* Cardiac patients who completed a longitudinal psychosocial study had a different clinical and psychosocial baseline profile than patients who dropped out prematurely.
- Non-response is a serious threat to the external validity of longitudinal psychosocial studies. Little is known about potential systematic differences between patients with coronary artery disease who complete a psychosocial study and those who drop out prematurely due to non-response, or whether drop-outs may have a different cardiovascular risk. We studied a cohort of 1132 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). At baseline, all patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Type D Scale (DS14). At 12 months follow-up, 70.8% (n = 802) of patients completed both questionnaires, while 29.2% (n = 330) dropped out. We observed significant differences in socio-demographic, clinical, and psychological baseline characteristics between completers and drop-outs. Drop-outs were younger, more likely to smoke, but less often prescribed cardiovascular medications, including calcium antagonists and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, as compared with completers. Drop-outs more often had depression, anxiety, and negative affectivity, as compared with completers (all p-values <0.05). After a median follow-up of 4 years, we found no significant differences in mortality risk between completers and drop-outs (6.5 vs. 7.3%; adjusted HR 1.34, 95% CI 0.82-2.19, respectively). In conclusion, a possible attrition bias occurred, as drop-outs and completers differed systematically on some socio-demographic, clinical, and psychological baseline characteristics. Despite these differences, this did not translate into a poorer short-term prognosis, as there were no differences in the mortality risk of completers vs. drop-outs after a median follow-up of 4 years. In future prospective studies, attention should be paid to attrition bias, and its possible impact on study results and implications should be discussed.
Overview of verb observe
The verb observe has 9 senses (first 8 from tagged texts)
1. (39) detect, observe, find, discover, notice -- (discover or determine the existence, presence,
or fact of; "She detected high levels of lead in her drinking water"; "We found traces of lead in
the paint")
2. (17) note, observe, mention, remark -- (make mention of; "She observed that his presentation took
up too much time"; "They noted that it was a fine day to go sailing")
3. (12) note, take note, observe -- (observe with care or pay close attention to; "Take note of this
chemical reaction")
4. (10) observe -- (watch attentively; "Please observe the reaction of these two chemicals")
5. (4) respect, honor, honour, abide by, observe -- (show respect towards; "honor your parents!")
6. (3) observe, celebrate, keep -- (behave as expected during of holidays or rites; "Keep the
commandments"; "celebrate Christmas"; "Observe Yom Kippur")
7. (2) watch, observe, follow, watch over, keep an eye on -- (follow with the eyes or the mind;
"Keep an eye on the baby, please!"; "The world is watching Sarajevo"; "She followed the men with the
binoculars")
8. (1) observe, keep, maintain -- (stick to correctly or closely; "The pianist kept time with the
metronome"; "keep count"; "I cannot keep track of all my employees")
9. observe, keep -- (conform one's action or practice to; "keep appointments"; "she never keeps her
promises"; "We kept to the original conditions of the contract")
Overview of adj observed
The adj observed has 1 sense (first 1 from tagged texts)
1. (7) ascertained, discovered, observed -- (discovered or determined by scientific observation;
"variation in the ascertained flux depends on a number of factors"; "the discovered behavior norms";
"discovered differences in achievement"; "no explanation for the observed phenomena")
--- WordNet end ---