Tag: statistics

J Adv Nurs. 2021 Dec 13. doi: 10.1111/jan.15130. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

AIMS: To evaluate the effectiveness of technology-based interventions in reducing psychological morbidities such as depressive symptomology, anxiety, burden and improving quality of life and self-efficacy in informal caregivers of stroke survivors.

DESIGN: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

DATA SOURCES: An extensive search was systematically undertaken at CENTRAL, PubMed, Embase, Scopus, CINHAL, Web of Science and PsycInfo until January 2021. Grey literature and dissertations were searched in Google Scholar, ProQuest & Scholarbank@NUS. Studies involving registered trials were retrieved from Clinicaltrials.gov and CENTRAL, respectively.

REVIEW METHODS: Two reviewers independently screened the trials, conducted quality appraisal and extracted the data. Quality of the studies included in the review was assessed using Cochrane Risk of bias tool. Meta-analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.4. Narrative synthesis was performed for studies where results could not be pooled statistically. The results were reported abiding Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines.

RESULTS: This review included 15 trials with a total of 1276 informal caregivers of stroke survivors. Eleven trials were included in the meta-analysis. Subgroup analyses revealed that technology-based interventions with structured educational programs were statistically significant in reducing depressive symptoms (d = -0.27, 95% CI [-0.49 to -0.05], p = .02). Technology-based interventions with structured educational programs <3-month revealed significant effects (d = -0.31, 95% CI [-0.49 to -0.13], p = .0009). Results of narrative synthesis reported technology-based intervention with face-to-face training minimized depressive symptoms of informal caregivers. Notably, there were no statistically significant effects on anxiety, burden, quality of life and self-efficacy outcomes.

CONCLUSION: Technology-based interventions had beneficial effects in alleviating depressive symptoms among informal caregivers.

IMPACT: Technology-based interventions serve as a support mechanism for informal caregivers of stroke survivors who face time-constrains. Further high-quality randomized controlled trials are warranted to elucidate sustainability, optimal format and dosage of intervention.

PMID:34904746 | DOI:10.1111/jan.15130

Cancer J. 2021 Nov-Dec 01;27(6):423-427. doi: 10.1097/PPO.0000000000000551.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS) patients may benefit from local ablative treatments due to modest efficacy of systemic chemotherapy. However, use of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is controversial because of presumed radioresistance of STS.

METHODS: Patients treated with SBRT for oligometastatic and oligoprogressive metastatic STS were retrospectively reviewed to assess results in terms of local control (LC), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). Incidence and grade of adverse events were reported. Statistical analysis was performed to identify variables correlated with outcome and toxicity.

RESULTS: Forty patients were treated with SBRT to a median biologic effective dose (BED) of 105 (66-305) Gy5 to 77 metastases. Two-year LC, DFS, and OS were 67%, 23%, and 40%. Improved LC was shown in patients receiving a BED >150 Gy5 (hazard ratio [HR], 3.9; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.6-9.7; P = 0.028). A delay >24 months between primary tumor diagnosis and onset of metastases was associated with improved DFS (HR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.22-0.96; P = 0.01) and OS (HR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.23-0.99; P = 0.03). No toxicity grade ≥3 was observed.

CONCLUSIONS: Stereotactic body radiotherapy is effective in metastatic STS with a benign toxicity profile. A BED >150 Gy5 is required to maximize tumor control rates. Metastatic relapse >24 months after diagnosis is correlated to improved survival.

PMID:34904803 | DOI:10.1097/PPO.0000000000000551

J Surg Oncol. 2021 Dec 14. doi: 10.1002/jso.26769. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To compare the immediate operating room (OR), inpatient, and overall costs between three surgical modalities among women with endometrial cancer (EC) and Class III obesity or higher.

METHODS: A multicentre prospective observational study examined outcomes of women, with early stage EC, treated surgically. Resource use was collected for OR costs including OR time, equipment, and inpatient costs. Median OR, inpatient, and overall costs across surgical modalities were analyzed using an Independent-Samples Kruskal-Wallis Test among patients with BMI ≥ 40.

RESULTS: Out of 520 women, 103 had a BMI ≥ 40. Among women with BMI ≥ 40: median OR costs were $4197.02 for laparotomy, $5524.63 for non-robotic assisted laparoscopy, and $7225.16 for robotic-assisted laparoscopy (p < 0.001) and median inpatient costs were $5584.28 for laparotomy, $3042.07 for non-robotic assisted laparoscopy, and $1794.51 for robotic-assisted laparoscopy (p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences in the median overall costs: $10 291.50 for laparotomy, $8412.63 for non-robotic assisted laparoscopy, and $9002.48 for robotic-assisted laparoscopy (p = 0.185).

CONCLUSION: There was no difference in overall costs between the three surgical modalities in patient with BMI ≥ 40. Given the similar costs, any form of minimally invasive surgery should be promoted in this population.

PMID:34904716 | DOI:10.1002/jso.26769

Laryngoscope. 2021 Dec 14. doi: 10.1002/lary.29959. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To quantify the degree of color match achieved during microvascular facial reconstruction, and to describe a novel technique for improving reconstructive skin color match. We hypothesize that split-thickness skin grafts (STSG) placed atop de-epithelialized free tissue produces better facial skin color match than free tissue with intact epithelium.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross sectional photographic study of reconstructed facial skin color match.

METHODS: Sixty-eight adults, who underwent head and neck reconstructive surgery, were divided into six categories based on cutaneous reconstructive technique: cervicofacial flap, radial forearm free flap (RFFF), fibula free flap, anterolateral thigh free flap (ALT), STSG over adiopofascial flap (STAFF), and STSG over myogenous flap (STMF). Averaged color samplings of the reconstructed defect and adjacent normal skin were taken from digital photographs. The color difference was calculated using the delta-E calculation. Blinded expert observers also rated the degree of color match. Nonparametric cohort contrast and correlation statistical analyses were performed.

RESULTS: The mean delta-E’s and 10-point Likert ratings for the ALT, fibula, RFFF, STAFF, STMF, and cervicofacial flaps were 11.6, 10.0, 7.7, 6.3, 8.8, and 4.7, and 5.1, 6.4, 2.4, 3.2, 2.7, and 1.1, respectively. Likert scale inter-rater correlation was strong, with coefficient = 0.80.

CONCLUSIONS: On average, STSG over de-epithelialized myogenous and adipofascial free tissue transfers produced a better color match than the skin paddles of donor sites, with the exception of the radial forearm donor site. Delta-E values obtained from photos correlated well with expert ratings of color match. This reliable technique for quantifying color match may be used in future studies.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3 Laryngoscope, 2021.

PMID:34904721 | DOI:10.1002/lary.29959

J Opioid Manag. 2021 Nov-Dec;17(6):445-453. doi: 10.5055/jom.2021.0679.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The opioid epidemic is frequently discussed including the staggering numbers involved with coprescribing opioids and benzodiazepines associated with death. Community pharmacists, with the help of a system intervention, have a unique opportunity to help reduce the coprescribing of benzodiazepines and opioids and reduce the associated risk of death.

DESIGN: A single center retrospective chart review was conducted after a system intervention was placed, as a quality improvement project, from November 2019 to May 2020.

SETTING: Independent community pharmacy.

PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: Data included demographics, dosing of each medication pre- and post-intervention, and naloxone status. Main outcome(s) measures: The primary outcome evaluated was reduction in dose/discontinuation of these prescriptions. The secondary outcome evaluated was the number of naloxone prescriptions ordered per protocol and picked up.

RESULTS: The primary outcome did not show statistical difference; however, the secondary outcomes showed statistical significance.

CONCLUSION: In conclusion, community pharmacists, with the help of evolving technologies, can reduce harm associated with the coprescribing of benzodiazepines and opioids.

PMID:34904693 | DOI:10.5055/jom.2021.0679

J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2021 Dec 14:dgab885. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgab885. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

CONTEXT: Excessive production of fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) by tumor was considered as the main pathogenesis in tumor-induced osteomalacia (TIO). Despite its importance to comprehensive understanding of pathogenesis and diagnosis, the regulation of systemic metabolism in TIO remains unclear.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to systematically characterize the metabolome alteration associated with TIO.

METHODS: By means of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS) based metabolomics, we analyzed the metabolic profile from 96 serum samples (32 initial diagnosis TIO patients, pairwise samples after tumor resection and 32 matched healthy control subjects). In order to screen and evaluate potential biomarkers, statistical analyses, pathway enrichment and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) were performed.

RESULTS: Metabolomic profiling revealed distinct alterations between TIO and HC cohort. Differential metabolites were screened and conducted to functional clustering and annotation. Significantly enriched pathway was found involved in arachidonic acid metabolism. A combination of 5 oxylipins, 4-HDoHE, leukotriene B4, 5-HETE, 17-HETE and 9,10,13-TriHOME, demonstrated a high sensitivity and specificity panel for TIO prediction screened by random forest (RF) algorithm (AUC=0.951, 95% confidence interval, CI 0.827-1). Supported vector machine (SVM) model and partial least-squares (PLS) model were conducted to validate the predictive capabilities of the diagnostic panel.

CONCLUSIONS: Metabolite profiling of TIO altered significant compared with HC. A high sensitivity and specificity panel with 5 oxylipins were tested as diagnostic predictor. For the first time, we provide the global profile of metabolomes and identify potential diagnostic biomarkers of TIO. The present work may offer novel insights into the pathogenesis of TIO.

PMID:34904633 | DOI:10.1210/clinem/dgab885

J Exp Biol. 2021 Dec 14:jeb.242872. doi: 10.1242/jeb.242872. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Wing damage attenuates aerial performance in many flying animals such as birds, bats and insects. Especially insect wings are fragile and light in order to reduce inertial power requirements for flight at elevated wing flapping frequencies. There is a continuing debate on the factors causing wing damage in insects including collisions with objects, mechanical stress during flight activity, and aging. This experimental study is engaged with the reasons and significance of wing damage for flight in the house fly Musca domestica. We determined natural wing area loss under two housing conditions and recorded flight activity and flight ability throughout the animals’ lifetime. Our data show that wing damage occurs on average after 6 h of flight, is sex-specific, and depends on housing conditions. Statistical tests show that both physiological age and flight activity have similar significance as predictors for wing damage. Tests on freely flying flies showed that minimum wing area for active flight is approximately 10-34% below the initial area and requires a left-right wing area asymmetry of less than approximately 25%. Our findings broadly confirm predictions from simple aerodynamic theory based on mean wing velocity and area, and are also consistent with previous wing damage measurements in other insect species.

PMID:34904650 | DOI:10.1242/jeb.242872

Rev Alerg Mex. 2021 Oct-Dec;68(4):225-232. doi: 10.29262/ram.v68i4.881.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To describe the medical and laboratory profile of the patients who have been diagnosed with chronic urticaria in the outpatient clinic of a tertiary care hospital of the social security system in Costa Rica.

METHODS: All patients over 13 years of age who had been diagnosed with chronic urticaria between January 1st, 2014, and December 31st, 2018 were included. Variables of medical and laboratory data were statistically analyzed, and the treatment of the patients between their first and last medical consultation was compared.

RESULTS: This was about 160 patients who had been diagnosed with chronic urticaria; 129 of them were women, 45.7 % between the ages of 30-49 years; in 17.5 % of them (28 patients), inducible urticaria was associated; 54.8 % (46/84) had positive antithyroperoxidase antibodies; 16.9 % (27 patients) maintained a single dose of second-generation anti-H1 antihistamines in the last consultation; 16.3 % (26 patients) no longer required antihistamine treatment in the last consultation. Cyclosporine was used in 8.8 % (14 patients), and omalizumab was used in 2.5 % (four patients).

CONCLUSION: Since this is a real-life study in a geographic region with limited publications on this pathology, we trust that the provided information will contribute to the scientific community in order to improve the quality of life of patients with chronic urticaria through a timely diagnosis and an effective and efficient treatment.

PMID:34904558 | DOI:10.29262/ram.v68i4.881

Ann Ital Chir. 2021 Nov 29;10:S0003469X21035454. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has seriously affected our society. Governments have difficult situations by adopting strict and severe mitigation measures in order to contain the pandemic spreading. These decisions influenced significatively people’s behavior changing their habits and routines. This study offers a statistical analysis of the incidence of the Maxillo-Facial traumas in Tuscany southern area, during the pandemic lockdown. The statistical analyzed has been obtained comparing the maxillo-facial trauma occurrence during the Italian lockdown between the 9th of March and the 18th of May 2020 in comparison with same period of the five previous years. KEY WORDS: Covid-19, Italian covid-19, Maxillofacial surgery, Maxillofacial trauma, Pandemic, Surgery management, Trauma incidence in Italy.

PMID:34904572

Glob Health Action. 2021 Jan 1;14(1):1985761. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2021.1985761.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Young people in low- and middle-income countries are often neglected in designing youth-friendly health services, especially HIV testing and preventive services. Designathons, which are time-bounded co-creation events where individuals gather in teams to develop solutions to a problem, could promote youth participation and ownership of health services.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to examine youth participation in a designathon to create youth-friendly health services in Nigeria.

METHODS: Our designathon was based on crowdsourcing principles and informed by a human-centered design approach. The designathon included an open call for Nigerian youths between 14 and 24 years to share ideas on how to promote uptake of HIV self-testing services and a three-day sprint event that brought together diverse teams to develop strategies enhancing linkage to care. Teams pitched their solutions to a panel of five independent experts who scored ideas based on the desirability, feasibility, potential impact, and teamwork. We used descriptive statistics to summarize participants’ demographics and conducted a content analysis to synthesize themes from youth proposals.

RESULTS: Nine hundred seventy-six youth across Nigeria applied to join the designathon. Forty-eight youth in 13 teams participated in the designathon with a median age of 20 years (IQR: 17-22]. Boys and young men were 48.5% (446/919) of the total applicants, 62.5% (30/48) of the designathon participants, and 63.6% (7/11) of the finalists. Students, from all educational levels, represented 91.2% (841/922) of the total applicants, 88.4% (38/43) of the designathon participants, and 90.0% (9/10) of the finalists. About twenty-three percent (3/13) of the final proposals were top ranked. The three finalist approaches to optimize youth-friendly health services centered on decentralizing service delivery to young people through mobile health technologies, use of mobile tents, or peer support services.

CONCLUSIONS: Our open call engaged diverse groups of Nigerian youth, including young women and students. Our data suggest that designathons may be useful for developing tailored youth-friendly health services. Further research is needed to understand the designathon process and the effectiveness of the finalist submissions.

PMID:34904539 | DOI:10.1080/16549716.2021.1985761