Validation of Sonographic Fronto-Occipital Ratio Based on Anatomical Landmarks compared to MR/CT-Derived Indexes in Children with Chiari II and Ventriculomegaly

Introduction: Ultrasound (US) based indexes such as fronto-occipital ratio (FOR) can be used to obtain an acceptable estimation of ventricular volume. Patients with colpocephaly present a unique challenge due to the shape of their ventricles. In the present study, we aim to evaluate the validity and reproducibility of modified US-FOR index in children with Chiari II-related ventriculomegaly. Methods: In this retrospective study, we evaluated Chiari II patients younger than one year who underwent head US and MR or CT scans for ventriculomegaly evaluation. MR/CT based FOR was measured in the axial plane by identifying the widest diameter of frontal horns, occipital horns, and the interparietal diameter (IPD). US based FOR (US-FOR) was measured using the largest diameter based on the following landmarks: frontal horn and IPD in the coronal plane at the level of the foramen of Monro, IPD just superior to the Sylvian fissures, and occipital horn posterior to the thalami and inferior to the superior margins of the thalami. Interclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were used to evaluate inter-rater reliability and Pearson correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plots were applied to assess agreement between US and other two modalities. Results: Ninety paired US and MR/CT exams were assessed for agreement between US-FOR and MR/CT-FOR measurements. ICC showed an excellent inter-rater reliability for US-FOR (ICC=0.99, p<0.001) and MR/CT-FOR measurements (ICC=0.99, p<0.001). The mean (range) values based on US-FOR showed a slight overestimation in comparison to MR/CT-FOR [0.51 (0.36-0.68) vs 0.46 (0.34-0.64)]. Pearson correlation coefficient showed high cross-modality agreement for the FOR index (r=0.83, p<0.001). Bland-Altman plot showed excellent concordance between US-FOR and MR/CT-FOR with a bias of 0.05 (95% CI, -0.03-0.13) Conclusion: US-FOR in the coronal plane is a comparable tool for evaluating ventriculomegaly in Chiari II patients when compared with MR/CT-FOR, even in the context of colpocephaly.

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Reliability and concurrent validity of an alternative method of lateral lumbar range of motion in athletes

South African Journal of Sports Medicine ◽

10.17159/2078-516x/2016/v28i1a1414 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 23-26 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

M Hecimovich

Keyword(s):

Lumbar Spine ◽

Range Of Motion ◽

Concurrent Validity ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Intraclass Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Index Test ◽

Low Back ◽

Detectable Change ◽

Rater Reliability

Background: Cricket bowling involves combined spinalmovements of side bending and rotation and, consequently, injuryto the low back is a common problem. Therefore the assessmentof lumbar spine kinematics has become a routine component inpreseason screening. This includes static measurement of lateralspinal flexion as asymmetrical range of motion may predispose anathlete to low back injury.Objectives: This study examined intra-rater reliability andconcurrent validity of the fingertip-to-floor distance test (FFD)when compared to a criterion range of motion measure.Methods: Thirty-four junior-level cricket players aged 13‑16years were recruited. Lumbar spine lateral flexion was measuredsimultaneously with the fingertip-to-floor distance test and digitalinclinometry methods. Relative and absolute intra-rater reliabilitywere investigated with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC3,1)of agreement, standard error of measurement (SEM) estimates,Bland and Altman bias estimates and 95% limits of agreement,respectively. The concurrent validity of the fingertip-to-floordistance test, compared to digital inclinometry measures, wasexamined with Pearson correlation coefficients.Results: Intra-rater reliability demonstrated substantial agreementfor both measures (ICC3,1 > 0.84). The fingertip-to-floor distancetest SEM values ranged from 1.71‑2.01 cm with an estimatedminimum detectable change (MDC) threshold of 4.73‑5.55 cm.The inclinometry SEM values ranged from 1.00‑1.09° withminimal detectable change estimates of 2.77‑3.01°. There werestrong correlations between the index test and criterion measureoutcomes (r > 0.84, p < 0.001).Conclusions: This study’s results support the intra-rater reliabilityand concurrent validity of the finger-to-floor distance test,suggesting it to be a suitable surrogate measure for lumbar lateralflexion testing

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Can the MOCART Scoring System Correlate with Patient Reported Foot and Ankle Outcome Scores After Ankle Cartilage Repair Procedures?

Foot & Ankle Orthopaedics ◽

10.1177/2473011419s00126 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

pp. 2473011419S0012

Author(s):

Taylor N. Cabe ◽

Carolyn Sofka ◽

Bryan Ang ◽

Harry G. Greditzer ◽

Sydney C. Karnovsky ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clinical Outcomes ◽

Cartilage Repair ◽

Scoring System ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Foot And Ankle ◽

Rater Reliability ◽

Repair Tissue ◽

Patient Reported ◽

Outcome Scores

Category: Ankle, Arthroscopy, Sports Introduction/Purpose: The magnetic resonance observation of cartilage repair tissue (MOCART) scoring system was developed and modified to allow for assessment of articular cartilage repair tissue in the foot and ankle. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the intra- and inter-rater reliability of the MOCART score following a variety of surgical procedures to repair chondral injuries within the ankle joint as well as to correlate these scores to clinically relevant functional outcomes scores. By correlating functional outcome scores with each variable evaluated by the MOCART scoring system as well as the presence of edema and cysts postoperatively, we aimed to identify the radiographic parameters most closely associated with clinical outcomes. Methods: Patients treated for a chondral injury after August 2006 by a fellowship-trained foot and ankle surgeon at our institution were included if their postoperative MRI and Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS) were completed within 5 months of one another. Surgical interventions used to stimulate reparative cartilage formation included osteochondral graft transplantation, debridement, microfracture, microfracture augmented by bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC), juvenile particulate cartilage implantation, or another adjunctive therapy like micronized allogenic cartilage extracellular matrix. Two radiologists (R1-R2) independently reviewed and scored each MRI using the MOCART system. A total MOCART score ranging between 0 and 100 was calculated for each patient. In addition, the presence or absence of postoperative cysts and edema was documented. Inter- and intra- rater reliability were calculated using Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC), and MOCART scores were correlated with FAOS to test for relative functional and clinical relevance. Correlations were calculated as Pearson Correlation Coefficients. Results: Forty-six patients (average age 35 +/- 13.49) under the care of nine different surgeons met inclusion criteria. Average follow-up was 18 months. For overall MOCART score, intra-rater ICC = 0.87 (p<0.01) for R1 and ICC = 0.78 (p<0.01) for R2. Inter-rater reliability ICC = 0.55 – 0.69 for total MOCART score (p<0.01). Overall MOCART score negatively correlated with pre-to-postoperative differences in FAOS subcategories. Correlation coefficients ranged from -0.09 to -0.48 for these variables. This correlation was significant (p<0.01) for the difference in the FAOS Pain and Activities of Daily Living subcategories. In addition, change in FAOS Pain subcategory (r = 0.42; p=0.01) and lesion size (r=0.45; p<0.01) had a moderate but significant correlation with the presence of postoperative cysts (r = 0.42; p=0.01). Conclusion: Intra-rater reliability for an overall MOCART score was relatively strong for each rater while the correlation between raters ranged from strong to moderate. As such, an overall MOCART score appears to be a somewhat reproducible measure. Weak to moderate negative correlational coefficients between the overall MOCART score and postoperative FAOS scores and changes in FAOS scores indicated the MOCART score may be limited in its ability to predict clinical outcomes. Finally, presence or absence of a postoperative cyst may be a useful category that significantly helps predict changes in FAOS pain as well as the size of the lesion preoperatively.

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The Reliability and Validity of the Computerized Double Inclinometer in Measuring Lumbar Mobility

The Open Orthopaedics Journal ◽

10.2174/1874325001408010355 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 355-360 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Joy Christine MacDermid ◽

Vanitha Arumugam ◽

Joshua Israel Vincent ◽

Krista L Carroll

Keyword(s):

Back Pain ◽

Repeated Measures ◽

Concurrent Validity ◽

Sagittal Plane ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Reliability And Validity ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Rater Reliability ◽

Spinal Motion ◽

Lumbar Range Of Motion

Study Design : Repeated measures reliability/validity study. Objectives : To determine the concurrent validity, test-retest, inter-rater and intra-rater reliability of lumbar flexion and extension measurements using the Tracker M.E. computerized dual inclinometer (CDI) in comparison to the modified-modified Schober (MMS) Summary of Background : Numerous studies have evaluated the reliability and validity of the various methods of measuring spinal motion, but the results are inconsistent. Differences in equipment and techniques make it difficult to correlate results. Methods : Twenty subjects with back pain and twenty without back pain were selected through convenience sampling. Two examiners measured sagittal plane lumbar range of motion for each subject. Two separate tests with the CDI and one test with the MMS were conducted. Each test consisted of three trials. Instrument and examiner order was randomly assigned. Intra-class correlations (ICCs 2, 2 and 2, 2) and Pearson correlation coefficients (r) were used to calculate reliability and concurrent validity respectively. Results : Intra-trial reliability was high to very high for both the CDI (ICCs 0.85 - 0.96) and MMS (ICCs 0.84 - 0.98). However, the reliability was poor to moderate, when the CDI unit had to be repositioned either by the same rate (ICCs 0.16 - 0.59) or a different rater (ICCs 0.45 - 0.52). Inter-rater reliability for the MMS was moderate to high (ICCs 0.75 - 0.82) which bettered the moderate correlation obtained for the CDI (ICCs 0.45 - 0.52). Correlations between the CDI and MMS were poor for flexion (0.32; p<0.05) and poor to moderate (-0.42 - -0.51; p<0.05) for extension measurements. Conclusion : When using the CDI, an average of subsequent tests is required to obtain moderate reliability. The MMS was highly reliable than the CDI. The MMS and the CDI measure lumbar movement on a different metric that are not highly related to each other.

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Sex-dependent Relationship Between Wrist Deviation and Scaphoid Kinematics

10.1101/298398 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Marissa Borgese ◽

Brent Foster ◽

Robert D. Boutin ◽

Christopher O. Bayne ◽

Robert M. Szabo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Coronal Plane ◽

Rank Test ◽

Wrist Position ◽

Radiographic Measurements ◽

Signed Rank ◽

Carpal Kinematics ◽

Signed Rank Test ◽

The Relationship

ABSTRACTSeveral methods of describing patterns of carpal kinematics from radiographs have emerged due to their potential use in developing personalized treatments for wrist pathologies. Such radiography-derived metrics have been used to infer associations between patterns of scaphoid kinematics and other clinically relevant factors such as sex, but the simultaneous effects of sex and wrist position on scaphoid kinematic metrics has yet to be considered. We sought to investigate the relationship between wrist position in the coronal plane and radiographic measurements of the scaphoid for each sex independently, then identify sex-specific differences in scaphoid measurements and calculated metrics. We retrospectively identified 38 subjects with posteroanterior radial and ulnar deviation radiographs. Radiographic scaphoid measurements were collected and used to calculate five scaphoid kinematic metrics per participant. We used Pearson correlation coefficients to explore the relationships between the degrees of wrist deviation in the coronal plane and radiographic scaphoid measurements for men and women independently. We used the non-parametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test to compare values between sexes. The correlations between degrees of coronal wrist deviation and radiographic measurements of scaphoid inclination were significant only for men. Men also had significantly greater values for all radiographic scaphoid measurements. Our study demonstrated sex-specific differences in the relationship between the degrees of radial and ulnar wrist deviation and scaphoid positioning.Clinical RelevanceOur findings show the importance of stratifying by sex in studies of carpal kinematics, such as scaphoid kinematics, and that investigation of strategies to restore normal carpal function should incorporate sex as a biological variable.

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Reliability and Agreement of Three Devices for Measuring Implant Stability Quotient in the Animal Ex Vivo Model

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11083453 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 3453

Author(s):

Monica Blazquez-Hinarejos ◽

Constanza Saka-Herrán ◽

Victor Diez-Alonso ◽

Raul Ayuso-Montero ◽

Eugenio Velasco-Ortega ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Correlation Coefficient ◽

Ex Vivo ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Intraclass Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Implant Stability ◽

Ex Vivo Model ◽

Rater Reliability ◽

Implant Stability Quotient ◽

Parallel Measurement

Resonance frequency analysis (RFA) is the most extended method for measuring implant stability. The implant stability quotient (ISQ) is the measure obtained by different RFA devices; however, inter- and intra-rater reliability and agreement of these instruments remain unknown. Thirty implants were placed in three different pig mandibles. ISQ was measured parallel and perpendicular (lingual) to the peg axis with Osstell® Beacon, Penguin® and MegaISQ® by two different investigators and furthermore, one performed a test-retest. Intraclass correlation coefficient was calculated to assess the intra- and inter-rater reliability. Pearson correlation coefficient was used to assess the agreement. Intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.20 to 0.65 for the Osstell® Beacon; 0.57 to 0.86 for the Penguin®; and −0.01 to 0.60 for the MegaISQ®. The highest ISQ values were obtained using Penguin® (66.3) in a parallel measurement; the lowest, using the MegaISQ® (60.1) in a parallel measurement. The highest correlation values with the other devices were obtained by MegaISQ® in a parallel measurement. Osstell® Beacon and MegaISQ® showed lower reliability than Penguin®. Osstell® had good agreement for measuring ISQ both in parallel and perpendicular, and MegaISQ® had the best agreement for measuring ISQ in parallel.

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Reliability of the Minimum Masking Level as Outcome Variable in Tinnitus Clinical Research

American Journal of Audiology ◽

10.1044/2020_aja-20-00047 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 29 (3) ◽

pp. 429-435

Author(s):

Patricia C. Mancini ◽

Richard S. Tyler ◽

Hyung Jin Jun ◽

Tang-Chuan Wang ◽

Helena Ji ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Standard Deviation ◽

High Frequency ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Outcome Variable ◽

Reliable Estimate ◽

Moderate Correlation ◽

Trained Subjects ◽

The Relationship ◽

Minimum Intensity

Purpose The minimum masking level (MML) is the minimum intensity of a stimulus required to just totally mask the tinnitus. Treatments aimed at reducing the tinnitus itself should attempt to measure the magnitude of the tinnitus. The objective of this study was to evaluate the reliability of the MML. Method Sample consisted of 59 tinnitus patients who reported stable tinnitus. We obtained MML measures on two visits, separated by about 2–3 weeks. We used two noise types: speech-shaped noise and high-frequency emphasis noise. We also investigated the relationship between the MML and tinnitus loudness estimates and the Tinnitus Handicap Questionnaire (THQ). Results There were differences across the different noise types. The within-session standard deviation averaged across subjects varied between 1.3 and 1.8 dB. Across the two sessions, the Pearson correlation coefficients, range was r = .84. There was a weak relationship between the dB SL MML and loudness, and between the MML and the THQ. A moderate correlation ( r = .44) was found between the THQ and loudness estimates. Conclusions We conclude that the dB SL MML can be a reliable estimate of tinnitus magnitude, with expected standard deviations in trained subjects of about 1.5 dB. It appears that the dB SL MML and loudness estimates are not closely related.

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Comparative Responses to Squats Completed with Free Weights and an Exoskeleton

Gravitational and Space Research ◽

10.2478/gsr-2016-0005 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 51-63

Author(s):

Peter Neuhaus ◽

Chris Jumonville ◽

Rachel A. Perry ◽

Roman Edwards ◽

Jake L. Martin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Data Collection ◽

Female Athletes ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Actual Data ◽

Limited Data ◽

Comparative Similarity ◽

Insufficient Amount ◽

Force Data ◽

Familiarization Session

AbstractTo assess the comparative similarity of squat data collected as they wore a robotic exoskeleton, female athletes (n=14) did two exercise bouts spaced 14 days apart. Data from their exoskeleton workout was compared to a session they did with free weights. Each squat workout entailed a four-set, four-repetition paradigm with 60-second rest periods. Sets for each workout involved progressively heavier (22.5, 34, 45.5, 57 kg) loads. The same physiological, perceptual, and exercise performance dependent variables were measured and collected from both workouts. Per dependent variable, Pearson correlation coefficients, t-tests, and Cohen's d effect size compared the degree of similarity between values obtained from the exoskeleton and free weight workouts. Results show peak O2, heart rate, and peak force data produced the least variability. In contrast, far more inter-workout variability was noted for peak velocity, peak power, and electromyography (EMG) values. Overall, an insufficient amount of comparative similarity exists for data collected from both workouts. Due to the limited data similarity, the exoskeleton does not exhibit an acceptable degree of validity. Likely the cause for the limited similarity was due to the brief amount of familiarization subjects had to the exoskeleton prior to actual data collection. A familiarization session that accustomed subjects to squats done with the exoskeleton prior to actual data collection may have considerably improved the validity of data obtained from that device.

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Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) Impact on Work-Home Interference in a South African Commuter Transport Engineering Company

African Journal of Employee Relations (Formerly South African Journal of Labour Relations) ◽

10.25159/2520-3223/4553 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 43 ◽

Author(s):

Jan Christoff Visagie ◽

Michael M. Jones ◽

Herman L. Linde

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Leader Member Exchange ◽

Negative Consequences ◽

Dyadic Relationship ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Engineering Company ◽

Member Exchange

The South African workplace is confronted with many leadership challenges, specifically those relating to the employment relationship between subordinates and their supervisors. A high-quality relationship is essential, considering the work-family spillovers employees experience. Limited research has been conducted on the potential positive and negative consequences of the leader-member exchange (LMX) dyadic relationship. In this study, we used a cross-sectional research design, and drew an employee sample (N = 120) from a commuter transport engineering company. A five-point Likert scale was employed and statistical analyses were carried out using the SAS statistical program. We calculated Pearson correlation coefficients and used structural equation modelling to test the proposed conceptual model to indicate possible correlations between the different variables. The main finding of the study was that the nature of the LMX relationship quality in the relevant company appeared to be high and positively related to work-home enrichment but negatively related to work-home conflict and role overload. The article concludes by making a number of suggestions to respond to challenges.

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Enhanced context-aware recommendation using topic modeling and particle swarm optimization

Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems ◽

10.3233/jifs-210331 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-16

Author(s):

Ibtissem Gasmi ◽

Mohamed Walid Azizi ◽

Hassina Seridi-Bouchelaghem ◽

Nabiha Azizi ◽

Samir Brahim Belhaouari

Keyword(s):

Topic Modeling ◽

Latent Dirichlet Allocation ◽

State Of The Art ◽

Weighting Function ◽

Contextual Factors ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Pso Algorithm ◽

Context Aware ◽

Proposed Model

Context-Aware Recommender System (CARS) suggests more relevant services by adapting them to the user’s specific context situation. Nevertheless, the use of many contextual factors can increase data sparsity while few context parameters fail to introduce the contextual effects in recommendations. Moreover, several CARSs are based on similarity algorithms, such as cosine and Pearson correlation coefficients. These methods are not very effective in the sparse datasets. This paper presents a context-aware model to integrate contextual factors into prediction process when there are insufficient co-rated items. The proposed algorithm uses Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) to learn the latent interests of users from the textual descriptions of items. Then, it integrates both the explicit contextual factors and their degree of importance in the prediction process by introducing a weighting function. Indeed, the PSO algorithm is employed to learn and optimize weights of these features. The results on the Movielens 1 M dataset show that the proposed model can achieve an F-measure of 45.51% with precision as 68.64%. Furthermore, the enhancement in MAE and RMSE can respectively reach 41.63% and 39.69% compared with the state-of-the-art techniques.

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The patellofemoral morphology and the normal predicted value of tibial tuberosity-trochlear groove distance in the Chinese population

BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders ◽

10.1186/s12891-021-04454-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Zhe Li ◽

Guanzhi Liu ◽

Run Tian ◽

Ning Kong ◽

Yue Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Individual Differences ◽

Chinese Population ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Correlation Coefficients ◽

Tibial Tuberosity ◽

Trochlear Groove ◽

Lasso Regression ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Anterior Posterior

Abstract Background Our objective was to obtain normal patellofemoral measurements to analyse sex and individual differences. In addition, the absolute values and indices of tibial tuberosity-trochlear groove (TT-TG) distances are still controversial in clinical application. A better method to enable precise prediction is still needed. Methods Seventy-eight knees of 78 participants without knee pathologies were included in this cross-sectional study. A CT scan was conducted for all participants and three-dimensional knee models were constructed using Mimics and SolidWorks software. We measured and analysed 19 parameters including the TT-TG distance and dimensions and shapes of the patella, femur, tibia, and trochlea. LASSO regression was used to predict the normal TT-TG distances. Results The dimensional parameters, TT-TG distance, and femoral aspect ratio of the men were significantly larger than those of women (all p values < 0.05). However, after controlling for the bias from age, height, and weight, there were no significant differences in TT-TG distances and anterior-posterior dimensions between the sexes (all p values > 0.05). The Pearson correlation coefficients between the anterior femoral offset and other indexes were consistently below 0.3, indicating no relationship or a weak relationship. Similar results were observed for the sulcus angle and the Wiberg index. Using LASSO regression, we obtained four parameters to predict the TT-TG distance (R2 = 0.5612, p < 0.01) to achieve the optimal accuracy and convenience. Conclusions Normative data of patellofemoral morphology were provided for the Chinese population. The anterior-posterior dimensions of the women were thicker than those of men for the same medial-lateral dimensions. More attention should be paid to not only sex differences but also individual differences, especially the anterior condyle and trochlea. In addition, this study provided a new method to predict TT-TG distances accurately.

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