All people experience pain and for some people, acute pain may over time develop into long-term disabling problems. Already at an early stage, it is possible to identify people at risk for long-term problems and psychologically oriented interventions have been shown to successfully prevent future disability. However, not all people are helped by treatment and there is room for improvement. Moreover, subgroups of people suffering from pain, with different profiles of psychological factors have been identified, indicating that people with pain problems differ. The first aim of this dissertation was to improve the understanding of how people differ. The second aim was to use these individual differences and to match people to psychological treatment based on their psychological profile. The third aim was to explore what happens during treatment that might be important for treatment outcome. The findings show that people who belonged to subgroups with elevated levels of psychological factors had less favorable outcomes over time, despite treatment, than people with no elevations. Moreover, people with elevations in several psychological factors had even less favorable outcomes. Psychological treatments aimed at preventing future disability performed well, but using profiles to match people to treatment did not improve outcomes further; people who were matched to a treatment and people who were unmatched had similar outcomes. However, the profiles used for matching were unstable over time and there is need to improve the identification of psychological variables used for treatment matching. Finally, a number of psychological factors were shown to be valuable targets for treatment; if the treatments successfully produced change in people’s thoughts and emotions related to pain the treatment outcomes were better. The findings were summarized in a flow chart showing the recommended clinical approach to people seekinghealth care for acute pain problems.

Background In patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) or chronic kidney disease (CKD), established cardiovascular disease (CVD) is associated with an increased risk of recurrent events and poor outcome. Ischemic stroke after an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a devastating event that carries high risks of decreased patient independence and death. Among patients with DM or CKD, the risk of an ischemic stroke within a year following an AMI is not known. Improved risk factor control is required to reduce the likelihood of CVD recurrence. Guidelines recommend target lipid profile and blood pressure values; however, data show that these targets are often not met. Therefore, there remains an urgent need for improved cardiovascular secondary preventive follow- up. Aims The aims of the present studies were to define trends in the incidence and predictors of ischemic stroke after an AMI in patients with DM or CKD. Furthermore to assess whether secondary preventive follow-up with nurse-based telephone follow-up including medication titration after CVD improves risk factor values in patients with DM or CKD and to investigate if this method performs better than usual care to implement a new treatment guideline in diabetic patients. Methods To assess the risk of post-AMI ischemic stroke, patient data were obtained from the Swedish Register of Information and Knowledge about Swedish Heart Intensive Care Admissions (RIKS-HIA). In separate studies, we compared a total of 173 233 AMI patients with and without DM, and 118 434 AMI patients with and without CKD. Within the nurse-based age-independent intervention to limit evolution of disease (NAILED) trial, we investigated a nurse-based cardiovascular secondary preventive follow-up protocol. Patients with acute coronary syndrome, stroke, or transient ischemic attack were randomized to receive either nurse-based telephone follow-up (intervention) or usual care (control). Low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) levels and blood pressure (BP) were measured at 1 month (baseline) and 12 months post- discharge. Intervention patients with above-target baseline values received medication titration to achieve treatment goals, while the measurements for control patients were forwarded to their general practitioners for assessment. We calculated the changes in LDL-C level and BP between baseline and 12 months post-discharge, and compared  these changes between 225 intervention patients and 215 control patients with concurrent DM or CKD. During the course of the NAILED trial, new secondary preventive guidelines for DM patients were released, including a new LDL-C target value. To assess adherence to the new guidelines within the NAILED trial, we compared LDL-C levels in the 101 intervention patients and 100 control patients with DM. Results Ischemic stroke after AMI The rates of ischemic stroke within one-year after admission for an AMI decreased over time, from 7.1% in 1998–2000 to 4.7% in 2007–2008 among DM patients, and from 4.2% to 3.7% during the same time periods for non-diabetic patients. Lower stroke risk was associated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and initiation of secondary preventive treatments in-hospital. In-hospital ischemic stroke occurred in 2.3% of CKD patients and 1.2% of non-CKD patients, with no change in these incidences over time. The rates of one-year post- discharge ischemic stroke decreased between 2003–2004 and 2009–2010 from 4.1% to 2.5% among CKD patients, and from 2.0% to 1.3% among non-CKD patients. Lower rates of post-discharge stroke were associated with PCI and statins. Cardiovascular secondary preventive follow-up Among DM and CKD patients with above-target baseline values in the NAILED trial, the median LDL-C value at 12 months was 2.2 versus 3.0 mmol/L (p<0.001) and median systolic BP was 140 versus 145 mmHg (p=0.26) for intervention and control patients, respectively. Before the guideline change, 96% of the intervention and 70% of the control patients reached the target LDL-C value (p<0.001). After the guideline change, the corresponding respective proportions were 65% and 36% (p<0.001). Conclusion Ischemic stroke is a fairly common post-AMI complication among patients with DM and CKD. This risk of stroke has decreased during recent years, possibly due to the increased use of evidence-based therapies. Compared with usual care, cardiovascular secondary prevention including nurse-based telephone follow-up improved LDL-C values at 12 months after discharge in patients with DM or CVD, and led to more efficient implementation of new secondary preventive guidelines.

Background Patients who experience a stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) are at high risk of recurrent stroke, but little is known about temporal trends in unselected populations. Reports of low adherence to recommended treatments indicate a need for enhanced secondary preventive follow-up to achieve the full potential of evidence-based treatments. In addition, socioeconomic factors have been associated with poor health outcomes in a variety of contexts. Therefore, it is important to assess the implementation and results of secondary prevention in different socioeconomic groups. Aims The aims of this thesis were to assess temporal trends in ischemic stroke recurrence and evaluate the implementation and results of a nurse-led, telephone-based follow-up program to improve blood pressure (BP) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels after stroke/TIA. Methods In study I, we collected baseline data for unique patients with an ischemic stroke event between 1998 and 2009 (n=196 765) from the Swedish Stroke Register (Riksstroke). Recurrent ischemic stroke events within 1 year were collected from the Swedish National Inpatient Register (IPR) and the cumulative incidence was compared between four time periods using the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and the logrank test. Implementation (study II) and 1-year results (study III-IV) for the secondary preventive follow-up were studied in the NAILED (Nurse-based Age-independent Intervention to Limit Evolution of Disease) study. Between 1 Jan 2010 and 31 Dec 2013, the baseline characteristics of consecutive patients admitted to Östersund Hospital for acute stroke or TIA were collected prospectively (n=1776). Consenting patients in a condition permitting telephone-based follow-up were randomized to nurse-led, telephone-based follow-up or follow-up according to usual care. Follow-up was cunducted at 1 and 12 months after discharge and the intervention included BP and LDL-C measurements, titration of medication, and lifestyle counseling. In study II, we analyzed factors associated with non-participation in the randomized phase of the NAILED study, including association with education level. In addition, we compared the 1-year prognosis in terms of cumulative survival between participants and non-participants. In study III, we compared differences in BP and LDL-C levels between the intervention and control groups during the first year of follow-up and, in study IV, in relation to level of education (low, ≤10 years; high, >10 years). Results The cumulative 1-year incidence of recurrent ischemic stroke decreased from 15.0% to 12.0%. Among surviving stroke and TIA patients, 53.1% were included for randomization, 35.7% were excluded mainly due to physical or cognitive disability, and 11.2% declined participation in the randomized phase. A low level of education was independently associated with exclusion, as well as the patient’s decision to abstain from randomization. Excluded patients had a more than 12-times higher risk of death within 1 year than patients who were randomized. After 1 year of follow-up, the mean systolic BP, diastolic BP, and LDL-C levels were 3.3 mmHg (95% CI 0.3 to 6.3), 2.3 mmHg (95% CI 0.5 to 4.2), and 0.3 mmol/L (95% CI 0.1 to 0.4) lower in the intervention group than among controls. Among participants with values above the treatment goal at baseline, the differences in systolic BP and LDL-C levels were more pronounced (8.0 mmHg, 95% CI 4.0 to 12.1; 0.6 mmol/L, 95% CI 0.4 to 0.9). In the intervention group, participants with a low level of education achieved similar or larger improvements in BP and LDL-C than participants with a high level of education. In the control group, BP remained unaltered and the LDL-C levels increased among participants with a low level of education. Conclusion The 1-year risk of ischemic stroke recurrence decreased in Sweden between 1998 and 2010. Nurse-led, telephone-based secondary preventive follow-up is feasible in just over half of the survivors of acute stroke and TIA and achieve better than usual care in terms of BP and LDL-C levels, and equality in BP improvements across groups defined by education level. However, a large proportion of stroke survivors are in a general condition precluding this form of follow-up, and their prognosis in terms of 1-year survival is poor. Patients with a low education level are over-represented within this group and among patients declining randomization for secondary preventive follow-up.

This thesis "The motivation for volunteering in the program of secondary prevention" is conceived as theoretical and empirical. The theoretical part of thesis aims to identify the motives leading to the decision to participate in voluntary activities and what motivates volunteers in its execution. It deals with the basic concepts of volunteering, its historical background and with the analysis of the psychological aspects of motivation for voluntary activity, which is seen as a manifestation of altruism and prosocial behavior. It tries to find the reason that may cause underdevelopment of volunteering while offering possible solutions, which can help to overcome the outlined barriers. Consequently, acquaints readers with a preventive program Five P. Base of empirical part consists of empirical investigation. The aim is to find techniques to reveal the personality characteristics of volunteers in Five P program. In conclusion, author examines the use of acquired knowledge in practice. Keywords motivation, volunteering, volunteer, altruism, secondary prevention program

One out of 2 women and 1 out of 5 men over age 50 will sustain a fragility fracture (FF) in their lifetime. The risk of a 2nd FF increases dramatically after the 1st fracture and can lead to pain, disability, and mortality. Despite the evidence that secondary prevention programs are effective, the local facility did not have a formal mechanism to address this need. The purpose of this project was to design a program for secondary prevention of FFs and to address the need for a program for secondary FF prevention that was sustainable locally. The program was designed for facility patients age 50 or older who sustained a wrist fragility fracture within 6 months. The reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, maintenance (RE-AIM) framework was used to guide the project and program evaluation. A needs assessment was conducted prior to developing the program and included secondary data from the facility's provider survey. The 'Own the Bone' program, a nationally recognized program, was chosen as the intervention model. The 'Own the Bone' program provided a registry data for performance measures which assisted in the development of the program. The program included a short survey for providers to assess satisfaction with the referral process, and a telephone survey to referred patients who chose not to attend. Patient satisfaction with the program incorporated the Standardized Clinician Group Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey. Data collection and analysis plans were provided to the site with recommendations for implementation. This program was the 1st step in closing the local research-practice gap of secondary fragility fracture prevention. The project offers an opportunity to promote positive social change through the prevention of FF in a setting that had not previously addressed the problem.

The aim of this thesis was to explore variations in stroke prevention and the effect of prevention on outcome. The studies were based on patients registered in the Swedish Stroke Register between 2001 and 2009 and although used to different extents in each paper, additional information was retrieved through linkage to The National Patient Register, the Cause of Death Register, the Prescribed Drug Register and the Total Population Register. Cardiovascular risk factors were prevalent among ischemic stroke (IS) patients; however, they were not always prescribed the drugs recommended, and increasing age was an important negative predictor (Paper I). After IS, the rate of hemorrhage in patients prescribed antiplatelet agents (2.4 per 100 person-years) was double to results from randomized controlled trails, but was similar for patients prescribed warfarin (2.5 per 100 person-years).  Age ≥75 years and previous hemorrhage were associated with a moderately increased risk of future hemorrhage (Paper II). Among IS patients with atrial fibrillation, one-third was prescribed warfarin and two-thirds were prescribed antiplatelets. After adjustment for a propensity score (used to adjust for the non-randomized design), warfarin was associated with a reduced risk of death (0.67; 95% CI, 0.63-0.71) (Paper III). The rate of subsequent hemorrhagic stroke was 0.4 per 100 person-years and the risk did not change (HR 1.04; 95% CI, 0.73-1.48) when later years of the 2000s (inclusion period 2005-8: follow-up until 2009) was compared with earlier years (inclusion period 2001-4: follow-up until 2005) (Paper IV, cohort). Although the risk of first-ever hemorrhagic stroke more than doubled with warfarin than without, the risk did not change between 2006 and 2009 (Paper IV, case-control). In summary, the prescription of secondary preventive drugs varies with age, even though cardiovascular risk factors are prevalent in all ages. The risk of death and hemorrhage are affected by the type of antithrombotic prescribed. Therefore, it is important individual’s stroke and bleeding risks in stroke prevention are assessed.

Patienter vet att det är viktigt att vara fysiskt aktiv trots det vet få varför, vilket leder till brist på motivation. Patienter saknar kunskap angående livsstilsförändringar och vilka effekter som sekundärpreventiva åtgärder har efter hjärtinfarkt. Sjuksköterskan har en skyldighet att ge information och rådgivning efter en hjärtinfarkt. Syftet med litteraturstudien var att beskriva effekten av fysisk aktivitet som sekundärprevention efter hjärtinfarkt. I studien ingick 17 vetenskapligt granskade artiklar. Resultatet visar att fysisk aktivitet har många fördelar efter hjärtinfarkt. Studien visar att även en kort period av hjärtrehabilitering har goda effekter och leder till varaktighet i träningen. Högre intensitet och varierad träning ger bättre resultat vilket minskar risken för reinfarkt. Dessutom reducerar fysisk aktivitet stress vilket kan vara till stor fördel för patienter efter hjärtinfarkt. Vid eftervård av dessa patienter kan det vara lämpligt att införa standardvårdplaner för att informera om effekter av fysisk aktivitet. För att motivera patienter till att fortsätta träna efter att hjärtrehabiliteringen avslutats är uppföljning av vikt för att hjälpa patienter till en varaktig livsstilsförändring. Sjuksköterskor har användning för mer evidensbaserad kunskap kring effekter av fysisk aktivitet för att kunna erbjuda säker vård. Vidare forskning om patienternas upplevelse av effekter i samband med fysisk aktivitet kan vara relevant för att uppnå bredare kunskap. / Patients know the importance of being physically active but   few know why, which leads to lack of motivation. After myocardial infarction patients don´t have enough knowledge about lifestyle changes and the effects of secondary prevention. Nurses have got the responsibility to give information and guidance after myocardial infarction. The purpose with the literature study was to describe the effects of physical activity as secondary prevention after myocardial infarction. In the study 17 scientific articles was used. The result shows that physical activity has got a lot of advantages after myocardial infarction. The study shows that even a short period of heart rehabilitation has got god effects and leads to duration in physical activity. High intensity and variation in training gives better result which prevent a re-infarction. Physical activity also reduces stress which can be a big advantage for heart patients. In the aftercare of myocardial infarction patients it can be suitable to introduce a standard treatment plan to inform about the effects of physical activity. To maintain an enduring lifestyle change monitoring times are important. Nurses could use more evidence-based knowledge about the effects of physical activity to be able to provide safe healthcare. Further science about the patient experience of effects in relation with physical activity could be relevant to reach wider broad knowledge.

Bisher existiert keine nicht-invasive/ nicht-operative Therapie der Aortenklappenstenose. Als wichtiger Zeitpunkt für eine präventive Maßnahme, zur Verhinderung der Ausbildung einer hömodynamisch relevanten Aortenklappenstenose, kann das Stadium der Aortenklappensklerose angesehen werden. Dieses frühe Erkrankungsstadium verfügt über zahlreiche pathophysiologische Parallelen zur Atherosklerose, für die eine positive Rolle der Prävention durch körperliche Aktivität erwiesen ist. Ziel dieser Arbeit war die Durchführung der Sekundärprävention der kalzifizierenden Aortenklappenerkrankung durch körperliches Training. Um mögliche Effekte dieser Intervention zu eruieren, wurden LDLR-/--Mäuse mit bereits bestehenden pathologischen Aortenklappenveränderungen über einen Zeitraum von 16 Wochen körperlichem Training unterzogen. Durch morphologische, serumanalytische, immunhistochemische und Genexpressionsanalysen konnte abschließend eine Quantifizierung der Effekte körperlichen Trainings - in der Zielsetzung der Sekundärprävention - realisiert werden.

The purpose of this thesis was to assess the prevalence and management of established cardiovascular (CV) risk factors and the prevalence and influence of self-reported markers (number of teeth and frequency of gum bleeding) of periodontal disease (PD), a less explored CV risk factor, in patients with stable chronic coronary heart disease (CHD). We studied patients from the global STabilization of Atherosclerotic plaque By Initiation of darapLadIb TherapY (STABILITY) trial (n=15,828), in which patients with stable chronic CHD were randomized to either darapladib or placebo. Our studies were performed using descriptive statistics and multivariable linear, logistic and Cox regression models. The use of secondary preventive medications was generally high across the whole study population. Despite this, CV risk factors were highly prevalent, including obesity, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. Achievement of guideline-recommended treatment targets was lacking and little improvement was seen throughout the study duration. Approximately 40% of patients reported having <15 remaining teeth and 25% reported gum bleeding. More tooth loss was associated with a greater CV risk factor burden after adjustment, while the associations for gum bleeding were less evident. After multivariable adjustment for CV risk factors and socioeconomic status, more tooth loss was associated with an increased risk of major adverse CV events (a composite of CV death, myocardial infarction and stroke), CV mortality, all-cause mortality and fatal or non-fatal stroke. We found associations between a higher degree of tooth loss and elevated levels of several prognostic biomarkers known to reflect various pathophysiological mechanisms involved in CV morbidity and mortality. Most biomarkers had little attenuating effect on the relationship between tooth loss and outcomes in a multivariable model. In conclusion, we found an inadequate CV risk factor control despite a high use of evidence-based pharmacological therapies, likely to explain some of the excess risk in CHD patients. Further, we demonstrated a high prevalence of PD markers, tooth loss in particular, that were associated with a wide range of established CV risk factors, prognostic biomarkers and outcomes. Collectively, these findings indicate that tooth loss may be a significant risk factor among patients with stable chronic CHD.

The overall aim of this thesis was to explore and describe women’s recovery after a first myocardial infarction (MI) from an organisational, a relational and an individual perspective. In this thesis a longitudinal, explorative and descriptive design combining both quantitative (papers I-II) and qualitative (papers III-IV) methods has been used. Data was collected from healthcare professionals at 18 acute hospitals (paper I), which on two occasions answered a questionnaire dealing with cardiac rehabilitation efforts. From these 18 hospitals, 240 women who had suffereda first MI (paper II) were consecutively chosen to answer a questionnaire on three occasions on the subject of social support and social network. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse data over time. Paper III and IV had an exploratory and descriptive design based on an inductive, qualitative content analysis approach. Interviews were conducted with 20 cardiac rehabilitation nurses (CRN) (paper III) and with 26 women suffering a first MI (paper IV). The results showed that patients with MI, and their next of kin, were offered a well-functioning cardiac rehabilitation on both measurement occasions. None of the hospitals offered a CRP that was specifically designed for women (paper I). The women perceived that the extent of general support, support from relatives, and professional support changed positively over time (paper II). The CRNs experienced that women’s recovery was influenced by their ability to cope with the stresses of life, if they wanted to be involved in their own personal care and how they related to themselves, and their opportunities to receive support (paper III). Women experienced that ability to approach the new perspective of life depended on how they embraced the three dimensions; behaviour, i.e. women’s acting and engaging in various activities, social i.e. how women receive and give support in their social environment, and psychological i.e. their way of thinking, reflect and appreciate life (paper IV). In conclusion, the four studies show that women’s recovery after a first MI is depending on factors emerging from an organisational, a relational and an individual perspective. Using knowledge from these three perspectives the possibility of a holistic approach to women’s recovery process to health will increase and the risk of a reductionist thinking will decrease.