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Biomedical subjects

L Molinari

Publications and source records attributed to L Molinari.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Epidemiology of IDDM in Switzerland. Increasing incidence rate and rural-urban differences in Swiss men born 1948-1972.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) in Switzerland by undertaking a retrospective analysis of the registry of the Swiss army, which contains updated medical files for all male Swiss citizens. Nation-wide data for IDDM epidemiology have not been available in Switzerland. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Every male Swiss citizen is obliged to enlist in the Swiss military service at 19 years of age, when a personal, continuously updated medical file is established. Diabetes is an exclusion condition for military service and is clearly marked in the file. A total number of 514,747 files, corresponding to birth year cohorts 1948-1950, 1955-1957, 1962-1964, and 1970-1972, have been manually checked for the diagnosis of IDDM. RESULTS: IDDM was identified in 926 cases in the four groups of three age-cohorts. The incidence at < or = 15 years (per 100,000/year) was 4.5 in the age cohorts 1948-1950 and 7.2 in the age cohorts 1970-1972 (P < 0.005). An additive age-cohort Poisson regression model fits the nationwide incidences adequately, neither a period effect nor age x cohort interactions being required. In the oldest age cohorts, the age-specific incidence of IDDM was calculated up to the age of 43 and was approximately 7/100,000/year in men between 20 and 40. In these age cohorts, we found an approximately 50% higher risk to develop IDDM at age < or = 19 for men living in an urban region and a significantly (P < 0.005) increased incidence between 20 and 40 years in rural regions compared with urban regions. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of IDDM in Switzerland is comparable to other countries in central Europe and has been increasing in the last 20 years. This is in accordance to most recent epidemiological studies worldwide. In addition, the data suggest exogenous factors inducing IDDM at a younger age in urban regions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

[Measuring vibration sense in childhood. Normal values and initial experiences in polyneuropathies].

BACKGROUND: We have attempted to obtain normal values for vibration thresholds in children and to evaluate their application in polyneuropathies. METHODS: Vibration thresholds determinations were made by means of a handheld vibrameter (Fa Somedic AB Sweden): Within a constant frequency (100 Hz) and a calibrated pressure (450 g) the amplitude ranged variably from 0.01 to 399 microns. Measurements were made at three sites (carpal, tibial and tarsal). Vibration threshold (VT) was determined by the average of Vibration Perception Threshold (VPT) and Vibration Disappearance Threshold (VDT). RESULTS: Reference values obtained from 106 children and adolescents (control group), 5.5 to 19 years of age, correlated with age but not with sex. The amplitude of VT-values ranged from 0.4 microns (carpal at 6 years), to 1.10 microns (tarsal at 18 years). Patients with Friedreich's ataxia (n = 7) or hereditary motosensory neuropathy (n = 11) showed strongly increased thresholds at all sites up to a factor of 100. CONCLUSIONS: The examination by means of a vibrameter took at least 10 min, the shorter examination by tuning fork however showed to be less sensitive and rather inexact. An examination with a vibrameter is, as rule, reliably possible in children older than 5 years.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Early fine motor and adaptive development in high-risk appropriate for gestational age preterm and healthy term children.

The development of fine motor and adaptive skills during the first 2 years of life is reported in 97 high-risk preterm children and 94 healthy term children. Most stages of fine motor and adaptive development were found to occur at slightly later ages among preterm children. Neurological development was significantly correlated with fine motor and adaptive development in preterm children only. No significant influence of prenatal, perinatal and postnatal variables on fine motor and adaptive development was noted. No significant sex differences were observed in both the term and preterm group. The strongest predictors of later intellectual functioning were fine motor performance at 9 months and fine motor and adaptive skills at 18 to 24 months.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1990

Neurological outcome in high risk weight appropriate for gestational age preterm children at early school age.

Neurological development in preterm children with birth weight appropriate for gestational age is reported in two separate groups: a longitudinal study of 97 preterm children and 93 term children as a control group and a cross-sectional study of 249 preterm children. Both preterm groups were regarded as high risk with respect to number of outborns, distribution of gestational age and perinatal risk factors. Neurological outcome at 5-6 years of age in the majority of the preterm children was comparable to that of the term children. However, 15% of boys and 9% of girls in the preterm group were diagnosed as having cerebral palsy. Mild diplegia was most frequently observed; 4% of the children were severely impaired. Fourteen percent of the preterm vs 2% of the term boys and 6-9% of the preterm vs none of the term girls received motor therapy during early school age. There was a small but consistent sex difference in neurological outcome in favour of the term and preterm girls. Effects of drop out rate and of incompleteness of ascertainment are reported in detail.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1990

Intellectual outcome, speech and school performance in high risk preterm children with birth weight appropriate for gestational age.

Intellectual development, speech and school performance of preterm infants with birth weight appropriate for gestational age are reported in two separate investigations: a longitudinal study of 97 preterm children and 93 term children as a control group, and a cross-sectional study of 249 preterm children. Both preterm groups were regarded as high risk groups with respect to number of outborns, distribution of gestational age and perinatal risk factors. Intellectual outcome at 5 and 7 years of age in the majority of the preterm children was comparable to that of the term children. However, 8% of the preterm boys and 2% of the preterm girls achieved lower IQ scores than any of the term children. Between 15% and 17% of the preterm boys and 9%-12% of the preterm girls did not attend school at grade level, compared to 4% and 2% in the term group, respectively. Intellectual and neurological development and school performance were higher interrelated in the preterm than in the term children. Articulation defects, stuttering and dysgrammatism occurred more frequently in the preterm than in the term children and in boys more so than in girls.

Achievement↗
PubMed1990

Predicting developmental outcome at school age from infant tests of normal, at-risk and retarded infants.

The predictive validity of developmental testing was investigated in term, preterm and retarded children. Verbal, performance and locomotor development were assessed at various ages and individual development curves constructed. Inter-age correlations between development tests at nine to 24 months and intellectual assessment at seven years revealed a strong effect on prediction for age at testing and level of mental performance. Categorisation by level of mental performance demonstrated that at seven years 98.6 per cent of the children with developmental quotients (DQs) greater than 85 at 24 months achieved IQs greater than 85, while 98.7 per cent of the seven- to eight-year-old children with DQs greater than 85 at nine to 24 months achieved IQs greater than 85. The Griffiths language and performance scores and their combination were the strongest predictors of later intellectual functioning. The social score was of moderate significance, while the locomotor score had no predictive value. Analysis of individual development curves revealed that prediction was hampered in some children by factors not detectable by statistical analysis, such as dissociations in development, organic impairment and major life events. Among the prenatal, perinatal and postnatal variables studied, only socio-economic status was of predictive significance; its effect depended on the level of mental performance and was most marked in term children, but it had no effect on retarded children.

Child↗
PubMed1989

[Second look yes, second look no, in the surgical therapy of intestinal infarct].

The thorny second-look problem is examined on the basis of personal experience of 65 cases of intestinal infarction over a period of 10 years. The medical literature is particularly lacking in indications on this point and only from careful assessment of reported experience and personal experience itself has it been possible to find indications and limitations. Data are reported which do not pretend to be absolute but do provide a useful aid for those faced with doubtful anatomopathological pictures during operation for acute intestinal ischaemia.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Significance of prenatal, perinatal and postnatal factors in the development of AGA preterm infants at five to seven years.

The effects of prenatal, perinatal and postnatal events on developmental outcome at five to seven years of preterm infants with birthweights appropriate for gestational age were investigated in two separate cohorts: one a longitudinal study of 97 infants, the other a cross-sectional study of 249 infants. Among the prenatal variables, the number of minor congenital anomalies was negatively correlated with neurological development, as was the deformation score. The pregnancy optimality score was not significantly related to outcome. Among the perinatal variables, gestational age and birthweight had some significant correlations with development, but birth and neonatal optimality scores were only inconsistently significant in relation to outcome. Socio-economic status was strongly related to language and intellectual development. Infants with gestations of 32 to 36 weeks had a more favourable neurological and intellectual outcome than those born before 32 weeks: however, the former group comprised about 80 per cent of the population studied, so the majority of children with lower function were found in that group.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1989

Physical growth of Swiss children from birth to 20 years of age. First Zurich longitudinal study of growth and development.

Physical growth from birth to adulthood in healthy Swiss children born 1954-1956 is described. The data are based on the First Zurich Longitudinal Study in which 137 individuals of each sex have been followed from birth to adulthood between 1954 and 1976. Distance standards of 20 anthropometric measurements such as weight, height and head circumference are presented as mean values and standard deviations or as median values (for weight and skinfold thickness) with smoothed empirical centiles. Velocity standards are provided for seven anthropometric parameters. The following standard growth charts for clinical use are presented: weight, length/height and head circumference in the perinatal period, in the age range of 0-48 months and in the age range of 1-18 years (including some data on puberty), as well as weight for length/height and height velocity (cross-sectional and peak height centered). Comparison of the growth standards with those of previous Swiss studies and of recent foreign studies revealed only minor differences. Various aspects relevant for the clinical use of growth standards, such as measurement error or secular trend, are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Short stature: a common feature in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

In a retrospective growth evaluation, which included parental height, birth length and a longitudinal analysis of growth and bone maturation, it has been shown that short stature is a common finding in Duchenne muscular dystrophy already in an early or even preclinical stage. Normal length and weight at birth, slow subsequent growth with a curve crossing the centiles in the 1st years of life, and normal bone maturation are characteristic of this type of short stature.

Body Height↗
PubMed1987

Spectral analysis of the EEG. Some fundamentals revisited and some open problems.

This tutorial was presented during the 1986 training course of the International Pharmaco-EEG Group (IPEG) in Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy. During recent years spectral analysis has been increasingly used in experimental EEG. However, to avoid misinterpretations of results, its limitations must still be carefully considered. The tutorial starts with revisiting the fundamentals of the technique, emphasizes the practical estimation of auto- and cross-spectra, discusses the assumptions underlying the spectral analysis of stochastic processes, and ends with a brief discussion concerning the postprocessing of spectral data.

Computers↗
PubMed1986

Language development of term and preterm children during the first five years of life.

Language development during the first five years is reported for 114 high-risk preterm children (20 with varying degrees of cerebral palsy) and 97 healthy term children. Most stages of language development occurred at slightly later ages among the neurologically unimpaired preterm children than among those born at term. Preterm children with cerebral palsy were more delayed and had more articulation defects compared with neurologically unimpaired preterm children. Girls were more advanced in early language development and showed less articulation defects than boys. The perinatal optimality score was significantly correlated with the ages at which the stages of language development were reached, and with language performance at five years in preterm children, but much less in term children. Birthweight and gestational age were negatively correlated with language development at all ages. Socio-economic status and birth order had an age-related influences on language development, but no correlation was found with the number of minor congenital malformations.

Articulation Disorders↗
PubMed1986

Robust spectral analysis of the EEG.

Robust methods for the spectral analysis of time series are briefly reviewed and seen to have applications in the field of EEG. After presenting two simple schemes for outliers (artifacts) generation and discussing their implications for estimation of the spectral density, the robust filtering algorithm of Kleiner et al. [J.R. Statist. Soc. Ser. B, 41: 313-351, 1979] is introduced and shown to work well for simulated data and for true EEG data containing artifacts. A new use of the robust methods for the detection of artifacts and possibly other transients in long-time EEG recordings is suggested and a preliminary implementation illustrated.

Electroencephalography↗
PubMed1985

Early development of locomotion: significance of prematurity, cerebral palsy and sex.

Data on the development of locomotion during the first two years of life were collected for 128 preterm infants (21 with varying degrees of cerebral palsy) and for 111 healthy term infants. Most stages of locomotion occurred at slightly later ages among the neurologically unimpaired preterm infants than among those born at term (age corrected for prematurity). There was no difference between preterm and term infants with regard to the number and types of pathways of locomotion, or to age at onset and type of first movements through space. By 9.5 months of age, 95 per cent of term infants and 92 per cent of preterm infants showed some ability to move through space. The infants with severe cerebral palsy had considerable delay in the development of locomotion, but this occurred to only a minor extent when the degree of cerebral palsy was mild or moderate. Most stages of locomotion occurred at slightly earlier ages for boys than for girls, but these differences were not significant at any age. The number and types of pathways of locomotion, and types of first movements, were comparable in both sexes.

Cerebral Palsy↗