Incidence Density (incidence + density)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


How do parents perceive their adolescent's diabetes: a qualitative study

DIABETIC MEDICINE, Issue 11 2006
Aaron E. Carroll
Abstract Background/aims The developmental tasks of adolescence, combined with physical changes, can interfere with self-management behaviour. Yet little is known about how parents view these challenges as they attempt to help their children cope with diabetes. Our objective was to understand how living with an adolescent with diabetes influences parents' perceptions of their child's well-being, their relationship with their child, and how they perceive the influence of peers and school on their child's diabetes. Methods Twenty-eight parents of adolescents with Type 1 diabetes, aged 13,18 years, participated in focus groups. Transcripts were analysed using qualitative methods to determine dominant themes and incidence density. Results Themes included how diabetes negatively influences their adolescent's lifestyle, how diabetes makes it difficult for parents to understand developmental challenges experienced by their child, concerns regarding the potential to develop long-term complications, perceptions on how diabetes impacts on their relationship with their child and relationships with peers and how their children's school impacts on their diabetes self-management Conclusions This qualitative focus group study provides insight into parental perceptions of adolescents living with Type 1 diabetes, specifically as it relates to lifestyle implications, relationships with parents, peers and physicians, and school experiences. [source]


Methadone maintenance therapy promotes initiation of antiretroviral therapy among injection drug users

ADDICTION, Issue 5 2010
Sasha Uhlmann
ABSTRACT Aims Despite proven benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART), many human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected injection drug users (IDU) do not access treatment even in settings with free health care. We examined whether methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) increased initiation and adherence to ART among an IDU population with free health care. Design We examined prospectively a cohort of opioid-using antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected IDU and investigated factors associated with initiation of antiretroviral therapy as well as subsequent adherence. Factors associated independently with time to first initiation of antiretroviral therapy were modelled using Cox proportional hazards regression. Findings Between May 1996 and April 2008, 231 antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected opioid-using IDU were enrolled, among whom 152 (65.8%) initiated ART, for an incidence density of 30.5 [95% confidence interval (CI): 25.9,35.6] per 100 person-years. After adjustment for time-updated clinical characteristics and other potential confounders, use of MMT was associated independently with more rapid uptake of antiretroviral therapy [relative hazard = 1.62 (95% CI: 1.15,2.28); P = 0.006]. Those prescribed methadone also had higher rates of ART adherence after first antiretroviral initiation [odds ratio = 1.49 (95% CI: 1.07,2.08); P = 0.019]. Conclusion These results demonstrate that MMT contributes to more rapid initiation and subsequent adherence to ART among opioid-using HIV-infected IDU. Addressing international barriers to the use and availability of methadone may increase dramatically uptake of HIV treatment among this population. [source]


Alcohol Consumption, Alcohol Outlets, and the Risk of Being Assaulted With a Gun

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 5 2009
Charles C. Branas
Background:, We conducted a population-based case,control study to better delineate the relationship between individual alcohol consumption, alcohol outlets in the surrounding environment, and being assaulted with a gun. Methods:, An incidence density sampled case,control study was conducted in the entire city of Philadelphia from 2003 to 2006. We enrolled 677 cases that had been shot in an assault and 684 population-based controls. The relationships between 2 independent variables of interest, alcohol consumption and alcohol outlet availability, and the outcome of being assaulted with a gun were analyzed. Conditional logistic regression was used to adjust for numerous confounding variables. Results:, After adjustment, heavy drinkers were 2.67 times as likely to be shot in an assault when compared with nondrinkers (p < 0.10) while light drinkers were not at significantly greater risk of being shot in an assault when compared with nondrinkers. Regression-adjusted analyses also demonstrated that being in an area of high off-premise alcohol outlet availability significantly increased the risk of being shot in an assault by 2.00 times (p < 0.05). Being in an area of high on-premise alcohol outlet availability did not significantly change this risk. Heavy drinkers in areas of high off-premise alcohol outlet availability were 9.34 times (p < 0.05) as likely to be shot in an assault. Conclusions:, This study finds that the gun assault risk to individuals who are near off-premise alcohol outlets is about the same as or statistically greater than the risk they incur from heavy drinking. The combination of heavy drinking and being near off-premise outlets resulted in greater risk than either factor alone. By comparison, light drinking and being near on-premise alcohol outlets were not associated with increased risks for gun assault. Cities should consider addressing alcohol-related factors, especially off-premise outlets, as highly modifiable and politically feasible approaches to reducing gun violence. [source]


Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Horses at a Veterinary Teaching Hospital: Frequency, Characterization, and Association with Clinical Disease

JOURNAL OF VETERINARY INTERNAL MEDICINE, Issue 1 2006
J.S. Weese
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an emerging equine pathogen. To attempt to control nosocomial and zoonotic transmission, an MRSA screening program was established for all horses admitted to the Ontario Veterinary College Veterinary Teaching Hospital, whereby nasal screening swabs were collected at admission, weekly during hospitalization, and at discharge. MRSA was isolated from 120 (5.3%) of 2,283 horses: 61 (50.8%) at the time of admission, 53 (44.2%) during hospitalization, and 6 from which the origin was unclear because an admission swab had not been collected. Clinical infections attributable to MRSA were present or developed in 14 (11.7%) of 120 horses. The overall rate of community-associated colonization was 27 per 1,000 admissions. Horses colonized at admission were more likely to develop clinical MRSA infection than those not colonized at admission (OR 38.9, 95% CI 9.49,160, P < 0.0001). The overall nosocomial MRSA colonization incidence rate was 23 per 1,000 admissions. The incidence rate of nosocomial MRSA infection was at the rate of 1.8 per 1,000 admissions, with an incidence density of 0.88 per 1,000 patient days. Administration of ceftiofur or aminoglycosides during hospitalization was the only risk factor associated with nosocomial MRSA colonization. MRSA screening of horses admitted to a veterinary hospital was useful for identification of community-associated and nosocomial colonization and infection, and for monitoring of infection control practices. [source]


For debate: problems with the DMF index pertinent to dental caries data analysis

COMMUNITY DENTISTRY AND ORAL EPIDEMIOLOGY, Issue 6 2005
J. M. Broadbent
Abstract , The Decayed, Missing, Filled (DMF) index has been used for over 50 years and is well established as the key measure of caries experience in dental epidemiology. Despite its long history of use, there is debate about the most appropriate number of surfaces to include for a missing tooth. Assigning the maximum possible value for the ,M' component of DMFS (Surfaces) leads to overestimation of an individual's caries experience, and in any associated comparisons of in-caries experience, whereas assigning the minimum possible value for the ,M' component has the opposite effect. Alternative methods of assigning the number of caries-affected surfaces for an extracted tooth are considered. The net caries increment and adjusted caries increment (common methods of correction of the crude increment measure for reversals) are discussed, along with incidence density, a measure of caries extent. Problems exist with the adjusted caries increment, particularly among cohorts with low mean baseline caries experience. Development of an alternative method of estimating the relationship of ,true' and ,examiner' reversals is advocated, as well as greater utilization of incidence density in dental epidemiology. [source]