Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

P Bjerregaard

Publications and source records attributed to P Bjerregaard.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Double external direct-current shocks for refractory atrial fibrillation.

Encouraged by preliminary data using double external direct-current (DC) shocks in patients with atrial fibrillation refractory to single external DC shocks, we undertook a prospective study of all patients with atrial fibrillation of > 1-month duration using a shock sequence with (1) 1 shock of 200 J anterior-posterior, (2) 1 shock of 360 J anterior-posterior, (3) 1 shock of 360 J apex-anterior, and (4) double shocks with configurations 2 and 3 delivered almost simultaneously by 2 defibrillators. The double shocks appeared to be safe and restored sinus rhythm in approximately 2 of 3 of patients in whom DC cardioversion failed with single shocks.

Atrial Fibrillation↗
PubMed1999

[Health, life style and living conditions in Greenland. The 1993-1994 Greenland health survey].

Existing knowledge about the disease pattern in Greenland does not include the Greenlanders' own perception of their health. Consequently, the Greenland Home Rule Government initiated a countrywide health interview survey which was carried out during 1993-1994. A total of 1728 adults were interviewed and filled in a questionnaire. Self-rated health varied with age, gender and socioeconomic conditions. Only few of those bothered by symptoms had contacted the health care services. Musculoskeletal diseases were by far the most frequent cause of symptoms. Suicidal thoughts were frequent; 48% had experienced the suicide of a relative or friend. The life style is characterized by a high consumption of marine mammals and fish, a decreasing but still high alcohol consumption and an 80% prevalence of smoking among both men and women. The health care services are often staffed by Danish physicians and nurses. Occasionally this gives rise to communication problems and dissatisfaction.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

High serum coenzyme Q10, positively correlated with age, selenium and cholesterol, in Inuit of Greenland. A pilot study.

Greenlanders (Eskimos) have low prevalence of ischaemic heart disease, partly explained by a lower extent of atherosclerosis and a low n-6/n-3 ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids. As atherosclerosis is also a result of oxidative stress, the total antioxidative readiness could have a substantial impact. From a health survey we chose the subpopulation from the most remote area, where the traditional Greenlandic diet with high intake of sea mammals and fish predominates. The mean (SD) of S-CoQ10 in males was 1.495 (0.529) nmol/ml and 1.421 (0.629) nmol/ml in females, significantly higher (p < 0.001) compared to a Danish population. In a linear multiple regression model the S-CoQ10 level is significantly positively associated with age and S-selenium in males, and S-total cholesterol in females. The high level of CoQ10 in Greenlanders probably reflects diet, since no bioaccumulation takes place, and it could probably be a substantial part of the antioxidative defense.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Deceleration-dependent shortening of the QT interval: a new electrocardiographic phenomenon?

In clinical cardiology, deceleration-dependent QT interval shortening is considered to be an extraordinary electrocardiographic phenomenon. We present an early premature born 4-year-old African-American girl with complications related to her premature birth, developmental delay, and several episodes of cardiac arrest. An episode of severe transient bradyarrhythmia was documented on Holter monitoring. The unique feature of the rhythm strips was paradoxical gradual shortening of the QT interval to 216 ms with accompanying transient T-waves abnormalities. The activation of the Ik, ACh due to an unusually high vagal discharge to the heart is proposed as a possible mechanism responsible for both slowing of the heart rate and shortening of the QT interval.

Bradycardia↗
PubMed1999

The Brugada syndrome: clinical, electrophysiologic and genetic aspects.

This review deals with the clinical, basic and genetic aspects of a recently highlighted form of idiopathic ventricular fibrillation known as the Brugada syndrome. Our primary objective in this review is to identify the full scope of the syndrome and attempt to correlate the electrocardiographic manifestations of the Brugada syndrome with cellular and ionic heterogeneity known to exist within the heart under normal and pathophysiologic conditions so as to identify the cellular basis and thus potential diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. The available data suggest that the Brugada syndrome is a primary electrical disease resulting in abnormal electrophysiologic activity in right ventricular epicardium. Recent genetic data linking the Brugada syndrome to an ion channel gene mutation (SCN5A) provides further support for the hypothesis. The electrocardiographic manifestations of the Brugada syndrome show transient normalization in many patients, but can be unmasked using sodium channel blockers such as flecainide, ajmaline or procainamide, thus identifying patients at risk. The available data suggest that loss of the action potential dome in right ventricular epicardium but not endocardium underlies the ST segment elevation seen in the Brugada syndrome and that electrical heterogeneity within right ventricular epicardium leads to the development of closely coupled premature ventricular contractions via a phase 2 reentrant mechanism that then precipitates ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF). Currently, implantable cardiac defibrillator implantation is the only proven effective therapy in preventing sudden death in patients with the Brugada syndrome and is indicated in symptomatic patients and should be considered in asymptomatic patients in whom VT/VF is inducible at time of electrophysiologic study.

DNA Mutational Analysis↗
PubMed1999

Comparison of short-term estrogenicity tests for identification of hormone-disrupting chemicals.

The aim of this study was to compare results obtained by eight different short-term assays of estrogenlike actions of chemicals conducted in 10 different laboratories in five countries. Twenty chemicals were selected to represent direct-acting estrogens, compounds with estrogenic metabolites, estrogenic antagonists, and a known cytotoxic agent. Also included in the test panel were 17beta++-estradiol as a positive control and ethanol as solvent control. The test compounds were coded before distribution. Test methods included direct binding to the estrogen receptor (ER), proliferation of MCF-7 cells, transient reporter gene expression in MCF-7 cells, reporter gene expression in yeast strains stably transfected with the human ER and an estrogen-responsive reporter gene, and vitellogenin production in juvenile rainbow trout. 17beta-Estradiol, 17alpha-ethynyl estradiol, and diethylstilbestrol induced a strong estrogenic response in all test systems. Colchicine caused cytotoxicity only. Bisphenol A induced an estrogenic response in all assays. The results obtained for the remaining test compounds--tamoxifen, ICI 182.780, testosterone, bisphenol A dimethacrylate, 4-n-octylphenol, 4-n-nonylphenol, nonylphenol dodecylethoxylate, butylbenzylphthalate, dibutylphthalate, methoxychlor, o,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDE, endosulfan, chlomequat chloride, and ethanol--varied among the assays. The results demonstrate that careful standardization is necessary to obtain a reasonable degree of reproducibility. Also, similar methods vary in their sensitivity to estrogenic compounds. Thus, short-term tests are useful for screening purposes, but the methods must be further validated by additional interlaboratory and interassay comparisons to document the reliability of the methods.

DDT↗
PubMed1999

Right bundle branch block as a cause of false-negative ECG classification of inferior myocardial infarction.

It is generally accepted in clinical electrocardiography that a right bundle branch block (RBBB) does not interfere with the electrocardiographic (ECG) diagnosis of myocardial infarction (MI). The basic assumption is that the initial excitation wavefronts are relatively unchanged in RBBB. This study compared serial changes in Q wave duration in inferior leads II, III, and aVF in 9 patients who developed RBBB within 3 weeks after myocardial revascularization procedure (RBBB group) and in 41 revascularized patients without RBBB in the same observation period (control group). Q wave durations in the electrocardiograms obtained before the patients' procedures were not significantly different between the study and control groups. However, Q wave durations shortened significantly more in the RBBB group than in the control group. The most pronounced Q wave duration shortening took place in lead aVF, -18.2 ms in the RBBB group versus -3.8 ms in the control group (P = .0001). The shortening was less pronounced, although significant, in leads II and III: II, -7.6 +/- -10.9 ms in the RBBB group vs -2.3 +/- -3.5 ms in the control group (P = .01); III, -11.3 +/- -10.5 ms vs -2.6 +/- -6.5 ms (P = .002); aVF, -18.2 +/- -13.5 ms vs -3.8 +/- -5.3 ms (P < .0001). It is concluded that incident RBBB complicating revascularization procedures may cause significant alterations in spatial orientation of the initial excitation wavefronts. This may be a potential source of false-negative ECG diagnosis of inferior MI, particularly in clinical trials where serial ECG analysis is an important part in MI classification.

Bundle-Branch Block↗
PubMed1998

Family pattern and family care in Greenland.

Information on household and family patterns from the 1993-94 Health Interview Survey in Greenland is described. The average size of households is 3.5, and almost three-fourths of the Greenlandic population live in families with children. The pattern of these families with children covers a variety of single-parent families (6% of the total Greenlandic population), nuclear families (42%), extended families (14%), and other types of families (11%).

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Regional variation in cardiovascular risk factors and ischemic heart disease mortality in Greenland.

In a random sample of 264 indigenous Greenlanders, behavioral and biochemical risk factors for cardiovascular disease were compared between the capital, Nuuk, and the rest of the country ("the Coast") while the whole sample was compared with Denmark. In Nuuk consumption of marine food averaged 23 meals per month, compared with 38 on the Coast. N6/N3 ratio was higher in Nuuk but HDL concentrations were similar. There were fewer current smokers in Nuuk, but the prevalence of hypertension and mortality from ischemic heart disease (IHD) were similar. IHD mortality is lower in Greenland than in Denmark (352 and 434 per 100,000). This is in agreement with the dietary differences, and with the low N6/N3 ratio and the high HDL concentration in Greenland, but opposed to a high proportion of smokers and a high prevalence of hypertension in Greenland compared with Denmark. IHD mortality is apparently decreasing in Greenland concurrently with a Westernization of the lifestyle. This paradox may be due to the fact that societal changes are recent, and the situation may change in the future.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Effects of dietary seal oil on fat metabolism.

In the 1970s, Bang and Dyerberg demonstrated that a high intake of n-3 acids in Greenland protected against ischemic heart disease. This started the interest in fish oil as a preventive component in cardiac disease. The fatty acid composition in Greenlandic diet is quite different from the one in the Danish diet, being lower in saturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and higher in monounsatured fatty acids (MUFAs). During the last decade, evidence has suggested that the MUFA (18:1) is not a neutral dietary component but has a positive effect of its own. This paper reports on a current project undertaken to study the effect of marine MUFAs and PUFAs on atherosclerosis-related parameters and to evaluate their possible synergistic effect in the prevention of atherosclerosis. The project has recently started, so at the moment results cannot be presented. The study will be carried out as an intervention study on 50 healthy volunteers. Capsules of Greenlandic halibut oil (rich in MUFAs) and "Biomarin" (rich in n-3 PUFAs) will be tested against seal oil.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Common mental disorders among patients in primary health care in Greenland.

Studies from all over the world have shown that well defined mental disorders are common in all general health care settings and that marked disability is associated with common mental disorders, more so than with chronic physical disorders without psychological disturbances. A majority of mental disorders are unrecognized and do not get appropriate treatment. No such study has been made in Greenland, but there are many indications that mental health is threatened and needs more attention. A two-stage study of common mental disorders among patients in the primary health service in Greenland is planned to take place from September 1996 to 1998. The research plan is presented as an invitation to replicate the study in other circumpolar areas.

Cross-Sectional Studies↗
PubMed1998

Social and cultural factors as determinants of self-rated health in Greenland.

In 1993-94, a countrywide health interview survey was performed in 38 towns and villages throughout Greenland. Information was collected on self-rated health and self-reported disease, social and cultural factors, lifestyle, and living conditions. A total of 1,580 adult Greenlanders and 148 Danes was interviewed (57% of the sample). Respondents were classified according to ethnic self-identification and job category, but these customary classifications were not satisfactory. An alternative classification according to exposure to traditional Greenlandic hunting culture and Danish culture during childhood was tested. The population fell into three subgroups, each with its own socioeconomic, ethnic, and occupational pattern, and with different health and health behavior. The new classification has distinct advantages as a supplement to the usual classification according to ethnicity and job category. The aim of the present paper is to present a comprehensive health interview survey from Greenland and to discuss some considerations regarding sociocultural classification of the population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

The role of hunting in a socioeconomic classification for Greenland.

The socioeconomic classification used in Western societies is not directly applicable to Greenland where other factors, such as success as a hunter, participation in community life, and raising children, also convey status and must be included in a status coding. In the 1993 Greenland Health Interview Survey the participants' hunting activities were estimated through a number of questions. Nineteen percent of male Greenlanders classified themselves as hunters when asked about their primary occupation, but in another question an additional 10% stated that they relied on hunting for a living. When asked about their job, hunters were confused as to whether hunting was considered a job by the researchers. This uncertainty may explain the difference between the two questions regarding classification of individuals as hunters. For future research it is necessary to develop a socioeconomic status classification which is culturally sensitive and suited to contemporary Greenlandic society.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Long QT interval.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Cisapride↗