BACKGROUND & AIMS The aim of this study was to assess systematically the efficacy of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in the treatment of functional dyspepsia compared with placebo and to determine if any difference in the response exists between symptom subgroups of functional dyspepsia. METHODS A literature search was performed through September 2005 in PubMed, Medline, Embase, CINAHL, and Coc...

BACKGROUND Chronic pain has a strong association with major depressive disorder (MDD), but there is a relative paucity of studies on the association between chronic multisite pain and bipolar disorder (BD). Such studies are required to help elucidate the complex biological and psychological overlap between pain and mood disorders. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between...

BACKGROUND Most twins after assisted reproductive technology (ART) are dizygotic. Analysis of dizygotic twin pairs is useful in assessing familial aggregation in the development of birth defects. METHODS Using nationwide post-ART data from the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, recurrence risk ratios (RRRs)-defined as probandwise concordance rates of birth defects in twins divided by...

OBJECTIVE The study evaluates the performance of Medicare managed care (Medicare Advantage [MA]) Plans in comparison to Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) Plans in three states with historically high Medicare managed care penetration (New York, California, Florida), in terms of lowering the risks of preventable or ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSC) hospital admissions and providing increas...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS To characterize contemporary patterns of thyroid surgical care and the effect of volume status on surgical care and short-term outcomes. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective cross-sectional study. METHODS Discharge data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample for 871,644 patients who underwent surgery for thyroid disease in 1993 through 2008 were analyzed using cross-tabulations an...

BACKGROUND Despite increasing recognition of the importance of involving patients in decisions on preventive healthcare interventions, little is known about how well patients understand and utilise information provided on the relative benefits from these interventions. The aim of this study was to explore whether lay people can discriminate between preventive interventions when effectiveness is...

OBJECTIVE We examined the association between dietary patterns and diabetes using the strengths of two methods: principal component analysis (PCA) to identify the eating patterns of the population and reduced rank regression (RRR) to derive a pattern that explains the variation in glycated Hb (HbA1c), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and fasting glucose. DESIGN We ...

BACKGROUND In trials of patients with left ventricular dysfunction or heart failure, ACE inhibitor use was unexpectedly associated with reduced myocardial infarction (MI). Using the Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE) trial data, we tested prospectively whether ramipril, an ACE inhibitor, could reduce coronary events and revascularization procedures among patients with normal left ventr...

BACKGROUND Uganda's poor maternal health indicators have resulted from weak maternal health services delivery, including access to quality family planning, skilled birth attendance, emergency obstetric care, and postnatal care for mothers and newborns. This paper investigated the predictors of maternal health services (MHS) utilization characterized as: desirable, moderate and undesirable. ME...