RESUMEN
Type 1 diabetes (T1D), an autoimmune disease, breaks out in some of the children who has genetic susceptibility to T1D. Besides genetic susceptibility some environmental factor(s) are required to trigger the disease. The incidence of T1D in Finland is highest in the world, so we must seek an environmental factor, that is typical for Finland and can declare many aspects of T1D epidemiology and biology. In the literature most popular trigger has been enterovirus infections. It is difficult however to find why enteroviruses would be in this role in Finland in contrary to neighbouring countries e.g. Sweden. Colloidal amorphous silica (ASi) is typical for Finnish environment in consequency of the geohistory of Finland, great part of Finland is an ancient lake and sea bottom. ASi concentrations in natural waters are high in April-June and in November, only traces can be found in the rest of months. Pure colloidal ASi is not a strong trigger for T1D, but ASi particle which has surface adsorbed tetrahedrally coordinated zinc (ASiZn) is probably the trigger which has kept it's secret up to date. Zn functions as address label which conducts the ASiZn particle to the beta cell, whose content of zinc is highest in the body. ASi particle adheres to membrane proteins distorting their tertiary structure revealing new epitopes. If the fetus has not met these epitopes at proper time during intrauterine development, the consequence is that the negative selection of lymphocytes in the thymus and bone marrow and fetal liver is not perfect. When a child later in postnatal life becomes predisposed to ASiZn particles the immune system reacts to these as to nonself proteins. As a consequence the insulin producing beta cells are destroyed. Many observations from diabetes research support the hypothesis, some to mentioned. 1. Three common autoantigens (ZnT8, ICA512/IA-2, GAD65) are membrane proteins whose function zinc regulates. 2. Geographical variation in Finland is convergent with surface water manganese concentrations. Manganese is the principal Zn scavenger and high manganese in water reduces ASiZn particle formation and the incidence of T1D. 3. The incidence of T1D depends of drinking water pH. The highest incidence can be found within water pH 6.2-6.9. Zn coordination changes from octahedral (unphysiologic) to tetrahedral (physiologic) at pH 6.56. In the text are presented five more supporting observations e.g. the similarity between the soils in Sardinia and Finland in respect to ASi.
Asunto(s)
Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 1/epidemiología , Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 1/etiología , Brotes de Enfermedades/estadística & datos numéricos , Contaminantes Ambientales/efectos adversos , Modelos Biológicos , Puntos Cuánticos/efectos adversos , Dióxido de Silicio/efectos adversos , Coloides/efectos adversos , Coloides/química , Contaminantes Ambientales/análisis , Finlandia/epidemiología , Humanos , Incidencia , Puntos Cuánticos/química , Dióxido de Silicio/químicaRESUMEN
Previously, a curious observation was made that indicated high iodine concentrations in the raw (ground) water of a water treatment plant wells is associated with a high prevalence of autoimmune hypothyreosis in consumers. When fractionating this water with liquid chromatography (HPLC), iodine elutes in the same fractions as humic substances. Humic substances are determined by measuring light absorbance at 280 nm from the fractions. The prevalence of autoimmune hypothyreosis in the Finnish municipalities varies approximately ten fold. In Finland, water is distributed by the municipal water works, and every municipal water work has its own water source. Water sources in the municipalities with a high prevalence of autoimmune hypothyreosis are at least at times synclinal (the water flows from the flood lake to the aquifer). This kind of flood lake is a suitable environment for the synthesis of ternary system amorphous silica/humus/iodine nanocolloid (Asi/Hu/I) particles. According to our proposed hypothesis, Asi/Hu/I nanocolloid particles in tap water are internalised by thyrocytes via the sodium iodide symporter (NIS), indicating receptor-mediated endocytosis. Receptor-mediated endocytosis is quick and efficient so that enough amorphous silica nanoparticles are internalised inside thyrocytes to denature various intracellular proteins (e.g., thyroglobulin), thereby affecting the immunoreactivity of proteins, which triggers the autoimmunity process. In this article, we present observations that support this hypothesis.
Asunto(s)
Enfermedades Autoinmunes/etiología , Coloides/análisis , Nanoestructuras , Dióxido de Silicio/análisis , Abastecimiento de Agua/análisis , Finlandia , HumanosRESUMEN
Ballistocardiography is a non-invasive technique for the assessment of cardiac function. We built a measurement setup to measure the ballistocardiogram from a normal chair using EMFi sensors. The ballistocardiogram is recorded from a subject sitting on the chair. The measured signal is amplified by a specially-designed charge amplifier and digitized by a circulation monitor. A PC provides a user interface for the measurement devices, records the data and displays the results. Impedance cardiography and ECG serve as reference measurements for the ballistocardiography. To test the system, one healthy 24-year-old male and one healthy 22-year-old female were measured. It is concluded that the ballistocardiogram waveforms described in the literature can be recognized from the EMFi signal measured from a normal chair.
RESUMEN
During six days in November, 1987, 611 pupils (age range 7-19 years) and 39 adults (23-57) at a school complex in southern Finland had diarrhoea due to Escherichia coli O111:B4. Diarrhoea developed in 137 other household members during the two weeks after the school outbreak. The source of the organism remains unknown. The outbreak strains, when incubated at 22 degrees C or exposed to ampicillin, lost the lipopolysaccharide O antigen and began to react with antisera against Salmonella typhi Vi antigen. The Vi antigen-like reactivity increased the adherence of the organisms to Hep-2 cells. These results indicate that E coli O111:B4, and possibly other enteropathogenic E coli strains, should be considered in the diagnosis of all diarrhoea cases and not only in infantile diarrhoea. Expression of Vi antigen in E coli may play a part in virulence by enhancing adherence to the intestinal epithelium.
Asunto(s)
Antígenos Bacterianos/análisis , Diarrea/epidemiología , Brotes de Enfermedades , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/epidemiología , Escherichia coli/clasificación , Polisacáridos Bacterianos , Adolescente , Adulto , Factores de Edad , Pruebas de Aglutinación , Resistencia a la Ampicilina , Adhesión Bacteriana , Niño , Diarrea/inmunología , Diarrea/microbiología , Escherichia coli/efectos de los fármacos , Escherichia coli/inmunología , Escherichia coli/metabolismo , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/complicaciones , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/inmunología , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/transmisión , Finlandia/epidemiología , Humanos , Persona de Mediana Edad , Salmonella typhi/inmunología , Serotipificación/métodos , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Factores de TiempoAsunto(s)
Diarrea/epidemiología , Brotes de Enfermedades , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/epidemiología , Escherichia coli/clasificación , Adolescente , Adulto , Niño , Diarrea/etiología , Diarrea/microbiología , Infecciones por Escherichia coli/microbiología , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana EdadRESUMEN
A 5-year trial of acupuncture therapy in the Finnish NHS is surveyed. In total 348 patients attending Halikko Health Centre in SW Finland were treated with needle-stimulation for a wide variety of chronic pain syndromes. The mean number of acupuncture sessions was 5 in the primary series and 41% of patients received more than one series. An analysis of results showed significant relief of pain (more than 40% reduction on the visual analogue scale) in myofascial syndromes affecting the head, neck, shoulder and arm. Osteoarthrosis of major joints, and backache, responded less favourably. In total 65% of those patients who had taken analgesics before acupuncture therapy, either stopped totally or reduced their dose considerably. Those with headache could significantly more often reduce their drug intake than those with arthritis or osteoarthrosis. More results and discussion will be published in part II later in this Journal.
Asunto(s)
Terapia por Acupuntura , Manejo del Dolor , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Artritis/terapia , Dolor de Espalda/terapia , Enfermedad Crónica , Ensayos Clínicos como Asunto , Femenino , Cefalea/terapia , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana EdadRESUMEN
A 5-year trial of acupuncture therapy in the Finnish NHS is surveyed. The material of 348 pain patients has been described in Part I. Acupuncture was less effective in the elderly, in patients with a psychiatric history, on high doses of analgesics, and in those with longstanding pain. Twenty six per cent of the patients were relieved of pain for more than two years. The response to treatment was not influenced by the patients social status or his expectations of benefit.
Asunto(s)
Terapia por Acupuntura , Manejo del Dolor , Adulto , Anciano , Analgésicos/uso terapéutico , Enfermedad Crónica , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Dolor/tratamiento farmacológicoRESUMEN
Metoclopramide has in previous studies been found to be synergic with acupuncture analgesia both in the laboratory and in the clinics. In the present study no synergism could be shown when patients with chronic pain were treated with acupuncture.
Asunto(s)
Terapia por Acupuntura , Metoclopramida/uso terapéutico , Manejo del Dolor , Adulto , Enfermedad Crónica , Terapia Combinada , Método Doble Ciego , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Dolor/tratamiento farmacológico , Distribución AleatoriaAsunto(s)
Deficiencia de Ácido Fólico/inducido químicamente , Trimetoprim/efectos adversos , Recuento de Células Sanguíneas , Eritrocitos/análisis , Femenino , Deficiencia de Ácido Fólico/sangre , Humanos , Masculino , Metenamina/uso terapéutico , Nitrofurantoína/uso terapéutico , Infecciones Urinarias/tratamiento farmacológicoAsunto(s)
Terapia por Acupuntura , Dolor Intratable/terapia , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana EdadRESUMEN
290 patients with recurrent urinary tract infection were treated with either placebo, methenamine hippurate, nitrofurantoin or trimethoprim. 38.9% of the patients had chronic pyelonephritis and 23.8% azotemia. During the follow-up period of 1 year 63.2% recurred in the placebo group, 34.2% in the methenamine hippurate group, 25.0% in the nitrofurantoin group and 10.4% in the trimethoprim group. 62.5% of the recurrences in the trimethoprim group were associated with trimethoprim-resistant strains. However, such strains appeared only in 6.5% of the patients treated with trimethoprim, compared with 16.2% in the placebo, 8.3% in the nitrofurantoin and 11.0% in the methenamine hippurate groups. Side-effects were mild and occurred most frequently in the nitrofurantoin group (13.9%).