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Ebrahimi H, Castro DV, Feng MI, Prajapati SR, Lee KO, Chan EH, Paul T, Sehgal I, Patel J, Li X, Zengin ZB, Meza L, Mercier BD, Hsu J, Govindarajan A, Chawla N, Dizman N, Bergerot CD, Rock A, Liu S, Tripathi A, Dorff T, Pal SK, Chehrazi-Raffle A. Examining Exclusion Criteria in Advanced Prostate Cancer Clinical Trials: An Assessment of recommendations From the American Society Of Clinical Oncology and Friends of Cancer Research. Clin Genitourin Cancer 2023; 21:e467-e473. [PMID: 37301665 DOI: 10.1016/j.clgc.2023.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/21/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Eligibility criteria illustrate the characteristics of the study population and promote the safety of participants. However, overreliance on restrictive eligibility criteria may limit the generalizability of outcomes. As a result, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) issued statements to curtail these challenges. In this study, we aimed to assess restrictiveness in eligibility criteria across advanced prostate cancer clinical trials. MATERIALS AND METHODS We identified all phase I, II, and III advanced prostate cancer clinical trials between June 30, 2012, and June 30, 2022, through Clinicaltrials.gov. We evaluated whether a clinical trial excluded, conditionally included, or did not report 4 common criteria: brain metastases, prior or concurrent malignancies, HIV infection, and hepatitis B virus (HBV)/hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Performance status (PS) criteria were recorded based on the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) scale. RESULTS Out of 699 clinical trials within our search strategy, 265 (37.9%) trials possessed all the required data and were included in our analysis. The most common excluded condition of our interest was brain metastases (60.8%), followed by HIV positivity (46.4%), HBV/HCV positivity (46.0%), and concurrent malignancies (15.5%). Additionally, 50.9% of clinical trials only included patients with ECOG PS 0 to 1. HIV and HBV/HCV infection were exclusion criteria of 22 (80.8%) and 19 (73.1%) immunotherapy trials, respectively. CONCLUSION Patients with brain metastases, prior or concurrent malignancies, HIV infection, HBV/HCV infection, or low-functioning PS were overly restricted from participating in advanced prostate clinical trials. Advocating for broader criteria may ameliorate generalizability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hedyeh Ebrahimi
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Daniela V Castro
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Matthew I Feng
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Sweta R Prajapati
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Kyle O Lee
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Elyse H Chan
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Trishita Paul
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Ishaan Sehgal
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Jalen Patel
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Xiaochan Li
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Zeynep B Zengin
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Luis Meza
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Benjamin D Mercier
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - JoAnn Hsu
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Ameish Govindarajan
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Neal Chawla
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Nazli Dizman
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA; Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, Yale New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT
| | - Cristiane D Bergerot
- Centro de Câncer de Brasília (CETTRO), Instituto Unity de Ensino e Pesquisa, Brasília, Brazil
| | - Adam Rock
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Sandy Liu
- Department of Medical Oncology, City of Hope Orange County Medical Center, Irvine, CA
| | - Abhishek Tripathi
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Tanya Dorff
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Sumanta K Pal
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA
| | - Alexander Chehrazi-Raffle
- Department of Medical Oncology & Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, CA.
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Grądalski T, Kochan K. Quality of referrals to specialist palliative care and remote patient triage - a cross-sectional study. Support Care Cancer 2023; 31:551. [PMID: 37658942 PMCID: PMC10474992 DOI: 10.1007/s00520-023-08025-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/05/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Choosing the optimal moment for admission to palliative care remains a serious challenge, as it requires a systematic identification of persons with supportive care needs. Despite the screening tools available for referring physicians, revealing the essential information for preliminary admission triage is crucial for an undisturbed qualification process. The study was aimed at analysing the eligibility criteria for specialist palliative care disclosed within provided referrals, expanded when necessary by documentation and/or interview. METHODS Referral forms with the documentation of 300 patients consecutively referred to the non-profit in-patient ward and home-care team in Poland were analysed in light of prognosis, phase of the disease and supportive needs. RESULTS Half of the referrals had the sufficient information to make a justified preliminary qualification based solely on the delivered documentation. The majority lacked performance status or expected prognosis. Where some information was revealed, two-thirds were in a progressing phase of the disease, with a within-weeks life prognosis. In 53.7%, no particular reason for admission was given. Social problems were signalled as the only reason for the admission in 7.7%. Twenty-eight percent were labelled as "urgent"; however, 52.4% of them were triaged as "stable" or disqualified. Patients referred to a hospice ward received complete referral forms more often, containing all necessary information. CONCLUSIONS General physicians need practical tips to facilitate timely referrals and unburden the overloaded specialist palliative care. Dedicated referral forms extended by a checklist of typical patients' concerns should be disseminated for better use of these resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Grądalski
- Chair of Palliative Medicine, Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski Krakow University, Kraków, Poland.
- St. Lazarus Hospice, Fatimska 17, 31-831, Kraków, Poland.
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Hyun S, Kim H, Mok SK, Yun SS, Park SC, Kim JY. Anatomical feasibility of fenestrated stent graft to treat complex abdominal aortic aneurysms from a Korean single institute database. Ann Surg Treat Res 2023; 104:34-42. [PMID: 36685774 PMCID: PMC9830046 DOI: 10.4174/astr.2023.104.1.34] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose This study aims to investigate the feasibility of Zenith Fenestrated AAA Endovascular Graft (Z-FEN, Cook Medical) from a single Korean institution database by evaluating the vascular anatomy of Korean abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) patients with hostile aortic neck. Methods This is a retrospective study on patients with AAA who underwent endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) and open surgery repair between January 2012 and December 2021 (n = 211). The anatomic characteristics of the aortic neck were evaluated using 3-dimensional reconstructed computed tomographic scans. For the juxtarenal AAA patients (n = 39), feasibility of fenestrated stent graft was evaluated under the protocol of fenestrated EVAR. For those who were not suitable for the application of Z-FEN, the reasons for unsuitability were analyzed. Results Among 211 AAA patients, 108 patients (51.2%) had complex aortic neck, and 39 (18.5%) had insufficient aortic neck length (<15 mm) for conventional EVAR. Of the 39 patients with juxtarenal AAAs, 13 (33.3%) were determined feasible for Z-FEN. Twenty-six patients (66.7%) were noncandidate for Z-FEN due to severe neck angulation, short aortic neck length, inadequate iliac artery anatomy, large aortic neck diameter, and severe calcification and thrombosis. Proximal aortic neck length of the non-feasible group was significantly shorter than that of the feasible group (P = 0.002). Conclusion Z-FEN was applicable to 33.3% of the juxtarenal AAA patients. As recent studies confirm, the effectiveness and safety of fenestrated EVAR, Z-FEN can be an option for AAA patients with short aortic neck.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sangho Hyun
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Hojung Kim
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sang Kyun Mok
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sang Seob Yun
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sun Cheol Park
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Jang Yong Kim
- Department of Vascular and Transplant Surgery, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, Korea
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Hwang D, Kim J, Kim HK, Huh S. Suitability of the Aortic Neck Anatomy for Endovascular Aneurysm Repair in Korean Patients with Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm. Vasc Specialist Int 2020; 36:71-81. [PMID: 32611839 PMCID: PMC7333089 DOI: 10.5758/vsi.200016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Revised: 05/09/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose To evaluate the aortic neck anatomy in Korean patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). Materials and Methods We examined computed tomography scans of 343 patients with AAAs (≥5.5 cm for men or ≥5 cm for women) between 2009 and 2018. Eligibility of neck anatomy for endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) was assessed with the standard instructions for use (IFU) (length ≥15 mm, suprarenal angulation (SRA) ≤45°, infrarenal angulation (IRA) ≤60°, and diameter 18-32 mm) and the extended IFU (length ≥10 mm, SRA ≤60°, IRA ≤75°, and diameter 17-32 mm). Results There were 71 women (20.7%), and 61 patients (17.8%) with rupture. Women had smaller neck diameters (21.3 vs. 23.4 mm, P<0.001 for proximal neck; 22.2 vs. 24.5 mm, P<0.001 for distal neck), and higher angulations (51.5° vs. 37.8°, P<0.001 for SRA; 77.7° vs. 57.0°, P<0.001 for IRA) than men. However, the neck length was not significantly different. Patients with ruptured AAAs had shorter neck lengths (21.0 vs. 26.8 mm, P=0.005) than those with intact AAAs. However, the neck diameters and angulations were not significantly different. EVAR eligibility for standard and extended IFUs was found in 37.5% and 55.1% of men, and 11.3% and 25.4% of women (P<0.001 for both IFUs); neck anatomy was eligible in 34.0% of intact AAAs and 23.0% of ruptured AAAs (P=0.098). Conclusion A significant proportion of the Korean patients did not meet the IFU for EVAR, mainly due to the angulated neck. Women, and patients with ruptured AAAs, were less likely to meet the IFU criteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deokbi Hwang
- Division of Vascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea
| | - Jihye Kim
- Division of Vascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea
| | - Hyung-Kee Kim
- Division of Vascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea
| | - Seung Huh
- Division of Vascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu, Korea
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Vikulova DN, Skorniakov IS, Bitoiu B, Brown C, Theberge E, Fordyce CB, Francis GA, Humphries KH, Mancini GJ, Pimstone SN, Brunham LR. Lipid-lowering therapy for primary prevention of premature atherosclerotic coronary artery disease: Eligibility, utilization, target achievement, and predictors of initiation. Am J Prev Cardiol 2020; 2:100036. [PMID: 34327459 PMCID: PMC8315606 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpc.2020.100036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Revised: 06/29/2020] [Accepted: 06/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Despite advances in screening and prevention, rates of premature coronary artery disease (CAD) have been stagnant. The goals of this study were to investigate the barriers to early risk detection and preventive treatment in patients with premature CAD. In particular, we: 1) assessed the performance of the latest versions of major international guidelines in detection of risk of premature CAD and eligibility for preventive treatment; and, 2) investigated real-life utilization of primary prevention with lipid-lowering therapies in these patients. METHODS We included patients in the Study to Avoid cardioVascular Events in British Columbia (SAVE BC), an observational study of patients with premature (males ≤ 50 years, females ≤ 55 years) angiographically confirmed CAD. Eligibility for primary prevention and treatment received were assessed retrospectively based on information recorded prior to or at the index presentation with CAD. RESULTS Of 417 patients (28.1% females) who met the criteria, 94.3% had at least one major cardiovascular risk factor. In the retrospective risk assessment, 41.7%, 61.4%, and 34.3% (p < 0.001) of patients met criteria for initiation of statin therapy, and an additional 13.9%, 8.4%, and 46.8% may be considered for treatment using the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association, Canadian Cardiovascular Society, and European Society of Cardiology guidelines, respectively. Only 17.1% of patients received statins and 11.0% achieved guideline-recommended lipid goals before presentation. Diabetes and elevated plasma lipid levels were positively associated with treatment initiation, while smoking was associated with non-treatment. CONCLUSIONS The current versions of major guidelines fail to recognize many patients who develop premature CAD as being at risk. The vast majority of these patients, including patients who have guideline-directed indications, do not receive lipid-lowering therapy before presenting with CAD. Our findings highlight the need for more effective screening and prevention strategies for premature CAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana N. Vikulova
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Ilia S. Skorniakov
- Department of Family Practice, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Brendon Bitoiu
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Chad Brown
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Emilie Theberge
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | | | - Gordon A. Francis
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Karin H. Humphries
- Centre for Health Evaluation and Outcomes Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - G.B. John Mancini
- Division of Cardiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Simon N. Pimstone
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Liam R. Brunham
- Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Centre for Heart Lung Innovation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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Sullivan AL, Sadeh S, Houri AK. Are school psychologists' special education eligibility decisions reliable and unbiased?: A multi-study experimental investigation. J Sch Psychol 2019; 77:90-109. [PMID: 31837731 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsp.2019.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2018] [Revised: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 10/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Nearly 50 years of research show persistent racial disproportionality in the identification of special education disabilities, but the underlying mechanisms for these disparities remain largely unexplored. Because ambiguous regulations defining disabilities may allow subjectivity and unlawful differential treatment (i.e., racial bias or discrimination) in the special education eligibility process, an important target of study is disparate treatment of students by race in evaluations required to determine eligibility. School psychologists have long been recognized as highly influential in this process and in schools' resultant decisions. We used a 3 × 2 mixed factorial experimental design in three studies with simulated case report data to measure the influence of race and assessment data on school psychologists' perceptions of students' eligibility for special education in cases centering on emotional disturbance, intellectual disability, or autism, respectively. Participants included 302 practicing school psychologists in three states across the three experiments. There was little evidence of racial disparity, but participants tended to render decisions unsupported by, and even contrary to, evaluation data. Implications for research, practice, and professional development are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda L Sullivan
- Department of Educational Psychology, College of Education & Human Development, University of Minnesota, USA.
| | - Shanna Sadeh
- Department of Educational Psychology, College of Education & Human Development, University of Minnesota, USA
| | - Alaa K Houri
- Department of Educational Psychology, College of Education & Human Development, University of Minnesota, USA
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Brænd AM, Straand J, Klovning A. Clinical drug trials in general practice: how well are external validity issues reported? BMC Fam Pract 2017; 18:113. [PMID: 29284407 PMCID: PMC5746953 DOI: 10.1186/s12875-017-0680-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2017] [Accepted: 12/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND When reading a report of a clinical trial, it should be possible to judge whether the results are relevant for your patients. Issues affecting the external validity or generalizability of a trial should therefore be reported. Our aim was to determine whether articles with published results from a complete cohort of drug trials conducted entirely or partly in general practice reported sufficient information about the trials to consider the external validity. METHODS A cohort of 196 drug trials in Norwegian general practice was previously identified from the Norwegian Medicines Agency archive with year of application for approval 1998-2007. After comprehensive literature searches, 134 journal articles reporting results published from 2000 to 2015 were identified. In these articles, we considered the reporting of the following issues relevant for external validity: reporting of the clinical setting; selection of patients before inclusion in a trial; reporting of patients' co-morbidity, co-medication or ethnicity; choice of primary outcome; and reporting of adverse events. RESULTS Of these 134 articles, only 30 (22%) reported the clinical setting of the trial. The number of patients screened before enrolment was reported in 61 articles (46%). The primary outcome of the trial was a surrogate outcome for 60 trials (45%), a clinical outcome for 39 (29%) and a patient-reported outcome for 25 (19%). Clinical details of adverse events were reported in 124 (93%) articles. Co-morbidity of included participants was reported in 54 trials (40%), co-medication in 27 (20%) and race/ethnicity in 78 (58%). CONCLUSIONS The clinical setting of the trials, the selection of patients before enrolment, and co-morbidity or co-medication of participants was most commonly not reported, limiting the possibility to consider the generalizability of a trial. It may therefore be difficult for readers to judge whether drug trial results are applicable to clinical decision-making in general practice or when developing clinical guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anja Maria Brænd
- Department of General Practice, Institute of Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Postbox 1130 Blindern, N-0318, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Jørund Straand
- Department of General Practice, Institute of Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Postbox 1130 Blindern, N-0318, Oslo, Norway
| | - Atle Klovning
- Department of General Practice, Institute of Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Postbox 1130 Blindern, N-0318, Oslo, Norway
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Makrani AH, Afshari M, Ghajar M, Forooghi Z, Moosazadeh M. Vitamin D and fibromyalgia: a meta-analysis. Korean J Pain 2017; 30:250-257. [PMID: 29123619 PMCID: PMC5665736 DOI: 10.3344/kjp.2017.30.4.250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2017] [Revised: 08/24/2017] [Accepted: 08/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Vitamin D is a cofactor responsible for autoimmune disorders. There is no agreement in the studies investigating the association between vitamin D and fibromyalgia. This study aims to combine the conflicting results of the primary studies which compared these patients with control groups regarding the serum concentration of vitamin D. This meta-analysis has been designed based on PRISMA guidelines. Relevant keywords were searched in PubMed, Science direct, Scopus, Cochrane, and Google scholar and primary studies were selected. After screening the eligible studies according to inclusion/exclusion criteria, we investigated the risk of bias in the selected studies and also the heterogeneity between the primary results using Cochrane (Q) and I-squared (I2) indices. The primary results were combined using inverse variance method and Cohen statistics as well as a random effects model. Publication bias was assessed using Egger test. Sensitivity analysis was applied to investigate the influence of each primary study on the final result of the meta-analysis. Suspected factors in the heterogeneity were assessed using meta-regression models. We entered 12 eligible studies in the meta-analysis including 851 cases compared with 862 controls. The standardized mean difference of Vitamin D between the two groups was −0.56 (95% confidence interval: −1.05, −0.08). Our meta-analysis showed that vitamin D serum levels of patients with fibromyalgia was significantly lower than that of control group.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mahdi Afshari
- Department of Community Medicine, Zabol University of Medical Sciences, Zabol, Iran
| | - Marayam Ghajar
- Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Zahra Forooghi
- Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Mahmood Moosazadeh
- Health Science Research Center, Addiction Institute, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
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Bhattacharya S, Cantor MN. Analysis of eligibility criteria representation in industry-standard clinical trial protocols. J Biomed Inform 2013; 46:805-13. [PMID: 23770150 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbi.2013.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2012] [Revised: 05/30/2013] [Accepted: 06/03/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Previous research on standardization of eligibility criteria and its feasibility has traditionally been conducted on clinical trial protocols from ClinicalTrials.gov (CT). The portability and use of such standardization for full-text industry-standard protocols has not been studied in-depth. Towards this end, in this study we first compare the representation characteristics and textual complexity of a set of Pfizer's internal full-text protocols to their corresponding entries in CT. Next, we identify clusters of similar criteria sentences from both full-text and CT protocols and outline methods for standardized representation of eligibility criteria. We also study the distribution of eligibility criteria in full-text and CT protocols with respect to pre-defined semantic classes used for eligibility criteria classification. We find that in comparison to full-text protocols, CT protocols are not only more condensed but also convey less information. We also find no correlation between the variations in word-counts of the ClinicalTrials.gov and full-text protocols. While we identify 65 and 103 clusters of inclusion and exclusion criteria from full text protocols, our methods found only 36 and 63 corresponding clusters from CT protocols. For both the full-text and CT protocols we are able to identify 'templates' for standardized representations with full-text standardization being more challenging of the two. In our exploration of the semantic class distributions we find that the majority of the inclusion criteria from both full-text and CT protocols belong to the semantic class "Diagnostic and Lab Results" while "Disease, Sign or Symptom" forms the majority for exclusion criteria. Overall, we show that developing a template set of eligibility criteria for clinical trials, specifically in their full-text form, is feasible and could lead to more efficient clinical trial protocol design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanmitra Bhattacharya
- Department of Computer Science, The University of Iowa, 14 MacLean Hall, Iowa City, IA 52242, United States.
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