Browsing by Author "Savic, Milan"

In this study, we evaluated and compared the morphogenetic variability and the degree of recessive homozygosity in patients with manifested ischemic stroke compared to healthy controls. We have evaluated 120 patients with manifested ischemic stroke, of which 64 did not have hypertension and 56 have hypertension. For comparison, we additionally tested 194 healthy individuals without manifested ischemic stroke (controls). For the estimation of the degree of recessive homozygosity, we have performed the homozygously recessive characteristics (HRC) test and tested 19 HRCs. There was a significant difference in the individual variations of 19 HRCs between the controls and patients with manifested ischemic stroke (∑χ² = 60.162, < 0.01). The mean values of the tested HRCs significantly differed between the controls and group with manifested ischemic stroke (Controls − 5.71 ± 1.61, Ischemic stroke group − 6.25 ± 1.54, = 0.012). For the tested individuals with hypertension, the mean values of HRCs did not significantly differ between the controls and those that had manifested ischemic stroke (Controls − 5.28 ± 1.75, Ischemic stroke group − 5.64 ± 1.48, = 0.435). We found a significant difference in the frequencies of HRCs between those with and without hypertension for controls ( < 0.003) and for those with manifested ischemic stroke ( < 0.001). There are increased degrees of recessive homozygosity along with decreased variability in patients with manifested ischemic stroke compared to controls.

The aim of our study was to evaluate the role of morphogenetic variability in functional outcome of patients with ischemic stroke. The prospective study included 140 patients with acute ischemic stroke, all of whom were tested upon: admission; discharge; one month post-discharge; and three months post-discharge. The age was analyzed, as well. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) test and the Barthel Index (BI) were used for the evaluation of functional outcomes for the eligible participants. We analyzed the presence of 19 homozygous recessive characteristics (HRC) in the studied individuals. There was a significant change in FIM values at discharge ( = 0.033) and in BI values upon admission ( = 0.012) with regards to the presence of different HRCs. Age significantly negatively correlated for the FIM score and BI values at discharge for the group with 5 HRCs ( < 0.05), while for BI only, negative significant correlation was noticed for the group with 5 HRCs at three months post-discharge ( < 0.05), and for the group with 3 HRCs at one month post-discharge ( < 0.05) and three months post-discharge ( < 0.05). Morphogenetic variability might be one among potentially numerous factors that could have an impact on the response to defined treatment protocols for neurologically-impaired individuals who suffered an ischemic stroke.

In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of six weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation on functional and psychological outcomes in long-COVID patients. The prospective clinical study included 46 patients that were diagnosed with COVID-19. A respiratory rehabilitation program was implemented for six weeks. Further valuables were tested before the beginning of the rehabilitation program (admission) and six weeks after (discharge): SpO, heart rate, respiratory rate, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score, Borg score, Sit-to-Stand (StS) test number of repetition, distance of 6-Minute Walking Test (6MWT), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) 9 score and Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) anxiety score. These parameters were tested before the rehabilitation program on admission and at discharge and after the rehabilitation program on admission and at discharge. The results were presented with standard descriptive and analytical methods. Differences between the continuous variables before and after physical rehabilitation intervention were tested using the Wilcoxon test. Graphical analysis is presented with a box plot. On discharge, in comparison with admission, the values of SpO were significantly lower ( = 0.007) before the 6MWT, and VAS scores were significantly higher ( = 0.036), while after the 6MWT, VAS scores were significantly lower ( < 0.001) as were Borg scores ( = 0.016). On discharge, in comparison with admission, the respiratory rate was significantly higher ( = 0.005) before the StS test, and Borg scores were significantly lower ( = 0.001), while after the StS test, SpO levels were significantly higher ( = 0.036) and VAS scores were significantly lower ( < 0.001), as were Borg scores ( = 0.008). After discharge, the values of the StS test were significantly higher ( = 0.011), PHQ9 scores were significantly lower ( < 0.001) and GAD anxiety scores were significantly lower as well ( = 0.005), while the distances measured in meters on the 6MWT were significantly increased ( < 0.001). A structured rehabilitation program in our study was shown to have beneficial effects on physiological, psychological and functional improvements in patients with long-COVID, and therefore it is advisable for these patients.