Population Pharmacokinetic Modelling of Amikacin in Neonates

20th Population Approach Group Europe (PAGE 20) Athens, Greece, 7-10 June, 2011., 201

Acute leukemia of childhood: A single institution's experience

The aim of this study was to investigate distribution of immunophenotypic and cytogenetic features of childhood acute leukemia (AL) in the cohort of 239 newly diagnosed patients registered at the leading pediatric oncohematology center in the country during a six-year period (1996-2002). With approximately 60-70% of all childhood AL cases in Serbia and Montenegro being diagnosed and treated in this institution the used data represent a valid research sample to draw conclusions for entire country. On the basis of five phenotypic markers, the distribution of immunological subtypes was as follows: 169 (70.7%) expressed B-cell marker CD19 (137 were CD10 positive and 32 CD10 negative), 37 (15.5%) belonged to T-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) (cyCD3 positive), and 33 (13.8%) were acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) (CD13 positive and/or CD33 positive in the absence of lymphoid-associated antigens). The ratio of males and females was 1.5:1. Most of the cases were between the ages of 2 and 4, and were predominantly B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) cases. Another peak of age distribution was observed at the age of 7. The frequency of T-ALL (18% of ALL) was similar to that reported for Mediterranean countries: France (19.4%), Greece (28.1%), Southern Italy (28.3%), and Bulgaria (28.0%). Cytogenetic analyses were performed in 193 patients: 164 ALL and 29 AML. Normal karyotype was found in 57% of ALL and in 55% of AML patients, while cytogenetic abnormalities including structural, numerical, and complex chromosomal rearrangements were found in 43% of ALL and in 45% of AML patients. Our results represent a contribution to epidemiological aspects of childhood leukemia studies

Uticaj probiotika na mineralni sastav sireva tipa kvarka

Quark cheese is a diary product with high nutritive value. This product is essential food, but could, nevertheless, be enriched with some nutriments and thus, presented as functional food. A food can be regarded as "functional" if it is satisfactory demonstreted to affect beneficially one or more target functions in body, beyond adequate nutritional effects. The presented study evaluated the effect of probiotics on mineral composition. The results showed that quark cheese with probiotic has higher amount of Ca, Mg, Zn, K (45,61% 30,32; 20,18; 37,99 i 29,32; respectively), compared with quark cheese without probiotics. Results showed lower amount of Cu in quark cheese with probiotics.Sirevi tipa kvark su sveži sirevi visoke nutritivne i relativno niske energetske vrednosti. Nakon suplementacije ovog sira probioticima, biološki aktivnim sastojcima koji povoljno deluju na gastrointestinalni trakt, mogu se svrstati u funkcionalne namirnice. U cilju ispitivanja uticaja dodatih probiotika na mineralni sastav, izvršena je analiza svežih belih sireva tipa kvark suplementiranih probioticima (ABT-grupa). Takođe, urađena je i analiza mineralnog sastava sireva tipa kvark, koji su proizvedeni korišćenjem tradicionalne kulture (FD-grupa). Rezultati su pokazali da ABT-grupa sadrži povećan sadržaj Ca, Mg, Zn, Na i K (45,61%; 30,32%; 20,18%; 37,99% i 29,32% redom) u odnosu na FD-grupu. Međutim, sadržaj Cu je neznatno smanjen (0,78%) u ABT-grupi. Zaključeno je i da sirevi tipa kvark sa probioticima imaju povoljan odnos pojedinih mineralnih materija (Ca, K, Zn) te bi se, uz određene korekcije mineralnog sastava, mogli svrstati u funkcionalnu hranu i preporučiti osobama sa osteoporozom. Zbog povoljnog odnosa Ca, Mg, K, a nakon smanjenja količine soli (Na), ovaj proizvod se može preporučiti i osobama sa hroničnom hipertenzijom

Prescribing practices in Southeastern Europe – focus on benzodiazepine prescription at discharge from nine university psychiatric hospitals

There is much concern about the widespread long-term use of benzodiazepines. Our manuscript addressed its use in the region of Southeastern Europe, which seems extensive, but insufficiently explored. At nine university psychiatric hospitals (Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia), we retrospectively analyzed discharge summary documents to find the prevalence of discharge benzodiazepine prescriptions and the prescribed benzodiazepine doses. This study included 1047 adult subjects and showed that 81.9% of them had benzodiazepines prescribed in the discharge summary document, with high mean daily dose of around 5 mg lorazepam equivalents. Factors associated with the prescriptions were exclusively clinical factors (diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum disorders, more lifetime hospitalizations, psychiatric comorbidity, co-prescription of antidepressant or mood stabilizer, shorter duration of the hospitalization), while socio-demographic factors were not found to influence benzodiazepine discharge prescriptions. Similarly, factors which influenced the prescription of higher daily benzodiazepine dose were more lifetime psychiatric hospitalizations and co-prescription of antidepressant or mood stabilizer, as well as the diagnosis of mental/behavioral disorders due to substance use and co-prescribed antipsychotic. Our data are emphasizing an urgent need for guidelines and improved education of both health care professionals and patients, in order to prevent long term benzodiazepine (mis)use and related side-effects