The Dodo Bird: Less a Verdict Than an Opportunity

I contend that although the Luborsky et al. findings on the Dodo bird verdict are noteworthy, the methodology on which they are based is significantly delimited. Amplifying Luborsky et al.'s moderate recognition of that delimitation, I propose a qualitative complement to the extant research. I call this complement "amalgamated" qualitative research and propose that it will deepen, clarify, and contextualize Luborsky et al.'s enigmatic findings. Until this amalgam is implemented, therapy research will be relegated to impressions rather than fine-grained illuminations.     

What methods do stakeholders prefer for feeding back performance data: a qualitative study in palliative care.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the opinions of stakeholders (service commissioners and providers) on how performance data should be presented, in order to develop effective feedback methods to facilitate the use of these data in decision making. DESIGN: A qualitative analysis of semi-structured face-to-face and telephone interviews. League tables and fictional box plots were presented as an illustrative guide. The themes covered in the interviews were the effectiveness of these two feedback formats, their positive and negative characteristics, and ideas for new and improved feedback mechanisms. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-six stakeholders representing a range of clinical and non-clinical roles within palliative care and the wider health care system across a variety of statutory and non-statutory organizations from London and the West Midlands. RESULTS: Box plots were received more positively than league tables, and qualitative information was considered more appropriate than pictorial feedback. Conventional methods such as league tables and box plots were judged to lack essential information on which important decisions could be based, such as additional contextual information and the methodological assumptions of the instrument. Both feedback methods were considered useful as an impetus to further discussion. There was a consensus that feedback should be constructive and able to be adapted to the organizational realities in which UK health services function. CONCLUSION: Qualitative research was viewed as the right evidence for gaining an understanding of the quality of end of life care. Stakeholders highlighted the importance of the lay perspective, which requires approaches that illuminate the subjective meanings of patient experience.     

应用数据挖掘技术获取周围型肺癌临床和CT诊断规则的初步研究

目的探讨数据挖掘技术对周围型肺癌影像诊断规则提取的价值。方法收集58例经过临床病理证实的周围型肺癌病例,对其临床及CT表现属性进行标准化认定,输入数据库,分别采用自主开发的基于关联规则知识发现程序与通用数据分析工具ROSETTA中的粗糙集约简算法和遗传分类算法对58例周围型肺癌临床及影像学数据进行挖掘对比研究。结果由Johnson’s Algorithm粗糙集约简算法产生诊断规则51条,由ROSETTA遗传分类算法所产生的诊断规则有5千多条,基于关联规则的挖掘算法所产生的诊断规则有123条。这3种不同的数据挖掘方法产生的最重要的诊断规则基本上都将性别、年龄、位置、毛刺、形状、毛玻璃样密度等属性作为诊断周围型肺癌的主要依据。结论数据挖掘技术在医学影像诊断和鉴别诊断中具有潜在的应用价值。     

炎症性肠病患者生存质量与其应对方式和社会支持的相关性

目的探讨炎症性肠病(IBD)患者的生存质量及其与应对方式和社会支持的相关性.方法应用中文IBD问卷(IBDQ)、简明健康调查问卷(SF-36)、简易应对方式问卷、社会支持评定量表对71例IBD患者(IBD组)进行调查,并与103名正常人(对照组)进行比较.结果IBD患者SF-36及各维度评分显著低于对照组(均P＜0.01),积极应对评分亦显著低于对照组(P＜0.01).IBD患者的积极应对和社会支持与其生存质量呈正相关(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),消极应对与生存质量呈负相关(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).结论IBD患者的生存质量水平较低,良好的应对方式和社会支持能提高其生存质量.     

产后抑郁症相关因素调查研究

目的探讨产后抑郁症的相关因素.方法采用分层整群抽样方法,对长沙市4所医院300例产后6周复查的初产妇进行Edinburgh产后抑郁量表与自编问卷调查.结果产后抑郁症的发生率为17.3%;产妇年龄、婚姻状况、教育程度与产后抑郁症无关(均P＞0.05),分娩疼痛承受力、分娩方式、新生儿性别、母婴同室、母乳喂养为产后抑郁症的影响因素(P＜0.05、P＜0.01),且分娩方式是产后抑郁症的危险因素,分娩疼痛承受力与母婴同室是保护因素.结论产后抑郁症发生率较高,其影响因素应引起产科工作人员的重视.     

进展性缺血性脑卒中30例临床分析

目的:探讨进展性缺血性脑卒中:30例患者的危险因素。方法:分析了30例进展性缺血性脑卒中患者的血压、血糖、血脂及纤维蛋白原指标与30例非进展性缺血脑卒中患者指标对照,并进行统计学处理。结果:进展性缺血性脑卒中患者合并高血压例数明显高于对照组(P<0.01),血糖,血脂和纤维蛋白原指标也高于对照组(P<0.01,0.05)。结论:高血压,糖尿病,高血脂和高纤维蛋白原血症是进展性缺血性脑卒中的危险因素。     

Requiring Consent vs. Waiving Consent for Medical Records Research: A Minnesota Law vs. the U.S. (HIPAA) Privacy Rule

The use of medical records in research can yield information that is difficult to obtain by other means. When such records are released to investigators in identifiable form, however, substantial privacy and confidentiality risks may be created. These risks become more common and more serious as medical records move to an electronic format. In 1996, the state of Minnesota enacted legislation with respect to consent requirements for the use of medical records in research. This legislation has been widely criticized because--it is claimed--it creates an unnecessary impediment to research. In this article, we show that these arguments rest upon misinterpretation and/or misrepresentation of the 1996 legislation. A consent requirement had actually been present in Minnesota since 1976 (though codified in a patient rights statute rather than a privacy statute). The 1996 law does not require specific consent, as often claimed, but rather only a general authorization. The campaign against the Minnesota legislation appears to have been motivated by concern with respect to the then impending federal privacy rule. The HIPAA rule, as enacted, is in fact less stringent with respect to consent than the Minnesota consent law. On the other hand, the Minnesota consent law has not been effectively applied or enforced. As we change the way we manage sensitive medical information, new efforts are needed to provide protection against the confidentiality risks in research. Patient consent is an important tool in this regard. New instrumentalities are needed to solicit and document consent.     

SRTR Center-Specific Reporting Tools: Posttransplant Outcomes

Measuring and monitoring performance—be it waiting list and posttransplant outcomes by a transplant center, or organ donation success by an organ procurement organization and its partnering hospitals—is an important component of ensuring good care for people with end-stage organ failure. Many parties have an interest in examining these outcomes, from patients and their families to payers such as insurance companies or the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; from primary caregivers providing patient counseling to government agencies charged with protecting patients.
The Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients produces regular, public reports on the performance of transplant centers and organ procurement organizations. This article explains the statistical tools used to prepare these reports, with a focus on graft survival and patient survival rates of transplant centers—especially the methods used to fairly and usefully compare outcomes of centers that serve different populations. The article concludes with a practical application of these statistics—their use in screening transplant center performance to identify centers that may need remedial action by the OPTN/UNOS Membership and Professional Standards Committee.     

Patterns of asbestosis in New Jersey.

Hospital discharge data from New Jersey were used to identify cases of asbestosis for the 8 years 1979-1986. Multiple admissions were deleted so that each individual was counted once at the time of his/her first hospitalization with an asbestosis diagnosis. White males had the highest age-adjusted average annual discharge rate of 19.3 cases/100,000 population, followed by black males (12.3 cases/100,000) and white females (1.2 cases/100,000). The discharge rate was positively associated with age in each race/sex category. The relationship between rates for black males and white males depended on age: under 65 years, the rates were almost equal, and at 65 years and older, the white rates were nearly twice the black rates. There were two areas of the state where the rates were highest: the north-central and southwest regions. These two areas represent manufacturing and shipbuilding applications of asbestos, respectively. During the years 1979-1986, the annual percentage increase in asbestosis rates was 20% for white males, 17% for black males, and 8% for white females. Continued surveillance will reveal when the rates for asbestosis stop increasing.     

Transplant data: sources, collection and research considerations, 2004

The process of collecting and analyzing transplant data is complex. Familiarity with how these data are collected is crucial to a thorough understanding of the information. This article focuses on available OPTN-SRTR data and the continuing evolution of data collection mechanisms; how that data collection system is improving the data quality and reducing the data collection burden; how additional ascertainment of outcomes both completes and validates existing data; and caveats that remain for researchers. This year's article focuses further on research considerations related to cohort choice, timing of data submission, and potential biases in follow-up data. Ongoing improvements in data collection timeliness and scope are covered. The impact of extra ascertainment of outcomes, particularly for post-transplant kidney graft failure from Medicare data, are also examined. A section on graft failure reporting among different sources traces the steps by which the SRTR reconciles different data sources in its analyses. It is important that those reading and conducting transplant research understand the origin, structure, and scope of the available data. All of these issues should be carefully considered when choosing cohorts and data sources for analysis.