integrated assessment modeling groups from a number of institutions from Europe and the US. About two dozen universities, research groups and environmental or consulting organizations took part in the CLIMACAP-LAMP cross-model comparison project, from both sides of the Atlantic. Over a handful of workshops were organized over the past four years in several countries in Latin America, attended by between 30 and 50 participants from, amongst others, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, the EU, and the US.« less

Report of the Working Group on the Composition of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abbasi, R.; Bellido, J.; Belz, J.; de Souza, V.; Hanlon, W.; Ikeda, D.; Lundquist, J. P.; Sokolskypt, P.; Stroman, T.; Tameda, Y.; Tsunesada, Y.; Unger, M.; Yushkov, A.

For the first time a proper comparison of the average depth of shower maximum (Xmax) published by the Pierre Auger and Telescope Array Observatories is presented. The Xmax distributions measured by the Pierre Auger Observatory were fit using simulated events initiated by four primaries (proton, helium, nitrogen and iron). The primary abundances which best describe the Auger data were simulated through the Telescope Array (TA) Middle Drum (MD) fluorescence and surface detector array. The simulated events were analyzed by the TA Collaboration using the same procedure as applied to their data. The result is a simulated version of the Auger data as it would be observed by TA. This analysis allows a direct comparison of the evolution of < Xmax > with energy of both data sets. The < Xmax > measured by TA-MD is consistent with a preliminary simulation of the Auger data through the TA detector and the average difference between the two data sets was found to be (2.9 ± 2.7 (stat.) ± 18 (syst.)) g/cm2.

Measurement invariance of the alcohol use disorders identification test: Establishing its factor structure in different settings and across gender.

PubMed

Moehring, Anne; Krause, Kristian; Guertler, Diana; Bischof, Gallus; Hapke, Ulfert; Freyer-Adam, Jennis; Baumann, Sophie; Batra, Anil; Rumpf, Hans-Juergen; Ulbricht, Sabina; John, Ulrich; Meyer, Christian

2018-05-31

The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) is an internationally well-established screening tool for the assessment of hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption. To be valid for group comparisons, the AUDIT should measure the same latent construct with the same structure across groups. This is determined by measurement invariance. So far, measurement invariance of the AUDIT has rarely been investigated. We analyzed measurement invariance across gender and samples from different settings (i.e., inpatients from general hospital, patients from general medical practices, general population). A sample of n = 28,345 participants from general hospitals, general medical practices and the general population was provided from six studies. First, we used Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to establish the factorial structure of the AUDIT by comparing a single-factor model to a two-factor model for each group. Next, Multiple Group CFA was used to investigate measurement invariance. The two-factor structure was shown to be preferable for all groups. Furthermore, strict measurement invariance was established across all groups for the AUDIT. A two-factor structure for the AUDIT is preferred. Nevertheless, the one-factor structure also showed a good fit to the data. The findings support the AUDIT as a psychometrically valid and reliable screening instrument. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Internet-delivered treatment for older adults with anxiety and depression: implementation of the Wellbeing Plus Course in routine clinical care and comparison with research trial outcomes

PubMed Central

Staples, Lauren G.; Fogliati, Vincent J.; Dear, Blake F.; Nielssen, Olav

2016-01-01

Background The Wellbeing Plus Course is an internet-delivered psychological intervention for older adults with anxiety or depression. Aims To compare the effectiveness of the Wellbeing Plus Course in a public health setting (clinic group) with its efficacy in a randomised controlled trial (research group). Method Participants (n=949) were Australian adults aged 60 and above. Primary outcome measures were the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7). Results Initial symptom severity was higher in the clinic group and course completion was lower. Both groups showed significant symptom reductions at post-treatment and were satisfied with the treatment. Results were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Within-group symptom changes were comparable between settings; there were no between-group differences on primary outcomes or satisfaction. Conclusions The Wellbeing Plus Course is as effective and acceptable in routine clinical care, as it is in controlled research trials. Declaration of interest N.T. and B.F.D developed the Wellbeing Plus Course but derived no financial benefit from it. Copyright and usage © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2016. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license. PMID:27703794

Comparison of the Infiniti vision and the series 20,000 Legacy systems.

PubMed

Fernández de Castro, Luis E; Solomon, Kerry D; Hu, Daniel J; Vroman, David T; Sandoval, Helga P

2008-01-01

To compare the efficiency of the Infiniti vision system and the Series 20,000 Legacy system phacoemulsification units during routine cataract extraction. Thirty-nine eyes of 39 patients were randomized to have their cataract removed using either the Infiniti or the Legacy system, both using the Neosonix handpiece. System settings were standardized. Ultrasound time, amount of balanced salt solution (BSS) used intraoperatively, and postoperative visual acuity at postoperative days 1, 7 and 30 were evaluated. Preoperatively, best corrected visual acuity was significantly worse in the Infiniti group compared to the Legacy group (0.38 +/- 0.23 and 0.21 +/- 0.16, respectively; p = 0.012). The mean phacoemulsification time was 39.6 +/- 22.9 s (range 6.0-102.0) for the Legacy group and 18.3 +/-19.1 s (range 1.0-80.0) for the Infiniti group (p = 0.001). The mean amounts of intraoperative BSS used were 117 +/- 37.7 ml (range 70-195) in the Legacy group and 85.3 +/- 38.9 ml (range 40-200) in the Infiniti group (p = 0.005). No differences in postoperative visual acuity were found. The ability to use higher flow rates and vacuum settings with the Infiniti vision system allowed for cataract removal with less phacoemulsification time than when using the Legacy system. Copyright 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Diagnostic utility of alpha-fetoprotein and des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin in nigerians with hepatocellular carcinoma.

PubMed

Ette, Akpakip Ikpong; Ndububa, D A; Adekanle, O; Ekrikpo, U

2017-10-01

Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and Des-gamma-carboxyprothrombin (DCP) have been extensively studied as biomarkers for the diagnosis of and prognostication in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However there are only few reports on the clinical characteristics of hepatocellular carcinoma in relation to the combination of the two tumor markers in hepatitis B virus-related HCC. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics of HBV-related HCC in relation to different sets of AFP and DCP values. Sixty-two patients with untreated HCC were studied. The positive value of AFP was set at 20 1U/L while DCP positive value was set at 150 mAU/ml. Patients were divided into three groups: Group 1(n=36) with AFP ≥ 20 IU/L and DCP ≥ 150 mAU/ml. Group 2(n=24) with AFP <20 1U/L and DCP ≥ 150 mAU/ml. Group 3 (n=2) with AFP < 20 1U/L and DCP < 150 mAU/ml. There were no patients in group 4 meant for those with AFP ≥ 20 1U/L and DCP < 150 mAU/ml. Clinical and laboratory variables were compared among the groups. Clinical and laboratory variables were comparable among the groups with the exception of gender and values of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Males were significantly more than females among the groups (p<0.03). ALT values were significantly different among the groups (p<0.006). Paired comparisons between the groups showed the mean values of serum ALT were significantly higher in group 2 than in group 1(p<0.003). The mean serum ALT values were also higher in group 2 than in group 3 (p <0.014). There was no significant difference between group 1 and group 3 (P = 0.124). HCC patients who are sero-positive for DCP and sero-negative for AFP have significantly higher levels of serum ALT; serum ALT levels may be of diagnostic importance in AFP-negative, HBV-related HCC patients.

Independent evolution of the core and accessory gene sets in the genus Neisseria: insights gained from the genome of Neisseria lactamica isolate 020-06

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background The genus Neisseria contains two important yet very different pathogens, N. meningitidis and N. gonorrhoeae, in addition to non-pathogenic species, of which N. lactamica is the best characterized. Genomic comparisons of these three bacteria will provide insights into the mechanisms and evolution of pathogenesis in this group of organisms, which are applicable to understanding these processes more generally. Results Non-pathogenic N. lactamica exhibits very similar population structure and levels of diversity to the meningococcus, whilst gonococci are essentially recent descendents of a single clone. All three species share a common core gene set estimated to comprise around 1190 CDSs, corresponding to about 60% of the genome. However, some of the nucleotide sequence diversity within this core genome is particular to each group, indicating that cross-species recombination is rare in this shared core gene set. Other than the meningococcal cps region, which encodes the polysaccharide capsule, relatively few members of the large accessory gene pool are exclusive to one species group, and cross-species recombination within this accessory genome is frequent. Conclusion The three Neisseria species groups represent coherent biological and genetic groupings which appear to be maintained by low rates of inter-species horizontal genetic exchange within the core genome. There is extensive evidence for exchange among positively selected genes and the accessory genome and some evidence of hitch-hiking of housekeeping genes with other loci. It is not possible to define a 'pathogenome' for this group of organisms and the disease causing phenotypes are therefore likely to be complex, polygenic, and different among the various disease-associated phenotypes observed. PMID:21092259

Using neuropsychological profiles to classify neglected children with or without physical abuse.

PubMed

Nolin, Pierre; Ethier, Louise

2007-06-01

The aim of this study is twofold: First, to investigate whether cognitive functions can contribute to differentiating neglected children with or without physical abuse compared to comparison participants; second, to demonstrate the detrimental impact of children being victimized by a combination of different types of maltreatment. Seventy-nine children aged 6-12 years and currently receiving Child Protection Services because of one of two types of maltreatment (neglect with physical abuse, n=56; neglect without physical abuse, n=28) were compared with a control group of 53 children matched for age, gender, and annual family income. The neuropsychological assessment focused on motor performance, attention, memory and learning, visual-motor integration, language, frontal/executive functions, and intelligence. Discriminant analysis identified auditory attention and response set, and visual-motor integration (Function 1), and problem solving, abstraction, and planning (Function 2) as the two sets of variables that most distinguished the groups. Discriminant analysis predicted group membership in 80% of the cases. Children who were neglected with physical abuse showed cognitive deficits in auditory attention and response set, and visual-motor integration (Function 1) and problem solving, abstraction, and planning (Function 2). Children who were neglected without physical abuse differed from the control group in that they obtained lower scores in auditory attention and response set, and visual-motor integration (Function 1). Surprisingly, these same children demonstrated a greater capacity for problem solving, abstraction, and planning (Function 2) than the physically abused neglected and control children. The present study underscores the relevance of neuropsychology to maltreatment research. The results support the heterogeneity of cognitive deficits in children based on different types of maltreatment and the fact that neglect with physical abuse is more harmful than neglect alone.

Do Collaborative Exams Really Promote Learning?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Scott; James, C. Renee

2018-01-01

Collaborative, two-stage exams are becoming more popular in physics and astronomy courses, and their supposed benefits in terms of collaborative learning have been reported in the field of physics. In a collaborative, two-stage exam, students first complete an exam individually. Once that portion of the exam is over, students then retake all or part of the exam within a group, where they are able to discuss the questions with their peers and arrive at a common answer. While there are a number of papers that discuss the purported benefits of this method from a collaborative point of view, few, if any discuss the actual benefits in terms of student learning. One paper found that when students were presented with previous exam questions a few weeks later, they performed better on questions covered previously in the group portion of the exam compared to similar questions which were tested but not part of the group portion. But, when students were retested on exam questions which were administered earlier, roughly six to seven weeks beforehand, no difference was found in their performance on the two sets of questions.We present preliminary findings comparing student performance levels on multiple sets of exam questions administered to students in an introductory astronomy course where two-stage exams are administered. Questions were administered first in an exam during the course of the semester, then again during a final exam. During the semester exams, one set of questions was also contained within the group portion of the exam, while questions similar in concept and difficulty were not. A comparison of student performance on these two sets of questions are compared to evaluate the usefulness of collaborative exams to promote learning.

Comparison of hemodynamic and nutritional parameters between older persons practicing regular physical activity, nonsmokers and ex-smokers.

PubMed

Francisco, Cristina O; Ricci, Natalia A; Rebelatto, Marcelo N; Rebelatto, José R

2010-11-01

Sedentary lifestyle combined with smoking, contributes to the development of a set of chronic diseases and to accelerating the course of aging. The aim of the study was to compare the hemodynamic and nutritional parameters between elderly persons practicing regular physical activity, nonsmokers and ex-smokers. The sample was comprised of 40 elderly people practicing regular physical activity for 12 months, divided into a Nonsmoker Group and an Ex-smoker Group. During a year four trimestrial evaluations were performed, in which the hemodynamic (blood pressure, heart rate- HR and VO2) and nutritional status (measured by body mass index) data were collected. The paired t-test and t-test for independent samples were applied in the intragroup and intergroup analysis, respectively. The mean age of the groups was 68.35 years, with the majority of individuals in the Nonsmoker Group being women (n = 15) and the Ex-smoker Group composed of men (n = 11). In both groups the variables studied were within the limits of normality for the age. HR was diminished in the Nonsmoker Group in comparison with the Ex-smoker Group (p = 0.045) between the first and last evaluation. In the intragroup analysis it was verified that after one year of exercise, there was significant reduction in the HR in the Nonsmoker Group (p = 0.002) and a significant increase in VO2 for the Ex-smoker Group (p = 0.010). There are no significant differences between the hemodynamic and nutritional conditions in both groups. In elderly persons practicing regular physical activity, it was observed that the studied variables were maintained over the course of a year, and there was no association with the history of smoking, except for HR and VO2.

International Neurocognitive Normative Study: Neurocognitive Comparison Data in Diverse Resource Limited Settings: AIDS Clinical Trials Group A5271

PubMed Central

Robertson, K; Jiang, H; Evans, SR; Marra, CM; Berzins, B; Hakim, J; Sacktor, N; Silva, M Tulius; Campbell, TB; Nair, A; Schouten, J; Kumwenda, J; Supparatpinyo, K; Tripathy, S.; Kumarasamy, N; La Rosa, A; Montano, S; Mwafongo, A; Firnhaber, C; Sanne, I; Naini, L.; Amod, F; Walawander, A

2016-01-01

Summary ACTG A5271 collected neurocognitive normative comparison test data in 2400 at-risk HIV seronegative participants from Brazil, India, Malawi, Peru, South Africa, Thailand and Zimbabwe. The participants were enrolled in strata by site (10 levels), age (2 levels), education (2 levels), and gender (2 levels). These data provide necessary normative data infrastructure for future clinical research and care in these diverse resource limited settings. Infrastructure for conducting neurological research in resource limited settings (RLS) is limited. The lack of neurological and neuropsychological (NP) assessment, and normative data needed for clinical interpretation impede research and clinical care. Here we report on ACTG 5271, which provided neurological training of clinical site personnel, and collected neurocognitive normative comparison data in diverse settings. At 10 sites in seven RLS countries, we provided training for NP assessments. We collected normative comparison data on HIV- participants from Brazil (n=240), India (n=480), Malawi (n=481), Peru (n=239), South Africa (480), Thailand (n=240) and Zimbabwe (n=240). Participants had a negative HIV test within 30 days before standardized NP exams were administered at baseline, and 770 at six-months. Participants were enrolled in 8 strata, gender (female and male), education (<10 years and ≥ 10 years), and age (<35 years and ≥35 years). Of 2400 enrolled, 770 completed the six-month follow up. As expected, significant between-country differences were evident in all the neurocognitive test scores (p<.0001). There was variation between the age, gender and education strata on the neurocognitive tests. Age and education were important variables for all tests; older participants had poorer performance and those with higher education had better performance. Women had better performance on verbal learning/memory and speed of processing tests, while men performed better on motor tests. This study provides the necessary neurocognitive normative data needed to build infrastructure for future neurological and neurocognitive studies in diverse RLS. These normative data are a much-needed resource for both clinicians and researchers. PMID:26733457

Sex in public and private settings among Latino MSM

PubMed Central

Reisen, Carol A; Iracheta, Miguel A.; Zea, Maria Cecilia; Bianchi, Fernanda T.; Poppen, Paul J.

2009-01-01

Latino men who have sex with men (MSM) constitute a group at high risk for HIV. Recent approaches to understanding sexual risk have emphasized the role that contextual factors can play in shaping behavior. This study examined sexual behavior of Latino MSM in private and public settings. First, a within-person comparison of behaviors performed in sexual encounters that occurred in public and private settings was conducted. Unprotected anal intercourse and other sexual behaviors involving anal stimulation were more common in private settings; group sex was more likely in public settings. Second, a between-person analysis compared sexual behaviors of MSM who went to three different types of public sex settings during the previous six months. The types were: 1) commercial sex venues (CSVs), which were defined as businesses with the function of providing a space where MSM can go to have sexual encounters, such as gay bathhouses; 2) commercial sex environments (CSEs), which were defined as businesses with another apparent function, but in which MSM sometimes have sexual encounters, such as gay bars or pornographic movie houses; and 3) public sex environments (PSEs), which were defined as free public areas where MSM can go to find partners for anonymous sex, such as parks or public restrooms. Results indicated that anal sexual behavior was most likely to occur in CSVs and least likely in PSEs, but the probability of unprotected anal intercourse was not found to differ among the three types of settings. Behavioral differences were discussed in terms of structural conditions related to privacy and safety, and psychological factors related to intimacy. PMID:20461575

Aggregating Individual Preferences in the Analytic Hierarchy Process Applied to the 1983 Battelle TAV Study.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-03-15

elicitation - rankings, ratings, and pairwise comparisons, 2) Value Theory: includes an explanation of the AHP and fuzzy set theory, and 3) Group... AHP are better tools for these " fuzzy " applications. These results apply directly to this thesis. The original Battelle survey used direct ratings to...iridepeindent uf three arggretation toctiiIque5: geometric mean input, arithmetic me;n voctor output, and Majority rle,, output. The AHP consi:3tcncy index was

Nontraditional families and childhood progress through school: a comment on Rosenfeld.

PubMed

Allen, Douglas W; Pakaluk, Catherine; Price, Joseph

2013-06-01

We reexamine Rosenfeld's (2010) study on the association between child outcomes and same-sex family structure. Using the same data set, we replicate and generalize Rosenfeld's findings and show that the implications of his study are different when using either alternative comparison groups or alternative sample restrictions. Compared with traditional married households, we find that children being raised by same-sex couples are 35 % less likely to make normal progress through school; this difference is statistically significant at the 1 % level.

Difficulties with Pitch Discrimination Influences Pitch Memory Performance: Evidence from Congenital Amusia

PubMed Central

Jiang, Cunmei; Lim, Vanessa K.; Wang, Hang; Hamm, Jeff P.

2013-01-01

Music processing is influenced by pitch perception and memory. Additionally these features interact, with pitch memory performance decreasing as the perceived distance between two pitches decreases. This study examined whether or not the difficulty of pitch discrimination influences pitch retention by testing individuals with congenital amusia. Pitch discrimination difficulty was equated by determining an individual’s threshold with a two down one up staircase procedure and using this to create conditions where two pitches (the standard and the comparison tones) differed by 1x, 2x, and 3x the threshold setting. For comparison with the literature a condition that employed a constant pitch difference of four semitones was also included. The results showed that pitch memory performance improved as the discrimination between the standard and the comparison tones was made easier for both amusic and control groups, and more importantly, that amusics did not show any pitch retention deficits when the discrimination difficulty was equated. In contrast, consistent with previous literature, amusics performed worse than controls when the physical pitch distance was held constant at four semitones. This impaired performance has been interpreted as evidence for pitch memory impairment in the past. However, employing a constant pitch distance always makes the difference closer to the discrimination threshold for the amusic group than for the control group. Therefore, reduced performance in this condition may simply reflect differences in the perceptual difficulty of the discrimination. The findings indicate the importance of equating the discrimination difficulty when investigating memory. PMID:24205375

Differential Item Functioning Detection across Two Methods of Defining Group Comparisons: Pairwise and Composite Group Comparisons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sari, Halil Ibrahim; Huggins, Anne Corinne

2015-01-01

This study compares two methods of defining groups for the detection of differential item functioning (DIF): (a) pairwise comparisons and (b) composite group comparisons. We aim to emphasize and empirically support the notion that the choice of pairwise versus composite group definitions in DIF is a reflection of how one defines fairness in DIF…

Feeling, caring, knowing: different types of empathy deficit in boys with psychopathic tendencies and autism spectrum disorder.

PubMed

Jones, Alice P; Happé, Francesca G E; Gilbert, Francesca; Burnett, Stephanie; Viding, Essi

2010-11-01

  Empathy dysfunction is one of the hallmarks of psychopathy, but it is also sometimes thought to characterise autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Individuals with either condition can appear uncaring towards others. This study set out to compare and contrast directly boys with psychopathic tendencies and boys with ASD on tasks assessing aspects of affective empathy and cognitive perspective taking. The main aim of the study was to assess whether a distinct profile of empathy deficits would emerge for boys with psychopathic tendencies and ASD, and whether empathy deficits would be associated with conduct problems in general, rather than psychopathic tendencies or ASD specifically.   Four groups of boys aged between 9 and 16 years (N = 96) were compared: 1) psychopathic tendencies, 2) ASD, 3) conduct problems and 4) comparison. Tasks were included to probe attribution of emotions to self, empathy for victims of aggression and cognitive perspective-taking ability.   Boys with psychopathic tendencies had a profile consistent with dysfunctional affective empathy. They reported experiencing less fear and less empathy for victims of aggression than comparison boys. Their cognitive perspective-taking abilities were not statistically significantly different from those of comparison boys. In contrast, boys with ASD had difficulties with tasks requiring cognitive perspective taking, but reported emotional experiences and victim empathy that were in line with comparison boys. Boys with conduct problems did not differ from comparison boys, suggesting that the affective empathy deficit seen in boys with psychopathic tendencies was specific to that group, rather than common to all boys with conduct problems.   Although both groups can appear uncaring, our findings suggest that the affective/information processing correlates of psychopathic tendencies and ASD are quite different. Psychopathic tendencies are associated with difficulties in resonating with other people's distress, whereas ASD is characterised by difficulties in knowing what other people think. © 2010 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry © 2010 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Feeling, caring, knowing: different types of empathy deficit in boys with psychopathic tendencies and autism spectrum disorder

PubMed Central

Jones, Alice P; Happé, Francesca GE; Gilbert, Francesca; Burnett, Stephanie; Viding, Essi

2010-01-01

Background Empathy dysfunction is one of the hallmarks of psychopathy, but it is also sometimes thought to characterise autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Individuals with either condition can appear uncaring towards others. This study set out to compare and contrast directly boys with psychopathic tendencies and boys with ASD on tasks assessing aspects of affective empathy and cognitive perspective taking. The main aim of the study was to assess whether a distinct profile of empathy deficits would emerge for boys with psychopathic tendencies and ASD, and whether empathy deficits would be associated with conduct problems in general, rather than psychopathic tendencies or ASD specifically. Methods Four groups of boys aged between 9 and 16 years (N = 96) were compared: 1) psychopathic tendencies, 2) ASD, 3) conduct problems and 4) comparison. Tasks were included to probe attribution of emotions to self, empathy for victims of aggression and cognitive perspective-taking ability. Results Boys with psychopathic tendencies had a profile consistent with dysfunctional affective empathy. They reported experiencing less fear and less empathy for victims of aggression than comparison boys. Their cognitive perspective-taking abilities were not statistically significantly different from those of comparison boys. In contrast, boys with ASD had difficulties with tasks requiring cognitive perspective taking, but reported emotional experiences and victim empathy that were in line with comparison boys. Boys with conduct problems did not differ from comparison boys, suggesting that the affective empathy deficit seen in boys with psychopathic tendencies was specific to that group, rather than common to all boys with conduct problems. Conclusions Although both groups can appear uncaring, our findings suggest that the affective/information processing correlates of psychopathic tendencies and ASD are quite different. Psychopathic tendencies are associated with difficulties in resonating with other people’s distress, whereas ASD is characterised by difficulties in knowing what other people think. PMID:20633070

Ultrasonically set novel NVC-containing glass-ionomer cements for applications in restorative dentistry.

PubMed

Moshaverinia, Alireza; Ansari, Sahar; Moshaverinia, Maryam; Schricker, Scott R; Chee, Winston W L

2011-09-01

The objective of this study is to investigate the effects of application of ultrasound on the physical properties of a novel NVC (N-vinylcaprolactam)-containing conventional glass-ionomer cement (GIC). Experimental GIC (EXP) samples were made from the acrylic acid (AA)-itaconic acid (IA)-NVC synthesized terpolymer with Fuji IX powder in a 3.6:1 P/L ratio as recommended by the manufacturer. Specimens were mixed and fabricated at room temperature and were conditioned in distilled water at 37°C for 1 day up to 4 week. Ultrasound (US) was applied 20 s after mixing by placing the dental scaler tip on the top of the cement and applying light hand pressure to ensure the tip remained in contact with cement without causing any deformation. Vickers hardness was determined using a microhardness tester. The working and setting times were determined using a Gillmore needle. Water sorption was also investigated. Commercial Fuji IX was used as control for comparison (CON). The data obtained for the EXP GIC set through conventional set (CS) and ultrasonically set (US) were compared with the CON group, using one-way ANOVA and the Tukey multiple range test at α = 0.05. Not only ultrasonic (US) application accelerated the curing process of both EXP cement and CON group but also improved the surface hardness of all the specimens. US set samples showed significantly lower water sorption values (P < 0.05) due to improved acid-base reaction within the GIC matrix and accelerated maturation process. According to the statistical analysis of data, significant increase was observed in the surface hardness properties of CS and US specimens both in EXP samples and the CON groups. It was concluded that it is possible to command set GICs by the application of ultrasound, leading to GICs with enhanced physical and handling properties. US application might be a potential way to broaden the clinical applications of conventional GICs in restorative dentistry for procedures such as class V cavity restorations.

Clinical interpretation of the Spinal Cord Injury Functional Index (SCI-FI)

PubMed Central

Fyffe, Denise; Kalpakjian, Claire Z.; Slavin, Mary; Kisala, Pamela; Ni, Pengsheng; Kirshblum, Steven C.; Tulsky, David S.; Jette, Alan M.

2016-01-01

Objective: To provide validation of functional ability levels for the Spinal Cord Injury – Functional Index (SCI-FI). Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Inpatient rehabilitation hospital and community settings. Participants: A sample of 855 individuals with traumatic spinal cord injury enrolled in 6 rehabilitation centers participating in the National Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems Network. Interventions: Not Applicable. Main Outcome Measures: Spinal Cord Injury-Functional Index (SCI-FI). Results: Cluster analyses identified three distinct groups that represent low, mid-range and high SCI-FI functional ability levels. Comparison of clusters on personal and other injury characteristics suggested some significant differences between groups. Conclusions: These results strongly support the use of SCI-FI functional ability levels to document the perceived functional abilities of persons with SCI. Results of the cluster analysis suggest that the SCI-FI functional ability levels capture function by injury characteristics. Clinical implications regarding tracking functional activity trajectories during follow-up visits are discussed. PMID:26781769

Comparison of job satisfaction among eight health care professions in private (non-government) settings.

PubMed

Chen, Ai-Hong; Jaafar, Saidah Nafisah; Noor, Abdul Rahim Md

2012-04-01

A comparison of the job satisfaction of health care professionals has not been well studied in Malaysia. This study aimed to compare the job satisfaction level among 8 groups of health care professionals in private settings, using the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS). A total of 81 health care professionals, including nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical laboratory technologists, dieticians, medical imaging practitioners, environmental health officers, and optometrists in private (non-government) settings in the Klang Valley, were interviewed using the Job Satisfaction Survey scale invented by Dr Paul E Spector. Their job satisfaction scores were calculated and determined. In the demographic data, the majority of the subjects were 20-30 years old (81.5%), were female (72.8%), had a basic degree (98.8%), were single (64.2%), and had 1-5 years of working experience (83.9%). A Kruskal-Wallis analysis showed significant differences (P < 0.05) in promotion, supervision, operating conditions, co-workers, nature of the work, and communication, but there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in pay, fringe benefits, and contingent rewards in JSS score among the 8 health care professions. The Friedman Test showed a significant difference of overall JSS scores (χ(2) = 526.418, P < 0.001) among the 8 health care professions. The overall job satisfaction levels are different among health care professionals in private settings, especially regarding promotion, supervision, operating conditions, co-workers, the nature of the work, and communication.

Guidelines for evaluating performance of oyster habitat restoration

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baggett, Lesley P.; Powers, Sean P.; Brumbaugh, Robert D.; Coen, Loren D.; DeAngelis, Bryan M.; Greene, Jennifer K.; Hancock, Boze T.; Morlock, Summer M.; Allen, Brian L.; Breitburg, Denise L.; Bushek, David; Grabowski, Jonathan H.; Grizzle, Raymond E.; Grosholz, Edwin D.; LaPeyre, Megan K.; Luckenbach, Mark W.; McGraw, Kay A.; Piehler, Michael F.; Westby, Stephanie R.; zu Ermgassen, Philine S. E.

2015-01-01

Restoration of degraded ecosystems is an important societal goal, yet inadequate monitoring and the absence of clear performance metrics are common criticisms of many habitat restoration projects. Funding limitations can prevent adequate monitoring, but we suggest that the lack of accepted metrics to address the diversity of restoration objectives also presents a serious challenge to the monitoring of restoration projects. A working group with experience in designing and monitoring oyster reef projects was used to develop standardized monitoring metrics, units, and performance criteria that would allow for comparison among restoration sites and projects of various construction types. A set of four universal metrics (reef areal dimensions, reef height, oyster density, and oyster size–frequency distribution) and a set of three universal environmental variables (water temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen) are recommended to be monitored for all oyster habitat restoration projects regardless of their goal(s). In addition, restoration goal-based metrics specific to four commonly cited ecosystem service-based restoration goals are recommended, along with an optional set of seven supplemental ancillary metrics that could provide information useful to the interpretation of prerestoration and postrestoration monitoring data. Widespread adoption of a common set of metrics with standardized techniques and units to assess well-defined goals not only allows practitioners to gauge the performance of their own projects but also allows for comparison among projects, which is both essential to the advancement of the field of oyster restoration and can provide new knowledge about the structure and ecological function of oyster reef ecosystems.

Comparison of Job Satisfaction among Eight Health Care Professions in Private (Non-Government) Settings

PubMed Central

Ai-Hong, Chen; Saidah Nafisah, Jaafar; Abdul Rahim, Md Noor

2012-01-01

Background: A comparison of the job satisfaction of health care professionals has not been well studied in Malaysia. This study aimed to compare the job satisfaction level among 8 groups of health care professionals in private settings, using the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS). Methods: A total of 81 health care professionals, including nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, medical laboratory technologists, dieticians, medical imaging practitioners, environmental health officers, and optometrists in private (non-government) settings in the Klang Valley, were interviewed using the Job Satisfaction Survey scale invented by Dr Paul E Spector. Their job satisfaction scores were calculated and determined. Results: In the demographic data, the majority of the subjects were 20–30 years old (81.5%), were female (72.8%), had a basic degree (98.8%), were single (64.2%), and had 1–5 years of working experience (83.9%). A Kruskal–Wallis analysis showed significant differences (P < 0.05) in promotion, supervision, operating conditions, co-workers, nature of the work, and communication, but there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in pay, fringe benefits, and contingent rewards in JSS score among the 8 health care professions. The Friedman Test showed a significant difference of overall JSS scores (χ2 = 526.418, P < 0.001) among the 8 health care professions. Conclusion: The overall job satisfaction levels are different among health care professionals in private settings, especially regarding promotion, supervision, operating conditions, co-workers, the nature of the work, and communication. PMID:22973134

Health Care Use and Spending for Medicaid Enrollees in Federally Qualified Health Centers Versus Other Primary Care Settings

PubMed Central

Lee, Sang Mee; Sharma, Ravi; Ngo-Metzger, Quyen; Mukamel, Dana B.; Gao, Yue; White, Laura M.; Shi, Leiyu; Chin, Marshall H.; Laiteerapong, Neda; Huang, Elbert S.

2016-01-01

Objectives. To compare health care use and spending of Medicaid enrollees seen at federally qualified health centers versus non–health center settings in a context of significant growth. Methods. Using fee-for-service Medicaid claims from 13 states in 2009, we compared patients receiving the majority of their primary care in federally qualified health centers with propensity score–matched comparison groups receiving primary care in other settings. Results. We found that health center patients had lower use and spending than did non–health center patients across all services, with 22% fewer visits and 33% lower spending on specialty care and 25% fewer admissions and 27% lower spending on inpatient care. Total spending was 24% lower for health center patients. Conclusions. Our analysis of 2009 Medicaid claims, which includes the largest sample of states and more recent data than do previous multistate claims studies, demonstrates that the health center program has provided a cost-efficient setting for primary care for Medicaid enrollees. PMID:27631748

Term Based Comparison Metrics for Controlled and Uncontrolled Indexing Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Good, B. M.; Tennis, J. T.

2009-01-01

Introduction: We define a collection of metrics for describing and comparing sets of terms in controlled and uncontrolled indexing languages and then show how these metrics can be used to characterize a set of languages spanning folksonomies, ontologies and thesauri. Method: Metrics for term set characterization and comparison were identified and…

Set size and culture influence children's attention to number.

PubMed

Cantrell, Lisa; Kuwabara, Megumi; Smith, Linda B

2015-03-01

Much research evidences a system in adults and young children for approximately representing quantity. Here we provide evidence that the bias to attend to discrete quantity versus other dimensions may be mediated by set size and culture. Preschool-age English-speaking children in the United States and Japanese-speaking children in Japan were tested in a match-to-sample task where number was pitted against cumulative surface area in both large and small numerical set comparisons. Results showed that children from both cultures were biased to attend to the number of items for small sets. Large set responses also showed a general attention to number when ratio difficulty was easy. However, relative to the responses for small sets, attention to number decreased for both groups; moreover, both U.S. and Japanese children showed a significant bias to attend to total amount for difficult numerical ratio distances, although Japanese children shifted attention to total area at relatively smaller set sizes than U.S. children. These results add to our growing understanding of how quantity is represented and how such representation is influenced by context--both cultural and perceptual. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Follow up of Stress Management Groups in Family Practice

PubMed Central

Herbert, Carol P.; Gutman, Gloria M.

1983-01-01

Ninety-six registrants (70 females, 26 males, mean age 36.4) were trained in seven standard autogenic training groups for management of stress-related disorders by a family physician in a community health centre. Comparisons were made before and after six training weeks, using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and a questionnaire about physical and psychological symptoms, drug, tobacco and alcohol use. As in a previous study, state and trait anxiety scores and symptoms related to stress were decreased in a majority of subjects. Effects were maintained in a subgroup followed for 12 months. Problems of data collection over time in clinical settings and of establishing the impact of health education measures are discussed. PMID:21283343

Acute Perioperative Comparison of Patient-Specific Instrumentation versus Conventional Instrumentation Utilization during Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty.

PubMed

Steimle, Jerrod A; Groover, Michael T; Webb, Brad A; Ceccarelli, Brian J

2018-01-01

Utilizing patient-specific instrumentation during total knee arthroplasty has gained popularity in recent years with theoretical advantages in blood loss, intraoperative time, length of stay, postoperative alignment, and functional outcome, amongst others. No study has compared acute perioperative measures between patient-specific instrumentation and conventional instrumentation in the bilateral total knee arthroplasty setting. We compared patient-specific instrumentation versus conventional instrumentation in the setting of bilateral total knee arthroplasty to determine any benefits in the immediate perioperative period including surgical time, blood loss, pain medication use, length of stay, and discharge disposition. A total of 49 patients with standard instrumentation and 31 patients with patient-specific instrumentation were retrospectively reviewed in a two-year period at one facility. At baseline, the groups were comparable with respect to age, ASA, BMI, and comorbid conditions. We analyzed data on operative time, blood loss, hemoglobin change, need for transfusion, pain medication use, length of stay, and discharge disposition. There was no statistically significant difference between groups in regards to these parameters. Patient-specific instrumentation in the setting of bilateral total knee arthroplasty did not provide any immediate perioperative benefit compared to conventional instrumentation.

Age-related changes in the anticipatory coarticulation in the speech of young children

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parson, Mathew; Lloyd, Amanda; Stoddard, Kelly; Nissen, Shawn L.

2003-10-01

This paper investigates the possible patterns of anticipatory coarticulation in the speech of young children. Speech samples were elicited from three groups of children between 3 and 6 years of age and one comparison group of adults. The utterances were recorded online in a quiet room environment using high quality microphones and direct analog-to-digital conversion to computer disk. Formant frequency measures (F1, F2, and F3) were extracted from a centralized and unstressed vowel (schwa) spoken prior to two different sets of productions. The first set of productions consisted of the target vowel followed by a series of real words containing an initial CV(C) syllable (voiceless obstruent-monophthongal vowel) in a range of phonetic contexts, while the second set consisted of a series of nonword productions with a relatively constrained phonetic context. An analysis of variance was utilized to determine if the formant frequencies varied systematically as a function of age, gender, and phonetic context. Results will also be discussed in association with spectral moment measures extracted from the obstruent segment immediately following the target vowel. [Work supported by research funding from Brigham Young University.

Towards Open-World Person Re-Identification by One-Shot Group-Based Verification.

PubMed

Zheng, Wei-Shi; Gong, Shaogang; Xiang, Tao

2016-03-01

Solving the problem of matching people across non-overlapping multi-camera views, known as person re-identification (re-id), has received increasing interests in computer vision. In a real-world application scenario, a watch-list (gallery set) of a handful of known target people are provided with very few (in many cases only a single) image(s) (shots) per target. Existing re-id methods are largely unsuitable to address this open-world re-id challenge because they are designed for (1) a closed-world scenario where the gallery and probe sets are assumed to contain exactly the same people, (2) person-wise identification whereby the model attempts to verify exhaustively against each individual in the gallery set, and (3) learning a matching model using multi-shots. In this paper, a novel transfer local relative distance comparison (t-LRDC) model is formulated to address the open-world person re-identification problem by one-shot group-based verification. The model is designed to mine and transfer useful information from a labelled open-world non-target dataset. Extensive experiments demonstrate that the proposed approach outperforms both non-transfer learning and existing transfer learning based re-id methods.

Comparative genomics of Lactobacillus

PubMed Central

Kant, Ravi; Blom, Jochen; Palva, Airi; Siezen, Roland J.; de Vos, Willem M.

2011-01-01

Summary The genus Lactobacillus includes a diverse group of bacteria consisting of many species that are associated with fermentations of plants, meat or milk. In addition, various lactobacilli are natural inhabitants of the intestinal tract of humans and other animals. Finally, several Lactobacillus strains are marketed as probiotics as their consumption can confer a health benefit to host. Presently, 154 Lactobacillus species are known and a growing fraction of these are subject to draft genome sequencing. However, complete genome sequences are needed to provide a platform for detailed genomic comparisons. Therefore, we selected a total of 20 genomes of various Lactobacillus strains for which complete genomic sequences have been reported. These genomes had sizes varying from 1.8 to 3.3 Mb and other characteristic features, such as G+C content that ranged from 33% to 51%. The Lactobacillus pan genome was found to consist of approximately 14 000 protein‐encoding genes while all 20 genomes shared a total of 383 sets of orthologous genes that defined the Lactobacillus core genome (LCG). Based on advanced phylogeny of the proteins encoded by this LCG, we grouped the 20 strains into three main groups and defined core group genes present in all genomes of a single group, signature group genes shared in all genomes of one group but absent in all other Lactobacillus genomes, and Group‐specific ORFans present in core group genes of one group and absent in all other complete genomes. The latter are of specific value in defining the different groups of genomes. The study provides a platform for present individual comparisons as well as future analysis of new Lactobacillus genomes. PMID:21375712

Selecting risk factors: a comparison of discriminant analysis, logistic regression and Cox's regression model using data from the Tromsø Heart Study.

PubMed

Brenn, T; Arnesen, E

1985-01-01

For comparative evaluation, discriminant analysis, logistic regression and Cox's model were used to select risk factors for total and coronary deaths among 6595 men aged 20-49 followed for 9 years. Groups with mortality between 5 and 93 per 1000 were considered. Discriminant analysis selected variable sets only marginally different from the logistic and Cox methods which always selected the same sets. A time-saving option, offered for both the logistic and Cox selection, showed no advantage compared with discriminant analysis. Analysing more than 3800 subjects, the logistic and Cox methods consumed, respectively, 80 and 10 times more computer time than discriminant analysis. When including the same set of variables in non-stepwise analyses, all methods estimated coefficients that in most cases were almost identical. In conclusion, discriminant analysis is advocated for preliminary or stepwise analysis, otherwise Cox's method should be used.

A distributed model predictive control scheme for leader-follower multi-agent systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franzè, Giuseppe; Lucia, Walter; Tedesco, Francesco

2018-02-01

In this paper, we present a novel receding horizon control scheme for solving the formation problem of leader-follower configurations. The algorithm is based on set-theoretic ideas and is tuned for agents described by linear time-invariant (LTI) systems subject to input and state constraints. The novelty of the proposed framework relies on the capability to jointly use sequences of one-step controllable sets and polyhedral piecewise state-space partitions in order to online apply the 'better' control action in a distributed receding horizon fashion. Moreover, we prove that the design of both robust positively invariant sets and one-step-ahead controllable regions is achieved in a distributed sense. Simulations and numerical comparisons with respect to centralised and local-based strategies are finally performed on a group of mobile robots to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.

Influence of a Diet Very High in Vegetables, Fruit, and Fiber and Low in Fat on Prognosis Following Treatment for Breast Cancer

PubMed Central

Pierce, John P.; Natarajan, Loki; Caan, Bette J.; Parker, Barbara A.; Greenberg, E. Robert; Flatt, Shirley W.; Rock, Cheryl L.; Kealey, Sheila; Al-Delaimy, Wael K.; Bardwell, Wayne A.; Carlson, Robert W.; Emond, Jennifer A.; Faerber, Susan; Gold, Ellen B.; Hajek, Richard A.; Hollenbach, Kathryn; Jones, Lovell A.; Karanja, Njeri; Madlensky, Lisa; Marshall, James; Newman, Vicky A.; Ritenbaugh, Cheryl; Thomson, Cynthia A.; Wasserman, Linda; Stefanick, Marcia L.

2007-01-01

Context Evidence is lacking that a dietary pattern high in vegetables, fruit, and fiber and low in total fat can influence breast cancer recurrence or survival. Objective To assess whether a major increase in vegetable, fruit, and fiber intake and a decrease in dietary fat intake reduces the risk of recurrent and new primary breast cancer and all-cause mortality among women with previously treated early stage breast cancer. Design, Setting, and Participants Multi-institutional randomized controlled trial of dietary change in 3088 women previously treated for early stage breast cancer who were 18 to 70 years old at diagnosis. Women were enrolled between 1995 and 2000 and followed up through June 1, 2006. Intervention The intervention group (n=1537) was randomly assigned to receive a telephone counseling program supplemented with cooking classes and newsletters that promoted daily targets of 5 vegetable servings plus 16 oz of vegetable juice; 3 fruit servings; 30 g of fiber; and 15% to 20% of energy intake from fat. The comparison group (n=1551) was provided with print materials describing the "5-A-Day" dietary guidelines. Main Outcome Measures Invasive breast cancer event (recurrence or new primary) or death from any cause. Results From comparable dietary patterns at baseline, a conservative imputation analysis showed that the intervention group achieved and maintained the following statistically significant differences vs the comparison group through 4 years: servings of vegetables, +65%; fruit, +25%; fiber, +30%, and energy intake from fat, −13%. Plasma carotenoid concentrations validated changes in fruit and vegetable intake. Throughout the study, women in both groups received similar clinical care. Over the mean 7.3-year follow-up, 256 women in the intervention group (16.7%) vs 262 in the comparison group (16.9%) experienced an invasive breast cancer event (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.96; 95% confidence interval, 0.80–1.14; P=.63), and 155 intervention group women (10.1%) vs 160 comparison group women (10.3%) died (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.72–1.15; P=.43). No significant interactions were observed between diet group and baseline demographics, characteristics of the original tumor, baseline dietary pattern, or breast cancer treatment. Conclusion Among survivors of early stage breast cancer, adoption of a diet that was very high in vegetables, fruit, and fiber and low in fat did not reduce additional breast cancer events or mortality during a 7.3-year follow-up period. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00003787 PMID:17635889

Drugs and falls in community-dwelling older people: a national veterans study.

PubMed

French, Dustin D; Campbell, Robert; Spehar, Andrea; Cunningham, Francesca; Bulat, Tatjana; Luther, Stephen L

2006-04-01

The aim of this study was to identify which specific medications within recognized major problematic drug categories that increase risk of falling were prescribed to veterans before their out-patient treatment for a fall. This was a retrospective, cross-sectional national secondary outpatient data analysis with an age- and sex-matched comparison group. The setting was the national Veterans Health Administration (VHA) ambulatory health care system in fiscal year (FY) 2004. The study population was VHA patients aged>or=65 years who had fall-related outpatient clinical health care encounters in FY 2004 (as indicated by diagnostic codes) and who received >or=1 outpatient medication during the study period. The age- and sex-matched comparison group consisted of an equal number of patients with nonspecific chest pain. The percentage of patients in each group receiving medications (at the time of the outpatient encounter) that affect the cardiovascular system (CVS), central nervous system (CNS), or musculoskeletal system (MSS) was compared with Bonferrom-adjusted P values. The study sample consisted of 20,551 patients; the comparison group included the same number of patients. More patients with fall-coded encounters used CNS drugs than those with nonspecific chest pain (42.05% vs 29.29%). Also, within the CNS category, more patients with fall-coded encounters used antiparkinsonian medications (3.67% vs 1.32%), Alzheimer's disease medications (ie, cholinesterase inhibitors [5.40% vs 2.35%]), anticonvulsants/barbiturates (8.95% vs 5.18%), antidepressants (22.50% vs 14.16%), antipsychotics (4.68% vs 2.01%), opioid analgesics and narcotics (11.21% vs 9.09%), and benzodiazepines (7.60% vs 5.96%) (all, P<0.002). More patients with nonspecific chest pain received CVS drugs compared with the fall-coded group (69.13% vs 63.07%; P<0.002). Within the CVS category, more patients in the nonspecific chest pain group received angiotensin-II receptor antagonists, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, vasodilators, diuretics, and antiarrhythmics (all, P<0.002). No differences were noted between groups in the MSS category, except for NSAIDs, which more patients in the nonspecific chest pain group used than in the fall-coded group (6.44% vs 5.63%; P<0.002). In this study, subjects with a health care encounter for a fall (as indicated by diagnostic code) were prescribed significantly more CNS-category medications than subjects in the age- and sex-matched comparison group.

The bank of standardized stimuli (BOSS): comparison between French and English norms.

PubMed

Brodeur, Mathieu B; Kehayia, Eva; Dion-Lessard, Geneviève; Chauret, Mélissa; Montreuil, Tina; Dionne-Dostie, Emmanuelle; Lepage, Martin

2012-12-01

Throughout the last decades, numerous picture data sets have been developed, such as the Snodgrass and Vanderwart (1980) set, and have been normalized for variables such as name and familiarity; however, due to cultural and linguistic differences, norms can vary from one country to another. The effect due specifically to culture has already been demonstrated by comparing samples from different countries where the same language is spoken. On the other hand, it is still not clear how differences between languages may affect norms. The present study explores this issue by collecting and comparing norms on names and many other features from French Canadian speakers and English Canadian speakers living in Montreal, who thus live in similar cultural environments. Norms were collected for the photos of objects from the Bank of Standardized Stimuli (BOSS) by asking participants to name the objects, to categorize them, and to rate their familiarity, visual complexity, object agreement, viewpoint agreement, and manipulability. Names and ratings from the French speakers are available in Appendix A, available in the supplemental materials. The results show that most of the norms are comparable across linguistic groups and also that the ratings given are correlated across linguistic groups. The only significant group differences were found in viewpoint agreement and visual complexity. Overall, there was good concordance between the norms collected from French and English native speakers living in the same cultural setting.

Can the national surgical quality improvement program provide surgeon-specific outcomes?

PubMed

Kuhnen, Angela H; Marcello, Peter W; Roberts, Patricia L; Read, Thomas E; Schoetz, David J; Rusin, Lawrence C; Hall, Jason F; Ricciardi, Rocco

2015-02-01

Efforts to improve the quality of surgical care and reduce morbidity and mortality have resulted in outcomes reporting at the service and institutional level. Surgeon-specific outcomes are not readily available. The aim of this study is to compare surgeon-specific outcomes from the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program and 100% capture institutional quality data. We conducted a cohort study evaluating institutional and surgeon-specific outcomes following colorectal surgery procedures at 1 institution over 5 years. All patients who underwent an operation by a colorectal surgeon at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center from January 1, 2008 through December 31, 2012 were identified. Thirty-day mortality, reoperation, urinary tract infection, deep vein thrombosis, pneumonia, superficial surgical site infection, and organ space infection were the primary outcomes measured. We compared annual and 5-year institutional and surgeon-specific adverse event rates between the data sets. In addition, we categorized individual surgeons as low-outlier, average, or high-outlier in relation to aggregate averages and determined the concordance between the data sets in identifying outliers. Concordance was designated if the 2 databases classified outlier status similarly for the same adverse event category. In the 100% capture institutional data, 6459 operative encounters were identified in comparison with 1786 National Surgical Quality Improvement Program encounters (28% sampled). Annual aggregate adverse event rates were similar between the institutional data and the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. For annual surgeon-specific comparisons, concordance in identifying outliers between the 2 data sets was 51.4%, and gross discordance between outlier status was in 8.2%. Five-year surgeon-specific comparisons demonstrated 59% concordance in identifying outlier status with 8.2% gross discordance for the group. The inclusion of data from only 1 academic referral center is a limitation of this study. Each surgeon was identified as a "high outlier" in at least 1 adverse event category. Comparisons at the annual and 5-year points demonstrated poor concordance between our 100% capture institutional data and the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program data.

Investigating Factorial Invariance of Latent Variables Across Populations When Manifest Variables Are Missing Completely

PubMed Central

Widaman, Keith F.; Grimm, Kevin J.; Early, Dawnté R.; Robins, Richard W.; Conger, Rand D.

2013-01-01

Difficulties arise in multiple-group evaluations of factorial invariance if particular manifest variables are missing completely in certain groups. Ad hoc analytic alternatives can be used in such situations (e.g., deleting manifest variables), but some common approaches, such as multiple imputation, are not viable. At least 3 solutions to this problem are viable: analyzing differing sets of variables across groups, using pattern mixture approaches, and a new method using random number generation. The latter solution, proposed in this article, is to generate pseudo-random normal deviates for all observations for manifest variables that are missing completely in a given sample and then to specify multiple-group models in a way that respects the random nature of these values. An empirical example is presented in detail comparing the 3 approaches. The proposed solution can enable quantitative comparisons at the latent variable level between groups using programs that require the same number of manifest variables in each group. PMID:24019738

Identifying functional reorganization of spelling networks: an individual peak probability comparison approach

PubMed Central

Purcell, Jeremy J.; Rapp, Brenda

2013-01-01

Previous research has shown that damage to the neural substrates of orthographic processing can lead to functional reorganization during reading (Tsapkini et al., 2011); in this research we ask if the same is true for spelling. To examine the functional reorganization of spelling networks we present a novel three-stage Individual Peak Probability Comparison (IPPC) analysis approach for comparing the activation patterns obtained during fMRI of spelling in a single brain-damaged individual with dysgraphia to those obtained in a set of non-impaired control participants. The first analysis stage characterizes the convergence in activations across non-impaired control participants by applying a technique typically used for characterizing activations across studies: Activation Likelihood Estimate (ALE) (Turkeltaub et al., 2002). This method was used to identify locations that have a high likelihood of yielding activation peaks in the non-impaired participants. The second stage provides a characterization of the degree to which the brain-damaged individual's activations correspond to the group pattern identified in Stage 1. This involves performing a Mahalanobis distance statistics analysis (Tsapkini et al., 2011) that compares each of a control group's peak activation locations to the nearest peak generated by the brain-damaged individual. The third stage evaluates the extent to which the brain-damaged individual's peaks are atypical relative to the range of individual variation among the control participants. This IPPC analysis allows for a quantifiable, statistically sound method for comparing an individual's activation pattern to the patterns observed in a control group and, thus, provides a valuable tool for identifying functional reorganization in a brain-damaged individual with impaired spelling. Furthermore, this approach can be applied more generally to compare any individual's activation pattern with that of a set of other individuals. PMID:24399981

Esophagus cancer and radiation exposure due to nuclear test fallout: an analysis based on the data of the Semipalatinsk historical cohort, 1960-1999.

PubMed

Bauer, S; Gusev, B I; Pivina, L M; Apsalikov, K N; Grosche, B

2006-01-01

This paper describes the Semipalatinsk historical cohort study and, in particular, examines the association between combined external and internal radiation exposure and esophagus cancer. Esophagus cancer is the most frequent single cancer site in the cause of death follow-up for the Semipalatinsk cohort. Set up in the 1960s, this historical cohort included 10 exposed settlements in the vicinity of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site in East Kazakhstan as well as 6 comparison settlements in a low exposure area of the same region. The external and internal radiation doses to the population of the settlements under study were mainly due to local fallout from atmospheric nuclear testing (1949-1962). The database includes dosimetry and health information for 19.545 inhabitants of exposed and comparison villages in the Semipalatinsk region, comprising a total of 582.750 person-years of follow-up between 1960 and 1999. Cumulative effective dose estimates in this cohort range from 20 mSv to -4 Sv, with a mean dose of 634 mSv in the exposed group. Relative risks were calculated in terms of rate ratios, using a Poisson regression model for grouped person-time data. Esophagus cancer was found substantially elevated, with a statistically significant increase of the relative risk with dose and an ERR/Sv of 2.37 (1.45; 3.28) for the total cohort. If the data set was restricted to the exposed group only, the ERR/Sv was found considerably lower (0.18 (-0.16; 0.52)), whereas the dose-response remained significant only in women. Overall, our results based on the Semipalatinsk historical cohort indicate an association between fallout exposure and the risk of esophagus cancer that should be further investigated.

Global measures of outcome in a controlled comparison of pharmacological and psychological treatment of panic disorder and agoraphobia in primary care.

PubMed Central

Sharp, D M; Power, K G; Simpson, R J; Swanson, V; Anstee, J A

1997-01-01

BACKGROUND: Panic disorder, with and without agoraphobia, is a prevalent condition which presents primarily in general practice. Previous clinical outcome studies have been conducted mainly in specialist university departments or hospital settings, and have tended to employ complex rating scales that are not well suited for use as outcome measures in primary care. AIM: To evaluate the outcome, in a primary care setting, of fluvoxamine versus cognitive behaviour therapy, each used alone and in combination in a double-blind placebo-controlled framework, balanced for therapist contact. METHOD: A total of 149 patients satisfying DSMIII-R criteria for panic disorder were randomly allocated to receive one of the following: fluvoxamine, placebo, fluvoxamine plus cognitive behaviour therapy, placebo plus cognitive behaviour therapy, and cognitive behaviour therapy alone. These five treatment groups represent the minimum number acceptable for such a comparison to be made. All patients received an identical schedule of contact over 13 weeks. Measures of symptom severity, general health and social disruption were taken at entry point and end point; measures of change in symptoms were taken at end point only. Outcome was reported in terms of brief global ratings of severity of illness and change in symptoms, and of ratings of general health and social disruption that are suitable for use in general practice. RESULTS: All active treatment groups showed statistically significant advantages over placebo over a range of outcome ratings. The groups employing cognitive behaviour therapy showed the most robust and consistent response. CONCLUSION: The brief global measures reported here proved adequate to the task of assessing treatment outcome. Results indicate that treatments including cognitive behaviour therapy can be effective in the treatment of panic disorder and agoraphobia in primary care. PMID:9167318

Deaths from nasopharyngeal cancer among waiters and waitresses in Chinese restaurants.

PubMed

Yu, Ignatius T S; Chiu, Yuk-lan; Wong, Tze-wai; Tang, Jin-ling

2004-10-01

Previous studies have shown that waiters have a high risk of developing cancers of the buccal cavity and pharynx, but nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) has not been specifically studied. This study was carried out to investigate whether waiters/waitresses in Chinese restaurants have an increased risk of dying from NPC. A mortality odds ratio study was used to estimate the relative risk of dying from NPC for waiters/waitresses working in Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong during the period 1986-1995, using the general population as the external comparison group and deceased kitchen workers as an internal comparison group. Cases were deaths from NPC and the controls were deaths from the selected sets of reference causes. Seventeen deaths from NPC were identified among 415 deceased waiters and four NPC deaths occurred among 140 deceased waitresses. The adjusted mortality odds ratio (aMOR) for NPC was increased among waiters, being 3.02 (95% CI 1.82-5.00) and 2.61 (95% CI 1.02-6.69) in the external and internal comparisons, respectively. For waitresses, the aMOR was 4.58 (95% CI 1.63-12.86) in the external comparison. Analysis by duration of union membership suggested a dose-response relationship. An increased risk of dying from NPC was observed among waiters/waitresses and could not be fully explained by bias or confounding factors. Possible risk factors related to poor indoor air quality in the service areas of Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong should be further investigated.

Methodological and Reporting Quality of Comparative Studies Evaluating Health-Related Quality of Life of Colorectal Cancer Patients and Controls: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Wong, Carlos K H; Guo, Vivian Y W; Chen, Jing; Lam, Cindy L K

2016-11-01

Health-related quality of life is an important outcome measure in patients with colorectal cancer. Comparison with normative data has been increasingly undertaken to assess the additional impact of colorectal cancer on health-related quality of life. This review aimed to critically appraise the methodological details and reporting characteristics of comparative studies evaluating differences in health-related quality of life between patients and controls. A systematic search of English-language literature published between January 1985 and May 2014 was conducted through a database search of PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Medline. Comparative studies reporting health-related quality-of-life outcomes among patients who have colorectal cancer and controls were selected. Methodological and reporting quality per comparison study was evaluated based on a 11-item methodological checklist proposed by Efficace in 2003 and a set of criteria predetermined by reviewers. Thirty-one comparative studies involving >10,000 patients and >10,000 controls were included. Twenty-three studies (74.2%) originated from European countries, with the largest number from the Netherlands (n = 6). Twenty-eight studies (90.3%) compared the health-related quality of life of patients with normative data published elsewhere, whereas the remaining studies recruited a group of patients who had colorectal cancer and a group of control patients within the same studies. The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality-of-Life Questionnaire Core 30 was the most extensively used instrument (n = 16; 51.6%). Eight studies (25.8%) were classified as "probably robust" for clinical decision making according to the Efficace standard methodological checklist. Our further quality assessment revealed the lack of score differences reported (61.3%), contemporary comparisons (36.7%), statistical significance tested (38.7%), and matching of control group (58.1%), possibly leading to inappropriate control groups for fair comparisons. Meta-analysis of differences between the 2 groups was not available. In general, one-fourth of comparative studies that evaluated health-related quality of life of patients who had colorectal cancer achieved high quality in reporting characteristics and methodological details. Future studies are encouraged to undertake health-related quality-of-life measurement and adhere to a methodological checklist in comparison with controls.

Quadratic time dependent Hamiltonians and separation of variables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anzaldo-Meneses, A.

2017-06-01

Time dependent quantum problems defined by quadratic Hamiltonians are solved using canonical transformations. The Green's function is obtained and a comparison with the classical Hamilton-Jacobi method leads to important geometrical insights like exterior differential systems, Monge cones and time dependent Gaussian metrics. The Wei-Norman approach is applied using unitary transformations defined in terms of generators of the associated Lie groups, here the semi-direct product of the Heisenberg group and the symplectic group. A new explicit relation for the unitary transformations is given in terms of a finite product of elementary transformations. The sequential application of adequate sets of unitary transformations leads naturally to a new separation of variables method for time dependent Hamiltonians, which is shown to be related to the Inönü-Wigner contraction of Lie groups. The new method allows also a better understanding of interacting particles or coupled modes and opens an alternative way to analyze topological phases in driven systems.

Developing a strategic plan for a neonatal nurse practitioner service.

PubMed

Lee, Laurie A; Jones, Luann R

2004-10-01

Neonatal nurse practitioners (NNPs) have been in practice for over 3 decades. More recently, NNPs have begun to take ownership for building their group practice models. The purpose of this article is to present a detailed case study demonstrating how one NNP group used a 4-phase strategic planning process to turn a crisis into an opportunity. The article describes data obtained during the strategic planning process from an informal national survey of NNP managers that focused on key benchmarks, such as role definition, responsibilities, protected nonclinical time, NNP salary and benefits, and educational and professional development support. Using the strategic planning process, the group defined mutually agreed upon minimum safe staffing levels for NNPs, interns, residents and neonatologists in their setting. Based on the data generated, the group successfully justified additional NNP positions and organizational support for 10% protected nonclinical time. A sample operational budget, comparison of 3 staffing scenarios, and a timeline are also provided.

Diagnostic grouping among adults with intellectual disabilities and autistic spectrum disorders in staffed housing.

PubMed

Felce, D; Perry, J

2012-12-01

There is little evidence to guide the commissioning of residential provision for adults with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) in the UK. We aim to explore the degree and impact of diagnostic congregation among adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) and ASD living in staffed housing. One hundred and fifty-seven adults with intellectual disabilities from a sample of 424 in staffed housing were assessed as having the triad of impairments characteristic of ASD. They lived in 88 houses: 26 were non-congregate (40% or fewer residents had the triad) and 50 congregate (60% or more had the triad); 12 with intermediate groupings were eliminated. Non-congregate and congregate groups were compared on age, gender, adaptive and challenging behaviour, house size, staff per resident and various measures of quality of care and quality of outcome. Comparisons were repeated for Adaptive Behavior Scale (ABS)-matched, congregate and non-congregate subsamples. Non-congregate settings were larger, had lower staff per resident and more individualised social milieus. Groups were similar in age and gender but the non-congregate group had non-significantly higher ABS scores. The non-congregate group did more social, community and household activities. After matching for ABS, these outcome differences ceased to be significant. Non-congregate settings were significantly larger and had significantly more organised working methods. The findings are consistent with other research that finds few advantages to diagnostic grouping. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Near-peer role modeling: Can fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, enhance reflection among second-year students in a physical diagnosis course?

PubMed

McEvoy, Mimi; Pollack, Staci; Dyche, Lawrence; Burton, William

2016-01-01

Humanism is cultivated through reflection and self-awareness. We aimed to employ fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, to facilitate reflective sessions for second-year medical students with the intention of positively influencing reflective process toward humanistic development. A total of 186 students were randomly assigned to one of three comparison arms: eight groups of eight students (64 students) were facilitated by a fourth-year student who was a Gold Humanism Honor Society member (GHHS); eight groups (64 students) by a volunteer non-GHHS student; and seven groups (58 students) were non-facilitated. Before sessions, second-year students set learning goals concerning interactions with patients; fourth-year students received training materials on facilitation. Groups met twice during their 10 clinical site visits. At the last session, students completed a reflective assignment on their goal progress. Comparative mixed method analyses were conducted among the three comparison arms on reflection (reflective score on in-session assignment) and session satisfaction (survey) in addition to a thematic analysis of responses on the in-session assignment. We found significant differences among all three comparison arms on students' reflective scores (p=0.0003) and satisfaction (p=0.0001). T-tests comparing GHHS- and non-GHHS-facilitated groups showed significantly higher mean reflective scores for GHHS-facilitated groups (p=0.033); there were no differences on session satisfaction. Thematic analysis of students' reflections showed attempts at self-examination, but lacked depth in addressing emotions. There was a common focus on achieving comfort and confidence in clinical skills performance. Near peers, recognized for their humanism, demonstrated significant influence in deepening medical students' reflections surrounding patient interactions or humanistic development. Overall, students preferred facilitated to non-facilitated peer feedback forums. This model holds promise for enhancing self-reflection in medical education, but needs further exploration to determine behavioral effects.

Near-peer role modeling: Can fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, enhance reflection among second-year students in a physical diagnosis course?

PubMed Central

McEvoy, Mimi; Pollack, Staci; Dyche, Lawrence; Burton, William

2016-01-01

Introduction Humanism is cultivated through reflection and self-awareness. We aimed to employ fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, to facilitate reflective sessions for second-year medical students with the intention of positively influencing reflective process toward humanistic development. Methods/Analysis A total of 186 students were randomly assigned to one of three comparison arms: eight groups of eight students (64 students) were facilitated by a fourth-year student who was a Gold Humanism Honor Society member (GHHS); eight groups (64 students) by a volunteer non-GHHS student; and seven groups (58 students) were non-facilitated. Before sessions, second-year students set learning goals concerning interactions with patients; fourth-year students received training materials on facilitation. Groups met twice during their 10 clinical site visits. At the last session, students completed a reflective assignment on their goal progress. Comparative mixed method analyses were conducted among the three comparison arms on reflection (reflective score on in-session assignment) and session satisfaction (survey) in addition to a thematic analysis of responses on the in-session assignment. Results We found significant differences among all three comparison arms on students’ reflective scores (p=0.0003) and satisfaction (p=0.0001). T-tests comparing GHHS- and non-GHHS-facilitated groups showed significantly higher mean reflective scores for GHHS-facilitated groups (p=0.033); there were no differences on session satisfaction. Thematic analysis of students’ reflections showed attempts at self-examination, but lacked depth in addressing emotions. There was a common focus on achieving comfort and confidence in clinical skills performance. Discussion/Conclusions Near peers, recognized for their humanism, demonstrated significant influence in deepening medical students’ reflections surrounding patient interactions or humanistic development. Overall, students preferred facilitated to non-facilitated peer feedback forums. This model holds promise for enhancing self-reflection in medical education, but needs further exploration to determine behavioral effects. PMID:27600828

Near-peer role modeling: Can fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, enhance reflection among second-year students in a physical diagnosis course?

PubMed

McEvoy, Mimi; Pollack, Staci; Dyche, Lawrence; Burton, William

2016-01-01

Introduction Humanism is cultivated through reflection and self-awareness. We aimed to employ fourth-year medical students, recognized for their humanism, to facilitate reflective sessions for second-year medical students with the intention of positively influencing reflective process toward humanistic development. Methods/Analysis A total of 186 students were randomly assigned to one of three comparison arms: eight groups of eight students (64 students) were facilitated by a fourth-year student who was a Gold Humanism Honor Society member (GHHS); eight groups (64 students) by a volunteer non-GHHS student; and seven groups (58 students) were non-facilitated. Before sessions, second-year students set learning goals concerning interactions with patients; fourth-year students received training materials on facilitation. Groups met twice during their 10 clinical site visits. At the last session, students completed a reflective assignment on their goal progress. Comparative mixed method analyses were conducted among the three comparison arms on reflection (reflective score on in-session assignment) and session satisfaction (survey) in addition to a thematic analysis of responses on the in-session assignment. Results We found significant differences among all three comparison arms on students' reflective scores (p=0.0003) and satisfaction (p=0.0001). T-tests comparing GHHS- and non-GHHS-facilitated groups showed significantly higher mean reflective scores for GHHS-facilitated groups (p=0.033); there were no differences on session satisfaction. Thematic analysis of students' reflections showed attempts at self-examination, but lacked depth in addressing emotions. There was a common focus on achieving comfort and confidence in clinical skills performance. Discussion/Conclusions Near peers, recognized for their humanism, demonstrated significant influence in deepening medical students' reflections surrounding patient interactions or humanistic development. Overall, students preferred facilitated to non-facilitated peer feedback forums. This model holds promise for enhancing self-reflection in medical education, but needs further exploration to determine behavioral effects.

Cirrus Parcel Model Comparison Project. Phase 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Ruei-Fong; Starr, David O'C.; DeMott, Paul J.; Cotton, Richard; Jensen, Eric; Sassen, Kenneth

2000-01-01

The Cirrus Parcel Model Comparison (CPMC) is a project of the GEWEX Cloud System Study Working Group on Cirrus Cloud Systems (GCSS WG2). The primary goal of this project is to identify cirrus model sensitivities to the state of our knowledge of nucleation and microphysics. Furthermore, the common ground of the findings may provide guidelines for models with simpler cirrus microphysics modules. We focus on the nucleation regimes of the warm (parcel starting at -40 C and 340 hPa) and cold (-60 C and 170 hPa) cases studied in the GCSS WG2 Idealized Cirrus Model Comparison Project. Nucleation and ice crystal growth were forced through an externally imposed rate of lift and consequent adiabatic cooling. The background haze particles are assumed to be lognormally-distributed H2SO4 particles. Only the homogeneous nucleation mode is allowed to form ice crystals in the HN-ONLY runs; all nucleation modes are switched on in the ALL-MODE runs. Participants were asked to run the HN-lambda-fixed runs by setting lambda = 2 (lambda is further discussed in section 2) or tailoring the nucleation rate calculation in agreement with lambda = 2 (exp 1). The depth of parcel lift (800 m) was set to assure that parcels underwent complete transition through the nucleation regime to a stage of approximate equilibrium between ice mass growth and vapor supplied by the specified updrafts.

GeneTopics - interpretation of gene sets via literature-driven topic models

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Annotation of a set of genes is often accomplished through comparison to a library of labelled gene sets such as biological processes or canonical pathways. However, this approach might fail if the employed libraries are not up to date with the latest research, don't capture relevant biological themes or are curated at a different level of granularity than is required to appropriately analyze the input gene set. At the same time, the vast biomedical literature offers an unstructured repository of the latest research findings that can be tapped to provide thematic sub-groupings for any input gene set. Methods Our proposed method relies on a gene-specific text corpus and extracts commonalities between documents in an unsupervised manner using a topic model approach. We automatically determine the number of topics summarizing the corpus and calculate a gene relevancy score for each topic allowing us to eliminate non-specific topics. As a result we obtain a set of literature topics in which each topic is associated with a subset of the input genes providing directly interpretable keywords and corresponding documents for literature research. Results We validate our method based on labelled gene sets from the KEGG metabolic pathway collection and the genetic association database (GAD) and show that the approach is able to detect topics consistent with the labelled annotation. Furthermore, we discuss the results on three different types of experimentally derived gene sets, (1) differentially expressed genes from a cardiac hypertrophy experiment in mice, (2) altered transcript abundance in human pancreatic beta cells, and (3) genes implicated by GWA studies to be associated with metabolite levels in a healthy population. In all three cases, we are able to replicate findings from the original papers in a quick and semi-automated manner. Conclusions Our approach provides a novel way of automatically generating meaningful annotations for gene sets that are directly tied to relevant articles in the literature. Extending a general topic model method, the approach introduced here establishes a workflow for the interpretation of gene sets generated from diverse experimental scenarios that can complement the classical approach of comparison to reference gene sets. PMID:24564875

Behaviour among children of substance-abusing women attending a Special Child Welfare Clinic in Norway, as assessed by Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL).

PubMed

Hjerkinn, Bjørg; Lindbaek, Morten; Rosvold, Elin Olaug

2013-06-01

A Special Child Welfare Clinic (SCWC) in Norway provides care for pregnant women with substance abuse problems. Treatment is given without substitution. This investigation assesses the behaviour of the children between the ages 6 and 13 years of women who attended the clinic. It also explores the correlation between the behaviour and a neuropsychological screening performed one and a half year earlier. The study was set up to investigate the influence of prenatal substance exposure. Thirty-eight SCWC children and 63 children in a comparison group were scored by Child Behavior Check List (CBCL). Twenty-one (55%) SCWC mothers were classed as short-term users (ceased substance abuse before the end of first trimester), and 17 (45%) were classed as long-term users (continued a moderate substance abuse throughout pregnancy). Thirteen (77%) of the children of the long-term users were living in foster homes at the time of the investigation. SCWC children were scored within normal ranges for most items, but their scores were significantly worse than those of the comparison group. Children of short-term users were given lower scores than comparisons on more issues in CBCL than were children of long-term users. The SCWC children were breastfed for a shorter time (p = 0.023) and had moved house more often (p < 0.001) than comparisons. SCWC children living with their biological mothers received more special education or remedial classes (p ≤ 0.001) than children of the comparisons. Most children of long-term users were living in foster homes. Notably, children of short-term users, that is, children living with their biological mothers, were given lower scores than comparisons in CBCL. Children of short-term users were more likely to receive special education than children of comparisons. More research is needed on how to reveal parenting problems and how to guide mothers with previous or present substance abuse problems. © 2012 Nordic College of Caring Science.

Hispanic ethnicity and Caucasian race: Relations with posttraumatic stress disorder's factor structure in clinic-referred youth.

PubMed

Contractor, Ateka A; Claycomb, Meredith A; Byllesby, Brianna M; Layne, Christopher M; Kaplow, Julie B; Steinberg, Alan M; Elhai, Jon D

2015-09-01

The severity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms is linked to race and ethnicity, albeit with contradictory findings (reviewed in Alcántara, Casement, & Lewis-Fernández, 2013; Pole, Gone, & Kulkarni, 2008). We systematically examined Caucasian (n = 3,767) versus non-Caucasian race (n = 2,824) and Hispanic (n = 2,395) versus non-Hispanic ethnicity (n = 3,853) as candidate moderators of PTSD's 5-factor model structural parameters (Elhai et al., 2013). The sample was drawn from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network's Core Data Set, currently the largest national data set of clinic-referred children and adolescents exposed to potentially traumatic events. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we tested the invariance of PTSD symptom structural parameters by race and ethnicity. Chi-square difference tests and goodness-of-fit values showed statistical equivalence across racial and ethnic groups in the factor structure of PTSD and in mean item-level indicators of PTSD symptom severity. Results support the structural invariance of PTSD's 5-factor model across the compared racial and ethnic groups. Furthermore, results indicated equivalent item-level severity across racial and ethnic groups; this supports the use of item-level comparisons across these groups. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Temporal distribution of alcohol related facial fractures.

PubMed

Lee, Kai H; Qiu, Michael; Sun, Jiandong

2017-11-01

This study aimed to address 2 important aspects of temporal pattern in alcohol-related facial fractures: (1) comparison of temporal pattern of alcohol-related facial fracture (alcohol group) presentation with non-alcohol-related fracture (non-alcohol group) presentation; (2) temporal pattern of patient demographic characteristics, injury characteristics, and surgical management in the alcohol group presentation. This study retrospectively examined the Victorian admitted episodes data set (VAED) for the years 2010 to 2013. VAED is a standardized set of data collected during all hospital presentations in Victoria. The study found higher incidence of alcohol-related facial fracture presentations during weekends and during the summer and spring months compared with non-alcohol-related fractures (statistically significant). Alcohol-related facial fractures are more likely to involve male patients in the 20- to 29-year age group, occur as a result of interpersonal violence, and require shorter hospital stays during weekend admissions (statistically significant). No statistically significant relationship has been observed in seasonal variation across all variables. This study found distinct characteristics in temporal distribution of alcohol-related facial fractures. These characteristics are, in particular, significant in weekend trauma admissions. Such information is important in workforce planning, resource distribution, and implementation of injury prevention programs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Speech perception with electric-acoustic stimulation : Comparison with bilateral cochlear implant users in different noise conditions].

PubMed

Rader, T

2015-02-01

Cochlear implantation with the aim of hearing preservation for combined electric-acoustic stimulation (EAS) is the therapy of choice for patients with residual low-frequency hearing. Preserved residual acoustic hearing has a positive effect on speech intelligibility in difficult noise conditions. The goal of this study was to assess speech reception thresholds in various complex noise conditions for patients with EAS in comparison with patients using bilateral cochlear implants (CI). Speech perception in noise was measured for bilateral CI and EAS patient groups. A total of 22 listeners with normal hearing served as a control group. Speech reception thresholds (SRT) were measured using a closed-set sentence matrix test. Speech was presented with a single source in frontal position; noise was presented in frontal position or in a multisource noise field (MSNF) consisting of a four-loudspeaker array with independent noise sources. Modulated speech-simulating noise and pseudocontinuous noise served respectively as interference signal with different temporal characteristics. The average SRTs in the EAS group were significantly better in all test conditions than those of the group with bilateral CI. Both user groups showed significant improvement in the MSNF condition compared with the frontal noise condition as a result of bilateral interaction. The normal-hearing control group was able to use short temporal gaps in modulated noise to improve speech perception in noise (gap listening). This effect was absent in both implanted user groups. Patients with combined EAS in one ear and a hearing aid in the contralateral ear show significantly improved speech perception in complex noise conditions compared with bilateral CI recipients.

STRAP PTM: Software Tool for Rapid Annotation and Differential Comparison of Protein Post-Translational Modifications.

PubMed

Spencer, Jean L; Bhatia, Vivek N; Whelan, Stephen A; Costello, Catherine E; McComb, Mark E

2013-12-01

The identification of protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) is an increasingly important component of proteomics and biomarker discovery, but very few tools exist for performing fast and easy characterization of global PTM changes and differential comparison of PTMs across groups of data obtained from liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry experiments. STRAP PTM (Software Tool for Rapid Annotation of Proteins: Post-Translational Modification edition) is a program that was developed to facilitate the characterization of PTMs using spectral counting and a novel scoring algorithm to accelerate the identification of differential PTMs from complex data sets. The software facilitates multi-sample comparison by collating, scoring, and ranking PTMs and by summarizing data visually. The freely available software (beta release) installs on a PC and processes data in protXML format obtained from files parsed through the Trans-Proteomic Pipeline. The easy-to-use interface allows examination of results at protein, peptide, and PTM levels, and the overall design offers tremendous flexibility that provides proteomics insight beyond simple assignment and counting.

The cardioprotection granted by metoprolol is restricted to its administration prior to coronary reperfusion

PubMed Central

Ibanez, Borja; Cimmino, Giovanni; Prat-González, Susanna; Vilahur, Gemma; Hutter, Randolph; García, Mario J.; Fuster, Valentin; Sanz, Javier; Badimon, Lina; Badimon, Juan J.

2013-01-01

Background Myocardial infarct size is a strong predictor of cardiovascular events. Intravenous metoprolol before coronary reperfusion has been shown to reduce infarct size; however, it is unknown whether oral metoprolol initiated early after reperfusion, as clinical guidelines recommend, is similarly cardioprotective. We compared the extent of myocardial salvage associated with intravenous pre-reperfusion-metoprolol administration in comparison with oral post-reperfusion-metoprolol or placebo. We also studied the effect on suspected markers of reperfusion injury. Methods Thirty Yorkshire-pigs underwent a reperfused myocardial infarction, being randomized to pre-reperfusion-metoprolol, post-reperfusion-metoprolol or placebo. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging was performed in eighteen pigs at day 3 for the quantification of salvaged myocardium. The amounts of at-risk and infarcted myocardium were quantified using T2-weighted and post-contrast delayed enhancement imaging, respectively. Twelve animals were sacrificed after 24 h for reperfusion injury analysis. Results The pre-reperfusion-metoprolol group had significantly larger salvaged myocardium than the post-reperfusion-metoprolol or the placebo groups (31±4%, 13±6%, and 7±3% of myocardium at-risk respectively). Post-mortem analyses suggest lesser myocardial reperfusion injury in the pre-reperfusion-metoprolol in comparison with the other 2 groups (lower neutrophil infiltration, decreased myocardial apoptosis, and higher activation of the salvage-kinase phospho-Akt). Salvaged myocardium and reperfusion injury pair wise comparisons proved there were significant differences between the pre-reperfusion-metoprolol and the other 2 groups, but not among the latter two. Conclusions The intravenous administration of metoprolol before coronary reperfusion results in larger myocardial salvage than its oral administration initiated early after reperfusion. If confirmed in the clinical setting, the timing and route of β-blocker initiation could be revisited. PMID:19913314

Postoperative Complications in the Ahmed Baerveldt Comparison Study during Five Years of Follow-up

PubMed Central

Budenz, Donald L.; Feuer, William J.; Barton, Keith; Schiffman, Joyce; Costa, Vital P.; Godfrey, David G.; Buys, Yvonne M.

2016-01-01

PURPOSE To compare the late complications in the Ahmed Baerveldt Comparison Study during 5 years of follow-up. DESIGN Multicenter, prospective, randomized clinical trial. METHODS SETTINGS Sixteen international clinical centers. STUDY POPULATION Two hundred seventy six subjects aged 18 to 85 years with previous intraocular surgery or refractory glaucoma with intraocular pressure of > 18 mmHg. INTERVENTIONS Ahmed Glaucoma Valve FP7 or Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant BG 101-350. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Late postoperative complications (beyond 3 months), reoperations for complications, and decreased vision from complications. RESULTS Late complications developed in 56 subjects (46.8 ± 4.8 5 year cumulative % ± SE) in the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve group and 67 (56.3 ± 4.7 5 year cumulative % ± SE) in the Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant group (P = 0.082). The cumulative rates of serious complications were 15.9% and 24.7% in the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve and Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant groups respectively (P = 0.034) although this was largely driven by subjects who had tube occlusions in the two groups (0.8% in the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve group and 5.7% in the Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant group, P = 0.037). Both groups had a relatively high incidence of persistent diplopia (12%) and corneal edema (20%), although half of the corneal edema cases were likely due to pre-existing causes other than the aqueous shunt. The incidence of tube erosion was 1% and 3% in the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve and Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant groups, respectively (P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS Long term rates of vision threatening complications and complications resulting in reoperation were higher in the Baerveldt Glaucoma Implant than the Ahmed Glaucoma Valve group over 5 years of follow-up. PMID:26596400

A randomized control trial of the effect of yoga on Gunas (personality) and Self esteem in normal healthy volunteers

PubMed Central

Deshpande, Sudheer; Nagendra, H R; Nagarathna, Raghuram

2009-01-01

Background/Aims: To study the efficacy of yoga on Gunas (personality) and self esteem in normal adults through a randomized comparative study. Materials and Methods: Of the 1228 persons who attended motivational lectures, 226 subjects aged 18–71 years, of both sexes, who satisfied the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and who consented to participate in the study were randomly allocated into two groups. The Yoga (Y) group practised an integrated yoga module that included asanas, pranayama, meditation, notional correction, and devotional sessions. The comparison group practised mild to moderate physical exercises (PE). Both groups had supervised practices for one hour daily, six days a week, for eight weeks. Guna (personality) was assessed before and after eight weeks using the self-administered “The ’Gita” Inventory of Personality” (GIN) to assess Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. Self esteem in terms of competency (COM), global self esteem (GSE), moral and self esteem (MSE), social esteem (SET), family self esteem (FSE), body and physical appearance (BPA), and the lie scale (LIS) were assessed using the self esteem questionnaire (SEQ). Results: The baseline scores for all domains for both the groups did not differ significantly (P > 0.05 independent samples t-test). There were significant pre-post improvements in all domains in both groups (P < 0.001 paired t-test). The number of persons who showed improvement in Sattva and decrease in Tamas was significant in the Y but not in the PE group (McNemar test). The effect size for self esteem in the Y group is greater than for the PE group in three out of seven domains. Conclusions: This randomized controlled study has shown the influence of Yoga on Gunas and self esteem in comparison to physical exercise. PMID:21234210

In vitro comparison of stone retropulsion and fragmentation of the frequency doubled, double pulse nd:yag laser and the holmium:yag laser.

PubMed

Marguet, Charles G; Sung, Jeff C; Springhart, W Patrick; L'Esperance, James O; Zhou, Songlin; Zhong, Pei; Albala, David M; Preminger, Glenn M

2005-05-01

The frequency doubled, double pulse Nd:YAG (FREDDY) laser (World of Medicine, Berlin, Germany) functions through the generation of a plasma bubble. Upon bubble collapse a mechanical shock wave is generated, causing stone fragmentation. This mechanism of action is in contrast to the holmium laser, which cause stone destruction by vaporization. Observed clinical stone retropulsion and fragmentation with the FREDDY and holmium lasers has prompted a series of in vitro experiments designed to compare laser induced retropulsion and fragmentation with those of a holmium laser and pneumatic lithotrite. For retropulsion a hands-off underwater laboratory setup, including a horizontally oriented silicone tube 1.3 cm in diameter and a holder to keep the stone phantom in contact with the quartz laser fiber or pneumatic probe, was used. Previously weighed, cylindrical Bego stone phantoms (Bego USA, Smithfield, Rhode Island) were placed in the apparatus. Stone fragmentation was performed with the FREDDY or holmium laser, or the pneumatic lithotripter. The FREDDY and holmium lasers were tested at similar pulse energy and frequency settings. As a standard for comparison, a pneumatic lithotrite was tested with a semirigid probe and single pulse settings of 100, 200 and 300 kPa. Stone phantoms underwent 30 shocks per setting. Mean net retropulsion, defined as the final resting point of the stone, as determined by direct measurement, was recorded for each setting. For fragmentation plaster of Paris stone phantoms of known weights were used to compare the fragmentation ability of each laser. Stones phantoms were placed in a hands-off underwater setup, consisting of an inverted silicon syringe and holder immersed in tap water. The laser fiber (365 microm for the holmium and 280 microm for the FREDDY) was placed through the tip of the syringe in contact with the stone phantom. A total of 24 stones were divided into 4 groups of 6 per group. Two groups were fragmented with the FREDDY laser at 300 and 400 J total energy. The other 2 groups were fragmented using the holmium laser at 300 and 480 J total energy. Fragmentation efficiency was determined as percent weight loss. For retropulsion at 160 mJ the FREDDY laser caused stone retropulsion to a mean distance of 7.6, 8.1 and 6.8 cm at settings of 5, 10 and 15 Hz, respectively. At 0.8 J the holmium laser retropulsed the stone to a mean distance of 3.3 and 4.9 cm at settings of 5 and 10 Hz, respectively. The pneumatic device caused stone retropulsion a mean distance of 8.5, 9.9 and 13.8 cm at pressure settings of 100, 200 and 300 kPa, respectively. The FREDDY laser generally caused less retropulsion than the pneumatic device, although this difference was only significant at the highest pneumatic lithoclast setting (p <0.05). At clinically relevant settings the FREDDY laser caused significantly more retropulsion than the holmium laser (p <0.05). For fragmentation at total energy settings of 300 and 400 J the FREDDY laser resulted in 44.9% and 86.8% weight loss, respectively (p <0.05). At settings of 300 and 480 J the holmium:YAG laser resulted in 3.3% and 7.1% weight loss, respectively (p <0.05). At lower frequency settings stone retropulsion was significantly greater with the FREDDY laser compared with the holmium laser. However, retropulsion was significantly less than that caused by the pneumatic lithotripter at all settings. Therefore, we recommend the use of an occlusive device, such as the Stone Cone (Boston Scientific, Natick, Massachusetts) proximal to the calculus during intracorporeal ureteral lithotripsy and in the ureteropelvic junction during percutaneous laser nephrostolithotomy. In vitro stone fragmentation was significantly greater with the FREDDY laser than with the holmium:YAG laser, suggesting that the FREDDY may offer a low cost alternative to the holmium:YAG laser lithotrite in select patients.

Effects of a classroom intervention with spatial play materials on children's object and viewer transformation abilities.

PubMed

Vander Heyden, Karin M; Huizinga, Mariette; Jolles, Jelle

2017-02-01

Children practice their spatial skills when playing with spatial toys, such as construction materials, board games, and puzzles. Sex and SES differences are observed in the engagement in such spatial play activities at home, which relate to individual differences in spatial performance. The current study investigated the effects of explicitly providing spatial play activities in the school setting on different types of spatial ability. We presented 8- to 10-year-old children with a short and easy-to-adopt classroom intervention comprising a set of different spatial play materials. The design involved a pretest-posttest comparison between the intervention group (n = 70) and a control group without intervention (n = 70). Effects were examined on object transformation ability (i.e., a paper-and-pencil mental rotation and paper folding task) and viewer transformation ability (i.e., a hands-on 3D spatial perspective-taking task). Results showed specific effects: there were no differences between the intervention and control group in progress on the two object transformation tasks. Substantial improvements were found for the intervention group compared to the control group on the viewer transformation task. Training progress was not related to sex and socioeconomic background of the child. These findings support the value of spatial play in the classroom for the spatial development of children between 8 and 10 years of age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

A Comparison between Chocolate Milk and a Raw Milk Honey Solution’s Influence on Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness

PubMed Central

Hatchett, Andrew; Berry, Christopher; Oliva, Claudia; Wiley, Douglas; St. Hilaire, Jacob; LaRochelle, Alex

2016-01-01

This investigation sought to examine the effect that a chocolate milk solution (CMS) and a raw milk solution (RMS) had on lower extremity induced delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS). Twenty trained male participants completed a set of questionnaires, prior to completing a lower extremity DOMS protocol, to determine the level of discomfort and functional limitations. Once the DOMS protocol was completed, participants were randomly assigned to either the CM or RM group. Once assigned, participants ingested 240 mL of the respective solution and completed the same set of questionnaires immediately post, 24-, 48- and 72-h post DOMS protocol. Additionally, for 10 days post-ingestion participants were contacted to learn if any negative effects were experienced as a result of ingesting either solution. Both groups reported an increase in lower extremity discomfort at each data collection interval post-DOMS protocol (post, 24-, 48- and 72-h). Participants assigned to the RM group reported high discomfort post and a relative decline in discomfort from immediately post-DOMS protocol to 72-h post. The RMS group reported substantially less discomfort at 72-h when compared to the CMS group. Ingestion of a raw milk solution immediately post strength exercise can substantially reduce the level of self-reported discomfort associated with DOMS. PMID:29910267

Minimalist video-assisted thoracic surgery biopsy of mediastinal tumors.

PubMed

Tacconi, Federico; Rogliani, Paola; Cristino, Benedetto; Gilardi, Francesco; Palombi, Leonardo; Pompeo, Eugenio

2016-12-01

Mediastinal tumors often require surgical biopsy to achieve a precise and rapid diagnosis. However, subjects with mediastinal tumors may be unfit for general anesthesia, particularly when compression of major vessels or airways does occur. We tested the applicability in this setting of a minimalist (M) uniportal, video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) strategy carried out under locoregional anesthesia in awake patients (MVATS). We analyzed in a comparative fashion including propensity score matching, data from a prospectively collected database of patients who were offered surgical biopsy for mediastinal tumors through either MVATS or standard VATS. Tested outcome measures included feasibility, diagnostic yield, and morbidity. A total of 24 procedures were performed through MVATS. Diagnostic yield was 100%. Median hospital stay and time interval to oncologic treatment were 2 days (IQR, 2-3 days) and 7 days (IQR, 5.5-11.5 days), respectively. At overall comparison (MVATS, N=24 vs. VATS, N=23), there was a significant difference in both frequency and severity of postoperative complication as measured by Clavien-Dindo classification (P<0.006). In a propensity score matched comparison (8 patients per group), grade 3 or 4 complications requiring aggressive management were found only in the general anesthesia group. Global time spent in the operating room was shorter in the MVATS group (P=0.05). Time interval to oncological treatment was the same between groups. Other differences were also found in SIRS score (P=0.05) and PaO 2 /FiO 2 (P=0.04) thus suggesting better adaption to perioperative stress. MVATS biopsy appears to be a reliable tool to optimize diagnostic assessment in patients with mediastinal tumors. It can offer high diagnostic accuracy due to large tissue samples, while reducing morbidity rate compared to the same operation under general anesthesia. More robust evaluation is needed to define the appropriateness of MVATS in this specific clinical setting.

International neurocognitive normative study: neurocognitive comparison data in diverse resource-limited settings: AIDS Clinical Trials Group A5271.

PubMed

Robertson, K; Jiang, H; Evans, S R; Marra, C M; Berzins, B; Hakim, J; Sacktor, N; Silva, M Tulius; Campbell, T B; Nair, A; Schouten, J; Kumwenda, J; Supparatpinyo, K; Tripathy, S; Kumarasamy, N; la Rosa, A; Montano, S; Mwafongo, A; Firnhaber, C; Sanne, I; Naini, L; Amod, F; Walawander, A

2016-08-01

Infrastructure for conducting neurological research in resource-limited settings (RLS) is limited. The lack of neurological and neuropsychological (NP) assessment and normative data needed for clinical interpretation impedes research and clinical care. Here, we report on ACTG 5271, which provided neurological training of clinical site personnel and collected neurocognitive normative comparison data in diverse settings. At ten sites in seven RLS countries, we provided training for NP assessments. We collected normative comparison data on HIV- participants from Brazil (n = 240), India (n = 480), Malawi (n = 481), Peru (n = 239), South Africa (480), Thailand (n = 240), and Zimbabwe (n = 240). Participants had a negative HIV test within 30 days before standardized NP exams were administered at baseline and 770 at 6 months. Participants were enrolled in eight strata, gender (female and male), education (<10 and ≥10 years), and age (<35 and ≥35 years). Of 2400 enrolled, 770 completed the 6-month follow-up. As expected, significant between-country differences were evident in all the neurocognitive test scores (p < 0.0001). There was variation between the age, gender, and education strata on the neurocognitive tests. Age and education were important variables for all tests; older participants had poorer performance, and those with higher education had better performance. Women had better performance on verbal learning/memory and speed of processing tests, while men performed better on motor tests. This study provides the necessary neurocognitive normative data needed to build infrastructure for future neurological and neurocognitive studies in diverse RLS. These normative data are a much-needed resource for both clinicians and researchers.

Systematic study on the TD-DFT calculated electronic circular dichroism spectra of chiral aromatic nitro compounds: A comparison of B3LYP and CAM-B3LYP.

PubMed

Komjáti, Balázs; Urai, Ákos; Hosztafi, Sándor; Kökösi, József; Kováts, Benjámin; Nagy, József; Horváth, Péter

2016-02-15

B3LYP is one of the most widely used functional for the prediction of electronic circular dichroism spectra, however if the studied molecule contains aromatic nitro group computations may fail to produce reliable results. A test set of molecules of known stereochemistry were synthesized to study this phenomenon in detail. Spectra were computed by B3LYP and CAM-B3LYP functionals with 6-311++G(2d,2p) basis set. It was found that the range separated CAM-B3LYP gives better predictions than B3LYP for all test molecules. Fragment population analysis revealed that the nitro groups form highly localized molecule orbitals but the exact composition depends on the functional. CAM-B3LYP allows sufficient spatial overlap between the nitro group and distant parts of the molecule, which is necessary for the accurate description of excited states especially for charge transfer states. This phenomenon and the synthesized test molecules can be used to benchmark theoretical methods as well as to help the development of new functionals intended for spectroscopical studies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A computational approach to compare regression modelling strategies in prediction research.

PubMed

Pajouheshnia, Romin; Pestman, Wiebe R; Teerenstra, Steven; Groenwold, Rolf H H

2016-08-25

It is often unclear which approach to fit, assess and adjust a model will yield the most accurate prediction model. We present an extension of an approach for comparing modelling strategies in linear regression to the setting of logistic regression and demonstrate its application in clinical prediction research. A framework for comparing logistic regression modelling strategies by their likelihoods was formulated using a wrapper approach. Five different strategies for modelling, including simple shrinkage methods, were compared in four empirical data sets to illustrate the concept of a priori strategy comparison. Simulations were performed in both randomly generated data and empirical data to investigate the influence of data characteristics on strategy performance. We applied the comparison framework in a case study setting. Optimal strategies were selected based on the results of a priori comparisons in a clinical data set and the performance of models built according to each strategy was assessed using the Brier score and calibration plots. The performance of modelling strategies was highly dependent on the characteristics of the development data in both linear and logistic regression settings. A priori comparisons in four empirical data sets found that no strategy consistently outperformed the others. The percentage of times that a model adjustment strategy outperformed a logistic model ranged from 3.9 to 94.9 %, depending on the strategy and data set. However, in our case study setting the a priori selection of optimal methods did not result in detectable improvement in model performance when assessed in an external data set. The performance of prediction modelling strategies is a data-dependent process and can be highly variable between data sets within the same clinical domain. A priori strategy comparison can be used to determine an optimal logistic regression modelling strategy for a given data set before selecting a final modelling approach.

The Effects of an Empowerment Intervention on Renal Transplant Recipients: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Hsiao, Chiu-Yueh; Lin, Li-Wei; Su, Yu-Wen; Yeh, Shu-Hui; Lee, Li-Na; Tsai, Fu-Mian

2016-09-01

Renal transplantation is a vital treatment for end-stage renal disease. To help improve quality of life after renal transplant surgery, interventions are needed to strengthen the coping skills and self-care behaviors of patients. However, most research studies on self-care after renal transplantation have addressed related factors. Few studies have examined the effects of interventions on renal transplant recipients. This study investigated the effects of an empowerment support group on the empowerment levels and self-care behaviors of renal transplant recipients. This study was a randomized controlled trial. Eligible participants were individuals who had undergone a renal transplant within the past 20 years, were 18 years old or older, were able to read and write in Chinese, and were willing to participate. We recruited 122 renal transplant recipients from two medical centers in southern Taiwan. The renal transplant outpatients were randomly assigned into empowerment support (n = 56) and comparison (n = 66) groups. The developed measures as well as the content, protocols, and the two groups were assessed for reliability and validity. The intervention involved one 2-hour meeting every 2 weeks for a total of six meetings. The topics included goal setting, problem solving, coping with daily stress, seeking social support, and staying motivated. The sessions consisted of introductions that highlighted the topic, group discussions, identifying areas of difficulty with self-care behaviors after renal transplant, and developing a set of goals and strategies to overcome these problems. The empowerment group reported significant increases both in terms of level of empowerment (F = 5.29, p = .023) based on age and time interaction (F = 9.86, p < .001) and in terms of self-care behaviors (F = 7.15, p = .009). Moreover, these increases were significantly larger than the increases recorded by the comparison group. In addition, these increases were particularly large in the older empowerment-group participants with lower pretest scores for empowerment. Empowerment support may be critical to improve the empowerment and self-care behaviors of renal transplant patients. The results of this study may be applied to improve patient education and empowerment programs for renal transplant patients. Furthermore, these programs may be adjusted to take into consideration the learning preferences or needs of different age groups.

Histological and profilometric evaluation of the root surface after instrumentation with a new piezoelectric device - ex vivo study.

PubMed

Silva, D; Martins, O; Matos, S; Lopes, P; Rolo, T; Baptista, I

2015-05-01

An ex vivo model was designed to profilometrically and histologically assess root changes resulting from scaling with a new ultrasonic device, designed for bone piezoelectric surgery, in comparison with curettes. Three groups of 10 periodontal hopeless teeth were each subjected to different root instrumentation: Gracey curettes (CUR); ultrasonic piezoelectric device, Perio 100% setting, level 8 (P100); and ultrasonic piezoelectric device Surg 50% setting, level 1 (S50). After extraction, all teeth were photographed to visually assess the presence of dental calculus. The treated root surfaces were profilometrically evaluated (Ra, Rz, Rmax). Undecalcified histological sections were prepared to assess qualitative changes in cementum thickness. Statistical analysis was carried out using one-way anova test with a significance level of 95%. Both instruments proved to be effective in the complete removal of calculus. The CUR group presented the lowest Ra [2.28 μm (±0.58)] and S50 the highest [3.01 μm (±0.61)]. No statistically significant differences were detected among the three groups, for Ra, Rz and Rmax. Histologically, there was a cementum thickness reduction in all groups, being higher and more irregular in S50 group. Within the limits of this study, there were no statistically significant differences in roughness parameters analyzed between curettes and the ultrasonic piezoelectric unit. This new instrument removes a smaller amount of cementum, mainly at the Perio 100% power setting, which appears to be the least damaging. The ultrasonic device is effective in calculus removal, proving to be as effective as curettes. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Impact evaluation of a healthy lifestyle intervention to reduce cardiovascular disease risk in health centers in San José, Costa Rica and Chiapas, Mexico.

PubMed

Fort, Meredith P; Murillo, Sandra; López, Erika; Dengo, Ana Laura; Alvarado-Molina, Nadia; de Beausset, Indira; Castro, Maricruz; Peña, Liz; Ramírez-Zea, Manuel; Martínez, Homero

2015-12-28

Previous healthy lifestyle interventions based on the Salud para Su Corazón curriculum for Latinos in the United States, and a pilot study in Guatemala, demonstrated improvements in patient knowledge, behavior, and clinical outcomes for adults with hypertension. This article describes the implementation of a healthy lifestyle group education intervention at the primary care health center level in the capital cities of Costa Rica and Chiapas, Mexico for patients with hypertension and/or type 2 diabetes and presents impact evaluation results. Six group education sessions were offered to participants at intervention health centers from November 2011 to December 2012 and participants were followed up for 8 months. The study used a prospective, longitudinal, nonequivalent pretest-posttest comparison group design, and was conducted in parallel in the two countries. Cognitive and behavioral outcome measures were knowledge, self-efficacy, stage-of-change, dietary behavior and physical activity. Clinical outcomes were: body mass index, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and fasting blood glucose. Group by time differences were assessed using generalized estimating equation models, and a dose-response analysis was conducted for the intervention group. The average number of group education sessions attended in Chiapas was 4 (SD: 2.2) and in Costa Rica, 1.8 (SD: 2.0). In both settings, participation in the study declined by 8-month follow-up. In Costa Rica, intervention group participants showed significant improvements in systolic and diastolic blood pressure and borderline significant improvement for fasting glucose, and significant improvement in the stages-of-change measure vs. the comparison group. In Chiapas, the intervention group showed significant improvement in the stages-of-change measure in relation to the comparison group. Significant improvements were not observed for knowledge, self-efficacy, dietary behavior or physical activity. In Chiapas only, a significant dose-response relationship was observed for systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Group education interventions at health centers have the potential to improve stage-of-change activation, and may also improve clinical outcomes. In the future, it will be essential to dedicate resources to understand ways to reach a representative group of the patient population, tailor the intervention so that patients are engaged to participate, and consider the broader family and community context that influences patients' capacity to manage their condition.

HIGHER MODIFIED BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY SCORES ARE ASSOCIATED WITH BODY, EATING, AND EXERCISE COMPARISONS BUT DECREASED EXERCISE AMOUNTS.

PubMed

Knepp, Michael M; Yoza, Jeffrey J; Quandt, Emily A

2015-06-01

Previous research has indicated that exercise can lead to decreased depression symptoms. The relationship of depression with right frontal lobe activity and self-image (body, eating, and exercise) were investigated as reasons why depressive symptoms might lead to decreased exercise. 120 college students (79 women) completed design fluency tasks followed by a set of questionnaires on depression and exercise. High (M = 23.03, SD = 5.92) and low quartiles (M = 3.11, SD = 1.59) were created using the Modified Beck Depression Inventory (mBDI) for primary analyses. The group with higher mBDI scores produced fewer unique designs (suggesting lower right frontal activity) and was more likely to make comparisons based on body shape, eating, and exercise. The group with higher mBDI scores reported significantly less strenuous and moderate exercise. These findings indicate that the relationship between exercise and depression could work in both directions. While exercise can be used as a potential treatment to decrease depression, increased depressive symptoms could be a hindrance to exercise.

Direct Comparison of Two New Actigraphs and Polysomnography in Children and Adolescents

PubMed Central

Meltzer, Lisa J.; Walsh, Colleen M.; Traylor, Joel; Westin, Anna M. L.

2012-01-01

Study Objectives: To evaluate the validity and reliability of 2 new models of commercially available actigraphs compared to polysomnography for children and adolescents. Design and Setting: Subjects concurrently wore the Ambulatory Monitoring Inc. Motionlogger Sleep Watch (AMI) and the Phillips Respironics Mini-Mitter Actiwatch-2 (PRMM) while undergoing overnight polysomnography (PSG) in a pediatric sleep laboratory housed in a tertiary care children's hospital. Participants: 115 youth (59 girls, 56 boys), ages 3-18 years (mean 8.8 years, SD 4.4 years). Measurements: Outcome variables were total sleep time (TST), wake after sleep onset (WASO), and sleep efficiency (SE). Epoch-by-epoch comparisons were made between the 2 devices and PSG to determine sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy. Agreement between the 2 devices was determined with t-tests and the Bland-Altman concordance technique. Different algorithms/sensitivities, developmental age groups, and sleep disordered breathing (SDB) status were also examined. Results: For both device brands, sensitivity (0.89-0.97), specificity (0.54-0.77), and accuracy (0.87-0.90) were similar to previous reports. Notably, compared to PSG, both device brands significantly overestimated WASO, while the AMI device also significantly underestimated TST. Inter-device comparison of the 2 brands found poor agreement for TST, WASO, and SE. Agreement with PSG differed depending on the scoring algorithm (AMI) or sensitivity setting (PRMM), as well as across developmental age group and sleep disordered breathing (SDB) status. Conclusions: Similar to previous reports, both new actigraph brands were found to have good sensitivity (to detect sleep), but poorer specificity (to detect wake). Study results also suggest that researchers should adjust the scoring algorithm/sensitivity depending on a study's design (e.g., young children vs. adolescents, healthy children vs. youth with SDB). Further, inter-device reliability was poor, suggesting the need for caution when comparing results across studies that use different brands of actigraphic devices. Citation: Meltzer LJ; Walsh CM; Traylor J; Westin AML. Direct comparison of two new actigraphs and polysomnography in children and adolescents. SLEEP 2012;35(1):159-166. PMID:22215930

Effectiveness of cognitive behaviour therapy for treatment-resistant depression with psychiatric comorbidity: comparison of individual versus group CBT in an interdisciplinary rehabilitation setting.

PubMed

Hauksson, Pétur; Ingibergsdóttir, Sylvía; Gunnarsdóttir, Thórunn; Jónsdóttir, Inga Hrefna

2017-08-01

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) has been shown to be effective, yet there is a paucity of research on the differential effectiveness of individual and group CBT for adults with treatment-resistant depression with psychiatric comorbidity. To investigate the effectiveness of individual and group CBT for inpatients, in an interdisciplinary rehabilitation setting; the extent of psychiatric comorbidity; and who benefits the most from group CBT. All patients (n = 181) received 6 weeks of rehabilitation (treatment as usual, TAU). In addition, they were randomly allocated to group CBT (n = 86) or individual CBT (n = 59) combined with TAU, or TAU only (n = 36). All CBT therapists were part of an interdisciplinary team, had at least 1-year CBT training, and attended weekly supervision. The same CBT manual was used for individual and group therapy, providing 12 sessions, two per week. Groups had 12-15 participants and two therapists in each session. Individual CBT was superior in efficacy to group CBT and TAU, with a large within-subject effect size (ES = 2.10). Group CBT was not superior to TAU. The benefits of treatment decreased over time, but remained large at 18-month follow-up for individual CBT (ES = 1.02), and medium for group CBT (ES = 0.46) and TAU (ES = 0.60). Individual CBT was an effective addition to TAU and showed significant improvements in symptom severity post-treatment and at 18-month follow-up. Disorder severity and comorbidity may have decreased effectiveness of group therapy primarily aimed at depression.

Mother-stranger comparisons of social attention in jealousy context and attachment in HFASD and typical preschoolers.

PubMed

Bauminger-Zviely, Nirit; Bauminger-Zvieli, Nirit; Kugelmass, Dana Shoham

2013-02-01

Affective bonding, social attention, and intersubjective capabilities are all conditions for jealousy, and are deficient in autism. Thus, examining jealousy and attachment may elucidate the socioemotional deficit in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Jealousy was provoked in 30 high-functioning children with ASD (HFASD) and 30 typical children (ages 3-6 years) through two triadic social (storybook-reading) scenarios - mother-child-rival and stranger-child-rival. A control nonsocial scenario included mother/stranger-book. For both groups, higher jealousy expressions emerged for mother than stranger, and for social than nonsocial scenarios. Attachment security (using Attachment Q-Set) was lower for HFASD than typical groups, but attachment correlated negatively with jealous verbalizations for both groups and with jealous eye gazes for HFASD. Implications for understanding jealousy's developmental complexity and the socioemotional deficit in ASD are discussed.

Genomic analysis of NAC transcription factors in banana (Musa acuminata) and definition of NAC orthologous groups for monocots and dicots.

PubMed

Cenci, Albero; Guignon, Valentin; Roux, Nicolas; Rouard, Mathieu

2014-05-01

Identifying the molecular mechanisms underlying tolerance to abiotic stresses is important in crop breeding. A comprehensive understanding of the gene families associated with drought tolerance is therefore highly relevant. NAC transcription factors form a large plant-specific gene family involved in the regulation of tissue development and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. The main goal of this study was to set up a framework of orthologous groups determined by an expert sequence comparison of NAC genes from both monocots and dicots. In order to clarify the orthologous relationships among NAC genes of different species, we performed an in-depth comparative study of four divergent taxa, in dicots and monocots, whose genomes have already been completely sequenced: Arabidopsis thaliana, Vitis vinifera, Musa acuminata and Oryza sativa. Due to independent evolution, NAC copy number is highly variable in these plant genomes. Based on an expert NAC sequence comparison, we propose forty orthologous groups of NAC sequences that were probably derived from an ancestor gene present in the most recent common ancestor of dicots and monocots. These orthologous groups provide a curated resource for large-scale protein sequence annotation of NAC transcription factors. The established orthology relationships also provide a useful reference for NAC function studies in newly sequenced genomes such as M. acuminata and other plant species.

Statistical process control as a tool for controlling operating room performance: retrospective analysis and benchmarking.

PubMed

Chen, Tsung-Tai; Chang, Yun-Jau; Ku, Shei-Ling; Chung, Kuo-Piao

2010-10-01

There is much research using statistical process control (SPC) to monitor surgical performance, including comparisons among groups to detect small process shifts, but few of these studies have included a stabilization process. This study aimed to analyse the performance of surgeons in operating room (OR) and set a benchmark by SPC after stabilized process. The OR profile of 499 patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy performed by 16 surgeons at a tertiary hospital in Taiwan during 2005 and 2006 were recorded. SPC was applied to analyse operative and non-operative times using the following five steps: first, the times were divided into two segments; second, they were normalized; third, they were evaluated as individual processes; fourth, the ARL(0) was calculated;, and fifth, the different groups (surgeons) were compared. Outliers were excluded to ensure stability for each group and to facilitate inter-group comparison. The results showed that in the stabilized process, only one surgeon exhibited a significantly shorter total process time (including operative time and non-operative time). In this study, we use five steps to demonstrate how to control surgical and non-surgical time in phase I. There are some measures that can be taken to prevent skew and instability in the process. Also, using SPC, one surgeon can be shown to be a real benchmark. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Comparison of Clinical Efficacy of Newfactan® versus Surfacten® for the Treatment of Respiratory Distress Syndrome in the Newborn Infants

PubMed Central

Choi, Chang Won; Hwang, Jong Hee; Yoo, Eun Jung; Kim, Kyung Ah; Koh, Sun Young; Lee, Yeon Kyung; Shim, Jae Won; Lee, Eun Kyung; Chang, Wook; Kim, Sung Shin; Chang, Yun Sil; Shin, Son Moon

2005-01-01

Newfactan® is a domestically developed, bovine lung-derived, semi-synthetic surfactant. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical efficacy of Newfactan® with that of Surfacten® in the treatment of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Newfactan® or Surfacten® was randomly allocated to 492 newborn infants who were diagnosed as RDS and required surfactant instillation in four participating hospitals. The comparisons were made individually in two subsets of infants by birth weight (<1,500 g group [n=253] and ≥1,500 g group [n=239]). Short-term responses to surfactant and acute complications, such as the total doses of surfactant instilled, response type, extubation rate, ventilator settings, changes in respiratory parameters, air leak, patent ductus arteriosus, pulmonary hemorrhage, and intraventricular hemorrhage, and mortality during the 96 hr after surfactant instillation were measured. Long-term outcome and complications, such as total duration of intubation, bronchopulmonary dysplasia and periventricular leukomalacia, and ultimate mortality were measured. There were no significant differences in demographic and perinatal variables, short-term responses to surfactant and acute complications, and long-term outcome and complications between Newfactan® and Surfacten® in both birth weight groups. We concluded that Newfactan® was comparable to Surfacten® in the clinical efficacy in the treatment of RDS in both birth weight groups. PMID:16100449

Validation of the NIMH-ChEFS adolescent face stimulus set in an adolescent, parent, and health professional sample

PubMed Central

COFFMAN, MARIKA C.; TRUBANOVA, ANDREA; RICHEY, J. ANTHONY; WHITE, SUSAN W.; KIM-SPOON, JUNGMEEN; OLLENDICK, THOMAS H.; PINE, DANIEL S.

2016-01-01

Attention to faces is a fundamental psychological process in humans, with atypical attention to faces noted across several clinical disorders. Although many clinical disorders onset in adolescence, there is a lack of well-validated stimulus sets containing adolescent faces available for experimental use. Further, the images comprising most available sets are not controlled for high- and low-level visual properties. Here, we present a cross-site validation of the National Institute of Mental Health Child Emotional Faces Picture Set (NIMH-ChEFS), comprised of 257 photographs of adolescent faces displaying angry, fearful, happy, sad, and neutral expressions. All of the direct facial images from the NIMH-ChEFS set were adjusted in terms of location of facial features and standardized for luminance, size, and smoothness. Although overall agreement between raters in this study and the original development-site raters was high (89.52%), this differed by group such that agreement was lower for adolescents relative to mental health professionals in the current study. These results suggest that future research using this face set or others of adolescent/child faces should base comparisons on similarly-aged validation data. PMID:26359940

The impact of the EUSCLE Core Set Questionnaire for the assessment of cutaneous lupus erythematosus.

PubMed

Kuhn, A; Patsinakidis, N; Bonsmann, G

2010-08-01

Epidemiological data and standard European guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) are lacking in the current literature. In order to provide a standardized tool for an extensive consistent data collection, a study group of the European Society of Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus (EUSCLE) recently developed a Core Set Questionnaire for the assessment of patients with different subtypes of CLE. The EUSCLE Core Set Questionnaire includes six sections on patient data, diagnosis, skin involvement, activity and damage of disease, laboratory analysis, and treatment. An instrument like the EUSCLE Core Set Questionnaire is essential to gain a broad and comparable data collection of patients with CLE from different European centres and to achieve consensus concerning clinical standards for the disease. The data will also be important for further characterization of the different CLE subtypes and the evaluation of therapeutic strategies; moreover, the EUSCLE Core Set Questionnaire might also be useful for the comparison of data in clinical trials. In this review, the impact of the EUSCLE Core Set Questionnaire is discussed in detail with regard to clinical and serological features as well as therapeutic modalities in CLE.

Sleep respiratory parameters in children with idiopathic epilepsy: A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Gogou, Maria; Haidopoulou, Katerina; Eboriadou, Maria; Pavlidou, Efterpi; Hatzistylianou, Maria; Pavlou, Evaggelos

2016-10-01

The aim of this study is to explore and compare through polysomnography respiratory sleep parameters between children with idiopathic epilepsy and healthy children. Our cross-sectional study included 40 children with idiopathic epilepsy and 27 healthy children, who underwent overnight polysomnography. Data about sleep respiratory parameters were obtained and statistically analyzed. The level of statistical significance was set at 0.05. The prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome was significantly higher in the epilepsy group (35% vs 7.4%, p<0.01). Moreover, the odds ratio of an obstructive apnea index ≥1 in the epilepsy group was 10.6 (95% Confidence Intervals: 3.08-37.08) in comparison to the control group. The mean value of the obstructive apnea-hypopnea index was significantly higher in children with epilepsy compared to healthy children (2.46±1.22 vs 1.21±0.83, p=0.027). The mean values of central apnea index and desaturation index were comparable between these two groups. Longest apnea duration was significantly higher in the group of poor seizure control. All other sleep respiratory variables did not differ significantly between children with poor and good seizure control and between children with generalized and focal epilepsy. Children with epilepsy seem to present more prominent sleep breathing instability in comparison to healthy children, which mainly includes a predisposition to obstructive respiratory events. More studies are needed to investigate the relationship between sleep apneas and seizure control. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of a 3-D multi-group SN particle transport code with Monte Carlo for intracavitary brachytherapy of the cervix uteri.

PubMed

Gifford, Kent A; Wareing, Todd A; Failla, Gregory; Horton, John L; Eifel, Patricia J; Mourtada, Firas

2009-12-03

A patient dose distribution was calculated by a 3D multi-group S N particle transport code for intracavitary brachytherapy of the cervix uteri and compared to previously published Monte Carlo results. A Cs-137 LDR intracavitary brachytherapy CT data set was chosen from our clinical database. MCNPX version 2.5.c, was used to calculate the dose distribution. A 3D multi-group S N particle transport code, Attila version 6.1.1 was used to simulate the same patient. Each patient applicator was built in SolidWorks, a mechanical design package, and then assembled with a coordinate transformation and rotation for the patient. The SolidWorks exported applicator geometry was imported into Attila for calculation. Dose matrices were overlaid on the patient CT data set. Dose volume histograms and point doses were compared. The MCNPX calculation required 14.8 hours, whereas the Attila calculation required 22.2 minutes on a 1.8 GHz AMD Opteron CPU. Agreement between Attila and MCNPX dose calculations at the ICRU 38 points was within +/- 3%. Calculated doses to the 2 cc and 5 cc volumes of highest dose differed by not more than +/- 1.1% between the two codes. Dose and DVH overlays agreed well qualitatively. Attila can calculate dose accurately and efficiently for this Cs-137 CT-based patient geometry. Our data showed that a three-group cross-section set is adequate for Cs-137 computations. Future work is aimed at implementing an optimized version of Attila for radiotherapy calculations.

Comparison of a 3D multi‐group SN particle transport code with Monte Carlo for intercavitary brachytherapy of the cervix uteri

PubMed Central

Wareing, Todd A.; Failla, Gregory; Horton, John L.; Eifel, Patricia J.; Mourtada, Firas

2009-01-01

A patient dose distribution was calculated by a 3D multi‐group SN particle transport code for intracavitary brachytherapy of the cervix uteri and compared to previously published Monte Carlo results. A Cs‐137 LDR intracavitary brachytherapy CT data set was chosen from our clinical database. MCNPX version 2.5.c, was used to calculate the dose distribution. A 3D multi‐group SN particle transport code, Attila version 6.1.1 was used to simulate the same patient. Each patient applicator was built in SolidWorks, a mechanical design package, and then assembled with a coordinate transformation and rotation for the patient. The SolidWorks exported applicator geometry was imported into Attila for calculation. Dose matrices were overlaid on the patient CT data set. Dose volume histograms and point doses were compared. The MCNPX calculation required 14.8 hours, whereas the Attila calculation required 22.2 minutes on a 1.8 GHz AMD Opteron CPU. Agreement between Attila and MCNPX dose calculations at the ICRU 38 points was within ±3%. Calculated doses to the 2 cc and 5 cc volumes of highest dose differed by not more than ±1.1% between the two codes. Dose and DVH overlays agreed well qualitatively. Attila can calculate dose accurately and efficiently for this Cs‐137 CT‐based patient geometry. Our data showed that a three‐group cross‐section set is adequate for Cs‐137 computations. Future work is aimed at implementing an optimized version of Attila for radiotherapy calculations. PACS number: 87.53.Jw

A comparison of the nursing practice environment in mental health and medical-surgical settings.

PubMed

Roche, Michael A; Duffield, Christine M

2010-06-01

To examine the differences between characteristics of the work environment of nurses working in mental health and general acute inpatient nursing settings. Secondary analysis of data collected on 96 randomly selected medical and surgical (general) wards and six mental health wards in 24 public acute general hospitals across two Australian states between 2004 and 2006. All nurses on the participating wards were asked to complete a survey that included the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (NWI-PES). Responses were received from 2,556 nurses (76.3% response rate). Using the five-domain structure, comparisons were made between mental health and general nurses. Across the entire sample of nurses, those working in mental health settings scored more highly in regard to nurse-doctor relationships and staffing adequacy. Nurses in general wards reported more participation in hospital affairs, stronger leadership, and the presence of more of the foundations of nursing quality care such as access to continued education. Differences between the groups on each of the domains was statistically significant at p=.05 or greater, but not for the composite practice environment scale. A wide range of responses was seen when data were aggregated to the ward level. The work environment of mental health nurses is different from that of their colleagues working in general settings. Specific areas of the mental health environment, such as participation in the hospital, leadership, and the foundations of quality, may be enhanced to improve nurses' job satisfaction and, potentially, other nurse and patient outcomes. Factors in the medical and surgical nursing practice environment have been established as significant influences on nurse and patient outcomes. It is important to understand the existence and potential impact of these factors in mental health inpatient settings.

Comparison of Sleep Latency and Number of SOREMPs in the Home and Hospital With a Modified Multiple Sleep Latency Test: A Randomized Crossover Study.

PubMed

Beiske, Kornelia K; Sand, Trond; Rugland, Eyvind; Stavem, Knut

2017-05-01

Comparison of mean sleep latencies and number of sleep-onset rapid eye movement periods (SOREMPs) between modified multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) performed in the unattended home and in-hospital laboratory setting. A randomized crossover single-blinded design. Thirty-four subjects referred to MSLT for suspected hypersomnia or narcolepsy were included. Participants were randomized to perform modified MSLT in the unattended home or in the hospital first. Scores in the two settings were compared using Wilcoxon signed-rank test or exact McNemar test. Agreement between home and hospital categorized mean sleep latency and number of SOREMPs was assessed using simple kappa (κ) and proportion agreement. Agreement between home and hospital mean sleep latency was assessed using a Bland-Altman plot and an intraclass correlation coefficient. There was no difference between home and hospital assessment of mean sleep latency (P = 0.86). Two or more SOREMPs were found more frequently on modified MSLTs performed at home compared with those at the hospital (7 and 2, respectively; P = 0.025). Agreement was moderate for categorized sleep latency (κ = 0.53) and fair for categorized SOREMPs (κ = 0.39) in the 2 settings. Analysis of mean sleep latency using intraclass correlation coefficient showed a very good agreement between the two settings. Group mean sleep latency for home modified MSLTs seems to be reliable compared with that for the attended sleep-laboratory setting. Higher rate of SOREMP in the unattended home suggests that napping in a familiar environment facilitates the transition into REM sleep. Further studies are needed to assess the normal limit, sensitivity, and specificity for SOREMP at home before the clinical utility of home-based napping can be determined.

Lerdahl and Jackendoff's grouping structure rules in the performance of a Hindemith sonata.

PubMed

Ordoñana, Jose A; Laucirica, Ana

2010-05-01

In the last decades, musical cognitive psychology has intervened to build a bridge towards the comprehension of musical structures. The present paper studies the behavior of several students and music professionals in relation to grouping structure and it does so through the performance analysis of the first movement of Hindemith's sonata for flute and piano, according to the rules formulated by Lerdahl and Jackendoff, movement chosen because of its tonal ambiguity. The participants of this experiment are three medium level female Conservatory students. They performed the aforementioned piece after studying it for a whole trimester. The performance of the same piece by three professional musicians was also analyzed, using the appropriate commercial recordings for this purpose. This analysis includes the choice of group limits used in performance by both professionals and students and the comparison of both groups' results. Differences were observed in the placement of said limits by the different groups but all of them respected the set of rules formulated by Lerdahl and Jackendoff.

Diversification and evolution of the SDG gene family in Brassica rapa after the whole genome triplication.

PubMed

Dong, Heng; Liu, Dandan; Han, Tianyu; Zhao, Yuxue; Sun, Ji; Lin, Sue; Cao, Jiashu; Chen, Zhong-Hua; Huang, Li

2015-11-24

Histone lysine methylation, controlled by the SET Domain Group (SDG) gene family, is part of the histone code that regulates chromatin function and epigenetic control of gene expression. Analyzing the SDG gene family in Brassica rapa for their gene structure, domain architecture, subcellular localization, rate of molecular evolution and gene expression pattern revealed common occurrences of subfunctionalization and neofunctionalization in BrSDGs. In comparison with Arabidopsis thaliana, the BrSDG gene family was found to be more divergent than AtSDGs, which might partly explain the rich variety of morphotypes in B. rapa. In addition, a new evolutionary pattern of the four main groups of SDGs was presented, in which the Trx group and the SUVR subgroup evolved faster than the E(z), Ash groups and the SUVH subgroup. These differences in evolutionary rate among the four main groups of SDGs are perhaps due to the complexity and variability of the regions that bind with biomacromolecules, which guide SDGs to their target loci.

Diversification and evolution of the SDG gene family in Brassica rapa after the whole genome triplication

PubMed Central

Dong, Heng; Liu, Dandan; Han, Tianyu; Zhao, Yuxue; Sun, Ji; Lin, Sue; Cao, Jiashu; Chen, Zhong-Hua; Huang, Li

2015-01-01

Histone lysine methylation, controlled by the SET Domain Group (SDG) gene family, is part of the histone code that regulates chromatin function and epigenetic control of gene expression. Analyzing the SDG gene family in Brassica rapa for their gene structure, domain architecture, subcellular localization, rate of molecular evolution and gene expression pattern revealed common occurrences of subfunctionalization and neofunctionalization in BrSDGs. In comparison with Arabidopsis thaliana, the BrSDG gene family was found to be more divergent than AtSDGs, which might partly explain the rich variety of morphotypes in B. rapa. In addition, a new evolutionary pattern of the four main groups of SDGs was presented, in which the Trx group and the SUVR subgroup evolved faster than the E(z), Ash groups and the SUVH subgroup. These differences in evolutionary rate among the four main groups of SDGs are perhaps due to the complexity and variability of the regions that bind with biomacromolecules, which guide SDGs to their target loci. PMID:26596461

Clinical outcomes for young people with screening-detected and clinically-diagnosed rheumatic heart disease in Fiji.

PubMed

Engelman, Daniel; Mataika, Reapi L; Ah Kee, Maureen; Donath, Susan; Parks, Tom; Colquhoun, Samantha M; Carapetis, Jonathan R; Kado, Joseph H; Steer, Andrew C

2017-08-01

Echocardiographic screening is under consideration as a disease control strategy for rheumatic heart disease (RHD). However, clinical outcomes of young people with screening-detected RHD are unknown. We aimed to describe the outcomes for a cohort with screening-detected RHD, in comparison to patients with clinically-diagnosed RHD. A retrospective cohort study included all young people with screening-detected RHD in the Central Division of Fiji in the primary cohort. Screen-negative and clinically-diagnosed comparison groups were matched 1:1 to the primary cohort. Data were collected on mortality, clinical complications and healthcare utilisation from the electronic and paper health records and existing databases. Seventy participants were included in each group. Demographic characteristics of the groups were similar (median age 11years, 69% female, median follow-up 7years). There were nine (12.9%) RHD-related deaths in the clinically-diagnosed group and one (1.4%) in the screening-detected group (Incident Rate Ratio: 9.6, 95% CI 1.3-420.6). Complications of RHD were observed in 39 (55.7%) clinically-diagnosed cases, four (20%) screening-detected cases and one (1.4%) screen-negative case. There were significant differences in the cumulative complication curves of the groups (p<0.001). Rates of admission and surgery were highest in the clinically-diagnosed group, and higher in the screening-detected than screen-negative group. Young people with screening-detected RHD have worse health outcomes than screen-negative cases in Fiji. The prognosis of clinically-diagnosed RHD remains poor, with very high mortality and complication rates. Further studies in other settings will inform RHD screening policy. Comprehensive control strategies are required for disease prevention. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effects of a portion design plate on food group guideline adherence among hospital staff.

PubMed

de Korne, Dirk F; Malhotra, Rahul; Lim, Wai Yee; Ong, Christine; Sharma, Ashu; Tan, Tai Kiat; Tan, Thiam Chye; Ng, Kee Chong; Østbye, Truls

2017-01-01

Food group guideline adherence is vital to prevent obesity and diabetes. Various studies have demonstrated that environmental variables influence food intake behaviour. In the present study we examined the effect of a portion design plate with food group portion guidelines demarcated by coloured lines (ETE Plate™). A two-group quasi-experimental design was used to measure proportions of carbohydrate, vegetable and protein portions and user experience in a hospital staff lounge setting in Singapore. Lunch was served on the portion design plate before 12.15 hours. For comparison, a normal plate (without markings) was used after 12.15 hours. Changes in proportions of food groups from 2 months before the introduction of the design plate were analysed in a stratified sample at baseline (859 subjects, all on normal plates) to 1, 3 and 6 months after (in all 1016 subjects on the design plate, 968 subjects on the control plate). A total of 151 participants were asked about their experiences and opinions. Between-group comparisons were performed using t tests. Among those served on the portion design plate at 6 months after its introduction, the proportion of vegetables was 4·71 % ( P  < 0·001) higher and that of carbohydrates 2·83 % ( P  < 0·001) lower relative to the baseline. No significant change was found for proteins (-1·85 %). Over 6 months, we observed different change patterns between the different food group proportions. While participants were positive about the portion design plate, they did not think it would influence their personal behaviour. A portion design plate might stimulate food group guideline adherence among hospital staff and beyond.

Functional group placement in protein binding sites: a comparison of GRID and MCSS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bitetti-Putzer, Ryan; Joseph-McCarthy, Diane; Hogle, James M.; Karplus, Martin

2001-10-01

One approach to combinatorial ligand design begins by determining optimal locations (i.e., local potential energy minima) for functional groups in the binding site of a target macromolecule. MCSS and GRID are two methods, based on significantly different algorithms, which are used for this purpose. A comparison of the two methods for the same functional groups is reported. Calculations were performed for nonpolar and polar functional groups in the internal hydrophobic pocket of the poliovirus capsid protein, and on the binding surface of the src SH3 domain. The two approaches are shown to agree qualitatively; i.e., the global characteristics of the functional group maps generated by MCSS and GRID are similar. However, there are significant differences in the relative interaction energies of the two sets of minima, a consequence of the different functional form used to evaluate polar interactions (electrostatics and hydrogen bonding) in the two methods. The single sphere representation used by GRID affords only positional information, supplemented by the identification of hydrogen bonding interactions. By contrast, the multi-atom representation of most MCSS groups yields in both positional and orientational information. The two methods are most similar for small functional groups, while for larger functional groups MCSS yields results consistent with GRID but superior in detail. These results are in accord with the somewhat different purposes for which the two methods were developed. GRID has been used mainly to introduce functionalities at specific positions in lead compounds, in which case the orientation is predetermined by the structure of the latter. The orientational information provided by MCSS is important for its use in the de novo design of large, multi-functional ligands, as well as for improving lead compounds.

Comparison between three option, four option and five option multiple choice question tests for quality parameters: A randomized study.

PubMed

Vegada, Bhavisha; Shukla, Apexa; Khilnani, Ajeetkumar; Charan, Jaykaran; Desai, Chetna

2016-01-01

Most of the academic teachers use four or five options per item of multiple choice question (MCQ) test as formative and summative assessment. Optimal number of options in MCQ item is a matter of considerable debate among academic teachers of various educational fields. There is a scarcity of the published literature regarding the optimum number of option in each item of MCQ in the field of medical education. To compare three options, four options, and five options MCQs test for the quality parameters - reliability, validity, item analysis, distracter analysis, and time analysis. Participants were 3 rd semester M.B.B.S. students. Students were divided randomly into three groups. Each group was given one set of MCQ test out of three options, four options, and five option randomly. Following the marking of the multiple choice tests, the participants' option selections were analyzed and comparisons were conducted of the mean marks, mean time, validity, reliability and facility value, discrimination index, point biserial value, distracter analysis of three different option formats. Students score more ( P = 0.000) and took less time ( P = 0.009) for the completion of three options as compared to four options and five options groups. Facility value was more ( P = 0.004) in three options group as compared to four and five options groups. There was no significant difference between three groups for the validity, reliability, and item discrimination. Nonfunctioning distracters were more in the four and five options group as compared to three option group. Assessment based on three option MCQs is can be preferred over four option and five option MCQs.

Results of the destination therapy post-food and drug administration approval study with a continuous flow left ventricular assist device: a prospective study using the INTERMACS registry (Interagency Registry for Mechanically Assisted Circulatory Support).

PubMed

Jorde, Ulrich P; Kushwaha, Sudhir S; Tatooles, Antone J; Naka, Yoshifumi; Bhat, Geetha; Long, James W; Horstmanshof, Douglas A; Kormos, Robert L; Teuteberg, Jeffrey J; Slaughter, Mark S; Birks, Emma J; Farrar, David J; Park, Soon J

2014-05-06

A post-approval (PA) study for destination therapy (DT) was required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to determine whether results with the HeartMate (HM) II (Thoratec, Pleasanton, California) left ventricular assist device (LVAD) in a commercial setting were comparable to results during the DT multicenter pivotal clinical trial. New device technology developed in the clinical research setting requires validation in a real-world setting. The PA study was a prospective evaluation of the first 247 HM II patients identified pre-operatively as eligible for DT in the national INTERMACS (Interagency Registry for Mechanically Assisted Circulatory Support) registry. Patients were enrolled from January to September 2010 at 61 U.S. centers and followed for 2 years. A historical comparison group included patients (n = 133 at 34 centers) enrolled in the primary data cohort in the DT pivotal trial (TR). Survival rates and adverse events for the PA group were obtained from the INTERMACS registry. Baseline characteristics were similar for PA versus TR. Forty-five percent of PA patients were in INTERMACS profiles 1 to 2 and 28% were in profile 3. Adverse events in the PA group were similar or lower than those in the TR group, including improvements in device-related infection (0.22 vs. 0.47) and post-operative bleeding requiring surgery (0.09 vs. 0.23) events per patient-year. Kaplan-Meier survival at 2 years was 62% (PA group) versus 58% (TR group). PA group survival at 1 and 2 years was 82 ± 5% and 69 ± 6% for INTERMACS profiles 4 to 7 (n = 63) versus 72 ± 3% and 60 ± 4% for profiles 1 to 3 (n = 184). The median length of stay after surgery was reduced by 6 days in the PA group versus the TR group. Results in a commercial patient care setting for the DT population supported the original pivotal clinical trial findings regarding the efficacy and risk profile of the HM II LVAD. Survival was best in patients who were not inotrope-dependent (INTERMACS profiles 4 to 7). Copyright © 2014 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assessment of second-line antiretroviral regimens for HIV therapy in Africa.

PubMed

Paton, Nicholas I; Kityo, Cissy; Hoppe, Anne; Reid, Andrew; Kambugu, Andrew; Lugemwa, Abbas; van Oosterhout, Joep J; Kiconco, Mary; Siika, Abraham; Mwebaze, Raymond; Abwola, Mary; Abongomera, George; Mweemba, Aggrey; Alima, Hillary; Atwongyeire, Dickens; Nyirenda, Rose; Boles, Justine; Thompson, Jennifer; Tumukunde, Dinah; Chidziva, Ennie; Mambule, Ivan; Arribas, Jose R; Easterbrook, Philippa J; Hakim, James; Walker, A Sarah; Mugyenyi, Peter

2014-07-17

The efficacy and toxic effects of nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) are uncertain when these agents are used with a protease inhibitor in second-line therapy for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in resource-limited settings. Removing the NRTIs or replacing them with raltegravir may provide a benefit. In this open-label trial in sub-Saharan Africa, we randomly assigned 1277 adults and adolescents with HIV infection and first-line treatment failure to receive a ritonavir-boosted protease inhibitor (lopinavir-ritonavir) plus clinician-selected NRTIs (NRTI group, 426 patients), a protease inhibitor plus raltegravir in a superiority comparison (raltegravir group, 433 patients), or protease-inhibitor monotherapy after 12 weeks of induction therapy with raltegravir in a noninferiority comparison (monotherapy group, 418 patients). The primary composite end point, good HIV disease control, was defined as survival with no new World Health Organization stage 4 events, a CD4+ count of more than 250 cells per cubic millimeter, and a viral load of less than 10,000 copies per milliliter or 10,000 copies or more with no protease resistance mutations at week 96 and was analyzed with the use of imputation of data (≤4%). Good HIV disease control was achieved in 60% of the patients (mean, 255 patients) in the NRTI group, 64% of the patients (mean, 277) in the raltegravir group (P=0.21 for the comparison with the NRTI group; superiority of raltegravir not shown), and 55% of the patients (mean, 232) in the monotherapy group (noninferiority of monotherapy not shown, based on a 10-percentage-point margin). There was no significant difference in rates of grade 3 or 4 adverse events among the three groups (P=0.82). The viral load was less than 400 copies per milliliter in 86% of patients in the NRTI group, 86% in the raltegravir group (P=0.97), and 61% in the monotherapy group (P<0.001). When given with a protease inhibitor in second-line therapy, NRTIs retained substantial virologic activity without evidence of increased toxicity, and there was no advantage to replacing them with raltegravir. Virologic control was inferior with protease-inhibitor monotherapy. (Funded by European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership and others; EARNEST Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN37737787, and ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00988039.).

Climate Mitigation in Latin America: Implications for Energy and Land Use: Preface to the Special Section on the findings of the CLIMACAP-LAMP Project

DOE PAGES

van der Zwaan, Bob; Calvin, Katherine V.; Clarke, Leon E.

2016-05-01

The CLIMACAP-LAMP project, completed in December 2015, was an inter-model comparison exercise that focused on energy and climate change economics issues in Latin America. The project partners – co-financed by the EC / EuropeAid (CLIMACAP part) and EPA / USAID (LAMP part) and co-coordinated by respectively the Energy research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) – report their main and detailed findings in this Special Issue of Energy Economics, exclusively dedicated to climate mitigation, low-carbon development and implications for energy and land use in Latin America. Our research endeavor included several of the mostmore » prominent regional energy modeling groups from Latin America, as well as a representative set of global integrated assessment modeling groups from a number of institutions from Europe and the US. About two dozen universities, research groups and environmental or consulting organizations took part in the CLIMACAP-LAMP cross-model comparison project, from both sides of the Atlantic. Over a handful of workshops were organized over the past four years in several countries in Latin America, attended by between 30 and 50 participants from, amongst others, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, the EU, and the US.« less

Strategic verbal rehearsal in adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities: A multi-centre European study.

PubMed

Poloczek, Sebastian; Henry, Lucy A; Danielson, Henrik; Büttner, Gerhard; Mähler, Claudia; Messer, David J; Schuchardt, Kirsten; Molen, Mariët J van der

2016-11-01

There is a long-held view that verbal short-term memory problems of individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) might be due to a deficit in verbal rehearsal. However, the evidence is inconclusive and word length effects as indicator of rehearsal have been criticised. The aim of this multi-site European study was to investigate verbal rehearsal in adolescents with mild ID (n=90) and a comparison group of typically developing children matched individually for mental age (MA, n=90). The investigation involved: (1) a word length experiment with non-verbal recall using pointing and (2) 'self-paced' inspection times to infer whether verbal strategies were utilised when memorising a set of pictorial items. The word length effect on recall did not interact with group, suggesting that adolescents with ID and MA comparisons used similar verbal strategies, possibly phonological recoding of picture names. The inspection time data suggested that high span individuals in both groups used verbal labelling or single item rehearsal on more demanding lists, as long named items had longer inspection times. The findings suggest that verbal strategy use is not specifically impaired in adolescents with mild ID and is mental age appropriate, supporting a developmental perspective. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An application of seasonal ARIMA models on group commodities to forecast Philippine merchandise exports performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Natividad, Gina May R.; Cawiding, Olive R.; Addawe, Rizavel C.

2017-11-01

The increase in the merchandise exports of the country offers information about the Philippines' trading role within the global economy. Merchandise exports statistics are used to monitor the country's overall production that is consumed overseas. This paper investigates the comparison between two models obtained by a) clustering the commodity groups into two based on its proportional contribution to the total exports, and b) treating only the total exports. Different seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) models were then developed for the clustered commodities and for the total exports based on the monthly merchandise exports of the Philippines from 2011 to 2016. The data set used in this study was retrieved from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) which is the central statistical authority in the country responsible for primary data collection. A test for significance of the difference between means at 0.05 level of significance was then performed on the forecasts produced. The result indicates that there is a significant difference between the mean of the forecasts of the two models. Moreover, upon a comparison of the root mean square error (RMSE) and mean absolute error (MAE) of the models, it was found that the models used for the clustered groups outperform the model for the total exports.

Foundations for Literacy: An Early Literacy Intervention for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

PubMed Central

Lederberg, Amy R.; Miller, Elizabeth M.; Easterbrooks, Susan R.; Connor, Carol McDonald

2014-01-01

The present study evaluated the efficacy of a new preschool early literacy intervention created specifically for deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children with functional hearing. Teachers implemented Foundations for Literacy with 25 DHH children in 2 schools (intervention group). One school used only spoken language, and the other used sign with and without spoken language. A “business as usual” comparison group included 33 DHH children who were matched on key characteristics with the intervention children but attended schools that did not implement Foundations for Literacy. Children’s hearing losses ranged from moderate to profound. Approximately half of the children had cochlear implants. All children had sufficient speech perception skills to identify referents of spoken words from closed sets of items. Teachers taught small groups of intervention children an hour a day, 4 days a week for the school year. From fall to spring, intervention children made significantly greater gains on tests of phonological awareness, letter–sound knowledge, and expressive vocabulary than did comparison children. In addition, intervention children showed significant increases in standard scores (based on hearing norms) on phonological awareness and vocabulary tests. This quasi-experimental study suggests that the intervention shows promise for improving early literacy skills of DHH children with functional hearing. PMID:25125456

The comparability of the universalism value over time and across countries in the European Social Survey: exact vs. approximate measurement invariance

PubMed Central

Zercher, Florian; Schmidt, Peter; Cieciuch, Jan; Davidov, Eldad

2015-01-01

Over the last decades, large international datasets such as the European Social Survey (ESS), the European Value Study (EVS) and the World Value Survey (WVS) have been collected to compare value means over multiple time points and across many countries. Yet analyzing comparative survey data requires the fulfillment of specific assumptions, i.e., that these values are comparable over time and across countries. Given the large number of groups that can be compared in repeated cross-national datasets, establishing measurement invariance has been, however, considered unrealistic. Indeed, studies which did assess it often failed to establish higher levels of invariance such as scalar invariance. In this paper we first introduce the newly developed approximate approach based on Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) to assess cross-group invariance over countries and time points and contrast the findings with the results from the traditional exact measurement invariance test. BSEM examines whether measurement parameters are approximately (rather than exactly) invariant. We apply BSEM to a subset of items measuring the universalism value from the Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) in the ESS. The invariance of this value is tested simultaneously across 15 ESS countries over six ESS rounds with 173,071 respondents and 90 groups in total. Whereas, the use of the traditional approach only legitimates the comparison of latent means of 37 groups, the Bayesian procedure allows the latent mean comparison of 73 groups. Thus, our empirical application demonstrates for the first time the BSEM test procedure on a particularly large set of groups. PMID:26089811

Effectiveness of the Lunch is in the Bag program on communication between the parent, child and child-care provider around fruits, vegetables and whole grain foods: a group-randomized controlled trial

PubMed Central

Rashid, Tasnuva; Ranjit, Nalini; Byrd-Williams, Courtney; Chuang, Ru-Jye; Roberts-Gray, Cindy; Briley, Margaret; Sweitzer, Sara; Hoelscher, Deanna M.

2015-01-01

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of the parent- and early care education (ECE) center-based Lunch is in the Bag program on communication between parent, child, and their ECE center providers around fruits, vegetables and whole grain foods (FVWG). Method A total of n=30 ECE center; 577 parent-child dyads participated in this group-randomized controlled trial conducted from 2011–2013 in Texas (n=15 ECE center, 327 dyads intervention group; n=15 ECE center, 250 dyads comparison group). Parent-child and parent-ECE center provider communication was measured using a parent-reported survey administered at baseline and end of the five-week intervention period. Multilevel linear regression analysis was used to compare the pre-to-post intervention changes in the parent-child and parent-ECE center provider communication scales. Significance was set at p<0.05. Results At baseline, parent-child and parent-ECE center provider communication scores were low. There was a significant increase post-intervention in the parent-ECE center provider communication around vegetables (Adjusted β = 0.78, 95%CI: 0.13, 1.43, p=0.002), and around fruit (Adjusted β = 0.62, 95%CI: 0.04, 0.20, p=0.04) among the parents in the intervention group as compared to those in the comparison group. There were no significant intervention effects on parent-child communication. Conclusion Lunch is in the Bag had significant positive effects on improving communication between the parents and ECE center providers around FVWG. PMID:26190371

Comparison of alternative relative weights for diagnosis-related groups

PubMed Central

Cotterill, Philip; Bobula, Joel; Connerton, Rose

1986-01-01

During this study, we investigated the extent to which diagnosis-related group (DRG) relative weights based exclusively on charge data differ from DRG weights constructed according to the methodology used in deriving the original relative weights for the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS). The PPS operating cost weights were based on a combination of cost and adjusted charge information (Pettengill and Vertrees, 1982). The results of this study reveal only minor differences between the two sets of weights. Interhospital differences in cost-to-charge ratios do not produce large, arbitrary differences between charge-based and operating cost weights. Whether the data are standardized for differences in capital and medical education costs also appears to make little difference. PMID:10311495

Evaluating shame transformation in group treatment of domestic violence offenders.

PubMed

Loeffler, Christopher H; Prelog, Andrew J; Unnithan, N Prabha; Pogrebin, Mark R

2010-08-01

Offender rehabilitation, pitting the rational ability of criminal justice against the seeming irrationality of criminal behavior, remains controversial. Psychology highlights the importance of emotions in mediating individual behavior. Borrowing from restorative justice as a more emotionally intelligent form of justice, this article examines the role of shame and guilt in a domestic violence offender treatment program. The emotions are differentiated and then activated, similar to the use of reintegrative shaming in restorative justice, to promote greater offender accountability and empathy. Using a two-group comparison of male domestic violence offenders, measurements were taken on three sets of scales in assessing the outcome of the shame transformation process. Statistically significant effects were found for self-esteem and empathetic concern. Findings and future research are discussed.

A Comparison of QSAR Based Thermo and Water Solvation Property Prediction Tools and Experimental Data for Selected Traditional Chemical Warfare Agents and Simulants

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-07-01

Labs uses parameterized Hammett -type equations to describe 1500 possible combinations of more than 650 ionizable functional groups. The change in...of the form ⋯ , ⋯ Equation (1) where Ypred is the predicted property, c0 is a constant, c1 to cn are coefficients from the...regression to the training set of measurements, X1 to Xn represent molecular or fragment or field-based descriptors, and the final term in Equation 1

Selectivity of similar compounds' identification using IR spectrometry: β-Lactam antibiotics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadlej-Sosnowska, Nina; Ocios, Agnieszka; Fuks, Leon

2006-07-01

The study aims to develop a reliable, quantitative method for positive identification or discrimination of a substance, when it is compared to a set of similar ones. In the course of the study a group of structurally related compounds, namely a set of β-lactam antimicrobial agents has been explored. Identification of a substance was based on the comparison of its spectrum with that of a reference material by using two functional algorithms. The algorithm based on the calculation of correlation coefficient between the first derivatives of the spectra has been proved more powerful than that using the original spectra. Then the results in a few spectral regions were likened. Limiting values were proposed for correlation coefficients that allow for qualification of a substance as identical to the reference one.

Preferences for female body size in Britain and the South Pacific.

PubMed

Swami, Viren; Knight, Daniel; Tovée, Martin J; Davies, Patrick; Furnham, Adrian

2007-06-01

To assess current attitudes to body weight and shape in the South Pacific, a region characterised by relatively high levels of obesity and traditionally positive views of large bodies, 38 high socio-economic status (SES) adolescent males and 38 low SES adolescent males in Independent Samoa were asked to rate a set of images of real women for physical attractiveness. Participants in both SES settings preferred women with a slender figure, as did a comparison group in Britain, suggesting that the traditional veneration of large bodies is no longer apparent in Samoa. However, the results also showed that low SES adolescents were more likely to view overweight figures as attractive, which suggests that the veneration of slim figures may be associated with increasing SES. Implications of this finding are discussed in conclusion.

Effectiveness and Comparison of Various Audio Distraction Aids in Management of Anxious Dental Paediatric Patients.

PubMed

Navit, Saumya; Johri, Nikita; Khan, Suleman Abbas; Singh, Rahul Kumar; Chadha, Dheera; Navit, Pragati; Sharma, Anshul; Bahuguna, Rachana

2015-12-01

Dental anxiety is a widespread phenomenon and a concern for paediatric dentistry. The inability of children to deal with threatening dental stimuli often manifests as behaviour management problems. Nowadays, the use of non-aversive behaviour management techniques is more advocated, which are more acceptable to parents, patients and practitioners. Therefore, this present study was conducted to find out which audio aid was the most effective in the managing anxious children. The aim of the present study was to compare the efficacy of audio-distraction aids in reducing the anxiety of paediatric patients while undergoing various stressful and invasive dental procedures. The objectives were to ascertain whether audio distraction is an effective means of anxiety management and which type of audio aid is the most effective. A total number of 150 children, aged between 6 to 12 years, randomly selected amongst the patients who came for their first dental check-up, were placed in five groups of 30 each. These groups were the control group, the instrumental music group, the musical nursery rhymes group, the movie songs group and the audio stories group. The control group was treated under normal set-up & audio group listened to various audio presentations during treatment. Each child had four visits. In each visit, after the procedures was completed, the anxiety levels of the children were measured by the Venham's Picture Test (VPT), Venham's Clinical Rating Scale (VCRS) and pulse rate measurement with the help of pulse oximeter. A significant difference was seen between all the groups for the mean pulse rate, with an increase in subsequent visit. However, no significant difference was seen in the VPT & VCRS scores between all the groups. Audio aids in general reduced anxiety in comparison to the control group, and the most significant reduction in anxiety level was observed in the audio stories group. The conclusion derived from the present study was that audio distraction was effective in reducing anxiety and audio-stories were the most effective.

Effects of Antiseptics on Pulpal Healing under Calcium Hydroxide Pulp Capping: A Pilot Study

PubMed Central

Bal, Cenkhan; Alacam, Alev; Tuzuner, Tamer; Tirali, Resmiye Ebru; Baris, Emre

2011-01-01

Objectives: The objective of this pilot study was to evaluate the effects of three different antiseptic materials on healing processes of direct pulp therapies with Ca(OH)2 histopathologically. Methods: Twenty-eight upper and lower first molar teeth from 7 male Wistar rats were used in this study. Four cavities were prepared in each rat in four quadrants, and each quadrant represented different experimental groups. In Group I: 0.5% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl); in Group II: 2% chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX); in Group III: 0.1% octenidine dihydrochloride (OCT); and in Group IV 0.9% sterile saline was applied to the exposure site with a sterile cotton pellet for 3 minutes. After hemorrhage control, the pulps were capped with hard setting Ca(OH)2 and, finally, restored with IRM. The animals were euthanized at 21 days post-operatively. After sacrificing, routine histological procedures were performed and evaluated statistically with non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test among the groups and two-by-two comparisons by using the Mann-Whitney U test for inflammatory response and tissue organization scores at the confidence interval of 95%. Results: There were significant differences in inflammatory response and tissue organization scores between the groups (P<.05). Statistical evaluation of inflammatory response showed that Group IV was significantly different from Groups I, II and III separately with a higher inflammatory cell response (P<.05) whereas no significant differences were detected between the other groups in two-by-two comparisons (P>.05). Healthy coronal and radicular pulp tissue organization scores indicated that the Group I has better pulp tissue organization than Group IV and this was significantly different (P<.05) whereas no significant differences were observed between the other groups separately (P>.05). Conclusions: The antiseptic materials used in this study created an environment that, rather than saline solution, may affect clinical and histological success in a positive way. PMID:21769267

Identifying positive deviants in healthcare quality and safety: a mixed methods study.

PubMed

O'Hara, Jane K; Grasic, Katja; Gutacker, Nils; Street, Andrew; Foy, Robbie; Thompson, Carl; Wright, John; Lawton, Rebecca

2018-01-01

Objective Solutions to quality and safety problems exist within healthcare organisations, but to maximise the learning from these positive deviants, we first need to identify them. This study explores using routinely collected, publicly available data in England to identify positively deviant services in one region of the country. Design A mixed methods study undertaken July 2014 to February 2015, employing expert discussion, consensus and statistical modelling to identify indicators of quality and safety, establish a set of criteria to inform decisions about which indicators were robust and useful measures, and whether these could be used to identify positive deviants. Setting Yorkshire and Humber, England. Participants None - analysis based on routinely collected, administrative English hospital data. Main outcome measures We identified 49 indicators of quality and safety from acute care settings across eight data sources. Twenty-six indicators did not allow comparison of quality at the sub-hospital level. Of the 23 remaining indicators, 12 met all criteria and were possible candidates for identifying positive deviants. Results Four indicators (readmission and patient reported outcomes for hip and knee surgery) offered indicators of the same service. These were selected by an expert group as the basis for statistical modelling, which supported identification of one service in Yorkshire and Humber showing a 50% positive deviation from the national average. Conclusion Relatively few indicators of quality and safety relate to a service level, making meaningful comparisons and local improvement based on the measures difficult. It was possible, however, to identify a set of indicators that provided robust measurement of the quality and safety of services providing hip and knee surgery.

Comparison of results for morphine urinalyses by radioimmunoassay and thin-layer chromatography in a narcotic clinic setting.

PubMed

Kokoski, R J; Jain, M

1975-03-01

Radioimmunoassay (RIA) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) were compared for morphine detection in an actual narcotic clinic setting. A choice of urines from all those screened by TLC allowed a critical comparison as to actual use or non-use of narcotic drugs, rather than a sampling at random in which the question of possible false positives or negatives cannot be conclusively answered. Although RIA is more sensitive than TLC, its advantage is apparent only in those cases where urine specimens are difficult to obtain frequently regularly or where the use of morphine is suspected by the positive identification of quinine in urine that was morphine-negative by TLC. In a selected group of negative and positive specimens chosen without conscious bias, the two methods gave consistently similar results, indicating that the modified TLC method provided a few or no false positives or negatives if the negatives were from those cases that were not positive anytime up to 3-4 days before urine collection. We conclude that RIA can be of significant value as a supplement to a TLC screening program, without sacrificing the many advantages that TLC has to offer.

A comparison of two approaches for representing AAC vocabulary for young children.

PubMed

Worah, Smita; McNaughton, David; Light, Janice; Benedek-Wood, Elizabeth

2015-01-01

Young children with complex communication needs often experience difficulty in using currently available graphic symbol systems as a method of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Information on young children's performance with graphic representations based on this population's conceptualizations of these vocabulary items may assist in the development of more effective AAC systems. This study developed Developmentally Appropriate Symbols (DAS) for 10 early emerging vocabulary concepts using procedures designed to address both conceptual and appeal issues for graphic representations for young children. Using a post-test only, between-subjects comparison group design, 40 typically-developing 2.5-3.5-year-old children were randomly assigned to receive a brief training in either of two different types of graphic symbol sets: (a) DAS or (b) Picture Communication Symbols (PCS), a, commercially available graphic symbol system. Results of a two sample independent t-test provide evidence that children in the DAS condition correctly identified more symbols than children trained with the PCS symbols. There was no evidence of a preference between the symbol sets. The results provide support for careful consideration of children's use and understanding of language in developing AAC systems for young children.

Radiation exposure due to local fallout from Soviet atmospheric nuclear weapons testing in Kazakhstan: solid cancer mortality in the Semipalatinsk historical cohort, 1960-1999.

PubMed

Bauer, Susanne; Gusev, Boris I; Pivina, Ludmila M; Apsalikov, Kazbek N; Grosche, Bernd

2005-10-01

Little information is available on the health effects of exposures to fallout from Soviet nuclear weapons testing and on the combined external and internal environmental exposures that have resulted from these tests. This paper reports the first analysis of the Semipalatinsk historical cohort exposed in the vicinity of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, Kazakhstan. The cohort study, which includes 19,545 inhabitants of exposed and comparison villages of the Semipalatinsk region, was set up in the 1960s and comprises 582,750 person-years of follow-up between 1960 and 1999. Cumulative effective radiation dose estimates in this cohort range from 20 mSv to approximately 4 Sv. Rates of mortality and cancer mortality in the exposed group substantially exceeded those of the comparison group. Dose-response analyses within the exposed group confirmed a significant trend with dose for all solid cancers (P < 0.0001) and for digestive and respiratory cancers (P = 0.0255 and P < 0.0001), whereas no consistent dose-response trend was found for all causes of death (P = 0.4296). Regarding specific cancer sites, a significant trend with dose was observed for lung cancer (P = 0.0001), stomach cancer (P = 0.0050), and female breast cancer (P = 0.0040) as well as for esophagus cancer in women (P = 0.0030). The excess relative risk per sievert for all solid cancers combined was 1.77 (1.35; 2.27) based on the total cohort data, yet a selection bias regarding the comparison group could not be entirely ruled out. The excess relative risk per sievert based on the cohort's exposed group was 0.81 (0.46; 1.33) for all solid cancers combined and thus still exceeds current risk estimates from the Life Span Study. Future epidemiological assessments based on this cohort will benefit from extension of follow-up and ongoing validation of dosimetric data.

Marginal and internal adaptation of ceramic crown restorations fabricated with CAD/CAM technology and the heat-press technique.

PubMed

Mously, Hisham A; Finkelman, Matthew; Zandparsa, Roya; Hirayama, Hiroshi

2014-08-01

The accuracy of chairside computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) restorations is questionable, and the effect of the die spacer settings is not well stated in the literature. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the marginal and internal adaptation of E4D crowns fabricated with different spacer thicknesses and to compare these crowns with those fabricated with the heat-press technique. The E4D system was used to fabricate 30 crowns for the first 3 groups, with different spacer thickness settings: 30 μm, 60 μm, and 100 μm. In the fourth group, 10 lithium disilicate crowns were fabricated with the heat-press technique. The occlusal gap, axial gap, vertical marginal gap, and absolute marginal discrepancy were evaluated by x-ray microtomography. Statistical significance was assessed with the Kruskal-Wallis test (α=.05). For post hoc analyses, the Mann-Whitney U test was used alongside the Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons (α=.008). Within the CAD/CAM groups, the 30-μm spacer thickness resulted in the lowest median axial gap (90.04 μm), whereas the 60-μm spacer thickness resulted in the lowest median occlusal gap (152.39 μm). The median marginal gap values of the CAD/CAM-60 group (49.35 μm) and CAD/CAM-100 group (46.65 μm) were lower than those of the CAD/CAM-30 group (55.18 μm). No significant differences among the CAD/CAM groups were observed for absolute marginal discrepancy. The heat-press group had significantly different values than those of the CAD/CAM groups. The spacer thickness and fabrication technique affected the adaptation of ceramic crowns. The heat-press group yielded the best marginal and internal crown adaptation results. The 30- or 60-μm spacer settings are recommended for the E4D CAD/CAM system. Copyright © 2014 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Finding a Comparison Group: Is Online Crowdsourcing a Viable Option?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azzam, Tarek; Jacobson, Miriam R.

2013-01-01

This article explores the viability of online crowdsourcing for creating matched-comparison groups. This exploratory study compares survey results from a randomized control group to survey results from a matched-comparison group created from Amazon.com's MTurk crowdsourcing service to determine their comparability. Study findings indicate…

Comparisons in the Recovery Response From Resistance Exercise Between Young and Middle-Aged Men.

PubMed

Gordon, Joseph A; Hoffman, Jay R; Arroyo, Eliott; Varanoske, Alyssa N; Coker, Nicholas A; Gepner, Yftach; Wells, Adam J; Stout, Jeffrey R; Fukuda, David H

2017-12-01

Gordon, JA III, Hoffman, JR, Arroyo, E, Varanoske, AN, Coker, NA, Gepner, Y, Wells, AJ, Stout, JR, and Fukuda, DH. Comparisons in the recovery response from resistance exercise between young and middle-aged men. J Strength Cond Res 31(12): 3454-3462, 2017-The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a bout of high-volume isokinetic resistance exercise protocol (HVP) on lower-body strength and markers of inflammation and muscle damage during recovery between young and middle-aged adult men. Nineteen recreationally trained men were classified as either a young adult (YA: 21.8 ± 2.0 years; 90.7 ± 11.6 kg) or a middle-aged adult (MA: 47.0 ± 4.4 years; 96.0 ± 21.5 kg) group. The HVP consisted of 8 sets of 10 repetitions, with 1 minute of rest between each set, performed on an isokinetic dynamometer at 60°·s. Maximal voluntary isometric contractions and isokinetic peak torque (PKT) and average torque (AVGT) (measured at 240° and 60°·s, respectively) were assessed at baseline (BL), immediately post (IP), 120 minutes, 24, and 48 hours after HVP. Blood was obtained at BL, IP, 30, 60, 120 minute, 24, and 48 hours after HVP to assess muscle damage and inflammation. All performance data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of covariance, whereas all inflammatory and muscle damage markers were analyzed using a 2-way (time × group) repeated measures analysis of variance. Results revealed no between-group differences for PKT, AVGT, or rate of torque development at 200 ms (RTD200). No between-group differences in myoglobin, creatine kinase, C-reactive protein, or interleukin-6 were observed. Although BL differences in muscle performance were observed between YA and MA, no between-group differences were noted in performance recovery measures from high-volume isokinetic exercise in recreationally trained men. These results also indicate that the inflammatory and muscle damage response from high-volume isokinetic exercise is similar between recreationally trained, young, and middle-aged adult men.

The DST group ionospheric sounder replacement for JORN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, T. J.; Quinn, A. D.; Pederick, L. H.

2016-06-01

The Jindalee Over-the-horizon Radar Network (JORN) is an integral part of Australia's national defense capability. JORN uses a real-time ionospheric model as part of its operations. The primary source of data for this model is a set of 13 vertical-incidence sounders (VIS) scattered around the Australian coast and inland locations. These sounders are a mix of Lowell digisonde portable sounder (DPS)-1 and DPS-4. Both of these sounders, the DPS-1 in particular, are near the end of their maintainable life. A replacement for these aging sounders was required as part of the ongoing sustainment program for JORN. Over the last few years the High-Frequency Radar Branch (HFRB) of the Defence Science and Technology (DST) Group, Australian Department of Defence, has been developing its own sounders based on its successful radar hardware technology. The DST Group VIS solution known as PRIME (Portable Remote Ionospheric Monitoring Equipment) is a 100% duty cycle, continuous wave system that receives the returned ionospheric signal while it is still transmitting and operates the receiver in the near field of the transmitter. Of considerable importance to a successful VIS is the autoscaling software, which takes the ionogram data and produces an ionogram trace (group delay as a function of frequency), and from that produces a set of ionospheric parameters that represent the (bottomside) overhead electron density profile. HFRB has developed its own robust autoscaling software. The performance of DST Group's PRIME under a multitude of challenging ionospheric conditions has been studied. In December 2014, PRIME was trialed at a JORN VIS site collocated with the existing Lowell Digisonde DPS-1. This side-by-side testing determined that PRIME was fit for purpose. A summary of the results of this comparison and example PRIME output will be discussed. Note that this paper compares PRIME with the 25 year old Lowell Digisonde DPS-1, which is planned to be replaced. Our future plans include PRIME comparisons with the much newer Digisonde DPS-4D located at Learmonth in Western Australia.

Motion analysis in the field of dentistry: a kinematic comparison of dentists and orthodontists

PubMed Central

Nowak, J; Erbe, C; Hauck, I; Groneberg, D A; Hermanns, I; Ellegast, R; Ditchen, D; Ohlendorf, D

2016-01-01

Objectives To conduct a kinematic comparison of occupational posture in orthodontists and dentists in their workplace. Design Observational study. Setting Dentist surgeries and departments of orthodontics at university medical centres in Germany. Participants A representative sample of 21 (10 female, 11 male) dentists (group G1) and 21 (13 female, 8 male) orthodontists (G2) with one male dropout in G2. Outcome measures The CUELA (computer-assisted acquisition and long-term analysis of musculoskeletal loads) system was used to analyse occupational posture. Parallel to the recording through the CUELA system, a software-supported analysis of the activities performed (I: treatment; II: office; III: other activities) was carried out. In line with ergonomic standards the measured body angles are categorised into neutral, moderate and awkward postures. Activities between the aforementioned groups are compared using the stratified van Elteren U test and the Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney U test. All p values are subject to the Bonferroni–Holm correction. The level of significance is set at 5%. Results The percentage of time spent on activities in categories I–II–III was as follows: dentists 41%–23%–36% and orthodontists 28%–37%–35%. The posture analysis of both groups showed, for all percentiles (P5–95), angle values primarily in the neutral or moderate range. However, depending on the activity performed, between 5% and 25% of working hours were spent in unfavourable postures, especially in the head-and-neck area. Orthodontists have a greater tendency than dentists to perform treatment activities with the head and torso in unfavourable positions. The statistically significant differences between the two groups with regard to the duration and the relevance of the activities performed confirm this assumption for all three categories (p<0.01, p<0.05). Conclusions Generally, both groups perform treatment activities in postures that are in the neutral or medium range; however, dentists had slightly more unfavourable postures during treatment for a greater share of their work day. PMID:27531728

Does technique matter; a pilot study exploring weighting techniques for a multi-criteria decision support framework.

PubMed

van Til, Janine; Groothuis-Oudshoorn, Catharina; Lieferink, Marijke; Dolan, James; Goetghebeur, Mireille

2014-01-01

There is an increased interest in the use of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to support regulatory and reimbursement decision making. The EVIDEM framework was developed to provide pragmatic multi-criteria decision support in health care, to estimate the value of healthcare interventions, and to aid in priority-setting. The objectives of this study were to test 1) the influence of different weighting techniques on the overall outcome of an MCDA exercise, 2) the discriminative power in weighting different criteria of such techniques, and 3) whether different techniques result in similar weights in weighting the criteria set proposed by the EVIDEM framework. A sample of 60 Dutch and Canadian students participated in the study. Each student used an online survey to provide weights for 14 criteria with two different techniques: a five-point rating scale and one of the following techniques selected randomly: ranking, point allocation, pairwise comparison and best worst scaling. The results of this study indicate that there is no effect of differences in weights on value estimates at the group level. On an individual level, considerable differences in criteria weights and rank order occur as a result of the weight elicitation method used, and the ability of different techniques to discriminate in criteria importance. Of the five techniques tested, the pair-wise comparison of criteria has the highest ability to discriminate in weights when fourteen criteria are compared. When weights are intended to support group decisions, the choice of elicitation technique has negligible impact on criteria weights and the overall value of an innovation. However, when weights are used to support individual decisions, the choice of elicitation technique influences outcome and studies that use dissimilar techniques cannot be easily compared. Weight elicitation through pairwise comparison of criteria is preferred when taking into account its superior ability to discriminate between criteria and respondents' preferences.

Spectral Generation from the Ames Mars GCM for the Study of Martian Clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klassen, David R.; Kahre, Melinda A.; Wolff, Michael J.; Haberle, Robert; Hollingsworth, Jeffery L.

2017-10-01

Studies of martian clouds come from two distinct groups of researchers: those modeling the martian system from first principles and those observing Mars from ground-based and orbital platforms. The model-view begins with global circulation models (GCMs) or mesoscale models to track a multitude of state variables over a prescribed set of spatial and temporal resolutions. The state variables can then be processed into distinct maps of derived product variables, such as integrated optical depth of aerosol (e.g., water ice cloud, dust) or column integrated water vapor for comparison to observational results. The observer view begins, typically, with spectral images or imaging spectra, calibrated to some form of absolute units then run through some form of radiative transfer model to also produce distinct maps of derived product variables. Both groups of researchers work to adjust model parameters and assumptions until some level of agreement in derived product variables is achieved. While this system appears to work well, it is in some sense only an implicit confirmation of the model assumptions that attribute to the work from both sides. We have begun a project of testing the NASA Ames Mars GCM and key aerosol model assumptions more directly by taking the model output and creating synthetic TES-spectra from them for comparison to actual raw-reduced TES spectra. We will present some preliminary generated GCM spectra and TES comparisons.

Why do temporal generalization gradients change when people make decisions as quickly as possible?

PubMed

Klapproth, Florian; Wearden, John H

2011-08-01

Three experiments investigated temporal generalization performance under conditions in which participants were instructed to make their decisions as quickly as possible (speed), or were allowed to take their time (accuracy). A previous study (Klapproth & Müller, 2008) had shown that under speeded conditions people were more likely to confuse durations shorter than the standard with the standard than in the accuracy conditions, and a possible explanation of this result is that longer stimulus durations are "truncated" (i.e., people make a judgement about them before they have terminated, thereby shortening their effective duration) and that these truncated durations affect the standard used for the task. Experiment 1 investigated performance under speed and accuracy conditions when comparison durations were close to the standard or further away. No performance difference was found as a function of stimulus spacing, even though responses occurred on average before the longest durations had terminated, but this lack of effect was attributed to "task difficulty" effects changing decision thresholds. In Experiment 2, the standard duration was either the longest or the shortest duration in the comparison set, and differences between speed and accuracy groups occurred only when the comparisons were longer than the standard, supporting the "truncation" hypothesis. A third experiment showed that differences between speed and accuracy groups only occurred if some memory of the standard that was valid for more than one trial was used. In general, the results suggest that the generalization gradient shifts in speeded conditions occur because of truncation of longer comparison durations, which influences the effective standard used for the task.

Resident outcomes in small-house nursing homes: a longitudinal evaluation of the initial green house program.

PubMed

Kane, Rosalie A; Lum, Terry Y; Cutler, Lois J; Degenholtz, Howard B; Yu, Tzy-Chyi

2007-06-01

To determine the effects of a small-house nursing home model, THE GREEN HOUSE (GH), on residents' reported outcomes and quality of care. Two-year longitudinal quasi-experimental study comparing GH residents with residents at two comparison sites using data collected at baseline and three follow-up intervals. Four 10-person GHs, the sponsoring nursing home for those GHs, and a traditional nursing home with the same owner. All residents in the GHs (40 at any time) at baseline and three 6-month follow-up intervals, and 40 randomly selected residents in each of the two comparison groups. The GH alters the physical scale environment (small-scale, private rooms and bathrooms, residential kitchen, dining room, and hearth), the staffing model for professional and certified nursing assistants, and the philosophy of care. Scales for 11 domains of resident quality of life, emotional well-being, satisfaction, self-reported health, and functional status were derived from interviews at four points in time. Quality of care was measured using indicators derived from Minimum Data Set assessments. Controlling for baseline characteristics (age, sex, activities of daily living, date of admission, and proxy interview status), statistically significant differences in self-reported dimensions of quality of life favored the GHs over one or both comparison groups. The quality of care in the GHs at least equaled, and for change in functional status exceeded, the comparison nursing homes. The GH is a promising model to improve quality of life for nursing home residents, with implications for staff development and medical director roles.

An electrophysiological investigation of non-symbolic magnitude processing: numerical distance effects in children with and without mathematical learning disabilities.

PubMed

Heine, Angela; Wissmann, Jacqueline; Tamm, Sascha; De Smedt, Bert; Schneider, Michael; Stern, Elsbeth; Verschaffel, Lieven; Jacobs, Arthur M

2013-09-01

The aim of the present study was to probe electrophysiological effects of non-symbolic numerical processing in 20 children with mathematical learning disabilities (mean age = 99.2 months) compared to a group of 20 typically developing matched controls (mean age = 98.4 months). EEG data were obtained while children were tested with a standard non-symbolic numerical comparison paradigm that allowed us to investigate the effects of numerical distance manipulations for different set sizes, i.e., the classical subitizing, counting and estimation ranges. Effects of numerical distance manipulations on event-related potential (ERP) amplitudes as well as activation patterns of underlying current sources were analyzed. In typically developing children, the amplitudes of a late parietal positive-going ERP component showed systematic numerical distance effects that did not depend on set size. For the group of children with mathematical learning disabilities, ERP distance effects were found only for stimuli within the subitizing range. Current source density analysis of distance-related group effects suggested that areas in right inferior parietal regions are involved in the generation of the parietal ERP amplitude differences. Our results suggest that right inferior parietal regions are recruited differentially by controls compared to children with mathematical learning disabilities in response to non-symbolic numerical magnitude processing tasks, but only for stimuli with set sizes that exceed the subitizing range. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of Topical Anesthesia with Lidocaine-prilocaine (EMLA) Cream and Local Pressure on Pain during Infiltration Injection for Maxillary Canines: A Randomized Double-blind clinical trial.

PubMed

Milani, Amin S; Zand, Vahid; Abdollahi, Amir A; Froughreyhani, Mohammad; Zakeri-Milani, Parvin; Jafarabadi, Mohammad A

2016-07-01

This study compared the effect of local pressure and topical lidocaine-prilocaine (EMLA) cream on pain during infiltration injection for maxillary canine teeth. A total of 140 volunteer students participated in this split-mouth design randomized clinical trial. The subjects were randomly divided into four groups (n = 35). Before administration of anesthesia, in each group, one side was randomly selected as the experimental and the opposite side as the control. In group 1, finger pressure was applied on the alveolar mucosa on the experimental side and on the tooth crown on the control side. In group 2, 5% EMLA cream and placebo; in group 3, finger pressure and 5% EMLA cream; and in group 4, 5% EMLA cream and 20% benzocaine gel were applied. In all the groups, a buccal infiltration procedure was carried out. Pain during injection was recorded with visual analog scale (VAS). Wilcoxon and McNemar tests were used for statistical analysis of the results. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. The results showed that EMLA reduced the injection pain significantly more than benzocaine (p = 0.02). Also, injection pain was significantly lower with the use of EMLA in comparison to placebo (p = 0.00). Application of local pressure reduced the injection pain, but the difference from the control side was not significant (p = 0.05). Furthermore, the difference between application of local pressure and EMLA was not statistically significant (p = 0.08). Topical anesthesia of 5% EMLA was more effective than 20% benzocaine in reducing pain severity during infiltration injection. However, it was not significantly different in comparison to the application of local pressure.

The impact of differences between patient and general population EQ-5D-3L values on the mean tariff scores of different patient groups.

PubMed

Little, Matthew H R; Reitmeir, Peter; Peters, Annette; Leidl, Reiner

2014-06-01

Health states can be valued by those who currently experience a health state (experienced health states [EHS]) or by the general public, who value a set of given health states (GHS) described to them. There has been debate over which method is more appropriate when making resource allocation decisions. This article informs this debate by assessing whether differences between these methods have an effect on the mean EQ-5D-3L tariff scores of different patient groups. The European tariff based on GHS valuations was compared with a German EHS tariff. Comparison was made in the context of EQ-5D-3L health states describing a number of diagnosed chronic diseases (stroke, diabetes, myocardial infarction, and cancer) taken from the Cooperative Health Research in the Augsburg Region population surveys. Comparison was made of both the difference in weighting of the dimensions of the EQ-5D-3L and differences in mean tariff scores for patient groups. Weighting of the dimensions of the EQ-5D-3L were found to be systematically different. The EHS tariff gave significantly lower mean scores for most, but not all, patient groups despite tariff scores being lower for 213 of 243 EQ-5D-3L health states using the GHS tariff. Differences were found to vary between groups, with the largest change in difference being 5.45 in the multiple stoke group. The two tariffs have systematic differences that in certain patient groups could drive the results of an economic evaluation. Therefore, the choice as to which is used may be critical when making resource allocation decisions. Copyright © 2014 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Blood pathway analyses reveal differences between prediabetic subjects with or without dyslipidaemia. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

PubMed

Laaksonen, Jaakko; Taipale, Tuukka; Seppälä, Ilkka; Raitoharju, Emma; Mononen, Nina; Lyytikäinen, Leo-Pekka; Waldenberger, Melanie; Illig, Thomas; Hutri-Kähönen, Nina; Rönnemaa, Tapani; Juonala, Markus; Viikari, Jorma; Kähönen, Mika; Raitakari, Olli; Lehtimäki, Terho

2017-10-01

Prediabetes often occurs together with dyslipidaemia, which is paradoxically treated with statins predisposing to type 2 diabetes mellitus. We examined peripheral blood pathway profiles in prediabetic subjects with (PR D ) and without dyslipidaemia (PR 0 ) and compared these to nonprediabetic controls without dyslipidaemia (C 0 ). The participants were from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, including 1240 subjects aged 34 to 49 years. Genome-wide expression data of peripheral blood and gene set enrichment analysis were used to investigate the differentially expressed genes and enriched pathways between different subtypes of prediabetes. Pathways for cholesterol synthesis, interleukin-12-mediated signalling events, and downstream signalling in naïve CD8+ T-cells were upregulated in the PR 0 group in comparison with controls (C 0 ). The upregulation of these pathways was independent of waist circumference, blood pressure, smoking status, and insulin. Adjustment for CRP left the CD8+ T-cell signalling and interleukin-12-mediated signalling event pathway upregulated. The cholesterol synthesis pathway was also upregulated when all prediabetic subjects (PR 0 and PR D ) were compared with the nonprediabetic control group. No pathways were upregulated or downregulated when the PR D group was compared with the C 0 group. Five genes in the PR 0 group and 1 in the PR D group were significantly differentially expressed in comparison with the C 0 group. Blood cell gene expression profiles differ significantly between prediabetic subjects with and without dyslipidaemia. Whether this classification may be used in detection of prediabetic individuals at a high risk of cardiovascular complications remains to be examined. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Cognitive dysfunction in Body Dysmorphic Disorder: New implications for nosological systems & neurobiological models

PubMed Central

Jefferies-Sewell, K; Chamberlain, SR; Fineberg, NA; Laws, KR

2017-01-01

Background Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a debilitating disorder, characterised by obsessions and compulsions relating specifically to perceived appearance, newly classified within the DSM-5 Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders grouping. Until now, little research has been conducted into the cognitive profile of this disorder. Materials and Methods Participants with BDD (n=12) and healthy controls (n=16) were tested using a computerised neurocognitive battery investigating attentional set-shifting (Intra/Extra Dimensional Set Shift Task), decision-making (Cambridge Gamble Task), motor response-inhibition (Stop-Signal Reaction Time Task) and affective processing (Affective Go-No Go Task). The groups were matched for age, IQ and education. Results In comparison to controls, patients with BDD showed significantly impaired attentional set shifting, abnormal decision-making, impaired response inhibition and greater omission and commission errors on the emotional processing task. Conclusions Despite the modest sample size, our results showed that individuals with BDD performed poorly compared to healthy controls on tests of cognitive flexibility, reward and motor impulsivity and affective processing. Results from separate studies in OCD patients suggest similar cognitive dysfunction. Therefore, these findings are consistent with the re-classification of BDD alongside OCD. These data also hint at additional areas of decision-making abnormalities that might contribute specifically to the psychopathology of BDD. PMID:27899165

Which peer teaching methods do medical students prefer?

PubMed

Jayakumar, Nithish; Srirathan, Danushan; Shah, Rishita; Jakubowska, Agnieszka; Clarke, Andrew; Annan, David; Albasha, Dekan

2016-01-01

The beneficial effects of peer teaching in medical education have been well-described in the literature. However, it is unclear whether students prefer to be taught by peers in small or large group settings. This study's aim was to identify differences in medical students' preferences and perceptions of small-group versus large-group peer teaching. Questionnaires were administered to medical students in Year 3 and Year 4 (first 2 years of clinical training) at one institution in the United Kingdom to identify their experiences and perceptions of small-and large-group peer teaching. For this study, small-group peer teaching was defined as a tutorial, or similar, taught by peer tutor to a group of 5 students or less. Large-group peer teaching was defined as a lecture, or similar, taught by peer tutors to a group of more than 20 students. Seventy-three students (81% response rate) completed the questionnaires (54% males; median age of 23). Nearly 55% of respondents reported prior exposure to small-group peer teaching but a larger proportion of respondents (86%) had previously attended large-group peer teaching. Of all valid responses, 49% did not have a preference of peer teaching method while 47% preferred small-group peer teaching. The majority of Year 3 students preferred small-group peer teaching to no preference (62.5% vs 37.5%, Fisher's exact test; P = 0.035) whereas most Year 4 students did not report a particular preference. Likert-scale responses showed that the majority of students held negative perceptions about large-group peer teaching, in comparison with small-group peer teaching, with respect to (1) interactivity, (2) a comfortable environment to ask questions, and (3) feedback received. Most respondents in this study did not report a preference for small-versus large-group settings when taught by peers. More Year 3 respondents were likely to prefer small-group peer teaching as opposed to Year 4 respondents.

A new universal simplified adhesive: 18-month clinical evaluation.

PubMed

Perdigão, J; Kose, C; Mena-Serrano, A P; De Paula, E A; Tay, L Y; Reis, A; Loguercio, A D

2014-01-01

To evaluate the 18-month clinical performance of a multimode adhesive (Scotchbond Universal Adhesive, SU, 3M ESPE, St Paul, MN, USA) in noncarious cervical lesions (NCCLs) using two evaluation criteria. Thirty-nine patients participated in this study. Two-hundred restorations were assigned to four groups: ERm, etch-and-rinse + moist dentin; ERd, etch-and-rinse + dry dentin; Set, selective enamel etching; and SE, self-etch. The composite resin, Filtek Supreme Ultra (3M ESPE), was placed incrementally. The restorations were evaluated at baseline, and at 18 months, using both the World Dental Federation (FDI) and the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) criteria. Statistical analyses were performed using Friedman repeated-measures analysis of variance by rank and McNemar test for significance in each pair (α=0.05). Five restorations (SE: 3; Set: 1; and ERm: 1) were lost after 18 months (p>0.05 for either criteria). Marginal staining occurred in four and 10% of the restorations evaluated (p>0.05), respectively, for USPHS and FDI criteria. Nine restorations were scored as bravo for marginal adaptation using the USPHS criteria and 38%, 40%, 36%, and 44% for groups ERm, ERd, Set, and SE, respectively, when the FDI criteria were applied (p>0.05). However, when semiquantitative scores (or SQUACE) for marginal adaptation were used, SE resulted in a significantly greater number of restorations, with more than 30% of the total length of the interface showing marginal discrepancy (28%) in comparison with the other groups (8%, 6%, and 8%, respectively, for ERm, ERd, and Set). The clinical retention of the multimode adhesive at 18 months does not depend on the bonding strategy. The only differences between strategies were found for the parameter marginal adaptation, for which the FDI criteria were more sensitive than the USPHS criteria.

Three-dimensional analysis of the uniqueness of the anterior dentition in orthodontically treated patients and twins.

PubMed

Franco, A; Willems, G; Souza, P H C; Tanaka, O M; Coucke, W; Thevissen, P

2017-04-01

Dental uniqueness can be proven if no perfect match in pair-wise morphological comparisons of human dentitions is detected. Establishing these comparisons in a worldwide random population is practically unfeasible due to the need for a large and representative sample size. Sample stratification is an option to reduce sample size. The present study investigated the uniqueness of the human dentition in randomly selected subjects (Group 1), orthodontically treated patients (Group 2), twins (Group 3), and orthodontically treated twins (Group 4) in comparison with a threshold control sample of identical dentitions (Group 5). The samples consisted of digital cast files (DCF) obtained through extraoral 3D scanning. A total of 2.013 pair-wise morphological comparisons were performed (Group 1 n=110, Group 2 n=1.711, Group 3 n=172, Group 4 n=10, Group 5 n=10) with Geomagic Studio ® (3D Systems ® , Rock Hill, SC, USA) software package. Comparisons within groups were performed quantifying the morphological differences between DCF in Euclidean distances. Comparisons between groups were established applying One-way ANOVA. To ensure fair comparisons a post-hoc Power Analysis was performed. ROC analysis was applied to distinguish unique from non-unique dentures. Identical DCF were not detected within the experimental groups (from 1 to 4). The most similar DCF had Euclidian distance of 5.19mm in Group 1, 2.06mm in Group 2, 2.03mm in Group 3, and 1.88mm in Group 4. Groups 2 and 3 were statistically different from Group 5 (p<0.05). Statistically significant difference between Group 4 and 5 revealed to be possible including more pair-wise comparisons in both groups. The ROC analysis revealed sensitivity rate of 80% and specificity between 66.7% and 81.6%. Evidence to sustain the uniqueness of the human dentition in random and stratified populations was observed in the present study. Further studies testing the influence of the quantity of tooth material on morphological difference between dentitions and its impact on uniqueness remain necessary. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Group Comparisons of Mathematics Performance from a Cognitive Diagnostic Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Yi-Hsin; Ferron, John M.; Thompson, Marilyn S.; Gorin, Joanna S.; Tatsuoka, Kikumi K.

2010-01-01

Traditional comparisons of test score means identify group differences in broad academic areas, but fail to provide substantive description of how the groups differ on the specific cognitive attributes required for success in the academic area. The rule space method (RSM) allows for group comparisons at the cognitive attribute level, which…

Assessing the evolutionary rate of positional orthologous genes in prokaryotes using synteny data

PubMed Central

Lemoine, Frédéric; Lespinet, Olivier; Labedan, Bernard

2007-01-01

Background Comparison of completely sequenced microbial genomes has revealed how fluid these genomes are. Detecting synteny blocks requires reliable methods to determining the orthologs among the whole set of homologs detected by exhaustive comparisons between each pair of completely sequenced genomes. This is a complex and difficult problem in the field of comparative genomics but will help to better understand the way prokaryotic genomes are evolving. Results We have developed a suite of programs that automate three essential steps to study conservation of gene order, and validated them with a set of 107 bacteria and archaea that cover the majority of the prokaryotic taxonomic space. We identified the whole set of shared homologs between two or more species and computed the evolutionary distance separating each pair of homologs. We applied two strategies to extract from the set of homologs a collection of valid orthologs shared by at least two genomes. The first computes the Reciprocal Smallest Distance (RSD) using the PAM distances separating pairs of homologs. The second method groups homologs in families and reconstructs each family's evolutionary tree, distinguishing bona fide orthologs as well as paralogs created after the last speciation event. Although the phylogenetic tree method often succeeds where RSD fails, the reverse could occasionally be true. Accordingly, we used the data obtained with either methods or their intersection to number the orthologs that are adjacent in for each pair of genomes, the Positional Orthologous Genes (POGs), and to further study their properties. Once all these synteny blocks have been detected, we showed that POGs are subject to more evolutionary constraints than orthologs outside synteny groups, whichever the taxonomic distance separating the compared organisms. Conclusion The suite of programs described in this paper allows a reliable detection of orthologs and is useful for evaluating gene order conservation in prokaryotes whichever their taxonomic distance. Thus, our approach will make easy the rapid identification of POGS in the next few years as we are expecting to be inundated with thousands of completely sequenced microbial genomes. PMID:18047665

Setting the renormalization scale in pQCD: Comparisons of the principle of maximum conformality with the sequential extended Brodsky-Lepage-Mackenzie approach

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ma, Hong -Hao; Wu, Xing -Gang; Ma, Yang

A key problem in making precise perturbative QCD (pQCD) predictions is how to set the renormalization scale of the running coupling unambiguously at each finite order. The elimination of the uncertainty in setting the renormalization scale in pQCD will greatly increase the precision of collider tests of the Standard Model and the sensitivity to new phenomena. Renormalization group invariance requires that predictions for observables must also be independent on the choice of the renormalization scheme. The well-known Brodsky-Lepage-Mackenzie (BLM) approach cannot be easily extended beyond next-to-next-to-leading order of pQCD. Several suggestions have been proposed to extend the BLM approach tomore » all orders. In this paper we discuss two distinct methods. One is based on the “Principle of Maximum Conformality” (PMC), which provides a systematic all-orders method to eliminate the scale and scheme ambiguities of pQCD. The PMC extends the BLM procedure to all orders using renormalization group methods; as an outcome, it significantly improves the pQCD convergence by eliminating renormalon divergences. An alternative method is the “sequential extended BLM” (seBLM) approach, which has been primarily designed to improve the convergence of pQCD series. The seBLM, as originally proposed, introduces auxiliary fields and follows the pattern of the β0-expansion to fix the renormalization scale. However, the seBLM requires a recomputation of pQCD amplitudes including the auxiliary fields; due to the limited availability of calculations using these auxiliary fields, the seBLM has only been applied to a few processes at low orders. In order to avoid the complications of adding extra fields, we propose a modified version of seBLM which allows us to apply this method to higher orders. As a result, we then perform detailed numerical comparisons of the two alternative scale-setting approaches by investigating their predictions for the annihilation cross section ratio R e+e– at four-loop order in pQCD.« less

A unique gender difference in early onset melanoma implies that in addition to ultraviolet light exposure other causative factors are important

PubMed Central

Liu, Feng; Bessonova, Leona; Taylor, Thomas H.; Ziogas, Argyrios; Meyskens, Frank L.; Anton-Culver, Hoda

2014-01-01

Summary Using US SEER17 Registry data, age-specific melanoma incidence rates were calculated and comparisons were made between males and females. Relative Risk (RR) for males and females in each age group was computed and compared with that from Nordic Cancer Registry data set and to that for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). For age groups 44 and younger, females showed higher incidence rates, with a peak difference at age 20–24 (RR = 2.01, 95% CI = 1.21–3.33). Males exhibited higher incidence rates after age 44. The same bimodal gender difference was confirmed by the Nordic Cancer Registry data set, but it was not observed for NMSC, which is known to be strongly associated with cumulative exposure to solar UV radiation. We conclude that exposure to solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation is the major causative factor for melanoma at older age (>44 yr), but that other factors may play a role in early onset melanomas, particularly in females. PMID:23095171

Neuropsychological comparison of alcohol-exposed children with or without physical features of fetal alcohol syndrome.

PubMed

Mattson, S N; Riley, E P; Gramling, L; Delis, D C; Jones, K L

1998-01-01

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is associated with behavioral and cognitive deficits. However, the majority of children born to alcohol-abusing women do not meet the formal criteria for FAS and it is not known if the cognitive abilities of these children differ from those of children with FAS. Using a set of neuropsychological tests, 3 groups were compared: (a) children with FAS, (b) children without FAS who were born to alcohol-abusing women (the PEA group), and (c) normal controls. The results indicated that, relative to controls, both the FAS and the PEA groups were impaired on tests of language, verbal learning and memory, academic skills, fine-motor speed, and visual-motor integration. These data suggest that heavy prenatal alcohol exposure is related to a consistent pattern of neuropsychological deficits and the degree of these deficits may be independent of the presence of physical features associated with FAS.

A comparison of patients with major depressive disorder recruited through newspaper advertising versus consultation referrals for clinical drug trials.

PubMed

Miller, C A; Hooper, C L; Bakish, D

1997-01-01

Difficulties in recruiting patients for clinical trials have plagued investigators for many years. One concern is the generalizability of clinical trial results to community practice, that is, whether volunteers recruited through advertising are homogeneous with those seeking treatment in a clinical setting. This article retrospectively compares the baseline characteristics of patients recruited through newspaper advertisements with those recruited through consultation referrals by reviewing the charts of 54 patients enrolled in two clinical trials for major depressive disorder (MDD). We examined demographic data, background information, clinical histories, and baseline status. Results indicated homogeneity for most variables. The consultation group was significantly more likely to have had previous treatment for the current episode of depression. These results suggest that, although the advertisement and consultation groups were very similar, the drug naivety of the advertisement group may make them a preferred source in terms of generalizability to community practice.

Effect of eccentric strengthening on pain, muscle strength, endurance, and functional fitness factors in male patients with achilles tendinopathy.

PubMed

Yu, JaeHo; Park, DaeSung; Lee, GyuChang

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of eccentric strengthening on pain, muscle strength, endurance, and functional fitness factors in Achilles tendinopathy patients. Thirty-two male patients with Achilles tendinopathy were assigned to either the experimental group that performed eccentric strengthening or the control group that performed concentric strengthening (n = 16, both groups) for 8 wks (50 mins per day, three times per week). A visual analog scale, an isokinetic muscle testing equipment, the side-step test, and the Sargent jump test were used to assess pain, muscle strength, endurance, and functional fitness factors before and after the intervention. In comparison with the control group, the experimental group showed significant improvement in pain, ankle dorsiflexion endurance, total balance index, and agility after the intervention (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in dexterity between the two groups. Eccentric strengthening was more effective than concentric strengthening in reducing pain and improving function in patients with Achilles tendinopathy; therefore, regular eccentric strengthening is important for patients in a clinical setting.

Comparison of in vivo dental pulp responses to capping with iRoot BP Plus and mineral trioxide aggregate.

PubMed

Shi, S; Bao, Z F; Liu, Y; Zhang, D D; Chen, X; Jiang, L M; Zhong, M

2016-02-01

To compare dental pulp responses to capping with iRoot BP Plus and mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) in dogs. Pulps in 36 incisors of three 8-month-old beagle dogs were mechanically exposed and assigned to two experimental groups (iRoot BP Plus group and MTA group, n = 15 per group) and one control group (n = 6). Direct pulp capping was performed using either iRoot BP Plus or MTA. The animals were sacrificed 3 months later. Histological sections were stained with haematoxylin and eosin and categorized using a histologic scoring system. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney U-test, with the significance set at 0.05. The majority of specimens in both experimental groups were associated with complete calcified bridge formation and the absence of pulpal inflammation. There was no significant difference in pulp response to iRoot BP Plus or MTA after 3 months (P > 0.05). iRoot BP Plus and MTA had similar favourable results when used as pulp-capping agents. © 2015 International Endodontic Journal. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Anaemia management protocols in the care of haemodialysis patients: examining patient outcomes.

PubMed

Saunders, Sushila; MacLeod, Martha L P; Salyers, Vince; MacMillan, Peter D; Ogborn, Malcolm R

2013-08-01

To determine whether the use of a nurse-driven protocol in the haemodialysis setting is as safe and effective as traditional physician-driven approaches to anaemia management. The role of haemodialysis nurses in renal anaemia management has evolved through the implementation of nurse-driven protocols, addressing the trend of exceeding haemoglobin targets and rising costs of erythropoietin-stimulating agents. Retrospective, non-equivalent case control group design. The sample was from three haemodialysis units in a control group (n = 64) and three haemodialysis units in a protocol group (n = 43). The protocol group used a nurse-driven renal anaemia management protocol, while the control group used a traditional physician-driven approach to renal anaemia management. All retrospective data were obtained from a provincial renal database. Data were analysed using chi-square tests and t-tests. Patient outcomes examined were haemoglobin levels, transferrin saturation levels, erythropoietin-stimulating agents use and intravenous iron use. Cost comparisons were determined using average use of erythropoietin-stimulating agents and intravenous iron. Control and protocol groups reached haemoglobin target levels. In the protocol group, 75% reached transferrin saturation target levels in comparison with 25% of the control group. Use and costs for iron was higher in the control group, while use and costs for erythropoietin was higher in the protocol group. The higher usage of erythropoietin-stimulating agents was potentially related to comorbid conditions amongst the protocol group. A nurse-driven protocol approach to renal anaemia management was as effective as the physician-driven approach in reaching haemoglobin and transferrin saturation levels. Further examination of the use and dosing of erythropoietin-stimulating agents and intravenous iron, their impact on haemoglobin levels related to patient comorbidities and subsequent cost effectiveness of protocols is required. Using a nurse-driven protocol in practice supports the independent nursing role while contributing to safe patient outcomes. © 2013 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Behavior problems in school-aged physically abused and neglected children in Spain.

PubMed

de Paúl, J; Arruabarrena, M I

1995-04-01

The present study investigated behavior problems in school-aged physically abused, neglected, and comparison children in the Basque Country (Spain). Data from the Teacher's Report Form of the Child Behavior Checklist was obtained on 66 children consisting of three groups (17 physically abused children, 24 physically neglected children, and 25 low-risk comparison children). The three groups were matched on seven sociodemographic variables. Overall, the abused and neglected children were higher than the comparison group on Total Behavior Problems scores. However, only neglected children obtained higher scores than the comparison group on the total score of the Externalized Scale, and only abused children scored higher than the comparison group on the total score of the Internalized Scale. Follow-up analysis indicated that both abused and neglected children had higher scores on the Social Problems, Delinquent Behavior, and Attention Problems subscales. Moreover, neglected children had higher scores on the Aggressive Behavior subscale than the comparison children, and abused children had higher scores on the Withdrawn subscale than the comparison children. The abused and neglected children also showed a lower school adjustment than the comparison group. Possible explanations of these findings are discussed and their implications for research and treatment are considered.

Effects of weight training on cognitive functions in elderly with Alzheimer's disease

PubMed Central

Vital, Thays Martins; Hernández, Salma S. Soleman; Pedroso, Renata Valle; Teixeira, Camila Vieira Ligo; Garuffi, Marcelo; Stein, Angelica Miki; Costa, José Luiz Riani; Stella, Florindo

2012-01-01

Deterioration in cognitive functions is characteristic in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and may be associated with decline in daily living activities with consequent reduced quality of life. Objective To analyze weight training effects on cognitive functions in elderly with AD. Subjects 34 elderly with AD were allocated into two groups: Training Group (TG) and Social Gathering Group (SGG). Methods Global cognitive status was determined using the Mini-Mental State Exam. Specific cognitive functions were measured using the Brief Cognitive Battery, Clock Drawing Test and Verbal Fluency Test. The protocols were performed three times a week, one hour per session. The weight training protocol consisted of three sets of 20 repetitions, with two minutes of rest between sets and exercises. The activities proposed for the SGG were not systematized and aimed at promoting social interaction among patients. The statistical analyses were performed with the U Mann Whitney and Wilcoxon tests for group comparisons. All analyses were considered statistically significant at a p-value of 0.05. Results There were no significant differences associated to the effects of the practice of weight training on cognition in AD patients. Conclusion In this study, no improvement in cognitive functions was evident in elderly with AD who followed a low intensity resistance exercise protocol. Thus, future studies could evaluate the effect of more intense exercise programs. PMID:29213805

Relational Agreement Measures for Similarity Searching of Cheminformatic Data Sets.

PubMed

Rivera-Borroto, Oscar Miguel; García-de la Vega, José Manuel; Marrero-Ponce, Yovani; Grau, Ricardo

2016-01-01

Research on similarity searching of cheminformatic data sets has been focused on similarity measures using fingerprints. However, nominal scales are the least informative of all metric scales, increasing the tied similarity scores, and decreasing the effectivity of the retrieval engines. Tanimoto's coefficient has been claimed to be the most prominent measure for this task. Nevertheless, this field is far from being exhausted since the computer science no free lunch theorem predicts that "no similarity measure has overall superiority over the population of data sets". We introduce 12 relational agreement (RA) coefficients for seven metric scales, which are integrated within a group fusion-based similarity searching algorithm. These similarity measures are compared to a reference panel of 21 proximity quantifiers over 17 benchmark data sets (MUV), by using informative descriptors, a feature selection stage, a suitable performance metric, and powerful comparison tests. In this stage, RA coefficients perform favourably with repect to the state-of-the-art proximity measures. Afterward, the RA-based method outperform another four nearest neighbor searching algorithms over the same data domains. In a third validation stage, RA measures are successfully applied to the virtual screening of the NCI data set. Finally, we discuss a possible molecular interpretation for these similarity variants.

Development of a set of process and structure indicators for palliative care: the Europall project

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background By measuring the quality of the organisation of palliative care with process and structure quality indicators (QIs), patients, caregivers and policy makers are able to monitor to what extent recommendations are met, like those of the council of the WHO on palliative care and guidelines. This will support the implementation of public programmes, and will enable comparisons between organisations or countries. Methods As no European set of indicators for the organisation of palliative care existed, such a set of QIs was developed. An update of a previous systematic review was made and extended with more databases and grey literature. In two project meetings with practitioners and experts in palliative care the development process of a QI set was finalised and the QIs were categorized in a framework, covering the recommendations of the Council of Europe. Results The searches resulted in 151 structure and process indicators, which were discussed in steering group meetings. Of those QIs, 110 were eligible for the final framework. Conclusions We developed the first set of QIs for the organisation of palliative care. This article is the first step in a multi step project to identify, validate and pilot QIs. PMID:23122255

Cytomorphometric analysis of oral buccal mucosal smears in tobacco and arecanut chewers who abused with and without betel leaf.

PubMed

Noufal, Ahammed; George, Antony; Jose, Maji; Khader, Mohasin Abdul; Jayapalan, Cheriyanthal Sisupalan

2014-01-01

Tobacco in any form (smoking or chewing), arecanut chewing, and alcohol are considered to be the major extrinsic etiological factors for potentially malignant disorders of the oral cavity and for squamous cell carcinoma, the most common oral malignancy in India. An increase in nuclear diameter (ND) and nucleus-cell ratio (NCR) with a reduction in cell diameter (CD) are early cytological indicators of dysplastic change. The authors sought to identify cytomorphometric changes in ND, CD, and NCR of oral buccal cells in tobacco and arecanut chewers who chewed with or without betel leaf. Participants represented 3 groups. Group I consisted of 30 individuals who chewed tobacco and arecanut with betel leaf (BQT chewers). Group II consisted of 30 individuals who chewed tobacco and arecanut without betel leaf (Gutka chewers). Group III comprised 30 apparently healthy nonabusers. Cytological smears were prepared and stained with modified-Papanicolaou stain. Comparisons between Groups I and II and Groups II and III showed that ND was increased, with P values of .054 and .008, respectively, whereas a comparison of Groups I and III showed no statistical significance. Comparisons between Groups I and II and Groups II and III showed that CD was statistically reduced, with P values of .037 and <.000, respectively, whereas comparison of Groups I and III showed no statistical significance. Comparisons between Groups I and II and groups II and III showed that NCR was statistically increased, with P values of <.000, whereas a comparison of Groups I and III showed no statistical significance. CD, ND, and NCR showed statistically significant changes in Group II in comparison with Group I, which could indicate larger and earlier risk of carcinoma for Gutka chewers than in BQT chewers.

MASTtreedist: visualization of tree space based on maximum agreement subtree.

PubMed

Huang, Hong; Li, Yongji

2013-01-01

Phylogenetic tree construction process might produce many candidate trees as the "best estimates." As the number of constructed phylogenetic trees grows, the need to efficiently compare their topological or physical structures arises. One of the tree comparison's software tools, the Mesquite's Tree Set Viz module, allows the rapid and efficient visualization of the tree comparison distances using multidimensional scaling (MDS). Tree-distance measures, such as Robinson-Foulds (RF), for the topological distance among different trees have been implemented in Tree Set Viz. New and sophisticated measures such as Maximum Agreement Subtree (MAST) can be continuously built upon Tree Set Viz. MAST can detect the common substructures among trees and provide more precise information on the similarity of the trees, but it is NP-hard and difficult to implement. In this article, we present a practical tree-distance metric: MASTtreedist, a MAST-based comparison metric in Mesquite's Tree Set Viz module. In this metric, the efficient optimizations for the maximum weight clique problem are applied. The results suggest that the proposed method can efficiently compute the MAST distances among trees, and such tree topological differences can be translated as a scatter of points in two-dimensional (2D) space. We also provide statistical evaluation of provided measures with respect to RF-using experimental data sets. This new comparison module provides a new tree-tree pairwise comparison metric based on the differences of the number of MAST leaves among constructed phylogenetic trees. Such a new phylogenetic tree comparison metric improves the visualization of taxa differences by discriminating small divergences of subtree structures for phylogenetic tree reconstruction.

Comparison of macroinvertebrate community structure between two riffle-based sampling protocols in Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana, 2000-2001

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peterson, David A.; Zumberge, Jeremy R.

2006-01-01

Samples of benthic macroinvertebrates were collected side-by-side from riffles at 12 stream sites in Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana during 2000-2001, following protocols established by the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP). Samples from riffles were collected following NAWQA protocols, using a sampler with 425-micron net mesh-opening size from a total area of 1.25 m2 per sample in multiple riffles. Samples also were collected following EMAP protocols, using a sampler with 500-micron net mesh-opening size from a total area of 0.72 m2 per sample in multiple riffles. The taxonomic identification and enumeration of the samples followed procedures established for each program. Benthic macroinvertebrate community structure was compared between the data sets using individual metrics, a multimetric index, and multivariate analysis. Comparisons between the macroinvertebrate community structures were made after sequentially adjusting both data sets for: (1) ambiguous taxa, (2) taxonomic inconsistencies, and (3) differences in laboratory subsampling. After removal of ambiguous taxa, pair-wise differences in total taxa richness and Ephemeroptera taxa richness were statistically significant (p < 0.05). Differences between the data sets generally were not significant for richness of other taxa, tolerant taxa, semi-voltine taxa, functional feeding groups, diversity, and dominance. Sample scores calculated using the Wyoming Stream Integrity Index were not significantly different between the two data sets. After reconciling both data sets for taxonomic inconsistencies, total taxa richness and Ephemeroptera taxa richness remained significantly different between the data sets. After adjusting the data for differences in laboratory subsampling, the differences in taxa richness were no longer significant. Bray-Curtis similarity coefficients and non-metric multi-dimensional scaling were used to examine macroinvertebrate community structure. Similarity in community structure between sites was affected to a greater extent by taxa reconciliation than by adjustment for subsampling.

Common and distinct patterns of grey-matter volume alteration in major depression and bipolar disorder: evidence from voxel-based meta-analysis.

PubMed

Wise, T; Radua, J; Via, E; Cardoner, N; Abe, O; Adams, T M; Amico, F; Cheng, Y; Cole, J H; de Azevedo Marques Périco, C; Dickstein, D P; Farrow, T F D; Frodl, T; Wagner, G; Gotlib, I H; Gruber, O; Ham, B J; Job, D E; Kempton, M J; Kim, M J; Koolschijn, P C M P; Malhi, G S; Mataix-Cols, D; McIntosh, A M; Nugent, A C; O'Brien, J T; Pezzoli, S; Phillips, M L; Sachdev, P S; Salvadore, G; Selvaraj, S; Stanfield, A C; Thomas, A J; van Tol, M J; van der Wee, N J A; Veltman, D J; Young, A H; Fu, C H; Cleare, A J; Arnone, D

2017-10-01

Finding robust brain substrates of mood disorders is an important target for research. The degree to which major depression (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD) are associated with common and/or distinct patterns of volumetric changes is nevertheless unclear. Furthermore, the extant literature is heterogeneous with respect to the nature of these changes. We report a meta-analysis of voxel-based morphometry (VBM) studies in MDD and BD. We identified studies published up to January 2015 that compared grey matter in MDD (50 data sets including 4101 individuals) and BD (36 data sets including 2407 individuals) using whole-brain VBM. We used statistical maps from the studies included where available and reported peak coordinates otherwise. Group comparisons and conjunction analyses identified regions in which the disorders showed common and distinct patterns of volumetric alteration. Both disorders were associated with lower grey-matter volume relative to healthy individuals in a number of areas. Conjunction analysis showed smaller volumes in both disorders in clusters in the dorsomedial and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, including the anterior cingulate cortex and bilateral insula. Group comparisons indicated that findings of smaller grey-matter volumes relative to controls in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and left hippocampus, along with cerebellar, temporal and parietal regions were more substantial in major depression. These results suggest that MDD and BD are characterised by both common and distinct patterns of grey-matter volume changes. This combination of differences and similarities has the potential to inform the development of diagnostic biomarkers for these conditions.

Bone Mineral Density in Adolescent Females Using Injectable or Oral Contraceptives: A 24 Month Prospective Study

PubMed Central

Cromer, Barbara A.; Bonny, Andrea E.; Stager, Margaret; Lazebnik, Rina; Rome, Ellen; Ziegler, Julie; Camlin-Shingler, Kelly; Secic, Michelle

2008-01-01

Study Objective To determine whether bone mineral density (BMD) is lower in hormonal contraceptive users than that in an untreated, comparison group. Design Observational, prospective cohort; duration: 24 months. Setting Adolescent clinics in a midwestern, metropolitan setting. Patients 433 postmenarcheal girls, aged 12–18 years, on depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) [n=58], oral contraceptives (OC) [n=187], or untreated (n=188). Intervention DMPA and OC containing 100 mcg levonorgestrel and 20 mcg ethinyl estradiol. Main Outcome Measure BMD measurements at spine and femoral neck were obtained with dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) at baseline and 6-month intervals. Results Over 24 months, mean percent change in spine BMD was: DMPA −1.5%, OC +4.2%, and untreated +6.3%. Mean percent change in femoral neck BMD was: DMPA −5.2%, OC +3.0%, untreated +3.8%. Statistical significance was found between the DMPA group and other two groups (p<.001). In the DMPA group, mean percent change in spine BMD over the first 12 months was −1.4%; the rate of change slowed to −0.1% over the second 12 months. No bone density loss reached the level of osteopenia. Conclusions Adolescent girls receiving DMPA had significant loss in BMD compared with bone gain in the OC and untreated group. However, its clinical significance is mitigated by slowed loss after the first year of DMPA use and general maintenance of bone density values within the normal range. PMID:18222431

Comparison of intraoperative volume and pressure-controlled ventilation modes in patients who undergo open heart surgery.

PubMed

Hoşten, Tülay; Kuş, Alparslan; Gümüş, Esra; Yavuz, Şadan; İrkil, Serhat; Solak, Mine

2017-02-01

Respiratory problems occur more frequently in patients who undergo open heart surgery. Intraoperative and postoperative ventilation strategies can prevent these complications and reduce mortality. We hypothesized that PCV would have better effects on gas exchange, lung mechanics and hemodynamics compared to VCV in CABG surgery. Our primary outcome was to compare the PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio. Patients were randomized into two groups, (VCV, PCV) consisting of 30 individuals each. Two patients were excluded from the study. I/E ratio was adjusted to 1:2 and, RR:10/min fresh air gas flow was set at 3L/min in all patients. In the VCV group TV was set at 8 mL/kg of the predicted body weight. In the PCV group, peak inspiratory pressure was adjusted to the same tidal volume with the VCV group. PaO2/FiO2 was found to be higher with PCV at the end of the surgery. Time to extubation and ICU length of stay was shorter with PCV. Ppeak was similar in both groups. Pplateau was lower and Pmean was higher at the and of the surgery with PCV compared to VCV. The hemodynamic effects of both ventilation modes were found to be similar. PVC may be preferable to VCV in patients who undergo open heart surgery. However, it would be convenient if our findings are supported by similar studies.

COMPARISON OF HISTORIC SO2 AND NOX EMISSION DATA SETS

EPA Science Inventory

The report gives results of a comparison of historic SO2 and NOx emission data sets. During the past few years, several research projects have been conducted to reconstruct historic air pollution emission trends in the U.S. The report compares in detail the emission estimates and...

Financial impact of injury in older workers: use of a national retrospective e-cohort to compare income patterns over 3 years in a universal injury compensation scheme

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Objective The study aims to quantify the impact of injury on the financial well-being of older workers. The hypothesis was that injured older workers have substantially reduced income from work following injury, but that New Zealand’s (NZ) universal injury compensation scheme mitigates the difference for total income. Design, setting and participants An e-cohort of 617 722 workers aged 45–64 years old was created using de-identified linked administrative data in NZ’s Integrated Data Infrastructure. Person-level data from numerous government agencies were used to compare 21 639 with an injury-related entitlement claim in 2009 with the remaining 596 133. Event date was the date of injury, or for the comparison group, a randomly selected date in 2009. Primary and secondary outcome measures Geometric mean ratios (GMRs) were used to compare income from work and total income from all taxable sources between those injured and the comparison group. Adjusted GMRs estimated income differences up to 36 months following the event date. Results Differences in total income increased over time. In the third year, those injured received 6.7% less (adjusted GMR 0.933 (95% CI 0.925 to 0.941)) than the comparison group, equivalent to an average loss of $NZ2628. Restricting to income from work, those injured received 29.2% less than the comparison group at 3 years (adjusted GMR 0.708 (95% CI 0.686 to 0.730)). For both men and women, those injured at 45–49 years consistently had the greatest relative income loss compared with those aged 50–54, 55–59 or 60–64 years. Conclusions Although the substantial impacts of injury on income were mainly mitigated by public income transfers, relative losses in income in those aged 45–64 years increased in the 3 years following injury. Policies focused on adequate compensation and reducing the time away from employment could reduce these financial impacts in older workers. PMID:29703849

Review of disability weight studies: comparison of methodological choices and values

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Introduction The disability-adjusted life year (DALY) is widely used to assess the burden of different health problems and risk factors. The disability weight, a value anchored between 0 (perfect health) and 1 (equivalent to death), is necessary to estimate the disability component (years lived with disability, YLDs) of the DALY. After publication of the ground-breaking Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 1996, alternative sets of disability weights have been developed over the past 16 years, each using different approaches with regards to the panel, health state description, and valuation methods. The objective of this study was to review all studies that developed disability weights and to critically assess the methodological design choices (health state and time description, panel composition, and valuation method). Furthermore, disability weights of eight specific conditions were compared. Methods Disability weights studies (1990¿2012) in international peer-reviewed journals and grey literature were identified with main inclusion criteria being that the study assessed DALY disability weights for several conditions or a specific group of illnesses. Studies were collated by design and methods and evaluation of results. Results Twenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria of our review. There is considerable variation in methods used to derive disability weights, although most studies used a disease-specific description of the health state, a panel that consisted of medical experts, and nonpreference-based valuation method to assess the values for the majority of the disability weights. Comparisons of disability weights across 15 specific disease and injury groups showed that the subdivision of a disease into separate health states (stages) differed markedly across studies. Additionally, weights for similar health states differed, particularly in the case of mild diseases, for which the disability weight differed by a factor of two or more. Conclusions In terms of comparability of the resulting YLDs, the global use of the same set of disability weights has advantages, though practical constraints and intercultural differences should be taken into account into such a set. PMID:26019690

Genus-specific PCR Primers Targeting Intracellular Parasite Euduboscquella (Dinoflagellata: Syndinea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, Jae-Ho; Choi, Jung Min; Kim, Young-Ok

2018-03-01

We designed a genus-specific primer pair targeting the intracellular parasite Euduboscquella. To increase target specificity and inhibit untargeted PCR, two nucleotides were added at the 3' end of the reverse primer, one being a complementary nucleotide to the Euduboscquella-specific SNP (single-nucleotide polymorphism) and the other a deliberately mismatched nucleotide. Target specificity of the primer set was verified experimentally using PCR of two Euduboscquella species (positive controls) and 15 related species (negative controls composed of ciliates, diatoms and dinoflagellates), and analytical comparison with SILVA SSU rRNA gene database (release 119) in silico. In addition, we applied the Euduboscquella-specific primer set to four environmental samples previously determined by cytological staining to be either positive or negative for Euduboscquella. As expected, only positive controls and environmental samples known to contain Euduboscquella were successfully amplified by the primer set. An inferred SSU rRNA gene phylogeny placed environmental samples containing aloricate ciliates infected by Euduboscquella in a cluster discrete from Euduboscquella groups a-d previously reported from loricate, tintinnid ciliates.

Effects of Different Mineral Admixtures on the Properties of Fresh Concrete

PubMed Central

Nuruddin, Muhammad Fadhil; Shafiq, Nasir

2014-01-01

This paper presents a review of the properties of fresh concrete including workability, heat of hydration, setting time, bleeding, and reactivity by using mineral admixtures fly ash (FA), silica fume (SF), ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), metakaolin (MK), and rice husk ash (RHA). Comparison of normal and high-strength concrete in which cement has been partially supplemented by mineral admixture has been considered. It has been concluded that mineral admixtures may be categorized into two groups: chemically active mineral admixtures and microfiller mineral admixtures. Chemically active mineral admixtures decrease workability and setting time of concrete but increase the heat of hydration and reactivity. On the other hand, microfiller mineral admixtures increase workability and setting time of concrete but decrease the heat of hydration and reactivity. In general, small particle size and higher specific surface area of mineral admixture are favourable to produce highly dense and impermeable concrete; however, they cause low workability and demand more water which may be offset by adding effective superplasticizer. PMID:24701196

Effects of different mineral admixtures on the properties of fresh concrete.

PubMed

Khan, Sadaqat Ullah; Nuruddin, Muhammad Fadhil; Ayub, Tehmina; Shafiq, Nasir

2014-01-01

This paper presents a review of the properties of fresh concrete including workability, heat of hydration, setting time, bleeding, and reactivity by using mineral admixtures fly ash (FA), silica fume (SF), ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), metakaolin (MK), and rice husk ash (RHA). Comparison of normal and high-strength concrete in which cement has been partially supplemented by mineral admixture has been considered. It has been concluded that mineral admixtures may be categorized into two groups: chemically active mineral admixtures and microfiller mineral admixtures. Chemically active mineral admixtures decrease workability and setting time of concrete but increase the heat of hydration and reactivity. On the other hand, microfiller mineral admixtures increase workability and setting time of concrete but decrease the heat of hydration and reactivity. In general, small particle size and higher specific surface area of mineral admixture are favourable to produce highly dense and impermeable concrete; however, they cause low workability and demand more water which may be offset by adding effective superplasticizer.

Comparison of Quick-Set and mineral trioxide aggregate root-end fillings for the regeneration of apical tissues in dogs.

PubMed

Kohout, George D; He, Jianing; Primus, Carolyn M; Opperman, Lynne A; Woodmansey, Karl F

2015-02-01

Quick-Set (Avalon Biomed Inc, Bradenton, FL) is a calcium aluminosilicate cement that is a potential alternative to mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) with greater acid resistance and faster setting. The purpose of this study was to compare the regeneration of apical tissues after root-end surgery when the apical tissues were exposed to Quick-Set or White ProRoot MTA (Dentsply Tulsa Dental Specialties, Tulsa, OK) by root-end resection. The root canals of 42 mandibular premolars in 7 beagle dogs were accessed, cleaned and shaped, and obturated with Quick-Set or white MTA. Osteotomies and root-end resections were performed immediately. The dogs were sacrificed at 90 days, and the teeth and surrounding tissues were removed and prepared for histologic analysis. The sections of the apical areas were scored for inflammation, new cementum formation, periodontal ligament formation, and bone quality. At 90 days, both materials supported some degree of cementum formation on the surface of the material, periodontal ligament regeneration, and excellent bone quality. The only significant difference was greater inflammation found in the Quick-Set group. Quick-Set and White ProRoot MTA had a similar effect on bone quality, cementum formation, and periodontal ligament formation after root-end surgery in dogs. Quick-Set was associated with greater inflammation. Copyright © 2015 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of Neuropsychological Functioning Between Adults With Early- and Late-Onset DSM-5 ADHD.

PubMed

Lin, Yu-Ju; Gau, Susan Shur-Fen

2017-09-01

We aimed to compare the visually dependent neuropsychological functioning among adults with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5) ADHD who recalled symptom onset by and after age 7 and non-ADHD controls. We divided the participants, aged 17 to 40 years, into three groups-(a) ADHD, onset <7 years (early-onset, n = 142); (b) ADHD, onset between 7 and <12 years (late-onset, n = 41); (c) non-ADHD controls ( n = 148)-and compared their neuropsychological functioning, measured by the Cambridge Neuropsychological Testing Automated Battery. Both ADHD groups had deficits in attention and signal detectability, spatial working memory, and short-term spatial memory, but only the early-onset group showed deficits in alertness, set-shifting, and planning after controlling for age, sex, and psychiatric comorbidities. There was no statistical difference between the two ADHD groups in neuropsychological functioning. DSM-5 criteria for diagnosing adult ADHD are not too lax regarding neuropsychological functioning.

A physical exercise program using music-supported video-based training in older adults in nursing homes suffering from dementia: a feasibility study.

PubMed

Spildooren, Joke; Speetjens, Ite; Abrahams, Johan; Feys, Peter; Timmermans, Annick

2018-04-28

Motivation towards an exercise program is higher in a small group setting in comparison to individual therapy. Due to attentional problems, group exercises are difficult for people with Alzheimer disease (AD). This study evaluates the feasibility of a music-supported video-based group exercise program in older adults suffering from AD. Five participants with moderate AD were recruited from a nursing home. A progressive physical exercise program using a video-based training with musical accompaniment was performed and digitally recorded to investigate the adherence and performed accuracy of the exercises. The overall participation during the exercises was 84.1%. The quality of the performance was for all exercises above the cut-off scores. A music-supported video-based group exercise program is feasible in persons with AD. The participants were motivated and the expectations towards the program increased over time. Music seemed an important factor for attention in participants with AD.