Distribution of Risk Factors in Male and Female Primary Health Care Patients with Osteoarthritis in Albania.

AIM: We aimed to describe the distribution of the main risk factors among primary health care users diagnosed with osteoarthritis in Albania, a post-communist country in South Eastern Europe. METHODS: Our study involved all individuals who were diagnosed with osteoarthritis over a two-year period (January 2013 - December 2014) in several primary health care centers in Tirana, the Albanian capital. On the whole, during this two-year period, 1179 adult individuals were diagnosed with osteoarthritis (521 men aged 60.1±10.6 years and 658 women aged 58.1±9.6 years). According to the criteria of the American College of Rheumatology, the diagnosis of osteoarthritis was based on the history of the disease, physical examination, laboratory findings and radiological findings. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the sex-differences regarding the major risk factors among individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis. RESULTS: In multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models, female gender was inversely associated with smoking (OR=0.39, 95%CI=0.27-0.56), alcohol intake (OR=0.08, 95%CI=0.06-0.10), overweight but not obesity (OR=0.65, 95%CI=0.46-0.91 and OR=0.74, 95%CI=0.46-1.18, respectively), weight lifting (OR=0.38, 95%CI=0.22-0.66) and heavy physical exercise (OR=0.69, 95%CI=0.46-1.03). Conversely, female gender was positively related to genetic factors (OR=2.17, 95%CI=1.55-3.04) and preexisting inflammatory diseases (OR=1.53, 95%CI=0.93-2.53). CONCLUSION: This study offers useful evidence about the distribution of the main risk factors for osteoarthritis in adult individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis in Albania. This information may support health professionals and decision-makers in Albania for evidence-based health planning and policy formulation in order to control the toll of osteoarthritis in this transitional society.

Demographic and Socioeconomic Characteristics Among Primary Health Care Users Diagnosed with Osteoarthritis in Albania.

AIM: The aim of this study was to describe the distribution of demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among primary health care users diagnosed with osteoarthritis in Albania, a transitional country in the Western Balkans. METHODS: This study included all individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis during January 2013 - December 2014 in selected primary health care centers in Tirana, the capital city of Albania. Overall, 1179 adult individuals were diagnosed with osteoarthritis (521 men and 658 women) during this time period. The overall mean age of study participants was 59.0±10.1 years (60.1±10.6 years in men and 58.1±9.6 years in women). The diagnosis of osteoarthritis was based on the history of the disease, physical examination, laboratory findings and radiological findings. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the sex-differences regarding demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among participants diagnosed with osteoarthritis. RESULTS: In multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models, female gender was inversely associated with the age-group (OR=0.67, 95%CI=0.47-0.95) and educational level (OR=0.39, 95%CI=0.25-0.61), but positively related to rural birthplace (OR=1.47, 95%CI=1.14-1.89) and unemployment (OR=1.40, 95%CI=1.02-1.92) of the patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide novel evidence about the distribution of demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among adult individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis in primary health care services in Albania. Future studies should assess the distribution of the major risk factors for osteoarthritis among adult men and women in transitional Albania.

Role of guiding groups in cinchona-modified platinum for controlling the sense of enantiodifferentiation in the hydrogenation of ketones.

Systematic structural variations of cinchona-type modifiers used in the platinum-catalyzed hydrogenation of ketones give insight into the adsorption mode of the modifier and its interaction with the substrate on the platinum surface under truly in situ conditions. The performance of a new modifier, O-(2-pyridyl)-cinchonidine, is compared to that of O-phenyl-cinchonidine and cinchonidine (CD). In the hydrogenation of ethyl pyruvate, ketopantolactone, and 2-methoxyacetophenone, CD gives the (R)-alcohol in excess. Introduction of the bulky O-phenyl group favors the (S)-enantiomer, whereas upon replacement of the phenyl by a 2-pyridyl group the (R)-alcohol is again the major product. This finding is particularly striking, because the two ether groups have virtually identical van der Waals volumes. A catalytic study including the nonlinear behavior of modifier mixtures, and attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy of the solid-liquid interface in the presence of hydrogen, revealed the adsorption mode and strength of the modifiers on Pt. Theoretical calculations of the modifier-substrate interactions offered a feasible explanation for the different role of the bulky ether groups: repulsion by the phenoxy and attraction by the 2-pyridoxy groups. Simulation of the interaction of o-pyridoxy-CD with ketopantolactone on a model Pt surface suggests that formation of two N-H-O-type H-bonds--involving the quinuclidine and pyridine N atoms, and the two keto-carbonyls in the substrate--controls the adsorption of the substrate during hydrogen uptake. This mechanistic study demonstrates the potential of insertion of suitable substituents into CD and their influence on adsorption and stereocontrol on the platinum surface.