168 research outputs found
Study design and statistical analysis of data in human population studies with the micronucleus assay
No full textThe most common study design performed in population studies based on the micronucleus (MN) assay, is the cross-sectional study, which is largely performed to evaluate the DNA damaging effects of exposure to genotoxic agents in the workplace, in the environment, as well as from diet or lifestyle factors. Sample size is still a critical issue in the design of MN studies since most recent studies considering gene-environment interaction, often require a sample size of several hundred subjects, which is in many cases difficult to achieve. The control of confounding is another major threat to the validity of causal inference. The most popular confounders considered in population studies using MN are age, gender and smoking habit. Extensive attention is given to the assessment of effect modification, given the increasing inclusion of biomarkers of genetic susceptibility in the study design. Selected issues concerning the statistical treatment of data have been addressed in this mini-review, starting from data description, which is a critical step of statistical analysis, since it allows to detect possible errors in the dataset to be analysed and to check the validity of assumptions required for more complex analyses. Basic issues dealing with statistical analysis of biomarkers are extensively evaluated, including methods to explore the dose-response relationship among two continuous variables and inferential analysis. A critical approach to the use of parametric and non-parametric methods is presented, before addressing the issue of most suitable multivariate models to fit MN data. In the last decade, the quality of statistical analysis of MN data has certainly evolved, although even nowadays only a small number of studies apply the Poisson model, which is the most suitable method for the analysis of MN data. © The Author 2010. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the UK Environmental Mutagen Society. All rights reserved
Analysis of Routine and Integrative Data from Clostridioides difficile Infection Diagnosis and the Consequent Observations
No full textAbstract:
Background:
Clostridioides difficile Infection (CDI) is an acute disease that needs a fast proper treatment. Unfortunately, the diagnosis, and above all the
understanding of the results, remain arduous.
Objective:
This study analyzed routine and integrative results of all fecal samples from patients over time. Our aim was to understand the dynamics of CDI
infection and the meaning of “difficult to interpret” results, to make physicians better understand the various tools they can use.
Methods:
We evaluated routine results obtained from 815 diarrheal stools with Enzyme Immunoassay (EIA) that detects C. difficile Glutamate
Dehydrogenase (GDH) antigen and toxin B. We also reanalyzed a part of samples using integrative tests: a Real-time polymerase chain reaction
(RT-PCR) for C. difficile toxin B gene (tcdB) and the automated immunoassay VIDAS C. difficile system for GDH and toxins A/B.
Results:
EIA GDH positivity increased through multiple testing over time, with a P value <0.001, depicting a sort of bacterial growth curve. Eighty-five
percent of GDH positive/toxin B negative, i.e., discrepant, samples PCR were tcdB positive, 61.5% of discrepant tcdB positive samples were
VIDAS toxins A/B positive, and 44.4% of GDH EIA negative stools were VIDAS GDH positive.
Conclusion:
The results confirmed the low sensitivity of the EIA system for C. difficile GDH and toxins, questioned the use of the latter for concluding any CDI
diagnostic algorithm, and led us to indicate the algorithm beginning with tcdB molecular research, and continuing in positive cases with VIDAS
CD GDH method, as the most effective for CDI
Epidemiology of Clostridium Difficile Infection in a Large Hospital in Northern Italy: Questioning the Ward-Based Transmission
No full textBackground:
Clostridium Difficile infection (CDI) is considered a ward-based nosocomial infection, due to contagion among patients. Molecular
studies recently questioned ward-based contact for disease spread.
Objective:
To investigate whether it is plausible that CDI spread in San Martino Hospital of Genoa was due to a ward-based contact and patientto-
patient diffusion.
Methods:
We conducted a retrospective cohort study of CDI cases from April 2010 to March 2015. We referred to Hospital data set and
Admission Service. Multilevel modelling approach and ecological analysis were used to assess C. difficile infection risk according to
wards and time of occurrence. Six representative CD strains were ribotyped to assess a possible equivalence.
Results:
The assessment of 514 CDI cases showed that the risk of disease and rate of incidence in wards were independent, while frequency
of cases and number of wards involved exhibited a positive relationship, excluding the typical epidemic pattern of contagious
diffusion, i.e., many cases in few wards. The extra-binomial variability due to ward clustering was not significant, indicating
homogeneity in the probability of CDI occurrence across all wards. Three hundred sixty-eight patients changed ward, without
showing connection between the frequency of cases in new wards and incidence among new subjects. Trigonometric components
described a significant contribution of seasonality, with excess of CDI cases during the winter months. Molecular analysis showed
different ribotypes of CD strains from the same ward.
Conclusion:
From our results it seems unlikely that in our institution CDI occurrence is due to ward-based contact and inter-human contagion of
the organism
Fundamentals of Material Design Culture
No full textThis essay is published in the book Ideas and the Matter, edited by Marinella Ferrara and Giulio Ceppi. The book presents the founding research undertaken by the Politecnico di Milano’s Material Design Culture Research Centre (Madec). Founded in 2014, Madec obtained the Design Department’s support during its first year by being granted the Fondo di Ateneo per la Ricerca di Base (FARB 2013) for “Fundamental/Foundational/ Exploratory Researches that are strategically assessed for scientific growth in a research department”. In the third section of the book, scientific discourse focuses on the Material Design Culture and changing approach in term of the evolution of research methods. In the chapter "Fundamental of Material Design Culture", the author traces the fundamentals of Material Design based on the Italian design history and its relationship with global design discourse
INCLUSIVE DESIGN- A pragmatical review
No full textThis book does not aim to provide perfect solutions or to make people believe that there is a single and absolute methodology for designing the topic of inclusion. It is about rethinking in a practical way what needs to be done, broadening horizons, showing examples that are quite heterogeneous, trying to understand to what extent more inclusive design can bring clear advantages, not only for users, but also for clients and managers.
There is no a priori limit in inclusive design: any theme, any brief can be seen with different eyes and become an opportunity for inclusion, for valorizing human differences.
The author brings 25 examples that touch on the fields of design, communication, interiors and architecture, up to research and education: worlds that are quite different from each other, in terms of professional and disciplinary fields, as well as in terms of project types and relative markets, but all fertile ground for designing inclusively
Democratic Accountability and the Relative Obstacles to Foreign Investment
No full textThis paper considers the relationship between democratic accountability in de- veloping countries and the policies they use to attract foreign direct investment (FDI). We isolate two policy areas that governments of developing countries use to attract FDI: the tax burden on firms and the regulatory standards within which they operate. Countries that maintain high business taxes can only attract FDI by offering a less regulated business environment, which may have associated po- litical costs. The extent to which democratic accountability constrains leaders in their tax/regulatory policy choices is our main line of analysis. The novelty of the paper is that it endogenously determines policy choices within a political economy framework that recognizes the trade-offs between attracting FDI and maintaining political control. Examination of firm-level survey data from foreign firms operating in eastern Europe and central Asian economies confirms our model's main conclusion: regulation is seen to be a relatively larger obstacle to doing business in countries with greater democratic accountability. --
Shifting to Design-driven Material Innovation
No full textThis essay is published in the book Ideas and the Matter, edited by Marinella Ferrara and Giulio Ceppi. The book presents the founding research undertaken by the Politecnico di Milano’s Material Design Culture Research Centre (Madec). Founded in 2014, Madec obtained the Design Department’s support during its first year by being granted the Fondo di Ateneo per la Ricerca di Base (FARB 2013) for “Fundamental/Foundational/ Exploratory Researches that are strategically assessed for scientific growth in a research department”. In the third section of the book, scientific discourse focuses on the Material Design Culture and changing approach in term of the evolution of research methods. In this chapter, the author analyses several changes in the design discipline and in the approaches to Material design and explores the new dimension of the contemporary trend of material innovation driven by design competences
Anthracycline and taxane-based chemotherapy versus docetaxel and cyclophosphamide in the adjuvant treatment of HER2-negative breast cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
No full textPurpose: Standard adjuvant chemotherapy for HER2-negative breast cancer consists generally in an anthracycline and taxane-based regimen (A+T). The TC (docetaxel and cyclophosphamide) regimen arises as a potential alternative, although individual randomized controlled trials (RCTs) could not demonstrate the non-inferiority of TC over A+T. This is a systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs comparing 6 cycles of TC versus sequential A+T in the adjuvant treatment of HER2-negative breast cancer. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed to identify RCTs comparing TC versus A+T. Disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were assessed. Subgroup analyses of DFS according to hormone receptor status, lymph node involvement, and menopausal status were performed. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for DFS and OS were extracted from each trial, and a pooled analysis was conducted using the random-effect model. The Higgins’ I-Squared Test was used to quantify heterogeneity. Results: Seven RCTs were included (12,741 patients). Overall, no difference was observed between TC and A+T in DFS (HR 1.08, 95% CI 0.96–1.20) and OS (HR 1.05; 95% CI 0.90–1.22). A trend favoring A+T was observed in hormone receptor-negative (HR 1.12, 95% CI 0.93–1.34) and N2 patients (HR 1.25; 95% CI 0.82–1.90). Emesis/vomiting, mucositis, thrombocytopenia and sensory neuropathy were significantly more frequent with A+T. Conclusion: As adjuvant treatment of HER2-negative breast cancer, sequential A+T regimen was associated with increased risk of toxicities and no clear survival benefit as compared to 6 cycles of TC. Higher-risk patients may benefit the most from A+T, whilst TC may be an efficacious and less toxic alternative for lower-risk patients.SCOPUS: re.jDecretOANoAutActifinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe
Slow+Design as sustainable sensoriality: an innovative approch aimed to explore the new relationships among design, innovation and sustainability
No full textA partir de la experiencia de Slow Food y su éxito internacional, el autor, junto con Giacomo Mojoli (ex vicepresidente de Slow Food) comienza a cuestionar el transferimento del enfoque slow en la práctica del diseño.
Esto significa discutir si puede y cómo puede el diseño contribuir al campo de los sistemas y dirigir las transformaciones en curso hacia formas sostenibles de vivir y producir. La expresión Sensorialidad Sostenible quiere combinar ambos mundos de sensorialidad y sostenibilidad, dimensiones conceptuales y operacionales del diseño, pero profundamente practicadas en las actividades de los autores como arquitecto y diseñador, y explicitada en muchas prácticas de enseñanza y en muchos casos de estudio de diseño. Starting from the Slow Food experience and its international success, the author, together with Giacomo Mojoli (former vicepresident of Slow Food) starts to question about the trasfer of the slow approach into design practice.
This means discussing whether and how design can contribute in the field of systems and steer the transformations underway towards sustainable ways of living and producing. The Sustainable Sensoriality expression wants to combine both worlds of sensoriality and sustainability, conceptual and operational dimensions of design, but deeply practiced into the authors’s activities as architect and designer and explicited in many teaching practices and design case histories.A partir da experiência do Slow Food e seu sucesso internacional, o autor, juntamente com Giacomo Mojoli (ex-vice-presidente do Slow Food) começa a questionar a abordagem slow na prática do design. Isto significa que discutir se o design pode e como pode contribuir para a área de sistemas e direcionar as transformações em curso produzindo modos de vida sustentáveis. O termo Sensorialidade Sustentável quer combinar os mundos da sensualidade e da sustentabilidade, dimensões conceptuais e operacionais do design, mas profundamente praticada nas atividades dos autores como arquiteto e designer, e explicitada em muitas práticas de ensino e em muitos casos estúdio de design
Health Issues of Primary School Students Residing in Proximity of an Oil Terminal with Environmental Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds
No full textResidential proximity to industrial sites has been associated with adverse effects on human health. Children are more susceptible to airborne environmental exposure because their immune and respiratory systems are still developing. This study aimed to investigate whether living close to an oil terminal in Genoa where there is higher VOCs exposure is associated with an increased rate of school absenteeism because of disease in primary school children. Five schools were chosen for the recruitment of children and students residing in the industrial site (A) were compared to those living in residential sites (B). Sixty-six of the 407 students involved in the project were also selected for VOC monitoring. Source apportionment was carried out by comparing profiles of VOCs; principal component analysis was performed to study the correlation between profiles, and Kriging interpolation model was used to extend profiles to all participants. The concentration means of total VOCs were significantly higher in the industrial areas compared to controls. Adjusting for potential confounders, children who lived in area A had a significantly higher risk of being absent from school due to sore throat, cough, and cold compared to controls. o-Xylene, which is dispersed during the industrial activity, showed clear evidence of a significant association with respiratory symptoms
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