Regulatory Mechanisms of Mitochondrial Function and Cardiac Aging.

Aging is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the major cause of death worldwide. Cardiac myocytes, which hold the most abundant mitochondrial population, are terminally differentiated cells with diminished regenerative capacity in the adult. Cardiomyocyte mitochondrial dysfunction is a characteristic feature of the aging heart and one out of the nine features of cellular aging.

Microbiome of the first stool after birth and infantile colic.

Background: Recent studies have shown a diverse microbiome in the first stool after birth. The clinical significance of the microbiome of the first stool is not known. Infantile colic has earlier been associated with the composition of the intestinal microbiome.

Prognostication for oral squamous cell carcinoma patients based on the tumour-stroma ratio and tumour budding.

Aims: Previous studies have demonstrated that the tumour-stroma ratio (TSR) and tumour budding are of prognostic value for oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs). The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic significance of those histological parameters, individually and in combination, for OSCC.

Methods And Results: The TSR and tumour budding (the presence of five or more buds at the invasive front) were estimated in 254 patients with OSCC.

Population-based Data at Ages 31 and 46 Show Decreased HRQoL and Life Satisfaction in Women with PCOS Symptoms.

Context: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with decreased health-related quality of life (HRQoL), but longitudinal data beyond the reproductive years are lacking, and the impact of isolated PCOS symptoms is unclear.

Objective: To study generic HRQoL using the 15D questionnaire, life satisfaction, and self-reported health status in women with PCOS symptoms at ages 31 and 46 years.

Design: A longitudinal assessment using the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966.

Depressive symptoms as predictors of visual memory deficits in middle-age.

Background: Depression has been known to affect memory and other cognitive domains. The objective of this longitudinal cohort study was to investigate longitudinal associations between depressive symptoms at age 31 years and visual memory and new learning at the age of 46 years. We investigated whether depressive symptoms at age 31 predicted visual memory deficits at age 46 years, and whether changes in depressive symptoms between 31 and 46 years predicted visual memory at age 46.

Effect of polycystic ovary syndrome on cardiac autonomic function at a late fertile age: a prospective Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 study.

Objectives: Previous studies of women in their 20s and 30s have reported impaired autonomic function in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). We aimed to study, for the first time, whether PCOS is associated with impaired cardiac autonomic function independent of metabolic and hormonal status in their late reproductive years.

Design: A prospective Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966) study including 5889 women born in 1966 and followed through the age of 46.

The incidence and treatment trends of pediatric proximal humerus fractures.

Background: Proximal humerus fractures comprise approximately 2% of all pediatric fractures. In general, upper extremity fractures have increased in children. However, recent trends of proximal humerus fractures are not analyzed yet.

Post-procedural Compression vs. No Compression After Radiofrequency Ablation and Concomitant Foam Sclerotherapy of Varicose Veins: A Randomised Controlled Non-inferiority Trial.

Objective: To compare post-operative compression with no compression, after radiofrequency endothermal ablation (RFA) of a truncal varicose vein and concomitant foam sclerotherapy of the tributaries.

Methods: This prospective randomised controlled, non-inferiority trial recruited patients from two centres in Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland. Patients with clinical class C2-C4 chronic venous disease were randomised to receive no compression after the operation, or to receive compression stockings continuously for two days, and then, during the daytime for five days.

Population-based study of anastomotic stricture rates after minimally invasive and open oesophagectomy for cancer.

Background: The population-based incidence of anastomotic stricture after minimally invasive oesophagectomy (MIO) and open oesophagectomy (OO) is not known. The aim of this study was to compare rates of anastomotic stricture requiring dilatation after the two approaches in an unselected cohort using nationwide data from Finland and Sweden.

Methods: All patients who had MIO or OO for oesophageal cancer between 2007 and 2014 were identified from nationwide registries in Finland and Sweden.

Survival analysis of a cohort of extremely preterm infants born in Finland during 2005-2013.

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the mortality of extremely preterm infants (ELGA born alive before 28 weeks) until the postconceptional age of 42 weeks, death, or home discharge, whichever came first. It was focused especially on studying the relationship between antenatal risk factors, the time of death, and the postnatal morbidities associated with mortality.

Study Design: The original data obtained from the nationwide Finnish medical birth register of extremely preterm and low birthweight infants born during 2005-2013 were analyzed.

Interventional magnetic resonance imaging as a diagnostic and therapeutic method in treating acute pediatric atlantoaxial rotatory subluxation.

Atlantoaxial rotatory subluxation or fixation (AARF) is a rare condition, usually occurring in pediatric patients. It mimics benign torticollis but may result in permanent disability or death. The condition requires prompt diagnosis by thorough examination to avoid any treatment delays.

Intake of different alcoholic beverages and periodontal condition.

The objective of this study is to study the association of alcoholic beverages and serum gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) level with periodontal condition. The study included 4294 dentate, non-diabetic Finnish adults aged 30-65 years who underwent periodontal examination during the Health 2000 Survey. The number of teeth with deepened (≥4 mm) periodontal pockets was the outcome.

Recent trends in children's elbow dislocation with or without a concomitant fracture.

Background: The elbow is the joint that most usually dislocates in children. In contrast to the widely known recent increase in the incidence of upper-extremity fractures and their operative treatment in children, potential trends in elbow dislocation are not clear. In this study we aimed to clarify the recent epidemiology of childhood elbow dislocation, in particular the potential change in incidence and treatment.

Non-union of the ulnar styloid process in children is common but long-term morbidity is rare: a population-based study with mean 11 years (9-15) follow-up.

Background and purpose - Fracture of the ulnar styloid process (USP) is common in children in connection with distal radius fracture. The long-term morbidity of USP non-union following a childhood distal radius fracture is unclear. We evaluated long-term clinical and radiographic findings of USP non-union.

Biallelic loss-of-function P4HTM gene variants cause hypotonia, hypoventilation, intellectual disability, dysautonomia, epilepsy, and eye abnormalities (HIDEA syndrome).

Purpose: A new syndrome with hypotonia, intellectual disability, and eye abnormalities (HIDEA) was previously described in a large consanguineous family. Linkage analysis identified the recessive disease locus, and genome sequencing yielded three candidate genes with potentially pathogenic biallelic variants: transketolase (TKT), transmembrane prolyl 4-hydroxylase (P4HTM), and ubiquitin specific peptidase 4 (USP4). However, the causative gene remained elusive.

Correction of leg-length discrepancy among meat cutters with low back pain: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: The etiology of non-specific low back pain (LBP) is complex and not well understood. LBP is common and causes a remarkable health burden worldwide. Leg-length discrepancy (LLD) is potentially a risk factor for development of LBP, although this relationship has been questioned.

Alcohol use and periodontal pocket development: findings from a 4-yr longitudinal study.

This study investigated whether alcohol use influences periodontal pocket development during a 4-yr follow-up period. The study included those participants who took part in both the Health 2000 Survey and the Follow-up Study on Finnish Adults' Oral Health. The participants at baseline were aged ≥30 yr, periodontally healthy, and did not have diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis.

Association between alcohol use and periodontal pockets in Finnish adult population.

Objective: To investigate whether alcohol use is associated with deepened periodontal pockets and whether this association is dependent on age, gender or socioeconomic position (SEP).

Material And Methods: This cross-sectional study, based on the Health 2000 Survey, consisted of dentate, non-smoking Finnish adults aged 30-65 years (n = 3059). The outcome was the number of teeth with deepened (≥4 mm) periodontal pockets.

Lung function in adults born preterm.

Very preterm birth, before the gestational age (GA) of 32 weeks, increases the risk of obstructed airflow in adulthood. We examined whether all preterm births (GA<37 weeks) are associated with poorer adult lung function and whether any associations are explained by maternal, early life/neonatal, or current life factors. Participants of the ESTER Preterm Birth Study, born between 1985 and 1989 (during the pre-surfactant era), at the age of 23 years participated in a clinical study in which they performed spirometry and provided detailed medical history.

Intramedullary nailing of forearm shaft fractures by biodegradable compared with titanium nails: Results of a prospective randomized trial in children with at least two years of follow-up.

There are disadvantages in Elastic Stable Intramedullary Nailing (ESIN) of forearm-shaft fractures, such as the need of implant removal. Biodegradable Intramedullary Nailing (BIN) is a new technique developed for these fractures. We hypothesized that there is no difference in rotational ROM between the patients treated by BIN vs.

Lessons learnt from a discontinued randomised controlled trial: adalimumab injection compared with placebo for patients receiving physiotherapy treatment for sciatica (Subcutaneous Injection of Adalimumab Trial compared with Control: SCIATiC).

Background: Adalimumab, a biological treatment targeting tumour necrosis factor α, might be useful in sciatica. This paper describes the challenges faced when developing a new treatment pathway for a randomised controlled trial of adalimumab for people with sciatica, as well as the reasons why the trial discussed was stopped early.

Methods: A pragmatic, parallel group, randomised controlled trial with blinded (masked) participants, clinicians, outcome assessment and statistical analysis was conducted in six UK sites.

Survey of family-related factors of children treated under dental general anaesthesia.

Aim: Treatment under general anaesthesia (DGA) is a rising trend in Finland. There is a great need to investigate the causes leading to it. Our purpose was to examine family-related factors reported by parents, such as the family size and favoring DGA in the family, and their influence on children being treated under DGA.