Effectiveness of treatment of arterial hypertension in Central Europe from 1972 to 2022.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease. This review examines the literature on hypertension control in the Czech Republic from 1972 to 2022 addressing limited data on its effectiveness. METHODS: A literature review was conducted covering the period from 1972 to 2022, utilizing MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, and Scopus databases. Articles were selected based on title and abstract evaluations, with full-text reviews performed as needed. Thirteen studies involving 44,990 participants were included in this review. RESULTS: Control rates increased from 2.8% (men) and 5.2% (women) in 1985 to 32.3% (men) and 37.4% (women) from 2015 to 2018. Women showed better blood pressure control. Specialised centres achieved higher success (48%) than general practitioners (18.4%). Diabetic patients had a lower percentage (29.1%) of patients meeting their target values (<130/80 mmHg) compared to non-diabetic patients, who had a higher percentage (60.6%) meeting their target values (<140/90 mmHg). CONCLUSION: Hypertension treatment success rate in the Czech Republic improved significantly over the last 50 years and is currently comparable to that of other European countries with similar healthcare resources. However, it still remains suboptimal and lags behind the countries with the most successful treatment outcomes (Tab. 3, Fig. 1, Ref. 37). Text in PDF www.elis.sk Keywords: hypertension, treatment, effectiveness, Czech Republic, blood pressure.

Pain and Analgesic Related Insomnia.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this review is to describe the effects of analgesics on sleep. DATA SOURCES: Systematic search of the databases of PubMed and the Cochrane Library was performed between January and September 2021. REVIEW/ANALYSIS METHODS: The search included all articles on the topic published during the past 20 years (2000-2020). The search strategy was developed using a controlled vocabulary of known studies meeting the inclusion criteria and focused on the following terms: chronic pain, pain, sleep disturbance, insomnia, analgesic, analgesic medication, antidepressants, antiepileptic drugs, nonsteroidal drugs, opioids, and quality of life. Two reviewers independently considered the studies for inclusion in the review, assessed the risk of bias, and extracted data. DESIGN: Review and analysis. RESULTS: A total of 37 studies met the inclusion criteria: 15 analyzed the effects of opioids, 6 those of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and acetaminophen, and 16 the effects of adjuvant analgesics. CONCLUSIONS: Sleep quality may be adversely affected by a variety of medications used in clinical practice, including those used in analgesic indications. The class of analgesics most affecting sleep quality are opioids.

Neurotoxic side effects of acyclovir: two case reports.

Acyclovir is an antiviral drug frequently used in clinical practice. It is indicated for the treatment of infections caused by herpes simplex virus and varicella zoster virus. The drug has a good safety profile; however, severe side effects may rarely occur during therapy. These include renal failure as a major risk factor for neurotoxic side effects potentially developing within 24-48 hours of therapy initiation. The paper presents the cases of two patients developing neurotoxic side effects while treated for herpes zoster. The aim of the authors is to highlight the potential for developing neurotoxic side effects in high-risk groups such as the elderly, patients with impaired renal function or multiple comorbidities on polypharmacy, or those using nephrotoxic drugs. Acyclovir use could lead to renal impairment and an increase in its plasma and CNS concentrations with severe neuropsychiatric side effects. The neurotoxic side effects are reversible after therapy withdrawal. Thus, in patients developing mental impairment or showing other neurological symptoms during acyclovir therapy, the patient should be promptly assessed for potential drug neurotoxicity, their therapy should be discontinued and drug elimination with forced diuresis or hemodialysis considered. Early recognition of acyclovir neurotoxic side effects can significantly improve a patient's prognosis.