Engaging religious leaders to promote safe burial practices during the 2014–2016 Ebola virus disease outbreak,Sierra Leone

ObjectiveTo quantify the potential impact of engaging religious leaders in promoting safe burial practices during the 2014–2016 Ebola virus disease outbreak in Sierra Leone.MethodsWe analysed population-based household survey data from 3540 respondents collected around the peak of the outbreak in Sierra Leone, December 2014. Respondents were asked if in the past month they had heard an imam or pastor say that people should not touch or wash a dead body. We used multilevel logistic regression modelling to examine if exposure to religious leaders’ messages was associated with protective burial intentions if a family member died at home and other Ebola protective behaviours.FindingsOf the respondents, 3148 (89%) had been exposed to faith-based messages from religious leaders on safe Ebola burials and 369 (10%) were unexposed. Exposure to religious leaders’ messages was associated with a nearly twofold increase in the intention to accept safe alternatives to traditional burials and the intention to wait ≥ 2 days for burial teams (adjusted odds ratio, aOR: 1.69; 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.23–2.31 and aOR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.38–2.44, respectively). Exposure to messages from religious leaders was also associated with avoidance of traditional burials and of contact with suspected Ebola patients (aOR: 1.46; 95% CI: 1.14–1.89 and aOR: 1.65; 95% CI: 1.27–2.13, respectively).ConclusionPublic health messages promoted by religious leaders may have influenced safe burial behaviours during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone. Engagement of religious leaders in risk communication should be prioritized during health emergencies in similar settings.     

External validity of phase III trials on vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 to a middle-aged and elderly Western European population

European Journal of Epidemiology - Initial results from various phase-III trials on vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 are promising. For proper translation of these results to clinical guidelines, it is...     

Antisense oligodeoxynucleotides against thrombomodulin suppress the cell growth of lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549

Thrombomodulin (TM), an anticoagulant factor on endothelial cells, is known to be expressed in non-endothelial cells as well. In neoplastic cells of lung adenocarcinomas, TM is expressed but its correlation with growth potential has not been studied. As TM expression has a negative correlation with cell proliferation in lung squamous cell carcinomas, we examined its growth effect on lung adenocarcinoma cells of the A549 cell line by inhibiting TM expression with antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN). In the antisense ODN transfected cells, the expression of TM mRNA was decreased to 49% at 12 h and 47% at 24 h, which was in accordance with TM expression at the protein level. By IdU (5-iodo-2'-deoxyuridine) incorporation assay, the growth of A549 cells was found to have decreased to 36% of the control level at 24 h post-transfection. The suppression of cell growth was maintained in a concentration-dependent manner for 48 h after transfection, when the expression of TM started to rebound. In the transfected cells, the G1 phase cell count was reduced to 60.7%, compared with 68.2% in the control transfectants. These results suggest that TM expression may play a suppressive role in the proliferation activity of A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells.     

A New Bidesmosidic Triterpenoidal Saponin from the Roots of Symphytum officinale

A new triterpenoidal saponin having hederagenin as the aglycone was isolated from the roots of SYMPHYTUM OFFICINALE L. The structure of this saponin was elucidated by FAB-MS, (1)H-, (13)C-NMR, 2D-NMR analyses and chemical studies as 3- O-[beta- D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->4)-alpha- L-arabinopyranosyl]-hederagenin 28- O-[beta- D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->6)-beta- D-glucopyranosyl] ester.     

Basic neuroscience

Poster Session 1

Basic neuroscience     

Mega-Liposuction: Analysis of 1520 Patients

Fifteen hundred and twenty cases of liposuction/liposculpture were performed at Dr. M. Erfan & Bagedo Hospitals and King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah from January 1983 to December 1994. These cases were mostly females. The age group was from 16–65 years. Multiple procedures were performed in 11.68% of these cases. The change in hemoglobin and the hematocrit ratio pre- and post-operatively, and the incidence of complications, were studied. The percentage of surface area operated upon rather than the amount of fat removed was the most important relevant factor.     

Raloxifene, a new selective estrogen receptor modulator.

There is evidence from observational studies that estrogen replacement therapy in postmenopausal women can reduce the rates of morbidity and mortality of atherosclerotic heart disease. The mechanism of this cardiovascular protective effect is not yet established, but favorable actions of hormone therapy on plasma lipids and vascular endothelial function have been proposed. Estrogens can also increase the risk of breast and uterine carcinoma. The new selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) raloxifene appears to have benefits similar to estrogen on plasma lipids and osteoporosis, but it does not affect the rate of uterine carcinoma as does tamoxifen and estrogen. Animal studies suggest an anti-atherosclerotic action of raloxifene, but this needs to be confirmed in long-term human studies.     

Iodine deficiency disorders in Bangladesh

An extensive iodine deficiency disorders survery was conducted in Bangladesh in 1993 to assess the latest iodine nutriture status of the country. The clinical variables of the survey were goitre and cretinism, and the biochemical variable was urinary iodine. The “EPI-30 cluster” sampling methodology was followed for selecting the survey sites. In each survey site, the study population consisted of boys and girls, aged 5–11 years, and men and women, aged 15–44 years, in about equal populations. the total number of survey sites was 78 and the total number of respondents was 30 072. The total number of urine samples was 4512 (15% sub-sample). The current total goitre rate (grade 1+grade 2) in Bangladesh is 47.1% (hilly, 44.4%; flood-prone, 50.7%; and plains, 45.6%). The prevalence of cretinism in the country is 0.5% (hilly, 0.8%; flood-prone, 0.5%; and plains, 0.3%). Nearly 69% of Bangladeshi population have biochemical iodine deficiency (urinary iodine excretion [UIE]<10 mg/dl) (hilly, 84.4; flood-prone, 67.1%; and plains 60.4%). Women and children are more affected than men, in terms of both goitre prevalence and UIE. The widespread severe iodine deficiency in all ecological zones indicates that the country as a whole is an iodine-deficient region. Important recommendations of global interest are made from the experience of the survey. An erratum to this article is available at .     

Risk factors for retinopathy in diabetes mellitus in Kelantan, Malaysia

Few attempts have been made to determine the risk factors for diabetic retinopathy which is a major cause of visual impairment and blindness. One hundred and forty patients of diabetes mellitus were studied to determine the prevalence and types of retinopathy, and its relation to various risk factors. Nearly half (48.6%) of the patients suffered from retinopathy. The significant associated risk factors were long duration of diabetes, proteinuria and elevated serum creatinine level. However, there was no significant association between the prevalence of retinopathy and high levels of serum cholesterol, C-peptide levels, associated hypertension, and glycaemic control of diabetes mellitus. An effective screening programme for detection of retinopathy in the patients of diabetes as a regular practice is encouraged.