The ankle-brachial index is the ratio between systolic arterial pressures measured on the arms and the ankles. It is a highly sensitive and specific test for detecting peripheral arterial occ­lusive…

Long term athletic training is associated with an increase in left ventricular diastolic cavity dimensions, wall thickness, and mass. These changes are described as the »athlete's heart«. In men, athlete's…

Background. Dilatative atherosclerosis is a rare form of degenerative process manifested by arterial aneurysms. It is believed that endothelial dysfunction is involved in dilatative athero­sclerosis. For estimation of systemic endothelial…

Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune disorder of the motor plate. The degree of reduction in the number of functional acetylcholine receptors correlates with the severity of myasthenia gravis as manifested…

Mutation in the prothrombin gene (G20120A) and in the factor V gene (G1691A), which is manifested as resistance to the activated protein C (nAPC), are important risk factors for throm­boembolic…

Breaking bad news is one of the most difficult challenges in doctor-patient communication. It is very important, however, to both the quality of the patient's life and the future connection…

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disease in fertile women. It is also closely associated with insulin resistance (IR). The purpose of this trial was to inves­tigate…

Percutaneous coronary intervention with stent implantation is the therapy of choice for the treatment of patients with decreased blood flow through the coronary arteries. According to the Taxus II-Trial definition,…

The pathology of the anorectum is rich. Evaluation of some symptoms frequently associa­ted with diseases of the anus and rectum is presented. The general principles of history taking and digitorectal…

Small amounts of alcohol consumption are associated with a decrease in the incidence of coro­nary artery disease and total mortality, whereas with higher alcohol consumption an increase in total and…

Aortic dissection is a relatively rare but life-threatening disease, characterized by a forma­tion of a tear in the aortic wall. Any part of aorta can be affected, most commonly ascending…

Pregnancy is associated with substantial cardiocirculatory changes that contribute to greater morbidity and mortality in women with underlying heart disease. An understanding of cardiovascular physiology during pregnancy is vital for proper…

Transjugular intrahepatic portosys­temic shunt is an alternative therapeutic approach in the treatment of portal hypertension and its complications. Two cases with implant­ed transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt are described. Doppler ultrasonography…

Speaking of acute hepatitis, acute viral hepatitis is what we usually have in mind, although a similar liver inflammation can also be caused by many other etiologic agents such as…

We studied 31 healthy volunteers with a normal menstrual cycle, who were divided according to their age into a group of younger women and a group of premenopausal women. During…

Diffuse interstitial lung diseases, in the strict sense, are immunologically mediated inflam­mations accounting for up to 5% of all pulmonary diseases, while diffuse interstitial lung diseases in the broader sense…

The main features of functional anato­my, physiology, pathophysiology and coronary angiography are presented and the clinical importance of coronary artery collaterals in pa­tients with ischemic heart disease is discussed. Coronary…

The aim of the study was to find out whether hypertensive reaction induced by exer­cise test, as well as the patient's body weight and heart rate can predict the development…

Non-invasive ultrasound methods have been increasingly used for detecting morpho­logical and functional changes in the arterial wall, indicating the beginning of atherosclerotic process. Early detection of atherosclerosis is of utmost…

The relationship between stressful emotions and sudden cardiac death is sup­ported not only by anecdotal reports, but also by experimental, epidemiologic and clinical data. Links between emotional stress, neural control…

Infective endocarditis is a disease with protean manifestations. The diagnosis is based mainly on the typical clinical signs and on a few laboratory parameters. The clinical and epide­miological aspects of…

Acute stroke is increasingly recognized as one of the leading factors of morbidity and mortality in adult worldwide population, with a mortality rate in the acute stage of more than…