Örebro University

About: Örebro University is a education organization based out in Örebro, Sweden. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Cohort study. The organization has 3488 authors who have published 11642 publications receiving 370975 citations. The organization is also known as: Örebro Universitet.

Worldwide distribution of persistent organic pollutants in air, including results of air monitoring by passive air sampling in five continents

Abstract: This article provides an overview of concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in ambient air on a global scale, including recent measurements and an extensive compilation of literature data. In this study, passive air samplers (PASs) were successfully employed to assess concentrations of POPs in ambient air from Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Islands. The project aimed to extend the knowledge on environmental contamination by POPs in these regions, where the currently available data are still limited to a few monitoring studies. The ambient air concentrations of PCB in Africa were relatively high when compared to other regions. Waste, in particular electronic waste, exported to Africa from industrialized countries may be a possible source of PCB in Africa, where PCB have never been extensively used or produced. For DDTs, the wide range of concentrations and particularly high levels in some countries of Africa and the Pacific Islands reflect the use of DDT for malaria control in these regions. For PCDD/PCDF, concentrations in Africa and Latin America are similar to or even higher than in Europe, probably due to unfavorable combustion practices of chlorine-containing materials. The data support the needs for further monitoring in developing countries and countries with economies in transition, and action to reduce environmental contamination by, and human exposure to, hazardous chemicals.

Pain reduction at venipuncture in newborns: oral glucose compared with local anesthetic cream.

Abstract: Our knowledge of pain in neonates has increased significantly during the last fifteen years.We now have an improved understanding of the pain system and of the negative effects of untreated pain. Advances in neonatal care have increased the nwnber of preterm and severely ill infants who are treated in neonatal intensive care units (NICU). These infants are subjected to a variety of painful procedures as part of their management. Sufficient pain relief is needed and for this, valid pain assessment is one prerequisite.The aim of this research was to improve the management of procedural pain and to examine the assessment of neonatal pain in clinical practice.In an earlier study, oral glucose was found to reduce pain during blood sampling. To further evaluate the pain-reducing effect of oral glucose and to compare this effect with different blood sampling techniques, a trial was performed. The pain score was lower and crying time shorter in the venipuncture group than in the heel stick group when no glucose was given. When glucose was administered, the pain score was lower in both glucose groups than in the groups not receiving glucose (paper I).In a randomized, controlled study, the effect of oral glucose was compared with that of a topical local anaesthetic, EMLA, during venipuncture. The pain scores were found to be lower in the glucose group and fewer infants were scored as having pain. Crying time was also shorter in the glucose group (paper II).To compare the pain-reducing effect of oral glucose with that of breast-feeding shortly before venipuncture, a new trial was performed. The pain score was significantly lower in the infants receiving glucose than in those not given glucose. There was no significant difference in pain score between the infants who were fed and the fasting infants (paper III).In a previous study we found an increase in heart rate in newboms when they received glucose as pain relief. We therefore investigated whether oral glucose in itself could cause an increase in heart rate in healthy infants. In a trial, infants were randomized to receive oral glucose or placebo without undergoing any painful procedure. The heart rate was significantly higher in the glucose than in the placebo group (paper IV).Activation of endogenous opioids is suggested as one possible mechanism underlying the pain-reducing effect of oral glucose. We therefore investigated whether administration of an opioid antagonist would reduce the effect of oral glucose at heel stick in full-term newboms. There were no significant differences in pain score or crying between the group receiving an opioid antagonist before oral glucose and the group receiving placebo before oral glucose during heel stick (paper V).To document whether pain is assessed in Swedish neonatal units and by what methods, a questionnaire was distributed to all neonatal wards in Sweden in 1993, and again in 1998. Only a small proportion of neonatal units in Sweden attempted to assess pain. There was a minor increase in the nwnber of wards that used a structured method for pain scoring. Docwnentation of pain is still inadequate and needs to be improved (paper VI). We compared parental assessment during blood sampling with measurement of the pain score with a multidimensional tool and crying. There was low agreement between these variables during the procedure (paper III).In conclusion, we found that oral glucose reduces signs of pain from both heel stick and venipuncture blood sampling. Oral glucose reduces pain better than does EMLA cream and better than if the infant is breast-fed shortly before the procedure. Oral glucose increases the heart rate in infants and the pain-reducing effect of oral glucose in newboms was not diminished by injection of an opioid antagonist. Parental assessment of an infant's pain cannot replace measurement by pain scores. The pain assessment at neonatal units in Sweden needs to be improved.

Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Bone Strength in 9-Year-Old Boys and Girls

Abstract: OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this work was to analyze the relationship between intensity and duration of physical activity and composite indices of femoral neck strength and bone-mineral content of the femoral neck, lumbar spine, and total body. METHODS. Physical activity was assessed by accelerometry in 143 girls and 150 boys (mean age: 9.7 years). Measurement of bone-mineral content, femoral neck bone-mineral density, femoral neck width, hip axis length, and total body fat-free mass was performed with dual-energy radiograph absorptiometry. Compressive [(bone-mineral density × femoral neck width/weight)] and bending strength [(bone-mineral density × femoral neck width2)/(hip axis length × weight)] express the forces that the femoral neck has to withstand in weight bearing, whereas impact strength [(bone-mineral density × femoral neck width × hip axis length)/(height × weight)] expresses the energy that the femoral neck has to absorb in an impact from standing height. RESULTS. Analysis of covariance (fat-free mass and age adjusted) showed differences between boys and girls of ∼9% for compressive, 10% for bending, and 9% for impact strength. Stepwise regression analysis using time spent at sedentary, light, moderate, and vigorous physical activity as predictors revealed that vigorous physical activity explained 5% to 9% of femoral neck strength variable variance in both genders, except for bending strength in boys, and ∼1% to 3% of total body and femoral neck bone-mineral content variance. Vigorous physical activity was then used to categorize boys and girls into quartiles. Pairwise comparison indicated that boys in the third and fourth quartiles (accumulation of >26 minutes/day) demonstrated higher compressive (11%–12%), bending (10%), and impact (14%) strength than boys in the first quartile. In girls, comparison revealed a difference between the fourth (accumulation of >25 minutes/day) and first quartiles for bending strength (11%). We did not observe any relationship between physical activity and lumbar spine strength. CONCLUSIONS. Femoral neck strength is higher in boys than girls. Vigorous intensity emerged as the main physical activity predictor of femoral neck strength but did not explain gender differences. Daily vigorous physical activity for at least ∼25 minutes seems to improve femoral neck bone health in children.