Journal of evaluation in clinical practice
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The COVID-19 has posed a wide range of urgent questions: about the disease, testing, immunity, treatments, and outcomes. Extreme situations, such as pandemics, call for exceptional measures. However, this threatens the production and application of evidence. ⋯ In order to avoid fake facts and to provide sustainable solutions, we need to pay attention to the various kinds of uncertainty. Producing high-quality evidence is the solution, not the problem.
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Co-morbidities in colorectal cancer patients complicate hospital care, and their relative importance to post-operative deaths is largely unknown. This study was conducted to examine a range of clinical and sociodemographic factors in relation to post-operative in-hospital deaths in colorectal cancer patients and identify whether these contributions would vary by severity of co-morbidities. ⋯ Identification of relative importance of factors contributing to in-hospital deaths in colorectal cancer patients using ANN may help to enhance patient-centred strategies to meet complex needs during acute surgical care and prevent post-operative in-hospital deaths.
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Postoperative respiratory failure after cardiac surgery (CS-PRF) is a devastating complication and its incidence and predictors vary depending on how it is defined and the patient population. ⋯ Knowledge of predictors for CS-PRF may help identify patients who are at risk for this complication and who may benefit from preventive measures to promote early extubation and to avert reintubation.
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While different imaging and treatment options are available in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) care, there is a lack of data regarding their use across Europe. We examined the diagnostic and treatment strategies in patients with known or suspected ACS as reported by physicians and identified variations in responses across European countries and geographical areas. ⋯ In this survey, respondents reported different diagnostic and treatment strategies in ACS care. These variations seem to have geographic components. Larger studies or real world data are needed to verify these observations and investigate their causes. More research is needed to compare the quality and efficiency of ACS care across countries and explore pathways for improvement.