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Introduction: The coronavirus pandemic has focused attention on the importance of critical care and highlighted the shortage of critical care specialists. Due to increasing workloads and high mortality rates, healthcare professionals were exposed to higher levels of physical and psychological stress during the pandemic than before., Objective: Our study investigated the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on the emotional, mental and moral stress of intensive care professionals., Method: Our workgroup performed paper-based surveys among caregivers in the Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Therapy at Semmelweis University. The first survey was conducted at the start of the pandemic in 2020, the second survey was conducted after the third wave in 2021. We applied validated questionnaires (Professional Quality of Life, Demoralization Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Impact of Event Scale, and Posttraumatic Growth Inventory), collected demographic data and information on lifestyle, recreation, dietary habits, and accepting psychological support., Results: The number and demographic characteristics of the participants in the two studies are different, reflecting the changes in the workforce during the pandemic. Our results revealed no differences between the working and socio-demographic groups before the outbreak, however, one year later, nurses scored significantly higher on all negative psychological scales compared to other groups. Only a minority of the respondents had sought psychological support (9.5-12.7%), although more than a third of respondents reported the need for psychological support. Employees in new work positions showed significantly increased posttraumatic growth (2.91 ± 0.82 vs. 2.20 ± 1.06, p = 0.016)., Discussion: These findings demonstrate that nurses are the most strained workgroup during an uncertain and stressful period. The available mental support alone is not enough to help caregivers., Conclusion: Further steps are needed to improve the mental health of critical care workers. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(42): 1646-1655.

Introduction: COVID–19 significantly affects endoscopic labs’ workflow. Endoscopic examinations are considered high-risk for virus transmission. Objectives: To determine impact of COVID–19 pandemic on Hungarian endoscopic labs’ workflow and on infection risk of endoscopic staff. Method: A nation-wide, cross-sectional online questionnaire was sent to heads of endoscopic labs in Hungary. The average number (with 95% confidence intervals) of upper and lower gastrointestinal endoscopies performed in 2020 was compared to that in 2019. The number of SARS-CoV-2-infected endoscopic staff members and the source of infection was also investigated. Results: Completion rate was 30% (33/111). Neither the number of upper (1.593 [743–1.514] vs. 1.129 [1.020–2.166], p = 0.053), nor that of lower gastrointestinal endoscopies (1.181 [823–1.538] vs. 871 [591–1.150], p = 0.072) decreased in 2020, but both upper and lower gastrointestinal endoscopies’ number decreased by 80% during peak phases. Separate examination room was available in 12% of institutes. Appropriate quality personal protective equipment (PPE) was available during the first and second peak phase in 70% and 82%, respectively. Infection risk stratification by questionnaire and PCR testing was routinely performed in 85% and 42%, respectively. Employee number decreased by 33% and 26% for physicians, and by 19% and 21% for assistants during peak phases, mainly due to age restrictions and COVID care assignments. 32% of assistants and 41% of physicians were infected (associated with inappropriate PPE use in 16% and 18%, respectively). Conclusion: Peak phases’ restrictions increase endoscopic workload afterwards. Despite PPE availability, 15% of employees’ COVID infection resulted from inappropriate PPE use in pre-vaccination era.

Introduction: High school education took place in the form of distance learning during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic worldwide, including Hungary. Decreased physical activity and an increase in inactive behaviours may lead to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Objective: Our study focused on changes in physical activity (aerobic exercise, muscle strengthening, team sports) and subjective perceptions of health status in adolescents and young adults during the pandemic. Method: High school students in 66 public schools in 37 cities in Hungary (n = 2508) were surveyed. Questionnaire items on physical activity and subjective perceptions of health were adapted from the WHO Health Behaviour of School-aged Children Survey and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey. 2 x 2 x 4 factorial ANCOVA was used to test the effect of gender and/or age and region on changes in subjective perceptions of physical activity and health before and during distance education. Results: The majority of the high school students reported a decrease in physical activity frequency during the distance learning period, with an average of 2-3 fewer days of physical activity per week regardless of region. Nearly a quarter of them rated their health as worse during distance learning than before. A higher proportion of those who reported a subjective decline in health also reported a decline in physical activity. Conclusion: A decline in physical activity during the period of distance learning is associated with a decline in subjective perceptions of health, especially among rural adolescent girls.

Összefoglaló. A koronavírus-19-pandémia hatalmas kihívás az egészségügyi ellátórendszerek számára. A hatékony kezelés iránti igény felerősítette a terápiás megoldásokra való törekvéseket. Ennek egyik eleme a favipiravir hatóanyag széles körű ambuláns és intézeti alkalmazása. A gyógyszer biztonsági információi korlátozottan említik a lehetséges cardialis mellékhatásokat: mindösszesen az igen ritka mellékhatások között lelhető fel a "szívritmuszavar" megjegyzés. A közlemény a favipiravirkezeléshez köthető átmeneti sinusbradycardia esetét ismerteti. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(7): 267-270. Summary. The coronavirus pandemic is an enormously high challenge for medical health services worldwide. The demand for effective treatment amplified the pursuits for therapeutic solutions. One element of the possible treatment is the use of favipiravir in outpatient departments and hospitals. Safety information of favipiravir is limited with the risk of potential cardiac side effects: only the two words of "rhytm disturbances" can be found among the very rare side effects. This article describes the case of favipiravir-induced transient sinus bradycardia. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(7): 267-270.

Összefoglaló. A SARS-CoV-2-infekció változatos kórlefolyású, a gyermekpopulációban növekvő incidenciát mutató fertőzés. Ebben a korcsoportban a felnőttekkel szemben sokkal gyakrabban tapasztalhatók gasztroenterológiai tünetek a betegség során, 18-32%-ban jelentkezik legalább egy szimptóma. Ezek nem specifikusak, gyakran megegyezhetnek a virális enteritisek, a gyulladásos bélbetegségek vagy a vakbélgyulladás tüneteivel. A gyermekkori SARS-CoV-2-infekciónak egy viszonylag ritkán megjelenő, de súlyos, akár életveszélyes szövődménye a gyermekkori sokszervi gyulladásos szindróma (multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, MIS-C). Ilyenkor a gastrointestinalis tünetek gyakorisága 60-100%-ra nő, sok esetben akut has benyomását keltve. A jelenlegi kutatások eredményei alapján a gyulladásos bélbeteg gyerekek az alapbetegségük miatt nincsenek nagyobb veszélynek kitéve az átlagpopulációhoz képest a COVID-19-fertőzés szempontjából. A terápiájukban alkalmazott gyógyszereik közül a nagy dózisú szteroidkezelés okoz nagyobb kockázatot a megfertőződésre, illetve ebben az esetben a súlyosabb kórlefolyásra. Az éppen remisszióban lévő gyulladásos bélbetegek fenntartó terápiájának módosítások nélküli folytatása javasolt, kiemelt figyelmet fordítva a biológiai terápiák időben történő, megszakítás nélküli alkalmazására. Törekedni kell a személyes vizitek számának csökkentésére a pandémia idején, ezek telemedicinával történő helyettesítése javasolt. A halasztható endoszkópos vizsgálatok noninvazív vizsgálómódszerekkel történő átmeneti kiváltása részesítendő előnyben a betegség aktivitásának, a terápia hatékonyságának megítélésére. A gyulladásos bélbetegségben szenvedő gyermekek COVID-19 elleni védőoltása javasolt, jelenleg minden elérhető oltóanyag alkalmazható náluk (az élő ágenst tartalmazó vakcinák ellenjavalltak). Immunmoduláns, szteroid- vagy anti-tumornekrózisfaktor (TNF)-alfa-terápia esetén az oltás lehetséges csökkent hatékonyságával kell számolni. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(6): 214-221. Summary. The SARS-CoV-2 infection is showing high variety in the disease course, with a constantly increasing incidence among the pediatric population. In this age group, at least one gastrointestinal symptom appears in 18-32% of the cases, showing a significant difference compared to the adult population. The gastrointestinal signs of COVID-19 are not specific, can mimic the symptoms of viral enteritis, inflammatory bowel diseases or acute appendicitis. The multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a rather rare, but serious complication of the pediatric COVID-19 disease: in these cases, the incidence of the gastrointestinal symptoms is increased up to 60-100%, often observed as acute abdomen. Based on recent researches, patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are shown to have the same risk in developing COVID-19 infection compared to the normal population: in their medications, the high dose steroid treatment is proved to increase the risk of infection or to make the disease course more serious. The treatment of patients with IBD should be continued without any changes (when the disease is in remission). The use of biologics should be done with special care, with more attention keeping the schedule and the continuity. It is advised to minimise the number of personal visits during the pandemic, they should be substituted with telemedicine. The postponable endoscopic examinations should be temporarily redeemed by non-invasive methods for screening the disease activity and the efficacy of the treatment. The vaccination against COVID-19 is advised in the population with IBD. All vaccines currently available are usable in this patient group (the use of vaccines containing live agents are contraindicated). In the case of patients treated with immunmodulators, steroids or anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha, a possible lower efficacy can be expected after the vaccination. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(6): 214-221.

Összefoglaló. Az új koronavírusként megismert SARS-CoV-2-fertőzés legsúlyosabb szövődményeként a gyulladásos folyamatok jelátvivő molekuláinak elszabadulása - az ún. citokinvihar - kritikus légzési elégtelenséggel társuló akut respirációs diszfunkciós szindrómát vagy többszervi gyulladásos szindrómát okoz. Mostanáig igazolódott, hogy a fertőzések legnagyobb részben tünetmentesen vagy enyhe tünetekkel zajlanak. A betegség minden szakaszában előfordulhat enyhe vagy középsúlyos, ritkábban intenzív fájdalom, melyek enyhítésére számos fájdalomcsillapítási lehetőség áll rendelkezésre. A pandémia kezdete óta foglalkoznunk kell a tünetek enyhítésével, akár infektológiai osztályon, akár műtéti ellátás alkalmával. A betegek hazaengedését követően figyelmet kell fordítanunk az intenzív osztályos ellátás utáni és a COVID-19-et követő tünetek és fájdalmak értékelésére. Időszerű átfogó összefoglalónkban hangsúlyozzuk a különböző fájdalomcsillapítók szerepét a COVID-19-fertőzéssel összefüggő fájdalommal járó folyamatokban. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(38): 1511-1519. Summary. As the most severe consequence of the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection, the cytokine storm - caused by the liberalization of several inflammatory mediators - engenders critical respiratory dysfunction syndrome or multisystem inflammatory syndrome. The most proportion of infections has proven symptomless or with very mild signs of disease so far. Mild, moderate, or rarely intense pain can occur in every phase of the disease, for the treatment of which more than a few analgesic possibilities are readily available. From the start of the pandemic, we have been concerning to ameliorate the symptoms, in either the department of infectology, or operating suites. The post-intensive care pain and post-COVID symptoms should be evaluated and treated after discharge. In this timely and comprehensive article, the role and importance of different analgesics are articulated regarding the COVID-associated painful conditions. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(38): 1511-1519.

Összefoglaló. Az új típusú koronavírus-fertőzés (COVID-19) nagy terhet ró az egészségügyi ellátórendszerre és a társadalomra. A betegségnek három nagy szakasza van, melyek alapvetően meghatározzák a kezelést. Az I-IIA fázisban az antivirális, míg a IIB-III. fázisban a gyulladásgátló kezelés áll előtérben, melyhez intenzív terápiás, szupportív kezelés csatlakozik. A jelen ajánlás kizárólag a gyógyszeres kezelésre vonatkozik, és a rendelkezésre álló bizonyítékok alapján foglalja össze a terápiás lehetőségeket. Emellett egy javasolt kezelési algoritmust is tartalmaz. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(17): 643-651. Summary. The novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) places a heavy burden on the health care system and our society. There are three major stages in the disease that fundamentally determine treatment approaches. Phases I-IIA require primarily antiviral treatment. In phases IIB-III, anti-inflammatory treatment is needed accompanied by intensive and supportive care. This recommendation applies only to pharmacotherapy and summarizes the therapeutic options based on the available evidence. It also includes a proposed treatment algorithm. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(17): 643-651.

Összefoglaló. Az új típusú koronavírus (SARS-CoV-2 ) okozta járvány hirtelen megnövekedett betegszámai és halálozásai komoly kihívás elé állították az egészségügyi ellátás minden színterét. A magas időfaktorú kórképek ellátásában a laikusok által végzett elsősegélynyújtás alapvető fontosságú a beteg túlélése és maradandó egészségkárosodásának elkerülése szempontjából. Az áttekintés célja rávilágítani arra, hogy a SARS-CoV-2 okozta járvány idején az első észlelők által megkezdett azonnali beavatkozások késlekedése mögött az elsősegélynyújtói attitűd változása feltételezhető. A társadalmilag fontos elsősegélynyújtás fenntartása érdekében az Európai Újraélesztési Tanács is módosította az elsősegélyre, az alapvető, eszköz nélküli újraélesztésre vonatkozó irányelveit, továbbá ajánlásokat fogalmazott meg a járvány idején a biztonságos elsősegélynyújtás oktatásával kapcsolatban. A hazai adaptáció érdekében a jelen áttekintés összefoglalja a legfontosabb eljárásrendi szempontokat, kiegészítéseket, és kitér azok gyakorlati alkalmazhatóságára is. Az eljárásrendek változásának legfőbb célja, hogy a segítségnyújtói szándékot a koronavírus-járvány előtti motiváltsági szintre lehessen visszahozni és azt tovább fokozni szakszerű oktatási anyagok és korszerű módszerek révén. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(15): 571-578. Summary. The sudden increase in the number of patients and deaths from this novel type of coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic poses a serious challenge to all arenas of health care delivery system. The care of high-time dependent-factor illnesses is essential for the survival of a patient and the need for avoiding impairment of health. The purpose of the review is to highlight that a change in first-aid attitudes can be assumed behind the delay in immediate interventions initiated by first responders during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. To maintain socially important first aid, the European Resuscitation Council amended its guidelines on first aid, basic life support and made further recommendations at the time of pandemic on first-aid education, too. For effective domestic adaptation, the present overview summarises the most important aspects of guidelines and their supplements and also covers their practical implementations. The main purpose of the change in guidelines is to bring the willingness of the first responders back to the level before the coronavirus pandemic, and to further enhance it with professional educational materials and modern methods. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(15): 571-578.

Összefoglaló. Számos közlemény született arról, hogy a COVID-19-pneumoniás betegek jelentős hányadában az artériás parciális oxigéntenzió kifejezetten alacsony, mégsem jellemző a dyspnoe, és a pulzusoximetria sem mutat - a csökkent oxigéntenzióval arányos - súlyos hypoxaemiát. A jelenséget "happy hypoxaemia" néven említik. Ugyanakkor a légszomjról nem panaszkodó, de súlyos alveolocapillaris O2-felvételi zavarban szenvedő COVID-19-pneumoniás betegek a legkisebb fizikai megterhelést sem tűrik, és állapotuk gyorsan kritikussá válhat, tehát a hypoxaemia mértékének időben való felismerése kulcskérdés. A jelen közleményben egy ilyen eset rövid ismertetése után összefoglaljuk a súlyos, de tünetmentes hypoxaemia hátterében meghúzódó élettani okokat. Ezek között szerepel a hypocapnia (respiratoricus alkalosis) is, mely alacsony oxigéntenzió mellett is a hemoglobin viszonylag megtartott oxigénszaturációját eredményezi. Ezért a mindennapi COVID-19-ellátásban a megismételt artériásvérgáz-meghatározások jelentősége nem hangsúlyozható eléggé. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(10): 362-365. Summary. Many COVID-19 patients have very low arterial partial oxigen tension while severe dyspnoe does not develop. Pulse oxymetry indicates only moderate reduction of arterial O2 saturation in these patients. The phenomenon is named "happy hypoxaemia". Lack of (severe) dyspnoe and only moderately decreased O2 saturation in severely impaired alveolo-capillary O2 uptake may partially be explained by an increased oxygen affinity of hemoglobin in the presence of low arterial partial pressure of CO2. The latter results from increased alveolar ventilation, while low partial pressure of O2 in COVID-19 patients reflects right-to-left shunting of pulmonary blood flow and ventilation-perfusion mismatch of the diseased lungs. While such patients may have mild complaints as related to the real impairment of alveolo-capillary oxygen exchange, severe hypoxaemia is a negative prognostic factor of outcome in this state where severe clinical deterioration may rapidly appear. The latter circumstance together with the unusual relationship of O2 partial pressure and O2 saturation of hemoglobin in COVID-19 emphasize the importance of repeated complete arterial blood gas analyses in these patients. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(10): 362-365.

Introduction: Early international observations report decreased number of acute ischemic stroke admissions and prolonged onset-to-treatment times during COVID-19 pandemic., Aim: Our goal was to assess the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on Hungarian acute ischemic stroke care., Method: We compared demographical and clinical characteristics, rate of intravenous and endovascular therapies and therapeutic time parameters of acute ischemic strokes admitted to a university stroke centre in a COVID-epidemic period (01/03/2020-30/04/2020) and an identical period of 2019., Results: 86 patients were admitted during the COVID-period and 97 in the control period. Demographical and clinical characteristics of these periods were well-balanced. In the COVID-period, the proportion of patients arriving beyond 24 hours after onset increased by 13% (p = 0.046), the rate of endovascular interventions remained unchanged (8%), the rate of intravenous thrombolysis decreased from 26% to 16%, the mean onset-to-treatment time of thrombolysis increased by 20 minutes, while the mean door-to-treatment time increased by only 5 minutes. Behind the shift of arrival time categories, multivariable (year of examination, NIHSS, age) logistic regression shows that the year of examination might play a leading role (p = 0.096)., Conclusion: In the COVID-period, admissions for acute ischemic strokes decreased by 11% and the proportion of cases certainly untreatable by reperfusion therapies (arriving beyond 24 hours after onset) increased significantly. While the rate of endovascular interventions remained unchanged, the absolute rate of intravenous thrombolysis decreased by 10% and the mean onset-to-treatment time showed a tendency to increase. In these changes, the COVID-epidemic itself and related out-of-hospital factors might play a leading role. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(34): 1395-1399.

Introduction: During the state of emergency caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Doctor-patient communication training for medical students at the University of Szeged was moved online. The training is based on the method of video analysis, involving simulated patients, making online implementation extremely challenging., Aim: The study aims to present our experiences with the online training and to analyse the students' evaluations., Method: We used the free version of Zoom for small groups of five students, a trainer and a simulated patient. All students participated in a situation that we recorded. The viewing of the recordings was followed by group discussion. Then, the students evaluated the course using an online questionnaire. We used descriptive statistics and content analysis., Results: 74.4% of the students (n = 64) completed the questionnaire. 78.1-100% of them gave a good (4) or excellent (5) evaluation for the questions. The highest average score (4.95 ± 0.21) was given to the professionalism of the trainers, the lowest was given to the choice of topic of the theoretical part (4.06 ± 1.02). The majority of the students were satisfied with the course, they would be happy to attend it again; however, in-person learning still seems to be the preferred option., Conclusion: The online practice was a success. In many ways, it proved to be an adequate replacement for the traditional form. The students evaluated the training similarly to those of previous years. The lack of personal contact is a limiting factor, thus, online practice should not be seen as an alternative to personal communication trainings; however, as an independent form of training, it can make a significant contribution to effective, modern education. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(33): 1355-1362.

The coronavirus pandemic is a serious challenge for healthcare workers worldwide. The virus is spread through the air by droplets of moisture when people cough or sneeze and it has a very high virulence. Procedures generating airway aerosols are dangerous for every participant of patient care. The serious form of coronavirus infection can cause progressive respiratory failure. The best treatment is early endotracheal intubation and invasive mechanical ventilation. Intubation is an aerosol-generating process and thus carries the risk of contamination. Additionally the airway management of this patient population is usually difficult. The goal of this article is to give a practice-based overview of the peculiarities of airway management in coronavirus-infected patients with special regard to infection control and patient safety considerations. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(17): 696–703., (© Szerző(k)/The Author(s))

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic probably started in China in 2019 and is influencing the whole healthcare system worldwide. As several healthcare interventions are essential even during pandemics, it is necessary for professionals working in such fields to get up-to-date information about the virus and its aspects that can influence patient care and suggested actions. The current article is a literature review, in which the authors elaborated the recently available scientific articles with their relevancy for clinical interventions as primary factor. The processed articles emphasize that during interventions in the head and neck region, especially when using rotating instruments, it is of utmost importance for all personnel being present at the time of intervention to wear full protection, including disposable medical uniforms, glasses and special masks. These single-use items have to be changed after each intervention and the whole team has to be educated for this process in advance. In order to avoid cross-contamination and infection of personnel during intervention, it is essential to keep all work-safety and infection-control precautions extremely strictly. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(17): 660–666., (© Szerző(k)/The Author(s))

The COVID-19 epidemic hit everyone, professionals and civilians alike. The possibility of a worldwide pandemic has long been theorized by epidemiologists, infectologists on the one hand, and sociologists and behavioral scientists dealing with communication and social habits on the other. Yet, faced with real-time events, daily infections and mortality statistics, almost everyone feels uninformed or disturbingly inexperienced. This summary aims to provide an overview of the latest scientific evidences. Of course, the incomplete material, compiled in late March 2020, will certainly contain a few elements that likely will be outdated in a few weeks. The authors hope that in the next publication we will all read much better and more hopeful prospects. Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(17): 644–651., (© Szerző(k)/The Author(s))

The coronavirus pandemic is a serious challenge for healthcare workers worldwide. The virus is spread through the air by droplets of moisture when people cough or sneeze and it has a very high virulence. Procedures generating airway aerosols are dangerous for every participant of patient care. Mortality of COVID-19 is above 10%, thus cardiopulmonary resuscitation is an often needed intervention in this patient group. Resuscitation is an aerosol-generating process and thus carries the risk of contamination. The goal of this article is to give a practice-based overview of the specialities of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in coronavirus-infected patients. Orv Hetil. 2020. 161(17): 710–712., (© Szerző(k)/The Author(s))