ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, incidence and the burden of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in the Southern Albania. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is an epidemiologic observational study with cross-sectional analyses of all patients with RA who lived in Southern Albania during the 1995-2011 years. The RA prevalence, incidence and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) were assessed. RESULTS: During the 1995-2011 years, 194 patients (154 females and 40 males) with RA living in Southern Albania were identified. The prevalence of RA in 2011 was 0.25% in general population and 0.34% in adult (>14 years) population. The incidence of RA in 2011 was 0.012% (12 new cases per 100000 inhabitants) and 0.016% (16 new cases per 100000 adults). The prevalence increased (from 0.036% in 1996 to 0.25% in 2011) and the incidence did not change over the study period. The mortality was 3.2% (n=7 deaths). The DALY due to RA was 823 years per 100000 inhabitants during 1995-2011 years. CONCLUSION: RA in Southern Albania has a prevalence of 0.25 % and an annual incidence of 0.012% in the general population in 2011. RA was responsible for a considerable burden on the health of population during the 1995-2011 years.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the incidence and prevalence of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in southern Albania and to assess the association of various demographic risk factors with the severity of disease. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is an observational study with cross-sectional analyses, conducted in the region of Gjirokaster, between 1995 until 2011. The diagnosis of AS was based on the modified New York criteria. Data on population are obtained from the reports of the National Institute of Statistics. RESULTS: Between 1995 and 2011, there were 54 patients diagnosed with AS. Of them, 48 subjects were males (88.9%) and 6 subjects females (11.1%). The AS prevalence in adult population (≥14 years of age), in December 2010, was 0.061%. The 5-year incidence (2006-2010) in adult population was 0.006 %. The mean age at the onset of disease was 29.7±8.4 years. The mean age in 2011 (n=50 subjects) was 51.6±12.7 years. The duration of the disease was 22.7±11.2 years. More than two thirds of the patients (70.3%) were in the advanced radiological stages of the disease. A younger age at the onset of the disease, longer delay in diagnosis, lower educational level and smoking were significant independent factors associated with the advanced forms of the disease. CONCLUSION: In southern Albania, the AS prevalence in 2010 was 0.061% and the 5-year incidence (2006-2010) was 6 new cases per 105 adults. The incidence and prevalence of AS in Southern Albania are close to the respective regional epidemiological data.
ABSTRACT
Road traffic noise is an important source of noise annoyance in the community. We performed a meta-analysis to assess whether there is an association between noise annoyance from road traffic noise and cardiovascular diseases (arterial hypertension and ischemic heart disease) in adult population. The meta-analysis included studies that: a. had noise annoyance as exposure, quantified either as "annoyed versus non-annoyed" or with various scales collected by standardized questionnaires; b. arterial hypertension or ischemic heart disease as outcome; c. had included only adult population (age >18 years); d. the studies had to have as effect size odds ratios or relative risk. From the individual studies those odds ratios were selected for meta-analysis which compared most distant categories. Eight studies that fulfilled criteria published between 1992 and 2006 were included in the meta-analysis: 6 studies had a cross-sectional design, 1 study had a case-control-design and 1 study had a cohort design. Increased annoyance was significantly associated with arterial hypertension (pooled risk estimate = 1.16, 95% confidence interval 1.02-1.29) while the association with ischemic heart disease did not reach statistical significance (pooled risk estimate = 1.07, 95% confidence interval 0.99-1.14). No publication bias was evidenced. The results of this meta-analysis demonstrated the existence of a positive and significant association between noise annoyance from road traffic and the risk of arterial hypertension and a positive yet insignificant association between noise annoyance and the risk of ischemic heart disease.
