Upper-lower limb and breathing exercise program for improving sleep quality and psychological status in multiple sclerosis: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: To examine the feasibility and possible effect of an 8-week exercise program on sleep quality, insomnia and psychological distress in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Methods: Twenty-four individuals with MS were recruited into a controlled pre-post feasibility study and divided into 2 groups: exercise ( = 13; Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS): 1.0-7.

Forces that fracture teeth during extraction with mandibular premolar and maxillary incisor forceps.

Our aim was to measure the forces that fracture teeth during extraction based on the effectiveness of the extraction forceps, and to compare them with data collected about forces applied to extracted teeth that did not fracture. We studied 208 patients whose teeth fractured during both the standard and our new method of extraction: maxillary incisors (n=79) extracted with forceps 1 (maxillary incisor forceps), and both maxillary (n=95) and mandibular incisors (n=34) extracted with forceps 13 (mandibular premolar forceps). Forces needed to fracture were assessed with a specially-designed instrument for measuring pressure and rotation.

Mucormycosis of the nasal ala in a leukemic (M7 AML) child. Is surgery of the nasal defect indicated?

Anterior tamponade with Surgicel (oxidized cellulose) was performed on a 5-year-old girl with megakaryoblastic leukemia (M7 AML) and epistaxis. Several days later necrosis of the nasal ala occurred. Debridement was performed and mucormycosis caused by Rhizopus was found in the material.

Increased arterial stiffness in children treated with anthracyclines for malignant disease.

Survivors of childhood cancer have a significantly higher late morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to determine whether anthracyclines used in childhood could increase arterial stiffness, a well-known independent predictor of cardiovascular diseases. The study included 53 children and adolescents aged 6-20 years having completed anthracycline treatment for a malignant disease according to various protocols at least a year before.

Complete transcatheter closure of a patent arterial duct with subsequent haemolysis.

We report a development of severe haemolysis after complete transcatheter closure of patent arterial duct. Aortography and echocardiography revealed no signs of residual shunt. Haemolysis occurred a day after the implantation.

An unusual association: anomalous origin of the left pulmonary artery from the thoracic aorta with total anomalous venous return of the left lung.

This report describes an extremely rare case involving anomalous origin of the left pulmonary branch from the thoracic aorta associated with ipsilateral anomalous pulmonary venous return in a 4-month-old boy and its successful repair.

Epidemiology and clinical characteristics of thyroid dysfunction in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the natural course and potential risk factors of autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) and thyroid dysfunction, and their influences on growth and glycemic control in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D). The study comprised 148 subjects (age range 1-21 years; males 51%) with T1D. During the interval of 12 years serum levels of thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO) and thyroglobulin (anti-TG) autoantibodies, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and tyroksine (T4), were screened annually.

Effect of root canal sealers on mouse peritoneal macrophage functions.

Three root canal filling materials, viz. calcium hydroxide-based cement (Apexit, resin-based cement (AH-plus) and glass-ionomer based material (Ketac Endo) were tested for their influence on several functions of peritoneal macrophages from Balb/c mice. Macrophage functions were evaluated by the adherence, phagocytic, candidacidal and Nitro blue tetrazolium-dye assays.

Measurement of tooth extraction forces in upper incisors.

A new method, applied for the first time in this research, was used for measurement of tooth extraction forces. The research has been done in a group of 50 examinees to whom the tooth extraction has been done with lower premolar forceps - forceps "13" and in the control group of 54 examinees in whom the tooth extraction has been done with upper incisive forceps - forceps "1". The measurement instrument registered the extraction forces values in both types of forceps.

The contribution of electromyography to the diagnostics of some rare palatal anomalies.

The paper presents the electromyographic (EMG) findings of the soft palate in three patients: a patient with Mohr syndrome and cleft palate, a patient with palatal asymmetry and rhinolalia and a patient with vertical oro-ocular facial cleft with marked asymmetry of the cleft palate. In the first patient, electrical silence was registered in one half of the palate. In the second patient, moderate loss of active motor units was registered in the hypoplastic part of the palate.

Prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases in Croatian children is increasing: survey study.

Aim: To estimate the prevalence of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis among school children in the region of Primorsko-goranska County in Croatia, and compare the results with data from other countries.

Methods: The study was conducted during the 2001-2002 school year, in complete adherence to the Phase One protocol of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). The target population comprised two age groups (6-7 and 13-14 years) in the region of Primorsko-Goranska County in Croatia.

[Congenital diaphragmatic hernia in older children].

The incidence of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is about 4.8/10,000 live births. Its typical clinical presentation is respiratory distress occurring immediately after birth or in the first few hours or days of a child's life.

Antibiotic use profile at paediatric clinics in two transitional countries.

Purpose: In this study, we evaluated antibiotic utilisation pattern at two paediatric clinics in different European (transitional) countries: Croatia (Rijeka) and Russia (Smolensk).

Methods: Antibiotic utilisation during the year 2000 was observed using the ATC/defined daily doses (DDD) methodology (ATC code-J01). Drug-usage data was expressed in numbers of DDD/100 bed-days and the DU90% profile.

Manifold significance of serum eosinophil cationic protein in asthmatic children.

Asthma is the result of complex interaction between different cells, mediators and nervous system that leads to an inflammatory response accompanied by increased bronchial hyperactivity. Its clinical manifestations include recurrent cough, wheezing and difficult breathing. The purpose of this study was to establish the possibility of diagnosing inflammation in asthmatic patients based on the assessment of serum eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), and of following the efficacy of asthmatic treatment by the levels of inflammation mediators.

Prolonged esophageal pH monitoring in the evaluation of gastroesophageal reflux in children with chronic tubotympanal disorders.

Background: Children with ear, nose and throat disorders are believed to have a high incidence of pathologic gastroesophageal reflux (GER). This study was designed to establish the frequency and ratio of pathologic GER in the development of chronic tubotympanal disorders.

Methods: Twenty-seven children with chronic tubotympanal disorders (mean age, 2 to 13 years; average age, 6.

Right atrial reduction for tachyarrhythmias in Ebstein's anomaly in infancy.

A 20-month-old girl with Ebstein's anomaly developed supraventricular paroxysmal tachycardia, which seemed to be a result of the wall tension of the giant right atrium. Right atrial resection reduced the wall tension and overall dimensions of the right atrium and finally resolved the tachycardia and ectopic electrical conduction. Six-year follow-up electrocardiograms confirmed continuing normal sinus rhythm without occurrence of supraventricular paroxysmal tachycardia or other ectopic electrical activity The follow-up echocardiograms showed the size of the right atrium to be unchanged from the time of operation.

Sonographic detection of multiple brain abscesses in a newborn with IgA deficiency.

We report the case of a neonate with selective IgA deficiency and multiple brain abscesses diagnosed with sonography. Brain sonography revealed multiple abscesses in the left hemisphere; the abscesses ranged from 10 to 20 mm. Cultures obtained from the cerebrospinal fluid and blood were positive for Proteus mirabilis.

[Intra-abdominelle Lymphangiome].

Intra-abdominal lymphangiomas are very rare. We report the unusual case of a 4-year-old boy, who presented with acute abdominal symptoms due to intracystic hemorrhage following a blunt abdominal trauma. After the diagnostic management, the radical resection was done with a good outcome.

Congenital tracheal stenosis treated with dilatation.

Congenital tracheal stenosis is a rare anomaly characterized by a broad spectrum of variations. Affected segments differ in the grade extent of stenosis, from thin webs to more severe stenoses such as short-segmental, funnel-like, or long-segment tracheal stenosis. A 5-month-old infant with persistent congenital stridor and acute respiratory distress is presented.