Background INES (INteractive model for Extrapolation of Survival and cost) provides an open-access tool powered by R that implements three-state partitioned survival models (PSM). This article describes the properties of the tool, and the situations where INES may or may not be suitable. Methods INES is designed to be used by investigators or healthcare professionals…
Background Lung cancer is the main cause of cancer mortality worldwide and in Spain. Several previous studies have documented socio-economic inequalities in lung cancer mortality but these have focused on specific provinces or cities. The goal of this study was to describe lung cancer mortality in Spain by sex as a function of socio-economic deprivation.…
Introduction Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is the outer membrane component of Gram-negative bacteria. LPS-binding protein (LBP) is an acute-phase reactant that mediates immune responses triggered by LPS and has been used as a blood marker for LPS. LBP has recently been indicated to be associated with Parkinson’s disease (PD) in small-scale retrospective case–control studies. We aimed to…
Introduction: Patients seeking first time treatment for opioid consumption reflect the characteristics of the consumer population. This group has not been studied in Spain in decades. The objective of this study was to characterize the opioid user population seeking first time treatment (incidents) and compare them group with those with prior treatment (prevalents). Methods: Cross-sectional…
Background Seafood is a major source of vital nutrients for optimal fetal growth, but at the same time is the main source of exposure to methylmercury (MeHg), an established neurodevelopmental toxicant. Pregnant women must be provided with dietary advice so as to include safely fish in their diet for nutrition and mercury control. The aim…
Background: Opioid drug prescription (ODP) and opioid-related mortality (ORM) have increased in Spain. However, their relationship is complex, as ORM is registered without considering the type of opioid (legal or illegal). Objective: This ecological study aimed to examine the correlation between ODP and ORM in Spain and discuss their usefulness as a surveillance tool. Methods:…
Background Most risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) are modifiable, suggesting that the burden of CVD could be substantially reduced through cardiovascular screening and healthier lifestyle. People who have social support are more likely to adhere to cardiovascular prevention recommendations, but it is not clear whether the benefit of social support is equal for men…
Background The Mediterranean diet has been associated with lower risk of breast cancer (BC) but evidence from prospective studies on the role of Mediterranean diet on BC survival remains sparse and conflicting. We aimed to investigate whether adherence to Mediterranean diet prior to diagnosis is associated with overall and BC-specific mortality. Methods A total of…
The main aim of this article is to reflect on the impact of biases related to artificial intelligence (AI) systems developed to tackle issues arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, with special focus on those developed for triage and risk prediction. A secondary aim is to review assessment tools that have been developed to prevent biases…
Background Since the first version of the dietary inflammatory index (DII®) developed in the past decade, several other versions have been developed. However, to date no study has attempted to compare these versions with respect to their associations with biomarkers of inflammation. Objective We aimed to investigate the relationship between four dietary inflammatory scores [DII,…
