Protozoan diseases – a marginalized threat of modern civilization

Globalization and the intensification of tourism in tropical and subtropical areas as well as journeys within the framework of military missions often cause the spread and persistence of infectious and parasitic diseases in areas where they previously have not been reported. Protozoan diseases may also be introduced along with imported, often illegally, exotic animals. Parasitic diseases transmitted from subtropical and tropical regions include protozoan gastrointestinal disorders, such as amoebiasis, balantidiasis and blood protozoan diseases such as malaria, babesiosis, trypanosomiasis, or protozoan diseases of the skin, e.g. leishmaniasis. The aim of the study is to draw attention to the problem of disregard for the risks caused by the development of tourism to tropical countries. One has to bear in mind that being infected with blood protozoan parasites is particularly important for public health because it permanently or temporarily excludes those infected as potential blood donors; this applies to trypanosoma, babesiosis and malaria infections. One should presume that the number of cases of parasitic blood diseases in Poland has increased significantly in comparison with previous years. It should also be emphasized that in connection with diagnostic difficulties in diseases caused by parasitic protozoa, it is possible that these diseases may fail to be diagnosed, thus resulting in an incorrect treatment or a lack thereof. This applies to Trypanosoma infections, babesiosis and malaria

Post-traumatic stress disorder

Post-traumatic stress is observed in people who have been directly exposed to traumatic mental and physical stimuli in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder of systemic reactions. Not only soldiers returning from military missions are affected by it, but also victims of all kinds of disasters, rescuers, providing the former with assistance, people pursuing the stress-related professions, including firefighters, paramedics, as well as fans of extreme sports and people, who have experienced unusual situations, such as death of a beloved person, divorce or a traffic accident. The stress symptoms follow the triggering factor. Reaction of the limbic system, associated with the circulation of emotional state, which takes place in the Papez area, causing a variety of vegetative symptoms, especially the circulatory ones, has a vital role to play. The consequences of post-traumatic stress affect both mental and emotional changes, as well as the changes in dynamic stereotype, and they also manifest indirect effects in the family life of an entity and its immediate surrounding. It is important to provide the people affected by post-traumatic stress syndrome with psychological and psychiatric care. The purpose of this article is to review the available literature data on both the post-traumatic stress disorder and its consequences as well as to focus on the key issues related to the prevention and assistance provided for people affected by the syndrome

The latest trends in hair composition analysis in toxicological studies

Humans have had to deal with toxic substances since times immemorial, and this remains the case in the present day. In case of forensic toxicology, of interest are those substances whose possession, use or effects of either imply an offense, a crime or a threat to life. Biological materials used in toxicological analyses are usually blood, urine and the vitreous body of the eye. In addition to the above-mentioned classic materials used for tests aimed at determining the presence of a given xenobiotic, alternative materials, such as hair, are increasingly being used. The primary goal of forensic and clinical toxicology is to look for a causal relationship between the presence of a toxic agent in the system and the specific biological effect caused by it. Carrying out the above objective requires the toxicology analyst to choose the appropriate diagnostic material and the appropriate analytical methods. Toxicological analysis can be performed for any type of material, including hair, which is an excellent sample for determination of individual substances. One of the most important tasks in the field of forensic toxicology is the analysis of addictive substances, whose presence or absence in the human body is one of the elements of a medico-legal report

Biosafety and biological factors

Biological threats go beyond infectious disease epidemics. A biological threat should be construed as the effects of deployment of biological warfare or the occurrence of biological events of natural origin, which can have significant impact on the breach of security in the military, social, ecological and biological context. Biological factors are often recognized as an important and increasingly appreciated problem of widely understood public health. Epidemiological data indicates that, worldwide, at least several hundred million people are exposed to them. A fallacious conviction prevails that biological factors generally affect health care workers who are exposed to them as part of their daily professional routine. However, we rarely realize that biological factors affect us as part of many types of work, also in public spaces. Exposure to biological factors in the workplace and out of work has become increasingly frequent, leading to many adverse health effects. Health care authorities should be sensitive to the emergence of disease foci caused by biological factors (bioterrorism), which requires their quick reaction. It is also important to guarantee the security of personnel in all employment areas where contact with these factors is expected. It is estimated that the frequency of use of weapons of mass destruction is directly proportional to the availability of these means and their production costs, as well as their production capacity. These are the main reasons that indicate that a growing number of terrorist organizations can start using them. The purpose of the study is to present the current knowledge on the preparedness of government bodies (administration and health care) to fight biological threats of various origin

Effect of toxic metals on oral tissues

Herman Katarzyna, Korczyński Mariusz, Janeczek Maciej, Wełmiński Paweł, Kowalczyk-Zając Małgorzata, Leśków Anna, Całkosiński Ireneusz, Dobrzyński Maciej. Effect of toxic metals on oral tissues. Journal of Education, Health and Sport. 2017;7(1):209-220. eISSN 2391-8306. DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.253366 http://ojs.ukw.edu.pl/index.php/johs/article/view/4180 The journal has had 7 points in Ministry of Science and Higher Education parametric evaluation. Part B item 754 (09.12.2016). 754 Journal of Education, Health and Sport eISSN 2391-8306 7 © The Author (s) 2017; This article is published with open access at Licensee Open Journal Systems of Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz, Poland Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited. The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper. Received: 02.01.2017. Revised 16.01.2017. Accepted: 20.01.2017. Wpływ metali toksycznych na tkanki jamy ustnej Effect of toxic metals on oral tissues Katarzyna Herman1, Mariusz Korczyński2,3, Maciej Janeczek4, Paweł Wełmiński5, Małgorzata Kowalczyk-Zając1, Anna Leśków6, Ireneusz Całkosiński6, Maciej Dobrzyński1 1 Katedra i Zakład Stomatologii Zachowawczej i Dziecięcej, Uniwersytet Medyczny we Wrocławiu, Krakowska 26, 50-425 Wrocław, Polska 2 Zakład Chirurgii Eksperymentalnej i Badania Biomateriałów, Uniwersytet Medyczny we Wrocławiu, Bujwida 44, 50-368 Wrocław, Polska 3 Katedra Higieny Środowiska i Dobrostanu Zwierząt, Uniwersytet Przyrodniczy we Wrocławiu, Kożuchowska 1/3, 51-631 Wrocław, Polska 4 Zakład Anatomii Zwierząt, Uniwersytet Przyrodniczy we Wrocławiu, Chełmońskiego 38c, 51-630 Wrocław, Polska 5 POLNET Sp. z o.o., Obodrzycka 61, 61-249 Poznań, Polska 6 Samodzielna Pracownia Neurotoksykologii i Diagnostyki Środowiskowej, Uniwersytet Medyczny we Wrocławiu, Grunwaldzka 2, 50-355 Wrocław, Polska Streszczenie Metale toksyczne, które powszechnie występują w środowisku mogą wywierać negatywny wpływ na zdrowie ludzi. W pracy przedstawiono problem zmian patologicznych, występujących w jamie ustnej w wyniku narażenia na działanie metali toksycznych. Według literatury, metale toksyczne mogą niekorzystnie wpływać na tkanki miękkie, zęby, proces wydzielania śliny oraz doznania smakowe. Istnieje również ryzyko wystąpienia wad rozwojowych twarzoczaszki, w szczególności rozszczepu podniebienia oraz upośledzenia mineralizacji zawiązków zębów. W związku z tym istotne jest aby ograniczać źródła metali toksycznych, zwłaszcza związane z przemysłem. Słowa kluczowe: metale toksyczne, jama ustna, błona śluzowa, zęby, ślina Summary Toxic metals that commonly occur in human environment may exert a negative influence on people’s health. This study presents the problem of pathological changes occurring within the oral cavity as a result of exposure to toxic metals. According to literature, they may adversely affect soft tissues, teeth, the saliva secretion process or taste sensations. There is also risk of developmental defects of the facial skeleton, particularly the cleft palate and impaired tooth buds mineralization. Therefore, it is essential to limit industrial and non-industrial sources of toxic metals. Key words: toxic metals, oral cavity, mucosa, teeth, saliva Adres do korespondencji: dr n. med. Maciej Dobrzyński Katedra i Zakład Stomatologii Zachowawczej i Dziecięcej, Uniwersytet Medyczny im. Piastów Śląskich we Wrocławiu, ul. Krakowska 26, 50-425 Wrocław, tel./fax: (71) 784-03-62, e-mail: [email protected]

Diagnosis and neurologopedic therapy in child with meningomyelocele

Introduction: Meningomyelocele is a birth defect caused by incomplete closing of neural tube. It is the heaviest and the most complicated defect from the spinal bifida defects. After giving birth to the child, some other disordes are also diagnosed, for example defects in the brain like the Arnold and Chiarie syndrome, other nervous system defects, lower limbs defects, urinary system defects, heart and blood vessels defect, digestive system defects.Aim: The aim of the work was to undergo a neurospeech-therapy, prepared individually for the child diagnosed with Meningomyelocele and answer the question if properly prepared therapy can improve child’s speech and perception ability.Material and methods: In present work, the case of an individual patient is described. The diagnosis was obtained based on the interview, observation, approximate examining the speech and the neurospeech-therapy examination.Results: The speech therapy caused desired effects. A motor and manual efficiency and visual-motor coordination were improved. An auditory and visual memory and perception were streamlined. Time of the concentration of the attention was extended. Considerably a store of the vocabulary was enriched. Ability of the play and desire for the imitation were developed. A process of the forming of the sided domination developed

The evaluate the thoracic kyphosis at children in age 8-12 years

Introdution: The technicalization, the sedentary and the busy lifestyle can lead to development and health disorders such as faulty posture. Usually effects concern abnormalities in motor organs and spinal cirvatures of the body which are widely described. Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the thorasic kyphosis in children at the age of 8-12 years.Material and methods: In the study, 204 children at the age of 8-12 years were examined, including 103 girls and 101 boys. The research on the evaluation of the posture of the body was conducted in years 2008 – 2011. An advanced system Zebris APGMS Pointer was used to evaluate faulty posture such as: sacral angel thoracic kyphosis, lumbar lordosis and total trunk inclination. Data were analyzed using WinSpine Pointer software, based on the built-in standard research protocol.Results: The results of this work suggest that the size of the thorasic kyphosis depends on the gender and on the formation of lumbar lordosis. In children at the age of 8-12 years there was a correlation between the total length of the spine and age

Thermographic evaluation of the sinus areas of selected groups of students - pilot study

Thermal imaging technique is a sufficiently precise tool by which you can evaluate the condition of the blood supply of various areas of the body. Blood supply is connected with physiological functional status or ongoing pathological processes such as inflammation. The study was conducted on 40 volunteers - randomly selected students. The results are characterized by a slight standard deviation in maximum and minimum temperatures in the maxillary sinus area and the minimal difference between these results. On the basis of studies, the range of values of the reference temperature of the maxillary sinus. This range was isolated based on the results of a group of 39 individuals. It has been shown that in case of one person the results were not within the range of reference values indicating the presence of chronic inflammatory sinusitis

Thermographic evaluation of experimental pleurisy induced by carrageenan and modified by 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)

The use of a thermal imaging camera may improve the detection of changes during inflammation process propagation in animals and humans that could be caused by numerous factors like 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD). Methods: Rats were randomised and divided into two groups, C group, in which experimental pleural inflammatory reaction was evoked and TCDD group, in which a single dose was applied 21 days before administration of 1% carrageenan solution. Infrared thermograms were taken with a microbolometer thermal imaging camera MobIR M8. The surface temperature distribution was measured in three randomly selected animals. Results: In the analysis of correlation we found negative results between both groups. In the C group, the pleurisy was developed and allowed to develop freely. It can be observed that both the average maximum temperature and the average minimum temperature were the highest after 48 hours after injection of the 1% carrageenan in solution. In TCDD group, lowered temperature in all days of experiments was noted. However, the increase of temperature after carrageenan injection was similar. The main changes observed in the lungs were oedema, hyperemia with clot formation and changes in lung structure. Several proliferative changes in the lungs were noted. Moreover, increased number of goblet cells as well and increased release of the surfactant was observed. The activation of fibroblasts and synthesis of collagen fibers was noted. Conclusions: The TCDD administration results in the reduction of superficial temperature, which is easily detectable by thermal imaging camera that can be effectively used in monitoring the course of inflammation