Acta clinica Croatica
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The year 2022 marked the one-hundredth anniversary of the first application of insulin. November 14th, the birth date of one of its main discoverers, Frederick Banting, was designated as World Diabetes Day. This paper comprises a narrative review of the history of the discovery of diabetes and insulin, progress in insulin development, important breakthroughs in insulin production and delivery, and a short commentary regarding potential future developments in insulin treatment. ⋯ Groundbreaking discoveries during the early 20th century have resulted in type 1 diabetes mellitus becoming a treatable, chronic condition. The relationship between good glycemic control and reduced occurrence of diabetes complications was established, which has enticed further development and refinements in insulin treatment, ranging from the purification and increased quality of insulin itself, as well as various inventions in its administration. Despite great achievements in insulin therapy so far, future research aims to avoid the need for subcutaneous administration and to create non-invasive means of insulin application.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Nov 2022
GLUCOSAMINE SULFATE EFFICACY IN TREATING KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS: A FOLLOW-UP STUDY.
Osteoarthritis (OA) can be treated using either a pharmacological or non-pharmacological approach, or a combination of both. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of crystalline glucosamine sulfate (CGS) in patients with knee OA. This open-label prospective study (with a 12-month follow-up) included 111 patients of both genders suffering from knee OA, who attended the Special Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases in Novi Sad, Serbia during the 2011-2013 period. ⋯ One year following the initial assessment, all patients reported pain intensity reduction; however, those in the CGS group experienced significantly lower pain intensity when compared with controls. At the end of the study, no reduction in the progression of joint structure damage (p>0.5) was noted in either group. Thus, while CGS demonstrated symptomatic efficacy, it failed to delay the progression of knee OA.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Nov 2022
THE EFFECT OF BOTULINUM TOXIN TYPE A IN PATIENTS WITH ESSENTIAL BLEPHAROSPASM.
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of botulinum toxin type A and satisfaction in patients with essential blepharospasm. The study included 12 subjects suffering from essential blepharospasm who received therapy with botulinum toxin type A injections. Respondents were given a Blepharospasm Disability Index (BSDI) survey before and three weeks after the procedure with questions related to quality of life. ⋯ The severity of symptoms after the application of botulinum toxin was reduced, which meant that there was a decrease in the severity of the difficulties, and the study found a statistically significant difference (p=0.003). The frequency of symptoms was reduced after botulinum toxin administration, and the study revealed a statistically significant difference (p = 0.012). From the results of this study, we can determine that the use of botulinum toxin type A increases the quality of life and that the severity and frequency of symptoms are statistically significantly reduced.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Nov 2022
ReviewMICROBIAL CAUSATIVE AGENTS AND THEIR ANTIMICROBIAL SUSCEPTIBILITY PATTERNS IN CHRONIC RHINOSINUSITIS - IMPACT ON ANTIBIOTIC PROPHYLAXIS AND TREATMENT.
Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is debilitating condition comprising inflammation of the mucosa of the nasal and paranasal sinuses, requiring conservative and often surgical treatment. Functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) is a CRS treatment during which a microbiological diagnostic procedure may be conducted. Preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis is administrated before FESS. ⋯ The most common isolated pathogens were Peptostreptococcus spp., Propionibacterium spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas spp., Fusobacterium spp. and Haemophilus influenzae. According to antibiotic susceptibility patterns, empiric antibiotic treatment with amoxicillin-clavulanic acid was appropriate. Due to high rates of antibiotic resistance of anaerobic bacterial isolates to metronidazole, it cannot be recommended in empirical antibiotic treatment or preoperative surgical antibiotic prophylaxis.
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The course of diabetes is marked by the development of chronic complications that, in addition to affecting health, also affect the quality of life of patients. The purpose of this study was to compare the quality of life of patients with type 2 diabetes based on their chronic complications. The study, which was conducted from March 2019 until March 2020, included 382 diabetic patients, specific data from medical records, and the application of the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief questionnaire. ⋯ The domains of social functioning were lowest in patients with diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy, while the physical functioning domains were rated lowest in patients with diabetic nephropathy, diabetic foot ulcer, and multiple chronic complications. All domains were rated lowest by patients with multiple complications and highest by those without any complications. In conclusion, differences in the assessment of quality of life of diabetic patients depend on the type of chronic complication.