Ford Motor Company

About: Ford Motor Company is a company organization based out in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Internal combustion engine & Signal. The organization has 36123 authors who have published 51450 publications receiving 855200 citations. The organization is also known as: Ford Motor & Ford Motor Corporation.

Underlying Structure of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale Results of a Factor Analysis

Abstract: Background and purpose No stroke scale has been validated as an outcome measure using data from a clinical trial demonstrating a positive therapeutic effect. Therefore, we proposed to use data from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) tPA Stroke Trial to determine whether the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) was valid in patients treated with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and to explore the underlying clinimetric structure of the NIHSS. Methods We performed an exploratory factor analysis of NIHSS data from Part 1 (n=291) of the NINDS tPA Stroke Trial to derive a hypothesized underlying factor structure. We then performed a confirmatory factor analysis of this structure using NIHSS data from Part 2 of the same trial (n=333). We then tested whether this final factor structure could be found in tPA- and placebo-treated patients serially over time after stroke treatment. Using 3-month outcome data, we tested for an association between the NIHSS and other measures of stroke outcome. Results The exploratory analysis suggested that there were 2 factors underlying the NIHSS, representing left and right brain function, confirming the content validity of the scale. An alternative structure composed of 4 factors could be derived, with a better goodness of fit: the first 2 factors could represent left brain cortical and motor function, respectively, and the second 2 factors could represent right brain cortical and motor function, respectively. The same factor structures were then found in tPA and placebo patient groups studied serially over time, confirming the exploratory analysis. All 3-month clinical outcomes were associated with each other at subsequent time points, confirming predictive validity. Conclusions This is the first study of the validity of a stroke scale in patients treated with effective stroke therapy. The NIHSS appeared to be valid in patients with acute stroke and for finding treatment-related differences. The scale was valid when used serially over time after stroke, up to 3 months, and showed good agreement with other measures of outcome.

Migraine and Major Depression: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract: SYNOPSIS Recent epidemiologic studies have reported an association between migraine and major depression. Little is known about the mechanisms that link the two disorders, or the natural history of their co-occurrence. We examined the association between migraine and major depression in a sample of young adults, using longitudinal data. Method: A random sample of 1,007 young adults (21–30 years of age) members of a large HMO in Southeast Michigan was interviewed in 1989; 97% of the sample were reinter-viewed 3.5 years later, in 1992. A structured diagnostic interview was used to elicit information on DSM-III-R major depression and IHS migraine in lifetime (in the 1989 interview) and during the 3.5 year follow-up interval (in the 1992 interview). Using Cox-proportional hazards models with time-dependent covariates, we estimated the relative risk for major depression associated with prior migraine and the relative risk for migraine associated with prior major depression. Results: In this sample of young adults, the incidence of migraine per 1,000 person years, based on the prospectively gathered data, was 5.0 in males and 22.0 in females. The estimated relative risk for major depression associated with prior migraine, adjusted for sex and education, was 3.2 (95% CI 2.3–4.6). The adjusted relative risk for migraine associated with prior major depression was 3.1 (95% CI 2.0–5.0). Conclusions: The study provides the first body of evidence that the previously observed cross-sectional association between migraine and major depression can result from bidirectional influences, with each disorder increasing the risk for first onset of the other. The explanation that major depression in persons with migraine represents a psychologic response to migraine attacks would have been more plausible had we found an influence only from migraine to depression. By diminishing the plausibility of a simple causal explanation for the migraine-depression comorbidity, the findings favor the shared mechanisms explanation.