Tag: pubmed

Health Serv Res Manag Epidemiol. 2023 Dec 21;10:23333928231220493. doi: 10.1177/23333928231220493. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: A woman’s health and wellbeing are impacted by illegal abortion since improper procedures can lead to consequences like extreme bleeding, infection, and damage to the reproductive organs and low awareness and attitude toward abortion law is one of the public health problems in Ethiopia. This study aimed to assess the knowledge, and attitude, and identify the effect of short birth interval and wealth index on the abortion law among reproductive-age women in Bule Hora town, Southern Oromia, Ethiopia.

METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study design was conducted from June 20 to July 20, 2022. A systematic random sampling technique was carried out to select 402 reproductive-age women. Data was collected by using a structured questionnaire with face-to-face interviews after the tools were pretested. The data was cleaned, coded, and entered into Epidata 3.1 and exported to STATA 14 for analysis. The model goodness of fit was checked using the Hosmer-Lemeshow test. Statistical significance is declared at P < .05 and a 95% confidence interval.

RESULTS: The study revealed that 153 (38%) of respondents had good knowledge and 192 (47%) had a favorable attitude toward the Ethiopian abortion law, with a 100% response rate. Women’s educational status, having information regarding the criteria of legal abortion services, and short birth intervals as a reason for induced abortion were significantly associated with knowledge. On the other hand, women who attended secondary education and above, have information regarding the criteria of legal abortion services, wealth index middle/average and richer, using the contraceptive method, and short birth interval as a reason for induced abortion were predictors of attitude toward Ethiopian abortion law.

CONCLUSION: This study shows that knowledge and attitude toward Ethiopian abortion law was not sufficient. So focusing on awareness creation and health education strategies by mobilization of the community to minimize the knowledge and attitude gap is essential.

PMID:38145213 | PMC:PMC10748687 | DOI:10.1177/23333928231220493

Risk Manag Healthc Policy. 2023 Dec 20;16:2805-2817. doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S436853. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to investigate the factors influencing hospitalization costs for patients diagnosed with acute appendicitis in China.

METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study using data from Provincial Health Statistics Support System Database from S Province in China. This dataset contained all hospital’s electronic medical records from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018 including both public and private hospitals. The target population was identified based on the principal diagnosis of appendicitis (ICD-10: K35). To examine the impact of various factors on hospitalization costs, we conducted a multivariate linear regression analysis. Furthermore, we employed the Shapley value decomposition method to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the factors that influenced hospitalization costs and their respective levels of importance.

RESULTS: Our study comprised 317,200 cases. During the period from 2015 to 2018, the average hospitalization expenses for patients with acute appendicitis were estimated at approximately 7014 RMB (1061 USD), which accounts for a considerable 12% of China’s per capita GDP. The results of this study demonstrate a significant correlation between various factors, such as the patient’s age, gender, marital status, occupation, payment method, number of complications, treatment method, hospital tier, and ownership, and the total hospitalization costs and subcomponents of hospitalization costs. Notably, the treatment method employed had the most substantial impact on hospitalization costs.

CONCLUSION: To the best of knowledge, this is one of the first studies to investigate the hospitalization costs of acute appendicitis incorporating both patient-level and hospital-level covariates, using a large sample size. To reduce the costs associated with acute appendicitis in China, it is recommended to consider suitable treatment options and explore the option of receiving medical care at lower-tier and privately-owned healthcare facilities.

PMID:38145209 | PMC:PMC10748862 | DOI:10.2147/RMHP.S436853

Pan Afr Med J. 2023 Sep 25;46:37. doi: 10.11604/pamj.2023.46.37.40310. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: perioperative anxiety in children may lead to psychological and physiological side effects. Clonidine is in increasing use in the pediatric population as an anxiolytic, sedative, and analgesic because of its central alpha2-adrenergic agonist effect. Our study aimed to evaluate the effect of clonidine in the prevention of perioperative children´s anxiety.

METHODS: we conducted a prospective controlled randomized double-blinded clinical trial including children aged between 2 and 15 years undergoing tonsillectomy surgery. The patients were randomly allocated to receive either an intranasal dose of clonidine (4 μg/kg) (clonidine group) or an equal volume dose of saline solution (control group) 30 minutes before entering the operating room. The level of anxiety assessed using the m-YPAS score was recorded before premedication, at the time of parent-child separation, and at the time of installation in the operating room. Acceptance of premedication, degree of sedation on entering the operating room as well as agitation on awakening, and sedation on arrival post-anesthesia care unit were noted. Adverse effects were recorded during the surgical procedure and in the postoperative recovery room.

RESULTS: the number of patients analyzed was 78 with 39 patients in each group. There were no signification differences in demographic data and premedication acceptance between the two groups. Levels of anxiety before any premedication were similar in the two groups. However, the anxiety level 30 minutes after premedication and in the operating room was significantly lower in the clonidine group (p<0.001). Children who received clonidine showed better sedation on entering the operating room (p=0.002) as well as postoperatively on entering the post-anesthesia unit care (p=0.006). The hemodynamic and respiratory parameters recorded were statistically comparable.

CONCLUSION: intranasal clonidine is an interesting premedication to prevent perioperative children´s anxiety with few side effects.

PMID:38145196 | PMC:PMC10746874 | DOI:10.11604/pamj.2023.46.37.40310

Ther Adv Infect Dis. 2023 Dec 21;10:20499361231220154. doi: 10.1177/20499361231220154. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) remains high worldwide. Despite the worldwide increase in the incidence of STIs every year, there are few reports on the frequency of STIs with different pathogens according to age and gender. Accordingly, a study was conducted to determine trends in co-infection with STIs by age and gender in Cheonan, South Korea from 2017 to 2021.

OBJECTIVES: To identify trends by age or sex in co-infection of STIs in this region.

DESIGN: A retrospective study was conducted on clinical samples examined at Dankook University Hospital from January 2017 to November 2021. A total of 3297 specimens were collected from patients visiting Dankook University Hospital (Cheonan, Korea), and statistical analysis was performed on patients ranging in age from 1 day to 93 years.

METHODS: Multiplex polymerase chain reaction, the most efficient method to diagnose a bacterial infection, was performed using an MJ Research PTC-200 Thermal Cycler (Marshall Scientific, Richmond, VA, USA) and a Seeplex STD Detection Kit (Seegene, Seoul, Republic of Korea). The co-infection rate with STI pathogens was analyzed according to age and sex.

RESULTS: Of the 3297 clinical samples, 1017 (30.9%) tested positive for sexually transmitted pathogens, ranging from one to six co-infections. Analysis of the co-infection rate by age revealed that the average age gradually decreased as the total number of co-infection pathogens increased. The co-infection percentage and age distribution of STIs differed according to sex. Co-infection was more prevalent in female patients. Furthermore, co-infection in male patients occurred frequently in the 30-39-year-old group, while those in female patients occurred in the 20-29- and 30-39-year-old groups.

CONCLUSION: Our statistical analysis showed that STI co-infections were more common among younger than older people. Therefore, it helps in recognizing STIs at a young age and provides possible indicator data to prevent STIs at a young age. In addition, further research is needed on co-infection in other regions.

PMID:38145192 | PMC:PMC10748651 | DOI:10.1177/20499361231220154

Med J Islam Repub Iran. 2023 Nov 11;37:120. doi: 10.47176/mjiri.37.120. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Meniscal injury is a common problem that can lead to knee pain and dysfunction. Meniscal repair and meniscectomy are two treatment approaches for meniscal injury, but the latter may increase the risk of osteoarthritis. We aimed to compare the 3-year outcomes of a new method of meniscal suturing with meniscectomy among patients with meniscal injury.

METHODS: This retrospective cohort study compared meniscal repair (treatment group) and meniscectomy (control group) in patients with meniscal injury. We evaluated the outcomes of 134 patients. under treatment with these approaches based on the Lysholm scale, which measures knee function and symptoms. The study used the chi-square test and the Mann-Whitney U test to compare the proportion of patients with different outcomes and the Lysholm scale scores between the treatment and control groups. The study also conducted subgroup analyses based on gender and age using the Mann-Whitney U test. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05 for all statistical tests.

RESULTS: The treatment group had a higher proportion of patients with excellent results, although the difference was not statistically significant (17.2% in the treatment group vs. 10.0% in the control group, P = 0.223). However, a comparative analysis of the proportion of patients with good results revealed statistically significant differences, with 67.2% of patients in the treatment group achieving good outcomes compared to 45.7% in the control group (χ2 = 6,256, df = 1 P = 0.012, HR 1,470 95%CI 1,081-1,999). The average score on the Lysholm scale was significantly higher in the treatment group (87.48, 95% CI 85.1-89.7, SD = 9.2) compared to the control group (81.73, 95% CI 78.4-84.9, SD = 13.7) (U = 1609, Z = -2.813, P = 0.005). Subgroup analyses based on gender and age also showed significant differences in the Lysholm scale scores.

CONCLUSION: The study demonstrates that meniscal repair is more effective than meniscectomy in improving patient outcomes, with a higher proportion of patients achieving excellent and good results and higher scores on the Lysholm scale. These findings support the use of meniscal repair as a preferred treatment approach for patients with meniscal injuries.

PMID:38145187 | PMC:PMC10744140 | DOI:10.47176/mjiri.37.120

Int J Cancer. 2023 Dec 24. doi: 10.1002/ijc.34821. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Excess body mass index (BMI) is associated with a higher risk of at least 13 cancers, but it is usually measured at a single time point. We tested whether the overweight-years metric, which incorporates exposure time to BMI ≥25 kg/m² , is associated with cancer risk and compared this with a single BMI measure. We used adulthood BMI readings in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study to derive the overweight-years metric. We calculated associations between the metric and BMI and the risk of cancers using Cox proportional hazards models. Models that either included the metric or BMI were compared using Harrell’s C-statistic. We included 13,463 participants, with 3,876 first primary cancers over a mean of 19 years (SD 7) of cancer follow-up. Hazard ratios for obesity-related cancers per standard deviation overweight-years were 1.15 (95% CI: 1.05-1.25) in men and 1.14 (95% CI: 1.08-1.20) in women. The difference in the C-statistic between models that incorporated BMI, or the overweight-years metric was non-significant in men and women. Overweight-years was associated with the risk of obesity-related cancers but did not outperform a single BMI measure in association performance characteristics.

PMID:38143298 | DOI:10.1002/ijc.34821

Mol Nutr Food Res. 2023 Dec 24:e2300286. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.202300286. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

SCOPE: The glucosinolate glucoraphanin from broccoli is converted to sulforaphane (SFN) or sulforaphane-nitrile (SFN-NIT) by plant enzymes or the gut microbiome. Human feeding studies typically observe high inter-individual variation in absorption and excretion of SFN, however, the source of this variation is not fully known. To address this, a human feeding trial to comprehensively evaluate inter-individual variation in the absorption and excretion of all known SFN metabolites in urine, plasma, and stool, and tested the hypothesis that gut microbiome composition influences inter-individual variation in total SFN excretion has been conducted.

METHODS AND RESULTS: Participants (n = 55) consumed a single serving of broccoli or alfalfa sprouts and plasma, stool, and total urine are collected over 72 h for quantification of SFN metabolites and gut microbiome profiling using 16S gene sequencing. SFN-NIT excretion is markedly slower than SFN excretion (72 h vs 24 h). Members of genus Bifidobacterium, Dorea, and Ruminococcus torques are positively associated with SFN metabolite excretion while members of genus Alistipes and Blautia has a negative association.

CONCLUSION: This is the first report of SFN-NIT metabolite levels in human plasma, urine, and stool following consumption of broccoli sprouts. The results help explain factors driving inter-individual variation in SFN metabolism and are relevant for precision nutrition.

PMID:38143283 | DOI:10.1002/mnfr.202300286

Genome Med. 2023 Dec 25;15(1):107. doi: 10.1186/s13073-023-01252-w.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Despite the acceleration of somatic driver gene discovery facilitated by recent large-scale tumor sequencing data, the contribution of inherited variants remains largely unexplored, primarily focusing on previously known cancer predisposition genes (CPGs) due to the low statistical power associated with detecting rare pathogenic variant-phenotype associations.

METHODS: Here, we introduce a generalized log-regression model to measure the excess of pathogenic variants within genes in cancer patients compared to control samples. It aims to measure gene-level cancer risk enrichment by collapsing rare pathogenic variants after controlling the population differences across samples.

RESULTS: In this study, we investigate whether pathogenic variants in Mendelian disease-associated genes (OMIM genes) are enriched in cancer patients compared to controls. Utilizing data from PCAWG and the 1,000 Genomes Project, we identify 103 OMIM genes demonstrating significant enrichment of pathogenic variants in cancer samples (FDR 20%). Through an integrative approach considering three distinct properties, we classify these CPG-like OMIM genes into four clusters, indicating potential diverse mechanisms underlying tumor progression. Further, we explore the function of PAH (a key metabolic enzyme associated with Phenylketonuria), the gene exhibiting the highest prevalence of pathogenic variants in a pan-cancer (1.8%) compared to controls (0.6%).

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest a possible cancer progression mechanism through metabolic profile alterations. Overall, our data indicates that pathogenic OMIM gene variants contribute to cancer progression and introduces new CPG classifications potentially underpinning diverse tumorigenesis mechanisms.

PMID:38143269 | DOI:10.1186/s13073-023-01252-w

Ann Surg Oncol. 2023 Dec 24. doi: 10.1245/s10434-023-14734-3. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:38143265 | DOI:10.1245/s10434-023-14734-3

Hum Genet. 2023 Dec 24. doi: 10.1007/s00439-023-02627-0. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

It remains challenging to translate the findings from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of autoimmune diseases (AIDs) into interventional targets, presumably due to the lack of knowledge on how the GWAS risk variants contribute to AIDs. In addition, current immunomodulatory drugs for AIDs are broad in action rather than disease-specific. We performed a comprehensive protein-centric omics integration analysis to identify AIDs-associated plasma proteins through integrating protein quantitative trait loci datasets of plasma protein (1348 proteins and 7213 individuals) and totally ten large-scale GWAS summary statistics of AIDs under a cutting-edge systematic analytic framework. Specifically, we initially screened out the protein-AID associations using proteome-wide association study (PWAS), followed by enrichment analysis to reveal the underlying biological processes and pathways. Then, we performed both Mendelian randomization (MR) and colocalization analyses to further identify protein-AID pairs with putatively causal relationships. We finally prioritized the potential drug targets for AIDs. A total of 174 protein-AID associations were identified by PWAS. AIDs-associated plasma proteins were significantly enriched in immune-related biological process and pathways, such as inflammatory response (P = 3.96 × 10^-10). MR analysis further identified 97 protein-AID pairs with potential causal relationships, among which 21 pairs were highly supported by colocalization analysis (PP.H4 > 0.75), 10 of 21 were the newly discovered pairs and not reported in previous GWAS analyses. Further explorations showed that four proteins (TLR3, FCGR2A, IL23R, TCN1) have corresponding drugs, and 17 proteins have druggability. These findings will help us to further understand the biological mechanism of AIDs and highlight the potential of these proteins to develop as therapeutic targets for AIDs.

PMID:38143258 | DOI:10.1007/s00439-023-02627-0