scholarly journals Strategies to maximise study retention and limit attrition bias in a prospective cohort study of men reporting a history of injecting drug use released from prison: the prison and transition health study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashleigh Cara Stewart ◽  
Reece Cossar ◽  
Shelley Walker ◽  
Anna Lee Wilkinson ◽  
Brendan Quinn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Injecting Drug Use ◽  
Health Study ◽  
Attrition Bias ◽  
History Of ◽  
Baseline Characteristics

Abstract Background There are significant challenges associated with studies of people released from custodial settings, including loss to follow-up in the community. Interpretation of findings with consideration of differences between those followed up and those not followed up is critical in the development of evidence-informed policies and practices. We describe attrition bias in the Prison and Transition Health (PATH) prospective cohort study, and strategies employed to minimise attrition. Methods PATH involves 400 men with a history of injecting drug use recruited from three prisons in Victoria, Australia. Four interviews were conducted: one pre-release (‘baseline’) and three interviews at approximately 3, 12, and 24 months post-release (‘follow-up’). We assessed differences in baseline characteristics between those retained and not retained in the study, reporting mean differences and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).  Results Most participants (85%) completed at least one follow-up interview and 162 (42%) completed all three follow-up interviews. Retained participants were younger than those lost to follow-up (mean diff − 3.1 years, 95% CI -5.3, − 0.9). There were no other statistically significant differences observed in baseline characteristics. Conclusion The high proportion of participants retained in the PATH cohort study via comprehensive follow-up procedures, coupled with extensive record linkage to a range of administrative datasets, is a considerable strength of the study. Our findings highlight how strategic and comprehensive follow-up procedures, frequent contact with participants and secondary contacts, and established working relationships with the relevant government departments can improve study retention and potentially minimise attrition bias.

scholarly journals Strategies to maximise study retention and limit attrition bias in a prospective cohort study of men reporting a history of injecting drug use released from prison: The Prison and Transition Health study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashleigh Cara Stewart ◽  
Reece Cossar ◽  
Shelley Walker ◽  
Anna Lee Wilkinson ◽  
Brendan Quinn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Injecting Drug Use ◽  
Health Study ◽  
Attrition Bias ◽  
History Of ◽  
Baseline Characteristics

Abstract Background There are significant challenges associated with studies of people released from custodial settings, including loss to follow-up in the community. Interpretation of findings with consideration of differences between those followed up and those not followed up is critical in the development of evidence-informed policies and practices. We describe attrition bias in the Prison and Transition Health (PATH) prospective cohort study, and strategies employed to minimise attrition.Methods PATH involves 400 men with a history of injecting drug use recruited from three prisons in Victoria, Australia. Four interviews were conducted: one pre-release (‘baseline’) and three interviews at approximately 3, 12, and 24 months post-release (‘follow-up’). We assessed differences in baseline characteristics between those retained and not retained in the study, using two-sample tests of proportions and t-tests.Results Most participants (85%) completed at least one follow-up interview and 162 (42%) completed all three follow-up interviews. Retained participants were younger than those lost to follow-up (mean diff − 3.1 years, 95% CI -5.3, -0.9). There were no other statistically significant differences observed in baseline characteristics.Conclusion The high proportion of participants retained in the PATH cohort study via comprehensive follow-up procedures, coupled with extensive record linkage to a range of administrative datasets, is a considerable strength of the study. Our findings highlight how strategic and comprehensive follow-up procedures, frequent contact with participants and secondary contacts, and established working relationships with the relevant government departments can improve study retention and potentially minimise attrition bias.

scholarly journals Menstrual cycle regularity and length across the reproductive lifespan and risk of premature mortality: prospective cohort study

BMJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. m3464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-Xin Wang ◽  
Mariel Arvizu ◽  
Janet W Rich-Edwards ◽  
Jennifer J Stuart ◽  
JoAnn E Manson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Cycle Length ◽  
Premature Mortality ◽  
Health Study ◽  
Menstrual Cycles ◽  
Hazard Ratios

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate whether irregular or long menstrual cycles throughout the life course are associated with all cause and cause specific premature mortality (age <70 years).DesignProspective cohort study.SettingNurses’ Health Study II (1993-2017).Participants79 505 premenopausal women without a history of cardiovascular disease, cancer, or diabetes and who reported the usual length and regularity of their menstrual cycles at ages 14-17 years, 18-22 years, and 29-46 years.Main outcome measuresHazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals for all cause and cause specific premature mortality (death before age 70 years) were estimated from multivariable Cox proportional hazards models.ResultsDuring 24 years of follow-up, 1975 premature deaths were documented, including 894 from cancer and 172 from cardiovascular disease. Women who reported always having irregular menstrual cycles experienced higher mortality rates during follow-up than women who reported very regular cycles in the same age ranges. The crude mortality rate per 1000 person years of follow-up for women reporting very regular cycles and women reporting always irregular cycles were 1.05 and 1.23 for cycle characteristics at ages 14-17 years, 1.00 and 1.37 for cycle characteristics at ages 18-22 years, and 1.00 and 1.68 for cycle characteristics at ages 29-46 years. The corresponding multivariable adjusted hazard ratios for premature death during follow-up were 1.18 (95% confidence interval 1.02 to 1.37), 1.37 (1.09 to 1.73), and 1.39 (1.14 to 1.70), respectively. Similarly, women who reported that their usual cycle length was 40 days or more at ages 18-22 years and 29-46 years were more likely to die prematurely than women who reported a usual cycle length of 26-31 days in the same age ranges (1.34, 1.06 to 1.69; and 1.40, 1.17 to 1.68, respectively). These relations were strongest for deaths related to cardiovascular disease. The higher mortality associated with long and irregular menstrual cycles was slightly stronger among current smokers.ConclusionsIrregular and long menstrual cycles in adolescence and adulthood are associated with a greater risk of premature mortality (age <70 years). This relation is slightly stronger among women who smoke.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of adenotonsillectomy in resolution of enuresis in children with sleep-disordered breathing: a hospital based prospective cohort study in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 155
Author(s):  
Zephania S. Abraham ◽  
Aveline A. Kahinga ◽  
Kassim B. Mapondella ◽  
Enica R. Massawe ◽  
Emmanuel Ole Lengine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Nocturnal Enuresis ◽  
Sleep Disordered Breathing ◽  
Dar Es Salaam ◽  
Adenotonsillar Hypertrophy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Disordered Breathing

<p class="abstract"><strong>Background:</strong> Adenotonsillar hypertrophy remains to be the commonest causes of sleep disordered breathing in paediatric patients and has been implicated as a cause of primary and secondary enuresis. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of adenotonsillectomy in resolution of enuresis in children with sleep-disordered breathing.</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Methods:</strong> A hospital based prospective cohort study was conducted at Ekenywa Specialised Hospital in Dar es Salaam, from May 2018 to February 2019. Two hundred children aged 3 to 15 years with obstructive adenotonsillar hypertrophy who were admitted ready to undergo adenotonsillectomy were evaluated. Upon such evaluation, the primary outcome was the number of bedwetting incidents (nocturnal enuresis) post-operatively compared with pre-operative incidents. Patients were kept under follow-up for 3 months. Data were collected using structured questionnaires regarding number of bedwetting incidents, type of enuresis (primary or secondary) and family history of enuresis. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 21 and p-values &lt;0.05 were considered to be statistically significant.  </p><p class="abstract"><strong>Results:</strong> Of 200 children admitted for adenotonsillectomy, 80 (40%) had a positive history of preoperative enuresis, including 35 (43.8%) girls and 45 (56.2%) boys.  All parents for the children consented to participate in the study. Three months after adenotonsillectomy, enuresis had resolved completely in 50 (62.5%) children and had shown relative improvement in 25 (31.3%) children. Enuresis had not improved in the remaining 5 (6.3%) children (p&lt;0.05).</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Conclusions:</strong> Findings from this study indicates that adenotonsillectomy can improve nocturnal enuresis and day-time incontinence in the majority of children with adenotonsillar hypertrophy.</p><p> </p>

scholarly journals Injecting drug use is an independent risk factor for reincarceration after release from prison: A prospective cohort study

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 254-263
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Winter ◽  
Mark Stoové ◽  
Paul A. Agius ◽  
Margaret E. Hellard ◽  
Stuart A. Kinner
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factor ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Independent Risk Factor ◽  
Injecting Drug Use ◽  
Release From Prison

scholarly journals Validity of self-reported diagnoses of gynaecological and breast cancers in a prospective cohort study: the Japan Nurses’ Health Study

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. e045491
Author(s):  
Kiyoshi Takamatsu ◽  
Yuki Ideno ◽  
Mami Kikuchi ◽  
Toshiyuki Yasui ◽  
Naho Maruoka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Predictive Value ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Health Study ◽  
Breast Cancers ◽  
Expert Review ◽  
The Mean

ObjectivesTo validate the self-reported diagnoses of gynaecological and breast cancers in a nationwide prospective cohort study of nursing professionals: the Japan Nurses’ Health Study (JNHS).Design and settingRetrospective analysis of the JNHS.Participants and measuresData were reviewed for 15 717 subjects. The mean age at baseline was 41.6±8.3 years (median: 41), and the mean follow-up period was 10.5±3.8 years (median: 12). Participants are regularly mailed a follow-up questionnaire once every 2 years. Respondents who self-reported a positive cancer diagnosis were sent an additional confirmation questionnaire and contacted the diagnosing facility to confirm the diagnosis based on medical records. A review panel of experts verified the disease status. Regular follow-up, confirmation questionnaires and expert review were validated for their positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV).ResultsNew incidences were verified in 37, 47, 26 and 300 cervical, endometrial, ovarian and breast cancer cases, respectively. The estimated incidence rates were 22.0, 25.4, 13.8 and 160.4 per 100 000 person-years. These were comparable with those of national data from regional cancer registries in Japan. For regular follow-up, the corresponding PPVs for cervical, endometrial, ovarian and breast cancer were 16.9%, 54.2%, 45.1% and 81.4%, and the NPVs were 100%, 99.9%, 99.9% and 99.9%, respectively. Adding the confirmation questionnaire improved the PPVs to 31.5%, 88.9%, 76.7% and 99.9%; the NPVs were uniformly 99.9%. Expert review yielded PPVs and NPVs that were all ~100%.ConclusionsGynaecological cancer cannot be accurately assessed by self-reporting alone. Additionally, the external validity of cancer incidence in this cohort was confirmed.

scholarly journals Prospective cohort study showing persistent HSV-2 shedding in women with genital herpes 2 years after acquisition

2017 ◽  
Vol 94 (8) ◽  
pp. 568-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meena Ramchandani ◽  
Stacy Selke ◽  
Amalia Magaret ◽  
Gail Barnum ◽  
Meei-Li Wu Huang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Initial Study ◽  
Viral Shedding ◽  
History Of ◽  
Simplex Virus ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Over Time

ObjectivesHerpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is a prevalent infection with great variability in clinical and virological manifestations among individuals. This prospective cohort study aims to evaluate the natural history of HSV-2 reactivation in the genital area in the same group of women over time.MethodsEighteen immunocompetent HSV-2 seropositive women were evaluated for viral shedding for 70 consecutive days within a median of 8 months (range 1–24 months) of HSV-2 acquisition and again approximately 2.5 years later from the original study. Participants obtained daily swabs of genital secretions for HSV PCR and recorded genital symptoms.ResultsThe viral shedding rate was 29% during the initial study and 19% in the follow-up study (32% reduction, P=0.019). Subclinical shedding rate also decreased from 24% to 13% (37% reduction, P=0.032), as did the rate of days with genital lesions from 22% to 15% (33% reduction, P=0.24). The mean copy number during viral shedding remained unchanged over time at 4.8 log10 c/mL (SD=2.0 and 1.6 during each study, respectively, P=0.33). Women with high viral shedding rates in the past were likely to continue to have high shedding rates (r=0.63, P=0.005).ConclusionsDespite some reduction, high viral shedding rates persist in women with genital HSV-2 greater than 2 years after acquisition.

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