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OBJECTIVE: Lung cancer (LC) is one of the most frequently diagnosed cancers and the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide. The aim of this study was to get a comprehensive insight into the epidemiology of LC among patients in Vojvodina, the Northern Serbian region, during the ten-year period. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was performed using LC hospital registry data of the Institute for Pulmonary Diseases of Vojvodina (IPBV) from 2011 to 2020. All patients reported in the registry with a place of residence in Vojvodina were included in this study. The data used in this research were: date of diagnosis, gender, age at diagnosis, place of residence, smoking habits at diagnosis, the intensity of smoking (pack/years), ECOG performance (0-5), histological cancer type, TNM classification and disease stage. RESULTS: A total of 12,055 LC patients were included, 69.6% of whom were male. The percentage of female LC patients significantly increased, from 26.9% in 2011 to 35.9% in 2020 (p<0.001). Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was diagnosed in 80.8% of patients, while 15.4% of patients had small cell lung cancer (SCLC). The most common histological type was adenocarcinoma (41.9%), followed by squamous cell carcinoma (30.0%) and SCLC (15.4%). CONCLUSIONS: The number of diagnosed LC patients in the Northern Serbian region increased over the past decade and is significantly higher in females. There was a strong correlation between smoking habits and LC in both genders. Our results also indicate the importance of introducing and promoting LC screening programs for all risk populations, particularly current and ex-smokers of younger age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most important factors in the choice of transport mode is the travel time. When choosing a transport mode, passengers prefer the alternative that offers a shorter travel time. The simplest and most commonly used method for determining travel time is a survey of citizens. However, the survey tends to be subjective and the data obtained can be inaccurate. The paper presents the research carried out in Novi Sad, where the travel time from the origin to the destination on three routes was analysed and differentiated using the Global Navigation Satellite System for the following transport modes: walking, cycling, passenger car, taxi and bus public transport. The results show that the bicycle is competitive with all other modes studied in terms of travel time. The journey by bus public transport took the longest compared to the other motorised transport modes. Walking had the lowest proportion of time lost in the total travel time structure.

Background/Aim: Intravenous therapy is a complex process usually requiring the preparation of the medicine before administration to the patient and it is well known that errors in preparation and administration can cause harm to patient. Systems that use information technology are key components of strategies to prevent medication errors in developed countries. Therefore, aim of study was to investigate nurses' perspective on medicines database in clinical information system implemented in university hospital. Methods: A convenience sample of 79 nurses at the bedside from four different hospital wards in the 1200-bed university hospital were asked to participate in the study. The questionnaire included twenty-three questions organised in three different sections and it assessed 3 components of the medicines usage: (1) medicines preparation; (2) medicines administration; (3) clinical information system usage. Mean scores were calculated for the 4-item Likert-type scale. Results: Most nurses found information in drug database reliable (Likert scale mean = 1.42 ± 0.778) and believed that using medicines database can decrease drug preparation and drug administration errors (mean: 1.35 ± 0.717) with no significant difference in mean between four different wards. Similarly, most nurses were familiar with the drug database in clinical information system (mean: 1.22 ± 0.613). Conclusion: Pharmacist as a drug expert could introduce medicines database to nurses, train them how to use it in everyday practice and explain how using information technologies can help in decreasing medication errors which leads to increasing patients' safety during hospitalisation.

Background/Aim. Multidetector computed tomography pulmonary angiography (MCTPA) has emerged as the most suitable method for diagnosing acute pulmonary embolism (APE) in hemodynamically stable patients. In addition to its diagnostic role, MCTPA facilitates the measurement and calculation of certain parameters that can be used as prognostic markers for outcomes in APE. Since the introduction of the method, there have been a lot of studies that pointed out there may be a significant difference in the prognostic value of MCTPA for APE concerning sex. Methods. The study population consisted of consecutive patients with a diagnosis of APE confirmed by MCTPA. Positive MCTPA findings and a diagnosis of APE were established if the patient had at least one segmental artery thrombus. APE severity was estimated using the simplified Pulmonary Embolism Severity Index (sPESI). All-cause and APE-related intrahospital deaths were the coprimary outcomes of this study. Results. In total, 1,612 patients were enrolled in the study (750 men and 862 women). Women with a centrally positioned pulmonary thrombus detected on MCTPA were more likely to die from PE-related death than those without one (10.4% vs. 4.2%, respectively; p = 0.016). Women with a right ventricle (RV) and left ventricle (LV) diameter ratio (RV/LV) > 1 died almost twice as often as those with a ratio ≤ 1 (15.5% vs. 8.6%, respectively; p = 0.017). Women with an RV/LV > 1 detected with MCTPA were significantly more likely to die from PE than those with a ratio ≤ 1 (11% vs. 5.2%, respectively; p = 0.017). Women who died from PE-related causes had a significantly higher value of the embolic burden score system (EBSS) than did the surviving women (18.00 vs. 11.00, respectively; p = 0.025). Independently of age, sPESI, and renal function, the presence of a central thrombus [odds ratio (OR) 2.278, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.050–4.944, p = 0.037] and the RV/LV ratio > 1 (OR 2.015, 95% CI: 1.042–3.893, p = 0.037) were associated with intrahospital PE-related death in women. Conclusion. In women, MCTPA parameters, a centrally placed thrombus, the RV/LV ratio, and the EBSS had prognostic significance for PE-related mortality. The RV/LV ratio had prognostic significance for all-cause intrahospital mortality. In men, the MCTPA parameters had no prognostic significance for both overall and PE-related mortality.

Fairytales are crucial for children's psychological, moral, social, emotional, and cognitive development. Preschool children encounter numerous problems and their solutions through fairytales. By listening to, reading, and watching fairytales, children build their views of the world, shape their moral values, and become familiar with positive behavior models. Fairytales point to ethical problems and teach children to differentiate between good and evil in an age-appropriate way. This paper discusses the influence of fairytales on the development of preschool children. The concept of a fairytale, its structure and characteristics are described. The paper lists the most common fairytale motifs and points out the therapeutic aspect of fairytales. The significance of telling fairytales to chronically ill hospitalized children is also emphasized, as well as their identification with the main characters and expressing their fairytale experience through play, dramatization, and drawings. By their length, dynamic plot, and the speed at which realistic and fantastic images interchange, fairytales improve the attention, imagination, communication, and creativity of preschool children.

Exercising command over units, as an element of capabilities of all armed forces, in armed conflicts represents a highly complex process. It is done in compliance with factors and principles, and through documents, and it is carried out from superiors to the subordinates. Command posts are part of the area of operation where commands or staffs (in their entirety or their segments) plan operations and activities, where from those decisions, in the form of orders and commands, are distributed to subordinate units. This paper draws a comparison between tactical-level command posts in the Serbian Armed Forces, armed forces of the Russian Federation and the United States of America by criteria of conceptual determination (purpose and types) and organisation (composition and manner of functioning). Apart from the comparative method, the research utilised other methods as well: definitions and classification, content analysis and analysis and synthesis. The aim of the research is to describe the purpose, composition and work organisation at command posts of foreign armed forces, and compare them with command posts of the Serbian Armed Forces. The research results have unequivocally indicated that the purpose and types of command posts in the Serbian Armed Forces and in foreign armed forces are rather similar, while the composition, organisation and structure, and the manner of functioning are partially different.

Introduction. Presbycusis can have numerous consequences, particularly hearing impairment and impairment in oral communication, which can severely affect the psychological, emotional and social lives of older people. Numerous factors related to age-related hearing loss (time of onset, degree of hearing loss), as well as the wide range of socioeconomic factors, may contribute to the subjective perception of hearing impairment in individuals with presbycusis. In line with previous research on this topic, the question arises whether there is a difference between hearing aid users and non-users in the perception of hearing loss. Objective. To find out whether there is a difference in the subjective perception of hearing loss between people with presbycusis who use hearing AIDS and those who do not. Method. The sample consisted of 56 people diagnosed with presbycusis. Questionnaires for general demographic data, the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening Version (HHIE-S) and the International Outcome Inventory -Hearing AIDS (IOI-HA) were used. Results. All individuals without amplification in this study had higher scores on the HHIE-S and confirmed hearing impairment, while 62.1% of those with amplification considered themselves disabled due to presbycusis. Hearing aid users generally had high scores on the IOI-HA, which leads us to conclude that hearing AIDS are extremely useful for the daily living and functioning of individuals with presbycusis. Conclusion. The results of the study emphasize the importance of using hearing AIDS in people with presbycusis, regardless of the degree of hearing loss and the age of the user.

Summary Introduction: Burnout syndrome at work is a response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors associated with the workplace, and occurs in workers without previous psychopathological illnesses or organic diseases. Aim: The aim of the research was to examine the prevalence of stress and burnout syndrome, among physicians and nurses working in the intensive care units (MICU) of 3 regional centers (Banja Luka, Novi Sad and Ljubljana), and to determine the differences between the centers and the causes of these differences. Methods: It is a cross-sectional study conducted during August and September 2020 (at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic) by surveying healthcare workers (doctors and nurses/technicians) from three intensive care units of the former Yugoslavia. The participantsfulfilled the Questionnaire for self-assessment of stress levels and the Maslach burnout inventory, which were supplemented with sociodemographic parameters. The obtained data were statistically processed using the SPSS 21 program. Results: 91 participantsfrom all 3 regional centers were included in th study. A statistically significant difference was found in terms of age, degree of professional education, length of service, gender, marital and parental status, where respondents from Ljubljana show the greatest deviations comparedto subjects from the other two centers. The sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents only showed that gender had a statistically significant influence on the degree of personal achievement. Conclusion: The attributes of healthcare professionals who work in MICUs with the same level of life support (level III) may be influenced by the development level and length of tradition of intensive care units. Additionally, factors such as legislation and other external and internal elements unique to each organizational unit can also play a role.

Natural cardiac glycosides have positive inotropic heart effects but at high, toxic doses they can cause life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias. Here we present the first Croatian case of a 16-year-old girl who attempted suicide by eating dried oleander leaves, which contain natural cardiac glycosides, and her treatment with a specific antidote. The girl presented with an oedema of the uvula indicating local toxicity, severe bradycardia, first-degree atrioventricular block, drowsiness, and vomiting. Having taken her medical history, we started treatment with atropine, intravenous infusion of dextrose-saline solution and gastroprotection, but it was not successful. Then we introduced digoxin-specific Fab antibody fragments and within two hours, the patient's sinus rhythm returned to normal. Cases of self-poisoning with this oleander are common in South-East Asia, because it is often used as a medicinal herb, and digoxin-specific Fab fragments have already been reported as effective antidote against oleander poisoning there. Our case has taught us that it is important to have this drug in the hospital pharmacy both for digitalis and oleander poisoning.

Introduction. The reconstruction of large postoperative defects after oncologic surgery of the head and neck remains challenging. Regional flaps are considered a less expensive reconstructive option compared to free flaps. The pectoralis major flap is one of the most versatile choices for the reconstruction of large head and neck defects. Case report. We present technical key points for safe harvesting of pectoralis major flap for two cases in a university-affiliated tertiary care medical center. Both patients were male, with an average age of 64 years. The defects that required reconstruction in Case 1 were on the lateral neck region and, in Case 2, on the anterior side of the neck. Flaps were used for covering the pharyngocutaneous fistula after total laryngectomy and irradiation. The donor site was closed primarily. Flaps in both patients healed primarily without complications. Conclusion. The pectoralis major flap has a constant vascular pedicle and can successfully be used for the reconstruction of large head and neck defects. In order to obtain absolute flap survival, the operative technique must be impeccable.

This paper meticulously analyzes the mechanisms for safeguarding the individual and collective rights of employees in the event of a transfer to a new employer. In this context, the protection of employees is facilitated through the rules governing the automatic transfer of employment contracts from the "old" to the "new" employer while maintaining identical working conditions. Consequently, the status of employees remains unaffected irrespective of any alterations in the activities undertaken by the new employer and decisions concerning the company transfer. In this sense, the assurance of job security serves as a counterbalance to the managerial authority of the employer and the freedom of entrepreneurship. The essence of the principle of employment security is encapsulated in the prohibition of initiating dismissals by the employer in the event of structural changes. Accordingly, the successor employer assumes the rights and obligations of the predecessor while preserving the legal status, thereby safeguarding the employees impacted by the transfer. Furthermore, legal continuity remains unbroken, even in terms of rights and obligations emanating from collective labor agreements, which continue to produce legal effects even under the successor employer.

This paper discusses the development and specifics of artistic expression in deaf and hard-of-hearing preschool children. We analyzed the significance of the stages of artistic development and the therapeutic effect of artistic expression. A drawing made by a deaf or hard-of-hearing child provides the opportunity to assess their cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development, the development of perception, a sense of beauty, and creativity. Through expressive and aesthetic development, children expand their knowledge and skills in nonverbal, visual, auditory, sensory, and verbal experiences. The artistic expression of deaf and hard-of-hearing children does not lag behind that of a hearing child. Visual representations of children with hearing impairment are much more realistic than those of hearing children. Visual perception of deaf and hard-of-hearing children contains many details related to physiognomy, movement, facial expression, body posture, and color. Children use art to communicate with themselves and the environment. In deaf and hard-of-hearing preschool children, it is necessary to develop all functions of nonverbal and verbal communication through artistic expression.

Introduction. Apart from developing physical skills, a characteristic of sport is that it also helps the socialization of the persons who do it. Thus, it is a rather significant system of activities in the lives of people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Considering the fact that these persons are often marginalized by the typical population, participating in sports activities may contribute to their visibility to a great extent and thus to their inclusion in the social community. It is important to underline that an individual's deafness or being hard of hearing does not represent a limiting factor for their doing sports if the function of the center of gravity is preserved. Objective. The aim of this work was to provide a systematic insight into the possibilities of the deaf to participate in sports activities through the analysis of the available literature, as well as to indicate the importance that sports can have in their lives. Methods. The descriptive method, analysis, synthesis, and content evaluation were used. Results. Sports are an important component in the lives of many deaf and hard-of-hearing people. Deaf and hard-of-hearing persons may do sports as part of organized activities, independently, for recreational purposes, but also professionally. Professional deaf and hard-of-hearing athletes have the possibility of taking part in specialized competitions which are intended for persons with disabilities or only for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, as well as in competitions in which predominantly typical athletes participate. Conclusion. In order to achieve the inclusion of the deaf, it is important to use the potential of sports activities as equally accessible to deaf people and members of the typical population.

Background/Aim. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has multiple impacts on the management of cancer patients. Treatment of malignancies, including chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy, can suppress the immune system and lead to the development of severe complications of COVID-19. The aim of this study was to determine the mortality of lung cancer (LC) patients in whom the COVID-19 was confirmed during active antitumor treatment. Methods. This retrospective study was conducted at the Institute for Pulmonary Diseases of Vojvodina, Sremska Kamenica, Serbia. All patients included in the study underwent active anticancer treatment at the time of diagnosis of COVID-19. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection was determined by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test. Patient data were collected using the institutional database and the observed period was from November 20, 2020, to June 5, 2021. Statistical analysis of the derived patient data used multivariate and univariate testing. Results. Out of 828 observed COVID-19 hospitalized patients, 81 were LC patients on active antitumor treatment. Patients were predominantly male (67.9%), smokers (55.6%), and with an average age of 66.5 years (range 43–83). The majority of patients (50.6%) had the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) 1, and 83.9% had at least one comorbidity. The most common comorbidities were arterial hypertension (66.7%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (28.4%), and diabetes mellitus (21%). Obesity, congestive heart failure, and other cardiovascular diseases were present in 11%, 6.2%, and 7.4% of patients, respectively. The most common was adenocarcinoma (33.3%), followed by squamous (30.9%) and small-cell LC (24.7%). Predominantly, 63% of the patients were in stage III of the disease, and 33.3% were in stage IV. Metastases were most commonly present in the contralateral lung/pleura (14.8%), brain (6.2%), bone (3.7%), and liver (3.7%). Systemic anticancer therapy was applied in 37 out of 81 patients (45.6%), chest radiotherapy in 35 (43.2%), concurrent chemo-radiotherapy in 1 (1.2%), and other types of radiotherapy in 8 (9.87%) patients. The most common forms of systemic therapy were chemotherapy (35.8%), immunotherapy (7.4%), and targeted therapy (2.4%). The most common chemotherapy was a cisplatin-based regiment applied in 34.6% of patients. The mortality from COVID-19 was 19.8%. The statistical significance in relation to the type of treatment was not observed. Statistical significance was observed between mortality and the ECOG PS (p = 0.011). Conclusion. LC patients are dependent on antitumor treatment and, at the same time, highly susceptible to potential infection. In this study, we did not find statistically significant differences in mortality related to the type of antitumor treatment in COVID-19 positive LC patients. Further detailed research on a larger scale is needed in order to explore the effects of SARS-CoV-2 on cancer patients. All possible methods of protection against SARS-CoV-2 virus should be performed in order to minimize the risk of infection in all but especially in immunocompromised cancer patients.

Understanding the factors which affect students' school achievement is an important knowledge source for strategic planning and encouraging changes in education. In this paper, we focused on examining the factors related to personal characteristics. The aim of this research was to determine the relation between school failure and achievements in certain functional abilities, such as: academic skills (reading, writing), attention, communication (receptive and expressive speech), class participation, and behavior. The sample included 195 younger school-age children of both genders. Students' functional abilities were assessed by the S.I.F.T.E.R. scale (Screening Instrument for Targeting Educational Risk). The results showed that school achievement correlated with all assessed functional abilities. The coefficient of multiple determination showed that 48% of individual differences in children's school achievement can be explained by individual differences in the given model of functional abilities. It should also be emphasized that only two functional abilities, attention and communication, were singled out as statistically significant particular predictors.

In this paper, the author analyses the ways in which the claims of employees in bankruptcy proceedings against their employer are protected. The first part of the paper discusses various modalities of protection that are applied alone or in combination with other means, all in order to provide a better protection framework for employees in bankruptcy. The central part of the paper is dedicated to the issue of the effectiveness of the Serbian protection system, which is measured by the number of settled claims of this type for creditors in bankruptcy proceedings, i.e. the number of upheld claims before the Solidarity Fund. In order to achieve the desired goal, it is necessary to place the protection of employees' claims in a broader context, which implies the harmony of the institutes of labour and bankruptcy law. As this is not the case in Serbia, the author points out a number of problems that arise in practice as a result, which were identified through interviews with employees of the Solidarity Fund and an analysis of reports on the work of this institution published since its establishment. At the very end, a comparative review shows that labour law mechanisms for the protection of employees are limited, and that, in that sense, expanding them to employers who have not initiated formal bankruptcy proceedings could be considered (with adequate adjustments). It is a unique theoretical proposal that deserves attention since the paper starts from the hypothesis that the system of protection of employees in terms of unsettled claims would be much more effective if they were more familiar with the work of the Solidarity Fund and if the way in which the Fund's work is organized was different.

In this paper, the author analyzes the fixed-term employment contract in German law highlighting the importance of this contract in a flexible employment environment. However, making a fixed-term employment contract is considered to be an exception, thus the objective reason which justifies its use is established in German law. This indicates that a fixed-term employment contract is a desirable means for creating an employment relationship only if the conditions provided by law are met. Therefore, the conditions under which the fixed-term contract can be used, the number of renewals and the maximum length of the total duration are mentioned. Additionally, the paper presents 'legislative history' of the fixed-term employment contract after its conceptual definition. At the end, the author points to the prohibition of discrimination against atypical employees stating that those employees must not have any less rights compared to the rest of the employees working for the same employer, especially those with the standard employment contract.

Background/Aim. Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) show lower degree of recognition of their own emotions and greater behavioral difficulties than children who do not have this disorder. This also affects the recognition of other people's emotions that are expressed not only by their language content, but also by their facial expression and the way they express the emotional message through speech. Most research in this area focuses on recognizing emotions based on facial expressions rather than on emotions in speech. The aim of this study was to examine how children with ADHD recognize emotions in speech (joy, anger, fear, sadness) and affective attitudes (threat and commandment) in relation to children of typical development. Methods. The study included 31 children with ADHD and 29 typical developmental children aged 6 to 13. To assess the ability to recognize emotions and affective attitudes, a corpus of Speech Emotional Expression and Attitudes (Govorna emocionalna ekspresija i stavovi – GEES, in Serbian) was used. This corpus included sentences that expressed emotions of anger, joy, fear, and sadness, and of affective attitudes, threat and command. Results. The results obtained showed that children with ADHD had worse recognition of emotions and affective attitudes in speech than children of typical development (t = 8.81; p = 0.000). Joy was the only emotion where no statistically significant difference was found. In all other emotions and affective attitudes, statistically significant differences were found (p < 0.01). Also, the results showed that there was a statistically significant association between age and recognition of emotion and affective attitudes in both groups, but this association was more pronounced in children of typical development. Conclusion. The results of this study provided important clues about the perception of emotions and affective attitudes in speech in children with ADHD. These results are very important for the conception of therapeutic procedures, especially in the development of strategies for modeling the behavior of children with ADHD.

This study analyses the process of adopting of the sign language with deaf and hard of hearing preschool children in the context of the result of linguistic and psycholinguistic research. The importance of the sign language is emphasized and its historical development is analyzed. It is pointed to the significance of the critical period for the adoption and the learning of the sign and spoken language with deaf and hard of hearing preschool children. The sign language is natural and primary linguistic expression of deaf children. Deaf and hard of hearing children are exposed to the sign and spoken language, they have better understanding and linguistic production than the children who are only exposed to the spoken language. Bilingualism involves the knowledge and the regular use of the sign language, which is used by the deaf community, and of the spoken language, which is used by the hearing majority. Children at the preschool age should be enabled to continue to adopt the language they started to adopt within the family (the sign language or the spoken language). Children will adopt the best both linguistic modalities through the interaction with other fluent speakers (the adults and children).

A way of communication on an equal footing with oral and written speech is sign language. Oral speech is a common way of communication, written speech has, with the development of information technologies, been taking up more and more space. In a parallel with them, communication can also take place through sign language, which is, to deaf people, as well as to all those who use it, a natural, simple and easy way to communicate. Relationship towards sign language has changed significantly throughout history from acceptance and isolated use, to complete rejection, and then to encouraging its adoption and emphasizing its importance for the cognitive, emotional, educational, social, and general development of deaf children. Serbian Sign Language (SSL) serves deaf people in Serbia as a means for everyday communication, for expressing desires, willingness, for learning, for intellectual discussions, for expressing personal style. Although the standardization of the Serbian Sign Language was completed in 2015, even nowadays we may still find certain gestures of expression varying in different regions. Different countries have different sign languages that are not reciprocally understood in use. They are distinguished by their own grammar (semantics, morphology, and syntax), different from the grammar of spoken languages. The distinguishing and recognition of sign languages in the world has led to changes in the field of education of deaf children. In bilingual schools, children acquire both sign and spoken languages, and teachers know both of the mentioned languages. The importance of sign language in the education of deaf children is emphasized.

Introduction/Objective. Tonsillitis is a very common condition found in the pediatric population but also in adult patients. One of the consequences of such conditions is poor voice quality. Hoarseness, poor voice impostation, interruption, and hypernazalization are just some of the differences in patient voice quality. The objective of this paper was to examine the effects of tonsillectomy on the voice quality. Methods. The sample included 37 patients, 17 female and 20 male, ranging in age 3–39 years. The method involved recording patients one month before and one month after tonsillectomy with a digital sound recorder, with recordings analyzed in the Praat program. The variables monitored in the basic voice were as follows: voice pitch, standard deviation of voice, degree of voice interruption, jitter, shimmer, and signal-to-noise ratio. In the statistical analysis, in addition to standard descriptive analyzes, t-test and ACNOVA were also used. Results. The results showed that there are effects of tonsillectomy on standard deviation of baseline voice (p = 0.002), shimmer (p = 0.002), baseline voice interruption rate (p = 0.023), signal to noise ratio (p = 0.003). There were no differences in the effects of tonsillectomy with respect to the sex of the subjects. Conclusion. Based on the conducted research, there were some methodological conclusions that could be considered as a recommendation for future research: increase the number of persons in the sample, introduce a variable of chronological age, type of surgical intervention, and gradation of size of the tonsil and adenoid tissue.

In this paper the author shows the shortcomings of the business judgment rule in the Serbian Company Act. Business judgment rule is a judicially created American doctrine that has gained widespread popularity in other countries. The trend of legal transplanting has not bypassed our country, and for this reason it is very important to define this rule and to properly understand the reason for its existence. Because of that the first part of this paper is dedicated to analysing the onset and deployment of this specific rule. Although the core of this paper is aimed at defining the subset of people who are protected by this rule, it is as well aimed at determining the precedents needed to get this protection mechanism operational. These conditions actually construct duty of care and are used to define the business judgment rule, and are not unanimously accepted in all law systems. In the paper these conditions have been individually analysed: 1. business decision; 2. absence of conflict of interest; 3. good faith; 4. informed decisions making; 5. the care of a prudent business person and 6. honest belief that the decision was in the company's best interest. The final segment of this paper shows the reverse distribution of the burden of proof which undermines the efficiency of the protective role of the business judgment rule.

Oxidized starch, an additive used in paper manufacturing and products for construction industry, is usually produced using harmful oxidant, such as hypochlorites or periodates. In this study, a simple and efficient eco-friendly laboratory and industrial procedures for starch oxidation were developed. The procedure involves application of small amounts of more environmentally friendly oxidant, hydrogen peroxide, a novel special metal complex catalyst such as copper(II) citrate and copper(II) ricinoleate and biobased plasticizers. Optimization procedure, with respect to the quantity of hydrogen peroxide and temperature in the presence of iron(II) sulphate catalyst, was performed by using the response surface methodology. Compa-rative analysis of the use of the other catalysts that is copper(II) sulphate, copper(II) citrate and copper(II) ricinoleate, indicated copper(II) citrate as the catalyst of choice. Improvement of starch is achieved using three plasticizers: ricinoleic acid (RA), diisopropyl tartarate, as well as epoxidized soybean, linseed and sunflower oils. The effects of hydrogen peroxide and catalyst concentrations, as well as the reaction temperature in the presence of naturally based plasticizers on the physicochemical, thermal and morphological properties of oxidized starch are presented. According to the results obtained in initial experiments, the optimal industrial process is based on the use of copper(II) citrate (0.1 %) as a catalyst and RA (3 %) as a plasticizer. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. ОI 172057 and Grant no. TR 34033]