Dusica Djordjevic

Although intensively investigated, the procedures for assessment and monitoring of scoliosis are still a subject of controversies. The aim of this study was to assess validity and reliability of a number of physiotherapeutic measurements that could be used for clinical monitoring of scoliosis. Fifteen healthy (symmetric) subjects were subjected to a set of measurements two times, by two experienced and two inexperienced physiotherapists. Intra-observer and inter-observer reliability of measurements were determined. Following measurements were performed: body height and weight, chest girth in inspirium and expirium, the length of legs, the spine translation, the lateral pelvic tilt, the equality of the shoulders, position of scapulas, the equality of stature triangles, the rib hump, the existence of m. iliopsoas contracture, Fröhner index, the size of lumbar lordosis and the angle of trunk rotation.RESULTS: Intraclass correlation coefficient was high (> 0.8) for majority of measur...

Тo examine the effects of nitroglycerine on portal vein haemodynamics and oxidative stress in patients with portal hypertension. Thirty healthy controls and 39 patients with clinically verified portal hypertension and increased vascular resistance participated in the study. Liver diameters, portal diameters and portal flow velocities were recorded using color flow imaging/pulsed Doppler detection. Cross-section area, portal flow and index of vascular resistance were calculated. In collected blood samples, superoxide anion radical (O(2) (-)), hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), index of lipid peroxidation (measured as TBARS) and nitric oxide (NO) as a marker of endothelial response (measured as nitrite-NO(2) (-)) were determined. Time-dependent analysis was performed at basal state and in 10th and 15th min after nitroglycerine (sublingual 0.5 mg) administration. Oxidative stress parameters changed significantly during the study. H(2)O(2) decreased at the end of study, probably via O(2) (-)...

Regular training has been claimed to increase the activity of antioxidant enzymes and, consequently, augments the resistance to oxidative stress; however, large volumes of training performed by elite sportsmen could lead to a chronic oxidative stress state. The aim of our study was to assess the oxidative status of elite athletes at the beginning of the preparatory and the beginning of the competition training phases, so that the influence of three months of programmed physical activity on redox status could be determined. The chronic effects of exercise on the redox state of the athletes were compared to the effects of a single bout of karate training. Thirty elite karate athletes, 16-30 years old, were subjected to maximal graded exercise test to estimate their aerobic capacity; blood sampling was also performed to measure levels of superoxide anion radical (O₂⁻), hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), superoxide dismutase activity (SOD) and catalase activity (CAT). The only significant change after the three-month training process was found in the significantly decreased CAT activity (X ± SE: 7.95 ± 0.13 U/g Hb × 10³ in the preparatory period, 6.65 ± 0.28 U/g Hb × 10³ in the competition stage; P < 0.01). After a single karate training session, there was statistically significant decrease of O₂⁻(X ± SE: 32.7 ± 4.9 nmol/ml in the preparatory period, 24.5 ± 2.5 nmol/ml in the competition stage; P < 0.05) and increase of H₂O₂(X ± SE: 11.8 ± 1.0 nmol/ml in the preparatory period, 14.2 ± 0.9 nmol/ml in the competition stage; P < 0.01), as well as significant CAT increase (X ± SE: 6.6 ± 0.6 U/g Hb × 10³ in the preparatory period, 8.5 ± 0.5 U/g Hb × 10³ in the competition stage; P < 0.05). Although the three-month training process induced, at the first sight, negative changes in the redox state, expressed through the decrease in CAT activity, adequate response of the antioxidant system of our athletes to acute exercise was preserved.

... Correspondence to: Vladimir Jakovljevic, MD, PhD / Associate Professor of Physiology / Medical Faculty, University of Kragujevac Svetozara Markovica 69, PP 124, 34000 Kragujevac, Republic of Serbia, Tel.: +381 34 34 29 44, Fax.: + 381 34 30 68 00/ext 112, E-mail ...