Intestinal parasites may be associated with later behavioral problems in internationally adopted children.

AIM: At arrival in new home country, internationally adopted children often have intestinal parasites. International adoptees also exhibit more behavioral problems than their biological peers. We examined whether intestinal parasite infections in international adoptees on arrival in Finland are associated with their later behavioral and emotional problems. METHODS: Data for this study were sourced from the Finnish Adoption Study (FinAdo) based on parental questionnaires for all internationally adopted children under 18 years (n = 1450) who arrived in Finland from 1985 to 2007. A total of 1293 families provided sufficient information on the adoptee's background, parasitic status on arrival, and behavioral symptoms at the median time of 5 years after arrival (mean age = 7.8 years). Behavioral and emotional disorders were evaluated with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Statistical analyses were conducted using linear regression. RESULTS: Of the 1293 families, parents of 206 adoptive children reported intestinal parasites in their adopted children on arrival. Parasite-infected children had subsequently higher CBCL problem scores than the children without parasites (p < 0.001). The association between intestinal parasites and later behavioral problems was stronger than that between intestinal parasites and any other factors measured in this study, except disability. LIMITATIONS: The control group was naturally provided by the adopted children without parasite infections, but we could not compare the adopted children to non-adopted children without a defined parasite infection. We were unable to specify the effects associated with a specific parasite type. It was not possible either to include multiple environmental factors that could have been associated with behavioral problems in the models, which indicated only modest explanatory values. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, intestinal parasite infections in early childhood may be associated with children's later psychological wellbeing, even in children who move to a country with a low prevalence of parasites. Our findings may support further developments pertaining to the gut-brain theory.

Diseases of renal function and bone metabolism after treatment for early onset cancer: A registry-based study.

Modern cancer therapy has led to a growing number of pediatric and young adult cancer survivors, who are prone to increased morbidities caused by the late effects of therapy. The aim of our study was to investigate pediatric and young adult cancer survivors' morbidity due to renal and bone metabolism diseases and especially to study bone metabolism in cancer survivors with renal disease. Patients were identified from the Finnish Cancer Registry, and the cohort consisted of 13,860, 5-year survivors of cancer diagnosed below the age of 35 years. Healthy siblings were used as the comparison cohort. Information on the main outcomes was linked from the national Care Register for Health Care. Hazard ratios (HRs) comparing cancer survivors to siblings were calculated for various outcomes. The patient cohort was separated into two age groups, pediatric (0-19 years) and young adults (20-34 years). Significantly elevated HRs (p < 0.0001) in survivors were observed in both age groups for scoliosis (HR 1.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.3-2.0), osteoporosis (HR 5.2, 95% CI 2.4-11.4), osteonecrosis (HR 12.7, 95% CI 5.4-29.7), nephritis (HR 1.9, 95% CI 1.5-2.2) and kidney failure (HR 3.6, 95% CI 2.4-5.3) for all. For cancer survivors with a renal outcome, the risk for developing any outcome of bone metabolism was increased (HR 2.3, 95% CI 1.4-3.6). These results show that pediatric and young adult cancer survivors have an elevated risk for long-term, adverse outcomes related to renal function and bone metabolism. These results suggest follow-up care for young cancer patients.

Prediction of pre-eclampsia and its subtypes in high-risk cohort: hyperglycosylated human chorionic gonadotropin in multivariate models.

BACKGROUND: The proportion of hyperglycosylated human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG-h) to total human chorionic gonadotropin (%hCG-h) during the first trimester is a promising biomarker for prediction of early-onset pre-eclampsia. We wanted to evaluate the performance of clinical risk factors, mean arterial pressure (MAP), %hCG-h, hCGß, pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A), placental growth factor (PlGF) and mean pulsatility index of the uterine artery (Uta-PI) in the first trimester in predicting pre-eclampsia (PE) and its subtypes early-onset, late-onset, severe and non-severe PE in a high-risk cohort. METHODS: We studied a subcohort of 257 high-risk women in the prospectively collected Prediction and Prevention of Pre-eclampsia and Intrauterine Growth Restriction (PREDO) cohort. Multivariate logistic regression was used to construct the prediction models. The first model included background variables and MAP. Additionally, biomarkers were included in the second model and mean Uta-PI was included in the third model. All variables that improved the model fit were included at each step. The area under the curve (AUC) was determined for all models. RESULTS: We found that lower levels of serum PlGF concentration were associated with early-onset PE, whereas lower %hCG-h was associated with the late-onset PE. Serum PlGF was lower and hCGß higher in severe PE, while %hCG-h and serum PAPP-A were lower in non-severe PE. By using multivariate regression analyses the best prediction for all PE was achieved with the third model: AUC was 0.66, and sensitivity 36% at 90% specificity. Third model also gave the highest prediction accuracy for late-onset, severe and non-severe PE: AUC 0.66 with 32% sensitivity, AUC 0.65, 24% sensitivity and AUC 0.60, 22% sensitivity at 90% specificity, respectively. The best prediction for early-onset PE was achieved using the second model: AUC 0.68 and 20% sensitivity at 90% specificity. CONCLUSIONS: Although the multivariate models did not meet the requirements to be clinically useful screening tools, our results indicate that the biomarker profile in women with risk factors for PE is different according to the subtype of PE. The heterogeneous nature of PE results in difficulty to find new, clinically useful biomarkers for prediction of PE in early pregnancy in high-risk cohorts. TRIAL REGISTRATION: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial number ISRCTN14030412 , Date of registration 6/09/2007, retrospectively registered.

18F-FDG-PET/CT based total metabolic tumor volume change during neoadjuvant chemotherapy predicts outcome in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the predictive potential of total metabolic tumor volume (MTV) reduction during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) with 18F-FDG-PET/CT in an advanced FIGO stage III/IV epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patient cohort. METHODS: Twenty-nine primarily inoperable EOC patients underwent 18F-FDG-PET/CT before and after NACT. The pre- and post-NACT total MTV, in addition to the percentage MTV reduction during NACT, were compared with primary therapy outcome and progression-free survival (PFS). ROC-analysis determined an optimal threshold for MTV reduction identifying patients with progressive or stable disease (PD/SD) at the end of primary therapy. A multivariate analysis with residual tumor (0/>0), FIGO stage (III/IV) and MTV reduction compared to PFS was performed. The association between MTV reduction and overall survival (OS) was evaluated. RESULTS: The median pre- and post-NACT total MTV were 352 cm3 (range 150 to 1322 cm3) and 51 cm3 (range 0 to 417 cm3), respectively. The median MTV reduction during NACT was 89% (range 24% to 100%). Post-NACT MTV and MTV reduction associated with primary therapy outcome (MTV post-NACT p = 0.007, MTV reduction p = 0.001) and PFS (MTV post-NACT p = 0.005, MTV reduction p = 0.005). MTV reduction <85% identified the PD/SD patients (sensitivity 70%, specificity 78%, AUC 0.79). In a multivariate analysis, MTV reduction (p = 0.002) and FIGO stage (p = 0.003) were statistically significant variables associated with PFS. MTV reduction during NACT corresponded to OS (p = 0.05). CONCLUSION: 18F-FDG-PET/CT is helpful in NACT response evaluation. Patients with total MTV reduction <85% during NACT might be candidates for second-line chemotherapy and clinical trials, instead of interval debulking surgery.

Working memory in very-low-birthweight children at the age of 11 years.

The aim of this study is to investigate the working memory (WM) of very-low-birthweight (VLBW, ≤ 1500 g) children at the age of 11 years using Baddeley's WM model. A regional cohort of 95 VLBW children was assessed for the domains of the WM model (central executive [CE], visuospatial sketchpad [VS], and phonological loop [PL]) using subtests from the Working Memory Test Battery for Children (WMTB-C) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Fourth Edition (WISC-IV). VLBW children were categorized into three groups according to their degree of brain pathology (normal, minor, or major) in neonatal brain magnetic resonance imaging at the term age, and the WM performance was compared between groups to test norms. The structure of the WM model was studied by analyzing correlations among domains. Even VLBW children with normal cognitive development (general ability index ≥ 85) performed worse compared to the test norms (M = 100, SD = 15) on CE (M = 87.64, SD = 20.54, p < .001) and VS (M = 91.65, SD = 11.03, p < .001), but their performance on PL was above the norm (M = 110.79, SD = 13.79, p < .001). VLBW children with major brain pathology performed significantly worse on VS and PL compared to the other groups. The correlations among the WM domains of the VLBW children differ from earlier findings in normative populations. To conclude, the WM of the VLBW children in the study differ-especially in the CE and VS subtest scores-from the normative population irrespective of the degree of brain pathology and level of cognitive development.

Compulsory military service as a measure of later physical and cognitive performance in male survivors of childhood cancer.

BACKGROUND: Compromised physical fitness and cognitive difficulties have been reported as late effects of cancer treatment during childhood. To assess this issue, the military rankings of cancer survivors in medical checkups at call-up, and conscripts' physical and cognitive performance during the first weeks of compulsory military education were compared to those of matched population controls without a history of cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 1680 male patients born between 1960 and 1992 with a malignancy diagnosed before the age of 16 who were alive at the call-up age (18 years) were identified using the Finnish Cancer Registry, and five age, sex and place of residence matched controls for each patient using the Population Register Centre. Data on military service were gathered from Finnish Defense Forces. A conditional logistic regression analysis, the GEE-method with the cumulative logit link function, the chi-square test, the chi-square test for trend and a one-way analysis of variance were used in different analyses. RESULTS: Cancer survivors were exempted from military service more often than the controls (p < .001). The fit-for-service frequency was highest for survivors of kidney tumors (68%) and lowest after irradiated brain tumors (19%). In service, the results of the 12-min running test were poorer than those of controls for leukemia/non-Hodgkin lymphoma (p = .03) and brain tumor (p = .01) survivors. Interestingly, the standing long-jump test was the only muscle test for which survivor groups performed worse than controls. Performance on cognitive tests only differed from controls in brain tumor survivors. CONCLUSIONS: Exemption from service is still common under the current guidelines, but fit-for-service survivors do well in military education. These results can be used for reassuring survivors that completion of military service is possible for those fulfilling the national general guidelines for military fitness.

Child and family-related predictors of psychological outcomes in children adopted from abroad; what is the role of caregiver time?

International adoptees need to cope with stressful transitions and to develop secure attachment with their caregivers at the same time. Although most children adopted from abroad adjust fine, they are at increased risk of psychological problems. We investigated whether both child and family-related factors are associated with later psychological problems and whether the length of time spent at home after adoption before daycare moderates these associations among internationally adopted children in Finland (FinAdo, Finnish Adoption Study). The sample consisted of 1,265 children (708 girls, 557 boys) who arrived in Finland before they started school (mean age 2 years at arrival). Later behavioral problems were measured using the Child Behavior Check List (CBCL). According to our results, male gender, older age, child's early clinical symptoms (problems of sensory processing) and single parenthood were associated with later behavioral problems measured by CBCL scores. Longer stay at home before the start of daycare or school modified these results. Longer stay at home was associated with less later behavioral externalizing problems in girls but not in boys compared to those who spent a shorter time at home.

Performance of MALDI-TOF MS for identification of oral Prevotella species.

During the past decade, the clinically relevant genus Prevotella has expanded considerably. Prevotella species can be isolated from nearly all types of oral infections but also from various non-oral infections. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been introduced in clinical microbiology laboratories as a convenient method for identifying bacterial isolates from clinical specimens. Here we tested the diagnostic accuracy of a total of 123 oral Prevotella isolates, selected based on their biochemical profile, by Bruker MALDI-TOF MS. Partial 16S rRNA sequencing was used as a reference method. The performance of MALDI-TOF MS to identify the isolates to the genus level was excellent with 100.0% accuracy, while a good identification rate of 88.6% was achieved to the species level with a log score of ≥2.0. The isolates representing P. aurantiaca and P. jejuni, which are currently missing from the MALDI BioTyper database, were identified correctly to the genus level. Of the 123 isolates, one P. pallens isolate (0.8%) was identified with a score variation of 1.7-1.999. Overall, biochemical testing produced a high proportion (70.7%) of incorrect identifications within different species. MALDI-TOF MS offers a reliable and rapid method for the identification of Prevotella species included in the database.

Association of Self-Perceived Physical Competence and Leisure-Time Physical Activity in Childhood-A Follow-Up Study.

BACKGROUND: The basis of self-perceived physical competence is built in childhood and school personnel have an important role in this developmental process. We investigated the association between initial self-perceived physical competence and reported leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) longitudinally in 10-, 12-, and 15-year-old children. METHODS: This longitudinal follow-up study comprises pupils from an elementary school cohort (N = 1346) in the city of Turku, Finland (175,000 inhabitants). The self-perceived physical competence (fitness and appearance) and LTPA data were collected with questionnaires. The full longitudinal data were available from 571 pupils based on repeated studies at the ages of 10, 12, and 15 years in 2004, 2006, and 2010. We analyzed the association of self-perceived physical competence and LTPA using regression models. RESULTS: Self-perceived physical competence was positively associated with LTPA at all ages (10 years p < .05, 12 years p < .0001, 15 years p < .0001). Increase in the self-perceived physical fitness scores was likely to associate with higher LTPA at each age point (10 years [odds ratio, OR] = 1.18, 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.09-1.27; 12 years [OR] = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.18-1.37; and 15 years [OR] = 1.28, 95% CI: 1.19-1.38). CONCLUSIONS: Self-perceived physical competence is associated with LTPA in children and adolescents, and the association is strengthened with age.

Postoperative human epididymis protein 4 predicts primary therapy outcome in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer.

Primary chemotherapy treatment response monitoring in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is currently based on CT-imaging and serum CA125 values. Serum HE4 profile during first line chemotherapy has not been previously studied. We evaluated the HE4 profile during first line chemotherapy after primary (PDS) and interval debulking surgery (IDS). In total, 49 FIGO stage III/IV EOC patients were included in the study. 22 patients underwent PDS and 27 patients neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) followed by IDS. Serial HE4 and CA125 serum samples were taken during first line chemotherapy. The association of postoperative tumor markers to surgery outcome, primary therapy outcome and progression free survival (PFS) were determined. The lowest HE4 and CA125 values during chemotherapy were compared to primary therapy outcome and PFS. The postoperative HE4 was associated to residual tumor after surgery (p = 0.0001), primary therapy outcome (p = 0.004) and PFS (p = 0.03) in all patients (n = 40). The postoperative CA125 was associated to PFS after IDS (n = 26, p = 0.006), but not after PDS. In multivariate analysis with FIGO stage (III/IV), residual tumor (0/>0) and postoperative CA125, the postoperative HE4 was the only statistically significant prognostic variable predicting PFS. Both HE4 and CA125 nadir corresponded to primary therapy outcome (HE4 p < 0.0001, CA125 p < 0.0001) and PFS (HE4 p = 0.009, CA125 p < 0.0001). HE4 is a promising candidate for EOC response monitoring. In our study, the performance of HE4 in response monitoring of first line chemotherapy was comparable to that of CA125. Of the postoperative values, only HE4 was statistically significantly associated to primary therapy outcome.

Novel biparametric MRI and targeted biopsy improves risk stratification in men with a clinical suspicion of prostate cancer (IMPROD Trial).

PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of a 3T biparametric magnetic resonance imaging (bpMRI), T2 -weighted imaging, and three separate diffusion-weighted imaging acquisitions combined with targeted biopsy (TB) for improving risk stratification of men with elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between March 2013 and February 2015, 175 men with a clinical suspicion of prostate cancer (PCa) were offered bpMRI (NCT01864135) based on a suspicion of PCa (two repeated PSA measurements in the range 2.5-20.0 ng/ml and/or abnormal digital rectal examination). Men with an equivocal to high suspicion of PCa had two TBs of the dominant lesion using cognitive ultrasound guidance, followed by systematic biopsy (SB). Men with a low to very low suspicion had only SB. In total, 161 (161/175, 92%) prospectively enrolled men completed the trial and were included in the final analyses. The primary endpoint of the trial was the cancer detection rate (CDR) of TB and SB. Clinically significant cancer (SPCa) was defined as Gleason score ≥3 + 4. RESULTS: TB compared with SB had higher CDR for SPCa (45%, 72/161 vs. 39%, 63/161, respectively; P > 0.05) and a lower CDR for Gleason score 3 + 3 (8%, 15/161 vs. 16%, 30/161; P < 0.05). Restricting biopsy to men with equivocal to highly suspicious bpMRI findings would have resulted in a 24% (38/161) reduction in the number of men undergoing biopsy, while missing 4 (2%) with SPCa. All anonymized datasets, including bpMRI reports and follow up information, are freely available on the trial server. CONCLUSION: Prebiopsy bpMRI and TB in men with a clinical suspicion of PCa improved risk stratification. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 1 Technical Efficacy: Stage 5 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2017;46:1089-1095.

Non-graduation after comprehensive school, and early retirement but not unemployment are prominent in childhood cancer survivors-a Finnish registry-based study.

BACKGROUND: In order to assess neurocognitive and social outcomes after childhood cancer, we explored the educational and vocational attainments of Finnish survivors in comparison to matched population controls. METHODS: From national registries, we identified survivors (n = 3243) born from 1960 to 1992 and aged below 16 at cancer diagnosis (years 1964-2009) as well as their controls (n = 16,215). Data on educational achievements, yearly income, employment status, and retirement were retrieved from Statistics Finland. RESULTS: The median (range) age at study was 28 (17-50) years. The proportion of those with no education after comprehensive school was higher than controls for all the diagnostic groups: brain tumor (BT) (33.5 vs 23.0 %), solid tumor (ST) (25.0 vs 21.4 %), and leukemia/NHL (29.2 vs 23.1 %). Odds ratios (OR) for unemployment were not significantly elevated in any survivor group compared to controls, but OR for being retired was elevated in each survivor group (BT 14.8, ST 2.2, leukemia/NHL 4.0). Irradiation significantly increased that OR only in BT survivors. Leukemia/NHL survivors treated after 1992 had lower risk for early retirement (OR 0.6) compared to those diagnosed earlier. CONCLUSIONS: Survivors had higher frequencies than controls for lacking further education after comprehensive school. Unemployment was not common, but risk for early retirement was significantly increased in each three survivor group. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Reassuring is that premature retirement was less common during the most recent treatment era. Screening and follow-up of psychosocial performance more effectively might be essential, and there is a need for studies on possibility for effective rehabilitation of the survivors.

Induced abortion - impact on a subsequent pregnancy in first-time mothers: a registry-based study.

BACKGROUND: To date, several studies concerning the effects of induced abortion (IA) on women's later psychosocial well-being and future delivery complications have been published. However, the lack of reports on woman's physical well-being during their first full-term pregnancy occurring after IA is what inspired the current study. Here, we evaluate the physical well-being and use of maternity services of first-time mothers with a history of IA. METHODS: Finnish National Birth Registry data from 2008 to 2010 were linked with the Induced Abortion Registry data from 1983 to 2007. After excluding first-time mothers with a history of miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or delivery, 57,406 mothers were eligible for the study, with 5,167 (9.0 %) having experienced prior IA. Data from the pregnancy follow-up visits were evaluated and compared between IA mothers and primiparous mothers. RESULTS: Women with IA had higher rates of smoking after the first trimester and were more likely to be overweight (body mass index >25 kg/m2) than the control group mothers. A higher use of maternity health clinic (MHC) services, thrombosis prophylaxis and participation in a second trimester ultrasound and amniotic fluid sample testing were evident in IA mothers, whereas the likelihood of assisted fertilisation procedure(s) was elevated in the control group. A shorter interpregnancy interval (IPI) seemed to contribute to a late first MHC visit and first trimester serum screening test participation, a higher incidence of placenta samples and an increased presence of preeclampsia and maternal care for poor foetal growth. CONCLUSIONS: IA is associated with being overweight before the subsequent pregnancy and with smoking after the first trimester. More frequent pregnancy follow-up visits in the IA group may be due to greater participation in the placenta sample testing and use of thrombosis prophylaxis. No association between IA and preeclampsia, hypertension, gestational diabetes or preterm premature rupture of membranes was evident in the pregnancy parameters. According to our findings, experiencing IA decreased the need for fertilisation procedures before the next pregnancy when compared to primiparous mothers. Among the IA mothers, the short IPI seemed to contribute to the higher risk for preeclampsia and maternal care for poor foetal growth. However, more research is needed around the IPI before establishing its effect on later pregnancy.

Immunological Reconstitution in Children After Completing Conventional Chemotherapy of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia is Marked by Impaired B-cell Compartment.

Humoral and cellular immunity were studied in 28 children completing conventional treatment of standard-risk (SR) or intermediate-risk (IR) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Both naïve and memory B cells were most severely affected and showed slow recovery during the 2-year follow-up, while the T-cell compartment showed only minor changes. Immunoglobulins and IgG subclasses, components, and antibodies against vaccine-preventable diseases were not significantly affected. In conclusion, immune recovery after conventional chemotherapy for SR and IR ALL is marked by B-cell depletion, but otherwise did not show any severe deficiencies in lymphocyte function.

The motor profile of preterm infants at 11 y of age.

BACKGROUND: Preterm infants are at a higher risk for poor motor outcome than term infants. This study aimed to describe the long-term motor profile in very preterm born children. METHODS: A total of 98 very preterm infants were included. Volumetric brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed at term age, and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (The Movement ABC-2) was employed at 11 y of age. The diagnosis of Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) was determined at 11 y of age according to the International Classification of Diseases. RESULTS: Eighty-two of 98 (84%) very preterm infants had normal motor development at 11 y of age. In these children, the mean percentile for the total test score in the Movement ABC-2 examinations was 42 (SD 20). Eight (8%) children had DCD. The mean percentile in these children was 4 (SD 2). Eight (8%) children had CP. Their mean percentile was 6 (SD 14). Decreased volumes in all brain regions associated with lower Movement ABC-2 total scores. CONCLUSION: The majority of the very preterm infants had normal motor development at 11 y of age. Volumetric brain MRI at term age provides a potential tool to identify risk groups for later neuromotor impairment.

Use of endocrinological and neurological medication among 5-year survivors of young onset brain tumors.

The burden of late-effects for young onset brain tumor (BT) survivors needs more careful evaluation. Our aim was to assess the need for endocrinological and neurological medication among this specific group. We identified 5-year survivors diagnosed at the age of 0-24 years between 1988 and 2004 from the Finnish Cancer Registry (N = 602). Data on endocrinological and neurological drug purchases were collected from the Social Insurance Institution of Finland. Five years after diagnosis the most commonly purchased drugs had been: antiepileptics (44.8 %), systemic hydrocortisone (18.3 %), female sex hormones (17.6 %), thyroid hormones (11.2 %), and growth hormone (10.0 %). The survivors showed an increased hazard ratio (HR) for a need for new types of drugs still 5 years after diagnosis. Thyroid hormones (HR 10.6, 95 % CI 5.1-21.4), estrogens (HR 8.0, 95 % CI 2.1-25.7), and antiepileptics (HR 6.3, 95 % CI 3.4-11.2) were bought with high frequencies. Irradiation increased the hazard for drug-purchases other than antiepileptics. Cumulative incidence of purchases of estrogens or androgens increased still 15 years after diagnosis. The cumulative incidence of purchasing thyroid hormones and antiepileptics showed continuous increase for the youngest group, whereas survivors diagnosed at 15-24 years of age reached stable level before 15 years from diagnosis. The need for new medication continued more than a decade after BT diagnosis. Especially the need for new thyroid or sex hormone medication among childhood BT survivors may emerge long after diagnosis.

Poor Parental Sleep and the Reported Sleep Quality of Their Children.

BACKGROUND: Pediatric sleep disturbances are regularly diagnosed on the basis of parental reports. However, the impact of parental sleeping problems on parental perceptions and reports of their child's sleep has not yet been studied. We hypothesized that poor parental sleep decreases the parent-reported child sleep quality. METHODS: A 1-week actigraph recording was performed in 100 children aged 2 to 6 years recruited in 16 day care centers. Their biological parents completed a sleep diary and a Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (SDSC) on children's sleep. The parents also completed the Jenkins' sleep scale on their own sleep, the 12-item General Health Questionnaire, and questions on demographic factors. Linear regression analyses were performed to study the association of the parental Jenkins' score on their child's total SDSC score. Analyses were also performed for 3 of the subscales of the SDSC: disorders of excessive somnolence, disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep, and sleep-wake transition disorders. RESULTS: Parental sleeping problems were associated with more frequent reporting of children's sleeping problems. This association was unexplained by the actigraph measures of children's sleep, such as actual 24-hour sleep time and sleep efficiency, parental mental health problems, or any other tested potential confounder or mediator. Similar correlations were seen for the 3 analyzed subscales. CONCLUSIONS: Parental sleep quality was associated with overreporting of sleep problems in their children. This finding emphasizes the importance of considering parental sleep quality in the diagnosis, treatment, and research of pediatric sleeping problems.

18F-FDG-PET/CT can identify histopathological non-responders to platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between the reduction of maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax) in 18F-FDG-PET/CT to histopathological changes obtained with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). We wanted to evaluate whether 18F-FDG-PET/CT is useful for identifying patients who will not respond to NACT and would therefore benefit from second-line chemotherapy instead of interval debulking surgery (IDS). METHODS: Twenty-six primarily inoperable EOC patients treated with NACT were enrolled in this study. 18F-FDG-PET/CT imaging was performed before diagnostic laparoscopy and after three to four NACT cycles. The relationship between the decrease in omental SUVmax from before to after NACT with omental histopathological response was examined in samples taken from the corresponding anatomical sites during IDS. Patients were divided into three groups according to chemotherapy-induced histopathological changes. Serum CA125 and HE4 halftimes during NACT as well as Ki-67 antigen expression in IDS samples were determined. RESULTS: The median omental SUVmax change during NACT was -64% (range-16% to -84%), and it was associated with histopathological response (p=0.004, OR 0.9, CI 0.84-0.97). A SUVmax decrease of less than 57% identified histopathological non-responders. Progression-free survival (PFS) differed between the poor, moderate and good histopathological response groups (0.9 year vs. 1.2 years vs. 1.4 years, respectively, p=0.05). The SUVmax change was not associated with PFS. CONCLUSION: 18F-FDG-PET/CT was able to identify patients who would not respond to NACT. To obtain a histopathological response in EOC, a substantial metabolic response in 18F-FDG-PET/CT is necessary.

Reduced ß-cell function in early preclinical type 1 diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to characterize insulin responses to i.v. glucose during the preclinical period of type 1 diabetes starting from the emergence of islet autoimmunity. DESIGN AND METHODS: A large population-based cohort of children with HLA-conferred susceptibility to type 1 diabetes was observed from birth. During regular follow-up visits islet autoantibodies were analysed. We compared markers of glucose metabolism in sequential intravenous glucose tolerance tests between 210 children who were positive for multiple (≥2) islet autoantibodies and progressed to type 1 diabetes (progressors) and 192 children testing positive for classical islet-cell antibodies only and remained healthy (non-progressors). RESULTS: In the progressors, the first phase insulin response (FPIR) was decreased as early as 4-6 years before the diagnosis when compared to the non-progressors (P=0.001). The difference in FPIR between the progressors and non-progressors was significant (P<0.001) in all age groups, increasing with age (at 2 years: difference 50% (95% CI 28-75%) and at 10 years: difference 172% (95% CI 128-224%)). The area under the 10-min insulin curve showed a similar difference between the groups (P<0.001; at 2 years: difference 36% (95% CI 17-58%) and at 10 years: difference 186% (95% CI 143-237%)). Insulin sensitivity did not differ between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: FPIR is decreased several years before the diagnosis of type 1 diabetes, implying an intrinsic defect in ß-cell mass and/or function.