Background: Clinical examination of patients with chronic lumbar radiculopathy aims to clarify whether there is nerve root impingement. The aims of this study were to investigate the association between findings at clinical examination and nerve root impingement, to evaluate the accuracy of clinical index tests in a specialised care setting, and to see whether imaging clarifies the cause of chronic ...

<i>Background</i> - A vast body of literature has documented regional variations in healthcare utilization rates. The extent to which such variations are “unwarranted” critically depends on whether there are corresponding variations in patients’ needs. Using a unique medical registry, the current paper investigated any associations between utilization rates and patients’ needs, as measured by two ...

<p><b>BAKGRUNN</b> De skandinaviske retningslinjene for akutt håndtering av voksne med minimal, lett eller moderat hodeskade har som mål å identifisere pasienter med risiko for å utvikle intrakranialt hematom samt å unngå unødvendig computertomografi (CT) og sykehusinnleggelse. Vi undersøkte etterlevelsen av retningslinjene ved Universitetssykehuset Nord-Norge Tromsø. <p><b>MATERIALE OG ...

Objective: We analyzed data from the Norwegian Stroke Registry (NSR) to study access to and outcomes of decompressive hemicraniectomy for brain infarction in a nationwide routine clinical setting. We also discretionary assessed whether the outcomes were comparable with those achieved in randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and whether the use was in accordance with guidelines. Methods: The NSR ...

This audit describes ionizing and non-ionizing diagnostic imaging at a regional trauma centre. All 144 patients (males 79.2%, median age 31 years) met with trauma team activation from 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2015 were included. We used data from electronic health records to identify all diagnostic imaging and report radiation exposure as dose area product (DAP) for conventional radiography ...

Background: Standardized surgery rates for common orthopedic procedures vary across geographical areas in Norway. We explored whether area-level factors related to demand and supply in publicly funded healthcare are associated with geographical variation in surgery rates for six common orthopedic procedures.<p> <p>Methods: The present study is a cross-sectional population-based study of hospital ...

Background: In three previous Norwegian studies conducted between 1974 and 1993, the annual incidence rates of hospital admitted head injuries were 236, 200 and 169 per 100,000 population. The aim of this study was to describe the incidence of head injury in the Stavanger region and to compare it with previous Norwegian studies. <br> Methods: All head injured patients referred to Stavanger ...

During the last decades, there has been an increase in the rate of surgery for degenerative disorders of the cervical spine and in the use of supplementary private health insurance. Still, there is limited knowledge about the diferences in characteristics of patients operated in public and private hospitals. Therefore, we aimed at comparing sociodemographic-, clinical- and patient management data ...

Background - The Norwegian registry for spine surgery (NORspine) is a national clinical quality registry which has recorded more than 10,000 operations for degenerative conditions of the cervical spine since 2012. Registries are large observational cohorts, at risk for attrition bias. We therefore aimed to examine whether clinical outcomes differed between respondents and non-respondents to standardized ...

Background and purpose: Several population-based cohort studies have related higher body mass index (BMI) to a decreased risk of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The main objective of our study was to investigate whether the previously reported inverse association can be explained by modifying effects of the most important risk factors of SAH—smoking and hypertension.<p> <p>Methods: We conducted ...