Translating Risk Ratios, Baseline Incidence, and Proportions Diseased to Correlations and Chi-Squared Statistics: Simulation Epidemiology.

Background In a population, when a disease is causing a symptom, the overall symptom incidence can be determined by proportions diseased, baseline symptom incidence, and risk ratios of developing the symptom due to the disease. There are various measures of association, including risk ratios. How risk ratios are linked to other measures of association, such as correlation coefficients and chi-squared statistics, has not been explicitly discussed.

Clinical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 infection and its impact on pediatric emergency care in northern Taiwan.

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 outbreak started in Taiwan in April 2022. The pandemic posed a challenge to pediatric emergency departments (PEDs) because of increased PED visits and diverse clinical presentations.

The mediating effect of health behaviors on the association between job strain and mental health outcome: a national survey of police officers.

Police officers often face emotionally challenging interpersonal situations and numerous studies have demonstrated that policing is a stressful occupation. A study revealed a significant positive correlation between emotional demands among police officers and emotional dissonance, as well as burnout. Health-promoting behaviors can contribute to better overall health outcomes and reduce the risk of developing health problems, but there is limited research evaluating the association of job strain and health behaviors with mental health outcomes in police officers.

Sustained acute kidney injury as an independent risk factor for neurodevelopmental and growth outcomes in a single NICU center.

Purpose: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is commonly seen in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and is potentially associated with adverse prognoses in later stages of life. Our study evaluated the impact of sustained AKI (SAKI) on both neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI) and early growth restriction (EGR) in neonates.

Methods: This case-control study retrospectively analyzed the medical records of neonates diagnosed with SAKI in the NICU of a tertiary medical center during the period from January 2007 to December 2020.

The Upper Limits of Risk Ratios and Recommendations for Reporting Risk Ratios, Odds Ratios, and Rate Ratios.

Background Relative measures, including risk ratios (RRs) and odds ratios (ORs), are reported in many epidemiological studies. RRs represent how many times a condition is likely to develop when exposed to a risk factor. The upper limit of RRs is the multiplicative inverse of the baseline incidence.

Critical Hierarchical Appraisal and Reporting Tool for Composite Measures (CHAOS).

Background Composite measures are often used to represent certain concepts that cannot be measured with single variables and can be used as diagnoses, prognostic factors, or outcomes in clinical or health research. For example, frailty is a diagnosis confirmed based on the number of age-related symptoms and has been used to predict major health outcomes. However, undeclared assumptions and problems are prevalent among composite measures.

Acrolein plays a culprit role in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy in vitro and in vivo.

Objective: Diabetic nephropathy (DN), also known as diabetic kidney disease (DKD), is a major chronic complication of diabetes and is the most frequent cause of kidney failure globally. A better understanding of the pathophysiology of DN would lead to the development of novel therapeutic options. Acrolein, an α,β-unsaturated aldehyde, is a common dietary and environmental pollutant.

Why Mental Illness Diagnoses Are Wrong: A Pilot Study on the Perspectives of the Public.

Background: Mental illness diagnostic criteria are made based on assumptions. This pilot study aims to assess the public's perspectives on mental illness diagnoses and these assumptions.

Methods: An anonymous survey with 30 questions was made available online in 2021.

Simulation study to demonstrate biases created by diagnostic criteria of mental illnesses: major depressive episodes, dysthymia, and manic episodes.

Objectives: Composite diagnostic criteria alone are likely to create and introduce biases into diagnoses that subsequently have poor relationships with input symptoms. This study aims to understand the relationships between the diagnoses and the input symptoms, as well as the magnitudes of biases created by diagnostic criteria and introduced into the diagnoses of mental illnesses with large disease burdens (major depressive episodes, dysthymic disorder, and manic episodes).

Settings: General psychiatric care.

Opportunities and Challenges From Leading Trends in a Biomonitoring Project: Canadian Health Measures Survey 2007-2017.

Biomonitoring can be conducted by assessing the levels of chemicals in human bodies and their surroundings, for example, as was done in the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS). This study aims to report the leading increasing or decreasing biomarker trends and determine their significance. We implemented a trend analysis for all variables from CHMS biomonitoring data cycles 1-5 conducted between 2007 and 2017.

Using syndrome mining with the Health and Retirement Study to identify the deadliest and least deadly frailty syndromes.

Syndromes are defined with signs or symptoms that occur together and represent conditions. We use a data-driven approach to identify the deadliest and most death-averse frailty syndromes based on frailty symptoms. A list of 72 frailty symptoms was retrieved based on three frailty indices.

Composite diagnostic criteria are problematic for linking potentially distinct populations: the case of frailty.

Composite diagnostic criteria are common in frailty research. We worry distinct populations may be linked to each other due to complicated criteria. We aim to investigate whether distinct populations might be considered similar based on frailty diagnostic criteria.

Blockade of STAT3 Signaling Contributes to Anticancer Effect of 5-Acetyloxy-6,7,8,4'-Tetra-Methoxyflavone, a Tangeretin Derivative, on Human Glioblastoma Multiforme Cells.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive primary brain tumor with poor prognosis, largely due to resistance to current radiotherapy and Temozolomide chemotherapy. The constitutive activation of Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3) is evidenced as a pivotal driver of GBM pathogenesis and therapy resistance, and hence, is a promising GBM drug target. 5-acetyloxy-6,7,8,4'-tetramethoxyflavone (5-AcTMF) is an acetylated derivative of Tangeretin which is known to exert anticancer effects on breast, colon, lung, and multiple myeloma; however, its effect on GBM remains elusive.

Dodecyl gallate induces apoptosis by upregulating the caspase-dependent apoptotic pathway and inhibiting the expression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins in human osteosarcoma cells.

Dodecyl gallate (DG) is a gallic acid ester that has been shown to inhibit tumor growth. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanism by which DG induces antiproliferative and apoptotic effects in MG-63 human osteosarcoma cells. Dose- and time-dependent cytotoxic effects of DG were determined using an MTT assay.

Effects of teriparatide on lung function and pain relief in women with multiple osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures.

Background: Osteoporosis is predominantly a condition of the elderly. In this study, we evaluated the effects of teriparatide on lung function and pain relief in elderly women with multiple osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures.

Methods: A total of 37 patients who received teriparatide treatment during the period January 2010 to December 2011 were enrolled.

Epithelial cell transformation sequence 2 is a potential biomarker of unfavorable survival in human gliomas.

Background: High-grade primary gliomas are invasive and have poor outcome. The identification of biomarkers predictive of outcome in patients with gliomas is crucial for clinical follow-up. Epithelial cell transformation sequence 2 (ECT2) modulates cancer invasion, progression, metastasis and cell cycle regulation.

Midkine expression in high grade gliomas: Correlation of this novel marker with proliferation and survival in human gliomas.

Background: High-grade primary glioma have poor prognosis and predictive biomarkers is very important. Midkine (MDK), a heparin-binding growth factor, is important in regulating carcinogenesis, cell proliferation, mitogenesis, and angiogenesis. This study aimed to identify over-expression of MDK in gliomas and correlate this with clinical outcomes.

Left common basal pyramid torsion following left upper lobectomy/segmentectomy.

Lobar or segmental lung torsion is a severe complication of lung resection. To the best of our knowledge, common basal pyramid torsion has never been reported. We describe a case of left basal pyramid torsion after left upper lobectomy and superior segmentectomy, which was successfully treated by thoracoscopic surgery.

Full-endoscopic interlaminar removal of chronic lumbar epidural hematoma after spinal manipulation.

Background: Spinal manipulation is widely used for low back pain treatments. Complications associated with spinal manipulation are seen. Lumbar epidural hematoma (EDH) is one of the complications reported in the literature.