| 1. |
- Björklund, Verna, et al.
(författare)
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Early-onset group B streptococcal infections in five Nordic countries with different prevention policies, 1995 to 2019
- 2024
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Ingår i: Eurosurveillance. - : European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC). - 1025-496X .- 1560-7917. ; 29:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Neonatal early-onset disease caused by group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of infant morbidity. Intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) is effective in preventing early-onset GBS disease, but there is no agreement on the optimal strategy for identifying the pregnant women requiring this treatment, and both risk-based prophylaxis (RBP) and GBS screening-based prophylaxis (SBP) are used.Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of SBP as a public health intervention on the epidemiology of early-onset GBS infections.Methods: In 2012, Finland started the universal SBP, while Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden continued with RBP. We conducted an interrupted time series analysis taking 2012 as the intervention point to evaluate the impact of this intervention. The incidences of early- and late-onset GBS infections during Period I (1995-2011) and Period II (2012-2019) were collected from each national register, covering 6,605,564 live births.Results: In Finland, a reduction of 58% in the incidence of early-onset GBS disease, corresponding to an incidence rate ratio (IRR) of 0.42 (95% CI: 0.34-0.52), was observed after 2012. At the same time, the pooled IRR of other Nordic countries was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.80-1.0), specifically 0.89 (95% CI: 0.70-1.5) in Denmark, 0.34 (95% CI: 0.15-0.81) in Iceland, 0.72 (95% CI: 0.59-0.88) in Norway and 0.97 (95% CI: 0.85-1.1) in Sweden.Conclusions: In this ecological study of five Nordic countries, early-onset GBS infections were approximately halved following introduction of the SBP approach as compared with RBP.
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| 2. |
- Einarsson, Einar-Jon, et al.
(författare)
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Hearing impairment after platinum-based chemotherapy in childhood.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Pediatric Blood & Cancer. - : Wiley. - 1545-5017 .- 1545-5009. ; 56:4, s. 631-637
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Chemotherapy is used in the treatment of children and adolescents with malignant diseases. Some of the chemotherapeutic agents are highly toxic and may cause a number of side effects. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term effects on hearing in cancer survivors who had received platinum-based chemotherapy in childhood or adolescence.
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| 3. |
- Gunnarsdottir, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Meðfædd vélindalokun á Íslandi 1963-2002
- 2004
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Ingår i: Laeknabladid. - 0023-7213. ; 90:9, s. 629-633
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Oesophageal atresia is an congenital anomali with incidence of 1/3000-1/4500 live births. The results of reconstructive surgery has improved greatly, to 80-92% survival reported in the last two decades. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of oesophageal atresia in Iceland and to evaluate the results of operations at the Department of Pediatric surgery at The Children's Hospital, Landspítal inn - University Hospital in Iceland. Material and methods: This retrospective study included all children diagnosed with oesophageal atresia in Iceland between 1963 and 2002. Information was gathered from hospital records, including birth-weight, gestational age, the type of atresia and the presence of other congenital anomalies. The results of operation were determined including post operative complications. Information on life births in Iceland for the same period was gathered from the Icelandic National Register. Results: Thirtyseven children were diagnosed with oesophageal atresia in these 40 years. The average birth-weight was 2626g, including 14 children (38%) with low birth-weight (<2500g). Fifteen children (41%) were prematurely born (<38 weeks). Thirtyfour children (92%) had the most common type of oesophageal atresia with proximal blind loop and distal tracheooesophageal fistula. Thirtyfour children were operated on, including one in Denmark. Nine children died within 60 days after surgery. The most common cause of death was lung inflammation (n=7, 78%). The survival after surgery in Iceland was 73% in the study period. Other congenital defects were common in this patient group with congenital heart defects as the most common ones (n=12, 32%). The incidence decresead in the study period from 1/3737 in the first ten years to 1/10639 in the last decade, this did not reach statistical signifiquance. Conclusion: It is interesting to see this decrease in incidence in the study period and this is the lowest incidence known to us. The survival has improved from previous study but is however still lower compared to our neighbouring countries. Other congenital anomalies are common in this patient group.
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| 4. |
- Hafsteinsdottir, Solveig, et al.
(författare)
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Suspected infections in children treated for ALL
- 2009
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Ingår i: Acta Pædiatrica. - : Wiley. - 1651-2227 .- 0803-5253. ; 98:7, s. 1149-1155
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of our study was to get epidemiological information on bacterial infections in children treated for ALL and to analyse which patients have an enhanced infection risk. Episodes of suspected or confirmed infections were evaluated during the first 12 months of treatment for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). The number of patients was 73 (43 boys). The median age was 4.6 years. A total of 179 episodes occurred, varying from none in six patients to eight in one. Bacteria were cultured in 57 episodes (31.8%), the most common being coagulase-negative staphylococci. The number of episodes fell significantly with increasing age for suspected and confirmed infections (p < 0.001 and p = 0.03). The proportion of confirmed infections was significantly higher (p < 0.001) in the first episodes. The average number of suspected infections was higher in girls than in boys (p = 0.03), but confirmed infections were not. Most of the serious infections occur early in the treatment and the number of suspected and confirmed infections falls with age. Suspicion of infection is more likely in girls, but the number of confirmed infections is equal in both sexes. Coagulase-negative staphylococcus was most commonly isolated, highlighting the importance of careful handling of central venous devices.
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| 5. |
- Leifsdottir, Kristin, et al.
(författare)
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The cerebrospinal fluid proteome of preterm infants predicts neurodevelopmental outcome
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Pediatrics. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 2296-2360. ; 10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BackgroundSurvival rate increases for preterm infants, but long-term neurodevelopmental outcome predictors are lacking. Our primary aim was to determine whether a specific proteomic profile in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of preterm infants differs from that of term infants and to identify novel biomarkers of neurodevelopmental outcome in preterm infants. MethodsTwenty-seven preterm infants with median gestational age 27 w + 4 d and ten full-term infants were enrolled prospectively. Protein profiling of CSF were performed utilizing an antibody suspension bead array. The relative levels of 178 unique brain derived proteins and inflammatory mediators, selected from the Human Protein Atlas, were measured. ResultsThe CSF protein profile of preterm infants differed from that of term infants. Increased levels of brain specific proteins that are associated with neurodevelopment and neuroinflammatory pathways made up a distinct protein profile in the preterm infants. The most significant differences were seen in proteins involved in neurodevelopmental regulation and synaptic plasticity, as well as components of the innate immune system. Several proteins correlated with favorable outcome in preterm infants at 18-24 months corrected age. Among the proteins that provided strong predictors of outcome were vascular endothelial growth factor C, Neurocan core protein and seizure protein 6, all highly important in normal brain development. ConclusionOur data suggest a vulnerability of the preterm brain to postnatal events and that alterations in protein levels may contribute to unfavorable neurodevelopmental outcome.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Oddsson, Asmundur, et al.
(författare)
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Deficit of homozygosity among 1.52 million individuals and genetic causes of recessive lethality
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Nature. - 2041-1723. ; 14:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Genotypes causing pregnancy loss and perinatal mortality are depleted among living individuals and are therefore difficult to find. To explore genetic causes of recessive lethality, we searched for sequence variants with deficit of homozygosity among 1.52 million individuals from six European populations. In this study, we identified 25 genes harboring protein-altering sequence variants with a strong deficit of homozygosity (10% or less of predicted homozygotes). Sequence variants in 12 of the genes cause Mendelian disease under a recessive mode of inheritance, two under a dominant mode, but variants in the remaining 11 have not been reported to cause disease. Sequence variants with a strong deficit of homozygosity are over-represented among genes essential for growth of human cell lines and genes orthologous to mouse genes known to affect viability. The function of these genes gives insight into the genetics of intrauterine lethality. We also identified 1077 genes with homozygous predicted loss-of-function genotypes not previously described, bringing the total set of genes completely knocked out in humans to 4785.
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| 8. |
- Petersen, Hannes, et al.
(författare)
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Decreased postural control in adolescents born with extremely low birth weight
- 2015
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Ingår i: Experimental Brain Research. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0014-4819 .- 1432-1106. ; 233:5, s. 1651-1662
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The survival rates of infants born preterm with extremely low birth weight (ELBW a parts per thousand currency sign 1000 g) have gradually improved over the last decades. However, these infants risk to sustain long-term disorders related to poor neurodevelopment. The objective was to determine whether adolescents born with ELBW have decreased postural control and stability adaptation. Twenty-nine ELBW subjects performed posturography with eyes open and closed under unperturbed and perturbed standing by repeated calf vibration. Their results were compared with twenty-one age- and gender-matched controls born after full-term pregnancy. The ELBW group had significantly decreased stability compared with controls in anteroposterior direction, both during the easier quiet stance posturography (p = 0.007) and during balance perturbations (p = 0.007). The ELBW group had similar stability decrease in lateral direction during balance perturbations (p = 0.013). Statistically, the stability decreases were similar with eyes closed and open, but proportionally larger with eyes open in both directions. Both groups manifested significant adaptation (p a parts per thousand currency sign 0.023) to the balance perturbations in anteroposterior direction, though this adaptation process could not compensate for the general stability deficits caused by ELBW on postural control. Hence, adolescent survivors of ELBW commonly suffer long-term deficits in postural control, manifested as use of substantially more recorded energy on performing stability regulating high-frequency movements and declined stability with closed and open eyes both in anteroposterior and lateral direction. The determined relationship between premature birth and long-term functional deficits advocates that interventions should be developed to provide preventive care in neonatal care units and later on in life.
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| 9. |
- Petersen, Hannes, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term effects from bacterial meningitis in childhood and adolescence on postural control.
- 2014
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Ingår i: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 9:11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Bacterial meningitis in childhood is associated with cognitive deficiencies, sensorimotor impairments and motor dysfunction later in life. However, the long-term effects on postural control is largely unknown, e.g., whether meningitis subjects as adults fully can utilize visual information and adaptation to enhance stability. Thirty-six subjects (20 women, mean age 19.3 years) treated in childhood or adolescence for bacterial meningitis, and 25 controls (13 women, mean age 25.1 years) performed posturography with eyes open and closed under unperturbed and perturbed standing. The meningitis subjects were screened for subjective vertigo symptoms using a questionnaire, clinically tested with headshake and head thrust test, as well as their hearing was evaluated. Meningitis subjects were significantly more unstable than controls during unperturbed (p≤0.014) and perturbed standing, though while perturbed only with eyes open in anteroposterior direction (p = 0.034) whereas in lateral direction both with eyes open and closed (p<0.001). Meningitis subjects had poorer adaption ability to balance perturbations especially with eyes open, and they frequently reported symptoms of unsteadiness (88% of the subjects) and dizziness (81%), which was found significantly correlated to objectively decreased stability. Out of the 36 subjects only 3 had unilateral hearing impairment. Hence, survivors of childhood bacterial meningitis may suffer long-term disorders affecting postural control, and would greatly benefit if these common late effects became generally known so treatments can be developed and applied.
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