| 1. |
- Kristofferzon, Marja-Leena, et al.
(författare)
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Evaluation of a Swedish version of the Watts Sexual Function Questionnaire (WSFQ) in persons with heart disease : A pilot study
- 2010
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Ingår i: European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing. - 1474-5151. ; 9:3, s. 168-174
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: As part of preparation for a Swedish multicentre study, exploring sexual and married life in patients with myocardial infarction and their partners, a Swedish validated instrument was required.Aims: The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of a Swedish version of the Watts Sexual Function Questionnaire (WSFQ) among persons with a heart disease.Methods: A convenience sample of 79 persons (47 men and 32 women) living with a heart disease was recruited from the members of the National Association of Heart and Lung Patients. They completed a Swedish version of the WSFQ on two occasions.Results: Two separate factor analyses each revealed a two-factor structure on both occasions: “Sexual appetite” and “Sexual expectations” with gender-neutral questions and “Sexual sensitiveness” and “Sexual ability” with gender-specific questions. Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from 0.48 to 0.86 and test–retest values for all but one question exceeded 0.70.Conclusions: The Swedish version of the WSFQ showed good validity and stability and acceptable internal homogeneity. Extended evaluations of the questionnaire are recommended.
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| 2. |
- Rask, Mikael, et al.
(författare)
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Validity and reliability of a Swedish version of the Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS) : a pilot study
- 2010
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Ingår i: Canadian journal of cardiovascular nursing. - Ottawa : Canadian Council of Cardiovascular Nurses. - 0843-6096. ; 20:1, s. 16-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: There is a need for a short and easily administered scale, in the Swedish language, for assessing partner relationships in the health care of persons with cardiac disease. PURPOSE: To establish the reliability and validity of the Swedish version of the Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS). DESIGN: The present pilot study has a methodological design. FINDINGS: Content validity has been tested for relevance, clarity and readability. The scale was tested for construct validity with explorative factor analysis. The reliability was tested by internal consistency and test-retest analysis. The result showed a two-factor solution, which does not correspond to the original proposed one-factor solution. The factor analyses revealed two quite distinct factors of RAS, labelled "Relationship built on expectations and satisfaction of needs" and "Relationship built on love and devotion". CONCLUSIONS: The scale has satisfactory psychometric properties in terms of content validity, construct validity, homogeneity and stability in a population of persons with cardiac disease. Wider evaluations of the RAS for other populations and settings are recommended.
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| 3. |
- Mamhidir, Anna-Greta, et al.
(författare)
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Weight increase in patients with dementia, and alteration in meal routines and meal environment after integrity promoting care
- 2007
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Ingår i: JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING. - 0962-1067. ; 16:5, s. 987-996
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AIMS: To follow weight changes in patients with moderate and severe dementia and analyse how these changes related to biological and psychological parameters after staff education and support in integrity promoting care. A further aim was to describe meal environment and routines relative to the intervention. BACKGROUND: Weight loss in patients with dementia and in particular Alzheimer's disease is common. The aetiology appears multifactorial with the meal environment and a decreased independence while eating among the factors. METHOD: Over a three-month intervention period, an integrity-promoting care training programme was conducted with the staff of a long-term ward. Alzheimer's disease patients, 18 from an intervention ward and 15 from a control ward were included and possible effects were evaluated. Weighing was conducted at the start and after completion of the intervention. Weight changes were analysed in relation to psychological and biochemical parameters. In addition, the staff wrote diaries about, for example changes made in the environment and in their work. RESULTS: The most prominent difference observed was weight increases in 13 of 18 patients compared with two of 15 patients in the control ward. No weight changes were related to the type of dementia. The individual weight changes correlated significantly to changes in the intellectual functions. Relationships between weight change, increased motor function and increased appetite were non-significant. There was no significant relationship between weight changes and changes in biochemical parameters. According to the staff, increased contact with the patients and a more pleasant atmosphere resulted when the meal environment and routines were changed. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Weight gain in patients with moderate and severe dementia was achieved by adjusting the meal environment to the individual's needs. Staff education was profitable, as increased competence seemed to promote individually adapted feeding situations. Ensuring good meal situations need to be given high priority.
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| 4. |
- Eriksson, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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Skeletal muscle morphology in power-lifters with and without anabolic steroids
- 2005
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Ingår i: Histochemistry and Cell Biology. - 0948-6143. ; 124:2, s. 167-175
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The morphological appearance of the vastus lateralis (VL) muscle from high-level power-lifters on long-term anabolic steroid supplementation (PAS) and power-lifters never taking anabolic steroids (P) was compared. The effects of long- and short-term supplementation were compared. Enzyme-immunohistochemical investigations were performed to assess muscle fiber type composition, fiber area, number of myonuclei per fiber, internal myonuclei, myonuclear domains and proportion of satellite cells. The PAS group had larger type I, IIA, IIAB and IIC fiber areas (p<0.05). The number of myonuclei/fiber and the proportion of central nuclei were significantly higher in the PAS group (p<0.05). Similar results were seen in the trapezius muscle (T) but additionally, in T the proportion of fibers expressing developmental myosin isoforms was higher in the PAS group compared to the P group. Further, in VL, the PAS group had significantly larger nuclear domains in fibers containing > or = 5 myonuclei. The results of AS on VL morphology in this study were similar to previously reported short-term effects of AS on VL. The initial effects from AS appear to be maintained for several years.
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| 5. |
- Burström, Lage, et al.
(författare)
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Acute effects of vibration on thermal perception thresholds
- 2008
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Ingår i: International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health. - 0340-0131. ; 81:5, s. 603-611
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: This study focuses on the acute effects of vibration and how vibrations influence the measures of the thermal perception thresholds during different vibration magnitudes, frequencies, and durations. METHODS: The fingers of ten healthy subjects, five males and five females, were exposed to vibration under 16 conditions with a combination of different frequency, intensity and exposure time. The vibration frequency was 31.5 and 125 Hz and exposure lasted between 2 and 16 min. The energy-equivalent frequency weighted acceleration, according to ISO 5349-1, for the experimental time of 16 min was 2.5 or 5.0 m/s(2) (r.m.s.), corresponding to a 8-h equivalent acceleration, A(8) of 0.46 and 0.92 m/s(2), respectively. A measure of the thermal perception of cold and warmth was conducted before the different exposures to vibration. Immediately after the vibration exposure the acute effect was measured continuously on the exposed index finger for the first 75 s, followed by 30 s of measures at every minute for a maximum of 10 min. If the subject's thermal thresholds had not recovered, the measures continued for a maximum of 30 min with measurements taken every 5 min. RESULTS: For all experimental conditions and 30 s after exposure, the mean changes of the thresholds compared with the pre-test were found to be 0.05 and -0.67 degrees C for the warmth and cold thresholds, respectively. The effect of the vibration exposure was only significant on the cold threshold and only for the first minute after exposure when the threshold was decreased. The warmth threshold was not significantly affected at all. The frequency and the exposure time of the vibration stimuli had no significant influence on the perception thresholds for the sensation of cold or warmth. Increased equivalent frequency weighted acceleration resulted in a significant decrease of the subjects' cold threshold, not the warmth. The thresholds were unaffected when changes in the vibration magnitude were expressed as the frequency weighted acceleration or the unweighted acceleration. CONCLUSION: When testing for the thermotactile thresholds, exposure to vibration on the day of a test might influence the results. Until further knowledge is obtained the previous praxis of 2 h avoidance of vibration exposure before assessment is recommended.
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| 6. |
- Flodgren, Gerd, et al.
(författare)
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Effects of 30 versus 60 minutes of low-load work on intramuscular lactate, pyruvate, glutamate, prostaglandin E2 and oxygenation in the trapezius muscle of healthy females
- 2006
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Ingår i: European Journal of Applied Physiology. - 1439-6319. ; 97:5, s. 557-565
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of duration of low-load repetitive work on intramuscular lactate, pyruvate, glutamate and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and oxygen saturation in the trapezius muscle. Twenty healthy females were studied during baseline rest, during low-load repetitive work for either 30 (REP 30) or 60 (REP 60) minutes, and 60 minutes recovery. Intramuscular microdialysate (IMMD) samples were obtained, and local muscle tissue oxygenation (StO2 %) assessed with near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Subjects rated their perceived exertion (Borg CR-10 scale) and capillary blood was sampled for lactate analysis. The results showed a significant increase in IMMD lactate in response to both REP 30 and REP 60 (P<0.05 and P<0.01 respectively) and glutamate (P<0.0001), but no progressive increase with increasing work duration. Both IMMD pyruvate and lactate tended to be significantly increased during the recovery period. No corresponding increase in blood-lactate was found. Local muscle StO2 % did not change significantly in response to work and was not correlated to the IMMD lactate concentration. The ratings of perceived exertion increased in response to work, and remained increased after recovery for REP 60.In conclusion, the results of this study show significantly increased IMMD lactate and, glutamate concentrations in the trapezius muscle of healthy females in response to low-load work, but no progressive increase with increased work duration. Further, they do not indicate that the increased IMMD lactate concentration was caused by a locally decreased or insufficient muscle tissue oxygenation.
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| 7. |
- Flodgren, Gerd M, 1961-, et al.
(författare)
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Glutamate and prostaglandin E2 in the trapezius muscle of female subjects with chronic muscle pain and controls determined by microdialysis.
- 2005
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Ingår i: European Journal of Pain. - 1090-3801. ; 9:5, s. 511-515
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Much is still unknown concerning the mechanisms underlying the development of chronic muscle pain. The presence and magnitude of inflammatory substances and neurotransmitters in chronic painful conditions is not clear. The aims of the present study were to determine, with the use of microdialysis, the interstitial concentrations and the equilibration times for PGE(2) and glutamate in the trapezius muscles of nine female subjects with chronic muscle pain, and nine pain-free age-matched controls. A microdialysis probe was implanted in the upper part of the trapezius muscle and perfused with Ringer-acetate solution at a flow rate of 0.3 muL/min. Samples were obtained every 30 min, during a 4-h rest period. At equilibration, the mean concentrations (+/-SE) of PGE(2) were 0.71 (+/-0.11) ng/mL for the pain-group and 0.97 (+/-0.35) ng/mL for the controls. For glutamate the mean concentrations for the pain-group were 66.3 (+/-13.3) mumol/L and 60.6 (+/-22.9) mumol/L for the controls. For the pain group and the control group, respectively, equilibration for PGE(2) was reached at 180 and 150 min, and for glutamate at 150 and 120 min. The present study showed no differences between groups in the concentrations of PGE(2) and glutamate in the trapezius muscle. Further, it revealed that when using the slow-flow method, a period of at least 2.0-2.5 h is needed, after probe insertion, to reach steady state for glutamate and PGE(2).
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| 8. |
- Hassler, Sven, et al.
(författare)
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Cancer in the Sami population of Sweden in relation to lifestyle and genetic factors
- 2008
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Ingår i: European Journal of Epidemiology. - 0393-2990. ; 23:4, s. 273-280
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The reindeer herding Sami of Sweden have low incidences of cancer. The aim of the present study was to investigate the cancer risk in a large cohort of Swedish Sami, containing Sami with different lifestyle and genetic Sami heritage. A cohort of 41,721 Sami identified in official national registers between 1960 and 1997, was divided into two sub-populations - reindeer herding Sami (RS) and non-reindeer herding Sami (NRS). A demographically matched non-Sami reference population (NS) was used as standard when incidence and mortality ratios were calculated. Incidence and mortality data were obtained from the Swedish Cancer and Cause of Death Registers for the period 1961–2003. For Sami men, lower risks were found for cancers of the colon and prostate, and for malignant melanoma and non-Hodkins lymphoma, but higher for stomach cancer. The Sami women showed higher risks for cancers of the stomach and the ovaries, but lower risk for cancer of the bladder. The RS demonstrated lower relative cancer risks compared with the NRS. The lowest relative risk was found among the RS men, while the highest were observed among the NRS women. The RS men who had adopted a more westernized lifestyle showed a similar relative risk for prostate cancer as that of the NS living in the same region. Most of these differences in cancer risks could probably be ascribed to differences in lifestyle. It is concluded that the traditional Sami lifestyle contains elements, e.g. dietary contents and physical activity that may protect them from developing cancer.
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| 9. |
- Moström, Jan Erik, et al.
(författare)
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Concrete examples of abstraction as manifested in students’ transformative experiences
- 2008
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Ingår i: ICER '08 : proceedings of the fourth international workshop on Computing education research. - New York : ACM. - 978-1-60558-216-0 ; s. 125-136
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper examines transformational learning experiences of computing students as a way to better understand threshold concepts in computing. From empirical evidence we found that students often describe transformative experiences as learning situations in which they were led to use various kinds of abstraction, for example modularity, data abstraction, inheritance, polymorphism, reuse, design patterns, and complexity. Some students describe an abstract concept as coming first, and then needing to be made concrete though application; others describe transformations in which they learn the advantages of these abstract concepts from their experience of not using them.Abstraction is certainly of central importance in computer science. It appears, however, from our students’ descriptions of transformative experiences, that abstraction per se is not a threshold, but that particular concepts in which abstraction is paramount exhibit the characteristics of threshold concepts.
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| 10. |
- O'Hara, Sarah, et al.
(författare)
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Household Incomes in Central Asia : The Case of Post-Soviet Kazakhstan
- 2009
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Ingår i: Eurasian geography and economics. - 1538-7216. ; 50:3, s. 327-347
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two European geographers present the findings of a sizeable survey (n = 7,5 15) providing a detailed geographical analysis of household incomes and reliance on personal subsidiary garden plots across Kazakhstan. The authors focus on assessing the extent to which Kazakhstan's rising GDP during the post-Soviet period has coincided with an increase in the general population's personal income and ability to secure adequate food supplies for personal consumption. The fine geographical scale of analysis of the survey data (significantly less coarse than oblast-level data) enabled them to identify regions characterized by "trickle-down" income, largely centered on the country's two main urban centers and areas of resource exploitation. The patterns revealed in the paper have relevance to the debate concerning the uneven distribution of benefits from resource exploitation (notably oil and gas) to Kazakhstan's population.
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