Sexual Experiences and the Psychosexual Effect of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) or Female Circumcision (FC) on Sudanese Women

The most serious traditional practice of FGM/FC should be considered and dealt with as a synonym for an endemic, epidemic and fatal disease specific to girls and women. Despite the over two decades of anti-FGM/FC efforts, the prevalence of FGM/FC in Sudan is escalating. Many research gaps have to be bridged for the identification of effective interventions, yet the topic is under researched in the Sudan.The findings of our study show that the majority (69%) of respondents had fearful and painful expectations of their first sexual intercourse after hearing negative stories from pharaonically mutilated elders. Sometime after the first sexual experience, 77% of the respondents enjoyed sex as pleasurable. Nonetheless, a good number of the respondents continue to live with the trauma of the experience.Although the majority (77%) of respondents reach orgasm, some 6% have never reached orgasm in their sexual life. Nineteen percent (19%) of the respondents who are pharonically circumcised also seem to be deprived of the four phases of sexuality, experiencing frustrations and psychological disorders as a result.The main recommendations include the enactment of laws prohibiting FGM/FC and penalizing circumcisers and those who contribute to the act. The inculcation of sex education in schools and other institutions curricula was also recommended. In-depth research on the investigated topic is highly recommended

Problems That Face Genitally Mutilated Immigrant Sudanese Women and Their Awareness of Available Health Services in London: A Case Study

Female genital mutilation (FGM) or female circumcision (FC) is a hazardous practice that negatively affects the health and wellbeing of girls and women. Recently, immigrant women who are victims of the cultural practice of FGM/FC have been facing health complications because health providers in their host countries are largely ignorant of the practice and its implications for women's health. This study is a preliminary investigation into immigrant genitally mutilated Sudanese women residing in London (UK). The study surveyed the problems that face genitally mutilated Sudanese women and their awareness of available health services in London. The study revealed that nearly 50% of genitally mutilated Sudanese women faced complications during delivery in London hospitals. A good number had to deliver their babies by caesarean section although their previous confinements were normal. Also, more than 50% of them faced complications that arose from their mutilation other than those encountered during delivery. These were caused, to a great extent, by the ignorance of most British health providers of FGM/FC health complications. There is only one specialized clinic in London that deals with FGM/FC, and the overwhelming majority of genitally mutilated Sudanese women are unaware of its existence.Since the majority of mutilated Sudanese women live in the Paddington area, the study recommended that a specialized clinic has to be established at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington since its health policy does not presently cater for FGM/FC complications. As great numbers of genitally mutilated women from different countries have immigrated to the UK, it was also recommended that FGM/FC health and other complications are to be included in the curricula of educational institutes at which health providers are trained. In addition, ad hoc training sessions on FGM/FC complications should be offered to all health providers at all levels in the United Kingdom

Assessment of fatigue in rheumatoid arthritis and its relation to pain and disease activity measures

Background Fatigue is a serious outcome of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Inflammatory synovitis is potentially an important causal factor for RA fatigue. Other factors include psychosocial factors, health beliefs, illness perceptions, and poor social support. Fatigue also has strong relationships to pain and depression. Objective The aim of the study was to define the amount of fatigue experienced by RA patients, and determine the relative contribution of RA disease activity to fatigue in comparison with factors such as pain and treatment in established RA cases using different instruments to assess fatigue [visual analog scale (VAS) fatigue and the vitality subscale of the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire]. Patients and methods A total of 50 adult patients diagnosed with RA according to the 1987 Revised American College of Rheumatology - 42 of them being female and the remaining eight being male, with a mean age of 45.36 ± 9.6 years and a mean disease duration of 7.78 ± 4.1 years - were included in the study. Fatigue was measured using a 100 mm VAS and the SF-36 vitality scores. We measured pain using 100 mm VAS, Disease Activity Score for 28 joint counts (DAS28), early morning stiffness, the modified Health Assessment Questionnaire score, and the physician global assessment score. Results Fatigue was common in RA patients. Out of 50 patients, 42 patients had fatigue (VAS ≥ 20 mm), and at the same time 26 had high fatigue scores (VAS΃50 mm). The mean SF-36 energy and vitality score was 60.5 ± 23.1. The VAS fatigue scores and the SF-36 vitality scores were significantly correlated with disease activity measures, including duration of morning stiffness (P = 0.001), articular index (P < 0.0001), VAS pain (P < 0.0001), DAS28 (P < 0.0001), C reactive protein (CRP) (P = 0.04 and 0.001, respectively), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (P = 0.04), and rheumatoid factor positivity (P = 0.04 and 0.01, respectively). Pain had the strongest association with fatigue, followed by articular index, duration of morning stiffness, ESR, DAS28, and finally CRP in that order. Conclusion High fatigue levels are common in RA and are mainly linked to pain. VAS fatigue scores are simple measurements that can be used for assessment of fatigue in patients with RA

Diastereomeric control of enantioselectivity: evidence for metal cluster catalysis.

Enantioselective hydrogenation of tiglic acid effected by diastereomers of the general formula [(μ-H)2Ru3(μ3-S)(CO)7(μ-P-P*)] (P-P* = chiral Walphos diphosphine ligand) strongly supports catalysis by intact Ru3 clusters. A catalytic mechanism involving Ru3 clusters has been established by DFT calculations

Incorporation of strontium and europium in crystals of a-calcium isosaccharinate

The final repository for short-lived, low and intermediate level radioactive waste in Sweden is built to act as a passive repository. Already within a few years after closure water will penetrate the repository and conditions of high alkalinity (pH 10.5-13.5) and low temperature (&lt; 7 degrees C) will prevail. The mobility of radionuclides in the repository is dependent on the radionuclides distribution between solid and liquid phases. In the present work the incorporation of strontium (II) and europium (III) in alpha-calcium isosaccharinate (ISA) under alkaline conditions (pH similar to 10) at 5 degrees C and 50 degrees C have been studied. The results show that strontium and europium are incorporated into alpha-Ca(ISA)(2) when crystallized both at 5 degrees C and 50 degrees C. Europium is incorporated to a greater extent than strontium. The highest incorporation of europium and strontium at 5 degrees C rendered the phase compositions Ca0.986Eu0.014(ISA)(2) (2.4% of Eu(ISA)(3) by mass) and Ca0.98Sr0.02(ISA)(2) (2.2% of Sr(ISA)(2) by mass). XPS spectra show that both trivalent and divalent Eu coexist in the Eu incorporated samples. Strontium ions were found to retard the elongated growth of the Ca(ISA)(2) crystals. The incorporation of Sr2+ and Eu3+ into the solid phase of Ca(ISA)(2) is expected to contribute to a decreased mobility of these ions in the repository

Diastereomeric control of enantioselectivity: evidence for metal cluster catalysis

Enantioselective hydrogenation of tiglic acid effected by diastereomers of the general formula [(μ-H)2Ru3(μ3-S)(CO)7(μ-P–P*)] (P–P* = chiral Walphos diphosphine ligand) strongly supports catalysis by intact Ru3 clusters. A catalytic mechanism involving Ru3 clusters has been established by DFT calculations.peerReviewe

Green Synthesis of Metal-Organic Framework Bacterial Cellulose Nanocomposites for Separation Applications

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are porous crystalline materials that can be designed to act as selective adsorbents. Due to their high porosity they can possess very high adsorption capacities. However, overcoming the brittleness of these crystalline materials is a challenge for many industrial applications. In order to make use of MOFs for large-scale liquid phase separation processes they can be immobilized on solid supports. For this purpose, nanocellulose can be considered as a promising supporting material due to its high flexibility and biocompatibility. In this study a novel flexible nanocellulose MOF composite material was synthesised in aqueous media by a novel and straightforward in situ one-pot green method. The material consisted of MOF particles of the type MIL-100(Fe) (from Material Institute de Lavoisier, containing Fe(III) 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate) immobilized onto bacterial cellulose (BC) nanofibers. The novel nanocomposite material was applied to efficiently separate arsenic and Rhodamine B from aqueous solution, achieving adsorption capacities of 4.81, and 2.77 mg g‒1, respectively. The adsorption process could be well modelled by the nonlinear pseudo-second-order fitting

Relationship between serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D levels, knee pain, radiological osteoarthritis, and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index in patients with primary osteoarthritis

Objective This study aims to detect the relationship between serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OHD) levels in patients with primary osteoarthritis (OA) of the knees and with other disease parameters of OA, mainly radiological findings, functional assessment using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and pain [numerical rating scale (NRS)]. Patients and methods We studied 140 consecutive patients with primary knee OA, 110 female patients and 30 male patients. They were clinically, radiologically, and also functionally evaluated regarding OA; pain was also assessed using NRS, and serum 25-OHD, serum parathormone, serum calcium, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase were measured. Results In our patient sample, we found that 90 (64.3%) patients had lower 25-OHD levels. The mean serum 25-OHD was 35.77 ± 14.6 (range 10.62-71.82) ng/ml; 25-OHD was negatively significantly correlated with patients′ age (P = 0.013, r = −0.236), radiological degree of OA (P = 0.036, r = −0.20), WOMAC (P < 0.0001, r = −0.337), and NRS for pain (P < 0.0001, r = −0.580). When comparing between patients with hypovitaminosis, 25-OHD less than 40 ng/ml, and patients with desirable 25-OHD levels, we found that radiographic grading of OA was significantly higher in the hypovitaminosis group (t = 2.024, P = 0.045); WOMAC was also significantly higher in the hypovitaminosis group (t = 3.226, P = 0.002) and NRS was also higher in the hypovitaminosis group (t = 4.468, P < 0.0001). Conclusion 25-OHD deficiency is prevalent in our patients suffering from OA; in addition, 25-OHD may play a role in patients suffering from OA

Synthesis, Characterization and Catalytic Activity Studies of Rhenium Carbonyl Complexes Containing Chiral Diphosphines of the Josiphos and Walphos Families

Ten rhenium carbonyl complexes\u2014[Re(H)(CO)3(1a)], [Re3(mu-H)3(CO)10(1a)], [Re2(CO)9(2a)], [Re2(CO)8(2a)], [Re2(CO)9(2b)], [{Re2(CO)9}2(2b)][Re2(CO)8(2b)], [Re2(CO)8(1b)], [Re2(mu-H)2(CO)6(2b)] and [Re3(mu-H)3(CO)11(2b)] containing different bidentate chiral phosphine ligands of theJosiphos (1a,1b) and Walphos(2a,2b) families have been synthesized and fully characterized (1a:(R)-1-{(SP)-2-[Bis[3,5-bis(trifluoromethylphenylphosphino]ferrocenyl} ethyldi(3,5-xylyl)phosphine,1b:(R)-1-{(SP)-2-[Di(2-furyl)phosphino]ferrocenyl}ethyldi-tert-butylphosphine,2a:(R)-1{(RP)-2-[2-[Bis(4-methoxy-3,5-dimethylphenyl)phosphino]phenyl]ferrocenyl}ethylbis[3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]phosphine and2b:(R)-1-{(RP)-2-[2- (Diphenylphosphino)phenyl]ferrocenyl}ethyldicyclohexylphosphine). The phos-phine-substituted clusters were tested for hydrogenation of tiglic acid [ trans-2-methyl-2-butenoic acid]. The catalytic reactions gave reasonable conversion rates(15\u201388 %) under relatively mild conditions but relatively moderate enantiomeric excesses (8\u201357 %) were observed. The crystal structures of [ReH(CO)3(1a)], [Re2(CO)9(2a)], [{Re2(CO)9}2(2b)] and [Re2(mu-H)(CO)6(2b)] are presented