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Nevin Manimala Statistics

9-1-1 Activations from Ambulatory Care Centers: A Sicker Pediatric Population

Prehosp Disaster Med. 2023 Oct 25:1-8. doi: 10.1017/S1049023X23006544. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Pediatric patients transferred by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) from urgent care (UC) and office-based physician practices to the emergency department (ED) following activation of the 9-1-1 EMS system are an under-studied population with scarce literature regarding outcomes for these children. The objectives of this study were to describe this population, explore EMS level-of-care transport decisions, and examine ED outcomes.

METHODS: This was a retrospective review of patients zero to <15 years of age transported by EMS from UC and office-based physician practices to the ED of two pediatric receiving centers from January 2017 through December 2019. Variables included reason for transfer, level of transport, EMS interventions and medications, ED medications/labs/imaging ordered in the first hour, ED procedures, ED disposition, and demographics. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, X test, point biserial correlation, two-sample z test, Mann-Whitney U test, and 2-way ANOVA.

RESULTS: A total of 450 EMS transports were included in this study: 382 Advanced Life Support (ALS) runs and 68 Basic Life Support (BLS) runs. The median patient age was 2.66 years, 60.9% were male, and 60.7% had private insurance. Overall, 48.9% of patients were transported from an office-based physician practice and 25.1% were transported from UC. Almost one-half (48.7%) of ALS patients received an EMS intervention or medication, as did 4.41% of BLS patients. Respiratory distress was the most common reason for transport (46.9%). Supplemental oxygen was the most common EMS intervention and albuterol was the most administered EMS medication. There was no significant association between level of transport and ED disposition (P = .23). The in-patient admission rate for transported patients was significantly higher than the general ED admission rate (P <.001).

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that pediatric patients transferred via EMS after activation of the 9-1-1 system from UC and medical offices are more acutely ill than the general pediatric ED population and are likely sicker than the general pediatric EMS population. Paramedics appear to be making appropriate level-of-care transport decisions.

PMID:37877361 | DOI:10.1017/S1049023X23006544

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Estimating counterfactual placebo HIV incidence in HIV prevention trials without placebo arms based on markers of HIV exposure

Clin Trials. 2023 Oct 25:17407745231203327. doi: 10.1177/17407745231203327. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Developing alternative approaches to evaluating absolute efficacy of new HIV prevention interventions is a priority, as active-controlled designs, whereby individuals without HIV are randomized to the experimental intervention or an active control known to be effective, are increasing. With this design, however, the efficacy of the experimental intervention to prevent HIV acquisition relative to placebo cannot be evaluated directly.

METHODS: One proposed approach to estimate absolute prevention efficacy is to use an HIV exposure marker, such as incident rectal gonorrhea, to infer counterfactual placebo HIV incidence. We formalize a statistical framework for this approach, specify working regression and likelihood-based estimation approaches, lay out three assumptions under which valid inference can be achieved, evaluate finite-sample performance, and illustrate the approach using a recent active-controlled HIV prevention trial.

RESULTS: We find that in finite samples and under correctly specified assumptions accurate and precise estimates of counterfactual placebo incidence and prevention efficacy are produced. Based on data from the DISCOVER trial in men and transgender women who have sex with men, and assuming correctly specified assumptions, the estimated prevention efficacy for tenofovir alafenamide plus emtricitabine is 98.1% (95% confidence interval: 96.4%-99.4%) using the working model approach and 98.1% (95% confidence interval: 96.4%-99.7%) using the likelihood-based approach.

CONCLUSION: Careful assessment of the underlying assumptions, study of their violation, evaluation of the approach in trials with placebo arms, and advancement of improved exposure markers are needed before the HIV exposure marker approach can be relied upon in practice.

PMID:37877356 | DOI:10.1177/17407745231203327

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Demoralization in cancer survivors: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis for quantitative studies

Psychogeriatrics. 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1111/psyg.13037. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Demoralization can cause impairments across all life aspects of cancer patients. Cancer patients are also vulnerable during their survivorship. The purpose of this review is to examine the risk of demoralization and associated risk factors among cancer survivors who have completed their primary anti-cancer treatment or time since diagnosis ≥5 years without recurrence.

METHODS: We searched databases of PubMed, Cochrane, Embase, PsycINFO and ClinicalTrial.gov to identify eligible studies which reported the demoralization level among cancer survivors. A random-effect meta-analysis model was used for calculating mean demoralization level. Heterogeneity was evaluated by I2 statistics. Funnel plots and Egger’s regression tests were performed for checking publication bias. We used one-study-removed method for sensitivity analysis. Subgroup analysis was also done to examine the difference of demoralization level between cancer types. Meta-regression was performed to reveal risk factors of demoralization.

RESULTS: A meta-analysis of 12 articles involving 2902 cancer survivors was conducted. The mean demoralization score among cancer survivors was 25.98 (95% CI: 23.53-28.43). Higher demoralization level was seen in participants with older age, higher female ratio, higher married/living together status ratio and higher patient health questionnaire-9 score. The literature review revealed correlations between demoralization and suicide risk, anxiety and quality of life. No consistent correlation between demoralization and post-traumatic stress symptoms could be seen.

CONCLUSIONS: High demoralization level is noticed among cancer survivors. Risks for females, elder patients or breast cancer survivors are identified. More longitudinal or interventional studies for cancer survivors’ demoralization are expected in the future.

PMID:37877340 | DOI:10.1111/psyg.13037

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Commentary on: Thompson WC. Uncertainty in probabilistic genotyping of low template DNA: a case study comparing STRmix™ and TrueAllele™. J Forensic Sci. 2023;68 (3):1049-63. doi: 10.1111/1556-4029.15225

J Forensic Sci. 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1111/1556-4029.15405. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:37877323 | DOI:10.1111/1556-4029.15405

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Author’s response

J Forensic Sci. 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1111/1556-4029.15407. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:37877317 | DOI:10.1111/1556-4029.15407

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Amine-modified polyionic liquid supports enhance the efficacy of PdNPs for the catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 to formate

Chem Commun (Camb). 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1039/d3cc04987f. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Palladium nanoparticles stabilised by aniline modified polymer immobilised ionic liquid is a remarkably active catalyst for the hydrogenation of CO2 to formate; the initial TOF of 500 h-1 is markedly higher than either unmodified catalyst or its benzylamine and N,N-dimethylaniline modified counterparts and is among the highest to be reported for a PdNP-based catalyst.

PMID:37877311 | DOI:10.1039/d3cc04987f

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Porcine antilymphocyte globulin versus rabbit antithymocyte globulin for intensive immunosuppressive therapy of acquired aplastic anemia: A meta-analysis and systematic review

Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.5414/CP204379. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Several studies have reported that porcine antilymphocyte globulin (pALG) has a significant effect on aplastic anemia (AA), but their conclusions are inconsistent. To objectively evaluate its efficacy and safety, a meta-analysis was conducted.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We systematically searched the relevant literature on pALG vs. rabbit antithymocyte globulin (rATG) as the first-line treatment in AA patients until August 31, 2022, in electronic databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, etc. Two researchers independently extracted data and evaluated the quality of the study. Stata 14.0 was used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS: 50 studies were included in the analysis. The overall responses at 3, 6, and 12 months between the pALG group and rATG group were equivalent. We analyzed early mortality, total mortality, relapse rates, and 5-year survival after the administration of pALG or rATG, and there was no significant difference between the pALG and rATG groups. In our study, the incidence of infection in the pALG group was better than that in the rATG group, OR = 0.63, 95% CI (0.44 – 0.88), p = 0.008, which showed a statistically significant difference.

CONCLUSION: The efficacy of pALG in AA patients is equivalent to that of rATG. rATG was associated with a significantly higher incidence rate of infection than pALG.

PMID:37877292 | DOI:10.5414/CP204379

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Water-soluble endohedral metallofullerenes: new horizons for biomedical applications

Chem Commun (Camb). 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1039/d3cc03603k. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs) offer a safe avenue to manipulate metals important to biomedical applications such as MRI contrast, X-ray contrast, radiolabeling, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and the control of inflammation by scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS). Moreover, functionalizing the double bonds on the surface of EMFs modifies their solubility, supramolecular behaviour, binding, targeting characteristics, and physical properties. While most existing water-soluble derivatives possess a statistical mixture of appended functional groups, progress has been made in creating molecularly-precise derivatives with a defined number of surface functional groups, leading to potentially more nuanced control of their behaviour and properties. Further elucidation of the structure-function relationships of these materials is expected to enhance their utility in biomedical applications and possibly broaden their use in diverse areas of science and technology.

PMID:37877250 | DOI:10.1039/d3cc03603k

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Stainability and translucency of potassium aluminum sulfate applied computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing materials after coffee thermocycling

J Esthet Restor Dent. 2023 Oct 25. doi: 10.1111/jerd.13154. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effect of potassium aluminum sulfate (alum) application on the stainability and translucency of computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) materials after coffee thermocycling (CTC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Disk-shaped specimens (Ø10 × 1 mm; N = 200) were fabricated by using additively (Crowntec [CT] and Varseo Smile Crown Plus [VS]) and subtractively manufactured (Brilliant Crios [RCR], CEREC Block [FC], and Vita Enamic [VE]) CAD-CAM materials and polished. All specimens were randomly divided into two groups as alum applied and control (n = 10). All specimens were then subjected to CTC (10,000 cycles at 5-55°C) and color coordinates were measured at each time interval. Color differences (ΔE00 ) and relative translucency parameters (RTPs) were calculated and the data were statistically analyzed (a = 0.05).

RESULTS: Among tested time intervals, alum applied specimens had their lowest ΔE00 after alum application (p ≤ 0.006), except for FC (p = 0.177). In addition, alum applied RCR had lower ΔE00 values than its control specimens (p = 0.029). Alum applied specimens had their lowest RTP after CTC (p < 0.001) and alum application decreased the RTP of CT (p = 0.010). CTC reduced the RTP of all materials in control groups (p < 0.001). Alum applied CT had higher RTP than its control specimens (p = 0.049).

CONCLUSIONS: Alum application’s effect on color change varied depending on the material and alum mostly resulted in clinically acceptable changes in translucency. CTC led to unacceptable color and translucency changes based on previously reported threshold values.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Optical properties of CAD-CAM materials and the sustainability of these properties over time is critical for longevity. Alum may improve the color stability of reinforced composite resin when subjected to long-term coffee consumption.

PMID:37877244 | DOI:10.1111/jerd.13154

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Exploration of chemical diversity in intercellular quorum sensing signalling systems in prokaryotes

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2023 Oct 25:e202314469. doi: 10.1002/anie.202314469. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Quorum sensing (QS) serves as a vital means of intercellular signalling in a variety of prokaryotes, which enables single cells to act in multicellular configurations. The potential to control community-wide responses has also sparked numerous recent biotechnological innovations. However, our capacity to utilize intercellular communication is hindered due to a scarcity of complementary signalling systems and a restricted comprehension of interconnections between these systems caused by variations in their dynamic range. In this study, we utilize uniform manifold approximation and projection and extended-connectivity fingerprints to explore the available chemical space of QS signalling molecules. We investigate and experimentally characterize a set of closely related QS signalling ligands, consisting of N-acyl homoserine lactones (HSL) and the aryl HSL p-coumaroyl, as well as a set of more widely diverging QS ligands, consisting of photopyrones, dialkylresorcinols, 3,5-dimethylpyrazin-2-ol and autoinducer-2, and define their performance. We report on a set of six fully signal and promoter orthogonal intercellular QS signalling systems, significantly expanding the toolkit for engineering community-wide behaviour. Furthermore, we demonstrate that ligand diversity can serve as a statistically significant tool to predict much more complicated ligand-receptor interactions. This approach highlights the potential of dimensionality reduction to explore chemical diversity in microbial dynamics.

PMID:37877232 | DOI:10.1002/anie.202314469