A crosscut survey on reproductive health in Lithuanian childhood cancer survivors

Objectives: Sexual dysfunction was reported to compromise the quality of life in childhood cancer survivors. The aim ofour study was to evaluate the reproductive health in long-term pediatric cancer survivors by conducting a crosscut survey.Material and methods: Childhood cancer survivors over 18 years of age, who were in remission for more than 5 years,were invited to complete a gender-specific questionnaire surveying on their reproductive health. Demographic and treatmentdata were retrieved from their medical records. Treatment modalities were reviewed for its potential gonadotoxicity.Results: 34 (17 males and 17 females, respectively) from 346 addressed survivors (9.8%) completed the questionnaire. Medianage and follow-up after diagnosis was 27 (18–35) and 14 (3–25) years, respectively. Some respondents reported sexualconcerns: 11.8% males experienced problems with penetration, two males (11.8%) who underwent semen analysis werefound to be azoospermic. Similarly, 11.8% females reported delayed puberty, the average age of menarche was 14 (12–17)years, 29.4% females reported irregular menstrual cycles. Cyclophosphamide equivalent dose (CED) differed significantlybetween the patients treated for leukemia, lymphoma and solid tumors (3000 vs 4352 vs 6660 mg/m2, respectively, p = 0.014).Conclusions: Low prevalence of sexual dysfunction, fertility related disorders or delayed puberty in childhood cancersurvivors was found. However, the results should be interpreted with caution taking into account a low response rate

Hepatitis C in Lithuania: incidence, prevalence, risk factors and viral genotypes

BACKGROUND: The epidemiology of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has been studied in many countries. However, little is known about HCV infection in Lithuania, a Baltic country, that was part of the former Soviet Union. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine and evaluate the etiology of acute viral hepatitis, the risk factors for acquiring HCV in comparison to hepatitis B virus (HBV), seroprevalence of anti-HCV among blood donors and risk groups of the population in Lithuania. The distribution of HCV genotypes from Lithuanian first-time blood donors was also assessed. STUDY DESIGN: Sera taken from clinical viral hepatitis patients, blood donors, risk groups of population were investigated serologically. Patients with acute viral hepatitis were interviewed to determine their risk factors for HCV and HBV. HCV genotyping was done by PCR using type specific primers. RESULTS: Acute hepatitis C accounted for 5.0-8.5% of reported viral hepatitis cases in adults in Vilnius. Of the acute hepatitis C cases, 37.0% was associated with blood transfusions before the implementation of screening of blood donors for anti-HCV and only 15.4% (2/13) after the screening was started. Anti-HCV was found in 2.2% of first-time blood donors, in 7.9% of commercial blood donors, in 13.9% of commercial blood plasma donors, in 48.3% of hemodialysis patients, in 29.4% of prisoners, in 9.4% of elderly nursing home residents, and in 7.9% of hemodialysis staff. The following distribution in genotypes were found: genotype 1b (54.3%), 3a (23.9%), 2a (10.9%) 2b (4.3%), 1a (0%), and double infection (6.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Lithuania is a country with a considerable hepatitis C problem

Assessment of nutrition and physical activity of 6th-7th grade schoolchildren in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania

Background: Evaluation of eating habits and physical activity is very important for health interventions. Our aim in this study was to assess the characteristics of eating and physical activity of 6-7th grade schoolchildren in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania, as well as the association between dietary habits and physical activity. Methods: The study was conducted within the project “Education of healthy diets and physical activity in schools”. The sample consisted of 1008 schoolchildren from 22 schools in the city of Vilnius, and was based on empirical methods, including a questionnaire poll and comparative analysis. Statistical software Stata v.12.1 (Stata corp LP) was used to analyze the data