Tag: statistics

Stat Appl Genet Mol Biol. 2021 Aug 9. doi: 10.1515/sagmb-2021-0004. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Statistical methods that allow for cell type specific DNA methylation (DNAm) analyses based on bulk-tissue methylation data have great potential to improve our understanding of human disease and have created unprecedented opportunities for new insights using the wealth of publicly available bulk-tissue methylation data. These methodologies involve incorporating interaction terms formed between the phenotypes/exposures of interest and proportions of the cell types underlying the bulk-tissue sample used for DNAm profiling. Despite growing interest in such “interaction-based” methods, there has been no comprehensive assessment how variability in the cellular landscape across study samples affects their performance. To answer this question, we used numerous publicly available whole-blood DNAm data sets along with extensive simulation studies and evaluated the performance of interaction-based approaches in detecting cell-specific methylation effects. Our results show that low cell proportion variability results in large estimation error and low statistical power for detecting cell-specific effects of DNAm. Further, we identified that many studies targeting methylation profiling in whole-blood may be at risk to be underpowered due to low variability in the cellular landscape across study samples. Finally, we discuss guidelines for researchers seeking to conduct studies utilizing interaction-based approaches to help ensure that their studies are adequately powered.

PMID:34378875 | DOI:10.1515/sagmb-2021-0004

Cancer Biol Med. 2021 Aug 11:j.issn.2095-3941.2021.0037. doi: 10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2021.0037. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Distinguishing immune-related adverse events (irAEs) caused by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) from the AEs caused by chemotherapy, targeted therapy, or infection is highly difficult. This study offers new insights into evaluating the diagnosis, differential diagnostic, and prognostic value of ferritin for irAEs induced by ICIs.

METHODS: From December 1, 2018, to April 1, 2019, we examined 318 patients with malignant tumors who received serum ferritin monitoring. The cohort comprised 231 patients treated with PD-1 inhibitor or combination with chemotherapy, and 87 patients treated with chemotherapy. Of the 231 patients, 90 had irAEs (irAE group), 70 had non-irAEs (non-irAE group), 67 had no AEs (no irAE-non irAE group), and 4 had unclassified AEs. In the 87 patients, 60 had AEs (AE group), and 27 had no AEs (no AE group). Statistical analyses were conducted with nonparametric Mann-Whitney tests.

RESULTS: At the onset of AEs in the irAE group, ferritin (normal range, 35-150 μg/L) rose to a median of 927 μg/L (range, 117-17,825 μg/L) from 86 μg/L at baseline (range, 29-421 μg/L) (P < 0.001). Ferritin levels at the onset of AEs in the irAE group were significantly higher than those in the non-irAE group (median, 81 μg/L; range, 32-478 μg/L) (P < 0.001) and the AE group (median, 103 μg/L; range, 23-712 μg/L) (P < 0.001). After treatment in the irAE group, ferritin continuously decreased to a normal range in recovered patients, showed no significant changes in stable patients, and continued to rise in patients who died.

CONCLUSIONS: Ferritin can be used as a diagnostic, differential diagnostic, and prognostic marker for irAEs in patients treated with ICIs.

PMID:34378879 | DOI:10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2021.0037

Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.1111/cid.13039. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: In immediately loaded implants within 72 h after the implant placement in the unilaterally and partially edentulous ridge, primary stability is considered critical, which can be influenced by the design of the implant fixture.

PURPOSE: To determine the outcomes at 1 year after the immediate loading of multiunit fixed partial prostheses over either tapered implants (TIs) or straight implants (SIs) in the posterior region.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-eight patients (24 patients, 52 implants in TI group; 24 patients, 50 implants in SI group) were included for the study. Except for the one SI group patient whose two implants showed the insertion torque less than 30 Ncm, provisional prostheses designed and fabricated from intraoral scan data obtained immediately after implant surgery were delivered to rest of the 47 subjects at 3-7 days. After a year, the survival rate was estimated by intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) analyses, and marginal bone loss (MBL) and implant stability were also analyzed statistically (p < 0.05).

RESULTS: Survival rate at implant level in TI group was 96.2%, and that of SI group in the ITT analysis was 86.0%. Intergroup difference, however, was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Insertion torque was significantly higher in TI group than SI group (47.12 ± 6.37 Ncm vs. 41.60 ± 9.77 Ncm; p < 0.05). MBLs of both groups were less than 0.1 mm at 1-year follow-up and was similar between two groups (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Immediate loading of fixed partial prostheses after TI and SI placement showed reliable outcomes in the partially edentulous posterior ridge. In terms of the initial mechanical stability, the performance was superior for TIs than for SIs.

PMID:34378853 | DOI:10.1111/cid.13039

Ther Apher Dial. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.1111/1744-9987.13722. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Long term dialysis involves a chronic inflammatory state and produces a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency. A clinical trial was conducted in hemodialysis with serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) level < 30 ng/mL. The conventional-group (N = 35) and the high-dose group (N = 35) were treated with ergocalciferol according to the K/DOQI guidelines and double dosage of ergocalciferol from the recommendation for 8 weeks, respectively. The main outcomes were measured by serum 25[OH]D and interleukin-6 (IL-6). At the end of 8 weeks, a statistically significantly greater increase was observed of mean serum 25[OH]D levels and decrease of mean PTH levels in the high-dose group compared with the conventional-dose group. The high dose group had higher achievement of vitamin D sufficiency than the conventional-dose group (97.4% vs. 76.4%, P = 0.012). No significance difference was found in mean changes of serum IL-6 level in the both groups, except subgroup patients with vitamin D deficiency or serum 25[OH]D < 20 ng/mL, high dose treatment suppressed serum IL-6 level (-2.67 pg/mL [IQR -6.56 to -0.17], P = 0.039). No differences were observed between the two groups in adverse events. Oral high-dose ergocalciferol supplementation has achieved higher vitamin D sufficiency than standard dose in ESRD patients on dialysis.

PMID:34378863 | DOI:10.1111/1744-9987.13722

Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.1111/cid.13034. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Implant-supported overdentures (IOD) are becoming a more commonly used treatment in the dental practice and it risks causing speech problems.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was investigating the changes in speech, satisfaction with speech, and overall oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in edentulous patients during and after treatment with maxillary IODs.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-one patients receiving an IOD participated in speech assessment. They were examined preoperatively with their conventional denture (CD) with full palatal coverage, after connection of the implant-bar connected denture, without palatal coverage, and 3 years thereafter. The examination included assessment of articulation in speech, OHRQoL based on total OHIP-14, and satisfaction with overall oral health and speech (visual analogue scale).

RESULTS: There was a reduction in mean number of articulation disorders from 1.00 at baseline to 0.55 at connection, although statistically insignificant (p = 0.059). Especially the /s/ sound is vulnerable. At 3 years follow-up, still 6/16 (37.5%) of the patients suffered from this speech problem. Overall satisfaction improved from 64.05/100 at baseline to 82.95/100 at connection (p = 0.008) and remained unchanged with 81.69/100 after 3 years follow-up. Patients’ satisfaction with speech increased from 70.62/100 with CD to 82.63/100, 3 years follow-up (p = 0.009). Total OHIP-14 decreased from 21.45/56 with CD to 8.00/56 (p < 0.001) with IOD and 6.13/56 3 years after connection (p = 0.001). Significant improvement of all seven domains in OHRQoL was observed with IOD compared to CD.

CONCLUSIONS: Patients treated with maxillary IODs show improved OHRQoL 3 years after connection of the IOD compared to the CD. Even though patients reported improvement of satisfaction and OHRQoL, articulation disorders were still present, suggesting that patients should be informed about possible speech issues.

PMID:34378864 | DOI:10.1111/cid.13034

J Cosmet Dermatol. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.1111/jocd.14375. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To study the application of evidence-based nursing in prosthesis postoperative complications.

METHODS: A total of 78 cases of patients who underwent prosthetic breast augmentation were selected from July 2017 to July 2019. All the patients were divided into control group and study group according to the random number table method. The patients in the control group received routine nursing interventions, and the patients in the study group performed evidence-based nursing interventions based on the control group’s care. The mental health, external esthetic effects, and complications of the two groups were observed and compared.

RESULTS: Before the implementation of nursing intervention, there was no significant difference in mental health indicators (SAS, SDS) between the two groups (p > 0.05). After the intervention, the SAS and SDS scores of the two groups were lower than before the intervention, and the study group was lower than the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05); before the implementation of nursing intervention, there was no significant difference in the scores of HADS-A and HADS-D between the two groups (p > 0.05). After the intervention, the scores of HADS-A and HADS-D of the two groups were lower than those before the intervention, and the scores of the study group were lower than those of the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05); 94.9% (37 / 39) was better than 71. 8% (28 / 39) in the control group. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05), and the total incidence of postoperative complications in the study group was 5.1% (2 / 39), which was lower than 15.4% (6 / 39) in the control group (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Evidence-based nursing intervention is effective in preventing postoperative complications of silicone breast augmentation prosthesis. It can effectively reduce postoperative complications, improve external esthetic effects, and improve the level of mental health of patients. It is worthy of clinical promotion and application.

PMID:34378842 | DOI:10.1111/jocd.14375

Obes Rev. 2021 Aug 10:e13217. doi: 10.1111/obr.13217. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

To meet the need for regular and reliable data on the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children in Europe, the World Health Organization (WHO) European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) was established in 2007. The resulting robust surveillance system has improved understanding of the public health challenge of childhood overweight and obesity in the WHO European Region. For the past decade, data from COSI have helped to inform and drive policy action on nutrition and physical activity in the region. This paper describes illustrative examples of how COSI data have fed into national and international policy, but the real scope of COSI’s impact is likely to be much broader. In some countries, there are signs that policy responses to COSI data have helped halt the rise in childhood obesity. As the countries of the WHO European Region commit to pursuing United Action for Better Health in Europe in WHO’s new European Programme of Work, COSI provides an excellent example of such united action in practice. Further collaborative action will be key to tackling this major public health challenge which affects children throughout the region.

PMID:34378847 | DOI:10.1111/obr.13217

J Ultrasound Med. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.1002/jum.15805. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Use of point-of-care lung ultrasound (POC-LUS) has increased significantly in pediatrics yet it remains under-studied in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). No studies explicitly evaluate the reliability of POC-LUS artifact interpretation among critically ill children with acute respiratory failure (ARF) in the PICU. We thus designed this study to determine the inter-rater reliability of POC-LUS interpretation in pediatric ARF among pediatric intensivists trained in POC-LUS and an expert intensivist.

METHODS: We compared the interpretation of lung sliding, pleural line characteristics, ultrasound artifacts, and POC-LUS diagnoses among pediatric intensivists and an expert intensivist in a cohort of children admitted to the PICU for ARF. Kappa statistics (k) adjusted for maximum attainable agreement (k/k_max ) were used to quantify chance-correct agreement between the pediatric intensivist and expert physician.

RESULTS: We enrolled 88 patients, evaluating 3 zones per hemithorax (anterior, lateral, and posterior) for lung sliding, pleural line characteristics, ultrasound artifacts, and diagnosis. There was moderate agreement between the PICU intensivist and expert-derived diagnoses with 56% observed agreement (k/k_max = 0.46, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.31-0.65). Agreement in identification of lung sliding (k = 0.19, 95% CI -0.17 to 0.56) and pleural line characteristics (k = 0.24, 95% CI 0.08-0.40) was slight and fair, respectively, while agreement in the interpretation of ultrasound artifacts ranged from moderate to substantial.

CONCLUSIONS: Evidence supporting the evaluation of neonatal and adult patients with POC-LUS should not be extrapolated to critically ill pediatric patients. This study adds to the evidence supporting use of POC-LUS in the PICU by demonstrating moderate agreement between PICU intensivist and expert-derived POC-LUS diagnoses.

PMID:34378821 | DOI:10.1002/jum.15805

Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2021 Aug 11:e14234. doi: 10.1111/nmo.14234. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) seriously lowers the quality of life of patients, and its prevalence has gradually increased in recent years. Some studies have showed that metabolic syndrome (MetS) is related to GERD, but the results remain controversial. This study explored the relationship between MetS and GERD through systematic retrieval and analysis of published studies.

METHODS: Retrieve related research from PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. Including cohort studies that compare the prevalence of GERD between patients with MetS and patients without, and case-control studies or cross-sectional studies that compare the prevalence of MetS between patients with GERD and patients without. In addition to analyzing the relationship between MetS and GERD, individual metabolic components are also analyzed. Use a random effects model (DerSimmonian and Laird) to merge the odd ratio (OR). Cochran’s Q test and Higgins’ I-squared statistic were performed to assess heterogeneity. Publication bias was assessed by Egger’s test.

KEY RESULTS: A total of 103,048 patients from 15 studies were included. The combined results suggest that MetS is a risk factor of GERD (OR: 1.66, 95%CI: 1.38-1.99). Among the individual metabolic components, abdominal obesity (OR: 1.42, 95%CI: 1.22-1.64), hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 1.50, 95%CI: 1.27-1.78), hyperglycemia (OR: 1.31, 95%CI: 1.07-1.61), and hypertension (OR: 1.19, 95%CI: 1.07-1.33) are risk factors of GERD. Conclusions and Inferences. MetS is a risk factor of GERD, and among the abnormal metabolic components that establish the diagnosis of MetS, abdominal obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension are risk factors of GERD.

PMID:34378835 | DOI:10.1111/nmo.14234

Endokrynol Pol. 2021 Aug 11. doi: 10.5603/EP.a2021.0074. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of selenium supplementation on autoantibody titers, thyroid ultrasonography and thyroid function in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (autoimmune thyroiditis) and normal thyroid reference range.

METHODS: A total of 100 patients were given 200 ug/d selenium yeast orally, their thyroid function, levels of serum selenium, thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb), thyroglobulin antibodies (TGAb) and urine iodine were measured and thyroid ultrasonography was performed before administration and three and six months afterwards, and the data were statistically analysed.

RESULTS: The subjects exhibited a selenium deficiency before the administration of selenium, and the serum levels increased to moderate levels three and six months after the selenium supplementation (p<0.05). The titers of TGAb decreased significantly in patients after six months of Selenium lack prevention measure(p<0.05). In the high antibody group, TgAb decreased after 6 months compared with baseline (P<0.05), and TPOAb decreased after 3 and 6 months of selenium supplementation compared with baseline (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION: In patients with autoimmune thyroiditis and normal thyroid reference range, there was a general selenium deficiency but, after six months of treatment, it was shown that the Selenium lack prevention measure may be effective in reducing the titers of TGAb and TPOAb.

PMID:34378788 | DOI:10.5603/EP.a2021.0074