SIHF Vitenarkiv
Not a member yet
590 research outputs found
Sort by
Use of alcohol and drugs with addiction potential among older women and men in a population-based study. The Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3)
Get PDFBackground Little is known about the consumption habits of older adults in Norway with respect to alcohol and the use of drugs with addiction potential, such as benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics and opioids, among regular drinkers. We studied the prevalence of self-reported consumption of alcohol on a regular basis in community-living older men and women (≥ 65 years). Furthermore, we investigated the prevalence of dispensed prescribed drugs with addiction potential in older men and women who were regular drinkers. Methods We used data from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006–2008 (HUNT3). Of 12,361 older adults in the HUNT3 study, 11,545 had answered the alcohol consumption item and were included in our study. Regular drinkers were defined as consuming alcohol one or more days a week. Data on dispensed drugs with addiction potential were drawn from the Norwegian Prescription Database. Addiction potential was defined as at least one prescription for benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics or opioids during one year for a minimum of two consecutive years. Results In total 28.2% of older Norwegian adults were regular drinkers. Men in the study were more likely to be regular drinkers than women. Drugs with addiction potential were used by 32.4% of participants, and were more commonly used by women. Nearly 12% of participants used benzodiazepines, 19% z-hypnotics and 12.4% opioids. Among regular drinkers, 29% used drugs with addiction potential, which was also more common among women. Adjusted for age, gender and living situation, use of z-hypnotics was associated with regular alcohol intake, while use of opioids was associated with no regular alcohol intake. Conclusion The prevalence of the use of drugs with addiction potential was high in a Norwegian population of older adults who reported regular consumption of alcohol. Strategies should be developed to reduce or prevent alcohol consumption among older adults who use drugs with addiction potential.Use of alcohol and drugs with addiction potential among older women and men in a population-based study. The Nord-Trøndelag Health Study 2006-2008 (HUNT3)This project has been made possible by the Norwegian Extra Foundation for Health and Rehabilitation (https://www.extrastiftelsen.no/) through The Norwegian Council for Mental Health (http://www.psykiskhelse.no/) (2015/FO5044). In addition, the project has been funded partly by the Norwegian National Advisory Unit on Ageing and Health, Vestfold Hospital Trust (http://www. aldringoghelse.no/). KT is a phd-fellow in this project and she received the funding. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analyses, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.publishedVersio
Associations between thyroid dysfunction and developmental status in children with excessive iodine status
Get PDFBACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE:
Adequate iodine status and normal thyroid hormone synthesis are important for optimal child development. In this study, we explored whether young children's developmental status is associated with thyroid dysfunction in an area of chronic excessive iodine exposure.
METHODS:
We included 298 children between 18 and 48 months of age residing in Algerian refugee camps. Early child development was measured using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires, third edition (ASQ-3), consisting of five domains: Communication, Gross Motor, Fine Motor, Problem Solving and Personal-Social. Due to poor discriminatory ability in the Gross Motor domain, the total ASQ-3 scores were calculated both including and excluding this domain. Urinary iodine concentration (UIC), thyroid hormones (TSH, FT3 and FT4), thyroid antibodies and serum thyroglobulin (Tg) were measured.
RESULTS:
The median UIC was 451.6 μg/L, and approximately 72% of the children had a UIC above 300 μg/L. Furthermore, 14% had thyroid disturbances, of whom 10% had TSH outside the reference range. Children with thyroid disturbances and TSH outside the reference ranges had lower odds of being among the 66% highest total ASQ scores, with adjusted odds ratios (95% CI) of 0.46 (0.23, 0.93) and 0.42 (0.19, 0.94), respectively.
CONCLUSION:
We found an association between thyroid dysfunction and poorer developmental status among children with excessive iodine intake. The high iodine intake may have caused the thyroid dysfunction and hence the delayed developmental status; however, other influential factors cannot be excluded. Optimal child development is important for a sustainable future. With iodine excess being an increasing problem globally, this subject should be further explored.The study was funded by Oslo and Akershus University College (http://www.hioa.no/) to IA and The Norwegian Church Aid (https://www. kirkensnodhjelp.no/) to IA. The funding did not include grant numbers. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.publishedVersio
Assessment of vitamin B6 intake in relation to tolerable upper intake Levels. Opinion of the Panel on Nutrition, Dietetic Products, Novel Food and Allergy of the Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food Safety. VKM report 2017:3
Get PDFThe Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food Safety (Vitenskapskomiteen for mattrygghet, VKM) has, at the request of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet; NFSA), assessed the intake of vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) in the Norwegian population in relation to tolerable upper intake levels (ULs). The existing maximum limit for vitamin B6 in food supplements is 4.2 mg/day. VKM has also conducted scenario calculations to illustrate the consequences of amending the maximum limitto 2, 6, 8, 10, 20 or 25 mg/day.
Vitamin B6 is water soluble and comprises six compounds with vitamin B6 activity; pyridoxine (PN, an alcohol), pyridoxal (PL, an aldehyde) and pyridoxamine (PM, the amine) and their corresponding phosphates; pyridoxine 5’-phosphate (PNP), pyridoxal 5’ -phosphate (PLP) and pyridoaxamin 5’ –phosphate (PMP). These six forms of vitamin B6 are all present in food in addition to the glycosylated form, pyridoxine-5’-β-δ-glucoside (PNG), in some plants. In food supplements the most common vitamin B6 form is pyridoxine hydrochloride. Eighty to ninety percent of vitamin B6 in the body is found in muscles and estimated body stores in adults amount to about 170 mg with a half-life of 25-33 days. Vitamin B6 deficiency is mostly seen in combination with deficiency of other B vitamins. Symptoms of vitamin B6 deficiency are anaemia and neurological abnormalities (EFSA, 2016).
Intakes of vitamin B6 from the diet alone have not been reported to cause adverse effects. Sensory neuropathy has been reported to be the most sensitive adverse health effect of vitamin B6 supplementation. VKM proposes to adopt the tolerable upper intake level (UL) set by the Scientific Committee for Food (SCF) in 2000 at 25 mg/day for vitamin B6, which was based on a lowest observed adverse effect level (LOAEL) of 100 mg/day found in one randomised controlled trial. VKM recognises that there are no well-designed dose-response studies of long-term use available. However, for adults, no adverse effects have been reported at doses with vitamin B6 up to 25 mg/day.
Dietary calculations have been performed for mean intakes and in various percentiles (P5, P25, P50, P75 and P95) in children (2-, 4- and 9-year-olds), adolescents (13-year-olds) and in adults.
To illustrate the consequences of amending the maximum limit for vitamin B6 in food supplements to 2, 6, 8, 10, 20 or 25 mg/day in the different age groups, VKM has used the scenarios with P95 from food and added the alternative amounts of supplements. VKM has compared these scenarios with the tolerable upper intake levels set by the Scientific Committee for Food in 2000 for adults, adolescents and children. In these scenarios, the 2- and 4-year-old children will exceed the tolerable upper intake level with use of 6 mg/day or higher vitamin B6 in supplements. The 9-year-old children will exceed the tolerable upper intake level with supplemental use of 10 mg/day. The 13-year-old adolescents will exceed the tolerable upper intake level with 20 mg/day of vitamin B6 in supplements. Adults will
VKM Report 2017: 3 7
exceed the tolerable upper intake level with use of 25 mg/day of vitamin B6/pyridoxine in supplements.publishedVersio
Musculoskeletal symptoms and exposure to whole-body vibration among open-pit mine workers in the arctic
Get PDFResearch articleObjectives: This cross-sectional questionnaire study was carried out at 4 open-pit mines in Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden as part of the MineHealth project. The aim has been to compare the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms between drivers of mining vehicles and non-drivers. Material and Methods: The mine workers were asked whether they had suffered from any musculoskeletal symptoms during the previous 12 months in specified body regions, and to grade the severity of these symptoms during the past month. They were also asked about their daily driving of mining vehicles. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 1323 workers (757 vehicle drivers) and the reported prevalence and severity of symptoms were highest for the lower back, followed by pain in the neck, shoulder and upper back. Drivers in the Nordic mines reported fewer symptoms than non-drivers, while for Russian mine workers the results were the opposite of that. The daily driving of mining vehicles had no significant association with the risk of symptoms. Female drivers indicated a higher prevalence of symptoms as compared to male drivers. Conclusions: The study provided only weak support for the hypothesis that drivers of vehicles reported a higher prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms than non-vehicle drivers. There were marked differences in the prevalence of symptoms among workers in various enterprises, even though the nature of the job tasks was similar.Funding: this work was carried out with the financial assistance of the European Union (Kolarctic ENPI CBC 02/2011/043/KO303 – MineHealth, project manager: Assoc. Prof. Lage Burström), and FORTE (Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare 2011-0494, project manager: Assoc. Prof. Lage Burström). The contents of this manuscript are the sole responsibility of the authors, and under no circumstances can they be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union or FORTE.publishedVersio
Morning salivary cortisol in young children: reference values and the effects of age, sex, and acute bronchiolitis
Get PDFAbstract
OBJECTIVE:
To identify morning salivary cortisol reference values in infancy and at 2 years of age and to investigate the influence of age, sex and acute bronchiolitis.
STUDY DESIGN:
In this South-East Norwegian cohort study, 308 children hospitalized with moderate to severe acute bronchiolitis in infancy in 2010-2011 were compared with 223 healthy controls included in 2012 by measuring morning salivary cortisol levels at inclusion and at 2 years of age. Samples were collected shortly after awakening after 6 am. The influences of age, sex, and acute bronchiolitis were assessed by regression analysis.
RESULTS:
In infancy, cortisol values were higher in acute bronchiolitis, with an age- and sex-adjusted weighted mean group difference of 13.9 nmol/L (95% CI 8.1-19.7; P < .0001). The median level in reference group was 23.7 nmol/L (95% CI 9.7-119.6). At 2 years of age, sex but not inclusion groups differed, with significantly higher values in girls. The weighted mean of all boys' cortisol levels was 32.4 nmol/L, (95% CI 30.5-34.3), and all girls' levels were 36.9 nmol/L (95% CI 34.7-39.2; P < .003).
CONCLUSIONS:
Salivary cortisol levels were higher at 2 years of age than in infancy in the reference group, were higher in girls than in boys at 2 years of age, and were higher in infants at the time of acute bronchiolitis than in healthy infants.
TRIAL REGISTRATION:
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT00817466.publishedVersio
The effects of vitamin B12 supplementation in pregnancy and postpartum on growth and neurodevelopment in early childhood: Study Protocol for a Randomized Placebo Controlled Trial
Get PDFAbstract
INTRODUCTION:
Vitamin B12 is crucial for normal cell division and differentiation, and necessary for the development and myelination of the central nervous system. Pregnant mothers in resource poor settings are at risk for poor vitamin B12 status. Poor vitamin B12 status in infancy is linked to poor growth and neurodevelopment. Brain development starts from conception, and pregnancy is a period of rapid growth and development for the brain.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS:
The study is an individually randomised double-blind placebo controlled trial in 800 pregnant Nepalese women randomised in a 1:1 ratio. A daily dose of 50 µg of vitamin B12 or placebo is given to women from early pregnancy, not later than week 15, until 6 months after birth. Weekly visits are conducted in order to record compliance, growth and morbidity. The primary outcomes are scores on the cognitive, language and motor subscales of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition, measured at 6 and 12 months of age, and growth (length and weight) measured at 6 and 12 months of age.
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION:
National Health and Research Council, Nepal (NHRC 253/2016) and Regional Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics of Western Norway (2016/1620/REK vest) have approved the study. Investigators who have contributed to the conceptualising, conducting, as well as being involved in the data analyses and manuscript writing will be eligible for authorship and be responsible to share outcomes with different stakeholders through publications and workshops. The results from this study may support new dietary guidelines for Nepalese and possibly South Asian pregnant women that can lead to improved pregnancy outcomes, neurodevelopment and cognitive functioning in children.
TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER:
Universal Trial Number: U1111-1183-4093.
TRIAL REGISTRATION:
clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03071666. Protocol date: version 1.2, 1 June 2017.
© Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.
KEYWORDS:
Cobalamin; Nepal; Pregnancy; SupplementationFunding This study has been granted funding from the Centre of Excellence Scheme and the University of Bergen (UiB), Norway to the Centre for Intervention Science in Maternal and Child Health (CISMAC; project number 223269).publishedVersio
Targeted interdisciplinary model for evaluation and treatment of neuropsychiatric symptoms : a cluster randomized controlled trial
Get PDFObjective To determine the effectiveness of the Targeted Interdisciplinary Model for Evaluation and Treatment of Neuropsychiatric Symptoms (TIME) for treatment of moderate to severe agitation in people with dementia. Methods In a single-blinded, cluster randomized controlled trial in 33 nursing homes (clusters) from 20 municipalities in Norway, 229 patients (104 patients in 17 nursing homes and 125 patients in 16 nursing homes) were randomized to an intervention or control group, respectively. The intervention group received TIME, and the control group received a brief education-only intervention. TIME is an interdisciplinary multicomponent intervention and consists of a comprehensive assessment of the patient with the goal to create and put into action a tailored treatment plan. The primary outcome was the between-group difference in change at the agitation/aggression item of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Nursing Home version between baseline and 8 weeks. Secondary outcomes were the between-group difference in change at the agitation/aggression between baseline and 12 weeks in other neuropsychiatric symptoms, quality of life, and use of psychotropic and analgesic medications between baseline and 8 and 12 weeks. Results A significant between-group difference in reduction of agitation at both 8 weeks (1.1; 95% confidence interval: 0.1–2.1; p = 0.03) and 12 weeks (1.6; 95% confidence interval: 0.6–2.7; p = 0.002) in favor of the TIME intervention was found. Conclusion The implementation of TIME resulted in a significant reduction of agitation among nursing homes patients with dementia. These results should inform training programs for care staff in Norway and internationally.acceptedVersio
Intake of non-nutritive sweeteners is associated with an unhealthy lifestyle: a cross-sectional study in subjects with morbid obesity
Get PDFBackground: Subjects with morbid obesity commonly use Non-Nutritive Sweeteners (NNS), but the health-related effects of NNS have been questioned. The objectives of this study were to explore the associations between the use of NNS and the health and lifestyle in subjects with morbid obesity.
Methods: This cross-sectional study included subjects with morbid obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2 or ≥35 kg/m2 with obesity-related comorbidity). Information about demographics, physical and mental health, and dietary habits was collected, and a blood screen was taken. One unit of NNS was defined as 100 ml beverages with NNS or 2 tablets/ units of NNS for coffee or tea. The associations between the intake of NNS and the health-related variables were analyzed with ordinal regression analyses adjusted for age, gender and BMI.
Results: One hundred subjects (women/men 83/17; mean age 44.3 years (SD 8.5)) were included. Median intake of NNS was 3.3 units (range 0 – 43). Intake of NNS was not associated with BMI (p = 0.64). The intake of NNS was associated with reduced heavy physical activity (p = 0.011), fatigue (p < 0.001), diarrhea (p = 0.009) and reduced well-being (p = 0.046); with increased intake of total energy (p = 0.003), fat (p = 0.013), carbohydrates (p = 0.002), sugar (p = 0.003) and salt (p = 0.001); and with reduced intake of the vitamins A (p = 0.001), C (p = 0.002) and D (p = 0.016).
Conclusions: The use of NNS-containing beverages was associated with an unhealthy lifestyle, reduced physical and mental health and unfavourable dietary habits with increased energy intake including sugar, and reduced intake of some vitamins.The authors want to thank Anne Stine Kvehaugen for the collection and scoring of the dietary data, Anja Byfuglien for conscientious help with the practical work and Innlandet Hospital Trust for the funding.acceptedVersio
Distinguishing early and late brain aging from the Alzheimer's disease spectrum: Consistent morphological patterns across independent samples
Get PDFAbstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a debilitating age-related neurodegenerative disorder. Accurate identification of individuals at risk is complicated as AD shares cognitive and brain features with aging. We applied linked independent component analysis (LICA) on three complementary measures of gray matter structure: cortical thickness, area and gray matter density of 137 AD, 78 mild (MCI) and 38 subjective cognitive impairment patients, and 355 healthy adults aged 18-78 years to identify dissociable multivariate morphological patterns sensitive to age and diagnosis. Using the lasso classifier, we performed group classification and prediction of cognition and age at different age ranges to assess the sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy of the LICA patterns in relation to AD, as well as early and late healthy aging. Three components showed high sensitivity to the diagnosis and cognitive status of AD, with different relationships with age: one reflected an anterior-posterior gradient in thickness and gray matter density and was uniquely related to diagnosis, whereas the other two, reflecting widespread cortical thickness and medial temporal lobe volume, respectively, also correlated significantly with age. Repeating the LICA decomposition and between-subject analysis on ADNI data, including 186 AD, 395 MCI and 220 age-matched healthy controls, revealed largely consistent brain patterns and clinical associations across samples. Classification results showed that multivariate LICA-derived brain characteristics could be used to predict AD and age with high accuracy (area under ROC curve up to 0.93 for classification of AD from controls). Comparison between classifiers based on feature ranking and feature selection suggests both common and unique feature sets implicated in AD and aging, and provides evidence of distinct age-related differences in early compared to late aging.The work was supported by the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme (#602450, IMAGEMEND), Research Council of Norway (213837, 223273, 204966/F20), the South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority (2013123, 2014097, 2015073, 2016083), The Norwegian Health Association's Dementia Research Program, and KG Jebsen Foundation. We acknowledge the contribution of patient data from the Norwegian registry for persons being evaluated for cognitive symptoms in specialized care (NorCog) by the Norwegian National Advisory Unit on Ageing and Health. Data collection and sharing for this project was funded by the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) (National Institutes of Health Grant U01 AG024904) and DOD ADNI (Department of Defense award number W81XWH-12-2-0012). ADNI is funded by the National Institute on Aging, the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, and through generous contributions from the following: AbbVie, Alzheimer's Association; Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation; Araclon Biotech; BioClinica, Inc.; Biogen; Bristol-Myers Squibb Company; CereSpir, Inc.; Cogstate; Eisai Inc.; Elan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Eli Lilly and Company; EuroImmun; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd and its affiliated company Genentech, Inc.; Fujirebio; GE Healthcare; IXICO Ltd.; Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy Research & Development, LLC.; Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development LLC.; Lumosity; Lundbeck; Merck & Co., Inc.; Meso Scale Diagnostics, LLC.; NeuroRx Research; Neurotrack Technologies; Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Pfizer Inc.; Piramal Imaging; Servier; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company; and Transition Therapeutics. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research is providing funds to support ADNI clinical sites in Canada. Private sector contributions are facilitated by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (www.fnih.org). The grantee organization is the Northern California Institute for Research and Education, and the study is coordinated by the Alzheimer's Therapeutic Research Institute at the University of Southern California. ADNI data are disseminated by the Laboratory for Neuro Imaging at the University of Southern California.acceptedVersionpublishedVersio
Methotrexate and anti-tumor necrosis factor treatment improves endothelial function in patients with inflammatory arthritis
Get PDFBackground Inflammatory arthritis (IA), including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), leads to increased cardiovascular disease occurrence probably due to atherosclerosis. One of the first stages in atherogenesis is endothelial dysfunction (ED). Therefore, we aimed to compare endothelial function (EF) in patients with IA, and to examine the effects of methotrexate (MTX) monotherapy and antitumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) treatment with or without MTX comedication (anti-TNF ± MTX) on EF. Methods From the PSARA observational study, all patients with RA (n = 64), PsA (n = 29), and AS (n = 20) were evaluated for EF. In patients with ED at baseline (n = 40), we evaluated changes in the Reactive Hyperemic Index (RHI) after 6 weeks and 6 months of antirheumatic therapy. Results In IA patients with ED, RHI significantly improved after 6 weeks (p < 0.001) and 6 months (p < 0.001) of treatment, independent of changes in disease activity parameters. After 6 months, RHI had improved more in the MTX group than in the anti-TNF ± MTX group, and the difference remained statistically significant after adjustments for potential confounders. Among patients with active RA, AS, and PsA, those with AS appeared to have the worst endothelial function, although they were the youngest. Conclusion Treatment with MTX and anti-TNF ± MTX was associated with a relatively fast improvement of EF in IA patients with ED, independent of change in disease activity. Therefore, modes of action other than the anti-inflammatory effect may contribute to the EF improvement. After 6 months, the EF improvement was more pronounced in the MTX group than in the anti-TNF ± MTX group. Trial registration Clinicaltrials, NCT00902005 . Registered on 13 May 2009.publishedVersio