Biomedical subjects

Marko Sarić

Publications and source records attributed to Marko Sarić.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

Incidence of malignant pleural mesothelioma in coastal and continental Croatia: epidemiological study.

AIM: To evaluate the actual incidence of malignant pleural mesothelioma in Croatia, geographical distribution of the disease, and relevance of occupation and some other characteristics of diseased subjects. METHOD: Data on the incidence of pleural mesothelioma over a seven-year period (1991-1997) were collected from the Croatian Cancer Registry. In each case, the tumor diagnosis was histologically verified. Registration of the patients was based on their place of residence. Also, in 2001, a short questionnaire was sent to patients' families to gather additional information on patients' occupation (exposure to asbestos), smoking habits, and length of residence in the registered place. In many cases some of the answers had to be clarified by telephone or through a personal contact. Data obtained from 20 counties (administrative units) of Croatia were grouped into two larger areas: coastal and continental. The data for the city of Zagreb were presented separately. RESULTS: During the 1991-1997 period, the Registry recorded a total of 248 malignant pleural mesotheliomas (197 in men and 51 in women). The poll gathered additional data for 194 patients (78.2%): 153 (77.7%) men and 41 (80.4%) women. Eight in a million people on average were diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma per year. Age standardized incidence rates (per 100,000) by residence showed an uneven geographical distribution for men: 2.66 in coastal area, 0.69 in continental area, and 0.75 in the city of Zagreb. Goodness-of-fit test for observed rates vs expected for Croatia were chi-square=145, df=2, p<0.001; post-hoc tests: coastal vs continental area chi-square=12.3, df=1, p=0.001; and coastal area vs city of Zagreb chi-square=4.4, df=1, p=0.035. In women with mesothelioma, these rates were 0.38, 0.24, and 0.18, respectively, and the differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Assuming that the information obtained by the poll on the occupation of diseased subjects was a true characterization of all recorded cases of pleural mesothelioma, more than two-thirds of subjects with the studied tumor had an occupational exposure to asbestos. Uneven distribution of the tumor, with higher rate in men in the coastal area, may be related to shipbuilding and other industrial sources of asbestos exposure in that part of the country.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

[Work capacity--approach and evaluation criteria].

In occupations involving specific risk factors, the employer is required by law to have his candidates/employees physically examined in the course of pre-placement/work, as a measure of health and safety protection. Upon examination, the occupational health physician issues to the employer a statement of the candidate's/employee's suitability for work. Mandatory pre-placement and periodic medical examinations are also required for workers who may affect the health and safety of the public such as workers in public transportation or food processing. This paper looks into the implementation of regulations and actual practice in performing relevant medical examinations. One of the issues described is the determination of a worker's temporary disability. Practicing physician determines a disability and rates the physical impairment. She or he has to translate clinical information into a decision about whether a patient is able to work. This decision is the basis for healthcare compensation and benefits and requires knowledge not only of the illness or injury and the patient, but also of the job tasks and exposure. From the medical standpoint, it may be difficult to determine when a period of temporary disability has ended or if a degree of impairment has remained, and when the temporary partial or total disability has become permanent. The paper discusses the assessment of total or partial permanent disabilities based on the new Pension Insurance Act (1998) and the differences from earlier criteria, summarising the implementation of new regulations for years 2000 and 2001.

Croatia↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Women and medical skill--historic view].

By the Banal edict of 28 June 1903, while the country was part of the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy, women physicians in Croatia were granted permission to carry out medical practice. In the memory of that occasion a historical overview of the women's role in medical science and practice is presented. The evidence of women's medical skills dates back to 2500 BC in Ancient Egypt. The 11th and 12th centuries saw first women gain access to medical schools in Europe. Women doctors practiced mainly gynaecology, obstetrics, cosmetics, skin and eye diseases. It took another seven centuries for them to be treated as men's equals as far as medical training and permission to work were concerned. In the 18th and 19th centuries the number of female physicians greatly increased in Europe, USA, and Canada. In Croatia the first woman medical doctor was Milica Sviglin Cavov, who graduated from the Medical School in Zürich in 1893, but was not allowed to work in the home country. The first woman to practice medicine in Croatia was Karola Maier Milobar in 1906. The first woman to have graduated from the Medical School in Zagreb, capital of Croatia, following its opening in 1917, was Kornelija Sertic The paper concludes with a view of the present-day role of women in medical practice, education and science.

Croatia↗