Evaluation of self-care practices and emotional distress among people with Type 2 diabetes mellitus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

This study was conducted to determine self-care practices and diabetes related emotional distress among people with Type 2 diabetes mellitus in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. A cross sectional survey-involving 121 Types 2 diabetics was conducted in 4 diabetic clinics located in Dar es Salaam. Anthropometric and biomedical measurements namely weight, height, waist, hip, mid-upper arm circumference, blood pressure and fasting blood glucose were measured. Self-care practices and diabetic related emotion distress were evaluated by using validated instruments. Results revealed that, the average fasting plasma glucose was 11.2 ± 5.5 mmol/l, blood pressure was 134.7/86.1 mm/Hg and the mean BMI for males and females were 25.0 ± 4.3 and 27.0 ± 5.1 kg/m(2), respectively. Subject's self-care score for general diet, specific diet, physical exercise, foot-care and medication were 4.6 ± 2.4, 3.7 ± 1.5, 3.4 ± 1.8, 3.6 ± 2.8 and 5.5 ± 2.8 days per week, respectively. Self-monitoring of blood glucose was irregular and only 46.3% of the subjects tested their levels of blood glucose at least once in between the appointments (90 days). Low income was the major limitation for complying with the self-care practices related to diet, blood glucose testing and medication. It is recommended that, the Government of Tanzania should in the short run subsidize the prices of diabetes drugs, remove all taxes on the glucose test kits and establish a national diabetes program that would coordinate and oversee provision of the basic services such as screening, glucose testing, medication, counseling and management of the condition. In the long run, the government should establish a preventive public health program in order to curtail the escalation of diabetes. Further research should be conducted to determine how factors such as socio-cultural and demographic, self-care, and psychosocial distress interact to determine biomedical outcomes such as blood pressure, blood glucose and body mass index.     

Effects of frequency of feedback on the learning of motor skill in individuals with cerebral palsy

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of frequency of knowledge of results (KR) on the learning of dart in individuals with cerebral palsy type I. Twenty-four individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) between the ages of 5 and 17 were chosen for this study. They were put into 3 homogenous groups according to their records after 20 throws and practiced for 8 sessions. The first group (0% KR) received no KR for any trials, the second group (50% KR) received KR for half of their trials (50%), and the third group (100% KR) received KR for all their trials (100%). The acquisition test was run immediately after the last session and the retention test was run 3 days later.Paired sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to analyze the data from the acquisition and retention tests. According to the results of this study, those with cerebral palsy have the ability of acquiring and retaining a new motor skill under the condition of feedback provision. Interestingly it was found that too much feedback interferes with learning of tasks in individuals with CP as in the average population. This finding shows that rules regarding feedback also apply to people afflicted with CP.     

The association between urodynamic findings and microvascular complications in patients with long-term type 2 diabetes but without voiding symptoms

Diabetic cystopathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus, which is assessable by urodynamic study. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between urodynamic findings and microvascular complications (neuropathy, retinopathy, nephropathy) in patients with long-term type 2 diabetes but without voiding symptoms. A total of 66 consecutive patients (26 males and 40 females, age 57.00+/-9.50 years, diabetes duration 14.44+/-6.78 years) with documented type 2 diabetes, low scores at the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and no subjective complaint of voiding problems were included in the study. Seven urodynamic parameters were considered: detrusor activity, bladder capacity, bladder compliance, first sensation of filling, flow rate, bladder outlet status and post-voiding residue. The following independent associations were found: between female sex and increased bladder capacity (p=0.004), between male sex and both decreased bladder compliance (p=0.023) and bladder outlet obstruction (p=0.001), between old age and both low flow rate (p=0.022) and outlet obstruction (p=0.047), between detrusor instability and shorter duration of diabetes (p=0.044) and between peripheral somatic neuropathy and low flow rate (OR=5.208; 95%CI=1.277-21.277). The Spearman's correlation coefficient for the latter association was 0.356 (p=0.005) and remained significant even after controlling for age, sex, HbA1c and diabetes duration (rho=0.310; p=0.019). In conclusion, searching for microvascular complications might be used to screen for some components of diabetic cystopathy in its asymptomatic phase.     

Incidence of obesity,overweight and hypertension in children and adolescents in Ahvaz southwest of IRAN: Five-years study

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate the incidence of obesity, overweight and hypertension in children and adolescents aged 10–15 in Ahvaz.MethodsThis is a epidemiologic study performed on 176 people aged 10–15 in Ahvaz. In 2009, 300 people underwent weight, height and blood pressure measurements. Five years later, the same people were reassessed for obesity, overweight and hypertension, of whom a total of 176 people agreed to repeat the procedure.ResultsThe study included 100 (57%) males and 76 (43%) females. Mean BMI was 22.1 ± 4.3 kg / m2 in year 2014, without any significant difference between the two sexes (P = 0.518). In the same year, the prevalence of obesity and overweight was 26 (14.8%) and 13 (7.4%), respectively. After 5years, BMI increased significantly (P < 0.001). Of the 150 norma participants with normal BMI in 2009, 15 (10%) and 6 (4%) became overweight and obese in 2014 respectively. The mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures increased significantly over 5 years P = 0.042 and P < 0.001.ConclusionsThis study shows an increase in mean BMI and mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures after 5 years among people aged 10–15 in Ahvaz.     

Pre-transplant and longitudinal changes in faecal microbiome characteristics are associated with subsequent development of chronic graft-versus-host disease

The role of the gastrointestinal microbiome in predisposing to chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD), an immune-mediated haematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) complication, is not well defined. We examined the relationship of the host faecal microbiome with subsequent cGVHD development by analysing baseline stool samples as well as post-HCT changes in microbiome composition and metabolite pathway analyses. We analysed pre-transplant baseline samples from 11 patients who subsequently developed cGVHD compared to 13 controls who did not develop acute GVHD or cGVHD at any time. We found a significant differential abundance of multiple taxa at baseline between cGVHD versus controls, including the Actinobacteria phylum and Clostridium genus. A subgroup analysis of longitudinal samples within each patient revealed a greater loss of alpha diversity from baseline to post-engraftment in patients who subsequently developed cGVHD. Metabolic pathways analysis revealed that two pathways associated with short-chain fatty acid metabolism were enriched in cGVHD patient microbiomes: β-oxidation and acyl-CoA synthesis, and γ-aminobutyrate shunt. In contrast, a tryptophan catabolism pathway was enriched in controls. Our findings show a distinct pattern of baseline microbiome and metabolic capacity that may play a role in modulating alloreactivity in patients developing cGVHD. These findings support the therapeutic potential of microbiome manipulation for cGVHD prevention.     

Retinol binding protein 4 expression in humans: relationship to insulin resistance, inflammation, and response to pioglitazone

CONTEXT: Retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4) was recently found to be expressed and secreted by adipose tissue, and was strongly associated with insulin resistance. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to determine the relationship between RBP4 and obesity, insulin resistance, and other markers of insulin resistance in humans. DESIGN AND PATIENTS: RBP4 mRNA levels in adipose tissue and muscle of nondiabetic human subjects with either normal or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) were studied, along with plasma RBP4. RBP4 gene expression was also measured in adipose tissue fractions, and from visceral and sc adipose tissue (SAT) from surgical patients. SETTING: The study was conducted at University Hospital and General Clinical Research Center. INTERVENTION: Insulin sensitivity (S(I)) was measured, and fat and muscle biopsies were performed. In IGT subjects, these procedures were performed before and after treatment with metformin or pioglitazone. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The relationship between RBP4 expression and obesity, S(I), adipose tissue inflammation, and intramyocellular lipid level, and response to insulin sensitizers was measured. RESULTS: RBP4 was expressed predominantly from the adipocyte fraction of SAT. Although SAT RBP4 expression and the plasma RBP4 level demonstrated no significant relationship with body mass index or S(I), there was a strong positive correlation between RBP4 mRNA and adipose inflammation (monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and CD68), and glucose transporter 4 mRNA. Treatment of IGT subjects with pioglitazone resulted in an increase in S(I) and an increase in RBP4 gene expression in both adipose tissue and muscle, but not in plasma RBP4 level, and the in vitro treatment of cultured adipocytes with pioglitazone yielded a similar increase in RBP4 mRNA. CONCLUSIONS: RBP4 gene expression in humans is associated with inflammatory markers, but not with insulin resistance. The increase in RBP4 mRNA after pioglitazone treatment is unusual, suggesting a complex regulation of this novel adipokine.     

Pyloric Injection of Botulinum Toxin for the Treatment of Refractory GERD Accompanied with Gastroparesis: A Preliminary Report

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) refractory to conventional medical treatment is frequently associated with gastroparesis, a complex condition with no definitive treatment to date. We first developed a scoring system to assess the severity and frequency of both reflux- and gastroparesis-related symptoms. We then tested, for the first time, the hypothesis that endoscopic pyloric botulinum toxin injection alleviates both of these symptom types. Eleven patients (four males) with GERD (confirmed by esophageal pH monitoring) plus gastroparesis (confirmed by gastric emptying study) underwent toxin injection. Patients had no concomitant disease and were not allowed to use prokinetics before or after treatment. Injection significantly improved both gastroparesis- and reflux-related symptoms in the majority of patients but the duration of symptom relief was relatively short. Responders to treatment had significantly higher total reflux symptom scores (before injection) than nonresponders. All but one of the patients in whom gastroparesis symptoms improved also showed response in reflux symptoms, which supports our hypothesis. We believe that response to toxin injection is a reliable predictor of response to subsequent surgery following the recurrence of symptoms.