Towards consensus: The need for standardised definitions in Long (post) COVID care in 34 European countries.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted global healthcare systems, leading to challenges in managing Long COVID. Variations in definitions and diagnostic criteria across Europe hinder recognition and treatment efforts. This study aims to analyse and compare the definitions of Long COVID used in 34 European countries.

Mental health of general practitioners and family medicine specialists 2 years into the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted general medical practice by altering work structures and increasing teamwork while also adversely affecting the mental health of general practitioners and family medicine specialists. This study assesses depression, anxiety, and fear levels among general practitioners and family medicine specialists in Europe 2 years after the COVID-19 pandemic's onset, and it explores influencing factors.

Methods: This observational cross-sectional study included participants from 13 European countries.

Family Physicians' Awareness of the Burden of Oral Corticosteroids in Asthma Patients.

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify when family physicians decide to prescribe oral corticosteroids (OCS) to treat asthma, to establish the factors affecting their decision, and how familiar family physicians are with the side effects of OCS.

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among physicians that are members of the Slovenian Family Medicine Society.

Results: The study included 122 family physicians from all 12 Slovenian regions.

The Evolution and Challenges of Academic Family Medicine: Insights from the Banja Luka Declaration.

Academic medicine encompasses education, research and clinical practice, and plays a crucial role in advancing medical science and training physicians. However, the field faces a crisis, with fewer graduates pursuing academic careers. Family medicine emerged as an academic discipline in the second half of the 20th century, contributing significantly to science and primary healthcare.

The Vaper's Perspective: A Qualitative Study of E-Cigarette Users and Smokers in Slovenia.

Background: The use of e-cigarettes has been rapidly expanding in recent years. The reasons people in Slovenia chose to use electronic cigarettes have not been studied to date. This study examines e-cigarette users' attitudes regarding their health risks.

Transition from a traditional to a comprehensive quality assurance system in Slovenian family medicine practices.

In Slovenia, quality of care at the primary healthcare level is formally a priority, but the legislation to ensure quality in this area is proceeding very slowly. The first steps towards a systematic quality control system in Slovenian family medicine were implemented with the initiation of an ongoing project of renewed family medicine practices in 2011 and the introduction of quality indicators. In 2017, an initiative by the Ministry of Health and the Department of Family Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, the University of Ljubljana, aimed to develop a new approach to quality assurance and an improvement.

Prevention of post-herpetic neuralgia using transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation.

Background: Post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common complication of herpes zoster (HZ) and is difficult to treat. The role of antiviral agents and nonpharmacologic procedures in preventing PHN is not entirely clear. Recent retrospective study showed that transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) may completely prevent PHN.

Clinical efficacy of OROS® hydromorphone in patients suffering from severe chronic pain: A Study undertaken in routine clinical practice.

Introduction: Strong opioids are efficient drugs for treating chronic pain. In cancer patients, strong opioids are the mainstay of pain management, but in non-cancer pain caution is advised due to possible adverse effects, addictive potential and drug abuse.

Aims: We studied the efficacy of OROS(®) hydromorphone in the treatment of chronic pain, the appearance and frequency of any adverse effects, the impact upon quality of life.