Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Albania”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Asthma and allergy in Albania.

BACKGROUND: The risk of allergic disease may be influenced by the degree of "westernization". A survey was conducted to ascertain whether the prevalence of allergy was lower in Albania than elsewhere in Europe, as it has been the most isolated European country. METHODS: The subjects were residents of Tirana aged 20-44 years. A screening questionnaire was completed by 2653 subjects. A more detailed questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 564 respondents, together with skin prick tests and serum IgE assay. RESULTS: The prevalence of wheeze in the last year, and of wheeze without a cold, was lower in Albania than in any country that participated in the European Community Respiratory Health Survey. Nasal allergy and atopy (as indicated by serum specific IgE) were also uncommon in Albania, although serum total IgE concentrations were high. CONCLUSIONS: The findings confirmed the hypothesis of a low prevalence of allergy in Albania. Possible reasons include the recent economic isolation of Albania, the infrequency of smoking by women, the lack of domestic pets, and the high incidence of childhood infection and parasitic infestation. The prevalence of allergy and its potential determinants should be monitored in Albania as that country acquires the characteristics of other parts of Europe.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Prevalence and determinants of smoking in Tirana city, Albania: a population-based survey.

BACKGROUND: Smoking is the leading cause of premature death in Europe yet there are still many countries in which there is little information on its patterns and determinants. Albania is one such country. METHODS: A survey of health and lifestyle, including questions on smoking practice and attitudes, and its determinants was undertaken in Tirana, the capital of Albania in mid 2001. SUBJECTS: One thousand one hundred and twenty adults aged 25 years and over (response rate 72.7%). RESULTS: Forty-one percent of the study population (61% male and 24% female) were current or ex-smokers-28% were current smokers (37.6% of males and 19.3% of females) and 13% were ex-smokers (23.4% of males and 4.7% of females). Age-standardized (to the European standard population) prevalence of smoking for the adult population of Tirana was 31.2% (42.8% in males and 21.2% in females). Smoking was most common among those aged 25-34 years (59% of males and 30% of females in this age group). Of the current smokers, 16.5% smoked more than 20 cigarettes/day, and 67.3% smoked the first cigarette within 30 min of waking. Only 11% of current smokers had tried to quit smoking once during their life. Concern about health was the most common reason for quitting cited by ex-smokers (44%). In men, smoking was inversely associated with educational achievement. While the probability of smoking decreases with age, there was no consistent association with employment or income. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of smoking in Albania is comparable with other Western societies. The high rates of smoking among young men and women suggest that tobacco will make an increasingly large contribution to premature morbidity and mortality in the future. The high rate of smoking among young women in Albania, while a common phenomenon in post-communist countries, is especially worrying. This study emphasizes the need for a robust, evidence-based strategy for tobacco control in Albania.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Prevalence of viral markers among refugees from southern Albania: increased incidence of infection with hepatitis A, B and D viruses.

BACKGROUND: Since 1991, thousands of refugees from southern Albania have entered north-western Greece, an area with low-to-moderate endemicity for infection with hepatitis viruses. We examined the prevalence of several markers of viral infection in this population in order to ascertain the likely impact of its presence on the epidemiology of hepatitis infections in north-western Greece. DESIGN: Consecutive unselected serum samples were obtained from refugees resident in three different reception camps. SETTING: A university hospital. STUDY POPULATION: One thousand and twenty-five refugees (662 males and 363 females, age range 0-81 years) and 1984 healthy controls (1293 males and 691 females, age range 0-80 years). INTERVENTIONS: None. RESULTS: We found a significantly greater prevalence of markers of infection with hepatitis A virus (prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis A virus 98.2%), hepatitis B virus (HBV; prevalence of HBV s antigen 22.2%, prevalence of HBV c antibody 70.6%, prevalence of HBV s antibody 40.5%, prevalence of HBV e antigen 21.1%, prevalence of HBV e antibody 46.2%), hepatitis C virus (prevalence of antibodies to hepatis C virus 1.75%) and hepatitis D virus (prevalence of antibodies to hepatis D virus 12.7%) among refugees from southern Albania than in healthy Greek controls. These markers were found with significantly greater frequency among younger refugees (< 30 years of age) than in older members of the same population. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that refugees from southern Albania are a new immigrant population characterized by a high incidence of infection with hepatitis A, B and D viruses. This finding may reflect the low socioeconomic status of the immigrant population and the poor hygienic conditions experienced by its members. The high incidence of HBV and HDV infections in the population from Albania will probably increase the prevalence of infection with these viruses in Ioannina and subsequently in the whole of the Epirus region. We therefore believe that rigorous adherence to general precautions and the initiation of hepatitis B vaccination programmes will be necessary in future, both in our area and in Albania.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Maternal and child health in Albania.

Women in Albania today live in a world very different from that of their parents and grandparents. In an increasingly "westernized" nation, women initially appear to have more autonomy within their families and greater power within society than their traditional ancestors had. From the reports of aid agencies and the former government, it appears that Albanian women's health has also greatly improved in the last half century. However, these reports are based largely on questionable statistics. At the same time, initial impressions based on women's public images can be deceptive. According to Albanian physicians, most of the data produced during the socialist era was falsified to improve the government's image. Furthermore, no comprehensive research projects have examined the multi-faceted nature of pregnancy including both social and physical factors. Albanian clinicians and international aid organizations need accurate indicators of maternal and child health to either corroborate or disprove the reports under discrepancy. The study reported here documents current health conditions for pregnant women and their offspring in Albania. Data for the study were collected in 1993 and 1994 from field sites throughout Albania. A total of 3250 medical charts from 1993 were abstracted from five maternity houses. Interviews were conducted during 1993-1994 with 1199 pregnant women who were followed through their pregnancies. Of these women, 938 were located at delivery. Their infants were weighed and assessed. The data show that infant birth weights, gestational ages and mortality rates are now comparable to the rest of Europe. Maternal disease rates and spontaneous and therapeutic abortion rates are also surprisingly low considering the previous reports. However, fertility rates remain relatively high compared to Western Europe. The results show that despite the degeneration of health services, maternal and child health in Albania is much better than expected and vastly improved over the pre-communist era.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Fertility transition in Communist Albania, 1950-90.

In 1945, at the end of the Second World War, Albania had the highest fertility in Europe with an average of more than six live births per woman. However, when Albania emerged from behind the 'olive curtain' in 1990, fertility had fallen to three children per woman, despite a pro-natalist environment and in the virtual absence of contraception and abortion. Nevertheless, after five decades, Albania's position at the top of the European fertility league remains unchanged. This paper documents the fertility transition in Albania during the period 1950-90 and places the demographic results in the context of recent socio-economic and cultural change.

Albania↗
PubMed1996

I've been where it's gone, so I know what I got ... An American Fulbright Lecturer in Albania, 1994-1995.

Spending 10 months as a Fulbright Lecturer in Medical Sciences at the University Medical Center, University of Tirana, Albania, gave me a first-hand view of academic medicine in a country merging from more than 45 years of Communist rule that impoverished the country and isolated it from the rest of the world. Even after the fall of Communism, every aspect of medicine in Albania continues to be government controlled. Early specialization is still the rule for academic physicians. Division chiefs exert absolute authority over their domain and seldom delegate this authority. Learning and teaching resources are scant, and access to current western medical literature is extremely limited because of both poverty and priority. Despite these obstacles, the medical students and postgraduate trainees I encountered were bright and receptive, which strongly reinforces the tremendous urge to help them. Fellowships abroad, however, are limited and available only to selected junior faculty; students and clinical trainees do not qualify. If we are to help, we must take the training to them. It takes time to become an effective clinical teacher in Albania: time to understand the system; time to devise the best teaching vehicles; and time to gain the trust of the students, trainees, and faculty. Given the time, the effort can be successful. The problem is, where do we find physicians with the time and interest? Might this be a role for still-energetic retired physicians? My experience in Albania permitted me only to formulate these questions; the answers must now come from this side of the Atlantic.

Academic Medical Centers↗
PubMed2002

Public health training in Albania: long way toward a school of public health.

AIM: To assess the needs for a school of public health in Albania, where health system has been going through difficult periods of transition after the collapse of the communist regime and its "Soviet" health system in 1991. METHOD: Review of the past and current state of public health training, as well as the evolution of the main institutions involved in public health training in Albania, in view of the recent attempts undertaken to establish a school of public health. RESULTS: Up to early 1990s, public health training in Albania involved mostly physicians and was based to a great extent on sanitary engineering approach. In the mid 1990s, the activities of the Department of Public Health of the Faculty of Medicine in Tirana focused on development of comprehensive public health training program. The aim of the current 2-year training program is to train public health specialists in a new fashion, in line with current international trends in the "new" public health. However, the size and the background of the faculty of the Department of Public Health (8 members, 7 physicians) is too limited and medically oriented. Since 1969, the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (later National Institute of Public Health) has been providing short-term (1-3 months) courses for hygienists, chemists, and microbiologists working at the district level. CONCLUSION: Only the establishment of a school of public health capable to train specialists according to international standards can meet the health needs of Albania.

Albania↗
PubMed2002

Tobacco smoking habits, beliefs, and attitudes among medical students in Tirana, Albania.

BACKGROUND: Many surveys throughout the world have evaluated the smoking behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes of medical students, but no information is available from Albania. METHOD: A cross-sectional survey in classroom settings using a self-administered questionnaire was performed at the University of Tirana during October 2000. RESULTS: In the first and fifth years of medical school, 149 (68.5% women) and 185 (55% women) students, respectively, completed the questionnaire, with overall response rates of 82 and 92%. Tobacco smoking prevailed among males. The smoking rates among first-year medical students were 34% among men and 5% among women. Among fifth-year students, 55% of the men and 34% of the women smoked. The percentages of occasional smokers were 29 and 49%, respectively, among the first- and fifth-year students who smoked. Most medical students reported knowing the health hazards of tobacco. Most students in both groups believed that smoking should be restricted in hospitals. Slightly more than half of the students stated that they will regularly advise smokers against smoking in their future jobs. CONCLUSION: Tobacco smoking is common among medical students in Albania. Targeted antismoking training should be mandatory for medical students in Albania.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Genomic characterization of human and environmental polioviruses isolated in Albania.

Between April and December 1996, a serious outbreak of poliomyelitis occurred in Albania; almost 140 subjects were involved, and the episode presented an unusually high mortality rate (12%). During the outbreak, water samples from the Lana River in Tirana, Albania, and stool samples from two cases of paralytic poliomyelitis were collected and analyzed for the presence of polioviruses. Six polioviruses were isolated from the environmental and human samples, according to standard methods. All the samples were characterized by partial genomic sequencing of 330 bases across the 5' untranslated region (5'-UTR) (nucleotide positions 200 to 530) and of 300 bases across the VP1 region (nucleotide positions 2474 to 2774). Comparison of these sequences with those present in data banks permitted the identification of environmental isolates Lana A and Lana B as, respectively, a Sabin-like type 2 poliovirus and an intertypic recombinant poliovirus (Sabin-like type 2/wild type 1), both bearing a G instead of an A at nucleotide position 481. The two other environmental polioviruses were similar to the isolates from the paralytic cases. They were characterized by a peculiar 5'-UTR and by a VP1 region showing 98% homology with the Albanian epidemic type 1 isolates reported by other authors. This study confirms the environmental circulation in Albania of recombinant poliovirus strains, likely sustained by a massive vaccination effort and by the presence in the environment of a type 1 poliovirus, as isolated from the Lana River in Tirana about 2 months before the first case of symptomatic acute flaccid paralysis was reported in this town.

Albania↗
PubMed2003

Epidemiology of hypertension and associated cardiovascular risk factors in a country in transition: a population based survey in Tirana City, Albania.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To describe the prevalence of hypertension and other cardiovascular risk factors on the adult population of Tirana City (Albania). DESIGN: Cross sectional survey. SETTING: Tirana City in mid-2001. PARTICIPANTS: 1120 adults aged 25 years and over (response rate=72.7%). MAIN RESULTS: Overall, hypertension prevalence (blood pressure =140 and/or 90 mm Hg, or known hypertensive receiving anti-hypertensive treatment) was 31.8% (36.6% and 27.4% in men and women respectively). Age standardised prevalence of hypertension (adjusted to the adult population of Tirana) was 30.2% (99% confidence intervals 29.8% to 30.6%) in men and 22.7% (22.3% to 23.1%) in women. Men were significantly more likely to be hypertensive than women (p value=0.001). Of those who had been diagnosed with hypertension, 87% were receiving anti-hypertensive therapy and more than half of them (52%) were adequately controlled. The prevalence of hypertension increased with increasing age and was more common in the obese in both sexes. While the prevalence of hypertension matched that in other industrialised and transition countries, the combination of hypertension with other cardiovascular risk factors was rather less common. CONCLUSION: These findings provide important new evidence on the prevalence of hypertension and its association with other cardiovascular risk factors in Albania. Albania is in a state of rapid transition, with evidence that risk factors for non-communicable diseases have already increased considerably over the past two decades. These finding provide a unique baseline against which future change can be compared.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Child malnutrition in north Albania: results from an anthropometric survey.

In order to assess child malnutrition, an anthropometric cross-sectional survey of children aged 0-36 months was conducted in selected rural, urban and mountainous areas of Northern Albania in May 1997. The results showed a high prevalence of low anthropometric indices in rural and mountainous areas with a trend of similar magnitude in northern rural areas. In Northern Albania child malnutrition is a public health priority. As the main risk factor for underweight we found a recent history of diarrhoea (OR = 2.45) together with female gender (OR = 2.28), rural (OR = 2.09) or mountain (OR = 1.61) residency. Absence of sanitation, marker of poor housing conditions, also showed a significant association (OR = 1.55) with underweight. Low birthweight (OR = 1.12) was confirmed as an important risk factor for underweight condition. In conclusion these findings underline the importance of support appropriate mother and child health and nutritional programmes in rural areas of Northern Albania.

Albania↗
PubMed2002

Medical education in Albania: current situation and perspective, with reference to primary care.

A radical primary health care-oriented reform of the medical services in Albania is now under way, calling for adequate revision in medical education. The reform has started in 1994. In January 1997, the Department of Family Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Tirana, was established for the development of general practice and family medicine, and with it a new era in medical education in Albania has begun. Mutual agreements for international collaborations are being realized, modern medical textbooks are being published, and the importance of continuous medical education is gaining a deserved appreciation. Here we describe medical education in Albania, including undergraduate education, vocational training, and continuing professional development. The emphasis is given on primary care, with some suggestions for concrete actions that would improve the current situation. A brief descriptive account is given of the ongoing Albanian medical education reform, primarily in the field of primary health care, which assumes its most interesting global aspects and at the same time reflects the unique demands of the country.

Albania↗
PubMed1996

The epidemiology of chronic renal failure and provision of renal services in Albania.

Tirana, the only dialysis facility in Albania (pop 4 million), has a stock of 12 patients and three haemodialysis machines. To determine the need for renal services in Albania we studied the incidence and outcome of patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) referred to the renal service in Tirana (pop 300 000) over 1 year. Case-notes of all patients with a serum creatinine concentration > or = 300 mumol/l during the study period (1992) were examined and outcome at 2 years recorded for each patient. In all, 84 patients (mean age 41.6 +/- 17.5 years, 56% male) were referred to nephrologists of whom 35 (42%) came from Tirana, giving an annual incidence of 116 per million pop. 77% were under 40 and had no co-morbid illness. Glomerulonephritis, the most common renal diagnosis, affected 26% patients. 22% patients (mean age 38 +/- 18.1) died within 2 years and only 5% received dialysis. The mean age of those who received dialysis was 29 +/- 8.3 compared with those who were not dialysed (42 +/- 18.0). The 59 patients (24 from Tirana i.e. 80 per million) who were alive with advanced CRF (creatinine > 500) had a mean creatine of 623 +/- 93 mumol/l and would be candidates for dialysis. Patients with progressive renal failure in Albania are regularly followed and treated with antihypertensives and dietary modification. The need for RRT, however, is not being met even for young patients with no co-morbidity.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Determination of lead in the blood of children in the town of Berat, Albania.

Little is known about exposure to lead during childhood in Albania. An analytical survey was carried out in order to determine the levels of lead in blood (PbB) and associated risk factors for 107 inner-city, first-grade schoolchildren living in the town of Berat in Albania, where a plant producing lead-acid batteries exists. The analysis showed that 68% of the children examined had blood levels equal to or greater than 10 micrograms/dL. The mean concentration of lead in the blood of the children was 11.20 micrograms/dL. The influence of the sex and the age of the children, as well as the distance of their homes from the lead-acid battery plant, on the blood lead content was examined.

Albania↗
PubMed2001

Asthma and allergy in Albania and the UK.

In the first phase of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood, a large difference in occurrence of asthma symptoms was seen between children in Albania and the UK. We did skin-prick tests with various allergens and measured peak expiratory flow rate in about 1000 children from each country. A large difference in the proportion of exercise-induced bronchial reactivity was evident between children from Albania and the UK (0.8% vs 5.4%, respectively). However, the frequency of allergic sensitisation was closely similar (15.0% vs 17.8%, respectively). These results suggest that large geographical variations in asthma prevalence can arise without differences in frequency of atopy.

Albania↗
PubMed1999

Occurrence of Salmonella spp. in imported eggs into Albania.

Seventy-nine shell egg lots imported into Albania during the 2-years period 1996-1997 (69 lots during 1996 and 10 lots during 1997) were investigated for the presence of the Salmonella spp. Salmonella was detected in 1 out of 79 analysed pooled samples (1.26%). The Salmonella strain was isolated only from the egg shell, but not from the liquid part. The isolated strain was biochemically identified by the API 20 E system. Following biochemical identification, it was serotyped with Salmonella monovalent sera at the Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania and was found belonging to the Salmonella group C. The lot in which Salmonella was detected consisted of 275000 eggs.

Albania↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Surveillance of suspected poliomyelitis in Albania, 1980-1995: suggestion of increased risk of vaccine associated poliomyelitis.

Surveillance of suspected poliomyelitis cases was conducted in Albania from 1980 through 1995. A total of 93 cases were reported, 11 of which were clinically defined as poliomyelitis cases according to WHO criteria. Poliovirus was isolated from six subjects who were defined as contact vaccine-associated cases. Characterization of isolates by both antigenic and molecular methods showed that, in all cases, the disease was associated with type 2 or 3 polioviruses of vaccine origin with retromutations known to be associated with loss of Sabin attenuated phenotype. Infection occurred despite the fact that all patients had records of previous immunization with oral polio vaccine (OPV), suggesting a failure of vaccination. Four of the five patients from which poliovirus could not be isolated were classified as possible recipient vaccine-associated poliomyelitis on the basis of serology data (presence of antibodies against all three polioviruses) and the temporal association between the latest dose of vaccine received and onset of paralysis. Virological investigation on healthy contacts of the poliomyelitic patients yielded the isolation of a further 12 Sabin-like polio revertant viruses, mostly type 2 and 3. A detailed study of the non-polio acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) cases and their healthy contacts revealed the presence of several enteroviruses, namely Echo, coxsackie and, in three cases type 2 or 3 Sabin-like polioviruses. Overall, these data suggest the absence of circulation of wild-type poliovirus in Albania from 1980 to 1995, before the recent outbreak of poliomyelitis in 1996, and emphasize the need for active surveillance of AFP and laboratory characterization of virus isolates to monitor vaccination efficacy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

The relationships of chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis to alcohol intake, hepatitis B and C, and delta virus infection: a case-control study in Albania.

The present study examined the effect of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and alcohol intake, and the role of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the aetiology of chronic liver disease in Albania. A total of 106 cases of liver cirrhosis or chronic hepatitis were compared to 195 control patients without these or other liver diseases. Adjusted odds ratios were 52.7 (95% CI 22.7-122) for HBV surface antigen, 26.9 (95% CI 4.9-147) for anti-HCV, 26.2 (95% CI 3-1-221) for anti-HDV, 2.4 (95% CI 1.3-4.4) for lifetime alcohol intake and 2.3 (95% CI 1-5.5) for duration of alcohol intake. Although not significant, an interaction was suggested between HBsAg and anti-HCV and between HBsAg and alcohol intake. Our study underlines the role of hepatitis viruses in the development of chronic liver diseases. Additionally, it suggests that heavy alcohol intake may magnify the effect of HBV on these diseases. HBV vaccination and alcohol abstention appear to be important strategies to reduce the risk of liver cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis in Albania.

Adolescent↗