| 1. |
- Nord, Magnus, 1967-
(författare)
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Proactive Primary Care for Older Adults at High Risk of Hospital Admission
- 2022
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Demographic change is leading to a higher proportion of older adults in most parts of the world. A minority of older adults have poor health, but this group has high care needs due to frailty and/or multimorbidity. Guidelines for the management of frailty emphasise early detection of frailty and recommend comprehensive care approaches in primary care, but the evidence for these interventions is low. To provide effective and individualised care, the health system needs to identify these patients and develop proactive interventions to improve quality of life and avoid treatments that are of no benefit to the individual. The aim of this thesis was to study the effects of a proactive primary care working model in which vulnerable older adults were identified and received individually tailored care, using an adaptation of comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA). Methods: A pragmatic controlled trial was conducted in 19 primary care practices in Sweden from 2017 to 2020. A predictive model, using electronic medical records to assess the risk of hospital admission, selected participants at high risk. Participants in the intervention practices were offered a comprehensive geriatric assessment in their primary care practice and subsequent follow-up by a team consisting of a nurse and the patient's doctor. A new CGA tool - PASTEL (Primary care ASsessment Tool for Elders) was used for assessment and care planning. The primary outcome for the intervention was hospital care days and secondary outcomes were hospital care episodes, mortality, outpatient visits, healthcare costs and cost-effectiveness. The outcomes were adjusted for age, sex and risk score and ana-lysed according to intention-to-treat. The predictive model was validated, and performance was assessed using the C-statistic. Focus group interviews were conducted to explore primary care nurses' and doctors' experiences with the new tool PASTEL. Results: 1304 older adults were included in the trial. The mean age was 82.2 years, 51% were female. During the follow-up period of 24 months, the relative risk reduction of hospital care days in the intervention group was - 22% (CI 95% = -35% to - 4%, p = 0.02) compared with usual care. There was no significant difference in mortality and outpatient visits. The reduction in healthcare costs was - € 4324 (- € 7962 to - € 686, p = 0.02). The intervention was cost-effective compared with usual care, mainly due to lower costs.The predictive model had an AUC of 0.69 (CI 0.68- 0.70). Primary care staff considered PASTEL valuable and feasible in the primary care context.In conclusion, the results of this thesis indicate that vulnerable older adults at risk of hospitalisation can be identified by a predictive model. Proactive intervention with a comprehensive geriatric assessment adapted to pri-mary care can reduce the need for hospital care. Future studies in similar contexts are needed to determine whether these results are generalisable.
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| 2. |
- Segernäs Kvitting, Anna, 1977-
(författare)
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Dementia diagnostics in primary care : with a focus on cognitive testing
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- BackgroundAge is the greatest risk factor for developing dementia and the total number of people aged 60 years and above is expected to more than double globally from 2013 to 2050 (1). Primary health care (PHC) is important for basic diagnostic evaluations. Objective test measurements have been shown to be more reliable than a patient's subjective memory complaints in dementia assessments (2). However, several studies indicate the low use of objective cognitive screening tools in dementia diagnostics in PHC (3). Some general practitioners (GPs) do not perceive today’s cognitive instruments as helpful in the diagnostic process and administration problems have been reported in PHC (4, 5).The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate the accuracy of several cognitive tests used in dementia assessments in PHC, especially among older patients: A Quick Test of Cognitive Speed (AQT), Cognistat and Cognitive Assessment Battery (CAB). The normative values of the Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE) in the oldest old was also studied.MethodsThe studies included in this thesis are from two different study populations.Studies I, II and IV. Patients with and without cognitive symptoms were recruited from four primary health care centres in Sweden between 2007 and 2009.Study III. The Elderly in Linköping Screening Assessment (ELSA 85) cohort-population examined people born in 1922 in the municipality of Linköping, Sweden.ResultsStudy I. Results showed that AQT is a usable test for dementia diagnosis in PHC. Sensitivity for AQT is superior to the Clock Drawing Test (CDT), equivalent to MMSE and the combination MMSE and CDT. The AUC for AQT was 0.773, valued good enough.Study II. Overall, the results for Cognistat in this study are superior to MMSE and CDT, also in combination. Cognistat is promising for improved dementia diagnosis in PHC with a quick and easily administered multi-domain test for dementia assessments.Study III. This study presents valuable information about normative MMSE data for the oldest patients. Results, suggest using the 25th percentile in MMSE of 25 to 26 points, and indicate that MMSE 26 is as a reasonable cut-off for cognitive decline and further medical evaluation in older persons aged from 85 to 93 years.Study IV. In summary, the additive value of the CAB test in dementia investigations in PHC is not obvious. In addition to questionable accuracy, the test is quite time consuming and normative values are scarce. By introducing the numerical sum (CABsum) the accuracy was increased.ConclusionIn conclusion, objective cognitive tests are an important part of dementia diagnosis in PHC and there is a need for improved instruments and norm-values. From our results, several cognitive quick tests are usable in PHC - MMSE, AQT and Cognistat - but they have some disadvantages. MMSE 26 is a reasonable cut-off for cognitive decline in the oldest patients 85 to 93 years from a well-educated population with quite good socioeconomic. There is a great interest in finding short and better multi-domain instruments but the additive value of CAB in dementia investigations in PHC is questionable.
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| 3. |
- Ludvigsson, Mikael, 1976-
(författare)
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Subsyndromal depression hos äldre äldre personer
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Bakgrund: Subsyndromal depression (SSD) eller subklinisk depression är ett vanligt affektivt tillstånd som kan beskrivas som depressivitet under gränsen för vad som kallas syndromal eller egentlig depressiv episod. Förekomsten av SSD har rapporterats vara ungefär 10 % i populationen, eller ungefär 2-3 gånger högre än förekomsten av syndromal depression. SSD jämfört med icke-depression (ND) är associerat med en lägre aktivitetsförmåga (ADL, Activities of Daily Living), lägre kognitiv funktion, lägre subjektiv hälsa, sämre psykiska utfall och en högre dödlighet. Emellertid har flertalet studier om SSD hos äldre gjorts i åldersgruppen yngre äldre (60-80 års ålder), medan få studier har undersökt SSD hos äldre äldre personer (80+ års ålder). Eftersom många aspekter (t ex multisjukdom, skörhet, funktionsförmågor och socialt beroende) generellt förändras mellan yngre äldre och äldre äldre åldrar, så finns det ett behov av ökad kunskap om SSD hos äldre äldre. Syftet med denna avhandling var att beskriva SSD, eller det komplexa området mellan syndromal depression och normalt åldrande, hos äldre äldre personer.Metod: studie 1 baserades på kvalitativa intervjuer (n=27), medan studier 2-4 till stor del baserades på data från en prospektiv observationsstudie av en kohort, ”Elderly in Linköping Screening Assessment” (ELSA85). ELSA85 hade en populationsbaserad design där man följde personer från 85 års ålder i tre uppföljande mätvågor. Depressivitet mättes med 15- frågeversionen av Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), som också användes för att definiera SSD i studierna.Resultat: Analysen av de kvalitativa intervjuerna (studie 1) resulterade i fyra teman (livet går ned och kroppen sviktar, att klara sig själv, att hänga med, och att ta en dag i taget), vilka tillsammans gav en helhetsbild av SSD i de högsta åldrarna. I en jämförelse mellan SSD, ND och syndromal depression, så skiljde sig SSD kvalitativt från syndromal depression, men däremot inte tydligt från ND. En tvärsnittsanalys av data från baslinjen av studien (studie 2) identifierade associerade faktorer till SSD bland äldre äldre personer, och enligt analysen med multipel logistisk respektive linjär regression så var det fyra domäner (sociodemografiska faktorer, sviktande fysisk funktion, neuropsykiatriska faktorer och existentiella faktorer) som var signifikant associerade med SSD.I en fem års longitudinell uppföljning (studie 3) visades att direkta hälso- och sjukvårdskostnader per överlevnadsmånad och person var förhöjd hos personer med SSD jämfört med ND med ett storleksförhållande 1.45 (€634 vs €436), vilket var en signifikant skillnad även när man kontrollerade för somatisk multisjukdom. I en åtta års longitudinell uppföljning visades att dödligheten var förhöjd (dödsintensitet eller Hazard ratio (HR))=1.33) för personer med SSD jämfört med ND, liksom sjuklighet avseende personlig ADL (P-ADL), instrumentell ADL (IADL), ensamhet, subjektiv hälsa, och depressivitet. Däremot var inte kognitiv snabbhet, exekutiva funktioner eller global kognitiv funktion signifikant försämrade när man hade kontrollerat för relevanta variabler.Slutsatser: SSD hos äldre äldre personer ser olika ut hos olika personer, och personal i hälso- och sjukvården bör vara uppmärksamma på även andra depressiva tecken förutom de klassiska symtomen i diagnosregistren. SSD hos äldre äldre är associerat med förhöjda sjukvårdskostnader, förhöjd sjuklighet och dödlighet. Med tanke på den höga förekomsten av SSD och den demografiska utvecklingen med ökande antal äldre äldre personer i samhället, så indikerar fynden behovet av att utveckla kliniska och samhälleliga strategier för att förebygga SSD och associerade negativa utfall.
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| 4. |
- Ludvigsson, Mikael, 1976-
(författare)
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Subsyndromal Depression in Very Old Persons
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: Subsyndromal depression (SSD) or subthreshold depression is a common affective condition that can be described as depressiveness below the threshold of what is called a syndromal or a major depressive episode. The point prevalence for SSD has been reported to be about 10% in the community, or about two or three times higher than the prevalence for syndromal depression. In elderly persons, SSD compared to non-depression (ND) is associated with impaired activities of daily living, lower cognitive function, lower self-perceived health, worse psychiatric outcomes and higher mortality. However, most studies on SSD in elderly persons have been done in the young old age group (age 60-80 years), while few studies have investigated SSD in very old persons (age 80+). As many aspects (e.g. multimorbidity, frailty, functional decline and social dependence) change between the young old and the very old ages, there is a need for more knowledge about SSD in the very old. The overall aim of this doctoral thesis was to describe SSD, or the complex area between syndromal depression and normal aging, in very old persons.Method: Paper 1 was based on qualitative interviews (n=27), while papers 2-4 were based largely on data from a prospective observational cohort study “Elderly in Linköping Screening Assessment” (ELSA85), with a population-based design following the participants from the age of 85 in three waves of follow-up. The 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) was used for measuring depressiveness and to define SSD in the studies.Results: The analysis of the qualitative interviews (paper 1) resulted in four themes (life curve and the body go down, to manage on one’s own, to keep up with life, and taking one day at a time), giving a comprehensive picture of SSD in very old age. In a comparison among SSD, ND and syndromal depression, SSD differed qualitatively from syndromal depression, but not clearly from ND. A cross-sectional analysis of data from baseline (paper 2) identified factors associated with SSD in very old persons, and according to analyses with multiple logistic and linear regressions, four domains (sociodemographic factors, declining physical functioning, neuropsychiatric factors, and existential factors) were significantly associated with SSD.A five-year longitudinal follow-up (paper 3) showed that direct healthcare costs per month of survival for persons with SSD exceeded those of persons with ND by a ratio of 1.45 (€634 vs €436), a difference that was significant even after controlling for somatic multimorbidity.An eight-year longitudinal follow-up (paper 4) showed that mortality was elevated (hazard ratio=1.33) for persons with SSD compared to ND, as were morbidity regarding basic ADL, IADL, loneliness, self-perceived health and depressiveness, whereas cognitive speed, executive functions and global cognitive function were not significantly impaired when adjusting for covariates.Conclusion: SSD in very old persons has a different presentation in different persons, and healthcare personnel should be attentive to other depressive signs beside the classical ones in the diagnostic classification registries. SSD in the very old is associated with elevated direct healthcare costs, morbidity and mortality. Considering the high prevalence of SSD and the demographic development of increasing numbers of very old people, the findings highlight the need to develop clinical and societal strategies to prevent SSD and associated negative outcomes.
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