427 research outputs found
Sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, in the Netherlands in 2013
Het aantal mensen dat zich bij een Centrum Seksuele Gezondheid heeft laten testen op een seksueel overdraagbare aandoening (soa) is verder gestegen in 2013. Het percentage mensen met een soa is voor het eerst licht gedaald (met 0,4 procent) sinds 2007. Desondanks blijft dit percentage hoog (14,7 procent). Een goed functionerende soa-monitoring blijft daarom essentieel om zicht te houden op relevante trends, opkomende soa binnen groepen die een grotere kans hebben er een op te lopen, en de effectiviteit van preventieprogramma's. De Centra Seksuele Gezondheid (CSG), voorheen soa-poli's, bieden hoogrisicogroepen de mogelijkheid om zich gratis te laten testen op soa en verstrekken medicatie als er een wordt vastgesteld. Het totaal aantal consulten in 2013 bedroeg 133.585 en is met 10 procent toegenomen ten opzichte van 2012. Van alle bezoekers werden de meeste soa gediagnosticeerd bij mensen die ervoor gewaarschuwd waren dat ze mogelijk een soa hadden opgelopen, mensen jonger dan 25 jaar, migranten uit gebieden waar soa en hiv veel voorkomen (bijvoorbeeld Afrika, Zuid-Amerika of Oost-Europa), of mannen die seks hebben met mannen (MSM). Chlamydia Net als in voorgaande jaren was chlamydia de meest gediagnosticeerde soa bij de CSG in 2013 (15.767 diagnoses). Het percentage mensen dat chlamydia had, daalde licht ten opzichte van 2012 (van 12,2 naar 11,8 procent). Chlamydia werd het meest vastgesteld bij heteroseksuelen, zowel mannen als vrouwen, onder de 25 jaar. Na de uitschieter in 2012 van het aantal en percentage mensen met een agressieve variant van chlamydia, lymphogranuloma venereum, zijn deze cijfers weer afgenomen naar het niveau van de jaren daarvoor (7 procent in 2013). Gonorroe Het percentage personen met een gonorroe-infectie bij de CSG bleef in 2013 stabiel ten opzichte van 2012 (3,6 procent in 2012 en 3,4 procent in 2013), nadat het in de voorgaande jaren licht was gestegen. Deze soa werd het meest gediagnosticeerd bij MSM. Het blijft belangrijk om te volgen of de gonorroe-bacterie resistent raakt tegen de antibiotica die in Nederland voorgeschreven worden, de zogenoemde derde generatie cefalosporines. In diverse Europese landen is deze resistentie waargenomen. Hiv Het aantal personen met een hiv-infectie, gediagnosticeerd bij een van de CSG, is in 2013 gelijk gebleven ten opzichte van 2012 (358 versus 356 in 2012). Het percentage positieve testen daalt sinds 2008: van 3,0 procent naar 1,4 procent bij MSM in 2013. Het percentage mensen dat in een laat stadium van een hiv-infectie bij een hiv-behandelcentrum komt, is de afgelopen jaren gedaald. Het is van belang om tijdig de hiv-diagnose te stellen en zo snel mogelijk de behandeling te starten, omdat hierdoor de gezondheidsschade bij de patiënt verkleind kan worden. Ook neemt door behandeling de besmettelijkheid af, waardoor de kans kleiner is dat hiv wordt overgedragen.In 2013, more people were tested for sexually transmitted infections (STI) at Dutch STI clinics than in previous years. Although the percentage of people with an STI showed a slight decrease (0.4 per cent) for the first time since 2007, it remained high at 14.7 per cent. Effective STI monitoring remains essential for the identification of relevant trends, emerging STIs in high-risk groups, and the effectiveness of prevention programmes. STI clinics offer high-risk groups access to free testing for STI and provide care and treatment if an STI is diagnosed. The total number of consultations in 2013 was 133,585, an increase of 10% compared with 2012. In 2013, STI clinic attendees with an STI were mainly people who reported having been notified of their possible exposure to STI, people aged 20-24, people originating from areas in which STI/HIV is common (e.g. Africa, South America or Eastern Europe), and men who have sex with men (MSM). Chlamydia With 15,767 cases, chlamydia remains the most commonly diagnosed STI in 2013. The percentage of people diagnosed with chlamydia was slightly lower in 2013 than in 2012 (11.8 versus 12.2 respectively). Chlamydia was primarily diagnosed in heterosexuals younger than 25 years old and in both men and women. Following the increase in the number and percentage of lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV; an aggressive variant of chlamydia) infections in 2012, these numbers declined to a level comparable to previous years in 2013. Gonorrhoea Whereas the percentage of people with a gonorrhoea infection slightly had increased in previous years, the percentage remained stable in 2013 (3.4 per cent) compared with 2012 (3.6 per cent). Gonorrhoea was mostly diagnosed in MSM. It remains important to monitor the resistance of the gonorrhoea bacteria against the antibiotic currently recommended in the Netherlands, a third-generation cephalosporin. A rising rate of resistance to this antibiotic has been observed in several European countries. HIVThe number of people diagnosed with HIV at STI clinics in 2013 was similar to that of 2012 (358 versus 356 respectively). Among MSM, the percentage of positive HIV tests decreased from 3.0 per cent in 2008 to 1.4 per cent in 2013. The percentage of HIV-positive people who were diagnosed at a late stage of the infection has decreased in previous years. Early diagnosis and treatment of an HIV infection is important because of individual health benefits and the potential reduction of HIV transmission
The design of a randomized, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging trial to investigate the efficacy and safety of the ADAMTS-5 inhibitor S201086/GLPG1972 in knee osteoarthritis
Objective
This study aims to assess the efficacy of the anticatabolic ‘a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motif-5’ (ADAMTS-5) inhibitor, S201086/GLPG1972, in slowing cartilage loss in participants with knee osteoarthritis (OA).
Design
ROCCELLA (NCT03595618) is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, dose-ranging, phase 2 trial. We plan to enrol a total of 852 participants with knee OA across 12 countries. Participants will be randomized 1:1:1:1 to receive 75, 150 or 300 mg S201086/GLPG1972, or placebo orally, once daily for 52 weeks. Eligible participants will be aged 40–75 years and have predominantly medial knee OA with centrally read Kellgren–Lawrence grade 2 or 3, OARSI atlas medial femorotibial joint space narrowing grade 1 or 2, and consistent moderate to severe baseline pain. The primary endpoint will be the change from baseline to week 52 in magnetic resonance imaging-assessed central medial femorotibial compartment cartilage thickness. Secondary endpoints will include other structural outcomes, and patient-reported outcomes, as well as safety and pharmacokinetic assessments. Study sites will be assessed for eligibility based on factors including imaging quality, and images will be centrally read and quality checked.
Conclusions
Using strict inclusion criteria and leading imaging techniques with stringent quality controls, the ROCCELLA trial will evaluate the efficacy of S201086/GLPG1972 in slowing cartilage loss in participants with knee OA. The selected eligibility criteria should enrich for participants with OA who experience sufficient cartilage loss to allow detection of a substantial treatment effect
Developmental trajectory of transmission speed in the human brain
The structure of the human connectome develops from childhood throughout adolescence to middle age, but how these structural changes affect the speed of neuronal signaling is not well described. In 74 subjects, we measured the latency of cortico-cortical evoked responses across association and U-fibers and calculated their corresponding transmission speeds. Decreases in conduction delays until at least 30 years show that the speed of neuronal communication develops well into adulthood
Seksueel overdraagbare aandoeningen, waaronder hiv, in Nederland in 2016
In 2016, the number of people who were tested at a Dutch STI clinic for a sexually transmitted infection (STI) increased, after a decrease in 2015. The percentage of people diagnosed with an STI has also increased, to 18.4 percent in 2016. It is estimated that the number of STI consultations at the general practitioner has decreased slightly. Chlamydia remains the most common STI in heterosexuals. Gonorrhoea is more common than chlamydia in men who have sex with men (MSM). STI clinics offer high-risk groups the opportunity for free STI testing. In 2016, a total of 143,139 consultations were registered at the STI clinics, an increase of 5 percent compared to 2015. The percentage of detected STIs varied per municipal health centre (GGD), ranging from 12.8 to 20.9 percent. Most STIs were detected in people infected with HIV, followed by people who had been notified for an STI. Chlamydia In 2016, 14.5 percent of STI clinic attendees were infected with chlamydia (20,698 diagnoses; an increase of 11 percent compared to the previous year). This increase can be explained in part because, since 2015, STI clinics more strictly prioritise people with a high risk of STI. The biggest increase was seen in heterosexual men (from 16.1 in 2015 to 18.0 percent in 2016). In women, the percentage of chlamydia diagnoses increased from 14.2 to 15.4. In MSM, the percentage has been stable around 10 percent for years. Gonorrhoea The number of gonorrhoea diagnoses at the STI clinics has risen in the past year with 13 percent, to 6,092 infections. The percentage of positive tests in heterosexual men (1.7 percent) and women (1.4 percent) remained stable, compared to previous years. In MSM, the percentage has increased from 10.7 percent in 2015 to 11.3 percent in 2016. The STI clinics have not yet found cases of gonorrhoea resistant to the first option antibiotic, Ceftriaxone. The number of gonorrhoea infections diagnosed by general practitioners in 2015 saw a slight decline among women, but an increase among men of 20 percent compared to 2014. Syphilis In 2016, the number of syphilis diagnoses increased by 30 percent compared to 2015, totalling 1,223 infections. This increase is mainly caused by an increase in the number of diagnoses in MSM, both those with and without HIV. Out of all syphilis infections, 95 percent was diagnosed in MSM. The percentage of positive diagnoses in heterosexual men and women remains very low; 0.19 and 0.07 percent of all consultations that tested for syphilis, respectively. HIV In 2016, 285 new HIV diagnoses were detected at the STI clinics, approximately the same number as in 2015 (288); 93 percent was detected in MSM. The percentage of HIV diagnoses in MSM decreased, from 2.8 percent in 2007 to 0.8 percent in 2016. The number of HIV patients that had their 'first care' encounter at a Dutch HIV treatment centre decreased again, from 1,033 cases in 2015 to 976 in 2016. Out of these people, 666 received their diagnosis in 2016Het aantal mensen dat zich bij een Centrum Seksuele Gezondheid (CSG) heeft laten testen op een seksueel overdraagbare aandoening (soa) is, na een daling in 2015, in 2016 weer toegenomen. Het percentage bij wie een soa werd vastgesteld is ook gestegen, tot 18,4 procent in 2016. Naar schatting is het aantal soa-consulten bij huisartsen licht gedaald. Chlamydia blijft de meest voorkomende soa onder heteroseksuelen. Onder mannen die seks hebben met mannen (MSM) werd vaker gonorroe dan chlamydia gevonden. De CSG's bieden hoog-risicogroepen de mogelijkheid om zich gratis te laten testen op soa's. In totaal zijn er in 2016 143.139 consulten geregistreerd bij de CSG's, een stijging van 5 procent ten opzichte van 2015. Het percentage gevonden soa's varieerde tussen de GGD-en; van 12,8 tot 20,9. De meeste soa's zijn gevonden bij mensen met hiv, gevolgd door mensen die waren gewaarschuwd voor een soa. Chlamydia In 2016 had 14,5 procent van de CSG-bezoekers een chlamydia-infectie (20.698 diagnoses; een toename van 11 procent ten opzichte van het jaar ervoor). Deze stijging is mogelijk deels te verklaren doordat GGD-en sinds 2015 eerder voorrang verlenen aan personen met hoog risico op soa. De grootste toename was te zien bij heteroseksuele mannen (van 16,1 in 2015 naar 18,0 procent in 2016). Bij vrouwen nam het percentage vastgestelde chlamydia toe van 14,2 naar 15,4. Onder MSM ligt dit percentage al jaren rond 10 procent. Gonorroe Het aantal gonorroe-diagnoses bij de CSG is het afgelopen jaar met 13 procent toegenomen tot 6.092 infecties. Het percentage positieven onder heteroseksuele mannen (1,7 procent) en vrouwen (1,4 procent) bleef stabiel ten opzichte van voorgaande jaren. Onder MSM is het percentage toegenomen van 10,7 procent in 2015 naar 11,3 procent in 2016. Bij CSG-bezoekers is nog steeds geen gonorroe resistent gevonden tegen het 'eerstekeus' antibioticum ceftriaxon. Het aantal gonorroe-infecties gediagnosticeerd door huisartsen in 2015 nam licht af onder vrouwen, maar steeg onder mannen met 20 procent ten opzichte van 2014. Syfilis In 2016 is het aantal diagnoses van syfilis met 30 procent gestegen ten opzichte van 2015, tot 1.223 infecties. Deze stijging komt voornamelijk door een toename in het aantal diagnoses onder MSM, zowel met als zonder hiv. Van alle syfilis-infecties werd 95 procent bij MSM vastgesteld. Het percentage positieve diagnoses onder heteroseksuele mannen en vrouwen blijft zeer laag; respectievelijk 0,19 en 0,07 procent van alle consulten waarin getest werd op syfilis. Hiv In 2016 zijn 285 nieuwe diagnoses van hiv gesteld bij de CSG, vrijwel evenveel als in 2015 (288). Drieënnegentig procent daarvan werd bij MSM vastgesteld. Het percentage hiv-diagnoses bij MSM is gedaald van 2,8 procent in 2007 tot 0,8 procent in 2016. Het aantal hiv-patiënten dat voor het eerst 'in zorg' was bij de Nederlandse hiv-behandelcentra daalde opnieuw, van 1.033 gevallen in 2015 tot 976 in 2016. Van hen hadden 666 personen de diagnose in 2016 gekregenMinisterie van VW
Calibration of the Logarithmic-Periodic Dipole Antenna (LPDA) Radio Stations at the Pierre Auger Observatory using an Octocopter
An in-situ calibration of a logarithmic periodic dipole antenna with a
frequency coverage of 30 MHz to 80 MHz is performed. Such antennas are part of
a radio station system used for detection of cosmic ray induced air showers at
the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory, the so-called
Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA). The directional and frequency
characteristics of the broadband antenna are investigated using a remotely
piloted aircraft (RPA) carrying a small transmitting antenna. The antenna
sensitivity is described by the vector effective length relating the measured
voltage with the electric-field components perpendicular to the incoming signal
direction. The horizontal and meridional components are determined with an
overall uncertainty of 7.4^{+0.9}_{-0.3} % and 10.3^{+2.8}_{-1.7} %
respectively. The measurement is used to correct a simulated response of the
frequency and directional response of the antenna. In addition, the influence
of the ground conductivity and permittivity on the antenna response is
simulated. Both have a negligible influence given the ground conditions
measured at the detector site. The overall uncertainties of the vector
effective length components result in an uncertainty of 8.8^{+2.1}_{-1.3} % in
the square root of the energy fluence for incoming signal directions with
zenith angles smaller than 60{\deg}.Comment: Published version. Updated online abstract only. Manuscript is
unchanged with respect to v2. 39 pages, 15 figures, 2 table
Multi-resolution anisotropy studies of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays detected at the Pierre Auger Observatory
We report a multi-resolution search for anisotropies in the arrival
directions of cosmic rays detected at the Pierre Auger Observatory with local
zenith angles up to and energies in excess of 4 EeV ( eV). This search is conducted by measuring the angular power spectrum
and performing a needlet wavelet analysis in two independent energy ranges.
Both analyses are complementary since the angular power spectrum achieves a
better performance in identifying large-scale patterns while the needlet
wavelet analysis, considering the parameters used in this work, presents a
higher efficiency in detecting smaller-scale anisotropies, potentially
providing directional information on any observed anisotropies. No deviation
from isotropy is observed on any angular scale in the energy range between 4
and 8 EeV. Above 8 EeV, an indication for a dipole moment is captured; while no
other deviation from isotropy is observed for moments beyond the dipole one.
The corresponding -values obtained after accounting for searches blindly
performed at several angular scales, are in the case of
the angular power spectrum, and in the case of the needlet
analysis. While these results are consistent with previous reports making use
of the same data set, they provide extensions of the previous works through the
thorough scans of the angular scales.Comment: Published version. Added journal reference and DOI. Added Report
Numbe
Ultrahigh-energy neutrino follow-up of Gravitational Wave events GW150914 and GW151226 with the Pierre Auger Observatory
On September 14, 2015 the Advanced LIGO detectors observed their first
gravitational-wave (GW) transient GW150914. This was followed by a second GW
event observed on December 26, 2015. Both events were inferred to have arisen
from the merger of black holes in binary systems. Such a system may emit
neutrinos if there are magnetic fields and disk debris remaining from the
formation of the two black holes. With the surface detector array of the Pierre
Auger Observatory we can search for neutrinos with energy above 100 PeV from
point-like sources across the sky with equatorial declination from about -65
deg. to +60 deg., and in particular from a fraction of the 90% confidence-level
(CL) inferred positions in the sky of GW150914 and GW151226. A targeted search
for highly-inclined extensive air showers, produced either by interactions of
downward-going neutrinos of all flavors in the atmosphere or by the decays of
tau leptons originating from tau-neutrino interactions in the Earth's crust
(Earth-skimming neutrinos), yielded no candidates in the Auger data collected
within s around or 1 day after the coordinated universal time (UTC)
of GW150914 and GW151226, as well as in the same search periods relative to the
UTC time of the GW candidate event LVT151012. From the non-observation we
constrain the amount of energy radiated in ultrahigh-energy neutrinos from such
remarkable events.Comment: Published version. Added journal reference and DOI. Added Report
Numbe
- …