Late Complications of Childhood Female Genital Mutilation

BackgroundCanada’s immigrants are increasingly from non-English-speaking countries with different medical issues. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a procedure performed for non-medical reasons that is not traditionally encountered in Canada and that has serious health implications for women.CaseA 36-year-old woman, who underwent FGM at the age of four, presented to our colposcopy unit with increasing swelling of the vulva. Examination revealed a large cystic mass in the midline of the vulva, and MRI identified two well-defined cystic lesions. The mass was excised, and histologic examination confirmed an epidermal inclusion cyst.ConclusionAn epidermal inclusion cyst can develop as a long-term consequence of FGM. Although it grows slowly and usually without symptoms, it may require excision because of inflammation, secondary infection, or, in rare cases, malignancy developing within the cyst.     

Synovial sarcoma of the hard palate: The third case in the medical literature

Synovial sarcoma is a high-grade soft tissue sarcoma that rarely arises in the head and neck region. It affects the parapharyngeal space and the hypopharynx most commonly and it has different presentations based on the affected site. In extremely rare occasions, it involves the hard palate such as in our case where a 24-year-old female patient presented with a mass lesion involving the left hard palate, which was identified clinically and by imaging studies. The histopathological assessment confirmed that it was a monophasic synovial sarcoma which was also confirmed with further molecular studies. The patient underwent surgical excision and postoperative radiotherapy. Her close follow up over a 6-year period that followed her curative treatment has demonstrated no evidence of disease recurrence or distant metastasis. Surgical excision is the mainstay of treatment for synovial sarcoma and adjuvant radiotherapy is advised. Long-term follow up is recommended because of the remote possibility of late recurrence of the tumor.     

Terra Firma forme dermatosis. Case series and review of the literature

Terra Firma forme dermatosis (TFFD) is an infrequently described disorder which features dirt‐like lesions that clear after rubbing with alcohol. We describe a series of four patients with the disorder, discuss differential diagnostic considerations and review the literature.     

Post-vaccination survey for monitoring the side effects associated with COVID-19 vaccines among healthcare professionals of Jazan province,Saudi Arabia

Objectives:To identify the self-reported vaccine-related side effects among healthcare professionals (HCPs) in the Jazan province, Saudi Arabia, and determine the associated socio-demographic factors. With the recent second and third waves of coronavirus disease -19 (COVID-19) infections worldwide, the race is not only to encourage but also to achieve mass vaccination.Methods:A total of 397 HCPs from across Jazan province participated in an anonymous online cross-sectional survey conducted for a period of 45 days (March 30, 2021 to May 13, 2021) in Jazan province, Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using a validated 22-items self-report survey.Results:For both COVID-19 vaccines, majority of reports were related to flu-like symptoms including fever, chills, headache, fatigue, tiredness, and myalgia. Statistically significant associations were observed between the severity of side effects and gender (χ²=73.32; p<0.001), type of vaccine (χ²=112.08; p<0.001), and presence of known allergies (χ²=99.69; p<0.001). Female HCPs were more likely to report any side effects compared with male HCPs (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 3.72; p<0.001). Furthermore, HCPs with known allergies were more likely to report any side effects than their counterparts with unknown allergies (AOR: 16.29; p<0.001).Conclusion:The findings of the present study would help in designing educational programs aimed at combating the misconstrued fear of vaccination and highlighting the urgent need of getting vaccinated. This study also helps in the identification of factors affecting the presence and severity of side effects.     

Assessment of beverage consumption by young adults in Saudi Arabia

ObjectiveThe primary objective was to assess beverage consumption pattern and calorie intake among undergraduate students on weekly and daily basis. Secondary objectives were to determine the relationship between demographic variables and beverage intake, assess mean differences in calorie intake between students’ groups and, report the predictors of beverage consumption.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted for 3 months (January–March 2019) among currently enrolled undergraduate students studying in 8 colleges of a public sector university in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. The study used the Arabic version of Beverage Frequency Questionnaire (BFQ) and collected data through purposive stratified sampling. Total intake in ml and calories in kcals were calculated. Data was analyzed through SPSS version 23 and the study was approved from ethics committee of the university (IRB‐2019‐05‐021).ResultsA total of 507 students responded to the survey. The average volume of sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs), caffeine containing beverage (CCBs) and carbonated beverages (CarBs) consumed was 4.2 L, 4 L and 1.5 L per week and 650.6 ml, 575.2 ml and 224.6 ml per day, respectively. Average daily calorie intake from SSBs, CCBs and CarBs was 187.6 kcals, 87.6 kcals and 52.5 kcals, respectively. Body mass index (BMI) was significantly related to CCB (ρ = 0.130) and CarBs (ρ = 0.100) intake (mL) (p < 0.05). Mean difference in calorie intake was mostly significant (p < 0.05) when accounted for students’ demographics, gender, BMI, residence, illness and, examination time, in case of SSBs, CCBs, CarBs and, all beverages. Averge % contribution towards total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) for SSBs, CCBs and CarBs were 10.2%, 6.3% and 2.8%, respectively. Year of study, BMI, residence and illness were predictors of SSBs consumption while BMI, residence and examination time were predictors of CCBs consumption. Gender and BMI were predictors of CarBs intake.ConclusionThere was a high consumption of beverages in students that was related to their demographic characteristics. There is a need to create awareness among the students regarding the detrimental effects of chronic consumption of these beverages.     

Band alignment of ZnO-based nanorod arrays for enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance

A ternary semiconductor ZnO/MoS₂/Ag₂S nanorod array in an intimate core–shell structure was synthesized on glass substrates. The physicochemical properties and photocatalytical performance of the specimen were characterized and compared with single ZnO and binary ZnO/Ag₂S and ZnO/MoS₂ nanorod arrays. It is found that the coating layers depressed the band edge emission of the ZnO core, improved light absorption in the visible range, reduced charge transfer resistance, and increased photocatalytic activity. The ternary heterojunction nanorod array possessed full solar absorption with an efficiency of 52.88% for the degradation of methylene blue under visible light in 30 min. The efficiency was higher than other arrays and was 7.6 times that of the ZnO array. Theory analysis revealed that the coating layer brought different band alignment in the heterojunctions for efficient charge separation and conduction, which was beneficial for the photocatalytic performance.

The ternary ZnO/MoS₂/Ag₂S nanorod array in a core–shell structure brings different band alignments at the interfacial heterojunctions to achieve full solar absorption with efficient charge separation and conduction and photocatalytic performance.     

Clinical effectiveness of space maintainers and space regainers in the mixed dentition: A systematic review

BackgroundThe aim of this systematic review was to address the clinical effectiveness of space maintainers and space regainers in the prevention and correction of dental arch decreases in mixed dentition.MethodsAn electronic search was conducted using five databases: the Cochrane Database for Systematic Reviews, EBSCO Host, ScienceDirect, PubMed, and Scopus (until February 2021) and 6 relevant journals. Inclusion criteria were: Randomized Controlled Clinical Trials (RCTs), Controlled Clinical Trials (CCTs), cohort studies and case-control studies of children in the mixed dentition requiring a space maintainer or a space regainer, children with mild to moderate crowding, and with Class I and mild Class II or Class III skeletal pattern. All articles included in this review were examined independently by three teams of investigators to assess the level of bias using the Cochrane risk of bias tools RoB 2.0 (for RCTs) and ROBINS-I (for non-RCTs).ResultsFollowing the three phases of a systematic search, 11 studies were included for the final analysis, of which nine used space maintainers (a lower lingual arch) and two used space regainers (one lip bumper and one transpalatal arch) with contradicting results. Four of the former and one of the latter devices showed a significant increase in arch length. Out of the 11 articles, one was found to be of critical risk, two of serious risk and eight of moderate risk of bias.ConclusionsThere is very low evidence to suggest that space maintainers and regainers are effective in preserving arch length and preventing mild to moderate crowding in children during the mixed dentition stage at the expense of lower incisor proclination. However, considering the low evidence provided by this systematic review, high-quality studies are needed.