Table II.
Issuing of sickness certification according to patients’ characteristics.
| Characteristic | Poland n (%) | Norway n (%) | p |
| All | 65 (52.0) | 54 (50.5) | NS |
| Male | 23 (51.1) | 19 (52.8) | NS |
| Female | 42 (52.5) | 35 (49.3) | NS |
| Age > 50 years | 10 (45.5) | 17 (35.4) | NS |
| Smokers | 26 (46.4) | 18 (60.0) | NS |
| Previous illness | |||
| Respiratory comorbidity | 5 (50.0) | 7 (53.8) | NS |
| Heart comorbidity | 2 (33.3) | 2 (66.7) | NS |
| Diabetes comorbidity | 1 (100.0) | 3 (37.5) | NS |
| Symptom presence reported by GPs in CRF1 | |||
| Cough | 59 (51.3) | 54 (53.5) | NS |
| Phlegm | 29 (55.8) | 22 (45.8) | NS |
| Abnormal phlegm (presence/absence) | 16 (59.3) | 18 (46.2) | NS |
| Shortness of breath | 20 (66.7) | 23 (52.3) | NS |
| Wheeze | 13 (68.4) | 12 (57.1) | NS |
| Coryza | 36 (56.3) | 21 (51.2) | NS |
| Fever | 28 (60.9) | 15 (57.7) | NS |
| Chest pain | 13 (52.0) | 15 (57.7) | NS |
| Muscle ache | 18 (45.0) | 12 (66.7) | NS |
| Headache | 27 (57.4) | 21 (60.0) | NS |
| Disturbed sleep | 18 (48.6) | 35 (55.6) | NS |
| Feeling unwell | 53 (57.6) | 39 (67.2) | NS |
| Interference with normal activities | 46 (63.0) | 43 (56.6) | NS |
| Confusion | 0 | 0 | NS |
| Diarrhoea | 1 (50.0) | 1 (50.0) | NS |
| Findings | |||
| Diminished vesicular breathing | 13 (40.6) | 2 (20.0) | NS |
| Wheeze | 18 (62.1) | 20 (64.5) | NS |
| Crackles | 6 (46.2) | 8 (44.4) | NS |
| Rhonchi | 9 (56.3) | 20 (76.9) | NS |
| Temperature > 37.2°C | 16 (59.3) | 11 (73.3) | NS |
| Antibiotic treatment | 53 (60.2) | 18 (62.1) | NS |
| Working status | |||
| Full time | 58 (54.2) | 45 (54.9) | NS |
| Part time | 7 (38.9) | 9 (36.0) | NS |
| Office work | 42 (56.0) | 22 (51.2) | NS |
| Manual work | 23 (46.0) | 32 (50.0) | NS |
Notes: Data were presented as percentage related to the total number of cases in particular groups (see Table I for details). Significance of differences estimated by means of chi-squared tests. 1Reported by patients as moderate or severe problem. CRF = case report form; NS = not significant.