Weapon carrying and psychopathic-like features in a population-based sample of Finnish adolescents

We investigated the prevalence of juvenile weapon carrying and psychosocial and personality-related risk factors for carrying different types of weapons in a nationally representative, population-based sample of Finnish adolescents. Specifically, we aimed to investigate psychopathic-like personality features as a risk factor for weapon carrying. The participants were 15–16-year-old adolescents from the Finnish self-report delinquency study (n = 4855). Four different groups were formed based on self-reported weapon carrying: no weapon carrying, carrying knife, gun or other weapon. The associations between psychosocial factors, psychopathic-like features and weapon carrying were examined with multinomial logistic regression analysis. 9 % of the participants had carried a weapon in the past 12 months. Adolescents with a history of delinquency, victimization and antisocial friends were more likely to carry weapons in general; however, delinquency and victimization were most strongly related to gun carrying, while perceived peer delinquency (antisocial friends) was most strongly related to carrying a knife. Better academic performance was associated with a reduced likelihood of carrying a gun and knife, while feeling secure correlated with a reduced likelihood of gun carrying only. Psychopathic-like features were related to a higher likelihood of weapon carrying, even after adjusting for other risk factors. The findings of the study suggest that adolescents carrying a weapon have a large cluster of problems in their lives, which may vary based on the type of weapon carried. Furthermore, psychopathic-like features strongly relate to a higher risk of carrying a weapon.     

Extracephalic tenderness and pressure pain threshold in children with headache

Background Sensitisation of the pain detection system has been suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of recurrent headache. In adults, increased sensitivity to pain has been found in patients with chronic tension type headache. Children with migraine or with unspecific headache report non‐headache pains and interictal pericranial muscular tenderness more often than headache‐free children. Objective To study if children with different types of headache report non‐headache pain more often than children with no headache and if extracephalic muscular tenderness is different in children with headache in comparison to headache‐free children. To find out if interval to the headache episode has influence on the extracranial muscular tenderness. Design A population‐based sample of 13‐year‐old children with migraine (n = 48), episodic tension type headache (61) or no headache (59) were interviewed for the occurrence and characteristics of headache and fulfilled a questionnaire on non‐headache pain. A structured manual palpation test on muscular tenderness and a pain threshold measurement were done on seven cephalic and three extracephalic points. Results Children with migraine reported other pains, especially stomach pain and limb pain more often than children with episodic tension type or no headache. There were no significant differences in the extracephalic muscular tenderness or in the pressure pain thresholds between the three groups. Conclusions Children with migraine experience more non‐headache pains than children with episodic tension type headache and with no headache. However, neither children with migraine nor children with episodic tension type headache show increased interictal extracephalic muscular sensitivity for palpation.     

An Infancy-Onset 20-Year Dietary Counselling Intervention and Gut Microbiota Composition in Adulthood

The randomized controlled Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP) has completed a 20-year infancy-onset dietary counselling intervention to reduce exposure to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk factors via promotion of a heart-healthy diet. The counselling on, e.g., low intake of saturated fat and cholesterol and promotion of fruit, vegetable, and whole-grain consumption has affected the dietary characteristics of the intervention participants. By leveraging this unique cohort, we further investigated whether this long-term dietary intervention affected the gut microbiota bacterial profile six years after the intervention ceased. Our sub-study comprised 357 individuals aged 26 years (intervention n = 174, control n = 183), whose gut microbiota were profiled using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. We observed no differences in microbiota profiles between the intervention and control groups. However, out of the 77 detected microbial genera, the Veillonella genus was more abundant in the intervention group compared to the controls (log₂ fold-change 1.58, p < 0.001) after adjusting for multiple comparison. In addition, an association between the study group and overall gut microbiota profile was found only in males. The subtle differences in gut microbiota abundances observed in this unique intervention setting suggest that long-term dietary counselling reflecting dietary guidelines may be associated with alterations in gut microbiota.     

Association of sleep with cognitive function during retirement transition: the Whitehall II study

Study ObjectivesSleep duration and difficulties have been shown to associate with cognitive function. This study examined how changes in sleep and in cognitive function are associated during retirement transition.MethodsThe study population consisted of 2980 Whitehall II study participants, who retired during the follow-up, whose sleep was queried, and cognitive function measured (inductive reasoning and verbal memory) before and after retirement (follow-up 16 years). Using the last information on sleep before and the first after retirement, participants were categorized into constantly without (59%), increasing (13%), decreasing (11%), and constantly with (18%) sleep difficulties; and constantly short (26%), increasing (19%), decreasing (8.5%), and constantly mid-range (47%) sleep duration. Change in cognitive function during retirement transition was examined by sleep change groups using linear regression analyses with generalized estimating equations.ResultsMore pronounced decline in inductive reasoning during retirement transition was observed among participants with increasing sleep difficulties (−1.96, 95% CI −2.52 to −1.41) compared to those constantly without sleep difficulties (−1.25, 95% CI −1.52 to −0.98) and constantly with sleep difficulties (−1.26, 95% CI −1.75 to −0.92). Decreasing sleep difficulties (−0.64, 95% CI −0.86 to −0.43) were associated with a more pronounced decline in verbal memory when compared to constantly without sleep difficulties (−0.42, 95% CI −0.52 to −0.32) in post-retirement period. No statistically significant differences across sleep duration groups in cognitive function were observed.ConclusionsIncreasing and decreasing sleep difficulties may be associated with accelerated decline in cognitive function during retirement transition and post-retirement.     

Sub-Surface Analysis of Grinding Burns with Barkhausen Noise Measurements

Barkhausen noise (BN) measurements are commonly used for surface characterisation. However, often there is also a need to verify the sub-surface region because detrimental tensile stresses may be present after different manufacturing steps. Especially in a grinding burn, the surface stress may be compressive, but it changes quickly into tensile stress below the surface. The aim of this study was to find out whether regular surface-sensitive BN measurement is also sensitive to the stresses below the surface caused by grinding burns. More specifically, the aim was to study the relationship between BN features and sub-surface stresses and to identify a model that estimates sub-surface stresses. Real samples were collected from an actual process. The samples were cylindrical samples manufactured from commercial alloyed AISI/SAE L6 steel that was through-hardened prior to grinding. Barkhausen noise measurements were carried out for 42 grinding burn locations followed by X-ray diffraction-based residual stress surface measurements and residual stress depth profiles. Depth information was obtained through step-by-step electrolytic removal of thin layers. The stress profiles were pre-processed through interpolation and averaged stress was calculated as a function of depth below the surface. Correlation analysis was carried out to evaluate the relationships between BN features and stress at different depths and among BN features. The main outcome of the analysis was that BN measurement is dominated by the sub-surface tensile stresses rather than the compressive stress at the surface. It was also noticed that BN features form two groups, corresponding to average Barkhausen activity and magnetising field strength leading to maximum Barkhausen activity. Models for stress at different steps were identified systematically. The performance of the models for sub-surface stresses was reasonable with R² values of around 0.85 and root mean squared error (RMSE) values of around 95 MPa. Based on the results, it is concluded that BN measurement provides information about sub-surface stresses and that stress can be evaluated through straightforward modelling, allowing fast detection of grinding burns.     

The Anticollagenolytic Potential of Lymecycline in the Long-Term Treatment of Reactive Arthritis

Objective. We sought to determine the antiinflammatory properties of lymecycline in the long-term treatment of reactive arthritis (ReA). Methods. Quantitative assay of collagenase activity by densitometry after sodium dodecyl sulfatepolyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Results. Therapeutic levels of lymecycline do not directly inhibit the activity of human neutrophil interstitial collagenase, but can prevent the oxidative activation of latent human neutrophil collagenase. Conclusion. This non-antimicrobial, anticollagenolytic property of lymecycline may contribute to its therapeutic efficacy in the treatment of patients with ReA.