scholarly journals Concurrent validity of an Estimator of Weekly Alcohol Consumption (EWAC) based on the Extended AUDIT

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter F Dutey-Magni ◽  
Jamie Brown ◽  
John Holmes ◽  
Julia MA Sinclair
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Total Error ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Mean Deviation ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Diagnostic Study ◽  
Reference Standard ◽  
Weekly Alcohol Consumption

Background and Aims: The 3-question Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C) is commonly employed in healthcare to screen for levels of alcohol consumption. AUDIT-C scores (0-12) have no direct interpretation and do not provide information on alcohol intake, an important variable for behaviour change. The study aimed to (a) develop a continuous metric from the Extended AUDIT-C, offering equivalent accuracy, and providing a direct estimator of weekly alcohol consumption (EWAC); (b) evaluate the EWAC's bias and error using the Graduated-Frequency (GF) questionnaire as a reference standard of alcohol consumption. Design: Cross-sectional diagnostic study based on a nationally-representative survey. Settings: Community-dwelling households in England. Participants: 22,404 household residents aged ≥16 years reporting drinking alcohol at least occasionally. Measurements: Computer-assisted personal interviews consisting of (a) Extended AUDIT and (b) GF. The primary outcomes were: mean deviation <1 UK unit (metric of bias); root mean squared deviation <2 UK units (metric of total error) between EWAC and GF. The secondary outcome was an equivalent receiver operating characteristic area under the curve for predicting alcohol consumption in excess of 14 and 35 UK units compared to AUDIT-C and AUDIT. Findings: EWAC had a positive bias of 0.2 UK units [95% confidence interval: 0.04, 0.3] compared to GF. Deviations were skewed: while the mean error was +/-11 UK units/week [9.8, 12.0], in half of participants the deviation between EWAC and GF was between 0 and +/-2.1 UK units/week. EWAC predicted consumption in excess of 14 UK units/week with a significantly greater area under the curve (0.921 [0.917, 0.925]) than AUDIT-C (0.871 [0.866, 0.876]) or the full AUDIT (0.854 [0.849, 0.860]). Conclusions: The EWAC https://ewac.netlify.app is designed to estimate weekly alcohol consumption using answers to the Extended AUDIT-C questionnaire. Using the detailed GF as a reference standard, the EWAC met the targeted bias tolerance. Its accuracy was superior to that of both AUDIT-C and the full AUDIT in relation to consumption thresholds, making it a reliable complement to the Extended AUDIT-C for health promotion interventions.

Discriminating Malignancy in Thyroid Nodules: The Nomogram Versus the Kwak and ACR TI-RADS

2020 ◽  
Vol 163 (6) ◽  
pp. 1156-1165
Author(s):  
Juan Xiao ◽  
Qiang Xiao ◽  
Wei Cong ◽  
Ting Li ◽  
Shouluan Ding ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thyroid Nodules ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Diagnostic Study ◽  
Diagnostic Efficiency ◽  
Training Set ◽  
Multivariable Logistic Regression Model ◽  
Predictive Values ◽  
Validation Set ◽  
Sensitivity Specificity

Objective To develop an easy-to-use nomogram for discrimination of malignant thyroid nodules and to compare diagnostic efficiency with the Kwak and American College of Radiology (ACR) Thyroid Imaging, Reporting and Data System (TI-RADS). Study Design Retrospective diagnostic study. Setting The Second Hospital of Shandong University. Subjects and Methods From March 2017 to April 2019, 792 patients with 1940 thyroid nodules were included into the training set; from May 2019 to December 2019, 174 patients with 389 nodules were included into the validation set. Multivariable logistic regression model was used to develop a nomogram for discriminating malignant nodules. To compare the diagnostic performance of the nomogram with the Kwak and ACR TI-RADS, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were calculated. Results The nomogram consisted of 7 factors: composition, orientation, echogenicity, border, margin, extrathyroidal extension, and calcification. In the training set, for all nodules, the area under the curve (AUC) for the nomogram was 0.844, which was higher than the Kwak TI-RADS (0.826, P = .008) and the ACR TI-RADS (0.810, P < .001). For the 822 nodules >1 cm, the AUC of the nomogram was 0.891, which was higher than the Kwak TI-RADS (0.852, P < .001) and the ACR TI-RADS (0.853, P < .001). In the validation set, the AUC of the nomogram was also higher than the Kwak and ACR TI-RADS ( P < .05), each in the whole series and separately for nodules >1 or ≤1 cm. Conclusions When compared with the Kwak and ACR TI-RADS, the nomogram had a better performance in discriminating malignant thyroid nodules.

scholarly journals Impact of COVID-19 pandemic social restriction measures on people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases in the UK: a mixed-methods study

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. e048772
Author(s):  
Toby O Smith ◽  
Pippa Belderson ◽  
Jack R Dainty ◽  
Linda Birt ◽  
Karen Durrant ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Musculoskeletal Diseases ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Healthcare Provision ◽  
Social Restriction ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesTo determine the impact of COVID-19 pandemic social restriction measures on people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) and to explore how people adapted to these measures over time.DesignMixed-methods investigation comprising a national online longitudinal survey and embedded qualitative study.SettingUK online survey and interviews with community-dwelling individuals in the East of England.ParticipantsPeople in the UK with RMDs were invited to participate in an online survey. A subsection of respondents were invited to participate in the embedded qualitative study.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe online survey, completed fortnightly over 10 weeks from April 2020 to August 2020, investigated changes in symptoms, social isolation and loneliness, resilience and optimism. Qualitative interviews were undertaken assessing participant’s perspectives on changes in symptoms, exercising, managing instrumental tasks such a shopping, medication and treatment regimens and how they experienced changes in their social networks.Results703 people with RMDs completed the online survey. These people frequently reported a deterioration in symptoms as a result of COVID-19 pandemic social restrictions (52% reported increase vs 6% reported a decrease). This was significantly worse for those aged 18–60 years compared with older participants (p=0.017). The qualitative findings from 26 individuals with RMDs suggest that the greatest change in daily life was experienced by those in employment. Although some retired people reported reduced opportunity for exercise outside their homes, they did not face the many competing demands experienced by employed people and people with children at home.ConclusionsPeople with RMDs reported a deterioration in symptoms when COVID-19 pandemic social restriction measures were enforced. This was worse for working-aged people. Consideration of this at-risk group, specifically for the promotion of physical activity, changing home-working practices and awareness of healthcare provision is important, as social restrictions continue in the UK.

scholarly journals Validation of the German Life-Space Assessment (LSA-D): cross-sectional validation study in urban and rural community-dwelling older adults

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. e049926
Author(s):  
Sandra Angelika Mümken ◽  
Paul Gellert ◽  
Malte Stollwerck ◽  
Julie Lorraine O'Sullivan ◽  
Joern Kiselev
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Construct Validity ◽  
Outcome Measures ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Life Space ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Past ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

ObjectivesTo develop a German version of the original University of Alabama at Birmingham Study of Aging Life-Space Assessment (LSA-D) for measurement of community mobility in older adults within the past 4 weeks and to evaluate its construct validity for urban and rural populations of older adults.DesignCross-sectional validation study.SettingTwo study centres in urban and rural German outpatient hospital settings.ParticipantsIn total, N=83 community-dwelling older adults were recruited (n=40 from urban and n=43 from rural areas; mean age was 78.5 years (SD=5.4); 49.4% men).Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe final version of the translated LSA-D was related to limitations in activities and instrumental activities of daily living (ADL/iADL) as primary outcome measure (primary hypothesis); and with sociodemographic factors, functional mobility, self-rated health, balance confidence and history of falls as secondary outcome measures to obtain construct validity. Further descriptive measurements of health included hand grip strength, screening of cognitive function, comorbidities and use of transportation. To assess construct validity, correlations between LSA-D and the primary and secondary outcome measures were examined for the total sample, and urban and rural subsamples using bivariate regression and multiple adjusted regression models. Descriptive analyses of LSA-D included different scoring methods for each region. All parameters were estimated using non-parametric bootstrapping procedure.ResultsIn the multiple adjusted model for the total sample, number of ADL/iADL limitations (β=−0.26; 95% CI=−0.42 to −0.08), Timed Up and Go Test (β=−0.37; 95% CI=−0.68 to −0.14), shared living arrangements (β=0.22; 95% CI=0.01 to 0.44) and history of falls in the past 6 months (β=−0.22; 95% CI=−0.41 to −0.05) showed significant associations with the LSA-D composite score, while living in urban area (β=−0.19; 95% CI=−0.42 to 0.03) and male gender (β=0.15; 95% CI=−0.04 to 0.35) were not significant.ConclusionThe LSA-D is a valid tool for measuring life-space mobility in German community-dwelling older adults within the past 4 weeks in ambulant urban and rural settings.Trial registration numberDRKS00019023.

scholarly journals Diagnostic Performance and Accuracy of the MNA-SF against GLIM Criteria in Community-Dwelling Older Adults from Poland

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 2183
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Kaluźniak-Szymanowska ◽  
Roma Krzymińska-Siemaszko ◽  
Marta Lewandowicz ◽  
Ewa Deskur-Śmielecka ◽  
Katarzyna Stachnik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Diagnostic Performance ◽  
Nutritional Assessment ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Mini Nutritional Assessment ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults ◽  
Test Result

Up to 28% of elderly residents in Europe are at risk of malnutrition. As uniform diagnostic criteria for malnutrition have not been formulated, in autumn 2018, the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) presented a consensus on its diagnosis. According to the consensus, the diagnosis of malnutrition requires a positive screening test result for the risk of malnutrition, and the presence of at least one etiologic and one phenotypic criterion. This study aimed to assess the diagnostic performance and accuracy of the Mini Nutritional Assessment—Short Form (MNA-SF) against GLIM criteria. The analysis involved 273 community-dwelling volunteers aged ≥ 60 years. All participants were screened for malnutrition with the MNA-SF questionnaire. Next, the GLIM phenotypic and etiologic criteria were assessed in all subjects. Based on the presence of at least one phenotypic and one etiologic criterion, malnutrition was diagnosed in more than one-third of participants (n = 103, 37.7%). According to the MNA-SF, only 7.3% of subjects had malnutrition, and 28.2% were at risk of malnutrition. The agreement between the MNA-SF score and the GLIM criteria were observed in only 22.3% of the population. The sensitivity and specificity of MNA-SF against the GLIM criteria were fair (59.2% and 78.8%, respectively). The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.77, indicating the fair ability of MNA-SF to diagnose malnutrition. Based on the present study results, the best solution may be an optional replacement of the screening tool in the first step of the GLIM algorithm with clinical suspicion of malnutrition.

scholarly journals Can fecal calprotectin accurately identify histological activity of ulcerative colitis? A meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 175628482199474
Author(s):  
Xiaoqi Ye ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
Harry H. X. Wang ◽  
Rui Feng ◽  
Ziyin Ye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ulcerative Colitis ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Fecal Calprotectin ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Histological Response ◽  
Summary Receiver Operating Characteristic ◽  
Histological Activity ◽  
Histological Remission ◽  
Sensitivity Specificity

Background and Aims: Elevated fecal calprotectin (FC) levels have been reported to correlate with histological activity in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). However, the accuracy of FC for evaluating histological activity of UC remains to be determined. The aim of this study was to determine the accuracy of FC for evaluating histological activity of UC, based on updated definitions. Methods: Related studies were retrieved from the PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane databases. Adult participants diagnosed with UC were included when sufficient data could be extracted to calculate the accuracy of FC for evaluating histological activity. The primary outcome was histological response, and the secondary outcome was histological remission, defined according to a recently updated position paper of European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization. Statistics were pooled using bivariate mixed-effects models. The area under the curve was estimated by summary receiver-operating characteristic curves. Results: Nine studies were included, from which 1039 patients were included for the analysis of histological response and 591 patients for histological remission. For the evaluation of histological response, the pooled sensitivity, specificity, and the area under the curve were 0.69 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.52–0.82], 0.77 (95% CI: 0.63–0.87), and 0.80 (95% CI: 0.76–0.83), respectively. For the evaluation of histological remission, the corresponding estimates were 0.76 (95% CI: 0.71–0.81), 0.71 (95% CI: 0.62–0.78), and 0.79 (95% CI: 0.75–0.82), respectively. FC had a higher accuracy in studies using Nancy Index. For histological response, the cut-off values of FC ranged from 50 to 172 µg/g, and the sensitivity was higher in studies with FC cut-off values >100 µg/g (0.77 versus 0.65). Conclusion: FC is a valuable biomarker for assessing histological activity in patients with UC. A cut-off value of 100–200 µg/g is more appropriate to spare patients from an unnecessary endoscopy and biopsy.

scholarly journals Validación de un test para determinar el sesgo atencional en pacientes dependientes de alcohol

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 504
Author(s):  
Alvaro Sanchez-Lopez ◽  
Rafael Quinto-Guillen ◽  
Josefa Pérez-Lucas ◽  
Rosa Jurado-Barba ◽  
Isabel Martínez-Grass ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Alcohol Dependence ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Attention Bias ◽  
Naming Task ◽  
Color Naming ◽  
Stroop Test ◽  
Stroop Interference ◽  
Spanish Version ◽  
Interference Effects

Attention bias for alcohol has proved useful to distinguish people with a pathological consumption of people who do not, and dependents who are more likely to fall in consumption. The aim of this study was to validate the Spanish version of the Alcohol Stroop test, designed to evaluate attention biases for alcohol in alcohol-dependent patients. The sample was composed by 173 participants divided into 2 groups: 1) “Patients” (<em>n = </em>88) meeting criteria for alcohol dependence; and 2) “Control” (<em>n = </em>85) having a low risk for alcohol consumption, that completed the Stroop color naming Task (Classic Stroop), the Neutral Stroop test and the alcohol Stroop test. Statistically significant differences were found in the interference effects calculated for the Classic and Alcohol Stroop tests. Patients compared to control participants showed a higher interference effect for alcohol-related stimuli than for neutral stimuli. These effects were accounted by an attention bias for alcohol-related information in patients. ROC curves were calculated for the three interference effects, showing an area under the curve statistically significant in the Classic Stroop interference and the Alcohol Stroop interference. This study provides the validation of the Spanish version of the Alcohol Stroop test that allows to evaluate attention biases for alcohol stimuli in individuals with both pathologic alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence.

Average Weekly Alcohol Consumption: Drinking Percentiles for American College Students

1997 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 201-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip W. Meilman ◽  
Cheryl A. Presley ◽  
Jeffrey R. Cashin
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Weekly Alcohol Consumption

Effects of golf training on cognition in older adults: a randomised controlled trial

2018 ◽  
Vol 72 (10) ◽  
pp. 944-950 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Shimada ◽  
Sangyoon Lee ◽  
Masahiro Akishita ◽  
Koichi Kozaki ◽  
Katsuya Iijima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Randomised Controlled Trial ◽  
Outcome Measures ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Training Group ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Logical Memory ◽  
Randomised Controlled

BackgroundAlthough research indicates that a physically active lifestyle has the potential to prevent cognitive decline and dementia, the optimal type of physical activity/exercise remains unclear. The present study aimed to determine the cognitive benefits of a golf-training programme in community-dwelling older adults.MethodsWe conducted a randomised controlled trial between August 2016 and June 2017 at a general golf course. Participants included 106 Japanese adults aged 65 and older. Participants were randomly assigned to either a 24-week (90–120 min sessions/week) golf-training group or a health education control group. Postintervention changes in Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) and National Centre for Geriatrics and Gerontology-Functional Assessment Tool scores were regarded as primary outcome measures. Secondary outcome measures included changes in physical performance and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) scores.ResultsA total of 100 participants (golf training, n=53; control, n=47) completed the assessments after the 24-week intervention period. The adherence to the golf programme was 96.2% (51/53 participants). Analysis using linear mixed models revealed that the golf training group exhibited significantly greater improvements in immediate logical memory (p=0.033), delayed logical memory (p=0.009) and composite logical memory (p=0.013) scores than the control group. However, no significant changes in MMSE, word memory, Trail Making Test or Symbol Digital Substitution Test scores were observed. In addition, no significant changes in grip strength, walking speed or GDS were observed.ConclusionsGolf-based exercise interventions may improve logical memory in older adults, but no significant changes in other cognitive tests. Further follow-up investigations are required to determine whether the observed effects are associated with delayed onset of mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease in older adults.Trial registration numberUMIN-CTR UMIN000024797; Pre-results.

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