Early experiences from one of the first treatment programs for chronic hepatitis B in sub-Saharan Africa.

Background: Treatment for chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is virtually absent in sub-Saharan Africa. Here we present early experiences from a pilot program for treatment of CHB in Ethiopia.

Methods: Adults (≥18 years) with CHB were included in a cohort study at St.

Negative Life Events, Social Support, and Self-Efficacy in Anxious Adolescents.

Purpose: To examine the prevalence and correlates of anxiety in a community sample of adolescents. Knowing the prevalence and characteristics of anxious adolescents is valuable to improve anxiety prevention strategies and interventions.

Design: Cross-sectional data about anxiety were collected via a school survey from a community sample of Norwegian adolescents aged 12-17 ( = 1719).

Changes in fruit and vegetable consumption habits from pre-pregnancy to early pregnancy among Norwegian women.

Background: A healthy diet is important for pregnancy outcome and the current and future health of woman and child. The aims of the study were to explore the changes from pre-pregnancy to early pregnancy in consumption of fruits and vegetables (FV), and to describe associations with maternal educational level, body mass index (BMI) and age.

Methods: Healthy nulliparous women were included in the Norwegian Fit for Delivery (NFFD) trial from September 2009 to February 2013, recruited from eight antenatal clinics in southern Norway.

Vulvar carcinoma in Norway: A 50-year perspective on trends in incidence, treatment and survival.

Objective: To explore trends in vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) incidence, age and stage at diagnosis, treatment and survival in Norway from 1961 to 2010.

Methods: From 1961 to 2010, 2233 cases of vulvar SCC were extracted from the Cancer Registry of Norway. Data on age at diagnosis, tumor morphology, stage of the disease and treatment were analyzed.

School-based cognitive behavioral interventions for anxious youth: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Anxiety disorders are prevalent among adolescents and may have long-lasting negative consequences for the individual, the family and society. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment. However, many anxious youth do not seek treatment.

Are non-invasive fibrosis markers for chronic hepatitis B reliable in sub-Saharan Africa?

Background: In the absence of liver biopsy, the World Health Organization recommends non-invasive tests, such as aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index and FIB-4, to assess liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B. However, these tests are not well validated in sub-Saharan Africa. Recently, a new marker, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase to platelet ratio, was found to be more accurate in an African setting, but this needs confirmation in other cohorts.

Impact of an exercise training program on cardiac neuronal function in heart failure patients on optimal medical therapy : A randomized Iodine-123 metaiodobenzylguanidine scintigraphy study.

Background: The syndrome of heart failure (HF) is characterized by left ventricular dysfunction and a compensatory chronic over activation of the sympathetic nervous system. We wanted to investigate if the beneficial effects of exercise training (ET) in HF patients on optimal medical therapy (OMT) are associated with alterations in cardiac sympathetic activity.

Methods: Cardiac sympathetic activity was evaluated at baseline and after 12 weeks using metaiodobenzylguanidine scintigraphy in 23 patients with stable HF participating in the SmartEx trial.

Patient factors and quality of life outcomes differ among four subgroups of oncology patients based on symptom occurrence.

Context: Reviews of the literature on symptoms in oncology patients undergoing curative treatment, as well as patients receiving palliative care, suggest that they experience multiple, co-occurring symptoms and side effects.

Objectives: The purposes of this study were to determine if subgroups of oncology patients could be identified based on symptom occurrence rates and if these subgroups differed on a number of demographic and clinical characteristics, as well as on quality of life (QoL) outcomes.

Methods: Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify subgroups (i.

Development of a feasible and responsive ultrasound inflammation score for rheumatoid arthritis through a data-driven approach.

Objective: To develop and validate a responsive and feasible ultrasound inflammation score for rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: We used data from cohorts of early RA (development) and established RA starting/switching biologic therapy (validation). 4 tendons and 36 joints were examined by a grey scale (GSUS) and power Doppler semiquantitative ultrasound (PDUS) scoring system (full score).

Perioperative humoral stress response to laparoscopic versus open aortobifemoral bypass surgery.

Minimally invasive surgery seems to reduce hormonal stress response to surgery, but has not previously been examined in major abdominal vascular surgery. Aortic cross-clamping time and operation time is known to be longer in the totally laparoscopic aortobifemoral bypass (LABF) as compared to open aortobifemoral bypass (OABF). The main objective of our study was to measure the hormonal stress response during surgery and aortic cross-clamping in patients undergoing a totally laparoscopic versus an open aortobifemoral bypass.

Mental distress following inpatient substance use treatment, modified by substance use; comparing voluntary and compulsory admissions.

Background: Treatment services to patients with substance use disorders (SUDs), including those mandated to treatment, needs to be evaluated and evidence based. The Norwegian Municipal Health Care Act (NMHCA) calls for compulsory treatment for persons with "severe and life-threatening substance use disorder" if these individuals are not otherwise willing to be voluntarily treated and consequently risk their lives over drug use. Mental distress is known to be high among SUD patients admitted to inpatient treatment.

Comparison of the acute-phase response after laparoscopic versus open aortobifemoral bypass surgery: a substudy of a randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: Minimally invasive surgical techniques have been shown to reduce the inflammatory response related to a surgical procedure. The main objective of our study was to measure the inflammatory response in patients undergoing a totally laparoscopic versus open aortobifemoral bypass surgery. This is the first randomized trial on subjects in this population.

Long-term mucosal recovery and healing in celiac disease is the rule - not the exception.

Objective: The prevalence of persistent villous atrophy (VA) in patients with celiac disease (CD) on a gluten-free diet (GFD) varies greatly between studies. Most studies show a relatively high prevalence of mucosal atrophy and inflammation in treated patients, a finding which have led to a concept of non-responsive CD. Few studies have examined the prevalence of long-term mucosal healing.

Ultrasound in management of rheumatoid arthritis: ARCTIC randomised controlled strategy trial.

Objective:  To determine whether a treatment strategy based on structured ultrasound assessment would lead to improved outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis, compared with a conventional strategy.

Design:  Multicentre, open label, two arm, parallel group, randomised controlled strategy trial.

Setting:  Ten rheumatology departments and one specialist centre in Norway, from September 2010 to September 2015.

Improved drug-use patterns at 6 months post-discharge from inpatient substance use disorder treatment: results from compulsorily and voluntarily admitted patients.

Background: Treatment services to patients with substance use disorders (SUDs), including those mandated to treatment, needs to be evaluated and evidence based. The Norwegian Municipal Health Care Act calls for mandated treatment for persons with "severe and life-threatening substance use disorder" if these individuals are not otherwise willing to be voluntarily treated and consequently risk their lives over drug use. This study aims to examine substance use-related outcomes at 6 months following inpatient treatment and to analyse factors associated with improved outcomes and abstinence.

Effect of a diet intervention during pregnancy on dietary behavior in the randomized controlled Norwegian Fit for Delivery study.

A mother's diet during pregnancy has the potential to influence both her own and her child's short- and long-term health. This paper reports the effects of a randomized controlled diet intervention during pregnancy on dietary behavior post-intervention as reported in late pregnancy. The diet intervention was part of a lifestyle intervention targeting both diet and physical activity behaviors among nulliparous women participating in the randomized controlled Norwegian Fit for Delivery study (NFFD).

Quality of Life in Patients with Substance Use Disorders Admitted to Detoxification Compared with Those Admitted to Hospitals for Medical Disorders: Follow-Up Results.

Quality of life (QoL) in patients admitted to a general hospital was compared with those admitted to a detoxification unit for the treatment of substance use disorder (SUD). This study combines data from two separate data collections: a cross-sectional study in a general hospital unit (somatic sample, N = 519) and a follow-up study in a detoxification unit (SUD sample, N = 140). A total of 659 patients recruited during 2008-2013 were included in this study.

Validating the generic quality of life tool "QOL10" in a substance use disorder treatment cohort exposes a unique social construct.

Background: Generic quality of life (QoL) instruments provide important measures of self-reported wellbeing that can be compared across healthy and clinical populations. The aim of this analysis is to validate the ten-item QoL instrument "QOL10", as well as to confirm the validity of the embedded "QOL5" questionnaire and single-item "QOL1" in measuring overall QoL among adults in a substance use disorder treatment study.

Methods: We used exploratory factor analysis and measured internal and convergent validity of the QOL10 against the gold standard measure of the WHOQOL-BREF, in a subsample of 107 participants in a substance use disorder treatment study.

Spiritual Well-being in Patients With Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Receiving Noncurative Chemotherapy: A Qualitative Study.

Background: Spiritual well-being (SWB) is an important quality-of-life dimension for cancer patients in the palliative phase. Therefore, it is important for healthcare professionals to recognize the concept of SWB from the patient's point of view. A deeper understanding of how patients experience and reflect upon these issues might influence patient care.

Perceived quality of life, 6 months after detoxification: Is abstinence a modifying factor?

Purpose: Patients with a substance use disorder (SUD), admitted for detoxification, often suffer from a poor quality of life (QoL). We set out to monitor QoL, together with substance use, in a departure from the usual norm of measuring substance use alone as a treatment outcome. Literature searches revealed scant knowledge of how QoL is influenced.

Upper Versus Lower Gastrointestinal Delivery for Transplantation of Fecal Microbiota in Recurrent or Refractory Clostridium difficile Infection: A Collaborative Analysis of Individual Patient Data From 14 Studies.

Goals: The aim of this study was to compare upper gastrointestinal (UGI) versus lower gastrointestinal (LGI) delivery routes of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) for refractory or recurrent/relapsing Clostridium difficile infection (CDI).

Background: FMT has been proven to be a safe and highly effective therapeutic option for CDI. Delivery, however, could be via the UGI or LGI routes, and it is unclear as to which route provides better clinical outcome.

Many correlates of poor quality of life among substance users entering treatment are not addiction-specific.

Background: Quality of life (QoL) is an important measure and outcome within chronic disease management and treatment, including substance use disorders (SUD). The aim of this paper was to investigate correlates of poorer QoL of individuals entering SUD treatment in Norway, in order to identify subgroups that may most benefit from different interventions.

Methods: Twenty-one treatment facilities invited all incoming patients to participate.

Assessing understandings of substance use disorders among Norwegian treatment professionals, patients and the general public.

Background: Beliefs about substance use disorder (SUD) shape how patients, treatment professionals and the general public view addiction and its treatment. A U.S.

Establishment of the South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority Resource Center for Children with Prenatal Alcohol/Drug Exposure.

This paper presents a new initiative in the South-Eastern Health Region of Norway to establish a regional resource center focusing on services for children and adolescents aged 2-18 years with prenatal exposure to alcohol or other drugs. In Norway, the prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum (FAS) is not known but has been estimated to be between 1 and 2 children per 1000 births, while the prevalence of prenatal exposure to illicit drugs is unknown. The resource center is the first of its kind in Scandinavia and will have three main objectives: (1) provide hospital staff, community health and child welfare personnel, and special educators with information, educational courses, and seminars focused on the identification, diagnosis, and treatment of children with a history of prenatal alcohol/drug exposure; (2) provide specialized health services, such as diagnostic services and intervention planning, for children referred from hospitals in the South-Eastern Health Region of Norway; and (3) initiate multicenter studies focusing on the diagnostic process and evaluation of interventions.