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Athanasios Zachariou,1,2 Dimitrios Zachariou,1,2 Aris Kaltsas,1 Ioannis Giannakis,1 Fotios Dimitriadis,3 Erriketi Douvli,1 Ioannis Champilomatis,1 Chrysanthi Kounavou,1 Athanasios Papatsoris,4 Panagiota Tsounapi,5 Charalampos Mamoulakis,6 Atsushi Takenaka,5 Nikolaos Sofikitis1 1Department of Urology, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece; 2Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Centre EU PRATTEIN, Volos, Greece; 3Department of Urology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece; 4 2nd Department of Urology, Sismanogleion General Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece; 5Department of Urology, Faculty of Medicine, Tottori University, Yonago, Japan; 6Department of Urology, Medical School, University of Crete, Heraklion, GreeceCorrespondence: Athanasios Zachariou, Urology Department, Ioannina University, Volos, 38221, Greece, Tel +302421026937, Email zahariou@otenet.grPurpose: Clean intermittent self-catheterization (CISC) is a safe and effective alternative to managing incomplete bladder emptying in patients afflicted with neurogenic bladder conditions. The Intermittent Catheterisation Difficulty Questionnaire (ICDQ) is a validated questionnaire concerning the assessment of catheter use and patient difficulties during CISC. The present study aimed to translate and validate the ICDQ into the Greek language. A subsequent outcome was to substantiate the requirement of both urologist consultation with patients undergoing CISC and the detailed evaluation of various therapeutic options with the consultation of other specialist physicians.Material and Methods: The study was undertaken between March 2022 and July 2022 and involved patients in an outpatient department of a Rehabilitation Centre. Sixty-two neurologic patients suffering from spinal cord injury (SCI), multiple sclerosis (MS), cauda equina (CE), and myelitis represented a convenience sample. To calculate test-retest reliability, patients filled out two consecutive questionnaires; an initial one and a second after one week. The socio and demographic circumstances of all participants were evaluated.Results: The mean ICDQ total score at the test and retest was 5.96± 1.28 (mean total score ± standard deviation) and 5.91± 1.29, respectively. Evaluation of the data concerning alterations between men and women did not reveal statistically significant differences. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.94, which proves the inter-correlation between the different topics. An ICC of 0.97 indicated very high intra-rater reliability.Conclusion: ICDQ, a valid and reliable self-administered screening tool for CISC difficulties faced by patients using this procedure regularly, was successfully translated and validated into Greek. A more detailed evaluation and understanding of these difficulties would enhance the quality of CISC and allow for more suitable treatment and the selection of catheter types used. These improved treatment strategies are possible as repeated use and constant comparison of ICDQ scores determine treatment impact, facilitating treatment regimen modification, should it be required.Keywords: ICDQ, clean intermittent self-catheterisation, urinary tract infection, urethral stricture, translation, validation, Greek

Athanasios Zachariou,1,2 Maria Filiponi,2 Aris Kaltsas,1 Fotios Dimitriadis,3 Vagia Sapouna,2 Ioannis Giannakis,1 Charalampos Mamoulakis,4 Andreas Karagiannis,1 Athanasios Zikopoulos,1 Minas Paschopoulos,5 Atsushi Takenaka,6 Nikolaos Sofikitis1 1Urology Department, Ioannina University, Ioannina, Greece; 2Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Centre EU PRATTEIN, Volos, Greece; 3 1st Urology Department, School of Medicine, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece; 4Department of Urology, University General Hospital of Heraklion, University of Crete, Medical School, Crete, Greece; 5Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece; 6Urology Department, School of Medicine, Tottori University, Yonago, JapanCorrespondence: Athanasios ZachariouUrology Department, Ioannina University, 3 Spyridi Street, Volos, 38221, GreeceTel +306937227778Fax +302421026932Email zahariou@otenet.grPurpose: The present study aimed to translate the Targeting the individual’s Aetiology of Nocturia to Guide Outcomes Questionnaire (TANGO) into the Greek language to create TANGO-Gr. A relative reliability study in prospective samples of community dwellers and rehabilitation centre residents was undertaken in order to validate the translation. In terms of nocturia severity, these groups were considered to be representative of patients at both ends of the scale, and therefore suitable validation purposes.Patients and Methods: The prospective descriptive study took place between 07 and 09/2020. Fifty residents in a rehabilitation centre and thirty-seven community dwellers were included in the study. All participants had more than one episode of nocturia per night. They were asked to complete the newly translated TANGO-Gr Questionnaire twice (test–retest procedure). TANGO-Gr includes three possible answers (“yes”, “no”, and “DK/NA”) to facilitate increased validity. The study group evaluated the socio and demographic characteristics, the level of independence and the comprehensive frailty of all participants.Results: Both groups satisfactorily completed questionnaire responses. The overall Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.753 (community-dwelling people: 0.776; rehabilitation centre residents: 0.531). A test–retest statistical analysis to determine reliability found an overall median Kappa of 0.88 (IQR: 0.79– 0.94) in community dwellers and 0.91 (IQR: 0.84– 1.00) in rehabilitation centre residents, thereby confirming an almost perfect respective agreement.Conclusion: The validity of the newly translated TANGO-Gr Questionnaire was proven. It should be considered to be a reliable, self-administered screening tool suitable for clinical practice, and therefore invaluable for Greek-speaking people. The study also determined that certain environment-related variables may contribute to nocturia in rehabilitation centre populations, which is a finding which invites further study.Keywords: nocturia, TANGO Questionnaire, translation, validation, Greek

The importance of street trees in the urban environment is widely recognised. Nevertheless, the absence of proper urban planning, combined with lack of resources and methodologies for road maintenance, have made the interaction between trees and the urban environment as a priority task to pursue. The uncontrolled development of tree roots can cause extensive damage, such as the cracking and uplifting of pavement and curbs, that could seriously endanger safety of pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. Within this framework, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) has already proven its effectiveness for the non-destructive evaluation and monitoring of road pavements. This research aims to demonstrate the potential of GPR in mapping the root system architecture of street trees. To this purpose, a GPR system equipped with a 700 MHz central frequency antenna was used to survey the area around a street tree (natural soil and flexible pavement structure). A multistage data processing methodology is proposed to map the tree root system architecture. Moreover, information on the mass density of roots at different depths is also provided. Results have proven the viability of the proposed method for root detection and mapping under road pavements. Analyses of results have also proven the potential of GPR in identifying safety-related occurrences from the interaction between the root system and the existing pavement structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]