Tag: statistics

PLoS One. 2023 Mar 6;18(3):e0270777. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270777. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Overweight is a global public health problem with increasing trend especially in middle to lower socioeconomic country like Nepal. The nutritional status of adolescents being shaped by socio-cultural, environmental, and economic factors has also been impacted by their food habits and level of physical activity. The current nutritional shift and rapid urbanization had emerged overweight as an additional burden for consistently prevalent undernutrition issues. So, the study aimed to identify the prevalence of and risk factors for overweight among school adolescents.

METHODS: A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out among random sample of 279 adolescents from nine schools of a Sub-metropolitan city of Nepal. The anthropometric measurement of the height and the weight were taken as per the standard. The odds ratio with a 95% CI was calculated and a p-value of ≤0.05 was considered as cut off for statistical significance by fitting into the final multivariable logistic regression.

RESULTS: The overall prevalence of overweight was obtained as 9.31% (95% CI: 6.40-13.3). The early aged adolescents were more overweight than compared to middle-aged adolescents (AOR: 0.27, CI: 0.028-2.67) and late adolescents (AOR: 0.66, CI: 0.068-6.44) respectively. Similarly, adolescents residing in rural areas had 0.35 (AOR = 0.33, CI: 0.030-3.71) odds of being overweight compared to their counterparts. Adolescents with sedentary behavior were about 4 times (AOR = 3.51, CI: 0.79-15.54) more likely of being overweight than their counterparts.

CONCLUSION: Overweight among adolescents residing in urban areas has emerged as an alarming issue due to their unhealthy lifestyle habits. It is therefore pertinent to emphasize adolescents to maintain healthy weight status through health food habits and physical activity.

PMID:36877713 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0270777

PLoS One. 2023 Mar 6;18(3):e0282651. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282651. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

Subsurface foraging is an important proportion of the activity budget of rorqual whales, yet information on their behaviour underwater remains challenging to obtain. Rorquals are assumed to feed throughout the water column and to select prey as a function of depth, availability and density, but there remain limitations in the precise identification of targeted prey. Current data on rorqual foraging in western Canadian waters have thus been limited to observations of prey species amenable to surface feeding, such as euphausiids and Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii), with no information on deeper alternative prey sources. We measured the foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Juan de Fuca Strait, British Columbia, using three complimentary methods: whale-borne tag data, acoustic prey mapping, and fecal sub-sampling. Acoustically detected prey layers were near the seafloor and consistent with dense schools of walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) distributed above more diffuse aggregations of pollock. Analysis of a fecal sample from the tagged whale confirmed that it had been feeding on pollock. Integrating the dive profile with the prey data revealed that the whale’s foraging effort followed the general pattern of areal prey density, wherein the whale had a higher lunge-feeding rate at the highest prey abundance and stopped feeding when prey became limited. Our findings of a humpback whale feeding on seasonally energy-dense fish like walleye pollock, which are potentially abundant in British Columbia, suggests that pollock may be an important prey source for this rapidly growing whale population. This result is informative when assessing regional fishing activities for semi-pelagic species as well as the whales’ vulnerability to fishing gear entanglements and feeding disturbances during a narrow window of prey acquisition.

PMID:36877706 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0282651

PLoS One. 2023 Mar 6;18(3):e0282696. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282696. eCollection 2023.

ABSTRACT

It has long been understood that there exists a strong association between a student’s belief in the future utility of mathematics and their self-efficacy in mathematics. This study re-examines this association by studying these variables based on data collected from a sample of 21,444 ninth-grade students who participated in the 2009 High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS09). The nature of the association between future utility beliefs of students in mathematics and self-efficacy of students in mathematics is explored visually using the simple correspondence analysis technique. The main feature that will be utilised from this technique is a two-dimensional graphical display, referred to as a correspondence plot. By studying the HSLS09 data, the first two axes of such a plot summarised nearly 99% of the statistically significant association that exists between a student’s beliefs in the future utility of mathematics and their mathematics self-efficacy. It is shown visually that students who strongly believe in the future importance of studying mathematics also perform strongly in the subject, while those who do not believe that there is any future utility from studying mathematics do not perform well at it. This study, therefore, suggests that mathematics ability is associated with a student’s perception of its future importance.

PMID:36877698 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0282696

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):240-245. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_672_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Malnutrition is one of the most common geriatric syndromes in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Although there is no gold standard for evaluating nutritional status in HD patients, the Subjective Global Assessment (SGA), Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index (GNRI), and Malnutrition-Inflammation Score (MIS) are widely used in clinical settings.

AIM: To examine the efficacy of using Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index (GNRI) and Malnutrition-Inflammation Score (MIS) as a predictor of mortality in elderly hemodialysis patients.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was carried out in Malatya Training and Research Hospital’s Hemodialysis Unit between July 2018 and August 2022. Two hundred seventy-four elderly hemodialysis patients were included in the study. Demographic characteristics, laboratory parameters, and anthropometric measurements of the patients were reviewed. Statistical analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of mortality.

RESULTS: The mean age of 83 patients who died was 70.00 ± 8.39 years and 47 (56.6%) of these patients were male. All-cause death occurred in 69 (71.1%) of 97 patients with an MIS of ≥6. All-cause death occurred in 24 (54.5%) of 44 patients with a GNRI score of <91.2. Accordingly, MIS (P < 0.001, OR = 1.376 [0.163-0.392]), GNRI (P = 0.001, OR = -0.431 [1.189-1.990]), and age (P = 0.021, OR = 0.109 [0.818-0.984]) were found to be independent predictors of all-cause mortality.

CONCLUSIONS: GNRI and MIS are important predictors of increased risk of mortality from all causes in elderly HD patients.

PMID:36876615 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_672_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):234-239. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_659_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The esthetic expectations of patients are increasing by the day. That is why it is important to minimize the color changes in the oral cavity in both the temporary and permanent restorations.

AIM: This study was carried out to compare the time-dependent color changes of polished and unpolished temporary crown materials prepared by different methods in various solutions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Half of the two different temporary restoration materials prepared with a diameter of 10 mm and a thickness of 2 mm were polished, and half were not polished. The ΔE* values of the samples kept in various solutions were recorded. Data were statistically evaluated by using variance analysis (ANOVA) and a Tukey HSD multiple comparison test.

RESULTS: It was determined that the material type, the solution, the interaction between the material types and the surface treatment, and the interaction between the surface treatment and the solution were statistically significant for color change (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION: The most significant color change in the inter-material evaluation was observed in chemically polymerized polymethyl methacrylate. In the evaluation between beverages, the highest color change was found in sugared coffee, and the lesser color change was observed in polished samples.

PMID:36876614 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_659_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):223-228. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_559_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Abdominal trauma is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in low-and middle-income countries. Typical patients present late and very sick with early recognition key to improving outcome. There is a paucity of trauma data in this environment and trauma scoring systems which have been validated in the developed world are yet to find widespread use here.

AIM: This study aimed at evaluating role of injury severity score (ISS) in predicting mortality.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of patients with abdominal trauma who presented at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital from 2013 to 2019. Records were identified and data were extracted and analyzed using Statistical package for social sciences 23.

RESULTS: A total of 87 patients were included in the study. There were 73 males and 14 females. The mean overall ISS in this study was 16.06 ± 7.9. Concerning morbidity, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve in predicting morbidity was 0.843 (95% confidence interval 0.737-0.928). ISS had a strong sensitivity of 90% and specificity 55% at a cut-off of 14.50. Also, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve in predicting mortality was 0.746 (95% confidence interval 0.588-0.908) and at a cut-off of 16.50; ISS had a specificity of 80% and sensitivity of 60%. The mean ISS of patients with mortality was 22.60 ± 10.5 while the survivors had a mean ISS of 14.7 ± 6.5 (P <.001). The mean ISS for patients who had morbidity was 22.8 ± 8.1 while those without morbidity had a mean ISS of 13.1 ± 5.7 (P <.05).

CONCLUSION: ISS was a good predictor of morbidity and mortality in abdominal trauma in patients in this study. A prospective study with standardized abdominal imaging would be needed to further validate this scoring tool.

PMID:36876612 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_559_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):211-216. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_498_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: In in vitro studies, it is desirable that the storage solutions in which dental samples kept between extraction and experiment should prevent dehydration and have antimicrobial properties. However, it should be taken into consideration that these solutions may have some effects that directly change test results on physical and mechanical properties of laboratory samples.

AIMS: The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate the effects of different storage media on dentin moisture, microhardness, and microshear bond strength of resin composite to dentin. Thirty non-carious human premolars were randomly divided into three groups: 1. 0.1% Thymol (T), 2. Distilled water (DW), 3. Dry storage (DS) (control) (n = 10). Dentin moisture was measured with a digital grain moisture meter. Dentin microhardness was measured with the Vickers test. The bond strength was measured with a microshear test.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the Bonferroni test was used for statistical evaluation (p = 0.05).

RESULTS: Dentin moisture of the experimental groups was statistically higher than that of the control group (p < 0.05). In addition, the dentin moisture of group DW was significantly higher than that of group T (p < 0.05). The mean microshear bond strength of resin composite to dentin was higher in group DW than in group T and group DS (p < 0.05), while there was no statistical difference between group T and group DS. The microhardness values of all groups were statistically similar.

CONCLUSIONS: Storage solutions used for disinfection and to prevent dehydration may have negative effects on dentin moisture and bond strength.

PMID:36876610 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_498_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):194-200. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_424_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Abnormalities of glucose metabolism are associated with abnormal left ventricular geometry (LV) independent of atherosclerosis. Abnormal LV geometry, a predictor of premature cardiovascular events, indicates presence of subclinical target organ damages. Screening for abnormal LV geometry in diseases of abnormal glucose metabolism is desirable as part of their management protocol.

AIM: To assess the left ventricular geometry in normotensive type II diabetic patients. Cross-sectional, descriptive, hospital-based study. One hundred normotensive type II diabetic patients drawn from the Endocrinology and Family Medicine Clinics of a tertiary hospital were age- and gender-matched with 100 apparently healthy controls. Participants meeting the criteria and informed consent proceeded for clinical evaluation, biochemical assessment, electrocardiography, and echocardiography using the American Society of Echocardiography guideline.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences [SPSS] version 25.0 (Chicago Illinois, USA).

RESULTS: Mean age of study and control groups was (55.56 ± 9.89 versus 55.47 ± 10.7) years (χ2 = 0.062, P = 0.951). The mean duration of diabetes illness was 6.57 ± 6.26 years. Prevalence of abnormal LV geometry was 51% (study) versus 18% (control) FT, P < 0.001). Concentric remodeling was the predominant geometry in 36% of study versus 11% of controls, followed by eccentric hypertrophy in 11% (study) versus 4% (control) and concentric hypertrophy in 4% (study) versus 3% (control). Geometry was normal in 49% of study against 82% in the controls (FT, P < 0.001). Significant association existed between LV geometry and duration of diabetes (χ2 = 10.793, P = 0.005).

CONCLUSION: Abnormal LV geometry is highly prevalent in normotensive diabetic patients.

PMID:36876608 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_424_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):169-176. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_186_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Procedural complications and workload have been reported as sources of stress in dentistry.

AIM: To investigate the impact of endodontic workload and allocated treatment time of dentists on perceived stress and frequency of complications.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: The online survey included questions to evaluate the average number of root canal treatments per week, stress levels during root canal treatment, frequency of single-visit root canal treatments, time spent on single-visit treatments, frequency of endodontic complications per week, preference for management of complication, and proposed solutions.

RESULTS: A negative correlation was found between endodontic workload and perceived stress, which was statistically significant at slight and moderate stress levels (P < 0.05). Amongst the clinicians who feel “very stressful” during the treatment, the clinicians who allocate only 20 minutes or less per treatment had the highest frequency, and their numbers were significantly higher than clinicians who spent 20-40 minutes per treatment (P < 0.05). Amongst the clinicians who experience instrument separation 4-6 times/week, the number of clinicians who spent 40-60 minutes or more than 60 minutes per root canal treatment was significantly lower in comparison to the number of clinicians who spent 20-40 minutes (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Increasing the quality of dental equipment and reducing the time pressure on dentists might result in lesser stress levels of clinicians and fewer endodontic complications.

PMID:36876605 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_186_22

Niger J Clin Pract. 2023 Feb;26(2):162-168. doi: 10.4103/njcp.njcp_35_22.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Dental students’ burnout has been repeatedly reported in the literature; however, there is little information about the contributing factors in different contexts and settings.

AIMS: This study aimed to investigate the correlation between burnout among undergraduate dental students and sociodemographic (specifically gender), psychological (resilience), and structural factors (dental environment stress).

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: An online cross-sectional survey questionnaire was distributed among a convenience sample of 500 undergraduate Saudi dental students. The survey included questions about sociodemographic factors (gender, level of education, academic achievement, type of school [public or private], and living arrangements). The study also included items that allowed assessment of students’ burnout using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and assessment of student environmental stress and resilience using the Dental Environment Stress Scale (DESS) and the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). Descriptive statistics, univariate, and linear regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS: The response rate was 67% (male = 119, female = 216). Univariable analysis showed that gender, level of education, and DESS and BRS scores correlated significantly (P <.05) with MBI scores. Adjusted multiple linear regression lends further support to that the MBI scores negatively correlated with the BRS score but positively correlated with the DESS score (β = -0.29, P <.001; β = 0.44, P <.001, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS: Within the limitations of this study, the findings demonstrated that increases in resilience correlated significantly with decreases in burnout and increases in environmental stress correlated significantly with increases in burnout among dental students. However, gender had no influence on burnout.

PMID:36876604 | DOI:10.4103/njcp.njcp_35_22