Early puerperal insertions of Copper-T-200

The Copper-T-200 (CuT-200) was inserted after delivery at term in 197 women on the day preceding discharge from the hospital. The majority of the insertions were done on day 5 or 6 after delivery. Every subject in the study was followed more than 12 months. The insertions were well tolerated; no perforations or serious side effects occurred. During the first year of use, only 9 infections were recorded. The first segment pregnancy rate (7.2) and expulsion rate (14.8) were significantly higher and the continuation rate, 69.5, lower than that obtained with the same device inserted in postmenstrum women. The expulsions were mainly partial (11.1), and were discovered during the first and second months postpartum. The postpartum insertions were found to be safe and well accepted. The high pregnancy and expulsion rates make the CuT-200 an unsuitable IUD in postpartum programs where follow-up is not adequate and early removals of partially expelled or displaced devices is not possible.     

Randomized comparison of clinical performance of two copper-releasing IUDs, Nova-T and Copper-T-200, in Denmark, Finland and Sweden.

A randomized study was conducted simultaneously in three countries to compare the clinical performance of two new IUDs, the Nova-T and Copper-T-200. Forty-four persons, midwives, general practitioners, residents and specialists in obstetrics and gynecology inserted 907 Nova-Ts and 936 Copper-Ts. The pregnancy rate of Nova-T (0.7 at one year) was significantly lower than that of Copper-T (2.2 at one year). No significant differences were observed in other termination rates. The continuation rates were 72.6 for Nova-T and 71.3 for Copper-T-200. The total experience was based on 18,035 woman months of use, with a lost to follow-up of less than 7 per cent for both IUDs.     

Measurement of bone blood flow with a 133Xe washout method

A method based on the intravenous ¹³³Xe injection technique has been used for measurement of bone blood flow in man. The measurements were made from the greater trochanteric region of the femur of eight healthy subjects and three patients with bone marrow or a bone disease in which bone blood flow is known to be increased. The half-times of the fast and the slow compartments of the externally recorded two-exponential bone washout curves were 4.05±0.88 min and 45.4±7.4 min (mean ±1 sd) in the healthy subjects, 1.46 min and 20.1 min in the patient with chronic myeloid leukemia, 2.50 min and 22.9 min in metastatic bone disease and 1.93 min and 18.1 min in the patient with osteosarcoma, respectively. The corresponding flow values were 11.5±1.4 ml/100 g/min (mean±1 sd) in healthy subjects and 59.8, 28.3 and 34.0 ml/100 g/min in patients with bone disorders.The precision of the method estimated from the duplicate measurements in eight healthy persons is; for the fast compartment, 6.8%; and for the slow one, 3.2%. Because of the rapid washout of xenon and the very low radiation dose the measurements are easily repeatable.     

Sodium transport in airway epithelium correlates with lung compliance in healthy newborn infants

To study the relation between sodium transport in airway epithelium and postnatal pulmonary adaptation, we measured nasal potential difference at 1 to 4 hours and lung compliance at 21 to 48 hours after birth in 20 healthy infants. Sodium transport correlated with lung compliance ( r 2 = 0.40, P < .003). Airway sodium transport plays a role in postnatal pulmonary adaptation.     

Quantitative electroencephalographic measures in homicidal men with antisocial personality disorder

Many symptoms of antisocial personality disorder have been proposed to be related to decreased daytime vigilance. To explore this hypothesis, quantitative analyses were conducted of the electroencephalographic (EEG) activity of drug-free and detoxified homicidal male offenders with antisocial personality disorder as the primary diagnosis. Subjects comprised 16 men recruited from a forensic psychiatric examination in a special ward of a university psychiatric hospital. Fifteen healthy age- and gender-matched controls with no criminal record or history of physical violence consisted of hospital staff and students. An overall reduction of alpha power was observed in the waking EEG of offenders. A bilateral increase in occipital delta and theta power was also found in these individuals. This study provides further support to the growing evidence of brain dysfunction in severe aggressive behavior. Homicidal offenders with antisocial personality disorder seem to have difficulties in maintaining normal daytime arousal. Decreased vigilance, together with social and psychological variables, may explain their aberrant behavior in everyday life. New studies are, however, needed to specify the vigilance problems of this patient group.     

A national survey on the effect of pharmaceutical promotion on medical students

The pharmaceutical industry affects physicians' clinical decision-making, especially their prescribing behaviour. However, little is known of the interactions between medical students and the pharmaceutical industry. The purpose of the present study was to examine the extent and perceived influence of pharmaceutical promotion on Finnish medical students and students' attitudes towards such promotion. Altogether 952 students (34%) responded to an anonymous questionnaire that was distributed to all Finnish medical students at varying levels of study. Students reported that they attended presentations by pharmaceutical company representatives on a frequent basis. A total of 44% attended at least twice a month. Students regarded the pharmaceutical industry as one of their most important sources of pharmaceutical information. The importance attached to pharmaceutical promotion as a source of pharmaceutical information and the intensity of pharmaceutical marketing increased over the course of medical studies. Although most students were not in favour of reducing promotion, the students largely believed that such activities would affect their future prescribing behaviour, and the awareness of this influence increased over the course of studies. The fact that medical students are commonly exposed to pharmaceutical promotion should be addressed in medical education.     

Normative values for tympanometry in 4-5-year-old children

The objective of this study was to determine normative values for tympanometric variables for 4-5-year-old children. Tympanometry was performed at a pre-scheduled visit at the age of 49-68 months on children recruited to a follow-up visit in a vaccine efficacy trial (n=756 children). Tympanograms obtained successfully from healthy ears were analysed. At the time of the visit, mean static acoustical admittance (SAA) was 0.52 cm3, mean tympanometric peak pressure (TPP) was -48 daPa, and mean tympanometric width (TW) was 101. Compared to results obtained for the same study population at 24 months of age, the SAA had increased significantly with age, while the values for TPP and TW had decreased with age. A history of previous tympanostomy tubes increased the admittance of the tympanic membrane by producing atrophic scars. Thus, the tympanograms obtained from ears with previous tubes were considerably higher and narrower (high SAA and low TW). In conclusion, this study further emphasizes the need for age-specific normative values for interpretation of SAA and TW.