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Background: Prematurity has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of intellectual disability (ID). Method: The aim was to establish whether the prevalence of ID, defined as significant limitations in both intellectual (intelligence quotient below 70) and adaptive functioning among moderately preterm (MP; 32[superscript + 0]-33 [superscript + 6] weeks) and late preterm (LP; 34[superscript + 0]-36[superscript +6 weeks) infants, is increased compared with that in term infants (=37[superscript +0] weeks). Antenatal and neonatal risk factors for ID among gestational age groups were sought. The national register study included all live-born infants in Finland in 1991-2008, excluding those who died before one year age, or had any major congenital anomaly or missing data. A total of 1 018 256 infants (98.0%) were analysed: very preterm (VP; <32[superscript +0] weeks, n = 6329), MP (n = 6796), LP (n = 39 928) and term (n = 965 203). Results: By the age of seven years, the prevalence of ID was 2.48% in the VP group, 0.81% in the MP group, 0.55% in the LP group and 0.35% in the term group. Intracranial haemorrhage increased the ID risk in all groups. Male sex and born small for gestational age predicted an increased risk in all but the MP group. Conclusions: The prevalence of ID decreased with increasing gestational age. Prevention of intracranial haemorrhages may have a beneficial effect on the neurodevelopmental outcomes of neonates.

Purpose: We specified the interrelationship between depressive mood and erectile dysfunction. Materials and Methods: The target population consisted of men who were 50, 60 or 70 years old and residing in the study area in Finland in 1994. Questionnaires were mailed to 3,143 men in 1994 and to 2,837 men 5 years later. The followup sample consisted of 1,683 men who responded to the baseline and followup questionnaires. Results: Erectile dysfunction was strongly associated with untreated and treated depressive symptoms. The prevalence OR adjusted for potential confounders was 2.6 (95% CI 1.8–3.8) for untreated and 3.3 (95% CI 1.6–7.1) for treated depressive symptoms at the beginning of followup. The incidence of erectile dysfunction was 59/1,000 person-years (95% CI 39–90) in men with depressive mood and 37/1,000 person-years (95% CI 32–43) in those free of the disorder. Compared with men free of depressive symptoms who did not use medication for psychological disorders at study entry the adjusted incidence density ratio of erectile dysfunction was 4.5 (95% CI 2.2–9.2) in men with treated depressive symptoms and 1.2 (0.7–2.1) in those with untreated depressive symptoms. The incidence of depressive mood was 20/1,000 person-years in men with erectile dysfunction and 11/1,000 person-years in those free of erectile dysfunction. The adjusted incidence density ratio of depressive mood was 1.9 (95% CI 1.1–3.3) in men with erectile dysfunction compared with those free of it at entry. Conclusions: Moderate or severe depressive mood or antidepressant medication use may cause erectile dysfunction and erectile dysfunction independently may cause or exacerbate depressive mood. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Protein kinase C (PKC) modulating activity of 81 plant extracts of Finnish origin was investigated with an automated bioassay method combined to LC/MS. Twenty-one extracts from different parts of the plants inhibited PKC significantly. Fractionation of the active extract of Filipendula ulmaria showed that this method was able to identify a PKC inhibiting compound from the extract as quercetin. Our results indicate that this method is suitable for PKC screening of complex matrices and provides a quick and low volume, non-radioactive, alternative method for PKC experiments.

A rapid and simple microdilution technique on 96-well microplate based on turbidimetry was optimized and validated for screening of antimicrobial activity against erythromycin-resistant bacterial strains of Streptococcus pyogenes and Staphylococcus simulans isolated from Finnish patients. Using S. pyogenes ATCC 12351 as reference strain the developed method was evaluated by reproducibility measurements and using parameters typically employed for screening methods, i.e. signal-to-background, signal-to-noise and a screening-window coefficient, the Z' factor. The method was further used for screening a group of natural compounds and their synthetic derivatives against resistant bacterial strains. Of these, octyl and dodecyl gallates, and usnic and ursolic acids were the most active. The described method is a rapid, homogeneous, cost-effective and easy-to-perform system for screening of new potential antimicrobial agents in drug discovery.