Infectious diseases risk framing in Bulgarian media during early COVID-19 pandemic and the Ebola crisis.

Introduction: Social forces, in conjunction with biological variables, play a crucial role in shaping the overall health of a community, particularly in the context of infectious disease outbreaks. Mass media calibrates risk perception among the public. The present study's aims are to review risk framings in the Bulgarian National Television in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and to compare results with the communication strategies employed when Ebola was exported outside of Africa.

Clinical and virological profile of locally acquired acute hepatitis E in South Bulgaria.

Introduction: Acute hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is recognized as a zoonosis in several European countries. We describe the characteristics and outcomes of locally acquired acute HEV hepatitis.

Methodology: A prospective study was conducted among adult patients with acute HEV hepatitis at the University Hospital in Plovdiv, South Bulgaria between January 2020 and May 2022.

Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit-Incidence and Strategies for Prevention.

The second most prevalent healthcare-associated infection in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) is ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). This review aims to update the knowledge regarding the incidence of neonatal VAP and to summarize possible strategies for prevention. The VAP incidence ranges from 1.

Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Infection among Hemodialysis Patients from Southern Bulgaria.

Viral hepatitis B and C are widely recognized problems in hemodialysis (HD) patients. There have been increasing reports of the importance of the hepatitis E virus (HEV) in recent years, but the worldwide data on the seroprevalence of HEV among them are conflicting. The aim of the present study was to assess the seroprevalence of HEV in HD patients and to analyze the predictors of seropositivity.

Bulgarian General Practitioners' Communication Styles about Child Vaccinations, Mainly Focused on Parental Decision Making in the Context of a Mandatory Immunization Schedule.

The communication practices of general practitioners in relation with vaccines have not been a topic of wide scientific interest. In this article, we outline them in the context of Bulgaria. A representative, cross-sectional, quantitative, face-to-face survey was conducted among 358 Bulgarian general practitioners in 2022 using simple random sampling.

Age and Gender Trends in the Prevalence of Markers for Hepatitis E Virus Exposure in the Heterogeneous Bulgarian Population.

The prevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) in the Bulgarian population remains underestimated. The aim of the present study was to evaluate age and gender trends in HEV prevalence in the heterogeneous Bulgarian population. Stored serum samples from blood donors and different patient sub-populations-kidney recipients (KR), patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), Lyme disease (LD), patients with liver involvement and a clinical diagnosis other than viral hepatitis A and E (non-AE), hemodialysis (HD) and HIV-positive patients (HIV)-were retrospectively investigated for markers of past and recent/ongoing HEV infection.

Chest CT diagnostic potential as a tool for early detection of suspected COVID-19 cases in pandemic peaks.

Introduction: The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in China at the end of 2019 caused a massive global outbreak that has become a major public health issue.

Aim: Our aim was to investigate the diagnostic potential of chest CT in screening patients suspected of having COVID-19 in high-prevalence settings.

Materials And Methods: This is a real-life, prospective, observational study involving 260 patients.

Depression and quality of life among Afghan healthcare workers: A cross-sectional survey study.

Background: According to the World Health Organization, approximately 280 million individuals worldwide suffer from depression. One occupational group that is more prone to mental health issues is healthcare workers (HCWs). However, very little is known about the mental health of HCWs in Afghanistan.

Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in Neonates Admitted to a Tertiary Care NICU in Bulgaria.

Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the second most common hospital-acquired infection (HAI) among neonatal patients in the intensive care units (ICUs) and is a serious challenge for neonatologists because it affects critically ill patients who need prolonged mechanical ventilation. In Bulgaria, there is no detailed data at regional and national levels on the characteristics of VAP in newborns, which imposes a necessity for specific studies of risk factors and etiology of VAP. The aim of the study was to analyze the frequency, characteristics and risk factors for the occurrence of VAP in newborns hospitalized in intensive care unit.

Cost Analysis for Patients with Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

The concept of improving the quality and safety of healthcare is well known. However, a follow-up question is often asked about whether these improvements are cost-effective. The prevalence of nosocomial infections (NIs) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is approximately 30% in developing countries.

Reporting adverse events of COVID-19 vaccines: The case of Bulgaria.

As a member state of the European Union, where vaccines against COVID-19 are available and affordable, Bulgaria reports the lowest immunization coverage and the most pronounced vaccine distrust. The present study aimed to assess the self-reported adverse reactions following COVID-19 vaccination as a possible tool to increase the trust in vaccines. A cross-sectional survey-based study, covering 761 vaccinated respondents, was conducted in Plovdiv (469 with an mRNA vaccine and 292 with an adenoviral vector vaccine).

Surveillance of Nosocomial Infections in a Bulgarian Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Introduction: Nosocomial infections (NI) are frequent complications in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) which result in high morbidity and mortality.

Aim: To determine and analyze the incidence, risk factors and etiologic agents of NI in newborns admitted in the NICU to help plan-ning future surveillance and prevention strategies.

Materials And Methods: A prospective cohort study was carried out at the NICU of St George University Hospital, Plovdiv, Bul-garia from January 1, 2017 to June 31, 2018.

Epidemiological Prognosis of Pertussis Incidence in Bulgaria.

Introduction: Epidemiological forecasting facilitates scientifically sound solutions to upcoming theoretical and practical issues, in the development of public health management, in particular of infectious diseases.

Aim: To critically analyze the most recent scientific advances in the biosocial nature and methodology of epidemiological forecasting to present a real-life example of pertussis, a disease with shifting epidemiology.

Materials And Methods: For the prediction of pertussis morbidity the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) the model was established by utilizing the method of time series analysis to construct a model of overall morbidity using Time series modeller in SPSS v.