The role of leukocytes in cognitive impairment due to long-term exposure to fine particulate matter: A large population-based mediation analysis.

Introduction: Our understanding of how fine particulate matter (PM) impacts cognitive functioning is limited. Systemic inflammation processes may play a role in mediating this effect.

Methods: This prospective cohort study used data from 66,254 participants aged 18+ between 2006 and 2015 from the Dutch Lifelines Cohort Study and Biobank.

Coronary artery bypass grafting drug-eluting stent implantation: the probabilities of reintervention, transition to severe care-need, nursing home, and death in patients with coronary artery disease within the first three years: evaluations based on health claims data in Germany.

Background: Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and drug-eluting stent implantation (DES) are established as central methods of revascularization for patients with coronary artery disease. This study aims to analyse the health trajectories of patients after first CABG or first, second or third DES within the first three years, with a focus on follow-up interventions, severe care need, transition into a nursing home, and death.

Methods: Based on health claims data (n=11,581), we estimated age-and sex standardized probabilities of reintervention, and of transition to severe care need, nursing home and death following initial CABG (n=2,008) or DES (n=9,573) for patients aged 50 years and older using logistic regression models and direct standardization.

Contributions of causes of death to differentials in life expectancy by internal migrant status in the Netherlands. A population register based study, 2015-2019.

Important health differences exist in the context of international migration and residential mobility. Less is known about health differences regarding the medium-distance level of internal migration. This study examines life expectancy gaps between internal movers and stayers in the Netherlands and their underlying processes by assessing the contribution of different causes of death by age and sex.

Colonoscopy and Subsequent Risk of Parkinson's Disease.

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is caused by the misfolding and aggregation of α-synuclein in neurons into toxic oligomers and fibrils that have prion-like properties allowing them to infect healthy neurons and to be transmitted to animal models of PD by injection or oral exposure. Given α-synuclein fibrils' potential transmission on the gut-brain axis, α-synuclein may be transmitted through colonoscopy procedures.

Objective: This study examines a possible association between colonoscopy and PD.

Association between the starting age of non-parental Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), and psycho-social problems in adolescence in West and East Germany - a natural experiment using data from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS).

Introduction: The study aimed to investigate the association between the start age of non-parental Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) and psycho-social problems in adolescence. The similarities and differences between West and East Germany were also investigated in a natural experiment.

Methods: Our sample consisted of 1022 children (621 from West Germany, 401 from East Germany) aged 3-4 years at wave 2003-2006 that were followed up to wave 2014-2017 as adolescents (mean ± SD age = 14.

Informal care and mental health in Germany: What are the differences between non-migrants and ethnic German immigrants? A longitudinal comparative analysis.

Objective: In aging Germany, a large part of care is provided by informal caregivers. We aimed to analyze the main drivers of the mental health of caregivers and their intersection with migration status.

Methods: Using panel data covering 18 years ( = 25,659 individuals, aged 16 to 103 years; mean age of 49.

Dementia in Germany: epidemiology, trends and challenges.

Background: Dementia poses a growing challenge for individuals, healthcare, social support, and society amidst the ongoing ageing of populations. To evaluate the care requirements and social implications of dementia in Germany, reliable statistics regarding its current and future occurrence are necessary.

Methods: Using existing data sources and recent research results, this paper compiles and analyses relevant statistics on the occurrence of dementia in Germany, presents protective and risk factors, and options for care provision.

The Impact of Sex-Specific Survival on the Incidence of Dementia in Parkinson's Disease.

Objective: The aim of our study is to analyze sex-specific patterns of Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD) incidence. We are investigating the extent to which sex differences in survival after initial Parkinson's disease (PD) diagnosis influence differences in PDD risk among PD patients.

Methods: We used a random sample of German longitudinal health claims data of persons ages 50+ (2004-2019; n = 250,000) and identified new PD cases ages 65+ who were followed-up for a PDD diagnosis or death between 2006 and 2017.

Sporadic Use of Antibiotics in Older Adults and the Risk of Dementia: A Nested Case-Control Study Based on German Health Claims Data.

Background: Antibiotics for systemic use may increase the risk of neurodegeneration, yet antibiotic therapy may be able to halt or mitigate an episode of neurodegenerative decline.

Objective: To investigate the association of sporadic use of antibiotics and subsequent dementia risk (including Alzheimer's disease).

Methods: We used data from the largest public health insurance fund in Germany, the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse (AOK).

The association of unhealthy and healthy food store accessibility with obesity prevalence among adults in the Netherlands: A spatial analysis.

Introduction: Obesity prevalence has almost tripled in Europe since 1980, and the obesogenic (food) environment is hypothesised to be one of the main drivers. Still, empirical evidence is rare for Europe.

Objective: This ecological study explores spatial patterns of obesity prevalence of adults (aged 19+) in the Netherlands in 2016.

Stents versus bypass surgery: 3-year mortality risk of patients with coronary interventions aged 50+ in Germany.

Objectives: Due to demographic aging, the prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) is expected to increase in the future, resulting in a growing demand for stent and bypass interventions. This study aims to investigate the mortality risk of patients following conventional coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or endovascular procedure by the implantation of bare-metal stents (BMS) or drug-eluting stents (DES).

Methods: Based on a random sample of 250,000 members of Germany's largest health insurance 'Allgemeine Ortskrankenkassen' (AOK) from 2004 to 2015, incident CAD patients were analyzed by Cox Proportional-Hazard models.

Does the Mortality of Individuals with Severe Disabilities Contribute to the Persistent East-West Mortality Gap Among German Men?

Unlabelled: After three decades since reunification male life expectancy in East Germany still lags behind that of West Germany. Unlike most of the prior studies focusing on the role of socioeconomic factors, this study aims at assessing the contribution of the population with severe disabilities to the persistent East-West male mortality gap. Our analysis is mainly based on the German Pension Fund data.

The influence of gender on COVID-19 infections and mortality in Germany: Insights from age- and gender-specific modeling of contact rates, infections, and deaths in the early phase of the pandemic.

Recent research points towards age- and gender-specific transmission of COVID-19 infections and their outcomes. The effect of gender, however, has been overlooked in past modelling approaches of COVID-19 infections. The aim of our study is to explore how gender-specific contact behavior affects gender-specific COVID-19 infections and deaths.

Potential of prevention strategies for the modifiable risk factor type 2 diabetes with relation to the future number of dementia patients in Germany- a multi-state projection through 2040.

Background: We assess the impact of prevention strategies regarding type 2 diabetes as a modifiable risk factor for dementia and its consequences for the future number of dementia patients in Germany.

Methods: We used a random sample of health claims data (N = 250,000) of insured persons aged 50+ drawn in 2014, and data on population size and death rates in 2015 from the Human Mortality Database. Using exponential hazard models, we calculated age- and sex-specific transition probabilities and death rates between the states (no diabetes/no dementia, diabetes/no dementia, no diabetes/dementia, diabetes/dementia).

Dementia risk predictions from German claims data using methods of machine learning.

Introduction: We examined whether German claims data are suitable for dementia risk prediction, how machine learning (ML) compares to classical regression, and what the important predictors for dementia risk are.

Methods: We analyzed data from the largest German health insurance company, including 117,895 dementia-free people age 65+. Follow-up was 10 years.

Sex and Gender Differences in Environmental Influences on Dementia Incidence in Germany, 2014-2019: An Observational Cohort Study Based on Health Claims Data.

Background: There is an ongoing debate about whether environmental characteristics influence dementia risk like individual traits do, and whether these differ by sex and gender.

Objective: This study examines the influence of regional characteristics on the incidence of dementia and explores sex and gender differences using individual-level health information and regional characteristics.

Methods: Using a random sample of 250,000 people aged 70 + insured through Germany's largest German public health agency, we analyzed quarterly data about diagnoses and place of residence from 2014 to 2019.

Social disparities in the first wave of COVID-19 incidence rates in Germany: a county-scale explainable machine learning approach.

Objectives: Knowledge about the socioeconomic spread of the first wave of COVID-19 infections in Germany is scattered across different studies. We explored whether COVID-19 incidence rates differed between counties according to their socioeconomic characteristics using a wide range of indicators.

Data And Method: We used data from the Robert Koch-Institute (RKI) on 204 217 COVID-19 diagnoses in the total German population of 83.

Progression to severe visual impairment and blindness in POAG patients: pace and risk factors-a cohort study using German health claims data.

Objective: Glaucoma is a leading cause of severe visual impairment and blindness (SVI/B) worldwide. Hence, it is of utmost importance to explore relevant risk factors and study the pace of progression to SVI/B.

Methods And Analysis: We used a random sample of 250 000 persons from administrative individual-level health records of the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkassen between 2004 and 2015.

Diabetes duration and the risk of dementia: a cohort study based on German health claims data.

Objective: Diabetes is a risk factor for dementia but little is known about the impact of diabetes duration on the risk of dementia. We investigated the effect of type 2 diabetes duration on the risk of dementia.

Design: Prospective cohort study using health claims data representative for the older German population.

Regional Characteristics of the Second Wave of SARS-CoV-2 Infections and COVID-19 Deaths in Germany.

(1) Background: In the absence of individual level information, the aim of this study was to identify the regional key features explaining SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19 deaths during the upswing of the second wave in Germany. (2) Methods: We used COVID-19 diagnoses and deaths from 1 October to 15 December 2020, on the county-level, differentiating five two-week time periods. For each period, we calculated the age-standardized COVID-19 incidence and death rates on the county level.

Recurring Gastrointestinal Infections Increase the Risk of Dementia.

Background: Gastrointestinal infections cause significant health problems, including those affecting the immune, musculoskeletal, and nervous system, and are one of the leading causes for death worldwide. Recent findings suggest that microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract contribute to dementia.

Objective: In this nested case-control study we investigated the role of common gastrointestinal infections on the subsequent risk of dementia.

Long-term exposure to fine particulate matter, lung function and cognitive performance: A prospective Dutch cohort study on the underlying routes.

Background: Exposure to fine particulate matter and black carbon is related to cognitive impairment and poor lung function, but less is known about the routes taken by different types of air pollutants to affect cognition.

Objectives: We tested two possible routes of fine particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) in impairing cognition, and evaluated their importance: a direct route over the olfactory nerve or the blood stream, and an indirect route over the lung.

Methods: We used longitudinal observational data for 49,705 people aged 18+ from 2006 to 2015 from the Dutch Lifelines cohort study.

Incidence, individual, and macro level risk factors of severe binocular visual impairment and blindness in persons aged 50 and older.

Objective: This study aims to estimate the incidence of severe binocular vision impairment and blindness (SVI/B) and to identify eye diseases and regional risk factors of persons with SVI/B at ages 50 years and older.

Methods: We designed an observational cohort study based on longitudinal, multifactorial, and administrative information of a random sample of 250,000 persons at ages 50+. All individuals were included in the process-produced health claims register of the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse in 2004, and were followed until 2015.

Health determinants among refugees in Austria and Germany: A propensity-matched comparative study for Syrian, Afghan, and Iraqi refugees.

In recent years, Germany and Austria have been among the leading European receiving countries for asylum seekers and refugees (AS&R). The two countries have cultural and economic similarities, but differ, for example, in their health care systems, with AS&R having unrestricted access to health services upon arrival in Austria, but not in Germany. This study investigates the determinants of health among refugees in Austria and Germany, and how these determinants differ between the two countries.