Complementary Medicine Practice and Use of Dietary Supplements in Pediatric Cancer Patients in Croatia.

Introduction:  The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has become a customary practice among pediatric cancer patients worldwide. The frequency of its use by pediatric cancer patients in Croatia has not been previously determined.  Methodology: In order to establish the frequency and detect factors affecting the use of CAM, a single-center, observational, cross-sectional study was conducted at the Children's Hospital Zagreb during a two-year period.

Urinary brain-derived neurotrophic factor and nerve growth factor as noninvasive biomarkers of overactive bladder in children.

Introduction: Overactive bladder (OAB) is the most common urinary disorder and the leading cause of functional daytime intermittent urinary incontinence in children. The aim of this study was to determine whether urinary brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF) concentrations, normalized to urine creatinine, could be used as biomarkers for diagnosis and treatment monitoring of OAB in children.

Materials And Methods: Urine samples of 48 pediatric patients with OAB were collected at the start of anticholinergic therapy (baseline), at follow-up visits (3 and 6 months), and from 48 healthy controls.

Overactivity index: A noninvasive and objective outcome measure in overactive bladder in children.

Introduction: Reports showed that observing detrusor overactivity (DO) and maximum cystometric capacity (MCC) may guide rational pharmacotherapy. Since urodynamic studies (UDS) are challenging for both patients and the healthcare system, a non-invasive objective prognostic marker is preferable.

Objectives: To investigate the value of the overactivity index (OI), a non-invasive measure calculated from the frequency-volume chart (FVC), for predicting the presence of symptoms and abnormal UDS in children with non-neurogenic OAB.

A challenging case of an adolescent and young adult patient with high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia: the need for a multidisciplinary approach: a case report.

Background: Adolescents and young adults diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia are treated according to pediatric-based regimens to achieve better results. However, implementation of intensive chemotherapy protocols in this age group is associated with increased treatment-related toxicities, affecting almost every organ and system. In this case, the focus of our interest was on rather rare entities: steroid-induced psychosis that seldom develops in children and adolescents, and choroid plexus hemosiderosis, infrequently identified as a first sign of iron overload.

Serum Calprotectin Is a Valid Biomarker in Distinction of Bacterial Urinary Tract Infection From Viral Respiratory Illness in Children Under 3 Years of Age.

Background: Febrile illnesses in young children can be a major diagnostic challenge, despite the routine use of various laboratory markers. Recent advancements in the understanding of inflammatory processes have highlighted the role of calprotectin, a heterodimer consisting of S100A8 and S100A9 proteins, with many studies suggesting its clinical value as a biomarker of inflammation. This research aimed to evaluate the usefulness of serum calprotectin (sCal) as a biomarker of urinary tract infection (UTI), which was due to its high pooled prevalence and feasibility of urine culture as a diagnostic reference standard selected for a model of bacterial infection in children.

An Unusual Case of Syringohydromyelia Presenting with Neurogenic Bladder.

We report the case of a 4-year-old boy who first presented with acute pyelonephritis at the age of 6 months. Diagnostic workup revealed high-grade bilateral vesicourethral reflux (VUR). At the age of 18 months, a bulking agent was used to treat bilateral VUR.

Autosomal recessive Alport syndrome caused by a novel COL4A4 splice site mutation: a case report.

Alport syndrome (AS) is a genetically heterogenic, structural disorder of the glomerular basement membrane (GBM) due to the mutation of COL4A3, COL4A4, or COL4A5 genes, which clinically presents as progressive hematuric nephritis with ultrastructural changes of the GBM, high tone sensorineural hearing loss, and ocular lesions. About 15% of AS cases have autosomal mutations of COL4A3 and COL4A4 genes, including homozygous and compound heterozygous mutations. Here, we present a case of a two-year-old boy with autosomal recessive Alport syndrome (ARAS) caused by a novel c.

Short health scale: a valid, reliable, and responsive measure of health-related quality of life in children with inflammatory bowel disease.

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) presents a growing medical and epidemiological problem. In respect to patients, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) emerged as informative means to evaluate the impact of disease burden on health. The Short Health Scale (SHS), a disease-specific HRQOL instrument with only 4 questions (symptoms, functioning, worry, and general well-being), was demonstrated as valid, reliable, and responsive in adults.

The IMPACT-III (HR) questionnaire: a valid measure of health-related quality of life in Croatian children with inflammatory bowel disease.

Background And Aims: To assess the reliability and validity of IMPACT-III (HR), a disease-specific, health-related quality of life instrument in Croatian children with inflammatory bowel disease.

Methods: In a multicenter study, 104 children participated in a validation study of IMPACT-III (HR) cross-culturally adapted for Croatia. Factor analysis was used to determine optimal domain structure for this cohort, analysis of Cronbach's alpha coefficients to test internal reliability, ANOVA to assess discriminant validity, and correlation with Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, Version 4.

Diagnosis of coeliac disease in children younger than 2 years.

Background And Aim: To diagnose coeliac disease (CD) in children younger than 2 years, the old ESPGHAN criteria based on 3 small bowel biopsies were recommended until recently. The aim of the present study was to investigate the applicability of only 1 small intestinal biopsy plus positive serology for the diagnosis of CD in children younger than 2 years.

Methods: A prospective cohort study included 81 patients younger than 2 years with symptoms suggestive of CD, who all completed the diagnostic procedure based on 3 small bowel biopsies.

Lactobacillus GG in the prevention of nosocomial gastrointestinal and respiratory tract infections.

Objective: The incidence of nosocomial infections, predominantly gastrointestinal and respiratory, in children in developed countries is high, ranging from 5% to 44%. There is no effective strategy for preventing these infections. The objective of our study was to investigate the role of Lactobacillus GG (LGG) in preventing nosocomial gastrointestinal and respiratory tract infections at a pediatric hospital.

Pedunculated myolipoma incidentally found in hernial sac: a case report.

A case of a very rare adipocytic tumor found during corrective surgery for incisional abdominal hernia is presented. Because of uterine leiomyomas the patient underwent total abdominal hysterectomy 14 years before. During surgery of incisional hernia, a part of small intestine along with a pedunculated tumor was found in hernial sac.

Lactobacillus GG in the prevention of gastrointestinal and respiratory tract infections in children who attend day care centers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Background & Aims: The aim of our study was to investigate the role of Lactobacillus GG (LGG) in the prevention of gastrointestinal and respiratory tract infections in children who attend day care centers.

Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 281 children who attend day care centers. They were randomly allocated to receive LGG at a dose of 10(9) colony-forming units in 100ml of a fermented milk product (LGG group, n=139) or placebo that was the same post-pasteurized fermented milk product without LGG (placebo group, n=142) during the 3-month intervention period.

[Relationship of regional alcohol drinking habit and cardiovascular risk factors in Croatia].

Aim: The aim was to investigate regional distribution of drinking habit and its relation to the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors.

Subjects And Methods: Nine thousand and seventy participants older than 18 questioned during THE 2003 Croatian health Survey were analyzed and weighted data extrapolated to the adult Croatian population. Study group included subjects reporting regular intake of any type of alcohol drink (liquor, wine or beer) during the past year.

Peace test: is war sometimes a better solution? Survey of students of Zagreb and Mostar Schools of Medicine.

Aim: To investigate the differences among medical students from two medical schools, one in Zagreb, Croatia, and the other in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in their affinity towards peaceful vs violent way of solving conflicts.

Methods: A total of 733 students from the Zagreb and 102 medical students from the Mostar University School of Medicine filled out an anonymous questionnaire during their enrollment into the next academic year. The questionnaire consisted of 10 Likert-type questions with 1-5 answer scale, which were designed to give an illustration of students' attitude towards war.