scholarly journals Diagnosis, rehabilitation and development of disability 2000-2019 in Iceland

2021 ◽  
Vol 107 (12) ◽  
pp. 575-580
Author(s):  
Ólafur Ó Guðmundsson ◽  
◽  
Guðmundur Hjaltalín ◽  
Haukur Eggertsson ◽  
Þóra Jónsdóttir ◽  
...  

INTRODUCTION: The disability assessment standard based on medically recognized illnesses or disabilities was introduced in Iceland 1999. The aim of this study is to examine the development of Social Insurance Administration (Tryggingastofnun ríkisins, TR) rulings regarding rehabilitation and disability pensions over a twenty-year period, since its introduction. MATERIAL AND METHODS: All registered diagnoses in the medical certificates of TR due to the approved rehabilitation or disability pension were examined in the period 2000-2019. The gender distribution and age distribution of these applicants and the number development during the period are described. At the same time, costs as a percentage of government expenditure are examined. RESULTS: The number of younger rehabilitation pensioners has increased rapidly in recent years, at the same time as the relative increase in disability pensioners has slowed slightly. Mental and musculoskeletal disorders are by far the most common types of illness leading to disability. Mental illnesses differ in terms of age distribution and increase over time. The proportion of individuals aged 18-66 with a 75% disability assessment has increased by a third during the period, from about 6% to 8%. The gender distribution of disability pensioners remains similar, with women accounting for 62% in total. Women are much more likely to receive disability pension due to musculoskeletal disorders than men and men are somewhat more likely to suffer from mental illness. The relative development of central government expenditure on total payments to rehabilitation and pensioners continues to grow as a proportion of central government expenditure. CONCLUSION: The number of rehabilitation pensioners has increased significantly since 2018, at the same time as the number of disability pensioners has decreased and there are indications that rehabilitation results in a lower number of new disability pensioners. Mental and musculoskeletal disorders are by far the most common types of illness leading to disability. A slightly lower proportion of disabled people have psychiatric diagnosis as a first diagnosis in the period 2000-2019 compared to those with a valid disability assessment in 2005, but the proportion of musculoskeletal disorders is slightly higher. Nevertheless, mental illnesses differ in age distribution and increase over time.

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-411
Author(s):  
Mia Söderberg ◽  
Ruth Mannelqvist ◽  
Bengt Järvholm ◽  
Linus Schiöler ◽  
Mikael Stattin

Aims: Study objectives were to investigate how changes in social insurance legislation influenced the incidence of disability pension. Methods: The study included 295,636 male construction workers who attended health examinations between 1971 and 1993, aged 20–60 years and without previous disability pension. Via the Swedish National Insurance Agency national register we identified 66,046 subjects who were granted disability pension up until 2010. The incidence rates were calculated and stratified according to age and diagnosis. Results: The incidence rate of disability pension was fairly stable until the 1990s when large variations occurred, followed by a strong decreasing trend from the early 2000s to 2010. Trends in incidence rates, stratified by age and diagnosis, showed a consistent decrease in cardiovascular disease for all age groups. In subjects aged 30–49 years there was a high peak around 2003 for musculoskeletal diseases and psychiatric diseases. For the age group 50–59 years, musculoskeletal diagnosis, the most common cause of disability pension, had a sharp peak around 1993 and then a decreasing trend. In the 60–64 age group, the incidence rate for psychiatric diagnosis was stable, while incidence rates for musculoskeletal diagnosis varied during the 1990s. Conclusions: There are considerable variations in the incidence rate of disability pension over time, with different patterns depending on age and diagnosis. Changes in social insurance legislation, as well as in administration processes, seem to influence the variation.


2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492110267
Author(s):  
Kiersten J. Kugeler ◽  
Paul S. Mead ◽  
Amy M. Schwartz ◽  
Alison F. Hinckley

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States and is characterized by a bimodal age distribution and male predominance. We examined trends in reported cases during a 25-year period to describe changes in the populations most affected by Lyme disease in the United States. We examined demographic characteristics of people with confirmed cases of Lyme disease reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during 1992-2016 through the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. We grouped cases into 5-year periods (1992-1996, 1997-2001, 2002-2006, 2007-2011, 2012-2016). We calculated the average annual incidence by age and sex and used incidence rate ratios (IRRs) to describe changes in Lyme disease incidence by age and sex over time. We converted patient age at time of illness into patient birth year to ascertain disease patterns according to birth cohorts. The incidence of Lyme disease in the United States doubled from 1992-1996 to 2012-2016 (IRR = 1.74; 95% CI, 1.70-1.78) and increased disproportionately among males; IRRs were 39%-89% higher among males than among females for most age groups. During the study period, children aged 5-9 years were most frequently and consistently affected. In contrast, the average age of adults with Lyme disease increased over time; of all adults, people born during 1950-1964 were the most affected by Lyme disease. Our findings suggest that age-related behaviors and susceptibilities may drive infections among children, and the shifting peak among adults likely reflects a probability proportional to the relative size of the baby boom population. These findings can inform targeted and efficient public health education and intervention efforts.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 75-81
Author(s):  
A. N. Volkov ◽  
E. V. Tsurkan

Aim. To analyze age and gender distribution in patients with Gilbert's syndrome.Materials and Methods. We consecutively recruited 115 patients with Gilbert's syndrome. All patients underwent genotyping of the rs8175347 polymorphism within the UGT1A1 gene using allele-specific polymerase chain reaction to confirm the diagnosis.Results. The age of initial diagnosis ranged from 3 years to 71 years, with the majority (44.3%) of cases detected ≤ 20 years of age. Mean ± standard error and median age of the diagnosis were 30.03 ± 1.72 years and 23 years. Despite the proportion of females and males among patients was similar, age distribution at primary diagnosis was significantly different across the genders. In women, Gilbert's syndrome was most frequently detected between 11 and 20 years (23.1%) and between 51 and 60 years (19.2%). In contrast, male adolescents were more prone to the development of Gilbert's syndrome, as 47.6% of male patients belonged to this age category.Conclusions. Variable age of Gilbert's syndrome diagnosis is probably determined by an individual combination of genetic causes (e.g., mutation of the UGT1A1 gene) and additional risk factors. Adolescents compose a significant proportion of patients. Because of relatively mild disease in many patients and unpredictability of the provoking factors, primary detection of Gilbert's syndrome can be delayed. Differences in age of Gilbert's syndrome diagnosis across the genders can be partially explained by organizational reasons associated with the current screening programs. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 423-449
Author(s):  
Graeme Roy ◽  
Mairi Spowage

Government Expenditure Revenue Scotland (GERS) remains a controversial statistical publication on Scotland’s public finances. We trace the evolution of GERS over time, and track how it has been used in political debate since it was first published in 1992. Now in its 27th edition, we review its ongoing role in informing constitutional and fiscal debate in Scotland. We dispel some of the myths about the publication, but also highlight legitimate criticisms, and explore how it is used by both sides in the independence debate. Our main contribution is to summarise what GERS tells us – and crucially what it does not tell us – about the state of Scotland’s economy and public finances. We conclude with an assessment of what GERS might tell us about the prospects for any future debate on Scottish independence.


2010 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Zakaria ◽  
Shujat Ali

Using Theil’s inequality coefficient based on the mean square prediction error, this paper evaluates the forecasting efficiency of the central government budget and revised budget estimates in Pakistan for the period 1987/88 to 2007/08 and decomposes the errors into biasedness, unequal variation and random components to analyze the source of error. The results reveal that budgetary forecasting is inefficient in Pakistan and the error is due mainly to exogenous variables (random factors). We also find that neither the budget nor revised budget estimates of revenue and expenditure satisfy the criteria of rational expectations of forecasting. Further, there is very little evidence of improvement in the efficiency of budgetary forecasts over time.


2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 234-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Sofie Lundberg ◽  
Niels Okkels ◽  
Lea Nørgreen Gustafsson ◽  
Janne Tidselbak Larsen ◽  
Lisbeth Uhrskov Sørensen ◽  
...  

ObjectivesDelirium shares symptoms with some mental illnesses. This may lead to misdiagnosis of delirium in psychiatric patients and a risk of inadequate management. Moreover, literature on delirium in psychiatric patients is sparse. The aim was to analyse possible changes in the diagnostic incidence of delirium in psychiatric patients from 1995 to 2011, and to investigate the patients with regard to sex, age, and type of patient.MethodsAll first time ever diagnoses of delirium among psychiatric patients were identified in the nationwide Danish Psychiatric Central Research Register (DPCRR) from 1995 to 2011. The delirium diagnoses include (1) delirium unspecified, (2) delirium with dementia, and (3) drug-related delirium, all in accordance with International Classification of Diseases-10. The incidence rates were age standardised.ResultsA total of 15 680 persons diagnosed with delirium for the first time were identified in the DPCRR between 1995 and 2011. The total incidence rate of delirium has decreased, reaching 8.4/1000 person-years in 2011. In 2011, 2.6% of the demented patients were diagnosed with delirium with dementia. Diagnosis of delirium is significantly more common in men, and the three groups of delirium showed a characteristic age distribution.ConclusionOur incidences were markedly lower when compared with previous studies. This suggests a possible underdiagnosis of delirium in psychiatric hospitals and should be investigated further, as delirium is a serious state and identifying the syndrome is important for sufficient treatment.


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (18) ◽  
pp. 2044-2052 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pia Kvillemo ◽  
Ellenor Mittendorfer-Rutz ◽  
Richard Bränström ◽  
Kerstin Nilsson ◽  
Kristina Alexanderson

Purpose To explore future diagnosis-specific sickness absence and disability pension among women with breast cancer compared with women without breast cancer. Also, to examine associations with disease-related and sociodemographic factors among those with breast cancer. Methods Longitudinal register data on 3,547 women living in Sweden (age 20 to 65 years) who were first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, and a matched comparison cohort (n = 14,188), were analyzed for the annual prevalence of diagnosis-specific sickness absence and disability pension over 5 years. Logistic regressions were used to explore associations of disease-related and sociodemographic factors with future sickness absence and disability pension among women with breast cancer. Results Immediately after being diagnosed with breast cancer, the proportion of women with sickness absence was high but decreased continuously from the 1st through 5th year after diagnosis (71%, 40%, 30%, 22%, and 19%, respectively). In comparison, the range for women without breast cancer was 17% to 11%, respectively. The higher prevalence of sickness absence after breast cancer was mainly a result of breast cancer diagnosis, not a mental diagnosis, or other somatic diagnoses. Advanced cancer at diagnosis, > 90 days sickness absence before diagnosis, low education, and being born outside Sweden were associated with higher odds ratios for sickness absence and disability pension (odds ratio range, 1.40 to 6.45). Conclusion The level of sickness absence increased substantially in women with breast cancer during the first year after diagnosis and approached the level of breast cancer–free women in the following years; however, even in the first year, most women were not on sickness absence for a substantial time, and even in high-risk groups, many were not on sickness absence or disability pension in the following years. Information about relatively low future sickness absence and disability pension levels can be used by patients when planning their work, by health care professionals, and by social insurance officers. Employers and Occupational Health Services need this information to adequately handle workplace adjustments.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Annina Ropponen ◽  
Jurgita Narusyte ◽  
Karri Silventoinen ◽  
Pia Svedberg

Abstract Background To investigate whether the clustering of different health behaviours (i.e. physical activity, tobacco use and alcohol consumption) influences the associations between psychosocial working conditions and disability pension due to different diagnoses. Methods A population-based sample of 24,987 Swedish twins born before 1958 were followed from national registers for disability pension until 2013. Baseline survey data in 1998–2003 were used to assess health behaviours and psychosocial Job Exposure Matrix for job control, job demands and social support. Cox proportional hazards models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results During follow-up, 1252 disability pensions due to musculoskeletal disorders (5%), 601 due to mental diagnoses (2%) and 1162 due to other diagnoses (5%) occurred. In the models controlling for covariates, each one-unit increase in job demands was associated with higher (HR 1.16, 95%CI 1.01–1.33) and in job control with lower (HR 0.87, 95%CI 0.80–0.94) risk of disability pension due to musculoskeletal disorders among those with unhealthy behaviours. Among those with healthy behaviours, one-unit increase of social support was associated with a higher risk of disability pension due to mental and due to other diagnoses (HRs 1.29–1.30, 95%CI 1.04–1.63). Conclusions Job control and job demands were associated with the risk of disability pension due to musculoskeletal disorders only among those with unhealthy behaviours. Social support was a risk factor for disability pension due to mental or other diagnoses among those with healthy behaviours. Workplaces and occupational health care should acknowledge these simultaneous circumstances in order to prevent disability pension.


2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-147
Author(s):  
Matthias Stepan ◽  
Quan Lu

This study explores the processes and outcomes of the public policy reforms from 2002 to 2014, targeting income security among the elderly for a segment of the Chinese population that was increasingly marginalised throughout the 1990s: the rural population. The authors reconstruct the policy process from 2002 until 2014 that led to the establishment of the New Type Rural Social Insurance Pension and assess its impact on providing adequate and sustainable old-age income. One particular focus is the study of the influence of international actors. Yet, as key to the success of the initiative, the authors identify the decisive support of the central level leadership, which facilitated the process by announcing a new development model and providing earmarked transfers from the central government. Despite the improvements in the income security of elderly rural Chinese, questions remain about the Chinese pension system's long-term sustainability and the influence of the system's fragmentation on social mobility and equality.


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