665 research outputs found
Small-sample corrections for score tests in Birnbaum-Saunders regressions
In this paper we deal with the issue of performing accurate small-sample
inference in the Birnbaum-Saunders regression model, which can be useful for
modeling lifetime or reliability data. We derive a Bartlett-type correction for
the score test and numerically compare the corrected test with the usual score
test, the likelihood ratio test and its Bartlett-corrected version. Our
simulation results suggest that the corrected test we propose is more reliable
than the other tests.Comment: To appear in the Communications in Statistics - Theory and Methods,
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t71359723
Improved maximum likelihood estimators in a heteroskedastic errors-in-variables model
This paper develops a bias correction scheme for a multivariate
heteroskedastic errors-in-variables model. The applicability of this model is
justified in areas such as astrophysics, epidemiology and analytical chemistry,
where the variables are subject to measurement errors and the variances vary
with the observations. We conduct Monte Carlo simulations to investigate the
performance of the corrected estimators. The numerical results show that the
bias correction scheme yields nearly unbiased estimates. We also give an
application to a real data set.Comment: 12 pages. Statistical Paper
Intracellular processing and presentation of T cell epitopes, expressed by recombinant Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium, to human T cells
Vaccines based on recombinant attenuated bacteria represent a potentially safe and effective immunization strategy. A carrier system was developed to analyze in vitro whether foreign T cell epitopes, inserted in the outer membrane protein PhoE of Escherichia coli and expressed by recombinant bacteria, are efficiently processed and presente
Radiation of parotid or submandibular glands is effective for drooling in patients with parkinsonism:a randomised double-blind placebo-controlled trial
BACKGROUND: Drooling is a common symptom in patients with parkinsonism, causing physical and emotional distress. It is unknown which major salivary glands are the best candidates for irradiation to reduce drooling with minimal adverse events. Therefore, this study assessed the efficacy and safety of submandibular and parotid salivary gland irradiation to reduce drooling. METHODS: A prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at the University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands. After informed consent, 31 patients with parkinsonism and severe drooling according to the Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) were included in this study. Exclusion criteria consisted of the use of anticholinergic drugs, the existence of salivary gland diseases, and/or an history of (pre)malignancies of the salivary glands. Patients were randomized for parotid-, submandibular- or sham irradiation (2x6 Gy with one week interval). Patients were evaluated at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after radiation. Primary outcome measure was drooling severity according to the UPDRS. Secondary outcomes measures consisted of stimulated glandular salivary secretion rates and adverse effects. FINDINGS: Overall 31 parkinsonian patients were included. Initially 11 patients were radiated on the parotid glands, 10 patients on the submandibular glands and 10 patients were sham-radiated. After 6 months, the sham-radiated patients were actively treated after a second randomisation. One patient in the parotid radiation group discontinued his participation after three months due to physical deterioration. Radiation of parotid or submandibular glands significantly improved the existing drooling, as compared to placebo radiation. Parotid- and submandibular radiation was equally effective, but more patients in the submandibular radiated group reported sticky saliva vs. patients treated by parotid radiation (33∙33% vs. 13∙33%). INTERPRETATION: Major salivary gland radiation significantly improves drooling in parkinsonian patients with few adverse effects. However, parotid gland radiation is accompanied by fewer side effects and therefore is the preferred mode of radiation in this patient population
Low Satisfaction with Normative Life Domains in Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa
OBJECTIVE: Low satisfaction with normative life domains might be an important factor in the persistence of anorexia nervosa (AN). Initial evidence in non‐clinical samples showed that lower satisfaction with normative life domains was related to more intense eating disorder symptoms. As a critical next step, the current study examined satisfaction with normative life domains in a clinical sample. Specifically, the present study tested whether adolescents with AN reported lower satisfaction with normative life domains than adolescents without an eating disorder. METHOD: Adolescents with AN (n = 69) and adolescents without an eating disorder matched on age, gender and educational level (n = 69) completed the Brief Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale to assess satisfaction with five life domains (family, friendships, school, self and living location) and life in general. RESULTS: Adolescents with AN reported significantly lower satisfaction with normative life domains than the comparison group. Subsequent analyses showed that this overall group difference was primarily driven by adolescents with AN reporting lower satisfaction with the self, school experience and life in general. CONCLUSIONS: Findings supported the hypothesis that adolescents with AN show relatively low satisfaction with meaningful, non‐AN‐related life domains. This points to the potential relevance of enhancing satisfaction with specific life domains to optimize treatment effectiveness
Satisfaction with normative life domains and the course of anorexia nervosa
OBJECTIVE: Satisfaction with normative life domains has been proposed as an important factor in the persistence of anorexia nervosa (AN). Initial evidence from a cross-sectional study indicated that individuals with AN reported lower satisfaction with normative life domains than individuals without an eating disorder. As an important next step in understanding causal relations, the present study used a longitudinal design to examine whether an improvement in AN symptoms is paralleled by an increase in satisfaction with normative life domains from baseline to follow-up and whether relatively low satisfaction with normative life domains at baseline is related to less improvement in AN symptoms. METHODS: During baseline and at 1-year follow-up, adolescents with AN (N = 69) completed the Brief Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale to measure satisfaction with normative life domains (e.g., friendships, school experience). Furthermore, eating disorder symptoms and BMI were measured. RESULTS: Improvement in eating disorder symptoms, but not in BMI, was paralleled by an increase in satisfaction with normative life domains. Relatively low satisfaction with normative life domains at baseline was not prospectively related to less improvement in eating disorder symptoms or BMI at follow-up. DISCUSSION: Our findings provide initial evidence that satisfaction with normative life domains is a malleable factor which fluctuates with symptom severity in AN. The results of this exploratory study point to the relevance of examining whether targeting satisfactory engagement with specific life domains optimizes treatment effectiveness. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: We explored whether an improvement in anorexia nervosa symptoms from start of treatment to 1-year follow-up would be paralleled by an increase in satisfaction with normative life domains. Improvement in eating disorder symptoms (but not BMI) was indeed related to a concurrent increase in satisfaction with normative life domains. These preliminary results point to the promising possibility that targeting satisfactory engagement with specific life domains may potentially enhance treatment effectiveness
Size and power properties of some tests in the Birnbaum-Saunders regression model
The Birnbaum-Saunders distribution has been used quite effectively to model
times to failure for materials subject to fatigue and for modeling lifetime
data. In this paper we obtain asymptotic expansions, up to order and
under a sequence of Pitman alternatives, for the nonnull distribution functions
of the likelihood ratio, Wald, score and gradient test statistics in the
Birnbaum-Saunders regression model. The asymptotic distributions of all four
statistics are obtained for testing a subset of regression parameters and for
testing the shape parameter. Monte Carlo simulation is presented in order to
compare the finite-sample performance of these tests. We also present an
empirical application.Comment: Paper submitted for publication, with 13 pages and 1 figur
Testing hypotheses in the Birnbaum-Saunders distribution under type-II censored samples
The two-parameter Birnbaum-Saunders distribution has been used succesfully to
model fatigue failure times. Although censoring is typical in reliability and
survival studies, little work has been published on the analysis of censored
data for this distribution. In this paper, we address the issue of performing
testing inference on the two parameters of the Birnbaum-Saunders distribution
under type-II right censored samples. The likelihood ratio statistic and a
recently proposed statistic, the gradient statistic, provide a convenient
framework for statistical inference in such a case, since they do not require
to obtain, estimate or invert an information matrix, which is an advantage in
problems involving censored data. An extensive Monte Carlo simulation study is
carried out in order to investigate and compare the finite sample performance
of the likelihood ratio and the gradient tests. Our numerical results show
evidence that the gradient test should be preferred. Three empirical
applications are presented.Comment: Submitted for publicatio
Genetic analysis of juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) off Oregon and Washington reveals few Columbia River wild fish
Little is known about the ocean distributions of wild juvenile coho salmon off the Oregon-Washington coast. In this study we report tag recoveries and genetic mixed-stock estimates of juvenile fish caught in coastal waters near the Columbia River plume. To support the genetic estimates, we report an allozyme-frequency baseline for 89 wild and hatchery-reared coho salmon spawning populations, extending from northern California to southern British Columbia. The products of 59 allozyme-encoding loci were examined with
starch-gel electrophoresis. Of these, 56 loci were polymorphic, and 29 loci had P0.95 levels of polymorphism. Average heterozygosities within populations ranged from 0.021 to 0.046 and averaged 0.033. Multidimensional scaling of chord genetic distances between samples resolved nine regional groups that were sufficiently distinct for genetic
mixed-stock analysis. About 2.9% of the total gene diversity was due to differences among populations within these regions, and 2.6% was due to differences among the nine regions. This allele-frequency data base was used to estimate the stock proportions of 730 juvenile coho salmon in offshore samples collected from central Oregon to northern Washington in June and September-October 1998−2000. Genetic mixed-stock analysis, together with recoveries of tagged or fin-clipped fish, indicates that about one half of the juveniles came from Columbia River hatcheries. Only 22% of the ocean-caught juveniles were wild fish, originating largely from coastal Oregon and Washington rivers (about 20%). Unlike previous studies of tagged juveniles, both tag recoveries and genetic estimates indicate the presence of fish from British Columbia and
Puget Sound in southern waters. The most salient feature of genetic mixed stock estimates was the paucity of wild
juveniles from natural populations in the Columbia River Basin. This result reflects the large decrease in the abundances of these populations in the last few decades
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