Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are an alternative to traditional tobacco cigarette smoking. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of cigarette smoking and e-cigarette use among university students from Central and Eastern Europe and to investigate personal characteristics associated with cigarette and e-cigarette smoking. A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey was performed between 2017–2018 among university students in five European countries: Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Slovakia. The questionnaire included 46 questions related to the frequency and habits of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes use. Completed questionnaires were obtained from 14,352 students (8800 medical; aged 20.9 ± 2.4 years) with an overall response rate of 72.2%. Two-thirds of the respondents had smoked a traditional tobacco cigarette and 43.7% had used an e-cigarette. Overall current smoking status included 12.3% traditional cigarette smokers, 1.1% e-cigarette users, and 1.8% were dual users with the remainder being non-smokers. Smoking status differed between the research centres (p < 0.001). Females were less likely to try either cigarettes (OR = 0.83) or e-cigarettes (OR = 0.62) and were less likely to be current cigarette (OR = 0.64), e-cigarette (OR = 0.34), or dual users (OR = 0.33) than males. Perception of e-cigarettes significantly differed between smokers and non-smokers (p < 0.001). Among university students, cigarettes are more popular than e-cigarettes.

The prevalence of asthma and other allergic diseases among children living in Eastern is not well described. Our objective was to estimate and compare the prevalence of asthma, respiratory symptoms and allergic diseases in children in Belarus, Ukraine, and Poland as well as to identify risk factors for these conditions. We also sought to profile and compare children with asthma between locations. Data were collected as a part of an international, multicenter, cross-sectional study of childhood asthma: The Belarus Ukraine Poland Asthma Study (BUPAS). Subjects were children aged 7–13 years attending primary and secondary schools in the urban and surrounding rural area of Grodno (Belarus), Ternopil (Ukraine) and Silesia Region (Poland). Physician-diagnosed respiratory diseases and symptoms as well as allergic diseases were ascertained using the ISAAC questionnaire completed by the parents. In total there were 4019 children from Belarus (rural: 2018, urban: 2001), 4493 from Ukraine (1972; 2521), and 4036 from Poland (2002, 2034). The overall response rate was 76.7 %. Groups were similar in case of gender and age (p > 0.05). Almost all analyzed respiratory and allergic conditions differed significantly between countries including asthma [Poland (rural, urban): 3.5 %, 4.1 %; Ukraine: 1.4 %, 2.1 %; Belarus: 1.4 %, 1.5 %], spastic bronchitis (Poland: 2.7 %, 3.2 %; Ukraine: 7.5 %, 6.5 %; Belarus: 6.4 %, 7.9 %), and chest wheeze in the last year (Poland: 4.8 %, 5.2 %; Ukraine: 11.5 %, 13.0 %; Belarus: 10.7 %, 10.0 %). These differences remained after adjustment for potential confounders. Risk factor associations were generally similar between outcomes. Symptom characteristics of children with asthma between countries were not consistent. The ratio of current wheeze:diagnosis of asthma differed by country: (Rural areas: Belarus: 10.9:1, Ukraine: 17.3:1, Poland: 2.4:1; Urban areas: Belarus: 8.1:1, Ukraine: 7.3:1 Poland: 1.9:1). The findings show large between-country differences and relatively low prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases in children of Western Belarus and Ukraine. There is evidence for underdiagnosis of asthma in these regions.

Our aim is to assess the smoking cessation and vaping cessation activity, including quit attempts and willingness to quit among university students in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as to investigate personal characteristics associated with smoking cessation and vaping cessation attempts. Data were collected by questionnaire which included 46 questions on cigarette and e-cigarette use. Questionnaires were obtained from 14,352 university students (aged 20.9 ± 2.4 years; cooperation rate of 72.2%). For the purposes of this analysis, only data from exclusive cigarette smokers (n = 1716), exclusive e-cigarette users (n = 129), and dual users (216) were included. Of all cigarette smokers, 51.6% had previously tried to quit smoking and 51.5% declared a willingness to quit cigarette smoking in the near future. Among all e-cigarette users only 13.9% had ever tried to quit using the e-cigarette and 25.2% declared a willingness to give up using e-cigarette in the near future. The majority of the group did not use pharmacotherapy to quit cigarette (87.5%) or e-cigarette (88.9%) use. Our results indicate that while most university students have some desire to quit conventional smoking, those who use e-cigarettes do not have the same desire.

Health and social care systems in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries have undergone significant changes and are currently dealing with serious problems of system disintegration, coordination and a lack of control over the market environment. The increased health needs related to the ageing society and epidemiological patterns in these countries also require funding needs to increase, rationing to be reformed, sectors to be integrated (the managed care approach), and an analytical information base to be developed if supervision of new technological approaches is to improve. The period of system transitions in CEE countries entailed significant changes in their health systems, including health care financing. Large deficits in the public financing of health systems were just one of the challenges arising from the economic downturn of the 1990s, which was coupled with inflation, increasing unemployment, low salaries, a large informal sector and tax evasion in a number of CEE countries. During the communist period, there was universal access to a wide range of health services, proving it difficult to retain this coverage. As a result, many states sought to ration publicly funded health services – for example, through patient cost-sharing or decreasing the scope of basic benefits. Yet, not all of these reform plans were implemented, and in fact, some were rolled back or not implemented at all due to a lack of social or political consensus. CEE health systems had come to practice implicit rationing in the form of under-the-table payments from patients, quasi-formal payments to providers to compensate for lack of funding, and long waiting lists forcing patients to the private sector. All these difficulties pose a challenge to the implementation of integrated care.

The COVID-19 restrictions in Belarus turned out to be less stringent than those of its neighboring countries. Objective: We aimed to evaluate physical activity, life satisfaction, perception of stress, choice of coping strategies and their correlations among Belarusian students. An anonymous Internet survey was conducted among 1769 students studying at the faculties of physical culture (415), pedagogical (737), and medical (617) universities. International Physical Activity Questionnaires (IPAQ) and Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), and Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced (mini-COPE) questionnaires were used. The respondents declared sufficient and high levels of physical activity. The level of physical activity was correlated with life satisfaction (typically for student-athletes). The least satisfaction with life and highest level of perceived stress were among future doctors. The minimum indicator of stress was noted in athletes. The most common coping strategy was active coping. Strategies of problem avoidance and seeking support from outside were not used by student-athletes. These strategies were used by pedagogical and medical students. Student-athletes have the most favorable opportunities, followed by representatives of pedagogical and medical students. The proposed classification of the levels of behavior (optimal, acceptable, satisfactory and risky) makes it possible to adjust lifestyles.