Low back pain (LBP) is a disease with a high socio-economic and medical impact. Recovery treatment is complex and includes medication (NSAIDs, analgesics, muscle relaxants), physiotherapy and kinesiology. Ultrasound is one of the electrotherapy procedures applied due to its analgesic effects, muscle relaxing properties and massage. The study assesses the evolution of temperature and the number of red blood cells after the application of ultrasound of different intensities and ways. The results are statistically significant for some parameters. Limitations of the study are determined by the relatively small number of study patients, but the results could form the basis of further research.

Medical analysis laboratory must establish its own reference intervals depending on the facilities they are working with, the working substances and protocols. These reference intervals must be obtained depending on age groups in order to accurately interpret the results of the analyzes performed. The study is a retrospective one using 3217 data from the electronic archive of the S.C. Vladutiu&Garabedian S.R.L. Clinic in Medias. Total serum calcium was determined by the colorimetric method on the Konelab analyzer. Processing of the collected data was done using the Hoffmann method, considering 5% up to 95% of the values in the database, the values being randomly selected. For comparison, data from the literature was used. In children under 1 year old, it was not possible to calculate the reference intervals since data was insufficient. In the other age groups, reference intervals obtained in the current study were similar to the studied literature. Reference intervals established for calcium can provide important guidance for the reasonable supplementation of this essential element in children.

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze epidemiological and clinical features of children screened for COVID-19 at Sibiu Pediatric Clinical Hospital during the first 9 months (March–November) of coronavirus disease pandemic in Romania. A total of 203 pediatric patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 were included in the study. The median age of the patients was 121 (IQR 18–181) months and 52.22% had mild clinical type with pneumonia, 35.47% were moderate cases, 3.94% severe cases, 0.99% critically ill cases and 7.39% were asymptomatic. The most common symptoms were fever (n = 130, 64.03%), nasal congestion (n = 138, 67.98%), cough (n = 128, 63.05%) followed by sore throat (n = 64, 31.52%), rhinorrhea (n = 63, 31.03%), fatigue (n = 57, 28.07%), headache (n = 47, 23.15%), diarrhea (n = 39, 19.21%), vomiting (n = 32, 15.76%), myalgia (n = 24, 11.82%), abdominal pain (n = 22, 10.83%). A higher proportion of infants with severe or critical disease was encountered with lymphopenia (n = 9, 90%), neutrophilia (n = 5, 50%), leukocytosis (n = 5, 50%) compared with asymptomatic infants (n = 10, 66.67%, n = 1, 6.67%, n = 3, 20%) or mild (n = 53, 50%, n = 19, 17.92%, n = 15, 14.15%) and moderate (n = 37, 51.39%, n = 9, 12.50%, n = 6, 8.33%) cases (p = 0.095, p = 0.042, p = 0.034). Pediatric patients generally had mild or moderate type of COVID-19, and the critically ill cases were rare. In our study, frequent symptoms were observed in both the systemic and respiratory systems, ear, nose and throat system, and less from gastrointestinal system, central nervous system or ocular system. Additionally, there is an increase in liver and myocardial enzyme levels with an increase in disease severity. Understanding the clinical and laboratory characteristics of pediatric patients is important for diagnosis, management and effective control of the disease.

The hand is a very important segment in gestures, functionality and the achievement of ADL. The Carpal tunnel syndrome was described for the first time by Paget in 1854 , being a very frequent health condition of the extremity in the upper limb caused by the compression of the median nerve at the level of the fibre bone tunnel at the level of the hand wrist. The incidence of the Carpal tunnel syndrome is approximately 0.125%-1% /year, having a prevalence of 5-15%. Among the patients diagnosed with the Carpal tunnel syndrome, 80% are over 40 years old, the women being more affected than the men. The Carpal tunnel syndrome is a disability issue with social and economic consequences, being a burden for the society. The recovery is conservative and it consists of immobilisation by orthesis at the hand level, crio-therapy, kinetic therapy, electric therapy (laser, ultrasound, low and average frequency electrical power) or by surgical intervention. This study tries to point out if it is possible to influence the quality of life and the individuals' level of functional independence by applying therapeutic protocols specific to this health condition. The patients diagnosed with the Carpal tunnel syndrome received a complex treatment which included electric therapy (of low and average frequency, TENS, laser and ultrasound), massage for the upper limb and kinetic therapy, with a length of 15 days, then the patients were called for the checkup 30 days later. It is important to set clear objectives for the recovery programmes and to create optimised treatment schemes. They confirm the hypothesis based on which the research was conducted. Therefore, any health condition for this segment may influence the quality of patients' life, with involvement in the achievement of the daily activities and the social professional insertion.

Magnesium is an essential nutrient for the living organisms and plays an important part in the prevention and treatment of many diseases. It is an enzymatic cofactor for more than 300 reactions. Magnesium is essential for regulating blood pressure, muscle contraction, cardiac excitability, insulin metabolism, vasomotor tonus. Studying the way in which serum magnesium concentration varies in children and adolescents in the Sibiu area according to the reference intervals we especially set for this area. The study is a retrospective one, using approximately 4900 data from the archives of the Medical Analysis Laboratory within the Sibiu Pediatric Clinical Hospital. Serum magnesium was dosed using the Konelab Prime 30i analyser. The data from the literature was used to compare the results. The reference ranges obtained in the current study were similar to the literature studied. The percentage of patients with magnesium concentration outside the reference ranges was roughly equal for all age groups. The difference was between 1 month and 2 year-old children with very few deviations from the reference range. The results of our study reflect more accurately the real reference range for the population in the Sibiu area, helping clinicians to establish a diagnosis as quickly and accurate as possible. These results were not significantly different from the literature studied.

Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 significantly marked people’s lives with respect to their behavior, and their physical and mental health. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that was conducted in 2021 for a period of 5 months. The study sample included 218 students from the College of Physical Education and Sports of the University of Suceava who filled in a questionnaire on mental, physical and behavioral symptoms caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the Anxiety Assessment Questionnaire (STAI). Results: The responses indicated increased anxiety, physical symptoms, altered behavior, and increased perception of social restrictions. Regression analyses indicated that the levels of anxiety during the COVID-19 outbreak were strongly correlated with cognitive, physical and behavioral symptoms of the students. These were influenced by the living arrangements, location (urban vs. rural), age group and study year. Conclusions: The results show that first-year students did not exhibit significant physical and cognitive symptoms despite reporting anxiety, probably due to their enthusiasm as beginners. The 3rd year students were prone to anxiety and reported cognitive symptoms, possibly due to the prospects of an uncertain future.

The low back pain is a public health problem, affecting the adult population and the young one. It is estimated that 90% of the population will experience at least one episode of lower lumbar pain during their lifetime, half of whom may have a second painful episode during the same year. Frequently, the mechanical cause (the pain is somatic and deep, caused by lesions in the musculoskeletal tendon or ligament, in non-specific degenerative or inflammatory diseases) but also the psychosocial factors are incriminated. In low back pain, ultrasounds were used for the analgesic effect, muscle relaxing and for the hyperemia effect. The paper has as purpose the study of the effects of applying ultrasound in relieving symptoms of the low back pain. The physical therapy had the purpose of relaxing the muscles in the sub-acute phase, stretching the paravertebral muscles, relaxing the pelvis, toning the abdominal muscles, stretching the psoas-iliac and the sciatic muscles. All the patients received pharmacological treatment consisting in non-steroidal, neurotrophic anti-inflammatory medicines. The evaluation of the patients was performed at the beginning and at the end of the treatment after 10 days and at the examination after 3 months. For the two groups (study and control), the assessment was made on the basis of some indices and scales, where statistically significant results were obtained in both groups, especially for the group receiving the ultrasound treatment (the pulsed form to avoid the thermal effect) and kinetotherapy.

Alzheimer�s disease (AD) is a complex neuropsychiatric condition characterized by progressive cognitive symptoms.The social and psychological costs associated with the care of AD patients are very high; therefore, significant funds for research in this field are being invested worldwide. The accuracy of medical methods for establishing the diagnosis of AD with specific neuropathology is very important. Biomarkers can detect AD in their pre-clinical stage, monitor the disease progression, and detectmore objectively the treatment response. We performed a retrospective study of 100 patients admitted to the Gheorghe Preda Psychiatric Hospital of Sibiu with the diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer�s Dementia. The diagnosis was established according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Disorders-4th edition criteria and the severity of the condition was determined by the Mini Mental State Examination. Our retrospective study revealed that in a certain period of time, most hospitalized patients with AD had the most days of hospitalization; they were patients in severe stage, due to the needs of multidisciplinary care and the multiple possibilities offered by medical staff. At present, AD research, in addition to finding therapeutic remedies in the clinical stages of AD, also aims at primary and secondary prevention strategies, including the detection of biomarkers in the pre-clinical stage of AD.