May Measurement Month 2019: an analysis of blood pressure screening results from Albania

This article discusses the results of the May Measurement Month (MMM) 2019 campaign, which contributed to a third round of MMM hypertension screening campaigns carried out in Albania, a transitional country in the Western Balkans. The hypertension screening campaign in Albania was carried out during the period 1–31 May 2019 in 30 sites in many districts of the country. Overall, 19 154 participants aged ≥18 years were included (approximately 68% of these were women), with an overall mean age of 47.0 ± 15.3 years. Blood pressure (BP) was measured with OMRON sphygmomanometers (Omron Healthcare, Kyoto, Japan). Hypertension was defined as systolic BP ≥140 mmHg, or diastolic BP ≥90 mmHg, or on treatment for hypertension. Self-reported data consisted of height and weight, pre-existing conditions, including smoking status and alcohol consumption. Overall, the proportion of participants with hypertension was 38.6%. Less than two-thirds (64.7%) of hypertensive individuals were aware of their condition. Also, less than half (48.3%) of participants on antihypertensive medication had controlled BP (<140/90 mmHg). The most sizable correlations of high BP were with known hypertension status, use of antihypertensive medication, and obesity. The MMM campaign contributes to routine hypertension screening in Albania. Hence, health professionals and policymakers in Albania should act on the findings of MMM screening campaigns and continue its support as a valuable tool for early detection of hypertension in the general population.

Differences in Occurrence of Unethical Business Practices in a Post-Transitional Country in the CEE Region: The Case of Slovakia

This study aims to contribute to the understanding of unethical practices in business and asks whether certain types of organizations are considerably more exposed to unethical business practices than others are. Drawing from the tenets of institutional theory, the paper investigates the occurrence of unethical practices in different organizational “fields”, namely the industry sector (with focus on Finance and Construction), company membership in professional networks, company ownership (public/private), and company age. The method of stratified random sampling by proportional allocation is used to establish the sample (n = 1295), composed mostly of company owners and higher managers. Results show that, in general, the industry sector, membership in professional networks, and company age are associated with significant variance in the perceived incidence of unethical practices, whereas company ownership has no significant effect in this regard. More specifically, the construction sector is significantly more exposed to unethical practices than other sectors in the sample, while the finance sector is not. Companies with membership in professional networks report a significantly lower occurrence of unethical practices. Young companies are significantly more exposed than their more mature counterparts; however, here the effect of company size must be accounted for. The research was conducted in one of the former CEE block countries—Slovakia. Given their common communist past and comparable peripeties with the transition process, these findings might be useful for understanding business ethics issues in a wider context of the CEE region.

Extra-esophageal symptoms in individuals with and without erosive esophagitis: a case–control study in Albania

Introduction Erosive reflux esophagitis caused a large clinical spectrum of symptoms. Our aim was to assess the prevalence of extra-esophageal symptoms in individuals with and those without erosive esophagitis in Albania. Methods A case–control study was conducted at the Regional Hospital of Durres, the second main district in Albania, a transitional country in South Eastern Europe, including 248 patients with erosive esophagitis (aged 46.5 ± 16.3 years) and 273 controls (aged 46.4 ± 16.0 years; response rate: 70%) enrolled during the period January 2013–June 2014. Both cases and controls underwent upper endoscopy. Information on socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyle factors was also collected. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the association of erosive esophagitis and extra-esophageal symptoms. Results Patients with erosive esophagitis had a higher prevalence of excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, sedentarity, non-Mediterranean diet and obesity compared to their control counterparts (9% vs. 5%, 70% vs. 49%, 31% vs. 17%, 61% vs. 49% and 22% vs. 9%, respectively). Upon adjustment for all socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyle/behavioral factors, there was evidence of a strong association of erosive esophagitis with chronic cough (OR = 3.2, 95% CI = 1.7–5.8), and even more so with laryngeal disorders (OR = 4.4, 95% CI = 2.6–7.5). In all models, the association of erosive esophagitis with any extra-esophageal symptoms was strong and mainly consistent with each of the symptoms separately (fully-adjusted model: OR = 4.6, 95% CI = 2.9–7.3). Conclusion Our findings indicate that the prevalence of extra-esophageal symptoms is higher among patients with erosive esophagitis in a transitional country characterized conventionally by employment of a Mediterranean diet.

The importance of operating agricultural equipment in use by fair value from the management situation in small and medium-sized enterprises in the transitional country: Example of the Republic of Serbia

This study highlights the importance of using real-life values of agricultural equipment in real financial statements in medium-sized enterprises. The authors have adopted the essence of nature related to the estimation of agricultural equipment, that is, he has stated that in the agricultural production of transition countries, agricultural equipment has been used for more than five decades. This was a key assumption adopted by the authors of this study. In addition, the presentation of realistic financial statements should include an account of the real value of agricultural equipment, which essentially leads to a periodic fair valuation of agricultural equipment available to agricultural producers in transition countries.

The Affects of Change: An Ethnography of the Affective Experiences of the 2013 Military Intervention in Egypt

In this chapter the author discusses the difficulties of exploring the ethnography of events as they are happening, especially when they are violent, not least due to the lack of reliable information available and the complex process of interpreting transmissions of affect. The epistemological turn away from language—in which the focus on affect has emerged as a critique of post-structuralism’s inability to recognize the prediscursive forces that also shape the body—is, the author argues, imperative, as using the framework of affect theory and new materialism allows us to assess societies in flux as long as our material is grounded in empirical research. Examining the material consequences of recent uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region may provide a way of addressing key methodological issues in qualitative research in innovative and creative ways. In her ongoing project in Egypt, the author has identified the materialization of a certain clustering of affect by spending time with Cairenes during violent uprisings and her own lived experiences at such intense and uncertain moments, especially from the summer of 2013 and onwards. Starting with an inquiry into the material affective consequences—in particular changes to the vibration of sound but also encompassing other materialized experiences—this chapter reflects upon how the author’s attempt to formulate alternative methods of inquiry, anchored in affects and the body as a way of studying affective politics and the tangible emotions that resonate with and transform everyday engagements in a transitional country, provides useful tools for the study of change in the making.

Extra-Esophageal Symptoms in Individuals With and Without Erosive Esophagitis: A Case-Control Study in Albania

Introduction: Erosive reflux esophagitis caused a large clinical spectrum of symptoms. Our aim was to assess the prevalence of extra-esophageal symptoms in individuals with and those without erosive esophagitis in Albania.Methods: A case-control study was conducted at the Regional Hospital of Durres, the second main district in Albania, a transitional country in South Eastern Europe, including 248 patients with erosive esophagitis (aged 46.5±16.3 years) and 273 controls (aged 46.4±16.0 years; response rate: 70%) enrolled during the period January 2013 – June 2014. Both cases and controls underwent upper endoscopy. Information on socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyle factors was also collected. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the association of erosive esophagitis and extra-esophageal symptoms. Results: Patients with erosive esophagitis had a higher prevalence of excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, sedentarity, non-Mediterranean diet and obesity compared to their control counterparts (9% vs. 5%, 70% vs. 49%, 31% vs. 17%, 61% vs. 49% and 22% vs. 9%, respectively). Upon adjustment for all socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyle/behavioral factors, there was evidence of a strong association of erosive esophagitis with chronic cough (OR=3.2, 95%CI=1.7-5.8), and even more so with laryngeal disorders (OR=4.4, 95%CI=2.6-7.5). In all models, the association of erosive esophagitis with any extra-esophageal symptoms was strong and mainly consistent with each of the symptoms separately (fully-adjusted model: OR=4.6, 95%CI=2.9-7.3). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the prevalence of extra-esophageal symptoms is higher among patients with erosive esophagitis in a transitional country characterized conventionally by employment of a Mediterranean diet.

Reverse knowledge transfer from Central to Western Europe: Selected Case Studies

Reverse knowledge transfer refers to the knowledge flow from the subsidiaries to the parent companies. The paper analyzes if the subsidiaries located in former transitional country (Slovakia) can create and transfer original knowledge to the parent companies in so-called developed Western Europe and focuses on the drivers, communication channels and contributions of such a knowledge flow for both, the headquarters and the subsidiaries. Qualitative research of four subsidiaries of multinational corporations was conducted to identify reverse knowledge transfers and to study them in-depth using case study method.

Nutrition status in adult Chilean population: economic, ethnic and sex inequalities in a post-transitional country

Objective:To assess the relationship between malnutrition, socioeconomic status (SES) and ethnicity in Chilean adult population.Design:Nationally representative survey (ENS) conducted in 2016–2017. Sociodemographic information, weight, height and hemoglobin (Hb) were measured (2003 ENS). Excess weight was defined as BMI ≥25 kg/m2. Undernutrition included underweight (BMI <18·5 kg/m2), short stature (height <1·49 m in women and <1·62 m in men) or anaemia (Hb <12 g/l). Education and household income level were used as indicators of SES; ethnicity was self-reported. We applied linear combinations of estimators to compare the prevalence of excess weight and undernutrition by SES and ethnicity.Setting:Chile.Participants:In total, 5082 adults ≥20 years (64 % women) and 1739 women ≥20 years for anaemia analyses.Results:Overall, >75 % of women and men had excess weight. Low SES women either by income or education had higher excess weight ((82·0 (77·1, 86·1) v. 65·0 (54·8, 74·1)) by income; (85·3 (80·6, 89·0) v. 68·2 (61·6, 74·1) %) by education) and short stature (20–49 years; 31(17·9, 48·2) v. 5·2 (2·2,11·4) by education); obesity was also more frequent among indigenous women (20–49 years; 55·8 (44·4, 66·6) v. 37·2 (32·7, 42·0) %) than non-indigenous women. In men, excess weight did not significantly differ by SES or ethnicity, but short stature concentrated in low SES (20–49 years; 47·6 (24·6, 71·6) v. 4·5 (2·1, 9·5) by education) and indigenous men (21·5 (11·9, 5·5, 11·9) v. 8·2 (5·5, 11·9)) (P < 0·05 for all).Conclusions:In Chile, malnutrition is disproportionately concentrated among women of low SES and indigenous origin; these inequalities should be considered when implementing prevention policies.