Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41581501›Full record

ArticleArquivos de neuro-psiquiatria2026

Automated measurement of pineal gland calcification volumes and sleep quality in adults living in costal Ecuador.

Oscar H Del Brutto, Robertino M Mera, Emilio E Arias, Denisse A Rumbea, Vishal Patel, Pablo R Castillo

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Arquivos de neuro-psiquiatria, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Oscar H Del BruttoUniversidad Espíritu Santo, Escuela de Medicina, Samborondón, Ecuador.ORCID 0000-0003-1917-8805
Robertino M MeraFreenome, Inc., Biostatistics/Epidemiology, South San Francisco CA, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-1701-560X
Emilio E AriasUniversidad Espíritu Santo, Centro de Investigaciones, Samborondón, Ecuador.ORCID 0009-0004-1696-5189
Denisse A RumbeaUniversidad Espíritu Santo, Centro de Investigaciones, Samborondón, Ecuador.ORCID 0000-0001-8257-7572
Vishal PatelMayo Clinic College of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Jacksonville FL, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-8704-5169
Pablo R CastilloMayo Clinic College of Medicine, Sleep Disorders Center, Jacksonville FL, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-0423-1354

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Studies on the association between pineal gland calcification (PGC) and non-breathing sleep-related symptoms are inconclusive.The present study aims to evaluate this association in middle-aged and older adults living in rural villages located in coastal Ecuador.Community-dwellers aged ≥ 40 years enrolled in the Three Villages Study cohort were interviewed with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to assess sleep quality and received head computed tomography for automated measurement of PGC volumes. Generalized linear and logistic regression models were used to assess the association between PGC volumes (exposure) and the PSQI score and sleep quality (as separate dependent variables), after adjusting for age and sex.The study included 1,009 participants (mean age: 56.5 ± 12.6 years; 57% women). The mean volume of PGC was 51 ± 53.5 µL. The mean score of the PSQI was 5.3 ± 2.8 points, with 399 (40%) participants having poor sleep quality. Locally-Weighted Scatterplot Smoothing showed a linear relationship between continuous PGC volumes and PSQI scores. An unadjusted generalized linear regression model showed a significant association between PGC volumes stratified in tertiles and the continuous PSQI score. However, this association lost statistical significance after adjustment for age and sex. The association between tertiles of PGC and poor sleep quality was non-significant in both unadjusted and multivariate logistic regression models.Study results did not find an association between increased PGC and sleep quality after adjusting for demographics, suggesting that PGC may not necessarily indicate pineal dysfunction but could reflect adaptive physiological mechanisms.

Indexed as

CalcinosisPineal GlandSleep QualitySleep Wake DisordersAdultAgedEcuadorFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedRural PopulationTomography, X-Ray Computed

Identifiers

PMID41581501
PMCPMC12832156

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.