Tag: statistics

Animal. 2022 Feb 18;16(3):100456. doi: 10.1016/j.animal.2022.100456. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Genetic selection focused purely on production traits has proven very successful in improving the productive performance of livestock. However, heightened environmental and infectious disease challenges have raised the need to also improve the resilience of animals to such external stressors, as well as their efficiency in utilising available resources. A better understanding of the relationship between efficiency and production and health traits is needed to properly account for it in breeding programmes and to produce animals that can maintain high production performance in a range of environmental conditions with minimal environmental footprint. The aim of this study was to perform a meta-analysis of genetic parameters for production, efficiency and health traits in sheep and goats. The dataset comprised 963 estimates of heritability and 572 genetic correlations collated from 162 published studies. A threelevel meta-analysis model was fitted. Pooled heritability estimates for milk production traits ranged between 0.27 ± 0.03 and 0.48 ± 0.13 in dairy goats and between 0.21 ± 0.06 and 0.33 ± 0.07 in dairy sheep. In meat sheep, the heritability of efficiency traits ranged from 0.09 ± 0.02 (prolificacy) up to 0.32 ± 0.14 (residual feed intake). For health traits, pooled heritability was 0.07 ± 0.01 (faecal egg count) and 0.21 ± 0.01 (somatic cell score) in dairy goats and 0.14 ± 0.04 (faecal egg count) and 0.13 ± 0.02 (somatic cell score) in dairy sheep. In meat sheep, the heritability of disease resistance and survival traits ranged between 0.07 ± 0.02 (mastitis) and 0.50 ± 0.10 (breech strike). Pooled estimates of genetic correlations between resilience and efficiency traits in dairy goats were not significantly different from zero with the exception of somatic cell score and fat content (-0.19 ± 0.01). In dairy sheep, only the unfavourable genetic correlation between somatic cell score and protein content (0.12 ± 0.03) was statistically significant. In meat sheep only, the correlations between growth and faecal egg count (-0.28 ± 0.11) as well as between growth and dagginess (-0.33 ± 0.13) were statistically significant and favourable. Results of this meta-analysis provide evidence of genetic antagonism between production and health in dairy sheep and goats. This was not observed in meat sheep where most of the pooled estimates had high standard errors and were non-significant. Based on the obtained results, it seems feasible to simultaneously improve efficiency and health in addition to production by including the different types of traits in the breeding goal. However, a better understanding of potential trade-offs between these traits would be beneficial. Particularly, more studies focused on reproduction and resilience traits linked to the animal’s multi-trait response to challenges are required.

PMID:35190322 | DOI:10.1016/j.animal.2022.100456

Am J Emerg Med. 2022 Feb 6;54:253-256. doi: 10.1016/j.ajem.2022.02.006. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSI) are frequently encountered in the emergency department and compromise more than 700,000 hospital admissions annually. Dalbavancin is a single dose long acting semi-synthetic lipogylcopepitde antibiotic with coverage against gram-positive organisms including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Recent data from large tertiary care centers have shown a decrease in hospital admissions and repeat emergency department visits for ABSSI’s but little data is available for those who practice in a rural community setting. The primary objective of this study was to describe the use of dalbavancin at a single rural emergency department.

METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of all adult patients who received dalbavancin between 2019 and 2021 while in the emergency department was completed. Abstracted data included patient demographics, infection location by body region, emergency department return visits, hospital admissions, and length of stay. Analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics, the Mann-Whitney test for continuous data, and the chi-squared analysis for nominal data.

RESULTS: A total of 125 patients were included in the final analysis with 35.2% being female. The median age of those treated with dalbavancin was 54 years (42.0-64.0) and the most common infection site was the lower extremities. A total of 35 patients re-presented to the emergency department following treatment with dalbavancin within 30 days and 16 were admitted to the hospital. Of those who re-presented to the emergency department, the median age was 56 (40.0-66.0) and the median re-presentation was 9 days (3-17) after dalbavancin administration. A total of 16 patients (12.8%) were subsequently admitted to the hospital with a median length of stay of 5.5 days (3.0-8.0). 30-day readmission rates were 23.9% in those who had an abnormal WBC count at initial presentation, 26.1% for those with congestive heart failure, 20.3% for those with hypertension, and 26.0% in those who had diabetes mellitus.

CONCLUSION: Following the administration of dalbavancin for ABSSI at a rural emergency department, few patients are subsequently admitted within the following 30 days. To further decrease this number and alleviate the burden on emergency departments and hospitals, local treatment algorithms should be developed to minimize the risk of representation and hospitalization following administration.

PMID:35190304 | DOI:10.1016/j.ajem.2022.02.006

Gait Posture. 2022 Feb 15;93:240-245. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2022.02.007. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a difference in postural control between nulligravida women and women who have given birth by vaginal or cesarean section.

METHODS: Women who had only vaginal delivery in the previous 1-3 years were included in the vaginal delivery group (n = 27), those who had only cesarean delivery in the previous 1-3 years were included in the cesarean section group (n = 28), and those who had never given birth were included in the control group (n = 32). Evaluations were administered 6-8 days after the ovulation phase. Postural control of the participants was evaluated with the computerized dynamic posturography device.

RESULTS: A total of 87 women with a mean age of 29.4 ± 4 years and a mean body mass index of 24.1 ± 3.1 kg/m² were included in the study. Antero-posterior somatosensory organization test values of the vaginal delivery group were lower than the control group (p = 0.0016). The cesarean delivery group had statistically lower antero-posterior somatosensory (p < 0.001 and p = 0.0013) and medio-lateral somatosensory (p = 0.002 and p = 0.017, respectively) test scores compared to the control group and the vaginal delivery group.

CONCLUSIONS: It was observed that women who birthed with vaginal or cesarean delivery had impaired somatosensory postural control. There is definitely a need for further studies with a long-term follow-up examining the effects of postural control during pregnancy and the postpartum period.

PMID:35190316 | DOI:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2022.02.007

J Cyst Fibros. 2022 Feb 18:S1569-1993(22)00039-X. doi: 10.1016/j.jcf.2022.02.007. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Variation in respiratory response to cystic fibrosis (CF) small molecule therapies is due in part to the contribution of CF lung disease modifier genes. Cultured human bronchial epithelia (HBE) is the gold standard respiratory model for assessing CF therapeutic efficacy but it is hard to access. Cultured human nasal epithelia (HNE) is proposed as a more accessible surrogate model but it is unknown whether the expression profile of the modifier genes are comparable between HNE and HBE which we assess here.

METHODS: RNA-sequencing was conducted on paired cultured and fresh HNE and HBE (n = 71 samples) collected from 21 individuals with CF. Genome-wide gene expression was first compared between cultured and fresh cells and then between cultured HNE and HBE based on an equivalence testing procedure we implemented. The co-expression relationships of CFTR and CF lung disease modifier genes were compared between cultured HNE and HBE to determine equivalent interactions.

RESULTS: The culturing process had little impact on the expression level of CF lung disease modifier genes. Over 90% of expressed genes showed significant equivalent expression level across cultured HNE and HBE (expression fold-change<2, FDR<0.1), including CFTR and CF lung disease modifier genes. The difference in co-expression relationships among these genes was not significant (p-value=0.99), suggesting their functional interactions are likely to be consistent in the two models.

CONCLUSIONS: Cultured HNE recapitulates the expression profile of CF lung disease modifier genes in cultured HBE, suggesting the biological processes involving these genes are likely to be consistent across the two models.

PMID:35190293 | DOI:10.1016/j.jcf.2022.02.007

Cytotherapy. 2022 Feb 18:S1465-3249(22)00020-2. doi: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2022.01.002. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) therapy has been spotlighted as a promising regenerative tool with its abundant source of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and growth factors. The spectrum of the utility of BMAC therapy has been expanding day by day to harness the potential for varied therapeutic purposes. In the due course of its evolution, it is often essential to have a comprehensive summary of progress to have a greater understanding and refine our future directives. With technological developments such as data mining, graphic drawing and information analytics combined with computational statistics, visualization of scientific metrology has become a reality. With this newer perspective, we intend to use scientometric tools including text mining, cocitation analysis, keyword analysis and cluster network analysis to perform thematic trend mapping and hotspot analysis of the literature on BMAC therapy and evaluate its progress in the management of osteoarthritis.

PMID:35190268 | DOI:10.1016/j.jcyt.2022.01.002

J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2022 Jan 22:S1748-6815(22)00038-9. doi: 10.1016/j.bjps.2022.01.021. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate whether the implementation of extra perioperative safety measures and precautions through adopted standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure optimal anti-microbial conditions has led to less surgical site infections (SSI) after alloplastic breast reconstruction (BR).

METHODS: This retrospective study compared two Cohorts of patients treated before and after the implementation of new SOPs (2009-2014: Cohort 1 versus 2014-2019: Cohort 2). Multivariate logistic regression analyses, adjusting for patient confounders, were implemented to compare SSI incidence between both Cohorts.

RESULTS: Overall, SSI incidence was equal in both groups (10%, p = 0.545). The incidence of deep SSI was 9% for Cohort 1 and 5% for Cohort 2 (p = 0.074). Incidence of SSI-related explantation was 8% and 5%, respectively (p = 0.136). After adjusting for patient confounders, no statistically significant difference was seen between both Cohorts in overall SSI, deep SSI incidence, and explantation due to SSI (OR_adjusted: -0.31, p = 0.452, OR_adjusted: 0.16, p = 0.747 and OR_adjusted: 0.18, p = 0.712). Higher BMI, smoking, one-stage BR, and immediate BR were associated with the risk for SSI (p<0.001, p = 0.036, p<0.001, and p = 0.022, respectively).

CONCLUSION: Extra safety measures to assure optimal anti-microbial conditions did not contribute to lower SSI incidence or SSI-related explantation after alloplastic BR. Confounders such as BMI, smoking, immediate BR, and one-stage BR were correlated to an increased risk for overall SSI, deep SSI, and SSI-related explantation of TE/implants.

PMID:35190280 | DOI:10.1016/j.bjps.2022.01.021

Rev Int Androl. 2022 Feb 18:S1698-031X(22)00016-4. doi: 10.1016/j.androl.2020.12.004. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Menopause refers to the permanent cessation of menstruation resulting from the loss of ovarian activity. Studies have shown that menopause has an impact on the life quality of women as well as their sexual function. In this study, we sought to characterise the differences in the sexual function of women with iatrogenic menopause and those with natural menopause.

METHODS: Data were collected from 300 women in this study. The Symptom Check List and the Female Sexual Function Index were the main data collection instruments. Forty-eight patients with a Symptom Check List score ≥0.5 were not included in the study. Therefore, we enrolled a cohort of 252 menopausal women at a tertiary care setting in Turkey. The independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson correlation and logistic regression analysis were used in this study and p value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: In our study, menopause women were divided into two equal groups based on the type of menopause (natural vs. iatrogenic). The iatrogenic group was further divided into 3 sub-groups; drug-induced 30 (12%), radiotherapy-induced 18 (7%) and surgical 78 (31%). No significant difference in sexual function between groups were observed with respect to mean scores for desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, pain and sexual function (p>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that sexuality-specific problems during menopause are multifactorial and not solely attributable to biological or psychological factors. Our findings call for comprehensive interventions to address the psychological and biological effects of menopause in order to improve the life quality of women.

PMID:35190266 | DOI:10.1016/j.androl.2020.12.004

Clin Breast Cancer. 2022 Jan 22:S1526-8209(22)00023-4. doi: 10.1016/j.clbc.2022.01.007. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: The rate of refusal of chemotherapy ranges from 3% to 19%, but varies widely by patient profile and treatment setting. Using a large national registry, we explore factors significantly associated with the decision to decline chemotherapy in patients with early-stage, HR+/HER2- breast cancer (BC) despite high risk scoring on multigene sequencing analysis for OncotypeDX (ODX) or MammaPrint (MP), in which the survival benefit of chemotherapy is clear.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with HR+/HER2- BC and high risk scoring on ODX (score >26) or MP were selected from the National Cancer Database (2004-2017). Only those who refused to get chemotherapy despite their physician’s recommendations were included. Univariate frequency and proportion statistics were used to describe the patient cohort. Bivariate Chi-square analysis evaluated the association between refusal of recommended chemotherapy and sociodemographic characteristics. Significant variables (P < .05) were included in a multivariable logistic regression model.

RESULTS: N = 43,533 patients were included (88.7% ODX, 11.3% MP). A total of n = 4415 (10.1%) patients declined chemotherapy despite recommendation by the patient’s primary oncologist. Age >70 (OR: 3.46, 95% CI: 2.96-4.04, P < .001), black race (OR: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.07-1.36, P = .01), non-private insurance, lobular carcinoma histology (OR: 1.21, 95% CI: 1.09-1.35, P < .001), and tumor grade of I significantly predicted chemotherapy decline.

CONCLUSION: Identifying and addressing many of the factors that contribute to under-treatment in minorities is to be key to reducing cancer disparity and improving equity in cancer care and outcome.

PMID:35190262 | DOI:10.1016/j.clbc.2022.01.007

J Sci Med Sport. 2021 Dec 29:S1440-2440(21)00560-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jsams.2021.12.009. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to document the technical and transferrable skills required for sport scientists, and perceived employment opportunities both currently and in the future with a particular emphasis on comparisons between academic and applied sport scientists.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey methodology.

METHODS: 117 Australian sport science employees completed an online survey capturing demographic information, perceptions about the importance of technical skills, transferable skills, future employment opportunities as well as free-text information on future careers, challenges, and opportunities for the profession. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise information and comparisons made between academic and applied sport science participants.

RESULTS: Participants were predominantly male and 35 years or younger, with half reporting they held only one position within the industry. Most technical and transferrable skills were rated as important (>4.0 out of 5.0), with practitioner-focused skills rated somewhat more important by applied sport scientists compared to scientific-focused skills rated somewhat more important by academics, and applied sport scientists generally rating transferable skills as more important compared to academics (d > 0.5). Value and supply/demand were identified as challenges to the industry with discipline-specific roles and non-elite populations considered areas for future jobs.

CONCLUSIONS: Participants felt there would be more jobs in the future and that these would be in discipline-specific roles and/or non-elite populations. Both technical and interpersonal skills were considered important for sport scientists. The greatest challenges are how sport science is valued and the potential oversupply of sport science graduates.

PMID:35190264 | DOI:10.1016/j.jsams.2021.12.009

Cancer Radiother. 2022 Jan 24:S1278-3218(22)00002-6. doi: 10.1016/j.canrad.2021.08.024. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic continues to spread exponentially around the world. Cancer patients have a higher risk of commorbidity than the rest of the population. Radiotherapy departments are actively involved in the management of these patients, whether they have COVID or not, and it is recognized that the time taken to take charge and the continuity of treatment have a prognostic impact. The main objective was to assess the impact of the coronavirus on the treatment times of patients undergoing radiotherapy.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted in the radiotherapy department of Gustave-Roussy institute (France) during the period from March 3, 2020 to January 12, 2021. Organizational changes, patient care times between the day of the scan and the last radiotherapy session as well as the time taken to take charge of patients between the first session and the last radiotherapy session has been studied.

RESULTS: A total of 1183 patients were included, among which 60 had COVID-19. Patients were divided into four categories. Treatment times of patients who did not have COVID-19 and those of patients who did were not statistically significantly different.

CONCLUSION: The organization of the radiotherapy department at the Gustave-Roussy institute is based on several points: carrying out preventive screening tests, protecting staff and patients and reorganizing the patient circuit. Thanks to the performance of diagnostic tests and the implementation of a specific workflow for patients with COVID, we ensure the continuity of patient treatment in complete safety without impacting treatment times.

PMID:35190250 | DOI:10.1016/j.canrad.2021.08.024