Biomedical subjects

M Balija

Publications and source records attributed to M Balija.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Posttraumatic stress disorder and platelet serotonin measures.

The role of serotonin (5HT) in the pathophysiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been suggested by the overlap in clinical symptoms between PTSD and psychiatric conditions in which a serotonin dysfunction is implicated, as well as by the therapeutic efficiency of 5HT-related drugs (antidepressants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and monoamine oxidase inhibitors) in alleviating symptoms in PTSD. In the present study, the blood platelet, which has been proposed as a peripheral model for the central serotonergic neurons, has been used to search for alterations in 5HT mechanisms in PTSD. Platelet serotonin level and kinetics of serotonin transporter and monoamine oxidase (MAO-B) were assessed in 63 combat-related PTSD patients and 43 sex and age-matched control subjects. A significant reduction in maximal velocity of platelet MAO-B (approx. 30%), with no changes in the enzyme affinity was observed in our patient sample. Conversely, no alterations in kinetic parameters (V(max), K(m)) of platelet serotonin transporter, as well as in platelet 5HT level, were found in the PTSD group.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Quality control in an immunohematology laboratory in the Croatian Transfusion Service].

In order to evaluate the testing proficiency in immunohematological laboratories in Croatia blood samples were prepared and fully examined in the Croatian Institute for Transfusion Medicine and sent to all the transfusion laboratories in the country. The laboratories were asked to perform the following tests: determination of AB0 blood group and Rh phenotype; detection and identification of irregular antibodies and crossmatches between serum and RBCs. All the laboratories (100%) accurately determined AB0 and Rh(D) negative blood groups and crossmatch between compatible serum and RBCs. In 80.65% of the laboratories, Rh(Du) blood group was accurately determined. The incompatibility between serum and Rh(Du) RBCs in crossmatch was detected in 93.55% of the laboratories. 96.77% laboratories correctly detected irregular antibodies. Only 35.48% of the laboratories accurately identified anti-D and anti-C alloantibodies in the serum, 32.26% failed to identify one of the two antibodies and 29.03% of the laboratories detected irregular antibodies but did not identify their specificity. Only 35.48% of the laboratories correctly performed all the tasks.

Blood Grouping and Crossmatching↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Safety of transfusion therapy with special emphasis on inactivated viruses in products made from human blood].

The most common complication of blood transfusion therapy is the transfusion-transmitted infection. The decrease of the risk had been achieved by several measures such as: the change from paid to all voluntary donor system, education of the population and potential donor groups as regards the risk factors, and the selection of donors without the risk factors, testing of donor blood for the presence of the hepatitis B and C viruses, HIV and syphilis, fractionation of plasma with the partition of viruses and their inactivation. In spite of all these efforts zero risk blood transfusion therapy has not been achieved and it is very unlikely that it will be achieved in the future. Clinicians must have sufficient background information on different procedures for viral inactivation in order to be able to select the least risky blood product.

Blood Coagulation Factors↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Evaluation of the direct antiglobulin test].

The validity of a direct antiglobulin test (DAT) was evaluated by testing 7645 blood samples from hospitalized patients. DAT was routinely done in 7201 blood samples sent for pretransfusion testing and 444 blood samples specifically sent for the examination of immune hemolysis. Positive DAT was discovered in 0.04% (3/7201) pretransfusion samples and in 3.83% (17/444) samples examined for immune hemolysis. In 16 of the samples with positive DAT, IgG antibodies with or without complements and in 4 samples only components of complements were detected on RBC. The cost of positive DAT in pretransfusion testing is 92 times higher than that of DAT during laboratory investigation of immune hemolysis. Due to a low frequency of positive DAT during pretransfusion testing, its cast and the fact that patients had no clinical signs of immune hemolysis, we advocate no use of a routine DAT during pretransfusion testing.

Blood Grouping and Crossmatching↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Distribution of Helicobacter pylori infection in the adult population of Croatia].

The study of the distribution of Helicobacter pylori infection was carried out among the population of Croatia aged between 20 and 70 years, in three areas of Croatia (central, northern, southern). For the detection of seroprevalence of this infection the ELISA test for IgG antibodies was used on a random sample of 3,082 serum samples. The testing showed an average rate of seroprevalence in Croatia of 60.4% (95% CI 58.7-62.1%). Higher infection rates were observed in older population of Croatia. These rates ranged from 51.6% in the third decade of life, to almost 70% in the sixth decade. In male subjects the average rate was 58.9% and in female subjects it was 65.9%. The difference was not statistically significant. The results of this study showed that distribution of this infection was not consistent in all the studied areas of Croatia. While the Helicobacter pylori infection prevalence was almost identical in the central area and in the northern counties of Croatia, 58.4% and 59.5% respectively, it showed statistically significant difference in the south, being 71.3% (chi(2) = 25.884, P < 0.001). An inconsistent distribution of this infection in Croatia was indicated also by standardized infection rates, which were 59 in the central area, 61 in the northern and 71 in the southern areas.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Seroprevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection in health personnel in 3 hospitals in Zagreb].

By this study we wanted to investigate the seroprevalence of H. pylori infection in 175 health care workers of three Zagreb city hospitals. The obtained results were compared with those of 2492 volunteer blood donors. The influence of age, education, socioeconomic status and length of service at specific hospital working places were investigated in relation to the frequency of H. pylori seropositivity. The blood samples were tested by commercial kits of immunoenzyme assay (ELISA) and complement fixation (CF), according to manufacturers instructions. The mean seroprevalence of infection was 58.6% in the group of blood donors and 53.7% in the group of health care workers (NS). Statistically significant difference was found between physicians (29%) and all other health care workers: nurses (58.6%; p < 0.005), laboratory technicians (60.6%; p < 0.005), clerical workers (66.6%; p < 0.005) and auxiliary workers (82.6%; p < 0.001). Concerning the age, the infection seroprevalence was higher in workers aged more than 40 years than in those younger, and that difference was of statistical significance among nurses and laboratory technicians. Physicians under 29 yrs were of the lowest seropositivity (14.8%). Among health care workers with less than 20 working years, physicians expressed the lowest rate of infection (17.9%) in comparison with nurses (48.5%) and laboratory technicians (53.3%). In all health care workers with more than 20 working years there was significant increase of infection prevalence, particularly among nurses. The employees in gastrointestinal endoscopy laboratories were more often serologically positive than medical workers in other medical departments (58.3% versus 35.0%; p < 0.05).

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[What we can learn from refusal of transfusion therapy from experience with Jehovah's Witnesses].

Patients who refuse blood transfusion for personal or religious reasons present complex medical, legal and moral problems. Blood transfusion has been doctrinally forbidden for Jehovah's Witnesses since 1945. Their refusal is based on the strict interpretation of several Biblical passages. A clear understanding of the philosophy of the Jehovah's Witnesses regarding blood transfusion and of the medicolegal and ethical aspects of their care is essential to clinicians who care for such patients. Various ethical principles, including the patient's autonomy, the interest of society in preserving life and the dignity of medical profession can be confronted. There are no clear guidelines which physicians can follow in deciding to treat or not treat in the presence of a patient's refusal. However, most authors agree that a competent adult has an absolute right to decline medical treatment, and that it is not morally or ethically correct to force patient to an unwanted treatment. We wished to present the experiences with the use of alternative methods in the treatment of Jehovah's Witnesses and to discuss ethical and legal aspects of treatment decisions in the presence of blood transfusion refusal.

Adult↗