Background/Objectives: Post-stroke disability is a prevalent complication in patients who have experienced a stroke. It is imperative that patients suffering from associated disability be hospitalised in rehabilitation wards, with a view to minimising their disability. The primary objective of the present study is to analyse the direct medical costs associated with the rehabilitation of patients with post-stroke disability who are admitted to a rehabilitation clinic for the first time. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in a public hospital in Romania between January 2021 and December 2024. Patient information was retrieved from the hospital database and included the following: socio-demographic and clinical characteristics; disability score assessed using the modified Rankin scale (mRS); number of days of hospitalisation; and direct medical costs related to hospitalisation. Results: A total of 584 patients were included in this study. The average age was 68.04 years, 82% had suffered an ischaemic stroke, and 18% had suffered a haemorrhagic stroke. The mRS disability scores for ischaemic stroke were 2 (28.54%); 3 (24.79%); 4 (30.41%); and 5 (16.25%). The mRS scores for haemorrhagic stroke were 4 (33.65%); 5 (29.80%); 3 (20.19%); and 2 (16.34%). Hypertension was present in 80% of patients. The average length of hospital stay was 12.44 days. The total cost of hospitalisation per patient averaged RON 5295.33 thousand (approximately EUR 1031). Pearson’s correlation indicates a statistically significant positive association between higher mRS disability scores and higher hospitalisation costs (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The financial burden imposed on healthcare systems in Romania by medical expenses related to the rehabilitation of patients with post-stroke disability is significant. It is imperative to implement measures that will reduce the financial burden associated with hospitalising these patients and minimise the duration of their hospital stay.

Background and Objectives: Burnout syndrome is increasingly recognized as a significant occupational hazard among forensic medicine professionals, a population exposed to intense psychological stress and complex work demands. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of burnout, job satisfaction, and unconditional self-acceptance among forensic personnel in Romania and to explore potential predictors and mediators of burnout within this context. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 153 forensic medicine professionals from 31 counties across Romania. Participants completed a battery of standardized instruments, including the Maslach Burnout Inventory—General Survey (MBI-GS), the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS), and the Unconditional Self-Acceptance Questionnaire (USAQ). Cut-off scores for burnout subscales were established using the 75th percentile. Data were analyzed to identify demographic, occupational, and psychological correlates of burnout. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize sample characteristics and burnout prevalence. Group comparisons were made across demographic and professional categories. A mediation model was tested to evaluate whether unconditional self-acceptance mediated the relationship between job satisfaction and burnout. We hypothesized that job satisfaction would be negatively associated with burnout symptoms and that unconditional self-acceptance would mediate this relationship, acting as a protective psychological factor. Results: Approximately a quarter of respondents met the criteria for high total burnout, emotional exhaustion, and professional inefficacy, while cynicism was present in a fifth of participants. Burnout was more prevalent among younger workers, forensic medicine residents, and those working in the capital. Job satisfaction was generally high, but lower in women, younger individuals, and residents. Nearly half of the participants reported low or very low self-acceptance. Mediation analysis revealed that unconditional self-acceptance partially mediated the relationship between job satisfaction and burnout, suggesting a protective psychological mechanism. Conclusions: This study highlights the considerable burden of burnout among forensic medicine professionals in Romania and identifies job dissatisfaction and low self-acceptance as key contributors. Findings underscore the need for targeted interventions aimed at enhancing job satisfaction and emotional resilience, particularly in vulnerable subgroups. Institutional efforts that support mental well-being, foster emotional coping, and improve organizational dynamics are essential to reduce burnout in this high-risk population.

Background: Patients with metabolic syndrome represent a particularly vulnerable population for alcohol-related liver disease progression. However, real-world longitudinal data evaluating the impact of alcohol abstinence on liver fibrosis dynamics in this group remain limited. Methods: We conducted a prospective observational study including hospitalized adults with metabolic syndrome and chronic alcohol consumption. Clinical, laboratory, and non-invasive fibrosis markers—fibrosis-4 index (FIB-4), aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI), and transient elastography—were assessed at baseline and after 6 and 12 months of individual follow-up. Patients were classified according to alcohol consumption status during follow-up. Longitudinal and comparative analyses were performed. Results: At baseline, patients were classified as having alcoholic steatosis (56.3%), alcoholic steatohepatitis (25.0%), or alcoholic cirrhosis (18.7%). During follow-up, 72.9% of patients achieved sustained alcohol abstinence. Abstinent patients demonstrated significant improvements in liver stiffness, FIB-4, and APRI scores at 12 months (all p < 0.001), while non-abstinent patients showed progressive worsening of fibrosis markers. Gamma-glutamyl transferase levels were independently associated with fibrosis severity at baseline. Conclusions: This prospective real-world study suggests that alcohol abstinence is associated with favorable longitudinal changes in non-invasive liver fibrosis markers in patients with metabolic syndrome. Given the non-invasive nature of the diagnostic approach and the relatively small sample size, these findings should be considered hypothesis-generating. Further studies with larger cohorts are warranted to better elucidate the interaction between metabolic risk factors, alcohol consumption, and liver disease progression.

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) are increasingly recognized as interconnected disorders linked by shared mechanisms of lifestyle-driven metabolic reprogramming. Alterations in systemic and hepatic metabolic pathways—including insulin signaling, lipid metabolism, mitochondrial bioenergetics, and redox homeostasis—reduce hepatic resilience to alcohol exposure and accelerate liver disease progression. Objective: This narrative review aims to integrate clinical, epidemiological, and mechanistic evidence published over the past two decades to examine how modifiable lifestyle factors contribute to metabolic reprogramming linking metabolic syndrome and alcohol-related liver disease with prioritization of high-level clinical evidence (cohort studies, meta-analyses, and guidelines). Key Findings: Modifiable lifestyle exposures such as alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking, unhealthy dietary patterns, and physical inactivity converge on common metabolically mediated pathways, including insulin resistance, dysregulated lipid metabolism and lipotoxicity, mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, chronic low-grade inflammation, and gut–liver axis perturbations. These processes are reflected in altered metabolite profiles involving lipid species, bile acids, tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates, and microbiota-derived metabolites, shaping a metabolic–hepatic continuum. Among these, alcohol consumption and metabolic dysfunction show the strongest and most consistent associations with liver disease progression, with evidence supporting synergistic rather than additive effects. Conclusions: The coexistence of metabolic dysfunction and alcohol exposure is consistently associated with synergistic worsening of liver-related outcomes, including fibrosis progression, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Recognition of metabolic alcohol-related liver disease (MetALD) underscores the need for integrated lifestyle-based strategies targeting alcohol consumption, smoking cessation, dietary quality, and physical activity to modulate shared metabolic and inflammatory pathways. A metabolically informed, systems-level approach may improve risk stratification, prevention, and management across the metabolic–hepatic continuum.

Breast thread lifting is a minimally invasive technique for correcting mild to moderate ptosis, offering aesthetic enhancement with reduced morbidity compared to traditional mastopexy. This review examines the anatomical underpinnings, clinical indications, technical nuances and limitations of breast thread lifting. The breast’s fascial architecture, particularly the role of Cooper’s ligaments and the retromammary space, critically influences thread trajectory and vector planning. Classification systems assist in proper patient selection, highlighting the suitability of thread lifts for Grades I–II ptosis with minimal skin excess. Advances in ultrasonography have improved preoperative planning, thread placement accuracy and postoperative monitoring. Various thread types, including PDO, PLLA, PCL and Silhouette Soft, offer different lifting capacities and collagen-stimulatory properties, necessitating tailored material selection. Although thread lifts offer immediate improvements, their transient nature necessitates careful patient counseling to manage expectations regarding durability and potential maintenance sessions. Innovative techniques, including clavicular anchoring and multi-level subdermal scaffolding, have expanded the procedural repertoire. Despite certain limitations, breast thread lifting remains a valuable tool within the aesthetic surgeon’s armamentarium, particularly for patients seeking minimally invasive options with shortened recovery periods and favorable psychosocial outcomes. Future developments are expected to further enhance safety, reproducibility and long-term results.

Background and Objectives: Assessing the national burden of chronic wounds is a complex data analytics challenge. Robust estimates in Eastern Europe are scarce, highlighting the need for computational methods to validate cases in large-scale health databases. Materials and Methods: We applied a large-scale data analytics approach to Romania’s National Inpatient Database (public hospitals, 2017–2022). A computational case-ascertainment algorithm (validated “≥2 admissions” rule) was used to identify recurrently hospitalized patients, establishing a cohort of 18,856 patients (65,771 hospitalizations). We computed annual prevalence, incidence, and mortality per 100,000 adults, stratified by ulcer categories, age, and sex. Results: Hospital-treated prevalence and incidence showed a clear pre-pandemic peak followed by a marked decline in 2020–2021 and only partial rebound by 2022, consistent with pandemic-related disruption of inpatient care. Population-level mortality remained low, but pressure ulcers, although least frequent, accounted for the highest mortality burden. Venous ulcers were the most common category, and the hospital-treated burden was concentrated in adults aged ≥ 65 years and in men. Conclusions: This nationwide data-analytics framework provides the first validated inpatient indicators of chronic ulcer burden in Romania and demonstrates substantial hospital-treated disease burden with pronounced sensitivity to healthcare access constraints. Clinical Implications: The findings can support health-policy and prevention strategies by prioritizing early detection and integrated hospital–community wound care pathways for high-risk groups (men and older adults) and by strengthening outpatient services to reduce avoidable admissions.