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Background: Several studies have revealed widening of inequalities in life expectancy, but little is known about the recent changes in health expectancy nationally and between socioeconomic groups. This study examines dynamics of national and education-specific life expectancy and health expectancies at age 50 years in Denmark from 2004/2007 to 2015. Methods: Nationwide register data on education and mortality were linked and combined with Danish health data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe and changes in life expectancy and three health expectancy indicators were estimated by Sullivan's method. Results: From 2004 to 2015, national life expectancy at age 50 years increased by 2.4 years for men and 2.1 years for women. Simultaneously, after an initial rapid improvement from 2004 to 2007, the pace of progress in health expectancy decreased. From 2007 to 2015, the difference in life expectancy at age 50 years between men with long and short education increased from 4.3 to 5.0 years. For women, the corresponding increase in the life expectancy gap was less pronounced from 3.5 to 3.8 years. The educational gap in lifetime without long-term illness decreased from 4.6 years to 3.1 years for men and from 6.1 years to 4.6 years for women. On the contrary, the educational gap increased for lifetime without activity limitations and in self-rated good health. Conclusions: Previously observed improvements in health expectancy in Denmark slowed down despite continuing progress in life expectancy. This worrying change coincides with persistent educational inequalities in life expectancy and health expectancy and is a challenge to a sustainable social and health development in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This paper reviews the most important articles using data from the Danish Multiple Sclerosis Registry (DMSR) published in the past 25 years. Research topics: These articles include: descriptive epidemiological studies, indicating that the female incidence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in Denmark has increased considerably; follow-up studies on social events, showing that patients at a high rate lose their working ability and their spouses/partners; mortality studies, demonstrating a considerable excess mortality; cause-of-death studies; comorbidity studies; and, most importantly, historical prospective studies identifying some risk factors (e.g. infectious mononucleosis) and refuting others (head trauma and a number of occupational exposures e.g. nurses, utility workers, people exposed to solvents). The most important results are briefly presented. Conclusion: The Danish MS register has proven to be a valuable tool for MS epidemiology and has provided knowledge that could not otherwise be achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Danish registers contain information on many important health and social issues. Because all Danish citizens have a unique personal identification number, linkage at the individual level between these nationwide registers and other data sources is possible and feasible. In this paper we briefly introduce selected Danish registers and the data structure and requirements for getting access to data at Statistics Denmark, which is the main provider of register data. We introduce the Danish Data Archive and briefly present the Act on Processing of Personal Data, which is the legal foundation for analyses of register-based data in Denmark. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: Mortality and disease patterns in Greenland have greatly changed since the 1950s. Infectious diseases have decreased markedly; chronic diseases, suicides and violent deaths have increased. Methods: Life tables for the period 1991-95 were used and health status was derived from the 1993/94 Greenland Health Interview Survey. Health expectancy for the Inuit population of Greenland was calculated by an index suggested by Sullivan. Results: Greenland Inuit women live longer than men, but the expected lifetime in self-rated good health was shorter for women than for men. Chronic disease rates are high in Greenland, and consequently many healthy life years are lost, especially because of musculoskeletal diseases. Health expectancy decreases with age, but for this Inuit population the proportion of healthy life years increases after the age of 60, especially among men. Conclusion: The many healthy life years lost in Greenland according to self-rated poor health and chronic diseases should be a cause for concern in public health planning in Greenland. Special attention should also be paid to future investigations of regional patterns of health in Greenland, since there is great population heterogeneity according to geography and urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The Danish Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Registry was established in 1956. Content: The register comprises data on all Danes who had MS in 1949 or who have been diagnosed since. Data on new cases and updated information on persons with an MS diagnosis already notified are continuously collected and classified according to standardized diagnostic criteria. Validity and coverage: The completeness and validity is high (91% and 94%, respectively). Conclusion: In January 2005 the register included data on 20,652 persons with a valid MS diagnosis, of whom 9,377 were alive. The register is the only existing nationwide MS register and covers a period of more than 50 years. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Population-based studies with information from registers can take place in Denmark due to linkage between registers at the individual level by means of a unique personal identification number (CPR-number), which all persons with residence in Denmark have. Registers with information on health can be linked to other population registers containing information on, for example, transfer payments, education, housing, income, and socioeconomic position. This article introduces a database and search engine, which is available for public health and welfare researchers as an aid to seek information on the content of important Danish registers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]