Tag: nevin manimala

Clin Rheumatol. 2022 Sep 21. doi: 10.1007/s10067-022-06366-x. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with Kawasaki disease (KD) before and after therapy.

METHODS: Patients with KD were divided into different groups according to their responsiveness to initial intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) treatment and coronary status. The clinical and laboratory parameters before and after therapy were compared. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify the independent risk factors, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to assess and compare the prediction ability of risk factors and their fluctuations.

RESULTS: Of the 153 patients included in the study, 41 (26.8%) had IVIG resistance and 37 (24.2%) had developed CAA. After stratifying by therapy response, the two groups differed in the levels of total bilirubin (TSB), albumin, and sodium, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte count ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte count ratio (PLR), TSB-to-albumin (B/A) ratio, and prognostic nutritional index (PNI) before IVIG, and in the white blood cell count (WBC), neutrophil count, levels of hemoglobin, C-reactive protein (CRP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and albumin, NLR, PNI, capillary leakage index (CLI), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) after IVIG. Multivariate analysis revealed that the B/A ratio before IVIG and CLI and SII after IVIG were significantly and positively associated with IVIG resistance and that there was a larger decline in the B/A ratio and smaller decline in CLI and SII pre- and post-treatment in the IVIG-resistant group than in the IVIG-responsive group. However, no statistical differences in the fluctuations of the B/A ratio, CLI, and SII as well as all parameters before and after therapy were observed in patients with and without CAA. ROC curve analyses found a greater AUC value of post-treatment parameters (0.751 and 0.706 for CLI and SII, respectively) compared with pre-treatment parameters (0.654 for B/A ratio) in predicting IVIG resistance; however, the predictive ability of the fluctuations in risk factors before and after therapy was not superior to that of baseline values.

CONCLUSIONS: The B/A ratio before IVIG and CLI and SII after IVIG were risk factors for IVIG resistance in patients with KD, independent of CAA development. Key Points • A high total bilirubin-to-albumin ratio before IVIG and high capillary leakage and systemic immune-inflammation indices after IVIG may indicate an increased risk of intravenous immunoglobulin resistance in patients with Kawasaki disease. • Post-treatment parameters were superior to pre-treatment parameters in terms of prediction; therefore, rapid and repeated assessment of risk factors before and after treatment must be considered in children in whom the vital signs and symptoms do not improve after treatment.

PMID:36129563 | DOI:10.1007/s10067-022-06366-x

Environ Monit Assess. 2022 Sep 21;194(11):809. doi: 10.1007/s10661-022-10431-y.

ABSTRACT

Reservoir storage is compromised by sedimentation for which reason it has become an important matter in reservoir operation and management. While many studies have investigated sediment deposition rate in reservoirs, few have analyzed reservoir sedimentation from their catchment’s land use change perspective. Based on bathymetric survey conducted on two reservoirs in the White Volta Basin in 2020 and analysis of four Landsat satellite imagery (1986, 1996, 2006, and 2020) within their watersheds, this study assessed the land cover change within the watersheds to draw inferences on the rate of sedimentation of the reservoirs located downstream of their catchments. The results revealed rapid sedimentation in the small-sized reservoir (Vea), with an annual sedimentation rate of 0.304% and a nominal sedimentation rate of 0.17% for the mid-sized reservoir (Tono). Furthermore, the savannah forest within the Vea catchment declined drastically from 29.4% (1985) to 9.9% (2020) influenced by the rapid expansion of farmlands from 18.7% to 47.9% within the same period, respectively. On the other hand, the savannah forest within the Tono catchment declined from 34.7% (1985) to 21.6% (2020) due to farmland expansion from 19.2% to 39% within the same period, respectively. The higher sedimentation rate observed in the small-sized reservoir was observed to be worsened by extensive tree cover removal in its catchment. Therefore, land cover characteristics within a watershed have a significant bearing on the rate of sedimentation in the reservoirs located downstream of their catchment. Hence, adopting a multi-sectorial approach to dealing with land use management is necessary to sustain reservoirs’ storage.

PMID:36129559 | DOI:10.1007/s10661-022-10431-y

Environ Monit Assess. 2022 Sep 21;194(11):811. doi: 10.1007/s10661-022-10497-8.

ABSTRACT

Greenhouse gas emissions and their effects on global warming are one of the serious challenges of developed and developing countries. Investigating the amount of greenhouse gas emissions of different countries makes it possible to determine the share of countries in the production of greenhouse gases. The purpose of this study is to use DAYCENT and DNDC models to estimate the emission rate of methane, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide greenhouse gases as well as to estimate the global warming potential in Khuzestan agricultural lands in Iran. For this purpose, the gas sampling was done in rice, wheat, and sugarcane fields using a static chamber, and then the concentration of methane, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide was determined by using gas chromatography. In the following, DAYCENT and DNDC models were used to estimate gas emissions and the global warming potential of these gases was estimated. Finally, TOPSIS method was used to prioritize gas emissions. In order to evaluate the modeling accuracy, the statistical indicators of maximum error, root mean square error, determination coefficient, model efficiency, and residual mass coefficient were used. According to the results, the highest measured gas flux was obtained for rice fields at Baghmalek and the lowest for sugarcane in Abadan. The results of DAYCENT model estimation showed that the highest emissions were obtained for methane gas and rice cultivation, and lowest gas emissions were obtained for sugarcane cultivation. The results of DNDC model estimation also showed that the highest flux was determined for nitrous oxide gas in rice cultivation. The results of the estimation of global warming potential also showed that it was the highest in sugarcane cultivation (Shushtar station) and the DAYCENT model, and the lowest was also in wheat cultivation and the DNDC model. The statistical results of the estimation of DAYCENT and DNDC models showed that the DAYCENT model in sugarcane cultivation (Shushtar station) was the most accurate in estimating carbon dioxide gas, and the lowest accuracy was related to the DNDC model and sugarcane cultivation (Shushtar station) in estimating nitrous oxide gas. According to the results of agricultural activities in Khuzestan province, they have made a major contribution to the production of greenhouse gases, which, or the lack of attention to this issue, will have an effect on the future climate of this region.

PMID:36129556 | DOI:10.1007/s10661-022-10497-8

J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 2022 Sep 21. doi: 10.1007/s00432-022-04245-1. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Invasive breast cancer prognosis has significantly improved over time; however, there are few data about the long-term survival.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analysed the data on female breast cancer incident during 2004-2005 in the area of the Tuscan Cancer Registry, distinguishing them in five subtypes, according to ER, PgR, HER2, and Ki67 expression: luminal A, luminal B, luminal B/HER2 + , triple-negative, and HER2 + . Effects of subtypes and age on 10 years breast cancer specific survival were analysed by Kaplan-Meier and multivariate Cox analysis.

RESULTS: The majority of breast cancer were luminal B (57%), and 45% of them were diagnosed at pathological stage I. The 10-year survival rates (p < 0.001) were higher among luminal A (90.2%) and lower among HER-2 + patients (70.3%). Prognostic effect of age was statistically significant (p < 0.0004): the 10-year cancer specific survival rates were higher among 40-59 years of age patients (88.5%), lower among 0-39 (75.8%). Luminal A breast cancer patients had a constant low risk throughout 10 years of follow up, while luminal B/HER2 + and triple negative tumours showed a peak 5 years after the diagnosis and then declined.

DISCUSSION: Our study confirmed the prognostic effect of biological subtype also in a long term follow up study; moreover, age at diagnosis showed to influence the outcome, other than stage at diagnosis and treatment. The long term follow up showed a constant risk of death for luminal A and B tumours, whereas for non-luminal cancer a peak 5 years after the diagnosis was found.

PMID:36129548 | DOI:10.1007/s00432-022-04245-1

Infect Dis (Lond). 2022 Sep 21:1-4. doi: 10.1080/23744235.2022.2125575. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:36128939 | DOI:10.1080/23744235.2022.2125575

J Child Health Care. 2022 Sep 21:13674935221110081. doi: 10.1177/13674935221110081. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) is a common disorder in children and adolescents that negatively impacts health-related quality of life (HRQOL). It can include chronic pain, fatigue, autonomic dysfunction, and mood problems. The objective of this study was to examine levels of agreement between children and parents in the setting of hEDS and HRQOL. Individuals with hEDS, ages 10-20 years, and their parents were recruited to complete a series of surveys. Instruments included pediatric quality of life generic and multidimensional fatigue scales, Functional Disability Index, Pain-Frequency-Severity-Duration scale, Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire, and Herth Hope Index. Agreement on each measure was evaluated using statistical calculations. Thirty-six parent-child dyads completed the surveys. There were no significant differences between the means of parent and child scores. There was moderate to strong agreement on all survey scores. However, the proportion of dyads with disagreement was relatively high for each individual score. Eighteen dyads disagreed on at least half of the surveys. Body mass index centile and child perception of cognitive fatigue most strongly predicted disagreement in total HRQOL score. Proxy-reporters for children and adolescents with hEDS may agree with their child on average. However, due to significant frequency of clinically important disagreement, information from both children and their parents should be sought whenever possible.

PMID:36128922 | DOI:10.1177/13674935221110081

Turk Neurosurg. 2022 Aug 13. doi: 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.40096-22.3. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

AIM: Neural tube defects (NTDs) are the most common congenital anomalies, and prenatal prediction of the disease is essential. The underlying factors of the disease have not been determined. The aim of this study is to investigate the predictive role of thiol/disulfide homeostasis and Ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels for NTDs.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 71 pregnant women (31 with NTD and 42 healthy controls) were enrolled in this study. This prospective case-control study included pregnant women with NTDs as the study group and randomly selected age-matched pregnant women with healthy fetuses as the control group. The two groups were compared on the basis of thiol/disulfide and IMA levels in the maternal and fetal samples.

RESULTS: No statistically significant difference in native thiol, total thiol, disulfide, and calculated ratios was observed between the groups. However, maternal IMA values were significantly higher in the study group. The IMA was proven to be a predictor with a sensitivity of 77.4% and specificity of 100% for NTDs at a cut-off value of 1.32.

CONCLUSION: The examination of the maternal levels of IMA may be useful in the detection of NTDs.

PMID:36128919 | DOI:10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.40096-22.3

Surg Innov. 2022 Sep 21:15533506221120484. doi: 10.1177/15533506221120484. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The mainstay of first-line treatment of parotid tumors is adequate surgical removal. The present study was conducted to compare the differences between parotidectomy with postauricular incision (PI) and modified Blair incision (MBI).

DATA SOURCES: A systematic search of PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library was performed.

METHODS: The data of interest and study characteristics were extracted from the included studies. Statistical analysis was performed with Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software (version 3; BioStat, Englewood, NJ). Dichotomous data and continuous data were analyzed by calculating the risk difference and the mean difference with the 95% confidence interval respectively.

RESULTS: Four retrospective studies were included in the present meta-analysis. The pooled results revealed that the cosmetic satisfaction score was higher in the PI group (MD = 2.67; 95% CI, 2.12 to 3.23) and that intraoperative blood loss was lower in the PI group (MD = -55.35; 95% CI, -100.33 to -10.36). The operative duration (MD = -5.15; 95% CI, -24.06 to 13.75), tumor size (MD = -.07; 95% CI, -.27 to .13) and incidences of common postoperative complications were comparable between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS: According to these findings, the use of PI in parotidectomies may be one of the options for improving cosmetic outcomes. This technique may be considered if oncological safety can be secured.

PMID:36128913 | DOI:10.1177/15533506221120484

Stat Methods Med Res. 2022 Sep 21:9622802221122403. doi: 10.1177/09622802221122403. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Dichotomous response data observed over multiple time points, especially data that exhibit longitudinal structures, are important in many applied fields. The multivariate probit model has been an attractive tool in such situations for its ability to handle correlations among the outcomes, typically by modeling the covariance (correlation) structure of the latent variables. In addition, a multivariate probit model facilitates controlled imputations for nonignorable dropout, a phenomenon commonly observed in clinical trials of experimental drugs or biologic products. While the model is relatively simple to specify, estimation, particularly from a Bayesian perspective that relies on Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling, is not as straightforward. Here we compare five sampling algorithms for the correlation matrix and discuss their merits: a parameter-expanded Metropolis-Hastings algorithm (Zhang et al., 2006), a parameter-expanded Gibbs sampling algorithm (Talhouk et al., 2012), a parameter-expanded Gibbs sampling algorithm with unit constraints on conditional variances (Tang, 2018), a partial autocorrelation parameterization approach (Gaskins et al., 2014), and a semi-partial correlation parameterization approach (Ghosh et al., 2021). We describe each algorithm, use simulation studies to evaluate their performance, and focus on comparison criteria such as computational cost, convergence time, robustness, and ease of implementations. We find that the parameter-expanded Gibbs sampling algorithm by Talhouk et al. (2012) often has the most efficient convergence with relatively low computational complexity, while the partial autocorrelation parameterization approach is more flexible for estimating the correlation matrix of latent variables for typical late phase longitudinal studies.

PMID:36128906 | DOI:10.1177/09622802221122403

J Pathol Transl Med. 2022 Sep;56(5):260-269. doi: 10.4132/jptm.2022.07.05. Epub 2022 Sep 13.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Gastric-type endocervical adenocarcinoma (GEA) is unrelated to human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and is clinically aggressive compared with HPV-associated usual-type endocervical adenocarcinoma (UEA). The cytological diagnosis falls short of a definitive diagnosis of GEA and is often categorized as atypical glandular cells (AGCs). To improve cytologic recognition, cytological findings of HPV-independent GEA were analyzed and the results compared with HPV-associated UEA.

METHODS: Cervical Papanicolaou (Pap) smears from eight patients with a histopathologic diagnosis of GEA and 12 control cases of UEA were reviewed. All slides were conventionally prepared and/or liquid-based prepared (ThinPrep) and stained following the Pap method. A mucinous background, architectural, nuclear, and cytoplasmic features were analyzed and compared with UEA.

RESULTS: Preoperative cytologic diagnoses of the eight GEA cases were AGCs, favor neoplastic in three cases, adenocarcinoma in situ in one case, and adenocarcinoma in four cases. Cytologically, monolayered honeycomb-like sheets (p = .002) of atypical endocervical cells with vacuolar granular cytoplasm (p = .001) were extensive in GEA, and three-dimensional clusters (p = .010) were extensive in UEA. Although the differences were not statistically significant, background mucin (p = .058), vesicular nuclei (p = .057), and golden-brown intracytoplasmic mucin (p = .089) were also discriminatory findings for GEA versus UEA.

CONCLUSIONS: Although GEA is difficult to diagnose on cytologic screening, GEA can be recognized based on cytologic features of monolayered honeycomb sheets of atypical endocervical cells with abundant vacuolar cytoplasm and some golden-brown intracytoplasmic mucin. UEA cases are characterized by three-dimensional clusters.

PMID:36128862 | DOI:10.4132/jptm.2022.07.05