Imaging methods in oncology

Slikovne metode u onkologiji omogućile su ranije dijagnosticiranje malignih oboljenja, brižljivije praćenje tijeka bolesti i ranije otkrivanje lokalnog recidiva ili diseminacije bolesti te bitno pridonijele činjenici da se danas karcinom smatra kroničnom bolesti. Slikovne metode dijelimo na one kojima prikazujemo morfologiju organa i tkiva i one kojima prikazujemo funkciju, odnosno metabolizam organa i tkiva. Prije odluke o odabiru slikovne metode nužno je postaviti kliničko pitanje i cilj koji želimo postići određenom pretragom. Također je važno slijediti i dijagnostičke algoritme u postavljanju indikacije za slikovne pretrage. Problem s kojim se susreću liječnici opće medicine je i moguća štetnost od (pre)čestih snimanja.Imaging methods in oncology have allowed earlier diagnosis of malignant diseases, more careful disease monitoring, early detection of local recurrence or dissemination of disease and significantly contribute to the fact that today, cancer is considered a chronic disease. Imaging methods are divided into those which show the morphology of organs and tissues, and those which show the function or metabolism of organs and tissues. Before deciding on the selection of imaging methods, it is necessary to consider clinical issue and goal that we want to achieve by particular examination. Also, it is important to follow diagnostic algorithms in setting indications for imaging methods. The problem faced by general physicians is the potential harmfulness of the (too) frequent shooting

Imaging methods in oncology

Slikovne metode u onkologiji omogućile su ranije dijagnosticiranje malignih oboljenja, brižljivije praćenje tijeka bolesti i ranije otkrivanje lokalnog recidiva ili diseminacije bolesti te bitno pridonijele činjenici da se danas karcinom smatra kroničnom bolesti. Slikovne metode dijelimo na one kojima prikazujemo morfologiju organa i tkiva i one kojima prikazujemo funkciju, odnosno metabolizam organa i tkiva. Prije odluke o odabiru slikovne metode nužno je postaviti kliničko pitanje i cilj koji želimo postići određenom pretragom. Također je važno slijediti i dijagnostičke algoritme u postavljanju indikacije za slikovne pretrage. Problem s kojim se susreću liječnici opće medicine je i moguća štetnost od (pre)čestih snimanja.Imaging methods in oncology have allowed earlier diagnosis of malignant diseases, more careful disease monitoring, early detection of local recurrence or dissemination of disease and significantly contribute to the fact that today, cancer is considered a chronic disease. Imaging methods are divided into those which show the morphology of organs and tissues, and those which show the function or metabolism of organs and tissues. Before deciding on the selection of imaging methods, it is necessary to consider clinical issue and goal that we want to achieve by particular examination. Also, it is important to follow diagnostic algorithms in setting indications for imaging methods. The problem faced by general physicians is the potential harmfulness of the (too) frequent shooting

Challenges in collecting evidence for the safe use of digital health solutions

Digitalne zdravstvene tehnologije (engl. Digital Health Technologies, DHT) uključuju širok raspon različitih proizvoda koji se koriste u sustavu zdravstvene i socijalne skrbi (aplikacije, softveri i online platforme), a mogu biti namijenjeni dobrobiti pojedinca ili sustava zdravstvene i socijalne skrbi. Budući da su digitalne intervencije postale sastavni dio skrbi o pacijentima nametnula se potreba za njihovom kliničkom validacijom i propisanom regulacijom unutar zdravstvenih sustava. Unatoč sve bržim naporima usmjerenim na digitalnu transformaciju u zdravstvu velik je izazov proizvesti čvrste dokaze za većinu digitalnih zdravstvenih rješenja na pravodoban i troškovno učinkovit način, pa za mnoga digitalna rješenja koja se primjenjuju dokazi o koristi tih alata ne postoje ili nisu javno prezentirani. Uzimajući u obzir složenost zdravstvenih sustava, cijenu i trajanje tradicionalnih pristupa za osiguravanje dokaza učinkovitosti medicinskih proizvoda (u koje spada i dio digitalnih zdravstvenih aplikacija) potrebno je zajednički poraditi na metodama i alatima koji su prihvatljivi inovatorima i svim ostalim dionicima u zdravstvenom sustavu te osigurati materijalna sredstva i ostale resurse potrebne za sagledavanje svih aspekata nužnih za učinkovitu i sigurnu implementaciju digitalnih zdravstvenih tehnologija.Digital health technologies (DHT) include a wide range of different products used in the health and social care system (applications, software and online platforms), and may be intended for the benefit of the personal care or health and social care system. Since digital interventions have become an integral part of patient care, the need for clinical validation and prescribed regulation of the same within healthcare systems has been imposed. Despite the increasingly rapid efforts in digital transformation of healthcare, it is still a challenge to produce solid evidence for most digital healthcare solutions in a timely and cost-effective manner. For many digital solutions that are currently applied, evidence of the benefits of these tools does not exist or has not been publicly presented. Taking into account the complexity of health systems, cost and duration of traditional approaches for providing evidence of the effectiveness of medical products (which also includes part of digital health applications), it is necessary to work together on methods and tools that are acceptable to innovators and all other stakeholders in the health system, and to provide material and other resources necessary to consider all aspects essential for the effective and safe implementation of digital health technologies

Electronic health record – advantages and obstacles in implementation and usage

Digitalne tehnologije i elektronički zdravstveni zapis (e‑Karton) imaju mogućnost smanjiti vrijeme koje liječnici troše na izradu zdravstvene dokumentacije, što osigurava više vremena za izravnu i kvalitetniju zdravstvenu skrb o pacijentima. Racionalizacijom poslova oko vođenja zdravstvene dokumentacije smanjuje se vrijeme administrativnih obveza te poboljšava efikasnost i zadovoljstvo zdravstvenih radnika. Osim prednosti, utvrđene su i poteškoće i prepreke u implementaciji e‑Kartona: ulazni troškovi, digitalna nepismenost, vrijeme potrebno za edukaciju, problem nepotpunih ili loših digitalnih aplikacija, jezične varijacije i terminološka neusklađenost, medicinsko-pravna usklađenost i interoperabilnost s postojećim računalnim sustavima. Iako nova tehnologija elektronskog vođenja zdravstvenih podataka ima brojne prednosti kako za pacijente, tako i za liječnike i za cjelokupni zdravstveni sustav, prepreke koje postoje moraju se identificirati i riješiti kako bi se osigurala sigurna i učinkovita integracija i provođenje zdravstvene skrbi. Promicanje ovih tema važno je kako bi se kvantitativno i kvalitativno obuhvatili te analizirali svi različiti učinci nastali nakon implementacije e‑Kartona budući da izravno utječu na sigurnost i kvalitetu zdravstvene skrbi.Digital technologies and the electronic health record (EHR) have the ability to reduce the time medical staff spend on documentation, allowing more time for direct and better patient health care. By optimizing work processes for keeping health records, the time required for administrative obligations is reduced, thus improving the efficiency and satisfaction of physicians. There are also various obstacles to the implementation of EHR: input costs of various scales, digital literacy, time for education on the use of ICT, poor EHR solutions, language variations and terminological inconsistencies, medical and legal compliance and interoperability with existing computer systems. Although new electronic health data management has a number of benefits for both patients and physicians and for the health care system, barriers do exist and need to be identified and addressed to ensure secure and effective integration and enforcement. The promotion of these topics is important in order to quantitatively and qualitatively cover and analyze all the different effects that occurred after the implementation of the EHR, as they directly affect the safety and quality of health care

Application of UAS for Monitoring of Forest Ecosystems – A Review of Experience and Knowledge

In the last couple of years, there have been a great number of articles that cover and emphasize the advantages and possibilities that UAS (Unmanned Air System) offers in forest ecosystem research. In the available research, alongside UAS, the importance of developing sensors that are designed to be used with UAV (Unamnned Air Vehicle), a flight programming software and UAS collected data processing software have been pointed out. With the widespread use of high-precision sensors and accompanying software in forestry, it is possible to obtain accurate data in a short time that replaces long-term manpower in the field with equal or in some cases, such as windthrow calculation or wildlife counting, greater accuracy. The former practice of manual imagery processing is being partly replaced with automated approaches. The paper analyses studies that deal with some form of application of UAS in forestry, e.g. forest inventory, forest operations, ecological monitoring, forest pests and forest fires, and wildlife monitoring. In the forest inventory, a large number of studies deal with the possibilities of applying UAS in mapping vegetation and individual trees, morphological research of individual parts of trees, surface analysis, etc. The use of remote and proximal sensing technologies in forest engineering has mainly been focused on defining surface roughness and topology, road geometry, planning and maintenance, ground-based and cable-based harvesting and soil characteristics and displacement. Wildfire monitoring already relies heavily on the use of UAS and thermal cameras in operations, and it is similar to the mapping of windthrow or directions of the spread of certain insects important for forestry. In wildlife research, numerous studies deal with abundance research of individual terrestrial birds and mammals using UAS thermal imagery. With some drawbacks such as wildlife disturbance or limited UAV range, common to most of the processed studies are positive attitudes regarding the application of UAS in forestry sensing and monitoring, which is slowly becoming a common operative practice, with the scientists’ focus being on developing automated approaches in UAS imagery processing. Reducing the error by improving the technological characteristics of the sensors will in the long run reduce the number of people required to collect data important for forestry, reduce risks and in some cases increase accuracy

Sociodemographic Determinants and Common Reasons for Visiting the Emergency Dental Service in the City of Zagreb

Svrha: Svrha rada bila je odrediti socijalno-demografske i kliničke parametre pacijenata koji posjećuju hitnu stomatološku službu te njihove najčešće dijagnoze. Materijali i metode: Podatci su prikupljeni na temelju ankete koju su pacijenti ispunjavali za posjeta službi. Ukupno je sudjelovalo 1730 pacijenata (26 %) od njih 6732, s pritom se ispunjavala anketa u kojoj su postavljena pitanja o socijalno- demografskom statusu i posjećivanju stomatologa te je tražen opis i dinamika simptoma. Nakon prikupljanja podataka provedene su metode deskriptivnog prikaza podataka te metode inferencijalne statistike u SPSS-u. Rezultati: Rezultati nakon analize ankete pokazali su da većina ispitanika (60,4 %) dolazi u hitnu službu vikendima i blagdanima. Istaknimo da je 73,1 % ispitanika naveo je da se već koristio uslugama hitne stomatološke službe, a 65,8 % njih zbog trenutačnog stanja nije posjetilo vojega stomatologa. Najveći broj ispitanika (62,2 %) u hitnu je službu došao unutar tjedan dana od početka tegoba. Najčešće dijagnoze bile su apscesi lica i čeljusti (27,3 %). Postoji statistički značajna razlika između broja pacijenata koji su došli u hitnu stomatološku službu i ispunili upitnik tijekom različitih mjeseci, u smislu da je više njih tražilo pomoć tijekom svibnja i lipnja (59,7 %) u odnosu prema srpnju i kolovozu (40,3 %). Zaključak: Kod većine ispitanika postojale su jasne indikacije za prijam u hitnu stomatološku službu. Većina hitnih stanja nastala je uglavnom zbog neredovitih posjeta izabranom liječniku. Boljom edukacijom pacijenata i provedbom preventivnih programa broj posjeta ovoj službi vjerojatno bi se smanjio.Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the sociodemographic and clinical parameters of patients who visit the emergency dental service and their most common diagnoses. Materials and Methods: The data were collected on the basis of a survey filled out by patients. A total of 1730 out of 6732 patients (26%) were surveyed using a questionnaire to analyze sociodemographic status, dental visits, the description and dynamics of the symptoms. After the data collection, methods of descriptive data presentation and of inferential statistics were made in SPSS. Results: Survey results show that most subjects (60.4%) came during the weekends and holidays. The subjects, 73.1 % of them, stated that they had already used this type of service, and 65.8% did not visit their dentist beforehand. The largest number of subjects (62.2%) reported that they needed emergency service within a week after their problems had begun. The most common diagnoses included face and jaw abscesses (27.3%). There is a statistically significant difference between the number of patients who went to the emergency dental service and completed the questionnaire over the course of several months contrary to patients who were there in May and June (59.7%) compared to July and August (40.3 %). Conclusions: Most subjects had clear indications for being referred to an emergency dental service. Most of the emergency conditions were mainly due to irregular visits to the dentist. Patient education and preventive programs would probably have reduced the number of visits

Medical Emergencies in Pediatric Dentistry

Hitna stanja opasna za život mogu se dogoditi, i događaju se, i u ordinaciji dentalne medicine. Mogu nastati zbog komplikacija osnovne bolesti i kao reakcija na lijekove koja može biti alergijska i toksična. Najčešće toksične reakcije uzrokuju lokalni anestetici, a alergije se pojavljuju uglavnom pri primjeni antibiotika, najčešće penicilina. Kao reakcija na stres najčešće nastaje vazovagalna sinkopa. Ostali uzroci mogu biti povezani s osnovnom bolesti određenog sustava (akutni astmatski napadaj, dijabetička ketoacidoza, hipoglikemija, epileptički napadaji itd.), ili su nesretni slučajevi (aspiracija stranog tijela, što uzrokuje opstrukciju dišnog sustava). Za sve navedeno propisane su smjernice koje je potrebno znati. Ako nastanu komplikacije, a ne poduzmu se potrebne mjere, može se dogoditi zastoj srca ili prestanak disanja pa je potrebna kardiopulmonalna reanimacija. Sve postupke i doze nužno je prilagoditi dobi djeteta.Medical emergencies that are life threatening can occur in dental practice. Complications may arise because of an underlying disease or a reaction to medication. Reactions to medications may be allergic and toxic. The most common reactions are toxic reactions to local anesthetics, whereas allergies occur mainly as a consequence of the application of antibiotics, usually penicillin. In response to stress, vasovagal syncope typically occurs. Other causes may be related to an underlying diseasespecific pathology (such as acute asthma attack, diabetic ketoacidosis, hypoglycemia, or seizures) or accidents (aspiration of a foreign body causing obstruction of the respiratory system). For all the above conditions, guidelines have been established that need to be known. If complications occur or necessary measures are not taken, it can lead to cardiac and respiratory arrest. Therefore, cardiopulmonary resuscitation is needed. All procedures and dosages should be adapted to the age of the child