| 1. |
- Philipson, Anna, 1978-
(författare)
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Health economic aspects of emotional problems and pain symptoms in childhood and adolescence : Long-term outcomes, efficacy and cost-effectiveness of interventions
- 2022
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Emotional problems and pain symptoms among children and adolescents are a global public health challenge that imposes a great burden on the individuals affected and on society. Because resources are limited, allocation and prioritization are needed. Health economic analysis can constitute a foundation for such decisions.The overall aim of this thesis is to estimate long-term outcomes associated with adolescent depression and to evaluate interventions for emotional problems and pain symptoms in childhood and adolescence from a health economic perspective. The thesis is based on four papers: paper I is a longitudinal cohort study of 539 participants, showing that adolescent depression is associated with reduced earnings in adulthood, papers II, III, and IV are based on two randomized controlled trials of interventions. In paper II, a dance intervention for 112 adolescent females with internalizing symptoms were evaluated. A cost–utility analysis was performed, indicating that the intervention was costeffective given a willingness-to-pay threshold of USD 50,000 with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of USD 3830/quality-adjusted life year. Papers III and IV evaluated a dance and yoga intervention for 121 girls, 9–13 years old, with functional abdominal pain disorders. Paper III showed that the intervention group decreased their abdominal pain more than did the control group. In paper IV, the cost–utility analysis of the trial indicated a negative incremental cost-effectiveness ratio, investigated from a societal perspective, over both one and ten years.In conclusion, this thesis identifies a need for preventive as well as treatment interventions for emotional problems in adolescence, to decrease the prevalence of emotional problems and mitigate negative outcomes. Dance or dance and yoga combined can be effective and cost-effective early treatment interventions for emotional problems and pain symptoms among females in childhood and adolescence. These findings may assist decision-makers in resource allocation within this area
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| 2. |
- Ahlgren, Erika, et al.
(författare)
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Association between Plasma Homocysteine Levels and Neuronal Injury in HIV Infection
- 2016
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Ingår i: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 11:7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective To investigate the role of homocysteine in neuronal injury in HIV infection. Methods Using a cross-sectional design and archived samples, we compared concentrations of plasma homocysteine and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) neurofilament light protein (NFL), a sensitive marker of neuronal injury, in 83 HIV-1-infected subjects without antiretroviral treatment. We also analyzed plasma vitamin B12, serum folate, CSF, and plasma HIV RNA, the immune activation marker neopterin in CSF and serum, and albumin ratio as a marker of blood-brain barrier integrity. Twenty-two subjects provided a second sample median of 12.5 months after antiretroviral treatment initiation. Results A significant correlation was found between plasma homocysteine and CSF NFL concentrations in untreated individuals (r = 0.52, p < 0.0001). As expected, there was a significant inverse correlation between homocysteine and B12 (r = -0.41, p < 0.001) and folate (r = -0.40, p = < 0.001) levels. In a multiple linear regression analysis homocysteine stood out as an independent predictor of CSF NFL in HIV-1-infected individuals. The correlation of plasma homocysteine and CSF NFL was also present in the group receiving antiretroviral therapy (r = 0.51, p = 0.016). Conclusion A correlation between plasma homocysteine and axonal injury, as measured by CSF NFL, was found in both untreated and treated HIV. While this study is not able to prove a causal link, homocysteine and functional B12/folate deficiency appear to play a role in neural injury in HIV-infected individuals.
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| 3. |
- Alaie, Iman, et al.
(författare)
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Adolescent depression, early psychiatric comorbidities, and adulthood welfare burden : a 25-year longitudinal cohort study
- 2021
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Ingår i: Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. - : Springer. - 0933-7954 .- 1433-9285. ; 56:11, s. 1993-2004
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PURPOSE: Depression at all ages is recognized as a global public health concern, but less is known about the welfare burden following early-life depression. This study aimed to (1) estimate the magnitude of associations between depression in adolescence and social transfer payments in adulthood; and (2) address the impact of major comorbid psychopathology on these associations.METHODS: This is a longitudinal cohort study of 539 participants assessed at age 16-17 using structured diagnostic interviews. An ongoing 25-year follow-up linked the cohort (n = 321 depressed; n = 218 nondepressed) to nationwide population-based registries. Outcomes included consecutive annual data on social transfer payments due to unemployment, work disability, and public assistance, spanning from age 18 to 40. Parameter estimations used the generalized estimating equations approach.RESULTS: Adolescent depression was associated with all forms of social transfer payments. The estimated overall payment per person and year was 938 USD (95% CI 551-1326) over and above the amount received by nondepressed controls. Persistent depressive disorder was associated with higher recipiency across all outcomes, whereas the pattern of findings was less clear for subthreshold and episodic major depression. Moreover, depressed adolescents presenting with comorbid anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders evidenced particularly high recipiency, exceeding the nondepressed controls with an estimated 1753 USD (95% CI 887-2620).CONCLUSION: Adolescent depression is associated with considerable public expenditures across early-to-middle adulthood, especially for those exposed to chronic/persistent depression and psychiatric comorbidities. This finding suggests that the clinical heterogeneity of early-life depression needs to be considered from a longer-term societal perspective.
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| 4. |
- Alaie, Iman, et al.
(författare)
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Uppsala Longitudinal Adolescent Depression Study (ULADS)
- 2019
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Ingår i: BMJ Open. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 2044-6055. ; 9:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: To present the Uppsala Longitudinal Adolescent Depression Study, initiated in Uppsala, Sweden, in the early 1990s. The initial aim of this epidemiological investigation was to study the prevalence, characteristics and correlates of adolescent depression, and has subsequently expanded to include a broad range of social, economic and health-related long-term outcomes and cost-of-illness analyses.Participants: The source population was first-year students (aged 16-17) in upper-secondary schools in Uppsala during 1991-1992, of which 2300 (93%) were screened for depression. Adolescents with positive screening and sex/age-matched peers were invited to a comprehensive assessment. A total of 631 adolescents (78% females) completed this assessment, and 409 subsequently completed a 15year follow-up assessment. At both occasions, extensive information was collected on mental disorders, personality and psychosocial situation. Detailed social, economic and health-related data from 1993 onwards have recently been obtained from the Swedish national registries for 576 of the original participants and an age-matched reference population (N=200 000).Findings to date: The adolescent lifetime prevalence of a major depressive episode was estimated to be 11.4%. Recurrence in young adulthood was reported by the majority, with a particularly poor prognosis for those with a persistent depressive disorder or multiple somatic symptoms. Adolescent depression was also associated with an increased risk of other adversities in adulthood, including additional mental health conditions, low educational attainment and problems related to intimate relationships.Future plans: Longitudinal studies of adolescent depression are rare and must be responsibly managed and utilised. We therefore intend to follow the cohort continuously by means of registries. Currently, the participants are approaching mid-adulthood. At this stage, we are focusing on the overall long-term burden of adolescent depression. For this purpose, the research group has incorporated expertise in health economics. We would also welcome extended collaboration with researchers managing similar datasets.
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| 5. |
- Hagberg, Lars, 1956-
(författare)
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Cost-effectiveness of the promotion of physical activity in health care
- 2007
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Introduction Physical inactivity is a major cause of reduced quality of life, as well as many common diseases and even premature death. Most people, globally, are scarcely or rarely physically active. Consequently, physical inactivity influences the burden of disease, and increases its societal costs. In view of this, it is necessary to ask how health care should respond when the population and the patients are either inactive or rarely physically active. Cost-effectiveness analyses of the promotion of physical activity in health care can contribute substantially to health care policy. Aims The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate the cost-effectiveness of physical activity promotion in the health care system. The specific aims were: (I) to provide a model for analyzing cost-effectiveness and equity in health for community-promoted physical activity, (II) to review current knowledge about the cost-effectiveness of health care based interventions aimed at improving physical activity, (III) to evaluate the cost effectiveness of physical activity promotion as a treatment method in primary health care, (IV) to illustrate the importance of enjoyment of exercise in interventions aimed at promoting physical activity, and (V) to describe a method of valuing the time spent on exercise. Methods Standard methods for economic evaluation were studied and adapted to create a model for the evaluation of physical activity promotion (I). Relevant databases were searched for published articles, and the articles found were analyzed using this economic evaluation model (II). A trial in primary health care was evaluated in a cost-utility analysis based on the model (III). In the same trial, the association between time spent on exercise and enjoyment of exercise was analyzed (IV). A model for valuing the time spent on exercise was developed based on existing approaches to the valuation of time, and used in two different groups of exercisers; experienced and inexperienced (V). Results An economic evaluation model was developed, as was a model to calculate an intervention’s effect on equity in health (I). In total, 26 articles were found regarding the cost-effectiveness of physical activity promotion in health care, and 20 of these described interventions, which the authors considered to be cost-effective (II). The treatment of patients in primary health care by the promotion of physical activity was shown to be cost-effective (III). For the same group of patients, time spent on exercise was associated with enjoyment of exercise (IV). A model for valuing the time spent on exercise was developed and used. Time costs were significantly higher among inexperienced exercisers (V). Conclusions There are many examples of interventions promoting physical activity that may be regarded as cost-effective. In general, it seems to be cost effective to promote physical activity among patients with increased risk, or who manifest poor health associated with physical inactivity. Unfortunately, there is still little evidence of when physical activity should be used, or what the best design of such an intervention might be. Although there is still a need for stronger evidence, the Swedish health care system should use the promotion of physical activity as a standard method among the following patients: • those who manifest increased risk (such as high blood pressure) of ill health due to a physically inactive lifestyle; • frail older people, especially those with increased risk of fall injuries; • those requiring rehabilitation after heart failure.
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| 6. |
- Hagberg, Lars, 1956-, et al.
(författare)
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What is the time cost of exercise? Cost of time spent on exercise in a primary health care intervention to increase physical activity
- 2020
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Ingår i: Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1478-7547. ; 18:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background In health care interventions aimed at increased physical activity, the individual's time spent on exercise is a substantial input. Time costs should therefore be considered in cost-effectiveness analyses. The aim of this study was to estimate the cost of time spent on exercise among 333 primary health care patients with metabolic risk factors receiving physical activity on prescription. Methods Based on a theoretical framework, a yardstick was constructed with experience of work (representing claim of salary as compensation) as the lower anchor-point, and experience of leisure activity forgone due to extended exercise time (no claim) as the higher anchor-point. Using this yardstick experience of exercise can be valued. Another yardstick was constructed with experience of cleaning at home in combination with willingness to pay for cleaning as the lowest anchor-point. Results The estimated costs of exercise time were between 14 and 37% of net wages, with physical activity level being the most important factor in determining the cost. Among sedentary individuals, the time cost was 21-51% of net wages while among individuals performing regular exercise it was 2-10%. When estimating the cost of time spent on exercise in a cost-effectiveness analysis, experience of exercise, work, leisure activity forgone, and cleaning at home (or other household work that may be relevant to purchase) should be measured. The individual's willingness to pay for cleaning at home and their net salary should also be measured. Conclusions When using a single valuation of cost of time spent on exercise in health care interventions, for employed participants 15-30% of net salary should be used. Among unemployed individuals, lower cost estimation should be applied. Better precision in cost estimations can be achieved if participants are stratified by physical activity levels. Trial registration The study was conducted as a survey of existing clinical physical activity on prescription work, and was approved by the Regional Ethical Review Board in Gothenburg, Sweden (ref: 678-14)
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| 7. |
- Kalm, Marie, 1981, et al.
(författare)
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Neurochemical Evidence of Potential Neurotoxicity After Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation.
- 2014
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Ingår i: International journal of radiation oncology, biology, physics. - : Elsevier BV. - 1879-355X .- 0360-3016. ; 89:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To examine whether cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers for neuroaxonal damage, neuroglial activation, and amyloid β-related processes could characterize the neurochemical response to cranial radiation.
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| 8. |
- Krut, Jan Jessen, et al.
(författare)
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Biomarker Evidence of Axonal Injury in Neuroasymptomatic HIV-1 Patients
- 2014
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Ingår i: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 9:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Prevalence of neurocognitive impairment in HIV-1 infected patients is reported to be high. Whether this is a result of active HIV-related neurodegeneration is unclear. We examined axonal injury in HIV-1 patients by measuring the light subunit of neurofilament protein (NFL) in CSF with a novel, sensitive method.With a cross-sectional design, CSF concentrations of neurofilament protein light (NFL) (marker of neuronal injury), neopterin (intrathecal immunoactivation) and CSF/Plasma albumin ratio (blood-brain barrier integrity) were analyzed on CSF from 252 HIV-infected patients, subdivided into untreated neuroasymptomatics (n = 200), HIV-associated dementia (HAD) (n = 14) and on combinations antiretroviral treatment (cART) (n = 85), and healthy controls (n = 204). 46 HIV-infected patients were included in both treated and untreated groups, but sampled at different timepoints. Furthermore, 78 neuroasymptomatic patients were analyzed before and after treatment initiation. While HAD patients had the highest NFL concentrations, elevated CSF NFL was also found in 33% of untreated neuroasymptomatic patients, mainly in those with blood CD4+ cell counts below 250 cells/μL. CSF NFL concentrations in the untreated neuroasymptomatics and treated groups were equivalent to controls 18.5 and 3.9 years older, respectively. Neopterin correlated with NFL levels in untreated groups while the albumin ratio correlated with NFL in both untreated and treated groups. Increased CSF NFL indicates ongoing axonal injury in many neuroasymptomatic patients. Treatment decreases NFL, but treated patients retain higher levels than controls, indicating either continued virus-related injury or an aging-like effect of HIV infection. NFL correlates with neopterin and albumin ratio, suggesting an association between axonal injury, neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier permeability. NFL appears to be a sensitive biomarker of subclinical and clinical brain injury in HIV and warrants further assessment for broader clinical use.
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| 9. |
- Månsdotter, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Towards capability-adjusted life years in public health and social welfare : results from a Swedish survey on ranking capabilities
- 2020
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - San Francisco : Public Library of Science. - 1932-6203. ; 15:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to rank capabilities and suggest a relevant set of capabilities for the Swedish context to inform the development of capability-adjusted life years (CALYs). CALYs is a quality of life measure for policy making based on the capability approach by Amartya Sen.MATERIALS AND METHODS: A Swedish governmental review proposed the following 10 relevant capabilities: time, financial situation, mental/physical health, political resources, knowledge, living environment, occupation, social relations, security, and housing. Researchers in health-related disciplines from 5 universities ranked these capabilities from 1 to 10 (most to least important) in a web-based cross-sectional survey; 115 of 171 responses were eligible.RESULTS: Health, social relations, and financial situation were deemed most important. Stratification by gender, research field, and age group revealed few differences. We found that it was possible to rank capabilities and that health, social relations, and financial situation were ranked highest by a non-representative sample of researchers and doctoral students from health-related disciplines at five Swedish universities.CONCLUSIONS: The revealed ranking is dependent on the metric and must be further explored. The findings support continued development of CALYs for monitoring and evaluating outcomes in public health and social-welfare interventions.
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