0000000001025754
AUTHOR
Matranga Domenica
Accuracy of the water-siphon test associated to barium study in a high prevalence gastro-oesophageal reflux disease population: a novel statistical approach
Abstract RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is 'a condition which develops when the reflux of gastric content causes troublesome symptoms or complications'. Instrumental diagnostic tests generally used for GORD are 24-hour pH-metry and upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy but barium study associated with provocative manoeuvres such as the water-siphon test (WST), has also been used for GORD. The aim of this paper was to estimate the accuracy of several tests in patients with GORD in a tertiary care setting, focusing on WST, which is rapid and non-invasive, simple to perform and well-tolerated by patients. METHOD: A total of 172 consecutive patients, sy…
The vaccina
Objective The aim of this study was to introduce the VaccinaTion & Hpv Knowledge (THinK) questionnaire to assess knowledge about human papillomavirus (HPV) and attitude to HPV-vaccination. Its reliability and validity was demonstrated in a sample of women living in Sicily (southern Italy). Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample of 220 women at the “Paolo Giaccone” University Hospital in Palermo (Sicily), aged 18–61. Data were analyzed through Cronbach’s alpha and exploratory factor analysis, followed by a structural equation model with measurement component. The two-level data structure was explicitly considered. Results Three dimensions were found: “knowledge of HPV inf…
Cranio-Facial Characteristics in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
Background: Cranio-facial anomalies frequently occur in neurodevelopmental disorders because both face and brain are derived from neuroectoderm. The identification of differences in the facial phenotype of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) may reflect alterations in embryologic brain development in children with ASD. Methods: we evaluated 33 caucasian children with ASD using a 2D computerized photogrammetry. Anthropometric euclidean measurements and landmarks located on the soft tissue of the face and head, were based on five cranio-facial indexes. Relationships between anthropometric z-scores and participant characteristics (i.e., age, Global IQ, severity of autistic symptoms m…
Non-communicable diseases, socio-economic status, lifestyle and well-being in Italy: An additive Bayesian network model
The aim of the paper is to investigate the statistical association, on a sample of Italian subjects, extracted by Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) dataset, between chronic diseases (occurrence or number of chronic diseases) and socio-economic and behavioural determinants (lifestyle indicators, QoL indicators, cognitive functioning variables). To this aim, additive Bayesian network (ABN) analysis was used. The resulting ABN model shows that better educated individuals have better health outcomes, age is direct and gender is an indirect determinant of the number of chronic diseases. Furthermore, self-perceived health is associated with lower number of chronic diseases…