Introduction: Due to the declaration of a state of emergency in the country due to the pandemic COVID-19, the education system was changed to online teaching. The implementation of distance education has led to an increased sedentary lifestyle, decreased physical activity, and increased use of information technologies. The purpose of this study was to analyze the sedentary habits of female students and their physical health during a period of restricted physical activity with reference to online instruction.Methods: The research was conducted among the first to third grade students of Secondary School Konjic, 45 days after the implementation of online instruction. Students of general secondary school (N = 83), business school (N = 68), and medical school (N = 55) completed the questionnaire after their parents gave their consent.Results: The total number of students surveyed was 206, with students from all three schools studied participating in online classes for up to 4 hours. Medical school students spend more than 3 hours completing schoolwork, while students at the other two schools spend up to 2 hours. Statistically significant differences in non-use of information technology during free time exist among medical students (p = 0.00). Female medical students reported daily symptoms such as headaches, reactions to the visual organ (dry eye, redness, and tearing), and pain in the fist area (twitching, cramps, and tingling). Statistically significant differences in the occurrence of pain in the upper back and chest girdle occurred in students of business school (p = 0.00) and general high school (p = 0.00) compared to medical students.Conclusion: Medical students who use information technology the most reported headaches, pain in the fist area, and frequent reactions to the sense of sight (dry eye, lacrimation, and redness). Assuming inappropriate positions during prolonged use of technology may contribute to poor posture.

Introduction: With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, people’s dietary habits have changed, so the importance of additional supplementation has become a current topic. The aim of this study is to analyze the attitude of female respondents toward dietary supplementation before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: The research is a cross-sectional study conducted in two different time periods. The sample consisted of two female subsamples who purchased immunity preparations from Verdant Pharmacy before the pandemic (n = 81) and during the pandemic (n = 120). Female respondents in both subsamples were: Of the same age, in the same health condition, residing in the same area (municipality), users of a local pharmacy located near the health center. The research instrument was a non-standardized questionnaire “Assessment of attitudes towards nutritional supplementation,” which consisted of nine questions.Results: During the pandemic COVID-19, the attitude toward the use of preparations to strengthen immunity differs by 7% compared to the pre-pandemic check. The attitude toward the use of preparations to strengthen immunity throughout the year increased by 32.3% (53.3%) during the pandemic, and the attitude toward the choice of preparations to strengthen immunity changed by 13% during the pandemic COVID-19 based on own experience and by 17% based on the recommendation of the pharmacist.Conclusion: The pandemic COVID-19 has contributed to a change in female respondents’ attitudes toward nutritional supplementation to strengthen the immune system during a pandemic. With the help of the media, public health recommendations, and people’s fear of disease, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a change in respondents’ attitudes compared to the pre-pandemic period.

Vector-borne diseases occur in the chain pathogen-vector-host, with vectors playing the most prominent role. Vectors transmit pathogens between humans, and more often, from animals to humans so that many vector-borne diseases are categorized as zoonoses. Vector-borne diseases have become more important worldwide, and not exclusively in the tropics as in the past, by causing high morbidity and mortality every year. Out of all infectious diseases, more than 17% are vector-borne. The most significant and widespread vectors are mosquitoes and ticks, and the most significant diseases are West Nile fever, yellow fever, Zika virus fever, tick encephalitis, Lyme borreliosis, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever and rickettsioses. Life and preservation of the vectors, and breakouts and spread of vector-borne diseases are profoundly affected by climate change (rise in temperature and humidity, downfalls, extreme weather conditions), urbanization, deforestation, inadequate waste management, international travel, international commerce and social conditions, with poverty being the most important and directly linked to the rising incidence. In recent years, all factors mentioned above have favoured a rising number of the vectors and their spread, so that vector-borne diseases have become emergent or reemergent, meaning their high incidence have been registered in the countries with no previous breakouts; or they reoccurred in the areas where they had earlier been eradicated. Some extra reasons contributing to the increasing incidence are lowered investments and limited resources for monitoring vector-borne diseases. Most vector-borne diseases are zoonoses, making "One Health" the only appropriate approach, which implies integrated monitoring of the diseases in the sectors of both animal and human health. Prevention of vector-borne diseases should be aimed at raising public awareness on the importance of the vectors, education of the professionals and active involvement of the community as a whole.

Aim To investigate the effect of intermittent traction therapy (ITT) on pain in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Methods A total of 81 patients with CLBP were included: experimental group received ITT (n=40) and control group received conservative physical treatment (n=41) 10 times for two weeks. A visual analogue scale (VAS) was used for measuring low back pain. Results In the experimental group, 26 (out of 40; 65.0%) patients were females, in the control group 20 (out of 41; 48.8%) were females (p=0.141). In a within-group comparison, median of VAS value was significantly decreased in both groups after ITT. A comparison of pre-intervention and post-intervention VAS value showed no statistically significant difference. Females from the experimental group had a significantly greater decrease of VAS compared with females from the control group. Patients in the ITT group with L5/S1 level of hernia had lower estimated marginal mean of VAS scale compared to the control group, as well the patients with left side of leg pain. Conclusion: Intermittent traction therapy is an effective treatment for pain reduction in patients with chronic low back pain.