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Copyright of Polish Journal of Wound Management / Leczenie Ran is the property of Evereth Publishing Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Nowadays, modern and more attractive methods of conservative treatment of urinary stress incontinence are sought. Authors' attention has focused on vibration training which is a new form of rehabilitation and fitness. Fitness centers, training rooms and rehabilitation centers are equipped with vibration platforms. The literature reports an increase in muscle strength and mechanical power as a result of vibration training. There are scientific rationales for assuming a positive impact of this form of training on the pelvic floor muscles. However, this aspect requires verification. Electrical stimulation is a conventional method of treatment of urinary stress incontinence. There has been good evidence for effectiveness of electrotherapy in strengthening of the pelvic floor muscles. The possibility of applying these methods depend on the age and general physical condition of women with urinary stress incontinence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiotherapy is a local method of oncology treatment frequently used in advanced disease. Radiotherapy is usually associated with high efficacy in relieving distressing symptoms and at the same time mild intensity of adverse effects. In this article theoretical background of the treatment with the ionized radiation, the most frequent indications for irradiation in advanced cancer, taking into account different localisation of primary tumors and metastases and themost frequent adverse effects of radiotherapy are discussed. Attention was paid on the appropriate patients' recruitment for the irradiation that may improve patients' quality of life and prolong survival. The most frequent indications for palliative radiotherapy apart from painful bone metastases are as follows: oncology emergencies - superior vena cava syndrome and spinal cord compression, brain metastases, bleeding and cancer ulcerations. The use of high fractions and low total doses allows shortening treatment time limits the number of visits in radiotherapy units and decreases patients' inconvenience associated with transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is one of a few physical methods subjected recently to investigations on their antidepressant activity. It is the only method which was officially accepted as add-on therapy for chronic and/or recurrent depressive disorder. The paper presents a critical (from the psychiatric point of view) analysis of several selected features of VNS. The technique of VNS has not been practically examined in experiments on animal models of depression. Sensory experiences connected with the current flow allow the patient to know if he has received true or sham stimulation. Long-term retention of patients in the placebo group (i.e. with implanted and non-operated VNS stimulator) is unethical. The majority of inves - tigations have an observational character and were made in small groups of patients. The quantity of well-planned randomized investigations is small. Future investigations on VNS in the therapy of de - pression require some consideration and introduction of new research procedures, which will be able to restrain hitherto existing methodological disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. About 10-20% of the adult population suffers from tinnitus, and its frequency among children is probably the same. Since its etiology is unclear, no satisfactory method for causal treatment of tinnitus is yet available. Aim. Evaluate the effectiveness of betahistine in tinnitus treatment in patients with sensorineural hearing loss, compared with the treatment of those patients by electrical stimulation of the hearing organ combined with cervical kinesitherapy. Material and methods. Group I of 40 patients was treated with betahistine (2x24 mg) for 120 days, and group II (reference) of 40 patients received electrical stimulation and kinesitherapy. The latter treatment involved fifteen electrical stimulations administered 3 or 4 times a week (the whole treatment lasted approximately 30 days). Results of the treatments were assessed in both groups for the same periods of time from regression or changed character of tinnitus and results of a questionnaire survey compiled from the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory, with the criterion set at minimum 20% change of the score. Results. The proportion of ears with permanent tinnitus decreased significantly in both groups: by 34% in the group treated with betahistine and by 36% in the group with electrical stimulations. However, the complete elimination of tinnitus was significantly more frequent in the betahistine (22%) than in the reference group (8%). In the questionnaire evaluation of tinnitus annoyance, the improvement was seen in more than 50% of ears treated with betahistine, and only in 30% of ears receiving electrostimulation, immediately after therapy. Conclusions. Prolonged therapy with betahistine seems to be an effective method of treatment in some of tinnitus patients. Effects of betahistine treatment are better than the effects of electrostimulation combined with cervical kinesitherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the implantation of the first cardiac pacemaker in 1958 by Ake Sening and Rune Elmqvist, there has been enormous progress in this field of medicine, including both the range of the equipment and the techniques of implantation. Today, electrotherapy is a rapidly developing field of invasive cardiology. There is a wide range of devices which can be implanted: pacemakers, implanted cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) and CRT -- Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy pacemakers for biventricular stimulation. In this paper, a description of the methods of implantation is presented, including a short description of the equipment which can be implanted. Special emphasis was placed on the surgical side of the described procedures as well as the possible complications of permanent cardiac stimulation. An additional section contains information about patients' activity and medical examinations which can be done safely after this kind of operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]