Biomedical subjects

J Marinkovic

Publications and source records attributed to J Marinkovic.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1997

Testosterone treatment in men with erectile disorder and low levels of total testosterone in serum.

Since decreased serum levels of testosterone (T) do not necessarily predict good outcome of testosterone treatment for erectile disorder, the purpose, of this study was to determine which men with erectile disorder and decreased serum levels might benefit from treatment. From a sample of 31 men (mean age = 39 years), 15 (48%) with erectile disorder and decreased serum levels of T responded well after 8 weeks of testosterone treatment (100 mg of testosterone propionate in the sustained-release form given im once a week). Good treatment outcome was associated with several variables, but only high levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) and low values of the T/LH (testosterone/LH) ratio consistently emerged as significant correlates and/or predictors of effective treatment. Levels of LH above 7.5 IU/L or the values of the T/LH ratio equal to or below 0.87 nmol/IU in patients with erectile disorder and decreased serum levels of T suggest that testosterone treatment may be effective.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Coronary vasodilation without myocardial erection. Simultaneous haemodynamic, echocardiographic and arteriographic findings during adenosine and dipyridamole infusion.

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate simultaneously echocardiographic, haemodynamic and angiographic changes that occur during adenosine and dipyridamole infusion, in patients with one-vessel coronary artery stenosis. This would assess whether deterioration in left ventricular haemodynamics during vasodilator agent infusion is influenced by vasodilation per se, or the development of myocardial ischaemia. METHODS AND RESULTS: We performed adenosine (140 micrograms.kg-1.min-1 over 4 min) and dipyridamole (up to 0.84 mg.kg-1 over 10 min) stress echocardiography tests, together with angiographic and haemodynamic assessment, in 26 patients undergoing elective coronary angioplasty. In 12 of 26 patients, adenosine and dipyridamole tests were repeated 24 h after angioplasty. The criterion for echocardiography test positivity was the appearance of a new transient regional wall motion abnormality. Coronary angiograms were analysed with quantitative coronary arteriography. Adenosine and dipyridamole induced regional dysfunction in 18/26 (69%) and 14/26 (54%) patients before angioplasty, respectively (P = ns). In the echocardiography-positive patients, the percent diameter stenosis was significantly (P < 0.05) tighter stenosis than in the echocardiography-negative patients (adenosine, 66.6 +/- 8.3% vs 58.0 +/- 8.9%; dipyridamole, 69.2 +/- 7.1% vs 57.7 +/- 7.6%). During both tests, left ventricular end-diastolic pressure significantly increased (P < 0.05) in echocardiography-positive patients (adenosine, 9.8 +/- 2.7 mmHg to 13.5 +/- 4.1 mmHg; dipyridamole, 10.1 +/- 2.8 mmHg to 14.1 +/- 4.3 mmHg), but not in echocardiography-negative patients. In the patients who had undergone successful angioplasty (reduction to < 50% diameter stenosis), both adenosine and dipyridamole confirmed the arteriographic success of the procedure (echocardiography negative in all patients). In this group of patients, no significant change was observed in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure during adenosine or dipyridamole infusion. CONCLUSIONS: Intravenous infusion of either adenosine or dipyridamole was accompanied by an obvious increase in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure only in patients with induced wall motion abnormalities. Coronary vasodilation per se has no significant effect on left ventricular end-diastolic pressure when no ischaemia is induced, disproving any clinically significant 'erectile' and adverse effects of coronary vasodilation per se.

Adenosine↗

PubMed1997

Developing mortality patterns: robust modified generalized likelihood ratio algorithm for infant mortality rate change detection.

A new robust modified generalized likelihood ratio algorithm, which enables the changes of mortality rates to be detected automatically, is applied. The procedure is based on the calculation of discrimination function using robust least squares estimates of AR mortality rates residuals. The feasibility of the approach is demonstrated with experimental data concerning infant mortality rate in Serbia.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1996

Health care delivery and the status of the population's health in the current crises in former Yugoslavia using EPI-design methodology.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to assess accessibility to health care services and the needs of the population and demands on the health service in the areas most affected by the current crisis in the former Yugoslavia. The delivery of health care services and problems in its realization and the status of the population's health in the crisis period (from the second half of 1993 to the end of the first half of 1994) were also investigated together with the results of Government measures concerning health care priorities during the period of UN Sanctions in Yugoslavia. METHOD: By the end of the 1980s, as an alternative to traditional data collection, a new method called 'Rapid Health Assessment' appeared. The EPI design (Experienced Programme on Immunization), the most frequently applied method, was used in this study. It is a cluster sample selection, where a household is the basic unit. RESULTS: This study showed that the first effects of the crisis appeared in the field of health care delivery and then in the population's health status. The difficulties were not the same for all categories of the population, and children and urgent cases had less problems than others. The expected difficulties in vaccination coverage were not shown in this survey. The morbidity structure for children and adults changed in comparison with routine statistical data but the size of the chosen sample, as well as the short period of the crisis investigated, mean that definite conclusions cannot be drawn on this issue. This study provides recent data on health care delivery, morbidity structure, and vaccination coverage, as well as giving a more complex and precise estimate of the real situation.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

Personality dimensions of opiate addicts.

A survey of 80 opiate addicts included in a detoxification program was conducted at the Institute on Addictions in Belgrade. In addition to a dependence diagnosis and mental disorders based on DSM-III-R, we applied a Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) that measures the 3 major personality dimensions: novelty-seeking (NS), harm avoidance (HA) and reward dependence (RD). When compared with a control group (a sample of Yugoslav undergraduate students), the opiate addicts demonstrate significantly high NS dimension as well as significant divergences of HA and RD subscales. The surveyed opiate addicts demonstrate a high percentage of personality disorders specifically in cluster B. The personality dimensions of opiate addicts showed certain temperament traits, such as: impulsiveness, shyness with strangers, fear of uncertainty and dependence. NS, HA and RD determined by temperament specifics may be an etiological factor in forming of a personality disorder, an affective disorder as well as of a drug choice.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

Brick mortar exposure and chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

A case-control study of 130 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and 130 controls matched with respect to sex, age (2 years), type of residence (urban-rural) and area of residence (according to the national per capita income) was carried out. Conditional logistic regression analysis showed that, apart of four risk factors already described in the literature (work in a hazardous industry, hair dye use, family history of leukemia and exposure to electromagnetic radiation), brick mortar exposure was also significantly related to CLL.

Case-Control Studies↗

PubMed1993

Cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil as induction chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy in metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of an unknown primary tumor localized to the neck. A phase II study.

12 patients with metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of an unknown primary tumor localized to the neck were treated with induction chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Median age was 54 years (range, 39-68 years) and male to female ratio was 2:1. Five (42%) patients had N3 disease and 7 (58%) had N2 disease. Induction chemotherapy consisted of cisplatin 60 mg/m2, days 1 and 2 and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), 500 mg/m2, days 3 and 4. Cycles were repeated every 4 weeks to a total of 3 cycles. After 4 weeks rest, patients underwent radiation therapy. It was given to all possible sites of the primary tumor (nasopharynx, pyriform sinus, and the base of the tongue). The radiation therapy dosage planned to the whole neck, nasopharynx, and supraclavicular area was 45 Gy in 24 daily fractions in 5 weeks, increasing to 60-70 Gy to the metastatic site. We observed 9 (75%) complete responses and 1 (8%) partial response. 7 (58%) patients are currently with no evidence of disease. Median survival time for all patients is 36 months (range, 14+ to 56 months), while median survival time for N3 patients was 32 months (range, 26-56 months). Toxicities were predominantly mild to moderate nausea and vomiting and mucositis. This combined modality appears to be effective and feasible in treatment of metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of an unknown primary tumor localized to the neck.

Adult↗

PubMed1992

Cardiovascular risk factors and prevalence of coronary heart disease in type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes.

The relationship between cardiovascular risk factors and the prevalence of coronary heart disease was examined in 152 Type 2 diabetic patients (65 men, 87 women) aged 35-54 years and in 105 randomly selected control subjects (46 men, 59 women). Coronary heart disease, defined by symptoms and ECG abnormalities, was 1.2 times higher in male and 3.4 times higher in female diabetic patients than in the controls. In logistic regression analysis (including diabetes, age, body mass index, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, non-HDL-cholesterol and hypertension) diabetes showed an independent, significant association to coronary heart disease in women, whereas hypertension was independently related to coronary heart disease in men.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Well water characteristics and the Balkan nephropathy.

A total of 366 inhabitants of a village affected by Balkan nephropathy (BN) have been followed over 12 years. It was shown that depth of the well to the water level, height of the water column, electroconductivity, and NO3 content of the water were not associated with BN. The risk of developing the disease was significantly higher if a well was at a lower altitude and contained a higher concentration of SiO2. Low altitude might have been expected to correlate with the BN frequency; as for silica, however, there are sound indications that it could just be a correlate of a cause rather than a direct determinant of BN.

Balkan Nephropathy↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Correlation of macroscopic and histological characteristics in the regional lymph nodes of patients with rectal and sigmoidal adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The number of involved lymph nodes is a relevant prognostic parameter which determines the duration of survival in patients with colonic and rectal adenocarcinoma. The purpose of this study was to establish a correlation between the macroscopic (size and consistency) and microscopic characteristics of the regional lymph nodes (type of involvement in tumor tissue, state of the capsule, adherence of the lymph nodes, etc.) in patients with colorectal carcinoma. METHODOLOGY: In this prospective study, 46 patients with rectal and sigmoid adenocarcinoma were studied through randomized selection. From the resected specimens, a total of 736 lymph nodes were identified (average 15.66 per patient), with the precise location determined according to Enker and Philiphsken. The macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of each lymph node were identified. These lymph node findings were then distributed by means of the x2 test, while the interrelationship of lymph node characteristics was determined by factor analysis. RESULTS: Within the group of "small" lymph nodes, 17.18% were malignant. Additionally, of all the malignant lymph nodes, 46.23% were less than 5 mm in diameter. Although the malignant lymph nodes were predominantly diffusely involved within the tumor tissue, 19.50% were focally involved within the tumor tissue, of which 48.38% were "small" lymph nodes, which are commonly non-palpable. Perforation of the capsule and adherence were more characteristic for focally mutated than for diffusely mutated lymph nodes in the cases of malignantly mutated lymph nodes. CONCLUSION: Size and consistency of the lymph nodes are not dependable parameters for appraisal of lymph node involvement in tumor tissue, the state of the lymph node capsule, nor the interrelation among the lymph nodes. As in the case of the primary tumor, local tumor aggression in the lymph nodes is conditioned by the grade of differentiation, i.e. histologic immaturity, rather than by tumor size.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Discriminant analysis of pre- and intraoperatively detected prognostic factors influencing lymph node involvement in patients with colorectal carcinoma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The aim of this study was to establish whether, and to what extent, pre- and intraoperatively detected characteristics (demographic, anamnestic and laboratory data) and tumor characteristics can be used in the assessment of regional lymph node involvement in patients with colorectal carcinoma. The assessment also included the number of lymph nodes involved in patients with positive lymph nodes. Considering that the number of obtained lymph nodes widely varies in resected specimens, assessment parameters also included the percentage of the involved lymph nodes within the total population of lymph nodes. METHODOLOGY: From 1992-1993, 46 patients with carcinoma of the rectum and sigmoid colon were studied, with a total number of 736 lymph nodes evaluated. Out of the total number of lymph nodes, 577 (78.4%) were benign and 159 (21.6%), malignant. Data were analyzed by multi-variant statistical methods, namely: discriminant analysis and multiple regression with the aid of SPSS/PC+ software. RESULTS: For this patient group, we evaluated the following potentially predictive factors for lymph node involvement: age; serum hemoglobin, albumin and alkaline phosphatase levels; weight loss; and the primary tumor localization characteristics: histologic type, macroscopic growth pattern and depth of tumor invasion of the bowel wall. We found that there was no difference in the prediction of regional lymph node involvement between analysis of the aforementioned parameters and analysis of the isolated discriminators only. CONCLUSION: A predictability likelihood of 83.78% greatly surpasses the acceptable error tolerance level of 5%. Correlation of demographic, anamnestic and laboratory data about the patient and the characteristics of the primary tumor cannot be used in distinguishing malignant lymph nodes from benign ones. These data cannot be the basis for exact intraoperative staging and thus cannot be significant criteria for decision-making about operative treatment modalities.

Adenocarcinoma↗