Aberrations in medically certified sick leave and primary healthcare consultations in Norway in 2023 compared to pre-COVID-19-pandemic trends.

Background: Since 2022, Norway has employed a vaccine-only COVID-19 strategy. Primary healthcare in Norway uses International Classification of Primary Care version 2 (ICPC-2) codes. This study aims to systematically compare medically certified sick leave and primary healthcare consultations in 2023 with the pre-pandemic 2010-2019 trends, and subsequently estimate the magnitude of these changes.

Association between V̇O, handgrip strength, and musculoskeletal pain among construction and health care workers.

Background: Construction and health care workers have a high prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders, and they are assumed to have physically demanding jobs. Profession- and gender-specific associations between individual capacity and musculoskeletal pain have not been sufficiently investigated. The main aim of this study was to examine the association between individual capacity (maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O) and handgrip strength) and musculoskeletal pain among construction and health care workers.