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Biomedical subjects

P Währborg

Publications and source records attributed to P Währborg.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Self-efficacy, symptoms and physical activity in patients with an anterior cruciate ligament injury: a prospective study.

Self-efficacy belief may be of major importance for the outcome of rehabilitation after sports-related injuries. A new instrument, the Knee Self-Efficacy Scale (K-SES), was used to evaluate the role of perceived self-efficacy in patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. The purpose of this prospective exploratory study was to describe the patients' perceived self-efficacy at various times post-injury and surgery, respectively, for responsiveness of the K-SES and to correlate the K-SES score with the patients' subjective symptoms. The purpose was also to describe the influence of gender, age and physical activity on the patients' perceived self-efficacy. Thirty recently injured patients with an ACL-deficient knee and 33 patients who had undergone ACL reconstruction reported their physical activity level and their perceived self-efficacy on four test occasions during a 1-year period. The patients' subjective knee symptoms were documented on two of the test occasions. A significant increase in the K-SES score was seen after injury as well as after surgery, during the course of rehabilitation. Pre-operatively, men's perceived self-efficacy was significantly (P=0.013) higher compared with women's self-efficacy. Patients with a high baseline (pre-injury) physical activity level (Tegner 7-10) perceived their self-efficacy as being significantly (P=0.005) higher pre-operatively compared with patients with a low baseline activity level (Tegner 3-6). "Younger" (age 17-29), recently injured patients, perceived their self-efficacy as being significantly (P=0.034) higher compared with "older" patients (age 30-54). At the 12-month test, 15 of 30 patients with an ACL-deficient knee and 15 of 33 patients who had undergone ACL reconstruction reported that they had returned or nearly returned to their baseline physical activity level. The subjective knee outcome score, as measured by the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), improved significantly (P<0.01) during rehabilitation, apart from the KOOS subscale of "pain" (P=0.077) for patients who had undergone ACL reconstruction. There was a "low" to "strong" correlation (r(s)=0.0-0.7) between the K-SES and the five subscales in the KOOS. We conclude from the present study that K-SES has good responsiveness with significantly increased self-efficacy during the rehabilitation process for patients with an ACL-deficient knee as well as for patients who had undergone ACL reconstruction. The improvement in perceived self-efficacy could, however, only be partly explained by the improvement in subjective symptoms. Furthermore, self-efficacy differed significantly with gender, age and physical activity level early in the rehabilitation process.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

A new instrument for measuring self-efficacy in patients with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

It has been suggested that self-efficacy belief is of major importance for rehabilitation outcome after sports-related injuries. No instruments are, however, available to evaluate perceived self-efficacy for prognostic and outcome expectations in patients with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Perceived self-efficacy is defined as a judgment of one's potential ability to carry out a task, rather than a measure of whether or not one actually can or does perform the task. The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid instrument for measuring perceived self-efficacy in patients with an ACL injury. A total of 210 male and female patients with an ACL injury were included in this study. The items were generated by health professionals with long clinical experience of patients with an ACL injury and by discussions with patients. After item analysis and item reduction, based on the results from 88 patients, the final 22-item version of the Knee Self-Efficacy Scale (K-SES) was evaluated in 18 patients for test-retest reliability and in 104 patients for internal consistency and validity. The K-SES was compared with the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control (MHLC), Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CSQ), SF-36 and Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) instruments. A factor analysis was also performed on the K-SES. The test-retest revealed a correlation of r(s)=0.73 between test-days and an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.75. No significant difference between test-days was found. The internal consistency was 0.94, as calculated with Cronbach's alpha. There were low correlations between the K-SES and MHLC and the K-SES and CSQ, respectively. A strong correlation was found between the K-SES and physical functioning, as measured by the SF-36 (r(s)=0.8). All the sub-scales in the KOOS correlated moderately to strongly (r(s)=0.4-0.7) to the K-SES. The factor analysis produced two factors of importance. Factor one was related to how patients perceived their present physical performance/function, while factor two was related to how patients perceived the future physical performance/prognosis of their knee. Good reliability and good face, content, construct and convergent validity were demonstrated for this new instrument (K-SES) for measuring perceived self-efficacy in patients with an ACL injury. The K-SES is recommended for studies designed to evaluate prognostic and outcome expectations of perceived self-efficacy in patients with an ACL-insufficient knee.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2002

Long-term effects of spinal cord stimulation and coronary artery bypass grafting on quality of life and survival in the ESBY study.

AIMS: To assess the long-term outcome regarding quality of life and survival in patients who were included in the ESBY study 1992-1995. The ESBY study (Electrical Stimulation versus Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery in Severe Angina Pectoris) included 104 patients-with severe angina, increased surgical risk and no prognostic benefits from revascularization-randomized to coronary artery bypass grafting or spinal cord stimulation. METHODS AND RESULTS: The ESBY patients' quality of life was analysed using two questionnaires, and 5-year mortality was assessed. Quality of life improved significantly 6 months after spinal cord stimulation and coronary artery bypass grafting, respectively, compared to run-in (P<0.001). The results were consistent after 4.8 years. The 5-year mortality was 27.9%. There were no significant differences between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Spinal cord stimulation as well as coronary artery bypass grafting offered long-lasting improvement in quality of life. Survival up to 5 years was comparable between the groups. Both methods can be considered as effective treatment options for patients with severe angina, increased surgical risks and estimated to have no prognostic benefits from coronary artery bypass grafting.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

[Pain--life's dreaded companion. Cultural history of algology and the most important achievements].

Pain is a comprehensive phenomenon which concerns not only physiology, biochemistry and molecular biology but also music, art, religion, philosophy and everyday life. The early contributions to the development of the specificity theory is described, as are some of the important discoveries in the history of algology, such as Baillou's description of rheumatism, Heberden's description of angina pectoris and the development of the gate control theory. Despite a number of important discoveries and a much improved knowledge in basic science pain is still the dreaded companion of mankind.

Analgesia↗
PubMed2000

COX-2-Specific inhibitors--the emergence of a new class of analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs.

The prostaglandin series of bioactive compounds is formed by the interaction of two distinct but related enzymes, cyclo-oxygenase-1 (COX-1) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). COX-1 is a constitutive form which is present mainly in the gastric mucosa, kidney and platelets. COX-2 is mainly an inducible form, although also to some extent present constitutively in the CNS, the juxtaglomerular apparatus of the kidney and in the placenta during late gestation. Both isoforms contribute to the inflammatory process, but COX-2 is of considerable therapeutic interest as it is induced, resulting in an enhanced formation of prostaglandins, during acute as well as chronic inflammation. Conventional NSAIDs inhibit both isoforms to a similar extent and in an approximately equal dose and concentration range. The two recently developed and clinically available selective COX-2 inhibitors, celecoxib and rofecoxib, are about 100-1000 times more selective on the COX-2 than on the COX-1 isoform. In Europe rofecoxib is today indicated for the symptoms and signs of osteoarthritis, whereas celecoxib is indicated for both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. The major clinical interest of these drugs has been related to the lower incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding which, with the conventional COX-1/COX-2 agents has been a source of hospitalisation, disablement and death, especially in the elderly. Clinical trials have convincingly demonstrated that celecoxib and rofecoxib in clinical use induce very few gastrointestinal complications compared to conventional and non-selective NSAIDs. However, the well known contraindications for NSAIDs, such as late pregnancy, aspirin-induced asthma, congestive heart failure and renal dysfunction, will so far apply also to the COX-2 inhibitors. Compared to the traditional and non-selective NSAIDs, COX-2 inhibitors may provide an insight into additional therapeutic areas, such as gastrointestinal cancer and dementia, where the potential relevance to COX-2 mechanisms are currently being explored and clinical trials being performed. With the rapid clinical acceptance of celecoxib and rofecoxib, knowledge about their clinical usefulness in various inflammatory disease states and pain disorders is increasing. For the many patients suffering from such conditions, the selective COX-2 inhibitors are likely to become a significant addition to the therapeutic arsenal of analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Analgesics↗
PubMed1999

Quality of life after coronary angioplasty or bypass surgery. 1-year follow-up in the Coronary Angioplasty versus Bypass Revascularization investigation (CABRI) trial.

BACKGROUND: Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) have both been shown to be safe and effective in the treatment of coronary artery disease. Nine randomized studies comparing CABG and PTCA have delivered consistent results, with no significant differences in mortality between the methods, either in single or in multivessel coronary artery disease. An important outcome measurement after intervention is the patient's subjective appraisal of the intervention. Results from the CABRI substudy on quality of life at 1 year follow-up are presented in this report. METHODS: CABRI is a multicentre, randomized, open comparison of patients assigned to either PTCA or CABG. Patients were recruited from 26 high volume European hospitals over a 53 month period starting in July 1988. A quality of life substudy was also set up, but participation was optional. Seven out of 26 centres took part in the study. One hundred and fifty-four (14.6%) out of the 1054 main study patients participated. Perceived health status was assessed at baseline and 1 year after revascularization by means of The Nottingham Health Profile and a set of 12 other questions. RESULTS: A significant improvement in quality of life in terms of the total score and in the Nottingham Health Profile for both groups, as compared with baseline, was found. A trend towards better outcome concerning energy was found favouring CABG. This trend might be due to the fact that the CABRI protocol permitted incomplete revascularization in the PTCA arm and did not exclude patients with totally occluded vessels. When adjusted for baseline differences, no difference in health-related quality of life at follow-up was found between the sexes, or between the PTCA and the CABG groups. A significant correlation was found between improvement in quality of life and severity of angina when adjusted for baseline values. CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that there is no general difference in health-related quality of life 1 year after bypass surgery or angioplasty; however, data presented are suggestive of a more favourable outcome in degree of perceived energy in the bypass group.

Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary↗
PubMed1999

Acute ischemic chest pain is not associated with increased calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) levels in peripheral plasma nor in the coronary circulation.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and substance P co-exist in capsaicin-sensitive primary sensory neurons and are released from the myocardium after activation of sensory nerve fibres as well as by ischemia in animals. This study was undertaken to try to clarify the potential involvement of immunoreactive (ir) CGRP in anginal pain and myocardial ischemia in humans. One clinical group (n = 87) and one experimental group (n = 14) were studied. The clinical group was admitted to a coronary care unit with suspected or definite acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The experimental group consisted of patients with severe angina pectoris (NYHA III-IV). This group was subjected to atrial pacing up to the appearance of angina pectoris. Mean irCGRP levels at admission for the clinical group with and without AMI showed no significant difference. Neither were any significant differences found in irCGRP concentrations between patients with pain as compared to those without pain or in the group who had had chest pain >30 min before hospital admission as compared to those with chest pain <30 min. Extraction ratios for lactate and irCGRP was calculated in the experimental group. No statistically significant covariance was found between irCGRP extraction ratio and lactate extraction ratio (r(xy) = -0.006) at the time of appearance of angina during atrial pacing. Despite the facts that CGRP may be liberated by a variety of physiological stimuli and may act as a potent vasodilator in the human vasculature, no evidence has been found in this study that CGRP release is increased as a consequence of ischemia or ischemic pain.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Pain recollection after chest pain of cardiac origin.

Memory for pain is an important research and clinical issue since patients ability to accurately recall pain plays a prominent role in medical practice. The purpose of this prospective study was to find out if patients, with an episode of chest pain due to suspected acute myocardial infarction could accurately retrieve the pain initially experienced at home and during the first day of hospitalization after 6 months. A total of 177 patients were included in this analysis. The patients rated their experience of pain on a numerical rating scale. The maximal pain at home was retrospectively assessed, thereafter pain assessments were made at several points of time after admission. After 6 months they were asked to recall the intensity of pain and once again rate it on the numerical rating scale. The results from the initial and 6-month registrations were compared. In general, patients rated their maximal intensity of chest pain as being higher at the 6-month recollection as compared with the assessments made during the initial hospitalization. In particular, in patients with a high level of emotional distress, there was a systematic overestimation of the pain intensity at recall.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1998

Risk indicators for recurrence among patients with coronary artery disease. Problems associated with their modification.

Various risk indicators associated with recurrence of a new ischemic event among patients with coronary artery disease are described and the impact of the implementation of a secondary preventive program on such risk indicators is evaluated. At Sahlgrenska Hospital in Göteborg 293 consecutive patients under the age of 70 years were followed for one to two years after an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). Enrollment and follow-up began after institution of a secondary preventive program among physicians and nurses at the hospital. A secondary preventive nurse was appointed and guidelines for risk factor modification were provided. The lipid guidelines were rather modest, with hyperlipidemia defined as cholesterol > 6.5 mmol/l or triglycerides > 3.0 mmol/l. The mean value for low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol was 3.96 mmol/l at first screening and 3.94 mmol/l at second screening. Smoking was modestly reduced, from 36% at first screening to 26% at second screening (p < 0.01) It was found that 70% of all the patients had one or more of the following risk indicators at the first screening: s-cholesterol > 6.5 mmol/l (30%), s-triglycerides > 3.0 mmol/l (19%), fasting blood glucose > 6.7 mmol/l (29%), systolic blood pressure > 160 mmHg (9%), diastolic blood pressure > 90 mmHg (8%) or smoking, compared with 67% one to two years later (p > 0.2). This is a clear demonstration of the difficulty in modifying risk indicators in patients, even with the aid of health-care professionals, in order to achieve risk-factor reduction in coronary artery disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Impact of a chest pain clinic on recurrency of symptoms and readmissions among patients early discharged from hospital after acute myocardial infarction was ruled out.

This paper evaluates the impact of an early revisit including symptom evaluation and an exercise electrocardiogram on recurrency of symptoms and readmissions during 1 year of follow-up among patients coming to hospital with chest pain or an initial suspicion of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) but in whom the suspicion was quickly ruled out. Patients below the age of 65 admitted to the emergency department (ED) at Sahlgrenska Hospital due to chest pain or other symptoms raising a suspicion of AMI who were either directly discharged from the ED or discharged within 1 day after having AMI ruled out. Patients were allocated to two groups: (1) patients being re-evaluated in a chest pain clinic less than a week after discharge from hospital (intervention group) and (2) patients handled routinely with no formalized follow-up (control group). The intervention group (n=484) and the control group (n=374) were comparable at baseline. During 1 year of follow-up, patients in the intervention group had a lower rate of readmissions to the ED than patients in the control group (17.4% versus 24.9%, p < 0.05) and a lower rate of rehospitalizations (15.9% versus 23.3%, p < 0.05). The proportion of patients being on sick leave at any time during the follow-up did not differ and neither did the recurrency of symptoms. The introduction of a chest pain clinic for patients early discharged from hospital after having AMI ruled out indicated beneficiency in terms of a lower rate of readmissions to the ED and a lower requirement of rehospitalizations. However, a methodological weakness in the randomization procedure suggest carefulness in interpretation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Mental stress and ischaemic heart disease: an underestimated connection.

In this paper a theoretical framework is offered for mental stress as a risk factor for the development of ischaemic heart disease (IHD). The development of IHD related to mental stress can be described as dependent on interaction between the following factors: (1) the presence of stressors, (2) activation of a receptor and transformation system (i.e. the central nervous system) and (3) physiological effector systems. Stressors are defined as external or internal, nomothetic or idiosyncratic and are exemplified. A prerequisite for the psychological stress reaction is the existence of a central nervous system in which stimuli are perceived, interpreted and responded to. The interaction between neocortex and paleocortex is discussed as well as the initiation of the cerebral stress reaction. Four physiological effector systems seem to be related to mental stress: (1) the autonomic nervous system (ANS), (2) the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, (3) the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and (4) the endorphin system. In the development of cardiovascular diseases the pathophysiological changes in the ANS and in the HPA axis play the most important roles.

Coronary Disease↗
PubMed1997

Patients discharged from emergency care after acute myocardial infarction was ruled out: early follow-up in relation to gender.

The aim of this research was to describe men and women who were discharged from the emergency department after having an initial suspicion of acute myocardial infarction ruled out in terms of patient characteristics, symptom reevaluation, electrocardiogram and exercise stress test. Consecutive patients below the age of 65 years who came to the emergency department of Sahlgrenska Hospital with acute chest pain or other symptoms raising suspicion of acute myocardial infarction for whom the suspicion was ruled out either directly in the emergency department or less than 1 day after hospital admission were included in the study. Four hundred and eighty-four patients participated, of whom 295 (61%) were men. Men had a higher prevalence of ischaemic heart disease. The cause of pain was judged similarly at reevaluation compared with in the emergency department in 53% of the cases. Only in 4.6% of the cases were the symptoms judged to be caused by myocardial ischaemia on both occasions. At the initial visit 36.0% of the patients were judged to have uncertain cause of the symptoms. This proportion was lowered to 26.4% at reevaluation. The exercise electrocardiogram at reevaluation revealed clinical and electrocardiographic signs indicating definite myocardial ischaemia in 2.6% of the cases. Early follow-up of patients discharged from the emergency department after acute myocardial infarction was ruled out revealed that a low proportion showed signs of myocardial ischaemia. In about half of the cases the judgement differed from that being made in the emergency department.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Psychosocial characteristics of a group of males with ischemic heart disease and extended sick leave.

A number of studies have been published indicating that psychosocial distress provides a significant predictor for outcome and even mortality among post-myocardial infarction patients. In this study medical and psychosocial characteristics were examined in a group of males with ischemic heart disease (IHD) still on extended sick leave (23.4 months +/- 17.5) after a cardiac event compared with a matched control group with considerably shorter sick leave time (2.7 months +/- 0.8). Twelve men with IHD and extended sick leave were referred from the Regional Social Insurance Office and, after informed consent, were enrolled in the study. The matched controls were recruited from the Sahlgrenska University Hospitals out-patient Heart Clinic. The two groups underwent medical examination including estimation of ejection fraction and ergometer bicycle stress test. Blood samples were drawn for analysis of blood lipids. Psychosocial characteristics were studied by a self-administrative, reliable, valid and sensitive questionnaire. The two groups were comparable on matched variables. Significant differences were found between the groups concerning: memory, emotional control, sleeping habits, daily life, leisure time, sexual life, physical capacity and general health status. A factor analysis revealed an inferior functioning in the group with extended sick leave concerning the social, somatic, and control factor. It is concluded that differences in psychosocial characteristics are present in males with ischemic heart disease and with extended sick leave after a cardiac event, compared to a group with 'normal' sick leave time, suggestive of a need for further studies concerning these characteristics and an implementation of this knowledge in rehabilitation programmes.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1996

The cardiac health profile: content, reliability and validity of a new disease-specific quality of life questionnaire.

BACKGROUND: The Cardiac Health Profile (CHP) is a new questionnaire for assessing health-related quality of life of patients with cardiovascular diseases. It consists of three parts assessed as follows: the degree of angina pectoris (the CCS scale), the quality of life and subjective scoring of psychosocial 'cost-benefit'. Parts II and III of the questionnaire are based on visual analogous scales and consist of 16 and two questions, respectively, covering nine areas. This quality of life questionnaire has been tested for reliability, validity and sensitivity. METHODS: Eighty consecutive patients with angina pectoris, who were waiting for coronary angiography, were enrolled in the study. Four sets of data were deleted since the respondents were not able to fill in the forms correctly. Fifty-one healthy volunteers constituted a control group. RESULTS: Reliability was assessed by a 'test and retest' method. The resulting correlation coefficient was 0.927 (P = 0.0009). Internal consistency was studied by applying Cronbach's alpha. The internal alpha-coefficient was 0.89. Concurrent validity was studied by comparing the outcome in the Nottingham Profile with the CHP. The intercorrelation indicated good concurrent validity (r = 0.753, P = 0.0001). The construct validity was assessed by performing a factor analysis. The sensitivity was assessed in three ways: analysis of kurtosis, comparison of the group of angina pectoris patients with a healthy control group and by comparing CHP results before a standard intervention (coronary artery bypass grafting) and after. The CHP showed in all of these ways a good sensitivity with statistically significant differences between angina patients and the control group (P < 0.0001). A significant improvement in health-related quality of life was also found after coronary artery bypass grafting compared with before (P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: The CHP has been found to be reliable, valid and sensitive and the present findings encourage use of the questionnaire in clinical trials for its further development.

Angina Pectoris↗