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Tzivian L, Benis A, Rusakova A, Syundyukov E, Seidmann A, Ophir Y. International scientific communication on COVID-19 data: management pitfalls understanding. J Public Health (Oxf) 2024; 46:87-96. [PMID: 38141038 DOI: 10.1093/pubmed/fdad277] [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] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2023] [Revised: 11/23/2023] [Accepted: 12/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND During the pandemic, countries utilized various forms of statistical estimations of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) impact. Differences between databases make direct comparisons and interpretations of data in different countries a challenge. We evaluated country-specific approaches to COVID-19 data and recommended changes that would improve future international collaborations. METHODS We compared the COVID-19 reports presented on official UK (National Health System), Israeli (Department of Health), Latvian (Center for Disease Prevention and Control) and USA (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) health authorities' websites. RESULTS Our analysis demonstrated critical differences in the ways COVID-19 statistics were made available to the general and scientific communities. Specifically, the differences in approaches were found in the presentation of the number of infected cases and tests, and percentage of positive cases, the number of severe cases, the number of vaccinated, and the number and percent of deaths. CONCLUSION Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability and Reusability principles could guide the development of essential global standards that provide a basis for communication within and outside of the scientific community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lilian Tzivian
- Institute of Clinical and Preventive Medicine, University of Latvia, Riga LV-1586, Latvia
| | - Arriel Benis
- Digital Medical Technologies Department, Holon Institute of Technology, Holon 5810201, Israel
| | - Agnese Rusakova
- Faculty of Education, Psychology and Arts, University of Latvia, Riga LV-1586, Latvia
| | - Emil Syundyukov
- Longenesis Ltd, Riga LV-1010, Latvia
- Faculty of Computing, University of Latvia LV-1586, Riga, Latvia
| | - Abraham Seidmann
- Questrom Business School, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
- Health Analytics and Digital Health, Digital Business Institute, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Yotam Ophir
- Department of Communication, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA
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2
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Liu C, Zhang X, Nguyen TT, Liu J, Wu T, Lee E, Tu XM. Partial least squares regression and principal component analysis: similarity and differences between two popular variable reduction approaches. Gen Psychiatr 2022; 35:e100662. [PMID: 35146334 PMCID: PMC8796256 DOI: 10.1136/gpsych-2021-100662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
In many statistical applications, composite variables are constructed to reduce the number of variables and improve the performances of statistical analyses of these variables, especially when some of the variables are highly correlated. Principal component analysis (PCA) and factor analysis (FA) are generally used for such purposes. If the variables are used as explanatory or independent variables in linear regression analysis, partial least squares (PLS) regression is a better alternative. Unlike PCA and FA, PLS creates composite variables by also taking into account the response, or dependent variable, so that they have higher correlations with the response than composites from their PCA and FA counterparts. In this report, we provide an introduction to this useful approach and illustrate it with data from a real study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenyu Liu
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Xinlian Zhang
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Tanya T Nguyen
- Department of Psychiatry, Stein Institute for Research on Aging, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Jinyuan Liu
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Tsungchin Wu
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Ellen Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Stein Institute for Research on Aging, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Xin M Tu
- Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
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3
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Flores-Alvarez E, Anselmo Rios Piedra E, Cruz-Priego GA, Durand-Muñoz C, Moreno-Jimenez S, Roldan-Valadez E. Correlations between DTI-derived metrics and MRS metabolites in tumour regions of glioblastoma: a pilot study. Radiol Oncol 2020; 54:394-408. [PMID: 32990651 DOI: 10.2478/raon-2020-0055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2020] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Specific correlations among diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-derived metrics and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) metabolite ratios in brains with glioblastoma are still not completely understood. Patients and methods We made retrospective cohort study. MRS ratios (choline-to-N-acetyl aspartate [Cho/NAA], lipids and lactate to creatine [LL/Cr], and myo-inositol/creatine [mI/Cr]) were correlated with eleven DTI biomarkers: mean diffusivity (MD), fractional anisotropy (FA), pure isotropic diffusion (p), pure anisotropic diffusion (q), the total magnitude of the diffusion tensor (L), linear tensor (Cl), planar tensor (Cp), spherical tensor (Cs), relative anisotropy (RA), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD) at the same regions: enhanced rim, peritumoral oedema and normal-appearing white matter. Correlational analyses of 546 MRS and DTI measurements used Spearman coefficient. Results At the enhancing rim we found four significant correlations: FA ⇔ LL/Cr, Rs = -.364, p = .034; Cp ⇔ LL/Cr, Rs = .362, p = .035; q ⇔ LL/Cr, Rs = -.349, p = .035; RA ⇔ LL/Cr, Rs = -.357, p = .038. Another ten pairs of significant correlations were found in the peritumoral edema: AD ⇔ LL/Cr, AD ⇔ mI/Cr, MD ⇔ LL/Cr, MD ⇔ mI/Cr, p ⇔ LL/Cr, p ⇔ mI/ Cr, RD ⇔ mI/Cr, RD ⇔ mI/Cr, L ⇔ LL/Cr, L ⇔ mI/Cr. Conclusions DTI and MRS biomarkers answer different questions; peritumoral oedema represents the biggest challenge with at least ten significant correlations between DTI and MRS that need additional studies. The fact that DTI and MRS measures are not specific of one histologic type of tumour broadens their application to a wider variety of intracranial pathologies.
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4
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Vazquez Arreola E, Wilson JR, Chen DG. Analysis of correlated data with feedback for time-dependent covariates in psychiatry research. Gen Psychiatr 2020; 33:e100263. [PMID: 32914055 PMCID: PMC7477964 DOI: 10.1136/gpsych-2020-100263] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2020] [Revised: 07/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
In studies on psychiatry and neurodegenerative diseases, it is common to have data that are correlated due to the hierarchical structure in data collection or to repeated measures on the subject longitudinally. However, the feedback effect created due to time-dependent covariates in these studies is often overlooked and seldom modelled. This article reviews the methodological development of feedback effects with marginal models for longitudinal data and discusses their implementation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elsa Vazquez Arreola
- School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Wilson
- Department of Economics, W.P. Carey School of Business, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Ding-Geng Chen
- School of Social Work and Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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5
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Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE To compare the effects of missing-data imputation techniques, mean imputation, group mean imputation, regression imputation, and multiple imputation (MI), on the results of exploratory factor analysis under different missing assumptions. METHODS Missing data with different missing assumptions were generated from true data. The quality of imputed data was examined by correlation coefficients. Factor structures were compared indirectly by coefficients of congruence and directly by factor structures. RESULTS MI had the best quality and matching factor structure to the true data for all missing assumptions with different missing rates. Mean imputation had the least favorable results in factor analysis. The imputation techniques revealed no important differences with 10% of data missing. CONCLUSION MI showed the best results, especially with larger proportions of missing data.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tian Dai
- Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Ying Guo
- Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
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6
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Kringle EA, Knutson EC, Engstrom C, Terhorst L. Iterative processes: a review of semi-supervised machine learning in rehabilitation science. Disabil Rehabil Assist Technol 2019; 15:515-520. [PMID: 31282778 DOI: 10.1080/17483107.2019.1604831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Purpose: To define semi-supervised machine learning (SSML) and explore current and potential applications of this analytic strategy in rehabilitation research.Method: We conducted a scoping review using PubMed, GoogleScholar and Medline. Studies were included if they: (1) described a semi-supervised approach to apply machine learning algorithms during data analysis and (2) examined constructs encompassed by the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). The first two authors reviewed identified articles and recorded study and participant characteristics. The ICF domain used in each study was also identified.Results: After combining information from the eight studies, we established that SSML was a feasible approach for analysis of complex data in rehabilitation research. We also determined that semi-supervised approaches may be more accurate than supervised machine learning approaches.Conclusions: A semi-supervised approach to machine learning has potential to enhance our understanding of complex data sets in rehabilitation science. SSML mirrors the iterative process of rehabilitation, making this approach ideal for calibrating devices, classifying activities or identifying just-in-time interventions. Rehabilitation scientists who are interested in conducting SSML should collaborate with data scientists to advance the application of this approach within our field.Implications for rehabilitationSemi-supervised machine learning applications may be a feasible approach for analyses of complex data sets in rehabilitation research.Semi-supervised machine learning approaches uses a combination of labelled and unlabelled data to produce accurate predictive models, thereby requiring less user-input data than other machine learning approaches (i.e., supervised, unsupervised), reducing resource cost and user-burden.Semi-supervised machine learning is an iterative process that, when applied to rehabilitation assessment and outcomes, could produce accurate personalized models for treatment.Rehabilitation researchers and data scientists should collaborate to implement semi-supervised machine learning approaches in rehabilitation research, optimizing the power of large datasets that are becoming more readily available within the field (e.g., EEG signals, sensors, smarthomes).
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily A Kringle
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Evan C Knutson
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Collin Engstrom
- School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Lauren Terhorst
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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7
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Abstract
A power calculation for a study with a quantitative outcome requires information on the outcome distribution under the alternative hypothesis. Researchers face challenges when they concisely specify alternative distributions in genetic studies because power depends on genotype frequencies and the average effect of each genotype. In GWAS, investigators evaluate hundreds of thousands of associations; therefore it is unrealistic to specify gene frequencies and gene effects for each test and some simplification is needed. Software packages are available to calculate power, but many of them have limited flexibility and / or may have a steep learning curve. In this review, we describe to researchers and graduate students the essentials of a power calculation for testing for an association between a quantitative trait and genotypes. In addition, we provide them with the codes of the different available software packages—free and commercial—to calculate this power. The calculations can be carried out using virtually any computer language that computes the cumulative distribution function of a non-central F-distribution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Delongchamp
- Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.,Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, USA
| | - Mohammed F Faramawi
- Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA.,Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, USA
| | - Eleanor Feingold
- Department of Human Genetics- Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Dongjun Chung
- Department of Public Health Sciences - Medical University of South Carolina, SC, USA
| | - Saly Abouelenein
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, USA
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8
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Abstract
For moderate to large sample sizes, all tests yielded pvalues close to the nominal, except when models were misspecified. The signed-rank test generally had the lowest power. Within the current context of count outcomes, the signed-rank test shows subpar power when compared with tests that are contrasted based on full data, such as the GEE. Parametric models for count outcomes such as the GLMM with a Poisson for marginal count outcomes are quite sensitive to departures from assumed parametric models. There is some small bias for all the asymptotic tests, that is, the signed-ranktest, GLMM and GEE, especially for small sample sizes. Resampling methods such as permutation can help alleviate this.
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Affiliation(s)
- James A Proudfoot
- Clinical and Translational Research Institute, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Tuo Lin
- Clinical and Translational Research Institute, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Bokai Wang
- Departments of Biostatistics & Computational Biology and Anesthesiology, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA
| | - Xin M Tu
- Clinical and Translational Research Institute, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA.,Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
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Shi R, Liu T, Liu Z, Zhang Y, Shen Z. Clinical Analysis of Classification and Prognosis of Ischemia-Type Biliary Lesions After Liver Transplantation. Ann Transplant 2018; 23:190-196. [PMID: 29555897 PMCID: PMC6248068] [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] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2017] [Accepted: 12/07/2017] [Indexed: 04/05/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to classify ischemia-type biliary lesions after liver transplantation according to their imaging findings and severity of clinical manifestations and to analyze the relationship between such classification and prognosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS We collected clinical data of patients with ischemia-type biliary lesions (ITBL) after liver transplantation in the Organ Transplantation Center, the First Central Hospital of Tianjin, from August 2012 to July 2013; all patients were classified according to their imaging findings and relevant clinical data to analyze the relationship between their classification and prognosis. RESULTS The mean postoperative survival time, as well as the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rate, in Group ITBL showed statistical significance when compared with those in Group NITBL (log rank=12.13, P<0.001), but the mean postoperative survival times among the mild, moderate, and severe ITBL cases showed no statistical significance. The incidence rates of 1-, 3-, and 5-year adverse prognosis in Group ITBL showed statistical significance when compared with Group NITBL with <2% patients who had anastomotic biliary obstruction (log rank=277.06, P<0.001), among which the difference in the incidence rate of adverse prognosis between severe and moderate ITBL cases showed no statistical significance. The difference in the incidence rate of adverse prognosis between mild and moderate ITBL cases showed statistical significance (log rank=6.01, P=0.014), and the difference in the incidence rate of adverse prognosis between mild and severe ITBL cases showed statistical significance (log rank=10.98, P=0.001). CONCLUSIONS ITBL classification based on the severity of biliary imaging and bilirubin level can predict the prognosis of ITBL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Shi
- Organ Transplantation Center, The First Central Hospital of Tianjin, Tianjin, P.R. China
| | - Tong Liu
- Department of General Surgery, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, P.R. China
| | - Zirong Liu
- Organ Transplantation Center, The First Central Hospital of Tianjin, Tianjin, P.R. China
| | - Yamin Zhang
- Organ Transplantation Center, The First Central Hospital of Tianjin, Tianjin, P.R. China
| | - Zhongyang Shen
- Organ Transplantation Center, The First Central Hospital of Tianjin, Tianjin, P.R. China
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Péron J, Roy P, Conroy T, Desseigne F, Ychou M, Gourgou-Bourgade S, Stanbury T, Roche L, Ozenne B, Buyse M. An assessment of the benefit-risk balance of FOLFIRINOX in metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Oncotarget 2018; 7:82953-82960. [PMID: 27765912 PMCID: PMC5347744 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.12761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [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: 07/28/2016] [Accepted: 09/29/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background We sought to assess the benefit-risk balance of FOLFIRINOX versus gemcitabine in patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Methods We used generalized pairwise comparisons. This statistical method permits the simultaneous analysis of several prioritized outcome measures. The first priority outcome was survival time (OS). Differences in OS that exceeded two months were considered clinically relevant. The second priority outcome was toxicity. The overall treatment effect was quantified using the net chance of a better outcome, which can be interpreted as the net probability for a random patient treated in the FOLFIRINOX group to have a better overall outcome than a random patient in the gemcitabine group. Results In this trial 342 patients received either FOLFIRINOX or gemcitabine. The net chance of a better outcome favored strongly and significantly the FOLFIRINOX group (24.7; P<.001), suggesting a favorable benefit-risk balance of FOLFIRINOX versus gemcitabine. The positive benefit-risk balance of FOLFIRINOX was observed throughout all sensitivity analyses. Conclusions Generalized pairwise comparisons are useful to perform a quantitative assessment of the benefit-risk balance of new treatments. It provides a clinically intuitive way of comparing patients with respect to all important efficacy and toxicity outcomes. Overall the benefit-risk balance of FOLFIRINOX was strongly positive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julien Péron
- CNRS, UMR 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Equipe Biostatistique-Santé, Service de Biostatistiques, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 69495 Pierre-Bénite, France.,Medical Oncology Department, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Institut de Cancérologie des Hospices Civils de Lyon-IC-HCL, 69495 Pierre-Bénite, France
| | - Pascal Roy
- CNRS, UMR 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Equipe Biostatistique-Santé, Service de Biostatistiques, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 69495 Pierre-Bénite, France
| | - Thierry Conroy
- Institut de Cancérologie de Lorraine, Alexis Vautrin Center, 54500 Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | | | - Marc Ychou
- Institut Régional du Cancer Montpellier, Val d'Aurelle, 34298 Montpellier, France
| | | | | | - Laurent Roche
- CNRS, UMR 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Equipe Biostatistique-Santé, Service de Biostatistiques, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 69495 Pierre-Bénite, France
| | - Brice Ozenne
- CNRS, UMR 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Equipe Biostatistique-Santé, Service de Biostatistiques, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 69495 Pierre-Bénite, France
| | - Marc Buyse
- International Drug Development Institute (IDDI), San Francisco, CA 94109, USA
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Hextrum S, Bennett S. A Critical Examination of Subgroup Analyses: The National Acute Spinal Cord Injury Studies and Beyond. Front Neurol 2018; 9:11. [PMID: 29449826 PMCID: PMC5799288 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2018.00011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2017] [Accepted: 01/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The use of high-dose methylprednisolone for acute spinal cord injury continues to be a topic of debate. This controversy largely stems from fundamental issues in statistical interpretation of trial data, most notably subgroup analyses. The purpose of this review is to discuss important examples of improper subgroup analysis and encourage better practices in future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon Hextrum
- Department of Neurology, Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, CA, United States
| | - Stephanie Bennett
- Department of Pharmacy, Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, CA, United States
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12
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Björk J, Rittner R, Cromley E. Exploring inter-rater reliability and measurement properties of environmental ratings using kappa and colocation quotients. Environ Health 2014; 13:86. [PMID: 25342232 PMCID: PMC4223848 DOI: 10.1186/1476-069x-13-86] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2014] [Accepted: 10/14/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Available evidence suggest that perceptions or ratings of the neighborhood, e.g. as being green, walkable or noisy, are important for effects on health and wellbeing, also after controlling for objective measures of identical or similar features. When evaluating effects of the perceived environment, it is important that measurement properties and the reliability of the environmental ratings are evaluated before decisions about how these ratings should be handled in the statistical analyses are made. In this paper we broaden the usage of two association measures, the well-known kappa statistic and the novel colocation quotient (CLQ), to studies of inter-rater reliability and of associations between different categorical ratings in spatial contexts. METHODS We conducted reliability analysis of a survey instrument for assessing perceived greenness at geographical point locations, here the close outdoor environment within 5-10 minutes walking distance from home. Data were obtained from a public health survey conducted in 2008 in Scania, southern Sweden (n =27 967 participants). RESULTS The results demonstrate the usefulness of kappa and CLQ as tools for assessing reliability and measurement properties of environmental rating scales when used at geographical point locations. We further show that the two measures are interchangeable, i.e. kappa can be accurately approximated from CLQ and vice versa, but can be used for somewhat different purposes in reliability analyses. Inter-rater reliability between the nearest neighbors was demonstrated for all five items of the evaluated instrument for assessing perceived greenness, albeit with clear differences across the items. CONCLUSION Reliability analysis employing kappa and CLQ can be used as a basis for informed decisions about, for instance, how dichotomizations of the ratings should be defined and how missing or indefinite ratings should be handled. Such reliability analyses can thus serve as guidance for subsequent epidemiological studies of associations between environmental ratings, health and wellbeing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Björk
- />Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden
| | - Ralf Rittner
- />Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden
| | - Ellen Cromley
- />Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden
- />Department of Community Medicine and Health Care, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, 263 Farmington Avenue, Farmington, CT 06030-6325 USA
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13
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Abstract
Most researchers acknowledge an intrinsic hierarchy in the scholarly journals ("journal rank") that they submit their work to, and adjust not only their submission but also their reading strategies accordingly. On the other hand, much has been written about the negative effects of institutionalizing journal rank as an impact measure. So far, contributions to the debate concerning the limitations of journal rank as a scientific impact assessment tool have either lacked data, or relied on only a few studies. In this review, we present the most recent and pertinent data on the consequences of our current scholarly communication system with respect to various measures of scientific quality (such as utility/citations, methodological soundness, expert ratings or retractions). These data corroborate previous hypotheses: using journal rank as an assessment tool is bad scientific practice. Moreover, the data lead us to argue that any journal rank (not only the currently-favored Impact Factor) would have this negative impact. Therefore, we suggest that abandoning journals altogether, in favor of a library-based scholarly communication system, will ultimately be necessary. This new system will use modern information technology to vastly improve the filter, sort and discovery functions of the current journal system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Björn Brembs
- Institute of Zoology-Neurogenetics, University of Regensburg Regensburg, Germany
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14
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Abstract
Most researchers acknowledge an intrinsic hierarchy in the scholarly journals (“journal rank”) that they submit their work to, and adjust not only their submission but also their reading strategies accordingly. On the other hand, much has been written about the negative effects of institutionalizing journal rank as an impact measure. So far, contributions to the debate concerning the limitations of journal rank as a scientific impact assessment tool have either lacked data, or relied on only a few studies. In this review, we present the most recent and pertinent data on the consequences of our current scholarly communication system with respect to various measures of scientific quality (such as utility/citations, methodological soundness, expert ratings or retractions). These data corroborate previous hypotheses: using journal rank as an assessment tool is bad scientific practice. Moreover, the data lead us to argue that any journal rank (not only the currently-favored Impact Factor) would have this negative impact. Therefore, we suggest that abandoning journals altogether, in favor of a library-based scholarly communication system, will ultimately be necessary. This new system will use modern information technology to vastly improve the filter, sort and discovery functions of the current journal system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Björn Brembs
- Institute of Zoology-Neurogenetics, University of Regensburg Regensburg, Germany
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15
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Sanon S, Lee VV, Elayda MA, Gondi S, Livesay JJ, Reul GJ, Wilson JM. Predicting early death after cardiovascular surgery by using the Texas Heart Institute Risk Scoring Technique (THIRST). Tex Heart Inst J 2013; 40:156-162. [PMID: 23678213 PMCID: PMC3649797] [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] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Preoperative risk-prediction models are an important tool in contemporary surgical practice. We developed a risk-scoring technique for predicting in-hospital death for cardiovascular surgery patients. From our institutional database, we obtained data on 21,120 patients admitted from 1995 through 2007. The outcome of interest was early death (in-hospital or within 30 days of surgery). To identify mortality predictors, multivariate logistic regression was performed on data from 14,030 patients from 1995 through 2002 and risk scores were computed to stratify patients (low-, medium-, and high-risk). A recalibrated model was then created from the original risk scores and validated on data from 7,090 patients from 2003 through 2007. Significant predictors of death included urgent surgery within 48 hours of admission, advanced age, renal insufficiency, repeat coronary artery bypass grafting, repeat aortic aneurysm repair, concomitant aortic aneurysm or left ventricular aneurysm repair with coronary bypass or valvular surgery, and preoperative intra-aortic balloon pump support. Because the original model overpredicted death for operations performed from 2003 through 2007, this was adjusted for by applying the recalibrated model. Applying the recalibrated model to the validation set revealed predicted mortality rates of 1.7%, 4.2%, and 13.4% and observed rates of 1.1%, 5.1%, and 13%, respectively. Because our model discriminates risk groups by using preoperative clinical criteria alone, it can be a useful bedside tool for identifying patients at greater risk of early death after cardiovascular surgery, thereby facilitating clinical decision-making. The model can be recalibrated for use in other types of patient populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saurabh Sanon
- Division of Cardiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78229, USA
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Vanner EA, Stewart MW, Liesegang TJ, Bendel RE, Bolling JP, Hasan SA. A retrospective cohort study of clinical outcomes for intravitreal crystalline retained lens fragments after age-related cataract surgery: a comparison of same-day versus delayed vitrectomy. Clin Ophthalmol 2012; 6:1135-48. [PMID: 22888212 PMCID: PMC3413336 DOI: 10.2147/opth.s27564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [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] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND This analysis compared outcomes for same-day (under a no-move, no-wait policy) versus delayed vitrectomy for intravitreal crystalline retained lens fragments after surgery for age-related cataract. METHODS This was a retrospective, nonrandomized treatment comparison cohort study with a consecutive series of 35 eyes (23 same-day, 12 delayed) receiving both cataract surgery and vitrectomy at the Mayo Clinic Florida between 1999 and 2010. Outcome measures included visual acuity (VA), glaucoma progression, visual utility, and complications. Several techniques (bootstrapping, robust confidence intervals, jackknifing, and a homogeneous sample) were used to reduce selection bias and increase confidence in our small sample's results. RESULTS No significant baseline treatment group differences. Mean previtrectomy delay (12 eyes) was 40.9 days (median 29.5, range 1-166). Mean postvitrectomy follow-up (35 eyes) was 47.5 months (median 40.5, range 3.1-123.5). Same-day patients had significantly better final VA (adjusted for age [t = -2.14, P = 0.040] and precataract surgery VA [t = -2.98, P = 0.006]); a higher rate of good final VA (≥20/40), 78.3% (18/23) versus 58.3% (7/12); a lower rate of bad final VA (≤20/200), 4.3% (1/23) versus 25.0% (3/12); and fewer final retinal conditions, 4.3% (1/23) versus 50.0% (6/12). Same-day patients also had marginally significant better mean final VA in the operated eye (20/40 versus 20/90, Z = 1.51, P = 0.130) despite poorer initial VA (20/98 versus 20/75) and higher age (3+ years), better final visual utility, and longer survival times for better VA. Among patients with preexisting glaucoma, same-day patients experienced significantly less differential (operated versus nonoperated eye) glaucoma progression. CONCLUSION Results favored same-day patients, who experienced better final VA and visual utility, less differential glaucoma progression, and fewer complications. Results need confirmation with larger samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth A Vanner
- Departments of Preventive, Medicine and Health Care Policy and Management, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
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Peacock WF, Bhatt DL, Diercks D, Amsterdam E, Chandra A, Ohman EM, Brown DFM, Januzzi J. Cardiologists' and emergency physicians' perspectives on and knowledge of reperfusion guidelines pertaining to ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction. Tex Heart Inst J 2008; 35:152-161. [PMID: 18612446 PMCID: PMC2435452] [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] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
We sought to determine U.S. physicians' knowledge and perspectives regarding the 2004 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for management of patients who have ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). We invited 45,998 physicians from the American Medical Association's roster to take an Internet survey of U.S. cardiologists and emergency physicians who were hospital-based or who had hospital-admitting privileges. To represent individual and combined populations, data were weighted on the basis of years in practice, sex, and geographic region. Of 505 cardiologists and 509 emergency physicians who completed the survey, 90% worked in an urban or suburban setting and 82% at hospitals with a cardiac catheterization laboratory. Sampling error was +/-3.4%. Most respondents (61%) believed that overall myocardial infarction treatment needed a "great deal" or "fair amount" of improvement; 24% were "somewhat" or "not at all" familiar with the guidelines. Although 84% knew the recommended STEMI treatments for a patient who presents within 3 hours of symptom onset without contraindications to reperfusion or delay to invasive treatment, only 11% knew that there is no preferred approach. If percutaneous coronary intervention proved impossible within 90 minutes of presentation, 21% reported that eligible patients--assuming early presentation, confirmed STEMI diagnosis, and no high-risk STEMI or contraindications to fibrinolysis--would "rarely" or "never" receive guideline-recommended fibrinolysis. Many cardiologists and emergency physicians are unfamiliar with the guidelines and with the uncertainty that surrounds therapeutic approaches, which suggests the need for increased education on effective treatments to expedite myocardial reperfusion in STEMI.
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Affiliation(s)
- W Frank Peacock
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio 44195-0002, USA.
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Altuve M, Wong S, Passariello G, Carrault G, Hernandez A. LF/(LF+HF) index in ventricular repolarization variability correlated and uncorrelated with heart rate variability. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc 2006; 2006:1363-1366. [PMID: 17946042 PMCID: PMC3386901 DOI: 10.1109/iembs.2006.259821] [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] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The purpose of this study, was to asses whether LF/(LF+HF) obtained from ventricular repolarization variability (VRV) reflects the state of sympathovagal balance. The VRV time series and heart rate variability (HRV) time series from seventy two electrocardiogram (ECG) records in four different autonomic nervous system (ANS) profiles (athletes, cardiac transplant patient, heart failure patients and normal subjects) were extracted. A dynamic linear parametric model was applied to separate the VRV in two parts, VRV correlated with HRV (VRV(r)) and VRV uncorrelated with HRV (VRV(u)). Spectral indices were obtained from HRV, VRV, VRV(u) and VRV(u) time series. Changes of these indicators from rest to tilt position were analyzed. Results showed that: i) only LF/(LF+HF) from HRV time series increases significantly from rest to tilt in all ANS profiles, this information could not be retrieved in the other three series (VRV, VRV (u) and VRV(u)) ii) LF/(LF+HF) index in HRV series are significantly different between normal subjects and heart failure patients, while cardiac transplant patients show a low coherence between HRV and VRV power spectra and iii) HF rhythm in VRV series seem to be related to the mechanical effect of respiration.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Altuve
- Industrial Technology Department, Simon Bolivar University, Caracas, Venezuela.
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Zhao JH, Brunner EJ, Kumari M, Singh-Manoux A, Hawe E, Talmud PJ, Marmot MG, Humphries SE. APOE polymorphism, socioeconomic status and cognitive function in mid-life--the Whitehall II longitudinal study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2005; 40:557-63. [PMID: 16021346 PMCID: PMC5063922 DOI: 10.1007/s00127-005-0925-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/21/2005] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate the association of the common apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) variants with cognitive function and cognitive decline in adult mid-life and explore the possibility that APOE genotype mediates the link between socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive function. METHODS Data on cognitive function, as measured by five cognitive tests, together with APOE genotype were obtained in an occupational cohort (the Whitehall II study) of 6,004 participants aged 44-69 years (1997-1999). Cognitive change was examined in 2,717 participants who had cognitive function measured at baseline (1991-1993). RESULTS SES based on civil service employment grade was strongly related to cognitive function. There was no association between APOE genotype and employment grade. In women, participants with APOE-epsilon4 had a lower memory score (p<0.05), but the result was sensitive to data from a small number of individuals. A marginal cross-sectional difference in the semantic fluency score was found (p=0.07), and there was a relative decline at follow-up (p<0.001, net change=-1.19; 95% CI, -1.90 to -0.49) in those with APOE-epsilon4 genotypes. CONCLUSIONS APOE-epsilon4 has little influence on cognitive decline in mid-life, whereas SES is a strong determinant, although APOE genotype may emerge as an important factor in cognitive function in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- J H Zhao
- Dept. of Epidemiology and Public Health, International Centre for Health and Society, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 6BT, UK.
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Alioum A, Cortina-Borja M, Dabis F, Dequae-Merchadou L, Haverkamp G, Hughes J, Karon J, Leroy V, Newell ML, Richardson BA, Van Weert L, Weverling GJ, Group G. Estimating the efficacy of interventions to prevent mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus in breastfeeding populations: comparing statistical methods. Am J Epidemiol 2003; 158:596-605. [PMID: 12965885 PMCID: PMC4767886 DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwg188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [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] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Postnatal transmission of human immunodeficiency virus infection through breastfeeding complicates evaluating the efficacy of interventions aimed to reduce mother-to-child transmission risk. Results from trials in Africa evaluating either peripartum antiretroviral therapy or refraining from breastfeeding show an estimated long-term efficacy at 15-24 months of age between 25 and 50 percent. Differences in statistical methods, duration of follow-up, and age at weaning hinder direct comparison between trials. The authors recently outlined theoretically preferred statistical methods for evaluating interventions aimed to reduce risk of mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus. When multiple test results and/or supplementary information is available, the more sophisticated methods account for the fact that exact age at infection is unknown, that risk for infection ends at weaning, or that censoring due to death may be informative. The authors apply these methods to four scenarios, using data from four randomized trials carried out in Africa between 1995 and 2000. The authors' findings suggest that, to estimate the cumulative proportion infected at age 6 weeks, a standard Kaplan-Meier approach is likely to give valid results. For estimation of this proportion at age 18 months, more sophisticated methods, such as the extension of the Kaplan-Meier procedure to interval-censored data and competing risks, would be preferred.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmadou Alioum
- Epidémiologie, Santé Publique et Développement
INSERMUniversité Bordeaux Segalen - Bordeaux 2IFR99ISPEDUniversite Victor Segalen 146 Rue Leo Saignat 33076 Bordeaux Cedex
- * Correspondence should be addressed to Ahmadou Alioum
| | - Mario Cortina-Borja
- Immunobiology Unit
Institute of Child Health30 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1EH
| | - François Dabis
- Epidémiologie, Santé Publique et Développement
INSERMUniversité Bordeaux Segalen - Bordeaux 2IFR99ISPEDUniversite Victor Segalen 146 Rue Leo Saignat 33076 Bordeaux Cedex
| | - Laurence Dequae-Merchadou
- Epidémiologie, Santé Publique et Développement
INSERMUniversité Bordeaux Segalen - Bordeaux 2IFR99ISPEDUniversite Victor Segalen 146 Rue Leo Saignat 33076 Bordeaux Cedex
| | - Geert Haverkamp
- International Antiviral Therapy Evaluation Center
Academic Medical CenterAmsterdam
| | - James Hughes
- Biostatistics
University of Washington [Seattle]F-600, Health Sciences Building, Box 357232, Office: H-665D, HSB, Seattle, WA 98195-7232
| | - John Karon
- Division of HIV/AIDS Surveillance and Epidemiology
Centers for Disease Control and PreventionNational Center for HIVAtlanta
| | - Valeriane Leroy
- Epidémiologie, Santé Publique et Développement
INSERMUniversité Bordeaux Segalen - Bordeaux 2IFR99ISPEDUniversite Victor Segalen 146 Rue Leo Saignat 33076 Bordeaux Cedex
| | - Marie-Louise Newell
- Immunobiology Unit
Institute of Child Health30 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1EH
| | - Barbra A Richardson
- Biostatistics
University of Washington [Seattle]F-600, Health Sciences Building, Box 357232, Office: H-665D, HSB, Seattle, WA 98195-7232
| | - Liesbeth Van Weert
- International Antiviral Therapy Evaluation Center
Academic Medical CenterAmsterdam
| | - Gerrit-Jan Weverling
- Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Academic Medical CenterAmsterdam
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