Case-control Method Research Articles

Prognostic value and outcome for acute lymphocytic leukemia in children with MLL rearrangement: a case-control study

PurposeTo evaluate the prognostic factors and outcome for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in children with MLL rearrangement (MLL-r).MethodsA total of 124 pediatric patients who were diagnosed with ALL were classified into two groups based on the MLL-r status by using a retrospective case-control study method from June 2008 to June 2020.ResultsThe prevalence of MLL-r positive in the whole cohort was 4.9%. The complete remission (CR) rate on Day 33 in the MLL-r positive group was not statistically different from the negative group (96.8% vs 97.8%, P = 0.736). Multivariate analysis showed that T-cell, white blood cell counts (WBC) ≥ 50 × 109/L, MLL-AF4, and D15 minimal residual disease (MRD) positive were independent risk factors affecting the prognosis of MLL-r positive children. Stem cell transplantation (SCT) was a favorable independent prognostic factor affecting event-free survival (EFS) in MLL-r positive patients (P = 0.027), and there was a trend toward an independent prognostic effect on overall survival (OS) (P = 0.065). The 10-year predicted EFS for patients with MLL-AF4, MLL-PTD, MLL-ENL, other MLL partner genes, and MLL-r negative cases were 46.67 ± 28.61%, 85.71 ± 22.37%, 75 ± 32.41%, 75 ± 32.41%, and 77.33 ± 10.81%, respectively (P = 0.048). The 10-year predicted OS were 46.67 ± 28.61%, 85.71 ± 22.37%, 75 ± 32.41%, 75 ± 32.41%, and 85.2 ± 9.77%, respectively (P = 0.049). The 124 patients with ALL were followed up and eventually 5 (4%) cases relapsed, with a median relapse time of 3.9 years.ConclusionPatients with MLL-r positive ALL have moderate remission rates, but are prone to relapse with low overall survival. The outcome of MLL-r positive ALL was closely related to the partner genes, and clinical attention should be paid to screening for MLL partner genes and combining them with other prognostic factors for accurate risk stratification.

Structural drivers and barriers to the strategic integration of sustainability in US B-schools

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore structural drivers and barriers that distinguish US business school Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME) signatories from nonsignatory peer institutions, and identify structural drivers of PRME institution strategic integration of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into their ongoing responsible management education reports.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a case–control method to compare the US PRME signatory sample to a size-matched random sample of US business management programs/schools. This study uses conditional inference tree and correlation analyses to highlight distinctive structural characteristics associated with US PRME signatories and with their strategies to highlight sustainability through the SDGs.FindingsThere are significant and practically meaningful structural differences between US-based PRME signatories and US programs/schools that have not adopted the PRME principles. Further, PRME schools differentially integrate SDGs in their information sharing based on structural characteristics.Practical implicationsUnderstanding school/program characteristics that align with PRME and different sustainability strategies affords a better comprehension of where targeted resources might be most effective in broadening the appeal and adoption of PRME and subsequent sustainability strategy integration.Originality/valueWhile previous work on PRME signatories has depended heavily on case studies of successful implementation and has examined the content of PRME activity by school, the present work compares the population of actual US signatories with a random sample of nonsignatories to determine leverage points for enacting broader PRME adoption. The study also examines the strategies that PRME schools use to integrate the UN SDGs and the structures that support such.

Speech Disorder in Anterior Open Bite (AOB): Systematic Review

There have been numerous researches showing that articulation disorders and malocclusion are linked. The most prevalent malocclusion in speech or articulation disorders is anterior open bite (AOB). Excessive propulsion of the tongue forward when articulating phonemes causes altered articulation in patients with open bites, as the tongue is in a more forward posture. The presence of this speech disorder can have a negative impact on a person's quality of life, although there hasn't been much research done on the impacts of AOB in cases of speech disorders in children. This study was to look at the link between speech disorders and the occurrence of anterior open bites (AOB) in a comprehensive way. Search results of research on four databases, namely ScienDirect, PubMed, Spingerlink, and Google Scholar, are displayed. The keywords used include speech disorder, articulation disorder, open bite, anterior open bite. Five articles were selected using case control and cross-sectional methods in their research. The sample with AOB in this study was analyzed to determine the presence of speech disorders. The five articles gave similar results, showing that patients with malocclusion, especially AOB, had a tendency to have speech disorders. Articulation disorders in the phoneme /s/z/d/l/t/ become the dominant problem experienced by patients with AOB. Anterior open bite (AOB) is a form of malocclusion that causes more articulation disorders than other malocclusions. The presence and position of the tongue are thought to have a substantial influence on articulation disorders.

The effect of serum magnesium, calcium, and potassium levels on the event of calf muscle cramps, according to the perspective of pregnant women in the third-trimester of pregnancy

Objective: To determine the effect of magnesium, calcium, and potassium levels on calf muscle cramps in third-trimester pregnant women at Dr. Zainoel Abidin Banda Aceh.
 Methods: This research is an observational analytic study with a case-control method by taking samples using a total sampling technique. The research sample was third-trimester pregnant women (28-40 weeks of gestation) who were treated in the maternity ward for the period September to December 2020.
 Results: A total of 263 samples were involved in this study where 105 patients (40%) were obese, 229 patients (87%) were housewives, 161 patients (61%) did not experience muscle cramps and samples had magnesium levels below normal as much as 82 people, calcium levels below normal as many as 127 people and potassium levels below normal as many as 2 people. The mean levels of magnesium, calcium, and potassium were 1.8 mg/dL, 8.69 mg/dL, and 4.25 mmol/L, respectively. The results of this study are magnesium levels affect muscle cramps in pregnant women (p-value=0.000), while calcium levels (p-value=0.373) and potassium (p-value=0.062) do not affect muscle cramps in pregnant women.
 Conclusion: There is a significant effect between magnesium levels on the incidence of calf muscle cramps in third-trimester pregnant women, while calcium and potassium levels do not affect them.
 Keywords: Muscle Cramps, Magnesium, Calcium, Potassium.

Correlation of Weaning Food with the Event of Stunting to Toddlers in Kali Rungkut Village Surabaya

Stunting is a chronic nutritional problem due to several factors and is intergenerational. For the number of children with stunting conditions, Indonesia is ranked fifth globally. This is due to one of the reasons for the provision of less nutritious food during the growth period obtained from weaning food. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there was a relationship between the provision of weaning food and the incidence of stunting in children in Kali Rungkut Village, Surabaya.This study is a case control method of chi square analysis and kappa correlation using primary data, namely questionnaires. The number of samples that meet the criteria are 53 people, then the data is processed with SPSS.Based on the results of the study, the relationship between complementary feeding and the incidence of stunting in Toddlers in Kali Rungkut Village, Surabaya, with a p-value of 0.002 less than (0.05) and an OR of 6.429. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that there is a significant relationship between the provision of complementary foods and the incidence of stunting in children under five in Kalirungkut sub-district, Surabaya and the relationship between the provision of complementary foods and the incidence of stunting is a large category, which has a risk of 6,429 times greater in the provision of complementary foods, less good in the incidence of stunting than the provision of complementary foods. the good one.

An association study of IL2RA polymorphisms with cerebral palsy in a Chinese population

BackgroundCerebral palsy (CP), the most common physical disability of childhood, is a nonprogressive movement disorder syndrome. Eighty percent of cases are considered idiopathic without a clear cause. Evidence has shown that cytokine abnormalities are widely thought to contribute to CP.MethodsAn association between 6 SNPs (rs12244380, rs2025345, rs12722561, rs4749926, rs2104286 and rs706778) in IL2RA (interleukin 2 receptor subunit alpha) and CP was investigated using a case–control method based on 782 CP cases and 778 controls. The allele, genotype and haplotype frequencies of SNPs were assessed using the SHEsis program. Subgroup analyses based on complications and clinical subtypes were also conducted.ResultsGlobally, no differences in genotype or allele frequencies for any SNPs remained significant after Bonferroni correction between patients and controls, except rs706778, which deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium and was excluded from further analyses. However, subgroup analysis revealed a significant association of rs2025345 with spastic tetraplegia (P genotype = 0.048 after correction) and rs12722561 with CP accompanied by global developmental delay (P allele = 0.045 after correction), even after Bonferroni correction.ConclusionsThese findings indicated that genetic variations in IL2RA are significantly associated with CP susceptibility in the Chinese Han population, suggesting that IL2RA is likely involved in the pathogenesis of CP. Further investigation with a larger sample size in a multiethnic population is needed to confirm the association.

Health literacy and self-management in people with coronary heart disease: a systematic review protocol.

The objective of the review is to assess the association between health literacy levels and self-management behaviors in people with coronary heart disease. Initiating and maintaining self-management behaviors following a coronary event can be challenging. The capacity to initiate behavioral changes requires adequate health literacy, which is the ability to understand and use health care information to make appropriate health decisions. This review will consider studies including individuals at any age who have been diagnosed with coronary heart disease. Studies that used a standardized measure of health literacy with the primary outcome of self-management behaviors or an element of self-management (eg, medication adherence) will be considered for inclusion. The review will be conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Databases to be searched include CINAHL, Embase, PubMed, APA PsycINFO, Cochrane, Scopus, ScienceDirect, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, Google Scholar, and OpenGrey. This will be followed by a forward and backward search of relevant articles. Cross-sectional, case-control, cohort, and mixed methods studies (quantitative component only) will be included. Studies will be screened by 2 independent reviewers and undergo a critical appraisal process. Included studies will be assessed for methodological quality, and data will be extracted using a JBI data extraction tool in the JBI System for the Unified Management, Assessment and Review of Information. The results will be presented as a narrative synthesis and, where possible, a meta-analysis will be conducted. The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach will be used to assess the certainty of evidence. PROSPERO CRD42021257407.

Medicine-Induced Acute Kidney Injury Findings from Spontaneous Reporting Systems, Sequence Symmetry Analysis and a Case-Control Study with a Focus on Medicines Used in Primary Care.

IntroductionPrimary care provides an opportunity to prevent community acquired, medicine or drug-induced acute kidney injury. One of the barriers to proactive prevention of medicine-induced kidney injury in primary care is the lack of a list of nephrotoxic medicines that are most problematic in primary care, particularly one that provides a comparison of risks across medicines.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to consolidate evidence on the risks associated with medicines and acute kidney injury, with a focus on medicines used in primary care.MethodWe searched the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases to identify published studies of all medicines associated with acute kidney injury identified from spontaneous report data. For each medicine positively associated with acute kidney injury, as identified from spontaneous reports, we implemented a sequence symmetry analysis (SSA) and a case–control design to determine the association between the medicine and hospital admission with a primary diagnosis of acute kidney injury (representing community-acquired acute kidney injury). Administrative claims data held by the Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs for the study period 2005–2019 were used.ResultsWe identified 89 medicines suspected of causing acute kidney injury based on spontaneous report data and a reporting odds ratio above 2, from Japan, France and the US. Spironolactone had risk estimates of 3 or more based on spontaneous reports, SSA and case–control methods, while furosemide and trimethoprim with sulfamethoxazole had risk estimates of 1.5 or more. Positive association with SSA and spontaneous reports, but not case control, showed zoledronic acid had risk estimates above 2, while candesartan telmisartan, simvastatin, naproxen and ibuprofen all had risk estimates in SSA between 1.5 and 2. Positive associations with case–control and spontaneous reports, but not SSA, were found for amphotericin B, omeprazole, metformin, amlodipine, ramipril, olmesartan, ciprofloxacin, valaciclovir, mycophenolate and diclofenac. All with the exception of metformin and omeprazole had risk estimates above 2.ConclusionThis research highlights a number of medicines that may contribute to acute injury; however, we had an insufficient sample to confirm associations of some medicines. Spironolactone, furosemide, and trimethoprim with sulfamethoxazole are medicines that, in particular, need to be used carefully and monitored closely in patients in the community at risk of acute kidney injury.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40264-022-01238-4.

Risk of cataract of different morphological types in Urals population chronically exposed at low doses

ObjectiveTo assess the risk of lens opacity depending on the dose in the population exposed to external and internal radiation for a long time, based on a long-term clinical follow-up of the cohorts of people exposed to radiation as a result of two radiation accidents in the South Urals. MethodsA layer-by-layer morphological study of the lens of 1,377 exposed individuals was conducted according to a special program in the Clinical Department of the Urals Research Center for Radiation Medicine (URCRM) 68 years after the onset of exposure. Lens changes were classified in accordance with the lens opacities classification (LOCS) III and included images of lens. To calculate the doses to lens, the data were taken into account, including the person's residence history in the radioactively contaminated territory, age and sex that affected their lifestyle and diet, radionuclide distribution in organs and tissues. Individualized lens doses were calculated using Techa River Dosimetry System (TRDS)-2016. Case-control method was used for statistical analysis. ResultsIndividual values of absorbed dose to lens ranged from 0 to 600 ​mGy. A dose-dependent increased risk of posterior subcapsular cataract (PSC) (OR ​1.54, 95%CI: 1.04–2.27) and nuclear cataract (OR ​1.84, 95%CI: 1.14–2.95) was found among chronically exposed individuals by a case-control method. No evidence of dose effect was found for cortical cataracts. ConclusionsThe results showed that population exposed to long-term chronic low-dose radiation was subjected to an increased risk of PSC and nuclear cataract development.

Low erythrocyte folate levels and increased risk of invasive cervical cancer in Chinese women

To investigate the relationship between erythrocyte folate levels and cervical lesions. Using a case-control method, patients with cervical lesions from September 2021 to February 2022 in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jiangnan University Hospital were selected as study subjects. After cervical biopsy, 40 cases of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) CIN3 and 65 cases of cervical cancer as case group. The normal population of 120 cases attending the same period served as the control group. A competitive model was used to establish a chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) for human erythrocyte folate. Erythrocyte folate levels of 225 subjects were determined. Serum folate levels were 7.82 ± 3.13, 8.04 ± 3.58, and 7.58 ± 4.30 ng/ml in the control, CIN3, and cervical cancer groups, with no statistically significant differences (p=0.959). Erythrocyte folate levels were 307.27 ± 122.95, 306.52 ± 189.77, and 285.42 ± 125.74 ng/ml, respectively, with statistically significant differences (p=0.03). In a population of middle-aged Chinese women, the lower the erythrocyte folate value, the greater the risk of cervical cancer. In addition, serum folate levels were not associated with cervical lesions.

Factors Associated with Retained Placenta: A Case-Control at Bethesda Hospital Yogyakarta

Background The retained placenta is a common cause of postpartum bleeding. Many conditions commonly can be found in pregnant women cause retained placenta.Objective This study aims to identify factors associated with retained placenta.Method This study was performed as an observational analytic study with a case-control method. The data used is secondary data, using normal postpartum mothers (n=74) and postpartum women diagnosed with the retained placenta (n=37) medical records, at Bethesda Hospital from 2013 until 2018. Variables were analyzed using simple logistic regression to measure crude odds ratio and using multiple logistic regression to calculate adjusted odds ratio.Results The factor associated with retained placenta was preterm labor (OR 37.16; CI 95% 6.98-197.84). Age (OR 1.32; CI 95% 0.34-5.19), anemia in pregnancy (OR 2.43; CI 95% 0.83-7.14), history of previous cesarean section (OR 9.63; CI 95% 0.79-117.36), history of curettage (OR 3.65; CI 95% 0.93-14.37) and parity (OR 2.07; CI 95% 0.72-5.98) increasing risk to develop retained placenta, but not statistically significant.Conclusion A history of previous cesarean section and preterm labor statistically increases the risk of retained placenta in Bethesda Hospital Yogyakarta. Age, anemia in pregnancy, and history of curettage were clinically associated with retained placenta, but not statistically significant.

Prevention of foreign bodies entering Children's respiratory tracts: The effect of the Caregiver's knowledge, behaviour and attitude

ObjectivesTo explore the effect of the caregiver's knowledge, behaviour and attitude on the prevention of foreign bodies in children's respiratory tracts to provide a basis for publicity and education on foreign bodies in children's respiratory tracts. MethodsA case–control method was used to investigate the knowledge, behaviour and attitude of the caregivers of 900 paediatric patients at Hunan Children's Hospital from June 2017 to February 2019. Caregivers of 300 children with foreign bodies removed by rigid bronchoscopy were selected as the case group. Caregivers of 600 children with other conditions were selected as the control group. The knowledge, behaviour and attitude of the caregivers towards foreign bodies in children's respiratory tracts and the demographic characteristics of the two groups were analyzed and compared. ResultsThe results showed significant differences for the children in terms of their gender, age and living conditions between the two groups (all p < 0.05) and for the caregivers in terms of their age, educational level, relationship with the child and the number of children in the family (all p < 0.05). There were statistically significant differences in the caregivers' knowledge of foreign bodies in the respiratory tract between the two groups (p < 0.05). In addition, a significant difference was also found between the groups in the caregivers' understanding of the prevention of foreign bodies in the respiratory tract, such as whether they were aware of the specific first-aid measures needed to treat the condition (p < 0.05). ConclusionThe caregiver's relationship to the child, their age, their level of education and the number of children in the family affected the occurrence of the condition, while the caregiver's knowledge, behaviour and attitude regarding foreign bodies in the respiratory tract also had some influence. However, in the future, national multiple-centre courses could be extremely useful in educating caregivers.

Effect of Video Counseling about Prevention of Anemia on Adolescent Girls Behavior in Supporting the First 1000 Days of Life

BACKGROUND: Lack of knowledge, attitudes, and behavior awareness to prevent anemia among adolescent girls in supporting 1000 HPK has resulted in high anemia incidence in Indonesia. Multimedia counseling is a method of learning that involves audio, visual, and discussion to make it more interesting and easy to understand. AIM: This study analyzed the effect of multimedia counseling about prevention of anemia on adolescent girls behavior to prevent anemia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study used pre-test–post-test with control group design, with a quasi-experimental design using the case–control method. The study population was 259, the samples were 90 respondents who were assigned to two groups, namely, 45 people in anemia group and 45 in non-anemia group. The samples were selected by simple random sampling. Respondents were given multimedia counseling about anemia prevention, behavioral questionnaire and food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Capillary blood test was conducted using Quik-Check, an the respondents were followed up every week and evaluated for 5 weeks. Results were tested using t-test and linear regression. RESULTS: Multimedia counseling had an effect on knowledge (t = 3.097; CI = 95%; 2.229–10.215; p = 0.003), attitude (t = 9.56; CI = 95%; 10.055–15.331; p = 0.001), behavior (t = −2.22; CI = 95%; −4.628–−0.260; p = 0.029), FFQ (t = −2.18; CI = 95%; −4.883 – −0.227; p = 0.032), and BMI (t = −10.40; CI = 95%; −5.094 - −3.460; p = 0.001) among adolescent girls in preventing anemia with R-Square of 0.952 (95%). CONCLUSION: There was an effect of multimedia counseling on the increase in knowledge, attitudes, and behavior in preventing adolescent anemia. Provision of ongoing multimedia counseling and monitoring of female careers in preventing adolescent anemia needs to be improved. Therefore, the role of health-care providers for monitoring and evaluation is very necessary.

A Comparison of Pitching Biomechanics and Sport Specialization in High School Pitchers.

BackgroundThe prevalence of sport specialization in high school athletes continues to rise, particularly among baseball players. Previous research has focused on the incidence of injury among specialized and non-specialized athletes but has yet to examine the level of sport specialization and pitching biomechanics.Hypotheses/PurposeThe purpose of this study was to investigate differences in pitching volume and biomechanics between low-, moderate-, and high-level specialized baseball pitchers. It was hypothesized that high-level specialized pitchers would have the most pitching volume within the current and previous years while low-level specialized pitchers would exhibit the least amount. The second hypothesis states that kinematics and kinetics commonly associated with performance and injury risk would differ between low-, moderate-, and high-level specialized pitchers.Study DesignCase-Control StudyMethodsThirty-six high school baseball pitchers completed a custom sport specialization questionnaire before participating in a three-dimensional pitching motion analysis. Sport specialization was based off current guidelines and categorized as low-, moderate-, and high-level specialized based upon self-reported outcomes. Pitchers then threw ≈10 fastballs from a mound engineered to professional specifications. Data averaged across fastballs was used for biomechanics variables. Key pitching biomechanical and pitching volume variables were compared between low-, moderate-, and high-level specialized pitchers.ResultsHigh-level specialized pitchers were older (p = 0.003), had larger body mass (p = 0.05) and BMI (p = 0.045), and threw faster (p = 0.01) compared to low-level specialized pitchers. Pitching volume and pitching biomechanics were similar across groups.ConclusionsPitching biomechanics were similar across groups, although high-level specialized pitchers threw with significantly higher throwing velocity compared to low-level pitchers. The low amount of pitching volume throughout the season may be responsible for the lack of additional observed differences. Further research should examine the relationship between pitching biomechanics, upper extremity strength and flexibility, and sport specialization.Level of EvidenceLevel III

Knowledge, Community Behavior About Basic Sanitation, And The Event Of Diarrhea In Sebatung Community Health Centers, Kotabaru Regency

The prevalence rate of diarrhea in Kotabaru Regency is 8.57%, which is the second highest number of cases after Hulu Sungai Utara. Data on diarrhea cases from the Kotabaru District Health Office stated that the Puskesmas with the highest number was the Sebatung Health Center. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the knowledge and behavior of the community about basic sanitation and the incidence of diarrhea in the working area of ​​the Sebatung Health Center, Kotabaru Regency. The study analysis design used a case-control study method with a 1:2 case-control comparison. Data analysis using the chi-square test. The results showed that the level of community knowledge was 70% in the good category and 30% in the poor category, and the behavior of the community was 70% in the good category and 30% in the bad category. The results of statistical tests showed that knowledge (p value 0.000 &lt; 0.05) was associated with the incidence of diarrhea, and behavior (p value 0.000 &lt; 0.05) was associated with the incidence of diarrhea. It is hoped that it will increase knowledge and behavior about basic sanitation.

Association of DNA methylation of IFNG gene with no/low response to hepatitis B vaccine in children

Objective: To explore the association of DNA methylation with immune response to hepatitis B (HepB) vaccine in Han nationality children from Guangxi province. Methods: A total of 263 children aged 8-9 months who had completed HepB immunization program were recruited from three hospitals in Guangxi province by using unmatched case-control method. Children with the HepB surface antibody concentration(Anti-HBs)<100 mIU/ml was set as the case group and ≥100 mIU/ml as the control group. Multiplex PCR and heavy sulfite sequencing were used to treat the samples. Illumina platform was used for high-throughput DNA methylation sequencing of IFNG gene target regions and CpG sites. Unconditional logistic regression was used to analyze the association between cytosine-phospho-guanosine DNA methylation at 18 loci of IFNG gene and HepB immune response level. Results: There were 104 children in the case group and 159 in the control group. The median (Q1, Q3) level of anti-HBs in two groups were 62.34 (30.06, 98.88) mIU/ml and 1 089.10 (710.35, 1 233.45) mIU/ml. The methylation levels of IFNG_1 gene 44 and 93 locus in the case group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). The unconditional logistic regression model showed that the DNA methylation level of IFNG_1 gene at 44 (OR=1.18, 95%CI: 1.03-1.35) and 93 (OR=1.21, 95%CI: 1.07-1.38) locus was associated with the HepB response level. Conclusion: The changes of DNA methylation at locus 44 and 93 of IFNG_1 gene may be relevant factors affecting the response level of HepB in Han nationality children from Guangxi province.

Freeway traffic safety state classification method based on multi-parameter fusion clustering

In order to deeply analyze the quantitative relationship between traffic flow state and crash risk, a highway traffic safety state classification method based on multi-parameter fusion clustering was proposed. First, attribute data of highway traffic crashes and corresponding upstream and downstream traffic flow data were extracted, and matched with paired case-control method. Secondly, considering the different roles of traffic volume, speed and occupancy in traffic state classification, the weight optimization algorithm is introduced to calculate the weight of the three parameters. Therefore, the comprehensive evaluation index of traffic state with the fusion of three parameters is obtained and used as the input index of traffic safety state clustering. Finally, [Formula: see text]-means clustering method is used to classify the highway traffic safety status. The result of the case study shows that the proposed method can achieve reasonable and effective traffic safety state division. The classification results are helpful to quantitatively evaluate highway crash risk levels under different traffic safety states.

Association of CTLA-4 (+49A/G) gene Polymorphism with type 1 diabetes mellitus in Iraqi children.

CTLA4 is a regulator gene for T cells and relates to autoimmune diseases. By using a case-control method, CTLA4 functional single-nucleotide polymorphisms for potential associations with Type 1 diabetes mellitus in an Iraqi children's population. ARMS-PCR method is used for genotyping +49AG (rs231775) variations in 60 obese children and 60 ethnically matched controls; all measured subjects were (fasting glucose, fasting insulin, and HbA1c). The glucose oxidase method is used to determine plasma glucose levels. The amounts of insulin in the blood were determined using a radioimmunoassay (RIA); Insulin resistance was measured using the HOMA-IR index. A HOMA-IR cut-off level of 2.5 was acceptable. There was no significant difference in allele and genotype frequencies between the groups, according to CTLA4 +49AG analyses. In conclusion, AA cases had a high frequency of A/A genotype than healthy participants but lower rates of A/G and G/G genotypes.

Thyroid dysfunction in Portuguese amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients

Thyroid hormones influence neuromuscular function, and it has been thought that this might contribute to degeneration of motor neurons. We used case-control methods to investigate the prevalence of thyroid dysfunction (hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism) in ALS patients followed in our centre, between 2015 and 2020. Data from patients with neuromuscular disorders not derived from thyroid dysfunction, followed within the same time frame, were used as controls. Thyroid dysfunction was defined by previous thyroid replacement medication managed by an endocrinologist. We used odds ratios (OR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) to compare 579 ALS patients and 415 age-gender-matched disease controls. Additionally, we provide a summarized review of the literature. Hypothyroidism (prevalence of 5.0 versus 8.6%; OR = 0.56, 95% CI 0.34-0.92, p = 0.023), hyperthyroidism (prevalence of 0.3 versus 1.2%; OR = 0.28, 95% CI 0.06-1.47, p = 0.134) and overall thyroid dysfunction (prevalence of 5.4 versus 9.9%; OR = 0.52, 95% CI 0.32-0.84, p = 0.015) were less prevalent in ALS patients than in controls, but similar to the national epidemiological data for thyroid disease. Our data are in line with the findings of most previous studies. We conclude that thyroid dysfunction is not associated with ALS.

Evaluation of the Real-World Effectiveness of Vaccines against COVID-19 at a Local Level: Protocol for a Test-Negative Case-Control Study.

Vaccines against COVID-19 approved for use in the EU/EEA have been shown to be highly effective against wild-type SARS-CoV-2. However, their effectiveness against new variants may be reduced. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of vaccines against COVID-19 in the prevention of symptomatic and severe disease, during pre- and post-omicron phases. Individuals who sought treatment at the emergency department of a Portuguese hospital with COVID-19-like disease and were tested for SARS-CoV-2 are the subjects of the study. Patients who received a positive result are considered cases, while those with negative results are the controls. The test-negative case–control method is one of the study designs recommended by WHO to estimate the effectiveness of vaccines against COVID-19. The main advantage of this design is that it controls for the healthcare seeking bias, commonly present in traditional cohort and case–control designs. This study may have broad implications for understanding the real-world performance of the COVID-19 vaccines at the local level, which may play a key role in promoting adherence to vaccination. Moreover, this study may contribute to inform decisions regarding booster doses and variant-specific vaccine formulations leading to the control of this and future pandemics.