Search results for "Research Design"

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization: a three-year prospective study in a neonatal intensive care unit in Italy.

2014

Background: Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major etiological agent of infection in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Routes of entry of this organism can be different and the transmission pathway complex. Colonized neonates are the main endogenous reservoir. Methods and Results: We conducted a prospective three-year study on MRSA colonization recruiting 722 neonates admitted between 2009 and 2012. Nasal swabs were cultured weekly and MRSA isolates were submitted to molecular typing. The annual incidence density of acquisition of MRSA ranged from a maximum of 20.2 cases for 1000 patient-days during the first year to a minimum of 8.8 cases in the second one to ra…

Environmentally friendly, but behaviorally complex? A systematic review of e-scooter riders’ psychosocial risk features

2022

Introduction E-scooters have made a place for themselves on urban roads as an affordable, easy-to-use and environmentally friendly method of transportation. However, and partly because of their road behaviors and safety outcomes, e-scooter users have started to represent a focus of attention for transport planners and policymakers. Aim The present systematic review aims to target and analyze the existing studies investigating the psychosocial characteristics of e-scooter riders, focusing on their behavioral and risk-related features. Methods For this systematic review, the PRISMA methodology was used, which allows for the selection of suitable papers based on the study topic, in accordance…

The Molecular Genetic Architecture of Self-Employment

2013

Economic variables such as income, education, and occupation are known to affect mortality and morbidity, such as cardiovascular disease, and have also been shown to be partly heritable. However, very little is known about which genes influence economic variables, although these genes may have both a direct and an indirect effect on health. We report results from the first large-scale collaboration that studies the molecular genetic architecture of an economic variable-entrepreneurship-that was operationalized using self-employment, a widely-available proxy. Our results suggest that common SNPs when considered jointly explain about half of the narrow-sense heritability of self-employment es…

What users think about the differences between caffeine and illicit/prescription stimulants for cognitive enhancement

2012

Pharmacological cognitive enhancement (CE) is a topic of increasing public awareness. In the scientific literature on student use of CE as a study aid for academic performance enhancement, there are high prevalence rates regarding the use of caffeinated substances (coffee, caffeinated drinks, caffeine tablets) but remarkably lower prevalence rates regarding the use of illicit/prescription stimulants such as amphetamines or methylphenidate. While the literature considers the reasons and mechanisms for these different prevalence rates from a theoretical standpoint, it lacks empirical data to account for healthy students who use both, caffeine and illicit/prescription stimulants, exclusively f…

Sex Differences in Colorectal Cancer Survival: Population-Based Analysis of 164,996 Colorectal Cancer Patients in Germany

2013

Risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) is considerably higher in men compared to women; however, there is inconclusive evidence of sex differences in CRC prognosis. We aimed to assess and explain sex differences in 5-year relative survival using standard and model-based period analysis among 164,996 patients diagnosed with CRC from 1997 to 2006 and reported to 11 German cancer registries covering a population of 33 million inhabitants. Age-adjusted 5-year relative survival was higher in women (64.5% vs. 61.9%, P<0.0001). A substantial survival advantage of women was confirmed in multivariate analysis after adjusting for CRC stage and subsite in subjects under 65 years of age (relative excess ri…

Role of Kras Status in Patients with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Receiving First-Line Chemotherapy plus Bevacizumab: A TTD Group Cooperative Study

2012

Background: In the MACRO study, patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) were randomised to first-line treatment with 6 cycles of capecitabine and oxaliplatin (XELOX) plus bevacizumab followed by either single-agent bevacizumab or XELOX plus bevacizumab until disease progression. An additional retrospective analysis was performed to define the prognostic value of tumour KRAS status on progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS) and response rates. Methodology/Principal Findings: KRAS data (tumour KRAS status and type of mutation) were collected by questionnaire from participating centres that performed KRAS analyses. These data were then cross-referenced with efficacy da…

Is there a right place to pace the right ventricle? Evaluation of apical and septal positions in a pacemaker population: Study protocol for a prospec…

2014

Abstract Introduction The main objective of research in pacemaker therapy has been to provide the best physiologic way to pace the heart. Despite the good results provided by right ventricular pacing minimization and by biventricular pacing in specific subsets of heart failure patients, these options present many limitations for standard pacemaker recipients. In these patients, pacing the right ventricle at alternative sites could result in a lower degree of left intraventricular dyssynchrony. Despite the lack of strong evidence and the difficulty in placing and accurately classifying the final lead position, pacing at alternative right ventricular sites seems to have become a standard proc…

Response to letter by Werner et al.

2012

Non-readmission decisions in the intensive care unit: A qualitative study of physicians' experience in a multicentre French study.

2021

Purpose Deciding not to re-admit a patient to the intensive care unit (ICU) poses an ethical dilemma for ICU physicians. We aimed to describe and understand the attitudes and perceptions of ICU physicians regarding non-readmission of patients to the ICU. Materials and methods Multicenter, qualitative study using semi-directed interviews between January and May 2019. All medical staff working full-time in the ICU of five participating centres (two academic and three general, non-academic hospitals) were invited to participate. Participants were asked to describe how they experienced non-readmission decisions in the ICU, and to expand on the manner in which the decision was made, but also on…

Study protocol for a multi-component kindergarten-based intervention to promote healthy diets in toddlers: a cluster randomized trial

2016

Background: There is concern about the lack of diversity in children’s diets, particularly low intakes of fruit and vegetables and high intakes of unhealthy processed food. This may be a factor in the rising prevalence of obesity. A reason for the lack of diversity in children’s diets may be food neophobia. This study aimed to promote a healthy and varied diet among toddlers in kindergarten. The primary objectives were to reduce food neophobia in toddlers, and promote healthy feeding practices among kindergarten staff and parents. Secondary objectives were to increase food variety in toddlers’ diets and reduce future overweight and obesity in these children. Methods: This is an ongoing, clu…