Unnur Valdimarsdóttir

The main focus of my research is on long-term psychological and physical health consequences of stressful exposures, such as the loss of a loved one by death. Of special interest are the modifying effects of forewarning or intellectual and emotional preparedness for such exposures (awareness time).

My PhD work was a population-based study on 379 Swedish widows who had lost their husband to cancer of the prostate or urinary bladder 2-4 years earlier. We found that the widows risk of psychological morbidity at follow-up was mainly explained by two factors additional to the loss itself: the widows short duration of time aware of the impending death (awareness time) and the patients unrelieved psychological symptoms during the last months of life. There is reason to believe that both these factors (e.g. the widows short awareness time and the patients unrelieved symptoms) can be avoided with refined health care.

In co-operation with fellow researchers at Div. Clinical Cancer Epidemiology, I am involved with research on bereaved parents and widowers who have lost due to cancer. Furthermore, we are planning a large study on young adults who have lost a sibling or a parent during childhood or adolescence due to cancer. Together with colleges at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, I am using the theoretical frame from my previous research to investigate on the impact of loss on development of dementia and the effect of environmental exposures on development of postpartum psychiatric illness. Among others, following hypotheses are being considered:

Widowhood due to cancer

• H1: Short time with awareness of husbands impending death from cancer increases the widows risk of physical morbidity, e.g. diabetes, vascular spasm.
• H2: A widowers emotional preparedness into the fact of his wifes impending death due to cancer is protective of physical and psychological morbidity in bereavement.

The loss of a child due to cancer

• H3: Short time with intellectual and emotional understanding of childs impending death due to cancer increases parents risk of long-term psychological morbidity 4-9 years after loss.

The loss of a sibling or parent due to cancer

• H4: The loss of a sibling or parent due to cancer in late childhood or adolescence results in increased risk of mortality owing to both natural and unnatural causes, psychiatric morbidity and lower educational achievement in young adulthood.

Loss and dementia

• H5: Sudden unexpected loss of a spouse (as defined in the Swedish Registry of Causes of Death) increases the widow(er)s risk of cognitive impairment/dementia.

Postpartum psychiatric illness

• H6: Unexpected developments during pregnancy or labour increase the womans risk for postpartum psychiatric illness.

Education

• PhD - Dep. Oncology & Pathology, Karolinska Institutet (2003)
• BA - Dep. of Psychology, University of Iceland (1996)

Professional experience

• 2004-present: Post doc fellow  Dep. Medical Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet
• 2003-2004: Post doc (50%), Dep. Oncology & Pathology, Karolinska Institutet
• 2003-2004: Researcher (50%), Oncologic Centre, Stockholm County.
• 1999-2003: Ph.D. student, Div. Clinical Cancer Epidemiology, Dep. Oncology & Pathology, KI.
• 1998-1999: Research assistant, Div. Clinical Cancer Epidemiology, Dep. Oncology & Pathology, KI.

Unnur works in Stockholm.