Tag: statistics

Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 May 2;104(18):e42295. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000042295.

ABSTRACT

To examine the correlation between negative cognitive processing bias and the mental health, sleep status of peacekeepers across various time periods to establish a benchmark for peacekeeper mental health interventions. Symptom checklist 90 (SCL-90), Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), and negative cognitive processing bias questionnaire (NCPBQ) were adopted to investigate 172 Chinese peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the early and middle stages of the mission. There was no statistically significant difference in the overall score of PSQI between the early and middle stages of the mission (P = .699). However, there was a statistically significant difference in the overall score of SCL-90 and NCPBQ (P < .05). Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between the negative cognitive processing bias and the scores of SCL-90 and PSQI (R = 0.114-0.528, P < .05). A negative cognitive processing bias was also found to be a strong predictor of the overall score on the SCL-90 and PSQI assessments, with explanation rates of 27.3% and 17.5%, respectively. Peacekeepers are prone to experiencing psychological issues during the initial phase of their mission, necessitating careful attention. The presence of negative cognitive processing bias significantly impacts both mental health and sleep quality. Alleviating negative cognitive processing bias can potentially enhance the mental well-being and sleep quality of peacekeepers.

PMID:40324253 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000042295

Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 May 2;104(18):e42277. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000042277.

ABSTRACT

Lung ultrasound (LUS) is a noninvasive, easily repeatable, and radiation-free technique that can be applied at the bedside and is used increasingly often in patient management. This study aims to examine the relationship between the mortality of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia followed in the intensive care unit and their LUS scores obtained by evaluating different areas of the thorax and to reveal the prognostic value of this method. Fifty patients diagnosed with COVID-19 by PCR tests and followed in our intensive care unit were included in this study. The LUS scores were obtained within 24 hours of the patients’ hospitalization. The patients’ demographic data, APACHE II and SOFA scores, laboratory data, and survival status were retrospectively reviewed. Comparisons were made according to 28-day mortality. The mortality rate was found to be 31 (62%) among all patients included in the study. The LUS scores of the patients who died were statistically significantly higher than those of patients who survived (30.77 ± 4.31 vs 24.21 ± 5.4, P = .001). The APACHE II (P = .001) and SOFA scores (P < .001) and lactate (P = .020) and ferritin (P = .005) levels of the patients who died were also significantly higher. In correlation analysis, LUS scores were positively correlated with APACHE II (R = 0.379, P = .007) and SOFA (R = 0.457, P = .001) scores, while they were negatively correlated with PaO2 (r = -0.483, P = .001) and PaO2/FiO2 (r = -0.297, P = .036). ROC curve analysis revealed that LUS scores of ≥ 30 predicted mortality with 80.65% sensitivity and 84.21% specificity (AUC: 0.836, P = .001). The likelihood of observing a LUS score of ≥ 30 in the patients who died was 22.222 times higher compared to surviving patients (odds ratio for LUS score: 22.222, 95% confidence interval: 4.854-101.741). We determined in this study that LUS scores successfully predicted the prognosis of COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit. Therefore, the LUS score can provide significant information to clinicians for patient management and the determination of the degree of lung involvement.

PMID:40324231 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000042277

Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 May 2;104(18):e42214. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000042214.

ABSTRACT

The aim was to study the morphological and positional characteristics of temporomandibular joints (TMJ) in adult females with different vertical bony facial types of bony class II. A total of 60 adult females with bony class II were divided into high-angle group, low-angle group, and an average-angle group in the Frankfort horizontal plane-gonion-gnathion angle (MP-FH). In the control group, there were 20 patients with bony class I homogeneous angle, and the ages of each group were between 18 and 35 years old. Dolphin software was used to generate lateral cranial views and perform fixed-point tracing. Invivo 5.3 software was used to reconstruct the 3-dimensional image of the TMJ, and the following items were measured under the view of the TMJ: (1) bony structures such as condyle and fossa and (2) condyle position. The statistical software SPSS27.0 was used to collate and analyze the data. There was no significant difference in bilateral TMJ measurements between the groups (P > .05). Compared with the other groups, the long axis of the condyle, short axis, and supra-articular space (SS) were larger, the fossa depth was deeper, articular eminence inclination was steeper, the long-term axis and the short axis of the high angle were smaller, the fossa depth, and articular eminence inclination were smaller, the anterior articular space was larger (P < .05), and the supra-articular and posterior spaces were smaller. The position of the condyle was mainly in the median and anterior positions in the control group, the anterior and posterior positions in the average angle group, the median and posterior positions in the low-angle group, and the posterior position in the high-angle group. The morphology and position of bilateral TMJ were basically symmetrical between the skeletal class II adult females and the control group, and the position and morphology of the TMJ in the vertical skeletal type of adult females with bony class II were different.

PMID:40324230 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000042214

Medicine (Baltimore). 2025 May 2;104(18):e42345. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000042345.

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised critical concerns about its long-term effects on cardiovascular health, particularly concerning autonomic nervous system (ANS) function. Little is known about the differences in ANS function between physically active and inactive individuals exposed and nonexposed to COVID-19. This study aimed to compare the impact of self-reported physical activity on ANS function using heart rate variability (HRV) metrics in individuals exposed and nonexposed to COVID-19. In total 142 participants from the Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia, were divided into exposed (n = 70) and nonexposed (n = 71) groups based on their COVID-19 exposure. HRV was assessed using photoplethysmography and analyzed using time and frequency domains. Physical activity was assessed using simple yes or no question, and duration was categorized into less than 30 minutes, 30 minutes, and more than 30 minutes. Physically active participants generally exhibited higher HRV metrics, suggesting better autonomic function, although this effect was more pronounced in the nonexposed group. Interestingly, the low-frequency to high-frequency ratio was the only HRV metric that showed a statistically significant difference between active and inactive participants in the nonexposed group (P = .04). There were no significant differences in HRV metrics based on the duration of reported physical activity in either the COVID-19-exposed or nonexposed groups. The study underscored the importance of monitoring cardiovascular health in post-COVID-19 populations and suggested that while physical activity is beneficial, the virus may blunted its benefits. Further research is needed to explore the long-term implications of COVID-19 on autonomic function and the potential for physical activity to mitigate these effects.

PMID:40324227 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000042345

Cogn Neuropsychol. 2025 May 5:1-22. doi: 10.1080/02643294.2025.2498154. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

We investigated visual working memory (VWM) for faces and two novel non-face pattern types (Blobs and Mondrians) in individuals with developmental prosopagnosia (DP) and age-matched controls. Participants completed both simultaneous and sequential encoding tasks, judging whether a probe item matched one shown at encoding. DPs showed a consistent face disadvantage across both encoding types, while controls showed a face advantage, but only during simultaneous encoding. Compared to controls, DPs had impaired face VWM in both tasks but performed equivalently for abstract shapes and patterns. Face VWM impairments in DP were not exacerbated by increased memory load or updating demands, suggesting these deficits stem from face perception difficulties that affect encoding rather than general VWM mechanisms. Our group-based analyses were supplemented by individual case statistics. Overall, our findings indicate that DPs do not exhibit general VWM deficits, but rather specific difficulties with face processing across formats.

PMID:40324216 | DOI:10.1080/02643294.2025.2498154

J Med Internet Res. 2025 May 5;27:e69284. doi: 10.2196/69284.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Mental health is emerging as an increasingly prevalent public issue globally. There is an urgent need in mental health for efficient detection methods, effective treatments, affordable privacy-focused health care solutions, and increased access to specialized psychiatrists. The emergence and rapid development of large language models (LLMs) have shown the potential to address these mental health demands. However, a comprehensive review summarizing the application areas, processes, and performance comparisons of LLMs in mental health has been lacking until now.

OBJECTIVE: This review aimed to summarize the applications of LLMs in mental health, including trends, application areas, performance comparisons, challenges, and prospective future directions.

METHODS: A scoping review was conducted to map the landscape of LLMs’ applications in mental health, including trends, application areas, comparative performance, and future trajectories. We searched 7 electronic databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane Library, IEEE Xplore, Weipu, CNKI, and Wanfang, from January 1, 2019, to August 31, 2024. Studies eligible for inclusion were peer-reviewed articles focused on LLMs’ applications in mental health. Studies were excluded if they (1) were not peer-reviewed or did not focus on mental health or mental disorders or (2) did not use LLMs; studies that used only natural language processing or long short-term memory models were also excluded. Relevant information on application details and performance metrics was extracted during the data charting of eligible articles.

RESULTS: A total of 95 articles were drawn from 4859 studies using LLMs for mental health tasks. The applications were categorized into 3 key areas: screening or detection of mental disorders (67/95, 71%), supporting clinical treatments and interventions (31/95, 33%), and assisting in mental health counseling and education (11/95, 12%). Most studies used LLMs for depression detection and classification (33/95, 35%), clinical treatment support and intervention (14/95, 15%), and suicide risk prediction (12/95, 13%). Compared with nontransformer models and humans, LLMs demonstrate higher capabilities in information acquisition and analysis and efficiently generating natural language responses. Various series of LLMs also have different advantages and disadvantages in addressing mental health tasks.

CONCLUSIONS: This scoping review synthesizes the applications, processes, performance, and challenges of LLMs in the mental health field. These findings highlight the substantial potential of LLMs to augment mental health research, diagnostics, and intervention strategies, underscoring the imperative for ongoing development and ethical deliberation in clinical settings.

PMID:40324177 | DOI:10.2196/69284

JMIR Res Protoc. 2025 May 5;14:e72091. doi: 10.2196/72091.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Veterans are more likely to experience chronic pain than civilians, with significant negative impacts on long-term health outcomes. Evidence for the effectiveness of prescription opioids for chronic pain management is limited, and chronic use of opioids is associated with an increased risk of sleep-disordered breathing, cardiovascular complications, and bowel dysfunction, as well as opioid misuse and overdose. Veterans Affairs (VA) and Department of Defense guidelines are prioritizing low-risk, evidence-based interdisciplinary pain management strategies while optimizing pain-related outcomes (PRO) for veterans. Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF)-Accredited VA Interdisciplinary Pain Rehabilitation Programs (IPRPs) have shared characteristics, while maintaining their unique characteristics as individual pain management programs. Though little is known about the characteristics of VA’s IPRPs (eg, staffing, services, and patients served), implementation, and sustainability of these mandated programs.

OBJECTIVE: The goals of our operational partner-driven evaluation are to (1) characterize IPRPs across multiple program factors, including but not limited to, service delivery methods, team composition, program characteristics, services and modalities offered, and patients served; (2) triangulate data to inform data visualization that characterizes and illustrates the IPRPs individually and collectively as a system of care; and (3) identify patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and metrics to measure program effectiveness and determine overlap across IPRPs.

METHODS: This partnered-driven program evaluation will use a sequential mixed methods prospective design, including interviews and surveys. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework, and Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) strategies will be used to contextualize qualitative data. Rapid content analysis will be used to iteratively analyze qualitative data, while descriptive statistics will be used to analyze quantitative data. Datasets will be triangulated to support data visualization for partners to inform clinical and operational decision support.

RESULTS: As of April 2025, All IPRP sites are engaged, and survey and interview data have been collected and prepared for analysis. The results and deliverables will inform VA CARF-accredited IPRP characterization, evaluation, and implementation as a learning health system.

CONCLUSIONS: The results of this evaluation will characterize CARF-accredited IPRPs and identify determinants affecting the implementation of this complex intervention, made up of multiple evidence-based practices. Partner-driven data will inform the state of implementation at each site, and quantitative measures will provide options for collecting standardized outcome measures for continued program evaluation. This operational partner-driven evaluation will inform future efforts for quality improvement to improve veterans’ pain management outcomes. This protocol informs the use of a mixed methods approach to evaluate a multimodal intervention (ie, IPRP), made up of multiple evidence-based practices to treat a complex comorbid condition. Future work may include data management infrastructure development and cost evaluations to inform clinical and operational decision-making.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/72091.

PMID:40324171 | DOI:10.2196/72091

Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2025 Apr 30:1-47. doi: 10.3310/MWKJ5102. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes is considered a critical challenge to modern healthcare systems. The National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme delivered an evidence-based behaviour change programme at a national scale to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes in England.

OBJECTIVE(S): The Diabetes Prevention – Long-term Multimethod Assessment research programme provided a comprehensive assessment of the delivery of the National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme and its effectiveness and cost-effectiveness.

DESIGN: Mixed-methods research including qualitative methods, observations, patient surveys and secondary analysis of administrative and survey data using statistical and econometric methods.

SETTING: Community settings in England delivering the commissioned intervention, supported by general practices responsible for recruitment and referral.

PARTICIPANTS: Patients in community settings identified as being at high risk of type 2 diabetes offered and participating in the National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme, and staff involved in the organisation and delivery of the service.

INTERVENTIONS: The National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme, including its evidence-based behaviour change intervention (using both face-to-face and digital platforms) and the associated services for patient recruitment.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Incidence of type 2 diabetes, cost-effectiveness, access to the programme and fidelity of intervention delivery.

DATA SOURCES: Interviews with patients and staff, document analysis and observations of the National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme delivery, patient surveys, secondary data (including National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme data, national surveys and audits).

RESULTS: The National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme was associated with significant reductions in incidence of type 2 diabetes and was highly likely to be cost-effective. Analyses of the delivery of the programme highlighted several aspects which impacted access to the programme and the fidelity with which the behaviour change intervention was delivered. For example, uptake and adherence were influenced by participants’ psychosocial beliefs (e.g. chance of getting type 2 diabetes and whether taking part would reduce this). There were large differences between general practices in how many people they referred to the programme, with practices that offered higher-quality care for people with diabetes referring more. Variation in retention and outcomes was associated with differences in providers.

LIMITATIONS: Analysis of administrative data to explore effectiveness and cost-effectiveness may be influenced by confounding. Recruitment of diverse and representative samples for surveys, interviews and observations was likely impacted by selection.

CONCLUSIONS: The National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme is highly likely to be cost-effective. Data from Diabetes Prevention – Long-term Multimethod Assessment have been used to improve aspects of programme delivery and could suggest further enhancements to improve recruitment, retention and fidelity.

FUTURE WORK: Future research should address the question of whether the National Health Service Diabetes Prevention Programme prevents or delays type 2 diabetes when longer-term follow-up data are available. We identified factors that could be targeted to impact on recruitment, retention and inequalities, and recommend a robust assessment of the link between fidelity and outcomes.

FUNDING: This synopsis presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme as award number 16/48/07.

PMID:40323644 | DOI:10.3310/MWKJ5102

J Med Internet Res. 2025 May 5;27:e66463. doi: 10.2196/66463.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Disorders of the patella are among the most prevalent knee injuries. While exercise therapy is widely accepted as an effective treatment strategy, the positive effects of conventional exercise therapy under the guidance of a physiotherapist may be offset by inherent limitations, such as difficulties in scheduling appointments or statutory policies restricting the number of training sessions. Home-based exercise interventions using digital health applications (DHAs) may help address some of these limitations.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the efficacy of a 12-week exercise intervention using a web-based DHA for improving knee function and reducing pain in patients with disorders of the patella (International Classification of Diseases code M22).

METHODS: The outcomes of the DHA intervention group (IG) were compared to a control group (CG) that received conventional physiotherapy covered by statutory health insurance in Germany (SHI-PT). A total of 259 patients with diagnosed disorders of the patella were included in the trial and randomly allocated to IG DHA (n=136, 52.5%) and CG SHI-PT (n=123, 47.5%). Two primary end points were examined: “knee function” (Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score-Activities of Daily Living [KOOS_ADL] subscale, range 0-100 points) and “knee pain” (visual analog scale [VAS], range 0-100 points). Participants were asked to complete 2 surveys: one before the first therapy session (PRE) and one after completing the treatment period of 12 weeks (POST).

RESULTS: Training with the DHA resulted in a 4.5-fold greater improvement in “knee function” (PRE-POST differences in KOOS_ADL score; IG DHA: 15.7 points, 95% CI 13.7-17.6 vs CG SHI-PT: 3.5 points, 95% CI 1.5-5.5) and a 3.5-fold greater reduction in “knee pain” (PRE-POST differences in VAS pain score; IG DHA: -22.5 points, 95% CI -25.2 to -19.9 vs CG SHI-PT: -6.5 points, 95% CI -8.7 to -4.4) compared to SHI-PT. The improvements in IG DHA exceeded the limits of clinical relevance. The differences between the treatment groups (KOOS_ADL score -10.1 points, 95% CI -infinity to -8.0; VAS pain score 14.3 points 95% CI 11.7-infinity) were statistically significant (P<.001) for both end points in favor of IG DHA. No effect was found for age or sex. The reported use of pain medication decreased substantially in IG DHA, and showed almost no change in CG SHI-PT.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicated that the investigated DHA is superior to SHI-PT for treating disorders of the patella. Therefore, DHA has been approved by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices for treating disorders of the patella in persons of all sexes aged ≥12 years.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS) DRKS00023454; https://drks.de/search/en/trial/DRKS00023454.

PMID:40323642 | DOI:10.2196/66463

J Craniofac Surg. 2025 May 5. doi: 10.1097/SCS.0000000000011364. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Reverse engineering techniques, including computed tomography (CT) equipment and 3-dimensional (3D) scanners, enable the acquisition of digital data for computational modeling and biomodel plotting. The objective of this study was to evaluate the dimensional fidelity of rapid prototyping (RP) biomodels obtained from different CT and 3D scanner equipment. Five dry mandibles were scanted by multidetector and cone beam CT equipment and 3D scanner. The data were processed in a standardized way to construct RP biomodels by the technique of deposition of molten material. Linear measurements were performed on dry mandibles and biomodels. The results revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between the measurements of dry mandibles and biomodels, but there was a difference between the measurements of the biomodels obtained by multidetector CT in relation to the other equipment (P=0.02). There was no significant difference in the measurements of the posterior region of the mandible (P=0.09), but in the anterior region the biomodels obtained by CBCT showed a significant difference in relation to the dry mandible (P=0.0002). Dimensional error was irrelevant to clinical practice. The biomodels produced were accurate for use in the biomedical area, although the anterior region of the mandible presents dimensional discrepancy when cone beam CT is used.

PMID:40323638 | DOI:10.1097/SCS.0000000000011364