Vol 25, No 4 (2025)

Aim – to study the course of the acute period of infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare workers in comparison with individuals not engaged in medical activities.

Material and methods. A cross-sectional online study was conducted from June to September 2022. To study the frequency of COVID-19 episodes in healthcare workers and individuals of other professions, an internet resource (testograf.ru) was used, based on which anonymous online questionnaires were posted. The questionnaire included three blocks of questions: information about the patient; data on previous NCI and vaccination; data on the recovery period of NCI (presence of complaints, period of occurrence and their duration). The analysis included 22,535 individuals who had COVID-19.

Results. In general, during this period, healthcare workers were characterized by a more frequent registration of pneumonia (22.6% vs. 20.5%, p = 0.0002) and the need for oxygen support (6.7% and 5.1%, p < 0.0001), the presence of complicated course (7.3% vs. 6.9%, p = 0.2506). Despite the similarity of the clinical picture during the period of circulation of various strains of NCI, features of the clinical course were revealed depending on the circulating predominant strain. The effectiveness of the vaccination against COVID-19 was revealed during the period of dominance of the “Wuhan” and “Delta” genetic variants and the lack of effectiveness during the period of dominance of “Omicron”.

Conclusion. A feature of our study was the presentation of data using an internet resource, which allows us to fully reflect the objective reality in the framework of morbidity among healthcare workers. The study revealed the features of the clinical course in healthcare workers.

Aim – to study the efficiency of an integrated approach in medical rehabilitation using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) for patients in the early post-stroke recovery period.

Material and methods. The study included 50 patients who had suffered an acute cerebrovascular accident in the early recovery period (six months after the stroke). All patients included in the study had a clinical manifestation of hemiparesis, either left- or right-sided. The patients were divided into the two groups: experimental and control. The rehabilitation process included therapeutic exercise with a trainer, mechanotherapy, and occupational therapy. The experimental group also received TMS on the motor cortex projection of the affected side of the brain.

Results. The average values of the parameters in patients who included TMS in the rehabilitation process at the end of the study were as follows: the muscle strength assessment scale parameters improved by 25.88%; the Rivermead Mobility Index by 28.37%; the Barthel Index by 25.21%; hand dynamometry (kg) by 27.45%, the Berg Balance Scale by 36.86%, and the 6-minute walk test by 29.59%.

Conclusion. For most clinical scales, we tracked a positive dynamics as a percentage compared to the control group. This allows us to conclude that the use of TMS in the complex rehabilitation of patients after a stroke is efficient.

Aim – to study the prevalence and structure of glaucoma pathology using the example of the Orenburg region in 2013-2024.

Material and methods. Statistical data on glaucoma pathology in the population of the Orenburg region, the Volga Federal District (VFD) and Russia for 2013-2024 were analyzed. Statistical data on morbidity in the Orenburg region, the Volga Federal District and Russia were obtained with the assistance of the State budget-funded healthcare institution “Medical Information and Analytical Center”. Data on the structure and dispensary supervision are calculated according to the federal statistical observation form No. 12 “Information on the number of diseases registered in patients living in the service area of the medical organization” (“Form No. 12”) and based on data from the Territorial Fund of Compulsory Medical Insurance for the Orenburg Region (hereinafter referred to as TF Compulsory Medical Insurance). The data is presented in the form of absolute and relative indicators (%). The statistical analysis was carried out using Microsoft Excel 2016 software.

Results. Glaucoma ranks 4th (6.9%) in the structure of general ophthalmological pathology in the Orenburg region in 2013-2024, following refractive disorders (46.4%), cataracts (20%) and conjunctivitis (11.1%). The overall incidence of glaucoma does not have a clear pattern; however, an increase of 3.41% was noted during the study period. Primary morbidity decreased dramatically during the study period (by 54.1%). The Covid-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the indicators for 2020-2021. By 2024, there was a positive trend in primary morbidity, but the indicators are significantly lower than the national ones. In the post-Covid period, the primary incidence among the working-age population continues to decrease, which indicates the problems of early detection of glaucoma. The work of ophthalmologists in the dispensary registration of patients with glaucoma is characterized by positive dynamics. By 2024, patient follow-up coverage has reached a decent level, equal to the national indicators - 80.8%. The detection of glaucoma patients during preventive examinations over the years under study remains at an extremely low level.

Aim – to compare the accuracy of two intraoral scanners common in modern dentistry when scanning dentition with partial tooth loss in vitro; to guide dentists in choosing a scanner for use in clinical practice.

Material and methods. The study compared two scanners: Medit I700 (Medit Corp, Seoul, South Korea) and TRIOS 3 (3Shape A/S, Copenhagen, Denmark). At the outset, 18 analog dental impressions of patients were taken, from which plaster models were cast. The models were scanned with a laboratory scanner (ATOS Blue Light Triple Scan III, 8 megapixels, 100 mm lens, GOM mbh, Braunschweig, Germany) to obtain reference scanning data. Next, 18 dental rows of the same patients were scanned on the compared intraoral scanners. The sets of all scan data were uploaded to software for three-dimensional accuracy assessment (Geomagic Qualify, 2013, Morrisville, NC).

Results. The smallest standard deviation in accuracy measurements between the reference dataset and the various intraoral scanner datasets was obtained using the Medit I700 (0.142 mm). The lowest arithmetic mean of all deviations was found in the TRIOS 3 scanner (0.005 mm). On average, the TRIOS 3 scanner showed more accurate results. However, there were no statistically significant differences between the two Medit I700 and TRIOS 3 scanners (p <0.05).

Conclusion. In this in vitro study, both oral scanners demonstrated clinically acceptable results in terms of accuracy.

Ankle injuries are one of the most common injuries of the musculoskeletal system sustained during physical activity and an urgent problem in modern traumatology. This paper presents a review 58 scientific publications on the topic of treatment methods for various ankle fractures at the current stage of development of traumatology. The publications were searched in the scientific databases PubMed, Google Scholar, RSCI. The literature review presents data on classifications and methods of conservative and surgical treatment of ankle fractures. Surgical methods are frequently the treatment method of choice. Choosing the optimal method of osteosynthesis for a particular patient, taking into account the type of fracture, the individual characteristics of the patient and the selection of a rehabilitation program is the most important task for an orthopedic traumatologist.

Aim – to evaluate the bladder wall barrier dysfunction using 11C-choline positron emission tomography/computed tomography using 3D reconstructive techniques based on visual cystoscopy and scanning electron microscopy of bladder wall tissue biopsy specimens at 6000x magnification.

Material and methods. The study was based on four clinical observations of patients with varying degrees of inflammatory changes in the bladder. In patients with bladder wall inflammation, digital PET/CT metabolic activity indices were compared with visual cystoscopic and ultrastructural 3D reconstructions.

Results. PET/CT indices of standardized 11C-choline uptake in the bladder wall correlated with 3D ultrastructural manifestations of the bladder wall barrier dysfunction across all layers, as well as with visual 3D cystoscopic changes in the mucosa during inflammation. 11C-choline PET/CT combined with advanced 3D reconstruction methods demonstrates high potential for a more accurate diagnosis and monitoring of urological diseases associated with bladder barrier dysfunction.

Conclusion. The integration of PET/CT data with cystoscopic and ultrastructural 3D reconstructions is a promising approach for a comprehensive assessment of bladder barrier function and enables the identification of underlying pathological processes at various levels. This integrated approach allows for increased diagnostic accuracy for inflammatory and destructive processes and optimizes treatment options. The introduction of such high-tech approaches into urological practice can significantly improve the quality of care for patients with inflammatory bladder pathologies.

Aim – to determine the prevalence of vasculogenic erectile dysfunction in men of different age groups based on the results of ultrasound imaging of the penile vessels.

Material and methods. A retrospective analysis of the data of 167 men for the period from 2018-2025 was performed. Three groups were obtained: 1 – young age (18-44 years); 2 – middle age (45-59 years); 3 – elderly age (60-74 years). Patients underwent USDG of the penile vessels with the introduction of the drug Caverject.

Results. In the first group, the analysis showed no echographic pathology in 69 cases, and in 8 cases, pathological venous drainage was diagnosed. This indicates the prevalence of non-organic causes, such as hormonal, neurogenic, and psychogenic disorders. In the second group, 30 patients did not show any echographic changes, 19 patients had reduced arterial blood flow of various origins, 4 patients had pathological venous drainage, and 7 patients had a combination of reduced arterial blood flow and pathological venous drainage. The remaining 11 patients had various combinations of reduced arterial blood flow and pathological venous reflux. For patients in the third age group, with ultrasound indicators of blood flow in the first two types of erectile dysfunction in the stage of arterial insufficiency compensation and a scattered type of pathological venous reflux, conservative medical treatment is recommended, possibly in combination with surgical treatment.

Conclusion. Analysis of the nature, severity, and duration of pharmacological erections, as well as the parameters recorded by Doppler ultrasonography, allows not only to identify vascular disorders, but also to differentiate between non-organic and organic ED, as well as to distinguish between arterial blood flow deficiency and pathological venous outflow.

Aim – to study the component composition of elements and amino acids in three species of the genus Geranium L. growing in the Baikal region.

Material and methods. The above-ground organs of Geranium wlassovianum Fisch., G. eriostemon Fisch., G. pratense L. were collected during the flowering period in the southern regions of the Irkutsk region. The elemental composition was studied after the ashing of the raw material samples (0.030 g) using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) on an Agilent 7500 ce quadrupole mass spectrometer. Amino acids were analyzed after hydrolysis using the Amino Acid Analyzer AAA 339 M (Mikrotechna, Czech Republic).

Results. The three species of the genus Geranium contain 54 elements, including essential ones. There is a high content of manganese in G. wlassovianum 39 mg/g, in G. eriostemon 66 mg/g, in G. pratense 43 mg/g. 23 amino acids have been identified in the composition of amino acids. The predominant amino acids were glutamic acid (5.94 and 11.32 mg/g, respectively) in G. wlassovianum and G. pratense, and glutamine (4.06 mg/g), which was identified only in this species. G. wlassovianum also contained high levels of aspartic and cysteine acids (4.44 and 2.00 mg/g, respectively), G. eriostemon contains high levels of glutamic acid and phenylalanine (3.61 and 2.90 mg/g, respectively), and G. pratense contains high levels of aspartic acid and leucine (6.96 and 6.22 mg/g, respectively).

Conclusion. The analysis showed the presence in the above-ground organs of the species Geranium wlassovianum, G. eriostemon, G. pratense of the flora of the Baikal region of elements and amino acids that are involved in ensuring the normal functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and the genitourinary system.

Aim – to develop a methodology for the quantitative determination of the amount of flavonoids in the flowers of the Tatar maple.

Material and methods. The flowers of the Tatar maple (Acer tataricum L. family, maple trees (Aceraceae) harvested in the Samara region, in the Dubki forest area. Direct spectrophotometry and differential spectrophotometry at wavelength of 412 nm in terms of rutin equivalent were used as research methods.

Results. A comparative study of the UV spectra of water-alcohol extracts from Tatar maple flowers and rutin solution showed that in both cases there was a bathochromic shift in the long-wavelength region of the UV spectra in the presence of AlCl₃ at 412 ±2 nm, which is typical for rutin. The developed technique is based on the complexation reaction of flavonoids with aluminum chloride (AlCl₃) using rutin and an analytical wavelength of 412 nm as a standard sample. Extraction conditions were optimized for the quantitative determination of flavonoid compounds: 70% ethanol was used as an extractant, and the ‘raw material: extractant’ ratio was 1:50, the extraction duration was 45 minutes when heated in a water bath with a reverse refrigerator.

Conclusion. It was found that the amount of flavonoids in terms of rutin in the flowers of the Tatar maple, collected in the Samara region, varies from 1.89 ± 0.05% to 2.01 ± 0.05%. The error of a single determination with a 95% confidence probability is ± 1.67%.