Status of resistance to antimicrobial agents of Staphylococcus aureus strains at the laboratory of microbiology of the HU-JRA Antananarivo

Introduction: On contact of antibiotics, S. aureus has gradually acquired multiple antibiotic resistances, including the methicillin (MRSA) and without lose its virulence. The aim of the present study was to report the evolution of resistance of S. aureus to different common antibiotics and to determine the antibiotics active against MRSA.Materials and methods: This is a retrospective and descriptive study for 10 years from January 2005 to December 2014 at the Laboratory of Microbiology of the HU-JRA Antananarivo, the biggest academic hospital located in the capital of Madagascar. All demands for standard bacteriological examination were registered in the laboratory for various bacteriological exams or from samples taken from hospitalized patients and we included all positive cultures for S. aureus. The variables selected and used for the study were community or nosocomial sources of patients and results of susceptibility testing.Results: A total of 906 results from 282 (31.12%) community-acquired and 624 (68.88%) nosocomial infections were studied an average of 100±25strains by year of study. Overall, the prevalence of MRSA was 13.83% (39 of 282 isolates)for community-acquired strains, and 15.70% (98 of 624) for nosocomial infections (p> 0.05)with a total of 29.53%. Resistance rate to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was significantly higher in nosocomial infection than in community-acquired. No significant difference was observed in other antibiotics. Of the 137 MRSA, except vancomycin, fusidic acid is the antibiotic that worked the most in 114 cases (83.21%) followed by gentamicin in 96 cases (70.07%). Apart from ciprofloxacin and tetracycline that we have noticed an increase in resistance rates in 2012 and 2013, almost all antibiotics tested have a stable rate of resistance.Conclusion: The antibiotics tested showed extremely high rates of resistance and that the problem of antibiotic resistance in S. aureus is effective in our center.Keywords: Resistance -antibiotics- S. aureus - HU-JRA Antananariv

Acid fast bacillus pulmonary and extra pulmonary in a laboratory of university hospital center in Antananarivo, Madagascar since 2003-2014

Background: Tuberculosis has even been a grave public health problem in Madagascar, one of the main causes responsible for death at the hospital for active and productive people.Methods: It was a descriptive and analytical retrospective study of patient records admitted for the research of acid-fast bacillus (AFB) pulmonary and extra pulmonary from January 2003 to December 2014 at the microbiology laboratory of the University Hospital Joseph Ravoahangy Andrianavalona (HU-JRA) Antananarivo, Madagascar. We did this study in order to describe the epidemiology of pulmonary and extra pulmonary tuberculosis at the laboratory. All of the requests about researching AFB for bacterial analysis have been received. Incomplete folders have been rejected. Age, sex, clinic information and the results of AFB research have been analyzed.Results: During 12 years, 1060 requests have been received to research AFB with 89 cases (8.39%) of positivity. Patients were between 9 months and 93 years old. The middle patient age was 41.7 years. Sex-ratio of infected patients was 1.36. There was a significant difference between gender and positive cases (p=0,001). 82 positive cases (93.77%) were pulmonary localization and 7 cases of extra pulmonary (6.23%).Conclusions: Despite the lack of screening, the high rate of bacillary pulmonary tuberculosis found was one of the great epidemiological importances because of their contagiousness. It is obvious that only health actions cannot solve the problem of tuberculosis.

Duration and determinants of birth interval among women of child bearing age in Southern Ethiopia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Longer intervals between consecutive births decrease the number of children a woman can have. This results in beneficial effects on population size and on the health status of mothers and children. Therefore, understanding the practice of birth interval and its determinants is helpful to design evidence based strategies for interventions. The objective of this study was to determine duration and determinants of birth interval among women of child bearing age in Lemo district, southern Ethiopia in March 2010.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A community based cross sectional study design with stratified multistage sampling technique was employed. A sample of 844 women of child bearing age were selected by using simple random sampling technique after complete census was conducted in selected kebeles prior to data collection. Structured interviewer administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Actual birth interval was measured with the respondents' memory since majority of the women or their children in the area had no birth certificate.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Majority (57%) of women were practicing short birth interval length with the median birth interval length of 33 months. Actual birth interval length is significantly shorter than preferred birth interval length. Birth interval showed significant variation by contraceptive use, residence, wealth index, breast feeding and occupation of husbands.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>low proportion of optimal birth spacing practices with short actual birth interval length and longer preferred birth interval lengths were evident among the study subjects. Hence interventions to enhance contraceptive utilization behaviors among women in Lemo district would be helpful to narrow the gap between optimal and actual birth spacing.</p

Optical turbulence prediction using WRF Model

International audienceThe optical turbulence forecasting has become a necessary information for an optimal programmation of the astronomical observations, called "flexible scheduling". We propose the prediction of the optical turbulence by means of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model combined with an optical turbulence model. We performed a set of simulations to obtain a 24-hours period forecast for optical turbulence parameters above the Calern observatory. We present the results of our forecasting and comparisons with the CATS (Calern Atmospheric Turbulence Station) measurements

Scattering by a dielectric cylinder with arbitrary cross section using Pseudo-spectral Modal Method

International audienceWe present a new semi-analytical formulation for diffraction by structured cylinders. A pseudo-spectral method is used to solve the Maxwell equations written in curvilinear coordinates. The program is compared with the numerical results obtained using Comsol Multiphysics

Scattering by a dielectric cylinder with arbitrary cross section using Pseudo-spectral Modal Method

We present a new semi-analytical formulation for diffraction by structured cylinders. A pseudo-spectral modal method is used to solve the Maxwell equations written in curvilinear coordinates. The program is compared with the numerical results obtained with finite element method using Comsol Multiphysics

CATS: continuous turbulence characterization station for both optical link and astronomical support

International audienceThe optical turbulence measurement and characterization has become an essential information for optical link (telecommunication, telemetry, time transfert, ...) and for high-angular resolution imagining in astron- omy. For example, it has an impact on the quality and on the bit error rate of optical communication signals and it decrease the resolution of astronomical images. The J.L. Lagrange Laboratory of the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur has a long and recognized expertise in atmospheric optics and turbulence for astronomical purposes. We have developed recently a new generation of autonomous instruments for daytime and night- time atmospheric optical turbulence measurement. In 2015, a complete instrumental platform, the Calern Atmospheric Turbulence Station (CATS) has been installed at the Calern observatory. CATS is an auto- matic station equipped with a set of complementary instruments using original techniques for monitoring optical turbulence from the first meters above the ground up to the top of the atmosphere including the dome seeing. The station is based on 4 instruments. PML measures continuously the vertical profiles of the refractive index structure constant Cn2 with a high vertical resolution (~ 100m at ground level). GDIMM monitors the wavefront coherence parameters (seeing, isoplanatic angle, coherence time, scintillation, outer scale). A weather station provides the ground meteorological conditions (pressure, temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction). And the nighttime cloud fraction is given by an all-sky camera. Another instrument called INTENSE (INdoor TurbulENce Sensor) is occasionally associated with CATS station to measure the seeing inside the dome of the 1.5m MeO telescope to evaluate its contribution to the whole turbulence. A new tool has been integrated to CATS station consisting in a forcasting model using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) system coupled to a turbulence model to predict daytime and nighttime meteorological and optical turbulence conditions for the next 48h