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Transferability of clinical laboratory data within a health care region.

Analytical data for S-Creatinine and S-Urate are presented from seventeen laboratories in the Swedish Uppsala-Orebro regional quality assessment program. The bias and imprecision as well as the instability of the measurement procedures in the participating laboratories were estimated over three 14-week periods. Bias was estimated by a linear least squares fit of the difference between measured and assigned values vs. assigned values, and expressed in absolute and relative terms. Instability of the measurement procedures was estimated by comparing slope and intercept of regression lines of measured vs. assigned values from three fourteen week periods. According to our experiences we recommend regression analysis to describe the performance of the analytical methods of a laboratory over time. The results show that most laboratories fell within the limits of +/- 15% bias for S-Creatinine above 100 mumol l-1 and +/- 17% for S-Urate at concentrations above 250 mumol l-1. Various steps to reduce the inter-laboratory variability are suggested, including numerical correction of individual laboratory results using correction functions. In a few laboratories, instability was too high to allow for numerical corrections of analytical results.

Bias

EDMUS, a European database for multiple sclerosis.

EDMUS is a minimal descriptive record developed for research purposes to document clinical and laboratory data in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). It has been designed by a committee of the European Concerted Action for MS, organised under the auspices of the Commission of the European Communities. The software is user-friendly and fast, with a minimal set of obligatory data. Priority has been given to analytical data and the system is capable of automatically generating data, such as diagnosis classification, using appropriate algorithms. This procedure saves time, ensures a uniform approach to individual cases and allows automatic updating of the classification whenever additional information becomes available. It is also compatible with future developments and requirements since new algorithms can be entered in the programme when necessary. This system is flexible and may be adapted to the users needs. It is run on Apple and IBM-PC personal microcomputers. Great care has been taken to preserve confidentiality of the data. It is anticipated that this "common" language will enable the collection of appropriate cases for specific purposes, including population-based studies of MS and will be particularly useful in projects where the collaboration of several centres is needed to recruit a critical number of patients.

Database Management Systems

Importance of analytical methods in pharmacokinetic and drug metabolism studies.

Pharmacokinetic and drug metabolism studies first request that good analytical data are available. The various methods that permit unchanged drugs and their metabolites to be separated, identified and quantitatively assayed are briefly reviewed. The present importance of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry is emphasized, as well as the limits of immunological assays. The sensitivity of the analytical assay has a direct impact on the validity of the pharmacokinetic model which is built up from plasma concentration data. The precision and accuracy of the assay is also critical, and it is not always easily estimated. A new significant parameter is the speed of analysis, and the resulting massive production of analytical data. New drugs coming from biotechnology, and new dosage forms, like targeted drugs, will create new analytical problems in the future. They will probably call for the development of new biological or pharmacological assay procedures, in addition to the physicochemical means of analysis.

Animals

Individual-differences assessment of the relationship between change in and initial level of adult cognitive functioning.

Methodological factors may have been partially responsible for the inconsistency in findings from previous investigations into the relationship between change in, and initial level of, adult cognitive functioning. An alternative data-analytic procedure is proposed and applied to data from 277 men (25-76 years of age at initial testing) over 3 measurement occasions (interwave intervals of 6.7 years). Performances on both the Benton Revised Visual Retention Test (BVRT) and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) Vocabulary subtest were analyzed. The findings demonstrate that the significant negative relationships between change and initial status, found on both tests, were partially a function of measurement error. Once adjustments were made for errors of measurement, the previously significant negative relationship for the BVRT data became significantly positive, whereas for the WAIS the relationship remained significantly negative, although to a lesser degree. The importance of accounting for errors of measurement is discussed.

Adult

Synthesis of peptide labelled with p-iodophenylalanine which corresponds to the first amphipathic region of apolipoprotein C-I.

The amino terminal fragment (1-15) of apolipoprotein C-1, H-Thr-Pro-Asp-Val-Ser-Ser-Ala-Leu-Asp-Lys-Leu-Lys-Glu-Phe14-Gly was prepared by the solid phase method. However, the phenylalanine residue at position 14 was replaced with p-iodophenylalanine in the chemical synthesis. The preparation of t-butyloxy-carbonyl-p-iodophenylalanine is described. After completion of the synthesis, the product was deprotected and cleaved from the resin with liquid HF. The peptide was purified by gel filtration on Sephadex G-25 and preparative high performance liquid chromatography. The purified material was shown to be homogeneous by amino acid analytical data and by chromatography in three different analytical reversed phase HPLC systems. The peptide was then labelled by the chloroamine-T procedure and good incorporation of 125I was obtained. After purification of the product by gel filtration on Biogel P-2, the labelled pentadecapeptide was tested for ability to bind to Very Low Density Lipoproteins (VLDL) in the following manner: VLDL was isolated from normolipemic serum by ultracentrifugal flotation and 100-microliter samples were incubated with labelled material dissolved in 200 microliter of 0.5 M NaCl, 0.02 M sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.4 at 37 degrees for 30 min. The VLDL fraction was again isolated by ultracentrifugal flotation and the incorporation of radioactivity into the lipoprotein was measured. Under these conditions, a sample of [3H]-native apolipoprotein C-I was incorporated to an extent of 83% of the total sample, while the [125I]-pentadecapeptide exhibited an incorporation of 8.7%.

Amino Acid Sequence

Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) methodology: the state of the art.

Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) methodology has been increasingly used in medical applications in the last 10 years. The text by Swets and Pickett has popularized the technique and the journal Medical Decision Making (1981--) provides a forum for further methodologic issues. In this article, I will (1) describe the nature of the data generated by ROC studies; (2) evaluate the choices of summary indices of performance (accuracy); (3) outline the data-analytic techniques used, and how to incorporate data from multiple observers and multiple "readings"; (4) review proposed alternatives to the commonly used binormal ROC model; and (5) discuss issues, such as verification bias, and challenges, such as multicenter comparative imaging studies and the difficulty of obtaining "truth data", which need to be addressed when adapting ROC methods to medical contexts.

ROC Curve

[Central accounting as a model of laboratory diagnosis].

From the experiences in the field of scientific organisation of the last years results a laboratory-diagnostic model with an automatic laboratory, a district laboratory and larger central units, so-called coordination laboratories which work together with about 10 to 20 laboratories and guarantee an up-to-date diagnostic spectre for the whole territory. Apart from the increasing investigation frequency, a constant dilatation of the diagnostic spectre and improved quality control of structural conditions must be taken into consideration. The constructed model which demands the collaboration of all institutions meets these critical problems. A central balancing should also extend to the personal and technical apparative capacity. Apart from this the system is to be extended by further automation in the sense of a machine activity with improvement by control and regulation processes. An electronic data processing improves the functional capacity only when the analytic data processing has achieved a high level. The cooperation in the field of laboratory diagnostics is not only a task in scientific organisation, but in the same way also scientific problems are solved together. The requirements increasing in qualitative and quantitative respect may optimally be fulfilled only by the two partners, clinic and laboratory. With increasing independence the laboratories should in scientific and organizational respect remain a place of meeting for laboratory scientist and physician.

Clinical Laboratory Techniques

Medical economics survey-methods study: design, data collection, and analytical plan.

This paper describes the background, methodology, data collection, and analytical plan of a pilot investigation conducted under contract for the National Center for Health Statistics during 1975. The objective was to determine the cost effectiveness of a variety of strategies under consideration for national application to develop previously unavailable information on utilization of, and the costs and payments for, health care. Detailed data on health care utilization and expenditures were collected periodically from a panel of 691 Maryland households over a six-month interval. Issues to be tested through a random experimental design include whether periodicity (monthly vs bimonthly interviews) and type of contact (in-person vs telephone) are significant factors in the cost effectiveness of this type of survey. An extensive record check involving all providers and third-party payers identified in the household survey was carried out. Record information will be used to 1) provide a basis for measuring accuracy of household data, 2) fill gaps in household knowledge, and 3) determine whether a subset of the record sources can provide adequate information for correcting household data. The household survey resulted in an initial response rate of 77.5 per cent with a subsequent attrition rate over six months of 13.6 per cent. Signed permission to access record data was obtained for 84.9 per cent of the individuals completing the entire survey. The most intensive survey strategy, monthly, mostly in-person contact, resulted in the lowest participation. The analytical plan presents details of the approaches to be taken in making judgments on the relative accuracy and completeness of data obtained by the various survey strategies and the contribution made by availability of data from record sources.

Adolescent

Maximizing the efficiency of a study on alcohol-related birth defects by means of data collection and analytic strategy dissociation.

Application of the terms "prospective" and "retrospective" to quasi/experimental research designs used in clinical investigations is often ambiguous; they often lack specification as to whether they apply to data acquisition, analytic strategy, or both. Data may be collected prospectively by preplanned protocol or retrospectively by chart review. In addition, the direction of analysis may be prospective--comparing differential outcomes for at-risk and not at-risk (exposed/not exposed) groups--or retrospective--comparing differential preceding risks for affected and nonaffected groups. Prospective data collection is advantageous in assuring the availability of crucial variables for an entire sample, but prospective analytic strategies may be inefficient, underestimating effect sizes, particularly when the outcome of interest is rare or the effect, even if large, is seen in only a small proportion of cases. In a prospective multilinear regression model of risks for lowered birthweight for gestational age, 2% of the variance was explained by alcohol variables after adjustment for confounding. In comparison, a similar multilinear regression of case-control sample, in which the frequency of the abnormal outcome is raised, showed 18% of the variance explained by alcohol variables. Data collection and analytic strategies may be dissociated. Although some statistical power may be lost because of reduced sample size, synthetic case-control analysis is efficient in examining small effects. It also has the advantage of decreasing the size of the database to be managed and the time required for analysis. Using this approach, it is feasible to perform virtually any analysis that can be done on a mainframe on medium-sized departmental computer system.

Birth Weight

Fluoride content of selected human food, pet food and related materials.

A survey was made of the fluoride content of selected human foods, some animal feeds, and related materials, with the purpose of a better characterization of products whose fluoride may contribute to the intake of fluoride by man as well as by some kinds of animals. Uptake of fluoride, especially from food with or without a foregoing food chain, was found to be more widely spread than has been documented previously. The major source of fluoride is represented by marine organisms, regardless of the ways by which man or animals are exposed to fluoride. As a consequence of the detailed analytical data given, recommendations would extend towards i) a more wide-spread analytical control of foods and feeds for fluoride, ii) an intensified assessment of fluoride bioavailabilities from foods and feeds, and iii) the consideration of such data in the evaluation of fluoride supplementations for optimized intakes, as recommended.

Animal Feed

Classification of fungi by means of pyrolysis-gas chromatography-pattern recognition.

Repetitive samples of three strains of the mould Penicillium were subjected to pyrolysis-gas chromatography (Py-GC). From the chromatograms, 26 peak heights were used in a subsequent SIMCA pattern recognition analysis. This data analysis gives a marked improvement in the classification of the samples (100% correct, 85% unique) in comparison with the traditional analysis based on the average chromatogram of each class (92% correct, 45% unique). The data analytical method is described in detail using the Py-GC data as an illustration.

Analysis of Variance

Epidemiology of adenocarcinoma of the cervix.

There is general evidence that the incidence of adenocarcinoma of the cervix has been rising, particularly among younger women. The determinants of these trends, however, remain largely unknown. We have reviewed the epidemiology of adenocarcinoma of the cervix using descriptive data from cancer registration and clinical series and two main sources of analytical data: clinical studies comparing cervical adenocarcinoma (AC) and squamous carcinoma (SC) and formal case-control and cohort epidemiological studies. In both the United States and northern Europe there is evidence of the rising frequency of AC in absolute and relative terms as compared to SC. These trends are generally restricted to younger women: under-age-35 AC incidence approximately doubled from the early 1970s to the early 1980s. Available data, although scanty, consistently show that the frequency of cervical adenocarcinoma rises with the number of partners and with decreasing age at first intercourse, suggesting a potential role for sexually transmitted (viral) factors. In clinical series, nulliparity was reported more frequently in AC than in SC cases but an inconsistent association was found in three formal epidemiological studies. Similarities with the epidemiology of endometrial cancer are also suggested from the association with overweight, while a possible relation with hypertension and diabetes is based on clinical series only and hence more difficult to interpret. Thus, adenocarcinoma of the cervix appears to share epidemiological characteristics with both adenosquamous cancer of the cervix and adenocarcinoma of the endometrium, although uncertainties in classification and registration leave several questions unanswered.

Adenocarcinoma

Modifications of lipid structure and their influence on mesomorphism in model membranes: the influence of hydrocarbon chains.

The influence of hydrocarbon chains on the temperature (TG-LC) of the gel to liquid-crystalline phase transition of model membranes has been investigated over an extensive variety of phosphatidylcholines (PC). The TG-LC is dependent upon the length of the hydrocarbon chains, on whether or not the chains are saturated or have been modified in some way, and on the position of any modification along the chain. For PC having two different acyl chains (heteroacid PC) in the sn-1 and sn-2 positions, the TG-LC is dependent on the chain position and on the inequivalence of chain penetration into the bilayer. Positional isomers of PC have different TG-LC. The first two double bonds introduced in each chain of a PC cause a much greater reduction in TG-LC and in the enthalpy change of the transition than does the subsequent introduction of additional double bonds. Dipolyunsaturated PC have uncooperative (broad) transitions that occur at low temperatures and have small enthalpy changes. While each PC has unique transitional characteristics, there are a number of patterns in the TG-LC which emerge on consideration of all the available data. One such pattern may be useful in predicting TG-LC from analytical data on the composition and positions of acyl chains of various lipids.

Chemical Phenomena

Evaluation of criteria for the acceptance of bioanalytical data.

Results from bioanalytical analyses for registration of a new drug entity are used to define its pharmacokinetics and bioavailability/bioequivalence. Whilst analytical data may be derived from the application of a validated method, it is essential to apply mathematical criteria to its acceptance, in order that the analyst can be assured that the assay is performing within defined limits and to its validated specification. Parameters evaluated for acceptability are the batch calibration curve, the minimum quantifiable concentration and the quality control (QC) sample acceptability. Specifically, six QC samples per analytical batch are used, two samples at each of three concentrations. The rationale for the definition of these criteria is evaluated together with a consideration of their applications and limitations. The relevance and use of Shewhart and Cusum plots to monitor assay performance is illustrated.

Biological Availability

Advances in data assessment. Application to the etiology of nausea reported during chemotherapy, concerns about significance testing, and opportunities in clinical trials.

Typical inferential statistical procedures, such as the t-test and analysis of variance, compare differences in mean values of variables. This approach can sometimes obscure rather than illuminate research data. Here we present and discuss alternative data analytic techniques. Potential advantages of box plots over conventional t-tests for understanding data are shown by comparing the area under high and low frequencies from spectral curves of autonomic changes following chemotherapy treatment. Typical t-tests provide information regarding statistical significance in terms of the differences in group means; box plots and related exploratory techniques provide information regarding the characteristics of the distributions within the groups as well as examination of potential outliers. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and other multivariate techniques are commonly used to deal with potentially complex data sets with multiple outcome measures. The potential advantages of visual clustering techniques such as star plots, Chernoff faces, and Andrew's Function Plots are demonstrated by examining changes in facial pallor caused by chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Typical MANOVA approaches can identify potential differences in mean values between groups; visual clustering approaches do this by graphically presenting complex interrelationships for individual cases. This approach enhances the visual interpretation of potential interactions that would be obscured by simply focusing on overall mean values. Preliminary data from a meta-analysis on the effect of metoclopramide on chemotherapy-induced vomiting demonstrates the potential uses and advantages of this summary technique over simple tabular summaries. We found significant relationships between the effect size of the drug and variables such as the year of study publication and whether the publication was an article or an abstract. While none of these techniques are meant to replace traditional inferential statistics, they offer advantages in terms of data exploration and understanding relationships within data sets that are not clearly addressed by other methods. They are potentially valuable alternatives worthy of exploration. Finally, we discuss issues of interim analyses and multiple endpoint assessment for clinical trials.

Antineoplastic Agents

Novel sulfur-containing microbial metabolite of primaquine.

Microbial metabolism studies of the antimalarial drug primaquine, using Streptomyces roseochromogenus (ATCC 13400) have produced an N-acetylated metabolite and a methylene-linked dimeric product, both of which have been previously reported, and a novel sulfur-containing microbial metabolite. The structure of the metabolite as a sulfur-linked dimer was proposed on the basis of spectral and chemical data. The molecular formula C34H44N6O4S was established from field-desorption mass spectroscopy and analytical data. The 1H- and 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance spectral data firmly established that the novel metabolite was a symmetrically substituted dimer of primaquine N-acetate with a sulfur atom linking the two units at C-5. The metabolite has been shown to be a mixture of stereoisomers which can equilibrate in solution. This observation was confirmed by microbial synthesis of the metabolite from optically active primaquine.

Chemical Phenomena

Elemental microanalysis of biological specimens.

Although X-ray microanalysis in the electron microscope is the most common method for microanalysis of biological specimens, other methods of elemental microanalysis (electron energy loss spectroscopy, scanning Auger microanalysis, and proton, ion, and laser microprobe analysis) may provide important complementary information and help overcome some of the limitations of electron probe X-ray microanalysis. Despite differences in physical principles and instrumentation, the various microanalytical methods have much in common with regard to specimen preparation, quantitative analysis, and interpretation of analytical data. A common approach to microanalytical problems in the biological sciences, irrespective of the analytical techniques used, seems therefore indicated.

Electron Probe Microanalysis