BACKGROUND: Pegylated interferon alfa plus ribavirin protocol is currently considered the most efficient hepatitis C treatment. However, no evidence of costs comparison among common viral genotypes has been published.OBJECTIVES: We aimed to assess core drivers of hepatitis C medical care costs and compare cost effectiveness of this treatment among patients infected by hepatitis C virus with genoty

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a study on attitudes, knowledge, and use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies in Serbia. Available data about CAM therapies in the region are scarce, opinions lacking from health sector. Balkan region countries had a delay in issuing national policies on CAM therapies.METHODS: The questionnaire used was based on previously validated CAM Health Belief Ques

AIMS: To support the Serbian Expert Board in setting up reimbursement for modern pharmacotherapeutic support, we compared a Serbian sample of alcohol-dependent patients with an Austrian sample, in order to detect differences that might inhibit the introduction of anti-craving medications in Serbia.METHODS: One hundred and twenty-seven (116 males) alcohol-dependent patients in Serbia and 136 in Aus

OBJECTIVE: Assessment of costs matrix and patterns of prescribing of radiology diagnostic, radiation therapy, nuclear medicine, and interventional radiology services. Another aim of the study was insight into drivers of inappropriate resource allocation.METHODS: An in-depth, retrospective bottom-up trend analysis of services consumption patterns and expenses was conducted from the perspective of t

The past 23 years of post-socialist restructuring of health system funding and management patterns has brought many changes to small Balkan markets, putting them under increasing pressure to keep pace with advancing globalization. Socioeconomic inequalities in healthcare access are still growing across the region. This uneven development is marked by the substantial difficulties encountered by loc

INTRODUCTION: The aim of our study was to develop and use a population pharmacokinetic model for assessment of individual valproate clearance in children and young adults suffering from epilepsy.MATERIAL AND METHODS: The analysis was performed using 52 steady-state concentrations of valproate collected from 26 epileptic patients during the routine clinical practice in our hospital. The mean values

Topiramate pharmacokinetics is influenced by individual factors such as patient age, renal function and co-treatment. The aim of this study was to develop a population pharmacokinetic model of topiramate to assist dosage adjustments in individual patients. Steady-state topiramate plasma concentrations in patients with epilepsy were determined by HPLC using fluorescent labelling. Demographic, bioch

Topiramate is biochemically classified as a fructopyranose sulphamate. Discovered as early as 1979, during middle 1980's it was approved in many countries for the treatment of epilepsies and migraine prevention. More recently, in the experimental stage, possible new indications have been disclosed: treatment of obesity, bipolar disorder, also cessation of smoking, neuropathic pain, cerebral pseudo

BACKGROUND/AIM: High morbidity and mortality rates, chronic course of disease and numerous clinical complications, make diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2 bear significant financial burden for healthcare system of Serbia. The aim of this study was to compare true disease-related expenses measured in the random sample of patients originating from the Central Serbia in 2007 and national estimate of total

BACKGROUND: Correlation between steady-state serum concentrations of antiepileptic drugs and both seizure control and adverse drug reactions frequency (two major determinants of quality of life in patients with epilepsy) is still matter of controversy.OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to investigate whether a correlation exists between steady-state serum concentration of valproic acid and qualit

OBJECTIVES: In countries with high income, tocolytic therapy with beta-mimetic agents is a cost-effective strategy compared to placebo. In our study, the cost-effectiveness of two beta-mimetic agents, ritodrine and fenoterol, used in the management of preterm labor was compared in the setting of a low-middle-income transitional country, Serbia & Montenegro.METHODS: This case study was conducte

OBJECTIVES: While the neurotransmitter role of glutamate in the gastrointestinal tract has been shown, its effects on smooth muscle of the human ureter have not previously been investigated. In our study we have investigated the effects of exogenous glutamate on the spontaneous activity of isolated human ureter, taken from 14 adult patients after nephrectomy.METHODS: The segment of ureter, excised

OBJECTIVE: Spontaneous motility of the human oviduct is an important factor in the regulation of fertility that can be influenced by a variety of substances. In this study we examined the effects of several antiepileptic drugs on spontaneous contractions of isolated human oviducts.METHODS: The isolated ampullar and isthmic segments of Fallopian tubes, taken from 34 patients with extensive uterine