Occupational risks of COVID-19: a case-cohort study using health insurance claims data in Germany.

Background: Studies on occupation and COVID-19 infection that cover a range of occupational groups and adjust for important confounders are lacking. This study aimed to estimate occupational risks of hospitalization with COVID-19 by taking into account sociodemographic factors and previous comorbidities.

Methods: We applied a case-cohort design using workers insured with one of Germany's largest statutory health insurers as a data source for occupational and demographical information as well as for information on comorbidities.

Validation of the Employment Precariousness Scale and its associations with mental health outcomes: results from a prospective community-based study of pregnant women and their partners in Dresden, Germany.

Objective: To translate the Employment Precariousness Scale (EPRES) from Spanish into German (EPRES-Ge), adapt it to the German context, assess the psychometric properties and show prospective associations with mental health outcomes within the peripartum period.

Design: Analyses encompassed descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to validate the structure of the EPRES, and multivariate regression analyses with mental health outcomes 8 weeks after birth.

Participants: Self-report data from 3,455 pregnant women and their partners within the Dresden Study on Parenting, Work, and Mental Health prospective longitudinal cohort study were used.

Cardiovascular disease risk after a SARS-CoV-2 infection: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: To our knowledge, there is no systematic review examining CVD risks after a SARS-CoV-2 infection over time, while also taking into account disease severity. All evidence on the risk for pulmonary embolism (PE), myocardial infarction (MI), ischaemic stroke (IS), haemorrhagic stroke (HS), and arterial thrombosis following infection was evaluated.

Methods: The protocol was registered with PROSPERO.

Occupational psychosocial exposures and chronic low-back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the association between occupational psychosocial exposures and chronic low-back pain (LBP) by conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods: The research protocol was registered in PROSPERO. A systematic literature search was performed in six databases, identifying articles complying with predefined inclusion criteria.

[Expectations And Motivations Of Young Occupational Medical Physicians: A Quantitative Survey Of Five German Academies].

Study Aim: The aim of this study was to describe the characteristics of future occupational physicians and to evaluate their expectations from and motivations for undertaking postgraduate medical education courses in occupational medicine. This will provide a basis for further increasing the attractiveness of occupational medicine as a discipline in preventive medicine and counteracting the shortage of occupational medical physicians.

Methods: At five locations in Germany, physicians in postgraduate medical education courses in occupational medicine were asked about their expectations from occupational medicine, their reasons for starting postgraduate medical education courses, and their assessment of these courses.

Impact of sitting at work on musculoskeletal complaints of German workers - results from the study on mental health at work (S-MGA).

Introduction: Sedentary behavior (including prolonged sitting) is a form of physical inactivity that has a negative impact on health, possibly including musculoskeletal complaints (MSCs). The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which time spent sitting at work is associated with the one-year prevalence of MSCs in the neck, shoulder, upper back/thoracic spine, and lower back among workers from the Study of Mental Health in the Workplace (S-MGA). In addition, the study also examined whether leisure time, physical activity, and sex modify the relationship between occupational sitting and MSCs.

Hip osteoarthritis and occupational mechanical exposures: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: The aim was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis investigating the association between occupational mechanical exposures and hip osteoarthritis.

Methods: The study was registered in PROSPERO. A systematic literature search was conducted in six databases to identify relevant articles.

Night shift work and cardiovascular diseases among employees in Germany: five-year follow-up of the Gutenberg Health Study.

Objective: This study aimed to determine if there is an increased risk of incident cardiovascular diseases (CVD) resulting from cumulative night shift work in the German population-based Gutenberg Health Study (GHS).

Methods: We examined working participants of the GHS at baseline and after five years. Cumulative night shift work in the 10 years before baseline was assessed and categorized as low (1-220 nights ≙ up to 1 year), middle (221-660 nights ≙ 1-3 years), and high (>660 nights ≙ more than 3 years) night shift exposure.

Dose-response-relationship between occupational exposure to diesel engine emissions and lung cancer risk: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: In 2012, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) concluded that diesel engine emissions (DEE) emissions cause cancer in humans. However, there is still controversy surrounding this conclusion, due to several studies since the IARC decision citing a lack of evidence of a dose-response relationship.

Objectives: Through a systematic review, we aimed to evaluate all evidence on the association between occupational DEE and lung cancer to investigate whether there is an increased risk of lung cancer for workers exposed to DEE and if so, to describe the dose-response relationship.

[The Role of Specific Study-Related Demands and Resources to Student Health and Life Satisfaction].

Background: Studies report an association between study conditions and student health outcomes. The aim was to investigate the influence of specific study-related demands and resources on self-assessed health.

Method: Students of the Technical University of Dresden were surveyed online about their health and their studies.

Socioeconomic differences in the utilization of diagnostic imaging and non-pharmaceutical conservative therapies for spinal diseases.

Background: A different utilization of health care services due to socioeconomic status on the same health plan contradicts the principle of equal treatment. We investigated the presence and magnitude of socioeconomic differences in utilization of diagnostic imaging and non-pharmaceutical conservative therapies for patients with spinal diseases.

Methods: The cohort study based on routine healthcare data from Germany with 11.

Occupational mechanical exposures as risk factor for chronic low-back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: The association between occupational mechanical exposures and low-back pain (LBP) has been studied in several systematic reviews. However, no systematic review addressing chronic LBP exists. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the association between occupational mechanical exposures and chronic LBP.

Health effects of railway-induced vibration combined with railway noise - A systematic review with exposure-effect curves.

Background: The combined health impact of concurrent railway noise and railway vibration exposure is not yet well understood.

Objectives: This systematic review gives an overview of epidemiological studies on health effects from railway vibration, aiming to quantify this association with exposure-effect curves. Moreover, the combined health effects of vibration and concurrent noise were investigated.

[Effects of Wearing Face Masks to Prevent Infectious Diseases On Children's and Adolescents' Well-Being and Behavior: An Interview Study].

Aim: To investigate the effects of wearing masks in terms of well-being, behavior and psychosocial development on children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Expert interviews were conducted with educators (n=2), teachers from primary and secondary education (n=9), adolescent student representatives (n=5) as well as paediatricians from primary care (n=3) and the public health service (n=1), transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis using MAXQDA 2020.

Results: The most frequently reported short- and medium-term direct effects of mask-wearing were primarily in terms of limited communication due to a reduction in hearing and facial expressions.

Association between occupational exposures and chronic low back pain: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: The association between occupational mechanical exposures and chronic low back pain (LBP) has been widely studied, however, few systematic reviews have evaluated the evidence of an association. Furthermore, little is known of the impact of occupational psychosocial exposures on chronic LBP. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to study the association between occupational mechanical and psychosocial exposures and chronic LBP.

Traffic noise annoyance in the LIFE-adult study in Germany: Exposure-response relationships and a comparison to the WHO curves.

Background: Noise annoyance is the second-highest cause of lost disability-adjusted life-years due to environmental noise in Europe. Evidence on exposure-response relationships (ERRs) for traffic noise annoyance with more accurate exposure values is still needed.

Objectives: In an analysis of the population-based LIFE-Adult study in Leipzig, Germany, we aimed to investigate the effect of road, railway (train and tram), and aircraft noise on high annoyance (HA).

Traffic-Related High Sleep Disturbance in the LIFE-Adult Cohort Study: A Comparison to the WHO Exposure-Response-Curves.

Sleep is negatively affected by environmental noise. In the present study, we investigated self-reported high sleep disturbances (being "highly sleep disturbed"-HSD) from road traffic (primary and secondary road networks), rail (train and tram) and air traffic noise in the LIFE-Adult cohort study in Leipzig, Germany. For this, we used exposure data from 2012 and outcome data of Wave 2 (collected during 2018-2021).

CAT HPPR: a critical appraisal tool to assess the quality of systematic, rapid, and scoping reviews investigating interventions in health promotion and prevention.

Background: For over three decades researchers have developed critical appraisal tools (CATs) for assessing the scientific quality of research overviews. Most established CATs for reviews in evidence-based medicine and evidence-based public health (EBPH) focus on systematic reviews (SRs) with studies on experimental interventions or exposure included. EBPH- and implementation-oriented organisations and decision-makers, however, often seek access to rapid reviews (RRs) or scoping reviews (ScRs) for rapid evidence synthesis and research field exploration.

Psychosocial Occupational Exposures and Mental Illness.

Background: The purpose of this study is to investigate the exposure-risk relationship between psychosocial occupational stress and mental illness.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review with meta-analyses as an update of a systematic review published in 2014. The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020170032).

Authors' response: Occupation and SARS-CoV-2 infection risk among workers during the first pandemic wave in Germany: potential for bias.

We thank van Tongeren et al for responding to our study on occupational disparities in SARS-CoV-2 infection risks during the first pandemic wave in Germany (1). The authors address the potential for bias resulting from differential testing between occupational groups and propose an alternative analytical strategy for dealing with selective testing. In the following, we want to discuss two aspects of this issue, namely (i) the extent and reasons of differential testing in our cohort and (ii) the advantages and disadvantages of different analytical approaches to study risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Health and Care Dependency of Older Adults in Dresden, Germany: Results from the LAB60+ Study.

As the population in Europe ages, an increased focus on the health of older adults is necessary. The purpose of the population-based LAB60+ study was to examine the current health and care situation of the population of older adults in Dresden, Germany, and to assess the effect of age, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) on health outcomes. In the first half of 2021, 2399 out of 6004 randomly sampled residents of Dresden aged 60 years or older answered questions on their chronic conditions, care dependency, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and well-being, among others.

["Shifting the Curve": New Developments and Challenges in the Field of Public Mental Health].

In recent years, the field of public mental health has received increasing attention in national and international research. However, a key challenge remains to map this field in its interdisciplinarity across the entire spectrum of mental health and lead the discourse between public health, psychiatric epidemiology, mental health promotion, prevention, and health services research in order to realize more fully its innovative potential for improving mental health at the population level. In this interdisciplinary discourse, a number of fundamental conceptual and methodological issues arise, which will be discussed in this essay in relation to Geoffrey Rose's population strategy.

Influence of physically demanding occupations on the development of osteoarthritis of the hip: a systematic review.

Background: Hip osteoarthritis (HOA) is a disabling disease affecting around 33 million people worldwide. People of working age and the elderly are at increased risk of developing HOA and the disease is associated with high costs at individual and societal levels due to sick leaves, job loss, total hip replacements and disability pension. This systematic review evaluated the influence of physically demanding occupations on the development of HOA in men.