Biomedical subjects

Lori Crawford

Publications and source records attributed to Lori Crawford.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2007

Computer algorithm for automated work group classification from free text: the DREAM technique.

OBJECTIVE: This study developed and tested a computer method to automatically assign subjects to aggregate work groups based on their free text work descriptions. METHODS: The Double Root Extended Automated Matcher (DREAM) algorithm classifies individuals based on pairs of subjects' free text word roots in common with those of standard classification systems and several explicitly defined linkages between term roots and aggregates. RESULTS: DREAM effectively analyzed free text from 5887 participants in a multisite chronic obstructive pulmonary disease prevention study (Lung Health Study). For a test set of 533 cases, DREAMs classifications compared favorably with those of a four-human panel. The humans rated the accuracy of DREAM as good or better in 80% of the test cases. CONCLUSIONS: Automated text interpretation is a promising tool for analyzing large data sets for applications in data mining, research, and surveillance. Work descriptive information is most useful when it can link an individual to aggregate entities that have occupational health relevance. Determining the appropriate group requires considerable expertise. This article describes a new method for making such assignments using a computer algorithm to reduce dependence on the limited number of occupational health experts. In addition, computer algorithms foster consistency of assignments.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2006

Mesothelioma in patients with nonoccupational asbestos exposure. An evidence-based approach to causation assessment.

The specific parameters of nonoccupational asbestos exposures (NOAE) that can distinguish an idiopathic from an asbestos-caused malignant mesothelioma (MM) are controversial. A systematic literature review yielded 1028 cases with this putative association. Only 287 of those reports had a defined single exposure to a household, building occupant, or neighborhood/community asbestos source. The available "evidence" was used to develop semiarbitrary evidence-based causation guideline rules for the assessment of putative associations between MM and NOAE. The rules are classified into class A (tissue burden analysis shows asbestos body counts or fiber counts in lung tissues comparable to MM caused by occupational exposure to asbestos) and classes B to D based on whether certain combinations of NOAE features and MM (evidence) have been described in over 15% (class B), 5% to 15% (class C), and less than 5% (class D) of the patients reviewed. The proposed 4 classes of evidence-based causation guidelines provide a semiarbitrary framework to evaluate the causation of individual MM patients by NOAE based on decreasing levels of currently available evidence. The neoplasms in classes A to C patients are probably caused by NOAE, with decreasing weight of evidence in the 3 groups. There is minimal evidence to support the causation of MM by NOAE in class D patients. There is no evidence or only anecdotal evidence to support a causal association between MM and NOAE in individuals who cannot be classified into any of the 4 classes. Future studies are needed to provide more comprehensive data regarding the association between MM and NOAE.

Asbestos↗

PubMed2005

Influence of residency training on occupational medicine practice patterns.

OBJECTIVES: A relatively high proportion of occupational medicine (OM) specialists have not had formal residency training in OM. Members of the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association, a professional organization of OM specialists, completed a postal questionnaire (160 of 561 members). METHODS: Educational background, practice setting, practice activities, and skills considered relevant were compared between those with and without formal training. RESULTS: Both groups had considerable focus in clinical care, musculoskeletal medicine, and workers' compensation. However, those with formal training practice in a broader variety of settings were less likely to have practiced another specialty, and used additional skills (toxicology, industrial hygiene, and epidemiology) in their practices. Formal education appears to create a greater diversity of skills and opportunities, but it does not appear to create a group of physicians disinterested in "front-line" occupational medicine practice. CONCLUSIONS: The data support the need for formal residency programs but also highlight the importance of access to formal training for midcareer physicians.

Clinical Competence↗

PubMed2005

Work environment and occupational health of dental hygienists: a qualitative assessment.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to characterize the work environment and identify factors that influence the occupational health of dental hygienists. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative analysis of dental hygiene work based on five national focus groups. RESULTS: We found that musculoskeletal symptoms are common, particularly after 10 years; common ergonomic problems included instruments and chairs. Important non-physical workplace problems include role ambiguity (eg, employee vs. independent practitioner), inadequate recognition, role identity (eg, distinction from dental assistants), role conflict (eg, with dentists and spousal office managers), and social isolation. CONCLUSIONS: Work organizational factors (eg, frequent part-time work, inadequate breaks, perception as a "second team" distinct from the dentist and dental-assistant team) impede the remediation of ergonomics and other problems. Job flexibility encourages hygienists to change work hours or location rather than deal with work conditions. Occupational health interventions should address social environment and work organization.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Work environment of dental hygienists.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to evaluate how musculoskeletal disorders and workplace psychosocial factors affect dental hygienists' work hours and productivity. METHODS: We mailed a survey to dental hygienists in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, California. RESULTS: Musculoskeletal pain caused 27% of hygienists to decrease work hours and 8.7% to change office locations. Hand/wrist pain caused the most missed workdays. Conversely, conflicts with the dentist caused 28.2% of dental hygienists to change jobs and 12.7% to decrease work hours. Conflicts with staff caused 17.1% to change office locations but only 7.0% to decrease work hours. This pattern was confirmed with multiple logistic regression analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Musculoskeletal and psychosocial factors affect dental hygienists differently: musculoskeletal discomfort is more likely to cause dental hygienists to decrease their working hours, whereas professional and social conflicts are more likely to lead to change in work location.

Absenteeism↗

PubMed2005

Working words: real-life lexicon of North American workers.

OBJECTIVE: This study describes a new computer methodology for analyzing workers' free text work descriptions. METHODS: Computerized lexical analysis was applied to work descriptions of participants in the Lung Health Study, a smoking-cessation study in persons with early chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Text was parsed and analyzed as single term roots and pairs of roots commonly occurring together. RESULTS: The frequencies of terms reflect the work of a population; our subjects' most frequently used terms included "sale, office, service, business, engine[er], secretary, construct, driv[e], comput[e], teach, truck." Standard classification schemes (NAICS and SOC) and textbooks use terms inconsistent with those of actual workers. Many common empirical terms imply both industry and job information content, although traditional coding schemes separate industry and job title. CONCLUSIONS: Formal analyses of language may facilitate communication, identify translation priorities, and allow automated work coding.

Female↗

PubMed2004

Association between the HOXA1 A218G polymorphism and increased head circumference in patients with autism.

BACKGROUND: The HOXA1 gene plays a major role in brainstem and cranial morphogenesis. The G allele of the HOXA1 A218G polymorphism has been previously found associated with autism. METHODS: We performed case-control and family-based association analyses, contrasting 127 autistic patients with 174 ethnically matched controls, and assessing for allelic transmission disequilibrium in 189 complete trios. RESULTS: A, and not G, alleles were associated with autism using both case-control (chi(2) = 8.96 and 5.71, 1 df, p <.005 and <.025 for genotypes and alleles, respectively), and family-based (transmission/disequilibrium test chi(2) = 8.80, 1 df, p <.005) association analyses. The head circumference of 31 patients carrying one or two copies of the G allele displayed significantly larger median values (95.0th vs. 82.5th percentile, p <.05) and dramatically reduced interindividual variability (p <.0001), compared with 166 patients carrying the A/A genotype. CONCLUSIONS: The HOXA1 A218G polymorphism explains approximately 5% of the variance in the head circumference of autistic patients and represents to our knowledge the first known gene variant providing sizable contributions to cranial morphology. The disease specificity of this finding is currently being investigated. Nonreplications in genetic linkage/association studies could partly stem from the dyshomogeneous distribution of an endophenotype morphologically defined by cranial circumference.

Adolescent↗