Search results for "Predictive"

Force Platform Balance Measures as Predictors of Indoor and Outdoor Falls in Community-Dwelling Women Aged 63-76 Years

2008

Background. Inability to maintain balance while standing increases risk of falls in older people. The present study assessed whether center of pressure (COP) movement measured with force platform technology predicts risk for falls among older people with no manifest deficiency in standing balance. Methods. Participants were 434 community-dwelling women, aged 63-76 years. COP was measured in six stances on a force platform. Following balance tests, participants reported their falls with 12 monthly calendars. Incidence rate ratios (IRR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed from negative binomial regression models. For the analysis, those with>/=1 fall indoors were coded"indoor fal…

Poor vision accompanied with other sensory impairments as a predictor of falls in older women

2008

Objectives:we studied visual acuity (VA) and co-existing hearing impairment and poor standing balance as predictors of falls. Design: prospective study with 1-year follow-up. Setting: research laboratory and residential environment. Participants: 428 women aged 63‐76 years from the Finnish Twin Study on Aging. Measurements: participants were followed up for incidence of falls over 1 year. VA, hearing ability and standing balance were assessed at the baseline. The incidence rate ratios (IRR) for falls were computed using the negative binomial regression model. Results: during the follow-up, 47% of participants experienced a fall. After adjusting for age and interdependence of twin sisters, p…

The logarithmic transformation should be avoided for stabilising the variance of mould growth rate.

2007

Abstract Radial growth rate, μ (mm d − 1 ) was evaluated by plotting the radius of the colony, r (mm) versus time (d) for Alternaria alternata , Aspergillus flavus , Cladosporium cladosporioides , Mucor racemosus , Rhizopus oryzae and Trichoderma harzianum at different T and a w . For each of the 12 data sets, an analysis of variance of the raw growth rate data was performed. It was observed from the P -values that all square-root transformed values of μ were non-significant at the significance level α  = 0.05, whereas for untransformed values of μ , three of the 12 values were significant and for logarithmically transformed μ , nine of the 12 values were significant at the significance lev…

Receptor Activator of NF-kB (RANK) Expression in Primary Tumors Associates with Bone Metastasis Occurrence in Breast Cancer Patients

2011

Background\ud Receptor activator of NFkB (RANK), its ligand (RANKL) and the decoy receptor of RANKL (osteoprotegerin, OPG) play a pivotal role in bone remodeling by regulating osteoclasts formation and activity. RANKL stimulates migration of RANK-expressing tumor cells in vitro, conversely inhibited by OPG.\ud \ud Materials and Methods\ud We examined mRNA expression levels of RANKL/RANK/OPG in a publicly available microarray dataset of 295 primary breast cancer patients. We next analyzed RANK expression by immunohistochemistry in an independent series of 93 primary breast cancer specimens and investigated a possible association with clinicopathological parameters, bone recurrence and surviv…

Have Day 3 Embryo Morphology a Predictive Value in Blastocyst Formation?

2000

Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor Induces Inflammation and Predicts Spinal Progression in Ankylosing Spondylitis

2017

Objective: To investigate the role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods: Patients who met the modified New York criteria for AS were recruited for the study. Healthy volunteers, rheumatoid arthritis patients, and osteoarthritis patients were included as controls. Based on the annual rate of increase in modified Stoke AS Spine Score (mSASSS), AS patients were classified as progressors or nonprogressors. MIF levels in serum and synovial fluid were quantitated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Predictors of AS progression were evaluated using logistic regression analysis. Immunohistochemical analysis of ileal tissue was…

Determination of antimony in drinking waters by an inexpensive, reproducible hydride generator for atomic spectroscopy.

1991

A method for determining antimony in drinking waters is described. In order to prevent a substantial error caused by the different oxidation states of antimony, Sb(V) is reduced to Sb(III) with potassium iodide-ascorbic acid. Covalent hydride is generated with a home made device by adding NaBH4. The hydride is then atomized in a flame-heated silica tube and atomic absorption is measured spectrophotometrically. The optimal conditions for this determination are discussed and interference effects are described. Results obtained by determining linearity range (0-200 ng), detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ) limits (LOD = 0.347 ng/ml, LOQ = 1.158 ng/ml), precision (instrumental CV 4.08% and me…

Value and limitations of transesophageal echocardiography in the evaluation of aortic prostheses.

1993

Results of 34 transesophageal (TEE) studies in patients with suspected aortic prosthetic dysfunction were compared with transthoracic echocardiographic (TTE) results and to anatomic findings. Mass lesions noted at surgery (autopsy) were correctly described in 93% by TEE versus 43% by TTE. Abscesses were detected in 88% by TEE versus 18% by TTE. Bioprosthetic degeneration was visualized in 88% versus 38% and prosthetic obstruction correctly identified in 75% versus 50% by TEE and TTE, respectively. Anatomic aortic regurgitant lesions were identified in 96% by TEE versus 77% by TTE, whereas the correct origin was detected in 88% of cases by TEE versus 54% of cases by TTE. TEE provides valuabl…

Genetic polymorphisms affecting the phenotypic expression in familial hypercholesterolemia

2004

The clinical expression of heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is highly variable even in patients carrying the same LDL receptor (LDL-R) gene mutation. This variability might be due to environmental factors as well as to modifying genes affecting lipoprotein metabolism. We investigated Apo E (2, 3, 4), MTP (-493G/T), Apo B (-516C/T), Apo A-V (-1131T/C), HL (-514C/T and -250G/A), FABP-2 (A54T), LPL (D9N, N291S, S447X) and ABCA1 (R219K) polymorphisms in 221 unrelated FH index cases and 349 FH relatives with defined LDL-R gene mutations. We found a significant and independent effect of the following polymorphisms on: (i) plasma LDL-C (Apo E, MTP and Apo B); (ii) plasma HDL-C (HL, …

Modeling Chickenpox Dynamics with a Discrete Time Bayesian Stochastic Compartmental Model

2018

[EN] We present a Bayesian stochastic susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered model in discrete time to understand chickenpox transmission in the Valencian Community, Spain. During the last decades, different strategies have been introduced in the routine immunization program in order to reduce the impact of this disease, which remains a public health's great concern. Under this scenario, a model capable of explaining closely the dynamics of chickenpox under the different vaccination strategies is of utter importance to assess their effectiveness. The proposed model takes into account both heterogeneous mixing of individuals in the population and the inherent stochasticity in the transmiss…