Objective: Several studies have shown an increased risk of congenital foot derformities after early amniocentesis. These studies have comprised amniocenteses performed before 13 completed gestational weeks. In this study, the risk of foot deformities after amniocentesis performed at 12-14 completed gestational weeks was determined. Methods: 3,469 genetic amniocenteses in singleton pregnancies perf

Background. Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has become widely accepted as a basis for clinical decision in many fields of medicine. This review examines the specific role of EBM in hepato-biliary and pancreatic (HBP) surgery. EBM relies on four main sources, including clinical guidelines, meta-analyses, primary information and clinical experience. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) constitute the c

Both benign and malignant prostate diseases elevate total prostate-specific antigen (tPSA), and the incidence of benign disease increases markedly with age. There is evidence, however, that free-to-total PSA ratio (%fPSA) and human kallikrein 2 (hK2) more closely reflect the malignant process. We tested the hypothesis that tPSA levels are more strongly predictive of cancer in younger when compared

Objective. To clarify the spontaneous course of important disease manifestations (a core set of outcome measures) over a period of 5 years in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS), and to analyze predictors of unfavorable outcome. To test the usefulness of the recently proposed core set of outcome measures. Methods. A cohort of patients with primary SS according to the American-European c

Background. Several population-based studies have shown that self-perceived health is a powerful predictor of health outcomes. The extent to which self-perceived health is associated with personality characteristics is, however, largely unknown. We aimed to study the relationship between self-perceived health and personality among adults in the community. Method. Data were drawn from the Midlife D

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) was examined in relation to state and trait anxiety in healthy individuals. Time-frequency analyses of HR-power spectrum in the high frequency region (0.12-0.40 Hz), related to RSA, were examined in 43 women and 39 men. Based on median split, the participants were divided into high and low state and trait anxiety groups. The main result showed that high state anx

The evolutionary divergence of a single species into two has never been directly observed in nature, primarily because speciation can take a long time to occur. A ring species, in which a chain of intergrading populations encircles a barrier and the terminal forms coexist without interbreeding, provides a situation in which variation in space can be used to infer variation in time(1-3). Here we re

The aim of this article is to explain norm change regarding gender and development in the EU. I trace the policy process from initiation to implementation to clarify how new norms were introduced and spread. The article combines a constructivist approach to norm diffusion with a negotiation perspective. Constructivist accounts underline the role of norm entrepreneurs and how they persuade others t

Objective: This research seeks to study the impact on family function after 3 months of treatment with amphetamine. Method: A total of 43 children, 6 to 11 years of age, with ADHD were treated with amphetamine for 3 months. Family function was studied before and after treatment by parent self-rating and independent observer ratings of videotaped parent—child interactions. Results: The families wit

Objective Bile reflux is thought to be responsible for reflux gastritis and stump carcinoma occurring after partial gastrectomy for peptic ulcer. Gastritis and gastric carcinoma are also correlated with Helicobacter pylori. The aim of this study was to investigate whether diversion of enteric reflux and the presence of H. pylori infection alter long-term histological developments in the gastric re

Eosinophil granulocytes are characterized by large crystalloid-containing granules whose major contents of highly cationic proteins may play a role in allergic reactions and parasitic infections. Human eosinophils are also rich in arylsulfatase B whose enzymatic activity is localized to a population of small type cytoplasmic granules and used as a marker for such organelles. We utilized immunoelec

The lifetime broadening and molecular field splitting of the sodium dimer 2p core level is studied by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and by Auger electron spectroscopy. The lifetime of the Na 2p core hole has been determined to be 15 +/- 8 fs, much shorter than what has previously been reported for solid sodium. The molecular field splitting of this core level has been determined to be 42 +/- 10

The importance of particular genes in neuronal death following global cerebral ischemia can readily be studied in genetically modified mice provided a reliable model of ischemia is available. For that purpose, we developed a mouse model of global cerebral ischemia that induces consistent damage to different regions of the brain and with a low mortality rate. Twelve minutes of ischemia was induced

The scattering determinant for the scattering of waves from several obstacles is considered in the case of elastic solids with voids. The multi-scattering determinant displays contributions from periodic ray-splitting orbits. A discussion of the weights of such orbits is presented

Three adult de novo acute myeloid leukemias (AML M1, M2, and M4) with an isochromosome 7p are presented. No additional abnormalities were deterred by G-band and multicolor, using combined binary ratio labeling, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses, indicating that the i(7p) was the sole. i.e., the primary, chromosomal aberration. Although the patients were elderly-68, 72, and 78 year

Established histopathological criteria divide invasive breast carcinomas into defined groups. Ductal of no specific type and lobular are the two major subtypes accounting for around 75 and 15% of all cases, respectively. The remaining 10% include rarer types such as tubular, cribriform, mucinous, papillary, medullary, metaplastic, and apocrine breast carcinomas. Molecular profiling technologies, o

Full-scale experiments have been carried out to adapt the activated sludge model ASM2d to include the influence of metal dosage (Fe3+ and Al3+) for phosphorus removal. Phosphorus removal rates, nitrification rates, as well as pH and sludge settling performance, were evaluated as functions of the metal dosages. Furthermore, models relating certain parameters to the dosage of chemicals have been der

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), placebo-controlled long-term studies of cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) are not permitted for ethical reasons. Therefore, in these studies, patients' outcomes on cognitive and functional assessment scales must be compared with mathematical models or historical data from untreated cohorts. PubMed and previously published long-term extensions of clinical trials and nat

A cost-efficient way to increase power in a genetic association study is to pool controls from different sources. The genotyping effort can then be directed to large case series. The Nordic Control database, NordicDB, has been set up as a unique resource in the Nordic area and the data are available for authorized users through the web portal (http://www.nordicdb.org). The current version of Nordi