Anxiety, Stress Perception, and Coping Strategies among Students with COVID-19 Exposure.

Background: Studying anxiety, stress, and coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic is crucial to mitigate the negative effects associated with infection risk and disease consequences. Objective: This study aimed to investigate anxiety levels, stress perception, and coping strategies in relation to the presence of illness. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted anonymously among 3950 university students from Poland (1822), Lithuania (232), and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad (1896). Due to the nearly identical application of anti-epidemic measures, the respondents were treated as a unified group. The State-trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Perceived Stress Scale 10 (PSS-10), and mini-COPE scale questionnaires were used. Statistical analysis included the Shapiro-Wilk test to check normality, the Mann-Whitney U test for comparative analysis between groups, the Pearson χ2 test for categorical data, and Spearman coefficients for correlations between variables. Results: A significant proportion of young adults in the community exhibited symptoms of anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the 1212 men and 2738 women surveyed, 348 (28.7%) and 1020 (37.3%) individuals, respectively, were diagnosed with COVID-19 according to clinical protocols. Prolonged disease duration and more severe residual symptoms correlated with higher self-reported anxiety levels. Conclusions: The level of anxiety and stress varied depending on the duration of the disease, significantly impacting the choice of coping strategies. Overall, students displayed a proactive approach to coping activities but tended to postpone important decisions. Seeking social support was a prevalent coping mechanism, although respondents who had COVID-19 showed higher levels of concern for their own emotions, a tendency to discharge emotions through alcohol or other substances (male), and a greater reliance on religion (female). The study provides data that may be useful in developing educational and health policies focused on the mental well-being of university students and potentially other social groups.

L-arginine and Its Derivatives Correlate with Exercise Capacity in Patients with Advanced Heart Failure.

Methylated arginine metabolites interrupt nitric oxide synthesis, which can result in endothelium dysfunction and inadequate vasodilation. Since little is known about the dynamics of arginine derivatives in patients with heart failure (HF) during physical exercise, we aimed to determine this as well as its impact on the patient outcomes. Fifty-one patients with HF (left ventricle ejection fraction-LVEF ≤ 35%, mean 21.7 ± 5.4%) underwent the cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET). Plasma concentrations of L-arginine, citrulline, ornithine, asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), and symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) were measured before and directly after CPET. All patients were followed for a mean of 23.5 ± 12.6 months. The combined endpoint was: any death, urgent heart transplantation, or urgent LVAD implantation. L-arginine concentrations increased significantly after CPET (p = 0.02), when ADMA (p = 0.01) and SDMA (p = 0.0005) decreased. The parameters of better exercise capacity were positively correlated with post-CPET concentration of L-arginine and inversely with post-CPET changes in ADMA, SDMA, and baseline and post-CPET SDMA concentrations. Baseline and post-CPET SDMA concentrations increased the risk of endpoint occurrence (HR 1.02, 95% CI 1.009-1.03, p = 0.04 and HR 1.02, 95% CI 1.01-1.03, p = 0.02, respectively). In conclusion, in patients with HF, extensive exercise is accompanied by changes in arginine derivatives that can reflect endothelium function. These observations may contribute to the explanation of the pathophysiology of exercise intolerance in HF.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity, life satisfaction, anxiety, stress perception and coping strategies in student-athletes: A comparison between Belarus and Poland-countries with a different approach of anti-pandemic measures.

Background: More than two years of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed lives of people around the world and had a profound impact on the field of sports. This has resulted in decreased physical activity (PA) and changes in mental health. The goal was to assess self-reported physical activity, life satisfaction, perceived stress, choice of coping strategies and their correlations among student athletes from two neighboring countries facing different anti-pandemic strategies. Methods: Cross-sectional surveys using standardized questionnaires: International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), and Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (Mini-COPE) to compare 600 students from Physical Education and Sports departments of universities in Belarus (n = 333), where restrictions were found to be less stringent than in neighboring Poland (n = 267). Results: Minor differences in physical activities between both countries indicate that student athletes have adapted fairly quickly and found ways to keep their PA at a fairly high level. Nevertheless, higher PA was reported in the group of student athletes from Belarus. PA levels correlated with life satisfaction, anxiety and stress levels. Female students from Poland reported lower satisfaction with their lives. Their perception of stress was twice as high as that of their Belarusian counterparts. The most common coping strategy in both groups was active coping. Polish respondents less frequently used strategies of avoiding problems and seeking outside support. Conclusion: The level of physical activity and well-being of student athletes are associated with increased mental health and coping with stress. They also contribute to prevention of affective disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, it is dependent on the country's anti-pandemic policies.

[Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis in children as the result of aseptic meningitis - a report of two cases]. / Ostre rozsiane zapalenie mózgu i rdzenia kregowego u dzieci jako nastepstwo jalowego zapalenia opon mózgowo-rdzeniowych - opis dwóch przypadków.

Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is an inflammation of the spinal cord and brain. Diagnosis of ADEM, due to its rare occurrence and lack of definite laboratory indices, is difficult and is never totally certain. The clinical criterion required for the diagnosis is presence of acute symptoms from the brain and/or spine with fever, occurring after viral or bacterial infection, vaccination or serum administration. Differentiation between ADEM and acute multiple sclerosis in children is difficult, and diagnosis of ADEM may only be confirmed after years of observation, especially as multiple sclerosis is more common than ADEM. The most useful tool in differentiation between the two diseases is MRI. The aim of the study was to present two cases of ADEM with unknown aetiology after aseptic meningitis in children.

[Bickerstaff's brainstem encephalitis -- an analysis of clinical and MRI findings]. / Zapalenie pnia mózgu Bickerstaffa - analiza przebiegu klinicznego i obraz rezonansu magnetycznego.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Bickerstaff's brainstem encephalitis (BBE) is a very uncommon central nervous system disease. Its etiology remains unknown but it is postulated that BBE has an autoimmunologic origin. BBE is characterized by acute ophtalmoplegia, ataxia, pyramidal paresis and disturbance of consciousness. A special pattern of changes in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is characteristic of BBE. Lesions are located mainly in the brainstem. The aim of this paper is to analyze the clinical course and MRI changes in our own cases of BBE. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We have analyzed medical records, clinical findings and MRI images of the patients with BBE diagnosis established in our Department of Neurology in the years 1998-2004. RESULTS: During that period 4 cases of BBE were diagnosed with clinical sings of acute brainstem lesion and MRI imaging suggestive of BBE. In our patients we have observed ophtalmoplegia, ataxia, disturbances of consciousness and pyramidal signs. Two patients had a monophasic and 2 remitting-relapsing course of the disease. In all four cases we have seen on T2-weighted images large, irregular hyperintense lesions in the brainstem, especially in the pons, midbrain and medulla, but also in one case in the thalamus and vermis of the cerebellum. Patients were treated with steroids, plasmapheresis or acyclovir or a combination of these methods. We observed a complete recovery in two cases and significant improvement in the other two lasting more than two years confirming a relatively good prognosis in BBE. CONCLUSIONS: BBE despite severe initial presentation usually has a good prognosis. MRI plays critical role in the diagnosis of BBE.