Publications by authors named "Stefan Pfeifer"

Background: This article examines discrepancies in the frequency of diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents in Germany using information on health care utilisation from both administrative and parent-reported survey data linked at person level.

Methods: 5,461 parents of 0- to 17-year-olds insured with DAK-Gesundheit in 2020 and being registered with a confirmed administrative ADHD diagnosis (ICD-10 F90.0-9) in at least one quarter in 2020 (M1Q criterion) were surveyed online on their child's ADHD diagnosis, utilisation of specialist care and therapeutic service providers.

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Article Synopsis
  • The INTEGRATE-ADHD project linked ADHD diagnosis data from parents and administration for the first time in Germany, analyzing discrepancies based on sociodemographic factors.
  • A survey of 5,461 children revealed that 71.6% of parents confirmed their child's ADHD diagnosis, with lower reporting rates among girls, younger children, those with migration backgrounds, and children from nuclear families.
  • About one-third of parents did not report their child's ADHD diagnosis, indicating variations in reporting influenced by sociodemographic characteristics, which should be considered in future data interpretations.
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As one of the most frequently diagnosed mental disorders in children and adolescents with sometimes serious individual, family and social consequences, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is highly relevant to society and health policy. In Germany, data from statutory health insurance companies has reported increasing ADHD diagnosis prevalence rates over years, while epidemiological data has shown constant and recently even decreasing prevalence rates. The clinical validity of diagnoses from either data sources is unknown.

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Background: Duchenne muscular dystrophy is an inherited degenerative neuromuscular disease characterised by rapidly progressive muscle weakness. Currently, curative treatment is not available. Approaches for new treatments that improve muscle strength and quality of life depend on preclinical testing in animal models.

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Objective: Malpositioning is one of the major problems in transcatheter aortic valve implantation. To evaluate the influence of mechanical balloon inflation on aortic valve stent positioning, the expansion process and the impact on the valve leaflet's structure were investigated.

Methods: Custom-made stents were laser cut from a 22-mm diameter stainless steel tube and mounted with a glutaraldehyde-treated bovine pericardial valve.

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Heart valve disease (HVD) is a globally increasing problem and accounts for thousands of deaths yearly. Currently end-stage HVD can only be treated by total valve replacement, however with major drawbacks. To overcome the limitations of conventional substitutes, a new clinical approach based on cell colonization of artificially manufactured heart valves has been developed.

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The aim of this project was to investigate the fundamental idea of the possibility of anastomosing small blood vessels in microvascular transplant procedures by an individualized stent known from coronary angioplasty. We investigated the influence of length, dilation and differences in fabrication of the newly developed balloon-expandable stent on the tensile force of stented anastomoses. Various gripping devices were tested and validated to investigate how the length, dilatation and differences in fabrication of the newly developed stent influence the tensile force of the stented anastomosis.

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After myocardial infarction, the implantation of stem cell seeded scaffolds on the ischemic zone represents a promising strategy for restoration of heart function. However, mechanical integrity and functionality of tissue engineered constructs need to be determined prior to implantation. Therefore, in this study a novel pulsatile bioreactor mimicking the myocardial contraction was developed to analyze the behavior of mesenchymal stem cells derived from umbilical cord tissue (UCMSC) colonized on titanium-coated polytetrafluorethylene scaffolds to friction stress.

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Recent developments in aortic valve replacement include the truly stentless pericardial bioprostheses with single point attached commissures (SPAC) implantation technique. The leaflet geometry available for the SPAC valves can either be a simple tubular or a complex three-dimensional structure molded using specially designed molds. Our main objective was to compare these two leaflet designs, the tubular vs.

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