Tentative detection of the gravitational magnification of type Ia supernovae

The flux from distant type Ia supernovae (SN) is likely to be amplified or de-amplified by gravitational lensing due to matter distributions along the line-of-sight. A gravitationally lensed SN would appear brighter or fainter than the average SN at a particular redshift. We estimate the magnification of 26 SNe in the GOODS fields and search for a correlation with the residual magnitudes of the SNe. The residual magnitude, i.e. the difference between observed and average magnitude predicted by the "concordance model" of the Universe, indicates the deviation in flux from the average SN. The linear correlation coefficient for this sample is r=0.29. For a similar, but uncorrelated sample, the probability of obtaining a correlation coefficient equal to or higher than this value is ~10%, i.e. a tentative detection of lensing at ~90% confidence level. Although the evidence for a correlation is weak, our result is in accordance with what could be expected given the small size of the sample.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure

Phenotypic characterization of patient dengue virus isolates in BALB/c mice differentiates dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever from dengue shock syndrome

International audienceBACKGROUND: Dengue virus (DENV) infection is the most common arthropod-borne viral disease in man and there are approximately 100 million infections annually. Despite the global burden of DENV infections many important questions regarding DENV pathogenesis remain unaddressed due to the lack of appropriate animal models of infection and disease. A major problem is the fact that no non-human species naturally develop disease similar to human dengue fever (DF) or dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS). Apart from other risk factors for severe dengue such as host genetics and secondary infection with a heterologous DENV, virus virulence is a risk factor that is not well characterized. RESULTS: Three clinical DENV-1 isolates from Cambodian patients experiencing the various forms of dengue disease (DF, DHF, and DSS) were inoculated in BALB/c mice at three different concentrations. The DENV-1 isolates had different organ and cell tropism and replication kinetics. The DENV-1 isolate from a DSS patient infected the largest number of mice and was primarily neurotropic. In contrast, the DENV-1 isolates from milder clinical dengue cases infected predominantly lungs and liver, and to a lesser extent brain. In addition, infection with the DENV isolate derived from a DSS patient persisted for more than two weeks in a majority of mice compared to the other DENV-1 isolates that peaked during the first week. CONCLUSIONS: These results confirm the in vitro findings of the same DENV-1 isolates, that showed that the isolate derived from a DSS patient can be distinguished based on phenotypic characteristics that differ from the isolates derived from a DF and DHF case 1. We observed in this study that the DSS virus isolate persist longer in vivo with extensive neuroinvasion in contrast to the other DENV-1 isolates originating in milder human cases. Genomic characterization of the three clinical isolates identified six amino acid substitutions unique for the DSS isolates that were located both in structural genes (M and E) and in non-structural genes (NS1, NS3, and NS5). The characterization of these clinically distinct DENV-1 isolates highlight that DENVs within the same genotype may have different in vivo phenotypes. HIGHLIGHTS: * Clinical DENV-1 isolates have different organ tropism in BALB/c mice.* The isolate from a DSS patient is primarily neurotropic compared to the other isolates.* The DENV-1 isolates have different in vivo replication kinetics.* The isolate from a DSS patient persists longer compared to the other isolates.* These phenotypic differences confirm our earlier in vitro findings with the same DENV-1 isolates. Thus, DENVs within the same serotype and genotype may differ enough to affect clinical conditions in vivo

Symptoms of anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic in six European countries and Australia – Differences by prior mental disorders and migration status

Background: Little is known about changes of mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in potentially disadvantaged groups. We investigated changes in anxiety and depression symptoms during the first year of the pandemic in six European countries and Australia by prior mental disorders and migration status. Methods: Overall, 4674 adults answered a web-based survey in May-June 2020 and were followed by three repeated surveys up to February 2021. Information on psychosocial, financial and demographic, living conditions, prior mental disorders, depression and anxiety symptoms during the pandemic and migration status was collected. Weighted general estimation equations modelling was used to investigate the association between prior mental disorders, migration status, and symptoms over time. Results: Most participants were <40 years old (48%), women (78%) and highly educated (62%). The baseline prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms ranged between 19%-45% and 13%-35%, respectively. In most countries, prevalence rates remained unchanged throughout the pandemic and were higher among people with prior mental disorders than without even after adjustment for several factors. We observed interactions between previous mental disorders and symptoms of anxiety or depression over time in two countries. No difference by migration status was noted. Limitations: Convenience sampling limits generalizability. Self-assessed symptoms of depression and anxiety might involve some misclassification. Conclusions: Depression and anxiety symptoms were worse among individuals with prior mental disorders than without, but there was no clear trend of worsening mental health in the observed groups during the observed period

Symptoms of anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic in six European countries and Australia - Differences by prior mental disorders and migration status

Background: Little is known about changes of mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in potentially disadvantaged groups. We investigated changes in anxiety and depression symptoms during the first year of the pandemic in six European countries and Australia by prior mental disorders and migration status. Methods: Overall, 4674 adults answered a web-based survey in May-June 2020 and were followed by three repeated surveys up to February 2021. Information on psychosocial, financial and demographic, living conditions, prior mental disorders, depression and anxiety symptoms during the pandemic and migration status was collected. Weighted general estimation equations modelling was used to investigate the association between prior mental disorders, migration status, and symptoms over time. Results: Most participants were &lt;40 years old (48%), women (78%) and highly educated (62%). The baseline prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms ranged between 19%-45% and 13%-35%, respectively. In most countries, prevalence rates remained unchanged throughout the pandemic and were higher among people with prior mental disorders than without even after adjustment for several factors. We observed interactions between previous mental disorders and symptoms of anxiety or depression over time in two countries. No difference by migration status was noted. Limitations: Convenience sampling limits generalizability. Self-assessed symptoms of depression and anxiety might involve some misclassification. Conclusions: Depression and anxiety symptoms were worse among individuals with prior mental disorders than without, but there was no clear trend of worsening mental health in the observed groups during the observed period

Vedlevande Coleoptera och Hemiptera förekomst på öar i Kolsnaren i sydvästra Södermanland

ABSTRACT Seven islands in the lake Kolsnaren have been investigated. I have inventoried saproxylic insects and investigated what characters on dead wood and characters at the islands that have affected species number of beetles (Coleoptera) and true bugs (Hemiptera). This study shows a relatively low number of species of beetles and true bugs but the study was too small to estimate a proper result. Probably there is many more species, especially more rare/threatened species. The characters vary between islands, but even the individual islands had different tree species, thickness, degradation stage and sun exposure of dead wood. Therefore there were favourable conditions for many different saproxylic species that have different demands of the habitat to find suitable substrate. The islands are partly isolated by water but no longer distances. With that in mind it was important that there is plenty of dead wood with varying characters around Kolsnaren so they get the opportunity to disperse and recolonise the islands when even the habitats are changing in time. The dead woods thickness and degradation stage was the characters with most impact of the number of species.SAMMANFATTNING Sju öar i Kolsnaren har undersökts. Jag har inventerat vedlevande insekter och undersökt vilka karaktärer på död ved (art, grovlek, rötstadie och solexponering) samt karaktärer på öarna (storlek, avstånd till land, ljusinsläpp, trädarter samt mängden död ved) som påverkar artantalet av skalbaggar (Coleoptera) och halvvingar (Hemiptera). Denna studie visade på ett relativt lågt artantal av skalbaggar och halvvingar men troligen finns det många fler arter, framförallt fler sällsynta liksom hotade arter. Öarnas karaktärer varierade mellan varandra men även på de enskilda öarna var det variationer i form av olika trädarter, grovlek, rötstadier och solexponering av den döda veden. Därför finns det goda förutsättningar för en mängd olika vedlevande arter med varierande habitatkrav att finna lämpligt substrat. Öarna är delvis isolerade av vatten men det utgör inget större hinder för de flesta skalbaggar. Däremot är det viktigt att det finns gott om död ved med varierande karaktärer runt omkring Kolsnaren så att vedlevande skalbaggar får möjlighet att sprida sig och återkolonisera öarna då även habitaten ändras med tiden. Den döda vedens grovlek och rötstadie var de karaktärerna som hade störst inverkan på antalet arter

Visualizing healthcare system variability and resilience: a longitudinal study of patient movements following discharge from a Swedish psychiatric clinic

Background: As healthcare becomes increasingly complex, new methods are needed to identify weaknesses in the system that could lead to increased risk. Traditionally, the focus for patient safety is to study incident reports and adverse events, but that starting point has been contested with a new era of safety investigations: the analysis of everyday clinical work, and the resilient healthcare. This study introduces a new approach of system monitoring as a way to strengthen patient safety and has focused on discharge in psychiatry as a risk for adverse outcomes. The aim was to analyse a psychiatric clinic’s everyday ‘normal’ performance variability of discharge from inpatient psychiatric care to outpatient care. Method: A retrospective longitudinal correlation study with a strategic selection. Data consist of 70,797 patient visits within one psychiatric clinic, and the visits were compared between 81 different wards in Stockholm County by using a model of time-lapse visualization. Results: The time-lapse visualization shows a discrepancy in types of visits and the proportion of cancelled visits to the outward units. 42% of all patients that were scheduled as an outward patient, did not complete this transition, but instead, they revisit the clinics’ emergency ward and did not receive the planned care treatment. The patients who visit the emergency ward instead of their planned outpatient visit did this within 20 days. Conclusions: The findings show a potential increased demand for emergency psychiatric care from 2010 to 2018 within the clinic. It also suggests that the healthcare system creates a space of temporal as well as functional variability, and that patients use this space to adapt to their changing conditions. This understanding can assist management in prioritising allocation of resources and thereby strengthen patient safety. Today’s incident reporting systems in healthcare are ineffective in monitoring patterns of more cancelled visits in outward units and sooner visit to the emergency ward. By using time-lapse visualization of patient interactions, stakeholders might analyse current-, and estimate future, stressors within the system to identify and understand potential system migration towards risk in healthcare. This could help healthcare management understand where resources should be prioritized

Patterns of mortality risk among patients with substance use disorder: an opportunity for proactive patient safety?

BACKGROUND: Patients with substance use disorder (SUD) suffer from excess mortality compared to the overall population. This study aims to identify patterns in death rates among patients with SUD visiting a SUD emergency ward and to explore whether this knowledge can be used as input to identify patients at risk and increase patient safety. METHODS: Hospital visit data to a SUD emergency ward were collected between 2010 and 2020 through medical records. Data included gender, age, SUD diagnosis, and the time of death. The Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test was used to test between ordinal variables, and risk ratio was used to quantify the difference in mortality risk. All statistical tests were two-sided, with a 95% confidence interval and a minimum significance level of 0.05. RESULTS: The male patients in the study group had 1.41-1.59 higher mortality risk than the female patients. The study revealed an average death rate of 0.14 among all patients during the study period. Although patients with a diagnosed alcohol use disorder constituted 73.7% of the cohort, having an opioid use disorder or sedative hypnotics use disorder was associated with the highest death rates; 1.29-1.52 and 1.47-1.74 higher mortality risk than those without such diagnoses. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that data from visits to SUD emergency wards can be used to identify mortality risk factors, such as gender, type of diagnosis, number of diagnoses, and number of visits to the SUD emergency ward. Knowledge about patterns of patient visits and mortality risk could be used to increase patient safety through a decision support tool integrated with the electronic medical records. An improved system for early detection of increased mortality risk offers an opportunity for an adaptive patient safety system

Patterns of mortality risk among patients with substance use disorder: an opportunity for proactive patient safety?

BackgroundPatients with substance use disorder (SUD) suffer from excess mortality compared to the overall population. This study aims to identify patterns in death rates among patients with SUD visiting a SUD emergency ward and to explore whether this knowledge can be used as input to identify patients at risk and increase patient safety.MethodsHospital visit data to a SUD emergency ward were collected between 2010 and 2020 through medical records. Data included gender, age, SUD diagnosis, and the time of death. The Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test was used to test between ordinal variables, and risk ratio was used to quantify the difference in mortality risk. All statistical tests were two-sided, with a 95% confidence interval and a minimum significance level of 0.05.ResultsThe male patients in the study group had 1.41–1.59 higher mortality risk than the female patients. The study revealed an average death rate of 0.14 among all patients during the study period. Although patients with a diagnosed alcohol use disorder constituted 73.7% of the cohort, having an opioid use disorder or sedative hypnotics use disorder was associated with the highest death rates; 1.29–1.52 and 1.47–1.74 higher mortality risk than those without such diagnoses.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that data from visits to SUD emergency wards can be used to identify mortality risk factors, such as gender, type of diagnosis, number of diagnoses, and number of visits to the SUD emergency ward. Knowledge about patterns of patient visits and mortality risk could be used to increase patient safety through a decision support tool integrated with the electronic medical records. An improved system for early detection of increased mortality risk offers an opportunity for an adaptive patient safety system