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Bartosz Szmyd

Bio: Bartosz Szmyd is an academic researcher from Medical University of Łódź. The author has contributed to research in topics: Medicine & Obstructive sleep apnea. The author has an hindex of 9, co-authored 22 publications receiving 240 citations.

Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
04 Mar 2021-Vaccine
TL;DR: In this article, the authors performed a survey on the attitude and behavior of Polish healthcare workers towards the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination and found that depression significantly affects the willingness to get vaccinated.

95 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
05 Feb 2021-Vaccine
TL;DR: In this article, the authors assess the attitudes held by both medical and non-medical students regarding vaccination and find that the most common concern about SARS-CoV-2 infection was the risk of passing on the disease to elderly relatives, while conspiracy theories regarding the COVID-19 vaccine are less popular among MS.

85 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The hypothesis that hypoxia is an independent risk factor for IR is strengthened by experimentally confirmed improvement of insulin sensitivity among OSA patients treated with the continuous positive airway pressure and recent studies suggest that HIF-1α protein concentration is increased in individuals with OSA.
Abstract: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) is described as an independent risk factor for the onset and progression of type 2 diabetes (T2DM), as well as for insulin resistance (IR). The mechanisms underlying these processes remain unclear. One of the proposed molecular mechanism is based on the oxygen-sensitive α-subunit of hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1α)-a key regulator of oxygen metabolism. The concept that stabilization of HIF-1α may influence T2DM and IR is supported by cell and animal models. Cell culture studies revealed that both glucose uptake and glycolysis are regulated by HIF-1α. Furthermore, animal models indicated that increased fasting glucose may be caused by a single night with intermittent hypoxia. Moreover, in these models, hypoxia time was correlated with IR. Mice models revealed that inhibition of HIF-1α protein may downregulate fasting blood glucose and plasma insulin level. Administration of superoxide dismutase mimetic resulted in inhibition of HIF-1α protein, catecholamines, and chronic intermittent hypoxia-induced hypertension in a mice model. The hypothesis that hypoxia is an independent risk factor for IR is strengthened by experimentally confirmed improvement of insulin sensitivity among OSA patients treated with the continuous positive airway pressure. Furthermore, recent studies suggest that HIF-1α protein concentration is increased in individuals with OSA. In this literature review, we summarize the current knowledge about HIF-1α in OSA in relation to the possible pathways in which they contribute to metabolic disorders.

49 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Observed differences in HIF-1 α serum protein level between the OSA and the control groups without difference between evening and morning measurements suggest chronic increase in this protein concentration by intermittent nocturnal hypoxia in OSA.
Abstract: Study Objectives:Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic condition that is characterized by recurrent pauses in breathing during sleep causing intermittent hypoxia. The main factor responsible f...

46 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The receiver operating curve was creat‐ ed to assess the value of serum HIF ‐1α concen‐ trations as a predictor of OSA.
Abstract: 158 to assess the value of the serum HIF ‐1α level as a predictor of OSA. Patients and methods The study group in‐ cluded 84 patients who were referred to Sleep and Respiratory Disorders Center in Łódź (Po‐ land) with a presumptive diagnosis of OSA. All patients underwent standard nocturnal polysom‐ nography examination (Jaeger, Viasys Healthcare, Höchberg, Germany), and the results were scored according to the American Academy of Sleep Med‐ icine guidelines.8 Patients with chronic respira‐ tory disorders (such as bronchial asthma, chron‐ ic obstructive pulmonary disease, or any chronic pulmonary disorder resulting in respiratory fail‐ ure) were excluded from the study, as individuals with these conditions have been shown to have increased serum HIF ‐1α protein levels.9 Other ex‐ clusion criteria were chronic inflammatory dis‐ eases (such as lupus or inflammatory bowel dis‐ ease), infection within 1 month of blood collec‐ tion, and diagnosis of cancer (active or in medical history). Peripheral blood samples were collect‐ ed in the evening before and in the morning af‐ ter polysomnography, and then centrifuged. Se‐ rum was collected and stored at a temperature of –80oC. The HIF ‐1α concentration was assessed us‐ ing an enzyme ‐linked immunosorbent assay kit (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, California, United States). The study was approved by the Ethics Com‐ mittee of the Medical University of Lodz (RNN/77/18/KE). All patients provided written informed consent to participate in the study. Statistical analysis was performed with Statis‐ tica 13.1 (StatSoft, Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States). The receiver operating curve was creat‐ ed to assess the value of serum HIF ‐1α concen‐ trations as a predictor of OSA. Introduction The prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) syndrome has greatly increased in re‐ cent years. It is estimated that almost 50% of men and 24% of women are affected by at least mod‐ erate OSA (apnea–hypopnea index [AHI] ≥15/h).1 Multiple screening tools have been developed to assess the risk of OSA, including various ques‐ tionnaires2 and parameters (eg, body mass in‐ dex).3 Similarly, there is an ongoing search for biochemical markers that might serve as predic‐ tors of the disorder. However, currently, none of them has a high predictive value for the diagno‐ sis of OSA.4,5 One of the typical complications of OSA is in‐ termittent hypoxemia, which manifests as desatu‐ rations on polysomnography.6 Hypoxia ‐inducible factor 1 (HIF ‐1) is a key regulator of cellular ox‐ ygen metabolism. It consists of 2 subunits: α, which is oxygen sensitive, and β, which is pro‐ duced in a continuous manner and is not oxygen dependent. Since hypoxia is characteristic for rap‐ idly proliferating tissues, such as tumor tissue, a considerable number of studies investigating HIF ‐1α focused on its effect on the formation and growth of tumor tissue. An increased expression of HIF ‐1α was observed in multiple cancers and correlated with a worse prognosis.7 The protein is also thought to be responsible for activation of a vast number of genes. For example, it activates genes associated with angiogenesis (eg, vascular endothelial growth factor) or glucose uptake by cells (glucose transporters 1 and 3).7 This explains the mechanisms whereby HIF ‐1α is involved in tumor progression and suggests its possible role in the development of OSA comorbidities. Thus, HIF ‐1α protein is a potential candidate for a di‐ agnostic marker in OSA. In this study, we aimed RESEARCH LETTER

42 citations


Cited by
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors conducted a comprehensive worldwide assessment of published evidence on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers and found that individuals who were males, of older age, and doctoral degree holders (i.e., physicians) were more likely to accept COVID19 vaccines.
Abstract: COVID-19 vaccines were approved in late 2020 and early 2021 for public use in countries across the world. Several studies have now highlighted COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in the general public. However, little is known about the nature and extent of COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in healthcare workers worldwide. Thus, the purpose of this study was to conduct a comprehensive worldwide assessment of published evidence on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among healthcare workers. A scoping review method was adopted to include a final pool of 35 studies in this review with study sample size ranges from n = 123 to 16,158 (average = 2185 participants per study). The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy worldwide in healthcare workers ranged from 4.3 to 72% (average = 22.51% across all studies with 76,471 participants). The majority of the studies found concerns about vaccine safety, efficacy, and potential side effects as top reasons for COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy in healthcare workers. The majority of the studies also found that individuals who were males, of older age, and doctoral degree holders (i.e., physicians) were more likely to accept COVID-19 vaccines. Factors such as the higher perceived risk of getting infected with COVID-19, direct care for patients, and history of influenza vaccination were also found to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake probability. Given the high prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in healthcare workers, communication and education strategies along with mandates for clinical workers should be considered to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake in these individuals. Healthcare workers have a key role in reducing the burden of the pandemic, role modeling for preventive behaviors, and also, helping vaccinate others.

283 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
13 Aug 2021-Vaccine
TL;DR: In this article, a scoping review was conducted in Medline®, Embase®, CINAHL®, and Scopus® and was reported in accordance with the PRISMA-SCr checklist.

228 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a cross-sectional survey-based study was carried out between January and February 2021 to collect data on the side effects following the COVID-19 vaccine among healthcare workers in the Czech Republic.
Abstract: Background: COVID-19 vaccine side effects have a fundamental role in public confidence in the vaccine and its uptake process. Thus far, the evidence on vaccine safety has exclusively been obtained from the manufacturer-sponsored studies; therefore, this study was designed to provide independent evidence on Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine side effects. Methods: A cross-sectional survey-based study was carried out between January and February 2021 to collect data on the side effects following the COVID-19 vaccine among healthcare workers in the Czech Republic. The study used a validated questionnaire with twenty-eight multiple-choice items covering the participants’ demographic data, medical anamneses, COVID-19-related anamneses, general, oral, and skin-related side effects. Results: Injection site pain (89.8%), fatigue (62.2%), headache (45.6%), muscle pain (37.1%), and chills (33.9%) were the most commonly reported side effects. All the general side effects were more prevalent among the ≤43-year-old group, and their duration was mainly one day (45.1%) or three days (35.8%) following the vaccine. Antihistamines were the most common drugs associated with side effects, thus requiring further investigation. The people with two doses were generally associated with a higher frequency of side effects. Conclusions: The distribution of side effects among Czech healthcare workers was highly consistent with the manufacturer’s data, especially in terms of their association with the younger age group and the second dose. The overall prevalence of some local and systemic side effects was higher than the manufacturer’s report. Further independent studies on vaccine safety are strongly required to strengthen public confidence in the vaccine.

203 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A systematic review of the current literature regarding attitudes and hesitancy to receiving COVID-19 vaccination worldwide was conducted by as discussed by the authors, where the authors identified the consistent socio-demographic groups that were associated with increased hesitance, including women, younger participants, and people who were less educated, had lower income, had no insurance, living in a rural area, and self-identified as a racial/ethnic minority.

191 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Mei Li, Yue Luo, Roger Watson1, Yu Zheng, Jianlan Ren, Jian Tang, Yanhua Chen 
TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors conducted a systematic review aimed to synthesise evidence on healthcare workers' attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination and analyse associated factors to provide information for vaccine policy development and practice.
Abstract: Herd immunity through vaccination is a key measure to control COVID-19 pandemic. However, vaccine hesitancy remains a public health threat, which is still common among healthcare workers (HCWs). This systematic review aimed to synthesise evidence on HCWs' attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination and analyse associated factors to provide information for vaccine policy development and practice. We searched PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, Web of Science and three Chinese databases for literature published on 12 February 2021. Two researchers screened the literature independently, and 13 studies were included in the systematic review. Vaccine acceptance varied widely and ranged from 27.7% to 77.3%. HCWs had positive attitudes towards future COVID-19 vaccines, while vaccine hesitancy was still common. Demographic variables such as men, older age and physicians were positive predictive factors. Women and nurses had more vaccine hesitancy. Previous influenza vaccination and self-perceived risk were facilitators. Concerns for safety, efficacy and effectiveness and distrust of the government were barriers. Influences of direct (COVID-19) patient care towards vaccination intention were less conclusive. Tailored communication strategies were needed to increase the uptake rate of COVID-19 vaccines among HCWs. More importantly, more data and information on the safety and efficacy of vaccines should be provided with transparency.

130 citations