Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally. The main risk factors are smoking, high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, obesity, physical inactivity and diabetes. In recent years, the incidence of myocardial infarction and stroke has decreased, partly due to the introduction of several effective medicines. However, many people still suffer from premature death and reduced quality of life. Several studies have shown room for improvement in e.g., health promotion and disease prevention, healthcare providers' adherence to guidelines, and patients' adherence to drug treatment.
We have several projects focusing on drugs used for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes:
- In collaboration with primary care in Region Stockholm and Västra Götaland as well as Karolinska Institutet and the University of Gothenburg, the database SPCCD – Swedish Primary Care Cardiovascular Database has been created. It includes extensive medical records data linked to national registers for research into hypertension. More about the database can be read here.
- Studies on the use, benefit and risk of statins and other lipid-lowering drugs in different population groups.
- In collaboration with Region Stockholm, KI and Utrecht University, we conduct research on the prescribing, use and effects of new anticoagulants in atrial fibrillation.
- Studies on the prescribing and use of drugs in patients with typ II diabetes, in collaboration with primary care in Region Uppsala.
For research on the relationship between medication and COVID-19 infection and the pandemic's effects on morbidity and drug usage we participated in the establishment of the SCIFI-PEARL (Swedish covid-19 investigation for future insights – a population epidemiology approach using register linkage) project. The study includes all known COVID-19 patients diagnosed in Sweden with the general population as control group. To all individuals in the study population, data from more than 20 Swedish registers are linked, to get a comprehensive and detailed data view of patient history. All data are regularly updated every 1-3 months, to produce timely and relevant research results. More information on this project is available here.
Recent publications
- Wettermark B, Kalantaripour C, Forslund T, Hjemdahl P. Statin treatment for Primary and Secondary Prevention in Elderly Patients – a cross sectional study in Stockholm, Sweden. Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 2024 Oct;80(10):1571-1580
- Malkon S, Wettermark B, Kahan T, Bastholm-Rahmner P, Hasselström J, Qvarnström M. A Qualitative Study on Patients' Views on Hypertension and Antihypertensive Medications. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2023 Dec 13;17:3331-3339. doi: 10.2147/PPA.S429638.
- Khanyk N, Hromovyk B, Levytska O, Agh T, Wettermark B, Kardas P. The impact of the war on maintenance of long-term therapies in Ukraine. Front Pharmacol. 2022 Nov 24;13:1024046. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.1024046.
- Santosa A, Franzén S, Nåtman J, Wettermark B, Parmryd I, Nyberg F. Protective effects of statins on COVID-19 risk, severity and fatal outcome: a nationwide Swedish cohort study. Sci Rep. 2022 Jul 14;12(1):12047. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-16357-2.
- Mousa SI, Nyberg F, Hajiebrahimi M, Bertilsson R, Nåtman J, Santosa A, Wettermark B. Initiation of antihypertensive drugs to patients with confirmed COVID-19-A population-based cohort study in Sweden. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2022 Sep;131(3):196-204. doi: 10.1111/bcpt.13766. Epub 2022 Jul 6.
Contact
Björn Wettermark, professor. bjorn.wettermark@uu.se
Hossein Hajiebrahimi, researcher. hossein.hajiebrahimi@uu.se
Miriam Qvarnström, senior lecturer. miriam.qvarnstrom@uu.se