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Discriminatory Ability (discriminatory + ability)
Selected AbstractsValidation of video versus electromyography for chewing evaluation of the elderly wearing a complete dentureJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 8 2007E. NICOLAS summary, Chewing efficiency may affect nutritional status in the elderly. Many elderly patients are complete denture wearers, and often present cognitive problems. Those two factors make evaluation of mastication difficult with experimental methods. Analysis of video recording may be a simple way to routinely assess chewing parameters. This study aimed at validating several parameters of video evaluation versus electromyography (EMG), which is considered the ,gold standard'. The design was a prospective randomized study, carried out at the Faculty of Dentistry, University of Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand, France. Twelve complete denture wearers chewed four model foods differing in hardness. Sessions were videotaped and EMG recordings were registered. Mastication time, number of masticatory cycles and cleaning time were recorded simultaneously by video and EMG. Two investigators independently analyzed the videos twice, in random order. Evaluation of criterion validity: a positive video/EMG correlation was found for the parameters ,chewing time' (0·89, Pearson) and ,number of masticatory cycles' (0·94, Spearman), whereas no statistical difference was found between these two EMG and video variables (t -test). Inter and intra-rater reliability gave a positive intraclass coefficient (ICC) for duration of mastication (0·86,0·98), number of masticatory cycles (0·90,0·97) and cleaning time (0·90,0·98). Discriminatory ability was studied using anova (P = 0·01): variation was significant in masticatory duration (F = 10), number of masticatory cycles (F = 10) and cleaning time (F = 4). Video may be a useful assessment tool in prosthetic rehabilitation and can be applied to help choose the type of food (solid, semi-liquid or liquid) to administer to dependent persons, particularly those suffering from dementia. [source] Relevant Alternatives, Perceptual Knowledge and DiscriminationNOUS, Issue 2 2010Duncan Pritchard This paper examines the relationship between perceptual knowledge and discrimination in the light of the so-called ,relevant alternatives' intuition. It begins by outlining an intuitive relevant alternatives account of perceptual knowledge which incorporates the insight that there is a close connection between perceptual knowledge and the possession of relevant discriminatory abilities. It is argued, however, that in order to resolve certain problems that face this view, it is essential to recognise an important distinction between favouring and discriminating epistemic support that is often overlooked in the literature. This distinction complicates the story regarding how an alternative becomes relevant, and in doing so weakens the connection between perceptual knowledge and discrimination. The theory that results, however,what I term a ,two-tiered' relevant alternatives theory of perceptual knowledge,accommodates many of our intuitions about perceptual knowledge and so avoids the revisionism of some recent proposals in the epistemological literature. [source] Comparative sediment quality guideline performance for predicting sediment toxicity in Southern California, USAENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 12 2005Doris E. Vidal Abstract Several types of sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) are used by multiple agencies in southern California (USA) to interpret sediment chemistry data, yet little information is available to identify the best approaches to use. The objective of this study was to evaluate the predictive ability of five SQGs to predict the presence and absence of sediment toxicity in coastal southern California: the effects range-median quotient (ERMq), consensus moderate effect concentration (consensus MEC), mean sediment quality guideline quotient (SQGQ1), apparent effects threshold (AET), and equilibrium partitioning (EqP) for organics. Large differences in predictive ability among the SQGs were obtained when each approach was applied to the same southern California data set. Sediment quality guidelines that performed well in identifying nontoxic samples were not necessarily the best predictors of toxicity. In general, the mean ERMq, SQGQ1q, and consensus MECq approaches had a better overall predictive ability than the AET and EqP for organics approaches. In addition to evaluating the predictive ability of SQGs addressing chemical mixtures, the effect of an individual SQG value (DDT) was also evaluated for the mean ERMq with and without DDT. The mean ERMq without DDT had a better ability to predict toxic samples than the mean ERMq with DDT. Similarities in discriminatory ability between different approaches, variations in accuracy among SQG values for some chemicals, and the presence of complex mixtures of contaminants in most samples underscore the need to apply SQGs in combination, such as the mean quotient. Management objectives and SQG predictive ability using regional data should be determined beforehand so that the most appropriate SQG approach and critical values can be identified for specific applications. [source] The importance of independent risk-factors for long-term mortality prediction after cardiac surgeryEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION, Issue 9 2006I. K. Toumpoulis Abstract Background, The purpose of the present study was to determine independent predictors for long-term mortality after cardiac surgery. The European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) was developed to score in-hospital mortality and recent studies have shown its ability to predict long-term mortality as well. We compared forecasts based on EuroSCORE with other models based on independent predictors. Methods, Medical records of patients with cardiac surgery who were discharged alive (n = 4852) were retrospectively reviewed. Their operative surgical risks were calculated according to EuroSCORE. Patients were randomly divided into two groups: training dataset (n = 3233) and validation dataset (n = 1619). Long-term survival data (mean follow-up 5·1 years) were obtained from the National Death Index. We compared four models: standard EuroSCORE (M1); logistic EuroSCORE (M2); M2 and other preoperative, intra-operative and post-operative selected variables (M3); and selected variables only (M4). M3 and M4 were determined with multivariable Cox regression analysis using the training dataset. Results, The estimated five-year survival rates of the quartiles in compared models in the validation dataset were: 94·5%, 87·8%, 77·1%, 64·9% for M1; 95·1%, 88·0%, 80·5%, 64·4% for M2; 93·4%, 89·4%, 80·8%, 64·1% for M3; and 95·8%, 90·9%, 81·0%, 59·9% for M4. In the four models, the odds of death in the highest-risk quartile was 8·4-, 8·5-, 9·4- and 15·6-fold higher, respectively, than the odds of death in the lowest-risk quartile (P < 0·0001 for all). Conclusions, EuroSCORE is a good predictor of long-term mortality after cardiac surgery. We developed and validated a model using selected preoperative, intra-operative and post-operative variables that has better discriminatory ability. [source] Comparative performances of staging systems for early hepatocellular carcinomaHPB, Issue 5 2009Hari Nathan Abstract Background:, Several staging systems for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have been proposed, but studies of their prognostic accuracy have yielded conflicting conclusions. Stratifying patients with early HCC is of particular interest because these patients may derive the greatest benefit from intervention, yet no studies have evaluated the comparative performances of staging systems in patients with early HCC. Methods:, A retrospective cohort study was performed using data on 379 patients who underwent liver resection or liver transplantation for HCC at six major hepatobiliary centres in the USA and Europe. The staging systems evaluated were: the Okuda staging system, the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (IHPBA) staging system, the Cancer of the Liver Italian Programme (CLIP) score, the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) staging system, the Japanese Integrated Staging (JIS) score and the American Joint Committee on Cancer/International Union Against Cancer (AJCC/UICC) staging system, 6th edition. A recently proposed early HCC prognostic score was also evaluated. The discriminative abilities of the staging systems were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards models and the bootstrap-corrected concordance index (c). Results:, Overall survival of the cohort was 74% at 3 years and 52% at 5 years, with a median survival of 62 months. Most systems demonstrated poor discriminatory ability (P > 0.05 on Cox proportional hazards analysis, c, 0.5). However, the AJCC/UICC system clearly stratified patients (P < 0.001, c= 0.59), albeit only into two groups. The early HCC prognostic score also clearly stratified patients (P < 0.001, c= 0.60) and identified three distinct prognostic groups. Discussion:, The early HCC prognostic score is superior to the AJCC/UICC staging system (6th edition) for predicting the survival of patients with early HCC after liver resection or liver transplantation. Other major HCC staging systems perform poorly in patients with early HCC. [source] Assessment of the Ecological Status of Streams in Two Carpathian SubregionsINTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF HYDROBIOLOGY, Issue 4-5 2007Il'ja Krno Abstract A multimetric assessment system was developed to determine the ecological status of two types of stream in the Carpathian ecoregion following the requirements of the WFD. The organic pollution gradient was defined using Canonical Correspondence Analysis. Classification based on physical, chemical and biological data divided the tested sites into two stream types with subsequent grouping into several ecological quality classes. From all the metrics tested, 17 for the East Carpathian streams and 15 for the West Carpathian streams, from seven metric categories, were included in the resulting multimetric index. Different kinds of response to degradation (linear, unimodal, exponential) were observed. The Saprobic index (Zelinka and Marvan), Rheoindex (Banning, with abundance classes) and Index of Biocenotic region, showed the best discriminatory ability for both stream types. (© 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] Inter-laboratory evaluation of three flagellin PCR/RFLP methods for typing Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli: the CAMPYNET experienceJOURNAL OF APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 6 2003C.S. Harrington Abstract Aims: To compare typeability, discriminatory ability, and inter-laboratory reproducibility of three flagellin PCR/RFLP (fla typing) methods previously described for Campylobacter. Methods and Results: The sample set (n = 100) was diverse, including both C. jejuni (n = 85) and C. coli (n = 15). Two of the three flaA typing methods amplified flaA alone, whereas one, a multiplex assay, amplified flaB in addition to flaA. DdeI restriction enzyme was employed for all methods, but HinfI was also investigated. 98,100% typeability was obtained for flaA-based methods, but only 93% for the multiplex assay, due to inconsistent amplification of a non-specific product. In addition, there appeared to be selective amplification of flaA over flaB. More DdeI types were generated using a longer flaA PCR amplicon, whilst additional use of HinfI increased the number of types by ca 25%. Inter-laboratory reproducibility for both flaA-based methods was defined at 100%. Conclusions:Fla typing requires standardization with respect to PCR primers and restriction enzymes. This study identified an assay, employing the full flaA gene and DdeI digestion, as an appropriate method on which to standardize. 100% inter-laboratory reproducibility was demonstrated using that method. Significance and Impact of the Study: This work should facilitate progress towards inter-laboratory standardization of fla typing. [source] Evaluation of library ranking efficacy in virtual screening,JOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2005Maria Kontoyianni Abstract We present the results of a comprehensive study in which we explored how the docking procedure affects the performance of a virtual screening approach. We used four docking engines and applied 10 scoring functions to the top-ranked docking solutions of seeded databases against six target proteins. The scores of the experimental poses were placed within the total set to assess whether the scoring function required an accurate pose to provide the appropriate rank for the seeded compounds. This method allows a direct comparison of library ranking efficacy. Our results indicate that the LigandFit/Ligscore1 and LigandFit/GOLD docking/scoring combinations, and to a lesser degree FlexX/FlexX, Glide/Ligscore1, DOCK/PMF (Tripos implementation), LigandFit1/Ligscore2 and LigandFit/PMF (Tripos implementation) were able to retrieve the highest number of actives at a 10% fraction of the database when all targets were looked upon collectively. We also show that the scoring functions rank the observed binding modes higher than the inaccurate poses provided that the experimental poses are available. This finding stresses the discriminatory ability of the scoring algorithms, when better poses are available, and suggests that the number of false positives can be lowered with conformers closer to bioactive ones. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 26: 11,22, 2005 [source] Comparison of automated ribotyping and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis for subtyping of Vibrio choleraeLETTERS IN APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 6 2009H.-J. Zhou Abstract Aims:, To compare the discriminatory power of an automated ribotyping method for Vibrio cholerae subtyping with the pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), to evaluate the possibility of automated ribotyping in use of outbreak investigations and surveillance of cholera. Methods and Results:, Eight-one epidemiologically unrelated isolates of V. cholerae, and 19 isolates from seven cholera outbreaks were used as the panels. When comparing the two methods using the epidemiologically unrelated isolates, automated ribotyping using PvuII distinguished 38 different ribotypes with a D -value of 0·8956. When combined with serotyping, the D -value is 0·9466. However, PFGE with NotI and SfiI digestions had higher D -values of 0·9951 and 0·9948, respectively. PFGE could cluster the isolates from each outbreak into the same pattern, and distinguish different patterns from different outbreaks, whereas automated ribotyping had lower discriminatory ability. Conclusions:, The automated ribotyping has lower discriminatory ability compared to PFGE, and is limited to application in V. cholerae subtyping and outbreak investigation. Significance and Impact of the Study:, The study evaluated the limitation in subtyping of automated ribotyping for V. cholerae, and raise the question of improvement for the automated ribotyping in subtyping. [source] Development of an oligonucleotide microarray method for Salmonella serotypingMICROBIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 6 2008B. Tankouo-Sandjong Summary Adequate identification of Salmonella enterica serovars is a prerequisite for any epidemiological investigation. This is traditionally obtained via a combination of biochemical and serological typing. However, primary strain isolation and traditional serotyping is time-consuming and faster methods would be desirable. A microarray, based on two housekeeping and two virulence marker genes (atpD, gyrB, fliC and fljB), has been developed for the detection and identification of the two species of Salmonella (S. enterica and S. bongori), the five subspecies of S. enterica (II, IIIa, IIIb, IV, VI) and 43 S. enterica ssp. enterica serovars (covering the most prevalent ones in Austria and the UK). A comprehensive set of probes (n = 240), forming 119 probe units, was developed based on the corresponding sequences of 148 Salmonella strains, successfully validated with 57 Salmonella strains and subsequently evaluated with 35 blind samples including isolated serotypes and mixtures of different serotypes. Results demonstrated a strong discriminatory ability of the microarray among Salmonella serovars. Threshold for detection was 1 colony forming unit per 25 g of food sample following overnight (14 h) enrichment. [source] Prospective Evaluation of Two Clinical Scores for Acute Asthma in Children 18 Months to 7 Years of AgeACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 6 2010FRCPC, Serge Gouin MDCM Abstract Objectives:, The objective was to evaluate the discriminatory ability of two clinical asthma scores, the Preschool Respiratory Assessment Measure (PRAM) and the Pediatric Asthma Severity Score (PASS), during an asthma exacerbation. Methods:, This was a prospective cohort study in an academic pediatric emergency department (ED; 60,000 visits/year) conducted from March 2006 to October 2007. All patients 18 months to 7 years of age who presented for an asthma exacerbation were eligible. The primary outcome was a length of stay (LOS) of >6 hours in the ED or admission to the hospital. Clinical findings and components of the PRAM and the PASS were assessed by a respiratory therapist (RT) at the start of the ED visit and after 90 minutes of treatment. Results:, During the study period, 3,845 patients were seen in the ED for an asthma exacerbation. Of these, 291 were approached to participate, and eight refused. Moderate levels of discrimination were found between a LOS of >6 hours and/or admission and PRAM (area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve [AUC] = 0.69, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.59 to 0.79) and PASS (AUC = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.60 to 0.80) as calculated at the start of the ED visit. Significant similar correlations were seen between the physician's judgment of severity and PRAM (r = 0.54, 95% CI = 0.42 to 0.65) and PASS (r = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.43 to 0.65). Conclusions:, The PRAM and PASS clinical asthma scores appear to be measures of asthma severity in children with discriminative properties. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:598,603 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine [source] | |||||||||||||