Background: Occupational balance is fundamental to occupational therapy and occupational science. Therefore, the Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ) was developed and has previously been found psychometrically valid according to classical test theory. Aim: To investigate the internal construct validity of the OBQ using Rasch measurement theory. Material and methods: Data from two general popu

In this study, effects of various geometrical parameters of a new winglet longitudinal vortex generator (LVG) on heat transfer and flow characteristics in a rectangular channel were investigated by a numerical method, and the influence of various parameters was analyzed. A comparative study of effects of elliptical pole parameters, the thickness, the length, the height, the attack angle, the trans

Background and purpose — The all-polyethylene tibial (APT) component, introduced in the early 1970s, was surpassed by metal-backed tibial (MBT) trays as the first choice for total knee arthroplasty (TKA). With improved polyethylene, the modern APT components can reduce costs, and have shown equivalent results in survivorship and early migration of the cruciate-retaining and cruciate-stabilizing de

The development of soft anisotropic building blocks is of great interest for various applications in soft matter. Furthermore, such systems would be important model systems for ordering phenomena in fundamental soft matter science. In this work, we address the challenge of creating hollow and anisotropically shaped thermoresponsive microgels, polymeric networks with a solvent filled cavity in thei

Insects visit flowers not only to forage for nectar or pollen but also to search for hosts or prey, and to look for suitable habitats for breeding sites. In oil palm flowers, it has been documented that not all flower-visiting insects are pollinators, but some insects are recognized as predators, parasitoids or saprophages, which may affect the abundance and persistence of the weevil pollinating o

Background: To assess whether a prespecified statistical model based on the four kallikrein markers measured in blood—total, free, and intact prostate-specific antigen (PSA), together with human kallikrein-related peptidase 2 (hK2)—or any individual marker measured in pretreatment serum were associated with biochemical recurrence-free (BCR) or metastasis-free survival after radical prostatectomy (

Aim: Children born preterm are at increased risk of reduced lung function. The aim was to test whether lung function was associated with pulmonary vascular resistance. Methods: Participants were recruited from a population-based cohort born in 2004-2007. Lung function was assessed with spirometry after administration of a beta2-agonist. Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in o

Background: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a frequent disorder with considerable morbidity and mortality. Obesity has previously been reported to influence disease severity. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association of adipose and muscle parameters with the severity grade of AP. Methods: In total 454 patients were recruited. The first contrast-enhanced computed tomography of

OBJECTIVE: Several previous studies have shown increased mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. This study investigated if this was true also for patients with disease onset in the 1980s.PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study group comprised 183 patients (67 men and 116 women) with definite RA participating in an ongoing prospective study. Mean age at onset of disease was 51 years, and mean dur

Thyroid hormones are of fundamental importance for brain development and essential factors to warrant brain functions throughout life. Their actions are mediated by binding to specific intracellular and membranous receptors regulating genomic and non-genomic mechanisms in neurons and populations of glial cells, respectively. Among others, mechanisms include the regulation of neuronal plasticity pr

Background/Aims: Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) is becoming clinical routine for management of Neuroendocrine Tumours. The number of PRRT cycles are correlated with treatment effect but theoretically limited by off-target radiation damage to kidneys and bone marrow. New imaging biomarkers for assessment of PRRT tissue damage would enable evaluation of novel renal and bone marrow protBackground/Aims: Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) is becoming clinical routine for management of neuroendocrine tumours. The number of PRRT cycles is correlated with treatment effect but theoretically limited by off-target radiation damage to kidneys and bone marrow. New imaging biomarkers for assessment of PRRT tissue damage would enable evaluation of novel renal and bone marrow prote

Background The mortality in individuals with a family history of heart failure (HF) has not been determined. This nationwide sib-pair study aimed to determine mortality in individuals with a sibling affected with HF. Methods Sib-pairs were linked using the Swedish Multi-Generation Register, the Hospital Discharge Register and the Cause of Death Register for the period 1987–2012. Families with card

Background: Being born with low birth weight (LBW) is a risk factor for muscle insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes (T2D), which may be mediated by epigenetic mechanisms programmed by the intrauterine environment. Epigenetic mechanisms exert their prime effects in developing cells. We hypothesized that muscle insulin resistance in LBW subjects may be due to early differential epigenomic and tran

In the mid-19th century, the discovery that bone microstructure in fossils could be preserved with fidelity provided a new avenue for understanding the evolution, function, and physiology of long extinct organisms. This resulted in the establishment of paleohistology as a subdiscipline of vertebrate paleontology, which has contributed greatly to our current understanding of dinosaurs as living org

Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) have a crystalline lipid core which is stabilized by interfacial surfactants. SLNs are considered favorable candidates for drug delivery vehicles since their ability to store and release organic molecules can be tailored through the identity of the lipids and surfactants used. When stored, polymorphic transitions in the core of drug-loaded SLNs lead to the prematur

Clinical risk factors explain only a fraction of the variability of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline in people with type 2 diabetes. Cross-omics technologies by virtue of a wide spectrum screening of plasma samples have the potential to identify biomarkers for the refinement of prognosis in addition to clinical variables. Here we utilized proteomics, metabolomics and lipidomics

Immune cells, such as B and T cells, fight pathogens infecting the human body. To fulfil this function the immune cells need to form a contact during which different membrane proteins play an important role. A key event in this contact is the interaction between the T-cell receptor (TCR) and an antigenic peptide-presenting major histocompatibility complex (MHC) protein. If this interaction is suff