Risk Behaviors for Getting HIV Infection among University Students in Serbia

The objective of this study was to determine risk-taking behaviors for getting HIV infection among university students in Serbia. The study is based on a cross-sectional survey. Five hundred forty four undergraduate, first year students from two Belgrade universities were selected through random sampling, to answer a self-administrated anonymous questionnaire. Data were collected from 252 students from the Faculties of Medical Sciences, University of Belgrade (FMS) and 292 students from the Faculties of Arts, University of Arts Belgrade (FA). The differences between two groups of students and between students with risk and non-risk behavior were assessed by the χ2 and t-test. Besides that, multivariate techniques such as factor analysis and multivariate logistic regression were used in statistical analysis. Smoking (Odds Radio – OR=5.05, 95% Confidence Interval – CI=3.10–8.24), studying FA, (OR=4.17, 95%CI=2.69–6.46), male sex (OR=3.85, 95% CI=2.38–6.25), committing offences (OR=1.51, 95%CI=1.09–2.08) and older age (OR=1.31, 95%CI=1.10–1.55) were the most significant factors connected with the risk-taking behaviors for HIV transmission among the students. In conclusion, HIV prevention efforts must be sustained and designed to reach young people and to prevent patterns of risky behaviors before they start

Health-related Quality of Life in Children with Moderate to Severe Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common, chronic skin disease in children that may affect their quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to assess QoL in children in Montenegro with moderate to severe AD. A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Clinic of Dermatology and Venereology, Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, between January and December 2014. The study group included 200 children (97 boys and 103 girls) with the diagnosis of AD. The Infants’ Dermatitis Quality of Life Index (IDQOL) and the Children’s Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) were used to determine QoL for 90 infants (&lt;4 years old) and 110 children (4-16 years old), respectively. Severity of disease was measured by the three-item severity (TIS) score. The mean scores were 14.38±5.57 for IDQOL and 18.43±4.88 for CDLQI. A positive correlation was observed between AD clinical severity (TIS) and all the items of IDQOL with Spearman’s correlation coefficient (ρ) ranging from 0.31 to 0.74, and between AD clinical severity and all domains of CDLQI (ρ=0.31-0.69). The impact of AD on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was more severe for younger girls, but only in some domains (IDQOL), and for older boys (CDLQI). The linguistically validated Serbian versions of both IDQOL and CDLQI questionnaires showed good internal consistency with Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.88 and 0.73, respectively. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that AD has a great impact on QoL. A positive correlation between clinical severity and quality of life was seen.</p

The impact of changes in psoriasis area and severity index by body regions on quality of life in patients with psoriasis

Psoriasis severity varies by body region, with each affected region having a different impact on patient quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to assess the impact of changes in the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores by body region on QoL in patients with psoriasis after treatment. A total of 100 patients with psoriasis were recruited to the study. All patients completed the generic EuroQol-5D instrument and two specific QoL measures, Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) and Psoriasis Disability Index (PDI) at the beginning of the study, and 50 patients successfully completed the same questionnaires four weeks after the end of the treatment. Clinical severity was assessed using PASI total score and PASI body region (head, trunk, arms, and legs) scores. QoL improved after treatment, and PASI improvements on visible body regions (head, legs, and arms) showed significant correlation with the most sub-areas of the Visual Analog Scale (EQ VAS), DLQI, and PDI. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that PASI improvement (particularly on the head), sex, age, and disease duration were predictors of QoL score changes for most domains of the three instruments. Improvement of psoriasis in visible body regions has an appreciable influence on QoL improvement, and may positively affect treatment success in patients with psoriasis. riadPro-Regular;color:black;mso-ansi-language:EN-US; mso-fareast-language:HR;mso-bidi-language:TA\u27&gt;The proportion of ADHD in patients with AD was 7.1% as compared to 4.1% in controls. ADHD was more frequent in boys with AD (9.6% vs. 5.2%, odds ratio (OR) 1.9, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-3.2) but not in girls with AD (4.6% vs. 2.9% OR 1.5). In multivariate analyses, AD was associated with ADHD (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.3-3.4). The current study demonstrated an association between AD and ADHD. This report and earlier observations emphasize the need for detection and treatment of ADHD in atopic patients.  </p

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Montenegrin patients with psoriasis

Background/Aim. Increasing epidemiological studies suggest the association between psoriasis and metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to assess the association of metabolic syndrome and its components with psoriasis in a sample of patients from Montenegro, and to predict the factors that determine the metabolic syndrome. Methods. A case-control study was conducted at the Clinic of Dermatology and Venereology, Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro, between January and December 2012. The study group included 101 patients with psoriasis (cases) and 126 patients with the diagnosis of dermatological disease other than psoriasis (controls) consecutively admitted to the same clinic. Results. Metabolic syndrome was more prevalent in the psoriasis patients than in the controls (48.5% vs 20.6%; OR = 2.99). In addition, the psoriasis patients were significantly more likely to be smokers (OR = 2.16) and were less physically active (OR = 0.58). Conclusion. The results of this study demonstrate a strong association between psoriasis and metabolic syndrome independent of psoriasis severity. Patients with psoriasis should be routinely screened for metabolic syndrome and its components. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 175025: Clinical-epidemiological research of diseases of public health importance in Serbia

Status of cardiovascular health in the Republic of Serbia: Results from the National Health Survey.

BACKGROUND:Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) remain the most significant cause of death in low- and middle-income countries where the burden of CVD continues to rise due to the increasing incidence of CVD. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) across sex and age groups and to analyze associations between demographic and socio-economic variables and ideal CVH metrics in the adult population of the Republic of Serbia. METHODS:Information on demographic (age, sex, marital status, and type of settlement) and socio-economic characteristics (education, and wealth index), and the 7 ideal CVH metrics (smoking, physical activity, healthy diet, BMI, blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose) was obtained for 13100 respondents aged 20 years and above, from the 2013 National Health Survey in the Republic of Serbia. According to the American Heart Association, the ideal CVH was defined as the simultaneous presence of 7 ideal CVH metrics. RESULTS:Out of all ideal CVH metrics, the most prevalent components were ideal glucose (92.2%), ideal cholesterol (86.4%) and ideal smoking (63%), while the least prevalent ideal CVH component was ideal healthy diet (2.4%). Only 0.1% had all 7 CVH components at the ideal level. According to the multivariable logistic regression analysis the higher number of ideal CVH metrics was observed in women (OR = 4.46), younger people (OR = 7.12), people living without partner (OR = 1.70), more educated (OR = 2.51 for middle educated and OR = 3.57 for high educated), as well as among the rich (OR = 1.43). CONCLUSION:Our findings of existing age-specific, sex and socio-economic differences in the prevalence and number of ideal CVH metrics should serve for the development of appropriate CVD prevention policies tailored to fit specific needs of both sexes, all age groups and people with different socioeconomic status

Nejednakosti u korišćenju usluga doktora porodične medicine i doktora specijaliste u Republici Srpskoj

Uvod. Nejednakosti u korišćenju usluga zdravstvene zaštite postoje širomsvijeta. Cilj rada je ispitivanje uticaja demografskih, socijalno-ekonomskihnejednakosti, nejednakosti u stilu života i zdravstvenom stanju na korišćenjeusluga doktora porodične medicine i specijaliste u Republici Srpskoj, Bosnai Hercegovina.Metode. Ova studija je dio Nacionalnog istraživanja zdravlja stanovništvaRepublike Srpske provedenog 2010. godine. Od 4673 osobe uzrasta 18 i višegodina identifikovane u anketiranim domaćinstvima, 4128 je intervjuisano(1906 muškaraca i 2222 žena). Multivarijantna logistička regresiona analiza jekorišćena za procjenu uticaja različitih varijabli na korišćenje usluga primarnei specijalističke zdravstvene zaštite.Rezultati. U poređenju sa muškarcima, viši procenat žena je koristio uslugedoktora porodične medicine [unakrsni odnos (UO) = 1,34; 95% intervalpovjerenja (95% IP) = 1,13–1,60], dok je suprotno kada je u pitanju korišćenjeusluga doktora specijaliste (UO = 0,62; 95% IP = 0,49–0,77). Ljudi sa nižimobrazovanjem su posjećivali doktora porodične medicine rjeđe nego visokoobrazovani. Nema značajnih socijalnih nejednakosti u korišćenju uslugadoktora porodične medicine i specijaliste u Republici Srpskoj. Osobe sahroničnim nezaraznim oboljenjima u poređenju sa onima bez ovih oboljenjasu češće koristile usluge doktora porodične medicine (UO = 3,90; 95% IP =3,22–4,73). Muškarci i žene koji procjenjuju svoje zdravlje kao dobro su koristiliusluge doktora porodične medicine i specijaliste značajno rjeđe u odnosu naone koji procjenjuju svoje zdravlje kao loše.Zaključak. Postoje značajne demografske, socijalno-ekonomske nejednakosti,kao i nejednakosti u životnom stilu i zdravstvenom stanju osoba koje koristeusluge doktora porodične medicine i specijaliste u Republici Srpskoj. Smanjivanjenejednakosti u korišćenju zdravstvenih usluga u Republici Srpskoj jeprioritet u budućnosti

Kvalitet života obolelih od psorijaze

Mada ne postoji univerzalna definicija kvaliteta života u vezi sa zdravljem,postignut je konsenzus da je to širok koncept koji uključuje fizičko zdravlje,psihološko stanje i socijalne odnose. Psorijaza je hronično inflamatorno oboljenjepovezano sa socijalnom stigmatizacijom, bolom, nelagodnošću, fizičkiminvaliditetom i psihološkim distresom. Brojne studije su pokazale da imaznačajan uticaj na kvalitet života obolelih. Ovaj pregledni rad se fokusira nakoncept kvaliteta života u vezi sa zdravljem kod obolelih od psorijaze i narazličite instrumente za njegovo merenje koji se mogu klasifikovati u upitnikespecifične za psorijazu, upitnike specifične za kožne bolesti i opšte upitnike

Socio-Economic Differences in Cardiovascular Health: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Study in a Middle-Income Country.

A relatively consistent body of literature, mainly from high-income countries, supports an inverse association between socio-economic status (SES) and risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Data from low- and middle-income countries are scarce. This study explores SES differences in cardiovascular health (CVH) in the Republic of Srpska (RS), Bosnia and Herzegovina, a middle-income country.We collected information on SES (education, employment status and household's relative economic status, i.e. household wealth) and the 7 ideal CVH components (smoking status, body mass index, physical activity, diet, blood pressure, total cholesterol, and fasting blood glucose) among 3601 participants 25 years of age and older, from the 2010 National Health Survey in the RS. Based on the sum of all 7 CVH components an overall CVH score (CVHS) was calculated ranging from 0 (all CVH components at poor levels) to 14 (all CVH components at ideal levels). To assess the differences between groups the chi-square test, t-test and ANOVA were used where appropriate. The association between SES and CVHS was analysed with multivariate linear regression analyses. The dependent variable was CVHS, while independent variables were educational level, employment status and wealth index.According to multiple linear regression analysis CVHS was independently associated with education attainment and employment status. Participants with higher educational attainment and those economically active had higher CVHS (b = 0.57; CI = 0.29-0.85 and b = 0.27; CI = 0.10-0.44 respectively) after adjustment for sex, age group, type of settlement, and marital status. We failed to find any statistically significant difference between the wealth index and CVHS.This study presents the novel information, since CVHS generated from the individual CVH components was not compared by socio-economic status till now. Our finding that the higher overall CVHS was independently associated with a higher education attainment and those economically active supports the importance of reducing socio-economic inequalities in CVH in RS

The prevalence study of hospital-acquired infections at different surgical departments in Banjaluka

Introduction: Prevalence study is simple, cheap and fast method that provides information about hospital-acquired infections (HAI). Objective: To assess the HAI prevalence at different surgical departments in the Clinical Center of Banjaluka. Method: A point prevalence study design was used. All patients (N = 174) hospitalized on July, 1st, 1999 were included in the study. The study was performed by following the CDC guidelines. All patients with clinically manifested infections on the day of study in all surgical departments were recorded. Infections of more than one site in the same patient were considered separate infections. Results: The overall prevalence of patients with HAI was 16.1% (28/174; 95%CI = 10.4-21.6) and the overall HAI prevalence was 18.4% (32/174). Surgical-site infections were the most prevalent (6.3%) followed by skin/soft tissue infections (4.6%) and urinary tract infections (4.0%). More than two thirds (87.5%) of HAI were microbiologically documented. The most commonly isolated microorganisms were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (29.7%), Enterobacter spp. (24.3%) and Staphylococcus aureus (16.2%). Conclusion: This point prevalence study clearly showed the magnitude of HAI problem at different surgical departments in the Clinical Center of Banjaluka, the most prevalent anatomic localizations of HAI, and the most common causes