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The aim of this study was to analyse the nationwide data on sick leaves (SL) due to work-related musculoskeletal disorders among Slovenian workers in section E “water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities” from NACE Rev2 classification. We report both, SL frequency (ie, number of cases) and SL severity (ie, average SL duration), stratified by body region, gender, age and divisions within the section. In addition, trends in SL data (year 2015–2019 difference) were analyzed. Throughout the analysed years, ∼9,000 workers were employed in the section, with male to female ratio at ∼ 4:1. The major findings are as follows: (i) low back disorders were by far the most prevalent, however, the mean SL duration was the highest for lower limb disorders; (ii) older age was associated with increased SL frequency and duration, irrespective of gender; (iii) male gender was consistently associated with larger SL duration, while the data on SL frequency is inconclusive, as older females had more frequent SL than older males; (iv) the effect of division was relatively minor and the comparisons are limited due to large discrepancies regarding the number of workers across divisions; (v) a slight increasing trend for both SL frequency and duration was observed from 2015 to 2019. In conclusion, particular attention in terms of early diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal disorders should be given to male workers and older workers in general in section E.

Sarcopenia is a common disease among older adults and is related to muscle failure. Considering the adverse health consequences of sarcopenia, early detection of the disease is crucial. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of sarcopenia and the levels of severe sarcopenia among older adults living in nursing homes in Western Slovenia by using the newly proposed EWGSOP2 criteria. One-hundred-and-twenty-one (121) older adults (mean age 83.8±7.6 years, 69% women) were included in the study. The obtained results indicate that the prevalence of sarcopenia is 25.0%, with a higher prevalence among men (35.1%) compared to women (24.1%). Interestingly, 90.3% of the sarcopenic cases were identified as severe. The results demonstrate a high prevalence of severe sarcopenia among older adults with the disease. Therefore, the regular and systematic assessment of sarcopenia among Slovenian older adults is suggested in order to identify the disease in an early stage. Interventions focusing on the prevention and alleviation of the disease are warranted.

Due to increased longevity, degenerative diseases and disabilities have become one of the largest health care problem. The state of well-being with a low risk of premature health problems is important for successful aging. Even if the impact of physical activi-ty and exercise on performance of daily life activities is still poorly understood, it seems that regular training has important benefits on physical and cognitive functioning in healthy elderly population. Combined training including strength, balance, flexibility exercises and activities that improve cardiorespiratory fitness, are important to ensure the independency of elderly people. Ena izmed posledic podaljševanja povprečne življenjske dobe so tudi različne tele-sne omejitve in številne degenerativne bolezni, ki postajajo vse večji zdravstveni pro-blem. Kvalitetno staranje je povezano z dobrim počutjem posameznika in nizkim tve-ganjem za zgodnji pojav bolezni. Vpliv redne telesne aktivnosti in vadbe na sposobnost izvajanja vsakodnevnih opravil v starosti še ni povsem pojasnjen, je pa vadba dokazano povezana z boljšimi telesnimi in kognitivnimi sposobnostmi starejše osebe. Kombini-rani trening, ki vključuje vaje za moč, ravnotežje in gibljivost, v povezavi z rednimi vzdržljivostnimi telesnimi aktivnostmi, pomembno prispeva k ohranjanju samostojnosti starostnika