Browsing by Author "Bubanja, Dragana (36571440700)"

Sarcoidosis afflicts the central nervous system more frequently than previously believed. Neurological symptoms are present in roughly one-half of patients, and depend on the location in the central nervous system. The probability of spontaneous regression is significantly less when compared to other forms of sarcoidosis, which means that the proper diagnosis and treatment is paramount. Even when properly treated, functional defects are not uncommon. Majority of these patients require immunomodulating drugs and continuous follow-up. New immunomodulating drugs, especially biological agents, have shown to be significantly more effective, with fewer side effects, and are important when corticosteroids could not be applied. Less invasive methods, such as cerebrospinal analysis, help greatly in the diagnostics procedure, and require further research and improvement. © 2021, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction The metabolic syndrome and its influence on coronary artery disease development and progression remains in focus of international research debates, while insulin resistance, which represents its core, is the key component of hypertension, dyslipidaemias, glucose intolerance and obesity. Objective The aim of this study was to establish relationship between basal glucose and insulin levels, insulin sensitivity and lipid panel and the degree of coronary atherosclerosis in non-diabetic patients. Methods The coronary angiograms were evaluated for the presence of significant stenosis, insulin sensitivity was assessed using the intravenous glucose tolerance test with a minimal model according to Bergman, while baseline glucose (G0), insulin (I0) and lipid panel measurements (TC, HDL, LDL, TG) were taken after a 12-hour fasting. Results The protocol encompassed 40 patients (19 men and 21 women) treated at the Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases of the Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade. All were non-diabetics who were divided into 3 groups based on their angios: Group A (6 patients, 15%, with no significant stenosis), Group B (18 patients, 45%, with a single-vessel disease) and Group C (16 patients, 40%, with multi-vessel disease). Presence of lower insulin sensitivity, higher I0 and TC in the group of patients with a more severe degree of coronary atherosclerosis (insulin sensitivity: F=4.279, p=0.023, A vs. C p=0.012, B vs. C p=0.038; I0: F=3.461 p=0.042, A vs. B p=0.045, A vs. C p=0.013; TC: F=2.572, p=0.09), while no significant difference was found for G0, LDL, HDL and TG. Conclusion Baseline insulinaemia, more precisely, fasting hyperinsulinaemia could be a good predictor of significant coronary atherosclerosis in non-diabetic patients, which enables a more elegant cardiometabolic risk assessment in the setting of everyday clinical practice.

The concept of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging is essential for research and academic programs and institutions worldwide, but although women do not lag behind men at entry and graduation from Serbian universities, equitable leadership does and it further hinders outcomes in every way: from translational science via healthcare up to legislative efforts to protect children, women and elderly. Although all these may seem as l’art-pour-l’art issues when compared to mere survival in war zones on two continents and all issues women face under circumstances of displacement and bans on rights to education, healthcare and sounds of their own voices in public, still it is the ongoing fight for rights lost in silence and where one least expects it that has to push every human being to fight for the oppressed and underprivileged. © 2024, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Cardiovascular and reproductive health of women have been going hand in hand since the dawn of time, however, their links have been poorly studied and once the basis of their connections started to be established in late 20th century, it depended on local regional abilities and the level of progressive thinking to afford comprehensive women’s care beyond the “bikini medicine”. Further research identified different associations rendering more conditions sex-specific and launching therefore a slow, yet initial turn around in clinical trials’ concept as the majority of global cardiovascular guidelines rely on the results of research conducted on a very modest percentage of women and even less on the women of color. Currently, the concept of women’s heart centers varies depending on the local demographics’ guided needs, available logistics driven by budgeting and societal support of a broad-minded thinking environment, free of bias for everyone: from young adults questioning their gender identity, via women of reproductive age both struggling to conceive or keep working part time when healthy and line of work permits it during pregnancy, up to aging and the elderly. Using “Investigate-Educate-Advocate-Legislate” as the four pillars of advancing cardiovascular care of women, we aimed to sum-marize standing of women’s health in Serbia, present ongoing projects and propose actionable solutions for the future. © 2021, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.