Health and lifestyle characteristics of professional singers and instrumentalists.

Ninety-one instrumentalists and 51 opera singers of the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, were examined, in order to study the frequency of symptoms from the musculoskeletal system and upper airways. The response rate was 91 per cent. Estimates of odds ratios (OR) with 95 per cent confidence interval were calculated, using multiple logistic regression equations, adjusting for age and gender.

Hearing impairment in orchestral musicians.

Symphony orchestra musicians from The Royal Danish Theatre (15 females and 80 males) aged 22 to 64 years were audiologically examined to elucidate the presence and the frequency of noise-induced hearing loss among classical musicians. Compared to a reference material (ISO 7029) the median hearing thresholds of the musicians were increased for all age groups. When using hearing sensitivity in one or both ears less than 20 dB HL as a criterion for normality, it was found the 58% of the musicians had a hearing impairment.

Follow-up study of Reiter's disease and reactive arthritis. Factors influencing the natural course and the prognosis.

The acute clinical picture and long-term prognosis of 160 patients with Reiter's disease (RD), and 144 patients with reactive arthritis triggered by yersinia infection (YA), was analysed. Most of the patients with RD were men, while YA was as common among male and female patients. YA manifested in a third of patients as incomplete or complete RD.