Tag: nevin manimala

Cognition. 2022 Mar 30;225:105112. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105112. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Exponential growth is frequently underestimated, an error that can have a heavy social cost in the context of epidemics. To clarify its origins, we measured the human capacity (N = 521) to extrapolate linear and exponential trends in scatterplots. Four factors were manipulated: the function underlying the data (linear or exponential), the response modality (pointing or venturing a number), the scale on the y axis (linear or logarithmic), and the amount of noise in the data. While linear extrapolation was precise and largely unbiased, we observed a consistent underestimation of noisy exponential growth, present for both pointing and numerical responses. A biased ideal-observer model could explain these data as an occasional misperception of noisy exponential graphs as quadratic curves. Importantly, this underestimation bias was mitigated by participants’ math knowledge, by using a logarithmic scale, and by presenting a noiseless exponential curve rather than a noisy data plot, thus suggesting concrete avenues for interventions.

PMID:35366484 | DOI:10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105112

Forensic Sci Int Genet. 2022 Mar 24;59:102692. doi: 10.1016/j.fsigen.2022.102692. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Body fluid identification is an important step in the forensic DNA workflow, and more advanced methods, such as microRNA (miRNA) analysis, have been research topics within the community over the last few decades. We previously reported a reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) panel of eight miRNAs that could classify blood, menstrual secretions, feces, urine, saliva, semen, and vaginal secretions through analysis of differential gene expression. The purpose of this project was to evaluate this panel in a larger population size, develop a more statistically robust analysis method and perform a series of developmental validation studies. Each of the eight miRNA markers was analyzed in > 40 donors each of blood, menstrual secretions, feces, urine, saliva, semen, and vaginal secretions. A 10-fold cross-validated quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA) model yielded the highest classification accuracy of 93% after eliminating miR-26b and miR-1246 from the panel. Accuracy of body fluid predictions was between 84% and 100% when various population demographics and samples from the same donor over multiple time periods were evaluated, but the assay demonstrated limited scope and reduced accuracy when mixed body fluid samples were tested. Limit of detection was found to be less than 10⁴ copies/µL across multiple commercially available RT-qPCR analysis methods. These data suggest that miR-200b, miR-320c, miR-10b, and miR-891a, when normalized to let-7 g and let-7i, can consistently and robustly classify blood, feces and urine, but additional work is important to improve classification of saliva, semen, and female intimate secretions before implementation in forensic casework.

PMID:35366474 | DOI:10.1016/j.fsigen.2022.102692

Thromb Res. 2022 Mar 24;213:138-144. doi: 10.1016/j.thromres.2022.03.017. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to detail the incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 in England.

METHODS: This was an exploratory retrospective analysis of observational data from the Hospital Episode Statistics dataset for England. All patients aged ≥18 years in England with a diagnosis of COVID-19 who had a hospital stay that was completed between 1st March 2020 and 31st March 2021 were included. A recorded diagnosis of VTE during the index stay or during a subsequent admission in the six weeks following discharge was the primary outcome in the main analysis. In secondary analysis, VTE diagnosis was the primary exposure and in-hospital mortality the primary outcome.

RESULTS: Over the 13 months, 374,244 unique patients had a diagnosis of COVID-19 during a hospital stay, of whom 17,346 (4.6%) had a recorded diagnosis of VTE. VTE was more commonly recorded in patients aged 40-79 years, males and in patients of Black ethnicity, even after adjusting for covariates. Recorded VTE diagnosis was associated with longer hospital stay and higher adjusted in-hospital mortality (odds ratio 1.35 (95% confidence interval 1.29 to 1.41)).

CONCLUSIONS: VTE was a common complication of hospitalisation with COVID-19 in England. VTE was associated with both increased length of stay and mortality rate.

PMID:35366435 | DOI:10.1016/j.thromres.2022.03.017

Cell. 2022 Mar 27:S0092-8674(22)00267-7. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2022.03.007. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The Avars settled the Carpathian Basin in 567/68 CE, establishing an empire lasting over 200 years. Who they were and where they came from is highly debated. Contemporaries have disagreed about whether they were, as they claimed, the direct successors of the Mongolian Steppe Rouran empire that was destroyed by the Turks in ∼550 CE. Here, we analyze new genome-wide data from 66 pre-Avar and Avar-period Carpathian Basin individuals, including the 8 richest Avar-period burials and further elite sites from Avar’s empire core region. Our results provide support for a rapid long-distance trans-Eurasian migration of Avar-period elites. These individuals carried Northeast Asian ancestry matching the profile of preceding Mongolian Steppe populations, particularly a genome available from the Rouran period. Some of the later elite individuals carried an additional non-local ancestry component broadly matching the steppe, which could point to a later migration or reflect greater genetic diversity within the initial migrant population.

PMID:35366416 | DOI:10.1016/j.cell.2022.03.007

Gait Posture. 2022 Mar 27;94:203-209. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2022.03.019. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused great changes in daily activities, especially in children. In Spain, to avoid infections, a home quarantine was declared, which caused a drastic reduction in daily or weekly physical activity in children.

OBJECTIVE: to analyse the balance performance after the COVID-19-induced quarantine on children’s balance, through the use of balance tests, considering the type of sport practiced.

METHODS: an observational and longitudinal study was carried out with a sample size of 150 healthy children (69 boys and 81 girls) with a mean age of 10.02 ± 1.15 years. Postural control was evaluated under different equilibrium conditions before and after the quarantine period. Two data collections using the Gyko system were compared, with a difference of 8 months between them. In addition, the influence of foot type and physical activity was analysed.

RESULTS: After the quarantine, statistically significant differences were found in terms of balance results, which were worse than before (p < 0.05). Postural control was not influenced by the type of sport practiced (i.e., individual, collective and / or not practicing sport), nor by the surface which the test was performed (p > 0.05). Physically active children (i.e., individual and / or collective sport) presented worse results than physically inactive children. A statistically significant impairment in terms of balance was demonstrated in children who performed high and moderate physical activity (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: After the quarantine period, a significant reduction in balance performance was found in children. The findings suggest that regular physical activity benefits postural control. Loss of balance does not differ in postural stability by the type of sport practised. Postural stability is not influenced by the type of footprint after the period of physical inactivity. Postural control is influenced in children with a great level of physical activity.

PMID:35366430 | DOI:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2022.03.019

Lancet Public Health. 2022 Apr;7(4):e347-e355. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(22)00026-3.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: There is a need to know how changes in health expectancy differ for population subgroups globally. The aim of this study was to estimate 10-year trends in health expectancies by individual markers of socioeconomic position from three points over the lifecourse, evaluating how compression and expansion of morbidity have varied within a national population.

METHODS: We analysed data from two cohorts of the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey. The cohorts were followed annually from 2001 to 2007 (n=4720; baseline age range 50-100 years) and 2011 to 2017 (n=6632; baseline age range 50-99 years). Health expectancies were estimated at age 65 years for four outcomes reflecting activity limitations, disability, perceived health, and mental health. Cohort differences were compared by gender, age left school, occupational prestige, and housing tenure.

FINDINGS: Women with low socioeconomic position were the only group with no improvements in life expectancy across the two cohorts. Among men with low education and all women gains in life expectancy comprised entirely of years lived with global activity limitations. Compression of years lived with severe-disability, poor self-rated health, and poor mental health was most consistently observed for men and women with high education and home ownership. Occupational prestige did not greatly differentiate cohort differences in health expectancies.

INTERPRETATION: Over the past two decades in Australia, social disparities in health expectancies have at least been maintained, and have increased for some outcomes. Equitable gains in health expectancies should be a major public health goal, and will help support sustainable health and social care systems.

FUNDING: Australian Research Council.

PMID:35366409 | DOI:10.1016/S2468-2667(22)00026-3

Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2022 Apr 2:jeac031. doi: 10.1093/ehjci/jeac031. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

AIMS: The ketogenic diet (KD) is standard-of-care to achieve myocardial glucose suppression (MGS) for assessing inflammation using fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). As KD protocols remain highly variable between centres (including estimation of nutrient intake by dietary logs for adequacy of dietary preparation), we aimed to assess the predictive utility of nutrient intake in achieving MGS.

METHODS AND RESULTS: Nineteen healthy participants underwent short-term KD, with FDG-PET performed after 1 and 3 days of KD (goal carbohydrate intake <20 g/day). Nutrient consumption was estimated from dietary logs using nutrition research software. The area under receiver operating characteristics (AUROC) of macronutrients (carbohydrate, fat, and protein intake) for predicting MGS was analysed. The association between 133 nutrients and 4 biomarkers [beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), non-esterified fatty acids, insulin, and glucagon] with myocardial glucose uptake was assessed using mixed effects regression with false discovery rate (FDR) correction. Median (25th-75th percentile) age was 29 (25-34) years, 47% were women, and 42% were non-white. Median (25th-75th percentile) carbohydrate intake (g) was 18.7 (13.1-30.7), 16.9 (10.4-28.7), and 21.1 (16.6-29.0) on Days 1-3. No macronutrient intake (carbohydrate, fat, or protein) predicted MGS (c-statistic 0.45, 0.53, 0.47, respectively). Of 133 nutrients and 4 biomarkers, only BHB was associated with myocardial glucose uptake after FDR correction (corrected P-value 0.003).

CONCLUSIONS: During highly supervised, short-term KD, approximately half of patients meet strict carbohydrate goals. Yet, in healthy volunteers, dietary review does not provide reassurance for adequacy of myocardial preparation since no clear thresholds for carbohydrate or fat intake reliably predict MGS.

PMID:35366303 | DOI:10.1093/ehjci/jeac031

Pathophysiology. 2022 Mar 9;29(1):106-117. doi: 10.3390/pathophysiology29010010.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Understanding of the risk factors for the development of adverse outcomes after aortic valve replacement is necessary to develop timely preventive measures and to improve the results of surgical treatment.

METHODS: We analyzed patients with aortic stenosis (n = 742) who underwent surgical treatment in the period 2014-2020. The average age was 63 (57;69) years-men 58%, women 42%.

RESULTS: The hospital mortality rate was 3% (22 patients). The following statistically significant threshold values (cut-off points) were obtained in the ROC analysis: aortic cross-clamp time &gt; 93 min AUC (CI) 0.676 (0.640-0.710), p = 0.010; cardiopulmonary bypass time &gt; 144 min AUC (CI) 0.809 (0.778-0.837), p &lt; 0.0001, hemoglobin before op &lt;120 g/L. AUC (CI) 0.762 (0.728-0.793), p &lt; 0.0001, hematocrit before op &lt;39% AUC (CI) 0.755 (0.721-0.786), p &lt; 0.001, end-diastolic dimension index &gt;2.39 AUC (CI) 0.647 (0.607-0.686), p = 0.014, end-systolic dimension index &gt; 1.68 AUC (CI) 0.657 (0.617-0.695), p = 0.009. Statistically significant independent predictors of hospital mortality were identified: BMI &gt; 30 kg/m² (OR 2.84; CI 1.15-7.01), ischemic heart disease (OR 3.65; CI 1.01-13.2), diabetes (OR 3.88; CI 1.38-10.9), frequent ventricular ectopy before operation (OR 9.78; CI 1.91-50.2), mitral valve repair (OR 4.47; CI 1.76-11.3), tricuspid valve repair (OR 3.06; CI 1.09-8.58), 3 and more procedures (OR 4.44; CI 1.67-11.8).

CONCLUSIONS: The hospital mortality rate was 3%. The main indicators associated with the risk of death were: diabetes, overweight (body mass index more than 30 kg/m²), frequent ventricular ectopy before surgery, hemoglobin level below 120 g/L, hematocrit level below 39%, longer cardiopulmonary bypass time and aortic cross-clamp time, additional mitral and tricuspid valve interventions.

PMID:35366293 | DOI:10.3390/pathophysiology29010010

Pathophysiology. 2021 Aug 31;28(3):387-399. doi: 10.3390/pathophysiology28030026.

ABSTRACT

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains an important form of cancer-related morbidity and mortality in the U.S. and worldwide. Previous U.S.-based studies on survival suggest ethnic disparities in HCC patients, but the complex interplay of multiple factors that contribute are still incompletely understood. Here we considered the influences of risk factors contributing towards HCC survival, including ethnic background, over ten years at a premier academic medical center with a majority (57.20%) African American (AA) population. Retrospective HCC data were collected from 2008-2018 at LSUHSC-Shreveport, an urban tertiary medical center. Data included demographics, comorbidities, liver disease characteristics, and tumor parameters. Statistical analysis was performed using Chi Square and one-way ANOVA. Results: 229 HCC patients were identified (male 78.6%). The mean HCC age at diagnosis was 61 years (SD = 7.3). Compared to non-Hispanic Caucasians (42.7%), AA patients (57.2% of total) were older at presentation, had more frequent diabetes/dyslipidemia/NAFLD (45 (34.3%) compared with 19 (19.3%) in non-Hispanic Caucasians, p = 0.02), and had a larger HCC burden at diagnosis. We conclude that compared to white patients, despite having similar BMI and MELD scores and rates of portal vein thrombosis, AA patients with HCC in our cohort were older at presentation, had a significantly increased incidence of modifiable metabolic risk factors including diabetes, higher AFP values, increased incidence of gallstones, and larger sized HCCs, and were more likely to be outside Milan criteria. These findings have important prognostic and diagnostic implications for developing a more targeted HCC surveillance program.

PMID:35366282 | DOI:10.3390/pathophysiology28030026

Pathophysiology. 2022 Mar 7;29(1):92-105. doi: 10.3390/pathophysiology29010009.

ABSTRACT

The clinical manifestations associated with COVID-19 disease is mainly due to a dysregulated host response related to the overexpression of inflammatory markers. Until recently, only remdesivir had gained FDA approval for COVID-19 hospitalized patients and there are currently no evidence-based therapeutic options or options for prevention of complications that have been established. Some medical treatments such as antivirals, antibacterials, antithrombotics, antipyretics, corticosteroids, interleukin inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, convalescent plasma, immunostimulants, and vitamin supplements have been utilized. However, there are limited data to support their effectiveness. Hence, this study was attempted to identify and evaluate the effectiveness of antibacterials and antivirals used for COVID-19 using a retrospective cross-sectional approach based on the medical records of adult patients in four hospitals. The number of antibacterials was calculated in defined daily dose (DDD) per 100 bed-days unit. Both mixed-logit regression and analysis of covariance were used to determine the effectiveness of the aforementioned agents in relation to COVID-19 outcome and patients’ length of stay. The model was weighed accordingly and covariates (e.g., age) were considered in the model. Heart disease was found to be the most common pre-existing condition of COVID-19 hospitalized patients in this study. Azithromycin, an antibacterial in the Watch category list, was used extensively (33-65 DDD per 100 bed-days). Oseltamivir, an antiviral approved by the FDA for influenza was the most prescribed antiviral. In addition, favipiravir was found to be a significant factor in improving patients’ COVID-19 outcomes and decreasing their length of stay. This study strongly suggests that COVID-19 patients’ received polypharmacy for their treatment. However, most of the drugs used did not reach statistical significance in improving the patients’ condition or decreasing the length of stay. Further studies to support drug use are needed.

PMID:35366292 | DOI:10.3390/pathophysiology29010009