War In Croatia Research Articles

The Croatian Diaspora in North America: Identity, Ethnic Solidarity, and the Formation of a “Transnational National Community”

As I attempt to reveal in this article, Croatian Diaspora's press in North America plays a crucial role in ethnic mobilization and formation of attitudes among members of Croatian Diaspora community toward their home society—Croatia and construction of transnational national community. Discourse analysis employed when examining writings published between 1980–1995 in the most influential Croatian Diaspora's journal—the Fraternalist—builds on the idea that not only news from both the host and home countries are provided, but they are also used to constantly reproduce elements of group identity among Diaspora's community. This study explores the main trends in different stages of ethnic homogenization and mobilization of Croatian Diaspora in North America, which progressed in response to political changes in the home country, reaching its peak with the commencement of the war in Croatia in 1991.

Comparison of Hail Characteristics in NW Croatia for Two Periods

This paper presents hail characteristics for two separate periods (1981–1990,1991–1999) in the western part of the hail protected area along the Croatianand Slovenian border. The first period is characterised by full application ofhail suppression technology. The protected area was covered with a sufficientnumber of hail suppression rockets, rockets launching was permitted across theSlovenian border aimed at early seeding, and Slovenia in that time had also theoperative hail suppression system. The second period is characterised withsignificantly lower application of hail suppression technology compared withfirst period. During the independence war in Croatia, because of a lack ofrockets and other objective circumstances, appropriate rocket hail suppressionwas missing. This work examines whether hail characteristics on the border areahave changed, taking into account the changes in suppression. Results show thatthe average diameter of hailstones and duration of hailfall slightly increasedin second period. Also, there is an increase in the number of areas with alarger ratio of hail producing heavy damage, compared with first period. On thebasis of data from five meteorological stations, it is visible that, as a resultof implementation of the hail suppression system, the average number of dayswith solid precipitation on that area in period April–October has reduced,compared with the period when there was no hail suppression system.

Effect of war on the occurrence of epileptic seizures in children

We studied the occurrence of epileptic seizures in 72 children from war-affected and 39 children from non-war-affected areas during and after the 1991–1992 war in Croatia. During the war, children from war-affected areas who had “stable” epilepsy before the war and regularly took antiepilepsy medications had epileptic seizures more often than children from areas not affected by the war. In 2002, all children ( n=10) whose first epileptic seizure was related to a stressful event had a “stable” condition, whereas 4 of 10 children whose first epileptic seizure was not stress-related had an “unstable” condition. Typical absence seizures were observed in 6 of 10 children in the stress-related group and none in the non-stress-related patient group. Stressful life events can be provocative factors for the occurrence of epileptic seizures. Typical absence seizures are more likely to be provoked by stress then other types of epileptic seizures.

Cerebrospinal Fluid Fistula as a Consequence of War Head Injury

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistula as a consequence of brain missile injury and following infectious complications has been recognized for years. Different methods of treatment have been advocated. Missiles used in war cause extensive destruction of the skull and brain as a result of their high kinetic energy. On its transfer through the skull, such high kinetic energy causes fractures called "discontinuous fractures," which are distant from the entry wound and not related to the fracture of the vault. The role of the timely diagnosis of CSF fistulas and their early repair in the management of these wounds is emphasized. Data on 312 patients with missile injuries of the brain inflicted during the war in Croatia were retrieved and analyzed, with special reference to the complications of CSF fistulas and infection. Forty-five patients developed CSF fistula, 15 (33%) of them at the wound site, 23 (51%) as CSF rhinorrhea, and seven (15%) as CSF otorrhea. Six patients developed infectious complications. The presented strategy and operative approach resulted in a low incidence of infectious complications in the study series.

Overview of the Victimological Data Related to War in Croatia

AbstractNo Abstract

Application of 3D computer-assisted techniques to sinonasal pathology—Case report: War wounds of paranasal sinuses caused by metallic foreign bodies

Foreign bodies in paranasal sinuses are found quite infrequently. They are usually detected after various types of head trauma and most commonly occur as a consequence of improper handling of firearms or explosives. In countries at war, eg, during the war in Croatia, adults and children were almost equally exposed to these injuries. The diagnosis should be based on results from precise computer tomography (CT) scanning in axial and coronal sections, and, using these data, tissues of different densities at these anatomical locations can be differentiated. The possibility of exact preoperative, noninvasive visualization of the spatial relationships of anatomic and pathologic structures with 3-dimensional (3D) computer-assisted diagnosis and intraoperative navigational techniques allows the surgeon to achieve a considerable advantage in the preoperative examination of the patient and to reduce the risk of intraoperative complications, all by the use of virtual surgery (VS) or virtual diagnosis. The expected contribution of the mentioned computer-assisted surgical technique manifests itself in defining the most appropriate mode of CT scanning of the head to design the 3D operating field model, and the possibility of active and dynamic 3D visualization of the desired anatomical regions is realized. 3D reconstruction of anatomic units becomes a routine preoperative procedure, providing a highly useful and informative visualization of the regions of interest, and, thus, advancing the definition of geometric information on anatomical contours of the 3D model by the transfer of so-called image pixel to contour pixel. (Am J Otolaryngol 2002;23:27-34. Copyright © 2002 by W.B. Saunders Company)

I. Lesbians in Croatia

The article gives an overview of the past and present situation on the Croatian lesbian scene – from the period prior to the war in Croatia (up to 1991), after the war (mid-1990s), right up to the present situation. The ‘coming out’ process of Croatian lesbians during the 1980s and 1990s has been determined by social and cultural homophobic indoctrination, which sends out clear messages about how deviant and unacceptable homosexuality is. Heterosexuality has traditionally been the imperative of social normality within Croatian society. Not being compatible with the social norm, lesbians are condemned by society to failure and isolation. Nevertheless, after the 10-year rule of a strongly nationalistic, rightist and patriarchal regime, recent political changes have brought Croatia to the threshold of a new transitional period. Even though the new Social Democratic and Liberal coalition government is sending mixed signals on many issues to do with gender equality, the homosexual population of Croatia can finally hope for better times to come.

Trends in Myocardial Infarction in Middle Dalmatia during the War in Croatia

The aim of this study was to determine the pattern of myocardial infarction (MI) incidence with regard to age, gender, infarction site, and the most important risk factors. All 3,454 patients hospitalized in coronary care units of Clinical Hospital Split between 1989 and 1997 were analyzed. In the 3-year period preceding the war, from 1989 to 1991, 1,024 patients were hospitalized because of MI. During the 3 years of full war activities, from 1992 to 1994, there were 1,257 patients (significantly more; p < 0.05). And in the 3-year period after the war, from 1995 to 1997, there were 1,173 patients. In the war period, there were 151 (12%) patients younger than 45 years of age (p < 0.05); of that number, 143 (95%) were men (significantly more than in the other two periods; p < 0.05) and 8 (5%) were women. In the period preceding the war, there were 66 (6.5%) patients younger than 45 years: 60 (91%) men and 6 (9%) women. In the period after the war, those numbers were 88 (7.5%), 81 (92%), and 7 (8%), respectively. The patients younger than 45 years (305) more often had MI of an inferior than an anterior site (49% vs. 28%; p < 0.001), whereas there was no difference in patients older than 45 years (36% vs. 37%; p > 0.05). The patients older than 45 years had significantly greater hospital mortality (21% vs. 4%; p < 0.001) and were more likely to have hypertension (51% vs. 15%; p < 0.001) as well as hypercholesterolemia (54% vs. 14%; p < 0.001). Smokers prevailed among those younger than 45 years (75% vs. 51%; p < 0.001). The number of hospitalized patients with MI was greatest during the war period. It included a significant increase in the incidence in men younger than 45 years (12% vs. 7%; p < 0.05), with smoking as the most important risk factor, especially for infarctions of inferior sites.

Penetrating combat injuries of the colorectal region

Colorectal war injuries can be treated with primary repair or by colostomy. We report our experience with both treatments. During the Croatian war from July 1991 to March 1994, 155 patients with colorectal injuries were treated at the Surgical Clinic, University Hospital Split. This group represents 7% of all patients (n = 2220) with gunshot and shrapnel wounds treated in this period at our clinic. The median patient age was 24.7 years (range 14-70 years). The majority of the patients (96.7%) were male. Concomitant injuries of the colon (83.7%) and rectum (69%) were found more frequently than isolated ones. 50 patients were operated on as emergencies in our clinic, while 105 were operated on in field hospitals. In 28 patients primary repair of the colorectal injury was performed (without derivation), whereas 127 patients were treated by colostomy. In those patients 106 wounds were closed electively during a second operation. The average in hospital stay was 32.3 days (range 10-65 days). Using PATI and FCIS scores for colorectal injuries, 80% of our patients had life-threatening injuries. In the cases with primary repair the percentage of complications was high (92%). In the cases with the diverting colostomy it was only 34%. The high complication rate in the cases with primary repair was directly related to the presence of the anastomotic leaks and subsequent peritonitis. Explorative laparotomy was an effective diagnostic tool especially in the field hospitals. The overall mortality rate was 3.2%. In our operative strategy we preferred derivation operations in order to decrease major complications due to anastomotic leakage or peritonitis.

Curricular and extracurricular activities of medical students during war, Zagreb University School of Medicine, 1991-1995.

War, as a major human disaster, affects many aspects of life, including medical education. This report describes curricular and extracurricular activities of the students at the Zagreb University School of Medicine during the wars in Croatia and neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina. Although condensed versions of the curricula were prepared in case of a major breakdown in civilian life, the school maintained the continuity and quality of its curriculum throughout the war. Students engaged in extracurricular activities related to medical aspects of the war, including organization of resuscitation and first aid courses, collecting medical documentation on war victims, humanitarian help to refugees, and peace-promoting activities. Some students joined mobile surgical teams on the battlefronts. After army service, most of them returned to the school and successfully continued with their studies. The school also accepted guest-students from other new states emerged from former Yugoslavia. The authors found that the students' engagement in extracurricular activities related to medicine was enormously beneficial both to the psychological well-being of the students and to the region's peace-building efforts.

BONE MARROW TRANSPLANTATION IN A PATIENT WHO EXPERIENCED TORTURE IN A PRISONER OF WAR CAMP: NARCISSISM AND SURVIVAL

Post-traumatic stress disorder has been described as a syndrome from which an individual may suffer as a result of extraordinary trauma. Torture of prisoners of war in Serbian camps during the war in Croatia is just such a stressful situation that requires mobilization of all defense mechanisms of an individual. The authors present a case study of a former prisoner of war who acquired acute myelogenous leukemia several months after release and was treated with bone marrow transplantation. On release the patient was medically examined, like all prisoners of war, and the findings did not suggest any disease. Because of the situation, the patient was in psychotherapeutic observation and treatment after his illness was diagnosed and throughout the transplantation treatment.

Osijek Health Center during the 1991–1992 War in Croatia

To assess the effectiveness of health services in the city of Osijek during the 1991-1992 war in Croatia, we followed the changes in the utilization of health services, morbidity and mortality, and completion of a vaccination plan during the 2 years of the war. We used a retrospective analysis of data from the Osijek Health Center and the Osijek County Institute of Public Health. The organization of health care during the war followed the concept of integrated health care and the instructions of the Ministry of Health. Visits to primary health care physicians decreased considerably, with a concomitant increase in disease and mortality. The plan for mandatory vaccination was not completed because of the evacuation of preschool and school children. The war changed the mode of health care use, the disease and mortality structure, and the implementation of mandatory vaccination. However, timely education and preparation of the health services to the war situation resulted in an adequate provision of health care to the population.

Posttraumatic symptomatology in children exposed to war.

This study examines affective and behavioral symptomatology in two groups of school-age children who were traumatized to different degrees during the war in Croatia (N = 1034). Six self-reported questionnaires were used to assess the following: number and type of war experiences, PTSD symptoms, anxiety, depression, psychosomatic symptoms, and psychosocial adaptation. Canonical discriminant analysis yielded a significant discriminant function that indicates moderate differentiation between the two groups of children according to the assessed symptoms. The results of a 2 x 2 x 2 ANOVAs (gender x age x level of traumatization) indicate that the children's reactions to war traumata varied in respect to all factors, as well as their interaction. The results indicate that gender differences are more prominent in older children. Older girls report more posttraumatic stress reactions, anxiety and depression, but at the same time seem better adapted than boys. Younger children, particularly those who survived more war even report more PTSD symptoms than older children.

PROFIL SUVREMENOG TURISTA I HRVATSKI TURISTIČKI PROIZVOD

This article deals with the types of changes that have occurred in tourist motivations in the last two decades, both worldwide and in Croatia, and the reasons behind these changes. Such changes in Croatian tourism are partially the result of the war in Croatia. Special emphasis in placed on the cultural aspects of tourism development. To this effect, the article features a brief overview of modern theoretical viewpoints on the changes that have occurred in tourist motivation, on postmodernism and virtual reality as powerful agents in tourist trips. The article speaks o f the role and significance of culture in the general social changes that have occurred in the world over the past twenty so years. These changes have caused profound changes in the general trends of both tourist motivation and tourist routes.

Transformation from militia to police in Croatia and Poland – A comparative perspective

During the last decade Croatia and Poland underwent a period of major political transformation from communist regimes to democratic forms of government. Although their police forces function within similar political frameworks, their operational agendas are somewhat different. Due to the differences in social and economic environments, as well as the recent war in Croatia, the challenges the two police forces faced in the transition period varied substantially. This paper analyzes and compares the processes of change encountered by the two law enforcement agencies.

The Imposed and the Imagined as Encountered by Croatian War Ethnographers

Previous articleNext article No AccessCOMMENTARYThe Imposed and the Imagined as Encountered by Croatian War Ethnographersby Maja Povrzanovićby Maja Povrzanović1Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research, Kralja Zvonimira 17, P.O.B. 287, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia ([email protected]). This article was written during my stay at the Department of European Ethnology, University of Lund, Sweden, in 1998, thanks to a grant received from the Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education. Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Current Anthropology Volume 41, Number 2April 2000 Sponsored by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/300125 Views: 70Total views on this site Citations: 27Citations are reported from Crossref © 2000 by The Wenner‐Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research. All rights reserved PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Jordan Kiper Remembering the Causes of Collective Violence and the Role of Propaganda in the Yugoslav Wars, Nationalities Papers 48 (Sep 2022): 1–24.https://doi.org/10.1017/nps.2022.53Elizabeth Mamali Researcher’s guilt: confessions from the darker side of ethnographic consumer research, Consumption Markets & Culture 22, no.33 (May 2018): 241–255.https://doi.org/10.1080/10253866.2018.1474109Connie Svob, Norman R. Brown, Vladimir Takšić, Katarina Katulić, Valnea Žauhar Intergenerational transmission of historical memories and social-distance attitudes in post-war second-generation Croatians, Memory & Cognition 44, no.66 (Mar 2016): 846–855.https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-016-0607-xKaterina Seraïdari Introduction, Conflict and Society 2, no.11 (Jun 2016): 160–163.https://doi.org/10.3167/arcs.2016.020114Maja Povrzanović Frykman An Anthropology of War and Recovery: Lived War Experiences, (Mar 2012): 253–274.https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118257203.ch15Michał Buchowski Anthropology in Postsocialist Europe, (Mar 2012): 68–87.https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118257203.ch5Robin Whitaker Writing as a Citizen?, Critique of Anthropology 28, no.33 (Sep 2008): 321–338.https://doi.org/10.1177/0308275X08094391Maja Povrzanović Frykman The Forgotten Majority, Ethnologie française Vol. 38, no.22 (Mar 2008): 315–324.https://doi.org/10.3917/ethn.082.0315Mariella Pandolfi Théâtre de guerres, Anthropologie et Sociétés 32, no.33 (Apr 2009): 99–119.https://doi.org/10.7202/029718arTheodor W. Adorno In the Footsteps of Walter Benjamin, (Jan 2007): 1–21.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-001Hannah Arendt Of Time and the River, (Jan 2007): 22–39.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-002Michael Herzfeld Imagining the Powers That Be, (Jan 2007): 40–60.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-003George Orwell On the Work of Human Hands, (Jan 2007): 61–79.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-004Michael Oakeshott Storytelling Events, Violence, and the Appearance of the Past, (Jan 2007): 80–101.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-005Henry Miller Migrant Imaginaries, (Jan 2007): 102–134.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-006A. N. Whitehead A Walk on the Wild Side, (Jan 2007): 135–153.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-007George Devereux From Anxiety to Method, (Jan 2007): 154–173.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-008W. G. Sebald Despite Babel, (Jan 2007): 174–191.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-009Lisa Guenther On Birth, Death, and Rebirth, (Jan 2007): 192–215.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-010Gertrude Stein Quandaries of Belonging, (Jan 2007): 216–232.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-011Herbert Marcuse A Critique of Colonial Reason, (Jan 2007): 233–256.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-012 Notes, (Jan 2007): 257–270.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-013 References, (Jan 2007): 271–287.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822390640-014Martin Hébert Présentation, Anthropologie et Sociétés 30, no.11 (Oct 2006): 7–28.https://doi.org/10.7202/013826arMaja Povrzanovic Frykman, Aleksandar Boskovic Balkan anthropology: A response to Aleksandar Boskovic AT 21(2), Anthropology Today 21, no.44 (Aug 2005): 18–18.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0268-540X.2005.00368.xAleksandaR Boskovic Distinguishing 'self' and 'other': Anthropology and national identity in former Yugoslavia, Anthropology Today 21, no.22 (Apr 2005): 8–13.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0268-540X.2005.00339.xJasna Čapo Žmegač Faire de l'ethnologie en Croatie dans les années quatre-vingt-dix, Ethnologie française Vol. 31, no.11 (Mar 2001): 41–50.https://doi.org/10.3917/ethn.011.0041

Colorectal War Injuries

During the war in Croatia (1991-1995), 851 war casualties were treated by the surgical teams of Rijeka Clinical Hospital. Among them, 66 patients (7.8%) had colon and/or rectum injuries, usually combined with trauma of other abdominal organs, most often jejunum and ileum (24.2%). Regarding the site of injury, right and sigmoid colon were the most frequently traumatized areas (30.3% and 31.8%, respectively). All patients received surgical treatment within 3 hours from wounding. In 89% of patients, relieving colostomy was formed after the resection of the damaged part of the intestine; 11% of patients were treated with primary resection or sutures without colostomy. The mortality rate of 3% (2 patients) was caused by mutilating multiple organ abdominal trauma combined with massive brain injury.

Gluteal Gunshot Wounds

Experience with advanced surgery for the treatment of civilian gunshot injuries supports the changes in approach and indications for the treatment of war gunshot injuries. Eight patients with gluteal gunshot wounds are presented with typical war injuries. They were wounded during 1992 and 1993 in the war in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Surgical complications were experienced in two cases. Complications developed in cases of colonic and rectal injuries for which advanced surgery was performed in the treatment of the war wound. Poor conditions for advanced surgery during war can change the final result, making the outcome of the war wound worse.

The Problems and Characteristics of Hepatic War Trauma Management in Central Dalmatia during the 1991–1995 War in Croatia

War injuries to the liver treated during the 1991-1995 war in central Dalmatia, Croatia, were analyzed retrospectively. There were 713 patients with abdominal injuries, 125 (17%) of whom were operated on for liver injuries. Mobile surgical teams operated on 91 patients (73%) in rear war hospitals (echelons II and III); only 34 patients (27%) were immediately transferred to and operated on at the Split University Hospital. After wounds to the small and large intestine, liver injuries were the third most common abdominal injuries. Morbidity was 63%, and reoperations were required in 20% of cases. Fourteen patients (11%) died. The highest rate of complications was observed in patients with postoperative inflammatory intra-abdominal collection, disseminated intravascular coagulation, adult respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, or ileus. The highest mortality was found in those patients requiring a right hemihepatectomy. The best results were achieved in patients on whom, after hepatotomy, selective hemostasis with liver debridement was carried out.

Craniocerebral War Missile Injuries: Clinical and Radiological Study

In this study we reviewed the initial clinical and radiological management and early outcomes of 176 consecutive patients from the war in Croatia.