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BACKGROUND: Use of a catheter-free, radio telemetric, oesophageal pH-monitoring system in paediatric clinical practice allows patients to follow a more normal physiological pattern of activities and causes less discomfort. At our institution, placement of the capsule is done under general anaesthesia, which restricts the child's activity during the first day. The aim of this study was to determine
Background: It has previously been shown that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to accurately determine left ventricular (LV) long-axis orientation in healthy individuals. However, the inter- and intra-observer variability in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chronic heart failure (CHF) has not been explored. Furthermore, the changes in LV long-axis orientation because of
Superimposed electrical stimulation techniques can be used to detect central activation failure (CAF), defined as incomplete central nervous system recruitment, suboptimal activation of motor units, or both. The purpose of this study was to evaluate superimposed electrical stimulation techniques to be used to detect CAF during isometric knee extension. We performed three sets of experiments and co
Background: In the COMET study, carvedilol improved survival compared to metoprolol tartrate in 3029 patients with NYHA II-IV heart failure and EF <35%, followed for an average of 58 months. Aims: To evaluate whether the effect on overall mortality was specific for a particular mode of death. This may help to identify the mechanism of the observed difference. Methods: Of the 1112 total deaths, 972
An activity-based vocabulary for Voice Output Communication Aids (VOCAs) was designed and evaluated through a user-centred, iterative design process, using expressions from the Gothenburg Spoken Language Corpus as well as other recorded, natural conversations. The growth and development of the vocabulary, called Phrases, was closely linked to its evaluation. The iterative design process included p
BACKGROUND: Individuals with low income have poorer health and should, therefore, have higher health expenditure than people with high income particularly in countries with a universal health care system. However, it has been discussed if social inequities in health diminish with age and we, hence, aimed to analyse this question. METHODS: We performed an age stratified cross-sectional analysis usi
Background: ABO genotyping is complicated by the remarkable diversity at the ABO locus. Recombination or gene conversion between common alleles may lead to hybrids resulting in unexpected ABO phenotypes. Furthermore, numerous mutations associated with weak subgroups and nondeletional null alleles should be considered. All known ABO genotyping methods, however, risk incorrect phenotype predictions
The first stories about Kluskap, the culture hero of the Mi’kmaq in eastern Canada, were written down at the end of the 19th century. The romantic epoch and the environmental failures of industrialism had generated a growing interest for the “Indian”, who seemed to inherit the continent’s authentic “poetry of the Volk” and harbour deep wisdom about nature. The first written literature about Kluska
An association between severe infant bronchiolitis due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and subsequent wheezing is well documented. High levels of urinary eosinophil protein X (U-EPX) have been related to active disease in asthmatic children. The aim of this study was to analyse whether RSV bronchiolitis leads to an increase in U-EPX levels and whether wheezing is more common in children with
The Commission of the European Communities (CEC) research project "Predictivity and optimisation in medical radiation protection" addressed fundamental operational limitations in existing radiation protection mechanisms. The first part of the project aimed at investigating (1) whether the CEC image quality criteria could be used for optimization or a radiographic process and (2) whether significan
Many of the core proteins in Photosystem II (PS II) undergo reversible phosphorylation. It is known that protein phosphorylation controls the repair cycle of Photosystem II. However, it is not known how protein phosphorylation affects the partial electron transport reactions in PS II. Here we have applied variable fluorescence measurements and EPR spectroscopy to probe the status of the quinone ac
Background: Carboxypeptidase B from the pancreatic gland may exist in three different molecular and immunoreactive forms: the proenzyme, the active enzyme, and the activation peptide. Aims: To investigate levels of procarboxypeptidase B (proCAPB) and its activation peptide in serum in acute pancreatitis to test the accuracy of these two variables as markers for the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis
Unsaturated solute transport is highly variable and therefore difficult to predict. In semi-arid areas, where water resources are limited, the presence of macropores is of great importance for crop production. The bromide ion (Br-) and dye tracers are useful for studies of water movement. One approach to describe the heterogeneous solute transport is to apply the concept of fractals to a dataset.
BACKGROUND: In health economics, health is regarded as part of an individual's human capital. As such it depreciates over time, and investments in health are made in order to keep the stock of health capital at the desired level. Using this framework for analysis of health-related behaviour and Swedish panel data, we examined whether the presence of asthma or allergy affects perceived health and i
To determine the impact of a family history of the common form of type 2 diabetes and the phenotype of the proband on anthropometric and metabolic variables in normoglycemic first degree relatives, we studied 2100 first degree relatives of patients with the common form of type 2 diabetes (FH+) and 388 subjects without a family history of diabetes (FH-). All subjects participated in an oral glucose
The aim of the study was to outline whether the influence by lifestyle factors on serum lipids was modified by the hormonal situation in middle-aged women. Six thousand nine hundred eight women, aged 50 to 59 years, participated in a health assessment program, including a serum lipid profile evaluation. The women were grouped according to their hormonal status into premenopausal (PM) (n = 492), po
BACKGROUND: An insertion/deletion polymorphism in the alpha2B-adrenoceptor (AR) has been associated with the risk for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and sudden cardiac death. In this study we tested whether this polymorphism is associated with the risk for AMI among members of families with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: 154 subjects with a history of AMI were matched for age and sex with one of the
In the developed countries the public expect society to be prepared for, and step in, if something out of the ordinary happens. This public pressure appears to have increased the demand for crisis preparedness planning. In crisis management the local authority serves as the first line of defence and will more or less always be involved in responding to crises. It is therefore important to study ho
