Cosmetic surgery and associated chronic postsurgical pain: A cross-sectional study from Norway.

OBJECTIVES: Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is a common postoperative sequela. Despite the increasing popularity of cosmetic surgeries, there is a notable lack of research on CPSP in this context, with existing studies focusing on breast surgeries only. To address existing gaps in knowledge, the objective of the present study was to investigate the self-reported prevalence of cosmetic surgery and associated CPSP among Norwegian adults. METHODS: An online questionnaire consisting of three questions inquiring prior cosmetic surgeries, associated CPSP, and whether participants had sought for pain management was constructed and distributed among adults residing in Norway. RESULTS: Between November 30, 2022 and December 16, 2022, 1,746 participants were recruited. 10% of respondents, 73.3% of which were female, affirmed to have undergone cosmetic surgery. About 1 in 4 of these was aged 18-29 years. The prevalence of CPSP was 12.6%. CPSP was five times more common among male, compared to female respondents. While about two thirds of participants indicating to have experienced CPSP were aged 18-29 years, CPSP was much less common among individuals of other ages. CONCLUSION: Consistent with international trends, there appears to be a young and growing population of cosmetic surgery consumers in Norway. According to our results, about 1 in 8 of these might be affected by CPSP, a condition that is notoriously hard to treat and weighting heavily on public healthcare and social welfare systems. Large-scale longitudinal studies further investigating the topic are thus urgently needed.

Effects of remote ear-nose-and-throat specialist assessment screening on self-reported hearing aid benefit and satisfaction.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the impact of remote versus in-person ear-nose-and-throat (ENT) specialist screening before hearing treatment on self-reported hearing aid (HA) benefit and satisfaction among adult first-time HA users. DESIGN: Participants were randomised to either remote or in-person ENT assessment before treatment initiation. Hearing ability, hearing quality, and treatment satisfaction were assessed pre- and post-HA treatment using the SSQ12, IOI-HA, and selected items from the 2021 Danish national Patient-Reported Experience Measures. Average daily HA usage was also recorded. STUDY SAMPLE: 751 adult potential first-time HA users with self-reported hearing impairment were included; 501 participants were remotely assessed in private or public audiological clinics, and 250 control group participants were assessed in-person by private ENT specialists. Of the 658 participants who completed the entire trial, 454 received HAs. RESULTS: No significant post-treatment HA benefit differences were found between groups. Remotely assessed HA recipients in private clinics expressed slightly higher staff and waiting time satisfaction. Participants with normal hearing and mild/moderate hearing loss reported higher pre-treatment hearing ability and quality. No significant difference in average daily HA usage was observed between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that remote screening does not compromise patient-reported HA benefit and satisfaction when compared to in-person screening.

Cross-Cultural Translation and Adaptation of the Consumer Ear Disease Risk Assessment (CEDRA) Questionnaire in Danish.

This study aimed to cross-culturally translate and adapt the Consumer Ear Disease Risk Assessment (CEDRA) questionnaire into Danish for remote ear, nose, and, throat assessments in adult, first-time hearing aid users when used in conjunction with audiometric measures and visual images of the tympanic membrane. Employing field-specific guidelines, the tool underwent a rigorous translation process. This was succeeded by field testing via cognitive debriefing with 30 intendent respondents and a pilot test involving 600 adult, potential first-time hearing aid users from 2020-2022. Test-retest reliability analysis in 113 respondents revealed high consistency and reproducibility, with most items showing Spearman's correlation coefficients of 0.82 or higher and a Pearson's correlation of 0.92 for the total score. The tool demonstrated moderate discriminative ability in identifying individuals at high and low risk of complicated hearing loss and targeted ear diseases, supported by an area under the curve of 0.82 on the receiver operating characteristics curve. Our findings suggest that the Danish-translated version of CEDRA is a reliable and effective screening instrument when used with audiometry and tympanometry, warranting further validation in a larger population.

Digital vs. physical ear-nose-and-throat specialist assessment screening for complicated hearing loss and serious ear disorders in hearing-impaired adults prior to hearing aid treatment: a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: This study introduces a digital assessment tool for asynchronous and remote ear-nose-and-throat (ENT) specialist assessment screening for complicated hearing loss and serious ear disorders in hearing-impaired adults prior to hearing aid (HA) treatment. The +60 population will nearly double from 12% to 22% between 2015 and 2050 increasing the incidence of age-induced hearing impairment and the need for hearing rehabilitation. If un-diagnosed, age-related hearing loss negatively affects quality of life by accelerating social distancing and early retirement as well as increasing risk of anxiety, depression, and dementia. Therefore, innovative measures are essential to provide timely diagnostics and treatment. Methods: A total of 751 hearing-impaired adults without previous HA usage or experience were randomly assigned to digital or physical ENT specialist assessment screening prior to HA treatment initiation in 20 public and private hearing rehabilitation and ENT specialist clinics in the North Denmark Region. A total of 501 test group participants were assigned to digital assessment screening and 250 control group participants to physical assessment screening prior to HA treatment. Results: In all, 658 (88%) participants completed the trial and were eligible for analysis. Digital screening sensitivity (0.85, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71-0.94) was significantly higher than physical screening sensitivity (0.2, 95% CI: 0.03-0.56). Screening specificity was high for both assessment methods. Discussion: In a setting where hearing-impaired adults were assessed for HA treatment, digital ENT specialist assessment screening did not compromise patient safety or increase the risk of misdiagnosis in patients with complicated hearing loss and/or serious ear disorders when compared to physical ENT specialist assessment screening. Clinical Trial registration: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05154539, identifier: NCT05154539.

Describing patients with a duration of sick leave over and under one year in Norway.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to describe the somatic, social, psychological, and work-related factors that characterize participants with a duration of sick leave over and under one year. METHODS: During 2012, 181 patients on long-term sick leave were consecutively recruited and asked to answer an extensive survey. Several outcomes were reported, addressing work-related factors and somatic, psychological, and social symptoms. In cross-sectional analyses, sick leave duration was dichotomized as > or < one year, based on Norwegian legislation. Linear and logistic regressions were used to estimate population probabilities and means. RESULTS: The estimated prevalence of pain, fatigue, anxiety, and depression was overall high. There was a tendency towards a higher prevalence of fatigue, anxiety, and depression in those with sick leave duration less than one year, with the exception of sleep problems, which was more frequent in the population with longer duration. Relationship with friends, family, co-workers, and the last workplace were worse in the population with longer duration. CONCLUSIONS: Cross-sectional analyses indicated that social and work-related problems are more adverse in patients with longer duration of sick leave, while psychological and somatic symptoms appear less adverse. This is one of the first studies quantitatively demonstrating these differences through comprehensive, simultaneously measured self-report questionnaires.

Occupational rehabilitation programs for musculoskeletal pain and common mental health disorders: study protocol of a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Long-term sick leave has considerably negative impact on the individual and society. Hence, the need to identify effective occupational rehabilitation programs is pressing. In Norway, group based occupational rehabilitation programs merging patients with different diagnoses have existed for many years, but no rigorous evaluation has been performed. The described randomized controlled trial aims primarily to compare two structured multicomponent inpatient rehabilitation programs, differing in length and content, with a comparative cognitive intervention. Secondarily the two inpatient programs will be compared with each other, and with a usual care reference group. METHODS/DESIGN: The study is designed as a randomized controlled trial with parallel groups. The Social Security Office performs monthly extractions of sick listed individuals aged 18-60 years, on sick leave 2-12 months, with sick leave status 50% - 100% due to musculoskeletal, mental or unspecific disorders. Sick-listed persons are randomized twice: 1) to receive one of two invitations to participate in the study or not receive an invitation, where the latter "untouched" control group will be monitored for future sick leave in the National Social Security Register, and 2) after inclusion, to a Long or Short inpatient multicomponent rehabilitation program (depending on which invitation was sent) or an outpatient cognitive behavioral therapy group comparative program. The Long program consists of 3 ½ weeks with full rehabilitation days. The Short program consists of 4 + 4 full days, separated by two weeks, in which a workplace visit will be performed if desirable. Three areas of rehabilitation are targeted: mental training, physical training and work-related problem solving. The primary outcome is number of sick leave days. Secondary outcomes include time until full sustainable return to work, health related quality of life, health related behavior, functional status, somatic and mental health, and perceptions of work. In addition, health economic evaluation will be performed, and the implementation of the interventions, expectations and experiences of users and service providers will be investigated with different qualitative methods. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01926574.