Outcomes of low-risk birth care during the Covid-19 pandemic: A cohort study from a tertiary care center in Lithuania.

According to the World Health Organization, midwife-led care is the most appropriate and cost-effective type of perinatal care. As the Covid-19 pandemic with its drastic changes and challenges for the health systems and the medical staff made large adjustments to the healthcare delivery system, midwife-led care became an even more important supportive tool in maintaining unnecessary interventions. This retrospective cohort study aims to compare the outcomes of midwife-led care and team-led care in low-risk births between the Covid-19 pandemic and non-Covid-19 pandemic period.

Individualized care for older adults with diabetes and its relationship with communication, psychosocial self-efficacy, resources and support for self-management and socio-demographics.

Aim: To examine the relationship between patient-provider communication, psychosocial patient self-efficacy, resources and support for self-management and socio-demographics within individualized care of older adults with diabetes.

Design: A quantitative study with a cross-sectional survey design.

Methods: Data were collected from September 2019 to January 2021 using: Individualized Care Scale, The Communication Assessment Tool, The Diabetes Empowerment Scale and The Resources and Support for Self-Management Scale.

Effectiveness of the ELLA Training for the Promotion of Emotional and Social Competences in Lithuanian Preschool Children.

By developing the emotional and social competences of children of preschool age, one can expect the prevention of emotional and behavioral problems and a better social and academic adaptation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the ELLA training for the promotion of emotional and social competences in 3-6-year-old children in preschool education institutions in Lithuania. In total, 140 children aged 3-6 years participated in the quasi-experimental study, of which 86 children were assigned to the experimental group and 54 were assigned to the control group.

Alzheimer's Disease Association with Metals and Metalloids Concentration in Blood and Urine.

As there is some evidence that the risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD) is partially attributable to environmental exposure to some metals and metalloids, we examined an association between AD and arsenic, chromium, and selenium in 53 AD patients and 217 controls. Urinary arsenic, blood chromium, and selenium were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Logistic regression models calculating odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were used to estimate AD association with arsenic, chromium, and selenium.

Microvascular Complications, Peripheral Artery Disease and Mortality in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, in Two Counties of Southern Lithuania over 13 Years: Analysis Using a Cohort Database of the National Health Insurance.

People living with diabetes mellitus are at risk of developing many serious and life-threatening complications. The present study aimed to determine the occurrence of microvascular complications, peripheral artery disease, and mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), in 2 Lithuanian counties. The data on residents aged ≥ 18 years, who were diagnosed for the first time in 2004 with uncomplicated T2DM, were obtained from the National Health Insurance Fund database.

Impaired Subjective Visual Vertical and Increased Visual Dependence in Older Adults With Falls.

Aging affects the vestibular system and may disturb the perception of verticality and lead to increased visual dependence (VD). Studies have identified that abnormal upright perception influences the risk of falling. The aim of our study was to evaluate subjective visual vertical (SVV) and VD using a mobile virtual reality-based system for SVV assessment (VIRVEST) in older adults with falls and evaluate its relationship with clinical balance assessment tools, dizziness, mental state, and depression level.

The Behavioral Problems in 2.5-5 Years Old Children Linked with Former Neonatal/Infantile Surgical Parameters.

Studies report the link between exposure to major neonatal surgery and the risk of later neurodevelopmental disorders. The aim of this study was to find out the behavioral problem scores of 2.5-5 years old children who had undergone median/major non-cardiac surgery before the age of 90 days, and to relate these to intraoperative cerebral tissue oxygenation values (rSO), perioperative duration of mechanical ventilation (DMV) and doses of sedative/analgesic agents.

Accuracy of Acoustic Voice Quality Index Captured With a Smartphone - Measurements With Added Ambient Noise.

Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of Acoustic Voice Quality Index (AVQI) measures obtained from voice recordings simultaneously using oral and smartphone microphones in a sound-proof room, and to compare them with AVQIs obtained from the same smartphone voice recordings with added ambient noise.

Methods: A study group of 183 subjects with normal voices (n = 86) and various voice disorders (n = 97) was asked to read aloud a standard text and sustain the vowel /a/. The controlled ambient noise averaged at 29.

Cadmium Exposure and Risk of Breast Cancer by Histological and Tumor Receptor Subtype in White Caucasian Women: A Hospital-Based Case-Control Study.

As the majority of experimental studies suggest cadmium being metalloestrogen, we examined cadmium/breast cancer (BC) association by histological and tumor receptor subtype in 509 invasive BC patients and 1170 controls. Urinary cadmium was determined by atomic absorption spectrometry, and categorized using tertiles of its distribution in the controls: <0.18, 0.

Validation of the EFFECT questionnaire for competence-based clinical teaching in residency training in Lithuania.

Background And Aim: In 2013, all residency programs at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences were renewed into a competency-based medical education curriculum. To assess the quality of clinical teaching in residency training, we chose the EFFECT (evaluation and feedback for effective clinical teaching) questionnaire designed and validated at the Radboud University Medical Centre in the Netherlands. The aim of this study was to validate the EFFECT questionnaire for quality assessment of clinical teaching in residency training.

Association between lifetime exposure to passive smoking and risk of breast cancer subtypes defined by hormone receptor status among non-smoking Caucasian women.

Tobacco smoking is inconsistently associated with breast cancer. Although some studies suggest that breast cancer risk is related to passive smoking, little is known about the association with breast cancer by tumor hormone receptor status. We aimed to explore the association between lifetime passive smoking and risk of breast cancer subtypes defined by estrogen receptor and progesterone receptor status among non-smoking Caucasian women.

The Association of Low-To-Moderate Alcohol Consumption with Breast Cancer Subtypes Defined by Hormone Receptor Status.

Background: Alcohol is a well-established risk factor for breast cancer, but pathways involved in alcohol-related breast carcinogenesis are not clearly defined. We examined the association between low-to-moderate alcohol intake and breast cancer subtypes by tumor hormone receptor status.

Materials And Methods: A hospital-based case-control study was performed in 585 cases and 1,170 controls.

The cost of newly diagnosed breast cancer in Lithuania, 2011.

Background And Objective: Although the cost of treating women with breast cancer (BC) is an important component for cost saving and effectiveness in relation to the benefits of BC treatment interventions, there is limited information on the direct cost reported for BC in Lithuania. Therefore the aim of this study was to evaluate annual direct medical cost for newly diagnosed BC in Lithuania in the year 2011.

Materials And Methods: The retrospective incidence-based top-down direct cost analysis was used.

Comparison of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of two recombinant granulocyte colony-stimulating factor formulations after single subcutaneous administration to healthy volunteers.

Background And Objective: The aim of this randomized, single dose, two-period crossover study with two weeks wash-out period was the demonstration of bioequivalence of two recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rG-CSF) formulations after subcutaneous administration of 300μg comparing their pharmacokinetic (primary endpoints AUC0-24, AUC0-∞ and Cmax) and pharmacodynamic (primary endpoints ANC AUC0-72, ANC AUC0-∞ and ANCmax) profiles in healthy male subjects.

Materials And Methods: A total of 36 (23.0±6.

Association between cadmium and breast cancer risk according to estrogen receptor and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2: epidemiological evidence.

The study aimed to examine the association between cadmium (Cd) and the risk of breast cancer according to estrogen receptor (ER) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). A hospital-based case-control study was carried out in 585 cases and 1,170 controls. Information on possible risk factors was collected via a structured questionnaire.

Assessment of a questionnaire for breast cancer case-control studies.

The aim of the present study was to assess criterion validity and external reliability of a questionnaire on risk factors for breast cancer. Materials and Methods. Women with breast cancer diagnosis (the cases) (N=40) and matched individuals without cancer (the controls) (N=40) were asked to fill in a questionnaire twice: on a day of admission to hospital (Q1) and on a day before discharge (Q2), with a time interval of 4-6 days.

Associations between the fracture type and functional outcomes after distal radial fractures treated with a volar locking plate.

OBJECTIVE. The aim of this study to investigate the associations of fracture type, age, and gender with hand function after distal radius fractures treated with a volar locking plate at a 6-month follow-up. MATERIAL AND METHODS.

Incidence of inflammatory bowel disease in Kaunas region, Lithuania.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of inflammatory bowel disease in Kaunas and its region during a 3-year period.

Material And Methods: The study was conducted during the 3-year period (2007-2009) and enrolled the patients from Kaunas with its region, which has a population of 381,300 inhabitants. The data were collected from all practices in the area where the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease was made by practicing gastroenterologists and consulting pediatricians along with endoscopists.

Rationality of administered gentamicin dose in cerebral coma patients treated in an intensive care unit.

Gentamicin is still widely used in the treatment of patients in an intensive care unit (ICU). The efficacy of aminoglycosides correlates with the peak serum concentration (Cmax), and the toxicity with the minimum serum concentration (Cmin). The aim of this study was to determine Cmax and Cmin in serum of cerebral coma ICU patients when a dosage of gentamicin of 5 mg/kg body weight was administered once daily; to evaluate the rationality of mentioned dose; and to identify factors associated with these concentrations.

Evaluation of health-related quality of life in patients with breast cancer.

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, comprising about 23% of all cancer types. About 1300 new cases of breast cancer are registered in Lithuania annually. During the last decade, health-related quality of life has become an important part of breast cancer treatment.

Cadmium concentration in biological media of breast cancer patients.

The study aimed to determine and compare cadmium (Cd) concentration in different biological media of breast cancer and benign breast tumor patients. Concentration of Cd was determined in breast tissue, urine, and blood of 57 breast cancer and 51 benign tumor patients. Two samples of breast tissue from each patient, i.

Specialist English as a foreign language for European public health: evaluation of competencies and needs among Polish and Lithuanian students.

Foreign languages are becoming an essential prerequisite for a successful carrier among all professions including public health professionals in many countries. The expanding role of English as a mode of communication allows for university graduates to project and to seek their career in English-speaking countries. The present study was carried out in the framework of EU Leonardo da Vinci project "Specialist English as a foreign language for European public health.

[Safety and efficacy study of the recombinant granulocyte colony-stimulating factor for prevention of neutropenia and neutropenia-related complications in women with metastatic breast cancer receiving docetaxel/doxorubicin].

Background: We evaluated efficacy and safety of recombinant granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (rGCSF) used as primary prophylaxis to prevent neutropenia and neutropenia-related complications induced by docetaxel and doxorubicin chemotherapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Patients And Methods: Three centers in Lithuania enrolled 36 patients who received rGCSF (5 microg/kg/d) on day 2 of each 21-day chemotherapy with docetaxel 75 mg/m(2) and doxorubicin 50 mg/m(2) (AT) starting in the first cycle. Treatment regimen was repeated for up to six cycles.

[Association between cadmium and breast cancer].

Cadmium is a known human lung carcinogen, although some studies indicate a link between cadmium exposure and human breast cancer. The objective of this study was to assess cadmium concentration in breast tissue samples of patients with breast cancer and benign breast tumor. MATERIAL AND METHODS.

Integrating global data into local health data base.

Data analysis traditionally belong to scientist's field of interest. Usually scientists gatherer and analyze their own data. Challenges of 21st century require more global point view in decision making process from each worker in local workplace.