Prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland 1992-2004

Hægt er að lesa greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenOBJECTIVES: To investigate changes in the prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland from 1992 to 2004. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were obtained from the disability register of the State Social Security Institute and Statistics Iceland for the years 1992 and 2004. Prevalence of disability pension related to obesity and of disability pension in general was calculated for both years. Statistical significance was assessed by calculating chi square and standardized risk ratios. RESULTS: From 1992 to 2004 the number of recipients of disability pension with obesity as a primary diagnosis increased from 37 to 111, amounting to 183% increase for females and 263% for males. This increase is significantly greater than the increase in disability pension in general during this period. Age standardized risk ratio showed increased disability related to obesity for both genders. Among males it was greater than the general increase in disability, while among females it was less. There was a significantly greater increase in disability related to obesity in areas outside the capital compared with Reykjavík and surrounding areas among females. The increase in disability related to obesity far surpasses the increase in obesity in the population, according to population surveys, suggesting that severe and morbid obesity may be particularly on the rise. CONCLUSION: There has been a significant increase in the prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland from 1992 to 2004. It is possible that increased social awareness of obesity during the study period has influenced diagnostic habits of physicians and thus increased the use of obesity as a diagnosis in medical certificates and disability assessment. In all likelihood, however, there has been an increase in disabling obesity in Iceland, indicating that obesity is an increasing public health problem demanding appropriate intervention.Tilgangur: Að kanna algengi örorku í tengslum við offitu á Íslandi og hvort algengi hafi breyst á milli áranna 1992 og 2004. Efniviður og aðferðir: Aflað var upplýsinga úr örorkuskrá Tryggingastofnunar ríkisins og þjóðskrá Hagstofu Íslands fyrir árin 1992 og 2004. Reiknað var algengi örorku í tengslum við offitu og örorku almennt fyrir bæði þessi ár. Kannað var hvort marktækar breytingar hefðu orðið á algengi örorku með kí-kvaðrat prófi og með því að reikna aldursstaðlað áhættuhlutfall fyrir örorku á milli áranna. Niðurstöður: Á milli 1992 og 2004 fjölgaði öryrkjum sem höfðu offitu sem fyrstu sjúkdómsgreiningu í örorkumati úr 37 í 111. Aukningin var 183% hjá konum og 263% hjá körlum. Þessi aukning var marktækt meiri en aukning örorku almennt á þessu tímabili. Aldurstengd fjölgun öryrkja sem höfðu offitu á meðal greininga í örorkumati var einnig umfram fjölgun öryrkja almennt. Körlum sem höfðu offitu á meðal greininga í örorkumati fjölgaði meira en karlkyns öryrkjum almennt, en á meðal kvenna var þessi aukning minni en hjá öðrum öryrkjum. Örorka tengd offitu var hjá konum marktækt algengari á landsbyggðinni en á höfuðborgarsvæðinu. Ályktun: Marktæk aukning hefur orðið á örorku í tengslum við offitu á Íslandi. Hugsanlegt er að aukin umræða um offituvandann á rannsóknartímabilinu hafi haft einhver áhrif á greiningarvenjur lækna og þar með á tíðni offitugreininga í örorkuvottorðum og örorkumati. Allar líkur eru þó á að fjöldi þeirra sem hafa mikla eða sjúklega offitu hér á landi fari vaxandi og þar með að offita sé vaxandi lýðfræðilegt vandamál sem bregðast þurfi við á viðeigandi hátt

"Það er eins og það hafi verið skipt um rafgeymi í manni" : Gildi starfstengdrar leiðsagnar fyrir starfsþróun kennara

Starfstengd leiðsögn hefur öðlast ríkan sess í umræðu um skólamál á undanförnum misserum. Kennaraskortur, brotthvarf kennara úr starfi og álag í vinnuumhverfi þeirra hafa rennt frekari stoðum undir hugmyndir um markvissari leiðsögn með nýliðum í kennarastéttinni sem og kennaranemum. Rannsóknir, erlendar og íslenskar, hafa sýnt fram á með óyggjandi hætti að formleg leiðsögn skili sér í bættu skólastarfi enda felur hún í sér gagnkvæma starfsþróun jafnt hjá þeim sem veita leiðsögnina og þeim sem hana þiggja. Frá árinu 2013 hefur Kennaradeild Háskólans á Akureyri boðið upp á þriggja námskeiða (30 ECTS) sérhæfingu í starfstengdri leiðsögn. Um er að ræða námskeiðin: Leiðsögn á vettvangi, Starfsefling og skólasamfélag og Leiðsögn – liður í starfsmenntun kennara. Uppbygging námsins var í fyrstu í samstarfi við Menntavísindasvið HÍ. Sérhæfingin er ætluð starfandi kennurum og er á meistarastigi. Uppsetning námsins er með þeim hætti að nemendur koma í lotur og sinna heimanámi þess á milli. Markmiðið með þessari sérhæfingu er tvíþætt. Annars vegar að efla leiðsögn nýrra kennara og kennaranema á vettvangi og hins vegar að skapa sterkari tengsl milli kennaramenntunar og skólasamfélagsins á forsendum starfsþróunar. Með þessari námsleið gafst tækifæri til að stuðla að því sem kallað hefur verið þriðja svæðið þar sem þeir sem koma að kennaramenntun, reyndir kennarar og nýliðar mætast á jafningjagrundvelli og læra hver af öðrum, skólasamfélaginu til heilla. Þessi grein byggir á rannsókn höfunda á því hverju sérhæfingin hefur skilað í starfi og starfsháttum þeirra sem luku sérhæfingunni í lok ársins 2018. Rannsóknarspurningin sem lögð var til grundvallar var: Á hvaða hátt hefur sérhæfingin breytt starfsháttum og starfsþróun reyndra kennara?Peer reviewe

Pain tolerance after stroke: The Tromsø study

Background: Stroke lesions might alter pain processing and modulation by affecting the widely distributed network of brain regions involved. We aimed to compare pain tolerance in stroke survivors and stroke-free persons in the general population, with and without chronic pain. Methods: We included all participants of the sixth and seventh wave of the population-based Tromsø Study who had been tested with the cold pressor test (hand in cold water bath, 3°C, maximum time 106 s in the sixth wave and 120 s in the seventh) and who had information on previous stroke status and covariates. Data on stroke status were obtained from the Tromsø Study Cardiovascular Disease Register and the Norwegian Stroke Register. Cox regression models were fitted using stroke prior to study attendance as the independent variable, cold pressor endurance time as time variable and hand withdrawal from cold water as event. Statistical adjustments were made for age, sex, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidaemia, body mass index and smoking. Results: In total 21,837 participants were included, 311 of them with previous stroke. Stroke was associated with decreased cold pain tolerance time, with 28% increased hazard of hand withdrawal (hazard ratio [HR] 1.28, 95% CI 1.10–1.50). The effect was similar in participants with (HR 1.28, 95% CI 0.99–1.66) and without chronic pain (HR 1.29, 95% CI 1.04–1.59). Conclusions: Stroke survivors, with and without chronic pain, had lower cold pressor pain tolerance, with possible clinical implications for pain in this group. Significance: We found lower pain tolerance in participants with previous stroke compared to stroke-free participants of a large, population-based study. The association was present both in those with and without chronic pain. The results may warrant increased awareness by health professionals towards pain experienced by stroke patients in response to injuries, diseases and procedures

Epidemiology of trauma in the subarctic regions of the Nordic countries.

To access publisher's full text version of this article, please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field or click on the hyperlink at the top of the page marked DownloadBackground: The northern regions of the Nordic countries have common challenges of sparsely populated areas, long distances, and an arctic climate. The aim of this study was to compare the cause and rate of fatal injuries in the northernmost area of the Nordic countries over a 5-year period. Methods: In this retrospective cohort, we used the Cause of Death Registries to collate all deaths from 2007 to 2011 due to an external cause of death. The study area was the three northernmost counties in Norway, the four northernmost counties in Finland and Sweden, and the whole of Iceland. Results: A total of 4308 deaths were included in the analysis. Low energy trauma comprised 24% of deaths and high energy trauma 76% of deaths. Northern Finland had the highest incidence of both high and low energy trauma deaths. Iceland had the lowest incidence of high and low energy trauma deaths. Iceland had the lowest prehospital share of deaths (74%) and the lowest incidence of injuries leading to death in a rural location. The incidence rates for high energy trauma death were 36.1/100000/year in Northern Finland, 15.6/100000/year in Iceland, 27.0/100000/year in Northern Norway, and 23.0/100000/year in Northern Sweden. Conclusion: We found unexpected differences in the epidemiology of trauma death between the countries. The differences suggest that a comparison of the trauma care systems and preventive strategies in the four countries is required. Keywords: Epidemiology; Injury; Rural; Trauma.Finnmarkssykehuset Health Trust University of Tromso Northern Norway Regional Health Authorit

The Ability to Pay for Long-Term Care in the Netherlands: A Life-cycle Perspective

This paper uses synthetic life-cycle paths at the individual level to analyze the distribution of long-term care expenditures in the Netherlands. Using a comprehensive set of administrative data 20,000 synthetic life-cycle paths of household income and long-term care costs are constructed using the nearest neighbor resampling method. We show that the distribution of these costs is less skewed when measured over the life-cycle than on a cross-sectional basis. This may provide an argument for self-insurance by smoothing these costs over the life-cycle. Yet costs are concentrated at older ages, which limits the scope for self-insurance. Furthermore, the paper investigates the relation between long-term care expenditures, household composition, and income over the life-cycle. The expenditures on a lifetime basis from the age of 65 are higher for low income households, and (single) women

Prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland 1992-2004

Hægt er að lesa greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenOBJECTIVES: To investigate changes in the prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland from 1992 to 2004. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were obtained from the disability register of the State Social Security Institute and Statistics Iceland for the years 1992 and 2004. Prevalence of disability pension related to obesity and of disability pension in general was calculated for both years. Statistical significance was assessed by calculating chi square and standardized risk ratios. RESULTS: From 1992 to 2004 the number of recipients of disability pension with obesity as a primary diagnosis increased from 37 to 111, amounting to 183% increase for females and 263% for males. This increase is significantly greater than the increase in disability pension in general during this period. Age standardized risk ratio showed increased disability related to obesity for both genders. Among males it was greater than the general increase in disability, while among females it was less. There was a significantly greater increase in disability related to obesity in areas outside the capital compared with Reykjavík and surrounding areas among females. The increase in disability related to obesity far surpasses the increase in obesity in the population, according to population surveys, suggesting that severe and morbid obesity may be particularly on the rise. CONCLUSION: There has been a significant increase in the prevalence of disability pension related to obesity in Iceland from 1992 to 2004. It is possible that increased social awareness of obesity during the study period has influenced diagnostic habits of physicians and thus increased the use of obesity as a diagnosis in medical certificates and disability assessment. In all likelihood, however, there has been an increase in disabling obesity in Iceland, indicating that obesity is an increasing public health problem demanding appropriate intervention.Tilgangur: Að kanna algengi örorku í tengslum við offitu á Íslandi og hvort algengi hafi breyst á milli áranna 1992 og 2004. Efniviður og aðferðir: Aflað var upplýsinga úr örorkuskrá Tryggingastofnunar ríkisins og þjóðskrá Hagstofu Íslands fyrir árin 1992 og 2004. Reiknað var algengi örorku í tengslum við offitu og örorku almennt fyrir bæði þessi ár. Kannað var hvort marktækar breytingar hefðu orðið á algengi örorku með kí-kvaðrat prófi og með því að reikna aldursstaðlað áhættuhlutfall fyrir örorku á milli áranna. Niðurstöður: Á milli 1992 og 2004 fjölgaði öryrkjum sem höfðu offitu sem fyrstu sjúkdómsgreiningu í örorkumati úr 37 í 111. Aukningin var 183% hjá konum og 263% hjá körlum. Þessi aukning var marktækt meiri en aukning örorku almennt á þessu tímabili. Aldurstengd fjölgun öryrkja sem höfðu offitu á meðal greininga í örorkumati var einnig umfram fjölgun öryrkja almennt. Körlum sem höfðu offitu á meðal greininga í örorkumati fjölgaði meira en karlkyns öryrkjum almennt, en á meðal kvenna var þessi aukning minni en hjá öðrum öryrkjum. Örorka tengd offitu var hjá konum marktækt algengari á landsbyggðinni en á höfuðborgarsvæðinu. Ályktun: Marktæk aukning hefur orðið á örorku í tengslum við offitu á Íslandi. Hugsanlegt er að aukin umræða um offituvandann á rannsóknartímabilinu hafi haft einhver áhrif á greiningarvenjur lækna og þar með á tíðni offitugreininga í örorkuvottorðum og örorkumati. Allar líkur eru þó á að fjöldi þeirra sem hafa mikla eða sjúklega offitu hér á landi fari vaxandi og þar með að offita sé vaxandi lýðfræðilegt vandamál sem bregðast þurfi við á viðeigandi hátt