Category: Statistics

Soc Sci Res. 2024 May;120:103013. doi: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2024.103013. Epub 2024 Apr 5.

ABSTRACT

Subjective well-being (SWB) describes an individual’s life evaluation. Direct elicitation methods for SWB via rating scales do not force individuals to trade-off among life domains, whilst best-worst scaling (BWS) approaches only provide relative measures. This paper instead offers a dual-response BWS task, where respondents nominate areas of most and least importance and satisfaction with respect to 11 SWB domains, whilst also eliciting anchoring points to obtain an absolute measure of domain satisfaction. Combining domain satisfaction and importance produces a robust measure of individual SWB, but statistically unique relative to other life satisfaction measures utilizing single- and multi-item ratings, including global satisfaction and those aggregated over SWB domains, as well as eudemonia. Surveying 2500 Australians reveals anchored-BWS improves discrimination amongst domains in terms of importance and satisfaction, illustrating its value as a diagnostic tool for SWB measurement to focus services, policy, and initiatives in areas to most impact wellbeing. This includes highlighting a major discrepancy between health satisfaction and importance, whilst also reporting that SWB is significantly lower for Indigenous, unemployed, middle-aged, males and lower income groups.

PMID:38763532 | DOI:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2024.103013

J Health Econ. 2024 May;95:102876. doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2024.102876. Epub 2024 Mar 20.

ABSTRACT

Prior research has found that a high level of residential racial segregation, or the degree to which racial/ethnic groups are isolated from one another, is associated with worsened infant health outcomes, particularly among non-Hispanic (NH) Black infant populations. However, because exposure to segregation is non-random, it is unclear whether and to what extent segregation is causally linked to infant health. To overcome this empirical limitation, we leverage exogenous variation in the placement of railroad tracks in the 19th century to predict contemporary segregation, an approach first introduced by Ananat (2011). In alignment with prior literature, we find that residential segregation has statistically significant associations with negative birth outcomes among Black infant populations in the area. Using OLS methods underestimates the negative impacts of segregation on infant health. We fail to detect comparable effects on health outcomes among NH White infant populations. Further, we identify several key mechanisms by which residential segregation could influence health outcomes among Black infant populations, including lower access to prenatal care during the first trimester, higher levels of anti-Black prejudice, greater transportation barriers, and increased food insecurity. Given that poor birth outcomes have adverse effects on adults’ health and well-being, the findings suggest that in-utero exposure to residential segregation could have important implications for Black-White inequality over the life course.

PMID:38763530 | DOI:10.1016/j.jhealeco.2024.102876

Clin Exp Optom. 2024 May 19:1-6. doi: 10.1080/08164622.2024.2352501. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Scientific evidence on the burden of visual impairment, its causes, and associated factors are essential to monitor progress in eye health, identify priorities and develop strategies and policies that meet the needs of the population, towards the eradication of preventable blindness.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of visual impairment, its causes and associated factors in adults living in suburban communities in Nampula.

METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study conducted from November 2019 to February 2020. Eye examinations were performed on adults aged ≥18 years covered by the Lúrio University program, ‘one student, one family’. The odds ratio (OR) and adjusted odds ratio (aOR) were calculated to study the association between the dependent variable (presenting visual impairment) and independent variables (gender, age, school level, residence, family income and systemic diseases), with a 95% confidence interval.

RESULTS: Distance and near presenting visual impairment had a prevalence of 16.3% and 21.1%, respectively, and were statistically associated with the age groups between 45-65 (OR:4.9) and >65 years (OR: 29.1), illiterate (OR:13.8), primary (OR:4.8) and secondary (aOR:37.5) school level, farmer (OR:32.8) and retired (OR:14.3) occupation, and presence of systemic diseases (OR :3.3). The main causes of presenting visual impairment were uncorrected refractive error and cataract.

CONCLUSION: The prevalence of presenting visual impairment is relatively high, given the enormous effort undertaken within the framework of VISION 2020: The Right to Sight global initiative. There is a need to develop intervention plans targeted at the highest risk groups, with a view to achieving the ‘one student, one family’ program goals with respect to eye health.

PMID:38763525 | DOI:10.1080/08164622.2024.2352501

Med J Aust. 2024 May 19. doi: 10.5694/mja2.52309. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To determine the national burden of working time lost to occupational injury and disease in Australia compensable by workers’ compensation schemes; to characterise the distribution of time lost by age, sex, and injury and disease type.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective population-based study; analysis of National Dataset for Compensation-based Statistics (NDS) data.

SETTING, PARTICIPANTS: Granted workers’ compensation claims by people aged 15-100 years including payment of wage replacement benefits for time off work lodged in Australia, 1 July 2012 – 30 June 2017.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Working years lost (WYL) per annum (total number of years of wage replacement benefits paid to injured and ill workers), overall and by sex, age, and injury and disease type; WYL per 10 000 fulltime equivalent (FTE) years worked.

RESULTS: A total of 755 330 eligible claims with complete data for analysis variables by people aged 15-100 years were identified, for compensable injuries and disease that led to 41 194 (95% confidence interval [CI], 41 020-41 368) WYL/year. The annual WYL number and rate were each higher for men (25 367 [95% CI, 25 230-25 503] WYL/year; 42.6 [95% CI, 42.1-43.1] WYL/10 000 FTE years) than for women (15 827 [95% CI, 15 720-15 935] WYL/year; 38.8 [95% CI, 38.2-39.4] WYL/10 000 FTE years). Workers aged 45-100 years made 66 742 claims per year (44.1% of all claims) but incurred 21 763 WYL/year (52.8% of all WYL). Traumatic joint and muscle injuries led to 16 494 WYL/year (40.0% of all WYL), musculoskeletal disorders to 8547 WYL/year (20.7%), mental health conditions to 5361 WYL/year (13.0%), fractures to 4276 WYL/year (10.4%), and wounds and lacerations to 3449 WYL/year (8.4%).

CONCLUSIONS: Occupational injury and disease covered by workers’ compensation result in lost working time in Australia equivalent to more than 41 000 fulltime jobs. Distribution of the burden reflects the greater labour force participation of men, slower recovery of older workers, and the impact of common occupational injuries and diseases. Population-based monitoring of lost working time could support effective occupational health surveillance and allocation of resources for protecting the health of Australian workers.

PMID:38763522 | DOI:10.5694/mja2.52309

Clin Exp Dermatol. 2024 May 19:llae204. doi: 10.1093/ced/llae204. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is a psychiatric condition involving a preoccupation with physical appearance disproportionate to physical findings, which are often absent altogether. Previously published data has estimated its prevalence at 11.3-11.9% approximately, across various medical specialties. No recent systematic reviews strictly related to dermatology clinics and the prevalence of BDD have been published. The goal of the review was to gather a pooled prevalence of BDD in outpatient dermatology clinics around the world and further underline the importance of its recognition and appropriate treatment. Twenty-one articles tackling BDD in outpatient cosmetic and general dermatology clinics were selected. Studies were graded based on the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software (SPSS) was used to a calculate a mean for the pooled prevalence, yielding a weighted mean prevalence of 12.5% among general dermatology patients and 25.01% among cosmetic dermatology patients. The mean prevalence of BDD among general dermatology patients fell within previously reported numbers. It was, however, markedly higher than previously reported in cosmetic dermatology patients, which we postulate could be due to dermatologists being at the forefront of non-invasive cosmetic procedures. As such, we conclude that given the high prevalence of BDD among dermatology patients, we highlight the importance of keeping a high index of suspicion of BDD among dermatologists, ways to uncover it in a clinical setting, and additional data showcasing the importance of psychiatric treatment of these patients for better outcomes, all while avoiding unnecessary interventions.

PMID:38762899 | DOI:10.1093/ced/llae204

J Sports Sci. 2024 May 19:1-9. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2024.2356439. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Decision accuracy is a crucial factor in the evaluation of refereeing performance. In sports research, officials’ decision-making is frequently assessed outside real games through video-based decision experiments, where they evaluate recorded game situations from a third-person perspective. This study examines whether the inclusion of the first-person perspective influences decision accuracy and certainty. Twenty-four professional officials from the first and second German basketball leagues participated in the study. The officials assessed 50 game situations from both first-person and third-person perspectives, indicating their decisions and certainty levels. The statistical analysis utilises signal detection theory to evaluate the efficacy of the first-person perspective compared to the third-person perspective in identifying rule violations and no-calls in video recordings. The findings indicate that the first-person perspective does not yield superior accuracy in identifying foul calls. However, scenes from the first-person perspective exhibit a significant 9% increase in correctly identifying no-calls. Furthermore, officials report significantly higher levels of decision certainty and comfort when using the first-person perspective. The study suggests that sports officials may benefit from incorporating additional scenes from the first-person perspective into video-based decision training. Future studies should explore whether this additional perspective improves the training effect and translates into enhanced in-game performance.

PMID:38762895 | DOI:10.1080/02640414.2024.2356439

Arch Dermatol Res. 2024 May 19;316(5):182. doi: 10.1007/s00403-024-02919-z.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:38762833 | DOI:10.1007/s00403-024-02919-z

J Math Biol. 2024 May 19;89(1):6. doi: 10.1007/s00285-024-02104-w.

ABSTRACT

Multiple infections enable the recombination of different strains, which may contribute to viral diversity. How multiple infections affect the competition dynamics between the two types of strains, the wild and the immune escape mutant, remains poorly understood. This study develops a novel mathematical model that includes the two strains, two modes of viral infection, and multiple infections. For the representative double-infection case, the reproductive numbers are derived and global stabilities of equilibria are obtained via the Lyapunov direct method and theory of limiting systems. Numerical simulations indicate similar viral dynamics regardless of multiplicities of infections though the competition between the two strains would be the fiercest in the case of quadruple infections. Through sensitivity analysis, we evaluate the effect of parameters on the set-point viral loads in the presence and absence of multiple infections. The model with multiple infections predict that there exists a threshold for cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) to minimize the overall viral load. Weak or strong CTLs immune response can result in high overall viral load. If the strength of CTLs maintains at an intermediate level, the fitness cost of the mutant is likely to have a significant impact on the evolutionary dynamics of mutant viruses. We further investigate how multiple infections alter the viral dynamics during the combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). The results show that viral loads may be underestimated during cART if multiple-infection is not taken into account.

PMID:38762831 | DOI:10.1007/s00285-024-02104-w

Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop. 2024 May 18:S0889-5406(24)00149-5. doi: 10.1016/j.ajodo.2024.04.011. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to identify the soft-tissue profile changes and the potential pretreatment cephalometric parameters that clinicians could use to predict the lip response after premolar extraction treatment in adult patients.

METHODS: Pretreatment and posttreatment lateral cephalograms of 75 white patients treated with premolar extractions were analyzed. The following initial cephalometric measurements were recorded: upper and lower lip to E-plane, vermilion thickness, lip length, maxillary and mandibular incisor inclination, and mentolabial and nasolabial angle. Pretreatment and posttreatment radiographs were superimposed using the Björk structural method to record lip retraction and incisor/lip retraction ratio. Pearson correlation and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to compare lip retraction and incisor/lip retraction ratio with the cephalometric variables. The sample was divided according to different extraction patterns.

RESULTS: The mean upper and lower lip retraction values were 1.4 mm and 1.7 mm, respectively. Vermilion thickness showed a negative and statistically significant correlation (P <0.05) with lip retraction and incisor/lip retraction ratio. In addition, the mean incisor/lip retraction ratio was 61% and 98% for the upper and lower thin lip, respectively, whereas the mean incisor/lip retraction ratio was 17% and 44% for the upper and lower thick lip, respectively. The comparison among extraction patterns did not highlight any noticeable difference.

CONCLUSIONS: The choice of a specific extraction pattern did not impact lip response. The vermilion thickness was the key factor influencing lip retraction: an increase in this parameter was related to a decrease in lip retraction and vice versa.

PMID:38762811 | DOI:10.1016/j.ajodo.2024.04.011

Australas J Dermatol. 2024 May 19. doi: 10.1111/ajd.14306. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Female-pattern hair loss (FPHL) is characterized by decreased scalp hair density, thinning of hair shafts, and progressive miniaturization of hair follicles.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the safety and efficacy of spironolactone versus bicalutamide in female pattern hair loss [FPHL].

METHODS: The study design was retrospective, and all eligible females aged between 18 years and 50 years with FPHL were included. We identified 120 patients from our database who fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and patients were then categorized into two groups, Group A comprising patients who were taking 100 mg of spironolactone once daily and Group B comprising patients who were taking 50 mg of bicalutamide once daily along with topical minoxidil 2% in both groups. Patient were analysed at approximately at 24 weeks from the commencement of the treatment.

RESULTS: Mean reduction in hair loss severity score on Sinclair scale was 19.51% in spironolactone group compared to 28.20% in bicalutamide group at 24 weeks, which was statistically significant. On global photographic assessment, marked improvement was seen in bicalutamide group compared to spironolactone group (p = 0.139).

CONCLUSIONS: Our study, though limited by its retrospective design and small sample size, showed that bicalutamide has greater efficacy and better safety profile in comparison to spironolactone in the treatment of FPHL.

PMID:38762801 | DOI:10.1111/ajd.14306