Tag: statistics

Int J Eat Disord. 2023 Jun 20. doi: 10.1002/eat.24012. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies have revealed associations between disordered eating symptoms, big-five personality traits, and psychological distress. However, limited research has explored these relationships as a network, including their interconnections, and even less has done so in non-Western populations. We employed network analysis to investigate the co-occurrence of disordered eating symptoms, big-five personality traits, and psychological distress in Chinese adults.

METHOD: A sample of 500 Chinese adults (256 men) completed measures assessing big-five personality traits, psychological distress, and disordered eating symptoms. The network of personality traits, psychological distress, and disordered eating symptoms was estimated, including its central and bridge nodes.

RESULTS: The central nodes in the network were the facets of openness (like adventure), extraversion (like going to social and recreational parties), and disordered eating symptoms (dissatisfaction with body weight or shape). Moreover, certain facets of neuroticism (always worrying something bad will happen), psychological distress (feeling worthless), and an inverse facet of extraversion (bored by parties with lots of people) were identified as essential bridge nodes in maintaining the structure of the network.

CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that personality traits (e.g., openness and extraversion) and body dissatisfaction are important in maintaining the network in a community sample of Chinese adults. While future replication is needed, findings from this study suggest that individuals with negative self-thinking, predisposed neuroticism, and extraversion may be at risk of developing disordered eating symptoms.

PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: The present study contributes to existing knowledge by employing a network perspective to examine the associations between disordered eating symptoms, big-five personality traits, and psychological distress in a Chinese adult community sample. The identified facets of neuroticism and extraversion and symptoms of psychological distress may be worthy of targeting in the prevention and treatment of disordered eating in the Chinese context.

PMID:37337937 | DOI:10.1002/eat.24012

Circ Heart Fail. 2023 Jun 20:e010312. doi: 10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.122.010312. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Many studies have demonstrated that physicians often err in estimating patient prognosis. No studies have directly compared physician to model predictive performance in heart failure (HF). We aimed to compare the accuracy of physician versus model predictions of 1-year mortality.

METHODS: This multicenter prospective cohort study on 11 HF clinics in 5 provinces in Canada included consecutive consented outpatients with HF with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (<40%). By collecting clinical data, we calculated predicted 1-year mortality using the Seattle HF Model (SHFM), the Meta-Analysis Global Group in Chronic HF score, and the HF Meta-Score. HF cardiologists and family doctors, blinded to model predictions, estimated patient 1-year mortality. During 1-year follow-up, we recorded the composite end point of mortality, urgent ventricular assist device implant, or heart transplant. We compared physicians and model discrimination (C statistic), calibration (observed versus predicted event rate), and risk reclassification.

RESULTS: The study included 1643 patients with ambulatory HF with a mean age of 65 years, 24% female, and mean left ventricular ejection fraction of 28%. Over 1-year follow-up, 9% had an event. The SHFM had the best discrimination (SHFM C statistic 0.76; HF Meta-Score 0.73; Meta-Analysis Global Group in Chronic Heart Failure 0.70) and calibration. Physicians’ discrimination differed little (0.75 for HF cardiologists and 0.73 for family doctors) but both physician groups substantially overestimated risk by >10% in both low- and high-risk patients (poor calibration). In risk reclassification analysis, among patients without events, the SHFM better classified 51% in comparison to HF cardiologists and 43% in comparison to family doctors. In patients with events, the SHFM erroneously assigned lower risk to 44% in comparison to HF cardiologists and 34% in comparison to family doctors.

CONCLUSIONS: Family doctors and HF cardiologists showed adequate risk discrimination, with however substantial overestimation of absolute risk. Predictive models showed higher accuracy. Incorporating models in family and HF cardiology practices may improve patient care and resource use in HF with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction.

REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.

CLINICALTRIALS: gov; Unique identifier: NCT04009798.

PMID:37337896 | DOI:10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.122.010312

Scand J Gastroenterol. 2023 Jun 20:1-7. doi: 10.1080/00365521.2023.2223709. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) have shown an increased risk for colorectal cancer, hepatobiliary, hematologic, and skin cancers, but updated long-term data is needed. This study aimed to estimate the risk of cancer in patients with UC compared to the general Norwegian population, in a population-based cohort (the IBSEN study), 30 years after diagnosis; and to identify possible risk factors associated with cancer.

METHODS: The IBSEN cohort prospectively included all incident patients between 1990 and 1993. Cancer incidence data were obtained from the Cancer Registry of Norway. The overall and cancer-specific hazard ratios (HR) were modelled using Cox regression. Standardized incidence ratios were estimated compared to the general population.

RESULTS: In total, the cohort included 519 patients, and 83 cases were diagnosed with cancer. There was no statistically significant difference in the overall cancer risk (HR = 1.01, 95% CI: [0.79-1.29]) and colorectal cancer risk (HR = 1.37, 95% CI: [0.75-2.47]) between patients and controls. The incidence of biliary tract cancer was higher than expected (SIR = 9.84, 95%CI: [3.19-20.15]), especially when UC patients suffered from primary sclerosing cholangitis. Male UC patients were also more at risk of being diagnosed with hematologic malignancies (HR = 3.48, 95% CI: [1.55-7.82]). Being prescribed thiopurines was associated with a higher risk of cancer (HR = 2.03, 95% CI: [1.02-4.01]).

CONCLUSIONS: At 30 years after diagnosis, the risk of all cancer in patients with UC was not significantly increased compared with the general population. However, the risks of biliary tract cancer and hematologic cancers were increased, particularly in male patients.

PMID:37337889 | DOI:10.1080/00365521.2023.2223709

New Phytol. 2023 Jun 20. doi: 10.1111/nph.19012. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:37337839 | DOI:10.1111/nph.19012

Mol Imaging Radionucl Ther. 2023 Jun 20;32(2):138-145. doi: 10.4274/mirt.galenos.2022.68094.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to investigate and compare the role of computed tomography (CT)-based attenuation-corrected images (AC) with non-attenuation-corrected images (NAC) obtained by single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI).

METHODS: The data of 124 patients who were applied one-day stress-rest Tc-99m sestamibi SPECT/CT MPI and who had coronary angiography (CAG) results within ±3 months were retrospectively reviewed. AC and NAC images were visually evaluated by two nuclear medicine specialists in a consensus. CAG results were used as the reference standard.

RESULTS: Specificity, sensitivity, and accuracy were calculated as 66%, 61%, 71%, 79% and 69%, 70% for AC and NAC imaging in the whole group, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between AC and NAC images for specificity, sensitivity, and accuracy in the male and female subgroups. In the diagnosis of right coronary artery (RCA) disease, CT AC significantly increased the specificity from 87% to 96%. However, in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) region, the specificity was significantly reduced from 95% to 77%.

CONCLUSION: CT-based AC did not significantly contribute to diagnostic performance for increased specificity for the RCA and reduced specificity in the LAD region. Therefore, AC images should always be evaluated side by side with NAC images to benefit from the different advantages of both techniques.

PMID:37337825 | DOI:10.4274/mirt.galenos.2022.68094

Afr J AIDS Res. 2023 Jun 20:1-11. doi: 10.2989/16085906.2023.2203128. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

In Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), the increasing number of orphans and vulnerable children due to HIV/AIDS has spurred demand for psychosocial support services. When the Ministry of Education and Training assumed responsibility for delivering psychosocial support, educators were burdened with the additional role of looking after orphans and vulnerable learners. This exploratory, sequential, mixed-methods study was employed to analyse factors that enhance the provision of psychosocial support services and the perceptions of educators towards psychosocial support delivery. The qualitative study phase entailed 16 in-depth interviews with multi-sectoral psychosocial support specialists and seven focus group discussions with orphans and vulnerable learners. In the quantitative study phase, 296 educators were surveyed. Thematic analysis was used for the qualitative data, and the quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 25 software. The findings reveal problems associated with psychosocial support service delivery at strategy, policy and operational levels. The results indicate that orphans and vulnerable children are offered material support (e.g. food and sanitary pads) and spiritual support, but were rarely referred for social and psychological needs. There were no proper counselling facilities and not all teachers received relevant training in children’s psychosocial needs. Training of educators in specific psychosocial support areas was considered significant to enhance service delivery and the psychosocial well-being of the learners. Overall, accountability was difficult to establish because the administration of psychosocial support is split among the Ministry of Education and Training, the Deputy Prime Minister’s office and Tinkhundla administration. There is unequal distribution of qualified early childhood development teachers to cater for early childhood educational needs.

PMID:37337815 | DOI:10.2989/16085906.2023.2203128

Child Dev. 2023 Jun 20. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13955. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Adhering to a partially defined plan requires an intentional commitment that curbs distracting desires conflicting with the planned course of action, enabling humans to act coherently over time. Two studies (N = 50, 27 girls, ages 5-6, Han Chinese, in Hangzhou, China, 2022.02-2022.03) explored the development of commitment to partial plans in a sequential decision-making task and the underlying cognitive capacity focusing on its correlation to attentional control. Results suggest that only 6-year-olds committed to partial plans (d = .51), and children’s commitment ratio was positively correlated with the use of proactive control (r = .40). These findings indicate that intentional commitment does not develop simultaneously with intention understanding, but rather matures gradually with the development of attentional control.

PMID:37337790 | DOI:10.1111/cdev.13955

Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2023 Jun 20. doi: 10.1002/ijgo.14929. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between interpregnancy interval (IPI) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

METHODS: Data of this retrospective cohort study were obtained from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) 2020. The participants were divided into different groups according to different IPI (<6, 6-11, 12-17, 18-23, 24-59 (reference), 60-119, ≥120 months). Multivariate logistic models were constructed to evaluate the association between IPI and GDM. Subgroup analysis was further performed.

RESULTS: A total of 1 515 263 women were included, with 123 951 (8.18%) having GDM. Compared with the 24-59 months group, the <6 months (odds ratio [OR] 0.64, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.46-0.90, P = 0.009), 12-17 months (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.94-0.98, P < 0.001), and 18-23 months (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.93-0.96, P < 0.001) groups had a significantly lower risk of GDM, while the 60-119 months (OR 1.13, 95% CI 1.11-1.15, P < 0.001) and ≥120 months (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.15-1.21, P < 0.001) groups had a significantly higher risk of GDM. No significant difference was observed in the risk of GDM between the 6-11 and 24-59 months groups (P = 0.542). The PI-GDM association varied across different groups of age, pre-pregnancy body mass index, pre-pregnancy smoking status, history of cesarean section, history of preterm birth, prior terminations, and parity.

CONCLUSION: An IPI of 18-23 months may be a better interval than 24-59 months in managing the risk of GDM.

PMID:37337776 | DOI:10.1002/ijgo.14929

Mol Imaging Radionucl Ther. 2023 Jun 20;32(2):117-122. doi: 10.4274/mirt.galenos.2021.65902.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the added diagnostic value of delayed imaging at 3 and 4 h compared to 2 h imaging as well as scanning up to 4 h compared to 3, and by this means, diagnosis reclassification or changes in diagnosis across various time points.

METHODS: Seventeen patients clinically suspected of gastroparesis, 8 (47.1%) men and 9 (52.9%) women, according to the standard procedural guidelines, underwent gastric emptying scintigraphy after ingesting a standard meal. One-minute static images in anterior and posterior projections were acquired immediately after ingestion and then at 1-, 2-, 3- , and 4 h time points. For image analysis, a manual region-of-interest was drawn, and then, count of stomach in each projection was used to calculate geometric mean for each time point. Decay correction was applied. At 2-, 3- and 4 h time points, percentage of retained activity was compared to standard values; therefore, each patient was labeled as normal or delayed.

RESULTS: Pairwise correlation between time points was statistically significant. Value of hour 3 shows an extremely strong correlation with the value of hour 4 (r=0.951, p<0.001). In hour 2, of 17 participants, 11 (64.7%) were diagnosed as normal and 6 (35.3%) as delayed. In hour 3, the diagnosis made as delayed rose to 9 (52.9%), whereas normal was 8 (47.1%). Finally, in hour 4, results were 10 (58.8%) as delayed and 7 (41.2%) as normal. All subjects who were labeled as delayed in hour 3 remained with the same diagnosis and 1 out of 8 subjects categorized as normal in hour 3 changed to delayed. For testing agreement, coefficient of kappa was computed between each pair. Agreement between diagnosis in hour 2 with hours 3 or 4 was not strong (kappa <0.6 for both pairs). However, a strong agreement was found between diagnosis in hours 3 and 4 (kappa: 0.881).

CONCLUSION: Because of excellent correlation between values of hours 3 and 4 and strong agreement between the diagnosis in those time points, extending acquisition from 3 to 4 h adds little to the final dai gnosis and may not be noticeably meaningful, especially in the clinical setting.

PMID:37337772 | DOI:10.4274/mirt.galenos.2021.65902

Mol Imaging Radionucl Ther. 2023 Jun 20;32(2):112-116. doi: 10.4274/mirt.galenos.2022.05826.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to compare the treatment responses after ablation with 30-50 mCi radioactive iodine (RAI) and 100 mCi RAI in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) who were in the low-risk group according to 2015 American Thyroid Associations Classification (ATA 2015) criteria.

METHODS: Between February 2016 and August 2018, 100 patients who received RAI treatment in our clinic after total thyroidectomy and who were in the low-risk group DTC were included in this retrospective study. These patients were divided into 2 groups: low-activity (30-50 mCi) (group 1) and high-activity (100 mCi) (group 2). While 54 patients were treated with low activity, 46 patients received high activity RAI. The 2 groups were compared according to the 1^st– and 3^rd-year treatment response status.

RESULTS: According to the first-year follow-up, 15 patients were accepted as indeterminate response and 85 patients as excellent response. Three (5.5%) of the patients who were accepted as indeterminate response were in group 1 and 12 (26%) were in group 2. According to the third year follow-up, 1 patient in group 1 and 3 patients in group 2 were accepted as indeterminate response. No biochemical incomplete response or recurrent disease was detected. In the chi-square analysis performed to investigate the relationship between the first-year treatment response and RAI activities, a significant relationship was found (p=0.004). In the Mann-Whitney U test performed to investigate the parameters that may be effective in the treatment response, only the preablative serum thyroglobulin value was shown to have a significant difference between the two groups (p=0.01). In the long-term follow-up of the patients, based on the third year treatment response data, chi-square analysis was performed to evaluate the two groups in terms of treatment responses, and no statistically significant relationship was found (p=0.73).

CONCLUSION: Ablation with 30-50 mCi can be safely applied in DTC patients who are in the ATA 2015 low-risk group and are planned for RAI ablation treatment.

PMID:37337764 | DOI:10.4274/mirt.galenos.2022.05826