Non-persistence with multiple secondary prevention medications for peripheral arterial disease among older hypertensive patients.

Introduction: The benefit of secondary prevention in hypertensive patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is based on continual simultaneous taking of statins, antiplatelet agents and antihypertensive agents, preferably angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs). Our study was aimed at a) the analysis of the extent of non-persistence with multiple medication classes, and b) identifying factors associated with the likelihood of non-persistence.

Methods: In our cohort study, 3,401 hypertensive patients (1,853 females and 1,548 males) aged ≥65 years treated simultaneously with statins, antiplatelet agents and ACEIs/ARBs and in whom PAD was newly diagnosed during 2012 were analysed.

Determination of activities of Pb in Slovak tobacco and cigarettes: a study on radiological risks.

This study investigates the Pb activity concentrations in tobacco and cigarettes available in Slovakia, utilizing two specific extraction methods including the Sr Resin sorbent used in extraction chromatography, and the AnaLig Sr01 sorbent, which operates based on molecular recognition principles. The findings revealed significant variations in Pb activity concentrations, with concentrations ranging from 13.3 to 33.

Factors associated with non-adherence to angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers in older patients with peripheral arterial disease.

As in other chronic conditions, medication adherence is important in the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Our study aimed at a) analysing non-adherence to angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) in groups of older ACEI and ARB users with PAD, and b) identifying characteristics associated with non-adherence. We focused on the implementation phase of adherence (i.

Reinitiation and Subsequent Discontinuation of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers among New and Prevalent Users Aged 65 Years or More with Peripheral Arterial Disease.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) are recommended in the treatment of arterial hypertension in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). The aims of our study were: (a) to analyse the extent of reinitiation and subsequent discontinuation in older hypertensive PAD patients non-persistent with ACEIs/ARBs; (b) to determine patient and medication factors associated with reinitiation and subsequent discontinuation; and (c) to compare these factors between prevalent and new users. The analysis of reinitiation was performed on a sample of 1642 non-persistent patients aged ≥65 years with PAD newly diagnosed in 2012.

Conjunctival Swab Findings in 484 COVID-19 Patients in Four Hospital Centers in Slovakia.

Since 2020, the COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) has quickly become a worldwide health problem. Ophthalmologists must deal with symptoms as well. For the positive detection in the conjunctival sac swab in COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Slovakia during March 2021 in four hospital centers, we used a test based on a polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Gender Differences in Non-Persistence with Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers among Older Hypertensive Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease.

The beneficial effects of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) in hypertensive patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) depends on long-term persistence. The aims of our study were to analyse gender differences in non-persistence with ACEIs/ARBs, and to identify the characteristics associated with the likelihood of non-persistence. Our study cohort included 7080 hypertensive patients (4005 women and 3075 men) aged ≥65 years, treated with ACEIs/ARBs, in whom PAD was diagnosed between 1 January and 31 December 2012.

Systematic Review of Authentication and Authorization Advancements for the Internet of Things.

Technologies for the Internet of Things (IoT) are maturing, yet no common standards dictate their direction, leaving space for a plethora of research directions and opportunities. Among the most important IoT topics is security. When we design a robust system, it is important to know the available options for facing common tasks related to access control, authentication, and authorization.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and conjunctival sac swab findings.

Background: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the positivity of conjunctival sac swab by PCR (Polymerase chain reaction) test in COronaVIrus Disease 19 (COVID-19) patients.

Methods: Inclusion criteria of our study were COVID-19 patients hospitalized during March 2021 in inpatient wards at University Hospitals in towns Bratislava and Zilina, Slovakia. The conjunctival sac swabs collected by four ophthalmologists were stored for 24 h, then analyzed in the laboratory of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University, Slovakia.

Adherence to Antiplatelet Medications among Persistent and Non-Persistent Older Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease.

Secondary prevention of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) includes administration of antiplatelet agents, and adherence to medication is a requirement for an effective treatment. The aim of this study was to analyse adherence measured using the proportion of days covered (PDC) index separately in persistent and non-persistent patients, and to identify patient- and medication-related characteristics associated with non-adherence in these patient groups. The study cohort of 9178 patients aged ≥ 65 years in whom PAD was diagnosed in 1/-12/2012 included 6146 persistent and 3032 non-persistent patients.

Reinitiation and Subsequent Discontinuation of Antiplatelet Treatment in Nonpersistent Older Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease.

The successful treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) depends on adequate adherence to medications including antiplatelet agents. The aims of this study were (a) to identify the proportion of nonpersistent patients who reinitiated antiplatelet therapy and how many of them discontinued therapy after reinitiation, and (b) to identify patient- and medication-related characteristics associated with the likelihood of reinitiation and discontinuation among reinitiators. The analysis of reinitiation was conducted on 3032 nonpersistent users of antiplatelet agents aged ≥65 years, with PAD newly diagnosed in 2012.

Blocking effect of ferritin on the ryanodine receptor-isoform 2.

Iron, an essential element for most living organism, participates in a wide variety of physiological processes. Disturbance in iron homeostasis has been associated with numerous pathologies, particularly in the heart and brain, which are the most susceptible organs. Under iron-overload conditions, the generation of reactive oxygen species leads to impairment in Ca signaling, fundamentally implicated in cardiac and neuronal physiology.

Phenotypical modifications of immune cells are enhanced by extracellular matrix.

Immune cells not only constitute tumour microenvironment but they may even affect disease prognosis as a result of dual functional roles that they may play in tumour tissues. Two frequently used established immune cell lines (lymphocytic Jurkat and monocytic THP-1) were used to test whether microenvironmental factors, especially molecular components of extracellular matrix, can shape the phenotype of immune cells. Proliferation, morphological and phenotypical analyses were applied to compare behaviour of the immune cells, typically cultured as suspensions in culture medium, with their behaviour in collagen type I-based and Matrigel-based 3D cultures.

Non-Persistence With Antiplatelet Medications Among Older Patients With Peripheral Arterial Disease.

Antiplatelet therapy needs to be administered life-long in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Our study was aimed at 1) the analysis of non-persistence with antiplatelet medication in older PAD patients and 2) identification of patient- and medication-related characteristics associated with non-persistence. The study data was retrieved from the database of the General Health Insurance Company.

Non-Adherence to Statin Treatment in Older Patients with Peripheral Arterial Disease Depending on Persistence Status.

The effectiveness of statins in secondary prevention of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) largely depends on patients' adherence to treatment. The aims of our study were: (a) to analyze non-adherence during the whole follow-up in persistent patients, and only during persistence for non-persistent patients; (b) to identify factors associated with non-adherence separately among persistent and non-persistent patients. A cohort of 8330 statin users aged ≥65 years, in whom PAD was newly diagnosed between January 2012-December 2012, included 5353 patients persistent with statin treatment, and 2977 subjects who became non-persistent during the 5-year follow-up.

Maternal Body Mass Index and Gestational Weight Gain and Their Association with Pregnancy Complications and Perinatal Conditions.

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of selected pregnancy pathologies statistically depending on overweight/obesity and excessive maternal weight gain during pregnancy on women who gave birth in the years 2013-2015 at the Second Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at the University Hospital in Bratislava, Slovakia. In a retrospective study, we analyzed data gathered from the sample, which consisted of 7122 women. Our results suggest a statistically significant, higher risk for the groups of women with overweight and obesity and gestational hypertension (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 15.

Extracellular matrix affects different aspects of cell behaviour potentially involved in response to aminolevulinic acid-based photoinactivation.

Two-dimensional cell cultures do not seem to be reliable models for anticancer drug discovery and validation. Numerous in vitro tumour models of different complexity have been evaluated with the aim to enhance anticancer drug development, but whether all these models could be considered as physiologically relevant is a question. Even type of the extracellular matrix may markedly influence experimental results and supposedly also clinical treatment outcome.

Cell-type dependent response to photodynamic treatment in 3D collagen cell cultures.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) can induce direct tumor cell destruction, indirect tumor cell inactivation due to vascular occlusion as well as immune response. Evidence suggests that the PDT-induced cell death is dependent on both PDT protocol-related as well as microenvironmental factors, and its mode is also decisive for the type of immune response. This suggests potential interrelationship among PDT-induced tumor cell destruction, immune response and microenvironmental factors.