Gaining weight through retirement? Results from the SHARE survey

This paper estimates the causal impact of retirement on the Body Mass Index (BMI) of adults aged 50–69 years old, on the probability of being either overweight or obese and on the probability of being obese. Based on the 2004, 2006 and 2010–2011 waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), our identification strategy exploits variation in European Early Retirement Ages (ERAs) and stepwise increases in ERAs in Austria and Italy between 2004 and 2011 to examine an exogenous shock to retirement behavior. Our results show that retirement induced by discontinuous incentives in early retirement schemes causes a 12-percentage point increase in the probability of being obese among men within a two- to four-year period. We find that the impact of retirement is highly non-linear and mostly affects the right-hand side of the male BMI distribution. Additional results show that this pattern is driven by men retiring from strenuous jobs and by those who were already at risk of obesity. In contrast, no significant results are found among women.     

Statistical analysis of pathologic risk factors for intramyometrial lymphvascular space involvement in myoinvasive endometrial carcinoma

In a retrospective study using univariate analysis, we identified tumor type (nonendometrioid vs endometrioid), depth of myoinvasion (MI), mode of MI (infiltrative vs cohesive), and direct anatomic invasion of the cervical wall from the isthmus as significant positive risk factors for intramyometrial lymphvascular space involvement (LVSI). On multivariate analysis, tumor grade, depth of MI, and mode of MI retained their significance. We created a grid for the relative risks of LVSI with respect to these variables individually or in combination. We suggest that our indirect estimate of the risk of LVSI can help in assessing prognosis and determining the need for adjuvant therapy whenever LVSI is important in clinical decision making, but its pathologic diagnosis is uncertain.     

基于系统输出分布的智能控制

提出了文题所述的控制策略,依据输出分布曲线的特征变量选取方法和依据该项信息的规则控制系统。仿真研究得到了满意的结果。在一个实验性二元精馏塔上用IBM-PC进行试验亦获成功。本法对具有非线性特性的分布参数对象,较常规控制策略有明显的优越性。     

Central cardiovascular and oxygen variables during haemorrhage in the pig

Background: We evaluated the ability of the standards issued by the Danish Society of Anaesthesiologists to reflect a blood loss.
Methods: In 9 pigs bled (0–24 ml kg^-1) and retransfused (to 28 ml kg^-1) during halothane anaesthesia, central cardiovascular, thoracic electrical impedance (TI), oxygen, acid-base and temperature variables were recorded.
Results: With the recommendation for minor surgery (mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR)), the correlation to the blood loss was 0.74 ( P < 0.001) and with that for major surgery (MAP, HR, central venous pressure (CVP) and rectal temperature (Temp_r)) it was 0.79 ( P < 0.001). With the recommendation for extensive surgery (MAP, HR, CVP, pulmonary artery catheter variables and the central-peripheral temperature difference (ΔTemp_r-t)), the correlation was 0.84 ( P < 0.001). Non-invasive monitoring (MAP, HR, ΔTemp_r-t TI and near-infrared spectroscopy of the brain (S_invosO₂)) was only slightly better than basal monitoring (r=0.76, P < 0.001). However, adding arterial base excess (BE), TI and peripheral temperature (Temp_t) to the recommendation for major surgery resulted in a correlation of 0.87 ( P < 0.001), while adding BE and TI to the recommendation for extensive surgery raised correlation to only 0.88 ( P < 0.001).
Conclusion: When the recommendations were followed the correlation to the blood loss ranged from 0.74–0.84. However, with the recording of MAP, HR, CVP, ΔTemp_r-t, BE and TI a correlation of 0.87 was achieved, indicating that a pulmonary artery catheter may not be in need for patients undergoing surgical procedures with expected haemorrhage.     

Electrocardiographic and Clinical Predictors of Torsades de Pointes Induced by Almokalant Infusion in Patients with Chronic Atrial Fibrillation or Flutter: A Prospective Study

The aim of this study was to identify predictors of torsades de pointes (TdP) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) or flutter exposed to the Class III antiarrhythmic drug almokalant. TdP can be caused by drugs that prolong myocardial repolarization. One hundred patients received almokalant infusion during AF (infusion 1) and 62 of the patients during sinus rhythm (SR) on the following day (infusion 2). Thirty-two patients converted to SR. Six patients developed TdP. During AF, T wave alternans was more common prior to infusion (baseline) in patients developing TdP (50% vs 4%, P < 0.01). After 30 minutes of infusion 1, the TdP patients exhibited a longer QT interval (493 ± 114 vs 443 ± 54 ms [mean ± SD], P < 0.01), a larger precordial QT dispersion (50 ± 74 vs 27 ± 26 ms, P < 0.05), and a lower T wave amplitude (0.12 ± 0.22 vs 0.24 ± 0.16 mV. P < 0.01). After 30 minutes of infusion 2, they exhibited a longer QT interval (672 ± 26 vs 489 ± 74 ms, P < 0.001), a larger QT dispersion in precordial (82 ± 7 vs 54 ± 52 ms, P < 0.01) and extremity leads (163 ± 0 vs 40 ± 34 ms, P < 0.001), and T wave alternans was more common (100% vs 0%, P < 0.001). Risk factors for development of TdP were at baseline: female gender, ventricular extrasystoles, and treatment with diuretics; and, after 30 minutes of infusion: sequential bilateral bundle branch block, ventricular extrasystoles in bigeminy, and a biphasic T wave. Patients developing TdP exhibited early during almokalant infusion a pronounced QT prolongation, increased QT dispersion, and marked morphological T wave changes.     

Indoor air pollution and pulmonary performance: investigating errors in exposure assessment

We use pulmonary function measurements on pre-adolescent children and indoor air pollution measurements in the homes of these children to illustrate estimation techniques for linear regression models containing independent variables measured with error. In our data set, replicate measures of indoor air pollutant concentrations provide one method of estimating measurement error variances. Surrogate information in the form of cigarettes smoked is also available for the pollutant of interest. Several estimation procedures are presented, and we combine two estimators, one based on surrogate information and one based on replication information, using generalized least squares.     

The pitfalls of the dexamethasone suppression test: A biological marker of endogenous depression?

In the past few years there have been numerous publications which have stressed the value of the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) as a diagnostic marker of endogenous depression. Our own studies in 333 psychiatric inpatients and 121 healthy subjects did not reveal a differential diagnostic use for the DST. This result is in good agreement with other results in the literature. Our data demonstrate that intervening variables such as severity of illness, weight loss, sleep disturbances, situational stress, drug and alcohol withdrawal, and the pharmacokinetics of dexamethasone have an important influence on DST results, regardless of the diagnostic classification.     

重庆城乡育龄妇女中介生育率变量研究

影响妇女生育率的直接因素,如妇女已婚比、避孕及人工流产等的定量分析是卫生人口统计分析中的重要内容。本文应用美国人口学者Bongaarts提出的中介生育率变量模型就重庆城乡妇女生育率直接影响因素作一定量研究     

Relationships between demographic variables and family dynamics of childbearing families

Hakulinen T, Paunonen M, Laippala P. International Journal of Nursing Practice 1997; 3: 247–254
Relationships between demographic variables and family dynamics of childbearing families
In this study relationships between demographic variables and family dynamics of childbearing families in Finland were studied. The sample was 160 urban families expecting their first or second child in the third trimester of pregnancy. One-hundred and eighteen families participated in the study. The Family Dynamics Questionnaire (FDQ) and the Family Dynamics Measure (FDM) were used in this study. Most expectant parents reported their family was well-functioning. Mothers of higher socioeconomic status found more flexibility in their families than mothers of lower socioeconomic status. Fathers in families expecting their first baby reported more mutuality, role reciprocity and more stability than second-time fathers. The findings contribute cues for public health nurses and midwives regarding parity, socioeconomic status and family dynamics to provide more specific family guidance during the transition to parenthood. Realistic information on the changes in family dynamics after childbirth should be given to pregnant parents.