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Alsoghier A, Alnutaifi A, Alotaibi O, Alotaibi A, Alharbi A, Almubarak N, Albassam S. Barriers and facilitators for oral health screening among tobacco users: a mixed-methods study. BMC Oral Health 2024; 24:306. [PMID: 38443882 PMCID: PMC10913556 DOI: 10.1186/s12903-024-04084-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Tobacco consumption adversely affects general and oral health and is considered one of the significant public health burdens globally. The present study aims to assess the barriers and facilitators for attending oral and dental health screening among tobacco users who seek cessation advice. METHODOLOGY The present mixed-methods study used group concept mapping (GCM) to identify the facilitators/barriers to attending oral health screening among young adults attending face-to-face and virtual Tobacco Cessation Clinic at King Saud University (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) between September 2022 and April 2023. Study investigators included healthcare social workers, dental interns, and oral and maxillofacial medicinists. Information about demographics, general health, oral/dental health and tobacco use were collected using self-completed questionnaires. The barriers and facilitators were assessed following GCM by brainstorming, sorting, rating, and interpretation activities. Descriptive, multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis were used to describe the study participants and produce concept maps of the generated statements. RESULTS The study included 148 participants who generated 67 statements summarised into 28 statements as facilitators or barriers. Based on a 5-point importance scale, the participants indicated the importance of facilitators under health-related cluster [e.g. when I feel pain] as the highest, followed by personal [e.g. to maintain my mouth hygiene], social [e.g. the quality of treatment] and financial clusters [e.g. the reasonable cost]. Concerning barriers, financial factors [e.g. high cost] acted as the highest-rated barrier, followed by personal [e.g. lack of dental appointments] and health-related [e.g. worry that dental problems will worsen]. The social factors were the least considerable barrier [e.g. lack of time]. Clustering these facilitators/barriers on the concept map indicated their conceptual similarity by an average stress value of 0.23. CONCLUSION Pain was the most important facilitator to attending oral health screening by young adults seeking tobacco cessation advice. Notable barriers included the high cost of dental treatment and the lack of scheduled appointments. Thus, oral health care providers need to consider scheduling periodic and timely dental check-ups to prevent and reduce the burden of tobacco-associated and pain-causing oral diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdullah Alsoghier
- Department of Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, 12372, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Abdulrahman Alnutaifi
- Dental Internship Training Programme, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Obaid Alotaibi
- Dental Internship Training Programme, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdulaziz Alotaibi
- Dental Internship Training Programme, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdullah Alharbi
- Smoking Cessation Clinic, Counselling and Guidance Center, Deanship of Student Affairs, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Nada Almubarak
- College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Social Studies Department, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Sara Albassam
- Department of Basic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Petti S, Cowling BJ. Ecologic association between influenza and COVID-19 mortality rates in European countries. Epidemiol Infect 2020; 148:e209. [PMID: 32912363 PMCID: PMC7506171 DOI: 10.1017/s0950268820002125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2020] [Revised: 08/12/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecologic studies investigating COVID-19 mortality determinants, used to make predictions and design public health control measures, generally focused on population-based variable counterparts of individual-based risk factors. Influenza is not causally associated with COVID-19, but shares population-based determinants, such as similar incidence/mortality trends, transmission patterns, efficacy of non-pharmaceutical interventions, comorbidities and underdiagnosis. We investigated the ecologic association between influenza mortality rates and COVID-19 mortality rates in the European context. We considered the 3-year average influenza (2014-2016) and COVID-19 (31 May 2020) crude mortality rates in 34 countries using EUROSTAT and ECDC databases and performed correlation and regression analyses. The two variables - log transformed, showed significant Spearman's correlation ρ = 0.439 (P = 0.01), and regression coefficients, b = 0.743 (95% confidence interval, 0.272-1.214; R2 = 0.244; P = 0.003), b = 0.472 (95% confidence interval, 0.067-0.878; R2 = 0.549; P = 0.02), unadjusted and adjusted for confounders (population size and cardiovascular disease mortality), respectively. Common significant determinants of both COVID-19 and influenza mortality rates were life expectancy, influenza vaccination in the elderly (direct associations), number of hospital beds per population unit and crude cardiovascular disease mortality rate (inverse associations). This analysis suggests that influenza mortality rates were independently associated with COVID-19 mortality rates in Europe, with implications for public health preparedness, and implies preliminary undetected SARS-CoV-2 spread in Europe.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. Petti
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
| | - B. J. Cowling
- WHO Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Control, School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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Deutsch FT, Khoury SJ, Sunwoo JB, Elliott MS, Tran NT. Application of salivary noncoding microRNAs for the diagnosis of oral cancers. Head Neck 2020; 42:3072-3083. [PMID: 32686879 DOI: 10.1002/hed.26348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2019] [Revised: 02/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Oral cancer is on the rise globally and survival rates, despite improvements in clinical care, have not significantly improved. Early detection followed by immediate intervention is key to improving patient outcomes. The use of biomarkers has changed the diagnostic landscape for many cancers. For oral cancers, visual inspection followed by a tissue biopsy is standard practice. The discovery of microRNAs as potential biomarkers has attracted clinical interest but several challenges remain. These microRNAs can be found in bodily fluids such as blood and saliva which have been investigated as potential sources of biomarker discovery. As oral cancer is localized within the oral cavity, saliva may contain clinically relevant molecular markers for disease detection. Our review provides an outline of the current advances for the application of salivary microRNAs in oral cancer. We also provide a technical guide for the processing of salivary RNAs to ensure accurate clinical measurement and validation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona T Deutsch
- School Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and IT, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Samantha J Khoury
- Office of the Deputy Vice Chancellor Innovation and Enterprise, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, New South Wales, Australia
| | - John B Sunwoo
- Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Michael S Elliott
- Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Chris O'Brien Lifehouse, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Nham T Tran
- School Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and IT, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, New South Wales, Australia.,The Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute, Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia
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Yeh CM, Lin CW, Chuang CY, Liu YF, Chou CH, Yang SF, Chen MK. Functional Genetic Variant of Long Pentraxin 3 Gene Is Associated With Clinical Aspects of Oral Cancer in Male Patients. Front Oncol 2019; 9:581. [PMID: 31334115 PMCID: PMC6616059 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2019.00581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2019] [Accepted: 06/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Long pentraxin 3 (PTX3) is produced by various cell types and is correlated with tumor progression in various tumor types. However, the clinical significance of PTX3 polymorphisms in oral cancer and their correlation with the risk of cancer are still unclear. In this study, we assessed the influence of PTX3 gene polymorphisms and environmental factors on susceptibility to oral tumorigenesis. We recruited 865 cases with oral cancer and 1,189 controls. Four single-nucleotide variations of the PTX3 gene (rs1840680, rs2305619, rs3816527, and rs2120243) were verified using a real-time polymerase chain reaction in control participants and cases with oral cancer. We found that rs3816527 in smokers was correlated with the development of late-stage cancer (odds ratio [OR], 2.328; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.078-5.027) and increased lymph node metastasis (OR, 2.152; 95% CI, 1.047-4.422). Moreover, additional bioinformatics analysis results showed that the rs3816527 C allele variant to the A allele exhibited the strongest exonic splicing enhancer activity. In conclusion, our results suggested that PTX3 rs3816527 plays a role in oral cancer development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chia-Ming Yeh
- Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.,Cancer Research Center, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan.,Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan
| | - Chiao-Wen Lin
- Institute of Oral Sciences, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.,Department of Dentistry, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chun-Yi Chuang
- School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.,Department of Otolaryngology, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Fan Liu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine Sciences and Technology, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Hsuan Chou
- Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Shun-Fa Yang
- Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.,Department of Medical Research, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Mu-Kuan Chen
- Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.,Cancer Research Center, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan.,Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan
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Petti S, Warnakulasuriya S. Betel quid chewing among adult male immigrants from the Indian subcontinent to Italy. Oral Dis 2018; 24:44-48. [PMID: 29480602 DOI: 10.1111/odi.12768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2017] [Revised: 08/30/2017] [Accepted: 09/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Betel quid chewing (BQC) is an important oral cancer risk factor widespread in the Indian subcontinent. This usage also is common among migrants from this region. As the number of immigrants from South-East Asia is dramatically increasing in Italy, this survey was aimed at investigating BQC prevalence among immigrants from the Indian subcontinent. SUBJECTS AND METHODS First-generation adult male immigrants coming from Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, living in Rome, were consecutively selected. They were interviewed using a validated questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were performed, and factors associated to regular BQC were investigated through regression analysis. RESULTS A total of 211 subjects (mean age, 33.8 years) living in Rome for 11 years, on average, participated in the study. BQC prevalence was 37.9% with few differences between Pakistani, Sri Lankans, and Indians. Prevalence among Bangladeshi was 7.3%. 69% of the consumers chewed BQ at least twice daily, 90% chewed BQ with tobacco; 30.3% subjects were smokers and chewers. Chewing parents, smoking, health illiteracy were associated with BQC. Most chewers believed that BQ helps to relieve stress. CONCLUSIONS The number of oral cancers in Italy is expected to increase because of BQC dissemination. Therefore, specific awareness campaigns directed to residents of South-East Asian origin are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Petti
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
| | - S Warnakulasuriya
- King's College London and WHO collaborating Centre for Oral Cancer, London, UK
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Rasmussen S, Haastrup PF, Balasubramaniam K, Christensen RD, Søndergaard J, Jarbøl DE. Predictive values of upper gastrointestinal cancer alarm symptoms in the general population: a nationwide cohort study. BMC Cancer 2018; 18:440. [PMID: 29669540 PMCID: PMC5907174 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-018-4376-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2017] [Accepted: 04/16/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Survival rates for upper gastrointestinal (GI) cancer are poor since many are diagnosed at advanced stages. Fast track endoscopy has been introduced to prompt diagnosis for patients with alarm symptoms that could be indicative of upper GI cancer. However, these symptoms may represent benign conditions and little is known about the predictive values of alarm symptoms of upper GI cancer in the general population. METHODS The study is a nationwide cohort study of 60,562 individuals aged 45 years or above randomly selected from the Danish general population. Participants were invited to complete a survey comprising of questions on several symptom experiences, including alarm symptoms for upper GI cancer within the past four weeks. The participants were asked about specific symptoms (repeated vomiting, difficulty swallowing, signs of upper GI bleeding or persistent and recent-onset abdominal pain) and non-specific symptoms (nausea, weight loss, loss of appetite, feeling unwell and tiredness). We obtained information on upper GI cancer diagnosed in a 12-month period after completing the questionnaire from the Danish Cancer Registry. We calculated positive predictive values and positive likelihood ratios for the association between alarm symptom and subsequent upper GI cancer. RESULTS A total of 33,040 individuals above 45 years completed the questionnaire, yielding a response rate of 54.6%. Respondents were fairly respresentative of the study sample. During the follow-up period, 18 people were diagnosed with upper GI cancer. The number of incident cancers was similar among eligible non-respondents. Two thirds of the respondents with an upper GI malignancy had experienced one or more alarm symptoms. The positive predictive value for being diagnosed with upper GI cancer after reporting a least one alarm symptom was 0.1% (95% CI:0.0-0.1%). The positive likelihood ratio was 4.4 for specific alarm symptoms and 1.1 for non-specific alarm symptoms. CONCLUSIONS We found that positive predictive values of alarm symptoms of upper GI cancer experienced in the general population are low. It is important knowledge that despite denoted alarm symptoms even patients with specific alarm symptoms of upper GI cancer have a low risk of being diagnosed with upper GI cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanne Rasmussen
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Peter Fentz Haastrup
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark.
| | - Kirubakaran Balasubramaniam
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark
| | - René DePont Christensen
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Jens Søndergaard
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark
| | - Dorte Ejg Jarbøl
- Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000, Odense C, Denmark
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Petti S. Elder neglect-Oral diseases and injuries. Oral Dis 2018; 24:891-899. [PMID: 29029370 DOI: 10.1111/odi.12797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2017] [Accepted: 10/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Elder neglect (EN) is the failure of a designated caregiver to meet the needs of a dependent older person. World EN prevalence, meta-analyzed in this study, is 1.0% or 1.8% according to different statistical methods. Referring alleged EN cases to Adult Protective Services (APSs) by healthcare workers (HCWs) is mandatory in many countries. However, only few claims are substantiated, as EN could be confused with Self-Neglect, and neglect could be unintentional or due to caregiver unawareness. Screening tools are inaccurate, and their use is discouraged by public health organizations, because they lead to too many false positives, which engulf the already overwhelmed APSs. HCWs need effective tools with objective judgments, which do not hamper the HCW-caregiver-patient rapport and prevent lawsuits when allegations are unfounded. Orofacial EN manifestations (poor oral/denture hygiene, lack of needed/improper dentures, dry mouth, skin/mucosal rashes) are essential Forensic Markers of EN. I classified EN-associated oral diseases according to the unmet needs into four groups: (1) traumatic injuries due to lack of caregiver vigilance (e.g., maxillofacial fractures); (2) diseases due to oral hygiene deficiency (e.g., root caries); (3) diseases typical of the elderly with late/no diagnosis (e.g., oral cancer); and (4) diseases typical of the elderly exacerbated by psychological distress (e.g., oral lichen planus).
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Affiliation(s)
- S Petti
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
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Clarke AK, Kobagi N, Yoon MN. Oral cancer screening practices of Canadian dental hygienists. Int J Dent Hyg 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/idh.12295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- AK Clarke
- School of Dentistry; Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry; University of Alberta; Edmonton AB Canada
| | - N Kobagi
- School of Dentistry; Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry; University of Alberta; Edmonton AB Canada
| | - MN Yoon
- School of Dentistry; Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry; University of Alberta; Edmonton AB Canada
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Ebola Virus Infection among Western Healthcare Workers Unable to Recall the Transmission Route. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2016; 2016:8054709. [PMID: 28018915 PMCID: PMC5149594 DOI: 10.1155/2016/8054709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2016] [Accepted: 11/13/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Introduction. During the 2014-2016 West-African Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak, some HCWs from Western countries became infected despite proper equipment and training on EVD infection prevention and control (IPC) standards. Despite their high awareness toward EVD, some of them could not recall the transmission routes. We explored these incidents by recalling the stories of infected Western HCWs who had no known directly exposures to blood/bodily fluids from EVD patients. Methodology. We carried out conventional and unconventional literature searches through the web using the keyword "Ebola" looking for interviews and reports released by the infected HCWs and/or the healthcare organizations. Results. We identified fourteen HCWs, some infected outside West Africa and some even classified at low EVD risk. None of them recalled accidents, unintentional exposures, or any IPC violation. Infection transmission was thus inexplicable through the acknowledged transmission routes. Conclusions. We formulated two hypotheses: inapparent exposures to blood/bodily fluids or transmission due to asymptomatic/mildly symptomatic carriers. This study is in no way intended to be critical with the healthcare organizations which, thanks to their interventions, put an end to a large EVD outbreak that threatened the regional and world populations.
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Petti S. Viewing humans as molecules to improve accuracy of clinical predictions. Oral Dis 2016; 22:457-9. [PMID: 26999298 DOI: 10.1111/odi.12478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Petti
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
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Petti S. Oral cancer screening usefulness: between true and perceived effectiveness. Oral Dis 2016; 22:104-8. [PMID: 26575316 DOI: 10.1111/odi.12387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2015] [Accepted: 11/06/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Screenings, introduced in the 1920s, became rapidly popular in healthcare settings. Chance is an intrinsic screening characteristic. Roughly one half of screened subjects are correctly classified merely by chance, and in high-prevalence settings, even inaccurate screenings detect several diseased individuals by chance, thus appearing effective. The viewpoint is another variable affecting screening perceived effectiveness. For example, public health officers, who seek for mortality rate reductions, look for high sensitivity, which, in turn, is affected by disease prevalence. The relative mortality rate reduction attributable to screening may therefore be significant in high-prevalence areas and irrelevant in low-prevalence areas. This explains why oral cancer visual screening is perceived effective in high-prevalence countries and ineffective in low-prevalence countries. Patients seek for reliable outcomes. Therefore, they require screenings with high positive (PV+) and negative (PV-) predictive values. In high-prevalence areas, PV+ is high, while PV- is low. The reverse occurs in low-prevalence areas. Thus, even for accurate screenings, the perceived effectiveness due to misclassification is low among false-negative patients in high-prevalence areas, who are misclassified as unaffected by the disease, and among false-positive patients in low-prevalence areas, who are subjected to psychophysical sufferings. This article explains the reasons for these and other paradoxes engendered by screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Petti
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
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