Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), especially the Chlamydia trachomatis bacterial infection, a common cause of infertility, are highly prevalent in developed countries, and a worrying problem in North Norway, where the incidence of chlamydia twice the Norwegian average. Seventy percent of reported chlamydia cases are found in people below 25 years of age, and although its spread could be controlled ...

In recent years, a connection between depression and inflammation has been established, with a range of immunological changes, both cellular and humoral, presenting during depressive states (Beydoun et al., 2016; Haapakoski et al., 2015; Wium-Andersen et al., 2013). Furthermore, there seems to be a dose-response relationship between depression and inflammation, in the sense that the more severe the ...

<p><i>Rationale:</i> The place of case reports in the medical literature has been much debated in recent years. This study was undertaken to gain knowledge about the publication practice of case reports and case series from a major university hospital. <p><i>Method:</i> We decided to conduct a retrospective, bibliographic, descriptive study of published case reports and case series from a university ...

Background - As the population of older adults continues to grow, changes in alcohol consumption are important to monitor because an increase may have public health consequences. Rates of alcohol use vary with geographical location. The aim of this study was to examine trends in alcohol consumption among older adults in a geographically defined area in Norway, especially changing sex differences in ...

Background: There has been an increased interest in the use of telemedical applications in clinical practice in recent years. Considerable effort has been invested in trials and experimental services. Yet, surprisingly few applications have continued beyond the research and development phase. The aim of this study is to explore characteristics of successfully implemented telemedical applications. ...

Background: The clinical case report has a long-standing tradition in the medical literature. While its scientific significance has become smaller as more advanced research methods have gained ground, case reports are still presented in many medical journals. Some scholars point to its limited value for medical progress, while others assert that the genre is undervalued. We aimed to present the ...

Large-scale electronic health record (EHR) systems have increasingly become a staple of the European healthcare market. The Norwegian health care authorities are planning for the acquisition of a common large-scale EHR system for 291 of Norway’s 356 municipalities. This has resulted in much controversy among the stakeholders. We explore the key contested areas.

<p><i>Background:</i> There is a paucity of studies on inflammatory markers in elderly psychiatric patients. Hence, our study was undertaken to investigate cytokines as biomarkers in diagnostically unselected elderly patients admitted to a psychiatric hospital. <p><i>Methods:</i> Demographic data, clinical data and blood samples, including 27 cytokines, were collected from 98 patients above 60 ...

Background - Health care has evolved to support the involvement of individuals in decision making by, for example, using mobile apps and wearables that may help empower people to actively participate in their treatment and health monitoring. While the term “participatory health informatics” (PHI) has emerged in literature to describe these activities, along with the use of social media for health ...

Background: The prevalence of depressive symptoms may differ in various age groups. The aim of the study was to investigate the point-prevalence of depressive symptoms in the adult general population and in various age groups. The impact of sex, marital status, education, and social support on depressive symptoms was also explored.<p> <p>Methods: The population ≥40 years in the city of Tromsø, ...