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,…
Background Associations of body shape with breast cancer risk, independent of body size, are unclear because waist and hip circumferences are correlated strongly positively with body mass index (BMI). Methods We evaluated body shape with the allometric “a body shape index” (ABSI) and hip index (HI), which compare waist and hip circumferences, correspondingly, among individuals…
The incidence of small intestinal cancer (SIC) is increasing, however, its aetiology remains unclear due to a lack of data from large-scale prospective cohorts. We examined modifiable risk factors in relation to SIC overall and by histological subtype. Methods We analysed 450,107 participants enrolled in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort. Cox…
Several studies have examined the association between prenatal exposure to organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides and their impact on foetal growth and newborn anthropometry; however, the available evidence is limited and inconclusive. This study examined whether prenatal organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticide exposure was associated with anthropometric measures at birth (weight, length, head circumference), ponderal index, gestational…
The shortage of physicians in rural and underserved areas is an obstacle to the implementation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC). We carried out a systematic review to analyze the effectiveness of initiatives in medical education aimed to increase the supply of physicians in rural or underserved areas. We searched for studies published between 1999 and…
Background Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is twice as common among men compared with women, and hormonal factors have been suggested to partially explain this difference. There is currently little evidence on the roles of reproductive and hormonal risk factors in RCC aetiology. Materials & Methods We investigated associations of age at menarche and age at…
Background We sought to develop a proteomics-based risk model for lung cancer and evaluate its risk-discriminatory performance in comparison with a smoking-based risk model (PLCOm2012) and a commercially available autoantibody biomarker test. Methods We designed a case-control study nested in 6 prospective cohorts, including 624 lung cancer participants who donated blood samples at most 3 years…
Background The aims of this research were to provide a better understanding of the specific evidence needs for assessment of clinical and cost-effectiveness of cell and gene therapies, and to explore the extent that the relevant categories of evidence are considered in health technology assessment (HTA) processes. Methods A targeted literature review was conducted to…
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the lack of a government contingency plan for an effective response to an unexpected health crisis. This study uses a phenomenological approach to explore the experience of healthcare professionals during the first three waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in a public health hospital in the Valencia region, Spain. It assesses…
