Gastroenterology

Lege Artis Medicinae

OCTOBER 07, 2024

[The possible role of being  a near-peer school health  educator in medical education    ]

ÁRVA Dorottya, CSEH Annamária, JENEY Anna, DUNAI Diána, MAJOR Dávid, ZÖRGÔ Szilvia

[Lack of skills, commitment, and physicians’ poor health beha­vior may hinder lifestyle counseling in medical practice, but these barriers can be mitigated by training. We aimed to explore how school-based peer health education during training may improve medical education. We examined among educators of the Ba­las­sagyarmat Health Education Program (BEP) what kind of experiences they gained useful for lifestyle counseling, how committed they became to health edu­cation, and whether their health behavior changed. 

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with medical student near-peer educators of BEP (n = 9) who had mastered all topics of the program. Our data were subjected to qualitative content analysis. Our deductive codes were defined by the research questions, and responses to these were inductively coded and aggregated along the questions. 

Among the skills useful for lifestyle counseling, the participants experienced improvement in patient education, motivation, and partnership-building. They became more committed and after the program voluntarily and successfully carried out health education in their communities and among patients. They reported more conscious nutrition, alcohol consumption, and increased physical activity as changes in their own behavior. 

The school-based health education program helped medical student near-peer educators improve medical communication skills and commitment to health education, and spurred positive health behavior change; thus, we recommend considering its integration into medical education. 

 ]

HUN 2024;34(9)

Lege Artis Medicinae

OCTOBER 07, 2024

[Prevalence and dietary treatment of the most common diseases and gastrointestinal symptoms in pregnancy   ]

HULMAN Anita, VARGA Katalin, KECZELI Viola, PAKAI Annamária

[A pregnant woman’s diet defines her own health as well as the healthy development and growth of the child in the womb. During pregnancy, a significant proportion of women experience some kind of unpleasant gastrointestinal symptom or illness, and most of them try to relieve those with dietary changes. 

The quantitative, cross-sectional research was performed between Ja­nuary 2020 and May 2020. During the non-random convenience sampling, the tar­get group consisted of Hungarian pregnant women (n = 721). In the self-administered, anonymous, online available questionnaire, sociodemographic, pregnancy and nutrition- related questions were used. The signifi­cance level was determined at p<0.05.

Nine out of ten pregnant women experienced at least one unpleasant symptom during their pregnancy. The highest proportion of pregnant women reported dieting due to illness, and the largest proportion tried to treat the symptoms by nutrition. We discovered a significant difference in terms of educational level and problem-specific dieting in case of illness, as well as income status and following a special diet due to food intolerance. Pregnant women mostly request advice from a doctor and then from a dietician to design a suitable diet, however, there was no statistically detectable difference in terms of higher education, higher income status and obtaining information from a dietician.

The education of pregnant women plays an important role in the effective dietary treatment of diseases and symptoms, which are experienced most often during pregnancy and can be relieved with proper nutrition.

 ]

HUN 2024;34(9)

Clinical Neuroscience

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

The effect of body position, leg dominance, and automatic releasing mechanism on quadriceps muscle tone assessed by Pendulum Test in able-bodied persons

MAYER Petra , BODOR András , SZABÓ Dorottya , LACZKÓ József , ZENTAI Norbert

Quadriceps femoris muscle spasticity is commonly measured by the Wartenberg pendulum test. It is generally assumed that lower values of the number of swings of the leg and lower relaxation indexes are associated with higher muscle tone and more spasticity. Still, there is incoherence regarding the test’s applications with various body positions and starting mechanisms. This study aims to investigate the influence of body position, leg dominance, and automatic leg-releasing mechanism on muscle tone measured by pendulum test in healthy population whose muscle tone is often compared to the spastic muscle tone of patients with neurologic disorders.

ENG 2024;77(9-10)

Clinical Neuroscience

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

Effect of inflammatory response before mechanical thrombectomy on prognosis in stroke patients

EMRAH AYTAÇ, FERHAT BALGETİR, ŞULE Kavak Genç, MURAT Gönen, HASAN DOGAN, CETIN Kursad AKPINAR

Mechanical thrombectomy is the most important treatment modality in acute stroke; despite successful thrombectomy, good functional outcome is not achieved in a significant proportion of patients. This study examined the effect of neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) values at admission on functional outcomes in successfully recanalized patients.

ENG 2024;77(9-10)

Clinical Neuroscience

SEPTEMBER 30, 2024

Predictors of pneumonia in stroke patients with dysphagia: A Turkish study

HALIM Ömer KAŞIKÇI, ELIF ÜÇGÜL ERÇİN , RAHŞAN KARACI, MUSTAFA ÜLKER, FÜSUN DOMAÇ MAYDA

Dysphagia, characterized by difficulty in swallowing due to neurological deficits, stands out as the foremost contributor to stroke asso­ciated pneumonia (SAP) development. Recent investigations have explored the utility of blood tests, including parameters like neutrophil count, leukocyte count, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and the CRP to albumin ratio (CAR), at the time of admission as potential markers for predicting SAP development. This study is set out to assess predictors of SAP in patients with acute ischemic stroke and dysphagia. 

This retrospective cross-sectio­nal study, conducted at the University of Health Sciences, Neurology Department of Erenkoy Mental Health Neurological Disor­ders in Istanbul, Turkey, between January 2021 and January 2023, assessed 65 indivi­duals with acute ischemic stroke and dysphagia. Excluding specific criteria, clinical and laboratory data were collected. Patients were categorized into SAP and non-SAP groups based on diagnostic criteria. Results provide insights into risk factors of SAP.

In this study of 65 stroke patients with dysphagia, 27 (41.5%) developed SAP within the first week. No significant differences in age, gender, comorbidities, or infarct size were observed between the pneumonia-positive and pneumonia-negative groups (p > 0.05). HbA1c levels were significantly lower in the pneumonia-positive group (p = 0.02). Logistic regression revealed that NLR, CAR levels, and the presence of atrial fibrillation (AF) were significant predictors of pneumonia development (p < 0.001).

Dysphagia is considered one of the most significant risk factors for SAP. However not all ischemic stroke patients with dysphagia develop SAP; that is the reason we think NLR, CAR, and AF might be predictors of SAP in acute ischemic stroke patients with dysphagia.

ENG 2024;77(9-10)

Journal of Nursing Theory and Practice

AUGUST 30, 2024

[Dietetic Aspects of Hospice-palliative Care]

TÓDOR Annamária

[Patients in hospice-palliative care are treated with the help of a multidisciplinary team, which includes dietittian too, as a member. The tasks of the dietitian are complex, they participate in the malnutrition screening, maintaining and reaching the patients’ appropriate nutritional status, exploring and solving different nutritional problems, shaping the diet according to individual needs, recommending clinical formula, if needed.]

HUN 2024;37(4)