Assessing normative cut points through differential item functioning analysis: An example from the adaptation of the Middlesex Elderly Assessment of Mental State (MEAMS) for use as a cognitive screening test in Turkey

BACKGROUND: The Middlesex Elderly Assessment of Mental State (MEAMS) was developed as a screening test to detect cognitive impairment in the elderly. It includes 12 subtests, each having a 'pass score'. A series of tasks were undertaken to adapt the measure for use in the adult population in Turkey and to determine the validity of existing cut points for passing subtests, given the wide range of educational level in the Turkish population. This study focuses on identifying and validating the scoring system of the MEAMS for Turkish adult population. METHODS: After the translation procedure, 350 normal subjects and 158 acquired brain injury patients were assessed by the Turkish version of MEAMS. Initially, appropriate pass scores for the normal population were determined through ANOVA post-hoc tests according to age, gender and education. Rasch analysis was then used to test the internal construct validity of the scale and the validity of the cut points for pass scores on the pooled data by using Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analysis within the framework of the Rasch model. RESULTS: Data with the initially modified pass scores were analyzed. DIF was found for certain subtests by age and education, but not for gender. Following this, pass scores were further adjusted and data re-fitted to the model. All subtests were found to fit the Rasch model (mean item fit 0.184, SD 0.319; person fit -0.224, SD 0.557) and DIF was then found to be absent. Thus the final pass scores for all subtests were determined. CONCLUSION: The MEAMS offers a valid assessment of cognitive state for the adult Turkish population, and the revised cut points accommodate for age and education. Further studies are required to ascertain the validity in different diagnostic groups

Sidi Rahman Oil Discovery in Egypt A Big Exploration Step in an Area of Lost Interest

Pretvaranje nezanimljivog područja, uključujući brojne neuspjele bušotine, u naftno privlačno područje je izazov s kojim se suočuje istraživanje kada se obavlja na području koji su drugi napustili, a na kraju se ipak pronađu nove rezerve ugljikovodika. Od vremena prvog otkrića u doba Prvog svjetskog rata, otkrivena su brojna naftna polja u Egiptu, ali ni jedno nije pronađeno duž 1 200 km mediteranskog obalnog pojasa pa je to područje napušteno kao nezanimljivo za istraživanje. Izgradnja novog konceptualnog geomodela, kakav dosada nije primijenjen, bio je imperativ na putu prema uspjehu. Male obveze u prvoj istražnoj fazi East Yidma koncesije bile su uzrok fokusiranja pažnje na ograničeno područje. Usprkos oskudnosti podataka osmišljen je naftni model. Postojanje velikih prepreka, uključujući minska polja iz drugog svjetskog rata i turističkih lokaliteta duž obale, nije promijenilo odluku da se pažnja usredotoči na sjeverozapadni dio koncesije. Oskudni seizmički podaci i malo prekrivanje bili su razlog za seizmička snimanja specifičnog dizajna, čiji su konačni rezultati potkrijepili i ažurirali prijašnji naftni model. Velika važnost je dana procjeni dvaju potpuno različitih ciljeva istraživanja s maksimalnom razlikom u nivou strukturalnog izdizanja. Bušotina Drazia-1 izabrana je kako bi se ispitalo duboko riftno korito, dok je bušotina Sidi Rahman-1, smještena na kraju jednog starog seizmičkog profila, imala za cilj prodrijeti u visoko izdignuti strukturni hrbat. Unatoč rezultatima konvencionalnih tehnika i primjene nekoliko nekonvencionalnih alatki, kao što je akustička spektroskopija, na osnovi kojih je zaključeno da na području Sidi Rahmana postoji mala vjerojatnost pronalaska ugljikovodika, odlučeno je da se ta lokacija ispita. Bušotina Drazia-1 potvrdila je akumulacije nafte zaključno s dubinom 3 901 m (12 800 ft) u baremskom ležištu, dok je u bušotini Sidi Rahman-1 nađena nafta na dosada najmanjoj poznatoj dubini od 1 914 m (6 280 ft) u donjocenomanskom pješčenjaku i 7 produktivnih zona do dubine 3 840 m (12 600 ft). Posljednja Inina otkrića oživjela su zanimanje i privukla investiranje internacionalnih kompanija u egipatski mediteranski obalni pojas.Converting an unattractive area, including numerous failed wells, into an oil attractive area is the challenge facing exploration when applying for an acreage previously relinquished by others, and finally achieving new hydrocarbon reserves. Since the first discovery during World War I (WWI), numerous oil fields were discovered in Egypt but none of them was found along the 1 200 km Mediterranean coastal strip, leaving the area unattractive for exploration. To build a new conceptual geomodel, not applied before, was imperative on the road to success. A small commitment for the first exploration phase of East Yidma Concession has triggered the needs to focus on a restricted area. Despite scarcity of data, a petroleum model has been reached. The presence of tough obstacles, including WWII mine fields and tourist sites along the coast, did not change the decision to focus on northwestern part of the concession. Poor seismic data and coverage was the reason to acquire seismic survey with a specific design, whose final results supported and updated the previously achieved petroleum model. High importance was given to evaluation of two completely separated plays with maximum elevation difference. Drazia-1 well was selected to test a deep rift-trough while Sidi Rahman-1, positioned on a tail of an old seismic line, aimed to penetrate a high stand structural ridge. Despite the results of conventional techniques and some non-conventional tools as acoustic spectroscopy that identified Sidi Rahman area as of low probability, it was decided to test the location. Drazia-1 proved oil accumulation down to 3 901 m (12 800 ft) in Barremian reservoir, while Sidi Rahman-1 tested the shallowest known oil at 1 914 m (6 280 ft) in Lower Cenomanian sandstone and 7 pay-zones down to 3 840 m (12 600 ft). The recent discoveries of INA re-triggered the interest and attracted international companies to invest in Egypt’s Mediterranean coastal strip

Imputation of missing values within WHODAS 2.0 data collected from low back pain patients using the response function approach

Purpose To investigate the impact of missing data and imputation with the response function (RF) approach on bias and precision of disability estimates as well as reliability of scale of WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. Material and methods Data were collected by face-to-face interviews and self-report surveys from 284 respondents with low back pain. Hypothetical datasets were created by using person and item parameters of real data. A simulation study was devised to assess the ability parameters and reliability measures on incomplete and imputed datasets. Rasch model was used to evaluate latent trait levels. Imputation was carried out using the response function method. Results Almost the same level of bias and MSE was reached. While the missing rate increases, the Person separation index slightly reduced, still exceeded 0.94 and Cronbach alpha values have similar mean values of 0.99 with larger variations. After deletion of four items of work or school activities in domain 5, reliability measures reduced the lowest. Conclusion Construct validity is preserved. Problems regarding the compliance of the items with the target group still persist. When researchers encounter missingness in data collected with WHODAS 2.0, the response function can be usefully implemented to impute missing values to improve the reliability of disability level estimates

First light of VLT/HiRISE: High-resolution spectroscopy of young giant exoplanets

A major endeavor of this decade is the direct characterization of young giant exoplanets at high spectral resolution to determine the composition of their atmosphere and infer their formation processes and evolution. Such a goal represents a major challenge owing to their small angular separation and luminosity contrast with respect to their parent stars. Instead of designing and implementing completely new facilities, it has been proposed to leverage the capabilities of existing instruments that offer either high contrast imaging or high dispersion spectroscopy, by coupling them using optical fibers. In this work we present the implementation and first on-sky results of the HiRISE instrument at the very large telescope (VLT), which combines the exoplanet imager SPHERE with the recently upgraded high resolution spectrograph CRIRES using single-mode fibers. The goal of HiRISE is to enable the characterization of known companions in the $H$ band, at a spectral resolution of the order of $R = \lambda/\Delta\lambda = 100\,000$, in a few hours of observing time. We present the main design choices and the technical implementation of the system, which is constituted of three major parts: the fiber injection module inside of SPHERE, the fiber bundle around the telescope, and the fiber extraction module at the entrance of CRIRES. We also detail the specific calibrations required for HiRISE and the operations of the instrument for science observations. Finally, we detail the performance of the system in terms of astrometry, temporal stability, optical aberrations, and transmission, for which we report a peak value of $\sim$3.9% based on sky measurements in median observing conditions. Finally, we report on the first astrophysical detection of HiRISE to illustrate its potential.Comment: 17 pages, 15 figures, 3 tables. Submitted to A&A on 19 September 202

First light of VLT/HiRISE: High-resolution spectroscopy of young giant exoplanets

A major endeavor of this decade is the direct characterization of young giant exoplanets at high spectral resolution to determine the composition of their atmosphere and infer their formation processes and evolution. Such a goal represents a major challenge owing to their small angular separation and luminosity contrast with respect to their parent stars. Instead of designing and implementing completely new facilities, it has been proposed to leverage the capabilities of existing instruments that offer either high-contrast imaging or high-dispersion spectroscopy by coupling them using optical fibers. In this work, we present the implementation and first on-sky results of the High-Resolution Imaging and Spectroscopy of Exoplanets (HiRISE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which combines the exoplanet imager SPHERE with the recently upgraded high-resolution spectrograph CRIRES using single-mode fibers. The goal of HiRISE is to enable the characterization of known companions in the H band at a spectral resolution on the order of R = λ/∆λ = 100 000 in a few hours of observing time. We present the main design choices and the technical implementation of the system, which is constituted of three major parts: the fiber injection module inside of SPHERE, the fiber bundle around the telescope, and the fiber extraction module at the entrance of CRIRES. We also detail the specific calibrations required for HiRISE and the operations of the instrument for science observations. Finally, we detail the performance of the system in terms of astrometry, temporal stability, optical aberrations, and transmission, for which we report a peak value of ~3.9% based on sky measurements in median observing conditions. Finally, we report on the first astrophysical detection of HiRISE to illustrate its potential

Patient-reported outcome measures in osteoarthritis: a systematic search and review of their use and psychometric properties

Introduction: Patient-reported outcome measures (PROM) or self-completed questionnaires have been used to report outcomes in osteoarthritis (OA) for over 35 years. Choices will always need to be made about what should be measured and, if relevant, what would be the most appropriate PROM to use. The current study aims to describe the available PROMs used in OA and their performance quality, so that informed choices can be made about the most appropriate PROM for a particular task. Methods: The study included a systematic search for PROMs that have been in use over 17 years (period 2000-2016), and to catalogue their psychometric properties, and to present the evidence in a user-friendly fashion. Results: 78 PROMs were identified with psychometric evidence available. The domains of pain, self-care, mobility and work dominated, whereas domains such as cleaning and laundry and leisure, together with psychological and contextual factors, were poorly served. The most frequently used PROMs included the Western Ontario McMaster Osteoarthritis Index, the Short Form 36 and the Knee Disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score which, between them, appeared in more than 4000 papers. Most domains had at least one PROM with the highest level of psychometric evidence. Conclusion: A broad range of PROMs are available for measuring OA outcomes. Some have good psychometric evidence, others not so. Some important psychological areas such as self-efficacy were poorly served. The study provides a current baseline for what is available, and identifies the shortfall in key domains if the full biopsychosocial model is to be explored.Pubme