Browsing by Author "Mihailović-Vučinić, Violeta (13410407800)"

Objective: The aim of this study was to use a Serbian-language version of the disease-specific, self-report Sarcoidosis Health Questionnaire (SHQ), which was designed and originally validated in the United States, to assess health status in sarcoidosis patients in Serbia, as well as validating the instrument for use in the country. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of 346 patients with biopsy-confirmed sarcoidosis. To evaluate the health status of the patients, we used the SHQ, which was translated into Serbian for the purposes of this study. We compared SHQ scores by patient gender and age, as well as by disease duration and treatment. Lower SHQ scores indicate poorer health status. Results: The SHQ scores demonstrated differences in health status among subgroups of the sarcoidosis patients evaluated. Health status was found to be significantly poorer among female patients and older patients, as well as among those with chronic sarcoidosis or extrapulmonary manifestations of the disease. Monotherapy with methotrexate was found to be associated with better health status than was monotherapy with prednisone or combination therapy with prednisone and methotrexate. Conclusions: The SHQ is a reliable, disease-specific, self-report instrument. Although originally designed for use in the United States, the SHQ could be a useful tool for the assessment of health status in various non-English-speaking populations of sarcoidosis patients. © 2016 Sociedade Brasileira de Pneumologia e Tisiologia.

[No abstract available]

Introduction: Potassium iodine (KI) is used as a drug therapy for treating numerous diseases such as small-vessel vasculitis, erythema nodosum, vasculitis nodularis, Sweet's syndrome, tuberculosis and granulomatosis, and for iodized salt. At the same time, KI can be harmful. Iodine intake may increase the frequency of thyroiditis in humans, and may induce the occurrence of experimental thyroiditis (ET) in animals. Investigations on an experimental model for the examination of thyroiditis in Wistar rats have clearly showed morphological changes in the rat thyroid evoked by KI administration. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of low and high doses of KI on the thyroid gland of Wistar rats and determine the effect on hormone status (T4, T3 and TSH) in this rat strain. Methods: Two groups of rats from the Wistar strain were treated with a low iodine dose (225 μg/g BW) and with a high iodine dose (675 μg/g BW) of KI solutions. Untreated nonimmunized animals served as controls. The solution was administrated daily intraperitoneally during the period of 26 consecutive days. Results: Monitoring hormone status (TSH, T3 and T4) and morphological changes it was found that therapeutic doses of KI applied in treatment induced the occurrence of experimental thyroiditis (chronic destructive Hashimoto's thyroiditis in humans) and cell necrosis in animals not carrying a genetic susceptibility. Significant inflammatory changes were observed in rats treated with a high iodine dose. Conclusion: The early iodine induced cell necrosis and inflammation in the nonimmunized animals without genetic susceptibility is a new experimental model of thyroiditis.

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.

Currently, topical are studies that examine different reasons for delay of tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis and its impact on disease prognosis. The aim was to examine three time periods associated with treatment delay: patient related, health system related and total delay. This retrospec-tive-prospective study included 100 consecutive patients hospitalized at Department of Pulmonology, Clinical Center of Serbia, in the period from March to December 2015. Study results showed median patient delay to be 92.5 days. Total delay was affected by patient related delay. Median healthcare delay was 18.5 days. Patients that reported excessive alcohol consumption were more likely to have prolonged time to seek medical help. Years of alcohol consumption yielded moderate positive correlation with patient related delay (r=0.362, p<0.001). Correlation between the number of cigarettes and patient delay was moderate, positive and statistically significant (r=0.314, p=0.001). Delay in seeking medical help was more likely in patients with negative family history of TB. There was no difference in the effect of the presence of symptoms on patient related delay (p>0.05). Clinical characteristics such as patient TB category and chest radiograph abnormalities were not associated with prolonged patient related delay (p>0.05). Study results point to the importance of health education and/or health intervention in the population group at a high risk of TB. © 2018, Klinicka Bolnica Sestre Milosrdnice. All rights reserved.

[No abstract available]

Introduction COVID-19 pneumonia does not have a characteristic course and prognosis. Many facts still remain hidden, mainly why certain patients develop complications with serious tissue damage and whether it causes a permanent organ impairment. If and when will fibrosis develop in COVID-19 pneumonia requires further research, but a link between the amount of tissue afflicted and the development of fibrosis exists. Case outline A previously healthy, non-smoker, woman with minor symptoms on admission had suddenly developed a serious respiratory insufficiency and whose radiographic finding on computed tomography scan had shown a serious progression with the development of fibrosis in a matter of days. The exact mechanism and correlation of this clinical course remains unknown; however, it is clear that the pulmonary fibrosis is caused by COVID-19 pneumonia. Follow-up computed tomography scan, performed 50 days after initial symptoms, had shown a partial regression of consolidations and post-inflammatory fibrosis. Conclusion Pulmonary fibrosis is the most severe complication of COVID-19 infection on the respiratory system. Who, when or if a patient will develop any complication is still unclear, as well as whether these changes are reversible? Also, the number of recovered patients who later develop some chronic complications remains to be seen. © 2021, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Introduction Orbit is one of the rarer locations for the metastasis of malignant tumors. The symptoms of orbital tumors are nonspecific, but require detail diagnostics. Methods of visualization, such as ultrasound, radiography, computed tomography scan and/or magnetic resonance imaging of the endocranium are a mandatory step in the diagnostics in order to determine not only the spread of the malignancy but also the affliction of the surrounding structures. The orbital manifestations can be the first sign of the malignant disease. Outline of cases The first case report presents a female patient with ocular symptomatology as a result of a metastasis of previously undiscovered breast cancer, and the second report presents a male patient with undiscovered lung cancer also presenting with ocular symptomatology. Conclusion An orbital tumor should instigate further diagnostic procedures, as it can be the first sign of a disseminated malignant disease. © 2020, Serbia Medical Society. All rights reserved.