scholarly journals The Quality of Statistical Reporting and Data Presentation in Predatory Dental Journals Was Lower Than in Non-Predatory Journals

Entropy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 468
Author(s):  
Pentti Nieminen ◽  
Sergio E. Uribe
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Peer Review ◽  
Scientific Journals ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Data Presentation ◽  
Predatory Journals ◽  
Study Results ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Highly Cited

Proper peer review and quality of published articles are often regarded as signs of reliable scientific journals. The aim of this study was to compare whether the quality of statistical reporting and data presentation differs among articles published in ‘predatory dental journals’ and in other dental journals. We evaluated 50 articles published in ‘predatory open access (OA) journals’ and 100 clinical trials published in legitimate dental journals between 2019 and 2020. The quality of statistical reporting and data presentation of each paper was assessed on a scale from 0 (poor) to 10 (high). The mean (SD) quality score of the statistical reporting and data presentation was 2.5 (1.4) for the predatory OA journals, 4.8 (1.8) for the legitimate OA journals, and 5.6 (1.8) for the more visible dental journals. The mean values differed significantly (p < 0.001). The quality of statistical reporting of clinical studies published in predatory journals was found to be lower than in open access and highly cited journals. This difference in quality is a wake-up call to consume study results critically. Poor statistical reporting indicates wider general lower quality in publications where the authors and journals are less likely to be critiqued by peer review.

scholarly journals Editorial Note: Fast Peer Review: A Practice of Predatory Journals or Fair Treatment for Authors?

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (27) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Jovan Shopovski ◽  
Robert W. McGee ◽  
Daniel B. Hier
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Peer Review ◽  
Review Process ◽  
Peer Review Process ◽  
Academic Discipline ◽  
Open Access Publishing ◽  
Editorial Note ◽  
Predatory Journals ◽  
On Line

Despite its weaknesses, peer review is our best gatekeeper of rigorous science. With the advent of on-line and open-access publishing, a vigorous debate has ensued over the timeliness of peer review. Many of us remember, and some still face, long peer review and publishing timeframes. Ware and Mabe (2015) estimated that a reviewer needs from several hours to a day to carefully prepare a peer review. Even so, the time from submission to first decision varies from 8 weeks to 18 weeks and varies by academic discipline and journal. Although the slowness of the peer review process has been critiqued (Lotriet, 2012), long ingrained processes have been slow to change. The development of the open access publishing has brought to the forefront the need to speed the peer review process and reduce the time to publication. However, short peer review times have been cited as one of the hallmarks of predatory journals (Cobey at al. 2018). Some have suggested that a faster and more agile peer review process may undermine the quality of published research (Bagdasarian et al. 2020).

scholarly journals AB0101 THE IMPACT OF TIME SPAN TO ACHIEVE BOOLEAN REMISSION FOR MAINTAINING DISEASE ACTIVITY AFTER ACQUISITION IN RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENT

2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 1079.1-1079
Author(s):  
I. Yoshii
Keyword(s):  
Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽  
Disease Activity ◽  
Disease Duration ◽  
Remission Rate ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Time Span ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Relationship

Background:Boolean remission criteria is one most popular and stringent criteria in treating patient with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), because it may guarantees a stable clinical course after attaining remission.Objectives:Impact of time span from initiation to achieving Boolean remission on maintaining disease activity, daily activities, and quality of life after attaining Boolean remission was investigated from daily clinical practice data.Methods:685 patients with RA since August 2010 under the T2T strategy were treated. They were monitored for their TJC, SJC, PGA, EGA, CRP, and disease activity indices such as CDAI, SDAI, DAS28, and Boolean criteria at every visit. HAQ-DI score, pain score using visual analog scale (PS-VAS), and EQ-5D were also monitored, and the quality of life score (QOLS) calculated from EQ-5D was determined at every visit from the time of diagnosis (baseline).Of 685 patients, 465 patients had achieved Boolean remission >1 times, and were consecutively followed up for >3 years. These patients were enrolled in the study. Time span from the first visit to first Boolean remission was calculated. The relationship between the time span and each of background parameters, and the relationship between the time span and each of the mean values of the SDAI score, HAQ score, PS-VAS, SHS, and QOLS at the first Boolean remission and thereafter was evaluated statistically.Patients were subsequently divided into the G ≤ 6 and G > 6 groups based on the achievement of first Boolean remission within two groups: time span G ≤ 6 months and G > 6 months. The two groups were compared with regard to the SDAI score, HAQ score, PS-VAS, SHS, and QOLS at first visit and at the time of first Boolean remission, and the mean values of these parameters after remission were evaluated statistically. Moreover, changes of these parameters and the mean Boolean remission rate after the first remission, and SDAI remission rate at the first Boolean remission to thereafter were compared between the two groups statistically.Results:Out of 465 patients, females comprised 343 (73.7%), and the mean age was 67.8 years (range, from 21–95 years). The mean disease duration at first visit was 6.1 years (range, from 1 months–45 years). The mean follow up length was 88.1 months (range: 36–122 months; median: 85 months) and mean time span from the first visit to the first Boolean remission was 8.1 months. The mean SDAI score, HAQ score, PS-VAS, and the QOLS at first visit were 13.3, 0.467, 33.2, and 0.834, respectively. Among the study parameters, PS-VAS and QOLS were significantly correlated with the time span. For parameters at the first Boolean remission, HAQ-DI score, PS-VAS, and QOLS demonstrated significant correlation with the time span, whereas SDAI, HAQ-DI score, PS-VAS, SHS, and QOLS after the Boolean remission demonstrated significant correlation with the time span.The comparison between the G ≤ 6 and the G > 6 groups revealed that the disease duration, HAQ score, and PS-VAS at baseline in the G > 6 were significantly higher than that in the G ≤ 6 group, and QOLS in the G ≤ 6 group was significantly higher than that in the G > 6 group at baseline. Similarly, the HAQ score and PS-VAS at the first Boolean remission in the G > 6 group were significantly higher than that in the G ≤ 6 group, whereas QOLS in the G ≤ 6 group demonstrated no significant difference compared with that in the G > 6 group.The mean value of the SDAI score after the first Boolean remission in the G > 6 group was significantly higher than that in the G ≤ 6 group. Similarly, the SDAI score, HAQ score, and PS-VAS after the first Boolean remission in the G > 6 group were also significantly higher than those in the G ≤ 6 group, and the mean value of the QOLS in the G ≤ 6 group were significantly higher than that in the G > 6 group. The Boolean remission rate and SDAI remission rate after the first Boolean remission were significantly higher in the G ≤ 6 group than those in the G > 6 group.Conclusion:Attaining Boolean remission ≤ 6 months for RA has significant benefit for more stable disease control, that leads good maintenance of ADL.Disclosure of Interests:None declared

Burden of Care and Its Relationship with Sleep Quality of Cancer Patients’ Caregivers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammadreza Boostaneh ◽  
Mohammad Zirak ◽  
Ramezan Fallah
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Quality ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Poor Sleep ◽  
Burden Of Care ◽  
Quality Of Sleep ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Northwest Of Iran ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Convenience Sampling

Abstract Purpose: This study aimed to assess the burden of care and its relationship with sleep quality of cancer patients’ caregivers.Methods: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted in a referral center of cancer in Zanjan, northwest of Iran. 135 caregivers of cancer patients were recruited through convenience sampling method. The data were collected using a demographic characteristics questionnaire, Novak and Guest’s caregiver burden inventory and Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI). The collected data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.Results: The mean (± SD) age of the participants was 39.71 (± 10.74) years. The mean (± SD) burden of care and sleep quality of the participants was 45.22 (± 17.75) and 8.88 (± 4.21), respectively. It was found that there is a significant positive relationship between burden of care and quality of sleep scores (r = 0.65, P < 0.001).Conclusion: cancer patients’ caregivers endure a remarkable burden of care and their sleep quality is undesirable. Results indicated that an increase in the burden of care reduces the caregiver’s quality of sleep. High burden of care and poor sleep quality may reduce the quality of the provided care that increase the costs and weakens the disease prognosis. According to the study results, reducing burden of care is an effective strategy regarding improving the caregivers’ quality of sleep that can improve the quality of provided cares by caregivers.

scholarly journals pH of exudate test in the physiological quality of crambe seeds

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 1014-1018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charline Zaratin Alves ◽  
Lennis Afraire Rodrigues ◽  
Carlos Henrique Queiroz Rego ◽  
Josué Bispo da Silva
Keyword(s):  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Tukey Test ◽  
Physiological Quality ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Mean ◽  
C 30

ABSTRACT: Crambe is a rapeseed with high oil content and can be used as a winter cover or as a source of raw material for the production of biodiesel, however espite the growing interest in the culture, research on the subject is still incipient, especially concerning the seed production and analysis technology. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the physiological quality of crambe seeds, 'FMS Brilhante' cultivar, by testing the pH of exudate. Five seed lots were submitted to the determination of water content and the tests of germination and vigor (first count, emergence and tetrazolium). In the conduction of pH exudate test, temperatures (25 and 30oC), and periods of seed imbibition in water (15, 30 and 45 minutes) were tested. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized manner, with four replicates, and the mean values were compared by the Tukey test at 5% probability; Pearson correlation between the pH of the exudate and initial tests was also made. Testing the pH of exudate is promising for separating lots of crambe seeds and the following combinations of 25°C/30 minutes or 30°C/45 minutes can be used.

scholarly journals Development of ARCADIA: a tool for assessing the quality of peer-review reports in biomedical research

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. e035604
Author(s):  
Cecilia Superchi ◽  
Darko Hren ◽  
David Blanco ◽  
Roser Rius ◽  
Alessandro Recchioni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Peer Review ◽  
Biomedical Research ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Peer Review Process ◽  
Final Version ◽  
Report Quality ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Review Reports ◽  
Definition Of

ObjectiveTo develop a tool to assess the quality of peer-review reports in biomedical research.MethodsWe conducted an online survey intended for biomedical editors and authors. The survey aimed to (1) determine if participants endorse the proposed definition of peer-review report quality; (2) identify the most important items to include in the final version of the tool and (3) identify any missing items. Participants rated on a 5-point scale whether an item should be included in the tool and they were also invited to comment on the importance and wording of each item. Principal component analysis was performed to examine items redundancy and a general inductive approach was used for qualitative data analysis.ResultsA total of 446 biomedical editors and authors participated in the survey. Participants were mainly male (65.9%), middle-aged (mean=50.3, SD=13) and with PhD degrees (56.4%). The majority of participants (84%) agreed on the definition of peer-review report quality we proposed. The 20 initial items included in the survey questionnaire were generally highly rated with a mean score ranging from 3.38 (SD=1.13) to 4.60 (SD=0.69) (scale 1–5). Participants suggested 13 items that were not included in the initial list of items. A steering committee composed of five members with different expertise discussed the selection of items to include in the final version of the tool. The final checklist includes 14 items encompassed in five domains (Importance of the study, Robustness of the study methods, Interpretation and discussion of the study results, Reporting and transparency of the manuscript, Characteristics of peer reviewer’s comments).ConclusionAssessment of Review reports with a Checklist Available to eDItors and Authors tool could be used regularly by editors to evaluate the reviewers’ work, and also as an outcome when evaluating interventions to improve the peer-review process.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE STUDY OF VARIETAL DIFFERENCES IN THE MALTING QUALITY OF BARLEY. PART IV

1939 ◽  
Vol 17c (3) ◽  
pp. 57-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry R. Sallans ◽  
J. Ansel Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Differential Effect ◽  
Malting Quality ◽  
Limiting Factor ◽  
Standard Variety ◽  
Real Difference ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Reasonable Range ◽  
Diastatic Activity ◽  
The Mean

An investigation was undertaken to compare the relative magnitudes of the differential effects of environment (i.e., stations) and of malting methods on the malting quality of barley varieties. Samples of Olli, O.A.C. 21, Hannchen, and Regal from four stations were malted by eight methods representing the combinations of germinating at 50° and 56° F., at 42 and 46% moisture, and for six and nine days.Statistical analyses showed that, with respect to diastatic activity, wort nitrogen, and extract yield, the variations due to the differential effect of environment on varieties were greater than the variations due to the differential effect of malting methods on varieties. As a result of this study and earlier ones, it appears that the former effect is the limiting factor in studies of the comparative malting qualities of varieties. The latter effect is of less importance but must be kept in mind if errors in the interpretation of the results of routine tests are to be avoided. In general, it appears that if routine tests show that the mean values for any variety, when grown at 12 stations representing a reasonable range of environment, differ from the values for the standard variety by more than 1% in extract, or 10% in diastatic activity or wort nitrogen, a real difference exists between the varieties, which cannot be overcome by any reasonable change in malting conditions.

scholarly journals How Frequently Are Articles in Predatory Open Access Journals Cited

Publications ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo-Christer Björk ◽  
Sari Kanto-Karvonen ◽  
J. Tuomas Harviainen
Keyword(s):  
Quality Assurance ◽  
Open Access ◽  
Peer Review ◽  
Random Sample ◽  
Academic Publishing ◽  
Scientific Quality ◽  
Scientific Impact ◽  
Predatory Journals ◽  
Open Access Journals ◽  
Citation Statistics

Predatory journals are Open Access journals of highly questionable scientific quality. Such journals pretend to use peer review for quality assurance, and spam academics with requests for submissions, in order to collect author payments. In recent years predatory journals have received a lot of negative media. While much has been said about the harm that such journals cause to academic publishing in general, an overlooked aspect is how much articles in such journals are actually read and in particular cited, that is if they have any significant impact on the research in their fields. Other studies have already demonstrated that only some of the articles in predatory journals contain faulty and directly harmful results, while a lot of the articles present mediocre and poorly reported studies. We studied citation statistics over a five-year period in Google Scholar for 250 random articles published in such journals in 2014 and found an average of 2.6 citations per article, and that 56% of the articles had no citations at all. For comparison, a random sample of articles published in the approximately 25,000 peer reviewed journals included in the Scopus index had an average of 18, 1 citations in the same period with only 9% receiving no citations. We conclude that articles published in predatory journals have little scientific impact.

scholarly journals The Quality Assessment of Stored Red Blood Cells Probed Using Atomic-Force Microscopy

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. M. Lamzin ◽  
R. M. Khayrullin
Keyword(s):  
Red Blood Cells ◽  
Blood Cells ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
High Increase ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
The Mean ◽  
The Moment

At the moment the suitability of stored red blood cells (sRBC) for transfusion is checked by routine methods such as haemoglobin estimation and the level of haemolysis. These methods cannot characterize directly the quality of the membranes of sRBC. The aim of this work is to assess the quality of sRBC based on such criteria as the membrane’s stiffness and the size and the form of sRBC. Materials and Methods. We have investigated 5 series of dry cytosmears of the sRBC which had been kept in blood bank in a period from 1 to 35 days. After AFM imaging, in every specimen, 5 RBC were chosen at random; the diameter, the height, and the stiffness were measured on each of them. Results. The present study shows high increase of the mean values of YM and height of RBC after 35 days of storage and decrease of the mean values of their diameter. Conclusion. Statistically significant high increase of the mean values of YM indicates the decrease of the elasticity of the cells in the course of storing of the RBC. This parameter along with the morphological characteristics can be used as criterion for assessment of applicability of the sRBC for blood transfusion.

scholarly journals Awareness of predatory journals and open access among medical oncologists: results of an online survey

ESMO Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (6) ◽  
pp. e000580 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georg Richtig ◽  
Erika Richtig ◽  
Alexandra Böhm ◽  
Christoph Oing ◽  
Farastuk Bozorgmehr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Access ◽  
Peer Review ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Scientific Practice ◽  
Peer Review Process ◽  
Clinical Decision ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Predatory Journals ◽  
Number Of Publications

IntroductionPredatory journals harm the integrity of science as principles of ‘good scientific practice’ are bypassed by omitting a proper peer-review process. Therefore, we aimed to explore the awareness of predatory journals among oncologists.MethodsAn online survey among oncologists working in Germany or Austria of various professional surroundings was conducted between October 2018 and April 2019.ResultsOne hundred and eighty-eight participants (55 women (29.2%), 128 men (68.1%)) completed the questionnaire. 41 (21.8%) participants indicated to work in a hospital, 24 (12.8%) in private practice and 112 (59.6%) in a university hospital. 98.9% of participants indicated to actively read scientific articles and consider them in clinical decision-making (96.3%). 90.4% of participants indicated to have scientific experience by publishing papers in journals with peer-review system. The open-access system was known by 170 (90.4%), predatory journals by 131 (69.7%) and Beall’s list by 52 participants (27.7%). Predatory journals were more likely to be known by participants with a higher number of publications (p<0.001), with more high-impact publications (p=0.005) and with recent publications (p<0.001). Awareness of predatory journals did not correlate with gender (p=0.515) or translation of scientific literature into clinical practice (p=0.543).ConclusionsThe problematic topic of ‘predatory journals’ is still unknown by a considerable amount of oncologist, although the survey was taken in a cohort of oncologists with scientific experience. Dedicated educational initiatives are needed to raise awareness of this problem and to aid in the identification of predatory journals for the scientific oncology community.

scholarly journals Satisfação com os Cuidados Anestésicos num Hospital Central

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Catarina Moura ◽  
Maria Amélia Ferreira ◽  
Joselina Barbosa ◽  
Joana Mourão
Keyword(s):  
Elective Surgery ◽  
Quality Criteria ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Global Satisfaction ◽  
Assess Patient Satisfaction ◽  
High Satisfaction ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Psychometric Quality

<strong>Introduction:</strong> The satisfaction level with health care reflects the quality of care from the patient’s perspective. The aim of this study is to assess patient satisfaction with anesthesia care in a Portuguese general hospital by using the “The Heidelberg Peri-anaesthetic Questionnaire”.<br /><strong>Material and Methods:</strong> The questionnaire was translated and tested based on psychometric quality criteria in a sample of 107 patients who underwent elective surgery as inpatients at Hospital de São João. The global satisfaction and for each dimension of care were calculated. We analyzed the differences between patients with different levels of satisfaction, identifying potential confounding factors.<br /><strong>Results:</strong> The Portuguese version of the questionnaire has 32 items distributed in three dimensions: ‘staff’, ‘discomfort’ and ‘fear’. The mean values of satisfaction for each dimension were 83.4%, 66.8% and 65.9%, respectively. The internal consistence was demonstrated by a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient ranging from 0.776 to 0.875 in the three dimensions. Satisfied and dissatisfied patients differed in the three dimensions, but to a lesser degree in ‘staff’. In the multivariate analysis we found significant influence of gender in the ‘discomfort’ dimension.<br /><strong>Discussion: </strong>The questionnaire has good psychometric characteristics. The domain ‘staff’ includes three domains of the source questionnaire.<br /><strong>Conclusions:</strong> Its application revealed high satisfaction levels regarding the staff. Dissatisfaction was mainly seen in the “fear” and “discomfort” dimensions, the latter being significantly lower in males.

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