Hradec Kralove Research Articles

Front-Line Treatment with Obinutuzumab ± Chlorambucil for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in Real-World Clinical Practice: Results of a Multinational, Multicenter Study By Eric and Icllsg

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) occurs in older individuals with a median age at diagnosis of 72 years. In recent years, there has been considerable progress in the frontline therapy of elderly/physically unfit patients with CLL. The German CLL11 trial showed that addition of obinutuzumab to chlorambucil (G-Clb) prolongs progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) compared to chlorambucil alone or in combination with rituximab. More recently, obinutuzumab together with ibrutinib or venetoclax were shown to be superior to G-Clb with regard to PFS, but there was no advantage in terms of OS. In this retrospective, multinational and multicenter co-operative study the European Research Initiative on CLL (ERIC) and the Israeli CLL Study Group (ICLLSG) evaluated the efficacy of frontline treatment with G-Clb in patients with CLL, in a "real-world" setting. Our analysis excluded CLL patients with documented del(17p) or TP53 mutations since they are no longer treated with chemotherapy. Results: A total of 437 treatment-naïve patients with CLL from 51 medical centers located in 13 countries were included. The median age of this patient population was 75.9 years; 59.7% were men, median CIRS total score was 8 and estimated creatinine clearance 61.1 mL/min. Seventy four patients had Binet stage A (17.2%), 167 (38.8%) stage B and 190 (44.1%) stage C. Results of FISH and IGHV mutational status were available for 332 and 115 patients, respectively. High-risk cytogenetics, del(11q) was documented in 18.7% patients and IGHV-unmutated gene in 64.4%. The vast majority of patients were treated with G-Clb (N=408) and the rest with obinutuzumab monotherapy (G-monotherapy, N=29). The clinical overall response was 86.5%, including clinical complete and partial responses in 41.6% and 45.8% of cases, respectively. The median observation time was 14.1 months (m) and the median PFS of the entire cohort was 27.6m (95% CI, 24.2-31.0). The PFS for G-Clb was significantly better than G-monotherapy (P=0.001; HR=0.38, 95% CI: 0.22-0.67), being the 2-year PFS estimates 61.8% and 52.8%, respectively. The median PFS was significantly shorter for patients with del(11q) (19.2m) compared to those with normal FISH (not reached, P<0.001), del(13q) (29.9m, P<0.001) and trisomy12 (not reached, P=0.027). Patients with IGHV-unmutated had a trend for shorter PFS compared to those with IGHV-mutated gene (median PFS 25.3m vs. not reached, respectively. p=0.06). In a multivariate analysis, older age, high risk-disease, lymph nodes >5cm, G-monotherapy, reduced cumulative dose of obinutuzumab and status less than CR, were independently associated with shorter PFS. Seventy patients (16%) received a second-line treatment. The median OS for the entire cohort has not been reached yet and 2-year OS estimate is 88%. In conclusion, in a "real-world" setting, frontline treatment with G-Clb achieves PFS comparable to that reported in clinical trials. Inferior outcomes were observed in patients with high-risk disease [del(11q) and/or IGHV-unmutated] and those treated with G-monotherapy. Thus, even today in the era of novel drugs, G-Clb can be considered a legitimate frontline treatment in unfit CLL patients with low-risk disease [non-del(11q) and IGHV-mutated]. Disclosures Herishanu: Roche: Honoraria; AbbVie: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria. Simkovic:Roche: Honoraria; University Hospital Hradec Kralove: Employment; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Gilead: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Acerta: Consultancy, Honoraria. Mauro:Gilead: Consultancy, Research Funding; Shire: Consultancy, Research Funding; Abbvie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Jannsen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Research Funding. Coscia:Abbvie: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Gilead: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Karyopharm Therapeutics: Research Funding. Scarfo:AstraZeneca: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; AbbVie: Honoraria. Tedeschi:AbbVie: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen spa: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Gilead: Consultancy; AstraZeneca: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; SUNESIS: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; BeiGene: Honoraria. Gimeno Vázquez:JANSSEN: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Abbvie: Speakers Bureau. Assouline:F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd: Consultancy, Honoraria; Abbvie: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Pfizer: Consultancy, Honoraria, Speakers Bureau. Levato:Novartis: Honoraria; Pfizer: Honoraria; Incyte: Honoraria; BMS: Honoraria. Rigolin:Gilead: Speakers Bureau; Gilead: Research Funding; AbbVie: Speakers Bureau. Loscertales:Janssen: Honoraria; Roche: Honoraria; AstraZeneca: Honoraria; AbbVie: Honoraria; Gilead: Honoraria. Ghia:Dynamo: Consultancy, Honoraria; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Acerta/AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Honoraria; ArQule: Consultancy, Honoraria; BeiGene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Juno/Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Sunesis: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Novartis: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy; Gilead: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding.

Utilization of Linguistic Aspects of Bloom’s Taxonomy in Blended Learning

This paper presents findings from the practical implementation of Bloom’s taxonomy into the class of Intercultural Business Communication that has been taught for several years at the Faculty of Informatics and Management, University of Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic. The class utilizes blended learning, and recently, Bloom’s taxonomy has been introduced into the online course. Research I tests the students’ satisfaction with the class before introducing Bloom’s taxonomy, and Research II tests the students’ satisfaction with the new approach using the Bloom’s taxonomy. The findings are as follows: the students realized the difference after the implementation of Bloom’s taxonomy into the online course; moreover, the students also evaluated the new course in a much more positive way than the previous one. Bloom’s taxonomy, therefore, proved to be enormously useful in this blended learning environment, and the present paper highlights the importance of such an implementation. As a consequence, blended learning courses using Bloom’s taxonomy will be more systematic and therefore more efficient. The results of this research show that proper linguistic utilization of Bloom’s taxonomy terminology proved to be useful, and the paper stresses the importance of systematic approaches in blended learning courses so that they are creative and attractive for the new generation of online course users. Considering the small number of participants, further studies are needed to confirm the results of this research.

Ranibizumab in macular oedema secondary to branch retinal vein occlusion - 24 months of treatment.

To retrospectively evaluate the efficacy and safety of ranibizumab treatment for macular edema (ME) secondary to branch retina vein occlusion (BRVO) after 24 months. This study included 39 eyes of 39 patients with ME associated with BRVO treated at the Ophthalmology Department of Faculty Hospital in Hradec Kralove. The average age of included patiens was 69,3 years, the mean duration of symptoms before treament was 5,4 months, the mean baseline visual acuity (VA) was 54,6 ETDRS (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study) letters, the mean baseline central retinal thickness (CRT) was 544,9µm. At 64,1% patients aretinal laserphotocoagulation was performed before intravitreal ranibizumab. After one year, the study was discontinued by 17 patiens, the remaining 22 patients were observed for 24 months. Initially, there were 3 doses of intravitreal ranibizumab administered in monthly intervals, further injections were applied according to PRN (pro re nata) regiment. Patients were examined at baseline and then at 3, 6, 9, 12 and 24 months from initiation of the treatment. In this study, the effect of ranibizumab on functional and morphological parameters of the affected eye was monitored, the safety of this treatment was also evaluated. During the follow-up, astatistically significant improvement in VA was achieved in every visit in comparison to baseline parameters, the mean VA gain at the 3 month visit was 12,1 ETDRS letters (p.

Venous Thromboembolism as an Adverse Effect During Treatment With Olanzapine: A Case Series.

Objective: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a serious multifactorial disorder. Patients with severe mental illness have a higher risk of developing the condition compared to the general population. Methods: We observed 10 cases of VTE in patients with mental illness who were treated with the antipsychotic drug olanzapine. The diagnosis of VTE was made at the University Hospital Hradec Kralove (UH HK) from 2004 to 2013. VTE was objectively determined by imaging techniques (duplex ultrasonography, CT angiography) and laboratory tests (D-dimer). The average age was 46 years. The clinical manifestation of VTE was deep vein thrombosis in nine cases, including one case of simultaneous pulmonary embolism and one case of a concurrent ischemic cerebrovascular accident (iCVA). None of our patients had a history of malignant disease, trauma, or surgery. Results: Apart from antipsychotic medication, all the patients had clinical or laboratory risk factors for VTE. The most frequent clinical risk factors were obesity (n = 7) and smoking (n = 6). The most frequent laboratory risk factors were increased levels of FVIII (n = 4), mild hyperhomocysteinemia (n = 3), and factor V Leiden mutation (n = 2). VTE developed within 3 months after antipsychotic drug initiation in three patients and within 6 months in three patients. Conclusion: Olanzapine can be considered a precipitating factor for VTE formation. When olanzapine is administered, we need to monitor for clinical signs and symptoms of VTE, especially when other risk factors are present.

Red Fox, Vulpes vulpes L., as a Bioindicator of Environmental Pollution in the Countryside of Czech Republic

The objective of this study is to determine the accumulation of heavy metals in the tissues of the small intestines of red foxes from 4 different areas of the northern part of the Czech Republic. The red foxes were relocated from countryside and free nature to the neighborhood of big cities in the last two decades, so it could be great indicator of pollution in these four different areas, with the focus on countryside problems with pollution of heavy metals. The heavy metal (Cd, Pb, Cr, Cu, Zn, Mn, Ni) concentrations in 27 samples and the relationships between heavy metal concentration in red fox tissue and the location of sample were investigated. The highest concentrations of Pb (0.684 mg.kg–1), Cr (0.162 mg.kg–1), Ni (0.235 mg.kg–1) and Zn (19.76 mg.kg–1) were found in tissues from mountain areas. The highest concentrations of Cd (0.047 mg.kg–1), Cu (1.474 mg.kg–1) and Mn (2.025 mg.kg–1) were measured in tissues from industrial agglomeration around the city Hradec Králové. Pb and Cr concentrations in tissues of red foxes from two areas (environs of the city Krasna Lipa and Hradec Kralove) exceeded the permissible food consumption limits.

Blended approach to learning and practising English grammar with technical and foreign language university students: comparative study

Blended design of teaching/learning foreign languages, in this case English grammar, has become widely spread within the higher education. The main objective of the article is to discover whether blended approach enhances the process of acquiring new knowledge in the field. The research was conducted at two institutions: faculty of informatics and management, University of Hradec Kralove (technical students) and faculty of education, University of Jan Evangelista Purkyne, Usti nad Labem (foreign language students), Czech Republic. Totally, the research sample included 123 bachelor students. Data were collected in three phases: (1) face-to-face pre-testing to monitor entrance knowledge before the process of blended learning starts, (2) post-testing 1 applied after the blended learning approach and (3) final face-to-face post-testing 2 administered at the end of semester. Phase 1 was followed by autonomous learning from the online course; teacher´s feedback was provided to the students after phase 2 so that they could correct their mistakes, and improve the knowledge in phase 3. Eight hypotheses were tested to discover whether there exist statistically significant differences in test scores between the technical and foreign language students. The results differ according to the students´ level of English knowledge. However, they entitle the described blended learning approach to be applied for acquiring English grammar for B2 and C1 levels of CEFR.

Experimental Verification of Effectiveness of English Language Teaching Using MyEnglishLab

The paper deals with a research focused on the blended learning model represented by an online component MyEnglishLab complementing English paper-based materials. At first, we viewed the blended learning model and we presented it in the context of sustainability in education. This is followed by the description of MyEnglisLab component representing the distant part of blended learning. Then, we presented a complete research carried out within undergraduate students at the Faculty of Science, University of Hradec Kralove attending English courses, where we applied the mentioned teaching design and verifying the effectiveness of MyEnglishLab tool. The study compared two groups of students; the group using MyEnglishLab reached better results.

High-Dose Rate Brachyther-apy in the Treatment of Early Stages of Penile Carcinoma.

Interstitial low dose rate brachyther-apy is established organ spar-ing treatment of T1- T2penile carcinoma. Experience with high-dose rate brachyther-apy is limited in this indication. Twenty-six patients with early penile carcinoma were treated by high-dose rate brachyther-apy at dose 18×3Gy per fraction twice daily between 2002- 2018at the Department of Oncology and Radiother-apy, University Hospital in Hradec Kralove. Breast interstitial brachyther-apy template was used for fixation and precise geometry reconstruction of stainless hollow needles. Median follow up was 85months (range 7- 200months). Acute reaction usually consisted of grade 2mucositis that dissolved dur-ing 8weeks after the treatment. Local recurrence occurred in 6patients, 5of them were successfully treated with partial amputation. One patient had anodal recurrence successfully salvaged by lymphadenectomy. One patient developed necrosis of the glans requir-ing partial amputation. Currently, there are 24patients alive without signs of dis-ease. One patient died of cardiac comorbidity, one died of duplicate lung cancer. Nineteen patients have apreserved penis (73%), 18of them sexually active before treatment report satisfactory intercourse. Hyperfractionated interstitial high-dose rate brachyther-apy with 18×3Gy per fraction twice daily is apromis-ing method in selected patients with penile carcinoma and deserves further evaluation in alarger prospective study. Key words penile neoplasms-  conservative treatment-  brachyther-apy This work was supported by programm Progres Q40. The authors declare they have no potential conflicts of interest concerning drugs, products, or services used in the study. The Editorial Board declares that the manuscript met the ICMJE recommendation for biomedical papers. Submitted: 8. 1. 2019 Accepted: 15. 1. 2019.

The Use of European Funds in Polish and Czech Municipalities. A Study of the Lower Silesia Voivodship and Hradec Kralove Region

The paper presents an analysis of the use of EU funds by municipalities in two neighbouring regions - the Lower Silesian Voivodship (Poland) and the Hradec Kralove region (Czechia). In total, 580 communes were analyzed (168 on Polish and 412 on the Czech side). The main aim of paper was spatial analysis and the demonstration of differences in the distribution of structural funds. The hypothesis of the scale effect - greater efficiency in gaining subsidies by larger units was especially tried. The results of the research allow for a few key conclusions. Polish municipalities have a greater influence on shaping local politics, which means that they obtain more funds than their counterparts on the Czech side. Our research has not proved the economies of scale, both on the Polish and Czech side, and no significant spatial dependencies have been demonstrated.

Effect of expectation on short- and long-term treatment response to Acupuncture in migraine patients

IntroductionThere are relatively few studies addressing the relationship between the patient’s expectation and the short and long-term response to treatment with acupuncture. The aim of this study was to assess the association between pre- and post-treatment expectation of acupuncture and post-treatment and post-follow-up patient outcomes. MethodsThis was an open-label, randomized controlled clinical trial conducted at the Czech-Chinese Centre for Traditional Chinese Medicine at the University Hospital Hradec Kralove between October 2015 and April 2017. Non-specific factors were examined in the intervention arm using regression analysis. ResultsPost-treatment positive expectation concerning the success of the treatment, as well as the affective status of the patient, is one of the most significant nonspecific factors contributing to an increased post-treatment effectiveness of acupuncture; however, this positive expectation decreased with time. On the other hand, the post-follow-up effect of acupuncture was significantly improved by the patients’ positive perception of the TCM practitioner. ConclusionsCorrect calibration of a patient’s expectation, good mental status, and patients' perceptions of an acupuncturist's skills reduced the number of migraine days in patients treated with acupuncture. Understanding non-specific treatment effects can potentially help clinicians to integrate them in to practice and thus optimise treatment effectiveness. Future research is needed to clarify whether interventions targeting modifiable non-specific factors prior to and during acupuncture treatment can result in better patient outcomes and future cost-savings.

Deceleration thoracic aortic ruptures in trauma center level I areas: a 6-year retrospective study.

This retrospective study aimed to analyze the trend of mortality due to thoracic aortic ruptures caused by deceleration injuries that occurred within the catchment area of Hradec Kralove University Hospital. The study sample comprised 175 patients who had sustained thoracic aortic ruptures caused by deceleration injuries and were transported to Hradec Kralove University Hospital in 2009-2014. The small proportion of patients enrolled in this retrospective study were diagnosed and treated at the emergency department (ED). However, the overwhelming majority of the sample comprised of patients who died at the accident scene and later underwent an autopsy at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in our hospital. Of 175 patients, 150 underwent an autopsy. Of these, 139 individuals (79%) died at the incident scene, and 11 (6%) were transported to the ED and later died of their injuries. A total of 36 patients were admitted to the hospital; 29 were admitted primary (11 later died), and 7 were transferred. No deaths occurred in the group of secondary admissions. Thus, 31% of all patients hospitalized died following transport to the hospital. Of 175 patients, 15% (or 69% of all hospitalized patients) survived their injuries. Among patients who died as a result of thoracic aortic injury, no unexpected deaths were recorded (i.e., no deaths among patients with survival probability more than 50% = PS > 0.5). Our results suggested that the lethality of thoracic aortic injuries might be minimized by transporting triage-positive patients directly to trauma centers. Accurate diagnoses and treatments were supported by admission chest X-rays, a massive transfusion protocol, and particularly, CT angiography, which is not routinely included in primary surveys. An additional prognostic parameter was clinical collaboration between an experienced trauma surgeon, an interventional radiologist, and a vascular or thoracic surgeon.

Damage investigation of pre-stressed cables in segmental box girder concrete bridge ev. No. 324-018 in Pardubice, Czech Republic

Complete reconstruction of the reinforced pre-stressed bridge Pavel Wonky in Pardubice was carried out in 2006. During this reconstruction specialists of the Klokner Institute made a complete revision of linear free external cables in bridge chambers, namely from the aspect of corrosion. During the ordinary visual inspection of the bearing structure of this bridge, in July 2017 [1], the SUS Pardubice staff members found out that in the places above both the pillars in the right-hand chamber of the Pavel Wonka bridge central beam in Pardubice, the blocks of deviators on the left-hand side of the chamber were deflected against the direction of stationing, towards Hradec Kralove. Some of the findings obtained during this revision are presented in this article.

Winners and losers in the wilderness: response of biodiversity to the abandonment of ancient forest pastures

Large areas of formerly oak-dominated woodlands are currently managed for timber products, and if they are used in a conservation-oriented way, they are often abandoned and left to become wilderness. We focused on the situation when an oak woodland is still partly managed as an ancient game park and partly abandoned as a nature conservation amendment. We studied this effect using a multi-taxa approach with lichens, fungi and beetles and investigated their response to the changing patterns in canopy openness, dead wood distribution and host tree conditions. The study was done in the Hradec Kralove region of the Czech Republic. We found that the maintenance of canopy openness, as determined by management, was the primary driver influencing species composition. Canopy closure led to homogenization of the beetle and lichen communities and the loss of species. Fungi were mainly driven by the amount of dead wood, and abandonment favored their species richness. The creation of a new wilderness was only profitable for fungi, and the maintenance of canopy openness was an important driver for most of the studied taxa (i.e., biodiversity maintenance). Canopy openness and the presence of veteran trees could be used as an indicator of a management history that helps conserve biodiversity. Appropriate conditions for all taxa studied could be fulfilled using wood pasturing or game keeping in combination with dead tree retention.

Acupuncture in migraine prophylaxis in Czech patients: an open-label randomized controlled trial.

BackgroundAdjuvant acupuncture for the symptomatic treatment of migraine reduces the frequency of headaches and may be at least similarly effective to treatment with prophylactic drugs.MethodsThis article describes an open-label randomized controlled clinical trial with two groups: the intervention group (n=42) and the waiting-list control group (n=44). This study occurred at the Czech-Chinese Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine at the University Hospital Hradec Kralove between October 2015 and April 2017.ResultsAfter 12 weeks of acupuncture, the number of migraine days was reduced by 5.5 and 2.0 days in the acupuncture and the waiting-list control groups, respectively, with a statistically significant inter-group difference of 2.0 migraine days (95% CI: −4 to −1). A significantly greater reduction in the number of migraine days per 4 weeks was reached at the end of the 6-month follow-up period in the acupuncture vs. control groups (Δ −4.0; 95% CI: −6 to −2). A statistically significant difference was observed in the number of responders to treatment (response defined as at least a 50% reduction in average monthly migraine day frequency) in the acupuncture vs waiting-list control groups (50% vs 27%; p<0.05) at the end of the intervention. A significantly greater percentage of responders to treatment was noted in the intervention vs control groups at the 6-month follow-up (81% vs 36%; p<0.001).ConclusionAcupuncture can reduce symptoms and medication use, both short term and long term, as an adjuvant treatment in migraine prophylaxis in Czech patients.

Quality of Life After High-dose Brachytherapy in Patients with Early Oral Carcinoma

The prevalence of head and neck tumors has continually increased over the past decades, which is a serious medical and social problem. This study retrospectively assessed the quality of life of patients with early-stage oral cavity tumors after high-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy. Quality of life was evaluated in 14 patients with early-onset oral cavity tumors who underwent HDR brachytherapy at the Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy, University Hospital Hradec Kralove. The standardized EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-H&N 35 questionnaires were used. Patients completed these questionnaires at 12 months after treatment. The general health status was scored 70 points using the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire. Fatigue, insomnia, loss of appetite, dyspnea, and financial problems were the most severe problems reported. The main problems identified by the EORTC QLQ-H&N 35 questionnaire were weight gain, coughing, pain, sticky saliva, and difficulties eating in public. On the contrary, patients did not significantly suffer weight loss, speech impairments, difficulties in mouth opening or swallowing, or sensory problems. HDR brachytherapy is an effective treatment for early oral cancer that leaves patients with an acceptable quality of life. A prospective, multicentric study focused on the quality of life of patients with head and neck tumors is required.Key worlds: oral cancer - brachytherapy - quality of life This article was supported by grant PROGRES Q 40/13. The authors declare they have no potential conflicts of interest concerning drugs, products, or services used in the study. The Editorial Board declares that the manuscript met the ICMJE recommendation for biomedical papers.Submitted: 17. 1. 2018Accepted: 4. 2. 2018.

The Most Influential Physicians in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Karl Bayer (1850-1914).

Dr. Karl (Karel) Bayer (Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic, January 23, 1850 - Sarajevo, April 12, 1914), was physician, specialist in Neuropsychiatry (Figure 1). He graduated elementary school and gymnasium in the town of Hradec Kralove (1-6). He graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at Charles University in Prague in 1876.

Hodnocení finanční výkonnosti podniků textilního průmyslu v Královéhradeckém kraji

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the financial performance of SMEs in the textile industry in the Hradec Kralove region. The textile industry has been chosen because of its importance in the Hradec Kralove region in the past. The analysis focuses on assessing the financial performance of textile and clothing enterprises doing business in the CZ-NACE 13200, 13900 and 14100 classes between years 2009 and 2014. Two different approaches were applied for this purpose. The first approach introduces a traditional way of measuring financial performance using after-tax profit. The second approach is based on a modern concept of measuring economic performance through the economic value added (EVA). The development of both indicators is analyzed over time. Research has confirmed significant differences in measuring financial performance using the above mentioned approaches.

English language teaching for students of management of travel and tourism

English has become the lingua franca in a lot of areas, including tourism industry. The aim of this contribution was to explain the way English is taught to students of Management of Travel and Tourism at the Faculty of Informatics and Management, University of Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic. The basic teaching approaches were described, and justified. Methods of collecting as well as creating teaching materials were exemplified. The resulting syllabi should be implemented in the coming years. Prior to this implementation, the whole curriculum of Management of Travel and Tourism has to be revised as the new accreditation is due in 2019. The new approach takes into account the fact that people working in tourism need to master especially speaking and listening as they are expected to communicate with foreigners.

The design and exploitation of blended learning concept: comparative study of two universities

The results of comparative study on the blended learning concept of two higher education institutions are introduced in the article - University of Ostrava, Faculty of Education and University of Hradec Kralove, Faculty of Informatics and Management, Czech Republic. Having the research sample of 591 and 466 students of both institutions, the data collected within Moodle and Blackboard LMSs were processed by the method of frequency analysis, structured according six criteria (learners' visit rate to the course, learners' performance in week days, learners' performance in hours of the day, learners' performance during weeks of the semester; learner-tutor communication via email during the semester; grading of learners' knowledge after the semester) and compared. In the results different number of assignments was reflected mostly showing higher visit rates to the technology for education course conducted at University of Ostrava compared to English for specific purposes at University of Hradec Kralove.

Experience of Children and Young Adults with Social Networks

Social networks connect the world. Human communication takes on another dimension through social networks, with the current generation often referred to as one growing up in a virtual context. This paper focuses on the experience of children and young adults with social networks. The authors evaluate the accessibility of internet access from the point of view of children and young adults, as well as which social networks are the most popular among children and young adults in the Czech Republic. Further sub-questions focus on assessing vulnerability in social networking environments frequented by children and young adults. The authors used a questionnaire survey which was instituted at basic, secondary and higher educational institutions in the Hradec Kralove region of the Czech Republic. How to cite: Kvetenska, D., & Jechova, K. (2017). Experience of Children and Young Adults with Social Networks. Postmodern Openings, 8 (3), 96-109. https://doi.org/10.18662/po/2017.0803.08