| 1. |
- Alme, Tomas Nordheim, et al.
(författare)
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Chronic fatigue syndromes: real illnesses that people can recover from
- 2023
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care. - : TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD. - 0281-3432 .- 1502-7724. ; 41:4, s. 372-376
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Oslo Chronic Fatigue Consortium consists of researchers and clinicians who question the current narrative that chronic fatigue syndromes, including post-covid conditions, are incurable diseases. Instead, we propose an alternative view, based on research, which offers more hope to patients. Whilst we regard the symptoms of these conditions as real, we propose that they are more likely to reflect the brains response to a range of biological, psychological, and social factors, rather than a specific disease process. Possible causes include persistent activation of the neurobiological stress response, accompanied by associated changes in immunological, hormonal, cognitive and behavioural domains. We further propose that the symptoms are more likely to persist if they are perceived as threatening, and all activities that are perceived to worsen them are avoided. We also question the idea that the best way to cope with the illness is by prolonged rest, social isolation, and sensory deprivation.Instead, we propose that recovery is often possible if patients are helped to adopt a less threatening understanding of their symptoms and are supported in a gradual return to normal activities. Finally, we call for a much more open and constructive dialogue about these conditions. This dialogue should include a wider range of views, including those of patients who have recovered from them.
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| 2. |
- Andreasson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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A global measure of sickness behaviour : Development of the Sickness Questionnaire
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Health Psychology. - : SAGE Publications. - 1359-1053 .- 1461-7277. ; 23:11, s. 1452-1463
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Symptoms after inflammatory activation, so-called sickness behaviour, overlap with trans-diagnostic complaints. As no self-report questionnaire to assess sickness behaviour exists, we aimed to develop such an instrument, the Sickness Questionnaire. Items responsive to experimentally induced inflammatory activation (randomized double-blind study endotoxin (0.6 ng/kg) versus placebo, n = 52) were selected and the statistical properties were examined in 172 primary care patients. A principal component analysis indicated a one-factor solution (Cronbach's alpha = .86). This 10-item scale correlated with depression ( β = .41, p < .001), anxiety ( β = .36, p < .001), self-rated health ( β = .28, p < .001) and a single item of feeling sick ( β = .55, p < .001). The results support the adequacy of Sickness Questionnaire as a brief assessment instrument of perceived sickness behaviour.
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| 3. |
- Andreasson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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A putative role for cytokines in the impaired appetite in depression
- 2007
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Ingår i: Brain Behavior and Immunity. - : Elsevier BV. - 1090-2139 .- 0889-1591. ; 21:2, s. 147-152
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Impaired appetite and weight changes are commonly seen in patients with depression, but the pathophysiology behind this imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure remains largely unknown. The aim of this paper is to review the literature regarding a possible role for cytokines in the regulation of appetite and body weight, with special emphasis on depression. There now exists a substantial amount of evidence that depressed patients show signs of immune activation including increased levels of proinflammatory cytokines. Cytokines, which by themselves have anorectic properties, stimulate the release of the cytokine-like anorexogenic peptide leptin. In addition to their anorectic properties, both proinflammatory cytokines and leptin interact with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the immune system. In turn, these systems regulate energy balance as well as they are dysfunctional in depression. Furthermore, both proinflammatory cytokines and leptin can induce anhedonia, one of the cardinal symptoms of depression. In view of the different effects on appetite and/or body weight observed in melancholic versus atypical depression, we suggest that cytokines are differentially altered in these subtypes of depression, and that this may explain some of the inconsistency in the reported findings of cytokine as well as leptin levels in depressed patients. Finally, we propose that the immune system uses the interoceptive pathway projecting to the insular cortex, a brain region where cytokine-induced changes in appetite could be partly mediated, and that this pathway is activated in depression. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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| 4. |
- Andreasson, Anna, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
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Assessing sickness behavior in the French : Validation of the French translation of the sickness questionnaire (SicknessQ) in a non-clinical French population
- 2023
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Ingår i: Brain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health. - 2666-3546. ; 34
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Sickness Questionnaire (SicknessQ) is a questionnaire developed to assess symptoms of sickness behavior, including somatic, behavioral, and affective dimensions. To promote cross-cultural assessments of sickness behavior, we aim to expand the use of this questionnaire to other populations and languages. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the French translation of SicknessQ in a French-speaking general population during the COVID-19 pandemic. One hundred and thirty-nine individuals completed the SicknessQ online, along with the construct criteria measures of self-rated health, state anxiety (STAI-S), and depressive symptoms (PHQ-9). The principal component analyses revealed two components: the first component included seven items concerning mood, motivation and experiences of fatigue and pain; the second component included three items concerning somatic sickness symptoms. Higher scores on the total scale and the two component subscales were associated with poorer self-rated health and higher STAI-S and PHQ-9 scores. Since the associations with construct criteria variables were relatively similar between the single- and the two-dimensional solutions, both the total scale and the subscales of the two components of the French SicknessQ can be used in future studies to measure sickness behavior in French-speaking populations.
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| 5. |
- Andreasson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Brief report : Contemplate your symptoms and re-evaluate your health. A study on working adults
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of Health Psychology. - : SAGE Publications. - 1359-1053 .- 1461-7277. ; 24:11, s. 1562-1567
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigated whether self-ratings of health are affected by a symptom rating. A diary including a one-item self-rating of health ("pre-self-rated health"; 1 = excellent, 7 = very poor), a subsequent 26-item rating of symptoms, and thereafter a second (identical) health rating ("post-self-rated health") was completed by 820 persons 21 times. Self-rated health worsened significantly ( p < .0001) after the symptom rating, from 2.72 pre-self-rated health (95% confidence interval: 2.70-2.74) to 2.77 post-self-rated health (95% confidence interval: 2.75-2.79) and more so in persons who reported more symptoms ( b = .058, p < .05). The results support the notion that subjective health perception is influenced by attending to symptoms, especially so in persons with a high symptom burden.
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| 6. |
- Andreasson, Anna N., et al.
(författare)
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Contemplate your symptoms and re-evaluate your health
- 2015
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Ingår i: Brain, behavior, and immunity. - : Elsevier BV. - 0889-1591 .- 1090-2139. ; 49, s. e38-e39
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Bodily signals and how these are interpreted affect self-ratings of health. It is thus reasonable that appraisals of health are affected by imminent exposures and disease primes. We aimed to investigate whether self-ratings of health are affected by a symptom rating and if changes are substantiated in persons who report more symptoms. We used data from 813 persons who completed a questionnaire daily for 21 consecutive days. The questionnaire included a one-item self-rating of health (“pre-SRH”; 1 = excellent, 7 = very poor), a subsequent 26-item rating of physical and mental symptoms and thereafter a second (identical) self-rating of health (“post-SRH”). Paired t-tests were used to test for differences between pre-SRH and post-SRH. Mixed effect regression models were used to calculate the interaction effect of pre-SRH and symptom score on post-SRH adjusted for gender, age and if the person had been working that day (13545 observations). SRH worsened significantly (p <<.0001) after the symptom rating, from 2.72 pre-SRH (95%CI:−2.70–2.74) to 2.77 post-SRH (95%CI:2.75–2.79). There was a significant interaction between pre-SRH and symptoms on post-SRH so that persons who reported more symptoms changed their post-SRH rating to a higher degree than those who reported fewer symptoms, irrespective of their subjective health status. The results support the notion that subjective health perception is affected by focus of attention, and that the effect depends on level of symptoms.
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| 7. |
- Andreasson, Anna N., et al.
(författare)
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Development and preliminary validation of the Sickness Questionnaire (SicknessQ)
- 2013
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Ingår i: Brain, behavior, and immunity. - : Elsevier BV. - 0889-1591 .- 1090-2139. ; 32
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The lack of questionnaires to measure subjective feelings of being sick made us develope the Sickness Questionnaire (SicknessQ) for assessment of sickness behavior in people. The objective of the present investigation was to test its internal consistency, criteria validity, and sensitivity to capture the sickness response in an experimental setting. An initial pool of items was developed based on previous research. The statistical properties of SicknessQ was assessed in 172 men and women primary care patients with acute complaints and involved three steps: (1) principal component analyses to reduce the number of items and to identify latent factor structures, (2) tests of internal consistencies of subscales, and (3) hierarchical regression analyses to test criteria validity of the subscales. Subsequently, sensitivity to change was tested in a placebo controlled experiment in which 31 blinded healthy men and women were injected with endotoxin (LPS) to provoke sickness behavior. Principal components analysis suggested a 3-factor solution with a total of 11 items measuring fatigue (5 items), pain (4 items) and emotion (2 items). The total scale as well as each of the three separate factors were significantly changed 90 min after endotoxin injection as compared to baseline (p’s < .01). In all, the new 11-item SicknessQ is highly sensitive to a mild systemic inflammation. Further studies are planned to test its usefulness and prognostic value in clinical settings.
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| 8. |
- Andreasson, Anna Nixon, et al.
(författare)
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Inflammation and positive affect are associated with subjective health in women of the general population
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Health Psychology. - : SAGE Publications. - 1359-1053 .- 1461-7277. ; 18:3, s. 311-320
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Poor subjective health has been associated with higher levels of inflammatory cytokines. We investigated whether such an association would apply to women of the general population. Levels of cytokines, affect and subjective health were assessed in 347 women of the general population aged 45 to 90 years. Higher levels of interleukin-6 were associated with poor subjective health, especially in participants over 65 years of age. Positive affect was a more robust determinant of subjective health than negative affect. The presence of low-grade inflammation and absence of positive affect, rather than presence of negative affect, may be important determinants of subjective health.
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| 9. |
- Andreasson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Properties of the Sickness Questionnaire in an Australian sample with chronic medically unexplained symptoms
- 2020
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Ingår i: Brain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health. - : Elsevier BV. - 2666-3546. ; 3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sickness behavior including malaise, fatigue and increased pain sensitivity is thought to be adaptive and facilitate recovery from disease. However, it may also reduce functioning and health if symptoms persists, which is why validated instruments for its assessment are needed. We evaluated the English translation of the Sickness Questionnaire (SicknessQ) in an Australian population of 156 participants with high level of persistent musculoskeletal pain and/or gastrointestinal symptoms without an organic explanation. The SicknessQ total score had an adequate model fit and no other models were found to fit data better. The SicknessQ correlated most strongly with fatigue, stress, anxiety and depression, which explained 62% of the variance in SicknessQ, but not with physical functioning. The mean score (8.9; 95 %CI: 8.0–9.8) was in between those previously reported in a general population sample and in primary care patients. In conclusion, the evaluation of the English version of the SicknessQ in an Australian sample with significant, chronic unexplained medical symptoms supports the use of the English version of the total SicknessQ score as an overall measure of sickness behavior.
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| 10. |
- Andreasson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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The effect of a transient immune activation on subjective health perception in two placebo controlled randomised experiments
- 2019
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 14:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Patient-reported outcomes predict mortality and play increasingly important roles in care, but factors that modify central measures such as health ratings have been little investigated. Building on designated immune-to-brain pathways, we aimed to determine how a short-term induced inflammation response impacts self-reported health status. Methods Lipopolysaccharide injections were used to provoke acute systemic inflammatory responses in healthy men and women and were compared to placebo in two double-blind randomized experiments. In Experiment 1, 8 individuals (mean 24 years; SD = 3.7) received lipopolysaccharide 0.8 ng/kg once and placebo once in a cross-over design, and in Experiment 2, 52 individuals received either lipopolysaccharide 0.6 ng/kg or placebo once (28.6 years; SD = 7.1). Main outcomes were perceived health (general and current), sickness behaviour (like fatigue, pain and negative affect), and plasma interleukin-6, interleukin-8 and tumour necrosis factor-alpha, before and after injection. Results Compared to placebo, lipopolysaccharide lead to a deterioration in both self-rated general (Experiment 1, b = 1.88 for 0.8 ng/kg) and current health (Experiment 1 b = -3.00; and Experiment 2 b = -1.79) 1.5h after injection (p's<0.01), effects that remained after 4.5 to 5 hours (p's<0.05). The effect on current health in Experiment 2 was mediated by increased inflammation and sickness behaviour in response to lipopolysaccharide injection (beta = -0.28, p = 0.01). Conclusion Health is drastically re-evaluated during inflammatory activation. The findings are consistent with notions that inflammation forms part of health-relevant interoceptive computations of bodily state, and hint at one mechanism as to why subjective health predicts longevity.
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