Publications by authors named "Florina Popescu"

Background: Occupational medicine (OM) faces considerable challenges today, one of them related to the university training of future physicians considered suboptimal at a global level as it has been pointed out in many studies. The aim of this study is to update the state of OM medical education in European universities.

Methods: Between March and August 2022, an e-mail survey regarding OM training to undergraduate medical students was conducted among OM professors at European universities in 28 countries (n = 347).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Club cells have a distinct role in the epithelial repair and defense mechanisms of the lung. After exposure to environmental pollutants, during chronic exposure, the secretion of club cells secretory protein (CCSP) decreases. Exposure to occupational hazards certainly has a role in a large number of interstitial lung diseases.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) is a rare mesenchymal tumor that is quite aggressive and prone to recurrence and metastasis. Most SFTs are benign, but the identification of the histological features that define the dedifferentiation of SFTs can predict the aggressiveness of the tumor and the presence of a reserved prognosis. We present a rare case of conventional SFTs with features of malignancy and highlight the diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties related to this case.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic foot ulcer non-reimbursed treatment depends on multiple factors, including the patient's buying behaviors. Factors affecting buying behaviors for the removable off-loading devices are not completely understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the patients' buying behaviors of the removable off-loading devices and their influence on the DFU treatment outcomes remotely monitored during the COVID-19 pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Aim: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cancer, the most important public health problems nowadays, and the mechanisms between the presence of diabetes and the development of malignancies remain unclear. The leading cause of cancer death in 2020 is attributed to lung cancer. This study aimed to highlight the impact of the association of these two diseases and the predominant histopathological type of lung cancer in the selected group, glycemic imbalance, and information about the course and outlook for these patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Burnout syndrome is well-documented and highly prevalent among healthcare professionals. The literature search found studies mainly aimed at front-line medical specialties, cardiologists, or physicians working in intensive care units. Workload and work conditions favor the occurrence of burnout syndrome among social insurance physicians, with many consequences on health status and a decrease in the quality of their work.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Superior ophthalmic vein thrombosis (SOVT) is a rare clinical entity that may be associated with hypercoagulability status. We present a case of a 77-year-old woman who presented to the emergency department complaining of eye ptosis, chemosis and conjunctival congestion in the right eye (RE). The ophthalmological examination revealed best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was 0.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: Cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of death worldwide, and pulse wave velocity (PWV) is considered a predictor of major adverse cardiovascular events. The study intended to be helpful in finding methods for the preliminary assessment of PWV in primary care units. : The study group consisted of 36 subjects (considered healthy by their own statement) from the medical field (medicine students and residents) aged between 20 and 30 years: 33.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The importance of magnesium (Mg), a micronutrient implicated in maintaining and establishing a normal heart rhythm, is still controversial. It is known that magnesium is the cofactor of 600 and the activator of another 200 enzymatic reactions in the human organism. Hypomagnesemia can be linked to many factors, causing disturbances in energy metabolism, ion channel exchanges, action potential alteration and myocardial cell instability, all mostly leading to ventricular arrhythmia.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Portable, custom-made electronic dynamometry for the foot and ankle is a promising assessment method that enables foot and ankle muscle function to be established in healthy participants and those affected by chronic conditions. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) can alter foot and ankle muscle function. This study assessed ankle toque in participants with diabetic peripheral neuropathy and healthy participants, with the aim of developing an algorithm for optimizing the precision of data processing and interpretation of the results and to define a reference frame for ankle torque measurement in both healthy participants and those affected by DPN.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Health care workers treating COVID-19 patients faced increased stress, which was linked to cardiovascular health risks measured by pulse wave velocity (PWV).
  • The study assessed stress through a questionnaire covering lifestyle, job, and personal relationships, while measuring PWV with a TendioMed arteriograph.
  • Results indicated that both stress levels and PWVs were significantly higher when caring for COVID-19 patients, showing a positive correlation between increased stress and higher PWV.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

An association between obesity and carpal tunnel syndrome is found in many epidemiological studies. Therefore, there is a need to evaluate the physiopathological links that could explain the association between these two entities. Ectopic adipose tissue is responsible for metabolic syndrome and inflammation, and is a major risk factor for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background and Objectives: Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of global death with a rising prevalence and a heavy economic burden. Periodontal disease has been associated with cardiovascular diseases—including incident coronary heart disease, peripheral artery disease and ischemic stroke. The study evaluates the quality of life of patients with cardiovascular and periodontal disease from the point of view of oral health by using the short version of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) questionnaire.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Inactivity negatively influences general health, and sedentary behaviour is known to impact the musculoskeletal system. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of time spent in active and sedentary behaviour on foot muscle strength. In this observational study, we compared the acute effects of one day of prolonged sitting and one day of low-to-moderate level of activity on ankle torque in one group of eight healthy participants.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The negative effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection on the musculoskeletal system include symptoms of fatigue and sarcopenia. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of COVID-19 on foot muscle strength and evaluate the reproducibility of peak ankle torque measurements in time by using a custom-made electronic dynamometer. In this observational cohort study, we compare two groups of four participants, one exposed to COVID-19 throughout measurements and one unexposed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

For more than a decade, NMDAR autoimmune encephalitis has been studied and treated as a neurological condition, and good results have been achieve through immune therapies. Apart from being well represented in the CNS, NMDA receptors are currently known of and being studied in multiple non-neuronal cells with potential clinical significance. The association of NMDAR autoimmune encephalitis with pregnancy is rare, and hypokalemia is not mentioned.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Keratoacanthoma (KA) is an epithelial tumor of the skin, classically considered as having a malignant transformation risk of 15%; however, many authors and the new World Health Organization (WHO) Classification of skin tumors consider KA as an incipient variant of the cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). The aims of the study were to assess the clinical, histopathological (HP) and immunohistochemical (IHC) aspects of the KA and the role of these factors in malignancy occurrence. The studied group comprises 194 patients diagnosed with KA or malignant KA, hospitalized in the Clinic of Dermatology, Emergency County Hospital, Craiova, Romania, between 2006 and 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Custom-made dynamometry was shown to objectively analyze human muscle strength around the ankle joint with accuracy, easy portability and low costs. This paper describes the full method of calibration and measurement setup and the measurement procedure when capturing ankle torque for establishing reliability of a portable custom-built electronic dynamometer. After considering the load cell offset voltage, the pivotal position was determined, and calibration with loads followed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

BACKGROUND Periodontal disease, a frequent oral health problem, is connected with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to assess the unstimulated saliva flow rate and saliva pH as markers of the severity of periodontal disease in patients with cardiovascular disease. MATERIAL AND METHODS A cohort of 155 patients (78 men and 77 women, aged 30-92 years) was included, and a structured questionnaire obtained information about their health status, oral healthcare behaviors, and eating habits.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The aim of this study was the characterization of the implantation site through histological and immunohistochemical exams and the evaluation of the changes that appear in the pregnancies ended by spontaneous abortion compared to normal pregnancies ended by requested abortion. One hundred eight patients were divided in two groups: the study group that included 58 patients with spontaneous abortion and the control group that included 50 patients with requested abortion. There has been made uterine curettage in all the cases after a complete preoperative evaluation and the obtained product was sent for histopathological evaluation and immunohistochemical study using a VEGF antibody.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A prospective study made by authors was initiated in 2000 in order to analyze differences in terms of response rate, overall survival and progression free survival for patients with advanced head and neck carcinoma treated with radiotherapy vs. radiochemotherapy, respectively and to analyze the role of modern molecular biomarkers in the prognosis of these patients (p53, EGFR and Ki67). It was detected one significant difference appeared between the two groups for response rate (p<0.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Skin burns represent a major problem of public health because of their frequency and because of their seriousness, too. The healing process of the burnt wound is extremely complex, as it requires a well-coordinated collaboration among different tissues and cellular strings. From the morphological point of view, the stages of the repairing process of the skin wounds include processes of inflammation, proliferation and tissular remodeling.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

During the healing process of third-degree skin burns, a very complex response involves different cells and tissues linked together by intra- and extra-cellular mechanisms. For the restoration of damaged tissues, angiogenesis is the key point in the formation of new blood vessels. By their emollient, astringent, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, biostimulator, epithelizing and cicatrizing effect, active principles from natural products contribute to the acceleration of the wound-healing process.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Skin burns are a rather high incidence lesions which, depending on their depth and extension, can severely affect not only the skin but the entire organism. Third-degree skin burns extended on over 20% of the body surface often require skin graft. Skin allograft is a therapeutic alternative when autograft cannot be used.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Macrophages are some of the innate immune cells with a central role in inflammatory and immune responses. Studies in the last 20 years have shown that these cells have a particular influence in the reparative processes also. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the macrophage response in third-degree skin burns treated with allograft in an experimental model.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF