scholarly journals Twinning in Norway Following the Oslo Massacre: Evidence of a ‘Bruce Effect’ in Humans

2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 485-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralph A Catalano ◽  
Katherine B Saxton ◽  
Alison Gemmill ◽  
Terry Hartig
Keyword(s):  
Spontaneous Abortion ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Offspring Survival ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
Human Species ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Bruce Effect ◽  
Genes And Environment

Emerging theory and empirical work suggest that the ‘Bruce Effect’, or the increase in spontaneous abortion observed in non-human species when environments become threatening to offspring survival, may also appear in humans. We argue that, if it does, the effect would appear in the odds of twins among male and female live births. We test the hypothesis, implied by our argument, that the odds of a twin among male infants in Norway fell below, while those among females rose above, expected levels among birth cohorts in gestation in July 2011 when a deranged man murdered 77 Norwegians, including many youths. Results support the hypothesis and imply that the Bruce Effect operates in women to autonomically raise the standard of fetal fitness necessary to extend the gestation of twins. This circumstance has implications for using twins to estimate the relative contributions of genes and environment to human responses to exogenous stimuli.

scholarly journals Infant mortality: comparison between two birth cohorts from Southeast and Northeast, Brazil

2004 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 773-779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valdinar S Ribeiro ◽  
Antônio A M Silva ◽  
Marco A Barbieri ◽  
Heloisa Bettiol ◽  
Vânia M F Aragão ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Mortality Rate ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Neonatal Mortality ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Infant Mortality Rate ◽  
Northeast Brazil ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
Neonatal Mortality Rate ◽  
Live Births

OBJECTIVE: To obtain population estimates and profile risk factors for infant mortality in two birth cohorts and compare them among cities of different regions in Brazil. METHODS: In Ribeirão Preto, southeast Brazil, infant mortality was determined in a third of hospital live births (2,846 singleton deliveries) in 1994. In São Luís, northeast Brazil, data were obtained using systematic sampling of births stratified by maternity unit (2,443 singleton deliveries) in 1997-1998. Mothers answered standardized questionnaires shortly after delivery and information on infant deaths was retrieved from hospitals, registries and the States Health Secretarys' Office. The relative risk (RR) was estimated by Poisson regression. RESULTS: In São Luís, the infant mortality rate was 26.6/1,000 live births, the neonatal mortality rate was 18.4/1,000 and the post-neonatal mortality rate was 8.2/1,000, all higher than those observed in Ribeirão Preto (16.9, 10.9 and 6.0 per 1,000, respectively). Adjusted analysis revealed that previous stillbirths (RR=3.67 vs 4.13) and maternal age <18 years (RR=2.62 vs 2.59) were risk factors for infant mortality in the two cities. Inadequate prenatal care (RR=2.00) and male sex (RR=1.79) were risk factors in São Luís only, and a dwelling with 5 or more residents was a protective factor (RR=0.53). In Ribeirão Preto, maternal smoking was associated with infant mortality (RR=2.64). CONCLUSIONS: In addition to socioeconomic inequalities, differences in access to and quality of medical care between cities had an impact on infant mortality rates.

Do Women Respond Less to Performance Pay? Building Evidence from Multiple Experiments

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-454
Author(s):  
Oriana Bandiera ◽  
Greg Fischer ◽  
Andrea Prat ◽  
Erina Ytsma
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Work ◽  
Bayesian Hierarchical Model ◽  
Performance Pay ◽  
Average Effect ◽  
Performance Incentives ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Bayesian Hierarchical ◽  
Gender Earnings Gap ◽  
Earnings Gap

Existing empirical work raises the hypothesis that performance pay—whatever its output gains—may widen the gender earnings gap because women may respond less to incentives. We evaluate this possibility by aggregating evidence from existing experiments on performance incentives with male and female subjects. Using a Bayesian hierarchical model, we estimate both the average effect and heterogeneity across studies. We find that the gender response difference is close to zero and heterogeneity across studies is small, while performance pay increases output by 0.36 standard deviations on average. The data thus support agency theory for men and women alike. (JEL C11, C90, J16, J31, J33)

scholarly journals Emergency cervical cerclage and pregnancy outcomes

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 1993
Author(s):  
N. Nagendra Prasad ◽  
Sherin Annamma Thampan ◽  
R. Nagarathnamma
Keyword(s):  
Retrospective Study ◽  
Spontaneous Abortion ◽  
Pregnancy Outcomes ◽  
Cervical Dilatation ◽  
Second Trimester ◽  
Cervical Cerclage ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Term Delivery

Background: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of emergency cervical cerclage in women who presented with advanced cervical changes such as cervical dilatation and bulging foetal membranes.Methods: This is a retrospective study on all women treated with cervical cerclage presented in the late second trimester with advanced cervical dilatation (2 to 4cms) for whom emergency cervical cerclage by McDonald technique.Results: Out of the 24 patients for whom emergency cervical cerclage was performed, three patients had spontaneous abortion after cervical cerclage, two had PROM and eight of these patients had term delivery. Twenty-one fetus were live born after the period of viability. Nine of these babies were admitted to NICU and 50 percent of the neonates required only regular perinatal care.Conclusions: Post emergency cervical cerclage, the outcome in terms of prolongation of pregnancy, live births and neonatal survival is better.

scholarly journals Why Aquinas’s Metaphysics of Gender Is Fundamentally Correct: A Response to John Finley

2019 ◽  
Vol 87 (2) ◽  
pp. 198-205
Author(s):  
William Newton
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Physical Development ◽  
The Body ◽  
Sex Reassignment Surgery ◽  
Sex Reassignment ◽  
Human Species ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Generative Power ◽  
The One ◽  
Better Than

In an important article, John Finley suggests a correction to Aquinas’s understanding of gender distinction. Disagreeing with Aquinas, Finley proposes that gender distinction (male and female) stems from the soul rather than from the body. In this essay, I will show that this is not a tenable position because it does not fit with either what we know about the physical development of sex differences or the unity of man and woman as a single human species. I will defend Aquinas’s fundamental insights into the root of gender distinction without defending his biological understanding of the process itself. I will argue that there is a single generic generative power in the soul that is determined by the matter to which the soul is united, to be expressed as either male or female. This paradigm, I believe, copes better than the one offered by Finley with phenomena such as intersexed persons and sex reassignment surgery. While I do not accept the idea of a feminine or masculine soul, the paradigm offered here does lead to the notion of the soul being feminized or masculinized on account of the matter that it informs.

Explaining disparities in BMI trajectories among older adults: a test of the double jeopardy and intersectionality hypotheses

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-265
Author(s):  
Hui Liew
Keyword(s):  
Minority Groups ◽  
Black People ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
The United States ◽  
Longitudinal Change ◽  
Double Jeopardy ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
Bmi Trajectories ◽  
Race Ethnicity

This study aims to assess how heterogeneity in BMI trajectories differs across birth cohorts, race/ethnicity, gender and the level of education in the United States of America. Specifically, it seeks to examine whether the combined effects of race/ethnicity, sex and education on the differences in the BMI trajectories reflect the processes associated with double jeopardy and/or intersectionality. The empirical work of this study is based on the 1992–2014 Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Findings from growth curve modelling provide partial support for the intersectionality hypotheses. Findings revealed that different dimensions of inequality (such as race/ethnicity, sex and education) interact and intersect with one another to influence longitudinal change in BMI. Health programmes to reduce, prevent, delay or reverse the progression of obesity among the elderly should pay particular attention to Black people, females and females from racial/minority groups (Black, Hispanic, Other).

scholarly journals Prematurity and Body Fat at 6, 18, and 30 Years of Age: Pelotas (Brazil) 2004, 1993, and 1982 Birth Cohorts

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline Cardozo Bortolotto ◽  
Iná Santos ◽  
Juliana dos Santos Vaz ◽  
Alicia Matijasevich ◽  
Aluísio J.D. B ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Fat ◽  
Fat Mass ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Z Score ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
Air Displacement Plethysmography ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The City ◽  
Prevention Of Prematurity

Abstract Background: Our aim was to investigate the association between preterm birth and body fat at 6, 18, and 30 years of age using data from three population-based birth cohort studies. Methods: Information on gestational age (GA) gathered in the hospital of birth in the first 24-hours after the delivery was obtained for all live births occurring in the city of Pelotas, Brazil, in the years 2004, 1993 and 1982. GA was defined by the date of last menstrual period and was later categorized in ≤33, 34-36 and ≥37 weeks. Body fat was assessed by air-displacement plethysmography. Outcomes included fat mass (FM, kg), percent fat mass (%FM), fat mass index (FMI, kg/m2), and body mass index (BMI, kg/m2 at 18 years in the 1993 cohort and at 30 years in the 1982 cohort; and BMI Z-score, at 6 years in the 2004 cohort). Crude and adjusted linear regression provided beta coefficients with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI).Results: A total of 3036, 3027, and 2417 participants, respectively, from the 2004, 1993, and 1982 cohorts were analyzed. At 6 years, boys born at 34-36 weeks GA presented lower adjusted mean %FM (β: -2.91%; -4.45--1.36), FMI (β: -0.70 kg/m2 ; -1.13--0.28) and BMI Z-score (β: -0.48 kg/m2; -0.79--0.16), when compared to boys born at term (≥37). At 30 years, FM (15.6kg; 0.40-30.90), %FM (13.65%; 1.38-25.92) and FMI (5.3kg/m2; 0.30-10.37) were higher among males born at ≤33 weeks, with no statistical difference as compared to those born at term. No association was found between GA and body fat at the 1993 cohort (18 years) for both sexes. Conclusions: Given the large number of preterm infants born each year, prevention of prematurity is essential as there are possible links between body composition and diseases later in life.

scholarly journals Pregnancy outcomes from the global pharmacovigilance database on interferon beta-1b exposure

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 175628642091031 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerstin Hellwig ◽  
Fernando Duarte Caron ◽  
Eva-Maria Wicklein ◽  
Aasia Bhatti ◽  
Alessandra Adamo
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Health Status ◽  
Spontaneous Abortion ◽  
Birth Defects ◽  
Pregnancy Outcomes ◽  
Congenital Anomalies ◽  
Interferon Beta ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Congenital Birth Defects ◽  
Pharmacovigilance Database

Background: The goal of the present cohort study was to review outcomes of patients exposed to interferon beta-1b during pregnancy. Methods: Pregnancy cases with exposure to interferon beta-1b reported to Bayer’s pharmacovigilance (PV) database from worldwide sources from January 1995 through February 2018 were retrieved for evaluation. Only cases where pregnancy outcomes were unknown at the time of reporting (i.e. prospective cases) were included in the analysis of this retrospective cohort study. Results: As of February 2018, 2581 prospective pregnancies exposed to interferon beta-1b were retrieved from the database; 1348 pregnancies had documented outcomes. The majority of outcomes [1106 cases (82.0%)] were live births. Health status was known for 981 live births (no known health status for 125). Most of the prospective pregnancies with known outcomes corresponded to live births with no congenital anomalies [896 cases (91.3%)]. Spontaneous abortion occurred in 160 cases (11.9%). Congenital birth defects were observed in 14/981 live births with known health status [1.4%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.78–2.38]. No consistent pattern in the type of birth defect was identified. Rates of both spontaneous abortion and birth defects were not higher than the general population. Conclusions: These PV data, the largest sample of interferon beta-1b-exposed patients reported to date, suggest no increase in risk of spontaneous abortion or congenital anomalies in women exposed during pregnancy.

Hereditary Congenital Unilateral Deafness: A New Disorder?

2005 ◽  
Vol 114 (4) ◽  
pp. 332-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederik G. Dikkers ◽  
Joke B. G. M. Verheij ◽  
Monique van Mechelen
Keyword(s):  
Medical Literature ◽  
Normal Hearing ◽  
Rare Disorder ◽  
Lower Prevalence ◽  
Prevalence Rates ◽  
Inheritance Pattern ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Unilateral Deafness ◽  
Live Births ◽  
The Family

Congenital unilateral deafness is a rare disorder. The prevalence rates are unknown. The prevalence of children with severe to profound hearing losses that are congenital (or acquired before the development of speech and language) is 0.5 to 3 per 1,000 live births. Evidently, congenital unilateral deafness must have a lower prevalence. The purpose of this research was to present a new disorder, hereditary congenital unilateral deafness. A pedigree is presented in which both male and female members display symptoms of congenital unilateral deafness. Two affected persons and a normal-hearing member of the family have vestibular abnormalities without dysequilibrium. The inheritance pattern of this new syndrome is not clear. We hypothesize that the disorder might be new. A family like this has never before been presented in the medical literature.

scholarly journals On the comparative osteological forms in the adult euro­pean male and female of the human species

1837 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 207-207
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Tabular Form ◽  
Human Species ◽  
Human Race ◽  
Human Skeleton ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
The Third ◽  
Adult Human ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Individual

With a view to the future investigation of the osteological developement of the human race, the author gives, in the present paper, the results of a great number of measurements, which he has very carefully made, of the dimensions of the different bones composing the adult human skeleton. The male bones examined were those in the collection of Dr. Monro 3 the female bones were furnished by Dr. Hamilton. The author was anxious to fix on some one dimen­sion in the skeleton which might be taken as the standard of all the measurements: and finding that no bone of the trunk or limbs pos­sessed the requisite characters for that purpose, he sought for it in the cranium; and the result of an extensive series of observations led him to adopt as the standard of measure the distance between the prolongations of the zygomatic ridges, immediately over the meatus auditorius externus, as being that dimension which was less liable to variation than any other of the human cranium. This line he deno­minates the auricular transverse ; and, adopting a scale of which the unit is the 14th part of this line, being generally about the third of an inch, he states at length, in multiples of this unit, the dimensions, in different directions, of almost every bone in the skeleton; noting more especially the differences that occur in those of the two sexes. Of these measurements, which are given in much detail, and in many instances arranged in a tabular form, it is impossible to give any abridgement. The conclusion he deduces from his inquiry is, that every bone in the body exhibits certain modifications, according to the sex of the individual.

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