Generalized Fused Lasso for Treatment Pooling in Network Meta-Analysis.

This work develops a generalized fused lasso (GFL) approach to fitting contrast-based network meta-analysis (NMA) models. The GFL method penalizes all pairwise differences between treatment effects, resulting in the pooling of treatments that are not sufficiently different. This approach offers an intriguing avenue for potentially mitigating biases in treatment rankings and reducing sparsity in networks.

Estimation and Applications of Uncertainty in Methane Emissions Quantification Technologies: A Bayesian Approach.

An accurate understanding of uncertainty is needed to properly interpret methane emission estimates from upstream oil and gas sources in a variety of contexts, from component-level measurements to yearly jurisdiction-wide inventories. To characterize measurement uncertainty, we examine controlled release (CR) data from five different technology providers including quantitative gas imaging (QOGI), tunable diode laser-absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS); and airborne near-infrared hyperspectral (NIR HS) imaging. We introduce a novel empirical method to develop probability distributions of measurements given a true emission rate using the CR data.

Using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 to improve depression screening in head and neck cancer patients.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the use of the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2) to screen for depression in patients undergoing treatment for head and neck cancer and to evaluate potential patient-specific risk factors that may contribute to depression.

Materials And Methods: This is a retrospective study at a tertiary-level hospital of outpatient adult patients with head and neck cancer who completed the PHQ-2/9 from 2019 to 2020. Patients were given a PHQ-2 during a surveillance visit.

It's what the community demands: Results of community-based emergency opioid overdose trainings.

Objectives: In response to a surge of drug overdoses involving polysubstance use among Atlanta service industry workers that resulted in the deaths of five people in the Atlanta area in the summer of 2021, a local community of harm reductionists and nurses organized opioid education and naloxone distribution (OEND) training sessions specifically customized for service industry workers in Atlanta. After the sessions, the nurses and harm reductionists asked attendants to participate in a study concerning their response to overdoses. The reason nurses and harm reductionists conducted the study was to determine the efficacy of OEND training adapted for those working in the service industries as well as to evaluate and possibly modify the training sessions for future use.

A Gentle Introduction to Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis Using an Automated R Package.

Network meta-analysis is an extension of standard meta-analysis. It allows researchers to build a network of evidence to compare multiple interventions that may have not been compared directly in existing publications. With a Bayesian approach, network meta-analysis can be used to obtain a posterior probability distribution of all the relative treatment effects, which allows for the estimation of relative treatment effects to quantify the uncertainty of parameter estimates, and to rank all the treatments in the network.

Bayesian unanchored additive models for component network meta-analysis.

Component network meta-analysis (CNMA) models are an extension of standard network meta-analysis (NMA) models which account for the use of multicomponent treatments in the network. This article contributes innovatively to several statistical aspects of CNMA. First, by introducing a unified notation, we establish that currently available methods differ in the way they assume additivity, an important distinction that has been overlooked so far in the literature.

Total laryngectomy negatively impacts sinonasal and olfactory-specific quality of life.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to characterize deficits in olfactory-specific and sinonasal-specific QoL after total laryngectomy (TL) with validated patient reported outcome measures.

Methods: Thirty patients who had a TL were prospectively enrolled. Patient demographics, as well as scores from the Questionnaire of Olfactory Disorders Negative Statements (QOD-NS) and the Sino-nasal Outcome Test-22 (SNOT-22) were collected.

Polyamine Metabolites as Biomarkers in Head and Neck Cancer Biofluids.

: Novel, non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers that facilitate early intervention in head and neck cancer are urgently needed. Polyamine metabolites have been observed to be elevated in numerous cancer types and correlated with poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to assess the concentration of polyamines in the saliva and urine from head and neck cancer (HNC) patients, compared to healthy controls.

Pregnancy and Fertility Trends Among Female Otolaryngologists.

Objective: This study sought to determine childbearing patterns and decision making among female otolaryngologists.

Study Design: Anonymous survey.

Setting: An anonymous survey was sent in 2020 to female otolaryngologists identified through their membership with the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

How has contraceptive provision at Family Planning clinics in Aotearoa New Zealand changed between 2009, 2014 and 2019: a cross-sectional analysis.

Aim: To investigate changes in contraceptive starts among Family Planning clients in 2009, 2014 and 2019.

Methods: National data of 75,825 contraceptive starts of clients at Family Planning clinics in New Zealand in 2009, 2014 and 2019 were analysed to measure changes in contraceptive starts across the three points in time. Data were analysed by age and ethnicity at each point in time, and by deprivation in 2019.

The Impact of Surgical Posterior Nasal Nerve Cryoablation on Symptoms and Disease-Specific Quality of Life in Patients With Chronic Rhinitis.

Objective: Preliminary data have demonstrated long-term efficacy of posterior nasal nerve (PNN) cryoablation in reducing rhinitis symptoms for patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) and nonallergic rhinitis (NAR). We sought to evaluate the impact of procedural cryoablation of the PNN on quality of life (QOL) in patients with AR and NAR.

Methods: Adult patients undergoing PNN cryoablation for AR or NAR after appropriate medical therapy were included for analysis.

Health Literacy and Web-Based Audiovisual Multimedia in Pituitary and Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery.

 The internet presents a rich milieu of multimedia options relating to pituitary and endoscopic skull base surgery (ESBS). Misinformation can create discordance between patient and provider expectations. The purpose of this study is to analyze the understandability and actionability of available ESBS and pituitary surgery audiovisual information on YouTube and Google.

The Impact of Medical Comorbidities on Patient Satisfaction in Chronic Rhinosinusitis.

Background: Patient satisfaction has a significant bearing on medical therapy compliance and patient outcomes. The purpose of this study was to (1) describe patient satisfaction, as characterized by the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire-18 (PSQ-18), in the care of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and (2) analyze the impact of comorbidities on satisfaction using the functional comorbidity index (FCI).

Methods: Patient demographics, disease severity measures, and PSQ-18 scores for patients with CRS presenting to a tertiary rhinology clinic between November 2019 and April 2020 were collected and analyzed.

Predictors of long-term use of prescription opioids in the community-dwelling population of adults without a cancer diagnosis: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Long-term opioid use is a known risk factor for opioid-related harms. We aimed to identify risk factors for and predictors of long-term use of prescription opioids in the community-dwelling population of adults without a diagnosis of cancer, to inform practice change at the point of care.

Methods: Using Quebec administrative claims databases, we conducted a retrospective cohort study in a random sample of adult members (≥ 18 yr) of the public drug plan who did not have a cancer diagnosis and who initiated a prescription opioid in the outpatient setting between Jan.

Preoperative Gabapentin Administration and Its Impact on Postoperative Opioid Requirement and Pain in Sinonasal Surgery.

Objective: To determine the efficacy of preoperative gabapentin on patient-reported pain levels and postoperative opioid requirements following sinonasal surgery.

Study Design: Retrospective review.

Setting: Academic institution.

Immunoregulatory Potential of Exosomes Derived from Cancer Stem Cells.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) are malignancies that originate in the mucosal lining of the upper aerodigestive tract. Despite advances in therapeutic interventions, survival rates among HNSCC patients have remained static for years. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are tumor-initiating cells that are highly resistant to treatment, and are hypothesized to contribute to a significant fraction of tumor recurrences.

BUGSnet: an R package to facilitate the conduct and reporting of Bayesian network Meta-analyses.

Background: Several reviews have noted shortcomings regarding the quality and reporting of network meta-analyses (NMAs). We suspect that this issue may be partially attributable to limitations in current NMA software which do not readily produce all of the output needed to satisfy current guidelines.

Results: To better facilitate the conduct and reporting of NMAs, we have created an R package called "BUGSnet" (Bayesian inference Using Gibbs Sampling to conduct a Network meta-analysis).

Probabilistic Graphical Modeling for Estimating Risk of Coronary Artery Disease: Applications of a Flexible Machine-Learning Method.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death and disease burden worldwide, causing 1 in 7 deaths in the United States alone. Risk prediction models that can learn the complex causal relationships that give rise to CAD from data, instead of merely predicting the risk of disease, have the potential to improve transparency and efficacy of personalized CAD diagnosis and therapy selection for physicians, patients, and other decision makers. We use Bayesian networks (BNs) to model the risk of CAD using the Z-Alizadehsani data set-a published real-world observational data set of 303 Iranian patients at risk for CAD.

Characteristics and methods of incorporating randomized and nonrandomized evidence in network meta-analyses: a scoping review.

Objectives: The objective of the study was to conduct a scoping review of the published literature on methods used to combine randomized and nonrandomized evidence (NRE) in network meta-analyses (NMAs) and their respective characteristics.

Study Design And Setting: We conducted a scoping review using a list of NMAs which incorporated NRE that were identified from a previous review. All NMAs that included NRE in the analysis of main outcomes or sensitivity analyses were eligible for inclusion.

Reduction of soil erosion and mercury losses in agroforestry systems compared to forests and cultivated fields in the Brazilian Amazon.

In addition to causing physical degradation and nutrient depletion, erosion of cultivated soils in the Amazon affects aquatic ecosystems through the release of natural soil mercury (Hg) towards lakes and rivers. While traditional agriculture is generally cited as being among the main causes of soil erosion, agroforestry practices are increasingly appreciated for soil conservation. This study was carried out in family farms of the rural Tapajós region (Brazil) and aimed at evaluating soil erosion and associated Hg release for three land uses.

Network meta-analysis of disconnected networks: How dangerous are random baseline treatment effects?

In network meta-analysis, the use of fixed baseline treatment effects (a priori independent) in a contrast-based approach is regularly preferred to the use of random baseline treatment effects (a priori dependent). That is because, often, there is not a need to model baseline treatment effects, which carry the risk of model misspecification. However, in disconnected networks, fixed baseline treatment effects do not work (unless extra assumptions are made), as there is not enough information in the data to update the prior distribution on the contrasts between disconnected treatments.

Fabrication and characterization of electrospun polycaprolactone and gelatin composite cuffs for tissue engineered blood vessels.

Sewing cuffs incorporated within tissue-engineered blood vessels (TEBVs) enable graft anastomosis in vivo, and secure TEBVs to bioreactors in vitro. Alternative approaches to cuff design are required to achieve cuff integration with scaffold-free TEBVs during tissue maturation. To create porous materials that promote tissue integration, we used electrospinning to fabricate cuffs from polycaprolactone (PCL), PCL blended with gelatin, and PCL coated with gelatin, and evaluated cuff mechanical properties, porosity, and cellular attachment and infiltration.

Modulation of MicroRNAs 34a and 21 Affects Viability, Senescence, and Invasion in Glioblastoma Multiforme.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive and invasive brain tumor. Current interventional strategies have been minimally successful. Three key characteristics of GBMs are (1) enhanced resistance to apoptosis, (2) increased proliferation rate, and (3) increased invasion potential, making them difficult to treat.

Aligned Nanotopography Promotes a Migratory State in Glioblastoma Multiforme Tumor Cells.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive, Grade IV astrocytoma with a poor survival rate, primarily due to the GBM tumor cells migrating away from the primary tumor site along the nanotopography of white matter tracts and blood vessels. It is unclear whether this nanotopography influences the biomechanical properties (i.e.