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Uncertainty, anxiety, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress in parents of children recently diagnosed with cancer.

The purpose of the study was to describe relationships between uncertainty, anxiety, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress (PTS) in parents of children recently diagnosed with cancer. The study was guided by the Uncertainty in Illness Theory. The setting was a children's hospital. Participants were 15 parents of 12 children recently diagnosed with cancer. Anxiety was measured by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Uncertainty was measured by the Parent Perception of Uncertainty Scale. Symptoms of PTS were measured by the Reaction Index. Total scale scores were calculated and psychometrics estimated. Differences in uncertainty, anxiety, and symptoms of PTS by parent race were assessed using analysis of variance. The correlation matrix was estimated to assess relationships between variables. The level of uncertainty was lower than expected, but was significantly higher for black parents (p < .001). The level of anxiety was comparable to that for hospitalized persons with anxiety disorders. The level of symptoms of PTS was higher than reported for parents of childhood cancer survivors. The relationship between anxiety and symptoms of PTS was significant (r =.56, p < .02). Pediatric oncology nurses should offer parents interventions to relieve high levels of anxiety and symptoms of PTS; some parents could also benefit from interventions that target uncertainty.

Adult↗

A factor structure for the MMPI-A: replication with male delinquents.

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent (MMPI-A) Structural Summary was developed as a means of simplifying the interpretation of the 69 scales and subscales of this test instrument by organizing findings around eight primary factor dimensions. The current study examined the scale-level factor structure of the MMPI-A in a large sample of 1,610 male juvenile delinquents to assess the potential usefulness of this factor structure in a delinquency population. In this attempt to replicate the MMPI-A scale-level factor structure identified by Archer, Belevich, and Elkins in the MMPI-A normative sample and by Archer and Krishnamurthy in a clinical sample, a correlation matrix of all MMPI-A scale raw scores was created for a principal factor analysis. Results from the factor analysis produced a seven-factor solution that was largely consistent with the dimensions of the MMPI-A Structural Summary. Results were also reported in terms of the frequency of elevations on Structural Summary dimensions, with particular evidence of the importance of the Immaturity factor in describing this male juvenile delinquent sample.

Adolescent↗

Reconstruction and Validation of the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire

The Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ) was constructed to assess two distinct characterological configurations associated with depression--the anaclitic (dependent) and introjective (self-critical). Although the DEQ is widely used as a measure of these two personality constructs, its validity in actually measuring them is questionable. In this study we subjected a correlation matrix comprised of DEQ responses from a large sample of normal adults (N = 404) to confirmatory factor analysis to assess formally whether the DEQ is congruent with the theoretical parameters outlined by the model. Results indicated that neither the two-factor (Dependency, Self-Criticism) nor the three-factor (Dependency, Self-Criticism, Efficacy) models represented good approximations of the data. Using a series of exploratory factor analyses, we identified 19 items (9 dependency, 10 self-critical) from the original DEQ that were an excellent fit to the data for the two-factor model from "normal" adult, depressed outpatient, and student samples. Parameter estimates of the relationship between the two factors indicated only a modest association. Test-retest reliabilities for both the Dependency and Self-Criticism scales indicated excellent temporal stability. There were diagnostically meaningful variations in the mean scores between the "normal" sample and patient sample.

Journal Article↗

Phenotypic, genetic, and genome-wide structure in the metabolic syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Insulin resistance, obesity, dyslipidemia, and high blood pressure characterize the metabolic syndrome. In an effort to explore the utility of different multivariate methods of data reduction to better understand the genetic influences on the aggregation of metabolic syndrome phenotypes, we calculated phenotypic, genetic, and genome-wide LOD score correlation matrices using five traits (total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, systolic blood pressure, and body mass index) from the Framingham Heart Study data set prepared for the Genetic Analysis Workshop 13, clinic visits 10 and 1 for the original and offspring cohorts, respectively. We next applied factor analysis to summarize the relationship between these phenotypes. RESULTS: Factors generated from the genetic correlation matrix explained the most variation. Factors extracted using the other matrices followed a different pattern and suggest distinct effects. CONCLUSIONS: Given these results, different methods of multivariate data reduction may provide unique clues on the clustering of this complex syndrome.

Adult↗

Beyond logistic regression: structural equations modelling for binary variables and its application to investigating unobserved confounders.

BACKGROUND: Structural equation modelling (SEM) has been increasingly used in medical statistics for solving a system of related regression equations. However, a great obstacle for its wider use has been its difficulty in handling categorical variables within the framework of generalised linear models. METHODS: A large data set with a known structure among two related outcomes and three independent variables was generated to investigate the use of Yule's transformation of odds ratio (OR) into Q-metric by (OR-1)/(OR+1) to approximate Pearson's correlation coefficients between binary variables whose covariance structure can be further analysed by SEM. Percent of correctly classified events and non-events was compared with the classification obtained by logistic regression. The performance of SEM based on Q-metric was also checked on a small (N = 100) random sample of the data generated and on a real data set. RESULTS: SEM successfully recovered the generated model structure. SEM of real data suggested a significant influence of a latent confounding variable which would have not been detectable by standard logistic regression. SEM classification performance was broadly similar to that of the logistic regression. CONCLUSION: The analysis of binary data can be greatly enhanced by Yule's transformation of odds ratios into estimated correlation matrix that can be further analysed by SEM. The interpretation of results is aided by expressing them as odds ratios which are the most frequently used measure of effect in medical statistics.

Cesarean Section↗

Component retention in principal component analysis with application to cDNA microarray data.

Shannon entropy is used to provide an estimate of the number of interpretable components in a principal component analysis. In addition, several ad hoc stopping rules for dimension determination are reviewed and a modification of the broken stick model is presented. The modification incorporates a test for the presence of an "effective degeneracy" among the subspaces spanned by the eigenvectors of the correlation matrix of the data set then allocates the total variance among subspaces. A summary of the performance of the methods applied to both published microarray data sets and to simulated data is given.

Journal Article↗

Associations of genetically predicted interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor signaling pathways with mortality among persons with colorectal cancer: a two-sample Mendelian randomization.

BACKGROUND: Despite significant progress in identifying risk factors for colorectal cancer (CRC), factors influencing survival in people with CRC remain less understood. Pro-inflammatory cytokines like interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-&#x3b1;) have been implicated in cancer progression and may influence CRC outcomes. We investigated associations between genetically predicted levels of IL-6 and TNF-&#x3b1; signaling pathways and mortality in people with CRC. METHODS: We conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis using cis-acting single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with soluble IL-6 receptor alpha (sIL6-RA) and IL-6 signal transducer gp130 (IL6ST), representing IL-6 signaling, and with TNF-&#x3b1;, and its soluble receptors (sTNF-R1, sTNF-R2). SNPs were obtained separately from two large genome-wide association studies (GWAS): deCODE and UK Biobank (UKB). The outcome was CRC-specific mortality among 16,964 CRC cases (4010 deaths) in the Genetics and Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer Consortium (GECCO). Analyses were stratified by tumor site and stage. The inverse variance weighted (IVW) method, incorporating a correlation matrix for dependent SNPs, was used for primary analyses. Because literature links TNF-&#x3b1; to CRC incidence, we additionally performed a simulation study to evaluate the potential impact of collider bias resulting from restricting analyses to CRC cases. RESULTS: Genetically predicted sIL6-RA was weakly positively associated with CRC-specific mortality (deCODE-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;13) HR per 1 SD increase: 1.06; 95% CI: 1.00-1.12; UKB-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;11) HR: 1.09; 95% CI: 1.02-1.17). Genetically proxied IL6ST levels showed no association with CRC-specific mortality in the overall sample (deCODE-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;19) HR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.90-1.21; UKB-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;9) HR: 1.11; 95% CI: 0.87-2.42), while higher IL6ST levels were associated with increased mortality among patients with stage 2/3 disease (deCODE-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;19) HR: 1.45; 95% CI: 1.10-1.91; UKB-SNPs (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;9) HR: 1.87; 95% CI: 1.22-2.89). No associations were observed for TNF-&#x3b1;, sTNF-R1, or sTNF-R2. Findings for all exposures were consistent across both GWAS datasets. Simulation analyses for TNF-&#x3b1; indicated collider bias was present but limited in magnitude. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that IL-6 signaling may play a role in CRC progression although of limited magnitude, whereas TNF-related pathways appear less relevant for prognosis.

Humans↗

The dimensions of schizophrenia phenomenology. Not one or two, at least three, perhaps four.

BACKGROUND: This confirmatory investigation examined the underlying structure of schizophrenia phenomenology through examination of the fit of several prominent dimensional models to observed symptom data. METHOD: Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on a correlation matrix of schizophrenia signs and symptoms derived from case history ratings of 192 individuals with schizophrenia who were the subjects in the major twin studies of schizophrenia. RESULTS: Schizophrenia phenomenology appears best described by four underlying factors, namely negative symptoms, premorbid social adjustment deficits, reality distortion, and disorganisation. Of interest, the premorbid deficit dimension was directly associated with negative symptoms and disorganisation, but was inversely associated with reality distortion. CONCLUSIONS: These data clearly support the multidimensionality of schizophrenia phenomenology and provide objective support for a four-factor model over other models. This four-factor model may be useful in organising existing and future data concerning the genetic, neurobiological, neurological, and psychosocial features of schizophrenia.

Depression↗

A system for assessing personal responsibility: validity, reliability and rater trainability.

Sixty-two subjects completed the California Psychological Inventory, the Rotter External-Internal locus of control scale and an audio-taped discussion of their personal problems. The audio-taped problems were rated on a five-point level of personal responsibility scale and were compared with the scores on the California Personality Inventory and the Internal-External locus of control scale in a correlation matrix which was subjected to a factor analysis. The results from these analyses supported the hypothesis that the Personal Responsibility Rating System has construct validity as a measure of psychological health. Study II assessed the trainability of the Personal Responsibility System. With a four-hour training program it was found that graduate students could be taught to rate personal responsibility in a reliable manner.

Journal Article↗

Assessment of violence potential using measures of anger, hostility, and social desirability.

The assessment of violence potential was studied using the following scales: The Novaco Anger Inventory, the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory, the MMPI Hostility Control Scale (Hc), the MMPI Overt Hostility Scale (Ho), and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale. The five measures were evaluated for their ability to discriminate between violent and nonviolent criminals, and between criminal and normal population samples. Normative data was collected for 204 adult male felons. A correlation matrix presents interrelationships among the five scales. A comparison of mean scale scores between violent and nonviolent groups resulted in a significant discrimination in the expected direction for all but the Hc scale. A discriminant analysis procedure applied to individual items from the Novaco Anger Inventory resulted in the selection of 25 variables which identified violence prone individuals with 90% accuracy. Clinical implications are noted and recommendations for future research are made.

Anger↗

Chordomas and chondrosarcomas of the cranial base: results and follow-up of 60 patients.

The management of chordomas and chondrosarcomas involving the cranial base remains controversial. The options for therapy include biopsy, partial resection, radical resection, and various forms of radiotherapy. In this article, we analyze the outcome of 60 patients with cranial base chordoma or chondrosarcoma treated with extensive surgical resection between 1984 and 1993. Forty-six patients had chordomas, and 14 had low-grade chondrosarcomas; 50% of these patients had been treated previously. Preoperative studies included computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, cerebral angiography, and balloon occlusion test of the internal carotid artery, as indicated. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed on all patients during follow-up. The surgical approaches used for tumor resection were predominantly the following: subtemporal, transzygomatic, transcavernous, and transpetrous apex; subtemporal and infratemporal; extended frontal; and extreme lateral transcondylar. Staged operations with a combination of approaches were used when necessary (52% of cases) to remove a tumor more completely. Statistical analysis was done by the chi 2 test and correlation matrix. Sixty-seven percent of the patients had total or near-total resection. Twenty percent of the patients received postoperative radiotherapy. Eleven patients died during the postoperative follow-up period, nine with chordomas and two with chondrosarcomas. Three patients died because of systemic complications within 3 months after surgery, five died because of tumor recurrence, one died from unrelated causes, and two died from late complications of radiotherapy. The recurrence-free survival rate for all tumors was 80% at 3 years and 76% at 5 years. Chondrosarcomas had a better prognosis than chordomas (recurrence-free survival rates, 90% at 5 years and 65% at 5 years, respectively; P = 0.09). Patients who had undergone previous surgery had a greater risk of recurrence (5-year recurrence-free survival rate, 64%) than did patients who had not undergone previous surgery (5-year recurrence-free survival rate, 93%; P < 0.05). Patients with total or near-total resection had a better 5-year recurrence-free survival rate (84%) than did patients with partial or subtotal resection (64%) (P < 0.05). Postoperative leakage of cerebrospinal fluid was the most frequent complication (30% of patients) and was found to increase the risk of permanent disability. Patients who had undergone previous radiotherapy had a greater risk of death in the postoperative period (within 3 months of their operations) and during follow-up. However, total or near-total resection did not increase the rate of postoperative disability.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Adolescent↗

Regeneration of ultraviolet-sensitive cones in the retinal cone mosaic of thyroxin-challenged post-juvenile rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss).

Previous studies in our laboratory have examined the loss of ultraviolet-sensitive (UVS) cones and UV sensitivity. This study looks at the question of regeneration of UVS cones and its topographic distribution, along with several other measures of the cone mosaic. Topography of the cone mosaic in rainbow trout smolts (post-metamorphic juveniles) was examined under normal growth conditions and during an exogenous thyroid hormone (TH) challenge. Growth of trout retina was studied over six weeks. Retinas sampled at 0, 3 and 6 weeks were embedded in EPON resin, and thick (1 micro m) tangential sections were stained with Richardson's stain. Sites representing central ventral, ventral, temporal, dorsal and nasal retina were sampled. Variables measured were cone densities, mean double cone diameter and mean spacing between cones of the same type. These same variables were compared with those of fish that were challenged with L-thyroxin (T4), and regeneration of UVS cones was assessed. Principal components of the correlation matrix of all photoreceptor measurements were analysed using analysis of variance. Here, we show several interesting effects of thyroxin exposure on post-metamorphic rainbow trout: (1) controls at week 0 have a high density of UVS cones in the temporal and dorsal sampling regions and a high density of blue (short-wavelength)-sensitive (SWS) and double cones across all regions sampled; (2) both control and TH-treated fish had less abundant, larger and less tightly packed SWS and double cones and a lower density of UVS cones in the temporal and dorsal sampling regions three and six weeks into the experiment compared with the starting condition at week 0; (3) fish treated with TH had a higher UVS cone density in the nasal and ventral sampling regions and there were higher densities of SWS and double cones in the central ventral, temporal and ventral regions, but lower densities in the nasal sampling regions, relative to the controls. The regeneration of UVS cones into the ventral retinal hemisphere in post-juvenile salmonids has important implications for visually guided behavior.

Animals↗

The mechanics of sound production in the puff adder bitis arietans (Serpentes: viperidae) and the information content of the snake hiss

Puff adders (Bitis arietans), like many other snakes, hiss as part of their defensive repertoire. In B. arietans, the hisses have a clear quadraphasic pattern consisting of an initial exhalatory hiss, a brief transitional pause, an inhalatory hiss and a rest or breath-holding phase. Simultaneous recordings of body diameter, electrical activity in the intrinsic laryngeal musculature, airflow through the nasal passageway and sound production revealed that the anterior respiratory tract plays a passive role in hissing and that the costal pump is responsible for generating the quadraphasic pattern. During hissing, B. arietans uses the same mechanics previously described for normal respiratory ventilation in snakes. Analyses of artificial hisses reveal that the anterior respiratory tract of B. arietans has little ability to modify an exhalant airstream acoustically. The combination of the simple ventilatory mechanics used during hissing and the lack of acoustic modification of the exhalant airstream results in the production of an acoustically simple hiss. Cross-correlation matrix analyses of a variety of snake hisses showed a high degree of acoustic similarity between the sounds, almost approaching the levels determined for white noise. This high level of acoustic similarity reflects the low level of acoustic specialization within the sounds produced by snakes and the low potential for encoded information content.

Journal Article↗

[An industrial toxicological study on workers who synthesize aminophenol and anisidine from chloronitrobenzene].

Aromatic nitro- and amino-compounds (ANA) are notorious methemoglobin forming substances. From 1987 to 1993, the author surveyed the exposure level to ANA and health status of workers in a chemical industry where they synthetize nitrophenol and anisidine from chloro-nitrobenzene. The ANA exposure indicator was the diazo-reaction positive substance in the worker's urine (Dz) and the biological effect of ANA was monitored through the methemoglobin concentration in the blood (MHb). The following results were obtained from the survey. 1. Both the Dz and MHb values tended to become lower between 1987 and 1993. 2. The MHb levels of the workers were a little higher than the control levels, and the difference between the values was statistically significant (p < 0.01); both levels were, however, within the normal range. 3. The MHb value was estimable from a mathematical model: MHb = (k1-k2/a) x DU x CH, where k1 and k2 were constants and a, DU and CH indicated the activity of glutathione S transferase in erythrocytes (GST), DZ in urine and blood hemoglobin concentration, respectively. The correlation coefficient of the multiple regression was statistically significant (R2 = 0.263, p < 0.01). This model suggests that the biotransformed fraction of ANA in the pulmonary uptake site, the lung, could not penetrate into erythrocytes or act as an MHb former. The model seemed to be consistent and valid when urinary DZ values were less than 1.0 (mg/mg creatinine) and MHb values were less than 2.0 (mg/ml blood). Thus, the upper limit of normal levels for MHb can be considered to be 2.0 (mg/ml blood), or 12-1.6% of total hemoglobin in blood. 4. The significance of the uptake sites, i.e., lung, skin etc., was discussed with reference to the evidence obtained from the longshoremen cases, who were percutaneously exposed to chloronitrobenzene in 1984. 5. Hemolysate solutions from the blood of workers were applied to isoelectric focusing electrophoresis (IEF), and Hb species of different valencies were separated; intermediate MHbs, where the heme iron in one of the components of Hb, i.e., in the alpha or beta chain was oxidized and MHb where both the alpha and beta chain heme iron oxidized and Hb X and Y, were separated and easily discernible. The correlation matrix was calculated using the data relevant to IEF and other indicators; MHb estimated spectrophotometrically, GST activity of erythrocytes, Hb and urinary DZ vale. The statistical procedure of principal component analysis was applied to the matrix, and two major principal components were extracted from the calculation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Adult↗

Epidemiologic analysis of spatial clustering of bovine ephemeral fever outbreaks. II. Principal component analysis.

The principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to analyze a correlation matrix of three variables on epidemic data of bovine ephemeral fever (BEF) outbreaks. These original data were summarized from the official outbreak report of Fukuoka Prefecture. The first and the second principal components of the PCA were interpreted as the infectious potency due to BEF virus and the prevention against BEF virus infection, respectively. The BEF outbreak areas were able to be classified epidemically into 4 groups by using the two principal components. The valuable epidemiological insights can be reasonably obtained from an application of the PCA. The results provided an important information for a further BEF vaccination campaign in the western part of Japan.

Animals↗

Eigenvector interpretation of the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test.

We measured the reflectance spectra for the 85 color caps of the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test. Eigenvectors and eigenvalues of a correlation matrix of cone responses were computed, with the cone responses being determined from the 85 test caps, arranged in order (according to color) by means of a linear model. It is shown that the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test can be simulated by use of eigenvectors of the cone responses. The eigenvectors can be interpreted as nonopponent signal and opponent color signals. The normal observer can determine the color of a cap by using two opponent color signals. For color-blind persons (dichromats) one or the other opponent signal is defective, and errors can occur during the test. The simulation results also suggest that eigenvectors can be used to predict results of arrangement tests similar to the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test.

Color Perception↗

The REALAB project: a new method for the formulation of reference intervals based on current data.

BACKGROUND: In a primary healthcare center concerned more with maintaining wellness than with diagnosing and monitoring illness, it is particularly important to compare patients' results with reference intervals derived from a matched population by use of defined statistical methods. METHODS: Laboratory results over a 3-year period (approximately 15,000,000 records; 197,350 individuals) were retrieved from our laboratory information system. An inclusion/exclusion procedure for individual patients was applied based on (a) presence of at least 1 of 23 previously defined "basic tests"; (b) only 1 measurement per test by the laboratory over the 3-year period; (c) for each test, absence of any abnormality in the correlated tests. Before the third step, correlations among quantities were assessed by a Spearman correlation matrix, comparing each of the 23 basic tests with all remaining tests by use of a novel multivariate algorithm. RESULTS: The initial sample group (n = 197,350) was reduced stepwise by the selection criteria outlined above to 166,027, then to 93,649, and finally to 61 246 individuals constituting our reference sample group. Results from the last 2 groups were used to calculate sex-specific, and in some cases age-related, reference limits for the 23 basic tests and for 13 additional quantities. Reference limits were calculated throughout this study by nonparametric estimation of percentiles. CONCLUSION: Reference values derived by retrospective analysis of large samples of data obtained at a given institution are particularly suitable for the evaluation of results for the presenting patient population at that institution.

Adolescent↗

Parameter identification of thermophilic anaerobic degradation of valerate.

The considered mathematical model of the decomposition of valerate presents three unknown kinetic parameters, two unknown stoichiometric coefficients, and three unknown initial concentrations for biomass. Applying a structural identifiability study, we concluded that it is necessary to perform simultaneous batch experiments with different initial conditions for estimating these parameters. Four simultaneous batch experiments were conducted at 55 degrees C, characterized by four different initial acetate concentrations. Product inhibition of valerate degradation by acetate was considered. Practical identification was done optimizing the sum of the multiple determination coefficients for all measured state variables and for all experiments simultaneously. The estimated values of kinetic parameters and stoichiometric coefficients were characterized by the parameter correlation matrix, the confidence interval, and the student's t-test at 5% significance level with positive results except for the saturation constant, for which more experiments for improving its identifiability should be conducted. In this article, we discuss kinetic parameter estimation methods.

Algorithms↗