Conditions In Norway Research Articles

Musculoskeletal symptoms among hospital cleaners

ABSTRACTStudies have indicated that cleaners are at risk for musculoskeletal symptoms (MSS). In 2001, the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate suggested improvements in cleaners' work environment to reduce MSS. We estimate prevalence of MSS among cleaners in a Norwegian hospital that had implemented improvements to reduce risk of MSS and calculate relative risk of MSS among cleaners compared to a group of office workers. Data were collected from 255 participants. MSS were investigated using the Nordic Questionnaire for Analysis of Musculoskeletal Symptoms. Cleaners reported a significantly higher prevalence of MSS compared to office workers but a lower prevalence compared to similar studies among cleaners in other countries. This may indicate that working conditions in Norway are better than in other countries; further studies are needed to compare MSS and working conditions in different settings.

Moisture Conditions in Passive House Wall Constructions

Buildings for the future, i.e zero emission buildings and passive houses, will need well insulated building envelopes, which includes increased insulation thicknesses for roof, wall and floor constructions. Increased insulation thicknesses may cause an increase in moisture levels and thereby increased risk of mold growth. There is need for increased knowledge about moisture levels in wood constructions of well insulated houses, to ensure robust and moisture safe solutions.Monitoring of wood moisture levels and temperatures have been performed in wall- and roof constructions of 4 passive houses in three different locations representing different climate conditions in Norway.

Institutional logic in self-management support: coexistence and diversity.

The prevalence of chronic conditions in Europe has been the subject of health-political reforms that have increasingly targeted collaboration between public, private and voluntary organisations for the purpose of supporting self-management of long-term diseases. The international literature describes collaboration across sectors as challenging, which implies that their respective logics are conflicting or incompatible. In line with the European context, recent Norwegian health policy advocates inter-sectorial partnerships. The aim of this policy is to create networks supporting better self-management for people with chronic conditions. The purpose of our qualitative study was to map different understandings of self-management support in private for-profit, volunteer and public organisations. These organisations are seen as potential self-management support networks for individuals with chronic conditions in Norway. From December 2012 to April 2013, we conducted 50 semi-structured interviews with representatives from relevant health and well-being organisations in different parts of Norway. According to the theoretical framework of institutional logic, representatives' statements are embedded with organisational understandings. In the analysis, we systematically assessed the representatives' different understandings of self-management support. The institutional logic we identified revealed traits of organisational historical backgrounds, and transitions in understanding. We found that the merging of individualism and fellowship in contemporary health policy generates different types of logic in different organisational contexts. The private for-profit organisations were concerned with the logic of a healthy appearance and mindset, whereas the private non-profit organisations emphasised fellowship and moral responsibility. Finally, the public, illness-oriented organisations tended to highlight individual conditions for illness management. Different types of logic may attract different users, and simultaneously, a diversity of logic types may challenge collaboration at the user's expense. Moral implications embed institutional logic implying a change towards individual responsibility for disease. Policy makers ought to consider complexities of logic in order to tailor the different needs of users.

Medical statistics and epidemiology – the early history

-

Moisture conditions in well-insulated wood-frame walls. Simulations, laboratory measurements and field measurements

Buildings for the future, that is, zero emission buildings and passive houses, will need well-insulated building envelopes, which include increased insulation thicknesses for roof, wall and floor constructions. Increased insulation thicknesses may cause an increase in humidity levels and thereby increased risk of mould growth. There is need for better knowledge about moisture levels in wood constructions of well-insulated buildings, to ensure robust and moisture-safe solutions. Various envelope constructions were simulated using HAM-tools (Heat, Air and Moisture). In addition, a laboratory experiment was performed to investigate the effect of a slower drying out of built-in moisture. Walls with varying insulation thicknesses and with a high degree of built-in moisture were instrumented with moisture sensors, and the drying speed was monitored. A field monitoring of wood moisture levels and temperatures was performed in wall and roof constructions of five passive houses in three different locations representing different climate conditions in Norway. The general conclusion is that the risk for mould growth increases somewhat in well-insulated envelopes compared to more traditional envelopes. However, in most cases this can be counteracted by making the right choices during design and construction.

Effect of fertilization rate and ploughing time on nitrous oxide emissions in a long-term cereal trail in south east Norway

Fertilization and soil tillage are important factors for crop production and N2O emissions. Nothing is known about fertilizer-induced N2O emissions (FIEs) in cereal production under cool-temperate conditions in Norway. Here, we report N2O emissions measured throughout two vegetation periods in a long-term cereal trail in SE Norway, comparing three nitrogen (N) fertilization rates (0, 60 and 120 kg N ha−1) under long-term autumn and spring-ploughing regimes. Emission rates were higher in undisturbed plots directly after spring thaw before ploughing (35–52 μg N2O-N m−2 h−1) than those in plots ploughed in previous autumn (18–26 μg N2O-N m−2 h−1), suggesting that ploughing date affected post-thaw availability of N from crop residues in the following year. In contrary, autumn-ploughed plots had higher N2O emissions during drying–rewetting events in summer, cancelling out any effect of ploughing date on growing season N2O emissions. Averaged FIE differed greatly between the years, with 0.37–0.40 and 0.72–0.96 % of fertilizer N lost as N2O in 2009 and 2010, respectively, reflecting different weather conditions in the 2 years. Growing season N2O emission response was not stable over the tested fertilization range but increased disproportionally above an optimum fertilization rate of 90–100 kg N ha−1, probably because of incomplete N uptake by the crop. This would suggest that decreasing the N fertilization rate by 25 % (from 120 to an optimum level of 90 kg N ha−1) could reduce N2O emission by 30 % with only minor reduction in grain yield (6–8 %).

Faces of a Changing Climate: Semi-Quantitative Multi-Mycotoxin Analysis of Grain Grown in Exceptional Climatic Conditions in Norway

Recent climatological research predicts a significantly wetter climate in Southern Norway as a result of global warming. Thus, the country has already experienced unusually wet summer seasons in the last three years (2010–2012). The aim of this pilot study was to apply an existing multi-analyte LC-MS/MS method for the semi-quantitative determination of 320 fungal and bacterial metabolites in Norwegian cereal grain samples from the 2011 growing season. Such knowledge could provide important information for future survey and research programmes in Norway. The method includes all regulated and well-known mycotoxins such as aflatoxins, trichothecenes, ochratoxin A, fumonisins and zearalenone. In addition, a wide range of less studied compounds are included in the method, e.g., Alternaria toxins, ergot alkaloids and other metabolites produced by fungal species within Fusarium, Penicillium and Aspergillus. Altogether, 46 metabolites, all of fungal origin, were detected in the 76 barley, oats and wheat samples. The analyses confirmed the high prevalence and relatively high concentrations of type-A and -B trichothecenes (e.g., deoxynivalenol up to 7230 µg/kg, HT-2 toxin up to 333 µg/kg). Zearalenone was also among the major mycotoxins detected (maximum concentration 1670 µg/kg). Notably, several other Fusarium metabolites such as culmorin, 2-amino-14,16-dimethyloctadecan-3-ol and avenacein Y were co-occurring. Furthermore, the most prevalent Alternaria toxin was alternariol with a maximum concentration of 449 µg/kg. A number of Penicillium and Aspergillus metabolites were also detected in the samples, e.g., sterigmatocystin in concentrations up to 20 µg/kg.

Which Sámi? Sámi inclusion criteria in population-based studies of Sámi health and living conditions in Norway – an exploratory study exemplified with data from the SAMINOR study

BackgroundIn a situation where national censuses do not record information on ethnicity, studies of the indigenous Sámi people's health and living conditions tend to use varying Sámi inclusion criteria and categorizations. Consequently, the basis on which Sámi study participants are included and categorized when Sámi health and living conditions are explored and compared differs. This may influence the results and conclusions drawn.ObjectiveTo explore some numerical consequences of applying principles derived from Norway's Sámi Act as a foundation for formalized inclusion criteria in population-based Sámi studies in Norway.DesignWe established 1 geographically based (G1) and 3 individual-based Sámi example populations (I1–I3) by applying diverse Sámi inclusion criteria to data from 17 rural municipalities in Norway north of the Arctic Circle. The data were collected for a population-based study of health and living conditions in 2003–2004 (the SAMINOR study). Our sample consisted of 14,797 participants aged 36–79 years.ResultsThe size of the individual-based populations varied significantly. I1 (linguistic connection Sámi) made up 35.5% of the sample, I2 (self-identified Sámi) made up 21.0% and I3 (active language Sámi) 17.7%. They were also noticeably unevenly distributed between the 5 Sámi regions defined for this study. The differences for the other characteristics studied were more ambiguous. For the population G1 (residents in the Sámi language area) the only significant difference found between the Sámi and the corresponding non-Sámi population was for household income (OR=0.69, 95% CI: 0.63–0.74). For the populations I1–I3 there were significant differences on all measures except for I2 and education (OR=1.09, 95% CI: 0.99–1.21).ConclusionsThe choice of Sámi inclusion criterion had a clear impact on the size and geographical distribution of the defined populations but lesser influence on the selected characteristics for the Sámi populations relative to the respective non-Sámi ones.

Disability measurements: impact on research results

This article addresses the issue of whether the choice of operational definition of disability in survey research affects findings. Earlier studies have shown that different definitions cause substantial variation in prevalence rates, as well as limited agreement on the classification of subjects as disabled or not disabled. The article addresses whether this leads to differences in research outcomes. The study compares seven existing measurements of disability. The analysis is carried out using a single dataset; the 2007 survey of disabled people's living conditions in Norway (N=1652). Results are reported for subject descriptors (gender, age, marital status, characteristics of impairment), social indicators (education, income and employment), and predictors of income and employment. The impact of the definition of disability on results is found to be modest in general but with exceptions: The definition of disability clearly affects employment rates and the type and degree of impairment of people classified as disabled. Consequences for disability research are discussed.

Post forest reversal discussion: Restructuring public subsidy system for private forests under the differences of topographic conditions in Norway

Global attention has focused on how to utilize wood resources with less impact on ecological services generated by forests, and governments are restructuring the subsidy system to achieve effective resource governance. We examined (1) the changes in wood utilization against growing wood stock among high-income countries; (2) regional differences in the Norwegian wood stock and its utilization and (3) the allocation system of public subsidies for forestry under the request of balance between wood production and conservation of forests in Norway. The utilization rate of wood differed significantly between the eastern and central-western regions of the country (P<0.01), but there was no significant difference in the growing wood stock per ha (127.7±10.9m3ha−1 in the eastern region and 119.2±21.1m3ha−1 in the central-western region). The difference in utilization status was significantly correlated with the share of harvestable forest areas located in steeper slopes (r=−0.935, P<0.001) and the forest road density (r=0.735, P<0.01). The government strategically implemented both financial support and regulations in each region on the basis of regional differences in wood resource conditions. As is the most of the western countries, Norway faced the competition between conservation and production of forests, and terminated public subsidy for forest in 2003. However, because a change in utilization of Norwegian wood stock (−2.2%yr−1) was one of the lowest values among the high-income group between 1990 and 2005, the subsidy was recovered and targeted to galvanize wood production with guidelines of mitigating environmental degradation. The proper allocation of both incentives and disincentives for forest management is pivotal to achieve the sustainable utilization of wood resources in developed countries, which might alleviate the transfer of environmental burden to developing nations through trade.

Ibsen’s Rosmersholm: Socio-Political Elements

The current study, displaying the reflection of political, ethical, psychological and social life of the times in Rosmersholm (1886), one of the middle plays of the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, aims at showing the social and political conditions in Norway in the early nineteenth century and the way how they influenced the behaviour and attitudes of people and the dramatis persona in the play. This paper also makes an effort to shed new light on the significance of Christianity on the social life of the time.

Measuring disability in survey research: Comparing current measurements within one data set

The aim of this article is to compare current operationalisations of disability in survey research, regarding prevalence estimates and also to analyse to what extent different measurements classify the same group of people as disabled. Eleven current measurements from national and international studies are compared, including subjective, administrative and functional definitions. Analyses were conducted using data from a survey of disabled people's living conditions in Norway (LCD), gathered in 2007. Results indicate that depending on definition, the estimated disability rate in Norway varies from about 10 to more than 25% within the same sample. The group of people classified as disabled according to different definitions overlaps only to some extent. The analysis also suggests more overlap among definitions if the comparison of definitions is restricted to people with severe impairments. The findings suggest a need for more standardised measurement of disability in survey research, and more conscious attention to how choice of operational definition may affect research results.

METABOLIC, TRANSCRIPTIONAL AND PROTEOMIC PROFILING OF COLD RESPONSE IN FRAGARIA VESCA

Due to short vegetation periods and harsh climatic conditions in Norway, successful strawberry production and berry yield relies mainly on the plants' cold acclimation, winter survival and re-growth in spring time. Based on joint research intents and national/ international co-operation, the present study was aimed at investigating the functional short- but also long-term cold response in leaves of Fragaria x ananassa (cvs. 'Korona' and 'Jonsok') and Norwegian Fragaria vesca clones (As, Tingvoll and Alta) upon exposure to 2°C for 0, 3, 24, 72 and 240h. Preliminary results from transcriptional profiling (F. vesca) have shown the up-regulation of proteins related to cryoprotection (dehydrins), membrane and transport function (COR proteins) and metabolism (galactinol synthase) after 24h, and in addition, the induction of distinct secondary metabolites (terpenes) was confirmed by metabolic profiling based on SPME/GC-MS analyses. Furthermore, GC/TOF-MS-based profiling of cold-adapted F. vesca clones and F. x ananassa (cv. 'Korona') revealed the up-regulation of carbohydrates (galactinol, glucose and fructose), amino acids (glutamine, glutamic acid, asparagine and aspartic acid), TCA intermediates (malic acid and fumaric acid) but also distinct secondary metabolites and redox functioning (ascorbic acid). Functional studies of Fragaria sp. cold response through transcriptional, proteomics and metabolic approaches are in progress.

Temperature responses, flowering and fruit yield of the June-bearing strawberry cultivars Florence, Frida and Korona

The effect of night temperature on short day (SD) floral induction has been studied in three June-bearing strawberry cultivars of different geographic origin and compared with yield performance in the cool Nordic environment. At the optimum day temperature of 18 °C, the SD flowering response of the cultivars ‘Florence’ and ‘Korona’ increased significantly with increasing night temperature from 9 to 18 °C, while an optimum was reached at 15 °C in the cultivar ‘Frida’ that is selected under cool-environment conditions in Norway. Also, while saturated flowering response was obtained with 3 weeks of SD treatment at all temperatures in ‘Frida’, several plants of ‘Florence’ and ‘Korona’ failed to initiate flowers at 9 °C night temperature even with 5 weeks of SD. The effect of extended SD period was particularly pronounced in ‘Florence’. The slow SD floral induction response of ‘Florence’ was associated with a 2 week delay of anthesis in subsequent long day (LD) conditions at 21 °C. Yield performance of the same cultivars during 2 years under field conditions at Nes Hedmark and in North Norway also demonstrated that the yield potential of ‘Florence’ was not realized under the climatic conditions prevailing at these locations. In both years the yields varied significantly among the cultivars, ‘Frida’ having the highest yields followed by ‘Korona’, with ‘Florence’ far below. It is concluded that, in the Nordic environment, autumn (September) night temperatures are obviously sub-optimal for yield performance of some June-bearing strawberry cultivars, and that this effect is mediated by autumn temperature effects on flower initiation responses.

Investigation of Flashover Performance of Snow-Covered Breakers

When snow is unevenly distributed on horizontal insulators there is a higher risk for flashover. This was investigated for a 400 kV circuit breaker with horizontal breaking chamber insulators. The highest risk occurs when connecting a line to a generator. For a short moment during the synchronization the voltage can reach 2.5 times the normal phase-to-earth voltage. A test method that simulates worst snow conditions in Norway during the synchronization was developed. When simulating these conditions it was possible to construct flashover curves as function of time under voltage. A comparison with the synchronizing voltage made it possible to estimate the risk for flashover during the synchronizing time. There is a very low flashover risk at nominal phase-to-earth voltage. At 25% overvoltage one can expect 50% flashover probability during critical snow condition. A mechanism that shows the interaction of the important flashover factors is presented.

Heavy metal load and dominance hierarchy in juvenile willow tits during winter

Possible links between plasma testosterone levels, heavy metal loads and dominance in juvenile male willow tits ( Parus montanus) are studied during winter conditions in Norway. Dominant individuals have better access to food resources, significantly higher cadmium content in the liver and higher plasma testosterone level compared to subordinates. A positive correlation was also found between plasma testosterone level and content of cadmium in the liver. Although the results in our study shows only a limited difference in testosterone level of dominant and subordinate juvenile male willow tits, possible small changes in behaviour might have crucial effects on winter survival of these birds.

Persistence of Orally Administered Salmonella enterica Serovars Agona and Montevideo in Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar L.)

The objective of our experiments was to study the persistence and dissemination of orally administered Salmonella in smoltified Atlantic salmon. In experiment 1, salmon kept at 15°C were fed for 1 week with feed contaminated with 96 most-probable-number units of Salmonella Agona per 100 g of feed and then starved for 2 weeks. Samples were taken from the gastrointestinal tract and examined for Salmonella 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, and 16 days after the feeding ended. In experiment 2, Salmonella Agona and Montevideo were separately mixed with feed and administered by gastric intubation. Each fish received 1.0 × 108, 1.0 × 106, or 1.0 × 104 CFU. The different groups were kept in parallel at 5 and 15°C and observed for 4 weeks. Every week, three fish in each group were sacrificed, and samples were taken from the skin, the pooled internal organs, the muscle, and the gastrointestinal tract and examined for the presence of Salmonella. The results from the two experiments showed that the persistence of Salmonella in the fish was highly dependent on the dose administered. Salmonella was not recovered from any of the fish that were fed for 1 week with the lowest concentration of Salmonella. In the fish given the highest dose of Salmonella, bacteria persisted for at least 4 weeks in the gastrointestinal tract as well as, to some extent, the internal organs. The present study shows that under practical conditions in Norway, the risk of Salmonella in fish feed being passed on to the consumer of the fish is negligible.

Moniliformin in Norwegian grain

Norwegian grain samples (73 oats, 75 barley, 83 wheat) from the 2000–02 growing seasons were examined for contamination with moniliformin, and the association between the fungal metabolite and the number of kernels infected with common Fusaria was investigated. Before quantification of moniliformin using ion pairing reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array ultraviolet light detection, all samples were extracted using acetonitrile/water (84/16) and disposable strong anion exchange columns used for clean up. The limit of detection was 40 μg kg−1. Moniliformin was found in 25, 32 and 76% of the barley, oats and wheat samples, respectively. The maximum concentrations of moniliformin in barley, oats and wheat were 380, 210 and 950 μg kg−1, respectively. At the same time, the prevalence and infection level of the moniliformin-producing F. avenaceum/arthrosporioides was as high as 100 and >53% on average, respectively. Moniliformin concentrations were significantly correlated to the variables grain species, growing season and infection with F. avenaceum/arthrosporioides and F. culmorum. The survey indicates that the prevalence of moniliformin in Norwegian grain is high, especially in wheat. On the other hand, field conditions in Norway do not seem to favour contamination of grain with high levels of moniliformin.

Spatial and temporal distribution of bioclimatic potential for the Codling moth and the Colorado potato beetle in Norway: model predictions versus climate and field data from the 1990s

Abstract 1 Based on climate data from a network of agrometeorological stations in Norway, the effects of current and future climate regimes on the spatial and temporal distribution of the Codling moth (Cydia pomonella) and the establishment potential of the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) were investigated.2 The study was accomplished using climex, a dynamic climate matching‐ and climate response estimation model, which predicts potential distribution of an organism based on its known geographical distribution.3 Validation of the climex model predictions for C. pomonella against field data on spatial distribution of the species in Norway resulted in a refined set of climate response parameters for C. pomonella. Temporal occurrence of C. pomonella seems to be affected by climate (temperature) and insecticide treatment against the Apple fruit moth (Argyresthia conjugella) in the previous season.4 Climate change scenarios (0.1 °C increase per degree in latitude in daily maximum and minimum temperatures) indicated an extension of the potential geographical range for C. pomonella, and 23 new locations were found favourable for its long‐term survival. The abundance and pest status of C. pomonella could increase dramatically in those locations where the species is already established.5 Leptinotarsa decemlineata would only temporarily find suitable climate conditions in Norway and hence only be able to establish interim populations in a few regions under current climate conditions. Climate change scenarios for L. decemlineata indicated that the species would be able to establish as far north as 64°N, mainly in the inland of eastern Norway.6 In general, the methods applied support the process of decreasing the uncertainty both in our knowledge about the pests themselves and about the environment, which are crucial elements in predicting whether a species is able to establish in a new area.

Root and shoot competition between established grass species and newly sown seedlings during spring growth

Competition between established Dactylis glomerata or Festuca pratensis/Taraxacum officinale swards and seedlings of Trifolium pratense was studied under field conditions in Norway. Root competition from the Festuca pratensis/Taraxacum officinale sward was significantly greater than that from a Dactylis glomerata sward. The balance in root and shoot competition varied between experimental years because of variation in environmental conditions. In the first experimental year, root competition had a greater effect on seedling dry weight than shoot competition, whereas the opposite was found in the second year. However, both root and shoot competition (full competition) in comparison with no competition gave proportionally the same effects in both years, indicating that an alleviation in root competition will be followed by intensified shoot competition. An increasing effect of shoot competition with time on plant dry weight was found. In a second experiment, seedlings of Lolium perenne and Trifolium pratense produced the highest plant dry weights in competition with an established Phleum pratense sward, followed by seedlings of Poa pratensis, Phleum pratense and Trifolium repens in decreasing order. However, no interactions between seedling species and competition treatments were found, indicating no differences in sensitivity between seedling species to competition from the established grass sward. The results are discussed in the context of renovating grassland by direct drilling.