Tag: statistics

Int J Circumpolar Health. 2022 Dec;81(1):2076383. doi: 10.1080/22423982.2022.2076383.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this paper was to describe the study design, data collection procedure and participation of the population-based study “Sámi Health on Equal Terms” (SámiHET) conducted among the Sámi in Sweden in 2021. A Sámi sample was constructed, drawing from three pre-existing-registers: the Sámi electoral roll, the reindeer mark register and the “Labour statistics based on administrative sources” register to identify reindeer herding businesses. All identified persons aged 18-84 were invited to participate during February-May 2021. Among the 9,249 invitations, 3,779 answered the survey (participation rate of 40.9%). More women than men participated, and the age group 45-64 was the most common in both sexes. Around 10% of participants were in the youngest group. A majority of participants were residents of Norrbotten (48%), while almost one fourth were living outside Sápmi (22%). SámiHET has been demonstrated to be a feasible and cost-effective way of investigating health and living conditions among the Sámi in Sweden, providing information easy to compare with Swedish data. The knowledge to be produced may be used to inform policy to guide and improve Sámi health, thus contributing to realising the equal health rights of the Indigenous Sámi in Sweden.

PMID:35611440 | DOI:10.1080/22423982.2022.2076383

BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2022 May 24;22(1):140. doi: 10.1186/s12911-022-01881-y.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Proper utilization of health data has paramount importance for health service management. However, it is less practiced in developing countries, including Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to assess routine health information utilization and identify factors associated with it among health workers in the Illubabor zone, Western Ethiopia.

METHODS: A facility based cross-sectional study was conducted from March to June 2021 with a total of 423 randomly selected health workers. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire that was developed based on the performance of routine information system management (PRISM) framework. We created composite variables for health workers’ knowledge, attitude, abilities, and information utilization based on existing data. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed and the statistical association between the outcome and independent variables was declared using 95% CI and a P < 0.05.

RESULTS: About two-thirds or 279 health workers (66.0%, 95% CI 61.3, 70.4) had good health information utilization. Two-thirds of health workers think organizational decision-making culture (67.1%, 95% CI 62.6, 71.5) and facility managers’ or supervisors’ promotion of information use (65.5%, 95% CI 60.9, 69.9) are positive. Over half of health workers (57.0%, 95% CI 52.2, 61.6) have a positive attitude toward data management, and the majority (85.8%, 95% CI 82.2, 88.9) believe they are competent of performing routine data analysis and interpretation activities. Only about two-thirds of health workers (65.5%, 95% CI 60.9, 69.9) were proficient in data analysis and interpretation.

CONCLUSIONS: The use of routine health information was lower than the national target and data from other literatures. Unacceptably large number of health personnel did not use information. As a result, efforts should be made to increase health workers’ data management knowledge and skills, as well as the organizational culture of data utilization.

PMID:35610716 | DOI:10.1186/s12911-022-01881-y

Syst Rev. 2022 May 23;11(1):102. doi: 10.1186/s13643-022-01971-y.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The group-based trajectory modeling (GBTM) method is increasingly used in pharmacoepidemiologic studies to describe medication adherence trajectories over time. However, assessing the associations between these medication adherence trajectories and health-related outcomes remains challenging. The purpose of this review is to identify and systematically review the methods used to assess the association between medication adherence trajectories, estimated from the GBTM method, and health-related outcomes.

METHODS: We will conduct a systematic review according to the recommendations of the Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews of interventions 6.2. Results will be reported following PRISMA 2020 (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses) recommendations. We will search in the following databases: PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Cochrane Library. Two reviewers will independently select articles and extract data. Discrepancies at every step will be resolved through discussion, and consensus will be reached for all disagreed articles. A third reviewer will act as a referee if needed. We will produce tables to synthesize the modalities used to estimate medication adherence trajectories with GBTM. We will also synthesize the modalities used to assess the association between these medication adherence trajectories and health-related outcomes by identifying the types of health-related outcomes studied and how they are defined, the statistical models used, and how the medication adherence trajectories were used in these models, and the effect measure yield. We will also review the limitations and biases reported by the authors and their attempts to mitigate them. We will provide a narrative synthesis.

DISCUSSION: This review will provide a thorough exploration of the strategies and methods used in medication adherence research to estimate the associations between medication adherence trajectories, estimated with GBTM, and the different health-related outcomes. It will represent the first crucial steps toward optimizing these methods in adherence studies.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Prospero CRD42021213503 .

PMID:35610710 | DOI:10.1186/s13643-022-01971-y

Clin Diabetes Endocrinol. 2022 May 25;8(1):5. doi: 10.1186/s40842-022-00142-1.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to compare the effects of Linagliptin and Empagliflozin on renal function and glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM).

METHOD: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, parallel trial on patients aged 30 to 80 years with type 2 DM and HbA1c ≤ 9%, regardless of background medical therapy, to compare the effects of Empagliflozin and Linagliptin on albuminuria, FBS, HbA1c, and eGFR. Participants were given the mentioned drugs for 12 weeks. Statistical analysis was performed using appropriate tests in IBM™SPSS® statistics software for windows version 24.

RESULTS: In total, 60 patients participated in the study, thirty patients in each group. The mean age of participants was 56.8 (SD = 8.15) in the Empagliflozin group and 60.9 (SD = 7.22) in the Linagliptin group. Before the intervention, FBS, HbA1C, and albuminuria values were significantly higher in the Empagliflozin group than those in the Linagliptin group (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between groups regarding eGFR (P = 0.271). Changes in the FBS, HbA1C, and eGFR were not significantly different between groups (P > 0.05), but there was more decrease in albuminuria in the Empagliflozin group compared to the Linagliptin group (P = 0.001, Cohen’s d = 0.98).

CONCLUSIONS: Regardless of baseline albuminuria, eGFR, or HbA1c, Empagliflozin 10 mg daily significantly reduced albuminuria at 12 weeks compared to Linagliptin 5 mg daily in patients with type 2 diabetes.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials, IRCT20200722048176N1 . Registered 3 August 2020.

PMID:35610696 | DOI:10.1186/s40842-022-00142-1

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):589-594. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210622-00366.

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate whether pre-lingual deafness adult caused by inadequate auditory compensation in childhood can benefit from cochlear implants and the related influencing factors. Methods: A total of 26 prelingual deafness as experimental group [11 males and 15 females, the age of operation was (24.5±5.7) years] and 13 postlingual deafness as control group [5 males and 8 females, the age at the time of operation was (42.2±11.4) years] were recruited. Objective assessment included hearing threshold and speech recognition rate tests while wearing cochlear implants. Subjective assessment used Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire to assess hearing-related quality of life of subjects. The changes of hearing ability in the prelingual deafness group before and after operation and the differences with the postlingual deafness group were compared, and the correlation between speech recognition ability and the age diagnosed as severe or profound deafness, the age of hearing aid invalid, and duration of wearing cochlear implant were analyzed as factor indicators. All statistical results were analyzed by SAS 9.4 software. Results: In terms of objective indicators, the speech recognition rate of pre-lingual deafness was significantly lower than that of post-lingual deafness [(35.4±28.0)% vs (80.9±8.0)%,t=7.67, P<0.001], while there was no statistical difference in hearing threshold between the two groups [(34.8±4.0) dB HL vs (33.1±3.7) dB HL, t=1.30, P>0.05]. The indicators in the subjective questionnaire showed that the prelingual deafness group was only weaker in advanced sound perception, confidence and total mean score than the post-lingual deafness group (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference in other aspects(P>0.05), meanwhile, all indicators of the prelingual deafness group were significantly improved compared with the preoperative level (P<0.001). There was a moderate positive correlation between the hearing quality and the speech recognition rate in the prelingual deafness group(r=0.51, P=0.008). The regression analysis showed that the invalid age of hearing aid was the exact influencing factor of speech recognition rate. Conclusions: Certain prelingual deaf adults can adapt to cochlear implants and obtain different degrees of auditory assistance. Compared with the improvement of objective auditory ability assessment, the patient who received cochlear implantation gain more improvement in auditory related quality of life subjectively. The ineffective age of preoperative hearing aid is an important factor, which needs to be aroused sufficient preoperative attention.

PMID:35610678 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210622-00366

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):607-611. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210723-00482.

ABSTRACT

Objective: To explore the characteristics of neonatal adenoid development and to study the relationship between neonatal adenoid development and disease. Methods: A retrospective analysis of neonates who received an electronic rhinopharyngolaryngoscope at Shenzhen Children’s Hospital from January 2019 to December 2020 was conducted to track the children’s medical history and to analyze the adenoid development status. All 131 neonates successfully completed the electronic laryngoscopy. According to the presence or absence of visible adenoid hyperplasia, they were divided into a hyperplasia group (81 cases, 61.83%) and an un-hyperplasia group (50 cases, 38.17%). Results: Compared with the un-hyperplasia group, the age and birth weight of the adenoid hyperplasia group were larger, and the difference was statistically significant (Z _age=-4.634,Z _weight=-2.273,all P<0.05), but there was no significant difference in gender and gestational age between the two groups. The number of neonates with rhinitis/sinusitis in the hyperplasia group were significantly more than those in the un-hyperplasia group (62.96% vs 48%). Conclusion: The development of neonatal adenoids is related to daily age, birth weight, but not significantly related to gender and gestational age.

PMID:35610681 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210723-00482

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):584-588. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn15330-20210805-00524.

ABSTRACT

Objective: To analyze the characteristics of heart rate variability (HRV) in patients with vestibular migraine (VM) and to explore its possible mechanism. Methods: Forty-eight patients with VM [17 males and 31 females, age (36.2±9.2) years], 44 patients with migraine [15 males and 29 females, age (34.4±9.0) years], and 30 patients with health check-ups during the same period [12 males and 18 females, age (34.6±6.5) years old] were selected as study subjects. Ambulatory ECG monitoring was performed in all subjects, and the HRV characteristics of each group were analyzed from both daytime and nighttime time phases. Time domain parameters were analyzed: standard deviation of normal to normal (SDNN), root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), and percentage of normal to normal intervals differing by more than 50 ms (pNN50). The parameters in the frequency domain were analyzed: high frequency power (HF), low frequency power (LF), and the ratio of low frequency to high frequency power (LF/HF). Statistical analysis of the data was performed using SPSS 26.0 software. Results: At night, RMSSD (F=6.694) and HF (F=9.434) were lower in the VM and migraine groups compared to the control group, while LF/HF (F=16.049) and LF (F=9.434) were elevated compared to the control group, with statistically significant differences (P<0.05 or P<0.01), while LF was significantly elevated in the VM group compared to the migraine group, with a statistically significant (P<0.05). On the daytime measurements, mainly LF was elevated in the vestibular migraine group compared with the control group, while RMSSD was decreased compared with the control group, with statistically significant differences (P<0.05). Conclusion: Autonomic dysfunction characterized by sympathetic hyperfunction and vagal hypofunction is present in VM patients and is more pronounced at night. In addition, the degree of autonomic dysfunction may be more pronounced in VM patients than in migraine patients.

PMID:35610677 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn15330-20210805-00524

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):578-583. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210203-00056.

ABSTRACT

Objective: The characteristics of 3D-FLAIR MRI images of the inner ear of patients with vestibular neuritis were preliminarily studied to explore the possible pathogenesis of vestibular neuritis, and the correlation analysis was conducted in combination with vestibular function to provide a basis for accurate diagnosis of vestibular neuritis. Methods: A total of 36 patients with vestibular neuritis (VN) from December 2019 to October 2020 were collected from the Vertigo Department of Shandong Provincial ENT Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University. There were 36 cases (18 females, 18 males) with unilateral acute vestibular neuritis, 17 cases of left ear and 19 cases of right ear. According to the results of 3D-FLAIR MRI in the inner ears, the patients were divided into the enhanced group and the non-enhanced group (the health side served as the normal control group). The results of vestibular function examination in the two groups were compared. SPSS19.0 software was used for statistical processing to analyze the relationship between the vestibular function and the characteristics of 3D-FLAIR imaging in the inner ears. Results: Abnormal enhancement of 3D-FLAIR was found in 31 cases (86.1%) of the 36 cases, including 14 cases of both vestibular nerve and vestibular terminal organ enhancement, eight cases of superior vestibular nerve enhancement alone, seven cases of vestibular terminal organ enhancement alone, and two cases of cochlear enhancement alone. Observation of abnormal reinforcement of vestibular nerve showed: twenty-one cases of superior vestibular nerve reinforcement, one case of superior and inferior vestibular nerve reinforcement. No abnormalities were found in 3D-FLAIR of inner ear in 5 cases. According to the analysis of vestibular function results, there were 19 cases (52.8%) with total vestibular involvement, sixteen cases (44.4%) with superior vestibular involvement alone, and one case (2.8%) with inferior vestibular involvement alone. Comparison of vestibular function between the five cases (non-enhancement group) and the 31 cases (enhanced group) in the 3D-FLAIR group of the inner ears showed that the CP values of caloric tests in the enhanced group were higher (60.81±3.49 vs 34.12±7.37), with statistically significant difference (t=-2.898, P<0.01). Conclusion: In patients with vestibular neuritis, 3D-FLAIR MRI scan of the inner ear provides visual imaging evidence for clinical practice, considering that the lesion site of vestibular neuritis is not only in the vestibular nerve, but also in the vestibular end organ. Patients with 3D-FLAIR enhanced in the inner ear may have more significant vestibular function damage.

PMID:35610676 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210203-00056

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):572-577. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210801-00508.

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate the feasibility, safety and efficacy of transoral robotic surgery (TORS) in the treatment of lingual thyroglossal duct cyst (LTGDC). Methods: The clinical data of 10 patients with LTGDC treated with TORS in Tongji Hospital affiliated to Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology from May 2017 to November 2020 were analyzed retrospectively,including 6 males and 4 females, aged 5-44 years. The cysts were fully exposed, and resection usually started from the cephalic side of lesions. The range of resection was 3 to 5 mm away from the lesions, and partial hyoid bone was removed if necessary. Intra-operative robotic set-up time,operation time and estimated blood loss,and post-operative local bleeding, dyspnea and recovery time for oral intake were analyzed. SPSS 12.0 software was used for statistical analysis. Results: The cysts in all 10 patients were successfully resected by TORS with da Vinci Si surgical system. The mean robotic set-up and exposure time, operation time, estimated intraoperative blood loss and recovery time for oral intake were (15.5±7.1) min, (17.6±7.4) min, (8.9±6.4)ml and (2.3±2.2)days, respectively. No patient required tracheostomy intra-or post-operatively, and no symptoms of airway obstruction, postoperative bleeding, pharyngeal fistula, hoarseness and neurological impairment occurred after operation. The patients were followed up for 5 to 47 months, with median follow-up time of 17 months, and no recurrence was observed. Conclusion: TORS is safe and feasible for resection of LTGDC, with rapid recovery and low recurrence rate.

PMID:35610675 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210801-00508

Zhonghua Er Bi Yan Hou Tou Jing Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2022 May 7;57(5):552-558. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210804-00519.

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate the safety, efficacy, locally control and survival results of transoral Da Vinci robotic surgery for salvage treatment of locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods: This retrospective study included 33 patients with locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (stage rT1-2, partial rT3) underwent transoral Da Vinci robotic surgery between October 2017 and January 2020. There were 20 males and 11 females, with an average age of (47.9±10.5) years. The lesions were localized in nasopharyngeal cavity in 14 cases, with extending to parapharyngeal space in 6 cases and the floor of sphenoid sinus in 13 cases. Transnasal endoscopy was used to assist surgery if necessary. SPSS 25.0 statistical software was used for statistical analysis. Results: Transoral robotic nasopharyngectomy was successfully performed in all cases without conversion to open surgery, of which 13 cases were combined with transnasal endoscopic surgery. The average operation time was (126.2±30.0) min, ranging from 90 to 180 min. The postoperative pathological margin was R0 (31 cases) and R1 (2 cases), with no tumor residue. Complications of surgery mainly included symptoms of headache, nasal dryness and velopharyngeal insufficiency without nasopharyngeal hemorrhage. Follow-up time was from 3 to 54 months. One case had tumor recurrence 11 months after operation, 1 case had ipsilateral cervical lymph node metastasis 27 months after operation, 2 cases had distant metastasis and 1 case died of nasopharyngeal hemorrhage 3 months after operation. The 1-year, 2-year and 3-year overall survival rates were 97.0%, 96.0% and 92.9%, respectively and the local recurrence free rates were 97.0%, 95.7% and 91.7%, respectively. Conclusion: Transoral robotic nasopharyngectomy is safe and feasible for local recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma in selected patients, with higher local control rate and quality of life.

PMID:35610672 | DOI:10.3760/cma.j.cn115330-20210804-00519