World Journal of Methodology

BACKGROUND: The occurrence of thyroid cancer (TC) has increased in recent decades. Exposure to outdoor artificial light at night (ALN) is associated with an increased risk of cancer. AIM: To investigated the impact of ALN, as a significant environmental pollutant, on TC incidence worldwide. METHODS: The assessment involved analyzing satellite ALN data in conjunction with TC incidence data [adjusted standardized rate (ASR)], while considering the quality of cancer registries (QCR), gross domestic product (GDP) per person, and health expenditure per person (HEP) for each country...

BACKGROUND: The authors describe a technique for building an alternative jawbone phantom using dental gypsum and rice for research and dental radiology instruction. AIM: To investigate the potential of an alternative phantom to simulate the trabecular bone aspect of the human maxilla in periapical radiographs. METHODS: Half-maxillary phantoms built from gypsum-ground rice were exposed to X-rays, and the resulting images (experimental group) were compared to standardized radiographic images produced from dry human maxillary bone (control group) ( n = 7)...

Systemic hypertension is an established risk factor for coronary artery disease and cerebrovascular accident and control of blood pressure reduces the risk of a major cardiovascular event. Both non-pharmacological and pharmacological treatment options are available to treat hypertension. Yoga, recently received more attention as a treatment modality for various lifestyle disorders, even though practiced in India since ancient times. In this review, we are analyzing the role of yoga in the treatment of systemic hypertension...

In this editorial we comment on the article published by Ning et al , "Role of exosomes in metastasis and therapeutic resistance in esophageal cancer". Esophageal cancer (EC) represents a significant global health concern, being the seventh most common and sixth in terms of mortality worldwide. Despite the advances in therapeutic modalities, the management of patients with EC remains challenging, with a 5-year survival rate of only 25% and a limited eligibility for curative surgery due to its late diagnosis...

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have long been recognized as the gold standard for establishing causal relationships in clinical research. Despite that, various limitations of RCTs prevent its widespread implementation, ranging from the ethicality of withholding potentially-lifesaving treatment from a group to relatively poor external validity due to stringent inclusion criteria, amongst others. However, with the introduction of propensity score matching (PSM) as a retrospective statistical tool, new frontiers in establishing causation in clinical research were opened up...

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) represents a major public health issue which affects millions of people globally and consist a chronic relapsing condition associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. The gut microbiome plays a crucial role in maintaining overall health and has emerged as a significant contributor to the pathophysiology of various psychiatric disorders. Recent evidence suggests that the gut microbiome is intimately linked to the development and progression of AUD, with alcohol consumption directly impacting its composition and function...

BACKGROUND: The surgeon performing a distal gastrectomy, has an arsenal of reconstruction techniques at his disposal, Billroth II among them. Braun anastomosis performed during a Billroth II procedure has shown evidence of superiority over typical Billroth II, in terms of survival, with no impact on postoperative morbidity and mortality. AIM: To compare Billroth II vs Billroth II and Braun following distal gastrectomy, regarding their postoperative course. METHODS: Patients who underwent distal gastrectomy during 2002-2021, were separated into two groups, depending on the surgical technique used (Billroth II: 74 patients and Billroth II and Braun: 28 patients)...

BACKGROUND: Selecting the optimal size of components is crucial when performing a primary total hip arthroplasty. Implanting the accurate size of the acetabular component can occasionally be exacting, chiefly for surgeons with little experience, whilst the complications of imprecise acetabular sizing or over-reaming can be potentially devastating. AIM: To assist clinicians intraoperatively with a simple and repeatable tip in elucidating the ambivalence when determining the proper acetabular component size is not straightforwardly achieved, specifically when surgeons are inexperienced or preoperative templating is unavailable...

The Human Microbiome Project, Earth Microbiome Project, and next-generation sequencing have advanced novel genome association, host genetic linkages, and pathogen identification. The microbiome is the sum of the microbes, their genetic information, and their ecological niche. This study will describe how millions of bacteria in the gut affect the human body in health and disease. The gut microbiome changes in relation with age, with an increase in Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes . Host and environmental factors affecting the gut microbiome are diet, drugs, age, smoking, exercise, and host genetics...

BACKGROUND: Excessive saturated fat intake compromises the integrity of the intestinal mucosa, leading to low-grade inflammation, impaired mucosal integrity, and increased intestinal permeability, resulting in the migration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to other tissues. AIM: To evaluate the chronic effects (at 10 and 16 wk) of a high-fat diet (HFD) (with 50% energy as fat) on the phylogenetic gut microbiota distribution and intestinal barrier structure and protection in C57BL/6 mice...

BACKGROUND: It was reported that rikkunshito (TJ-43) improved the cisplatin-induced decreases in the active form of ghrelin in plasma; however, other effects on gastrointestinal hormones have not been investigated. AIM: To investigate the effects of TJ-43 on peripheral levels of incretin hormones, including gastric inhibitory polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like polypeptide-1 (GLP-1), in humans and rats. METHODS: Patients were divided into two groups, namely patients who received TJ-43 immediately following surgery [TJ-43(+) group] and those who received TJ-43 on postoperative day 21 [TJ-43(-) group], and the plasma levels of active GIP and active GLP-1 were assessed...

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis, microscopic colitis, and Crohn's disease (CD), has a global impact. This review focuses on duodenal CD (DCD), a rare subtype affecting the duodenum. DCD's rarity and asymptomatic nature create diagnostic challenges, impacting prognosis and patient well-being. Delayed diagnosis can worsen DCD outcomes. AIM: To report a rare case of DCD and to discuss the diagnostic challenges and its implications on prognosis...

Managing diabetes during pregnancy is challenging, given the significant risk it poses for both maternal and foetal health outcomes. While traditional methods involve capillary self-monitoring of blood glucose level monitoring and periodic HbA1c tests, the advent of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems has revolutionized the approach. These devices offer a safe and reliable means of tracking glucose levels in real-time, benefiting both women with diabetes during pregnancy and the healthcare providers...

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is continuing. The disease most commonly affects the lungs. Since the beginning of the pandemic thorax computed tomography (CT) has been an indispensable imaging method for diagnosis and follow-up. The disease is tried to be controlled with vaccines. Vaccination reduces the possibility of a severe course of the disease. AIM: The aim of this study is to investigate whether the vaccination status of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 has an effect on the CT severity score (CT-SS) and CORADS score obtained during hospitalization...

BACKGROUND: Reports of a decrease in hospital admissions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown period have raised concerns about delayed or missed diagnoses and treatments for non-COVID-19-related illnesses. AIM: To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic-induced lockdown and its end on hospital admissions of patients with epistaxis in Germany. METHODS: A retrospective analysis based on the national database of the Hospital Remuneration System was used to compare hospital admissions during defined time periods between 2019 and 2022 with the lockdown period as the reference period...

The results of years of dental study serve as the foundation for the practise of medicine and, for that matter, dentistry. Doctors may have their own preferences for techniques and materials, but whether directly or indirectly, their decisions are influenced by systematic reviews and meta-analyses. However, due to poorly conducted or presented research, this very basic foundation may not be reliable. Bias in research is one of several factors that might make study results or research itself unreliable. Bias can be introduced into research at many stages, deliberately or unknowingly...

BACKGROUND: Efficient extraction of nucleic acids and proteins (ENAP) from cells is a prerequisite for precise annotation of gene function, and has become laboratory routine for revealing the mysteries of life. However, cell samples are often from different culture dishes, resulting in inevitable experimental errors and sometimes poor repeatability. AIM: To explore a method to improve the efficiency of ENAP, minimizing errors in ENAP processes, enhancing the reliability and repeatability of subsequent experimental results...

Oversampling is the most utilized approach to deal with class-imbalanced datasets, as seen by the plethora of oversampling methods developed in the last two decades. We argue in the following editorial the issues with oversampling that stem from the possibility of overfitting and the generation of synthetic cases that might not accurately represent the minority class. These limitations should be considered when using oversampling techniques. We also propose several alternate strategies for dealing with imbalanced data, as well as a future work perspective...

When designing a study on dental movement acceleration or pain control during orthodontic treatment, it is crucial to consider effective parameters. The objective of this editorial is to compile the most effective parameters supported by evidence that should be considered in future studies to achieve complete parameter homogenization. The protocol currently recommended to homogenize the parameters and facilitate the development of further meta-analysis in terms of acceleration of movement and pain control in orthodontics is Wavelength: 810 nm, 2...

The concept of evidence-based practice has persisted over several years and remains a cornerstone in clinical practice, representing the gold standard for optimal patient care. However, despite widespread recognition of its significance, practical application faces various challenges and barriers, including a lack of skills in interpreting studies, limited resources, time constraints, linguistic competencies, and more. Recently, we have witnessed the emergence of a groundbreaking technological revolution known as artificial intelligence...