Newest findings on gaming addiction treatment

Background: With introduction of new technologies, mainly computers and internet, the lives of societies are being transferred more often to virtual reality. What happens to be one of the greatest achievements of human kind, being able to archive all of accomplishments of the civilizations, connect people around the world and make the living truly globalized, to some may be a curse and an addictive trap. Gaming addiction and internet addiction are one of the new behavioural addictions, collecting more and more victims every year, and gathering more attention of psychiatrists, neurobiologists and public health professionals. Materials and methods: The aim of this study is to review the latest treatment options for gaming addiction. For this purpose, 32 papers from PubMed Medline of period 2007-2017 have been reviewed. Results: Treatment of gaming addiction is still a new topic within modern psychiatry. The latest options of treatment can be differentiated between psychosocial and pharmacotherapy treatment. Psychosocial treatment consists of cognitive behavioral and psycho-educational therapy, aiming to control the harmful stressors and to obtain skills necessary for self-control. For pharmacotherapy the choice depends on the coexisting comorbidities, however the data on the neurobiology of the gaming addiction, as well as diagnostics procedures are still not consistent enough to provide reliable guidelines. Conclusions: Study reveals the growing importance of increased research in field of treatment of gaming addictions, as more guidelines are being provided nowadays as well as number of patients affected will be increasing in the nearest future

Telemedicine in neurosurgery during SARS-CoV2 Pandemic

Introduction and purposeFirst large scale introduction and research of telecommunication in medicine was conducted in year 1977. However, until current SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic, telemedicine has been used only in emergency interventions or in cases in which only remote healthcare provision services were available. Healthcare was forced to implement telemedical changes in a scale broader beyond imagination, in order to limit the risk of COVID transmission and preserve the scarce healthcare resources. Especially in surgical fields, such as neurosurgery, which strongly depend on on-site procedures, this time has been extremely demanding. The aim of the study is to present the current views and effectiveness of implementation of telemedicine in neurosurgery during SARS-CoV2 pandemic. Substantial articles on implementation and challenges of telemedicine in neurosurgery from period 02.2020-09.2020 were analyzed.  Current state of knowledgeWithin 581 articles of PubMED database, 15 substantial articles on advancements of telemedicine in neurosurgery during SARS-CoV2 Pandemic were included in the review. 60% of the articles discussed telemedicine implementation and improvements made, 40% of the articles discussed the legislative changes, telemedicine recommendations and good pratices. Most of the articles noted the significant increase in provision of services using telemedicine and high satisfaction of patients and professionals from the remote visits. However, many challenges of the technology has been encountered including difficulties in conducting proper remote examination, lack of standarized protocols, concerns of the ethical and social matters, such as patient’s confidentiality and privacy concerns, digital illiteracy in patients, and the need for more advanced hardware and more secure software for the provision of high quality services. Conclusions Reviewed research presents significant improvements in introduction of telemedicine in neurosurgical field in times of COVID Pandemic, however due to many multidisciplinary concerns regarding telemedicine implementation, face-to-face examination and communication still should take priority over the telemedicine interventions in the non-emergency future.  

New opportunities in glioma therapy - awake craniotomy

In some populations over the past 30 years there has been an increase of 30% in brain tumors morbidity, in Poland, over two-fold increase within three decades. Even though the diagnostics is significantly increasing, the mortality still remains high - general statistics of survival is 34%, for the most malignant cases - less than 5%. Brain tumor resection is essential not only for the overall survival, but the post-operative quality of life is as important as the survival rate. Especially in motor and language area lesions, the greater resections with lesser post-operative complications are required. The modern opportunity in favour of such circumstances is tend to grow within awake craniotomy technique. The aim of the study is to present the newest achievements in field of neurosurgical awake surgery. For the purpose of this study, most significant works have been reviewed in period 2000-2015. Study reveals the growing importance of awake surgery with simultaneous necessity for new pre-operative technologies, which can support the greater outcomes of the surgeries. Apart from that, the concerns of the ethical matter can be withdrawn if the valid algorythms and guidelines are applied for this procedure

The knowledge and skills on pediatric EEG in medical education - Lublin experience

Background Electroencephalography is a study that records the electrical activity of the cerebral cortex. This record of neuronal communication supports clinical diagnosis of epilepsy and status epilepticus and monitoring of its future courses. That is why electroencephalography is considered one of the most important examination in children neurology. Aim and methodology Due to the interest of medical students in neuroscience, the Pediatric EEG Training was conducted and its efficacy was measured. The study group included 68 international students, who attended lectures in 10-15 participant groups in year 2014-2017. Both knowledge and students self-confidence were rated before and after conduction of the workshops. Results After the conduction of the workshop, 73% increase of knowledge was observed. In aspect of self confidence, 91% of participants confirmed they are confident in reasonable ordering of the examination to their future patients, and 72% of participants feel confident in technical preparation of the examination. Small groups of participants and sufficient amount of time for both theoretical lecture and practical skills training were essential to the significant results and participants’ satisfaction. Conclusions EEG workshops are a great example of combined theoretical and practical training which supports not only the knowledge improvement, but also the practical skills and teamwork experience for future healthcare professionals

Improvement of surgical performance of medical students after basic surgical suturing workshops

Introduction Surgery, subject considered as one of the most demanding in medical education, fascinates medical students for centuries. And despite the possibilities of surgical observerships, as well as the passion and dreams of young adepts of medicine to acquire practical skills and experience in this fascinating field, we observe lack of practical aspect in medical undergraduate training. In order to allow medical students to experience basics of surgical reality, every year our team performs surgical suturing workshops for more than 50 students from all years within non-formal peer-to-peer education model. The Aim of the Study The aim of this study is to present the effectiveness of basic suturing training among 145 international students of Medical University of Lublin. Materials and methods The study group included 145 international students with no prior or little practical surgical experience, who attended surgical workshops in 15-participant groups in years 2014-2016. Both knowledge and technical performance were rated before and after conduction of the workshops. Results Within theoretical part of the training, 84% increase of knowledge in surgical procedures was observed. As for the practical skills, 71% of attendees decreased time of basic and continuous sutures performance by at least 50%. Non-formal peer-to-peer education model, as well as small groups and sufficient time for practice were noted as essential factor to the significant results of conducted workshop. Conclusions Basic surgical skills workshops serve as a great example of non-formal peer-to-peer training which improves practical abilities among attendees, as well as didactic and teamwork skills among senior students

Use of yoga in treatment and screening of eating disorders

Mental disorders are a common cause of human disability and early morbidity. Eating disorders, affecting greatly both mental and physical abilities of the patients, are a frequent diagnosis in modern societies (1-5% in women population) with low rate of full recovery (50%) and high morbidity (10-20%). The difficulties in compliance as well as importance of holistic approach, including restoring mind-body balance, improving body image disturbances and additional psychiatric symptoms, urge medicine to find complementary and alternative solutions for existing therapeutic options. Among those yoga, which involves meditation, body awareness, breathing techniques, light physical activity without significant BMI changes, seems to become a more and more popular mean of additional treatment in fighting eating disorders. The aim of this study is to present the effectiveness of yoga interventions in treatment of eating disorders and importance of screening of yoga communities in terms of higher prevalence of several eating disorder types among those groups. . Within 6 reviewed articles from PubMed database in years 2008-2018, presented research proved the importance of inclusion of yoga interventions in patients with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, avoidant restrictive food intake disorder, binge eating disorder. Also among yoga communities, higher scores for disorders like orthorexia nervosa, weight control behaviours were found, comparing to non-participants of those practices. Yoga, the ancient practice of finding balance between body, mind and soul, should be furtherly researched and developed in psychiatric practices, due to the effectiveness and promising results proved by presented reviewed studies

Modern techniques in organ transplantation

Transplantologia to jedna z najbardziej intensywnie rozwijających się dziedzin medycyny, której pełny rozkwit rozpoczął się na przełomie XIX i XX wieku wraz z pierwszymi przeszczepami organów zakończonymi sukcesem, dającymi pacjentom nadzieję na „drugie życie” i zdrowie. Obecnie, po odkryciu chirurgicznych i immunologicznych aspektów transplantacji, najbardziej dotkliwym problemem jest brak organów. Naukowcy stawiają przed medycyną również coraz to nowe wyzwania wraz z wprowadzeniem procedury przeszczepu twarzy, przeszczepu u noworodka oraz planowanej procedury przeszczepu głowy. Celem poniższej pracy jest przedstawienie najnowszych wyzwań technicznych związanych z transplantacją: hodowli organów oraz 3D bioprintingu, przeszczepu głowy, ksenotransplantacji. Liczne badania stwierdzają niezwykły postęp w pracach nad syntetyzowaniem organów z iPSC – pierwsze próby regeneracji serca, wątroby, kości i rogówki zwiastują początek medycyny regeneracyjnej i nowej ery w transplantologii, w której możliwość użycia syntetycznych organów wyeliminuje potrzebę ludzkich dawców. Niezbędna wydaje się w planowaniu powyższych osiągnięć technika 3D bioprintingu, dzięki której będzie możliwe harmonijne odtworzenie anatomicznych i histologicznych struktur i zależności. Intensywne badania prowadzone są również w aspekcie przeszczepu głowy, w którym najważniejszymi dylematami operatywy są m.in. głęboka hipotermia, anastomoza rdzenia kręgowego oraz następcze uszkodzenie drogi rdzeniowo-wzgórzowej, niepokoją również liczne argumenty natury etycznej i moralnej, związane z przeprowadzeniem zabiegu. Mimo iż w transplantologii obserwuje się ogromny postęp techniczny w ostatnim dwudziestoleciu, to powyższe procedury czeka jeszcze wiele wyzwań natury technicznej oraz etycznej.Organ transplantation is one of the most intensively developing fields of medicine, the blooming period of which began at the turn of the century with the first successful organ transplants, giving patients hope for a second chance and health. Currently, after the discovery of the surgical and immunological aspects of transplantation, the most pressing problem is the lack of organs. Scientists are also facing new challenges with the introduction of face transplantation procedures, transplantation in the newborn, and the planned procedure for head transplant. The purpose of the study is to present the latest technical challenges of transplantation: organ culture and 3D bioprinting, head transplantation, and xenotransplantation. Numerous studies show remarkable progress in the synthesis of iPSC organs – the first attempts of regeneration techniques of the heart, liver, bones and cornea mark the beginning of regenerative medicine and a new era in transplantation, where synthetic organs replace the need for human donors. The 3D bioprinting technique seems necessary in the planning of the above-mentioned achievements, which will enable a harmonious reconstruction of anatomical and histological structures and dependencies. Intensive research is also being carried out from the aspect of head graft, where the most important dilemmas of surgery are, e.g. deep hypothermia, anastomosis of the spinal cord, and subsequent damage to the spinothalamic tract. Additionally, numerous ethical and moral arguments related to the surgery are also the cause of disquiet. Although, in the last two decades transplantation has been experiencing tremendous technical progress, there are still many technical and ethical challenges related with these procedures

English

Telehealth has been known in medicine for over 70 years. Until the year 2020 it has been utilized in a limited setting to provide long-distance care for individuals residing in areas lacking health facilities. SARS-CoV-2 pandemic shifted the priorities of healthcare system towards COVID-19 infections, which resulted in the transition of non-emergency consultations to telemedicine in many countries. Since pediatric neurology requires frequent follow-up and multidisciplinary care, the purpose of our work is to determine the spectrum of use of telehealth in pediatric neurology before and during the pandemic. Secondly, we would like to discuss the differences of focus in tele-neurology for children patients between the pre-pandemic and during pandemic timeframes.Within 171 articles of PubMED database, 36 substantial articles on the introduction of telehealth to pediatric neurology were included in the review. 30.5% of the articles have included the implementation of telemedicine before the pandemic, 69.5% of the articles discussed improvements made after the pandemic started. The spectrum of disorders and interventions considered for telehealth included epilepsy, cerebral palsy, rare diseases, teleneuropsychology and teleneurorehabilitation. Among major differences between pre-pandemic and pandemic research, increase in international cooperation and discussion of not only medical, but also scientific and academic impact of the pandemic could be noted.Telehealth offers sustainable alternatives to many interventions which cannot be performed in-person during public health emergency such as SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Despite high satisfaction of caregivers and healthcare professionals from the virtual visits, solutions are still far from perfection and need improvements to provide more support for the patients with various disorders, cover the concerns of privacy and confidentiality, as well as support patients from low-income and lack of electronic techology backgrounds

Modern techniques in organ transplantation

Transplantologia to jedna z najbardziej intensywnie rozwijających się dziedzin medycyny, której pełny rozkwit rozpoczął się na przełomie XIX i XX wieku wraz z pierwszymi przeszczepami organów zakończonymi sukcesem, dającymi pacjentom nadzieję na „drugie życie” i zdrowie. Obecnie, po odkryciu chirurgicznych i immunologicznych aspektów transplantacji, najbardziej dotkliwym problemem jest brak organów. Naukowcy stawiają przed medycyną również coraz to nowe wyzwania wraz z wprowadzeniem procedury przeszczepu twarzy, przeszczepu u noworodka oraz planowanej procedury przeszczepu głowy. Celem poniższej pracy jest przedstawienie najnowszych wyzwań technicznych związanych z transplantacją: hodowli organów oraz 3D bioprintingu, przeszczepu głowy, ksenotransplantacji. Liczne badania stwierdzają niezwykły postęp w pracach nad syntetyzowaniem organów z iPSC – pierwsze próby regeneracji serca, wątroby, kości i rogówki zwiastują początek medycyny regeneracyjnej i nowej ery w transplantologii, w której możliwość użycia syntetycznych organów wyeliminuje potrzebę ludzkich dawców. Niezbędna wydaje się w planowaniu powyższych osiągnięć technika 3D bioprintingu, dzięki której będzie możliwe harmonijne odtworzenie anatomicznych i histologicznych struktur i zależności. Intensywne badania prowadzone są również w aspekcie przeszczepu głowy, w którym najważniejszymi dylematami operatywy są m.in. głęboka hipotermia, anastomoza rdzenia kręgowego oraz następcze uszkodzenie drogi rdzeniowo-wzgórzowej, niepokoją również liczne argumenty natury etycznej i moralnej, związane z przeprowadzeniem zabiegu. Mimo iż w transplantologii obserwuje się ogromny postęp techniczny w ostatnim dwudziestoleciu, to powyższe procedury czeka jeszcze wiele wyzwań natury technicznej oraz etycznej.Organ transplantation is one of the most intensively developing fields of medicine, the blooming period of which began at the turn of the century with the first successful organ transplants, giving patients hope for a second chance and health. Currently, after the discovery of the surgical and immunological aspects of transplantation, the most pressing problem is the lack of organs. Scientists are also facing new challenges with the introduction of face transplantation procedures, transplantation in the newborn, and the planned procedure for head transplant. The purpose of the study is to present the latest technical challenges of transplantation: organ culture and 3D bioprinting, head transplantation, and xenotransplantation. Numerous studies show remarkable progress in the synthesis of iPSC organs – the first attempts of regeneration techniques of the heart, liver, bones and cornea mark the beginning of regenerative medicine and a new era in transplantation, where synthetic organs replace the need for human donors. The 3D bioprinting technique seems necessary in the planning of the above-mentioned achievements, which will enable a harmonious reconstruction of anatomical and histological structures and dependencies. Intensive research is also being carried out from the aspect of head graft, where the most important dilemmas of surgery are, e.g. deep hypothermia, anastomosis of the spinal cord, and subsequent damage to the spinothalamic tract. Additionally, numerous ethical and moral arguments related to the surgery are also the cause of disquiet. Although, in the last two decades transplantation has been experiencing tremendous technical progress, there are still many technical and ethical challenges related with these procedures