Mapping an uncertainty zone between interpolated types of a categorical variable

Categorical data cannot be interpolated directly because they are outcomes of discrete random variables. Thus, types of categorical variables are transformed into indicator functions that can be handled by interpolation methods. Interpolated indicator values are then backtransformed to the original types of categorical variables. However, aspects such as variability and uncertainty of interpolated values of categorical data have never been considered. In this paper we show that the interpolation variance can be used to map an uncertainty zone around boundaries between types of categorical variables. Moreover, it is shown that the interpolation variance is a component of the total variance of the categorical variables, as measured by the coefficient of unalikeability. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Uric acid biorhythm, a feature of long-term variation in a clinical laboratory database

Background: The biorhythm of serum uric acid was evaluated in a large sample of a clinical laboratory database by spectral analysis and the influence of the gender and age on uric acid variability. Methods: Serum uric acid values were extracted from a large database of a clinical laboratory from May 2000 to August 2006. Outlier values were excluded from the analysis and the remaining data (n = 73,925) were grouped by gender and age ranges. Rhythm components were obtained by the Lomb Scargle method and Cosinor analysis. Results: Serum uric acid was higher in men than in women older than 13 years (p<0.05). Compared with 0-12 year group, uric acid increased in men but not in women older than 13 years (p<0.05). Circannual (12 months) and transyear (17 months) rhythm components were detected, but they were significant only in adult individuals (>26 years, p<0.05). Cosinor analysis showed that midline estimating statistic of rhythm (MESOR) values were higher in men (range: 353-368 mu mol/L) than in women (range: 240-278 mu mol/L; p<0.05), independent of the age and rhythm component. The extent of predictable change within a cycle, approximated by the double amplitude, represented up to 20% of the corresponding MESOR. Conclusions: Serum uric acid biorhythm is dependent on gender and age and it may have relevant influence on preanalytical variability of clinical laboratory results.