Publications by authors named "Asa Lundgren-Nilsson"
Article Synopsis
- The study aims to identify factors that improve the quality of life for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) in Sweden by using workshop and survey data from a variety of stakeholders.
- Results indicate that while many contributing factors, like relationships and leisure activities, are similar to the general population, unique influences from the healthcare system and broader societal rules significantly affect those living with SCI.
- The authors conclude that enhancing life for people with SCI requires a flexible approach that considers the diverse and individual needs within different systems over their lifespan.
Article Synopsis
- A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the epidemiological and demographic characteristics of spinal cord injury (SCI) patients in Sweden using data from a national rehabilitation quality registry.
- The study found that the average age of onset for SCI was 56 years, with a predominantly male population (66%), and that traumatic spinal cord injuries (TSCI) were more common than non-traumatic injuries (NTSCI), particularly for tetraplegia.
- Key findings revealed 8% of patients required breathing aids at discharge, with 58% experiencing bowel and bladder dysfunction; the median hospital stay was 40 days, longer for those with TSCI, and the incidence rates were lower than in prior studies.
Article Synopsis
- * A survey was sent to 1,014 patients about six weeks post-discharge, with 436 (93.6%) reporting ongoing symptoms, most commonly weight loss, and demonstrating decreased mobility since admission.
- * Six months later, nearly 90% of patients sought further medical care, indicating a significant and ongoing need for rehabilitation related to COVID-19, with hospital costs for inpatient and outpatient care and related visits exceeding 9.6 million Euros.
Article Synopsis
- A mixed-method consensus development project was conducted in Sweden to identify the top ten research priorities for spinal cord injury (SCI) during 2021-22.
- The project involved two phases where respondents, including individuals with SCI, their relatives, and healthcare professionals, provided inputs to create and rank questions related to SCI, resulting in a final set of ten priorities.
- The findings highlighted significant concerns regarding specialist care, rehabilitation, and various aspects of physical and mental health for people living with SCI, aiming to inform future research efforts.
Background: In patient care, demand is growing for digital health tools to enable remote services and enhance patient involvement. People with chronic conditions often have multiple health problems, and long-term follow-up is recommended to meet their needs and enable access to appropriate support. A digital tool for previsit preparation could enhance time efficiency and guide the conversation during the visit toward the patient's priorities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Rehabilitation in iNPH is suggested to be an important factor to improve patients' functions but there are lack of clinical trials evaluating the effect of rehabilitation interventions after shunt surgery in iNPH. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a physical exercise programme and goal attainment for patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH) after surgery compared to a control group.
Methods: This was a dual centre randomised controlled trial with assessor blinding, intention-to-treat (ITT) and per protocol (PP) analysis.
Article Synopsis
- - Cognitive impairment is frequently observed after a stroke, but many patients are not screened for it in acute stroke units, highlighting a gap in adherence to recommendations for screening.
- - In a study involving 1,120 patients, it was found that 44% did not undergo cognitive screening during their hospital stay, with factors like walking ability being key in decisions about screening.
- - Barriers to cognitive screening were identified as both patient-related (e.g., aphasia, mobility issues) and organization-related, pointing to the need for more personalized approaches and consistent application of guidelines in acute care settings.
Introduction: The importance of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) clinical studies has been recognised for many years. The current study aims to describe the RA PROMs used over the past 20 years, and their performance metrics, to underpin appropriate tool selection.
Methods: The study included a systematic search for PROMs that have been in use over the period 2000-2019, with detailed documentation of their psychometric properties, and a user-friendly presentation of the extensive evidence base.
Article Synopsis
- The study focuses on creating a measurement tool to assess how healthcare systems implement person-centred care, emphasizing the importance of understanding patient experiences.
- The item bank development process involves translating and evaluating potential survey items, utilizing input from patients, caregivers, healthcare professionals, and researchers.
- The final outcome includes 155 selected items for further analysis, with adjustments made based on validation feedback, resulting in a refined set that reflects the collaborative nature of person-centred care.*
Study Design: Retrospective study.
Objectives: To determine prevalence of respiratory complications in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) during the initial rehabilitation at the spinal cord injury unit (SCU) and to describe the subsequent effect on mortality.
Setting: The SCU at the university hospital in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Article Synopsis
- The study aims to create a work instability scale specifically for individuals with common mental disorders like depression and anxiety, as early detection can help prevent long-term sick leave.
- Researchers conducted qualitative interviews and developed a self-report questionnaire, ultimately refining it from an initial 63 items down to a 34-item scale that fits psychometric model expectations.
- The final scale demonstrated acceptable validity and showed a moderate correlation with the work ability index, indicating its potential usefulness, but further validation in a larger sample is needed.
Background: Recovery patterns of motor function and activity capacity of the upper extremity after stroke have been described, but less is known about longitudinal changes of perceived manual activity performance. The aim of this study was to investigate longitudinal changes of self-perceived manual ability at several timepoints from onset until 12 months post-stroke in a cohort of consecutively recruited individuals with mild, moderate and severe stroke.
Methods: The study included 106 participants from a non-selected cohort with first-ever mild, moderate or severe stroke and impaired upper extremity function (Stroke Arm Longitudinal Study at the University of Gothenburg, SALGOT).
Article Synopsis
- Self-reported outcomes help understand an individual's perceived manual ability after a stroke and were studied in relation to objective kinematic variables during the first year post-stroke.
- The research involved 66 participants from the SALGOT study, who were evaluated at multiple timepoints using the ABILHAND questionnaire and a virtual target-to-target pointing task.
- Results showed that correlations between self-reported manual ability and objective movement assessments were low initially but improved over time, suggesting that both self-reported and objective measures are crucial for evaluating recovery in the early stages after a stroke.*
Article Synopsis
- - The study investigates the effects of very early supported discharge (VESD) for stroke patients needing ongoing rehabilitation, aiming to compare its impact on anxiety and overall disability against standard hospital discharge practices.
- - A randomized controlled trial was conducted with stroke patients from Sahlgrenska University Hospital, analyzing outcomes at 5 days, 3 months, and 12 months post-stroke.
- - Results showed no significant difference in anxiety levels between VESD and control groups at 3 and 12 months, but the VESD group had notably lower overall disability 3 months post-stroke, with no significant difference at 1 year.
After a stroke, cognitive impairment is commonly associated with poor functional outcomes. The primary aim of this study was to investigate if cognitive function, assessed with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) 36-48 h after stroke, could predict functional dependence 3 months later. The secondary aim was to identify an optimal threshold for the MoCA score that could predict functional dependence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The study aimed to explore the experiences, needs, and preferences for follow-up care from the perspectives of stroke patients and healthcare professionals.
- Using focus groups, researchers gathered insights from both patients (ages 45-78) and healthcare providers (ages 35-55) about the complexities and long-term challenges of stroke management.
- Key findings highlighted feelings of abandonment among patients, unequal access to healthcare, and the need for a structured, tailored follow-up approach to improve support and communication.
Objective: The wide range of outcomes after stroke emphasises the need for comprehensive long-term follow-up. The aim was to evaluate how people with stroke and health professionals (HPs) perceive the use of the poststroke checklist (PSC), with a focus on feasibility and relevance.
Design: An exploratory design with a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to evaluate neuropsychological functioning and quality of life in adults with Chiari I malformation before and three months after surgery.
- Results showed that most patients had normal cognitive functions pre-surgery, with significant improvements in certain cognitive areas like verbal learning and executive functioning post-surgery.
- Although patients expressed lower life satisfaction compared to healthy individuals before and after surgery, their overall quality of life showed significant improvement based on EQ-5D-5L measurements after the surgical intervention.
Article Synopsis
- The study assessed the impact of various sociodemographic and clinical factors on self-perceived manual ability in individuals one year after their first stroke, involving 68 participants with upper extremity impairments.
- Key determinants analyzed included age, gender, stroke severity, and specific upper extremity functions like motor skills and grip strength, with findings indicating that upper extremity motor function and activity capacity were the strongest predictors of perceived manual ability.
- The results suggest that for effective rehabilitation, focusing on upper extremity motor function and activity capacity assessments is crucial to address the self-perceived difficulties in manual ability among stroke survivors.
Article Synopsis
- Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for osteoarthritis (OA) have been used for over 35 years, with the current study aiming to evaluate their performance quality to help choose the most suitable PROMs for various assessments.
- A systematic search reviewed PROMs used from 2000-2016, cataloguing their psychometric properties to present the information in an accessible way.
- Out of 78 identified PROMs, common themes included pain and mobility, with important areas like psychological factors being underrepresented; this study highlights both the current options and the need for improvement in certain key domains.
Article Synopsis
- The study explores the feasibility of using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) to evaluate cognitive function 36-48 hours after a stroke and its relationship to dependence in activities of daily living (ADL).
- Researchers assessed cognitive and basic ADL functions in 550 patients using MoCA and the Barthel Index (BI), finding moderate correlations between these assessments.
- While the MoCA showed high sensitivity in predicting ADL dependence, the most effective predictive model included MoCA, NIHSS scores, and age, highlighting the importance of these factors in understanding post-stroke recovery.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to analyze self-reported activity levels of Swedish adults with haemophilia using the Haemophilia Activity List (HAL) and track changes over time.
- About 260 participants filled out the HAL and additional questionnaires, with a 50% response rate, highlighting significant differences in activity levels between groups treated early versus later.
- Results showed that those treated early experienced much better activity abilities overall, while late treatment respondents reported more limitations, particularly in leisure and sports activities.
Purpose: To examine if the International Classification of Functioning (ICF) core set for stoke contains problems that are relevant for the persons living with stroke as expressed in the Stroke Impact Scale (SIS).
Methods: Cross-sectional study of 242 persons with previous stroke. The agreement between the perceived problems in the SIS items and problems in the categories of Comprehensive ICF Core Set for stroke were analyzed using percent of agreement and Kappa statistic.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how late stroke rehabilitation affects the life situation of informal caregivers for stroke survivors involved in a multimodal intervention trial.
- Researchers used a questionnaire to assess changes in caregivers' lives before and after a 12-week intervention, comparing those in intervention groups with a control group.
- Results showed that caregivers in the intervention groups experienced significant improvements in their life situation immediately after and three months post-intervention, but these gains did not persist after six months.
Article Synopsis
- Fatigue is a common symptom in patients with chronic gastrointestinal and liver diseases, and this study evaluates the effectiveness of various versions of the Fatigue Impact Scale, including the original 40-item version and its shorter forms.
- The research involved 354 patients who completed the original scale, demonstrating that while the 21-item Modified Fatigue Impact Scale works well with some adjustments, the eight-item Daily Fatigue Impact Scale faces issues with validity.
- The study proposes new, shorter item sets (15 and 6 items) for better assessment of fatigue, along with a transformation table for accurate score comparisons across different versions.