Rate and characterization of parasitic infestation in a stool specimens in children with diarrhea by using polymerase chain reaction technique

Diarrheal disorders are a major health problem in pediatrics worldwide. Accounting for more than 750,000 deaths in children under the age of 5 per year, they are the second leading cause of death in this population according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Giardia duodenalis (G. duodenalis), Cryptosporidium parvum (C. parvum) and Entamoeba histolytica (E. histolytica) are the most common protozoan parasites that cause acute diarrhoeal illnesses in children. For many decades, the laboratory diagnosis of intestinal amebiasis has been based upon the microscopic examination of stool samples. So the aim of the present study was to compare the sensitivity of light microscopic method with the PCR method to identify parasitic pathogens among children with persistent diarrhea. 90 stool samples were collected from children that infected by diarrhea from Wasit hospitals and were analyzed by routine light microscopic method and PCR techniques. In conclusion, parasitic cause of persistent diarrhea is underestimated when diagnosed solely by microscopic techniques and that mixed infection are going to be missed and the use of PCR is helpful in avoiding these problems. Key words: Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium parvum, Entamoeba histolytica, PCR, diarrhe

Therapeutic Effect of Chitosan Nanoparticles and Amikacin in Treatment of Experimentally Escherichia bacteria isolated from diarrheal cases

Background: The application of nanotechnology in medicine, especially in drug delivery, will rapidly spread. Many substances are currently being investigated for drug delivery in order to the treatment of various diseases. The present study aimed to assess the effect of Chitosan Nanoparticles and Amikacin in Treatment of experimentally Escherichia coli bacteria isolated from diarrheal cases as well as evaluate the efficacy of loading Amikacin on chitosan nanoparticles. Methods: This study was carried out at medicine Department, college of Medicine, Wasit University and lab tore of Al-Batool Hospital in Wasit Governorate from February 2022 to February 2023. The study was conducted on 60 children (males and females) under the age of 5 years who were diagnosed with Escherichia coli bacterial infection from cases of diarrhea for patients in Al-Batool Hospital in the city of Wasit. All samples were grouped into three groups: group A include E. coli infected individual treated with Amikacin alone, group B include E. coli infected individual treated with Chitosan nanoparticles alone and group C include E. coli infected individual treated with Chitosan nanoparticles and Amikacin. Results: The highest percentages of reduction inhibition were in group that received mixed Chitosan nanoparticles and Amikacin treatment (67.34). Lower percentages of reduction were recorded for TRI only treated group (58.15%). where the incidence of E. coli in males was higher than that of females (61.51%) and (60.33%) respectively

Participatory evaluation of chicken health and production constraints in Ethiopia

Chicken production has a major role in the economy of developing countries and backyard production is particularly important to women. Several programmes, in Ethiopia and elsewhere, have attempted to improve chicken production as a means to reduce poverty. A key constraint to chicken production identified by farmers is disease. This study used participatory rural appraisal methods to work with chicken-keepers in order to prioritise chicken diseases, place these within the context of other production constraints, and to explore perceptions of disease risk factors and biosecurity measures. The study, focused on Debre Zeit, Ethiopia, included 71 poultry keepers (41 backyard and 30 semi-intensive chicken producers). Although women played an important role in backyard production systems, semi-intensive farms were more likely to be controlled by men. Participants identified 9 constraints to production: 7 of 8 groups of backyard producers and 15/31 semi-intensive producers ranked diseases as the most important constraint to chicken production. In contrast to previous reports, farmers in both groups had considerable knowledge of diseases and of factors affecting disease risk. Both groups, but particularly semi-intensive producers, highlighted access to feed as a constraint. Many of the challenges faced by both groups were associated with difficulty accessing agricultural and veterinary inputs and expertise. Whilst many of the constraints identified by farmers could be viewed as simply technical issues to be overcome, we believe it is important to recognise the social factors underpinning what are, in reality, relatively modest technical challenges. The low involvement of women in semi-intensive production needs to be recognised by poultry development schemes. Provision needs to be made to allow access to inputs for a wide range of business models, particularly for those, such as women, who have limited access to the capital to allow them to make the jump from backyard to semi-intensive producer, and require support to slowly build up a flock into a profitable venture

Hypoparathyroidism in Patients Older than 10 Years of Age with Beta-thalassemia

BACKGROUND: Despite prolonged life expectancy in patients with beta-thalassemia due to modern chelation therapy and planned blood transfusions, they still suffer from multisystem complications of this chronic hemolytic anemia, including endocrine system dysfunction. Under-recognized parathyroid hormone (PTH) dysfunction in these patients can manifest as bone pain and fractures. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to evaluate PTH in patients with beta-thalassemia >10 years of age. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed on 76 randomly selected patients >10 years old with beta-thalassemia (including both thalassemia major and thalassemia intermedia) in the Al-Kut Hereditary Blood Disease Center in Wasit province, Iraq. The study covered the period from November 2021 to April 2022. Data were collected from patients’ files after written consent, including sex, age, ferritin level, mean hemoglobin level, type of chelation therapy, frequency of transfusion, mean calcium level, and whether the patients were splenectomized or not. RESULTS: Of the 76 patients enrolled in the study, 39 (51.3%) were males. There were 63 (82.9%) who had thalassemia major. The majority of cases (n = 55, 71%) were from the age group >15 years. Fifteen (19.7%) patients had low PTH levels. The age group >15 years had a higher frequency of having low PTH levels (P = 0.01 and Pearson factor - 0.29). The study found a positive correlation between low calcium and low PTH levels (P = 0.001, Pearson factor = 0.1). High ferritin levels had no significant correlation with PTH levels (P = 0.4). CONCLUSIONS: Beta-thalassemia patients can have a low PTH level. It can occur more often in patients >15 years old, which necessitates close monitoring for older thalassemia patients. A declining calcium level in these patients can correlate with a low PTH level