Comparison of the Schirmer tear test I values after placement in ventral and dorsal conjunctival fornices in healthy cats

Objectives The objective of this study was to compare the Schirmer tear test I values obtained from placement of Schirmer tear test (STT) strips in ventral and dorsal conjunctival fornices and to investigate any correlation between age, body weight and STT values in clinically normal cats. Methods Twenty-eight intact adult domestic shorthair and Persian cats were used in this study. The cats were gently physically restrained in a sternal position, and a Schirmer tear strip was placed on each eye in the ventral conjunctival fornix at one-third of the distance from the temporal to nasal canthus for 60 s. Then, the wetted portion of the strips was measured as mm/min (L-STT I). After 48 h, the same procedure was performed on each eye in the dorsal conjunctival fornix (U-STT I). Results Mean ± SD STT values of the ventral and dorsal conjunctival fornices were 20.80 ± 2.25 mm/min (range 14–25 mm/min; 95% confidence interval [CI] 19.92–21.67) and 18.28 ± 2.27 mm/min (range 15–22 mm/min; 95% CI 17.39–19.16) in all of the study population, respectively. A significant difference was found between STT values obtained from the ventral and dorsal conjunctival fornices ( P <0.001). There was no correlation between the age and body weight of the animals and STT I values. Conclusions and relevance This study compared the STT I values of the dorsal and ventral conjunctival fornices in cats. The difference was significant between the L-STT I and U-STT I values; however, the L-STT I and U-STT I values were within normal reference intervals. The U-STT I data have diagnostic value that might be of benefit in cases where there is a problem in the ventral conjunctival fornix.

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Evaluation of tear production using the Schirmer tear test I in healthy cats; effect of age, life stage, sex, breed and neuter status

Veterinary Record ◽

10.1136/vr.104974 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 184 (26) ◽

pp. 799-799 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Seyed Mehdi Rajaei ◽

Houman Faghihi ◽

David Leonard Williams ◽

Ghazal Aftab

Keyword(s):

Life Stage ◽

Age Groups ◽

Clinically Normal ◽

Tear Production ◽

Schirmer Tear Test ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Study Population ◽

Effect Of Age

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the values of Schirmer tear test (STT) and determine effects of age, life stage, sex, breed and neuter status on tear production in healthy cats.MethodsThree hundred and forty-three domestic shorthair (DSH) and Persian cats, 50 days through 18 years old, were examined in this study. STT I was used to measure tear production in both eyes of each cat.ResultsA mean STT 14.9±4.8 mm/min was calculated for the eyes of all cats. There was a significant difference between STT values in kittens (≤6 months old) and cats of other age groups (P<0.001). A substantial number of cats with clinically normal eyes had STT values less than 10 mm/min. No significant difference was found between males (14.7±5.0 mm/min) and females (15.1±4.5 mm/min) in STT values (P=0.46). Significant differences were found between entire (14.4±4.2 mm/min) and neutered (16.2±4.1 mm/min) cats (P=0.001), and between STT values of DSH (14.6±5.0 mm/min) and Persian (16.5±3.1 mm/min) cats in the study population (P=0.001).ConclusionsThis study documents the average STT values for a sizeable feline population demonstrating that, in contradistinction to the situation in dogs, a number of cats with clinically normal eyes have STT values below 10 mm/min.

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Significant Associations of lncRNA H19 Genotypes with Susceptibility to Childhood Leukemia in Taiwan

Pharmaceuticals ◽

10.3390/ph14030235 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (3) ◽

pp. 235

Author(s):

Jen-Sheng Pei ◽

Chao-Chun Chen ◽

Wen-Shin Chang ◽

Yun-Chi Wang ◽

Jaw-Chyun Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Confidence Interval ◽

Childhood Leukemia ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽

Wild Type ◽

Single Nucleotide ◽

Genotypic Distribution ◽

Heterozygous Variant ◽

Significant Difference ◽

The Difference

The purpose of our study was to investigate whether genetic variations in lncRNA H19 were associated with susceptibility to childhood leukemia. Two hundred and sixty-six childhood leukemia patients and 266 healthy controls were enrolled in Taiwan, and two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs2839698 and rs217727, in H19 were genotyped and analyzed. There was a significant difference in the genotypic distribution of rs2839698 between patients and healthy controls (p = 0.0277). Compared to the wild-type CC genotype, the heterozygous variant CT and homozygous variant TT genotypes were associated with significantly increased risks of childhood leukemia with an adjusted odd ratio (OR) of 1.46 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.08–2.14, p = 0.0429) and 1.94 (95%CI, 1.15–3.31, p = 0.0169), respectively (pfor tread = 0.0277). The difference in allelic frequencies between childhood leukemia patients and controls was also significant (T versus C, adjusted OR = 1.53, 95%CI, 1.13–1.79, p = 0.0077). There were no significant differences in the genotypic and allelic distributions of rs217727 between cases and controls. Interestingly, the average level of H19 rs2839698 was statistically significantly higher for patients with CT and TT genotypes than from those with the CC genotype (p < 0.0001). Our results indicate that H19 SNP rs2839698, but not rs217727, may serve as a novel susceptibility marker for childhood leukemia.

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0588 Ring Pulse Oximeter for Screening of Moderate to Severe OSA: A Pilot Study

SLEEP ◽

10.1093/sleep/zsaa056.585 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 43 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. A225-A225

Author(s):

J Xue ◽

R Zhao ◽

J Li ◽

L Zhao ◽

B Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pilot Study ◽

Pulse Oximeter ◽

Characteristic Curve ◽

Diagnostic Value ◽

Receiver Operator Characteristic Curve ◽

Oxygen Desaturation ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Acceptance Range ◽

The Difference ◽

Two Parameters

Abstract Introduction To evaluate the utility of the ring pulse oximeter for screening of OSA in adults. Methods 87 adults were monitored by a ring pulse oximeter and PSG simultaneously during a nocturnal in-lab sleep testing. 3% oxygen desaturation index (ODI3); Mean oxygen saturation(MSpO2), Saturation impair time below 90% (SIT90) derived from an automated algorithm of the ring pulse oximeter. Meanwhile, the parameters of PSG were scored manually according to the AASM Manual. Correlation and receiver operator characteristic curve analysis were used to measure the accuracy of ring pulse oximeter and its diagnostic value for moderate to severe OSA (AHI≥15). Results Among the 87 participants, 18 cases were AHI<5, 17 cases were diagnosed with mild OSA (AHI:5-14.9), 25 cases were diagnosed with moderate OSA (AHI:15-29.9) and 27 cases were diagnosed with severe OSA (AHI≥30). There was no significant difference between PSG and ring pulse oximeter in regard to ODI3 (23.4±23.5 vs 24.7 ± 21.7), and SIT90 (1.54%, range 0.14%-8.99% vs. 3.20%, range 0.60%, 12.30%) (P>0.05], Further analysis indicated that two parameters from the oximeter correlated well with that derived from PSG (r=0.889, 0.567, respectively, both p<0.05). Although MSpO2 correlated significantly (r=0.448, P<0.05), the difference was remarkable [95.9%, range 94.0% to 97.0% vs. 94.5%, range 93.3% to 95.7%, p<0.05]. Bland-Altman plots showed that the agreement of these three parameters was within the clinical acceptance range. The ROC curve showed that the sensitivity and specificity of the ring pulse oximeter when the oximeter derived ODI3 ≥12.5 in the diagnosis of moderate to severe OSA were 82.7% and 74.3%, respectively. Conclusion The pilot study indicated that ring pulse oximeter can detect oxygen desaturation events accurately, therefore to be used as a screening tool for moderate to severe OSA. Support The study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81420108002 and NO. 81570083).

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Diagnostic Value of C-Reactive Protein in Discrimination between Uncomplicated and Complicated Parapneumonic Effusion

Diagnostics ◽

10.3390/diagnostics10100829 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 829

Author(s):

Yana Kogan ◽

Edmond Sabo ◽

Majed Odeh

Keyword(s):

Area Under The Curve ◽

Diagnostic Value ◽

Parapneumonic Effusion ◽

C Reactive Protein ◽

Diagnostic Efficacy ◽

Reactive Protein ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Study Population ◽

Complicated Parapneumonic Effusion

Objectives: The role of serum C-reactive protein (CRPs) and pleural fluid CRP (CRPpf) in discriminating uncomplicated parapneumonic effusion (UCPPE) from complicated parapneumonic effusion (CPPE) is yet to be validated since most of the previous studies were on small cohorts and with variable results. The role of CRPs and CRPpf gradient (CRPg) and of their ratio (CRPr) in this discrimination has not been previously reported. The study aims to assess the diagnostic efficacy of CRPs, CRPpf, CRPr, and CRPg in discriminating UCPPE from CPPE in a relatively large cohort. Methods: The study population included 146 patients with PPE, 86 with UCPPE and 60 with CPPE. Levels of CRPs and CRPpf were measured, and the CRPg and CRPr were calculated. The values are presented as mean ± SD. Results: Mean levels of CRPs, CRPpf, CRPg, and CRPr of the UCPPE group were 145.3 ± 67.6 mg/L, 58.5 ± 38.5 mg/L, 86.8 ± 37.3 mg/L, and 0.39 ± 0.11, respectively, and for the CPPE group were 302.2 ± 75.6 mg/L, 112 ± 65 mg/L, 188.3 ± 62.3 mg/L, and 0.36 ± 0.19, respectively. Levels of CRPs, CRPpf, and CRPg were significantly higher in the CPPE than in the UCPPE group (p < 0.0001). No significant difference was found between the two groups for levels of CRPr (p = 0.26). The best cut-off value calculated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis for discriminating UCPPE from CPPE was for CRPs, 211.5 mg/L with area under the curve (AUC) = 94% and p < 0.0001, for CRPpf, 90.5 mg/L with AUC = 76.3% and p < 0.0001, and for CRPg, 142 mg/L with AUC = 91% and p < 0.0001. Conclusions: CRPs, CRPpf, and CRPg are strong markers for discrimination between UCPPE and CPPE, while CRPr has no role in this discrimination.

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COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT CRITERIA IN THE PREVALENCE OF METABOLIC SYNDROME IN STUDENTS FROM PARANAVAÍ, PARANÁ

Revista Paulista de Pediatria ◽

10.1590/1984-0462/;2019;37;3;00007 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 37 (3) ◽

pp. 332-337 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Flávio Ricardo Guilherme ◽

Matheus Amarante do Nascimento ◽

Carlos Alexandre Molena-Fernandes ◽

Vânia Renata Guilherme ◽

Stevan Ricardo dos Santos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Metabolic Syndrome ◽

Waist Circumference ◽

Confidence Interval ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

Diagnostic Criteria ◽

Public And Private ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Low Hdl ◽

The Difference

ABSTRACT Objective: To investigate the difference in the proportion of students with metabolic syndrome, diagnosed according to different criteria. Methods: The sample consisted of 241 students (136 boys and 105 girls) aged 10 to 14 years, from public and private schools in Paranavaí, Paraná. We used three distinct diagnostic criteria for metabolic syndrome, considering the presence of at least three of the following risk factors: increased waist circumference, hypertension, fasting hyperglycemia, low HDL-C, and elevated triglycerides. Results: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome found was 1.7% (confidence interval of 95% - 95%CI 0-3.3) for the IDF criterion; 3.3% (95%CI 1.0-5.6) for Cook; and 17.4% (95%CI 12.6-22.3) for Ferranti. Analyzing the criteria in pairs, the agreement between IDF and Cook was 97.5% (k=0.95); between IDF and Ferranti, 83.4% (k=0.67); and between Cook and Ferranti, 85.9% (k=0.72). Onlyone student (0.4%) was diagnosed with metabolic syndrome solely by the IDF criterion, while 34 (14.1%) were diagnosed exclusively by Ferranti. The comparison of the three criteria showed that Ferranti presented the highest proportion of metabolic syndrome (p<0.001), and Cook had a greater proportion than IDF (p<0.001). Conclusions: We found a significant difference in the proportion of metabolic syndrome in the three criteria. The choice of which criterion to use can compromise not only the percentage of metabolic syndrome prevalence but also interfere in strategies of intervention and prevention in children and adolescents with and without metabolic syndrome, respectively.

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Comparison of yield and relative costs of different screening algorithms for tuberculosis in active case-finding: a cross-section study

BMC Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1186/s12879-021-06486-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Fei Zhao ◽

Canyou Zhang ◽

Chongguang Yang ◽

Yinyin Xia ◽

Jin Xing ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Case Finding ◽

Active Case Finding ◽

Face To Face ◽

Active Case ◽

Symptom Screening ◽

Significant Difference ◽

National Tuberculosis ◽

Study Population ◽

The Difference ◽

The Cost

Abstract Background Part of tuberculosis (TB) patients were missed if symptomatic screening was based on the main TB likely symptoms. This study conducted to compare the yield and relative costs of different TB screening algorithms in active case-finding in the whole population in China. Methods The study population was screened based on the TB likely symptoms through a face-to-face interview in selected 27 communities from 10 counties of 10 provinces in China. If the individuals had any of the enhanced TB likely symptoms, both chest X-ray and sputum tests were carried out for them furtherly. We used the McNemar test to analyze the difference in TB detection among four algorithms in active case-finding. Of four algorithms, two were from WHO recommendations including 1a/1c, one from China National Tuberculosis Program, and one from this study with the enhanced TB likely symptoms. Furthermore, a two-way ANOVA analysis was performed to analyze the cost difference in the performance of active case-finding adjusted by different demographic and health characteristics among different algorithms. Results Algorithm with the enhanced TB likely symptoms defined in this study could increase the yield of TB detection in active case-finding, compared with algorithms recommended by WHO (p < 0.01, Kappa 95% CI: 0. 93–0.99) and China NTP (p = 0.03, Kappa 95% CI: 0.96–1.00). There was a significant difference in the total costs among different three algorithms WHO 1c/2/3 (F = 59.13, p < 0.01). No significant difference in the average costs for one active TB case screened and diagnosed through the process among Algorithms 1c/2/3 was evident (F = 2.78, p = 0.07). The average costs for one bacteriological positive case through algorithm WHO 1a was about two times as much as the costs for one active TB case through algorithms WHO 1c/2/3. Conclusions Active case-finding based on the enhanced symptom screening is meaningful for TB case-finding and it could identify more active TB cases in time. The findings indicated that this enhanced screening approach cost more compared to algorithms recommend by WHO and China NTP, but the increased yield resulted in comparative costs per patient. And it cost much more that only smear/bacteriological-positive TB cases are screened in active case-finding.

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ALKALINE PROTEASE, AMYLASE AND CELLULASE ACTIVITIES OF YELLOW RASBORA, Rasbora lateristriataBlkr., AT DIFFERENT FEEDING LEVELS

Molekul ◽

10.20884/1.jm.2016.11.2.254 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 190

Author(s):

Untung Susilo ◽

Purnama Sukardi ◽

Ridwan Affandi

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Alkaline Protease ◽

Fish Biomass ◽

Alkaline Proteases ◽

Protein Digestion ◽

Feeding Level ◽

Significant Difference ◽

The Difference ◽

Average Body ◽

Average Body Weight

Alkaline proteases, amylase and cellulase activities of digestive organ of yellow rasbora, Rasbora lateristriata Blkr., was evaluated with four different feeding levels of 0.34g protein+0.03g fiber, 1.01g protein+0.10g fiber, 1.69g protein+0.16g fiber and 2.36g protein+0.23g fiber/day/100 g fish biomass. A total of 280 fish with average body weight of 0.71±0.06g were used in this study. The results showed that the difference in the feeding levels resulted in a significant difference in trypsin and chymotrypsin activities (P <. 05), but not for amylase and cellulase activities (P > .05). In conclusion, protein digestion capacity increased, but not to the digestion of starch and fiber in response to different feeding levels and the optimal feeding level for yellow rasbora was 1,01g protein+0,10g fiber/day/100 g fish biomass.

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Occupational structure of bearers of Jewish rabbinical, occupational and generic surnames

F1000Research ◽

10.12688/f1000research.24532.2 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 971

Author(s):

Alexander Jonathan Vidgop ◽

Nelly Norton ◽

Nechama Rosenberg ◽

Malka Haguel-Spitzberg ◽

Itzhak Fouxon

Keyword(s):

Confidence Interval ◽

The Self ◽

The Other ◽

Occupational Structure ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Standard Classification ◽

The Difference ◽

The Individual ◽

Study Choice

We study choice of profession in three groups of Russian-speaking Jewish families with different occupational distributions of the ancestors. This study continues exploration of the persistence of social status of families over centuries that was initiated in recent years. It was found previously that in some cases professions remain associated with the same surnames for many generations. Here the studied groups are defined by a class of the surname of individuals composing them. The class serves as a label that indicates a professional bias of the ancestors of the individual. One group are the bearers of the class of surnames which were used by rabbinical dynasties. The other group is constituted by occupational surnames, mostly connected to crafts. Finally, the last group are generic Jewish names defined as surnames belonging to neither of the above groups. We use the self-collected database that consists of 858 and 1057 of the first two groups, respectively, and 7471 generic Jewish surnames. The statistics of the database are those of individuals drawn at random from the considered groups. We determine shares of members of the groups working in a given type of occupations together with the confidence interval. The occupational type’s definition agrees with International Standard Classification of Occupations. It is demonstrated that there is a statistically significant difference in the occupational structure of the three groups that holds beyond the uncertainty allowed by 95% confidence interval. We quantify the difference with a numerical measure of the overlap of professional preferences of different groups. We conclude that in our study the occupational bias of different population groups is preserved at least for two centuries that passed since the considered surnames appeared.

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Establishment of PIVKA-Ⅱ Reference Intervals From Hospital-stored Data: A Comparison Analysis

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1040511/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Lewei Zhou ◽

Qiyuan Su ◽

Yan Yao ◽

Meixian Xiang ◽

Jiesheng Zhen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Clinical Laboratory ◽

Reference Intervals ◽

Female Group ◽

Comparison Analysis ◽

Test Items ◽

Health Group ◽

Significant Difference ◽

The Difference ◽

Gender Specific ◽

Indirect Reference

Abstract Objective The authors aimed to explore methods to establish indirect reference intervals for PIVKA-II from hospital-stored data.Method 7623 patient specimens of the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University were collected. Indirect reference intervals were established based on the hospital-stored data with four different methods, including the Hoffmann method (HM), revised Hoffmann method (HMCDF), E-M algorithm-based method (EMBCT), and a recent estimator (KOSMIC). According to CLSI C28-A3 guidelines, 369 healthy specimens were collected. The authors tested the difference between reference intervals of gender-specific and age-specific subgroups using Harris and Boyd's test. Finally, the averaging result of estimates was calculated according to how likely each model was.Results The indirect reference intervals of PIVKA-II based on LIS data were 0 to 35.30 mAU/mL (HM), 0 to 31.48 mAU/mL (HMCDF), 0 to 30.78 mAU/mL (EMBCT), 0 to 36.17 mAU/mL (KOSMIC) and 0 to 31.48 mAU/mL (averaging) respectively, and the reference intervals based on healthy group were 0 to 32 mAU/mL. Compared with HM, EMBCT and KOSMIC, HMCDF and the averaging result was closer to those of the health group. Significant difference was detected between gender-partitioned subgroups, and the reference upper limit in the female group was smaller than the male group.Conclusions The authors established the indirect reference intervals of PIVKA-II for the Wuhan population, which could be used to the clinical reference intervals. The framework proposed could help clinical laboratory set their reference intervals of test items.

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Study on Serum miR-204 Expression Levels in Patients with Severe Pneumonia and Patients with Primary Bronchial Lung Cancer and Its Diagnostic Value

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2021/6034413 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

Wenhong Zheng ◽

Wei Huang ◽

Xuchao Yu

Keyword(s):

Lung Cancer ◽

Severe Pneumonia ◽

Diagnostic Value ◽

Control Group ◽

Qrt Pcr ◽

Kaplan Meier ◽

Significant Difference ◽

The Difference ◽

The Relationship ◽

Low Expression

Objective. To analyze the expression and clinical significance of miR-204 in the serum of patients with severe pneumonia (SP) and primary bronchial lung cancer (LC). Methods. 65 SP patients and 43 primary bronchial LC patients who were treated in the hospital from January 2017 to December 2018 were randomly selected as the SP group and LC group. At the same time, healthy patients from the physical examination department of the hospital were selected. 65 cases were the control group. QRT-PCR detected serum miR-204 expression and compared the differences between groups. The pathological data of patients were collected, and the relationship between serum miR-204 and the patient’s pathological data was compared; the area under the ROC curve and Kaplan–Meier curve were used to evaluate the diagnostic value of serum miR-204 for the two conditions and to explore the relationship between serum miR-204 and prognosis. Results. The serum miR-204 of the SP group was (0.43 ± 0.09), the serum miR-204 of the LC group was (0.40 ± 0.10), the serum miR-204 of the control group was (1.00 ± 0.09), and the miR-204 level of was significantly higher than that of the control group, and the difference between the groups was statistically significant ( P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in serum miR-204 levels between the SP group and the LC group ( P > 0.05). Serum miR-204 levels in SP patients with cumulative organs ≥3 were higher than those with cumulative organs <3, and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.001). In the LC group, in patients with stage III to IV and low and undifferentiated patients, the level of miR-204 was higher than that of stage I∼II and high and moderately differentiated patients, and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.001). The level of miR-204 in the two groups of patients (0.89 ± 0.10, 0.83 ± 0.13) who died of illness was significantly higher than that of the surviving patients (1.00 ± 0.11, 1.00 ± 0.10), and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.05); the survival rate of patients with high expression of miR-204 was higher than that of patients with low expression. The AUC of serum miR-204 level to SP and LC was 0.766 and 0.818, respectively. Conclusion. The level of miR-204 in the serum of SP patients and patients with primary bronchial LC was significantly lower than that of healthy people, and patients who died were lower than those who survived; the miR-204 in serum has a good diagnostic value for SP and LC and is related to the survival and prognosis of patients.

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