| 1. |
- Fransson, Helena, et al.
(författare)
-
Efficacy of lasers as an adjunct to chemo-mechanical disinfection of infected root canals : a systematic review
- 2013
-
Ingår i: International Endodontic Journal. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0143-2885 .- 1365-2591. ; 46:4, s. 296-307
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim was to evaluate the efficacy of various types of lasers used as an adjunct to chemo-mechanical disinfection of infected root canals with the outcome measures 'normal periapical condition' or 'reduction of microbial load'. PubMed, CENTRAL and ISI Web of Knowledge literature searches with specific indexing terms and a subsequent hand search were made with stated limits and criteria. Relevant publications were retrieved, followed by interpretation. The quality of each included publication was assessed as high, moderate or low. The initial search process yielded 234 publications. All abstracts of these publications were read, and the reference lists of relevant publications were hand-searched. Ten articles were read in full text and interpreted according to a data extraction form. Five were included in the systematic review and were assessed. A meta-analysis was impossible to perform because the included studies were heterogeneous with regard to study design, treatment and outcome measures. Positive effects were reported; however, no concluding evidence grade could be made because each included study was judged to have low quality, primarily due to lack of a power analysis, blinding and reproducibility. The evidence grade for whether lasers can be recommended as an adjunct to chemo-mechanical disinfection of infected root canals was insufficient. This does not necessarily imply that laser should not be used as an adjunct to root canal treatment but instead underscores the need for future high-quality studies.
|
|
| 2. |
- Larsson, Helena, et al.
(författare)
-
Contrasts in older persons’ experiences and significant others’ perceptions of existential loneliness
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Nursing Ethics. - : Sage Publications. - 0969-7330 .- 1477-0989. ; 26:6, s. 1623-1637
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: As frail older people might have difficulties in expressing themselves, their needs are often interpreted by others, for example, by significant others, whose information health care staff often have to rely on. This, in turn, can put health care staff in ethically difficult situations, where they have to choose between alternative courses of action. One aspect that might be especially difficult to express is that of existential loneliness. We have only sparse knowledge about whether, and in what way, the views of frail older persons and their significant others concerning existential loneliness are in concordance. Objective: To contrast frail older (>75) persons’ experiences with their significant others’ perceptions of existential loneliness. Methods: A case study design was chosen for this study. Individual interviews with frail older persons (n ¼ 15) and interviews with their significant others (n ¼ 19), as well as field notes, served as a basis for the study. A thematic analysis was used to interpret data. Ethical considerations: This study was conducted in accordance with the principles of research ethics. Findings: The findings showed three themes: (1) Meaningless waiting in contrast to lack of activities, (2) Longing for a deeper connectedness in contrast to not participating in a social environment and (3) Restricted freedom in contrast to given up on life. Discussion: Knowledge about the tensions between older persons’ and their significant others’ views of existential loneliness could be of use as a basis for ethical reflections on the care of older people and in the encounter with their significant others. Conclusion: It is of importance that health care professionals listen to both the frail older person and their significant other(s) and be aware of whose voice that the care given is based on, in order to provide care that is beneficial and not to the detriment of the older person. Keywords case study, existential loneliness, frail older person, significant other, thematic analysis
|
|
| 3. |
- Larsson, Helena
(författare)
-
Existentiell ensamhet hos sköra äldre personer : ett närståendeperspektiv
- 2020
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The aim of this thesis was to explore existential loneliness from the perspective of significant others, to contrast their perceptions with frail older people’s experiences and to describe significant others’ and family care advisors’ views on existential support. This thesis is part of a larger research project about existential loneliness among frail older people, the LONE study. The thesis embraces three qualitative and one quantitative study. A total of 29 significant others, 15 frail older people and 120 family care advisors participated in the studies. The significant others were husbands, wives, daughters, sons, other relatives and friends to frail older people. The concept ‘frail older people’ was defined as older persons (≥ 75 years old) dependent on long-term health- or social care. The qualitative studies were based on multistage focus-group interviews (study I) and individual interviews (studies II and III). The quantitative study (IV) had a cross-sectional design and was based on a questionnaire specifically developed for the current study. Different methods to analyse data were used; hermeneutics (study I), content analysis (study II), a case study with thematic analysis (study III) and descriptive statistics (study IV). Findings from the four studies show that existential loneliness emerges when: 1) Longing for, but also striving for, a deeper feeling of connectedness, 2) Being in, but also enduring, an unwanted separation, and 3) Not finding, but still trying to recreate meaning. This thesis also shows that existential loneliness is often experienced in so-called limit situations in life and arises in difficult choices related to close relationships, in connection with experiences of meaninglessness and in the absence of connection to something or someone. The results show that existential loneliness emerges in the process of balancing between what was and what is to come in the unknown future. Significant others navigate themselves, and sometimes together with the older person, through an unfamiliar existence that makes them feel ambivalent about the de-cisions they have previously made and the decisions they need to make in the future, while also doubting the meaning in their current situation. Existential support should mainly focus on transition phases and on relational aspects. Person-centredness can be a way to make the existential needs of significant others and older people visible and to provide support based on their needs.
|
|
| 4. |
- Larsson, Helena, et al.
(författare)
-
Older persons’ existential loneliness, as interpreted by their significant others - an interview study study
- 2017
-
Ingår i: BMC Geriatrics. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-2318. ; 17:138
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: In order to better understand people in demanding medical situations, an awareness of existential concerns is important. Studies performed over the last twenty years conclude that when dying and death come closer, as in the case with older people who are stricken by infirmity and diseases, existential concerns will come to the fore. However, studies concerning experiences of existential loneliness (EL) are sparse and, in addition, there is no clear definition of EL. EL is described as a complex phenomenon and referred to as a condition of life, an experience, and a process of inner growth. Listening to someone who knows the older person well, as significant others often do, may be one way of learning more about EL. Methods: This study is part of a larger research project on EL, the LONE study, where EL is explored through interviews with frail older people, their significant others and health care professionals. The aim of this study was to explore frail older (>75) persons’ EL, as interpreted by their significant others. The study is qualitative and based on eighteen narrative interviews with nineteen significant others of older persons. The data was analysed using Hsieh and Shannon’s conventional content analysis. Results: According to the interpretation of significant others, the older persons experience EL (1) when they are increasingly limited in body and space, (2) when they are in a process of disconnecting, and (3) when they are disconnected from the outside world. Conclusion: The result can be understood as if the frail older person is in a process of letting go of life. This process involves the body, in that the older person is increasingly limited in his/her physical abilities. The older person’s long-term relationships are gradually lost, and finally the process entails the older person’s increasingly withdrawing into him- or herself and turning off the outside world. The result of this study is consistent with previous research that has shown that EL is a complex phenomenon, but the implications of this research include a deepened understanding of EL. In addition, the study highlights the interpretations of significant others.
|
|
| 5. |
- Larsson, Helena, et al.
(författare)
-
Spouses' existential loneliness when caring for a frail partner late in life : a hermeneutical approach.
- 2020
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being. - : Taylor and Francis Ltd.. - 1748-2623 .- 1748-2631. ; 15:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Spouses are in a vulnerable situation when caring for a frail partner late in life. Exploring their existential loneliness can be a way to understand more about their existential needs.Method: A hermeneutic approach was used. Multistage focus group interviews were conducted with two groups consisting of five spouses, respectively, who met three times each. To work with the text, an approach was adapted where quotations are converted into poems in a linguistic manner.Results: Existential loneliness can be understood as the following: 1) being in a transition from us to merely me, 2) being forced to make decisions and feeling excluded, 3) navigating in an unfamiliar situation and questioning oneself, and 4) longing for togetherness but lacking the energy to encounter other people. The main interpretation is that existential loneliness emerges when one is in moments of inner struggle, when one is forced to make impossible choices, when one is approaching and is in limit situations, and when one is experiencing the endless loss of the other.Conclusion: For health care professionals to achieve a holistic picture, person-centeredness can be a way to make the spouses' existential needs visible and to provide support based on their needs.
|
|
| 6. |
- Larsson, Helena, et al.
(författare)
-
Swedish family care advisors’ views on existential loneliness and existential support to informal caregivers of older people : A cross-sectional national survey
- 2021
-
Ingår i: Nordic journal of nursing research. - : SAGE Publications Ltd. - 2057-1585 .- 2057-1593. ; 42:2, s. 93-100
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The number of older people needing care is increasing, and care is often provided by informal caregivers. The mission of family care advisors (FCAs) is to provide them with support; however, whether and how support in existential matters such as existential loneliness is provided is unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to describe FCAs’ views on existential loneliness, and existential support provided to relatives who act as informal caregivers to older people. A national survey was distributed to 349 FCAs in Sweden, response rate n = 120 (36%). The STROBE checklist was followed when presenting the study. Existential loneliness was viewed as thoughts about life and meaning (78%). Existential support was provided by dialogues (87%), visits (75%) and support groups (73%); 45% of FCAs stated that they had time to provide existential support and 27% reported having knowledge of how to encounter existential loneliness. FCAs provide existential support, but often lack experience, knowledge and time. Time and knowledge are important prerequisites for acknowledging existential needs.
|
|
| 7. |
- Robledo-Sierra, J., et al.
(författare)
-
A mechanistic linkage between oral lichen planus and autoimmune thyroid disease
- 2018
-
Ingår i: Oral Diseases. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 1354-523X .- 1601-0825. ; 24:6, s. 1001-1011
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ObjectiveTo determine the levels of antithyroid antibodies and thyroid hormones in the sera of patients with oral lichen planus (OLP), and to quantify the expression of thyroid proteins in OLP lesions. Subjects and MethodsVenous blood samples were drawn from 110 patients with OLP who had no history of thyroid disease or levothyroxine supplementation (OLP+/LT4-). A random population sample of 657 healthy subjects was used as the control group. Two additional groups were used as comparators. Immunohistochemical and qPCR analyses were performed on tissue specimens collected from the patients with OLP and thyroid disease and healthy subjects. ResultsNo association was found between the presence of antithyroid antibodies and OLP. More patients in the OLP+/LT4- group showed high levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone and low levels of free thyroxine than were seen in the control group. Thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor was more highly expressed in the OLP lesions of patients with thyroid disease than in the healthy oral mucosa. ConclusionsA significant number of patients with OLP who are not previously diagnosed with thyroid disease have thyroid parameters that are compatible with hypothyroidism. The expression of thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor in OLP lesions suggests that mechanisms related to autoimmune thyroid disease are involved in the aetiology of OLP.
|
|
