The impact of the euro on money and bond markets

The paper provides an analysis of the euro area money and bond markets and their infrastructure since the introduction of the euro. Significant development in terms of integration took place in both markets in general to a various degree for the different segments. However, there remain room for further integration after the first year of Stage III of EMU notably regarding the bond market which lags behind in terms of liquidity, market completeness and overall size compared to the US corporate bond market. Analysis of the barriers to integration, which do not seem to be specific to these markets but apply more generally to euro securities infrastructure, identifies fields where further action is required. This covers (i) the lack of availability of cross-border settlement on a DVP basis, (ii) the lack of standardised legal documentation for repos, (iii) the lack of common practices concerning settlement procedures, (iv) the lack or harmonisation of collateralisation processes between national central banks and interbank operations, (v) the heterogeneity in fiscal and accounting procedures and, (vi) the need for a clearing house.money market, bond market, securities market, financial market integration, euro area, monetary policy.

The impact of the euro on money and bond markets

The paper provides an analysis of the euro area money and bond markets and their infrastructure since the introduction of the euro. Significant development in terms of integration took place in both markets in general to a various degree for the different segments. However, there remain room for further integration after the first year of Stage III of EMU notably regarding the bond market which lags behind in terms of liquidity, market completeness and overall size compared to the US corporate bond market. Analysis of the barriers to integration, which do not seem to be specific to these markets but apply more generally to euro securities infrastructure, identifies fields where further action is required. This covers (i) the lack of availability of cross-border settlement on a DVP basis, (ii) the lack of standardised legal documentation for repos, (iii) the lack of common practices concerning settlement procedures, (iv) the lack or harmonisation of collateralisation processes between national central banks and interbank operations, (v) the heterogeneity in fiscal and accounting procedures and, (vi) the need for a clearing house

The prevalence and incidence of glaucoma in Denmark in a fifteen year period:a nationwide study

The purpose of the present study was to describe the prevalence, incidence and geographic variation of glaucoma in Denmark in the period from 1996 to 2011. Moreover, the aim was to identify the treatment patterns of glaucoma within the studied period.All Danish citizens were included throughout the study period. The National Prescription Registry was used to identify all claimed prescriptions for glaucoma medication.A total of 116,592 incident glaucoma patients were identified. Average age at onset was 66 years (range: 0-105 years), 55% were women. The prevalence of glaucoma increased from 0.79% to 1.72% during the investigated period. In 2011 glaucoma affected 3.76% of the population above 50 years and 10% in patients above 80 years. The age-specific incidence rate of glaucoma seemed to be constant and the increasing prevalence was primarily attributed to an aging population. We found the highest prevalence of glaucoma in the capital region of Denmark. Within the studied period the use of prostaglandin analogs and combination drugs increased, whereas the use of β-blockers, carbon anhydrase inhibitors and parasympathomimetic drugs decreased (p<0.001). Finally, the use of α2-adrenergic agonists remained unchanged. A total of 75% of the patients were treated with two or more glaucoma medications.Over all, the present study is the first to assess the frequency and the development of glaucoma in Denmark over a 15-year period. We find that glaucoma affects a little less than 2% of the total population and increases with age to reach a prevalence of more than 10% amongst people above 80 years. Generally, the present study is the largest nation-wide study ever made and must be a close-to-real-life-picture of the utilization of glaucoma medication on a national scale. Our findings confirm other recent estimations on an increasing burden of glaucoma globally

A Sociological Approach to Managerial Technoloy

The relevance of technologies in management and organizational analysis is well accepted in theory, if not by managers themselves. But the way technologies allow us to observe has not yet been explored. This is because many accounts of technologies neglect, if not the constitutive nature of technologies, then at least their observational potential. In particular, this article argues, technologies work by setting the scene of observation for the manager. In order to handle that challenge, management must be a matter of `managination`, that is, second order observation. Keywords: management, observation, reproduction, steering, technology

Oral leukoplakia: Diagnosis and treatment

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Oral leukoplakia (OL) is a common premalignant lesion. The possible benefits of specific interventions in preventing a malignant transformation of OL are not well understood. This review assesses different invasive treatment techniques for OL and evaluate the optimal treatment possibilities. METHODS: A Medline (PubMed) search was conducted and heterogeneity between the studies was found, e.g., with regard to the OL lesions, patient groups, follow-up time, and definition of recurrence. RESULTS: The recurrence and malignant transformation rate after the different treatment methods were evaluated. The mean overall recurrence rate varied with the treatment method. CONCLUSION: A surgical treatment appears to decrease the risk of transformation but does not fully eliminate it. Follow-up should be done regardless of the surgical treatment. KEYWORDS: Oral Leukoplakia; Squamous Cell Carcinoma; Chemotherapy; Laser Ablation; Cryosurger

The predictive value of ICD-10 diagnostic coding used to assess Charlson comorbidity index conditions in the population-based Danish National Registry of Patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Charlson comorbidity index is often used to control for confounding in research based on medical databases. There are few studies of the accuracy of the codes obtained from these databases.</p> <p>We examined the positive predictive value (PPV) of the ICD-10 diagnostic coding in the Danish National Registry of Patients (NRP) for the 19 Charlson conditions.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Among all hospitalizations in Northern Denmark between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2007 with a first-listed diagnosis of a Charlson condition in the NRP, we selected 50 hospital contacts for each condition. We reviewed discharge summaries and medical records to verify the NRP diagnoses, and computed the PPV as the proportion of confirmed diagnoses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 950 records were reviewed. The overall PPV for the 19 Charlson conditions was 98.0% (95% CI; 96.9, 98.8). The PPVs ranged from 82.0% (95% CI; 68.6%, 91.4%) for diabetes with diabetic complications to 100% (one-sided 97.5% CI; 92.9%, 100%) for congestive heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, chronic pulmonary disease, mild and severe liver disease, hemiplegia, renal disease, leukaemia, lymphoma, metastatic tumour, and AIDS.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The PPV of NRP coding of the Charlson conditions was consistently high.</p

Association between sexually transmitted disease and church membership:a retrospective cohort study of two Danish religious minorities

OBJECTIVES: Studies comprising Danish Seventh-day Adventists (SDAs) and Danish Baptists found that members have a lower risk of chronic diseases including cancer. Explanations have pointed to differences in lifestyle, but detailed aetiology has only been sparsely examined. Our objective was to investigate the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among Danish SDAs and Baptists as a proxy for cancers related to sexual behaviour. METHODS: We followed the Danish Cohort of Religious Societies from 1977 to 2009, and linked it with national registers of all inpatient and outpatient care contacts using the National Patient Register. We compared the incidence of syphilis, gonorrhoea and chlamydia among members of the cohort with the general population. RESULTS: The cohort comprised 3119 SDA females, 1856 SDA males, 2056 Baptist females and 1467 Baptist males. For the entire cohort, we expected a total of 32.4 events of STD, and observed only 9. Female SDAs and Baptists aged 20–39 years had significant lower incidence of chlamydia (both p<0.001). Male SDAs and Baptists aged 20–39 years also had significant lower incidence of chlamydia (p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively). No SDA members were diagnosed with gonorrhoea, when 3.4 events were expected, which, according to Hanley's ‘rule of three’, is a significant difference. No SDA or Baptist was diagnosed with syphilis. CONCLUSIONS: The cohort shows significant lower incidence of STD, most likely including human papillomavirus, which may partly explain the lower incidence of cancers of the cervix, rectum, anus, head and neck