Burnout syndrome among medical nurse-technicians in intensive care units in cardiovascular surgery.

Background: Healthcare workers in intensive care units work under specifically hard conditions compared to healthcare workers who work under regular clinical conditions. In this sense, the research aims at assessing the level of burnout symptomatology among nurse technicians working in intensive care units for cardiovascular surgery and to compare those burnout levels with those recorded for medical technicians working under regular clinical conditions. Method: The research was designed as a cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of nurse technicians working in intensive care units specializing in cardiovascular surgery (70 participants) and nurse technicians working under regular clinical conditions (70 participants) at the Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases "Dedinje," Belgrade, Serbia. To evaluate the manifestation of burnout syndrome at work, the analysis uses the Serbian version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS). Results: To examine the variances in the average sub-scores for burnout within two groups of medical technicians, the study used Two Independent Samples T-test. The statistically noteworthy differentiation was ascertained for emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment, but this does not hold true for depersonalization. However, the mean score values across the different burnout levels (low, moderate, high) are similar in two cohorts of respondents (p > 0.05). Conclusion: This study will serve as an impetus for a policy reform focused on ameliorating working conditions and improving healthcare workers' satisfaction and overall healthcare quality.

Lifestyle, Physical Activity, Eating and Hygiene Habits: A Comparative Analysis Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Student Population.

Background: Changing daily habits such as diet, hygiene and physical activity may be some of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study was to analyze the effect of this pandemic on lifestyle, physical activity, eating and hygiene habits among students. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved 171 students from the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Serbia. Data were statistically analyzed using Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test, Marginal homogeneity test and Chi-square test. The differences were considered statistically significant when p ≤ 0.05. Results: In this study, it was observed that the most common physical activity before the pandemic was walking, while during the pandemic was home exercising. Compared to the period before the pandemic, there was no difference in the time spent engaging in daily physical activity (p = 0.334). However, there was a significant increase in sitting time during the pandemic (p = 0.005). Difference was noticed in the use of breakfast, the number of meals, and the type of fat in the diet before and during the pandemic (p = 0.000). During the pandemic, there was an increase in the use of fruits (p = 0.000), vegetables, and nuts (p = 0.001), while the use of fast food and alcohol have decreased. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant increase in the use of dietary supplements was observed (40.2%), (p = 0.008). Conclusions: Given that the COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing, certain changes in lifestyle observed in this study should be confirmed in more extensive population studies.

Analysis of Mortality from Carcinomas Primary Localized in Region of Lip, Oral Cavity and Pharynx in Central Serbia, 1999-2015.

BACKGROUND: Lip, oral cavity, and pharyngeal cancers have been globally estimated to account for about 3.8% of all cancer cases and 3.6% of cancer deaths. Mortality of these cancers is generally higher in developing than in developed countries. Overall cancer mortality rate in Serbia is one of the highest in the world. The aim of this study was to determine the mortality rate trends and the most common localization of lip, oral and pharyngeal cancers in Serbia. METHODS: The study was conducted in 2018 as descriptive epidemiological study and included years from 1999 to 2015. The differences in standardized mortality rates and number of deaths were analyzed with regard to age, gender, and tumor localization. Linear trend and regression were used to determine mortality rate trend. RESULTS: There was statistically significant difference in the number of deaths between men and women in the ages of 40 and over (P < 0.01); male/female cancer mortality ratio was 4.56:1. Generally, the most common localization of this carcinoma was hypopharynx. There was no statistically significant increase of mortality rates from these cancers for both genders (males: y = 4.77 + 0.42x, P = 0.069 % change = +20.35; females: y = 1.03 + 0.01x, P = 0.40 % change = +4) during 17-year period. CONCLUSION: Promotion of healthy habits, life-styles and regular inspection of mouth by patients and health professionals should be better prioritized especially in developing countries where implementing and improving national health prevention programs are essential.

Association of Socioeconomic Factors and Sedentary Lifestyle in Belgrade's Suburb, Working Class Community.

BACKGROUND: Sedentary lifestyle represents a growing health problem and considering that there is already a range of unhealthy habits that are marked as health risk factors and the increasing prevalence of sedentary lifestyle worldwide, we aimed to investigate association of sedentary way of living in suburb, working class local community with socioeconomic determinants such as educational level, occupation and income status. METHODS: In this community-based cross-sectional study, 1126 independently functioning adults were enrolled into the study. The study protocol included a complete clinical and biochemical investigation revealing age, gender, lipid status, height, weight and blood pressure. Trained interviewers (nurses) collected information from patients about current state of chronic diseases (diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension) smoking, medication and other socioeconomic data. Descriptive analysis, Chi-square and logistic regression were performed as statistical calculations. RESULTS: Patients with elementary school were seven times more likely to be classified in category with sedentary lifestyle compared to patients with college or faculty degree. Being retired and reporting low income were significantly associated with higher odds of sedentary behavior when compared with students and patients with high-income status, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The significance of this study lies in the fact that our results may help to easier identification of patients who may have a tendency towards a sedentary lifestyle.

[Influence of moderate physical activity on the levels of plasma lipoproteins in subjects with impaired glucose tolerance].

INTRODUCTION: Physical activity and healthy diet, as lifestyle factors, are essential components in the prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases. Impared glucose intolerance (IGT) is an independent cardiovascular risk factor. Dyslipidaemia is a cardiometabolic risk factor for the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of moderate physical activity of plasma lipoprotein indicators in high-risk subjects for diabetes mellitus during one-year planned intervention. METHODS: We randomly assigned 60 overweight subjects with IGT aged 30-60 years. The subjects were divided into intervention group with 30 subjects, who were intensively and individually instructed on weight reduction, nutrition and increased physical activity, and control group with 30 subjects, who were counselled, as standard, on nutrition and increased exercise. Total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C), HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglycerides (Tg) were measured at the beginning of the study, and at 2 months, 6 months, and at the end of the study (12 months). RESULTS: Compared to the beginning of the study, after 2 and 6 months there was no statistically significant difference in serum lipid values. After 12 months, the average values of the measured lipid levels in the intervention group decreased by 18.36% for TC, 27.3% for LDL-C, and 34.2% for Tg (compared to 10.27%, 13.45%, and 10.4%, respectively in the control group). Value of HDL-C in the intervention group increased by 19.12%, and decreased in the control group by 1.48%. Total/HDL-C ratio was reduced by 30.6% and LDL-C/H by 38.1% in the intervention group (compared to 12.36%, and 15.9% in the control group). After 12 months, significantly greater decrease in TC (p < 0.01), LDL-C (p < 0.01) and Tg (p < 0.0001) and significantly greater increase in HDL-C (p < 0.05) was detected in the intervention group compared to the control group. CONCLUSION: Plasma lipoproteins can be significantly decreased by changes in the lifestyles of high-risk subjects during one-year planned intervention.

Significant influence of biometeorological conditions on the incidence of spontaneous pneumothorax in the Kragujevac city.

AIM: To explore and establish an influence of biometeorological conditions on the occurrence of spontaneous pneumothorax (SP) in the city of Kragujevac (Serbia) in a five-year period. METHODS: According to the type of series of cases, this was a retrospective, non-interventional study. The data collected from the medical records and operative protocols of the Thoracic Surgery Department in the period between 01.01.2005 and 31.12.2009, as well as the data on daily biometeorological phases for the Kragujevac city obtained from the Hydrometeorological Service of Serbia, and afterwards a comparative analysis of the data were performed. RESULTS: A total number of 159 patients with spontaneous pneumothorax were hospitalized. Most patients were treated in 2009 (55, 34.6%), least in 2005 (22, 13.8%). Most cases occurred in March (20, 12.6%), on Tuesdays (33, 20.7%), and in the biometeorological phase 2 (0.15 SP/day). The least number of cases occurred in September (9, 5.7%), on Saturdays (6, 3.8%) and in phase 8 (0.04/day) (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: There was an evident biometeorological influence on the occurrence of spontaneous pneumothorax in our area, so most cases were in the phase with sunny weather (atmospheric pressure falling, air temperature and moisture rising), while the lowest number was in the phase with a fall of atmospheric pressure, moisture and air temperature. The results of this research suggest a necessity of further investigations on this field.