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- Amkreutz, J. A. M. P., et al.
(författare)
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Association Between Bone Mineral Density and Autoantibodies in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis
- 2021
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Ingår i: Arthritis and Rheumatology. - : Wiley. - 2326-5191 .- 2326-5205. ; 73:6, s. 921-930
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Autoantibodies, such as anti–citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPAs), have been described as inducing bone loss in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which can also be reflected by bone mineral density (BMD). We therefore examined the association between osteoporosis and autoantibodies in two independent RA cohorts. Methods: Dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) of the lumbar spine and left hip was performed in 408 Dutch patients with early RA during 5 years of follow-up and in 198 Swedish patients with early RA during 10 years of follow-up. The longitudinal effect of ACPAs and other autoantibodies on several BMD measures was assessed using generalized estimating equations. Results: In the Dutch cohort, significantly lower BMD at baseline was observed in ACPA-positive patients compared to ACPA-negative patients, with an estimated marginal mean BMD in the left hip of 0.92 g/cm2 (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 0.91–0.93) versus 0.95 g/cm2 (95% CI 0.93–0.97) (P = 0.01). In line with this, significantly lower Z scores at baseline were noted in the ACPA-positive group compared to the ACPA-negative group (estimated marginal mean Z score in the left hip of 0.18 [95% CI 0.08–0.29] versus 0.48 [95% CI 0.33–0.63]) (P < 0.01). However, despite clear differences at baseline, ACPA positivity was not associated with greater decrease in absolute BMD or Z scores over time. Furthermore, there was no association between BMD and higher levels of ACPAs or other autoantibodies (rheumatoid factor and anti–carbamylated protein antibodies). In the Swedish cohort, ACPA-positive patients tended to have a higher prevalence of osteopenia at baseline (P = 0.04), but again, ACPA positivity was not associated with an increased prevalence of osteopenia or osteoporosis over time. Conclusion: The presence of ACPAs is associated with significantly lower BMD at baseline, but not with greater BMD loss over time in treated RA patients. These results suggest that ACPAs alone do not appear to contribute to bone loss after disease onset when disease activity is well-managed. © 2020 The Authors. Arthritis & Rheumatology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American College of Rheumatology.
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- Eeg-Olofsson, Måns, 1967, et al.
(författare)
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TTCOV19: timing of tracheotomy in SARS-CoV-2-infected patients: a multicentre, single-blinded, randomized, controlled trial
- 2022
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Ingår i: Critical Care. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1364-8535. ; 26:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Critically ill COVID-19 patients may develop acute respiratory distress syndrome and the need for respiratory support, including mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit. Previous observational studies have suggested early tracheotomy to be advantageous. The aim of this parallel, multicentre, single-blinded, randomized controlled trial was to evaluate the optimal timing of tracheotomy. Methods: SARS-CoV-2-infected patients within the Region Vastra Gotaland of Sweden who needed intubation and mechanical respiratory support were included and randomly assigned to early tracheotomy (<= 7 days after intubation) or late tracheotomy (>= 10 days after intubation). The primary objective was to compare the total number of mechanical ventilation days between the groups. Results: One hundred fifty patients (mean age 65 years, 79% males) were included. Seventy-two patients were assigned to early tracheotomy, and 78 were assigned to late tracheotomy. One hundred two patients (68%) underwent tracheotomy of whom sixty-one underwent tracheotomy according to the protocol. The overall median number of days in mechanical ventilation was 18 (IQR 9; 28), but no significant difference was found between the two treatment regimens in the intention-to-treat analysis (between-group difference:- 1.5 days (95% CI -5.7 to 2.8); p= 0.5). A significantly reduced number of mechanical ventilation days was found in the early tracheotomy group during the per-protocol analysis (between-group difference: - 8.0 days (95% CI - 13.8 to - 2.27); p= 0.0064). The overall correlation between the timing of tracheotomy and days of mechanical ventilation was significant (Spearman's correlation: 0.39, p < 0.0001). The total death rate during intensive care was 32.7%, but no significant differences were found between the groups regarding survival, complications or adverse events. Conclusions: The potential superiority of early tracheotomy when compared to late tracheotomy in critically ill patients with COVID-19 was not confirmed by the present randomized controlled trial but is a strategy that should be considered in selected cases where the need for MV for more than 14 days cannot be ruled out.
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- Jönsson, Agnez, et al.
(författare)
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In vitro activity and time-kill curve analysis of sitafloxacin against a global panel of antimicrobial-resistant and multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates
- 2018
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Ingår i: Acta Pathologica, Microbiologica et Immunologica Scandinavica (APMIS). - : Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc.. - 0903-4641 .- 1600-0463. ; 126:1, s. 29-37
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Treatment of gonorrhoea is a challenge worldwide because of emergence of resistance in N. gonorrhoeae to all therapeutic antimicrobials available and novel antimicrobials are imperative. The newer-generation fluoroquinolone sitafloxacin, mostly used for respiratory tract infections in Japan, can have a high in vitro activity against gonococci. However, only a limited number of recent antimicrobial-resistant isolates from Japan have been examined. We investigated the sitafloxacin activity against a global gonococcal panel (250 isolates cultured in 1991-2013), including multidrug-resistant geographically, temporally and genetically diverse isolates, and performed time-kill curve analysis for sitafloxacin. The susceptibility to sitafloxacin (agar dilution) and seven additional therapeutic antimicrobials (Etest) was determined. Sitafloxacin was rapidly bactericidal, and the MIC range, MIC50 and MIC90 was ≤0.001-1, 0.125 and 0.25 mg/L, respectively. There was a high correlation between the MICs of sitafloxacin and ciprofloxacin; however, the MIC50 and MIC90 of sitafloxacin were 6-fold and >6-fold lower, respectively. Sitafloxacin might be an option for particularly dual antimicrobial therapy of gonorrhoea and for cases with ceftriaxone resistance or allergy. However, further in vitro and particularly in vivo evaluations of potential resistance, pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics and ideal dosing for gonorrhoea, as well as performance of randomized controlled clinical, trials are crucial.
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- Otnes, Gaute, et al.
(författare)
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Strategies to obtain pattern fidelity in nanowire growth from large-area surfaces patterned using nanoimprint lithography
- 2016
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Ingår i: Nano Research. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1998-0124 .- 1998-0000. ; 9:10, s. 2852-2861
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Position controlled nanowire growth is important for nanowire-based optoelectronic components which rely on light emission or light absorption. For solar energy harvesting applications, dense arrays of nanowires are needed; however, a major obstacle to obtaining dense nanowire arrays is seed particle displacement and coalescing during the annealing stage prior to nanowire growth. Here, we explore three different strategies to improve pattern preservation of large-area catalyst particle arrays defined by nanoimprint lithography for nanowire growth. First, we see that heat treating the growth substrate prior to nanoimprint lithography improves pattern preservation. Second, we explore the possibility of improving pattern preservation by fixing the seed particles in place prior to annealing by modifying the growth procedure. And third, we show that a SiNx growth mask can fully prevent seed particle displacement. We show how these strategies allow us to greatly improve the pattern fidelity of grown InP nanowire arrays with dimensions suitable for solar cell applications, ultimately achieving 100% pattern preservation over the sampled area. The generic nature of these strategies is supported through the synthesis of GaAs and GaP nanowires. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
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- Söfteland, John M., 1977, et al.
(författare)
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Longevity of anti-spike and anti-nucleocapsid antibodies after COVID-19 in solid organ transplant recipients compared to immunocompetent controls.
- 2022
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Ingår i: American journal of transplantation : official journal of the American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. - : Elsevier BV. - 1600-6143. ; 22:4, s. 1245-1252
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Solid organ transplant recipients (SOTRs) are on lifelong immunosuppression, which may interfere with adaptive immunity to COVID-19. The data on dynamics and duration of antibody response in SOTRs are limited. This longitudinal study examined the longevity of both anti-spike (S)- and anti-nucleocapsid (N)-specific IgG-antibodies after COVID-19 in SOTRs compared to matched immunocompetent persons. SOTRs (n=65) were matched with controls (n=65) for COVID-19 disease severity, age, and sex in order of priority. Serum-IgG-antibodies against N- and S-antigens of SARS-CoV-2 were analyzed. At 1 and 9 months after COVID-19, anti-S-IgG detectability decreased from 91% to 82% in SOTRs versus 100% to 95% in controls, whereas the anti-N-IgG decreased from 63% to 29% in SOTRs versus 89% to 46% in controls. A matched paired analysis showed SOTRs having significantly lower levels of anti-N-IgG at all time points (1-month P=0.007, 3-months P<0.001, 6-months P=0.019 and 9-months P=0.021) but not anti-S-IgG at any time points. A mixed-model analysis confirmed these findings except for anti-S-IgG at one month (p=0.005) and identified severity score as the most important predictor of antibody response. SOTRs mount comparable S-specific, but not N-specific, antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection compared to immunocompetent controls.
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| 9. |
- Abel, Marianne Hope, et al.
(författare)
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Insufficient maternal iodine intake is associated with subfecundity, reduced foetal growth, and adverse pregnancy outcomes in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study.
- 2020
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Ingår i: BMC medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1741-7015. ; 18:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Severe iodine deficiency impacts fertility and reproductive outcomes. The potential effects of mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency are not well known. The aim of this study was to examine whether iodine intake was associated with subfecundity (i.e. >12months trying to get pregnant), foetal growth, and adverse pregnancy outcomes in a mild-to-moderately iodine-deficient population.We used the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) and included 78,318 pregnancies with data on iodine intake and pregnancy outcomes. Iodine intake was calculated using an extensive food frequency questionnaire in mid-pregnancy. In addition, urinary iodine concentration was available in a subsample of 2795 pregnancies. Associations were modelled continuously by multivariable regression controlling for a range of confounding factors.The median iodine intake from food was 121μg/day and the median urinary iodine was 69μg/L, confirming mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency. In non-users of iodine supplements (n=49,187), low iodine intake (<100-150μg/day) was associated with increased risk of preeclampsia (aOR=1.14 (95% CI 1.08, 1.22) at 75 vs. 100μg/day, p overall <0.001), preterm delivery before gestational week 37 (aOR=1.10 (1.04, 1.16) at 75 vs. 100μg/day, p overall=0.003), and reduced foetal growth (-0.08 SD (-0.10, -0.06) difference in birth weight z-score at 75 vs. 150μg/day, p overall <0.001), but not with early preterm delivery or intrauterine death. In planned pregnancies (n=56,416), having an iodine intake lower than ~100μg/day was associated with increased prevalence of subfecundity (aOR=1.05 (1.01, 1.09) at 75μg/day vs. 100μg/day, p overall=0.005). Long-term iodine supplement use (initiated before pregnancy) was associated with increased foetal growth (+0.05 SD (0.03, 0.07) on birth weight z-score, p<0.001) and reduced risk of preeclampsia (aOR 0.85 (0.74, 0.98), p=0.022), but not with the other adverse pregnancy outcomes. Urinary iodine concentration was not associated with any of the dichotomous outcomes, but positively associated with foetal growth (n=2795, p overall=0.017).This study shows that a low iodine intake was associated with restricted foetal growth and a higher prevalence of preeclampsia in these mild-to-moderately iodine-deficient women. Results also indicated increased risk of subfecundity and preterm delivery. Initiating iodine supplement use in pregnancy may be too late.
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| 10. |
- Agelis, Sacki, et al.
(författare)
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Modular interconnection system for optical PCB and backplane communication
- 2002
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Ingår i: Parallel and Distributed Processing Symposium., Proceedings International, IPDPS 2002, Abstracts and CD-ROM. - Los Alamitos, Calif. : IEEE Press. - 0769515738 ; , s. 245-250
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents a way of building modular systems with a powerful optical interconnection network. Each module, placed on a Printed Circuit Board (PCB), has a generic optical communication interface with a simple electronic router. Together with optical switching using micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) technology, packet switching over reconfigurable topologies is possible. The interconnection system gives the possibility to integrate electronics with optics without changing existing PCB technology. Great interest from industry is therefore expected and the cost advantages are several: reuse of module designs, module upgrades without changing the PCB, low-cost conventional PCB technology, etc. In the version described in this paper, the interconnection system has 48 bidirectional optical channels for intra-PCB communication on each board. For inter-PCB communication, a backplane with 192 bidirectional optical channels supports communication between twelve PCBs. With 2.5 Gbit/s per optical channel in each direction, the aggregated intra-PCB bit rate is 120 Gbit/s full duplex (on each PCB) while the aggregated inter-PCB bit rate is 480 Gbit/s full duplex. A case study shows the feasibility of the interconnection system in a parallel processing system for radar signal processing.
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