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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Prognostic Impact of Early Treatment and Oxaliplatin Discontinuation in Patients With Stage III Colon Cancer: An ACCENT/IDEA Pooled Analysis of 11 Adjuvant Trials

J Clin Oncol. 2022 Oct 28:JCO2102726. doi: 10.1200/JCO.21.02726. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Oxaliplatin-based adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with stage III colon cancer (CC) for 6 months remains a standard in high-risk stage III patients. Data are lacking as to whether early discontinuation of all treatment (ETD) or early discontinuation of oxaliplatin (EOD) could worsen the prognosis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We studied the prognostic impact of ETD and EOD in patients with stage III CC from the ACCENT/IDEA databases, where patients were planned to receive 6 months of infusional fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin or capecitabine plus oxaliplatin. ETD was defined as discontinuation of treatment and EOD as discontinuation of oxaliplatin only before patients had received a maximum of 75% of planned cycles. Association between ETD/EOD and overall survival and disease-free survival (DFS) were assessed by Cox models adjusted for established prognostic factors.

RESULTS: Analysis of ETD and EOD included 10,447 (20.9% with ETD) and 7,243 (18.8% with EOD) patients, respectively. Compared with patients without ETD or EOD, patients with ETD or EOD were statistically more likely to be women, with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status ≥ 1, and for ETD, older with a lower body mass index. In multivariable analyses, ETD was associated with a decrease in disease-free survival and overall survival (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.61, P < .001 and HR: 1.73, P < .001), which was not the case for EOD (HR: 1.07, P = .3 and HR: 1.13, P = .1). However, patients who received < 50% of the planned cycles of oxaliplatin had poorer outcomes.

CONCLUSION: In patients treated with 6 months of oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy for stage III CC, ETD was associated with poorer oncologic outcomes. However, this was not the case for EOD. These data favor discontinuing oxaliplatin while continuing fluoropyrimidine in individuals with significant neurotoxicity having received > 50% of the planned 6-month chemotherapy.

PMID:36306483 | DOI:10.1200/JCO.21.02726

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Glottalized lateral in Rikvani Andi: an acoustic study

Phonetica. 2022 Oct 28. doi: 10.1515/phon-2022-2024. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Glottalized sonorants are a rare sound type that has been under scrutiny for a number of reasons of general relevance to the phonetic theory. It has been claimed that the timing of glottalization of glottalized sonorants may shift in accordance with the position in the syllable onset (pre-glottalization) or coda (post-glottalization), to provide a cue for its place of articulation; other studies argued against this claim. The paper investigates acoustic properties of the glottalized lateral in Rikvani Andi, a one-village dialect of Andi (East Caucasian). Based on the data from elicitations and free narratives, we consider the acoustic correlates that have been argued in the literature to differentiate glottalized sonorants from their modal counterparts, including aperiodicity, intensity, duration and spectral tilt. In Rikvani Andi, all of the correlates prove to be statistically significant in recordings of isolated words, but the differences tend to decrease in free narratives. The timing of glottalization does not support the existing generalizations – while the glottalized lateral only occurs in Rikvani Andi in the syllable onset, it tends to be mid- to post-glottalized. We discuss two possible explanations of why the Rikvani Andi glottalized sonorant fails to comply with typological expectations.

PMID:36306469 | DOI:10.1515/phon-2022-2024

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Systematic reviews: Key concepts for health professionals

Medwave. 2022 Oct 28;22(9). doi: 10.5867/medwave.2022.09.2622.

ABSTRACT

The exponential growth of currently available evidence has made it necessary to collect, filter, critically appraise, and synthesize biomedical information to keep up to date. In this sense, systematic reviews are a helpful tool and can be reliable sources to assist in evidence-based decision-making. Systematic reviews are defined as secondary research or syntheses of evidence focused on a specific question that — based on a structured methodology — make it possible to identify, select, critically appraise, and summarize findings from relevant studies. Systematic reviews have several potential advantages, such as minimizing biases or obtaining more accurate results. The reliability of the evidence presented in systematic reviews is determined, amongst other factors, by the quality of their methodology and the included studies. To conduct a systematic review, a series of steps must be followed: the formulation of a research question using the participants, interventions, comparisons, outcomes (PICO) format; an exhaustive literature search; the selection of relevant studies; the critical appraisal of the data obtained from the included studies; the synthesis of results, often using statistical methods (meta-analysis); and finally, estimating the certainty of the evidence for each outcome. In this methodological note, we will define the basic concepts of systematic reviews, their methods, and their limitations.

PMID:36306467 | DOI:10.5867/medwave.2022.09.2622

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Estimating risk and rate ratio in rare events meta-analysis with the Mantel-Haenszel estimator and assessing heterogeneity

Int J Biostat. 2022 Oct 31. doi: 10.1515/ijb-2021-0087. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Meta-analysis of binary outcome data faces often a situation where studies with a rare event are part of the set of studies to be considered. These studies have low occurrence of event counts to the extreme that no events occur in one or both groups to be compared. This raises issues how to estimate validly the summary risk or rate ratio across studies. A preferred choice is the Mantel-Haenszel estimator, which is still defined in the situation of zero studies unless all studies have zeros in one of the groups to be compared. For this situation, a modified Mantel-Haenszel estimator is suggested and shown to perform well by means of simulation work. Also, confidence interval estimation is discussed and evaluated in a simulation study. In a second part, heterogeneity of relative risk across studies is investigated with a new chi-square type statistic which is based on a conditional binomial distribution where the conditioning is on the event margin for each study. This is necessary as the conventional Q-statistic is undefined in the occurrence of zero studies. The null-distribution of the proposed Q-statistic is obtained by means of a parametric bootstrap as a chi-square approximation is not valid for rare events meta-analysis, as bootstrapping of the null-distribution shows. In addition, for the effect heterogeneity situation, confidence interval estimation is considered using a nonparametric bootstrap procedure. The proposed techniques are illustrated at hand of three meta-analytic data sets.

PMID:36306466 | DOI:10.1515/ijb-2021-0087

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Using a Delphi Process to Update the Nisonger Child Behavior Rating Form

Am J Intellect Dev Disabil. 2022 Nov 1;127(6):455-472. doi: 10.1352/1944-7558-127.6.455.

ABSTRACT

The Nisonger Child Behavior Rating Form (NCBRF) was developed to specifically screen psychopathology and problem behavior in children and adolescents with IDD. This study aimed to update the NCBRF to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) and screen for the most prevalent psychopathologies that affect children and adolescents with IDD. The authors re-aligned the existing items to fit within a DSM-5 framework, and then used the Delphi method with a panel of experts in IDD to evaluate the NCBRF items. The revision process included deleting and revising existing items and formulating new items. We obtained a final item pool after three iterations. The Delphi process and resulting item pool are described in this article.

PMID:36306412 | DOI:10.1352/1944-7558-127.6.455

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

The relationship between dietary patterns and aggressive behavior in adolescent girls: A cross-sectional study

Brain Behav. 2022 Oct 28:e2782. doi: 10.1002/brb3.2782. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: There are few studies about the relationship between dietary patterns and aggression. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the main dietary patterns and aggression scores among adolescent girls in Iran.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 670 adolescent girls. The 168-item self-administered Semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire was used to evaluate dietary intake and to identify major dietary patterns, while factor analysis was applied. Aggression was evaluated by the validated Persian version of the Buss-Perry questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed by crude and adjusted models.

RESULTS: Three main dietary patterns including healthy, fast food, and Western were identified. A significant positive association was found between more adherence to Western dietary pattern and the presence of a high aggression score (OR: 2.00; 95% CI: 1.32-3.05, p-trend = .001); even after adjustment for potential confounders, these findings were significant.

CONCLUSION: Although Western dietary patterns were associated with increased aggression risk, there was no significant relationship between healthy and fast food dietary patterns and the prevalence of a high aggression score. Further studies, particularly longitudinal intervention studies, are required to clarify this relationship.

PMID:36306400 | DOI:10.1002/brb3.2782

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

COVID -19 Vaccinations in pregnancy: Save Mother and Baby from Covid-19 Pandemic

Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2022 Oct 28. doi: 10.1002/ijgo.14532. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To study immune response of maternal Covid-19 vaccination and vertical transmission of Anti-SARS-CoV-2, S and N.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study of pregnant women in Bahrain Defense Force Hospital, from March 2021 till September 2021, who were vaccinated, with Sinopharm and Pfizer/Bio NTech. Anti-N and S level from paired samples of maternal and umbilical cord blood was done at the time of delivery with Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunoassay. Immune response to vaccination, association with maternal and fetal factors, and the vertical transmission of antibodies were studied. Analysis was performed using SPSS (version 26.0) and Minitab (version 18) software. P-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: The study included 79 pregnant women. The median gestational age for Sinopharm was 28 weeks and Pfizer was 31 weeks. 100% of the vaccinated population generated antibodies and had vertical transmission. The anti-N and S titre, and interval frequencies varied in both vaccinations. The anti-N and S and Transfer ratio are correlated statistically with maternal age, gestational age at delivery, latency period and birth weight of the neonates differently in both vaccines. Also the peak level of antibodies and transfer ratios varied.

CONCLUSION: Though variations are exhibited in both type of vaccination, the vaccinated pregnant population generated a significant level of anti-N and-S, and had vertical transmission as well.

PMID:36306398 | DOI:10.1002/ijgo.14532

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Factors associated with puerperal women’s perception of the support received from their companions during labor and delivery

Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2022 Oct 28. doi: 10.1002/ijgo.14529. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To associate sociodemographic characteristics and satisfaction with the support received from companions during labor and delivery.

METHOD: An analytical cross-sectional study was carried out in a maternity hospital in Fortaleza, Brazil, from March to August 2019, with 320 postpartum women. A form containing sociodemographic and obstetric questions, companion-related information, type of support provided, and the Birth Companion Support Questionnaire (BCSQ) were used to assess the frequency of social support behaviors. The Chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test were used for statistical analyses.

RESULTS: Non-pharmacological methods were associated with an unsatisfactory perception of support, but the emotional support provided by companions was positively associated with women’s satisfaction.

CONCLUSION: The study findings concerning women’s perceptions of the support received from their companions may allow improvements in the delivery of care to women in labor toward the humanization of obstetric practices.

PMID:36306395 | DOI:10.1002/ijgo.14529

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Deep learning for myocardial ischemia auxiliary diagnosis using CZT SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging

J Chin Med Assoc. 2022 Oct 29. doi: 10.1097/JCMA.0000000000000833. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization reported that cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death worldwide. On average, one person dies of heart disease every 26-min worldwide. Deep learning approaches are characterised by the appropriate combination of abnormal features based on numerous annotated images. The constructed CNN model can identify normal states of reversible and irreversible myocardial defects and alert physicians for further diagnosis.

METHODS: Cadmium zinc telluride single-photon emission computed tomography myocardial perfusion resting-state images were collected at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical Center, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and were analysed with a deep learning convolutional neural network to classify myocardial perfusion images for coronary heart diseases.

RESULTS: In these grey-scale images, the heart blood flow distribution was the most crucial feature. The deep learning technique of You Only Look Once was used to determine the myocardial defect area and crop the images. After surrounding noise had been eliminated, a three-dimensional convolutional neural network model was used to identify patients with coronary heart diseases. The prediction area under the curve, accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity were 90.97%, 87.08%, 86.49%, and 87.41%, respectively.

CONCLUSION: Our prototype system can considerably reduce the time required for image interpretation and improve the quality of medical care. It can assist clinical experts by offering accurate coronary heart disease diagnosis in practice.

PMID:36306391 | DOI:10.1097/JCMA.0000000000000833

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Nevin Manimala Statistics

Investigating feedback orientation in medical learners

Med Teach. 2022 Oct 28:1-7. doi: 10.1080/0142159X.2022.2138741. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Feedback processes in health professions education (HPE) are not always successful. While recommendations to improve feedback provision dominate the literature, studying specific learner attributes that impact feedback uptake may also improve feedback processes. Feedback orientation is a concept from management science involving four dimensions of learner attributes and attitudes that impact their feedback uptake: utility, accountability, social awareness, and feedback self-efficacy. Feedback orientation may represent a valuable concept in HPE. We aimed to understand medical learners’ feedback orientation at different stages in their development.

METHODS: We used the Feedback Orientation Scale, a 20-item survey instrument, for a cross-sectional analysis of feedback orientation in medical students and Internal Medicine residents at one large academic center. We performed descriptive statistics and analysis of variance for data analysis.

RESULTS: We found the same factors (dimensions) to feedback orientation in our population as in management science. Overall feedback orientation scores were high and were largely consistent across trainee levels. Utility was the domain that was highest across learners, whereas feedback self-efficacy was lowest.

CONCLUSIONS: Feedback orientation represents a useful concept to explore medical learners’ attitudes toward feedback’s role in their development. The four domains can help guide further nuanced feedback research and application.[Box: see text].

PMID:36306388 | DOI:10.1080/0142159X.2022.2138741