Prevention of deaths and injuries caused by house fires: survey of local authority smoke alarm policies

BACKGROUND: Despite an increased risk of fire in disadvantaged households, smoke alarm ownership is considerably lower than in the general population. The government currently recommends that local authorities install battery-operated smoke alarms in all public sector properties regardless of tenure. However, the extent to which local authorities comply is currently not known. We conducted a survey of local authorities to establish the extent of their smoke alarm provision to public sector households. METHODS: A telephone survey of all 405 local authorities within England and Wales was carried out. RESULTS: We obtained responses from 390 (97 per cent) local authorities, 266 of which had responsibility for housing. Over half of all public-sector households are offered smoke alarms by the local authorities. The majority of local authorities offer ionization and/or optical sensor alarm types (78 per cent), with many local authorities providing battery-operated alarms alone (17 per cent) or in combination with hardwired alarms (31 per cent). CONCLUSIONS: Many local authorities offer smoke alarm provision to their public-sector households. Whether this represents an effective and cost-effective use of resources requires further investigation.     

Is the combination of cellulosic polymers and anionic surfactants a good strategy for ensuring physical stability of BCS Class II drug nanosuspensions?

Ensuring the physical stability of drug nanosuspensions prepared via wet media milling has been a challenge for pharmaceutical scientists. The aim of this study is to assess the combined use of non-ionic cellulosic polymers and anionic surfactants in stabilizing multiple drug nanosuspensions. Particle size of five drugs, i.e. azodicarbonamide (AZD), fenofibrate (FNB), griseofulvin (GF), ibuprofen (IBU) and phenylbutazone (PB) was reduced separately in an aqueous solution of hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) with/without sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) via a stirred media mill. Laser diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, thermal analysis, rheometry and electrophoresis were used to evaluate the breakage kinetics, storage stability, electrostatic repulsion and stabilizer adsorption. Without SDS, drug particles exhibited aggregation to different extents; FNB and GF particles aggregated the most due to low zeta potential and insufficient steric stabilization. Although aggregation in all milled suspensions was reduced due to HPC–SDS combination, FNB and IBU showed notable growth during 7-day storage. It is concluded that the combination of non-ionic cellulosic polymers and anionic surfactants is generally viable for ensuring the physical stability of wet-milled drug nanosuspensions, provided that the surfactant concentration is optimized to mitigate the Ostwald ripening, whereas cellulosic polymers alone may provide stability for some drug suspensions.     

An unusual penetrating stab injury in a child: Case report

Penetrating neck wounds is an otolaryngologic and head and neck emergency.Case report: A 12-year-old female Hausa child admitted through the accident and emergency room with about an hour history of stabbed nail to the right side of the neck while hawking on the street with associated pain at injury site, voice loss and neck swelling She had an emergency neck exploration and removal of the nail with satisfactory post-operative condition.Penetrating neck injury is an ENT emergency that required prompt attention resulting from assault and to draw attention of caregivers to hazards of child labour through street hawking.     

Intravaginal misoprostol versus Foley catheter for cervical ripening and induction of labor.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy and safety of 100 microg of intravaginal misoprostol with intracervical Foley catheter for cervical ripening and induction of labor. METHOD: One hundred women being induced in the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria, were randomized to receive a single 100 microg dose of misoprostol intravaginally or intracervical insertion of Foley catheter. Data analyses were by the Student's t-test and chi-square test. RESULT: Misoprostol was more effective in terms of induction to delivery interval (11.84+/-5.43 versus 20.03+/-4.68 h, P<0.05), change in Bishop score, and number delivered within 24 h, in patients with a one-time successful induction. Uterine hyperactivity and rupture were more frequent in the misoprostol group. CONCLUSION: A single 100 microg dose of intravaginal misoprostol is more efficacious than intracervical insertion of Foley catheter for cervical ripening and induction of labor. Further studies using lower doses are needed to determine the safest dose.     

Doppler ultrasonographic evaluation of celiac and mesenteric arteries in subjects with sickle cell disease

Vasculopathy, as occurring in sickle cell disease (SCD), can affect celiac and mesenteric arteries and result in stenosis, with elevated peak systolic velocity (PSV) on Doppler ultrasonography. In six subjects with confirmed SCD in steady state, routine Doppler ultrasonographic examination discovered features of celiac artery (CA) or superior mesenteric artery (SMA) stenosis with CA PSV >200 cm/s (median = 222.8 cm/s; range = 201.5-427.1 cm/s) and/or SMA PSV >275 cm/s (median 183.2 cm/s; range = 87.8-289.3 cm/s). Among the six subjects, five had elevated soluble P-selectin values (median 72.55 ng/mL), while all six (100%) had elevated cystatin C levels (median 4.15 mg/L). Peripheral oxygen saturation was suboptimal in five subjects. All subjects had low hemoglobin concentration levels (median 8.5 g/dL) while four had elevated white blood cell count. Although vaso-occlusive crises result from microvessel occlusion, these findings at the macrovascular level suggest that SCD patients may also be vulnerable to mesenteric ischemic injury, especially in the setting of anemic heart failure from hemolysis.     

Evaluation of the Toxicological Profile of the Leaves and Young Twigs of Caesalpinia Bonduc (Linn) Roxb

Acute and sub-acute toxicological effects of ethanolic extract of the leaves and young twigs of Caesalpinia bonduc were carried out on albino rats. Single extract doses from 2000 to 5000 mg/kg body weight were administered orally and monitored for 14 days in acute study, while extract doses from 200 to 1600 mg/kg body weight were orally administered daily for 28 days in sub-acute study and recovery was assessed 14 days after dosing. Biochemical, haematological and histopathological examinations were carried out. There was no mortality in the experimental animals in all acute treatment doses. However, there were significant alterations in the biomarkers and induced cellular damage to the liver in all acute treatment doses. In the sub-acute toxicity treatment, the assessed biomarkers were unaffected at extract dose of 200 mg/kg body weight compared to control, while significant changes were observed in rats administered with extract doses of 400 mg/kg body weight and above. No significant difference was observed between the tested groups and the recovery groups in the sub-acute toxicity study. In conclusion, the ethanolic extract of C. bonduc could be toxic to selected organs of the rat body in acute and sub-acute treatments.     

The course of anxiety and depressive symptoms in Nigerian postpartum women

Summary Postnatal depression is mostly studied within the first 12 weeks postpartum and postnatal anxiety neglected. Using the Zung’s self rating anxiety and depression scales in a repeated cross sectional study of postpartum women we found both anxiety and depressive symptoms more in first 8-weeks postpartum with a gradual decline in later postpartum period. Anxiety is more common than depression in the first 4-weeks with reversal of the trend subsequently. Both symptoms may persist till late postpartum period.     

Lipid peroxidation in brain tissue following administration of low and high doses of arsenite and L-ascorbate in wistar strain rats

This study aimed at investigating the mechanism by which sodium arsenite induces brain injury and the role of L-ascorbate. Thirty adult (n=5) Wistar rats weighing between 140 and 160 g were used. Group 1 neither received sodium arsenite nor L-ascorbate (control), group 2 was administered low dose of arsenite only, group 3 received high dose of arsenite only, group 4 was administered L-ascorbate only, group 5 was administered low dose of arsenite and L-ascorbate, and group 6 received high dose of arsenite and L-ascorbate. M0 alon dialdehyde, MDA, levels were significantly increased in rats treated with high dose of arsenite when compared with those treated with low dose of arsenite. However, all treated groups except those treated with L-ascorbate only showed significant increase in MDA levels when compared with the control group. Rats treated with high dose of arsenite and L-ascorbate showed a significantly higher MDA level than those treated with low dose of arsenite and L-ascorbate. However, catalase activity, body weight gain, brain weight and mean food consumption were comparable across all groups. Brain tissue total protein was similar in all groups except in both groups treated with high dose of arsenite, where they were significantly reduced when compared with the control group. I0 n conclusion, sodium arsenite treatment induces brain injury via a mechanism associated with lipid peroxidation, but not catalase-dependent. However, L-ascorbate ameliorates arsenite-induced oxidative injury in the brain. L-ascorbate antioxidative potential in alleviating arsenite-induced brain injury is dependent on the concentration of arsenite.