Prevalence and determinants of anxiety and depression symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes in Lithuania.

BACKGROUND: Depression is associated with a variety of diabetes complications, including diabetic retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, and macrovascular complications. The prevalence of the symptoms of anxiety (32%) and depression (22.4%) in patients with diabetes is considerably higher than in general population samples (10%). The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and determinants of anxiety and depression symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This survey was conducted during 2007-2010. In total, 1500 patients were invited to participate in the study. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to measure depression and anxiety for the evaluation of the depressive state and anxiety. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS 17.0. RESULTS: More than 70% of all respondents who participated in the study had diabetes mellitus complications (72.2%). The prevalence of mild to severe depression score was 28.5% (95% CI 25.7-31.4). The prevalence of anxiety was 42.4% (95% CI 39.3-45.5). Anxiety was more frequent among females (46.8%) than among males (34.7%) (p<0.001). A significant negative trend was observed between prevalence of anxiety and depression, and age and education (p for trend <0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A significant association between depression and diabetic complications was identified (p<0.05). Duration of diabetes was a risk factor significantly associated with higher scores of anxiety among the patients with T2DM.

Investigation of the antimicrobial activity of Rhaponticum (Rhaponticum carthamoides D.C. Iljin) and shrubby cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa L.).

The aim of the study was to determine antimicrobial activity of rhaponticum and shrubby cinquefoil extracts. MATERIAL AND METHODS. Ethanol extract from the leaves of rhaponticum (Rhaponticum carthamoides D.C. Iljin) and shrubby cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa L.) was produced at the Department of Food Technology, Kaunas University of Technology. The antimicrobial activity of the viscous extract or rhaponticum and shrubby cinquefoil was evaluated using standard microorganism cultures (bacteria Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 33499, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Proteus mirabilis ATCC 12459, Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Bacillus cereus ATCC 8035 and fungi Candida albicans ATCC 60193). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the examined preparations was determined. RESULTS. Both studied preparations - rhaponticum (Rhaponticum carthamoides D.C. Iljin) and shrubby cinquefoil (Potentilla fruticosa L.) - demonstrated similar antimicrobial activity. The highest sensitivity to the studied preparations was observed in microbes with eukaryotic cell structure: Candida albicans, which is a fungus, and a spore-forming prokaryotic bacterium, Bacillus cereus. The highest resistance was observed in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. CONCLUSIONS. The studied preparations - viscous extracts of rhaponticum and shrubby cinquefoil - are substances with antimicrobial activity against gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Proteus mirabilis) bacteria, spore-forming bacteria (Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus), and fungi (Candida albicans).

[Quality of life of athletes with disability and some aspects of equal possibilities]. / Neigaliuju sportininku gyvenimo kokybe ir kai kurie lygiu galimybiu aspektai.

The International Olympic and Paralympic Committees have decided that in 2012, the Olympic and Parolympic Games in London will take place at the same time. For this reason, the aim of our study was to determine whether athletes with disability in Lithuania have the same possibilities for sports - and thus for integration into the unified Lithuanian sports system - as those without disability. An anonymous inquiry of athletes with and without disability was performed in 2006. We analyzed 235 questionnaires filled in by the participants of the study; 159 subjects were with and 76 without disability. The Lithuanian Paralympic Committee approved the questionnaires and gave an agreement for the study. The inquiry was performed in Lithuanian sports clubs for the persons with disability and in the Lithuanian Academy of Physical Education. The obtained findings about the respondents' personality and environmental factors indicated that the indices of self-awareness in all athletes without disability were significantly higher than in athletes with disability (P<0.05). More than one-half (56.6%) of the respondents without disability indicated that their life was meaningful, whereas the respective percentage of athletes with disability was only 33.8% (P<0.05). As many as 59% of the respondents without disability were satisfied with their quality of life, compared to 36.2% of the respondents with disability. More than one-half (56.6%) of athletes without disability indicated that sports played an important role in their lives, whereas the respective percentage of athletes with disability was significantly lower - 33.2%. Only one-half (51.6%) of the participants with disability of the study had a permanent instructor (coach). The absolute majority of the respondents (irrespectively of the presence or absence of disability) indicated that sports helped them realize their potential. According to our findings, the majority of the respondents without disability (74.6%) and the absolute majority of respondents with disability (92.5%) indicated that sports of the persons with disability is not sufficiently propagated in mass media. Age and sex did not have any influence on the factors studied. Insufficient information about sports of the persons with disability and significantly lower indices in personality, physical and social environmental factors among athletes with disability are the main obstacles in the creation of an independent social sports system for the persons with disability and integration of these athletes into the general Lithuanian sports system in the aspect of equal possibilities.

Self-rated health among physicians.

The aim of the study was to analyze self-rated health among physicians depending on their sex, age, workplace (hospital or polyclinic), and specialty. MATERIAL AND METHODS. The studied group consisted of 377 26-70-year-old physicians randomly selected from various county hospitals and polyclinics of Lithuania. There were 85 men and 292 women. The inquiry was performed using the complemented (by the authors of the study) version of the WHO anonymous questionnaire of the quality of life (1995). Responses were evaluated based on physicians' evaluation of their own health, which was rated as very good, good, satisfactory, poor, and very poor. RESULTS. Only 8.2% of males and 5.8% of females evaluated their health as very good (P>0.05). More men, compared to women, evaluated their health as good (62.3% and 53.1%, respectively; P<0.05), whereas more females evaluated their health as satisfactory, compared to males (36.0% and 25.9%, respectively; P<0.05); 2.4% of males and 5.1% of females (p>0.05) stated that their health was poor. In most cases, physicians of different age groups presented equal evaluations of their health except for physicians in the age groups of 26-37 and 38-43 years - those who evaluated their health as very good comprised a significantly higher percentage (P<0.05), compared to other age groups. As expected, a higher percentage of older physicians evaluated their health as satisfactory. In addition to that, more hospital physicians, compared to those working in polyclinics, evaluated their health as good (12.8% and 1.8%, respectively; P<0.05) and vice versa - significantly more physicians working in polyclinics evaluated their health as satisfactory, compared to those working in hospitals (38.1% and 26.8%, respectively; P<0.05). A significantly higher percentage of surgeons, compared to general practitioners or therapists, evaluated their health as very good (15.8%, 4.5%, and 6.1%, respectively; P<0.05) and a significantly lower percentage - as satisfactory (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS. Irrespectively of sex, 6.4% of the studied physicians evaluated their health as very good; 55.2%, as good; 33.7%, as satisfactory; 4.7%, as poor; and 0.3%, as very poor. A higher percentage of physicians who evaluated their health as very good or good were 26-37 and 38-43 years of age, whereas more physicians in older age groups evaluated their health as satisfactory. A higher percentage of physicians working in hospital evaluated their health as very good, whereas more physicians who worked in polyclinics evaluated their health as satisfactory. Compared to general practitioners and therapists, surgeons more frequently evaluated their health as very good and significantly less frequently - as satisfactory.

[Socialization of athletes with disabilities in adapted physical activity]. / Neigaliuju socializacija taikomojoje fizineje veikloje.

UNLABELLED: The aim of this study was to determine the impact of the impairment of the body functions on the participation of people with disabilities in sports activities. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was carried out in the institutions mostly attended by people with severe physical disabilities. The participants took a modified Kenny test and answered the questions of a questionnaire. The study sample consisted of 35 persons with severe physical disabilities. RESULTS: The findings of this study showed that people with disabilities who were not engaged in sports were of much worse opinion about their health condition (P=0.02) and they needed more help from family or friends (P=0.035) compared to the disabled who were not engaged in sports, but in the group of people with disabilities who were engaged in sports, the correlations of those indicators were statistically significant (r=0.59 and r=0.68, respectively). The main motivation of sports participation of people with disabilities (about 80%) was the need for communication and gaining independence. Health improvement was mentioned by less than half of people with disabilities (about 41%) engaged in sports. CONCLUSIONS: The syndrome of movement function impairment, duration of impairment, marital status, the age of persons with disabilities, and objectively determined impairment of biosocial self-service functions did not impact sports participation of people with disabilities. However, subjective sensation of pain and the need of medical aid, which did not match the objective functional impairments, could be the obstacle for people with disabilities to participate in sports.

Psychosocial environment for the integrated education opportunities of the disabled in Lithuania.

BACKGROUND: The policy of the diminution of the social isolation of the disabled is the main objective of the strategy of the EU new policy concerning the disabled. Lithuanian society faces this objective as well. For this reason, this study aiming at providing the theoretical basis for and predicting the possible psycho-social environment in an integrated education system, as well as at the evaluation of the reasons for the formation of a positive approach to the disabled, is especially relevant, since it creates the prerequisites for the optimisation of the process of the integration of disabled schoolchildren into the general system of education. METHOD: The sample of the study consisted of 2471 children from the same schools: not integrated (1958), integrated (126) and special schools (382). Empirical methods: questionnaire poll, comparative analysis. The statistical analysis was carried out using SAS. RESULTS: Our study showed that the majority of schoolchildren without disabilities and disabled schoolchildren have positive intentions for interpersonal interactions (>82%) and positive emotions (>69%) independently of the discrepant character of interpersonal contacts, different conditions of education and family life, and despite of low level of knowledge. CONCLUSION: The results of the study confirmed positive intentions for interpersonal interaction between disabled schoolchildren and schoolchildren without disabilities, as well as a positive character of emotions, and disprove the unsound myth of the opponents of the social integration of the disabled stating that disabled children in comprehensive schools would undoubtedly experience offence from their peers without disabilities.

[The influence of common perilla (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton) on non-specific cell-mediated immunity--phagocytosis activity]. / Krumines periles (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton) itaka nespecifiniam lasteliniam imunitetui--fagocitozes aktyvumui.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of plant preparations, obtained from Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton introduced in Lithuania, on non-specific cell-mediated immunity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Non-specific cellular immunity was estimated by phagocytosis activity. The study of phagocytosis activity in peripheral rabbits blood (ability of leukocytes to phagocyte polystyrene latex parts of 0.8 microm diameter) was performed before (control) and after the experiments (injecting or administering per os perilla leaves extracts for one week and four weeks, respectively). The extracts were prepared from the leaves of perilla using repercolation method. For the studies in vitro the extract containing 1 mg/ml of perilla was used. In the studies in vitro two preparations of Perilla frutescens were used: 1) 32% sterile aqueous solution derivable from extract of perilla leaves and 2) 38% ethanol extract of perilla leaves. RESULTS. The phagocytosis activity studies in vitro showed that after 30 minutes of incubation with Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton extract phagocytosis activity was stimulated from 39+/-1.2 to 61+/-2.2% (p<0.001). Phagocytosis index increased from 1.26 to 1.79. The experiments in vivo showed that injected perilla leaves preparation to rabbits (1.2 mg/kg) increased phagocytic activity compared to the control (32.17+/-2.13%). The largest increase of phagocytosis activity was detected after seven days - 40.67+/-4.68%. Phagocytic activity of neutrophils in peripheral blood of rabbits increased after oral administration of perilla leaves extracts already after one week, but the largest increase of phagocytic activity was detected after four weeks (62.00+/-2.76%). CONCLUSIONS: Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton contains natural substances that increase the activity of phagocytes in vivo and in vitro and stimulate phagocytosis.

Exposure to urban nitrogen dioxide pollution and the risk of myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVES: This study attempted to determine whether long-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), an indicator of motor vehicle exhaust, increases the risk of myocardial infarction (MI). METHODS: A population-based case-control study was conducted among men aged 25-64 years and residing in Kaunas, Lithuania. The study included all cases of first-time myocardial infarction in 1997-2000. Interviews with patients treated in hospitals elicited information on smoking and other risk factors, including residential histories. A high response rate (77.4%) resulted in 448 cases and 1777 controls. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) was selected for analysis as an indicator of traffic-related air pollution. The annual air pollution levels were estimated for the residential districts; thereafter the data were linked to the home addresses of the cases and controls. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, education, smoking, blood pressure, body mass index, marital status, and psychological stress, the risk of myocardial infarction was higher for the men exposed to medium [odds ratio (OR) 1.43, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.04-1.96] and high (OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.07-1.92) NO2 levels. The data suggested a stronger association among 55- to 64-year-old men. The risk of myocardial infarction increased by 17% among the 25- to 64-year-old men (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.01-1.35) and by 34% among those aged 55-64 years (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.08-1.67) from the first to the third tertile of NO2 exposure. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that urban NO2 pollution may increase the risk of myocardial infarction and that vehicle emissions may be of particular importance.

[Common perilla (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton.) as a perspective immunomodulator]. / Krumine perile (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton)--perspektyvus imunomoduliatorius.

Common perilla (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton) is a new perspective annual medicinal dead-nettle family (Lamiaceae Lindl.) plant in Lithuania. Its medicinal raw material and preparations produced of it are characterised by the variety of pharmacological effects: desensitizing, antimicrobial, anti tumorous, and antioxidative. This species was introduced from the East Asia and cultivated in many European, Asian, and North American countries. The common perilla has been cultivated in Lithuania as a decorative plant in parks and squares since 1990. This plant has been introduced in the collection and exposition of medicinal plants in Kaunas Botanical Garden of Vytautas Magnus University since 1998 with the purpose to analyze biological and pharmacological properties of plants and to assess the quality and quantity of the raw herb. It would be reasonable to carry out experimental research on biological qualities and raw material of the common perilla in Lithuania in accordance with the contemporary technologies and requirements of the European Union standards.

[Social status, psychological stress and myocardial infarction risk among 35-64-year-old women]. / Socialiniu ir psichologiniu veiksniu itaka 35-64 metu moterims susirgti miokardo infarktu.

We examined the association between social status, assessed by education and occupational categories and risk of myocardial infarction. We conducted a case-control study among 35-64 year-old women of Kaunas. Cases were 191 women with first myocardial infarction treated in hospitals in 1997-2000, and controls were 482 women in the same age group, randomly selected, without ischemic heart disease. We used multiple logistic regression to estimate the adjusted odds ratios of developing myocardial infarction in relation to social status and psychological stress. The study results indicated that stress, arterial hypertension, smoking, overweight and low education increased the risk of first myocardial infarction among 35-64 years old women. Managers and service, market sales workers had about twice higher risk for myocardial infarction than associate professionals (OR = 2.64; 95% CI 1.17-6.62 and OR = 2.18; 95% CI 1.03-4.63 correspondingly).