IMPORTANCE Early identification of children on the autism spectrum is crucial to facilitate access to early supports and services for children and families. The need for improved early autism identification tools is highlighted by the lack of sufficient diagnostic accuracy in current tools.
OBJECTIVES To examine the diagnostic accuracy of the Social Attention and CommunicationSurveillance-Revised (SACS-R) and SACS-Preschool (SACS-PR) tools when used with a large, community-based, convenience sample and identify the prevalence of autism in this sample.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This diagnostic accuracy study was conducted inMelbourne, Australia, training maternal and child health nurses who monitored 13 511 children aged 11 to 42 months using the SACS-R and SACS-PR during their routine consultations (June 1, 2013, to July 31, 2018). Children identified as being at high likelihood for autism (12-24 months of age: n = 327; 42 months of age: n = 168) and at low likelihood for autism plus concerns (42 months of age: n = 28) were referred by their maternal and child health nurse for diagnostic assessment by the study team.
The severity of allergic rhinitis is typically measured by TSS, scored on a Likert scale (0-3). However, VAS are increasingly being used in clinical trials. In the present study, we evaluated the correlation between an overall allergy symptoms VAS (0-100 mm) and TSS of allergic rhinitis subjects in the EEC over separate visits. METHODS: A total of 78 subjects with allergic rhinitis were exposed to ragweed allergen in the EEC and subsequently every 13 (+5) days thereafter for a total of 3 visits. During the EEC visits, subjects recorded their individual nasal and ocular symptoms to achieve a TSS as well as their overall allergy symptoms on a VAS using an electronic diary (ePDAT Ò) prior to EEC entry and every 30 minutes over a 2 hour period. RESULTS: Both TSS and VAS increased and peaked over time showing similar trends between all 3 visits. The average TSS and VAS showed a highly positive correlation at all 3 visits (Visit 1: r 5 0.7765, Visit 2: r 5 0.6433, Visit 3: r 5 0.7316, all p-values < 0.0001). When the correlation between TSS and VAS scores were analyzed over time, once again, high correlations were seen (Visit 1: r 5 0.9948, Visit 2: r 5 0.9873, Visit 3: r 5 0.9863, all p-values < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that VAS can also be used as an alternative to total scores of individual nasal and ocular symptom scores symptoms correlating with disease severity and detecting symptom variation in allergic rhinitis individuals.
Biomarkers of potential harm (BoPH) are indicators of biological perturbations which may contribute to the pathophysiology of disease. In this review, we critically assessed the published data on lung-related BoPH in human lung disease for potential use in evaluating the effects of tobacco and nicotine products. A Scopus literature search was conducted on lung disease biomarkers used in a clinical setting over the last 10 years. We identified 1171 papers which were further screened using commercial software (Sciome SWIFT-Active Screener) giving 68 publications that met our inclusion criteria (data on the association of the biomarker with cigarette smoking, the impact of smoking cessation on the biomarker, and differences between smokers and non-smokers), the majority of which investigated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Several physiological and biochemical measures were identified that are potentially relevant for evaluating the impact of tobacco products on lung health. Promising new candidates included blood biomarkers, such as surfactant protein D (SP-D), soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE), skin autofluorescence (SAF), and imaging techniques. These biomarkers may provide insights into lung disease development and progression; however, all require further research and validation to confirm their role in the context of tobacco and nicotine exposure, their time course of development and ability to measure or predict disease progression.
RATIONALE: The severity of allergic rhinitis is typically measured by TSS, scored on a Likert scale (0-3). However, VAS are increasingly being used in clinical trials. In the present study, we evaluated the correlation between an overall allergy symptoms VAS (0-100 mm) and TSS of allergic rhinitis subjects in the EEC over separate visits. METHODS: A total of 78 subjects with allergic rhinitis were exposed to ragweed allergen in the EEC and subsequently every 13 (+5) days thereafter for a total of 3 visits. During the EEC visits, subjects recorded their individual nasal and ocular symptoms to achieve a TSS as well as their overall allergy symptoms on a VAS using an electronic diary (ePDAT Ò ) prior to EEC entry and every 30 minutes over a 2 hour period. RESULTS: Both TSS and VAS increased and peaked over time showing similar trends between all 3 visits. The average TSS and VAS showed a highly positive correlation at all 3 visits (Visit 1: r 5 0.7765, Visit 2: r 5 0.6433, Visit 3: r 5 0.7316, all p-values < 0.0001). When the correlation between TSS and VAS scores were analyzed over time, once again, high correlations were seen (Visit 1: r 5 0.9948, Visit 2: r 5 0.9873, Visit 3: r 5 0.9863, all p-values < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that VAS can also be used as an alternative to total scores of individual nasal and ocular symptom scores symptoms correlating with disease severity and detecting symptom variation in allergic rhinitis individuals.
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