Representativeness of child controls recruited by random digit dialling.

Recruiting control subjects who are representative of the population from which the cases are drawn is a challenge in case-control studies. This paper examines the performance of random digit dialling (RDD) in obtaining a control sample, and the sample's representativeness of the population with respect to socio-economic status. The study subjects were recruited from 2003 to 2006 for a national, population-based case-control study investigating causes of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) in children <15 years of age in Australia.

Human constitutive androstane receptor (CAR) and pregnane X receptor (PXR) support the hypertrophic but not the hyperplastic response to the murine nongenotoxic hepatocarcinogens phenobarbital and chlordane in vivo.

Mouse nongenotoxic hepatocarcinogens phenobarbital (PB) and chlordane induce hepatomegaly characterized by hypertrophy and hyperplasia. Increased cell proliferation is implicated in the mechanism of tumor induction. The relevance of these tumors to human health is unclear.

Search for muon-neutrino to electron-neutrino transitions in MINOS.

This Letter reports on a search for nu(mu) --> nu(e) transitions by the MINOS experiment based on a 3.14x10(20) protons-on-target exposure in the Fermilab NuMI beam. We observe 35 events in the Far Detector with a background of 27+/-5(stat)+/-2(syst) events predicted by the measurements in the Near Detector.

Age at diagnosis of birth defects.

Background: Many birth defects surveillance programs ascertain cases of birth defects diagnosed beyond 1 year of age. The Western Australian (WA) Birth Defects Registry includes cases diagnosed up to 6 years of age, but the value of extending ascertainment beyond 1 year has not been assessed.

Methods: We examined the age at diagnosis for all cases and all birth defects notified to the WA Birth Defects Registry for births and terminations of pregnancy in 2000 and 2001 and estimated the amount of person time needed to ascertain cases diagnosed beyond 1 year of age.

Accuracy and safety of tracheoscopy for infants in a tertiary care clinic.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic accuracy and safety of office-based tracheoscopy when combined with flexible fiberoptic laryngoscopy (FFLT). Flexible laryngoscopy on infants is routinely performed by otolaryngologists in the clinic. The addition of tracheoscopy may improve overall airway assessment but is rarely performed due to the suspected risk of airway compromise.

A survey of folate knowledge and consumer behaviours in Western Australia prior to the introduction of mandatory food fortification.

Objectives: Prior to the introduction of mandatory folic acid fortification in September 2009, this study collected baseline data on folate awareness, knowledge of pregnancy-relevant public health messages and consumer behaviours in Western Australia.

Methods: One thousand residents aged 18 years or older participated in a cross sectional telephone survey in September 2006. Respondents were recruited randomly from the electronic residential telephone directory.

Treatment of infection associated with tunneled pleural catheters.

Chronic indwelling tunneled pleural catheters are increasingly used for the treatment of malignant pleural effusions. Some common complications of these catheters include empyema and local site infection. Empyema is generally treated with the removal of the pleural catheter and the administration of systemic antibiotics.

Parental occupational exposure to potential endocrine disrupting chemicals and risk of hypospadias in infants.

Objectives: Hypospadias is a urogenital birth defect affecting infant boys. Periconceptual parental occupational exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) with oestrogenic or anti-androgenic properties may adversely affect male genital development in utero. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between both maternal and paternal occupational exposures to EDCs and hypospadias.

Evidence of a complex association between dose, pattern and timing of prenatal alcohol exposure and child behaviour problems.

Background: There is a lack of evidence regarding the effect of dose, pattern and timing of prenatal alcohol exposure and behaviour problems in children aged 2 years and older.

Methods: A 10% random sample of women delivering a live infant in Western Australia (1995-96) were invited to participate in an 8-year longitudinal survey (78% response rate n = 2224); 85% were followed-up at 2 years, 73% at 5 years and 61% at 8 years. Alcohol consumption was classified by combining the overall dose, dose per occasion and frequency to reflect realistic drinking patterns.

Recurrence risks for trisomies 13, 18, and 21.

The objective was to establish whether the risk of trisomies 13, 18, and 21 (Patau, Edwards, and Down syndrome, respectively) in a subsequent pregnancy is raised for women who have had a previous pregnancy with trisomy 13, 18, or 21. Birth defect register data were used to investigate this issue. Pregnancy data from three Australian population-based birth defect registers contained 5,906 women with a previous trisomy 13, 18, or 21 pregnancy in whom there were 3,713 subsequent pregnancies, 75 of which were trisomic.

A new method of prenatal alcohol classification accounting for dose, pattern and timing of exposure: improving our ability to examine fetal effects from low to moderate alcohol.

Background: When examining the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and fetal effects, the timing and intensity of exposure have been ignored in epidemiological studies. The effect of using dose, pattern and timing of consumption ("composite" method) was investigated in this study, to examine the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and fetal effects.

Methods: The composite method resulted in six categories of exposure (abstinent, low, moderate, binge View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Maternal folate and other vitamin supplementation during pregnancy and risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the offspring.

The Australian Study of Causes of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Children (Aus-ALL) was designed to test the hypothesis, raised by a previous Western Australian study, that maternal folic acid supplementation during pregnancy might reduce the risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Aus-ALL was a national, population-based, multicenter case-control study that prospectively recruited 416 cases and 1,361 controls between 2003 and 2007. Detailed information was collected about maternal use of folic acid and other vitamin supplements before and during the index pregnancy.

Updraft gasification of salmon processing waste.

The purpose of this study was to judge the feasibility of gasification for the disposal of waste streams generated through salmon harvesting. Gasification is the process of converting carbonaceous materials into combustible "syngas" in a high temperature (above 700 degrees C), oxygen deficient environment. Syngas can be combusted to generate power, which recycles energy from waste products.

Formation of patterned arrays of polystyrene colloidal crystal structures on flexible functional substrates.

This contribution presents the first preparation of patterned arrays of highly ordered polystyrene colloidal crystal structures on flexible functional substrates. The formation of patterned arrays of colloidal crystals over large areas (5x1 cm) with periodic line patterns ranging in pitch from 25 to 450 microm is demonstrated. The protocol developed to achieve this is applicable to a wide-range of substrates and is inherently scalable.

Hearing assessment in infants and children: recommendations beyond neonatal screening.

Congenital or acquired hearing loss in infants and children has been linked with lifelong deficits in speech and language acquisition, poor academic performance, personal-social maladjustments, and emotional difficulties. Identification of hearing loss through neonatal hearing screening, regular surveillance of developmental milestones, auditory skills, parental concerns, and middle-ear status and objective hearing screening of all infants and children at critical developmental stages can prevent or reduce many of these adverse consequences. This report promotes a proactive, consistent, and explicit process for the early identification of children with hearing loss in the medical home.

Autism spectrum disorders in young children: effect of changes in diagnostic practices.

Background: It is unclear whether the increase in autism over the past two decades is a real increase or due to changes in diagnosis and ascertainment of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), which include autism, Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). The aim of this study was to examine the trends in ASD over time in Western Australia (WA) and the possible effects and contribution of changes in diagnostic criteria, age at diagnosis, eligibility for service provision based on ASD diagnoses and changes in diagnostic practices.

Methods: A population-based study was conducted among the cohort of children born in WA between 1983 and 1999 and diagnosed with ASD between the age of 2 and 8 years up to December 31, 2004.

The outcomes of pregnancies following a prenatal diagnosis of fetal exomphalos in Western Australia.

Aims: To review the perinatal outcomes for prenatally diagnosed exomphalos from a single geographical region.

Methods: Retrospective review of cases of prenatally identified exomphalos in the state of Western Australia in the ten-year period 1998-2007 using the medical databases of the sole tertiary obstetric and paediatric hospitals.

Results: Ninety-four cases of prenatally identified exomphalos comprise this consecutive case series.

Systematic review of interventions for children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.

Background: Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) may have significant neurobehavioural problems persisting into adulthood. Early diagnosis may decrease the risk of adverse life outcomes. However, little is known about effective interventions for children with FASD.

Twins born following assisted reproductive technology: perinatal outcome and admission to hospital.

Background: Compared with spontaneously conceived (SC) singletons, adverse perinatal outcome, neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission and hospital admission in infancy are more common in those born following Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART). Similar comparisons for twins have shown conflicting results.

Methods: We investigated perinatal outcome and hospital admission during the first 3 years of life for all twin children born in Western Australia between 1994 and 2000 [700 ART, 4097 SC].

A retrospective population-based study of childhood hospital admissions with record linkage to a birth defects registry.

Background: Using population-based linked records of births, deaths, birth defects and hospital admissions for children born 1980-1999 enables profiles of hospital morbidity to be created for each child.

Methods: This is an analysis of a state-based registry of birth defects linked to population-based hospital admission data. Transfers and readmissions within one day could be taken into account and treated as one episode of care for the purposes of analyses (N = 485,446 children; 742,845 non-birth admissions).