No abstract

Dementia was present in nearly a third of unselected 85-year-olds in Sweden. Almost half these subjects appeared to have vascular dementia, which may currently be more amenable to prevention or treatment than Alzheimer's disease.

Impact of electro-acupuncture and physical exercise on hyperandrogenism and oligo/amenorrhea in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 300: E37-E45, 2011. First published October 13, 2010; doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00495.2010.-Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, is characterized by hyperandrogenism, oligo/amenorrhea, and polycystic ovaries. We aimed to determine whether low-frequency electroacupuncture (EA) would decrease hyperandrogenism and improve oligo/amenorrhea more effectively than physical exercise or no intervention. We randomized 84 women with PCOS, aged 18 -37 yr, to 16 wk of low-frequency EA, physical exercise, or no intervention. The primary outcome measure changes in the concentration of total testosterone (T) at week 16 determined by gas and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was analyzed by intention to treat. Secondary outcome measures were changes in menstrual frequency; concentrations of androgens, estrogens, androgen precursors, and glucuronidated androgen metabolites; and acne and hirsutism. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, after 16 wk of intervention, and after a 16-wk follow-up. After 16 wk of intervention, circulating T decreased by Ϫ25%, androsterone glucuronide by Ϫ30%, and androstane-3␣,17␤-diol-3-glucuronide by Ϫ28% in the EA group (P ϭ 0.038, 0.030, and 0.047, respectively vs. exercise); menstrual frequency increased to 0.69/month from 0.28 at baseline in the EA group (P ϭ 0.018 vs. exercise). After the 16-wk follow-up, the acne score decreased by Ϫ32% in the EA group (P ϭ 0.006 vs. exercise). Both EA and exercise improved menstrual frequency and decreased the levels of several sex steroids at week 16 and at the 16-wk follow-up compared with no intervention. Low-frequency EA and physical exercise improved hyperandrogenism and menstrual frequency more effectively than no intervention in women with PCOS. Low-frequency EA was superior to physical exercise and may be useful for treating hyperandrogenism and oligo/amenorrhea. acupuncture; androgens; estrogens; exercise; glucuronidated androgen metabolites; oligomenorrhea; sex steroid precursors POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, is characterized by clinical or biochemical hyperandrogenism, oligo/amenorrhea, and polycystic ovaries with or without increased ovarian volume (4). The most constant and prominent feature is hyperandrogenism, manifested by hirsutism, persistent acne, and biochemical abnormalities (4), including elevated levels of androgens, sex steroid precursors, and glucuronidated androgen metabolites as well as estrogens (22).There is no gold standard for the long-term treatment of women with PCOS who do not attempt to conceive (1). Treatments for hyperandrogenism and menstrual disturbances include oral contraceptives, insulin sensitizers, and lifestyle interventions. Combined low-dose oral contraceptives are recommended as the primary treat...

The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of congenital malformations in a complete cohort of children born after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). The medical records were retrieved for 1139 infants, 736 singletons, 200 sets of twins and one set of triplets. The total number of infants with an identified anomaly was 87 (7.6%), 40 of which were minor. The incidence of malformations in children born after ICSI was also compared with all births in Sweden using data from the Swedish Medical Birth Registry and the Registry of Congenital Malformations. For ICSI children, the odds ratio (OR) for having any major or minor malformation was 1.75 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19-2.58] after stratification for delivery hospital, year of birth and maternal age. If stratification for singletons/twins was also done, the OR was reduced to 1.19 (95% CI 0.79-1.81). The increased rate of congenital malformations is thus mainly a result of a high rate of multiple births. The only specific malformation which was found to occur in excess in children born after ICSI was hypospadias (relative risk 3.0, exact 95% CI 1. 09-6.50) which may be related to paternal subfertility.

ISRCTN38014610.

A retrospective study was designed to examine whether the presence of a hydrosalpinx influenced pregnancy outcome following in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment in stimulated cycles. A total of 254 women with tubal lesions were included. Patients with one or two hydrosalpinges were compared with patients having other tubal lesions and pregnancy outcome was analysed. Both pregnancy and delivery rates were significantly higher in the patient group without a hydrosalpinx. The results after frozen embryo transfer showed the same tendency. These findings strongly indicate that a permanent hydrosalpinx has a negative influence on implantation, as well as on pregnancy, and suggest that a more active approach against large hydrosalpinges should be undertaken before IVF treatment, in order to improve the pregnancy rates.

No abstract

Several anxiety symptoms distinguished women with PCOS from a control group matched on BMI. A better understanding of the symptoms is needed to identify and alleviate anxiety symptoms in this vulnerable group.