A hypothetical intervention on the use of hearing aids for the risk of dementia in people with hearing loss in UK Biobank.

Observational studies have reported that hearing aid (HA) use is associated with a reduced risk of dementia diagnosis, suggesting a possible protective effect. However, extant observational studies do not explicitly model causal effects, while randomised controlled trials on the effect of HA on dementia exhibit short follow-up. Here we used self-report, hearing tests, and healthcare records in UK Biobank to design a hypothetical intervention for the effect of HA use on the risk of dementia diagnosis in people with incident hearing loss (HL).

Chronic occupational paronychia secondary to digital pilonidal sinus from dog grooming.

Objectives Pilonidal sinus is a recognized occupational condition sometimes seen in barbers and pet groomers, and it involves most commonly interdigital spaces. We present a previously unreported case of chronic paronychia with two separate digital pilonidal sinuses resulting from multiple embedded hair fragments in the eponychium of a dog groomer, who had been repeatedly treated with antibiotics with no success and ended up to surgical treatment. The objective of this study is to remind readers of this rare but possible occupational disease, particularly among employees working with hair, and to emphasize the importance of preventive measures to prevent its occurrence.

A real-world study on the impact of infection load on mortality in multiple myeloma patients in Finland.

Infections are a clinically significant cause of mortality in multiple myeloma (MM) patients. The high number of infections in MM patients is due to the immunosuppressive effects of the disease itself as well as treatment-related immunosuppression. In this real-world evidence (RWE) study, we used several nationwide healthcare registries of Finland to investigate the effect of infection load on mortality in MM patients during 1997-2021.

Computed tomography-determined high visceral adipose tissue and sarcopenic obesity and their associations with survival in vulnerable or frail older adults with cancer considered for systemic anticancer treatment.

Introduction: Treatment decisions are challenging in older adults with solid tumors. Geriatric 8 (G8)-screening and comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) are important but additional methods are needed. We examined the association of computed tomography (CT)-derived high visceral adipose tissue index (VATI) with or without low skeletal muscle index (SMI) on three-month and overall survival (OS).

The Role of Prenatal Ultrasound and Added Value of Post-Mortem Radiographic Imaging With X-Ray and CT in Suspected Fetal Skeletal Dysplasia.

Objective: This study aims to assess the diagnostic value of post-mortem radiographic imaging compared with prenatal ultrasound in suspected fetal skeletal dysplasias in a large Finnish cohort.

Method: Prenatal ultrasound findings and their association with post-mortem radiographic imaging were evaluated in a cohort of 36 fetuses with prenatally suspected skeletal dysplasia.

Results: Prenatal ultrasound performed well in detecting skeletal dysplasias and severe forms of the disease.

Health information system support for collaboration between physicians and registered nurses: National cross-sectional user experience surveys from 2010 to 2023.

Background: In addition to storing patient data, health information systems (HISs) should advance continuity and quality of care by supporting collaboration between physicians and registered nurses (RNs). Our aim was to study how physicians and RNs experience this support and how the situation has evolved from 2010 to 2023.

Methods: Nationwide usability-focused cross-sectional surveys were conducted among Finnish physicians in 2010, 2014, 2017, and 2021 and RNs in 2017, 2020, and 2023.

QClus: a droplet filtering algorithm for enhanced snRNA-seq data quality in challenging samples.

Single-nuclei RNA sequencing remains a challenge for many human tissues, as incomplete removal of background signal masks cell-type-specific signals and interferes with downstream analyses. Here, we present Quality Clustering (QClus), a droplet filtering algorithm targeted toward challenging samples. QClus uses additional metrics, such as cell-type-specific marker gene expression, to cluster nuclei and filter empty and highly contaminated droplets, providing reliable filtering of samples with varying number of nuclei and contamination levels.

The relationship between self-care preparedness and quality of life in a 3-year-follow-up: a study in primary health care.

Background: Measuring self-care preparedness may enable better support for patients in general practice.

Objective: This study assessed the relationship between the self-care preparedness index (SCPI) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a longitudinal analysis over 36 months.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of an intervention group of a randomized controlled trial.

Associations Between Active Commuting and Sickness Absence in Finnish Public Sector Cohort of 28 485 Employees.

Active commuting can be beneficial for health. We examined whether active commuting by walking or cycling was associated with a lower risk of sickness absence in a Finnish public sector cohort of 28 485 employees. We used negative binomial regression to test associations of weekly active commuting in kilometers (no, low, moderate, and high dose) with all-cause sickness absence.

Understanding lipidomics associations and the lipoprotein-related caveats in population epidemiology.

Mass spectrometry lipidomics is becoming customary to analyse serum/plasma samples in epidemiology. The measurables are molecular constituents of lipoprotein particles, but very little is known on the consequences of adjusting lipidomics data with lipoprotein measures. We studied two population cohorts with 5,657 and 2,036 participants.

Comparison of balloon catheter, oral misoprostol, or combination of both for cervical ripening in late-term and post-term nulliparous women: A Finnish randomized controlled multicenter pilot trial.

Introduction: Nulliparous women beyond term have high rates of induction failure. The aim of this study was to compare delivery outcomes for balloon catheter, misoprostol, and combination of both in nulliparous late- and post-term women with unfavorable cervices. We intended to explore whether the combination strategy has lower cesarean section rate and is as safe as either method alone.

Thermal simulation of the lower limb in vascular medicine: A proof-of-concept by using computed tomography images.

Simulations of physiology based on patient-specific anatomical structures have several potential applications in medicine. A few fields, such as radiotherapy and neurophysiology already utilize such methods in clinical practice, yet a number of disciplines could benefit from similar technologies, especially when imaging data is already available. The major problem in patient-specific simulation is the data conversion to simulation-compatible form i.

Production of Novel Energy Gases in Bioprocesses Using Undefined Mixed Cultures.

Three phases of matter intermingle in various environments. The phenomena behind these fluctuations provide microbial cultures with beneficial interphase on the borderlines. Correspondingly, a bioreactor broth usually consists of a liquid phase but also contains solid particles, gas bubbles, technical surfaces, and other niches, both on a visible scale and microscopically.

Nocturnal short-term HRV reflects impaired daytime vigilance better than overnight HRV in suspected OSA patients.

In obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), heart rate variability (HRV) decreases and performance in psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) worsens with more severe hypoxic load. Nevertheless, the association between HRV and PVT performance is poorly understood. Thus, we hypothesize that nocturnal short-term HRV is better related to daytime psychomotor vigilance compared to overnight HRV.

Cognition, Depression, Pain, and Exercise Motives as Predictors of Longitudinal Profiles of Physical Activity During a Seven-Year Follow-Up Among Older Adults.

This study investigated longitudinal physical activity (PA) profiles over 7 years in the Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER). Cognition, depression, pain, and PA motives were included as determinants of the PA profiles. The 1259 participants, aged 60-77 years at baseline, were randomized into either a control group receiving general health advice, or an intervention group offered a comprehensive 2-year multidomain intervention including physical exercise, diet advice, cognitive training, and vascular risk factor management.

Cancer-type somatic mutations in saccular cerebral aneurysms.

Intracranial aneurysms (IAs) are a major cause of subarachnoidal hemorrhage (SAH) which can have a significant morbidity and mortality. The processes underlying the aneurysm development remains unclear. We performed whole exome sequencing of DNA derived from 20 saccular cerebral aneurysms of 20 patients, followed by somatic variant calling.

Effects of polymethylmethacrylate nanoplastics on the swimming behaviour and gut microbiome of the freshwater amphipod Gammarus pulex.

Plastic pollution has posed a significant environmental concern being widely spread in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Nanoplastic particles (NPs: <1000 nm) have been drawing attention for their potential toxicological implications on organisms. Aquatic animals are increasingly exposed to NPs but their effects on many aquatic invertebrates remain inadequately known.

Brain health: Pathway to primary prevention of neurodegenerative disorders of environmental origin.

While rising global rates of neurodegenerative disease encourage early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention to block clinical expression (secondary prevention), a more powerful approach is to identify and remove environmental factors that trigger long-latencybrain disease (primary prevention) by acting on a susceptible genotype or acting alone. The latter is illustrated by the post-World War II decline and disappearance of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Parkinsonism-Dementia Complex (ALS/PDC), a prototypical often-familial neurodegenerative disease formerly present in very high incidence on the island of Guam. Lessons learned from 75 years of investigation on the etiology of ALS/PDC include: the importance of focusing field research on the disease epicenter and patients with early-onset disease; soliciting exposure history from patients, family, and community to guide multidisciplinary biomedical investigation; recognition that disease phenotype may vary with exposure history, and that familial brain disease may have a primarily environmental origin.

Diesel exhaust and ozone adversely affect pollinators and parasitoids within flying insect communities.

The effects of air pollution on human and animal health, and on the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems, are wide-ranging. This potentially includes the disruption of valuable services provided by flying insects (e.g.

Is work burden associated with postmenopausal breast cancer? A population-based 25-year follow-up.

Objective: To study the association between breast cancer and work burden over 25 years.

Methods: The study was based on the Kuopio Osteoporosis Risk Factor and Prevention (OSTPRE) cohort (n = 14,220) and included women who had answered the questionnaire from the year 1994 and had no previous breast cancer. Breast cancer cases were recorded from the Finnish Cancer Registry during the study period: from 1st June 1994 till December 31, 2019.

Psychosocial risks and resources at work and employee wellbeing in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: time series of cross-sections.

Objective: We examined the relationships between psychosocial factors and employee wellbeing in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Survey data were from Finnish public sector employees from 2018 (T1 = before), 2020 (T2 = during), and 2022 (T3 = after the pandemic) (n = 29,360). Employee wellbeing was measured with self-rated health, work ability, and recovery from work.

tREatment of trIaNgular FibrOcaRtilage ComplEx Ruptures (REINFORCER): protocol for randomised, controlled, blinded, efficacy trial of triangular fibrocartilage complex tears.

Introduction: Triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) tear is often considered to be the cause of ulnar wrist pain. The primary treatment typically involves non-operative methods; however, in cases of persistent symptoms, operative intervention has been proposed as a viable option. Depending on the tear's morphology, treatment may involve debridement (central or radial tear) or repair (peripheral tear).