1,720,959 research outputs found
Self-perceived physical functioning and health status in fully ambulatory MS patients
No full textWe investigated the self-perceived health status among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with no or mild disability according to the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and the impact of self-rated physical functioning. A sample of fully ambulatory (EDSS ≤ 3.5) consecutive patients with MS was included after screening for major cognitive impairment. The EDSS was used to measure nervous system signs or disability, and the self-rated health status was assessed using the SF-36 Health Survey. The normative SF-36 data for the general population of Italy were used for comparison. The 197 MS patients analyzed (150 women and 47 men) had significantly lower mean SF-36 scores than the general population, except for bodily pain. The scores did not differ significantly by gender. The same analysis performed on a subsample of 105 patients (79 women and 26 men) with minimal disability in one functional system (EDSS ≤ 2.0) yielded similar results. EDSS was weakly correlated with the physical funct..
Self-perceived physical functioning and health status among fully ambulatory multiple sclerosis patients
No full textWe investigated the
self-perceived health status among
multiple sclerosis (MS) patients
with no or mild disability according
to the Expanded Disability Status
Scale (EDSS) and the impact of
self-rated physical functioning.A
sample of fully ambulatory (EDSS
≤ 3.5) consecutive patients with MS
was included after screening for
major cognitive impairment. The
EDSS was used to measure nervous
system signs or disability, and the
self-rated health status was assessed
using the SF-36 Health Survey.
The normative SF-36 data for
the general population of Italy were
used for comparison. The 197 MS
patients analyzed (150 women and
47 men) had significantly lower
mean SF-36 scores than the general
population, except for bodily pain.
The scores did not differ significantly
by gender. The same analysis
performed on a subsample of 105
patients (79 women and 26 men)
with minimal disability in one
functional system (EDSS ≤ 2.0)
yielded similar results. EDSS was
weakly correlated with the physical
functioning subscale and explained
only 2% of the variance in the
physical functioning subscale. The
regression of the physical functioning
subscale on the other seven SF-
36 subscales was significantly lower
among MS patients than in the
general population for all subscales,
except for role limitation
due to physical health problems
and social functioning.Neither disease
course nor duration correlated
significantly with SF-36 subscales.
The SF-36 physical functioning
subscale seemed to indicate physical
functioning more sensitively
than EDSS. These findings should
encourage the implementation of
specific strategies aimed at improving
the quality of the self-perceived
health status already in the early
disease stage
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Personality traits predict perceived health-related quality of life in persons with multiple sclerosis
No full textBackground: Personality traits can affect health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in different disorders. In multiple sclerosis (MS), personality traits can determine patients' willingness to take on more risky treatment options, predispose to neuropsychiatric symptoms and affect coping strategies. Objectives: We investigated the role of personality traits as possible predictors of HRQoL in a large cohort of persons with MS (PwMS). Methods: In total, 253 consecutively recruited PwMS were screened for intellectual deficits with Raven Colour Progressive Matrices (RCPM), state anxiety with STAI-X1 and major depression on a clinical basis. PwMS' self-perceived mental and physical health status was measured with the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), and the personality profile with the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-R). The correlation between HRQoL and personality traits was investigated by means of analysis of variance, adjusting for possible confounders. Results: Of the 253 MS patients, 195 (F:M=2.75), aged 41.7±10.2 years were included in the analysis. The variance of SF-36 mental and physical composite score was largely explained by extraversion and neuroticism. Conclusions: Our data confirm that PwMS' HRQoL is largely influenced by personality traits, which may therefore act as predictors of perceived quality of life and should be included in clinical and experimental settings focusing on HRQoL
Depression, quality of life and disability in Sardinian patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS)
No full textVariations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
- …
