Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2)

Erfurt Male Cohort Study (ERFORT Study). Study Design and Descriptive Results

Joachim Heinrich, Christa Meisinger, Gabriele Wölke, Claudia Greschik, Hubert Schneller, Sabine Brasche, Gert Strube

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):51-57 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3410  

Objectives: The main objective of ERFORT Study is to investigate cardiovascular risk factors, life-style related factors and psychosocial factors with regard to total and cause-specific mortality and morbidity. This paper describes the study design, frequency data on cardiovascular and psychosocial factors at baseline survey, and findings of three 5 year follow-up medical examinations. Life status was followed for 30 years. Methods: The Erfurt Male Cohort Study (ERFORT Study) is a population-based prospective cohort study and has its origin in the WHO initiated feasibility study to acquire experience in multi-factorial intervention programs. The baseline...

Promoting Public Health: Benefits and Challenges of a Europeanwide Research Consortium on Student Health

Walid El Ansari, Annette E. Maxwell, Rafael T. Mikolajczyk, Christiane Stock, Vihra Naydenova, Alexander Krämer

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):58-65 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3418  

Aims: The purpose of this paper is to highlight some of the benefits and challenges when undertaking research across several countries comprising diverse ethnic, lingual and historically different communities.Methods: Literature review and experiences of the researchers who participated in the Students' Health Inquiry, as regards the benefits and the challenges that can emerge when conducting collaborative research. The Delphi technique was employed to reach consensus on and prioritise the emerging challenges and suggested solutions.Results: Challenges of research consortia include the preparatory work before the study, the ownership of the...

Physical Activity Patterns and Sedentary Behaviors of Children from Urban and Rural Areas of Cyprus

Eirini Bathrellou, Chrystalleni Lazarou, Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos, Labros S. Sidossis

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):66-70 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3414  

Background: A sedentary lifestyle among children is becoming increasingly common and has been linked to future risk of degenerative diseases. Urban residence has been suggested to be a contributing factor to a less active lifestyle; however, not all available studies support this link. In the present study we examined the physical activity patterns and sedentary behaviours of children living in urban and rural areas of Cyprus, where major demographic shifts have occurred the last decades.Methods: We studied 1140 children (531 boys; 609 girls), aged 10-12 years, registered in 24 selected elementary public schools from five urban and rural districts...

The Development of Medical Sociology in the Post-soviet Society: The Case of Lithuania

Raimundas Kaminskas, Eimantas Peičius

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):74-78 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3403  

This article explores the historical development of medical sociology and analyses the social problems that have had impacted the changes of health care institutionalization particularly in Lithuania during the Soviet and post-soviet period. Approaching the interaction between sociology and public health sciences, it is intended to apply the concept of medical sociology and its determinants in the context of health care and education systems. By analyzing the case past of medical sociology in Lithuania, we claim that its prospects should be associated with the study of new challenges in the biomedical sciences. In order to improve the importance of...

Book Review

Jindřich Jíra

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):78  

Smoking Attributable Hospital Treatment, Treatment Costs and Smoking Attributable Mortality in the Czech Republic in 2002

Hana Sovinová, Ladislav Csémy, Bohumír Procházka, Stanislava Kottnauerová

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):79-83 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3417  

Objectives: The main objective of this work is to quantify the number of hospitalizations caused by smoking, estimate the costs of hospital treatment and to estimate contribution of smoking to mortality in the Czech Republic (CR) in 2002.Methods: The estimate of the proportion by which smoking contributed to hospitalizations and to mortality in the CR was computed using the method of smoking-attributable fractions (SAF). The SAF was computed from relative risks established in the American study Cancer Prevention Study II and from estimates of the prevalence of smoking in the CR from a nationwide study conducted in 2002.Results: In 2002, based...

Low-threshold Services for Problem Drug Users in Hungary

Katalin Melles, Ferenc Márványkövi, Jozsef Rácz

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):84-86 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3405  

Objectives: The main objective of this study was to explore how harm reduction (HR) approach and low-threshold approach are realised at low-threshold services (LTSs) in Hungary in comparison with the guidelines presented in different policy papers (European Union drugs strategies) and national regulations.Materials and methods: Hungarian LTSs were investigated: 29 organisations out of 44 (66% return rate) were reached with questionnaires and 40 LTS workers were interviewed.Results: The LTSs have difficulties reaching their target group, distributing sufficient sterile syringes and interpreting the concept of 'low-threshold' and HR, sometimes...

Prevalence of icaA and icaD Genes of Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis Strains Isolated from Patients and Hospital Staff

Sara Elena Satorres, Lucía Esther Alcaráz

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):87-90 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3396  

Staphylococci are ubiquitous microorganisms that predominate in normal skin and mucosal flora. Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis have been identified as a major cause of nosocomial infections, especially in patients with predisposing factors such as indwelling or implanted foreign bodies. The ability of both S. epidermidis and S. aureus to produce biofilm was compared between 116 clinically significant strains (46 from blood cultures of patients with bloodstream infection and 70 isolated from catheters) and 60 strains isolated from nasal swabs of healthy carriers from hospital staff. The presence of the intercellular adhesion genes...

Screenig Evaluation Systeme-Europe (SESy_Europe) Met Skin Cancer Screening

Vasiliki Karampoiki, Francisco Javier Rivas Flores, Hilal Altinoz, Marzanna Chojnacka, Irini Karentzou, Mario Dambrosio, Camelia Colichi, Tamara Oxiuzova, Eleni Kanavoura, Berta Adelaide Maia da Silva Alves de Sousa, Diana Ivanova, Jacopo Mauri, Georgios Alexiou, Davide Mauri, Konstantinos Kamposioras, Angeliki Maragkaki, Christina Peponi

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):71-73 | DOI: 10.21101/cejph.a3411  

Skin tumors are the most frequent malignancies in the white population worldwide and have reached the proportion of an epidemic disease. Since non-melanocytic skin cancers can be cured when timely detected, given that still malignant melanoma may have good prognosis if early diagnosed, and considering the key role of primary care in cancer screening advising and implementation, the international PACMeR study group (trial_01.3) adjourned SESy_Europe database in a version comprehensive of skin-malignancies screening indexing. The novel database provides standardized pre-codified translations of 2,331 parameters in eight languages (English, French, German,...

Global goal to reduce measles deaths in children surpassed. Measles deaths fall by 60 per cent.

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):65, 73  

CALL FOR PAPERS

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):91  

WHO Executive Board to tackle key global health issues. Agenda includes measles, polio, chronic diseases and pandemic influenza.

Cent Eur J Public Health 2007, 15(2):92