OBJECTIVE To assess the validity, responsiveness, and reliability of single-joint outcome measures for determining target joint (TJ) response in patients with inflammatory arthritis. METHODS Patient-reported outcomes (PRO), consisting of responses to single questions about TJ global status on a 100-mm visual analog scale (VAS; TJ global score), function on a 100-mm VAS (TJ function score), an...

BACKGROUND Volunteer patients (also known as patient partners (PPs)) play a vital role in undergraduate healthcare curricula. They frequently take part in objective structured clinical examinations (OSCE) and rate aspects of students' performance. However, the inclusion and weighting of PP marks varies, while attitudes and opinions regarding how (and if) they should contribute towards the pass/...

BACKGROUND The impact of serum matrix metalloproteinases-9 (MMP-9) on cognitive impairment after ischemic stroke is unclear. We aimed to investigate the association between serum MMP-9 in the short-term acute phase of ischemic stroke and cognitive impairment at 3 months. METHODS AND RESULTS Our study was based on a subsample from the CATIS (China Antihypertensive Trial in Acute Ischemic Strok...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The presence of cerebral microbleeds has been associated with dementia and cognitive decline, although studies report conflicting results. Our aim was to determine the potential role of the presence and location of cerebral microbleeds in early stages of cognitive decline. MATERIALS AND METHODS Baseline 3T MR imaging examinations including SWI sequences of 328 cognitive...

Over recent years UK medical schools have moved to more integrated summative examinations. This paper analyses data from the written assessment of undergraduate medical students to investigate two key psychometric aspects of this type of high stakes assessment. Firstly, the strength of the relationship between examiner predictions of item performance (as required under the Ebel standard setting...

Introduction Core competencies have progressively gained importance in medical education. In other contexts, especially personnel selection and development, assessment centers (ACs) are used to assess competencies, but there is only a limited number of studies on competency-based ACs in medical education. To the best of our knowledge, the present study provides the first data on the criterion-r...

BACKGROUND Avalanches are a significant cause of winter recreational fatalities in mountain regions. The purpose of this study was to determine the relative contributions of trauma and asphyxia to avalanche deaths. METHODS We reviewed all avalanche fatalities between 1984 and 2005 that had been investigated by the offices of the British Columbia Coroners Service and the Chief Medical Examiner...

OBJECTIVE To determine if remote administration of the Unified Batten Disease Rating Scale (UBDRS) Physical Impairment subscale by telemedicine is reliable and feasible across a broad range of disease severity. METHODS For the majority (n = 10) of subjects, the examination was performed by a nonphysician who had been trained to perform the examination but not to score the subjects. A trained ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) is a widely used measure of neurological function in clinical trials and patient assessment; inter-rater scoring variability could impact communications and trial power. The manner in which the rater certification test is scored yields multiple correct answers that have changed over time. We examined the range of poss...