Publications by authors named "Line Vold"

Objectives: We analysed hepatitis A (HepA) notifications and hospitalisations in Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden for available periods between 1995 and 2014. We aimed to investigate whether decreasing HepA incidence is associated with increasing age at infection and worsening HepA presentation and to identify groups at risk of severe disease.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study including 36 734 notified and 36 849 hospitalised patients.

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We included 39,524 COVID-19 Omicron and 51,481 Delta cases reported in Norway from December 2021 to January 2022. We estimated a 73% reduced risk of hospitalisation (adjusted hazard ratio: 0.27; 95% confidence interval: 0.

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In late November 2021, an outbreak of Omicron SARS-CoV-2 following a Christmas party with 117 attendees was detected in Oslo, Norway. We observed an attack rate of 74% and most cases developed symptoms. As at 13 December, none have been hospitalised.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to compare the hospitalization risk of the Delta and Alpha variants of COVID-19 in Norway, focusing on vaccination status.
  • Researchers analyzed 19,055 lab-confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 from May to August 2021, finding similar hospitalization risks for both variants.
  • The study concluded that vaccination significantly reduces hospitalization risk, with partially vaccinated individuals having a 72% reduced risk and fully vaccinated individuals having a 76% reduced risk compared to unvaccinated cases.
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BackgroundThe occupational risk of COVID-19 may be different in the first versus second epidemic wave.AimTo study whether employees in occupations that typically entail close contact with others were at higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19-related hospitalisation during the first and second epidemic wave before and after 18 July 2020, in Norway.MethodsWe included individuals in occupations working with patients, children, students, or customers using Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-08) codes.

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Climate change will lead to more extreme weather events in Europe. In Norway, little is known about how this will affect drinking water quality and population's health due to waterborne diseases. The aim of our work was to generate new knowledge on the effect of extreme weather conditions and climate change on drinking water and waterborne disease.

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Background: Waterborne outbreaks are still a risk in high-income countries, and their early detection is crucial to limit their societal consequences. Although syndromic surveillance is widely used for the purpose of detecting outbreaks days earlier than traditional surveillance systems, evidence of the effectiveness of such systems is lacking. Thus, our objective was to conduct a systematic review of the effectiveness of syndromic surveillance to detect waterborne outbreaks.

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We describe an outbreak of Agbeni sequence type (ST)2009 infections in Norway. Between 31 December 2018 and 16 March 2019, 56 cases (33 female and 23 male; median age: 50 years, range: 2-91) were reported, of which 21 were hospitalised. Cases were defined as people living in Norway, with laboratory-confirmed infection with .

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Background: The first case of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Norway was confirmed on 26 February 2020. Following sharpened advice on general infection control measures at the beginning of the outbreak, extensive national control measures were implemented on 12 March, and testing was focused on those with severe illness. We describe the first six weeks of the outbreak in Norway, viewed in light of testing criteria and control measures.

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Tick-borne diseases are emerging and re-emerging threats causing public health concerns in Europe and North America. Prevention and control requires understanding of human exposure and behaviour. The aim was to measure exposure to tick bites across Scandinavia, its spatial distribution and the associated risk factors.

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On 6 June 2019, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health was notified of more than 50 cases of gastroenteritis in Askøy. A reservoir in a water supply system was suspected as the source of the outbreak because of the acute onset and geographical distribution of cases. We investigated the outbreak to confirm the source, extent of the outbreak and effect of control measures.

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Water supply systems, in particular small-scale water supply systems, are vulnerable to adverse events that may jeopardise safe drinking water. The consequences of contamination events or the failure of daily operations may be severe, affecting many people. In Norway, a 24-hour crisis advisory service was established in 2017 to provide advice on national water supplies.

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Background: In Norway, Legionnaires' disease is reportable upon clinical suspicion to public health authorities and mandatorily notifiable through the Norwegian surveillance system for communicable diseases (MSIS) for both clinicians and laboratories. In the summer of 2017, several European countries reported high notification rates for Legionnaires' disease, which was not observed in Norway. We evaluated MSIS to assess if it meets its objectives of detecting cases and trends in incidence of Legionnaires' disease.

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Article Synopsis
  • An outbreak of skin rash occurred in May 2017 among visitors of a public floating tank in Norway, leading to a study to assess its cause and risk factors.
  • A questionnaire revealed that 22 out of 46 respondents experienced symptoms like rashes and ear canal pain, but no specific risk factors correlated with illness.
  • Water tests showed significant contamination, highlighting the need for improved hygiene practices and better guidance for floating tank operators and local health authorities.
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  • - In September 2017, a cluster of salmonellosis cases due to monophasic Typhimurium was detected in Norway, linked to a café at Oslo Airport, with 21 confirmed cases across 10 counties.
  • - Investigations included molecular techniques like whole genome sequencing (WGS) to trace the outbreak, finding that contamination likely began in mid-August and worsened as the outbreak continued, showing increased incubation periods over time.
  • - Control measures, including the café's temporary closure and kitchen renovations, did not effectively eliminate the source, leading to recommendations for improved hygiene practices amid ongoing environmental contamination during such outbreaks.
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  • Sequence-based typing of hepatitis A virus (HAV) is crucial for detecting and investigating outbreaks, as demonstrated during a significant EU-wide outbreak linked to frozen berries in 2013, though challenges arose due to partial genomic comparability among countries.
  • In 2014, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) surveyed EU/EEA countries to assess their HAV surveillance practices and proposed harmonized procedures to enhance cross-border outbreak response, focusing on sequencing methods.
  • Follow-up surveys in 2016 showed an increase in countries participating in centralized collection and sequencing of HAV samples, but disparities in the specific genomic regions sequenced still exist, indicating that further collaboration is needed for effective surveillance.
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The aim of this study was to investigate implementation of multiplex PCR assays (broad screening PCR) on the distribution and characteristics of notified Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) cases in Norway, 2007-2017. We described STEC cases notified to the Norwegian Surveillance System for Communicable Diseases (MSIS), 2007-2017 and categorised cases as high-virulent, low-virulent or unclassifiable STEC infections based on guidelines for follow-up of STEC cases. We conducted descriptive analysis and time series analysis allowing for trends and seasonality, and calculated adjusted incidence rate ratios (aIRR) using negative binomial regression for laboratories with and without broad screening PCR.

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BackgroundTravel to countries with high or intermediate hepatitis A virus (HAV) endemicity is a risk factor for infection in residents of countries with low HAV endemicity. The objective of this study was to estimate the risk for hepatitis A among European travellers using surveillance and travel denominator data. We retrieved hepatitis A surveillance data from 13 European Union (EU)/ European Economic Area (EEA) countries with comprehensive surveillance systems and travel denominator data from the Statistical Office of the European Union.

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Water quality in the Gaza Strip has been severely compromised due to increasing salinity, contamination with pollutants, and lack of adequate treatment options. To provide the population of the Gaza Strip with advice on how to mitigate health risks from water we developed recommendations on using water from different sources for different purposes (such as for consumption, hygiene, amenities, and irrigation) based on a literature review and consultation with experts. Specific advice was developed for several vulnerable groups, including infants, children, pregnant or lactating women, and elderly people.

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We conducted a matched case-control study to examine the association between heavy precipitation events and waterborne outbreaks (WBOs) by linking epidemiological registries and meteorological data between 1992 and 2012 in four Nordic countries. Heavy precipitation events were defined by above average (exceedance) daily rainfall during the preceding weeks using local references. We performed conditional logistic regression using the four previous years as the controls.

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In May 2014, a cluster of Yersinia enterocolitica (YE) O9 infections was reported from a military base in northern Norway. Concurrently, an increase in YE infections in civilians was observed in the Norwegian Surveillance System for Communicable Diseases. We investigated to ascertain the extent of the outbreak and identify the source in order to implement control measures.

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Background: The approach to surveillance of Lyme borreliosis varies between countries, depending on the purpose of the surveillance system and the notification criteria used, which prevents direct comparison of national data. In Norway, Lyme borreliosis is notifiable to the Surveillance System for Communicable Diseases (MSIS). The current notification criteria include a combination of clinical and laboratory results for borrelia infection (excluding Erythema migrans) but there are indications that these criteria are not followed consistently by clinicians and by laboratories.

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