Objective: To investigate average sodium excretion in 24 h urine as a marker for salt intake in the Slovene population. Design: Salt intake was determined by measuring sodium excretion in 24 h urine collected from a representative sample of geographically diverse Slovene adults. Setting: Slovenia. Subjects: A random sample of 600 adults aged 25-65 years was generated from census data. The effective sample yield was 143 people, 42?7 % men and 57?3 % women.Results: Urinary sodium excretion was significantly higher in men (220?9 (SD 86?0) mmol Na/d) than in women (169?8 (SD 73?8) mmol Na/d); t test 5 14?5, P , 0?001. Average salt intake was 11?3 (SD 4?9) g/d, higher in men than in women (13?0 (SD 5?1) v. 9?9 (SD 4?3) g/d, respectively). Average intakes of salt among regions were not significantly different. Salt intake increases slightly with increasing age, but there was no significant correlation between age and salt intake. Salt intake was increased with BMI (r 5 0?384, P , 0?001). Conclusions: Salt intake in Slovene adults, especially in men, exceeds the WHO recommended population nutrient intake goal of 5 g by more than twofold. A national programme for reducing salt intake in Slovenia needs to be implemented through systematic efforts including public education and involving the health-care sector and the food industry.
Keywords
Salt intake 24 h urine collection Body mass index RegionsIn 2005, thirty-five million people died from chronic diseases worldwide, which represents 60 % of the total number of deaths (fifty-eight million) in that year. Of all deaths from chronic diseases in 2005, 30 % were due to CVD (1) . In Slovenia CVD is the leading cause of death (40 % of all deaths) (2) . There is strong conclusive evidence of the adverse effects of excessive dietary salt intake on blood pressure, and high blood pressure is a risk factor for CVD (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)
This study investigated the prevalence, risk factors and rate of recognition of anxiety and depression in 50 patients hospitalized for exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Using the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders questionnaire, 13 patients were identified as having depression, four had anxiety and eight had a combination of the two. Patients with anxiety and/or depression had a significantly higher partial pressure of oxygen and pH, and a lower partial pressure of carbon dioxide, in arterial blood on admission, more severe dyspnoea after a 6-min walk test and less improvement of dyspnoea from admission to discharge than COPD patients without anxiety and/or depression. Two patients were referred to a mental health specialist during their hospitalization, indicating a low rate of recognition. The results suggest that patients with mental disorders are referred and admitted to hospital earlier in the course of a COPD exacerbation due to earlier and more intense perception of dyspnoea.
BackgroundThe outcome of severely injured or ill patients can be time dependent. Short activation and approach times for emergency medical service (EMS) units are widely recognized to be important quality indicators. The use of a helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) can significantly shorten rescue missions especially in mountainous areas. We aimed to analyze the HEMS characteristics that influence the activation and approach times.MethodsIn a multi-centre retrospective study, we analyzed 6121 rescue missions from nine HEMS bases situated in mountainous regions of four European countries.ResultsWe found large differences in mean activation and approach times among HEMS bases. The shortest mean activation time was 2.9 minutes; the longest 17.0 minutes. The shortest mean approach time was 10.4 minutes; the longest 45.0 minutes. Short times are linked (p < 0.001) to the following conditions: helicopter operator is not state owned; HEMS is integrated in EMS; all crew members are at the same location; doctors come from state or private health institutions; organization performing HEMS is privately owned; helicopters are only for HEMS; operation area is around 10.000 km2; HEMS activation is by a dispatching centre of regional government who is in charge of making decisions; there is only one intermediator in the emergency call; helicopter is equipped with hoist or fixed line; HEMS has more than one base with helicopters, and one team per base; closest neighboring base is 90 km away; HEMS is about 20 years old and has more than 650 missions per year; and modern helicopters are used.ConclusionsAn improvement in HEMS activation and approach times is possible. We found 17 factors associated with shorter times.
The study demonstrated an early decline of anti-PT IgG after vaccination. According to the serological profile, school-age children and adolescents have the highest rate of infection. The large proportion of seropositive adults indicates that reinfection with B. pertussis is relatively common.
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