Acromegaly management in the Nordic countries: A Delphi consensus survey.

Objective: Acromegaly is associated with increased morbidity and mortality if left untreated. The therapeutic options include surgery, medical treatment, and radiotherapy. Several guidelines and recommendations on treatment algorithms and follow-up exist.

FIGO opinion paper: Drivers and solutions to the cesarean delivery epidemic with emphasis on the increasing rates in Africa and Southeastern Europe.

Cesarean delivery rates are rapidly increasing in Southeastern Europe (to more than 60%), North Africa (with a rate as high as 72% in Egypt), and in urban areas in Southern Africa (a rate of over 50% in Lagos, Nigeria). Data on the background to these increases are scarce, but likely to include poor birthing facilities in general hospitals, convenience for the doctor, private medicine, fear of litigation, socioeconomic status, shortage of midwives and nurses, and disappearance of vaginal instrumental deliveries. Options to reverse cesarean delivery trends are discussed.

The variability of arsenic in blood and urine of humans.

Background: Humans are exposed to inorganic and organic arsenic. The total arsenic (As) concentration in urine is a commonly used biomarker of exposure. However, little is known about variability of As in biological fluids and the diurnal variation of As excretion.

Variability of lead in urine and blood in healthy individuals.

Background: Lead is a non-essential toxic trace element. Lead in blood (BPb) is the most common biomarker of lead exposure but lead in urine (UPb) has also been used. There is, however, limited data on the variability of UPb in the general population and the association with BPb.

Long-term exposure to particulate air pollution and black carbon in relation to natural and cause-specific mortality: a multicohort study in Sweden.

Objectives: To estimate concentration-response relationships for particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC) in relation to mortality in cohorts from three Swedish cities with comparatively low pollutant levels.

Setting: Cohorts from Gothenburg, Stockholm and Umeå, Sweden.

Design: High-resolution dispersion models were used to estimate annual mean concentrations of PM with aerodynamic diameter ≤10 µm (PM10) and ≤2.

Normal variability of 22 elements in 24-hour urine samples - Results from a biobank from healthy non-smoking adults.

Background: Urine is often used for biomonitoring the exposure to elements. However, most studies report concentrations in spot urine samples, which may not accurately mirror the "gold standard" of complete 24-h (24 h) urine samples. There are relatively few data published for 24 h samples, and little information on the within- and between person variability.

Concordance of CSF measures of Alzheimer's pathology with amyloid PET status in a preclinical cohort: A comparison of Lumipulse and established immunoassays.

Introduction: We assessed the concordance of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid beta (Aβ) and tau measured on the fully automated Lumipulse platform with pre-symptomatic Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology on amyloid positron emission tomography (PET).

Methods: In 72 individuals from the Insight 46 study, CSF Aβ40, Aβ42, total tau (t-tau), and phosphorylated tau at site 181 (p-tau181) were measured using Lumipulse, INNOTEST, and Meso Scale Discovery (MSD) assays, and inter-platform Pearson correlations were derived. Logistic regressions and receiver-operating characteristic analysis generated CSF cut-points optimizing concordance with F-florbetapir amyloid PET status (n = 63).

Impact on Population Health of Baltic Shipping Emissions.

Emission of pollutants from shipping contributes to ambient air pollution. Our aim was to estimate exposure to particulate air pollution (PM) and health effects from shipping in countries around the Baltic Sea, as well as effects of the sulfur regulations for fuels enforced in 2015 by the Baltic Sulfur Emission Control Area (SECA). Yearly PM emissions, from ship activity data and emission inventories in 2014 and 2016, were estimated.

Breast cancer survival trends in different stages and age groups - a population-based study 1989-2013.

Background: During the recent decades, breast cancer survival has gradually improved but there is limited knowledge on the improvement in population-based studies of patients diagnosed with different stages of the disease and in different age groups.

Patients And Methods: In two Swedish health care regions a total of 42,220 female breast cancer patients below 90 years of age were diagnosed between 1989 and 2013. They were treated and followed according to national and regional guidelines and formed a population-based cohort.

Urinary sodium excretion after gastric bypass surgery.

Background: Gut-kidney signaling is implicated in sodium homeostasis and thus blood pressure regulation. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery for morbid obesity confers a pronounced and long-lasting blood pressure lowering effect in addition to significant weight loss.

Objectives: We set out to establish whether RYGB is associated with an intrinsic change in urinary sodium excretion that may contribute to the reported blood pressure lowering effects of the procedure.

Is pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) more of a strain regarding satisfaction with marital quality for male or female partners? A three-year follow-up study.

Introduction: Men and women with a hereditary genetic disease are faced with different options when they plan to become parents. One is pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) which is a combination of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and genetic analysis of the embryo before implantation. The present study focuses on how men and women planning for PGD experience the quality of marital satisfaction when they apply for treatment and again, three years later.

Country breakout session highlights.

At the 2016 MS Experts Summit, country-relevant aspects pertaining to the management of symptoms and disability in multiple sclerosis (MS), with emphasis on those associated with spasticity, were explored in interactive country breakout sessions chaired by selected MS experts. Attendees had the opportunity to review and discuss topics in their own native language. After feedback from each session leader, key messages were collated and presented in a Plenary Session by Summit chair, Professor Angelo Ghezzi.

Plasma neurofilament light chain predicts progression in progressive supranuclear palsy.

Objective: Blood-based biomarkers for neurodegenerative conditions could improve diagnosis and treatment development. Neurofilament light chain (NfL), a marker of axonal injury, is elevated in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). The goal of this study was to determine the diagnostic and prognostic value of plasma NfL in patients with PSP.

Novel aβ isoforms in Alzheimer's disease - their role in diagnosis and treatment.

The last decades have witnessed an explosion in studies of the role of amyloid-β (Aβ) in the progress of the neurodegenerative disorder Alzheimer's disease (AD) and it is now widely accepted that Aβ is related to the pathogenesis of AD. For example, studies have shown that Aβ is neurotoxic and that the neurotoxicity of Aβ is related to its aggregation state. The concentration of the 42 amino acid form of Aβ (Aβ1-42) is reduced in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from AD patients, which is believed to reflect the AD pathology with plaques in the brain acting as sinks.