How handling extreme C-reactive protein (CRP) values and regularization influences CRP and depression criteria associations in network analyses.

How handling extreme C-reactive protein (CRP) values and regularization influences CRP and depression criteria associations in network analyses. Brain Behav Immun. 2021 Jan;91:393-403 Authors: Moriarity DP, Horn SR, Kautz MM, Haslbeck JMB, Alloy LB Abstract Increasingly, it has been recognized that analysis at the symptom, rather than diagnostic, level will drive progress in the field of immunopsychiatry. Network analysis offers a useful tool in this pursuit with the ability to identify associations between immune markers and individual symptoms, independent of all other variables modeled. However, investigation into how methodological decisions (i.e., including vs. excluding participants with C-reactive protein (CRP) >10 mg/L, regularized vs. nonregularized networks) influence results is necessary to establish best practices for the use of network analysis in immunopsychiatry. In a sample of 3,464 adult participants from the 2015-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey dataset, this study found consistent support for associations between CRP and fatigue and changes in appetite and some support for additional CRP-criterion associations. Methodologically, results consistently demonstrated that including individuals with CRP >10 mg/L and estimating nonregularized networks provided better estimates of these associations. Thus, we recommend considering the use of nonregularized networks in immunopsychiatry and inclu...
Source: Brain, Behavior, and Immunity - Category: Neurology Authors: Tags: Brain Behav Immun Source Type: research