Award

A life-course approach to prevent noncommunicable diseases in an ageing population - NCDNOR

Description: Popular science description: The project aims to describe the development of the non-communicable diseases (NCD); cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and chronic lung diseases, including mental health, musculoskeletal diseases (here: hip fractures) and the extent of having more than one NCD (multimorbidity), including drug use (polypharmacy). We will identify plausible underlying causal factors and the significance of various risk factors for the development. We will investigate the significance of different life conditions such as socioeconomic position, family situation and place of residence to establish new knowledge about how mental health, health behavior and biological markers affect the risk of developing non-communicable diseases in a life-course perspective. We have spent time on examining the quality of data sources, establishing an infrastructure for data processing, and ensuring new delivery and updating of data sources. The project has coordinated the research group, including all non-research partners and other associated users, ensuring active user involvement. We have contributed to testing new methodologies for user involvement in a user workshop for public health research, based on real case descriptions from municipalities working with cross-sectoral efforts to promote public health and reduce social inequality in health. The project has conducted webinars and meetings with non-research partners and users to share new knowledge and ensure clear communication. Also, we are developing an interactive presentation tool for regional and national NCD occurrence in Norway. The research group has held national and international research seminars and meetings, which have included courses in epidemiological methods. The project has, in collaboration with clinical milieus, developed a new method for defining disease outcomes based on data from more than one health registry. We have also developed a new tool for harmonizing data from nationwide health surveys. These new methods will be published as part of the project’s data management plan. The project has identified how different health registries capture individuals registered with an NCD during the period 2008-2020. Additionally, we have highlighted the proportion registered with one, two, three, or more NCDs in the population. We have compared self-reported mental symptoms with diagnoses registered in the healthcare system to highlight changes in occurrence over time. We have studied the development throughout the life course of the most common NCD risk factors and identified vulnerable groups with unfavorable development. We have described the prevalence of clustering of risk factors for NCDs in the population and identified groups with different patterns of NCD risk factors. We have characterized social inequality in mental symptoms and health perception, as well as changes over time. In preliminary analyses, we have studied social inequality in life expectancy among groups with different patterns of NCD risk factors. We have characterized the prognosis of NCD comorbidity in several types of cancer. We have identified disparities in the incidence of new cases of heart attacks and strokes over time based on immigration status. In preliminary analyses, we have studied social inequality in life expectancy among groups with different patterns of NCD risk factors. We have also studied social inequality in the body’s physiological response to chronic stress (allostatic load) and changes over time. We have characterized the prognosis of NCD comorbidity in several types of cancer. Additionally, we are studying NCD comorbidity patterns and prognosis in severe mental disorders. Moreover, we are examining the significance of inequality in age, gender, income, and education for NCD multimorbidity. The research will provide new knowledge within the NCD field that will identify potential venues for structural and more targeted interventions and the effects of interventions at the local and national level. This will strengthen Norwegian public health work in key areas described in the Ministry of Health and Care Services's Public Health Report (2023). Project summary: The preventive potential of NCDs is traditionally estimated separately for each NCD, but the lifetime risk of NCDs, and how these diseases co-occur are uncertain, as are the role of clustering of life conditions, common risk factors, biomarkers and mental health throughout the life course. Thus, we need a novel approach to achieve new knowledge in the promotion and prevention of NCDs. Our concept include consolidation of NCD endpoints across somatic disciplines, examining joint and interacting effects of socioeconomic circumstances, life conditions, health behaviours, biological markers and mental health throughout the life-course. We will utilize the largest and most comprehensive population based long-term prospective cohorts and mandatory national registers, biobanks, and do comparable analyses to test similar hypotheses in independent datasets with individual data to elucidate plausible underlying causal mechanisms - to identify targets for prevention. Our approach, first using regional population based cohorts linked to national registers and then statistical methods will for the first time provide adjusted analyses applicable for the complete Norwegian population. Main objective: WP 1 To identify patterns of NCD occurrence, multimorbidity and polypharmacy of NCDs to recognise underlying potential causal mechanisms by integrating social contexts and biomarkers and do cost-effectiveness analysis. WP2 To contribute to a better understanding on how socioeconomic position (SEP) ultimately translates into inequalities in health. Our project will be among the first with this wider perspective taking shared risk factors among NCDs into account and make the results applicable for the complete Norwegian population. Teaser: The project aims to describe the development of the non-communicable diseases (NCD); cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and chronic lung diseases, including mental health, musculoskeletal diseases (here: hip fractures) and the extent of having more than one NCD (multimorbidity), including ... Disciplines: [["Medisin og helsefag", "Helsefag", "Forebyggende medisin"]] Geographies: [["Oslo - Oslove", "Oslo - Oslove"]]

Funder: Norges Forskningsråd

Amount: NOK 15,990,000

Funding type: research

Funder scheme: HELSEFORSKNING-Helseforskning

Start date: 2021-01-01

End date: 2028-12-31

Investigator: Inger Kristine Ariansen

Institution: FOLKEHELSEINSTITUTTET

Funded outputs count: 0

Funder award ID: rcn-foriss-319705

OpenAlex ID: G8402385339