Health service use in indigenous Sami and non-indigenous youth in North Norway: A population based survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This is the first population based study exploring health service use and ethno-cultural factors in indigenous Sami and non-Sami youth in North Norway. The first aim of the present study was to compare the frequency of health service use between Sami adolescents and their non-indigenous peers. The second aim was to explore the relationships between health service use and ethno-cultural factors, such as ethnic context, Sami self-identification, perceived discrimination and Sami language competence. Finally, we wanted to explore the relationship between use of health services and emotional and behavioural problems.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>The Norwegian Arctic Adolescent Health Study was conducted among 10th graders (15-16 years old) in junior high schools in North Norway. The sample consisted of 4,449 adolescents, of whom 450 (10.1%) were indigenous Sami and 3,999 (89.9%) were non-Sami.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Sami and non-Sami youth used all health services with equal frequency. However, several ethno-cultural factors were found to influence health service use. Sami youth in more assimilated ethnic contexts used general practitioners more than non-Sami youth. Youth with Sami self-identification had a higher probability of using the school health service compared with other youth. Ethnic barriers to health service use were also identified. Sami speaking youth with a high degree of perceived discrimination had lower probability of using school health services than non-Sami speaking youth. Sami youth with conduct problems were less likely than non-Sami to use psychologist/psychiatrist. The present study demonstrated a relationship between health need and actual health service use.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Culture-specific factors influenced the help-seeking process in indigenous youth; some factors acted as barriers against health service use and other factors increased the probability of health service use.</p

Effects of ageing and fitness on skin-microvessel vasodilator function in humans

The impact of cardiopulmonary fitness (V) over dotO(2max)) on the age-related decline in skin-microvessel vasodilator function has not been fully established and the inter-relationships among different measures of microvascular vasodilator function are unknown. We used laser Doppler flowmetry to assess relative changes in forearm skin blood flow to various stimuli in three groups of adults: young (n = 15; 27 +/- 2 years), older sedentary (n = 14; 65 +/- 6 years) and older fit (n = 15; 61 +/- 5 years). Local-heating induced and post-occlusive hyperaemia responses were higher in the young and older fit groups compared to the older sedentary group (P 0.05). Associations among different measures of microvascular vasodilator function were generally moderate at best. In summary, the local heating and reactive hyperaemia data indicate that the age-related decline in skin-microvessel vasodilator function can be ameliorated through regular aerobic exercise training. As this is not supported by the iontophoresis data, we recommend that, when assessing microvascular function, the use of a single physiological or pharmacological stimulation coupled to laser Doppler flowmetry should be avoided. Finally, the moderate correlations between outcomes probably reflect the distinct mediators that are responsible for the vasodilator response to each test