Provide a descriptive title for your comment here...Problems in the screening of articles for the meta-analysis (Andre Guay, 21 May 2013)
Type youTestosterone therapy and cardiovascular events among men: a systematic review and meta-analysis of placebo-controlled randomized...
read full comment
Since publishing this manuscript we have identified a typographical error in the sample size of one included trial (#32 - Lawton et al. 2008) reported in Figures 3 and 5 (self-reported physical activity duration at 12 months measured on a continuous scale). The sample size should read n=544 for the intervention group and n=545 for the control group, as is reported for this trial in Figure 4....
read full comment
Addendum - authorship of 'Photo 51' (Naomi Attar, 15 May 2013)
In this article, I (the author) followed multiple sources in referring to 'Photo 51' as the work of Rosalind Franklin. However, medical geneticist Jim Lupski raised a query about the accuracy of the attribution, having received correspondence from Jim Watson which mentioned in passing that Ray Gosling had taken the...
read full comment
Promising traffic crash prevention technologies (Ediriweera Desapriya, 14 May 2013)
I would agree with the authors and it may be driver¿s lack of awareness about appropriate use that would partly explain and hinder effectiveness of ABS. In addition, drivers may over rely on these promising crash prevention technologies and take some additional risks while driving to compensate the added safety value to the vehicles. However, Anti Lock Brakes (ABS) has been shown effective in reducing motor cycle crashes (Teoh, 2010). Fatal crashes are 37 per cent lower for motorcycles equipped with optional ABS than for those same models without ABS. Similarly, insurance claims for ABS equipped motor cycles are 22 per cent less than for motorcycles without ABS. In fact, European Union declared that ABS will be mandatory for new models above 125 cc from 2016. It will be mandatory for all EU...
read full comment
Perspective is crucial (Ellen Schultz, 10 May 2013)
This article highlights the critical importance of considering perspective when addressing care planning and care coordination. From a distance, all the clinicians who participated in this study might be considered to represent the same perspective--that of health care professionals from within the same health care system--yet as so clearly demonstrated through the experience of this study, they are very much not "on the same page." The disconnect between those participants from the primary care setting who were oriented towards patients and supportive care needs and the participants from the hospital setting who were oriented towards particular diseases underscores the depth of fragmentation--cultural as well as structural--in this particular health system. Experience suggests that this...
read full comment
Comment on: Røsstad et al. BMC Health Services Research, 13:121
Stratification of non-specific low back pain patients for therapeutic trials in general and illustrative suggestions for trials of manipulation in particular. (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Orrock and Myers (1) have reviewed the present status of osteopathic intervention for so-called ¿non-specific¿ low back pain. They conclude that further clinical trials into this subject are required that have consistent and rigorous methods. However their introduction states that Non Specific Low Back Pain (CNSLBP) is a common, complex and disabling condition, but go on in the discussion to note that many studies had mixed back pain populations. There in lies one of the greatest problems of trial design. Should initial data collection allow for subgroup analysis? Which symptoms and signs are best for such...
read full comment
Comment on: Orrock et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:129
Different types of low back pain consequences confound the guidelines (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Premature return to the work place may risk aggravation or reprecipitation of the underlying back pain problem. Surely it would be best to fix the back or work place first. But that is easier said than done and gauging recovery of the back is difficult. In their study Hendrick et al (1) question current wisdom. They reveal many incongruities between measures of impairment, disability and handicap, which help explain why guidelines on back care may well be...
read full comment
Comment on: Hendrick et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:126
Low back pain and sciatica; relationship of imaging findings to clinical symptoms. (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Takatalo et al have recently reported MRI studies of disk degeneration in the young adult Oulo cohort. In the latest article (1) body mass index and smoking were linked to disk degeneration in males. In the slightly earlier article (2) the same MRI data was used to check which changes might be the causes of actual back pain symptoms and in particular the relationship between disk degeneration and Schmorls nodes. They include a helpful review of the modern literature in their following discussion. However they conclude that it is difficult to prove cause and effect and that it would need a prospective study with annual MRI studies for many years to get round this problem. To add to these deliberations it is perhaps interesting to draw attention to similar studies undertaken with plain x-...
read full comment
Comment on: Takatalo et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:87
Comment on 'Potential impact of a nine-valent vaccine in human papillomavirus related cervical disease' (Norma Erickson, 08 May 2013)
No such thing as homeopathy? (Lee Turnpenny, 03 May 2013)
This paper was recently cited in a short article entitled `Homeopathy is more than placebo¿, in the February 2013 edition of the magazine What Doctors Don¿t Tell You, on sale in various UK outlets. (It also formed the basis for an article...
read full comment
Kudos! Great commentary on sequestration¿s impact on research! National media should talk about this and YOU should read it!!! (Leonardo Collado Torres, 03 May 2013)
I have greatly enjoyed reading this commentary by Leek and Salzberg and find it a must read for anyone. I am not talking just researchers and those involved in science, but the general public. I wrote my comments with this in mind at Fellgernon Bit and would love to see the national media commenting Leek and Salzberg's point of...
read full comment
Sociodemographic data (Neil Turner, 26 April 2013)
We have a good bit more of that now and are working on an analysis.
read full comment
Comment on: Bartlett et al. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, 12:87
Does association mean causality? (George Somers, 26 April 2013)
Thank you for this paper. Unfortunatley, only the abstract is available at this stage, the full paper, when it becomes available, might explain my question....
read full comment
Comment to article Genetics Selection Evolution 2013, 45:1 (Felix Goyache, 26 April 2013)
Comments on: Methods to estimate effective population size using pedigree data: Examples in dog, sheep, cattle and horse (Leroy et al....
read full comment
Comment on: Leroy et al. Genetics Selection Evolution, 45:1
BD increase is not always due to shock (Venkatesh Srinivasa, 24 April 2013)
BD value is, when it reflects lactic acidosis. BD can increase during hyperchloremia (hypertonic resuscitation, NS resuscitation) where it is not an indicator of shock. Nonetheless, increased BD from any reason has been shown to have worse outcome. This study emphasizes the need for RCT's.
read full comment
Comments on Interpretation of Findings in Article on Primary Health Care in Rural Malawi (Nadi Kaonga, 24 April 2013)
Dear Editors of the BMC Health Services Research Journal and Authors of the Manuscript by Makaula et al...
read full comment
Comment on: Makaula et al. BMC Health Services Research, 12:328
Author reply (Peter Morfeld, 23 April 2013)
I¿d like to thank Drs Silverman and Attfield for their profound reply [1] to my commentary [2] and their in-depth explanations of specific aspects of the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study [DEMS, 3, 4]. It was my motivation to instigate discussions about this important and impressive epidemiological project. Thus, I highly appreciate that the leading DEMS authors responded to my commentary in such a great detail. The Editors of JOMT invited me to follow-up on this discussion and I will respond to the points as they were numerated in Silverman and Attfield [1]....
read full comment
Comment on: Morfeld Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 7:10
Hummingbirds, not insects, pollinate sub-alpine Castilleja (Robert Colwell, 23 April 2013)
We offer a small correction, regarding Benjamin Blonder's photo of summer wildflowers in an subalpine meadow in Colorado. You...
read full comment
ERRATUM (Ma. de la Luz Galvan-Ramirez, 22 April 2013)
Erratum
The following revised paragraph should replace the originally published paragraph on page of abstrac of our article
Abstract
Results
Comparisons among different risk groups showed that the weighted prevalence was higher in women with miscarriages (35.96%), mentally-ill patients (37.24%) and other risk groups (21.88%). Toxoplasma infection among the Mexican population showed a downward trend of 0.1%/year over a period of sixty years that represents a 5.8% reduction in prevalence.
read full comment
RSS
Latest comments
Paracelsus' wisdom (Giuseppe Citerio, 22 May 2013)
I¿ve read with interest this paper by Schiefecke and others on parenteral Diclofenac infusion in SAH patients..... read full comment
Comment on: Schiefecker et al. Critical Care, 17:R88
Provide a descriptive title for your comment here...Problems in the screening of articles for the meta-analysis (Andre Guay, 21 May 2013)
Type youTestosterone therapy and cardiovascular events among men: a systematic review and meta-analysis of placebo-controlled randomized... read full comment
Comment on: Xu et al. BMC Medicine, 11:108
Correction (Nicola Hobbs, 21 May 2013)
Since publishing this manuscript we have identified a typographical error in the sample size of one included trial (#32 - Lawton et al. 2008) reported in Figures 3 and 5 (self-reported physical activity duration at 12 months measured on a continuous scale). The sample size should read n=544 for the intervention group and n=545 for the control group, as is reported for this trial in Figure 4.... read full comment
Comment on: Hobbs et al. BMC Medicine, 11:75
Addendum - authorship of 'Photo 51' (Naomi Attar, 15 May 2013)
In this article, I (the author) followed multiple sources in referring to 'Photo 51' as the work of Rosalind Franklin. However, medical geneticist Jim Lupski raised a query about the accuracy of the attribution, having received correspondence from Jim Watson which mentioned in passing that Ray Gosling had taken the... read full comment
Comment on: Attar Genome Biology, 14:402
Promising traffic crash prevention technologies (Ediriweera Desapriya, 14 May 2013)
I would agree with the authors and it may be driver¿s lack of awareness about appropriate use that would partly explain and hinder effectiveness of ABS. In addition, drivers may over rely on these promising crash prevention technologies and take some additional risks while driving to compensate the added safety value to the vehicles. However, Anti Lock Brakes (ABS) has been shown effective in reducing motor cycle crashes (Teoh, 2010). Fatal crashes are 37 per cent lower for motorcycles equipped with optional ABS than for those same models without ABS. Similarly, insurance claims for ABS equipped motor cycles are 22 per cent less than for motorcycles without ABS. In fact, European Union declared that ABS will be mandatory for new models above 125 cc from 2016. It will be mandatory for all EU... read full comment
Comment on: Khorasani-Zavareh et al. BMC Public Health, 13:439
Perspective is crucial (Ellen Schultz, 10 May 2013)
This article highlights the critical importance of considering perspective when addressing care planning and care coordination. From a distance, all the clinicians who participated in this study might be considered to represent the same perspective--that of health care professionals from within the same health care system--yet as so clearly demonstrated through the experience of this study, they are very much not "on the same page." The disconnect between those participants from the primary care setting who were oriented towards patients and supportive care needs and the participants from the hospital setting who were oriented towards particular diseases underscores the depth of fragmentation--cultural as well as structural--in this particular health system. Experience suggests that this... read full comment
Comment on: Røsstad et al. BMC Health Services Research, 13:121
Stratification of non-specific low back pain patients for therapeutic trials in general and illustrative suggestions for trials of manipulation in particular. (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Orrock and Myers (1) have reviewed the present status of osteopathic intervention for so-called ¿non-specific¿ low back pain. They conclude that further clinical trials into this subject are required that have consistent and rigorous methods. However their introduction states that Non Specific Low Back Pain (CNSLBP) is a common, complex and disabling condition, but go on in the discussion to note that many studies had mixed back pain populations. There in lies one of the greatest problems of trial design. Should initial data collection allow for subgroup analysis? Which symptoms and signs are best for such... read full comment
Comment on: Orrock et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:129
Different types of low back pain consequences confound the guidelines (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Premature return to the work place may risk aggravation or reprecipitation of the underlying back pain problem. Surely it would be best to fix the back or work place first. But that is easier said than done and gauging recovery of the back is difficult. In their study Hendrick et al (1) question current wisdom. They reveal many incongruities between measures of impairment, disability and handicap, which help explain why guidelines on back care may well be... read full comment
Comment on: Hendrick et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:126
Low back pain and sciatica; relationship of imaging findings to clinical symptoms. (Brian Sweetman, 08 May 2013)
Takatalo et al have recently reported MRI studies of disk degeneration in the young adult Oulo cohort. In the latest article (1) body mass index and smoking were linked to disk degeneration in males. In the slightly earlier article (2) the same MRI data was used to check which changes might be the causes of actual back pain symptoms and in particular the relationship between disk degeneration and Schmorls nodes. They include a helpful review of the modern literature in their following discussion. However they conclude that it is difficult to prove cause and effect and that it would need a prospective study with annual MRI studies for many years to get round this problem. To add to these deliberations it is perhaps interesting to draw attention to similar studies undertaken with plain x-... read full comment
Comment on: Takatalo et al. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 14:87
Comment on 'Potential impact of a nine-valent vaccine in human papillomavirus related cervical disease' (Norma Erickson, 08 May 2013)
Dear Editors In... read full comment
Comment on: Serrano et al. Infectious Agents and Cancer, 7:38
Response to Tomljenovic et al. HPV vaccines and cancer prevention, science versus activism. (Franco Maria Buonaguro, 08 May 2013)
Dear Dr Tomljenovic and... read full comment
Comment on: Tomljenovic et al. Infectious Agents and Cancer, 8:6
No such thing as homeopathy? (Lee Turnpenny, 03 May 2013)
This paper was recently cited in a short article entitled `Homeopathy is more than placebo¿, in the February 2013 edition of the magazine What Doctors Don¿t Tell You, on sale in various UK outlets. (It also formed the basis for an article... read full comment
Comment on: Rostock et al. BMC Cancer, 11:19
Contrasting results from new study...? (Lee Turnpenny, 03 May 2013)
Effect of complementary and alternative medicine on the survival and health-related quality of life among terminally ill cancer patients: a prospective cohort study. read full comment
Comment on: Rostock et al. BMC Cancer, 11:19
Kudos! Great commentary on sequestration¿s impact on research! National media should talk about this and YOU should read it!!! (Leonardo Collado Torres, 03 May 2013)
I have greatly enjoyed reading this commentary by Leek and Salzberg and find it a must read for anyone. I am not talking just researchers and those involved in science, but the general public. I wrote my comments with this in mind at Fellgernon Bit and would love to see the national media commenting Leek and Salzberg's point of... read full comment
Comment on: Leek et al. Genome Biology, 14:109
How the work was carried out (Fidele Ntie-Kang, 29 April 2013)
It took us approximately 1 year to collect all data, generate 3D models, carry out analysis and write the paper. read full comment
Comment on: Ntie-Kang et al. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 13:88
A very useful and thorough study, but ... (Richard James Clark, 29 April 2013)
I can offer two comments to help you avoid future criticism of your... read full comment
Comment on: Lee et al. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 13:59
Author name correction (Marinus Smulders, 26 April 2013)
For co-author Smulders the initials listed are incorrect. The correct name is Marinus J.M. Smulders. read full comment
Comment on: Pagliarani et al. BMC Plant Biology, 13:51
Sociodemographic data (Neil Turner, 26 April 2013)
We have a good bit more of that now and are working on an analysis. read full comment
Comment on: Bartlett et al. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, 12:87
Does association mean causality? (George Somers, 26 April 2013)
Thank you for this paper. Unfortunatley, only the abstract is available at this stage, the full paper, when it becomes available, might explain my question.... read full comment
Comment on: Forster et al. BMC Medical Education, 13:37
Comment to article Genetics Selection Evolution 2013, 45:1 (Felix Goyache, 26 April 2013)
Comments on: Methods to estimate effective population size using pedigree data: Examples in dog, sheep, cattle and horse (Leroy et al.... read full comment
Comment on: Leroy et al. Genetics Selection Evolution, 45:1
BD increase is not always due to shock (Venkatesh Srinivasa, 24 April 2013)
BD value is, when it reflects lactic acidosis. BD can increase during hyperchloremia (hypertonic resuscitation, NS resuscitation) where it is not an indicator of shock. Nonetheless, increased BD from any reason has been shown to have worse outcome. This study emphasizes the need for RCT's. read full comment
Comment on: Mutschler et al. Critical Care, 17:R42
Comments on Interpretation of Findings in Article on Primary Health Care in Rural Malawi (Nadi Kaonga, 24 April 2013)
Dear Editors of the BMC Health Services Research Journal and Authors of the Manuscript by Makaula et al... read full comment
Comment on: Makaula et al. BMC Health Services Research, 12:328
Author reply (Peter Morfeld, 23 April 2013)
I¿d like to thank Drs Silverman and Attfield for their profound reply [1] to my commentary [2] and their in-depth explanations of specific aspects of the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study [DEMS, 3, 4]. It was my motivation to instigate discussions about this important and impressive epidemiological project. Thus, I highly appreciate that the leading DEMS authors responded to my commentary in such a great detail. The Editors of JOMT invited me to follow-up on this discussion and I will respond to the points as they were numerated in Silverman and Attfield [1].... read full comment
Comment on: Morfeld Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 7:10
Hummingbirds, not insects, pollinate sub-alpine Castilleja (Robert Colwell, 23 April 2013)
We offer a small correction, regarding Benjamin Blonder's photo of summer wildflowers in an subalpine meadow in Colorado. You... read full comment
Comment on: Harold et al. BMC Ecology, 13:6
ERRATUM (Ma. de la Luz Galvan-Ramirez, 22 April 2013)
Erratum
The following revised paragraph should replace the originally published paragraph on page of abstrac of our article
Abstract
Results
Comparisons among different risk groups showed that the weighted prevalence was higher in women with miscarriages (35.96%), mentally-ill patients (37.24%) and other risk groups (21.88%). Toxoplasma infection among the Mexican population showed a downward trend of 0.1%/year over a period of sixty years that represents a 5.8% reduction in prevalence. read full comment
Comment on: Galvan-Ramirez et al. Parasites & Vectors, 5:271