Comorbidity and health-related quality of life in Somali women living in Sweden.

To explore the relationship between low serum vitamin D levels and comorbidity in Somali women, immigrants to Sweden. Cohort study in a Primary Health Care Center and a University Hospital. Somali women skin type V, n = 114, aged 18-56 years, from latitude 0-10 N, living in Sweden, latitude 57 N > 2 years were compared with women from a population sample, skin type II-III, n = 69, aged 38-56 years, the WHO MONICA study, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Shared Decision Making in Psoriasis: A Systematic Review of Quantitative and Qualitative Studies.

Background: Patients with psoriasis face numerous treatment and self-management decisions. Shared decision making is a novel approach where patients' preferences and values are considered in cooperation with healthcare professionals before making treatment decisions.

Objective: The objective of this systematic review was to explore what is illuminated in psoriasis research regarding shared decision making, and to estimate the effects of shared decision-making interventions in this context.

Alexithymia, Illness Perception and Self-management Competency in Psoriasis.

Alexithymia, defined as difficulty in describing or recognizing emotions, has been shown to be connected with psoriasis, but its relationship with self-management of psoriasis has not been explored. The aim of this study was to assess the frequency of alexithymia and its relationship with self-management and illness perception in the context of psoriasis. A total of 163 patients participating in 3 weeks of climate heliotherapy (CHT) at Gran Canaria were assessed for alexithymia using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) at baseline.

Cost-utility Analysis of Supported Self-management with Motiva-tional Interviewing for Patients with Psoriasis.

There are few studies evaluating the cost-effectiveness of self-management interventions for patients with psoriasis. Motivational interviewing (MI) as a telephone follow-up after climate-heliotherapy was effective on several clinical parameters, but its cost-effectiveness is unknown. A cost-utility analysis was conducted alongside a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing MI with usual care.

Size of the exposed body surface area, skin erythema and body mass index predict skin production of vitamin D.

Background: Cholecalciferol (vitamin D3), produced in the skin by UVB irradiation (290-315nm) of 7-dehydrocholesterol, is metabolized in the liver into 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] which is a major circulating metabolite.

Aim: To examine changes in serum concentrations of cholecalciferol and its metabolites after UVB exposure of different skin areas.

Methods: 21 healthy Caucasians (skin type II and III, aged 23-47years) were exposed to broadband UVB (290-320nm) and randomized to either exposure to one minimal erythema dose given as a single dose, or a suberythemic dose given for 3 subsequent days.