Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4)
Acute effects of using a mobile phone on CNS functions
Hladký A., Musil J., Roth Z., Urban P., Blažková V.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):165-167 
Twenty volunteers participated in two experiments exploring the acute effects of using the mobile phone Motorola GSM 8700 on the functions of the CNS. When speaking (5 minutes reading a text from daily newspapers) the electromagnetic fields from the mobile apparatus did not affect the visual evoked potentials. Also a 6-min exposure did not reveal any effect of electromagnetic fields on the results in two tests (memory and attention) performed while speaking into the mobile. On the other hand the phone call itself strongly influenced the performance in a secondary task applying a test of switching attention which is a good model for driving a car. The...
Alternative treatment of the carpal tunnel syndrome
Fialová J., Bartoušek J., Nakládalová M.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):168-171
Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a painful disease of the wrist which is usually treated with corticoids locally or surgically. In this study combined infusion therapy with procain, pentoxyphyllin and magnesium sulphuricum in patients with CTS was evaluated retrospectively. 101 manually working patients (65 male, 36 female) aged 42.8 ± 8.6 years, initially examined at our department to assess professional origin of the disease and who had abnormal conduction to the distal section of median nerve on electromyography (EMG), were entrolled. The group of patients was heterogenous etiologically. 41 % of patients were found to be exposed to overlimit...
Plesiomonas shigelloides in water and fish
Aldová E., Melter O., Chýle P., Šlosárek M., Kodym P.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):172-175
Plesiomonas shigelloides strains isolated from aquariums, surface water and fish were serotyped using the international antigenic scheme and a provisional scheme designed for environmental strains, called the "Schubert" scheme. A remarkable variety of serovars represented in both schemes was found, namely in surface water samples and in fish.
Status of magnesium, selenium and iodine saturation in the population of seven regions in the Czech Republic
Šimečková A., Zamrazil V., Čeřovská J., Kvíčala J., Bílek R.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):176-181
In seven regions of the Czech Republic the magnesiuria and calciuria were determined photometrically using the apparatus Merck Vitalab Eclipse, the selenuria fluorimetrically and the ioduria photometrically after alkaline mineralization in the morning sample of urine (after night fasting) in subjects aged 6-65 years (3,587 probands) selected at random. The lowest magnesiuria was found in children in Klatovy district (5.36 nmol/l ± 0.11) and the highest magnesiuria was estimated in children from the Usti nad Labem district (6.59 mmol/l ± 0.16). In adults the lowest magnesiuria was in Vsetin region (3.78 mmol/l ± 0.08). Selenuria...
Microbiological control of the water bottling process
Šefcová H.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):182-184
Psychrophilic and mesophilic bacteria counts were detected in samples taken from 10 sites in filling line for bottled waters (table and baby waters). Increased microorganisms count were located behind the sand filter and the aeration unit (10(2) CFU/ml). We recommend intensified sanitation of the aeration columns.
Spectral coherence between blood pressure and inter-beat intervals in hypertension
Danev S., Datzov E., Svetoslavov S., Mikhov D., Markova P., Girchev R.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):185-188
Continuous registration of blood pressure (BP) was obtained in 31 normotensives and 76 hypertensives (divided into 3 stages of hypertension) by a method where the blood pressure in a human finger was measured non-invasively in a beat-by-beat fully calibrated manner. From this signal, the power density spectra of inter-beat intervals (IBI), systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were derived. Total spectral power (TP) and low/high spectral frequency ratios of all spectra were calculated. Cross-correlation analysis between IBI, SBP and DBP spectra showed that the level of amplitude and phase spectral coherence (SC) was strongly...
National Tuberculosis Programme in Romania 1997-2000: how it works
Ditiu L.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):189-190
Romania displays one of the highest epidemiological parameters of tuberculosis among European countries: the incidence reached 113.3 per 100,000 in 1998, the prevalence of chronic cases was 18.9 and mortality 11.5 per 100,000 in 1996. A National Tuberculosis Programme aimed at decreasing the present burden of the disease has been elaborated according to the WHO strategy in 1997 and for its implementing. The National Committee on Pneumophtisiology and the Central Unit of the National Institute of Pneumophtisiology were made responsible. Tuberculosis managers and supervisors were nominated in each of the 48 counties and a total of 18,000 family doctors...
Drinking water, mortality, and life expectancy: an assessment of the east-west mortality gap in Europe
Guliš G., Kross B.C.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):191-196
The role of the drinking water in public health has been recognised for many years. Recent ecological studies of mortality rates in Slovakia when compared to indicators of environmental pollution have shown surprising results - areas with greater air pollution seem to have lower total mortality rates. This paradox may be explained by a number of other factors, including urban/rural occupational conditions, socio-economic status, access to health care, and perhaps drinking water. Overall population access to safe drinking water is about the same between East and West Europe, but more careful evaluation suggest at least one important difference. About...
Problems associated with sterilization using ethylene oxide. Residues in treated materials
Buben I., Melicherčíková V., Novotná N., Svitáková R.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):197-202
The paper deals with problems associated with reduction of undesirable effects of ethylene oxide in polymers in medical devices on the patient's health. The authors explain the need of careful elaboration and validation of the sterilization and aeration process incl assessment of ethylene oxide (EO) residues. The authors investigated the effect of the type of material and conditions of sterilization and aeration on the assessed EO concentration. For research of the behaviour of different polymers in the sterilization process model sterilizations of actual items of medical devices with a known composition proved more suitable than assessment in medical...
Environmental health and the family doctors
Amaral-Mendes J.J., Pauluis J.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):203-206
Medicine, that is human medicine, has a long tradition of the use of biomarkers in assessing multiple departures from the health status: it is assumed that in ecosystem health assessment this experience could be helpfully shared with all those - from many scientific disciplines - involved in this research, crucial for the future of life on earth. The growing importance of ecology is evident in all aspects of modern life. Social and economically the ecological analysis cannot be ignored in future by politicians or medical doctors alike. Environmental Health is thus taking over many responsibilities from the traditional Public Health, mainly the significant...
Defining and assessing health-related quality of life
Holčík J., Koupilová I.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):207-209
In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in quality of life assessment in clinical research and practice, as well as in public health and policy analysis. Indicators of health-related quality of life are important not only for health professionals and their patients, but also for health administrators and health economists in health care planning and policy making. Most studies on the outcome of treatments and interventions now include some kind of a quality of life measure. This usually takes a form of an assessment of symptoms and physical functioning, measurement of psychological well-being, life satisfaction, or coping and adjustment....
Occupational risks for human reproduction: ELSPAC Study
Hrubá D., Kukla L., Tyrlík M.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):210-215
Pregnant women living in Brno who were contacted for the first time at 18th week of their pregnancies during the period from February 1990 to January 1992 were involved into the ELSPAC group. Among others, the exposure to different occupational factors in the three periods was obtained by the self-reported questionnaire: 1. the last 9 months before pregnancy, 2. the first, and 3. second trimester periods. The women's health status during pregnancy, the history of delivery and the developmental and health status of newborns were described in details by obstetrics and pediatrics according to another internationally unified questionnaire. All data obtained...
Quality of water - quality of life
Sixl W., Sixl K., Sixl-Voigt B.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):216-220
Especially in developing countries, the problem of adequate drinking water supply is an ever growing one. Public health programmes have been established to improve the population's health conditions, but these programmes require big financial means for guaranteeing adequate supply of potable water and medical therapy for sick people. Too little emphasis is still put on regular testing of drinking water for microorganisms such as Aeromonas sp. and Vibrio sp. In a spot check analysis in various countries, the importance of Aeromonas sp. is shown - not a single sample complied with international norms and guidelines for drinking water.
The biomarkers detecting early changes in the human organism exposed to occupational carcinogens
Indulski J.A., Lutz W.
Cent Eur J Public Health 1999, 7(4):221-224
Epidemiological studies and clinical data confirm that occupational exposure to carcinogenic agents plays an important role in cancer etiology. Recent tremendous progress in understanding of the mechanisms of carcinogenesis, and also introduction of new tests to recognize changes occurring in the exposed organism have made it possible for the occupational medicine to detect the earliest cancer stages which occur during the latent phase of the disease. Detecting pre-neoplastic changes which precede an overt form of cancer and identification of measurable indicators of those changes has been one of the fundamental aims of molecular biology research....