Self-perceived learning outcomes of virtual and in-person academic detailing among general practitioners in Norway.

Self-perceived learning outcomes of virtual academic detailing (AD) are poorly studied. We compared self-perceived learning outcomes of virtual and in-person AD among general practitioners (GPs). GPs from the Western region of Norway received a questionnaire before and after AD concerning rational pharmacotherapy of migraine in the autumn 2022.

Can academic detailing reduce opioid prescriptions in chronic non-cancer pain?

Background: One measure to support optimal opioid prescription is academic detailing (AD) with one-to-one visits by trained professionals (academic detailers) to general practitioners (GPs).

Objective: To investigate the usefulness of AD visits on GPs' opioid prescribing patterns in Norway, and academic detailers' experiences with AD visits to GPs on opioid prescription.

Methods: Design: A quantitative registry study on opioid prescriptions and a qualitative focus group interview study with academic detailers.

Cohort Description: Preventing an Opioid Epidemic in Norway - Focusing on Treatment of Chronic Pain (POINT) - A National Registry-Based Study.

Aim: The POINT project aims to provide evidence to optimise chronic pain management, prevent adverse consequences of opioids, and improve chronic pain patients' pain relief, functional capacity, and quality of life. We describe the outline of the project and its work packages. More specifically, we describe a cohort of persons with chronic pain and a cohort of long-term opioid users identified from a national registry linkage.

Metformin serum concentrations during pregnancy and post partum - A clinical study in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Background And Objectives: Metformin is used to treat gestational diabetes. It is also used to treat women with polycystic ovary syndrome and has been shown to prevent late miscarriage and preterm birth. However, increased renal clearance during pregnancy causes a decline in serum concentrations of metformin.

Randomised controlled trial showed long-term efficacy, immunogenicity and safety of varicella vaccines in Norwegian and Swedish children.

Aim: Several countries, such as Norway and Sweden, have not implemented universal varicella vaccination. We present data for Norway and Sweden that were generated by a paediatric multi-country Phase III study over a 10-year period. This assessed the efficacy, antibody persistence and safety of two varicella vaccines containing the same Oka strain.

Academic detailing as a method of continuing medical education.

Introduction: Academic detailing is an interactive educational outreach to prescribers to present unbiased, non-commercial, evidence-based information, mostly about medications, with the goal of improving patient care. Academic detailing in Norway is an approach for providing continuing medical education to general practitioners (GPs). The basis of academic detailing is a one-to-one discussion between a trained health professional (the academic detailer) and the GP at the GP's workplace.

Peer academic detailing on use of antibiotics in acute respiratory tract infections. A controlled study in an urban Norwegian out-of-hours service.

Objective: To analyse if peer academic detailing by experienced general practitioners (GPs) could be a useful way to change Medical Doctors, (MDs) prescription of antibiotics for acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) in out-of-hours service.

Method: An educational Intervention study based on prescription data among MDs working in an out-of-hours service from June 2006 through October 2008. Specially trained GPs lectured a peer educational program (3 × 45 minutes) about use of antibiotics for ARTIs according to national recommendations.

Sedative and hypnotic drugs--fatal and non-fatal reference blood concentrations.

In postmortem investigations of fatal intoxications it is often challenging to determine which drug/s caused the death. To improve the interpretation of postmortem blood concentrations of sedative and hypnotic drugs and/or clonazepam, all medico-legal autopsies in Sweden - where these drugs had been detected in femoral vein blood during 1992-2006 - were identified in the databases of the National Board of Forensic Medicine. For each drug, concentrations in postmortem control cases - where the cause of death was not intoxication and where incapacitation by drugs could be excluded - were compiled as well as the levels found in living subjects; drugged driving cases and therapeutic drug monitoring cases.

Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) repertoire in Norway.

Background: In many clinical situations it is useful to measure drug levels in patient samples. The purpose of this survey is to obtain an overview of the therapeutic drug monitoring analyses offered by Norwegian laboratories.

Material And Method: At the end of 2011, the authors of this article phoned all the public and private hospitals in Norway, and located their laboratories.

A puzzling case of increased serum clozapine levels in a patient with inflammation and infection.

A 23-year old male with a history of schizophrenia treated with clozapine 900 mg/d was admitted to the hospital for a gastrointestinal infection. The trough serum concentration of clozapine at admission was 9074 nmole/L, that is, almost 4-fold the upper limit of the reference range. The patients did not report any adverse effects of clozapine.

[Toxicological screening of medicines and drugs of abuse in emergency cases].

Background: In some situations, and particularly when intoxications are suspected, it would be advantageous if medicines and drugs of abuse could be swiftly detected in serum or urine.

Material And Methods: The Department of Clinical Pharmacology at St. Olav University Hospital has since 2004 been developing a comprehensive toxicology service (at all hours 7-days/week) for immediate quantitative analysis of between 80 and 90 substances.

[On-site testing for drug abuse in urine].

Background: There is an increasing interest in on-site testing for drugs of abuse.

Methods: Based upon our own experience and published literature, we have reviewed advantages and disadvantages of such tests. On-site testing is also evaluated in relation to the recommendations for urinary testing of drugs of abuse from the Norwegian Health Authorities.