Use of outpatient and inpatient health care services by occupation-a register study of employees in Oulu, Finland.

Background: The aim of this study was to examine how the use of outpatient and inpatient health services differs by occupational groups, and whether the differences are explained by sociodemographic factors and health status.

Methods: We used register-based data on 25-64-year-old employees living in the city of Oulu, Finland, in 2018 (N = 61,848). Use of outpatient health care services (public, private and occupational health care) among men and women was analysed with negative binomial regression models, and use of inpatient health care with logistic regression models, using two occupational classifications: occupational group (1-digit level) and more detailed occupation (2-digit level).

Associations of Medical Visits with Dentist Visits: A Register-Linkage Study of a Working-Age Population in Finland.

Studies have usually addressed the utilization of either medical or dental services, and less is known about how medical and dentist visits are associated. As oral health is linked to systemic health, knowledge on care coordination between dental and medical services is important to gain understanding of the overall functioning of health care. Register data on 25-64-year-old residents of the city of Oulu, Finland, were used for the years 2017-2018 (N = 91,060).

Frequent attenders of three outpatient health care schemes in Finland: characteristics and association with long-term sickness absences, 2016-2018.

Objectives: Frequent attenders (FAs) impose a significant burden on service capacity and public health funding. Although the characteristics of the group and their risk for sickness absences (SA) have been studied, an understanding of FAs in different health care schemes is lacking. The aim of the study was to investigate FAs and their SA risk in the working-age population in public care, occupational health services (OHS) and private care schemes.

Incidence and Length of Sickness Absence among Hierarchical Occupational Classes and Non-Wage-Earners: A Register Study of 1.6 Million Finns.

Socioeconomic differences in sickness absence are well known, but previous studies have tended to focus on wage earners only. This study examined incidence and length of sickness absence comparing the employee groups of upper and lower non-manual employees and manual workers, but also entrepreneurs, the unemployed and other non-wage-earners. The study utilized register data on a nationally representative 70% sample of Finns aged 25-62 at the end of year 2012 ( = 1,615,352).

SARS-CoV-2 infections among healthcare workers at Helsinki University Hospital, Finland, spring 2020: Serosurvey, symptoms and risk factors.

Background: Exposure, risks and immunity of healthcare workers (HCWs), a vital resource during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, warrant special attention.

Methods: HCWs at Helsinki University Hospital, Finland, filled in questionnaires and provided serum samples for SARS-CoV-2-specific antibody screening by Euroimmun IgG assay in March-April 2020. Positive/equivocal findings were confirmed by Abbott and microneutralization tests.

Work participation trajectories among 1,098,748 Finns: reasons for premature labour market exit and the incidence of sickness absence due to mental disorders and musculoskeletal diseases.

Background: Early exit from paid employment is a notable public health and societal challenge. Previous research has largely focused on the relationships among variables instead of the relationships among individuals with different work participation history. Person-oriented methods enable to identify latent groups of individuals who are likely to follow similar development in their work participation over time.

Occupational class differences in diagnostic-specific sickness absence: a register-based study in the Finnish population, 2005-2014.

Background: Musculoskeletal diseases and mental disorders are major causes of long-term sickness absence in Western countries. Although sickness absence is generally more common in lower occupational classes, little is known about class differences in diagnostic-specific absence over time. Focusing on Finland during 2005-2014, we therefore set out to examine the magnitude of and changes in absolute and relative occupational class differences in long-term sickness absence due to major diagnostic causes.

Over-indebtedness and chronic disease: a linked register-based study of Finnish men and women during 1995-2010.

Objectives: More knowledge of the associations between over-indebtedness and health is needed. This study is the first longitudinal register-based study analysing long-term health consequences of severe over-indebtedness.

Methods: Adult Finnish persons, identified in 2010 as having been over-indebted for at least 15 years, were compared with matched controls (total N = 48,778).

Characterization of Hairdresser Exposure to Airborne Particles during Hair Bleaching.

Respiratory symptoms among hairdressers are often ascribed to the use of bleaching powders that contain persulfate salts. Such salts can act as allergens and airway irritants but the mechanisms behind the negative health effects are not fully known. In order to understand why some hairdressers experience respiratory symptoms during, and after, sessions of hair bleaching, it is of importance to characterize how exposure occurs.

Impact of tonsillectomy on health-related quality of life and healthcare costs in children and adolescents.

Background: Tonsillectomy is a common surgical intervention in children, but its efficacy is under debate. We studied whether tonsillectomy is a cost-effective intervention with a positive impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL).

Methods: Children (aged 7-11 years) and adolescents (aged 12-15 years) undergoing tonsillectomy answered the 17D or 16D HRQoL questionnaires before tonsillectomy and at 6 and 12 months postoperatively.

Who ends up having tonsillectomy after peritonsillar infection?

We wanted to explore how many patients will undergo tonsillectomy during the first 5 years after peritonsillar abscess or peritonsillar cellulitis, and why. In addition we sought predictive factors as to who would benefit from tonsillectomy. Medical records of 809 patients with peritonsillar infection (ICD-10 J36) aged over six were analyzed, and data on the history of tonsil infections and differences in treatment were collected.

Determinants of home-based formal help in community-dwelling older people in Finland.

Knowledge of the determinants of use of formal home-based services among older people is of particular importance for predicting the need for and cost of care in the future. The aim of this study was to estimate the frequency of formal and informal help among community-dwelling older people and to assess the determinants of home-based formal help, with a special emphasis on the frequency of help from spouse, from children and other relatives and friends. We used nationally representative cross-sectional data from 1,166 community-dwelling Finnish persons aged 70-99.

Current challenges in diagnosis of acute otitis media.

Diagnosis of acute otitis media is difficult: circumstances and equipment for diagnosis are often compromised, the child may be uncooperative, signs and symptoms of acute otitis media and those of the common cold are mostly the same, and parents appear to have strong opinions concerning correct diagnosis and treatment. Many clinicians have received inadequate pre- and postgraduate education about diagnosis. On the other hand, they are aware of the worldwide problem of antimicrobial resistance resulting from antibiotics unwisely prescribed for viral infections.

Clinical significance of incidental magnetic resonance image abnormalities in mastoid cavity and middle ear in children.

Objective: Magnetic resonance imaging of the head may reveal incidental findings in paranasal sinuses. The purpose of this study was to discover whether similar changes could be identified in the mastoid cavity and middle ear as well.

Methods: A group of 50 children undergoing magnetic resonance imaging of the head for suspected intracranial pathology were prospectively gathered.

Mitochondria and ischemic reperfusion damage in the adult and in the developing brain.

The developing and the adult brain respond in similar ways to ischemia, but also display clear differences. For example, the relative contributions of necrosis and apoptosis to neuronal death may be different, such that apoptotic mechanisms would be more prevalent in the developing brain. During normal development, more than half of the neurons in some brain regions are removed through apoptosis, and effectors like caspase-3 are highly upregulated in the immature brain.