Hypertension and selected indicators of health assessment in a population of 19-year-old men subject to military qualifications.

Assessment the prevalence of hypertension and its relation to selected indicators of health status and performance, including classification of BMI, obesity classifications, and body structure in a large test group of 19-year-old men.The study was observational-retrospective, and included a group of 17,282 men, aged 19, from the Malopolska region. All subjects met the qualifications for compulsory military service in 2017. We analyzed selected data obtained from the records of the Ministry of National Defense-spiral-ZINT. Data collection and analysis were carried out from April 1, 2018 to August 31, 2018.Hypertension was found at 0.6%, weak body structure at 0.8% and obesityco-existing with cardiorespiratory insufficiency has been reported 2.6% of respondents and it was more frequent in the recruiters from HT II than I. The underweight concerned almost 7%, and the overweight and obesity of 1/4 of conscripts. The vast majority of people with hypertension were characterized by excessive body weight (74.8%), mainly overweight.Hypertension was seen in a negligible percentage of males studied and was significantly associated with an increase in BMI, particularly with regards to being overweight.

Decreased Bioelectrical Impedance Phase Angle in Hospitalized Children and Adolescents with Newly Diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes: A Case-Control Study.

The aim of this study was to assess the body composition and nutritional status of hospitalized pediatric patients with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes by using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) with phase angle (PA) calculation. PA is considered to be a useful and very sensitive indicator of the nutritional and functional status, and it has not yet been evaluated in such a population. Sixty-three pediatric patients aged 4 to 18 years, with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes, were included in the study. The control group consisted of 63 healthy children and adolescents strictly matched by gender and age in a 1:1 case: control manner. In both groups, BIA with PA calculation was performed. Diabetic patients, in comparison to control subjects, had a highly significantly lower PA of 4.85 ± 0.86 vs. 5.62 ± 0.81, p < 0.001. They also demonstrated a lower percentage of body cell mass (BCM%), 46.89 ± 5.67% vs. 51.40 ± 4.19%, p < 0.001; a lower body cell mass index (BCMI), 6.57 ± 1.80% vs. 7.37 ± 1.72%, p = 0.004; and a lower percentage of muscle mass (MM%), 44.61 ± 6.58% vs. 49.40 ± 7.59%, p < 0.001, compared to non-diabetic controls. The significantly lower PA value in diabetic patients indicate their worse nutritional and functional status compared to healthy subjects. To assess the predictive and prognostic value of this finding in this population, further prospective studies involving larger sample of patients are required.

The Relationship between Body Composition and a Gluten Free Diet in Children with Celiac Disease.

The primary and proven therapy, in cases of celiac disease (CD), is a rigorous gluten-free diet (GFD). However, there are reports of its negative effects in the form of nutritional deficiencies, obesity, and adverse changes in body composition. The study aimed to assess the impact of a GFD on the body composition of children with CD. In a case-controlled study (n = 41; mean age 10.81 y; SD = 3.96) children with CD, in various stages of treatment, underwent medical assessment. The control group consisted of healthy children and adolescents, strictly matched for gender and age in a 1:1 case-control manner. More than half of the examined children (n = 26) followed a GFD. CD children had significantly higher mean values of the fat free mass (FFM% = 80.68 vs. 76.66, p = 0.015), and total body water (TBW% = 65.22 vs. 60.47, p = 0.012), and lower mean values of the fat mass (FM% = 19.32 vs. 23.34, p = 0.015). Children who were on a GFD presented slightly higher, but not statistically significant, mean values of FM and FFM, than children who did not follow dietary recommendations (FM [kg] = 7.48 vs. 5.24, p = 0.064; FM% = 20.81 vs. 16.73, p = 0.087; FFM [kg] = 28.19 vs. 22.62, p = 0.110). After minimum one year of a GFD, CD children showed significantly higher values of FFM [kg] (p = 0.001), muscle mass (MM) [kg] (p < 0.001), TBW [L] (p < 0.001) and body cell mass (BCM) [kg] (p < 0.001). Furthermore, CD children who were on a GFD presented a significantly higher increase in weight (p = 0.034) and body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.021). The children adhering to a GFD demonstrate a tendency towards higher indices of selected body composition components.

The quality of life and readiness of Polish nurses to take new competences of drug prescribing.

Satisfaction with life in the case of nurses is closely related to their professional work and is an important factor affecting the quality of work and patient care.An analysis of the readiness of Polish nurses depending on the level of life satisfaction.The study was conducted from January to November 2016 in randomly selected 13 health care facilities and 756 nurses in the South-Eastern part of Poland. The study used the satisfaction with life scale and the author's questionnaire.Nearly 75% of the nurses surveyed declared (reported) a low and average level of satisfaction. The level of satisfaction significantly influenced the readiness of nurses to administer medicines and write prescriptions. Nurses who had a higher level of life satisfaction were also more prepared to prescribe foodstuffs for particular nutritional uses (rho = 0.095, P = .0092), medical devices (rho = 0.117, P = .0012), potent drugs (rho = 0.138, P = .0001), intoxicants (rho = 0.078, P = .0311), and psychotropic drugs (rho = 0.085, P = .0196).Nurses who had a higher level of life satisfaction were also more prepared to administer medicines, especially foodstuffs for particular nutritional uses, medical devices, potent drugs, narcotic drugs, and psychotropic drugs.

Use of negative pressure wound therapy in a chronic leg wound with coexisting rheumatoid arthritis: a case study.

We present a case of a 69-year-old woman with rheumatoid arthritis. The patient's condition was managed with steroid therapy for more than 12 years. She had a coexisting infected chronic ulceration in the left leg, which was treated with negative pressure wound therapy for 52 days. Use of this therapy within the wound reduced exudate and the bacterial count, which dramatically accelerated the process of wound healing.

Bioelectrical Impedance Phase Angle as an Indicator of Malnutrition in Hospitalized Children with Diagnosed Inflammatory Bowel Diseases-A Case Control Study.

The phase angle (PhA) seems to be a reliable screening tool for the identification of malnutrition risk in hospitalized children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of the present study was to assess the body composition and nutritional status of hospitalized children and adolescents with IBD by using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) with phase angle (PhA) calculation, which has not been evaluated in hospitalized children with IBD yet. A total of 59 children and adolescents aged 4–18 years, with IBD: 34 ulcerative colitis (UC) and 25 Crohn’s disease (CD) were included in the study. The control group consisted of healthy children and adolescents, strictly matched for gender and age in a 1:1 case-control manner. In both groups, BIA was performed and PhA was calculated. IBD patients had significantly lower PhA (UC: 5.34 ± 1.34 vs. 5.96 ± 0.76, p = 0.040; CD: 5.16 ± 1.18 vs. 5.90 ± 0.62, p = 0.009) compared to the control subjects. Significant changes in selected body composition parameters were observed particularly in CD, especially in fat free mass components. Lower phase angle score together with lower body composition parameters and selected nutrition indicators in children and adolescents with IBD demonstrate their worse nutritional and functional status compared to healthy subjects.

Body composition as an indicator of the nutritional status in children with newly diagnosed ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease - a prospective study.

INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of nutritional status disorders in children with ulcerative colitis (UC) is much lower than in the case of Crohn's disease (CD). The largest variability in the components of body composition occurs at the time of a new diagnosis and in periods of disease exacerbation. AIM: Assessment of body composition in children with UC and CD. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The preliminary study included 59 children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (34 children with UC vs. 25 children with CD) aged 4-18 years. The final analysis included 26 newly diagnosed children (16 children with UC vs. 10 children with CD). The evaluation of body composition was conducted by means of BIA-101 bioimpedance analyser. RESULTS: Decreased values of lean mass were found in children with newly diagnosed IBD (UC: 41.13 kg vs. control group: 42.06 kg; CD: 35.50 kg vs. control group: 45.50 kg). After a year interval, an increase in fat (UC 1: 7.67 kg vs. UC 2: 10.33 kg; CD 1: 7.36 kg vs. CD 2: 9.47 kg) as well as lean body mass (UC 1: 35.22 kg vs. UC 2: 39.00 kg; CD 1: 35.99 kg vs. CD 2: 42.41 kg) was found in children. CONCLUSIONS: Children with newly diagnosed IBD were highly vulnerable to nutritional status disturbances. The increase in fat and lean body mass in an annual interval may be due to the treatment regime and control of the children.

Nurse prescribing in Poland: Opinions expressed by primary care doctors, nurses, and patients.

The aim of this study was to identify and examine the differences in opinions held by health care professionals and the general public concerning the right to administer and prescribe medication which has been awarded to nurses and midwives in Poland.The study was conducted from December 1, 2014 to July 1, 2015, in randomly selected primary health care clinics, among 2227 individuals, including 849 subjects representing medical personnel of primary health care and 1378 patients receiving primary care services. The study used 2 versions of a questionnaire. The relationships were examined with χ test for independence and Kruskal-Wallis test.Health professionals do not believe the new rights awarded to nurses and midwives will reduce the waiting time for medical consultations (P < 0.001). Nurses' qualifications for the new tasks were most highly rated by patients, whereas the least favorable opinion was expressed by doctors (P < 0.001).To introduce nurse prescribing it is necessary to develop a suitable strategy enabling implementation of the government's initiative and facilitating the process of taking up the new task by nurses.

Pro-health behaviours - a sense of coherence as the key to a healthy lifestyle in rural areas?

BACKGROUND: Health-related behaviours and lifestyle are related to the salutogenic concept of health, whereas the major public health problems faced in rural areas include difficulties in encouraging people to a healthy lifestyle. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to explore mutual relationships between psychosocial-demographic factors and a sense of coherence. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Two-stage sampling was applied. Data were collected with the use of the Juczynski Health Behaviours Inventory and Antonovsky's SOC-29 (Sense of Coherence Questionnaire). The study was conducted among 668 adults. Data were statistically prepared using one-way ANOVA test, linear correlation analysis, and linear regression model. RESULTS: A higher level of pro-health behaviours is associated with gender, self-rated health, sense of coherence and age. Almost half of the farmers were characterized by a low level of pro-health attitudes. A higher level of pro-health behaviours was demonstrated by less than one-fifth of the farmers. CONCLUSIONS: There is a strong association between sense of coherence and pro-health behaviours. Farmers have bad habits and pro-health attitudes to health and poorer self-assessment of their health. There is a great need to monitor health-related behaviour, increase the effectiveness of health promotion and health education in shaping a pro-health lifestyle among residents of rural areas, particularly among farmers.

[Coexistence of risky behaviors amongst group of students. Tendencies of changes between 2009-2012. Prospective studies]. / Wspólwystepowanie zachowan ryzykownych w grupie mlodziezy akademickiej--tendencje zmian w latach 2009-2012. Badania prospektywne.

AIM OF STUDY: Aim of conducted studies was to asses changes in time and coexistence of improper behavior patterns among students in year 2009 and 2012. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 905 students of the University of Rzeszow and Rzeszow University of Technology who have studied on medical, humanistic and science fields. Research was conducted by diagnostic sounding with usage of survey technique. In statistical elaboration squared-chi test and logical regression models were used. The study was conducted between October and December 2009 (study T1). It was repeated in 2012 among the same group of students (T2). RESULTS: Conducted in year 2009 and 2012 studies indicated that over half of surveyed students did not smoke cigarettes (T1 67.8%; T2 66.5%) and that daily smoking was declared only by 11.5% (T1) and 10.9% (T2) of asked youths. Majority of examined youth academic people drank alcohol once a month (T1 30.7%; T2 32.1%). Only 4.7% (T1) i 6.3% (T2) declared themselves as abstainers. Research pointed on significant increase of systematic drugs use (T1 0.4%; T2 1.7%). Vast majority of surveyed youths did not use legal highs in both research periods (89.3%--T2 and 91.5%--T2). There were no differences shown on the level of statistical significance in neither category (tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, usage of drugs and legal highs). Students who smokes have bigger chance to addict themselves to alcohol, legal highs and drugs then the ones who do not smoke cigarettes. CONCLUSIONS: Conducted studies shows that tobacco smoking is a predictor of risky behaviors. Students who smoke are more exposed to addiction to alcohol, drugs and legal highs then those who reject tobacco.

[Analisys of changes of risky behaviors among students from south-eastern Poland. Long-term prospective study]. / Analiza zmian w zachowaniach ryzykownych w grupie mlodziezy akademickiej w Polsce poludniowo - wschodniej. Dlugookresowe badania prospektywne.

AIM OF STUDY: The aim of this study was a comparative evaluation of the dynamics of change during selected behavior patterns related to students health. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study covered a total of 1.496 students from University of Rzeszów and Rzeszów University of Technology, studying following disciplines: medical, humanities and exact sciences. The study was performed by using a diagnostic survey questionnaire technique. The study used a statistical test of independence chi-square. It was conducted from October to December 2009. Afterwards the study was repeated in 2012 in the same group of students. The percentage of students who were in class on the day of the study reached 59.1% of the assumed research sample. RESULTS: The research found that in 2009 and 2012, in the scope of selected unhealthy behavior, the respondents did not differ in the level of statistical significance in any of following categories: drinking alcohol (p=0.4951); drug usage (p=0.2968); tobacco smoking (p=0.6053) and usage of psychoactive substances (p=0.6581). Students used the drugs occasionally, mostly at social events in order to achieve pleasure. If it comes to sex of respondents who presented risky behaviors men occurred more often (5.3% [2009] vs. 2.2% [2012]). University students derived from municipal areas had frequent contact with drugs (14.2% vs. 8.0%). Students of non-medical fields consumed alcohol more often than the ones from medical fields of studies (11.7%, 7.9%). Repeated study shows in this category increase towards medical studies (23.2% vs. 8.9%). The same study (2012) indicates statistical differences between field of study and smoking (p = 0.0064) in reference to students of medical sciences (respectively 38.2% and 27.5%). ONCLUSIONS: This work showed that the stabilization prevalence of risky behaviors considerina students. may be the result of positive changes and prevention pro. grams aimed at children and teenagers, constantly put on the national and regional level.

The opinions of Polish nurses and patients on nursing protests.

The aim of this study is to explore nurses' and patients' opinions about nurses in Poland going on strike. The study was carried out in Poland between January and June 2009, using 150 nurses and 150 hospitalized patients. The study was conducted using two questionnaire surveys. The main reasons why nursing strikes are organized, in the opinions of nurses, are: higher wages, the improvement of working conditions and the improvement of the image of the nursing profession. The main reasons why nursing strikes are organized, in the opinions of patients, are: higher wages, not abiding standards of employment by government and the improvement of the image of the nursing profession. The main reasons for a lack of active participation in strikes are holidays and occupational and economic matters. Patients and nurses support nursing strikes. Both nurses (53.3%) and patients (42%) said that organizing nursing strikes is right and might improve the occupational situation of nurses.

Methods used by female nurses and lay women for everyday pain management.

There are numerous types of pain, with different clinical meanings. Everyday pain might be experienced by everyone under different stressors, such as lack of sleep, alcohol overuse, stay in a stuffy room, and physical overstressors. It also might be related to a job character or attitudes. The aim of the present study was to investigate the methods for the management of everyday pain used by female nurses and lay women. Headaches and back pain were the most common pains reported among the female population included in this study. Analgesic use was the most common method for management of everyday pain. Nurses used prescription medicine and other methods. Lay women used over-the-counter analgesics more often. There is a significant tendency to exceed the maximum analgesic dose when treating migraines, total body pain, and toothaches. The majority of all of the women included in this study used analgesics according to recommendations. Nurses were found to underuse analgesics and lay women to overuse the recommended dose. Speed and safety were identified as key factors driving studied respondents' decisions when treating pain.

Childhood obesity: knowledge, attitudes, and practices of European pediatric care providers.

OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare attitudes, skills, and practices in childhood obesity management in 4 European countries with different obesity prevalence, health care systems, and economic situations. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was distributed to primary health care providers from France, Italy, Poland, and Ukraine. The questionnaire was returned by 1119 participants with a response rate of 32.4%. RESULTS: The study revealed that most of the primary health care providers were convinced of their critical role in obesity management but did not feel sufficiently competent to perform effectively. The adherence to recommended practices such as routine weight and height measurements, BMI calculation, and plotting growth parameters on recommended growth charts was poor. Most primary health care providers recognized the need for continuing professional education in obesity management, stressing the importance of appropriate dietary counseling. CONCLUSIONS: The study underlines insufficient implementation of national guidelines for management of obesity regardless of the country and its health system. It also makes clear that the critical problem is not elaboration of guidelines but rather creating support systems for implementation of the medical standards among the primary care practitioners.

Secular trends in BMI changes among the military population between 2000 and 2010 in Poland - a retrospective study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to investigate secular trends in body mass index among the young military population. This involved a comparison of changes in the body mass index (BMI) and height among 19-year-old males from 11 successive birth cohorts. DESIGN: Samples of a total of 37,934 conscripts between 2000 and 2010 were examined using the BMI defined as weight (kg)/ height (m2). SETTING: The analysis included each medical record for all recruits reporting for examination between 2000 and 2010 to the Military Headquarters in south-east of Poland. Underweight, overweight and obesity were estimated according to World Health Organization criteria. Means of the BMI, body mass and height were calculated for the following three subgroups: (1) rural resident; (2) urban resident (towns with population of 10,000+); and, (3) urban resident (cities with populations of 100,000+). RESULTS: Secular trends in body mass index have changed significantly between 2000 and 2010. A statistically significant increase in both the prevalence of overweight (10.5% to 15.6%) and obesity (2.5% to 3.8%) were observed. However, the prevalence of underweight also increased from 8.3% to 10.2%. CONCLUSIONS: Secular trends in BMI have been unfavourable for the military population over the last 10 years studied and, therefore, the need for promotion of health among recruits is very important.

Longitudinal assessment of quality of life in ovarian cancer patients.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this work was to evaluate longitudinally the quality of life (QOL) in women treated for ovarian cancer, pre-operatively, three and six months postoperatively. METHODS: A longitudinal cohort study. A total of 93 patients with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer in F. Chopin Voivodeship Specialist Hospital in Rzeszow, Poland were interviewed pre- and post-operatively with two questionnaires: EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ- OV28 between October 2006 and December 2008. RESULTS: Based on EORTC QLQ-30 it was found that global health and emotional functioning improved. An improvement regarding symptoms such as nausea and vomiting was recorded between T2 and T3. Patients complained less of pain in the whole studied period of time. Based on the modules of the QLQ-OV28 showed improvement of QOL on the scales concerning abdominal and attitude to disease/treatment. Decrease of symptoms on the scales concerning body image and sexual worries were observed. Increase of chemotherapy side effects and hormonal symptoms were observed between T1 and T2, but then improved. CONCLUSIONS: QOL of patients had increased after the treatment in comparison to the baseline. There is a need to implement the assessment of quality of life in ovarian cancer patients in practice.

Counterfeit medicines in Poland: opinions of primary healthcare physicians, nurses and lay persons.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To gain information concerning disparities in the understanding of the counterfeit medicines phenomenon between healthcare workers and lay persons. BACKGROUND: Central-eastern Europe is facing significant challenges in combating a multi-billion euro, and often lethal, trade in counterfeit medicines. It is a major challenge especially for primary healthcare workers to expand the understanding of counterfeit medicines to the benefit of patients. DESIGN: Use of questionnaires. Two separate questionnaires were distributed, one for healthcare professionals and the other for lay persons. METHODS: Conducted between September 2009-May 2010. One thousand and seventy-eight primary healthcare professionals and 377 lay persons were surveyed. RESULTS: Findings revealed less awareness among healthcare professionals than lay persons about the danger of purchasing illegal medicines or dietary supplements outside pharmacies. Healthcare professionals have lower levels of awareness about the scale of counterfeit medicines as well as threats of counterfeit medicines to health than lay persons. The majority of medical workers do not know the procedure for reporting suspicious medicine and do not warn their patients against purchasing medicine from unknown sources. CONCLUSIONS: Primary healthcare workers have less awareness of the scale of the counterfeit medicines phenomenon than lay persons. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Nurses and physician need to become aware of the counterfeit medicines phenomenon. Nurses are well positioned to assume the active role in educating patients about the threat of the presence of counterfeit medicines so as to enhance safety for their patients. However, to accomplish that aim, these findings suggest that healthcare professionals need to become better educated about counterfeit medicines and need to be trained in skills to identify counterfeit medicines.

What Polish hospital healthcare workers and lay persons know about counterfeit medicine products?

AIM: To report on Polish hospital health care workers' and lay persons' knowledge about counterfeit medicine products. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cross-sectional design was used. Two types of questionnaire survey about counterfeit medicine, separate for health care professionals and lay persons were completed by 201 physicians and nurses, and 450 adult Polish residents between October 2008 and January 2009. RESULTS: Physicians and nurses working in hospitals are more aware of counterfeit medicine than lay persons and more often notice the presence of drugs from unknown sources. Nearly 90% of physicians, 80% of nurses, and more than 40% of representatives of the lay persons had heard about the possibility of importing illegal medicine from Ukraine or China. The majority of medical workers does not know the procedure for reporting suspicious medicine and do not warn their patients against purchasing medicine from unknown sources. CONCLUSIONS: Increase education of nurses and physicians about counterfeit medicine particularly including the procedure of reporting suspicious medicine from unknown sources. In practice, reinforce a role of nurses and physicians in warning their patients against purchasing medicine from unknown sources and educate them about possible health hazards and life risks.

Sense of coherence and health-related behaviour among university students--a questionnaire survey.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the relation between a sense of coherence and intensity of health-related behaviour among 521 Polish university students. The study was conducted using validated instruments with two questionnaires: Antonovsky's SOC-29 and the Inventory of Health-Related Behaviour. The mean value of SOC amounted to 125.2. More than half of the studied group were characterized by the average level of SOC. No statistical differences were found between the faculty of study and SOC (p = 0.107). A low intensity of health-related behaviour characterized a large group of students. Students of particular faculties differ among themselves in a statistically significant way in the level of health-related behaviour (p = 0.015). SOC is related to healthy behaviour (p < 0.001). University students are often characterized by an average level of SOC and a low intensity of health-related behaviour. Medical students are characterized by higher level of health-related behaviour in comparison with humanistic and science students. SOC correlates positively with a tendency to health-related behaviour. The higher the level of coherence, the higher is the tendency towards pro-health behaviour.

Psychosocial factors and health-related behavior among students from South-East Poland.

The aim of this study was to determine the meaning of selected social-demographic factors, such as: gender, place of resident, education, level of knowledge about health and life orientation in modifying the behaviours related to health among university students.The study was conducted among 521 students of two major universities of the South-Eastern Region of Poland. The survey was conducted by means of a diagnostic survey with the use of the Inventory of Health-Related Behaviuor (Zygfryd Juczynski?s IZ ), A. Antonovsky?s Sense of Coherence Questionnaire SOC-29 and the original questionnaire, including socio-demographic variable, as well as a test of statements considering the assessment of the level of knowledge about health. Methods of descriptive statistics, such as: mean, standard deviation, median, upper and lower quartile, and highest and lowest value, methods of analysis of variance, the chi-square test, correlation and linear regression and Spearman?s rank correlation coefficient, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient, and backward stepwise regression were used for statistical analysis. The study showed that almost a half of respondents (48.9 percent) were characterized by a low intensity of pro-health behaviour, and among 38.4 percent it was on an average level. Gender was a factor that differentiated the intensity of health-related behaviour - women indicated a higher level of these behaviours. Almost half of the studied group (48.6 percent) was characterized by a low level of knowledge about health. The major meaning among studied factors influencing health-related behaviour in the regression model had the level of sense of coherence, gender and material status.