Työperäisten sairauksien rekisteriin kirjatut uudet tapaukset.

Työterveyslaitoksen Työperäisten sairauksien rekisteriin (TPSR) kirjattiin vuodelta 2013 yhteensä 4 602 ammattitautia tai ammattitautiepäilyä eli 18,7 tapausta 10 000 työllistä työntekijää kohden. Vahvistettuja ammattitauteja oli 1 811 eli 7,4 10 000 työllistä työntekijää kohden. Viime vuosien lukumäärien lasku näyttää nyt pysähtyneen. Naisten tapausten osuus oli 37 % eli sama kuin vuonna 2012 (37 %)

Fertility education for adolescent cancer patients: Gaps in current clinical practice in Europe

Objective: As adolescent cancer patients may suffer from infertility following treatment, fertility counselling is essential. Our aim was to explore the current situation in four European countries in terms of (I) education about the risk for infertility, (II) counselling on fertility preservation, (III) patients' knowledge on fertility, (IV) sufficiency of information and (V) uptake of cryopreservation. Methods: In total, 113 patients (13–20 years) at 11 study centres completed a self-report questionnaire three and six months after cancer diagnosis. Multivariate logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: As many as 80.2% of participants reported having received education about the risk for infertility prior to treatment, 73.2% recalled counselling on fertility preservation. Only 52.3% stated they felt sufficiently informed to make a decision. Inability to recall counselling on fertility preservation (OR = 0.03, CI: 0.00–0.47) and female gender (OR = 0.11, CI: 0.03–0.48) was associated with lower use of cryopreservation, whereas older age was associated with higher use. Conclusion: Fertility counselling was available to a relatively high proportion of patients, and it did influence the utilisation of cryopreservation. However, many patients did not feel sufficiently informed. Further improvement is needed to enable adolescent cancer patients to make an informed decision on fertility preservation

Multiomics in the central Arctic Ocean for benchmarking biodiversity change

Multiomics approaches need to be applied in the central Arctic Ocean to benchmark biodiversity change and to identify novel species and their genes. As part of MOSAiC, EcoOmics will therefore be essential for conservation and sustainable bioprospecting in one of the least explored ecosystems on Earth

Die konkurrierende Steuergesetzgebung des Bundes im Bereich der Finanzverfassung | Steuerautonomie der Länder ohne Reform?

Ist nach der gegenwärtigen Finanzverfassung ein Steuerwettbewerb zwischen den Bundesländern im Bereich der Landessteuern möglich? Dieser durch die Föderalismusdebatte aktuellen Frage widmet sich die Autorin. Ausgehend vom Kompetenztitel des Art. 105 Abs. 2 GG erfolgt eine eingehende Auseinandersetzung mit dem neuen Art. 72 Abs. 2 GG, der die Gesetzgebungskompetenz des Bundes im Bereich der Landessteuern auf ein "erforderliches" Maß beschränkt.Anja Korte zeigt auf, dass die konkrete Anwendung des Art. 72 Abs. 2 GG auf die einzelnen Landessteuern den Ländern bereits heute erhebliche Freiheiten einräumt. Der Bund ist weitestgehend auf Kollisionsverhütungen, vorzugsweise durch ein Doppelbesteuerungsgesetz, beschränkt. Zu beachten ist, dass ein Landessteuerwettbewerb derzeit nicht ohne ein Freigabegesetz des Bundes und auch nicht schrankenlos erfolgen kann. Zu erwähnen sei nur der Länderfinanzausgleich und das Bundestreueprinzip

Genome-based analysis of Carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates from German hospital patients, 2008-2014

Background By using whole genome sequence data we aimed at describing a population snapshot of carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae isolated from hospitalized patients in Germany between 2008 and 2014. Methods We selected a representative subset of 107 carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae clinical isolates possessing the four most prevalent carbapenemase types in Germany (KPC-2, KPC-3, OXA-48, NDM-1). Isolates were processed via illumina NGS. Data were analysed using different SNP-based mapping and de-novo assembly approaches. Relevant information was extracted from NGS data (antibiotic resistance determinants, wzi gene/cps type, virulence genes). NGS data from the present study were also compared with 238 genome data from two previous international studies on K. pneumoniae. Results NGS-based analyses revealed a preferred prevalence of KPC-2-producing ST258 and KPC-3-producing ST512 isolates. OXA-48, being the most prevalent carbapenemase type in Germany, was associated with various K. pneumoniae strain types; most of them possessing IncL/M plasmid replicons suggesting a preferred dissemination of blaOXA-48 via this well-known plasmid type. Clusters ST15, ST147, ST258, and ST512 demonstrated an intermingled subset structure consisting of German and other European K. pneumoniae isolates. ST23 being the most frequent MLST type in Asia was found only once in Germany. This latter isolate contained an almost complete set of virulence genes and a K1 capsule suggesting occurrence of a hypervirulent ST23 strain producing OXA-48 in Germany. Conclusions Our study results suggest prevalence of “classical” K. pneumonaie strain types associated with widely distributed carbapenemase genes such as ST258/KPC-2 or ST512/KPC-3 also in Germany. The finding of a supposed hypervirulent and OXA-48-producing ST23 K. pneumoniae isolates outside Asia is highly worrisome and requires intense molecular surveillance.Peer Reviewe

Carrier prevalence, secondary household transmission and long-term shedding in two districts during the Escherichia coli O104:H4 outbreak in Germany, 2011

Background: From May-July 2011, Germany experienced a large Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) O104:H4 outbreak. Our objective was to identify the prevalence of STEC O104:H4 carriers in households in highly affected areas, the rate of secondary household transmissions, and the duration of long-term shedding. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, we recruited case and control households to determine STEC household prevalence; we then conducted a prospective cohort study (≥2-persons households with ≥1 case) for rates of household transmission and shedding duration. Results: For part 1, we recruited 57 case households (62 cases and 93 household contacts) and 36 control households (89 household members). We only detected cases in previously known case households and identified 1 possible adult-to-adult household transmission. For part 2, we followed 14 households and 20 carriers. No secondary household transmission was detected in the prospective follow-up. The longest prolonged shedding lasted >7 months, however, median estimated shedding time was 10-14 days (95% CI: 0-33 days). Three carriers showed intermittent shedding. Conclusions: Prevalence of STEC O104:H4 carriers even in highly affected areas appears to be low. Despite prolonged shedding in some patients, secondary adult-to-adult household transmissions seem to be rare events in the post-diarrheal disease phase

Personality Consistency in Dogs: A Meta-Analysis

Jamie L. Fratkin is with UT Austin; David L. Sinn is with UT Austin and University of Tasmania; Samuel D. Gosling is with UT Austin; Erika A. Patall is with UT Austin.Personality, or consistent individual differences in behavior, is well established in studies of dogs. Such consistency implies predictability of behavior, but some recent research suggests that predictability cannot be assumed. In addition, anecdotally, many dog experts believe that ‘puppy tests’ measuring behavior during the first year of a dog's life are not accurate indicators of subsequent adult behavior. Personality consistency in dogs is an important aspect of human-dog relationships (e.g., when selecting dogs suitable for substance-detection work or placement in a family). Here we perform the first comprehensive meta-analysis of studies reporting estimates of temporal consistency of dog personality. A thorough literature search identified 31 studies suitable for inclusion in our meta-analysis. Overall, we found evidence to suggest substantial consistency (r = 0.43). Furthermore, personality consistency was higher in older dogs, when behavioral assessment intervals were shorter, and when the measurement tool was exactly the same in both assessments. In puppies, aggression and submissiveness were the most consistent dimensions, while responsiveness to training, fearfulness, and sociability were the least consistent dimensions. In adult dogs, there were no dimension-based differences in consistency. There was no difference in personality consistency in dogs tested first as puppies and later as adults (e.g., ‘puppy tests’) versus dogs tested first as puppies and later again as puppies. Finally, there were no differences in consistency between working versus non-working dogs, between behavioral codings versus behavioral ratings, and between aggregate versus single measures. Implications for theory, practice, and future research are discussed.Funding provided by the US Department of Homeland Security, Contract HSHQDC-10-C-00085. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Psycholog