| 1. |
- Ittermann, T., et al.
(författare)
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Standardized Map of Iodine Status in Europe
- 2020
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Ingår i: Thyroid. - : Mary Ann Liebert Inc. - 1050-7256 .- 1557-9077. ; 30:9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background:Knowledge about the population's iodine status is important, because it allows adjustment of iodine supply and prevention of iodine deficiency. The validity and comparability of iodine-related population studies can be improved by standardization, which was one of the goals of the EUthyroid project. The aim of this study was to establish the first standardized map of iodine status in Europe by using standardized urinary iodine concentration (UIC) data. Materials and Methods:We established a gold-standard laboratory in Helsinki measuring UIC by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. A total of 40 studies from 23 European countries provided 75 urine samples covering the whole range of concentrations. Conversion formulas for UIC derived from the gold-standard values were established by linear regression models and were used to postharmonize the studies by standardizing the UIC data of the individual studies. Results:In comparison with the EUthyroid gold-standard, mean UIC measurements were higher in 11 laboratories and lower in 10 laboratories. The mean differences ranged from -36.6% to 49.5%. Of the 40 postharmonized studies providing data for the standardization, 16 were conducted in schoolchildren, 13 in adults, and 11 in pregnant women. Median standardized UIC was <100 mu g/L in 1 out of 16 (6.3%) studies in schoolchildren, while in adults 7 out of 13 (53.8%) studies had a median standardized UIC <100 mu g/L. Seven out of 11 (63.6%) studies in pregnant women revealed a median UIC Conclusions:We demonstrate that iodine deficiency is still present in Europe, using standardized data from a large number of studies. Adults and pregnant women, particularly, are at risk for iodine deficiency, which calls for action. For instance, a more uniform European legislation on iodine fortification is warranted to ensure that noniodized salt is replaced by iodized salt more often. In addition, further efforts should be put on harmonizing iodine-related studies and iodine measurements to improve the validity and comparability of results.
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| 2. |
- Verhaaren, C. B., et al.
(författare)
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Searches for Long-Lived Particles at the Future FCC-ee
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Physics. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 2296-424X. ; 10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The electron-positron stage of the Future Circular Collider, FCC-ee, is a frontier factory for Higgs, top, electroweak, and flavour physics. It is designed to operate in a 100 km circular tunnel built at CERN, and will serve as the first step towards ≥100 TeV proton-proton collisions. In addition to an essential and unique Higgs program, it offers powerful opportunities to discover direct or indirect evidence of physics beyond the Standard Model. Direct searches for long-lived particles at FCC-ee could be particularly fertile in the high-luminosity Z run, where 5 × 1012 Z bosons are anticipated to be produced for the configuration with two interaction points. The high statistics of Higgs bosons, W bosons and top quarks in very clean experimental conditions could offer additional opportunities at other collision energies. Three physics cases producing long-lived signatures at FCC-ee are highlighted and studied in this paper: heavy neutral leptons (HNLs), axion-like particles (ALPs), and exotic decays of the Higgs boson. These searches motivate out-of-the-box optimization of experimental conditions and analysis techniques, which could lead to improvements in other physics searches.
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| 3. |
- Bebbington, Emily, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring the similarities and differences of burn registers globally: Results from a data dictionary comparison study
- 2024
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Ingår i: Burns. - : ELSEVIER SCI LTD. - 0305-4179 .- 1879-1409. ; 50:4, s. 850-865
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Pooling and comparing data from the existing global network of burn registers represents a powerful, yet untapped, opportunity to improve burn prevention and care. There have been no studies investigating whether registers are sufficiently similar to allow data comparisons. It is also not known what differences exist that could bias analyses. Understanding this information is essential prior to any future data sharing. The aim of this project was to compare the variables collected in countrywide and intercountry burn registers to understand their similarities and differences. Methods: Register custodians were invited to participate and share their data dictionaries. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were compared to understand each register population. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the number of unique variables. Variables were classified into themes. Definition, method, timing of measurement, and response options were compared for a sample of register concepts. Results: 13 burn registries participated in the study. Inclusion criteria varied between registers. Median number of variables per register was 94 (range 28 - 890), of which 24% (range 4.8 - 100%) were required to be collected. Six themes (patient information, admission details, injury, inpatient, outpatient, other) and 41 subthemes were identified. Register concepts of age and timing of injury show similarities in data collection. Intent, mechanism, inhalational injury, infection, and patient death show greater variation in measurement. Conclusions: We found some commonalities between registers and some differences. Commonalities would assist in any future efforts to pool and compare data between registers. Differences between registers could introduce selection and measurement bias, which needs to be addressed in any strategy aiming to facilitate burn register data sharing. We recommend the development of common data elements used in an international minimum data set for burn injuries, including standard definitions and methods of measurement, as the next step in achieving burn register data sharing. (c) 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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| 4. |
- Goudzovski, Evgueni, et al.
(författare)
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New physics searches at kaon and hyperon factories
- 2023
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Ingår i: Reports on progress in physics (Print). - : Institute of Physics (IOP). - 0034-4885 .- 1361-6633. ; 86:1
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Rare meson decays are among the most sensitive probes of both heavy and light new physics. Among them, new physics searches using kaons benefit from their small total decay widths and the availability of very large datasets. On the other hand, useful complementary information is provided by hyperon decay measurements. We summarize the relevant phenomenological models and the status of the searches in a comprehensive list of kaon and hyperon decay channels. We identify new search strategies for under-explored signatures, and demonstrate that the improved sensitivities from current and next-generation experiments could lead to a qualitative leap in the exploration of light dark sectors.
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