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BackgroundSerostudies are important resources when following pandemics and predicting their further spread, as well as determining the length of protection against reinfection and vaccine development. The aim of this study was to update data on the prevalence of seropositive individuals in Canton Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) from September 2020 to May 2021.MethodsAnti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were quantified using an electrochemiluminescence immunoassay.ResultsCompared to the period April-July 2020, when anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected in 3.77% of samples, one year later (May 2021) the estimated percentage within the same population of the urban Canton Sarajevo was 29.9% (5,406/18,066). Of all anti-SARS-CoV-2 Ig-positive individuals, 53.27% were men, and 69.00% were of 50 years of age or younger. Also, the current update found the individuals 50 years of age or younger to be more frequently anti-SARS-CoV-2 Ig positive compared to older individuals. On the other hand, higher median anti-SARS-CoV-2 Ig levels were found in individuals > 50 years old than in younger individuals, as well as in men compared to women. Seropositivity gradually increased from September 2020 to May 2021, with the lowest frequency of positive cases (3.5%) observed in September 2020, and the highest frequency (77.7%) in January 2021.ConclusionOur results provided important seroprevalence data that could help in planning restrictive local public health measures to protect the population of Sarajevo Canton, especially considering that at the time of the study the vaccines were virtually inaccessible to the general population not belonging to any of the high-priority groups for vaccination.

Background: Acute Systemic Diseases (ASD) impact on extended leukoaraiosis (ExLA) have been seldom described. We study the deterioration in daily life activities (DLA) and cognition associated with ASD events compared with the well-described impacts of stroke in patients with leukoaraiosis (L-A)., Methods: Cross-sectional surveys of aged adults from the emergency room after an acute event of ASD or stroke, hospitalized or receiving home care, were followed for one year. From 268 initial patients 206 were included in the study, all with moderate to severe L-A (Fazekas 2 and 3). The Clinical Deterioration Rating (CDR) and the modified Rankin scale with structured interview were obtained one week previous to admission and after 3 and 12 months of evolution. Comparisons were conducted within and between groups with nonparametric techniques., Results: We formed three groups of similar age, A: Inpatients with one Stroke, B: Inpatients with one ASD, and C: Outpatients with one ASD. A sudden deterioration in Rankin was evident in Group A, while in B and C impairment was progressive. Impairment in CDR was smooth in all groups while in Rankin it was always greater than in cognition (CDR). No differences were found in the associations between groups and risk factors, hypertension being the most frequent one., Conclusion: ASD in ExL-A causes a worsening of DLA and cognition similar to that observed in ExL-A with concomitant stroke indicating the need, in ageing patients, of differential diagnosis in order to achieve the best possible treatment., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Rationale: Once dependent on alcohol or opioids, negative affect may accompany withdrawal. Dependent individuals are hypothesized to "self-medicate" in order to cope with withdrawal, which promotes escalated alcohol and drug use., Objectives: The current study aimed to develop a reliable animal model to assess symptoms that occur during spontaneous alcohol and opioid withdrawal., Methods: Dependence was induced using intermittent alcohol exposure or pulsatile heroin delivery and assessed for the presence of withdrawal symptoms during acute withdrawal by measuring somatic signs, behavior in the forced swim test (FST), and air-puff-induced 22-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs). Additional animals subjected to 8 weeks of alcohol vapor exposure were evaluated for altered somatic signs, operant alcohol self-administration, and 22-kHz USV production, as well as performance in the elevated plus maze (EPM)., Results: During spontaneous withdrawal from pulsatile heroin or intermittent alcohol vapor, animals displayed increased somatic withdrawal signs, FST immobility, and 22-kHz USV production but did not show any behavioral change in the EPM unless the duration of alcohol exposure was extended to 4 weeks. Following 8 weeks of alcohol vapor exposure, animals displayed somatic withdrawal signs, escalated alcohol self-administration, and increased 22-kHz USVs., Conclusions: These paradigms provide consistent methods to evaluate the behavioral ramifications, and neurobiological substrates, of alcohol and opioid dependence during spontaneous withdrawal. As immobility in the FST and percent open-arm time in the EPM were dissociable, with 22-kHz USVs paralleling immobility in the FST, assessment of air-puff-induced 22-kHz USVs could provide an ethologically valid alternative to the FST.