Dysphagia caused by a lateral medullary infarction syndrome (Wallenberg’s syndrome)

A 68-year-old man was referred to our hospital for a dysphagia evolving for 10 days. Clinical examination had found neurological signs ascontralateral Horner’s syndrome, ipsilateral palatal paresis, gait ataxia and hoarseness. Video-fluoroscopy showed a lack of passage of contrastmedium to the distal esophagus. Esogastroduodenoscopy was normal. The cranial MRI had shown an acute ischemic stroke in the left lateral medullar region and the diagnosis of Wallenberg syndrome (WS) was established. WS remains an unknown cause of dysphagia in the clinical practice of the gastroenterologist.Key words: Dysphagia, lateral medullary infarction, Wallenberg’s syndrome, deglutitio

Proximal clavicle physeal fracture-separation mimicking an anterior sterno-clavicular dislocation

SummaryProximal physeal fracture-separation of the clavicle is a very rare injury occurring in the adolescent and in the young adult which involves a contact loss with fracture between the clavicle and its cartilaginous ossification center similar in appearance to a sternoclavicular dislocation. The authors report an unusual case of a proximal physeal fracture-separation of the clavicle with avulsion of sternoclavicular periosteal and ligamentous structures without vasculonervous injury in a 16-year-old young person. A CT scan examination is essential. Surgical management consisted in costoclavicular ligament and periosteum reattachment associated with reduction of the fracture-separation and pin fixation.This repair demonstrated a successful outcome at 8-month follow-up

La différence épidémiologique des hémorragies digestives hautes entre les hommes et les femmes

Introduction: Des différences épidémiologiques, étiologique voire pronostique des hémorragies digestives hautes (HDH) entre les deux sexes opposés ont été cité par différentes études. Méthodes: Nous avons essayé de déceler ces différences à travers une analyse rétrospective nichée sur une étude prospective sur les hémorragies digestives hautes ayant inclus 945 patients.Résultats: Six cents trente-sept patients étaient des hommes (67,4% Vs 32,6%). Un antécédent d’HDH était trouvé chez 24,2% des cas sans différence significative entre les deux sexes. L’âge de survenue de l’hémorragie était plus élevé chez les femmes que chez les hommes : 51,5 ans ± 18,8 Vs 47,8 ans ± 18,3 (p : 0,003). Les étiologies de l’HDH étaient différentes entre les deux sexes. Alors que l’hémorragie liée à l’HTP était la première cause chez la femme (38 % Vs 23,5 % chezl’homme, p<0,0001), c’est la pathologie ulcéreuse qui venait en premier chez l’homme (62 % Vs 36,7 % chez la femme, p <0,0001). Un besointransfusionnel était noté chez 42,4 % des patients de sexe masculin contre 35,4 % des patientes avec un p = 0,03. Le taux de récidive et de décès global étaient de 7,5 % et de 5,7 % des cas respectivement, sans différence significative entre les deux sexes.Conclusion: L’étude trouve un profil épidémiologique, clinique et étiologique différent selon le sexe des patients.Key words: Hémorragie digestive haute, épidémiologie, sexe masculin, sexe féminin, endoscopie, ulcère gastroduodénal, hypertension portal

The effect of Cu and Cu-humic acids on the adsorption of imazethapyr herbicide by montmorillonite clay

Adsorption of imazethapyr, an imidazolinone herbicide, was measured from dilute suspensions onto montmorillonite clay and complexes of montmorillonite with Cu and humic acid. Adsorption of imazethapyr was found to be greater for the Cu-montmorillonite and Cu-humic acid-montmorillonite complexes than by montmorillonite alone. Isotherm shape was similar for all supports studied. Adsorption of imazethapyr varied with pH for montmorillonite and for Cu-humic acid-montmorillonite complex. The pH had no apparent effect on imazethapyr adsorption to the Cu-montmorillonite complex. This might be due to imazethapyr retention at high pH by Cu ions linked to the clay. Imazethapyr adsorption kinetics was faster for Cu-montmorillonite (15 min) and Cu-humic acid-montmorillonite (30 min) than for montmorillonite (240 min). The copper-humic acid complexes with montmorillonite might be used to detoxify water contaminated with imazethapyr

Assessment of the Quality of Soil and Groundwater of the Agricultural Area of Sidi Yahya Region, Morocco

The Gharb plain is the largest agricultural area in Morocco. It is characterized by fertile soils and the availability of water either from surface or groundwater which allowed intensive agriculture. The aim of this research work is to study the impact of this land management on the quality of water and soil. The study was done for the irrigated perimeter of Sidi Yahya belonging to the province of Sidi Slimane, Gharb (Morocco). Depth of water table and water pH were measured in situ while water and soil samples were collected and brought to the laboratory for their physico-chemical analyses. Sampling of 33water wells and soil samples, from six different zones, was done between May and October 2018. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to check if mean water and soil parameters differed between zones. The results showed that the minimal and maximal water table depth were 6 and 96 m, respectively. Also, slightly more than half of the wells (51.5%) were inadequate for irrigation since they were either highly or extremely saline. Furthermore, soils were poor to moderately poor in organic matter but very rich in potassium and the phosphorus content was highly variable. Based on the statistical analysis, it is clear that the six zones had significantly different means for CaCO3, pH, OM, and exchangeable sodium percentage. Soil degradation like pollution and salinization may occur in this region if poor quality water is used for irrigation and if land is mismanaged. This research work can be considered as a first step towards a program for monitoring the quality of soil and water for adapting the land management with the final objective of securing high productivity and sustainable use of soil and water resources