Category: Statistics

J Fish Biol. 2024 Jul 15. doi: 10.1111/jfb.15860. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

This paper introduces the Fish 3D Locomotion app (F3LA), a Python-based, Graphical User Interface (GUI)-equipped tool designed to automate behavioral endpoint extraction in zebrafish locomotion assays. Building on our previous work, which utilized a specialized aquatic tank with a mirror and a single camera for fish movement tracking in three dimensions, F3LA significantly enhances data processing efficiency. Its accuracy was tested by reanalyzing and comprehensively comparing the calculated data with the previously published data from prior publications. From the comparison results, 90% of endpoints showed a similar statistical difference result. These minor differences were due to the different starting points for the dataset and updated calculation formulas that are implemented in F3LA. In addition, shoaling area or shoaling volume calculations are also included in F3LA as a new feature that can serve as sensitive indicators of social cohesion, group dynamics, or stress responses, offering insights into neuropsychological conditions or the effects of pharmacological interventions. Furthermore, F3LA offers a marked improvement over manual operations, being at least five times faster, while maintaining consistent accuracy as it reduces human-induced errors, ensuring a higher degree of reliability in the results. Finally, the potency of F3LA was tested to evaluate the toxicities of 14 rare earth elements (REEs) to the adult zebrafish behaviors. Based on the results, our findings suggested that each tested REE altered fish behaviors in different patterns and magnitudes to each other. However, among the tested light rare earth elements (LREEs), neodymium was demonstrated to cause more relatively severe behavior alterations than other LREEs, indicated by the statistically higher value of entropy (0.2695 ± 0.04977 (mean with a standard deviation)) than the control group (0.2352 ± 0.05896). Meanwhile, in terms of heavy rare earth elements (HREEs), erbium seemed to lead to more distinct behavior toxicities than other HREEs, which was shown by the statistically lower level of fractal dimension (2.022 ± 0.3412) than the untreated group (2.255 ± 0.1661). Taken together, F3LA’s development marks a significant advance in high-throughput toxicological and pharmacological assessments in zebrafish, leveraging three-dimensional locomotion data for a more comprehensive analysis of fish behavior performance, providing a significant contribution to research in various fields.

PMID:39007187 | DOI:10.1111/jfb.15860

Photobiomodul Photomed Laser Surg. 2024 Jul 15. doi: 10.1089/pho.2023.0189. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Background and Objective: Eliminating intracanal Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) is challenging because of its ability to penetrate deep dentinal tubules and its high resistance to many chemicals. This study evaluated the effectiveness of conventional needle irrigation and three different irrigant activation methods in reducing E. faecalis. Methods: The root canals of extracted teeth were shaped, contaminated with E. faecalis, and incubated for three weeks. They were randomly allocated to four experimental groups of 15 teeth each according to the final irrigation method: group 1, conventional needle irrigation; group 2, passive ultrasonic (PU) irrigation; group 3, XP-endo Finisher (XPF); and group 4, laser-activated (LA) irrigation. Bacterial samples were taken and cultured before and after these final irrigation procedures. The colony-forming units were counted, and the bacterial reduction percentages of each group were calculated. The Kruskal-Wallis and Dunnet tests were used for statistical analysis. Results: All irrigant activation methods were significantly more effective than conventional needle irrigation. Although the LA group generated more negative samples than PU, there was no statistically significant difference between the LA and PU groups. LA was significantly more effective than the XPF, whereas PU and XPF were statistically similar. Conclusions: Within the limitations of this study, the final irrigation with LA and PU showed the best reductive effect on E. faecalis colonies. Considering that the LA group had more negative samples, it may be chosen as an alternative to enhance root canal disinfection, especially in difficult cases.

PMID:39007181 | DOI:10.1089/pho.2023.0189

Photobiomodul Photomed Laser Surg. 2024 Jul 15. doi: 10.1089/pho.2024.0037. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Aim: The study aims to assess the efficacy of rose bengal (RB)-mediated antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (a-PDT) as an adjunct to scaling and root planing in the management of chronic periodontitis patients in terms of clinical parameters like gingival index (GI), probing pocket depth (PPD), clinical attachment level (CAL), and microbiological parameters like total microbial count, total red complex organism count, Porphyromonas gingivalis count, Treponema denticola count, and Tannerella forsythia count. Materials and Methods: In this randomized controlled clinical trial, a total of 30 patients were recruited who met the inclusion criteria. The participants were randomly allocated into group A with scaling and root planning (SRP) alone and group B with SRP + a-PDT. The clinical and microbiological parameters were measured at baseline and at 3-month follow-up. Intergroup and intragroup comparisons were performed using independent t test and paired t test, respectively. Value of p < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: At 3-month follow-up, group B treated with SRP + a-PDT showed statistically significant reduction in GI (0.58 ± 0.20) and PPD (1.81 ± 0.32 mm), gain in CAL (0.73 ± 0.04 mm), and reduction in total microbial count [2.80 ± 0.08 × 10⁴ colony forming unit (CFU)], total red complex count (0.29 ± 0.14 × 10² CFU), P. gingivalis count (0.43 ± 0.13 × 10² CFU), T. denticola count (0.61 ± 0.04 × 10² CFU), and T. forsythia count (0.59 ± 0.04 × 10² CFU) as compared with group A (p < 0.05). Conclusion: RB-mediated a-PDT as an adjunct to SRP was significantly more effective in improving GI, PPD, and CAL and in reducing microbial count as compared with SRP alone in the management of chronic periodontitis.

PMID:39007179 | DOI:10.1089/pho.2024.0037

Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2024 Jul 9;17:2683-2692. doi: 10.2147/DMSO.S464761. eCollection 2024.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a significant public health problem in The Gambia. While therapeutic non-adherence is widely recognized as a common and costly problem, very little is known about therapeutic adherence behavior among patients with diabetes in The Gambia.

PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and factors that influence diabetic therapeutic non-adherence behavior among patients with type 2 diabetes in The Gambia.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was used, and participants were recruited from Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital (EFSTH) and Kanifing General Hospital (KGH). The sample size of 145 patients with type 2 diabetes was included and data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Adherence to anti-diabetic medications was measured using the Morisky Medications Adherence Scale (MMAS-8). Logistic regression was used to determine the factors associated with diabetic therapeutic non-adherence.

RESULTS: The prevalence of non-adherence to anti-diabetic treatment was 27.6%. Perceived barrier (forgetfulness, long-term medication use, and medication side effects) to diabetic treatment (OR = 0.265, 95% CI: 0.113-0.621, p = 0.041) was statistically significantly associated with non-adherence to anti-diabetic treatment. However, the frequency of doctor’s visits (OR = 0.310, 95% CI: 0.046-2.111) was not significantly associated with non-adherence to anti-diabetic treatment.

CONCLUSION: The rate of non-adherence to antidiabetic treatment in this study was high. Perceived barriers to antidiabetic treatment such as forgetfulness, long-term medication use, and medication side effects influenced therapeutic non-adherence to antidiabetic treatment. While interventions should focus on how to eliminate these barriers, health education on diabetic self-care may help reinforce the importance of medication adherence to prevent complications.

PMID:39007155 | PMC:PMC11246075 | DOI:10.2147/DMSO.S464761

Adv Med Educ Pract. 2024 Jul 9;15:649-657. doi: 10.2147/AMEP.S460140. eCollection 2024.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To determine the effect of experience and tooth location on the finish line width and angle of crown preparations performed by undergraduate students.

METHODS: Eighty full metal crown preparations on typodont teeth were divided into four groups: Group 1: 20 preparations performed on mandibular first molar in the first semester. Group 2: 20 preparations performed on mandibular first molar in the second semester. Group 3: 20 preparations performed on mandibular second molar in the first semester. Group 4: 20 preparations performed on mandibular second molar in the second semester. All prepared teeth were scanned, and the finish line width and angles were measured at 8 different locations. Paired t-test in the SPSS software was used to compare and determine the effect of experience and tooth location on the students’ performance.

RESULTS: There was a statistically significant difference in the mandibular first molar finish line width between the first and second semesters for the same student in the distal, distolingual, and mesiobuccal areas of the tooth. There was a statistically significant increase in finish line width between first and second molars in the distobuccal, distal, distolingual, lingual, and mesial side of the tooth. Regarding the finish line angle, there was a statistically significant difference between the first and second semesters on the distal side of the tooth. There was a statistically significant increase in finish line angle between first and second molars in the distobuccal side of the tooth.

CONCLUSION: As students gain more experience in different types of tooth preparations, they tend to produce a wider finish line than that recommended for full metal crown preparation. The tooth location in the mouth influences the width and angle of the finish line hence the more inaccessible areas on the tooth have a wider finish line.

PMID:39007125 | PMC:PMC11246083 | DOI:10.2147/AMEP.S460140

Soc Choice Welfare. 2017 Jun;49(1):145-169. doi: 10.1007/s00355-017-1055-7. Epub 2017 May 16.

ABSTRACT

Is a larger population of people living good lives a better population, all else equal? This question is central to population issues in social welfare, ethics, and policy. Many answers in the philosophical literature argue that if a policy choice results in the birth of additional people living good lives, these extra lives are irrelevant to any evaluation of the policy. This paper applies the questionnaire-experimental method of empirical studies of social choice to investigate participants’ policy choices and social orderings with respect to population size and average well-being. In general, heterogeneous responses depended on the quantitative and qualitative properties of the question. In particular, an experimentally manipulated increase in population size caused an option to be more likely to be selected, on average. Overall, responses suggest that population size is not neutral to social welfare. Many participants, although not all, reported that a larger population of people living good lives could be strictly preferable, at small or no costs to average well-being.

PMID:39007124 | PMC:PMC11245279 | DOI:10.1007/s00355-017-1055-7

EClinicalMedicine. 2024 Jun 20;73:102681. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2024.102681. eCollection 2024 Jul.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The outcome of patients with metastatic tumors who discontinued immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) not for progressive disease (PD) has been poorly explored. We performed a meta-analysis of all studies reporting the clinical outcome of patients who discontinued ICIs for reasons other than PD.

METHODS: We searched PubMed, Embase and Scopus databases, from the inception of each database to December 2023, for clinical trials (randomized or not) and observational studies assessing PD-(L)1 and CTLA-4 inhibitors in patients with metastatic solid tumors who discontinued treatment for reasons other than PD. Each study had to provide swimmer plots or Kaplan-Meier survival curves enabling the reconstruction of individual patient-level data on progression-free survival (PFS) following the discontinuation of immunotherapy. The primary endpoint was PFS from the date of treatment discontinuation overall and according to tumor histotype, type of treatment and reason of discontinuation. The Combersure’s method was used to estimate meta-analytical non-parametric summary survival curves assuming random effects at study level.

FINDINGS: Thirty-six studies (2180 patients) were included. The pooled median PFS (mPFS) was 24.7 months (95% CI, 18.8-30.6) and the PFS-rate at 12, 24, and 36 months was respectively 69.8% (95% CI, 63.1-77.3), 51.0% (95% CI, 43.4-59.8) and 34.0% (95% CI, 27.0-42.9). Univariable analysis showed that the mPFS was significantly longer for patients with melanoma (43.0 months), as compared with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC, 13.5 months) and renal cell carcinoma (RCC, 10.0 months; between-strata comparison test p-value < 0.001); for patients treated with anti-PD-(L)1 + anti-CTLA-4 as compared with anti-PD-(L)1 monotherapy (44.6 versus 19.9 months; p-value < 0.001), and in NSCLC when the reason of treatment discontinuation was elective as compared with toxicity onset (19.6 versus 4.8 months; p-value = 0.003). The multivariable analysis confirmed these differences.

INTERPRETATION: The long-term outcome of patients who stopped ICIs for reasons other than PD was substantially affected by clinicopathological features: PFS after treatment discontinuation was longer in patients with melanoma, and/or treated with anti-PD-(L)1 + anti-CTLA-4, and shorter in patients with RCC or in those patients with NSCLC who stopped treatment for toxicity onset.

FUNDING: The Italian Ministry of University and Research (PRIN 2022Y7HHNW).

PMID:39007061 | PMC:PMC11245998 | DOI:10.1016/j.eclinm.2024.102681

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2024 Jun 24;12:1433811. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2024.1433811. eCollection 2024.

ABSTRACT

Advances in computational fluid dynamics continuously extend the comprehension of aneurysm growth and rupture, intending to assist physicians in devising effective treatment strategies. While most studies have first modelled intracranial aneurysm walls as fully rigid with a focus on understanding blood flow characteristics, some researchers further introduced Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) and reported notable haemodynamic alterations for a few aneurysm cases when considering wall compliance. In this work, we explore further this research direction by studying 101 intracranial sidewall aneurysms, emphasizing the differences between rigid and deformable-wall simulations. The proposed dataset along with simulation parameters are shared for the sake of reproducibility. A wide range of haemodynamic patterns has been statistically analyzed with a particular focus on the impact of the wall modelling choice. Notable deviations in flow characteristics and commonly employed risk indicators are reported, particularly with near-dome blood recirculations being significantly impacted by the pulsating dynamics of the walls. This leads to substantial fluctuations in the sac-averaged oscillatory shear index, ranging from -36% to +674% of the standard rigid-wall value. Going a step further, haemodynamics obtained when simulating a flow-diverter stent modelled in conjunction with FSI are showcased for the first time, revealing a 73% increase in systolic sac-average velocity for the compliant-wall setting compared to its rigid counterpart. This last finding demonstrates the decisive impact that FSI modelling can have in predicting treatment outcomes.

PMID:39007055 | PMC:PMC11243300 | DOI:10.3389/fbioe.2024.1433811

Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2024 Jun 28;12:1440206. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2024.1440206. eCollection 2024.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:39007054 | PMC:PMC11239540 | DOI:10.3389/fbioe.2024.1440206

MethodsX. 2024 Jun 13;13:102803. doi: 10.1016/j.mex.2024.102803. eCollection 2024 Dec.

ABSTRACT

An appropriate salt production methods must be implemented to increase salt production’s quantity and quality. This paper was prepared to introduce and demonstrate a new method, namely a geomembrane-based salt production method, which can contribute directly to increasing the quantity and quality of people’s salt production. This method can be applied quickly with simple equipment, so this method is easy to replicate in various salt production center areas. The results of statistical tests directly show that there is a fundamental difference between the quantity and quality of salt produced by salt farmers using conventional salt production methods and geomembrane-based salt production methods, where geomembrane-based salt production methods are capable of producing much higher quantities of salt production with better quality.•The geomembrane-based salt production method is easy to implement because it uses simple equipment and can be made independently by salt farmers.•Using a geomembrane in this method can prevent leaks in the salt crystallization pond and optimize heat from solar energy to optimize the quantity of salt production.•This method prevents direct contact of seawater with soil. The effect is that the quality of salt produced from geomembrane-based salt production methods is higher than conventional salt production methods.

PMID:39007028 | PMC:PMC11245934 | DOI:10.1016/j.mex.2024.102803