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Biomedical subjects

A J Søgaard

Publications and source records attributed to A J Søgaard.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Mental distress and risk of hip fracture. Do broken hearts lead to broken bones?

OBJECTIVE: Mental distress may entail increased risk of hip fracture, but it is uncertain whether the effect consists solely of an indirect effect through use of medication, or whether it is also mediated through other mechanism. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between mental distress and risk of hip fracture in women, adjusted for medication (that is, use of tranquillisers/sedatives or hypnotics). DESIGN: A three year follow up of hip fracture was conducted on 18,612 women, consisting of 92.5% of all women aged 50 years or older in a Norwegian county. Three hundred and twenty nine suffered a hip fracture. A mental distress index was based on questions about life dissatisfaction, nervousness, loneliness, sleep disorders, troubled and uneasy feelings, depression and impairment attributable to psychological complaints. Relative risk with 95% confidence intervals (CI) of hip fracture with respect to mental distress were controlled for medication, age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, physical inactivity, and physical illness by means of Cox regression. RESULTS: The 10% of women with the highest mental distress had more than twofold increased risk of hip fracture compared with the 10% of women with the lowest mental distress, after adjustment for age and medication. The relative risk was 1.95 (95% CI 1.2, 3.3) after additional control for BMI, smoking, physical inactivity, and physical illness. The relative risk of hip fracture for daily users of medication compared with never users was 2.1 (95% CI 1.6, 2.9). After adjusting for mental distress it was 1.5 (95% CI 1.0, 2.2). CONCLUSIONS: Risk of hip fracture was positively related to mental distress, also after adjustment for medication use. The effect of tranquillisers/sedatives or hypnotics on hip fracture risk may be overestimated in studies with no adjustments for mental distress.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

[Who gives up smoking? Results from the health surveys in Finnmark in 1977/78 and 1987/88].

In order to develop effective smoking cessation programmes, it is important to understand why people stop smoking. This study is based on data from two population-based health surveys carried out in the northernmost county of Norway in 1977-78 and 1987-88. 6,254 men and 6,404 women smokers participated in the survey. For both surveys questionnaires were used to collect information on smoking habits, sociodemographic variables, various diseases, symptoms, health related behaviours, and social network. Ten years later 19.3% of the men and 16.0% of the women had stopped smoking. The primary factors for giving up were: a short history of smoking, older age, having non-smoking family and friends, and acquiring a smoking related disease during the period. Health promoting behaviours, such as low consumption of coffee, alcohol, butter and margarine, also increased the chances of giving up smoking. Developing smoking related symptoms, such as a morning cough, or coughing up mucus in the mornings, predicted continuous smoking. Future health promotion programmes should be targeted at young smokers and persons with smoking related diseases; and efforts should probably be directed towards lifestyle with the aim of modifying general attitudes to health.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

[Mental health in costal areas of Finnmark 1987-93].

Over 70% of the adult population of five rural communities in Northern Norway participated in a three-part epidemiological study that included identical questions on mental health. Data were collected in 1987/88, 1990 and 1993. Both repeated cross-sectional analyses and individual growth curve analyses on the 2,486 individuals who participated in either two or three surveys were carried out in order to reveal the changes in mental health over time. The proportion of the population using sleeping pills or psychotropic drugs decreased significantly as time progressed. There were also a significant decrease in the proportion of people who reported being depressed or dissatisfied with life, or who had insomnia or problems in coping. A similar improvement in mental health was noted for both sexes and it remained statistically significant even after adjusting for age and level of education. There was no decrease in the proportion of individuals who reported loneliness. The time effect remained significant, even after adjusting for multiple factors in the growth curve analyses. Improvement in mental health has occurred despite the crisis in the region's fishing industry.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

[Estrogen replacement].

Recent research on long-term postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy (HRT) indicates a positive effect on both total mortality and morbidity. This has raised the question of widespread preventive long-term use of HRT. Possible side-effects and ideological issues related to preventive HRT have led to debate and uncertainty among health professionals, in the media, and in the population at large. In order to evaluate the level of knowledge about and attitudes towards HRT, a randomly selected group of 737 Norwegian women aged 16-79 was interviewed by the Central Bureau of Statistics. One in three women had received information about HRT in the last two years, mainly through weekly magazines and physicians. The proportion who answered the questions on knowledge correctly varied from 36% to 47%. Those who had been given information by a physician possessed accurate knowledge, had more positive attitudes towards HRT and were more willing to use HRT than women who had reviewed information through other channels. Women with a higher level of education were better informed and more knowledgeable than others, but were nevertheless more reluctant to use HRT than those who were less educated. The limited number of women who actually receive information on HRT, the low level of knowledge and the ambivalent attitudes toward HRT are a major challenge to the public health service.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

[Hormone replacement therapy among Norwegian women. Self-reported use and sales of estrogen preparations].

In order to analyse the use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and the predicting factors for its use, two random samples of Norwegian women (30-79 years) were interviewed by the Central Bureau of Statistics in 1994 (n = 565) and in 1996 (n = 470). The extent of use of HRT was compared with statistics for sales of oestrogen in Norway and the Nordic countries. In the age group 45-69 years the use of hormone replacement therapy increased from 16.3% in 1994 to 19.1% in 1996. The proportion of users did not increase with a higher level of education. In addition to information received, and after adjusting for other variables, attitudes towards oestrogen and knowledge about it were the most important contributing factors for using HRT. Sales figures show that the use of systemic oestrogen in Norway has increased more than 280% since 1990. None of the Nordic countries have had a corresponding increase, but the Norwegian figures are still low compared to most other Nordic countries. In 1996 14.5% of Norwegian women (50-79 years) used oestrogen for urogenital disorders. Norwegian women need to be better informed and more knowledgeable to enable them to make conscious choice regarding use of hormone replacement therapy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

The Tromsø Study: body height, body mass index and fractures.

Tall persons suffer more hip fractures than shorter persons, and high body mass index is associated with fewer hip and forearm fractures. We have studied the association between body height, body mass index and all non-vertebral fractures in a large, prospective, population-based study. The middle-aged population of Tromsø, Norway, was invited to surveys in 1979/80, 1986/87 and 1994/95 (The Tromsø Study). Of 16,676 invited to the first two surveys, 12,270 attended both times (74%). Height and weight were measured without shoes at the surveys, and all non-vertebral fractures in the period 1988-1995 were registered (922 persons with fractures) and verified by radiography. The risk of a low-energy fracture was found to be positively associated with increasing body height and with decreasing body mass index. Furthermore, men who had gained weight had a lower risk of hip fractures, and women who had gained weight had a lower risk of fractures in the lower extremities. High body height is thus a risk factor for fractures, and 1 in 4 low-energy fractures among women today might be ascribed to the increase in average stature since the turn of the century. Low body mass index is associated with a higher risk of fractures, but the association is probably too weak to have any clinical relevance in this age category.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

The Tromsø Study: physical activity and the incidence of fractures in a middle-aged population.

We have studied the relation of occupational and recreational physical activity to fractures at different locations. All men born between 1925 and 1959 and all women born between 1930 and 1959 in the city of Tromsø were invited to participate in surveys in 1979-1980 and 1986-1987 (The Tromsø Study). Of 16,676 invited persons, 12,270 (73.6%) attended both surveys. All nonvertebral fractures (n = 1435) sustained from 1988 to 1995 were registered in the only hospital in the area. Average age in the middle of the follow-up period (December 31, 1991) was 47.3 years among men and 4501 years among women, ranging from 32 to 66 years. Fracture incidence increased with age at all locations among women, but it decreased with or was independent of age among men. Low-energetic fractures constituted 74.4% of all fractures among women and 55.2% among men. When stratifying by fracture location, the most physically active persons among those 45 years or older suffered fewer fractures in the weight-bearing skeleton (relative risk [RR] 0.6, confidence interval [CI] 0.4-0.9, age-adjusted), but not in the non-weight-bearing skeleton (RR 1.0, CI 0.7-1.2, age-adjusted) compared with sedentary persons. The relative-risk of a low-energetic fracture in the weight-bearing skeleton among the most physically active middle-aged was 0.3 (CI 0.1-0.7) among men and 0.9 (CI 0.4-1.8) among women compared with the sedentary when adjusted for age, body mass index, body height, tobacco smoking, and alcohol and milk consumption. It seems that the beneficial effect on the skeleton of weight-bearing activity is reflected also in the incidence of fractures at different sites.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[Effects of a TV mental health campaign 1992].

A 1992 one-Sunday fund-raising TV-show was broadcasted by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. The six-hour TV-show included information on mental health intermingled with entertainment and money-counting results. The mass media had covered the forthcoming TV-show extensively. The campaign has been evaluated through a stratified random sample of the population who were questioned before (n = 1,191) and after (n = 644) the campaign. Almost 94% were aware of the campaign and more than 60% watched the campaign day TV-show. Nearly 70% had read about psychiatric disorders and 45% had discussed the campaign topic with others. The proportion who were aware that suicide takes more lives than traffic accidents, and the proportion with an open attitude to mental illness had increased significantly after the campaign (p < 0.001). After the campaign, a higher proportion would recommend a person with a minor mental disorder to visit a general practitioner (p < 0.001). Through its penetrating effect the Norwegian Mental Health Campaign put mental health issues on the cultural agenda, and succeeded in changing people's knowledge and attitudes.

Female↗
PubMed1996

[Osteoporosis. Knowledge and attitudes of the Norwegian population].

In March 1994, a random sample of 1,514 Norwegians aged 16-79 years were interviewed about their knowledge of osteoporosis and their attitudes towards prevention of this disease. About 85% answered correctly that osteoporosis can be prevented, but only 57% knew that it cannot be cured. Women had better knowledge of osteoporosis than men had. Two thirds of the women were positive to the use of long-term hormone replacement therapy to prevent osteoporosis. The majority of women aged 60 years or more preferred walking to other physical activities to prevent the disease. Although the data demonstrated fairly good general knowledge of osteoporosis in the population, the oldest women, those at the highest risk of developing the disease, knew less about osteoporosis than the younger women did.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

The Harstad Injury Prevention Study: prevention of burns in small children by a community-based intervention.

Burns are known to cause considerable morbidity and mortality, and scalding is the most common type of burn injury in small children. A community-based injury prevention programme was initiated in the Norwegian city of Harstad (22,000 inhabitants) in 1987 and evaluated by means of data from a hospital-based injury recording system. One part of the programme aimed at reducing burns in children below 5 years of age. Accident analyses based on the local database revealed coffee to be the most frequent liquid causing scalds, which mostly occurred in the kitchen. Sixty-six per cent of the injured were boys and two-thirds were below 2 years of age. The prevention study was divided in a baseline period (19.5 months) with no local intervention-and a succeeding 7-year period containing a wide range of active and passive prevention strategies. From the first to the second period the mean burn injury rate decreased 52.9 per cent, from 52.4 to 24.7 per 10,000 person years (P < 0.05). In a reference city located 1,000 km away, the rates increased from 61.9 to 68.0 per 10,000 person years (NS). The burn injury rate reduction was considered mainly attributable to the strengthening of public participation and the enhancement of community empowerment achieved by recording and actively using the local burn injury data.

Burns↗
PubMed1994

Finnmark Heart Study: employment status and parenthood as predictors of psychological health in women, 20-49 years.

This study examined the influence of employment status and presence of young children in the household on psychological health in a population-based sample of 3103 women aged 20-49 years. Women were classified by employment status and parental status, thus creating four groups for comparison. After excluding women reporting chronic diseases and women receiving sickness, rehabilitation, unemployment or disability benefits, analyses indicated that problems of coping, dissatisfaction with life, depression and loneliness were greatest among homemakers, particularly among those with young children. Analyses adjusted for age, education, marital status and place of residence yielded similar results. Stratification by marital status and place of residence revealed two exceptions to this general pattern: unmarried employed women with young children had the highest rate of coping problems--and parenthood, not employment status, was the most important factor for psychological health problems in rural areas. Discrepancies between an individual's behaviour and the norm in society regarding women's employment, may partly explain the findings.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1992

[Knowledge about the attitude to mental disorders. An interview study prior to last autumn's TV-action].

In June 1992 a random sample of 1,191 Norwegians were interviewed about their knowledge concerning mental disorders and psychiatric research, and their attitudes in this connection. The study shows that people tend to underestimate the prevalence of mental illness, and they are less willing to talk freely about a mental disorder in the family than about cancer. People have a relatively good understanding of the aetiology of mental disorders. They are less willing, however, to support psychiatric research financially compared with cancer research.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1992

Self-reported change in health behaviour after a mass media-based health education campaign.

A comprehensive short-term fund-raising campaign, was launched in 1987 by a health charity organization in cooperation with the only Norwegian TV-channel covering the whole country. The campaign which was extensively announced on TV and other media and which involved large proportions of the population, finished up with a six hour TV-show on the fund-raising day. Because a considerable amount of information on prevention of heart disease was presented in connection with the campaign, it is presently evaluated as a nationwide health education campaign. Twenty-two per cent of the population reported changes in one or more habits in connection with the campaign (one third of them took more exercise, while one quarter reduced/quit their smoking). Health behaviour change among family/friends, reported new knowledge of health and worry created by the campaign, were the factors most clearly associated with self-reported behaviour change. The paper discusses the magnitude of the effects of the campaign in relation to the study design, and the importance of social environment and fear arousal on health behaviour.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[The Heart for Life action in 1987. Effects on health behavior related factors].

A comprehensive short-term campaign aimed of raising money to benefit a health charity organization also contained a considerable amount of information on prevention of heart disease. The campaign ended up with a six-hour TV-show broadcast by the only Norwegian TV channel covering the whole country. The 1987 fund-raising, which was extensively announced in TV and other media and involved large groups of the population, has been evaluated as a nationwide mass media-based health education campaign through a stratified random sample of 976 persons aged 15 years or more. 96% of the population were aware of the campaign, 72% had watched TV in addition to the news reports, 47% reported having acquired new knowledge and 22% reported having changed one or more habits as a result of the campaign. The factors most clearly associated with self-reported change of behaviour were a change of health behaviour by family/friends, new information and worry created by the campaign. The paper discusses the magnitude of the effects in relation to the weak design of the study, and elaborates upon the importance for impact on social environment, knowledge and arousal of fear for health behaviour.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1991

Recent changes in health related dental behaviors in Norway.

There has been a substantial decrease in the prevalence of caries in younger age groups in the western world during the last 15 years. A corresponding increase has been reported regarding use of preventive remedies. Since prevention and control of dental disease is highly dependent upon personal behavior, investigations of dental health behaviors within subgroups of the population are important for future preventive strategies. Occurrence and changes in individual dental health behaviors in Norway were studied through four sets of cross-sectional data collected in 1981, 1983, 1985, and 1987. Personal interviews performed by trained interviewers were held with probability samples, each of about 1400 persons, covering the Norwegian population aged 15 and above. During the 6-yr period the proportion of individuals who brushed their teeth and used fluoride dentifrice every day increased. The number of people who used toothpicks or dental floss every day also increased from 1981 to 1985. A marked decrease was, however, observed in use of interdental remedies from 1985 to 1987. Daily use of dental floss was reduced by 10 percent points. Logistic regression showed that the reduction in the probability of using interdental aids was most pronounced among those with few teeth. Lower importance attached to dental health education, at all levels, combined with difficult economic times since 1987, might account for the decrease in daily use of interdental aids in Norway.

Adolescent↗