Genė Šurkienė

Prevalence and determinants of anxiety and depression symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes in Lithuania.

Background Depression is associated with a variety of diabetes complications, including diabetic retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, and macrovascular complications. The prevalence of the symptoms of anxiety (32%) and depression (22.4%) in patients with diabetes is considerably higher than in general population samples (10%). The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and determinants of anxiety and depression symptoms in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Material/Methods This survey was conducted during 2007–2010. In total, 1500 patients were invited to participate in the study. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to measure depression and anxiety for the evaluation of the depressive state and anxiety. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS 17.0. Results More than 70% of all respondents who participated in the study had diabetes mellitus complications (72.2%). The prevalence of mild to severe depression score was 28.5% (95% CI 25.7–31.4). The prevalence of anxiety was 42.4% (95% CI 39.3–45.5). Anxiety was more frequent among females (46.8%) than among males (34.7%) (p<0.001). A significant negative trend was observed between prevalence of anxiety and depression, and age and education (p for trend <0.001). Conclusions A significant association between depression and diabetic complications was identified (p<0.05). Duration of diabetes was a risk factor significantly associated with higher scores of anxiety among the patients with T2DM.

Self-reported consequences and healthcare costs of falls among elderly women

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Although the falls in elderly people lead to serious health consequences, the economic burden is underestimated. The aim of this study was to calculate the medical costs of fall consequences in elderly women. MATERIALS AND METHODS Women aged 65 years and older were interviewed by phone recording the consequences and healthcare procedures related to every fall sustained during the previous 12 months. The healthcare costs were estimated by calculating the sum of costs for all self-reported contacts with medical care providers: ambulance, emergency department, visits to family doctor and other specialists, hospitalisations, and rehabilitation. RESULTS The study population consisted of 878 community-dwelling women (mean age 72.2±4.8 years). Falls were reported by 310 (35.3%) women; one in three of them had fallen twice or more. Of all women who fell, 280 (90.3%) reported their fall resulted in an injury, and 77 (15.3%) falls led to bone fractures. Fear of falling was reported by 72.9% of women. Fall-related medical care was provided to 135 women (43.5% of those fallen), and 18 (5.8%) subjects were hospitalised, mostly for the fracture. The mean estimated healthcare cost was 254 EUR per patient receiving fall-related medical care, and 116 EUR per women fallen. The highest mean cost (1289 EUR) was estimated in falls resulted in hip fracture; the lowest (135 EUR), in nonfracture injury. CONCLUSION The data on the self-reported consequences of falls in elderly women showed a significant number of fall-related injuries and a high cost of healthcare.

Food allergies among 5th-9th grade schoolchildren in Vilnius (Lithuania)@@@Vilniaus 5-9 klasių moksleivių maisto alergijos

Allergic diseases are a frequent disorder of children health the world over. Th e prevalence of food allergies among schoolchildren in Vilnius was estimated by an anonymous, questionnaire-based survey. 540 schoolchildren answered the questionnaire. Th e prevalence of food allergies among schoolchildren was 12.8%. It was independent of the gender and age of respondents. Th e pupils who did not have food allergies estimated their state of health better than those who did have it. Th ere were two times more children who had food allergy in the families where family members had food allergy, than in families without food allergy. Schoolchildren that had food allergies mostly suff ered from body rashes (34.8% of respondents), short breath (14.5%), run-ning and itchy eyes (34.8%). 1.3% of schoolchildren had urticaria; they were mostly allergic to eggs, strawberries, wild strawberries, chocolate and oranges; 1.9% of schoolchildren had atopic dermatitis; they did not tolerate milk, wild strawberries and nuts. Key words: schoolchildren, prevalence, food allergy, atopic dermatitis, urticaria

Organic food consumption by athletes in Lithuania

Abstract Background: With environmental pollution increasing, interest in organic farming and organic foodstuffs has been growing all over the world. Data on organic food consumption by Lithuanian athletes is not yet available. This lack of data determined the aim of this study: to identify the particulars of organic foodstuff consumption among athletes. Methods: In September–November 2012, we polled 158 of the best-performing athletes of the Olympic sports team through direct interviews. An approved questionnaire was used to identify the specifics of organic foodstuff consumption among athletes. Results: The survey results showed that 97% of athletes consume organic foodstuffs, and 80% of athletes highlighted the positive impact of organic food on health. Nevertheless, a slim majority of athletes (51.7%) consume organic foodstuffs seldomly, 2–3 times per week. The range of organic foodstuffs consumed depends on the gender of athletes, and the consumption of some products depends on monthly incomes. Conclusions: Survey results confirm the need for the production and expansion of the variety of organic foodstuffs. In the course of the development of the organic food market, it should be beneficial for manufacturers to target high-performance athletes and physically active people.

The Influence of Information, Published in Mass Media, on Student‘S Nutrition

Saltiniai, is kurių žmonės gauna informaciją apie mitybą, yra labai svarbūs, nes sveika mityba yra mūsų sveikatos pagrindas. Jauniems žmonėms, taip pat ir jų mitybos įprociams, didele įtaką daro populiarioji spauda. Svarbu įvertinti spaudoje pateikiamą informaciją apie mitybą ir sios informacijos įtaką studentų mitybai. Darbo tikslas: įvertinti populiarioje spaudoje pateikiamos informacijos apie mitybą įtaką Vilniaus universiteto studentų mitybai. Tyrimo metodika: populiarios spaudos informacija apie mitybą vertinta taikant aprasomosios statistikos metodus. Įvertinti keturių didžiausio mėnesinio tiražo žurnalų (,,Edita“, ,,Cosmopolitan“, ,,Panelė“ ir ,,Laima“) penkerių metų (nuo 2006 iki 2010 imtinai) straipsniai apie mitybą (is viso 240 žurnalų). Žurnalų analizės duomenys apdoroti naudojant programą Microsoft Office Excel 2007. Siekiant įvertinti spaudos informacijos apie mitybą įtaką studentų mitybai, atlikta anoniminė anketinė apklausa. Anketą sudarė 18 uždaro ir atviro tipo klausimų. Apklausta 300 antro – trecio kurso Vilniaus universiteto studentų, studijuojancių Gamtos mokslų, Medicinos bei Matematikos ir informatikos fakultetuose. Surinktų duomenų analizė atlikta naudojant statistinių programų paketą SPSS 17.0. Pasirinkta a klaidos rizika 0,05; rezultatai vertinami kaip statistiskai reiksmingi, kai p < 0,05. Rezultatai. Populiarioje spaudoje vyrauja dietų (38,4 proc.) ir maisto produktų (37,4 proc.) aprasymai. Produktų aprasymai tik is dalies atitinka sveikos mitybos rekomendacijas. Dažniausiai spaudoje aprasomi vaisiai ir daržovės (44,7 proc.) bei saldumynai, riebalai ir druska (21,3 proc.). Tik 4,6 proc. straipsnių apie mitybą, pateikiamų populiarioje spaudoje, remiasi moksline informacija. Apklausos duomenimis, tik 21,3 proc. respondentų savo mitybą vertina kaip gerą. Vaikinai savo mitybą vertina blogiau nei merginos (p<0,001). 53 proc. respondentų skaito populiarios spaudos straipsnius apie mitybą. Merginos du kartus dažniau nurodė skaitancios populiarių žurnalų straipsnius apie mitybą (62,3 proc. ir 33,3 proc. atitinkamai, p<0,001). Net 59,6 proc. studentų vadovaujasi populiarios spaudos informacija apie maisto produktus, 60,9 proc. – sveikos mitybos patarimais, 37,9 – kitų žmonių mitybos pavyzdžiais. 31,7 proc. respondentų savo mitybai taiko dietas, aprasomas spaudoje. Vaikinai du kartus dažniau nurodė, kad domisi informacija apie maisto papildus (p=0,003), o daugiau merginų domisi dietų aprasymais (p=0,034). Daugiau vaikinų nei merginų nepasitiki spaudos informacija. Isvados: 1. Populiarios spaudos informacija apie mitybą is dalies atitinka sveikos mitybos rekomendacijas. 2. Tik 21,3 proc. studentų savo mitybą vertina kaip gerą. Vaikinai savo mitybą vertina blogiau nei merginos. 3. Daugiau vaikinų nei merginų nepasitiki populiarios spaudos informacija apie mitybą. 4. Studentai vadovaujasi spaudoje pateikiamais sveikos mitybos patarimais, dietų aprasymais, kitų žmonių mitybos pavyzdžiais ir informacija apie maisto produktus, formuodami savo mitybą. 5. Vaikinai ir merginos domisi skirtingomis mitybos temomis aprasomomis spaudoje. doi:10.5200/sm-hs.2012.098