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Background: There has been a notable decrease in antibiotic prescribing in the last thirty years in Sweden. Little is known about factors influencing antibiotic prescribing over several years. Objective: To compare primary care physicians who, over time, reduced their antibiotic prescribing for respiratory tract infections with those who remained either high or low prescribers regarding potentiall
The novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) presents a major threat to public health but can be prevented by safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers (HCWs) is essential to promote uptake. This study, aimed to determine the COVID-19 vaccination uptake and hesitancy and its associated factors among HCWs in Tanzania. We employed a convergent-parallel mixed-
Background: Photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) is a new clinical method that may show better diagnostic quality at lower radiation doses than conventional CT. Objective: To investigate the diagnostic quality and radiation dose of paediatric cardiovascular PCCT for diagnosis of congenital heart defects at 70 kV and 90 kV. Materials and methods: This retrospective assessment included clinica
Background: Expiratory flow limitation (EFL) during tidal breathing and lung hyperinflation have been identified as major decisive factors for disease status, prognosis and response to therapy in obstructive lung diseases. Aim: To investigate the delta values between expiratory and inspiratory resistance and reactance, measured using respiratory oscillometry and its correlation with air trapping a
Background: Food biodiversity in human diets has potential co-benefits for both public health and sustainable food systems. However, current evidence on the potential relationship between food biodiversity and cancer risk, and particularly gastrointestinal cancers typically related to diet, remains limited. This study evaluated how dietary species richness (DSR) was associated with gastrointestina
OBJECTIVE: To assess the progression of type 1 diabetes using time to peak glucose or C-peptide during oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) in autoantibody-positive relatives of people with type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We examined 2-h OGTTs of participants in the Diabetes Prevention Trial Type 1 (DPT-1) and TrialNet Pathway to Prevention (PTP) studies. We included 706 DPT-1 partic
Background: Osteocalcin is a metabolic active hormone, which correlates positively with bone formation and inversely with body mass index and waist circumference in adults. Objectives: To investigate whether osteocalcin in infancy and early childhood were related to childhood growth or body composition. Methods: A Swedish longitudinal birth cohort with blood samples from 551 children from birth un
Metal fuels can be promising candidates as alternative energy sources and renewable energy carriers within the metal-fuel cycle. They feature high energy density, low environmental impact, and broad production and application. One challenge in metal particle combustion lies in its multi-physics complexity compared to traditional hydrocarbon fuels. This thesis intends to investigate the combustion
Isolation and characterization of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) present a noninvasive alternative to monitor disease progression in individual patients. However, the heterogeneous lineage specificity of CTCs makes it difficult to isolate and identify possible CTCs by a liquid biopsy. Better label-free methods for the isolation of viable CTCs are needed. Our solution is a combined approach that is
This thesis comprises three self-contained chapters that explore how individual behavior, incentives, and institutional frameworks shape the allocation of scarce resources, with particular emphasis on healthcare markets. The first chapter examines the impact of intrinsic truth-telling preferences on consumer welfare within a priority pricing mechanism, in which individuals can gain faster access t
Human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) is a critical factor in unlimited cell proliferation and immortalization, with numerous studies demonstrating that high expression of hTERT is a poor prognostic factor in various types of cancer. Ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2D 3 (UBE2D3) is a member of the E2 family, and participates in the ubiquitin proteasome pathway to regulate basic cellular act
The transition to a fossil-free society in Sweden is expected to cause an increased demand for forest-derived products which may intensify existing conflicts between forest ecosystem services. This study investigated the preferences among non-industrial private forest owners for maintaining multiple forest ecosystem services and their preferences for future forest development. The findings were re
Background: Conventional cytotoxic drugs are not effective in alveolar soft-part sarcoma (ASPS). Immune checkpoint (programmed cell death protein 1/programmed death-ligand 1) inhibitors (ICIs) are promising drugs in ASPS. A worldwide registry explored the efficacy of ICI in ASPS. Materials and methods: Data from adult patients diagnosed with ASPS and treated with ICI for advanced disease in expert
BACKGROUND: Proteomic profiling could potentially disclose new pathophysiological pathways for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and improve prediction at the individual level. We therefore aimed to study the plasma protein profile associated with the incidence of different CVDs. METHODS: Plasma levels of 245 proteins suspected to be linked to CVD or metabolism were measured in 4 Swedish prospective p
Although microgels have been widely used as model systems for soft colloids, their properties are still far from being completely understood. This stems from their heterogeneous structure strongly differing from that of an idealized polymeric network. Indeed, microgels synthesized by conventional precipitation polymerization exhibit not only a fuzzy structure with respect to the difference of reac
BACKGROUND: Cancer patients often use antioxidants that may interact with adjuvant treatments. The purpose was to investigate pre- and postoperative antioxidant use in relation to clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis in different breast cancer treatment groups.METHODS AND PATIENTS: Pre- and postoperative antioxidant (vitamin A, C, E, carotenoids, or Q10) or multivitamin use was self-r
The thesis presented here delves into why dwell time delays for commuter trains occur, with a specific focus on the impact of boarding and alighting passengers. The overarching aim is to develop knowledge of how time delays arise to identify and describe potential ways in which dwell time delays can be reduced. In addition to this, a secondary aim is to identify how dwell times can be studied on a
Background: Advances in treatment of childhood malignancies have improved overall cure rates to 80%. Nevertheless, cancer is still the most common cause of childhood mortality in Sweden. The prognosis is particularly poor for relapse of high-risk malignancies. In the international INFORM registry, tumor tissue from patients with relapsed, refractory, or progressive pediatric cancer as well as from
Background: Limited data exist on transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) outcomes in patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) stenosis. This study compared TAVR outcomes in BAV versus tricuspid aortic stenosis. Methods: This observational study included all patients who underwent TAVR in Sweden from 2016 to 2022, excluding those with pure aortic insufficiency and valve-in-valve procedures.
Individuals with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) face an increased risk for severe COVID-19. This study from Sweden, a country that only had a few mandatory restrictions at the onset of the pandemic, used 10 nationwide registers to compare the risks for severe COVID-19 outcomes of polymerase chain reaction-verified severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections through
