OBJECTIVE Quality measures of glycemic control using threshold values do not assess incremental quality improvement. We compared health care system performance using weighted continuous versus dichotomous measures for glycemic control. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We performed retrospective cross-sectional analysis of chart abstraction data on 37,142 diabetic patients from 141 Veterans Health ...

Results A reduced odds ratio (OR) related to ever having been a regular mobile phone user was seen for glioma [OR 0.81; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.70–0.94] and meningioma (OR 0.79; 95% CI 0.68–0.91), possibly reflecting participation bias or other methodological limitations. No elevated OR was observed 510 years after first phone use (glioma: OR 0.98; 95% CI 0.76–1.26; meningioma: OR 0.83; ...

the level of ecomomic (income or expenditure) inequality in khorasan province has been unknown. this paper tries to estimate and compare the trends of expenditure (income) inequality in khorasan province and the whole iran during 1971-2001 in two categories of urban and rural regions. for this purpose, inequality indices (gini coefficient and income deciles) were estimated parametrically. the r...

BACKGROUND Plant-based diets have been recommended to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, not all plant foods are necessarily beneficial. We examined the association of an overall plant-based diet and hypothesized healthful and unhealthful versions of a plant-based diet with T2D incidence in three prospective cohort studies in the US. METHODS AND FINDINGS We included 69,949 wom...

BACKGROUND Mortality prediction models generally require clinical data or are derived from information coded at discharge, limiting adjustment for presenting severity of illness in observational studies using administrative data. OBJECTIVES To develop and validate a mortality prediction model using administrative data available in the first 2 hospital days. RESEARCH DESIGN After dividing th...

BACKGROUND A single composite measure calculated from individual quality indicators (QIs) is a useful measure of hospital performance and can be justified conceptually even when the indicators are not highly correlated with one another. OBJECTIVE To compare 2 basic approaches for calculating a composite measure: an extension of the most widely-used approach, which weights individual indicator...

Aims. This study aimed to evaluate the associations of diabetic retinopathy (DR) with fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-hour postload plasma glucose (2hPG), and glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in a Chinese population. Materials and Methods. A total of 3124 participants, identified from a population-based survey in Pinggu district, were examined by retinal photography (45°). DR was classified acco...

Background & Aims of the Study:  Occupational stress is one of the most common problems that can occur in any occupational population and can cause problems for the individual mental health.  Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the relation between occupational stress and psychological distress in Isfahan’s steel employees. Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional study was co...

We study the distributional consequences of student debt forgiveness in present value terms, accounting for differences repayment behavior across earnings distribution. Full or partial is regressive because high earners took larger loans, but also because, low earners, balances greatly overstate benefits cancellation. Consequently, would benefit top decile as much bottom three deciles combined....