Hill- Piper diagram for drinking water quality in Ingessana area - Blue Nile State, Sudan.

        This study, aims to assess the effect of mineralization on drinking water quality and its visages in Ingessana area, which is located in the southwestern part of the Blue Nile State (Sudan). Forty drinking water samples from various sources in the study area were collected during four seasons, and then analyzed, using atomic absorption spectrometer, Flame photometer, UV spectrophotometer and conventional titration methods. Different computer software's were used to interpret data as Aquachem. The results showed that calcium, and magnesium, were the main predominant cations in the samples, while bicarbonate and chloride were the dominant anions in wet and dry seasons. Calcium, magnesium and bicarbonate are due to the presence of marble, calcite CaCO3, dolomite CaCO3, Mg (CO3), aragonite, gabbros, and schist in under saturated state. Calcium chloride and bicarbonate indicate the presence of dolomite, aragonite, halite (NaCl), magnsite, gypsum and carbonate rocks as an interfere layers in the study area. These minerals occur in the fractured zone in study area. The Hill-Piper result shows that, all groundwater visages in wet seasons are normal earth alkaline and alkaline with prevailing bicarbonate, while in dry season is earth alkaline with increased portion of alkalis in water and the processes that control these visages are ion exchange and simple dissolution or mixing processes. Comparing the results with (WHO) standard, calcium, magnesium and lead are of higher levels than (WHO) drinking water standard. This may be due to mineralization in the study area. There is an impossibility to determine the effect of these augment on native's health, because most of them are medicated by traditional medicines.  As a final result most of drinking water in the area of study needs treatment before use .                                                                                                                                       &nbsp

Universal Data Logger System for Environmental Monitoring Applications

Collecting huge amount of data in long time acquisition systems like in environmental monitoring, there is a need to collect and save data over time for further use or analysis. A data logger is an electronic device that records data over time or in a relation to location either with a built-in instrument, sensor or via an external instruments and sensor. In this paper, a data logger system is designed to use as a stand-alone or computer based device. When used as a standalone system, all data acquired are saved in SD memory card, which must be copied and erased periodically depending on the memory size. When used as computer based device, all the data sent to the computer via the serial port and stored automatically in achieved files. The limit of those files size only restricted by the capacity of the disk. The data logger is designed using an Arduino UNO board and LabView software, and it has the flexibility to set it up for different user options. With this system, the user could be able to record and read back sensory data to or from existing files, or in automatically generated files and plot these readings in a graph. Also, the user have the ability to choose the periodic time at which a sample record in a file in term of seconds, minutes or hours. The system designed to monitor and record a single channel data, but it could be adapted to monitor more than one channel

THROMBOPROPHYLAXIS IMPACT IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING MAJOR ORTHOPEDIC SURGERY IN SUDAN

Objective: Venous thromboembolism is an important complication of major orthopedic surgery. The aim of present study was to investigate the efficacy of the currently used thromboprophylaxis protocol, determine the incidence of VTE post operatively and the risk factors behind it in patients undergoing major orthopedic surgery. Methods: A retrospective descriptive study for 403 patients underwent major orthopedic surgery from July 2013 to July 2014 in main hospitals in Khartoum state where major orthopedic surgery performed. Data were collected using observation checklist and analyzed using SPSS version 22 to study the association between the type of surgery, patient’s risk factors, choice and duration of thromboprophylaxis and development of VTE after major orthopedic surgery. Results: Total 403 patients were incorporated the study, 2.73% were diagnosed with DVT developed within 5 days post operatively. 1.64% of the patients not received any type of thromboprophylaxis, 0.27% wore compression stocking. Pharmacological methods were used in the rest of the patients, 96.72% administered to them enoxaparine. 75.95% of the patients presented with one or more than one risk factors for VTE other than the orthopedic surgery. 4% of patients received thromboprophylaxis for more than 14 days while 96% received it for 3-5 days. The incidence of DVT was higher in diabetic patients (p- value= 0.03) and hypertensive (p- value= 0.046) who aged ≥60 years. Conclusion: Results showed that VTE was a significant complication of major orthopedic surgery, despite the use of thromboprophylaxis and the incidence was 2.73% in our study.                             Peer Review History: Received 13 June 2020; Revised 25 June; Accepted 6 July, Available online 15 July 2020 Academic Editor: Essam Mohamed Eissa, Beni-Suef University, Egypt, [email protected] UJPR follows the most transparent and toughest ‘Advanced OPEN peer review’ system. The identity of the authors and, reviewers will be known to each other. This transparent process will help to eradicate any possible malicious/purposeful interference by any person (publishing staff, reviewer, editor, author, etc) during peer review. As a result of this unique system, all reviewers will get their due recognition and respect, once their names are published in the papers. We expect that, by publishing peer review reports with published papers, will be helpful to many authors for drafting their article according to the specifications. Auhors will remove any error of their article and they will improve their article(s) according to the previous reports displayed with published article(s). The main purpose of it is ‘to improve the quality of a candidate manuscript’. Our reviewers check the ‘strength and weakness of a manuscript honestly’. There will increase in the perfection, and transparency. Received file:                Reviewer's Comments: Average Peer review marks at initial stage: 5.5/10 Average Peer review marks at publication stage: 7.0/10 Reviewer(s) detail: Dr. Michael Otakhor Erhunmwunse, St. Philomena Catholic Hospital, Nigeria, [email protected]  Francesco Ferrara, USL Umbria, Pharmacy Department, Perugia, Italy, [email protected]  Similar Articles: PREVALENCE OF CYTOMEGALOVIRUS IGG ANTIBODIES, POTENTIAL RISK FACTORS AND AWARENESS OF CONGENITAL CYTOMEGALOVIRUS AMONG FEMALE DOCTOR

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus endemicity in United Arab Emirates, 2019

© 2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). All rights reserved. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) in dromedary camels and attached ticks at 3 locations in the United Arab Emirates. Results revealed a high prevalence of CCHFV-reactive antibodies in camels and viral RNA in ticks and camel serum, suggesting the virus is endemic in this country

The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic: Vaccination challenges in Sudan.

The first COVID-19 case in Sudan was announced on March 13th, 2020. 1835 deaths were recorded as of February 7th, 2021. 800,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine were allocated to Sudan through COVAX in March 2021. However, multiple challenges exist in vaccinating the Sudanese population, ranging from an inadequate cold chain system to low acceptance rates of COVID-19 vaccination among the Sudanese population. Economic crises, high inflation rates and long-standing economic sanctions have also negatively impacted the healthcare system in Sudan as a result of deprivation of access to research and development funding

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

Extraction of Association Rules from Cancer Patient’s Records using F-P Growth Algorithm

Cancer is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, and Sudan has a high cancer burden. The issue is that the data acquired from cancer patients grows yearly, and standard methodologies for analyzing this data are no longer adequate. Data mining techniques such as frequent pattern analysis and association rule mining are utilized in this research to assist in identifying hidden patterns and relationships in data. These strategies were utilized to provide valuable insights into the spread of cancer in Sudan and to assist healthcare professionals in making better diagnosis and treatment decisions. Support and confidence were utilized as measurement criteria. Support is used to evaluate the frequency of occurrence of an item or set of items among all transactions. In contrast, confidence is used to assess the strength of the relationship between groups of things. According to the findings, women are more likely than men to be diagnosed with cancer. The most common cancers in both genders include breast, prostate, ovarian, esophagus, and cervical cancers

The Influence of Diets Containing Phenols and Condensed Tannins on Protein Picture, Clinical Profile and Rumen Characteristics in Omani Sheep

A study was carried out to investigate the effects of feeding low quality non-conventional feeds (NCF) containing phenols and condensed tannins on health and performance characteristics in Omani sheep. Twelve Omani sheep were fed one of two base roughages, urea-treated palm frond (UTPF) or Rhodesgrass hay, (RGH) plus a commercial concentrate for 63 days. Haematological, serum biochemical and urine analyses were used to assess sheep health. Serum protein fractions were measured using electrophoresis. Urea-treated palm frond contained higher levels of polyphenols and condensed tannins and fiber than Rhodesgrass hay or concentrate feed. Animals fed UTPF had lower feed intake (P<0.05) and lower body gain (P<0.001) than those fed RGH. Rumen liquor of UTPF-fed animals had higher pH, ammonia-nitrogen and butyric fatty acid but lower acetic fatty acid (P<0.05). Animals fed UTPF had  higher neutrophil (P<0.05) but lower lymphocyte (P<0.05) and monocyte (P<0.001) counts by the end of the trial than those fed RGH. There were no effects of diet on serum albumin or globulin fraction levels or albumin:globulin ratio. There were no major effects on urine analysis but there was a trend by control animals to have higher protein and specific gravity than treated ones. This study indicated that feeding low quality non-conventional feeds containing polyphenols or tannins would reduce body gain and may produce some effects on clinical parameters. Although tannins are known to influence protein digestion and absorption in ruminants, it did not significantly affect the serum protein picture in sheep

Estimation of reduction of glomerular filtration rate in renal colic patients

Purpose: The aim of current study was to evaluate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) decline in patients with renal colic. Materials and methods: This descriptive analytical study was conducted on patients with definitive diagnosis of renal colic in university hospital of Sharjah. Data including gender, age, and underlying disease were extracted from medical records. GFR and creatinine level were assessed before and 3 months after stone excretion. Hydronephrosis severity was assessed by ultrasound procedure. Results: In current study, 224 patients with renal colic and mean age 45.6±11.35 years old were selected. The mean GFR before and 3 months after urinary stone excretion were 45.89±18.84 and 61.13±22.10 ml/minute, respectively (P&lt;0.01). The mean creatinine at the beginning and 3 months after urinary stone excretion was 1.93±0.46 and 1.59±0.43 mg/dl, respectively (P&lt;0.01). The most frequency of patients with different hydronephrosis degrees was related to score 3 (n=92). There was significant difference between hydronephrosis severity in terms of GFR (P=0.000). No significant difference was seen between the mean GFR at the beginning of the study and at 3 months after urinary stone excretion in terms of diabetes and hypertension (P&gt;0.05). Conclusion: We observed significant difference between hydronephrosis severity in terms of GFR.&nbsp