Needs or obligations? The influence of childcare infrastructure and support norms on grandparents' labour market participation

This study investigates how institutional and normative characteristics affect grandparents' labour market participation. Previous studies indicate that providing regular grandchild care reduces labour market participation, and this linkage varies between European welfare states. Yet the underlying mechanisms remain unclear, and no study has systematically disentangled cultural from institutional influence when investigating grandparents' work-care reconciliation. Based on two mechanisms, needs and obligations, we investigate how (grandparental) support norms and childcare infrastructure jointly shape the labour market participation of active grandparents. We use six waves from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), investigating variation across 91 subnational regions in 18 countries. The results indicate that the regular provision of grandchild care increases the risk of exiting the labour market for both men and women. This linkage is stronger in contexts with stronger support norms, but also depends on the childcare infrastructure in contexts where norms are weaker

Serological diagnosis of echinococcosis: the diagnostic potential of native antigens

Purpose: Human alveolar (AE) and cystic echinococcosis (CE) caused by the metacestode stages of Echinococcus multilocularis and E. granulosus, respectively, lack pathognomonic clinical signs. Diagnosis therefore relies on the results of imaging and serological studies. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of several easy-to-produce crude or partially purified E. granulosus and E. multilocularis metacestode-derived antigens as tools for the serological diagnosis and differential diagnosis of patients suspicious for AE or CE. Methods: The sera of 51 treatment-naïve AE and 32 CE patients, 98 Swiss blood donors and 38 patients who were initially suspicious for echinococcosis but suffering from various other liver diseases (e.g., liver neoplasia, etc.) were analysed. Results: According to the results of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), metacestode-derived antigens of E. granulosus had sensitivities varying from 81 to 97% and >99.9% for the diagnosis of CE and AE, respectively. Antigens derived from E. multilocularis metacestodes had sensitivities ranging from 84 to 91% and >99.9% for the diagnosis of CE and AE, respectively. Specificities ranged from 92 to >99.9%. Post-test probabilities for the differential diagnosis of AE from liver neoplasias, CE from cystic liver lesions, and screening for AE in Switzerland were around 95, 86 and 2.2%, respectively. Cross-reactions with antibodies in sera of patients with other parasitic affections (fasciolosis, schistosomosis, amebosis, cysticercosis, and filarioses) did occur at variable frequencies, but could be eliminated through the use of confirmatory testing. Conclusions: Different metacestode-derived antigens of E. granulosus and E. multilocularis are valuable, widely accessible, and cost-efficient tools for the serological diagnosis of echinococcosis. However, confirmatory testing is necessary, due to the lack of species specificity and the occurrence of cross-reactions to other helminthic disease

Education systems as life course policies? The example of subnational educational regimes and young adults’ family transitions

This study investigates the role of subnational educational opportunities for three typical transitions in young adulthood: 1) leaving the parental home, 2) starting to cohabit and 3) becoming a parent. Educational opportunities shape young adults’ life courses as they facilitate the accumulation of human capital, labour market entry and financial independence. Education systems and opportunities are part of transition regimes shaped by the specific cultural, economic and policy characteristics of a (subnational) context, and are thus likely to affect moving out and family formation. Drawing on the example of Switzerland with its large cantonal variation in educational opportunities, we use longitudinal data from the TREE panel study to follow a cohort of young adults born in the mid-1980s from ages 16 to 29. Event history models show that larger shares of young people in vocational education at a cantonal level are associated with earlier moving out and parenthood, but later partnership formation. The influence of vocational opportunities is moderated by the presence of a university in the canton.Diese Studie untersucht die Rolle subnationaler regionaler Bildungsangebote für drei zentrale Familienübergänge im jungen Erwachsenenalter, nämlich 1) den Auszug aus dem Elternhaus, 2) das Eingehen einer ersten festen Partnerschaft, und 3) den Übergang in die Elternschaft. Bildungsangebote formen Lebensverläufe, da sie die Akkumulation von Humankapitel ermöglichen, den Einstieg in den Arbeitsmarkt erleichtern und die finanzielle Unabhängigkeit junger Menschen von ihren Eltern fördern. Zudem sind sie in Lebensverlaufsregimes eingebettet, welche mit ihren spezifischen kulturellen, ökonomischen und politischen Eigenschaften auch familiäre Übergänge im jungen Erwachsenenalter beeinflussen dürften. Basierend auf dem Beispiel der Schweiz, die durch eine große regionale Heterogenität in der Bildungslandschaft und der Orientierung in Bildungssystemen gekennzeichnet ist, untersuchen wir den Zusammenhang zwischen kantonalen Bildungsangeboten und den drei genannten Übergängen. Dabei nutzen wir Daten der TREE-Panelstudie, welche die Bildungs-, Arbeitsmarkt- und Lebensverläufe einer Kohorte von jungen Erwachsenen von 16 bis 29 Jahren verfolgt. Event History-Modelle zeigen, dass ein höherer Anteil von jungen Menschen in beruflicher Ausbildung in einem Kanton mit früheren Auszügen und Elternschaft, aber späterer Partnerschaft assoziiert ist. Der Zusammenhang zwischen Übergängen und dem Berufsbildungsangebot wird jedoch von der Verfügbarkeit einer Universität im Kanton moderiert

Der Einfluss der Herzphase auf die Prävalenz von Bewegungsartefakten beim Koronarkalknachweis mittels Computertomographie

Background and Objectives Multi-detector Computed Tomography (MDCT) with retrospective ECG gating is used for the detection of coronary calcification in the context of risk stratification. Motion artefacts can occur and may influence the ability to visualize and quantify calcium. We investigated the relationship between the cardiac phase used for reconstruction and the prevalence of motion artefact in the coronary arteries. Methods 50 consecutive patients scanned by 16-slice MDCT (16x1.5 mm collimation, 370 ms rotation) for the detection of coronary calcification were evaluated. The mean heart rate was 60±10/min. No beta-blockers were given for the MDCT scan. In all patients, 9 MDCT data sets (3.0 mm slice thickness, 1.5c mm increment) were reconstructed starting at 10% to 90% of the cardiac cycle. Each data set was evaluated concerning the presence of motion artefact in each cross-section for the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD), left circumflex coronary artery (LCX), and right coronary artery (RCA). The number of cross-sections in which an artery was discernible without motion artefact divided by the total number of cross-sections in which the vessel was present constituted the percentage of vessel visualized free of motion artefacts. Results and Observations Most frequently, data sets reconstructed at 60% of the cardiac cycle yielded least motion artefact for all coronary arteries. For all patients, 93.6% of all vessel cross-sections were free of motion artefact at 60% of the cardiac cycle. The LAD was visualized completely free of motion in 80% of patients, the LCX in 76%, and the RCA in 82%. Practical Conclusions In summary, optimal visualization of all coronary arteries in 16-slice MDCT for coronary calcium detection is most frequently achieved at 60% of the cardiac cycle. This information is important when ECG-correlated tube current modulation is planned to reduce radiation exposure.Hintergrund und Ziele Die Mehrzeilen-Detektor-Computertomographie (MDCT) mit retrospektivem EKG-Gating wird im Rahmen der Risikoevaluation für kardiale Ereignisse zum Nachweis koronarer Kalzifizierungen eingesetzt. Das Auftreten von Bewegungsartefakten kann die Quantifizierung von Koronarkalk beeinträchtigen. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurde der Zusammenhang zwischen der zur Rekonstruktion verwendeten kardialen Phase und dem Auftreten von Bewegungsartefakten in Koronararterien untersucht. Methoden Es wurden 50 konsekutive Patienten evaluiert, die mittels MDCT (16 x 1,5 mm Kollimation, 370 ms Rotation) zum Nachweis von Koronarkalk untersucht wurden. Die mittlere Herzfrequenz betrug 60+/-10 Schlägen/Minute. Für alle Patienten wurden 9 Datensätze (3.0 mm Schichtdicke, 1,5c mm Tischvorschub) zu unterschiedlichen, äquidistanten Zeitpunkten im Bereich von 10 – 90% des R-R-Intervalls rekonstruiert. Die Schnittbilder aller Datensätze wurden hinsichtlich des Auftretens von Bewegungsartefakten getrennt für Ramus interventricularis anterior (RIVA), Ramus circumflexus (RCX) und rechte Koronararterie (RCA) evaluiert. Für das jeweilige Gefäß wurde die Herzphase ermittelt, die im Durchschnitt aller Patienten die wenigsten Bewegungsartefakte aufwies. Ergebnisse und Beobachtungen Im Durchschnitt aller Patienten traten Bewegungsartefakte in der Rekonstruktion bei 60% des Herzzyklus, was der mittleren Diastole entspricht, am seltensten auf. Insgesamt zeigten zu diesem Zeitpunkt 93,6% aller Schnittbilder, auf denen die Koronararterien abgebildet wurden, die geringsten Bewegungsartefakte. Der Zeitpunkt 60% des Herzzyklus zeigte für den RIVA bei 80% der Patienten die optimale Bildqualität, für den RCX bei 76% und für die rechte Koronararterie bei 82% aller Fälle. Praktische Schlussfolgerung Zusammenfassend findet sich die optimale Herzphase zur Detektion von Koronarkalk mittels 16-Zeilen CT in dieser Studie bei 60% des Herzzyklus. Diese Information kann besonders bedeutend sein, wenn eine EKG-Modulation des Röhrenstroms zur Senkung der Strahlenexposition geplant ist

Short- and Longer-Term Changes in Housework and Childcare Across the Covid-19 Pandemic in Finland : Evidence from the ECEC ("Varhaiskasvatus") survey

In this descriptive study, we look back at the Covid-19 pandemic in Finland, evaluating the changes in couples division of housework and childcare beyond the immediate lockdown measures. We identify patterns of couple s changes into and out of more or less gender-egalitarian ways of sharing these two types of unpaid domestic work across three time points, creating typical profiles of changers. We provide an extensive overview of the socio-demographic and socio-economic charac-teristics that are associated with these patterns

Dependent on one’s past? how lifetime employment shapes later life work-care reconciliation

This article investigates the association between older Europeans’ earlier employment biographies and their probability of leaving the labour market when becoming a caregiver. Based on theoretical ideas about life course path-dependencies and gender role socialisation, we argue that accumulated durations of lifetime employment are associated with both labour market exits in general, and conditional on caregiving. We draw on six panel waves from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and use information from retrospective interviews (SHARELIFE) to measure earlier participation in six different types of (non-)employment between ages 20 and 50. We analyse a large sample of men and women aged 50–68 years in 18 European countries (n = 35,766 respondents). Based on fixed effects regression models, we find that employment biographies and current caregiving jointly affect labour market exits. Explanations for these linkages are gender-specific: Upon initiation of caregiving, men are more likely to extend working lives when their previous employment biographies are characterised by homemaking, pointing at neutralising deviance from non-standard male biographies. For women, we find evidence for path-dependencies: Concomitant to beginning caregiving, women are more likely to stay in the labour market the longer their previous employment was characterised by homemaking

Gendered life courses and cognitive functioning in later life: the role of context-specific gender norms and lifetime employment

With increasing life expectancy, dementia poses an epidemiological challenge. As a cure has not been developed, the investigation into preventive factors becomes pivotal. Previous research emphasizes the cognitively stimulating and socio-emotional benefits of lifetime employment, but research on heterogeneous patterns across social groups and societal contexts remains sparse. Sociological approaches have a promising potential to provide insights into health inequalities and can contribute to the study of this major societal challenge. We investigate the influence of previous employment biographies on cognitive functioning for men and women aged 50 to 75 in 19 European countries, using longitudinal and retrospective information from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. We link individual information on employment biographies and cognitive functioning to contextual measures of gender norms, using aggregated agreement rates to both men's and women's role in employment and family. We find that previous employment affects cognitive functioning men and women differently. Part-time employment is beneficial for women's cognitive functioning, but not for men's. Traditional gender norms are associated with lower levels of cognitive functioning for both genders and moderate the linkage between previous employment and cognitive functioning. In contexts with more traditional gender norms, men's part-time employment is associated with lower and women's part-time employment with higher cognitive functioning. We conclude that employment and non-employment participation can, depending on characteristics of individuals and contexts, benefit or hinder the life-course accumulation of cognitive reserve, and those with norm-deviating behaviour are disadvantaged

To the Fifties and Back Again? A Comparative Analysis of Changes in Breadwinning Arrangements during the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Four European Countries

Over the past decades, opposite-sex couples have moved away from the traditional ‘male breadwinner model’ towards a more egalitarian division of paid work. However, lockdown measures and the closures of schools and childcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic may have challenged egalitarian divisions of paid work, pushing couples into traditional breadwinning arrangements. This study investigates whether opposite-sex couples experienced short- and medium-term relapses into traditional breadwinning arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic. Logistic regressions models, applied to harmonized data from four country-specific representative longitudinal studies fielded during the pandemic (Varhaiskasvatus (Finland), pairfam (Germany), LISS (the Netherlands), and the UKHLS (the UK)), are used to estimate the probability of shifting into traditional breadwinning arrangements among opposite-sex co-resident partners from different social strata. Results indicate a moderate re-traditionalization of breadwinning arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic that did not appear to deepen pre-existing social inequalities in couples’ division of paid work