Multidimensional Analysis Of Variance Research Articles

An Objective Measure of Recovery.

Effective ambulatory anesthesia is based on a predictable pattern of recovery. This, of course, varies with the agent used, the inherent differences in how patients metabolize or detoxify a drug, as well as the duration and dosage of the drug administered. The development of a straightforward objective test to measure recovery accurately was undertaken in an effort to provide reliable and reproducible data.Other methods of measuring psychomotor performance have been used. These include testing special sensory functions such as vision and hearing,1 various verbal, drawing and bead threading parameters,2 as well as the use of a complex reaction timer developed by the American Automobile Association.3 Other studies of recovery from methohexital anesthesia have involved measuring waking time, the ability to speak rationally and coherently,4 as well as the use of a driving simulator.5 Porteus mazes and ‘“draw a person test” have also been proposed. All available methods are very involved, and require special equipment or personnel.The Bender Motor Gestalt Test, a series of drawings developed by Lauretta Bender in 1938, was copyrighted in 1946.6 This test is used on children and adults as a maturational test involving visual-motor gestalt function. The main aim of the test is to determine the individual’s capacity to experience visual-motor stimuli (gestalten). It has been used to explore mental retardation, regression, loss of function, organic brain damage and personality deviations. Clinical psychologists made extensive use of the Bender tests in cases of neuroses in World War II Army medical installations. Both fatigue and central nervous system depression tend to magnify the sensory-motor disturbances seen in the performance of the Bender Motor Gestalt Test.One of the figures of the Bender Test was selected and modified. Dots were substituted for the continuous lines and spaced approximately 12–13 mm. (See Fig. 1.) In this way, fine motor coordination and perception of the entire outline form could be measured.Patients admitted to the Oral Surgical Clinic were requested to carry out the drawing test, to provide their own pre-operative, pre-anesthetic baseline. Patients were asked to simply “connect the dots in Figure 1.” All patients in this study received either intravenous sedation consisting of pentobarbital sodium or hydroxyzine and meperidine hydrochloride, with scopolamine hydrobromide or atropine sulfate and/or general anesthesia (methohexital) in addition to a local anesthetic. (No oral or intramuscular pre-medications were administered). Ten patients who received only local anesthesia served as one control.This same drawing test was then repeated at appropriate intervals before and after the anesthesia experience to evaluate recovery. Patients were observed and timed in their performance of this test. Their position, cooperativeness and general attitude were noted and scaled.Immediately following the operation, as soon as the patient became conscious and responsive, a second test was administered. Ten minutes later a third test was given. The decision to discharge the patient was made by the doctor and was based on his clinical assessment of recovery. At that time, the final drawing was administered.Scoring: Data processing was done on the IBM 7094 computer. Pearson Correlation Coefficients with 50 variables in Matrix form; variances and standard deviations as well as multidimensional analysis of variance and quadratic and linear trends were computed and analyzed, and are reported elsewhere.8Recovery was taken as the period from awakening to discharge for those patients who received general anesthesia; or from the end of the surgical procedure to discharge for those patients receiving only intravenous sedation.It was determined that performance of this test is directly and significantly related to recovery time. Connecting the series of dots, proved to be a reliable and reproducible index of psychomotor performance. (Subsequent studies of drug effects, utilizing this modified Bender test have repeatedly demonstrated its validity and reliability.)Visual-motor incoordination appears most frequently in the production of sweeping, uninhibited lines, the substitution of dashes for lines, exaggeration or minimization of curves, and fragmentation.7 These aberrations, together with the psychological trauma resulting from the surgery and drug infusion, become evident in the patient’s performance. The following illustrations demonstrate the obvious deviations in performance and eventual return to baseline with recovery.This study provides statistical and clinical evidence in support of the validity of a simple, direct, self-administered, objective test to measure recovery time from ambulatory anesthesia. This test measures sensory-motor performance, which is a critical determinant of recovery. With the aid of this test, the patient’s return towards his own pre-anesthetic baseline becomes more evident and objective. It may also serve as a helpful medical-legal record of recovery from anesthetic influence.Postscript: Detailed data generated from this experiment were published in Anesth. & Analg., 1969.8 This simple drawing test has been effectively used since its development, in subsequent studies which involve comparison of various anesthetic and pre-anesthetic agents. It may provide a helpful tool for both the researcher and the clinician in anesthesiology.

EFFECTIVENESS OF PEDIATRIC PALLIATIVE CARE EDUCATION PROGRAM IN STRENGTHENING NURSING STUDENTS’ PALLIATIVE CARE PRACTICES AND ATTITUDES TOWARD CARE OF THE DYING

Objective: The present study used a quasi-experimental design to determine the effectiveness of palliative care education program in strengthening nursing students’ palliative care practices and attitudes toward care of the dying. 
 Methods: The study involved 39 nursing student of 4th year, including 17 students in the experimental group and 22 in the control group. A pediatric palliative care education program was applied to the intervention group through interactive learning methods. The data was evaluated using multidimensional variance analysis, the Bonferroni modified t measure, and regression analysis.
 Results: A significant difference was found among the experimental and the control group for total mean scores of the all scale. A high level, positive, and highly significant relationship was found between the education program and all scale.
 Conclusion: The results of the study indicated that the pediatric palliative care education program was an effective method that could be used in educating nursing students. The study provides effective results for including pediatric palliative care nursing course to the nursing undergraduate education curriculum.

The Effect of Fatigue-Related Education on Pediatric Oncology Patients' Fatigue and Quality of Life.

The identification of cancer-related fatigue as a clinical problem in pediatric oncology is an important phenomenon, and there are limited number of studies about raising the awareness of pediatric oncology patients and their parents. Fatigue-related education for patients and their parents before and during cancer treatment reduces the fatigue levels of patients. This study aims to analyze the effect of fatigue-related education for pediatric oncology patients aged 7-12 and their parents on their fatigue and quality of life. This study was conducted with 80 children with cancer and their parents who were assigned to either the control group (n = 40) or the experimental group (n = 40). The experimental group received a fatigue-related educational program. The data were collected three times: prior to the program, 3months later, and 6months afterwards. Multidimensional variance analysis, the Bonferroni adjusted t test and regression analysis were used to analyze the data. A significant difference was found among the experimental and the control group for total mean scores and the mean scores of subdimensions of the Scale for the Assessment of Fatigue-Child Form in terms of the interactions of group, time, and group*time (p < 0.05). Significant differences were found among the experimental and control groups' mean scores on the Scale for the Quality of Life-Child and Parents Form in terms of the interactions of group, time, and group*time (p < 0.05). Fatigue-related education is an effective education model as a way to reduce fatigue and increase the quality of life of children with cancer. The use of fatigue-related education by nurses in pediatric oncology clinics will have positive effects on children and their parents.

A study of wear of aged aluminum alloys 2XXX and 6XXX within the manova statistical analysis

Statistically processed data on the microstructure and wear of aged aluminum alloys AA2024 and AA6063 are presented. Results of wear tests are analyzed using multidimensional analysis of variance (MANOVA) with 95% confidence interval for statistically significant deviations. It is shown that the temperature and the duration of the aging are statistically significant factors affecting wear of aluminum alloys 2XXX and 6XXX.

Study of interaction in bioindication research on tobacco plant injuries caused by ground level ozone

AbstractTropospheric ozone is one of the most phytotoxic air pollutants. Its concentration has increased over recent decades. Bioindication methods could help to measure ozone levels in places where automatic methods are not available. The investigations described were carried out in the city of Poznan (Poland) and in its vicinity, using tobacco plants as a bioindicator for ozone. Plants were located at 10 sites during the years 2002–2004, and visible ozone injuries were assessed. Statistical methods based on multidimensional models were used to interpret the results. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the level of ozone‐related injury to the 5th tobacco leaf, using multivariate analysis of variance. Differences of leaf injury levels between certain years and exposition sites were especially analyzed. The results of multivariate analysis were presented graphically in the space of canonical variates. The described study shows that multidimensional analysis of variance using canonical variates appears be an appropriate technique for testing hypotheses about differences between years and exposition sites as regards 5th leaf injury degree. The studies revealed a high variability of tobacco leaf injury caused by ozone in Poznan and its vicinity. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Chemometrics in monitoring spatial and temporal variations in drinking water quality

This case study reports multivariate techniques applied for the evaluation of temporal/spatial variations and interpretation of monitoring data obtained by the determination of chloro/bromo disinfection by-products in drinking water at 12 locations in the Gdańsk area (Poland), over the period 1993–2000. The complex data matrix (1756 observations) was treated with various multivariate techniques. Cluster analysis (CA) was successful, yielding two different groups of similarity reflecting different types of drinking water supplied (surface and groundwater). The locations supplied in general with groundwater could be further classified into two subgroups, depending on whether the groundwater was mixed with surface water or not. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to classify and thus confirm the groups found by means of cluster analysis and proved the existence of statistically significant differences between the concentration levels of CHCl 3, CHBrCl 2+C 2HCl 3, CHBr 2Cl, and CH 2Cl 2 in the samples collected. Of all the variables evaluated, only three were characterized by statistically significant correlations (CHCl 3, CHBrCl 2+C 2HCl 3, CHBr 2Cl). The analysis of correlation coefficients revealed that chloroform formed as the main chlorinated disinfection by-product and, furthermore, the natural presence of bromide in water (both ground and surface) results in the formation of brominated disinfection by-products (DBPs). Temporal variations of volatile organic chlorinated compounds (VOCls) were also evaluated by multidimensional ANOVA. Observation of temporal changes in the concentration of VOCls at the location supplied with both surface and groundwater reveals a steady improvement in drinking water quality. In general, the study shows the importance of drinking water monitoring in connection with simple but powerful statistical tools to better understand spatial and temporal variations in water quality.

Specialized PC software package for creation of computer systems supporting partial diagnostics based on numerical results of medical examinations

Computer scientists creating computer systems supporting partial diagnostics based on numerical results of medical examinations always follow a similar method. Why not algorithmize this procedure? This was the main reason for preparation of the specialized PC software presented in the paper. The software is addressed to clinicians-scientists and enables such users to create by themselves (with no need of programming) practically useful computer systems for differential diagnosis of chosen diseases. These generated systems are assigned to an end-user, i.e. any physician interested in a partial diagnosis of the considered type. They perform classification of patients on the basis of numerical results of the examinations selected for the training databases. The software is based on a statistical approach; multi-dimensional variance analysis and discriminant analysis methods have been used. The pilot version of the software (experimentally implemented in a Warsaw clinic) and an outline of planned work are presented.

Mehrdimensionale Varianz‐ und Diskriminanzanalyse sowie Klassifizierungsmethoden zur Auswertung gaschromatographischer Ergebnisse

AbstractMultivariate data sets are a result of numerous methods of analytical chemistry, for instance like high performance chromatography. In addition to procedures of nonsupervised learning (e.g. cluster analysis) multidimensional analysis of variance, discriminant analysis and classification methods have extraordinary importance for data evaluation. Essential ideas of these methods are described and their application to two data examples by using the BASIC programs VARDIS and CLASS is illustrated. The first example deals with a discrimination of fuel filling stations being provided by the same source. In another example the recognition rate of 10 european brandies is studied. Both data sets were obtained by gas chromatography.

Statistical estimation of the influence of mineralization methods on the results of heavy metals determination in cereals by the DPASV method

The elements Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn have been determined in wheat, barley and oats by differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry after wet mineralization, mineralization by dry ashing or mineralization in a PTFE bomb. The procedures are described. The results were evaluated by BASIC programs for one dimensional data evaluation, by principal components plot and by multidimensional analysis of variance. The influences of mineralization procedures on the results are low compared with the different contents in the three cereals particularly for Cd, but also for Pb and Zn. There are no significant differences, in the Cu content.

Plasma Clearance of 99mTc-N/2,4-Dimethyl-Acetanilido/Iminodiacetate Complex as a Measure of Parenchymal Liver Damage

Fifty-two patients were studied with various diseases affecting liver parenchyma. Any disorders of bile transport were excluded on the basis of dynamic liver scintigraphy using intravenously injected N/2,4-dimethyl acetanilido/iminodiacetate 99mTc complex (HEPIDA). The activity concentration of 99mTc-HEPIDA in plasma was measured from 5 through 60 min post injection. Clearance of the substance (ClB) was calculated from blood plasma disappearance curves and compared with results of 13 laboratory tests used conventionally for assessment of damage of the liver and its functional capacity; age and body weight was also included in the analysis. Statistical relations were studied using linear regression analysis of two variables, multiple regression analysis as well as multidimensional analysis of variance. It was demonstrated that 99mTc-HEPIDA clearance is a simple, accurate and repeatable measure of liver parenchyma damage. In males, values of ClB above 245 ml. min-1/1.73 m2 exclude hepatic damage with high probability; values below 195 ml.min-1/1.73 m2 indicate evident impairment of liver parenchyma function.

Decision-Theoretic Speaker Recognizer

A real-time computer system for identifying persons on the basis of their speech is presented. The most novel feature of the system is the facility for recognizing a speech sample as not having been produced by any of the speakers previously identified. The system can be broken into 2 distinct subsystems. In the initial phase, a large sample of speech is read into the computer through a set of 35 bandpass filters. These sets of 35 element vectors are then analyzed, using multidimensional analysis of variance. This yields a small set of linear transformations of the original filter measurements having the property that their variation between speakers is as large as possible relative to their variation within the speech of any one speaker. The coefficients defining these combinations and their variances over speakers are the input to the 2nd phase of the process. In the 2nd phase, as speech is read in it is transformed and compared with data already read, if any. The likelihood of the data having come from each of the previously identified speakers is computed. In addition, the likelihood of the data having come from the same population of speakers, but not any of them. is computed. Based on these likelihoods and on an evaluation of the possible errors, a maximum expected value decision is reached. The operator then either confirms or corrects the decision, and the new data is added to that received earlier. Thus, the available data for making a decision can be continually improved. Evaluation of the decisions depends on the error costs previously mentioned. and confusion matrices for some of the more interesting cost functions are presented.