Publications by authors named "Sarantis Pittas"
Background Hospital-acquired infections are a common problem in Intensive Care Units and are associated with significant morbidity, mortality, and cost of hospitalization. Despite the development of prevention and control strategies, the incidence of hospital-acquired infections remains consistently high in ICUs and is often associated with the practices of healthcare professionals in patient care. Purpose The aim of the study was to investigate the perceptions of ICU nursing staff regarding measures for the prevention of hospital-acquired infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Spontaneous dissection of the coronary arteries is relatively rare and usually does not affect life expectancy. However specific types have been implicated to episodes of sudden cardiac death and myocardial ischemia. The recognition of both clinical and imaging characteristics contributes to appropriate decision and patient management.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Several studies have examined the efficacy of smoking cessation therapies in the general population. However little is known about the efficacy of these advisory methods in cardiovascular patients.
Aim: The aim of the study is to determine the prevalence and the characteristics of smoking abstinence in cardiovascular patients, after a smoking intervention during hospitalization.
Introduction: Many patients who are hospitalised for acute ischaemic episodes stop smoking; however, many of them relapse and resume smoking again within three months from their hospitalisation. The aim of this study was to study the factors that might affect smoking resumption in patients who have suffered an acute coronary syndrome.
Methods: We studied 420 patients, active smokers at the time of admission, who were hospitalised for an acute coronary episode.