Water traffic accidents, drowning and alcohol in Finland, 1969-1995.
(1/3922)
OBJECTIVE: To examine age- and sex-specific mortality rates and trends in water traffic accidents (WTA), and their association with alcohol, in Finland. MATERIALS AND METHODS: National mortality and population data from Finland, 1969-1995, are used to analyse rates and trends. The mortality rates are calculated on the basis of population, per 100000 inhabitants in each age group (<1, 1-4, 5-14, 15-24, 25-44, 45-64, > or = 65), and analysed by sex and age. The Poisson regression model and chi2 test for trend (EGRET and StatXact softwares) are used to analyse time trends. RESULTS: From 1969 through 1995 there were 3473 (2.7/100000/year; M:F= 20.4:1) WTA-related deaths among Finns of all ages. In 94.7% of the cases the cause of death was drowning. Alcohol intoxication was a contributing cause of death in 63.0% of the fatalities. During the study period the overall WTA mortality rates declined significantly (-4% per year; P < 0.001). This decline was observed in all age groups except > or = 65 year olds. The overall mortality rates in WTA associated with alcohol intoxication (1987-1995) also declined significantly (-6%; P = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: In Finland, mortality rates in WTA are exceptionally high. Despite a marked decline in most age groups, the high mortality in WTA nevertheless remains a preventable cause of death. Preventive countermeasures targeted specifically to adult males, to the reduction of alcohol consumption in aquatic settings and to the use of personal safety devices should receive priority. (+info)
Ethical issues among Finnish occupational physicians and nurses.
(2/3922)
A postal survey was conducted among 200 Finnish occupational physicians and nurses on their ethical values and problems. Both groups considered 'expertise' and 'confidentiality' as the most important core values of occupational health services (OHS) corresponding with newly published national ethical guidelines for occupational physicians and nurses in Finland. Nearly all respondents had encountered ethically problematic situations in their work, but ethical problems with gene testing in the near future were not considered likely to occur. Only 41% of the nurses and 36% of the physicians had received some training in the ethics of OHS, and 76% of all respondents never used available ethical guidelines. According to the results, even if ethics play a vital role in OHS, the ability to critically evaluate one's own performance seems quite limited. This creates a need for further training and more practicable national guidelines. (+info)
Increase in paediatric acute otitis media diagnosed by primary care in two Finnish municipalities--1994-5 versus 1978-9.
(3/3922)
In recent decades, several epidemiological studies have been published on acute otitis media (AOM), indicating that the occurrence of AOM is increasing. However, the comparison between the surveys is complicated and biased by several factors, e.g. variable study demography and design and dissimilar diagnostic criteria. The present study was performed with an identical set-up in 1978-9 and 1994-5 to find out potential changes in the occurrence of AOM. All the attacks of AOM among children under 10 years diagnosed by a physician during the 12-month periods 1 June, 1978 to 31 May 1979 and 1 June 1994 to 31 May 1995 were registered retrospectively in two Finnish municipalities. The incidence rate (total number of AOM attacks per 100 child years) was 19 (95% CI 18-21) in 1978-9 and 32 (95% CI 30-34) in 1994-5. The increase in the occurrence of AOM was 68% (95% CI 53-79%, P < 0001). (+info)
Type 2 diabetes: evidence for linkage on chromosome 20 in 716 Finnish affected sib pairs.
(4/3922)
We are conducting a genome scan at an average resolution of 10 centimorgans (cM) for type 2 diabetes susceptibility genes in 716 affected sib pairs from 477 Finnish families. To date, our best evidence for linkage is on chromosome 20 with potentially separable peaks located on both the long and short arms. The unweighted multipoint maximum logarithm of odds score (MLS) was 3.08 on 20p (location, chi = 19.5 cM) under an additive model, whereas the weighted MLS was 2.06 on 20q (chi = 57 cM, recurrence risk,lambda(s) = 1. 25, P = 0.009). Weighted logarithm of odds scores of 2.00 (chi = 69.5 cM, P = 0.010) and 1.92 (chi = 18.5 cM, P = 0.013) were also observed. Ordered subset analyses based on sibships with extreme mean values of diabetes-related quantitative traits yielded sets of families who contributed disproportionately to the peaks. Two-hour glucose levels in offspring of diabetic individuals gave a MLS of 2. 12 (P = 0.0018) at 9.5 cM. Evidence from this and other studies suggests at least two diabetes-susceptibility genes on chromosome 20. We have also screened the gene for maturity-onset diabetes of the young 1, hepatic nuclear factor 4-a (HNF-4alpha) in 64 affected sibships with evidence for high chromosomal sharing at its location on chromosome 20q. We found no evidence that sequence changes in this gene accounted for the linkage results we observed. (+info)
Fine particulate air pollution, resuspended road dust and respiratory health among symptomatic children.
(5/3922)
The short-term association of particulate air pollution with peak expiratory flow rate (PEF) and respiratory symptoms was examined. Forty-nine children with chronic respiratory symptoms aged 8-13 yrs were followed daily for six weeks in spring, 1995, in Kuopio, Finland. Daily concentrations of particulate material with a 50% cut-off aerodynamic diameter < or = 10 microm and < or = 2.5 microm (PM10 and PM2.5, respectively), black carbon, and the number concentrations of particles from 0.01-10 microm diameter were measured. During the study period, PM10 were mainly resuspended soil and street dust, and the concentration was estimated using aluminum content of PM10 samples. No consistent effect of particles was found as the associations varied by lag. Of the lags examined, only 1-day lagged PM2.5 was statistically significantly associated with morning PEF (beta=-1.06, SE=0.52 (per interquartile increase in pollutant)). Evening PEF was significantly associated with the 1-day lagged number of particles in the size range 0.1-1.0 microm (beta=-1.56, SE=0.72). One-day lagged PM10, PM2.5-10, PM2.5 and resuspended PM10, and 4-day average of PM2.5 were significantly associated with increased risk of cough. Given the short duration of the study, separating the effects of different types of particles was difficult. The present study demonstrates the highly variable size and number distribution and chemical composition of particles in Finland, and underlines the importance of measuring the size and chemical composition of particles to determine which types of particles are associated with health effects. (+info)
An epidemiological study of lung cancer: history and histological types in a general population in northern Finland.
(6/3922)
A prospective epidemiological study was conducted to assess the incidence, diagnosis, histology and surgical treatment of lung cancer in northern Finland. The results were compared with those obtained in a similar survey 20 yrs earlier. Most of the patients with a suspected lung tumour were interviewed (72%) and the information was combined with that obtained from the national cancer registry. All pathological specimens were re-evaluated by a pathologist. A total of 602 new lung cancer cases (85% male, 15% female) were diagnosed during the years 1990-1992, the annual incidence per 100,000 being 63 for males and 9.5 for females. The number not reported to the Finnish Cancer Registry was low (<1%). Lung cancer was confirmed histologically in 381 cases (63%) and in addition cytologically in 135 cases (23%). Squamous cell carcinoma was the most common histological type (40%), the proportion of adenocarcinoma being 26%, small cell carcinoma 24% and large cell carcinoma 4%. The incidence of lung cancer had decreased significantly among males (from 87 to 63 per 100,000) compared with 20 yrs earlier but had increased among females (from 4.1 to 9.5), chiefly on account of adenocarcinoma. The findings of this prospective study show an increase in the incidence of lung adenocarcinoma among females, a histological type which is less closely related to smoking than the other cancers. This suggests that other risk factors may play an increasing role in the aetiology of lung cancer. (+info)
Sex, age, cardiovascular risk factors, and coronary heart disease: a prospective follow-up study of 14 786 middle-aged men and women in Finland.
(7/3922)
BACKGROUND: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is markedly more common in men than in women. In both sexes, CHD risk increases with age, but the increase is sharper in women. We analyzed the extent to which major cardiovascular risk factors can explain the sex difference and the age-related increase in CHD risk. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study cohort consists of 14 786 Finnish men and women 25 to 64 years old at baseline. The following cardiovascular risk factors were determined: smoking, serum total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index, and diabetes. Risk factor measurements were done in 1982 or 1987, and the cohorts were followed up until the end of 1994. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to assess the relation between risk factors and CHD risk. CHD incidence in men compared with women was approximately 3 times higher and mortality was approximately 5 times higher. Most of the risk factors were more favorable in women, but the sex difference in risk factor levels diminished with increasing age. Differences in risk factors between sexes, particularly in HDL cholesterol and smoking, explained nearly half of the difference in CHD risk between men and women. Differences in serum total cholesterol level, blood pressure, body mass index, and diabetes prevalence explained about one-third of the age-related increase in CHD risk among men and 50% to 60% among women. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in major cardiovascular risk factors explained a substantial part of the sex difference in CHD risk. An increase in risk factor levels was associated with the age-related increase in CHD incidence and mortality in both sexes but to a larger extent in women. (+info)
Effects of 2 low-fat stanol ester-containing margarines on serum cholesterol concentrations as part of a low-fat diet in hypercholesterolemic subjects.
(8/3922)
BACKGROUND: Full-fat sitostanol ester-containing margarine reduces serum total and LDL cholesterol, but the effect of plant stanol ester-containing margarine as part of a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet has not been studied. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the cholesterol-lowering effects of 2 novel, low-fat stanol ester-containing margarines as part of a low-fat diet recommended for hypercholesterolemic subjects. DESIGN: In a parallel, double-blind study, 55 hypercholesterolemic subjects were randomly assigned after a 4-wk high-fat diet (baseline) to 3 low-fat margarine groups: wood stanol ester-containing margarine (WSEM), vegetable oil stanol ester-containing margarine (VOSEM), and control margarine (no stanol esters). The groups consumed the margarines for 8 wk as part of a diet resembling that of the National Cholesterol Education Program's Step II diet. The daily mean total stanol intake was 2.31 and 2.16 g in the WSEM and VOSEM groups, respectively. RESULTS: During the experimental period, the reduction in serum total cholesterol was 10.6% (P < 0.001) and 8.1% (P < 0.05) greater and in LDL cholesterol was 13.7% (P < 0.01) and 8.6% (P = 0.072) greater in the WSEM and VOSEM groups, respectively, than in the control group. Serum campesterol concentrations decreased 34.5% and 41.3% (P < 0.001) in the WSEM and VOSEM groups, respectively. Serum HDL cholesterol, sitostanol, campestanol, beta-carotene, and fat-soluble vitamin concentrations did not change significantly from baseline. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that the low-fat, plant stanol ester-containing margarines are effective cholesterol-lowering products in hypercholesterolemic subjects when used as part of a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet. They offer an additional, clinically significant reduction in serum cholesterol concentrations to that obtained with a low-fat diet alone. (+info)