The impact of orthodontic treatment on choosing a career in dentistry

Introduction Many studies, globally, have aimed at elucidating reasons to choose a career in dentistry. The most common motives found are reasonable working hours and aspiration to help. The aim of this study was to explore whether eventual past personal experience of orthodontic treatment and particularly the interpersonal skills of the treating orthodontist are of significance in this respect. Materials and methods An electronic questionnaire, consisting of multiple choice and descriptive questions about dental history and experiences in dental care, was sent to dental and, as controls, psychology students within the same Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Finland. The answers between the two groups were compared and differences tested statistically. Results The questionnaire was answered by 143 (46.0%) dental students and 94 (17.6%) psychology students. Dental students, compared to psychology students, had more positive views of their dentition and dental treatment in general (p = 0.000). Amongst participants, 47.9% of dental students and 57.4% of psychology students had received orthodontic treatment. Of those, dental students had perceived their orthodontic treatment as less painful (p = 0.001) and less uncomfortable (p = 0.000) than psychology students. Moreover, dental students reported more often experiences of orthodontist taking into account their situation in life during treatment (p = 0.011) and gave more positive descriptions of the orthodontist's interpersonal skills (p = 0.031). Conclusions Dental students, compared to psychology students, had statistically significantly more positive personal experiences related to dentistry and orthodontics, supporting our hypothesis that positive experiences with orthodontic treatment likely increase the probability of choosing dentistry as the future career.Peer reviewe

Advective timescales and pathways of Agulhas leakage

Current research indicates an increase in Agulhas leakage for the past and coming decades. This change potentially alters the strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, in particular, through advection of positive density anomalies into the North Atlantic. To explore the fate of Agulhas leakage, results from a Lagrangian analysis were evaluated, with virtual floats advected within an eddy-permitting ocean model (ORCA025). A considerable fraction of Agulhas leakage reached the subtropical North Atlantic: of a mean Agulhas leakage transport of 15.3 Sv entering the South Atlantic, 9.7, 7.7, and 6.1 Sv crossed sections at 6 degrees S, 6 degrees N, and 26 degrees N, respectively. The most probable transit time of leakage to reach the respective latitudes is one to two decades. We suggest that changes in Agulhas leakage could manifest in the Gulf Stream regime most probably within two decades. These results were supported by an eddy-resolving implementation of the ocean model (INALT01

Oppilasarviointi ja monimateriaalisuus koulukäsityön haasteina:kirjallisuuskatsaus yhteisen käsityönopetuksen kontekstissa

Tiivistelmä. Tässä kandidaatintutkielmassa käsittelemme suomalaisen peruskoulun kontekstissa koulukäsityön oppilasarviointia, sekä uusimman opetussuunnitelmauudistuksen mukanaan tuomaa käsityönopetuksen monimateriaalisuutta, erityisesti monimateriaalisuusvaatimuksen tuomia haasteita. Yleisesti kaikkien taito- ja taideaineiden numeroarviointia on kritisoitu runsaasti. Ottaen huomioon, että mittauksissa on havaittu samantasoisen osaamisen tuottavan eri kouluissa hyvinkin erilaisia arvosanoja, on keskustelu hyvinkin ajankohtaista ja tarpeellista. Tasa-arvokeskusteluun paljon pohjautuva kaikille yhteinen monimateriaalinen käsityö on myös herättänyt paljon mielipiteitä niin puolesta, kuin vastaankin. Ilman ongelmia ja sopeutumista tämän tasoinen muutos ei toteudu hetkessä. Tutkimuskysymyksemme ovat, Miten oppilaita arvioidaan koulukäsityössä? Sekä mitä vaikeuksia teknisen työn ja tekstiilityön yhdistyminen monimateriaaliseksi käsityöksi on aiheuttanut opetustoiminnalle? Käsityöoppiaineen arviointia ohjaillaan muiden oppiaineiden tapaan lainsäädännöllä, sekä valtakunnalliselta tasolta kunta- ja koulukohtaisiksi tarkentuvilla opetussuunnitelmilla. Kuitenkin opettajalla on paljon vapauksia opetuksen toteuttamisen suhteen, sillä erityisesti valtakunnallisen opetussuunnitelman tasolla kriteerit ja vaatimukset ovat melko laajoja. Opetushallitus on helpottanut opettajien toimintaa laajentamalla päättöarviokriteereitä kuvailemaan sanallisesti arvosanoihin 5, 7, 8 ja 9 vaadittavaa osaamista. Myös yhteiskunnan muuttuminen aiempaa tasa-arvoisemmaksi on kannustanut edistämään myös perinteisesti hyvin sukupuolittuneen käsityöoppiaineen tasa-arvioisuutta. Tyttöjen ja poikien käsitöiksi alun perin jaoteltu oppiaine on muuttunut kaikille yhteiseksi, monimateriaaliseksi käsityönopetukseksi. Muutos on kuitenkin aiheuttanut ongelmia erityisesti vähäisten resurssien, erillisiksi rakennettujen oppimisympäristöjen, sekä lisääntyneiden osaamisvaatimusten takia

Outcomes of High-Frequency Gastric Electric Stimulation for the Treatment of Severe, Medically Refractory Gastroparesis in Finland

Background and Aims: Severe, medically uncontrollable gastroparesis is a rare entity, which can be treated using a high-frequency gastric electric stimulator implanted surgically. Previous follow-ups have proven positive outcomes with gastric electric stimulator in patients with gastroparesis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of gastric electric stimulator in patients, in whom gastroparesis could not be controlled by conservative means in our country. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective multi-center cohort comprising all patients who had been implanted gastric electric stimulator for severe, medically refractory gastroparesis during 2007-2015 in Finland. Results: Fourteen patients underwent implantation of gastric electrical stimulator without any postoperative complications. Laparoscopic approach was used in 13 patients (93%). Prior implantation, all patients needed frequent hospitalization for parenteral feeding, 13 had severe nausea, 11 had severe vomiting, 10 had notable weight loss, and 6 had frequent abdominal pain. After operation, none of the patients required parenteral feeding, 11 patients (79%) gained median of 5.1 kg in weight (P <0.01), and symptoms were relieved markedly in 8 and partially in 3 patients (79%). Of partial responders, two continued to experience occasional vomiting and one mild nausea. Five patients needed medication for gastroparesis after the operation. One patient did not get any relief of symptoms, but gained 6 kg in weight. No major late complications occurred. Conclusion: Gastric electrical stimulator seems to improve the nutritional status and give clear relief of the symptoms of severe, medically uncontrollable gastroparesis. Given the low number of operations, gastric electrical stimulator seems to be underused in Finland.Peer reviewe

Diagnosis, natural course and treatment outcomes of groove pancreatitis

Background: Groove pancreatitis (GP) is a rare form of chronic pancreatitis with limited data on its diagnostics and treatment outcomes. The aim of this study was to assess its diagnostics, natural course, and treatment options. Methods: The study is a retrospective population-based study from Southern Finland, including all patients with suspected GP between January 2005 and December 2015. Two certified gastrointestinal radiologists re-reviewed the imaging studies. The radiological re-review, clinical judgment, and final histopathology confirmed the GP diagnoses. Results: Out of 67 patients with possible GP, 39 patients were considered to have high radiological certainty of GP. Out of these 39, five patients had cancer instead. Thirty-three patients with confirmed GP formed the final study cohort. Patients with GP were mostly middle-aged (median 55 years) men. All had at least moderate alcohol consumption. No intervention was needed in 14 patients. In five-year follow-up all conservatively treated patients became asymptomatic, while 10 out of 16 patients undergoing at least one intervention were asymptomatic at five years. Conclusion: The radiological diagnosis of GP is difficult, and a low threshold for cancer suspicion should be kept. Symptoms of GP decrease with time and suggest conservative treatment as the first-line option.Peer reviewe

On the suitability of North Brazil Current transport estimates for monitoring basin-scale AMOC changes

The North Brazil Current (NBC) constitutes a bottleneck for the mean northward return flow of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in the tropical South Atlantic. Previous studies suggested a link between interannual to multidecadal NBC and AMOC transport variability and proposed to use NBC observations as an index for the AMOC. Here we use a set of hindcast, sensitivity, and perturbation experiments performed within a hierarchy of ocean general circulation models to show that decadal to multidecadal buoyancy-forced changes in the basin-scale AMOC transport indeed manifest themselves in the NBC. The relation is, however, masked by a strong interannual to decadal wind-driven gyre variability of the NBC. While questioning the NBC transport as a direct index for the AMOC, the results support its potential merit for an AMOC monitoring system, provided that the wind-driven circulation variability is properly accounted for

Simulating the spread of disinfection by-products and anthropogenic bromoform emissions from ballast water discharge in Southeast Asia

Ballast water treatment is required for vessels to prevent the introduction of potentially invasive neobiota. Some treatment methods use chemical disinfectants which produce a variety of halogenated compounds as disinfection by-products (DBPs). One of the most abundant DBP from oxidative ballast water treatment is bromoform (CHBr3) where we find an average concentration of 894±560nmolL-1 (226±142μgL-1) in the undiluted ballast water from measurements and literature. Bromoform is a relevant gas for atmospheric chemistry and ozone depletion, especially in the tropics where entrainment into the stratosphere is possible. The spread of DBPs in the tropics over months to years is assessed here for the first time. With Lagrangian trajectories based on the NEMO-ORCA12 model velocity field, we simulate DBP spread in the sea surface and try to quantify the oceanic bromoform concentration and emission to the atmosphere from ballast water discharge at major harbours in the tropical region of Southeast Asia. The exemplary simulations of two important regions, Singapore and the Pearl River Delta, reveal major transport pathways of the DBPs and the anthropogenic bromoform concentrations in the sea surface. Based on our simulations, we expect DBPs to spread into the open ocean, along the coast and also an advection with monsoon-driven currents into the North Pacific and Indian Ocean. Furthermore, anthropogenic bromoform concentrations and emissions are predicted to increase locally around large harbours. In the sea surface around Singapore we estimate an increase in bromoform concentration by 9% compared to recent measurement. In a moderate scenario where 70% of the ballast water is chemically treated bromoform emissions to the atmosphere can locally exceed 1000pmolm-2h-1 and double climatological emissions. In the Pearl River Delta all bromoform is directly outgassed which leads to an additional bromine (Br) input into the atmosphere of 495kmolBr (∼42tCHBr3) a-1. From Singapore ports the additional atmospheric Br input is calculated as 312kmolBr (∼26tCHBr3) a-1. We estimate the global anthropogenic Br input from ballast water into the atmosphere of up to 13Mmola-1. This is 0.1% global Br input from background bromoform emissions and thus probably not relevant for stratospheric ozone depletion

Strategies for simulating the drift of marine debris

Modelling the drift of marine debris in quasi-real time can be of societal relevance. One pertinent example is Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. The aircraft is assumed to have crashed in the Indian Ocean, leaving floating wreckage to drift on the surface. Some of these items were recovered around the western Indian Ocean. We use ocean currents simulated by an operational ocean model in conjunction with surface Stokes drift to determine the possible paths taken by the debris. We consider: (1) How important is the influence of surface waves on the drift? (2) What are the relative benefits of forward- and backward-tracking in time? (3) Does including information from more items refine the most probable crash-site region? Our results highlight a critical contribution of Stokes drift and emphasise the need to know precisely the buoyancy characteristics of the items. The differences between the tracking approaches provide a measure of uncertainty which can be minimised by simulating a sufficiently large number of virtual debris. Given the uncertainties associated with the timings of the debris sightings, we show that at least 5 items are required to achieve an optimal most probable crash-site region. The results have implications for other drift simulation applications