Maria Vollsæter

University of Bergen | UiB · Department of Clinical Science

Aim: To (1) compare the perceived benefit of long-term mechanical insufflation-exsufflation (MI-E) of children with neuromuscular disorders (NMDs) and central nervous system (CNS) disorders, including health care needs and treatment routines and (2) describe the children's health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Method: This cross-sectional stud...

Introduction Exercise induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is a common cause of exertional breathing problems in young adults. Current management generally consists of breathing advice, speech therapy, inspiratory muscle training (IMT), or supraglottoplasty in highly motivated subjects with supraglottic collapse. Inhaled ipratropium bromide (IB) is...

The continuous laryngoscopy exercise (CLE) test can be combined with breathing cold air. Combining the CLE test and cold air does not cause excessive discomfort. The indicated laryngeal responses with cold air support the need for more research. https://bit.ly/3AChJ7V.

Background Preterm birth and low birthweight have been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and heart failure at young adult age. However, clinical studies of myocardial function have reported diverging results. Echocardiographic strain analyses allow detection of subclinical early stages of cardiac dysfunction, and non-invasive...

Background Survival of extremely preterm (EP) birth is increasing, but long-term consequences are still largely unknown as their high survival rates are recent achievements. Aims To examine self-reported mental health, and health related quality of life (HRQoL) in a cohort of adults born EP in the early 1990s and individually matched term-born con...

Purpose To study development trajectories to 34 years of age of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and subjective health complaints in extremely preterm (EP) born subjects with and without disability, and to compare with term-born controls. Methods A Norwegian longitudinal population-based cohort of subjects born in 1982–85 at gestational age...

Purpose: Exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) and exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) are two disorders commonly considered when athletes complain of exertional dyspnea. They are highly different but often confused. We aimed to address this diagnostic challenge and its consequences in elite athletes. Methods: We included all athl...

Introduction Application of non-invasive positive airway pressure may provoke laryngeal responses that obstruct the airways, especially in patients with disturbed laryngeal control. To control and adjust for this, transnasal fibre-optic laryngoscopy (TFL) is used to visualise laryngeal movements during therapeutic interventions. Being an invasive p...

Background Lifelong pulmonary consequences of being born extremely preterm or with extremely low birth weight remain unknown. We aimed to describe lung function trajectories from 10 to 35 years of age for individuals born extremely preterm, and address potential cohort effects over a period that encompassed major changes in perinatal care. Methods...

When the ability to cough is impaired, secretion clearance may be assisted and augmented by Mechanical Insufflation-Exsufflation (MI-E) treatment. In patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, the efficacy of MI-E may be hampered by counterproductive upper airway responses. Careful adjustment of MI-E settings can be beneficial. During the disease...

The objective of this study is to investigate the prevalence of autism (ASD) symptoms, i.e. , social difficulties, repetitive behaviors, and communicational problems, among children born extremely preterm (EP) compared to a reference group, and to investigate possible antecedents of ASD symptoms among EP children. Method is a national Norwegian coh...

Objective : Exercised induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is an important cause of exertional dyspnea. The diagnosis rests on visual judgement of relative changes of the laryngeal inlet during continuous laryngoscopy exercise (CLE) tests, but we lack objective measures that reflect functional consequences. We aimed to investigate repeatability and...

Background: Exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is a common cause of exertional breathing problems in young individuals, caused by paradoxical inspiratory adduction of laryngeal structures, and diagnosed by continuous visualization of the larynx during high-intensity exercise. Empirical data suggest that EILO consists of different subtyp...

Background: Left vocal cord paralysis (LVCP) is a known complication of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) surgery in extremely preterm (EP) born neonates; however, consequences of LVCP beyond the first year of life are insufficiently described. Both voice problems and breathing difficulties during physical activity could be expected with an impaired l...

Complaints of breathlessness during heavy exercise is common in children and adolescents, and represent expressions of a subjective feeling that may be difficult to verify and to link with specific diagnoses through objective tests. Exercise-induced asthma and exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction are two common medical causes of breathing difficu...

Purpose Exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is relatively common in young people. Treatment rests on poor evidence; however, inspiratory muscle training (IMT) has been proposed a promising strategy. We aimed to assess laryngeal outcomes shortly after IMT, and to compare self-reported symptoms with a control group 4–6 years later. Methods...

Objective: To evaluate the effects and safety of exercise training, and to determine the most effective exercise intervention for people with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Exercise training was compared with no training, placebo or alternative exercise training. Primary outcomes were functioning and health-related quality of life. Secondary outcome...

Background Respiratory problems are common complaints among athletes, potentially influencing their sport performances as well as their health. Exertional dyspnoea unresponsive to asthma medication have been referred to as ‘mysterious breathing problems’. Objective To address if exercise related breathing problems in athletes with exercise induced...

Exercise‐induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is common, but we lack readily available diagnostic tools. The larynx represents an important point of resistance in the airways, and we therefore hypothesized that EILO is associated with characteristic breathing patterns possible to record from a standard incremental ergospirometry test. We studied 24...

Background Gas exchange in extremely preterm (EP) infants must take place in foetal lungs. Childhood lung diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DL CO ) is reduced; however, longitudinal development has not been investigated. We describe growth of DL CO and its sub-components to adulthood in EP-born compared to term-born subjects. Methods Two are...

Background: Studies are sparse and inconclusive about the association between maternal education and cognitive development among children born very preterm (VPT). Although this association is well established in the general population, questions remain about its magnitude among children born VPT whose risks of medical and developmental complicatio...

Background: Preterm birth and low birthweight have been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease in young adults. Endothelial dysfunction is established as an early marker for development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Previous studies of endothelial function in young adults born very preterm or with extremely low birthw...

Background: Exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is common in young people with exertional breathing difficulties. Psychological characteristics have been proposed as underlying contributors; however, the evidence for this is limited. Objectives: Describe self-reported health, self-efficacy, and anxiety symptoms in adolescents with EILO, a...

Dynamic laryngoscopy during noninvasive (NIV) respiratory therapy is feasible and may facilitate optimal and individualized treatment in patients with chronic respiratory failure, also in children. Dynamic laryngoscopy during noninvasive (NIV) respiratory therapy is feasible and may facilitate optimal and individualized treatment in patients with c...

When ability to cough is impaired, secretion clearance may be assisted and augmented by Mechanical Insufflation-Exsufflation (MI-E). In some individuals, the efficacy of MI-E may be hampered by counterproductive upper airway reactions, where the airways close in response to positive pressures. In order to fully utilize the therapeutic potential inh...

Low birthweight and being born small-for-gestational age (SGA) are linked to asthma and impaired lung function. Particularly, poor intrauterine growth followed by rapid catch-up growth during childhood may predispose for respiratory disease. Bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) is an essential feature of asthma, but how foetal and early childhood gr...

Aim To determine the prevalence of long‐term mechanical insufflation‐exsufflation (MI‐E) and concomitant mechanical ventilation in children with neurological conditions, with reported reasons behind the initiation of treatment. Method This was a population‐based, cross‐sectional study using Norwegian national registries and a questionnaire. Resul...

Objective Cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) is the gold standard to evaluate symptom-limiting exercise intolerance, while continuous laryngoscopy performed during exercise (CLE) is required to diagnose exercised induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO). Combining CPET with CLE would save time and resources; however, the CPET data may be distorted by...

Objective: To investigate voice characteristics and exercise related respiratory symptoms in extremely preterm born 11-year-old children, focusing particularly on associations with management of a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). Study design: Prospective follow-up of all children born in Norway during 1999–2000 at gestational age <28 weeks or with...

Predicting physical activity in a national cohort of children born extremely preterm. Objectives To compare physical activity among school-aged children born extremely preterm or with extremely low birthweight (EP/ELBW) to term-born children, and to identify early predictors for physical inactivity in the EP/ELBW-children. Methods A national coho...

Dynamic obstructions of the larynx are a set of disorders that occur during exercise in equines and humans. There are a number of similarities in presentation, diagnosis, pathophysiology and treatment. Both equines and humans present with exercise intolerance secondary to dyspnea. During laryngoscopy at rest, the larynx appears to function normally...

Introduction: Exercise induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is relatively common in adolescents, with symptoms often confused with exercise induced asthma. EILO often starts with medial or inward rotation of supraglottic structures of the larynx, whereas glottic adduction appears as a secondary phenomenon in a majority. Therefore, surgical treatmen...

Objectives To compare physical activity and body composition in a cohort of children born extremely preterm/extremely low birth weight (EP/ELBW) with term-born (TB) controls. Methods A regional cohort of children born during 1999–2000 at gestational age <28 weeks or with birth weight <1000 g and their individually matched TB controls were examined...

Background: Maximal expiratory airflow peaks early in the third decade of life, then gradually declines with age. The pattern of airflow through adulthood for individuals born very preterm (at <32 weeks' gestation) or with very low birthweight (<1501 g) is unknown. We aimed to compare maximal expiratory airflow in these individuals during late ado...

Objectives/Hypothesis To determine if simultaneous tracheal and supraglottic pressure measurement performed during a continuous laryngoscopy exercise (CLE) test is possible, tolerable, and feasible, and if so, whether measurements can be used to determined airflow resistance over the larynx, thus providing an objective outcome measure for the CLE t...

Objective A constricted, upper chest breathing pattern and postural dealignments habitually accompany exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO), but there are few effective treatments for athletes presenting with EILO. This case series was conducted to examine whether physiotherapy based on principles from the Norwegian psychomotor physiotherap...

Background Exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO) is common in athletes and presents with dyspnoea, chest tightness, inspiratory stridor and sometimes panic reactions. The evidence for conservative treatment is weak, but case reports suggest effects from inspiratory muscle training (IMT). We aimed to explore effects from IMT used in athletes...

Background: Preterm birth and low birth weight are associated with reduced nephron numbers and increased risk of hypertension and kidney disease in later life. Aims: We tested the hypothesis that extremely preterm birth and intrauterine growth restriction is associated with decreased renal function in mid childhood. Methods: At 11 years of age...

Background: Advances in perinatal care have markedly increased the prospects of survival for infants born extremely preterm (EP). The aim of this study was to investigate hospitalisation rates and respiratory morbidity from five to 11 years of age in a prospective national cohort of EP children born in the surfactant era. Methods: This was a nat...

Breathing difficulties during exerise in young people have multiple causes. In this communication we explain how the throat can function as a bottleneck to free airflow during exercise in active and otherwise healthy young people, thereby causing breathing problems that are often confused with asthma or even with psychological problems Why is it i...

Objectives: Investigate cardiorespiratory outcomes in children surviving previable preterm premature rupture of membranes (PV-PPROM) before 22 weeks' gestational age (GA) with minimum 2 weeks latency. Study design: Single institution, follow-up of retrospectively identified children who were born after PV-PPROM during 2000-2004, and individually...

Being born preterm often adversely affects later lung function. Airway obstruction and bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) are common findings. Respiratory symptoms in asthma and in lung disease after preterm birth might appear similar, but clinical experience and studies indicate that symptoms secondary to preterm birth reflect a separate disease...

Background: Children and adolescents born extremely preterm have lower dynamic lung volumes and gas transfer capacity than subjects born at term. Ventilatory mechanical or gas exchange limitations may contribute to lower aerobic capacity in subjects born preterm. Aim: To compare ventilatory efficiency, measured as the slope of the relationship betw...

Introduction: Extremely premature born (EPB) children carry an increased risk of a range of shortcomings that may influence physical activity. Respiratory morbidity has in several studies been related to lower physical capacity. Aim: To examine the relationship between respiratory morbidity and level of physical activity and endurance in preterm bo...