The article examines how measures implemented to control COVID‑19 in Norway—such as social distancing and expanded testing—were associated with a marked reduction in the reporting of other infectious diseases. In the early months of 2020, surveillance data showed a clear decline in reported cases of several communicable diseases compared with previous years. This reduction may reflect decreased transmission resulting from social distancing measures, but it could also be partly explained by the reallocation of healthcare resources toward the management of COVID‑19.
I am particularly proud of this publication, as it was my first scientific article written in Norwegian. Although the Journal of the Norwegian Medical Association publishes in both Norwegian and English, the English version is a translation.