Impact of different scoring algorithms applied to multiple-mark survey items on outcome assessment: an in-field study on health-related knowledge.

Introduction. Health-related knowledge is often assessed through multiple-choice tests. Among the different types of formats, researchers may opt to use multiple-mark items, i.e. with more than one correct answer. Although multiple-mark items have long been used in the academic setting â sometimes with scant or inconclusive results â little is known about the implementation of this format in research on in-field health education and promotion.Methods. A study population of secondary school students completed a survey on nutrition-related knowledge, followed by a single-lecture intervention. Answers were scored by means of eight different scoring algorithms and analyzed from the perspective of classical test theory. The same survey was re-administered to a sample of the students in order to evaluate the short-term change in their knowledge.Results. In all, 286 questionnaires were analyzed. Partial scoring algorithms displayed better psychometric characteristics than the dichotomous rule. A penalizing algorithm in which the proportion of marked distracters was subtracted from that of marked correct answers was the only one that highlighted a significant difference in performance between natives and immigrants, probably owing to its slightly better discriminatory ability. This algorithm was also associated with the largest effect size in the pre-/post-intervention score change.Discussion. The choice of an appropriate rule for scoring multiple-mark items in research on health education and promotion should consider not only the psychometric properties of single algorithms but also the study aims and outcomes, since scoring rules differ in terms of biasness, reliability, difficulty, sensitivity to guessing and discrimination

Phytoindication approach to assessing factors determining the habitat preferences of red deer (Cervus elaphus)

The study examined the possibility of using the phytoindication technique to describe habitat preferences of red deer in a relatively homogeneous area. Two alternative hypotheses were tested. Hypothesis 1 suggests that the relationship between red deer and vegetation is due to a trophic factor, so preferences for individual plant species cause vegetation to influence the distribution of animal numbers. Hypothesis 2 suggests that environmental factors influence vegetation, structuring and determining the productive level of the community as a whole. Therefore, environmental factors, rather than individual plant species, cause vegetation-animal interactions. The research was conducted on Biryuchiy Island Spit, where the Azov-Sivash National Nature Park is located. The geobotanical surveys were performed in three types of ecosystems: sandy steppe (vegetation class Festucetea vaginatae), saline meadows (vegetation class Festuco–Puccinellietea), and artificial forest plantation (vegetation class Robinietea). 250 releves were recorded according to the Brown-Blanquet approach. The number of fecal pellets and the number of groups of pellets of red deer was recorded together with geobotanical surveys in the same sample plots. The pellet groups counted in the field were converted to deer densities in specific vegetation classes taking into account the number of pellet groups on the site and the decay rate of the fecal pellets. The vegetation types were distinguished by the number of deer fecal pellets per unit area. The highest number of fecal pellets was found for the plant class Festucetea vaginatae, somewhat fewer fecal pellets were in the plant class Robinietea, and the lowest number was in the plant class Festuco-Puccinellietea. A geometric distribution model is adequate for explaining the experimental data on the number of fecal pellets. A total of 59 species of flowering plants were found. Based on the species composition and projective cover of species, the ecological regimes of ecotopes were identified by phytoindication. The correspondence analysis of the vegetation revealed two ordination axes. The ordination axis 1 (CA1) was able to explain 11.3% of community inertia, and the ordination axis 2 (CA2) was able to explain 5.2% of community inertia. The maximum excretory activity of animals was recorded for the central part of the ordination space, indicating the presence of an optimum zone in the gradient of environmental factors that structure plant communities. The forward selection procedure allowed the Nutrients Availability variable to be selected as the most important variable to explain variation in the plant community structure. The number of deer fecal pellets exhibited different patterns of response in the Nutrients Availability gradient. The response within the plant class Festucetea vaginatae could best be explained by Model III from the list of HOF-models. The response of the excretory activity of deer within the class Festuco-Puccinellietea could best be fitted by the model IV, which represents a symmetric Gaussian curve. The response of excretory activity in the Robinietea vegetation class was asymmetrical bimodal. The ecological properties of the red deer ecological niche in both the drier and less mineralized part of the range of ecological conditions and the wetter and more mineralized part should be assessed in the context of the prospects for future studies

Ligophorus pilengas n. sp. (monogenea: ancyrocephalidae) from the introduced so-iuy mullet, mugil soiuy (teleostei: mugilidae), in the sea of Azov and the Black sea

The monogenean Ligophorus chabaudi was originally described on the gills of the flathead mullet, Mugil cephalus, and was subsequently reported on the So-iuy mullet, Mugil soiuy. However, the morphology of sclerotized parts and multivariate statistical analyses suggest that the form from the So-iuy mullet represents a new species. This study provides a description of the new species Ligophorus pilengas n. sp. and provides additional morphological data concerning the morphology of the ventral bar that might be useful for the diagnosis of Ligophorus. Ligophorus pilengas n. sp. is the second species of Ligophorus reported on the So-iuy mullet. Zoogeographical records indicate that L. pilengas n. sp. was probably introduced to the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov from the western Pacific Ocean together with its host.Balbuena Diaz-Pines, Juan Antonio, [email protected]

Communication strategy during the A/H1N1v influenza pandemic in Italy

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CORRELATES OF PROTECTION AND HOST-RELATED MODIFIERS OF THE IMMUNOGENICITY OF INFLUENZA VACCINES: EVIDENCE MAPS AND EVIDENCE GAPS

Seasonal influenza is the leading infectious disease in terms of its health and socioeconomic impact. Annual immunization is the most efficient way to reduce this burden. To be clinically effective, influenza vaccines must be immunogenic, and several immunological assays to test their immunogenicity have been developed. The overall aim of this PhD thesis is to provide the principal stakeholders (including scientists, healthcare professionals, policy-makers, pharmaceutical industry, etc.) with stateof-the-art knowledge and practices related to influenza vaccine-induced immunogenicity. To achieve this aim, we developed a novel empirical approach that incorporated some modern techniques, including, for example, evidence mapping. Basically, this thesis is composed of three main domains. In the introductory part, we will briefly cover the topics of influenza disease, influenza vaccination, the immunogenicity measurements of influenza vaccines and their correlates of protection. The second part, which is the core of the present project, is composed of two original case studies. The first study aimed to describe the patterns of use of the various immunological assays available to measure the influenza vaccine-induced adaptive immune response and to determine its correlates of protection. For this purpose, we analyzed 1,164 phase I–IV studies that enrolled a total of 754,935 subjects. Of the studies included in our analysis, 76.5% measured only the humoral immune response. Among these, the hemagglutination-inhibition assay was by far the most widely used. Other, less common, humoral immune response assays were: virus neutralization (21.7%), enzyme-linked immunosorbent (10.1%), single radial hemolysis (4.6%) and assays able to quantify antineuraminidase antibodies (1.7%). By contrast, cell-mediated immunity was quantified in only 23.5% of studies. Several variables were significantly (P < .05) associated with the use of single assays. Specifically, some influenza vaccine types (e.g. adjuvanted, live attenuated and cell culture-derived or recombinant), study phase and study sponsorship pattern were usually found to be statistically significant predictors. In the second study, we went further by systematically analyzing host-related factors able to modify influenza vaccine-induced immunogenicity. To this end, a total of 28 systematic reviews/meta-analyses (with thousands of participants) were analyzed. These covered the following domains: intravenous drug use, psychological stress, acute and chronic physical exercise, genetic polymorphisms, use of pre-/pro-/symbiotics, previous Bacillus Calmette–Guérin vaccination, diabetes mellitus, vitamin D supplementation/deficiency, latent cytomegalovirus infection and various forms of immunosuppression. In order to present effect sizes on the same scale, all meta-analyses were re-performed, whenever possible, and cumulative evidence synthesis ranking was carried out. Meta-analysis was conducted separately on each health condition category and virus (sub)type. A total of 295 meta-analyses were re-performed/performed ex novo; of these, 97 pooled estimates were used in order to construct an evidence-based stakeholder-friendly map. Finally, we discussed the principal findings, made some suggestions from the point of view of the various stakeholders and proposed a novel immunogenicity pathway

Vaccination against Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE) in Italy: Still a Long Way to Go

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is endemic in several European countries, and its incidence has recently increased. Various factors may explain this phenomenon: social factors (changes in human behavior, duration and type of leisure activities and increased tourism in European high-risk areas), ecological factors (e.g., effects of climate change on the tick population and reservoir animals), and technological factors (improved diagnostics, increased medical awareness). Furthermore, the real burden of TBE is not completely known, as the performance of surveillance systems is suboptimal and cases of disease are under-reported in several areas. Given the potentially severe clinical course of the disease, the absence of any antiviral therapy, and the impossibility of interrupting the transmission of the virus in nature, vaccination is the mainstay of prevention and control. TBE vaccines are effective (protective effect of approximately 95% after completion of the basic vaccination\u2014three doses) and well tolerated. However, their uptake in endemic areas is suboptimal. In the main endemic countries where vaccination is included in the national/regional immunization program (with reimbursed vaccination programs), this decision was driven by a cost-effectiveness assessment (CEA), which is a helpful tool in the decision-making process. All CEA studies conducted have demonstrated the cost-effectiveness of TBE vaccination. Unfortunately, CEA is still lacking in many endemic countries, including Italy. In the future, it will be necessary to fill this gap in order to introduce an effective vaccination strategy in endemic areas. Finally, raising awareness of TBE, its consequences and the benefit of vaccination is critical in order to increase vaccination coverage and reduce the burden of the disease

Позааудиторна робота як спосіб навчання аудіювання

The article is devoted to extra-curriculum work as one of the means in teaching listening. Certain definitions of extra-curriculum work and a receptive type of the communicative activity – listening are given. The functions of extra- curriculum work and speech mechanisms for implement ing students’ communicative skills in the process of listening in social and cultural spheres as well as in the sphere of daily communication are examined in the article.Стаття присвячена позааудиторній роботі як одному із способів навчання аудіювання. Подано визначення понять позааудиторної роботи та рецептивного виду мовленнєвої діяльності – аудіювання. Розглядаються функції позааудиторної роботи та мовні механізми, що допомагають реалізувати комунікативні потреби студентів у аудіюванні в соціально-культурній сфері та у сфері повсякденного спілкування

Mapping host-related correlates of influenza vaccine-induced immune response: An umbrella review of the available systematic reviews and meta-analyses

Seasonal influenza is the leading infectious disease in terms of its health and socioeconomic impact. Annual immunization is the most efficient way to reduce this burden. Several correlates of influenza vaccine-induced protection are commonly used, owing to their ready availability and cheapness. Influenza vaccine-induced immunogenicity is a function of host-, virus-and vaccine-related factors. Host-related factors constitute the most heterogeneous group. The objective of this study was to analyze the available systematic evidence on the host factors able to modify influenza vaccine-induced immunogenicity. An umbrella review approach was undertaken. A total of 28 systematic reviews/meta-analyses were analyzed—these covered the following domains: intravenous drug use, psychological stress, acute and chronic physical exercise, genetic polymorphisms, use of pre-/pro-/symbiotics, previous Bacillus Calmette–Guérin vaccination, diabetes mellitus, vitamin D supplementation/deficiency, latent cytomegalovirus infection and various forms of immunosuppression. In order to present effect sizes on the same scale, all possible meta-analyses were re-performed and cumulative evidence synthesis ranking was carried out. The meta-analysis was conducted separately on each health condition category and virus (sub)type. A total of 97 pooled estimates were used in order to construct an evidence-based stakeholder-friendly map. The principal public health implications are discussed

Assessing spatial inequalities in accessing community pharmacies: a mixed geographically weighted approach

Geographical accessibility is an important determinant for the utilisation of community pharmacies. The present study explored patterns of spatial accessibility with respect to pharmacies in Liguria, Italy, a region with particular geographical and demographic features. Municipal density of pharmacies was proxied as the number of pharmacies per capita and per km2, and spatial autocorrelation analysis was performed to identify spatial clusters. Both non-spatial and spatial models were constructed to predict the study outcome. Spatial autocorrelation analysis showed a highly significant clustered pattern in the density of pharmacies per capita (I=0.082) and per km2 (I=0.295). Potentially under-supplied areas were mostly located in the mountainous hinterland. Ordinary least-squares (OLS) regressions established a significant positive relationship between the density of pharmacies and income among municipalities located at high altitudes, while no such association was observed in lower-lying areas. However, residuals of the OLS models were spatially auto-correlated. The best-fitting mixed geographically weighted regression (GWR) models outperformed the corresponding OLS models. Pharmacies per capita were best predicted by two local predictors (altitude and proportion of immigrants) and two global ones (proportion of elderly residents and income), while the local terms population, mean altitude and rural status and the global term income functioned as independent variables predicting pharmacies per km2. The density of pharmacies in Liguria was found to be associated with both socio-economic and landscape factors. Mapping of mixed GWR results would be helpful to policy-makers