Aim: To investigate associations between negative life experiences and common illnesses among adolescents. Methods: Cross‐sectional questionnaire study carried out at all lower secondary schools (10 grade) in Oslo, Norway, during 2000 and 2001 (n= 8316 pupils). Different negative life experiences and illnesses were addressed. Results: The participation rate was 88%. Among reported negative life experiences last year were a pressure felt to succeed (62%), death of a close person (26%), exposure to physical violence (22%), bullying at school (15%) and sexual violation (4%). A large number of the pupils had some chronic illness: hay fever (38%), eczema (29%) and asthma (13%). Reported illnesses the previous 12 month were: headache (56%), painful neck or shoulders (35%), sore throat at least three times (15%), lower respiratory tract infection (9%) and mental problems for which help was sought (7%). During the week prior to the survey, 26% of all girls had symptoms of a depressive disorder, while this applied to 10% of all boys. Fifty‐three percent of the boys (29% of the girls) who had depressive symptoms had been exposed to physical violence. Sexually violated boys had a high probability for seeking help for mental problems (OR = 4.9) and for frequent episodes of sore throat (OR = 2.5). Corresponding odds ratios for girls were 1.7 and 2.5, respectively.
Conclusion: Common illnesses in adolescence are significantly associated with negative life experiences. In clinical encounters with adolescents not only should the presenting complaints be addressed, but also other common illnesses and relevant background factors such as negative life events.
Storm H, Nylander G, Saugstad OD. The amount of brainstem gliosis in sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) victims correlates with maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy. Acta Paediatr 1999; 88: 13-8. Stockholm. ISSN 0803-5253Brainstem gliosis is elevated in some SIDS victims and has been associated with hypoxicischaemic events. Factors which increase the risk of SIDS include possible risk factors for hypoxic-ischaemic events during foetal and perinatal life. In this study a scoring system was developed whereby possible risk factors for hypoxic-ischaemic events during pregnancy, birth and in the perinatal period were correlated with the level of gliosis in the nucleus olivaris inferior in SIDS victims (n = 19). The mothers' antenatal care and obstetric records and the SIDS infants' perinatal hospital records were investigated, and each possible risk factor for hypoxic-ischaemic events was given one point. The points were summarized for each infant, and this sum was correlated with the level of gliosis in the infant's nucleus olivaris inferior. The number of cigarettes the mothers smoked during pregnancy was also compared with the level of gliosis. Our results show that in SIDS victims there is 41% probability that the more the mothers smoked during pregnancy, the more gliosis in the nucleus olivaris inferior is found in their infants (p`0.01). Gliosis in the nucleus olivaris inferior also correlated with the possible risk factors for hypoxic-ischaemic events during pregnancy, birth and the perinatal period (r 2 = 0.28, p`0.05). However, if cigarette smoking was excluded as a possible hypoxic-ischaemic risk factor, no correlation was found. & Brainstem gliosis, cigarette smoking, hypoxia, ischaemia, sudden infant death syndrome H Storm,
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