Problematic internet use (PIU) can be defined as internet use that is not well-controlled. The aim of this study was to examine the validity and reliability of the Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire Short Form (PIUQ-SF-6) among Serbian medical students and to examine the prevalence of students at risk of problematic internet use and social, lifestyle, and mental health characteristics associated with it. We conducted a cross-sectional study that included a total of 735 medical students (66.8% female and 33.2% male) attending classes in Social Medicine during the 2023/2024 school year. The instrument used was a questionnaire developed based on the questionnaires in similar studies. A total of 160 students (21.8%) were in the problematic internet use group, and 575 were in the non-problematic internet use group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis with PIU as the outcome variable showed an association between PIU and the Patient Health Questionnaire−9 score (OR: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.03–1.16) and impulsivity (OR: 1.07, 95% CI: 1.05–1.10). The mental health of medical students, as future health professionals, should be promoted through tailored interventions that are widely accessible and long-lasting.

Introduction: Stigmatising attitudes towards mentally ill people are present among healthcare professionals. The aim of the study was to evaluate medical students' attitudes in five medical schools from Albania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania and Serbia and to determine if psychiatry clerkship improves these attitudes. Methods: In the first stage, the study included students from the first and final years of medical school; in the second stage, only final-year students were included; The Mental Illness Clinicians' Attitude Scale (MICA-2) and the Attribution Questionnaire (AQ-9) were used in this study. The total sample comprised 1,526 medical students in the first stage and 614 in the second stage. Results: The analysis of the average AQ-9 and MICA-2 scores between countries revealed significant differences (p<0.05). Multivariable analysis showed that female students were 30% more likely to have elevated AQ-9 scores than male students (p=0.029). Final-year students had a significantly lower chance of having a higher MICA-2 score compared to first-year students (OR=0.7; p<0.05). Conclusions: Psychiatry clerkship contributes to a decrease in the level of stigmatising attitudes among medical students. Further research is required to assess the curricula to achieve better results in reducing stigma among future doctors.

Climate change has been recognized as an important issue in public health, with particular concerns being raised about the effects of heat and cold extremes on health, and about seasonal changes over the year and their associations with increased mortality and hospitalizations. This paper explored the relationship between physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and cardiovascular and respiratory hospital admissions in Novi Sad (Serbia) with the aim of assessing the impact of urban outdoor thermal conditions on health. Analysis was performed using daily data on cardiovascular and respiratory hospital admissions by gender covering the period from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2017. For the same period, PET was calculated using data from two urban meteorological network stations. The association between PET and hospital admissions was examined using a generalized additive model (GAM) combined with a distributed lag non-linearmodel (DLNM). The study found a non-linear relationship between PET and cardiovascular and respiratory hospital admissions, with a larger impact during the cold period of the year. The findings also indicated that under conditions of high PET, the cumulative RR increased for cardiovascular admissions (for males) and respiratory admissions (for females). People with pre-existing respiratory diseases were found to be more vulnerable under conditions of extremely low and moderately low PET, with a greater effect at lag 0–14 days. By contrast, for people with cardiovascular diseases, low PET was linked to a decrease in hospital admissions, with the risk being lowest at lag 0 and 0–3 days.

Introduction: Our objective was to identify clusters of lifestyle risk factors among Serbian adults and assess associations with socio-demographic characteristics and self-rated health. Methods: The sample included 7,885 adults aged 18 and over from the 2019 Serbian National Health Survey, who provided information on all four lifestyle risk factors (smoking, physical inactivity, low fruit and vegetable intake and risky drinking). The Two-Step Cluster Analysis was used to identify different health-related lifestyle clusters. Logistic regression models were used to assess the association of obtained clusters with socio-demographic characteristics and self-rated health. Results: Five distinct clusters of lifestyle risk factors were identified: Healthy lifestyle (cluster 1), Low fruit and vegetable intake (cluster 2), Physical inactivity (cluster 3), Smoking and other risk factors (cluster 4), Risky drinking and other risk factors (cluster 5). Multi-risk groups (cluster 4, cluster 5) exhibit specific socio-demographic characteristics (men, younger adults, living alone, less educated). Adults in unhealthy lifestyle clusters were more likely to report poor self-rated health than adults in the healthy lifestyle cluster. Conclusions: Individuals who were men, younger, living alone, less educated and those with poor self-reported health were more likely to engage in clusters of lifestyle risk factors and represent high-priority population groups for multiple health behaviour change interventions.

Background/Aim. Population aging and the increase in the prevalence of chronic diseases led to a rise in the number of people who live with more than one disease. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and predictors of multimorbidity in the working-age population (WAP) of Serbia. Methods. The study is part of ?The 2019 Serbian National Health Survey?, a c ross-sectional study conducted on a representative stratified two-stage sample. For this paper, a representative data sample for 9,473 persons of the WAP (aged 15?64 years) was used. Multimorbidity was defined as the co-occurrence of two or more of 13 chronic conditions. Data on chronic conditions were self-reported, and data on body mass and body height were measured. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess predictors of multimorbidity. Results. Multimorbidity prevalence among WAP was 12.0%, and it was significantly higher among women (13.3%) than in men (10.6%). The predictors of multimorbidity were: female gender, increasing age, lower level of education, lower income, unemployment, retirement, widowhood, and divorce. Being overweight and obese were associated with higher odds of multimorbidity in both men and women. Conclusion. Multimorbidity is an important public health problem amongst WAP in Serbia due to its high prevalence, especially among vulnerable groups, and its inequality in frequency among different socioeconomic groups.