PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Model interpretability”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,117 records · Page 62Linked to original sources

[Notes on the model "universal genesis of psychoses"--aspects of an unconventional interpretation of mental diseases (author's transl)].

The article describes a temporarily closed model of a uniform interpretation of all endogenous psychosyndromes (universal genesis of psychoses) which, however, is capable of extension and modification. This concept, which was developed in 1964, does not postulate a "unitary psychosis" in the narrow sense of the term. It is based mainly on results obtained in traditional psychiatry and combines individual aspects and opinions which are used by other psychiatrists also who share these opinions although mostly they do not employ them as general principles. To substantiate the author's own position, several old and new problems of the doctrine of psychoses are illuminated from a uniform point of view. In this synopsis biologically relevant aspects are emphasized, especially those of the common pathogenetic fundamentals, the common phases of the disease, as well as the agreements in recording of the syndromes. The final section of the study provides a condensed survey of the essential factors and consequences of the concept, supplying details to supplement this brief review.

Atrophy↗

A cellular automata model of the heart and its coupling with a qualitative model.

Cellular Automata (CA) models offer a good compromise between computational complexity and biological plausibility while qualitative models have expressive power for explicitly describing dynamic processes. In this paper we present a 2D CA model and its coupling with a qualitative model. The CA model includes elements characterizing muscle, nodal tissue, and bypass conduction. Each element exhibits adaptive properties to cycle length and to the prematurity of incoming impulses. A crude electrocardiogram is also simulated via an equivalent source formulation. Arrhythmias such as the Wenckebach phenomenon, atrial flutter, or extrasystole-triggered tachyarrhythmias can be simulated using relatively simple models when they incorporate the fast conduction system with muscle tissue and when the model elements exhibit adaptive properties. We then illustrate how a CA model can be coupled to a qualitative model to produce a system that combines the fine grained description of CA models with the high level interpretative role of qualitative models.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

Genetics of urinary pepsinogen: a new hypothesis.

A new genetic model is proposed to explain the inheritance of the urinary pepsinogen (PG1) polymorphism. Each main fraction, 3, 4 and 5, in the multibanded electrophoretic pattern, is determined by its own specific gene, B, C and D respectively. The intensity ratio of the fractions is principally determined by the number of gene copies. Accordingly, the PG1 phenotypes are determined by gene combinations, haplotypes, some of which may be identical to alleles in previous one locus models. Some critical families, not interpretable using previous genetic models, are presented to support the hypothesis. Preliminary population data from the Netherlands are described. The molecular background of this polymorphism and its relevance for gastric (pre)malignancy is discussed.

Adult↗

Data mining and machine learning techniques for the identification of mutagenicity inducing substructures and structure activity relationships of noncongeneric compounds.

This paper explores the utility of data mining and machine learning algorithms for the induction of mutagenicity structure-activity relationships (SARs) from noncongeneric data sets. We compare (i) a newly developed algorithm (MOLFEA) for the generation of descriptors (molecular fragments) for noncongeneric compounds with traditional SAR approaches (molecular properties) and (ii) different machine learning algorithms for the induction of SARs from these descriptors. In addition we investigate the optimal parameter settings for these programs and give an exemplary interpretation of the derived models. The predictive accuracies of models using MOLFEA derived descriptors is approximately 10-15%age points higher than those using molecular properties alone. Using both types of descriptors together does not improve the derived models. From the applied machine learning techniques the rule learner PART and support vector machines gave the best results, although the differences between the learning algorithms are only marginal. We were able to achieve predictive accuracies up to 78% for 10-fold cross-validation. The resulting models are relatively easy to interpret and usable for predictive as well as for explanatory purposes.

Algorithms↗

Characterization and reduction of formaldehyde emissions from a low-VOC latex paint.

The patterns of formaldehyde emission from a low volatile organic compound (VOC) latex paint applied to gypsum board were measured and analyzed by small environmental chamber tests. It was found that the formaldehyde emissions resulted in a sharp increase of chamber air formaldehyde concentration to a peak followed by transition to a long-term slow decay. A semi-empirical first-order decay in-series model was developed to interpret the chamber data. The model characterized the formaldehyde emissions from the paint in three stages: an initial "puff" of instant release, a fast decay, and a final stage of slow decay controlled by a solid-phase diffusion process that can last for more than a month. The model was also used to estimate the peak concentration and the amount of formaldehyde emitted during each stage. The formaldehyde sources were investigated by comparing emission patterns and modeling outcomes of different paint formulations. The biocide used to preserve the paint was found to be a major source of the formaldehyde. Chamber test results demonstrated that replacing the preservative with a different biocide for the particular paint tested resulted in an approximate reduction of 55% of formaldehyde emissions. But the reduction affected only the third-stage long-term emissions.

Air Pollution, Indoor↗

The nitrogen and nitrate economy of butterhead lettuce (Lactuca sativa var capitata L).

Quantifying and simulating the relationships between crop growth, total-nitrogen (total-N) and nitrate-N (NO3--N) concentration can improve crop nutritional husbandry. In this study, the relationship between shoot relative growth rate (RGR) and shoot total-N, organic-N and NO3--N concentration of hydroponically-grown lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. capitata L. cv. Kennedy) was described and simulated. Plants were grown hydroponically for up to 74 d. Nitrogen was supplied throughout (control; T1), or removed at 35 d (T2) and 54 d (T3), respectively, after sowing. The organic-N and NO3--N concentration declined in the shoots of control plants with growth, until commercial maturity approached when organic-N and NO3--N concentration increased. There were sub-linear relationships between both total-N and organic-N concentration, and shoot RGR, in the N-limited treatments, i.e. shoot RGR approached an asymptote at high shoot N concentration. The proportional effects of total-N and organic-N concentration on shoot RGR were independent of plant age. A dynamic simulation model ('Nicolet'), derived previously under different conditions, was used to simulate the growth, dry matter content, organic-N, and NO3--N concentration of lettuce grown under the extreme N-stress conditions experienced by the plants. In view of the largely successful fitting of the model to experimental data, the model was used to interpret the results. Suggestions for model improvement are made.

Hydroponics↗

[Inhibited aggression as a behavioral disorder in children and possibilities for therapy exemplified by an integrative therapy model].

Practical applications of an integrated therapy model based on theoretic aspects of the etiology of aggressive behavior disorders are exemplified by the case of an extremely unassertive child. The range of symptoms was regarded from a psychoanalytical as well as a behavioral point of view and a treatment plan based on both theoretical assumptions was developed. In this multistage treatment model, the psychoanalytical method of interpretation was combined with modeling techniques. The child's fear of aggressive conflicts was significantly reduced and age-specific assertive behavior was established. The deficits caused by the child's social and emotional socialization were largely compensated, providing her with the chance of a positive developmental growth without symptoms.

Aggression↗

Sequestered endoplasmic reticulum space for sequential metabolism of salicylamide. Coupling of hydroxylation and glucuronidation.

The metabolic disposition of simultaneously delivered [14C]salicylamide (SAM) (100 microM) and a tracer concentration of its hydroxylated metabolite [3H]gentisamide (GAM) was studied with single-pass followed by recirculating rat liver perfusion (10 ml/min). The use of dual radiolabeling of precursor-product pairs in single-pass and recirculating perfusions allowed for characterization of the differential metabolism of preformed [3H]GAM and formed [14C]GAM, which arose in situ in the liver with [14C]SAM single-pass perfusion, and the behavior of circulating [14C]GAM, which behaved as a preformed species in recirculation. In both modes of perfusion, [14C]SAM was mainly sequentially metabolized to [14C]GAM-5-glucuronide, whereas [3H]GAM predominantly formed [3H]GAM-5-sulfate. The steady-state and time-averaged clearances of SAM were identical and approached the value of flow, yielding a high hepatic extraction ratio (E = 0.98). The apparent extraction ratio of formed GAM [E(mi) = 0.96] was greater than that of the preformed species [E(pmi) approximately 0.7]. Because the coupling of (SAM) oxidation and (GAM) glucuronidation was a plausible explanation for the observation, a novel physiological pharmacokinetic model was developed to interpret the data. In this model, the liver was divided into three zonal units, within which acinar distribution of enzymatic activities was considered, namely periportal sulfation, evenly distributed glucuronidation, and perivenous hydroxylation. Each zonal region was subdivided into extracellular, cytosolic, and endoplasmic reticulum compartments, with cytosolic (sulfotransferases) and microsomal (cytochromes P-450 and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase) enzymes being segregated intracellularly into the cytosolic compartment and endoplasmic reticulum compartment, respectively. The simulations provided a good prediction of the present experimental data as well as previously obtained data with increasing SAM concentration and retrograde flow and supported the contention that SAM oxidation and GAM glucuronidation are coupled.

Animals↗

Models for the relationship between ambient temperature and daily mortality.

BACKGROUND: Ambient temperature is an important determinant of daily mortality that is of interest both in its own right and as a confounder of other determinants investigated using time-series regressions, in particular, air pollution. The temperature-mortality relationship is often found to be substantially nonlinear and to persist (but change shape) with increasing lag. We review and extend models for such nonlinear multilag forms. DEVELOPMENT: Popular models for mortality by temperature at given lag include polynomial and natural cubic spline curves, and the simple but more easily interpreted linear thresholds model, comprising linear relationships for temperatures below and above thresholds and a flat middle section. Most published analyses that have allowed the relationship to persist over multiple lags have done so by assuming that spline or threshold models apply to mean temperature in several lag strata (e.g., lags 0-1, 2-6, and 7-13). However, more flexible models are possible, and a modeling framework using products of basis functions ("cross-basis" functions) suggests a wide range, some used previously and some new. These allow for stepped or smooth changes in the model coefficients as lags increase. Applying a range of models to data from London suggest evidence for relationships up to at least 2 weeks' lag, with smooth models fitting best but lag-stratified threshold models allowing the most direct interpretation. CONCLUSIONS: A wide range of multilag nonlinear temperature-mortality relationships can be modeled. More awareness of options should improve investigation of these relationships and help control for confounding by them.

Humans↗

A novel approach to the characterization of cumulative exposure for the study of chronic occupational disease.

Inappropriate parameterization of an exposure metric for the study of occupational and environmental hazards may lead to significant misclassification and biased results. A model for identification of an optimal expression for cumulative exposure that includes exponentiated terms for concentration and time was developed. When the values of the exponents are allowed to vary, an optimal expression for cumulative exposure may be identified. The approach has advantages for the study of chronic hazards, in that it is flexible, limits the number of assumptions, and incorporates many of the models generally suggested in the literature. In addition, the model results may be interpreted to suggest particular pathophysiologic mechanisms. The model was implemented with data from a previously studied cohort of underground coal miners, and the associations between the exposure metric and measures of obstructive lung disease were identified. The results demonstrated that the exposure metric can improve the association of dust exposure histories with various outcomes over the usual measure of cumulative exposure. However, in the particular data set used, the overall predictive power of alternative models was similar and the interpretability of the results was limited.

Adult↗

Preceptor development programs: an interpretive approach.

The behavioral model commonly used in preceptor educational programs is inadequate for conveying the complexity of precepting. An interpretive approach is offered as an alternative for preceptor education. Using an interpretive approach is one way to extend our understanding of precepting as an educational process. A preceptor education program is described along with examples of narratives from preceptors. Interpretations of each narrative provide nurse educators with a model for utilizing narratives with preceptors. Themes of teaching, nursing as precepting, and timing are explored. Restoring the narrative to the nursing practice of precepting promises to recapture the richness and complexity of precepting.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic modeling in the data analysis and interpretation of drug-induced QT/QTc prolongation.

In this review, factors affecting the QT interval and the methods that are currently in use in the analysis of drug effects on the QT interval duration are overviewed with the emphasis on (population) pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) modeling. Among which the heart rate (HR) and the circadian rhythm are most important since they may interfere with the drug effect and need to be taken into account in the data analysis. The HR effect or the RR interval (the distance between 2 consecutive R peaks) effect is commonly eliminated before any further analysis, and many formulae have been suggested to correct QT intervals for changes in RR intervals. The most often used are Bazett and Fridericia formulae introduced in 1920. They are both based on the power function and differ in the exponent parameter. However, both assume the same exponent for different individuals. More recent findings do not confirm this assumption, and individualized correction is necessary to avoid under- or overcorrection that may lead to artificial observations of drug-induced QT interval prolongation. Despite the fact that circadian rhythm in QT and QTc intervals is a well-documented phenomenon, it is usually overlooked when drug effects are evaluated. This may result in a false-positive outcome of the analysis as the QTc peak due to the circadian rhythm may coincide with the peak of the drug plasma concentration. In view of these effects interfering with a potential drug effect on the QTc interval and having in mind low precision of QT interval measurements, a preferable way to evaluate the drug effect is to apply a population PK-PD modeling. In the literature, however, there are only a few publications in which population PK-PD modeling is applied to QT interval prolongation data, and they all refer to antiarrhythmic agents. In this review, after the most important sources of variability are outlined, a comprehensive population PK-PD model is presented that incorporates an individualized QT interval correction, a circadian rhythm in the individually corrected QT intervals, and a drug effect. The model application is illustrated using real data obtained with 2 compounds differing in their QT interval prolongation potential. The usefulness of combining data of several studies is stressed. Finally, the standard approach based on the raw observations and formal statistics, as described in the Preliminary Concept paper of the International Conference on Harmonization, is briefly compared with the method based on population PK-PD modeling, and the advantages of the latter are outlined.

Animals↗

Model uncertainty and choices made by modelers: lessons learned from the International Atomic Energy Agency model intercomparisons.

The treatment of uncertainties associated with modeling and risk assessment has recently attracted significant attention. The methodology and guidance for dealing with parameter uncertainty have been fairly well developed and quantitative tools such as Monte Carlo modeling are often recommended. However, the issue of model uncertainty is still rarely addressed in practical applications of risk assessment. The use of several alternative models to derive a range of model outputs or risks is one of a few available techniques. This article addresses the often-overlooked issue of what we call "modeler uncertainty," i.e., difference in problem formulation, model implementation, and parameter selection originating from subjective interpretation of the problem at hand. This study uses results from the Fruit Working Group, which was created under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) BIOMASS program (BIOsphere Modeling and ASSessment). Model-model and model-data intercomparisons reviewed in this study were conducted by the working group for a total of three different scenarios. The greatest uncertainty was found to result from modelers' interpretation of scenarios and approximations made by modelers. In scenarios that were unclear for modelers, the initial differences in model predictions were as high as seven orders of magnitude. Only after several meetings and discussions about specific assumptions did the differences in predictions by various models merge. Our study shows that parameter uncertainty (as evaluated by a probabilistic Monte Carlo assessment) may have contributed over one order of magnitude to the overall modeling uncertainty. The final model predictions ranged between one and three orders of magnitude, depending on the specific scenario. This study illustrates the importance of problem formulation and implementation of an analytic-deliberative process in risk characterization.

Journal Article↗

WHO antenatal care randomised trial for the evaluation of a new model of routine antenatal care.

BACKGROUND: We undertook a multicentre randomised controlled trial that compared the standard model of antenatal care with a new model that emphasises actions known to be effective in improving maternal or neonatal outcomes and has fewer clinic visits. METHODS: Clinics in Argentina, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand were randomly allocated to provide either the new model (27 clinics) or the standard model currently in use (26 clinics). All women presenting for antenatal care at these clinics over an average of 18 months were enrolled. Women enrolled in clinics offering the new model were classified on the basis of history of obstetric and clinical conditions. Those who did not require further specific assessment or treatment were offered the basic component of the new model, and those deemed at higher risk received the usual care for their conditions; however, all were included in the new-model group for the analyses, which were by intention to treat. The primary outcomes were low birthweight (<2500 g), pre-eclampsia/eclampsia, severe postpartum anaemia (<90 g/L haemoglobin), and treated urinary-tract infection. There was an assessment of quality of care and an economic evaluation. FINDINGS: Women attending clinics assigned the new model (n=12568) had a median of five visits compared with eight within the standard model (n=11958). More women in the new model than in the standard model were referred to higher levels of care (13.4% vs 7.3%), but rates of hospital admission, diagnosis, and length of stay were similar. The groups had similar rates of low birthweight (new model 7.68% vs standard model 7.14%; stratified rate difference 0.96 [95% CI -0.01 to 1.92]), postpartum anaemia (7.59% vs 8.67%; 0.32), and urinary-tract infection (5.95% vs 7.41%; -0.42 [-1.65 to 0.80]). For pre-eclampsia/eclampsia the rate was slightly higher in the new model (1.69% vs 1.38%; 0.21 [-0.25 to 0.67]). Adjustment by several confounding variables did not modify this pattern. There were negligible differences between groups for several secondary outcomes. Women and providers in both groups were, in general, satisfied with the care received, although some women assigned the new model expressed concern about the timing of visits. There was no cost increase, and in some settings the new model decreased cost. INTERPRETATIONS: Provision of routine antenatal care by the new model seems not to affect maternal and perinatal outcomes. It could be implemented without major resistance from women and providers and may reduce cost.

Adult↗

Improving CPAP use by patients with the sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS).

Though continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the treatment of choice for the sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS), suboptimal adherence to CPAP is common. Internationally, some 5-50% of SAHS patients recommended for CPAP either reject this treatment option or discontinue within the first week, and 12-25% of remaining patients can be expected to have discontinued CPAP by 3 years. Biomedical investigations of patients' CPAP use reveal frequent adverse effects, weak prospective relationships between symptomatic or physiological disease severity and CPAP use, and moderate correlations between use and benefit. Relatively expensive high-technological interventions to improve CPAP use (e.g. "intelligent" CPAP, humidification) are the subject of several well-conducted studies favouring their effectiveness. More basic educational and behavioural supports, and low-technological interventions (e.g. chinstraps, mask re-fitting) appear valued, but are currently less rigorously evaluated. In other diseases with demanding treatment regimens, cognitive constructs including health attitudes and beliefs (health value, locus of control, chance, powerful others, self-efficacy) and mental and physical health status are significant predictors of adherence. The enhancement of multidisciplinary models with psychosocial interpretations may provide increased explanatory and interventional potential in models of CPAP use. While acknowledging the scarcity of evidence, a structured, multidisciplinary, cost-efficient model is suggested, containing educational, behavioural and technological components as basic support, and with high-expertise cognitive-behavioural intervention in more difficult cases of low CPAP use.

Child↗

The phylogenetic mixed model.

The phylogenetic mixed model is an application of the quantitative-genetic mixed model to interspecific data. Although this statistical framework provides a potentially unifying approach to quantitative-genetic and phylogenetic analysis, the model has been applied infrequently because of technical difficulties with parameter estimation. We recommend a reparameterization of the model that eliminates some of these difficulties, and we develop a new estimation algorithm for both the original maximum likelihood and new restricted maximum likelihood estimators. The phylogenetic mixed model is particularly rich in terms of the evolutionary insight that might be drawn from model parameters, so we also illustrate and discuss the interpretation of the model parameters in a specific comparative analysis.

Algorithms↗

Applications of codon and rate variation models in molecular phylogeny.

The current article illustrates the practical advantages of some new models and statistical algorithms for codon substitution and spatial rate variation in molecular phylogeny. Our companion paper in this issue discusses at length the mathematical properties of these models for nucleotide and codon substitution, for site-to-site and branch-to-branch heterogeneity in rates of evolution, and for spatial correlation in the assignment of rates. In this study we summarize the theoretical background and apply the models and algorithms to data on beta-globin, the complete HIV genome, and the mitochondrial genome. Our complex but realistic models enhance biological interpretation of sequence data and show substantial improvements in model fit over existing models. All the new statistical algorithms applied are incorporated in our phylogeny software LINNAEUS, which is tuned for performance and modeling flexibility.

Animals↗