Comparing health status in Belarus between 2001-10: a novel method using surveys with different response categories.

Background: Two population surveys were conducted in Belarus: The Living Conditions, Lifestyle and Health (LLH) in 2001 (n = 2000) and The Health in Times of Transition (HITT) in 2010 (n = 1800). Each survey included a question on health status. The LLH questionnaire provided a 4-point Verbal Response Scale, but the HITT questionnaire used a 5-point scale.

[Effect of gamma-aminobutyric acid and its analogs on the smooth muscle of veins].

Effect of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and its agonists, phenibut, phenylpyrrolidone and LGPI-29, on contractility of smooth muscle cells was studied on an isolated rat vena porta. The contractility was recorded by a rapidly operating 6MH-1B mechanotrone to show that the solutions of GABA and those of phenibut (to a less extent) exert a distinct inhibitory effect on smooth muscle cells of the rat vena porta at a concentration of 10--20 mM. Phenylpyrrolidone and LGPI-29 did not decrease vascular tone.