Tag: statistics

Glob Health Promot. 2023 Mar 4:17579759231153130. doi: 10.1177/17579759231153130. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Among all road users, pedestrian behavior is most unpredictable, and our knowledge of pedestrian behavior and compliance in northern Iran is limited. The aim of the study was to determine the self-reporting behavior of pedestrians and related factors in northern Iran in 2021. This cross-sectional study’s research tool included demographic characteristics, social characteristics, and a pedestrian behavior questionnaire (PBS – 43 questions). Data collection was randomly performed in 30 different passages around Rasht (a city in the north of Iran). We used the Poisson regression model and statistical software STATA version 15 for data analysis. With increasing age, pedestrians showed better crossing behavior (p < 0.001, β = 0.202), and the behavior of female pedestrians was better than that of male pedestrians (p < 0.001, β -4.79). As pedestrians, those with private jobs had worse crossing behavior than others (p < 0.045, β = 9.380), and those pedestrians who mentioned they were motorcyclists before had worse crossing behavior than others (p < 0.045, β = 9.380). The findings of this study can be used to establish pedestrian safety and preventative planning. In behavior change intervention programs, it is best to target young male pedestrians aiming to walk to their workplace, a private business. In addition, the behavior of pedestrians whose predominant means of transportation is the motorcycle must be corrected. It is necessary to conduct information campaigns and educational programs for pedestrians with common high-risk behaviors, especially errors and violations.

PMID:36869640 | DOI:10.1177/17579759231153130

Stat Med. 2023 Mar 4. doi: 10.1002/sim.9695. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Rare binary events data arise frequently in medical research. Due to lack of statistical power in individual studies involving such data, meta-analysis has become an increasingly important tool for combining results from multiple independent studies. However, traditional meta-analysis methods often report severely biased estimates in such rare-event settings. Moreover, many rely on models assuming a pre-specified direction for variability between control and treatment groups for mathematical convenience, which may be violated in practice. Based on a flexible random-effects model that removes the assumption about the direction, we propose new Bayesian procedures for estimating and testing the overall treatment effect and inter-study heterogeneity. Our Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm employs Pólya-Gamma augmentation so that all conditionals are known distributions, greatly facilitating computational efficiency. Our simulation shows that the proposed approach generally reports less biased and more stable estimates compared to existing methods. We further illustrate our approach using two real examples, one using rosiglitazone data from 56 studies and the other using stomach ulcers data from 41 studies.

PMID:36869639 | DOI:10.1002/sim.9695

Eur J Neurol. 2023 Mar 3. doi: 10.1111/ene.15764. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Primary progressive apraxia of speech (PPAOS) is associated with imaging abnormalities in lateral premotor cortex (LPC) and supplementary motor area (SMA). It’s unknown whether relatively greater involvement of these regions in either hemisphere is associated with demographics, presenting, and/or longitudinal features.

METHODS: In 51 prospectively recruited PPAOS patients who completed [¹⁸ F]-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET we classified patients as left-dominant, right-dominant, or symmetric, based on visual assessment of the LPC and SMA on FDG-PET. SPM and statistical analysis of regional metabolic values were performed. Diagnosis of PPAOS was made if AOS was present and aphasia absent. Thirteen patients completed Ioflupane-123I (DAT) scans. We compared cross-sectional and longitudinal clinicopathological, genetic, and neuroimaging characteristics across the three groups, with area under the receiver operator curve (AUROC) determined as a measure of effect size.

RESULTS: 49% of the PPAOS patients were classified as left-dominant, 31% as right-dominant, and 20% as symmetric which was supported by results from the SPM and regional analyses. There were no differences in baseline characteristics. Longitudinally, right-dominant PPAOS showed faster rates of progression of ideomotor apraxia (AUROC=0.79), behavioral disturbances (AUROC=0.84), including disinhibition symptoms (AUROC=0.82) and negative behaviors (AUROC=0.82), and Parkinsonism (AUROC=0.75), compared to left-dominant PPAOS. Symmetric PPAOS showed faster rates of dysarthria progression compared to left-dominant (AUROC=0.89) and right-dominant PPAOS (AUROC=0.79). Five patients showed abnormal DAT uptake. Braak neurofibrillary tangle stage differed across groups (p=0.01).

CONCLUSIONS: Patients with PPAOS and a right-dominant pattern of hypometabolism on FDG-PET have fastest rates of decline of behavioral and motor features.

PMID:36869612 | DOI:10.1111/ene.15764

Brain Behav. 2023 Mar 3:e2865. doi: 10.1002/brb3.2865. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: The false discovery rate (FDR) procedure does not incorporate the geometry of the random field and requires high statistical power at each voxel, a requirement not satisfied by the limited number of participants in imaging studies. Topological FDR, threshold free cluster enhancement (TFCE), and probabilistic TFCE improve statistical power by incorporating local geometry. However, topological FDR requires specifying a cluster defining threshold and TFCE requires specifying transformation weights.

METHODS: Geometry-derived statistical significance (GDSS) procedure overcomes these limitations by combining voxelwise p-values for the test statistic with the probabilities computed from the local geometry for the random field, thereby providing substantially greater statistical power than the procedures currently used to control for multiple comparisons. We use synthetic data and real-world data to compare its performance against the performance of these other, previously developed procedures.

RESULTS: GDSS provided substantially greater statistical power relative to the comparator procedures, which was less variable to the number of participants. GDSS was more conservative than TFCE: that is, it rejected null hypotheses at voxels with much higher effect sizes than TFCE. Our experiments also showed that the Cohen’s D effect size decreases as the number of participants increases. Therefore, sample size calculations from small studies may underestimate the participants required in larger studies. Our findings also suggest effect size maps should be presented along with p-value maps for correct interpretation of findings.

CONCLUSIONS: GDSS compared with the other procedures provides considerably greater statistical power for detecting true positives while limiting false positives, especially in small sized (<40 participants) imaging cohorts.

PMID:36869597 | DOI:10.1002/brb3.2865

Biophys J. 2023 Mar 3:S0006-3495(23)00154-6. doi: 10.1016/j.bpj.2023.03.001. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Essential cellular processes such as metabolism, protein synthesis, and autophagy require the intracellular transport of membrane-bound vesicles. The importance of the cytoskeleton and associated molecular motors for transport is well-documented. Recent research has suggested that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) may also play a role in vesicle transport through a tethering of vesicles to the ER. We use single particle tracking fluorescence microscopy and a Bayesian changepoint algorithm to characterize vesicle motility in response to the disruption of the ER, actin, and microtubules. This high-throughput changepoint algorithm allows us to efficiently analyze thousands of trajectory segments. We find that palmitate-mediated disruption of the ER leads to a significant decrease in vesicle motility. A comparison with the disruption of actin and microtubules shows that disruption of the ER has a significant impact on vesicle motility, greater than the disruption of actin. Vesicle motility was dependent on cellular region, with greater motility in the cell periphery than the perinuclear region, possibly due to regional differences in actin and the ER. Overall, these results suggest that the ER is an important factor in vesicle transport.

PMID:36869590 | DOI:10.1016/j.bpj.2023.03.001

Med Sci Monit. 2023 Mar 4;29:e938758. doi: 10.12659/MSM.938758.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND Delayed graft function (DGF) caused by ischemia-reperfusion injury is a common pathophysiological process that should be monitored by specific biomarkers in addition to serum creatinine. Thus, this single-center retrospective study aimed to investigate the association between levels of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), kidney injury molecular-1 (KIM-1), liver-type fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP), and interleukin-18 (IL-18) in DGF associated with acute kidney injury in kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 3 years post-transplant. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 102 KTRs [14(13.7%) of DGF and 88(86.3%) of NON-DGF] were enrolled. DGF was defined as “dialysis is needed within 1 week after kidney transplantation”. NGAL, KIM-1, L-FABP, and IL-18 were obtained from perfusate samples of donation-after-cardiac-death (DCD) kidneys, and measured by ELISA. RESULTS Compared to the NON-DGF group, KTRs in the DGF group had a statistically significant increase in levels of NGAL (P<0.001) and KIM-1 (P<0.001). Multiple logistic regression analyses showed that NGAL (OR=1.204, 95% CI 1.057-1.372, P=0.005) and KIM-1 (OR=1.248, CI=1.065-1.463, P=0.006) could be regarded as independent risk factors. The accuracy of NGAL and KIM-1 was 83.3% and 82.1%, respectively, calculated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Furthermore, the eGFR at 3 years post-transplant had a moderate negative correlation with NGAL (r=-0.208, P=0.036) and KIM-1 (r=-0.260, P=0.008). CONCLUSIONS Our results support those from previous studies showing that perfusate levels of NGAL and KIM-1 are associated with DGF in KTRs and also with reduced eGFR at 3 years post-transplant.

PMID:36869580 | DOI:10.12659/MSM.938758

J Eval Clin Pract. 2023 Mar 3. doi: 10.1111/jep.13825. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Patient and family-centred care (PFCC) is a healthcare model has been acknowledged as the central pillar in the paediatric health care that recognizes the family’s role and experience in the health care delivery.

AIMS: This study investigated and compared the perception of PFCC from the perspective of staff and parents of hospitalized children and adolescents.

METHODS: A quantitative and comparative cross-sectional survey was used in a convenience sample of 105 staff and 116 parents, who completed the Brazilian versions of the Perceptions of Family Centred Care-Parent and Staff questionnaires, with additional questions on their characteristics. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used, as well as the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests and Spearman’s correlation coefficient.

RESULTS: Both parents and staff responses were positive and parents had significantly higher scores for 19 of the 20 items (p < 0.001). The item related to parental participation did not show any significant difference between the groups.

CONCLUSION: The positive perception of PFCC for both groups is consistent with recommendations for expanded care that includes patient and family in healthcare settings. Parents’ perception was more positive than staff perceptions of their delivery of family-centred care in hospital. The lowest score for the parent support subscale in both groups requires investigation.

PMID:36869575 | DOI:10.1111/jep.13825

Australas J Ageing. 2023 Mar 3. doi: 10.1111/ajag.13187. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Individuals with schizophrenia develop dementia in late life at higher rates than the general population. This is arguably explained by high rates of chronic medical conditions and exposure to antipsychotic medications. This risk has implications for public health. We aimed to test this in a large New Zealand database.

METHODS: Participants in this study were New Zealanders aged 65 years or older who had an interRAI assessment completed during the study period (July 2013-June 2020). This cohort study analysed data from 168,780 individuals. The majority were European (87%), and mostly assessment was for home care (86%).

RESULTS: There were 2103 individuals with schizophrenia, 1.25% of the total sample, mean age of 75 years (±1.9) and 61% female. A minority of individuals with schizophrenia, 23%, also had a dementia diagnosis. At 82 years of age (±1.7) and 60% female, 25% of individuals without schizophrenia had a dementia diagnosis; the difference from rate of dementia in individuals with schizophrenia was not statistically significant.

CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that further study is needed about the processes that lead to dementia diagnoses in older individuals with schizophrenia.

PMID:36869573 | DOI:10.1111/ajag.13187

Food Res Int. 2023 Mar;165:112517. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2023.112517. Epub 2023 Jan 26.

ABSTRACT

Flavored milk drink is a popular dairy product traditionally processed by pasteurization, which is a safe and robust process. Still, it can imply a greater energy expenditure and a more significant sensorial alteration. Ohmic heating (OH) has been proposed as an alternative to dairy processing, including flavored milk drink. However, its impact on sensory characteristics needs to be evidenced. This study used Free Comment, an underexplored methodology in sensory studies, to characterize five samples of high-protein vanilla-flavored milk drink: PAST (conventional pasteurization 72 °C/15 s); OH6 (ohmic heating at 5.22 V/cm); OH8 (ohmic heating at 6.96 V/cm); OH10 (ohmic heating at 8.70 V/cm), and OH12 (ohmic heating at 10.43 V/cm). Free Comment raised similar descriptors to those found in studies that used more consolidated descriptive methods. The employed statistical approach allowed observation that pasteurization and OH treatment have different effects on the sensory profile of products, and the electrical field strength of OH also has a significant impact. PAST was slightly to moderately negatively associated with “acid taste,” “fresh milk taste,” “smoothness,” “sweet taste,” “vanilla flavor,” “vanilla aroma,” “viscous,” and “white color.” On the other hand, OH processing with more intense electric fields (OH10 and OH12) produced flavored milk drinks strongly associated with the “in natura” milk descriptors (“fresh milk aroma” and “fresh milk taste”). Furthermore, the products were characterized by the descriptors “homogeneous,” “sweet aroma,” “sweet taste,” “vanilla aroma,” “white color,” “vanilla taste,” and “smoothness.” In parallel, less intense electric fields (OH6 and OH8) produced samples more associated with a bitter taste, viscosity, and lumps presence. Sweet taste and fresh milk taste were the drivers of liking. In conclusion, OH with more intense electric fields (OH10 and OH12) was promising in flavored milk drink processing. Furthermore, the free comment was a valuable approach to characterize and identify the drivers of liking of high-protein flavored milk drink submitted to OH.

PMID:36869518 | DOI:10.1016/j.foodres.2023.112517

Food Res Int. 2023 Mar;165:112508. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2023.112508. Epub 2023 Jan 25.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of fermentation and food matrix on the ACE inhibitory activities of the peptides obtained after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion, protein profiles (SDS-PAGE) and β-glucan amounts of oat products. Furthermore, the physicochemical and microbiological properties of fermented oat drinks and oat yogurt-like product obtained from oat fermentation were evaluated. Oat grains were mixed with a certain ratio of water 1:3 w/v (oat:water, yogurt consistency) and 1:5 w/v (oat:water, drink consistency), and this mixture was fermented with yogurt culture and probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum and fermented drinks and yogurt were produced. The results indicated that the fermented oat drink and the oat yogurt-like product had L. plantarum viability over 10⁷ cfu/g. After the in vitro gastrointestinal digestion of the samples, the hydrolysis levels ranged from 57.70 % to 82.06 %.The hydrolysis level of the samples with fermented-drink consistency was significantly higher than the samples with yogurt consistency (p < 0.05).The SDS-PAGE profiles of the non-digested samples showed that the bands had molecular weights of 12-15 kDa and around 35 kDa. Bands whose molecular weights were around 35 kDA disappeared after gastric digestion. ACE inhibitory activities of the fractions composed of molecular weights of 2 kDa and 2-5 kDa obtained after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion of the oat samples were in the range of 46.93-65.91 %. The effect of fermentation on the ACE inhibitory activities of the peptide mixture with molecular weights between 2 and 5 kDa was not statistically significant, however, fermentation caused an increase in the ACE inhibitory activities of the peptide mixture with a molecular weight<2 kDa (p < 0.05). The β-glucan amounts of fermented and non-fermented oat products were in the range of 0.57-1.28 %. The β-glucan amounts detected after gastric digestion decreased considerably and β-glucan could not be detected in the supernatant after gastrointestinal digestion. This indicated that β-glucan did not solubilize in the supernatant (bioaccessible) and remained in the pellet. In conclusion, fermentation is a valuable process for releasing peptides with moderately high ACE inhibitory effects from the parent oat proteins.

PMID:36869510 | DOI:10.1016/j.foodres.2023.112508