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The first European Vasculitis Society (EUVAS) meeting report was published in 2017. Herein, we report on developments in the past 5 years which were greatly influenced by the pandemic. The adaptability to engage virtually, at this critical time in society, embodies the importance of networks and underscores the role of global collaborations. We outline state-of-the-art webinar topics, updates on d
Background: Surgical extraction of testicular spermatozoa is needed in men with nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA) who wish to become biological fathers. Based on available uncontrolled studies with unspecific patient selection, microdissection testicular sperm extraction (mTESE), having a sperm retrieval rate (SRR) of 50%, is considered the most efficient sperm retrieval procedure. However, no rand
Fluctuations of thermodynamic observables, such as heat and work, contain relevant information on the underlying physical process. These fluctuations are however not taken into account in the traditional laws of thermodynamics. While the second law is extended to fluctuating systems by the celebrated fluctuation theorems, the first law is generally believed to hold even in the presence of fluctuat
Human genetic studies support an inverse causal relationship between leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and coronary artery disease (CAD), but directionally mixed effects for LTL and diverse malignancies. Clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP), characterized by expansion of hematopoietic cells bearing leukemogenic mutations, predisposes both hematologic malignancy and CAD. TERT (which
Marriage is protective of survival and contributes to healthy ageing, whereas both singlehood and widowhood are related to increased mortality and poor health. The long-term change in the mortality differentials by marital status, and its interaction with gender and social class, has not been systematically addressed in the literature. In this study, we explore the marriage premium for survival a
Globally, the lifespan of populations increases but the healthspan is lagging behind. Previous research showed that survival into extreme ages (longevity) clusters in families as illustrated by the increasing lifespan of study participants with each additional long-lived family member. Here we investigate whether the healthspan in such families follows a similar quantitative pattern using three-ge
A century after the Spanish Flu, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought renewed attention to socioeconomic and occupational differences in mortality in the earlier pandemic. The magnitude of these differences and the pathways between occupation and increased mortality remain unclear, however. In this paper, we explore the relation between occupational characteristics and excess mortality among men duri
Objectives: To investigate the association of exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) during early pregnancy with markers of the maternal thyroid system. Methods: Serum concentrations of seven PFAS as well as thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), free and total thyroxine (FT4 and TT4), free and total triiodothyronine (FT3 and TT3) were measured in pregnant women in early pregnancy in t
Background: Only few studies have compared environmental pesticide air concentrations with specific urinary metabolites to evaluate pathways of exposure. Therefore, we compared pyrimethanil and chlorpyrifos concentrations in air with urinary 4-hydroxypyrimethanil (OHP, metabolite of pyrimethanil) and 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCPy, metabolite of chlorpyrifos) among pregnant women from the Infan
OBJECTIVES: This research evaluates whether environmental exposures (pesticides and smoke) influence respiratory and allergic outcomes in women living in a tropical, agricultural environment. METHODS: We used data from 266 mothers from the Infants' Environmental Health cohort study in Costa Rica. We evaluated environmental exposures in women by measuring seven pesticide and two polycyclic aromatic
Early MAXimisation of bronchodilation for improving COPD stability (EMAX) was a large, multicentre, multi-national, randomised, double-blind, 24-week trial. EMAX evaluated the efficacy and safety of dual bronchodilator therapy with umeclidinium bromide (UMEC)/vilanterol (VI) versus monotherapy with either UMEC or salmeterol (SAL) in symptomatic patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (
Objective: Ambient particle matter is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, little is known about associations between particles in occupational settings and risk of CVD. We investigated associations between occupational dust exposure and biomarkers of CVD, and potential recovery effects after vacation. Methods: Personal dust exposure measurements (respirable silica, respirable
The UK tariff for quality of life associated with the health states in the EQ-5D is probably not consistent with the preferences of Swedish health economists. This is worrying in view of the widespread use of the tariff values and the fact that health economists likely are better able than ordinary citizens to report their preferences for health states in a valid and reliable manner. We suggest th
Controllable particle assisted growth (PAG) of III-V nanowires is today almost exclusively done with Au, Ga or In nanoparticles, whereas other metals often yield nanowires with uncontrolled growth directions. To improve the control of the initial growth direction in PAG, independent of choice of metal, we propose to initiate nanowire growth from a group-III-rich foreign metal particle. For III-V n
We use tunneling spectroscopy to study the evolution of few-electron spin states in parallel InAs nanowire double quantum dots (QDs) as a function of level detuning and applied magnetic field. Compared to the much more studied serial configuration, parallel coupling of the QDs to source and drain greatly expands the probing range of excited-state transport. Owing to a strong confinement, we can he
This paper investigates if the effect of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) on school performance, documented in prior research, has changed in more recent birth cohorts of children using national Swedish population register data. The issue is of interest because management and treatment of the disease have improved over the last decades and, furthermore, because of changes in the educational grading
Background: The intestinal tract is important for development of immune tolerance and disturbances are suggested to trigger autoimmune disorders. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of Maillard products in skim milk powder obtained after long storage, compared to fresh skim milk powder. Methods: Young rats were weaned onto a diet based on skim milk powder with high concentration of Mai
