Rate and predictability of pulp revascularization in therapeutically reimplanted permanent incisors

Abstract The aim of the present investigation was to study the frequency of pulp revascularization in therapeutically reimplanted incisors as well; is its relationship with the following factors: width of apical foramen, duration of extra-alveolar lime, storage conditions and postoperative administration of antibiotics. Out of 72 immature teeth (width of apical foramen 1.1–5.0 mm) the pulp was revascularized in 13 (18%), while in 88 mature teeth (width of apical foramen 1.0 mm or less) no revascularization occurred. Among parameters tested statistically in immature teeth, a significantly increased frequency of revascularization (p < 0.05) was only found in teeth reimplanted within 45 minutes after avulsion, when compared with teeth reimplanted after a longer extra-alveolar time, and in mandibular incisors when compared with maxillary incisors (p < 0.01). All teeth in which revascularization did not occur exhibited a periapical radiolucency and/or external inflammatory root resorption.     

Unilateral neglect: further validation of the baking tray task.

OBJECTIVE: The Baking Tray Task is a comprehensible, simple-to-perform test for use in assessing unilateral neglect. The aim of this study was to validate further its use with stroke patients. METHODS: The Baking Tray Task was compared with 2 versions of the Behaviour Inattention Test and a test for personal neglect. A total of 270 patients were subjected to a 3-item version of the Behaviour Inattention Test and 40 patients were subjected to an 8-item version of the Behaviour Inattention Test, besides the Baking Tray Task and the personal neglect test. RESULTS: The Baking Tray Task was more sensitive than the 3-item Behaviour Inattention Test, but the 8-item Behaviour Inattention Test was more sensitive than the Baking Tray Task. The best combination of any 3 tests was Baking Tray Task, Reading an article, and Figure copying; the 2 last-mentioned being a part of the 8-item Behaviour Inattention Test. CONCLUSION: Multi-item tests detect more cases of neglect than do single tests. However, it is tiresome for the patient to undergo a larger test battery than necessary. It is also time-consuming for the staff. Behavioural tests seem more appropriate when assessing neglect. The Baking Tray Task seems to be one of the most sensitive single tests, but its sensitivity can be further enhanced when it is used in combination with other tests.     

What Factors in Early Pregnancy Indicate that the Mother Will Be Hit by Her Partner during the Year after Childbirth?A Nationwide Swedish Survey

Abstract: Background : To be hit by one's intimate partner during the first year after childbirth may affect a woman's health and ability to take care of her newborn. The purpose of this study was to document the prevalence and indicators in early pregnancy of a woman being hit by her partner during the year after childbirth. Method : Information was collected by a postal questionnaire in early pregnancy and 12 months after childbirth from the approximately 5,550 women in Sweden who visited an antenatal care clinic for the first time during one of three chosen weeks in 1999 and 2000. Results : Of the 3,266 recruited women, 2,563 returned the follow‐up questionnaire. Being hit during the first year after childbirth was reported by 52 of the 2,563 (2%) women: 32 (61%) had been hit by their partner once, 12 (23%) twice, and 8 (15%) three or more times. Risk increased in women who were age 24 years or younger (3.9% had been hit), unmarried (7.1%), born in countries outside Europe (6.8%), with a partner born outside Europe (5.4%), had a low level of education (8.9%), and were unemployed (5.0%). In early pregnancy, women with back pain (4.0%), a chronic illness (4.1%), coital pain (6.1%), frequent depression‐related symptoms (8.1%), stomach pain (3.8%), or a urinary tract problem (6.3%) were hit more often than others after childbirth. Conclusions : At least 2 percent of Swedish women giving birth in 2000 were hit by their partner during the year after childbirth. Using identified predictors during antenatal care may increase the likelihood of finding women at risk, thereby enhancing the possibility of interventions to prevent this crime and health hazard.     

Antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus aureus colonising the intestines of Swedish infants

Staphylococcus aureus has become a frequent coloniser of the intestinal tract of infants, but the health effects of such colonisation are not clear. In this study, the antibiotic resistance patterns of 116 S. aureus strains from the commensal intestinal microflora were determined. The strains were obtained from 81 Swedish infants who had been followed with regular stool samples and registration of antibiotic usage during their first year of life. The faecal population levels of the individual strains and the duration of their persistence in the microflora had been determined previously. The prevalence of antibiotic resistance among the 116 strains was modest: methicillin, 0%; penicillin G, 78%; erythromycin A, 3%; tetracycline, 2%; clindamycin, 0.9%; and fusidic acid, 0.9%. Colonisation by antibiotic-resistant strains was unrelated to antibiotic consumption by individual infants. Antibiotic-resistant strains were as capable of persisting in the intestinal microflora and reaching high faecal population levels as fully susceptible strains. No strain lost or acquired resistance during the colonisation period. Thus, antibiotic-resistant strains of S. aureus seem to be as fit for competition in the large bowel microflora as susceptible strains, even in the absence of selective pressure from antibiotics. This may aggravate the ecological consequences of antibiotic resistance development.     

High rate of transfer of Staphylococcus aureus from parental skin to infant gut flora

Many Swedish infants carry Staphylococcus aureus in their intestinal microflora. The source of this colonization was investigated in 50 families. Infantile S. aureus strains were isolated from rectal swabs and stool samples at 3 days and at 1, 2, 4, and 8 weeks of age. The strains were identified by using the random amplified polymorphic DNA method and compared to strains from swab cultures of the mothers' hands, nipples, and nares and from the fathers' hands and nares. Maternal stool samples were also obtained at a later stage to compare infant and adult intestinal S. aureus colonization. Although 60% of 1-month-old children had S. aureus in the stools, this was true of only 24% of the mothers. The median population numbers in colonized individuals also differed: 10(6.8) CFU/g of feces among infants at 2 weeks of age versus 10(3.2) CFU/g of feces in the mothers. Of S. aureus strains in the stools of 3-day-old infants, 90% were identical to a parental skin strain. A total of 96% of infants whose parents were S. aureus skin carriers had S. aureus in their feces and 91% had the same strain as at least one of the parents. In comparison, only 37% of infants to S. aureus-negative parents had S. aureus in the stool samples. Thus, infantile intestinal S. aureus colonization was strongly associated with parental skin S. aureus carriage (P = 0.0001). These results suggest that S. aureus on parental skin establish readily in the infantile gut, perhaps due to poor competition from other gut bacteria.     

Parents’ experiences of an instrumental vaginal birth findings from a regional survey in Sweden

ObjectiveAn instrumental vaginal birth is known to affect women’s birth experience, few studies have explored the fathers’ experiences of attending such a birth. The aim of this study is to compare birth outcome and parents’ feelings in parents with instrumental vaginal birth or a spontaneous vaginal birth.MethodsA regional survey was conducted of 936 mothers and 827 fathers recruited in mid-pregnancy and followed up 2 months after birth. Data was collected by questionnaires. Crude and adjusted odds ratios with a 95% confidence interval were used in the analysis.ResultsThe prevalence for instrumental vaginal birth was 9%. Prolonged labour (OR 8.3; 95% CI 5.0–13.9), augmentation with synthetic oxytocin (OR 5.1; 2.9–8.9), and birth complications (OR 2.5; 1.5–2.6) were more common in the instrumental vaginal group. An instrumental vaginal birth was associated with a negative birth experience for mothers (OR 3.2; 1.3–8.1) and fathers (OR 5.2; 1.2–21.5). Mothers who had an instrumental vaginal birth were more likely to report feelings that the baby would be damaged during birth (OR 3.0; 1.7–5.5) and that the birth experience made them decide not to have any more children (OR 3.4; 1.1–10.7). Fathers reported a near-panic feeling when attending an instrumental vaginal birth (OR 5.2; 1.7–15.5).ConclusionAn instrumental vaginal birth was correlated with longer and more complicated births, epidurals and oxytocin augmentation. It affected the birth outcome and parents’ feelings and was associated with future reproductive thoughts and a negative birth experience.     

Fathers want to stay close to their partner and new baby in the early postnatal period: The importance of being able to room in after a surgical birth

The early postnatal period can be challenging for new fathers especially when their partner has experienced a caesarean section. The aim of this study was to describe men’s perceptions and feelings of staying with their partner and new baby in the context of having experienced a surgical birth. Thematic analysis was employed to analyse telephone interviews collected from 21 Swedish fathers who had experienced elective or emergency caesarean section. Being involved, receiving support and providing support were main reasons men considered it important they be facilitated to stay with their partners. Postnatal care should be oriented towards the whole family.     

Urinary excretion of 3-methylhistidine and creatinine and plasma concentrations of amino acids in hyperthyroid patients following preoperative treatment with antithyroid drug or beta-blocking agent: results from a prospective, randomized study

The aim of this investigation was to compare the effects of a beta 1-selective adrenoceptor blocking agent and an antithyroid drug on urinary excretion of creatinine (Cr) and 3-methylhistidine (3-MH) and plasma concentrations of amino acids in hyperthyroid patients. beta-adrenoceptor blocking agents are increasingly used in the treatment of hyperthyroid patients, and the effects on clinical signs and symptoms mainly reflect beta 1-adrenoceptor blockade. The consequences of this treatment on metabolic alterations in hyperthyroidism are not fully known. In the present study, 30 hyperthyroid patients were randomized to preoperative treatment with the antithyroid drug methimazole + thyroxine (group I) or the beta 1-selective adrenoceptor blocking agent metoprolol (group II). Urinary excretion of Cr and 3-MH and plasma concentrations of amino acids were measured at the time of diagnosis, following preoperative treatment and 6 months postoperatively. Serum triiodothyronine (T3) was comparably elevated in the two groups of patients at the time of diagnosis and was normalized during preoperative treatment in group I but remained elevated during preoperative treatment in group II. Urinary excretion of creatinine was lower at the time of diagnosis than postoperatively, suggesting reduced muscle mass during hyperthyroidism. Urinary excretion of Cr increased during preoperative treatment in group I but was not significantly altered during treatment with metoprolol. The 3-MH/Cr ratio, which was higher at the time of diagnosis than postoperatively, indicating accelerated protein breakdown in skeletal muscle during hyperthyroidism, was reduced during preoperative treatment in group I but not in group II.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)