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- Akande, OW, et al.
(författare)
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Epidemiological comparison of the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria, February 2020-April 2021
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMJ global health. - : BMJ. - 2059-7908. ; 6:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- With reports of surges in COVID-19 case numbers across over 50 countries, country-level epidemiological analysis is required to inform context-appropriate response strategies for containment and mitigation of the outbreak. We aimed to compare the epidemiological features of the first and second waves of COVID-19 in Nigeria.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective analysis of the Surveillance Outbreak Response Management and Analysis System data of the first and second epidemiological waves, which were between 27 February and 24 October 2020, and 25 October 2020 to 3 April 2021, respectively. Descriptive statistical measures including frequencies and percentages, test positivity rate (TPR), cumulative incidence (CI) and case fatality rates (CFRs) were compared. A p value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. All statistical analyses were carried out in STATA V.13.ResultsThere were 802 143 tests recorded during the study period (362 550 and 439 593 in the first and second waves, respectively). Of these, 66 121 (18.2%) and 91 644 (20.8%) tested positive in the first and second waves, respectively. There was a 21.3% increase in the number of tests conducted in the second wave with TPR increasing by 14.3%. CI during the first and second waves were 30.3/100 000 and 42.0/100 000 respectively. During the second wave, confirmed COVID-19 cases increased among females and people 30 years old or younger and decreased among urban residents and individuals with travel history within 14 days of sample collection (p value <0.001). Most confirmed cases were asymptomatic at diagnosis during both waves: 74.9% in the first wave; 79.7% in the second wave. CFR decreased during the second wave (0.7%) compared with the first wave (1.8%).ConclusionNigeria experienced a larger but less severe second wave of COVID-19. Continued implementation of public health and social measures is needed to mitigate the resurgence of another wave.
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- Elimian, KO, et al.
(författare)
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Assessing the capacity of symptom scores to predict COVID-19 positivity in Nigeria: a national derivation and validation cohort study
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMJ open. - : BMJ. - 2044-6055. ; 11:9, s. e049699-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study aimed to develop and validate a symptom prediction tool for COVID-19 test positivity in Nigeria.DesignPredictive modelling study.SettingAll Nigeria States and the Federal Capital Territory.ParticipantsA cohort of 43 221 individuals within the national COVID-19 surveillance dataset from 27 February to 27 August 2020. Complete dataset was randomly split into two equal halves: derivation and validation datasets. Using the derivation dataset (n=21 477), backward multivariable logistic regression approach was used to identify symptoms positively associated with COVID-19 positivity (by real-time PCR) in children (≤17 years), adults (18–64 years) and elderly (≥65 years) patients separately.Outcome measuresWeighted statistical and clinical scores based on beta regression coefficients and clinicians’ judgements, respectively. Using the validation dataset (n=21 744), area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) values were used to assess the predictive capacity of individual symptoms, unweighted score and the two weighted scores.ResultsOverall, 27.6% of children (4415/15 988), 34.6% of adults (9154/26 441) and 40.0% of elderly (317/792) that had been tested were positive for COVID-19. Best individual symptom predictor of COVID-19 positivity was loss of smell in children (AUROC 0.56, 95% CI 0.55 to 0.56), either fever or cough in adults (AUROC 0.57, 95% CI 0.56 to 0.58) and difficulty in breathing in the elderly (AUROC 0.53, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.58) patients. In children, adults and the elderly patients, all scoring approaches showed similar predictive performance.ConclusionsThe predictive capacity of various symptom scores for COVID-19 positivity was poor overall. However, the findings could serve as an advocacy tool for more investments in resources for capacity strengthening of molecular testing for COVID-19 in Nigeria.
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- Oeding, Jacob, et al.
(författare)
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Platelet-Rich Plasma Versus Alternative Injections for Osteoarthritis of the Knee: A Systematic Review and Statistical Fragility Index-Based Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
- 2024
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Ingår i: AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SPORTS MEDICINE. - 0363-5465 .- 1552-3365.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Based in part on the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that suggest a beneficial effect over alternative treatment options, the use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for the management of knee osteoarthritis (OA) is widespread and increasing. However, the extent to which these studies are vulnerable to slight variations in the outcomes of patients remains unknown.Purpose: To evaluate the statistical fragility of conclusions from RCTs that reported outcomes of patients with knee OA who were treated with PRP versus alternative nonoperative management strategies.Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis; Level of evidence, 2.Methods: All RCTs comparing PRP with alternative nonoperative treatment options for knee OA were identified. The fragility index (FI) and reverse FI were applied to assess the robustness of conclusions regarding the efficacy of PRP for knee OA. Meta-analyses were performed to determine the minimum number of patients from >= 1 trials included in the meta-analysis for which a modification on the event status would change the statistical significance of the pooled treatment effect.Results: In total, this analysis included outcomes from 1993 patients with a mean +/- SD age of 58.0 +/- 3.8 years. The mean number of events required to reverse significance of individual RCTs (FI) was 4.57 +/- 5.85. Based on random-effects meta-analyses, PRP demonstrated a significantly higher rate of successful outcomes when compared with hyaluronic acid (P = .002; odds ratio [OR], 2.19; 95% CI, 1.33-3.62), as well as higher rates of patient-reported symptom relief (P = .019; OR, 1.55; 95% CI, 1.07-2.24), not requiring a reintervention after the initial injection treatment (P = .002; OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.33-3.53), and achieving the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for pain improvement (P = .007; OR, 6.19; 95% CI, 1.63-23.42) when compared with all alternative nonoperative treatments. Overall, the mean number of events per meta-analysis required to change the statistical significance of the pooled treatment effect was 8.67 +/- 4.50.Conclusion: Conclusions drawn from individual RCTs evaluating PRP for knee OA demonstrated slight robustness. On meta-analysis, PRP demonstrated a significant advantage over hyaluronic acid as well as improved symptom relief, lower rates of reintervention, and more frequent achievement of the MCID for pain improvement when compared with alternative nonoperative treatment options. Statistically significant pooled treatment effects evaluating PRP for knee OA are more robust than approximately half of all comparable meta-analyses in medicine and health care. Future RCTs and meta-analyses should consider reporting FIs and fragility quotients to facilitate interpretation of results in their proper context.
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- Stábile, Franca, et al.
(författare)
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Fate and biological uptake of polystyrene nanoparticles in freshwater wetland ecosystems
- 2024
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Ingår i: ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE-NANO. - 2051-8153 .- 2051-8161.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Little is known about the fate and uptake of nanoplastics (NPs) in natural ecosystems, mainly due to analytical limitations in measuring NPs in complex environmental matrices. Our aim was to quantitatively assess the transport, fate and biological uptake of NPs in freshwater ecosystems by using replicated wetland mesocosms and gold-doped polystyrene nanoparticles. We showed that 97% of the NPs were retained in the wetlands, with most of them found in the sediment of the mesocosm's lake compartment. A small fraction (3%) of the NPs left the system through the outlet. After 10 weeks of exposure, both filter feeders (Daphnia magna) and detritivores (Asellus aquaticus) had taken up NPs, with D. magna showing a 5 times higher uptake than A. aquaticus. Moreover, NPs were detected in macrophyte roots and their leaves, with significantly higher values in the roots. NP distribution was negatively related with distance from the point of addition, a relation observed both for sediments and macrophytes. Both with respect to the experimental set-up and NP concentrations, our study provides novel insights to the understanding of the fate and uptake of NPs, a contaminant of emerging concern, in natural scenarios. In a broader context, our study also provides crucial knowledge for risk assessment and support for decision-makers and ongoing legislative work regarding nanoplastics. Wetland mesocosms retained nanoplastics. Nanoplastics where taken up by freshwater invertebrates and macrophytes and mainly ended up in the sediments of the water compartment.
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- Stender, Joshua D, et al.
(författare)
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Structural and Molecular Mechanisms of Cytokine-Mediated Endocrine Resistance in Human Breast Cancer Cells
- 2017
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Ingår i: Molecular Cell. - Cambridge, United States : Cell Press. - 1097-2765 .- 1097-4164. ; 65:6, s. 1122-1135.e5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Human breast cancers that exhibit high proportions of immune cells and elevated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines predict poor prognosis. Here, we demonstrate that treatment of human MCF-7 breast cancer cells with pro-inflammatory cytokines results in ERα-dependent activation of gene expression and proliferation, in the absence of ligand or presence of 4OH-tamoxifen (TOT). Cytokine activation of ERα and endocrine resistance is dependent on phosphorylation of ERα at S305 in the hinge domain. Phosphorylation of S305 by IKKβ establishes an ERα cistrome that substantially overlaps with the estradiol (E2)-dependent ERα cistrome. Structural analyses suggest that S305-P forms a charge-linked bridge with the C-terminal F domain of ERα that enables inter-domain communication and constitutive activity from the N-terminal coactivator-binding site, revealing the structural basis of endocrine resistance. ERα therefore functions as a transcriptional effector of cytokine-induced IKKβ signaling, suggesting a mechanism through which the tumor microenvironment controls tumor progression and endocrine resistance.
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