Scott JA, Aitkin I, Binns CW, Aroni RA. Factors associated with the duration of breastfeeding amongst women in Perth, Australia. Acta Paediatr 1999; 88: 416-21. Stockholm. ISSN 0803-5253 Duration of breastfeeding was studied in 556 women delivering at 2 maternity hospitals in Perth, Australia. At discharge 83.8% of women were breastfeeding their infants, including 6% who were giving complementary feeds. At 3 and 6 months, 61.8% and 49.9%, respectively, were still breastfeeding. In a Cox survival analysis of factors associated with duration of breastfeeding a positive association was found with maternal education, age and intended duration of breastfeeding. Male infants were more likely to be weaned before female infants and women whose partners were unemployed, or did not have a preference for breastfeeding, breastfed for shorter duration. There is still a need for programmes which support and encourage breastfeeding, focusing particularly on younger, less well-educated women who intend to breastfeed for less than the recommended 4-6 months. & Breastfeeding, duration of breastfeeding, infant gender, intended duration, maternal age, maternal education

In an attempt to evaluate EEG changes associated with dementia in Parkinson''s disease (PD), we performed frequency analysis in three groups of 10 subjects each; two with PD, and one normal control group. The PD patient groups were matched for age, sex, severity and duration of disease, but were discordant for the existence of dementia. Normals were age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. The relative alpha amplitude was significantly decreased in the demented PD patients, unrelated to motor disability. There was a non-significant but consistent trend of increased amplitude in the delta and theta range in the demented PD patients as compared to nondemented PD subjects and normal controls, as well as increased amplitude in the theta and delta range with more severe motor disability in the nondemented PD patients.

No abstract

The annual prevalence rates of ten selected informative morphogenetic variants (IMVs) were studied in 31 194 newborn infants over a period of 8 years (1980–1987). Two of them (preauricular sinus and ocular hypertelorism) revealed a highly significant decrease by logistic regression analysis. The other eight presented a stable pattern or small fluctuations which did not reach statistical significance. These data may serve as valuable baseline rates for monitoring IMVs in a specific newborn population. Their potential informative value as indicators of altered morphogenesis and their power for monitoring programs of environmental teratogenicity should be carefully verified.