Gevolgen van groei voor financiële resultaten op melkveebedrijven in Nederland en EU : deelrapport 1 van het project "Groeien in rendement" = Implications of expansion on financial results of dairy farms in the Netherlands and the EU : report Part 1 of the project "Expansion with financial return"

Dairy farm expansions in the Netherlands and the EU and their impact on economic results are the focus of this report. After expansion successful expanders realize better results for nearly all types of revenues and costs. The high investments by expansion of Dutch dairy farms during the period 2000-2007 do not seem detrimental to their competitiveness compared to neighboring EU countries. However, they increase the risk of liquidity problems during periods of low milk prices

Clinical outcomes of treatment with idebenone in Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy in the Netherlands:A national cohort study

Purpose The purpose of the study was to present results from a national Dutch cohort of patients with Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) treated with idebenone. Methods The multicentre, open-label, retrospective evaluation of the long-term outcome of idebenone treatment of Dutch LHON patients on visual function and on thickness of the retinal ganglion cell layer. Patients included in the analysis had a confirmed mutation in their mitochondrial DNA encoding either of the seven subunits of complex I, had a reported loss of vision in at least one eye and had a follow-up of more than 6 months after their treatment was started. Control visits involved routine clinical examinations of visual function and retinal structure at (1) the start of treatment, (2) nadir (time of lowest visual acuity), (3) the time of recovery (if any), (4) the time of termination of treatment and (5) more than 6 months after termination of the treatment. Results Data from 72 patients were analysed. Treatment duration was 23.8 +/- 14.4 (mean +/- SD) months. A positive response, that is either a clinically relevant recovery (CRR) or a clinically relevant stabilization (CRS), occurred in 53% and 11% of the patients, respectively. The magnitude of CRR was 0.41 +/- 1.54 logMAR. CRR of visual acuity is associated with recovery of colour discrimination. The thickness of both the ganglion cell complex (GCC) and the retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) is irreversibly reduced. Conclusion Our results confirm that idebenone may help to restore or maintain visual function. Whether this effect will persist is still unknown. Thinning of retinal neural tissue appears to be permanent

Percutaneous vertebroplasty is not a risk factor for new osteoporotic compression fractures: results from VERTOS II

Background and purpose: Pv is increasingly used as treatment for osteoporotic vcfs. However, controversy exists as to whether pv increases the risk for new vcfs during follow-up. The purpose of our research was to assess the incidence of new vcfs in patients with acute vcfs randomized to pv and conservative therapy. Materials and methods: Vertos ii is a prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial comparing pv with conservative therapy in 202 patients. Incidence, distribution, and timing of new vcfs during follow-up were assessed from spine radiographs. In addition, further height loss during follow-up of treated vcfs was measured. Results: After a mean follow-up of 11.4 Months (Median, 12.0; Range, 1-24 months), 18 New vcfs occurred in 15 of 91 patients after pv and 30 new vcfs in 21 of 85 patients after conservative therapy. This difference was not significant (P = .44). There was no higher fracture risk for adjacent-versus-distant vertebrae. Mean time to new vcf was 16.2 Months after pv and 17.8 Months after conservative treatment (Logrank, p = .45). The baseline number of vcfs was the only risk factor for occurrence (Or, 1.43; 95% Ci, 1.05-1.95) And number (P = .01) Of new vcfs. After conservative therapy, further height loss of treated vertebrae occurred more frequently (35 Of 85 versus 11 of 91 patients, p < .001) And was more severe (P < .001) Than after pv. Conclusions: Incidence of new vcfs was not different after pv compared with conservative therapy after a mean of 11.4 Months' follow-up. The only risk factor for new vcfs was the number of vcfs at baseline. Pv contributed to preservation of stature by decreasing both the incidence and severity of further height loss in treated vertebrae

Financiële crisis en agrosector, situatie medio oktober 2009

Deze notitie van LEI Wageningen UR geeft een beeld van de situatie in de agrosector in samenhang met de financiële crisis (kredietcrisis) medio oktober 2009. In beschouwing zijn onder meer genomen de ontwikkeling van opbrengstprijzen van belangrijke producten en kostenposten, en het effect hiervan op de inkomens en liquiditeitspositie in enkele sectoren van de land- en tuinbouw. De indeling van de notitie is: (2) algemeen, (3) de agrosector als geheel, (4) de land- en tuinbouw per deelsector en (5) visserij. Bij de agrosector is ingegaan op de export, verwerkende bedrijven, retail en dergelijke

Resultaat en financiering

Het Landbouw-Economisch Bericht 2009 biedt een verklarend overzicht van de gang van zaken in de Nederlandse agrosector. Tegen de achtergrond van de internationale en nationale economische en politieke ontwikkelingen, wordt ingegaan op ontwikkelingen in de landbouw en het landbouwbeleid in respectievelijk de wereld en de Europese Unie. Vervolgens staat de Nederlandse agrosector centraal, met aandacht voor consumptie en de voedings- en genotmiddelenindustrie. Hierna wordt aandacht besteed aan het landelijk gebied, de landbouwmilieuproblematiek en de structuur van de agrosector. De publicatie wordt afgerond met een beschouwing over de inkomensontwikkelingen in de onderscheiden delen van het agrocomplex. This report presents a survey of the economic state of Dutch agribusiness. First, attention is paid to general economic and political developments, followed by an overview of the changes in the EU policy for the agricultural sector. Next the report deals with the developments in the Dutch agricultural complex and food industry, followed by chapters describing changes in the Dutch rural area and environmental issues. Following a description of the production structure and production factors in agriculture, profi tability and income formation in the various sub sectors are analysed. The complete report is only available in Dutch, a separate English summary is available

Intravenous ATP infusions can be safely administered in the home setting: a study in pre-terminal cancer patients

The aim of the study was to investigate the safety of adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP) administration at home in pre-terminal cancer patients. Included were patients with cancer for whom medical treatment options were restricted to supportive care, who had a life expectancy of less than 6 months, a World Health Organization performance status 1 or 2, and suffered from at least one of the following complaints: fatigue, anorexia or weight loss >5% over the previous 6 months. Side effects were registered systematically on a standard form according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Common Toxicity Criteria. Fifty-one patients received a total of 266 intravenous ATP infusions. Of these, 11 infusions (4%) were given at the lowest dose of 20 μg kg−1 min−1, 85 infusions (32%) at 25–40 μg kg−1 min−1, and 170 (64%) at the highest dose of 45–50 μg kg−1 min−1 ATP. The majority of ATP infusions (63%) were without side effects. Dyspnea was the most common side effect (14% of infusions), followed by chest discomfort (12%) and the urge to take a deep breath (11%). No symptoms of cardiac ischemia occurred in any of the infusions. All side effects were transient and resolved within minutes after lowering the ATP infusion rate. Side effects were most frequent in the presence of cardiac disorders. We conclude that ATP at a maximum dose of 50 μg kg−1 min−1 can be safely administered in the home setting in patients with pre-terminal cancer