Current postgraduate training in emergency medicine in the Nordic countries

Funding Information: Members of the Nordic EM Study Group Denmark: Tommy Andersson, Hospitalsenheden Vest (Hernig, Denmark), Christian Rasmussen, Hvidovre Hospital, (Hvidovre Denmark) Ulf Grue Hørlyk, Emergency Department, Regional Hospital Horsens (Horsens Denmark). Finland: Ville Hällberg and Teemu Koivistoinen, Kanta-Häme Central Hospital (Hämeenlinna, Finland), Jonni Unga, Turku University Hospital (Turku, Finland), Sweden: Bahram Shams, University Hospital of Linköping (Linköping, Sweden), Cornelia Härtel, Stockholm South General Hospital (Stockholm, Sweden). Publisher Copyright: © 2023, The Author(s).BACKGROUND: Emergency Medicine (EM) is an independent specialty in all five Nordic countries. This study aims to evaluate the structure of post-graduate EM training in the area. METHODS: A leading hospital or hospitals in EM training in each country were identified. An e-survey was sent to each hospital to gather data on patient volume and physician staffing, curriculum, trainee supervision, and monitoring of progression in training. RESULTS: Data were collected from one center in Iceland and Norway, two in Finland and Sweden, and four centers in Denmark. The data from each country in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden, were pooled to represent that country. The percentage of consultants with EM specialist recognition ranged from 49-100% of all consultants working in the participating departments. The number of patients seen annually per each full time EM consultant was almost three times higher in Finland than in Sweden. In Iceland, Denmark, and Sweden a consultant was present 24/7 in the ED but not in all centers in the other countries. The level of trainee autonomy in clinical practice varied between countries. Requirements for completing standardized courses, completing final exams, scientific and quality improvement projects, and evaluation of trainee progression, varied between the countries. CONCLUSIONS: All Nordic countries have established EM training programs. Despite cultural similarities, there are significant differences in how the EM training is structured between the countries. Writing and implementing a standardized training curriculum and assessment system for EM training in the Nordic countries should be considered.Peer reviewe

Predicting unfavorable long-term outcome in juvenile idiopathic arthritis : results from the Nordic cohort study

Background: The aim was to develop prediction rules that may guide early treatment decisions based on baseline clinical predictors of long-term unfavorable outcome in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Methods: In the Nordic JIA cohort, we assessed baseline disease characteristics as predictors of the following outcomes 8 years after disease onset. Non-achievement of remission off medication according to the preliminary Wallace criteria, functional disability assessed by Childhood Health Assessment Questionnaire (CHAQ) and Physical Summary Score (PhS) of the Child Health Questionnaire, and articular damage assessed by the Juvenile Arthritis Damage Index-Articular (JADI-A). Multivariable models were constructed, and cross-validations were performed by repeated partitioning of the cohort into training sets for developing prediction models and validation sets to test predictive ability. Results: The total cohort constituted 423 children. Remission status was available in 410 children: 244 (59.5%) of these did not achieve remission off medication at the final study visit. Functional disability was present in 111/340 (32.7%) children assessed by CHAQ and 40/199 (20.1%) by PhS, and joint damage was found in 29/216 (13.4%). Model performance was acceptable for making predictions of long-term outcome. In validation sets, the area under the curves (AUCs) in the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were 0.78 (IQR 0.72-0.82) for non-achievement of remission off medication, 0.73 (IQR 0.67-0.76) for functional disability assessed by CHAQ, 0.74 (IQR 0.65-0.80) for functional disability assessed by PhS, and 0.73 (IQR 0.63-0.76) for joint damage using JADI-A. Conclusion: The feasibility of making long-term predictions of JIA outcome based on early clinical assessment is demonstrated. The prediction models have acceptable precision and require only readily available baseline variables. Further testing in other cohorts is warranted.Peer reviewe

Long-term results after simple versus complex stenting of coronary artery bifurcation lesions:nordic bifurcation study 5-year follow-up results

ObjectivesThis study sought to report the 5-year follow-up results of the Nordic Bifurcation Study.BackgroundRandomized clinical trials with short-term follow-up have indicated that coronary bifurcation lesions may be optimally treated using the optional side branch stenting strategy.MethodsA total of 413 patients with a coronary bifurcation lesion were randomly assigned to a simple stenting strategy of main vessel (MV) and optional stenting of side branch (SB) or to a complex stenting strategy, namely, stenting of both MV and SB.ResultsFive-year clinical follow-up data were available for 404 (98%) patients. The combined safety and efficacy endpoint of cardiac death, non–procedure-related myocardial infarction, and target vessel revascularization were seen in 15.8% in the optional SB stenting group as compared to 21.8% in the MV and SB stenting group (p = 0.15). All-cause death was seen in 5.9% versus 10.4% (p = 0.16) and non–procedure-related myocardial infarction in 4% versus 7.9% (p = 0.09) in the optional SB stenting group versus the MV and SB stenting group, respectively. The rates of target vessel revascularization were 13.4% versus 18.3% (p = 0.14) and the rates of definite stent thrombosis were 3% versus 1.5% (p = 0.31) in the optional SB stenting group versus the MV and SB stenting group, respectively.ConclusionsAt 5-year follow-up in the Nordic Bifurcation Study, the clinical outcomes after simple optional side branch stenting remained at least equal to the more complex strategy of planned stenting of both the main vessel and the side branch

ICAR: endoscopic skull‐base surgery

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Papilledema Outcomes from the Optical Coherence Tomography Substudy of the Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension Treatment Trial.

PurposeTo assess treatment efficacy using spectral-domain (SD) optical coherence tomography (OCT) measurements of papilledema in the Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension Treatment Trial (IIHTT), which evaluated the effects of acetazolamide and weight management and of placebo and weight management in eyes with mild visual loss.DesignRandomized double-masked control clinical trial of acetazolamide plus weight management compared with placebo plus weight management in subjects with mild visual field loss and previously untreated idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH).ParticipantsEighty-nine (43 acetazolamide treated, 46 placebo treated) of 165 subjects meeting IIHTT entry criteria.MethodsSubjects underwent perimetry, papilledema grading (Frisén method), high- and low-contrast visual acuity, and SD OCT imaging at study entry and 3 and 6 months. Study eye results (worse perimetric mean deviation [PMD]) were used for most analyses.Main outcome measuresRetinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness, total retinal thickness (TRT), optic nerve (ONH) volume, and retinal ganglion cell layer (RGCL) measurements derived using 3-dimensional segmentation.ResultsStudy entry OCT values were similar in both treatment groups. At 6 months, the acetazolamide group had greater reduction than the placebo group for RNFL thickness (175 μm vs. 89 μm; P = 0.001), TRT (220 μm vs. 113 μm; P = 0.001), and ONH volume (4.9 mm(3) vs. 2.1 mm(3); P = 0.001). The RNFL thickness (P = 0.01), TRT (P = 0.003), and ONH volume (P = 0.002) measurements also showed smaller increases in subjects who lost 6% or more of study entry weight. The acetazolamide (3.6 μm) and placebo (2.1 μm) groups showed minor RGCL thinning (P = 0.06). The RNFL thickness, TRT, and ONH volume measurements showed moderate correlations (r = 0.48-0.59; P ≤ 0.0001) with Frisén grade. The 14 eyes with RGCL thickness less than the fifth percentile of controls had worse PMD (P = 0.001) than study eyes with RGCL in the fifth percentile or more.ConclusionsIn IIH, acetazolamide and weight loss effectively improve RNFL thickness, TRT, and ONH volume swelling measurements resulting from papilledema. In contrast to the strong correlation at baseline, OCT measures at 6 months show only moderate correlations with papilledema grade

Health-related quality of life among transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy patients

Aims: Transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR CM) is a progressive and severe heart disease with physical and psychological implications. The Nordic PROACT study was conducted to investigate the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in ATTR CM patients. Methods and results: The Nordic PROACT study was a cross-sectional non-interventional study conducted in 12 cardiology hospital clinics across Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. Men and women aged ≥18 years diagnosed with symptomatic ATTR CM were included. The investigator provided information on medical history, biomarkers, current treatment, co-morbidities and disease severity according to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) class and the National Amyloidosis Centre (NAC) staging. Patients completed the HRQoL questionnaires in the form of the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ), the EQ-5D-5L index with Visual Analog Scale (VAS), and the Major Depression Inventory (MDI). A total of 169 patients (mean ± SD age 77.7 ± 6.2 years) were included. Ninety-two per cent were men. Seventy-six per cent had wildtype ATTR CM (ATTRwt CM) and 15% had a hereditary form of ATTR CM (ATTRv CM) while 9% were genetically unclassified. Most patients were in NYHA class II (54%) and NAC stage 1 (53%). Participation in randomized clinical trials (RCT) was noted in 58% of the patients. The 169 ATTR CM patients had a mean ± SD KCCQ score of 64.3 ± 23.1 for total symptom score, 64.8 ± 20.9 for overall summary score (OSS) and 65.1 ± 21.5 for clinical summary score. The EQ-5D-5L total utility score was 0.8 ± 0.2 and the EQ-5D-5L VAS score was 62.9 ± 20.6. The vast majority (89%) did not report any signs of depression. Patients with ATTRv CM had a higher KCCQ OSS as compared with ATTRwt CM, while EQ-5D-5L utility score, EQ-5D-5L VAS and MDI were similar. Non-RCT participants had a poorer HRQoL as compared with RCT participants as reflected in lower KCCQ OSS and EQ-5D-5L VAS scores and a higher MDI score. Patients with higher NYHA classes and NAC disease stages had a poorer HRQoL as demonstrated by lower KCCQ and EQ-5D-5L scores and higher MDI scores. Correlation between KCCQ, EQ-5D-5L and MDI and the covariate NYHA class remained significant (P < 0.05) after adjusting for multiple testing. Conclusions: KCCQ scores were lower than previously reported for patients with other heart diseases of non-ATTR CM origin. The HRQoL measures correlated well to NYHA class and NAC disease stage. The prevalence of depression appeared to be low.Peer reviewe