Aetiology of Proximal Weakness among Adult Sudanese patients

Objective: To determine the aetiology of proximal myopathy among adult Sudanese patients seen in Elshaab Teaching Hospital. Methods: This is a descriptive cross sectional hospital based study conducted in Elshaab Teaching Hospital, during the period from January 2004 September 2005. 100 adult Sudanese patients with proximal myopathy were reviewed, detailed history and proper clinical examination was done by the authors. Results: The most frequent cause of proximal myopathy was found to be muscular dystrophy which accounted for 30% of the cases, followed by myasthenia gravis 20%, polymyositis and dermatomyositis 14%, Guillain Barre 8%, diabetes mellitus 5%, connective tissue diseases 5%, thyrotoxicosis 3%, chronic renal failure 3%, malignancy 2%, drugs (steroids and chloroquine) 2%, alcohol 2%. Spinal muscular atrophy, hypokalaemia, and hypocalcaemia each accounted for 1%. Conclusion: The study showed that the incidence of proximal myopathy is more common among females. Proximal muscle weakness involved the lower limbs more than the upper limbs. Keywords: myopathy, Guillain Barre, dermatomyositis, polymyositis, hypokalaemia, atrophy.Sudan Journal of Medical Sciences Vol. 3 (1) 2008: pp. 17-2

GLAMS: A graphical method for capturing land and water management practices in agroecosystems

Modification of native ecosystems through land use can affect the biophysical functioning of agroecosystems, with spatial arrangement (configuration) through time often determining the degree to which landscapes experience dysfunctional states. An improved understanding is needed of how spatial and temporal patterns in land use affect ecohydrological dysfunctions, such as how landscapes leak or fail to retain water and soil, at scales relevant to farm management. We develop and apply a Graphical LAndscape Map Survey method, or "GLAMS", for measuring changes in landscape function based upon a 3D graphic of a hypothetical sub-catchment. GLAMS was applied within four Landcare Groups comprised of farmers from the Western Catchments of Southeast Queensland, Australia. The aim was to capture the behaviors of farmers who manage land use under natural variations in precipitation, especially extended dry periods, and with the associated risks from ecohydrologically dysfunctional or 'leaky' landscapes. GLAMS provided variable spatial and temporal resolution which allowed quantification of the land use responses for three different property sizes: (1) small, less than 100 ha; (2) medium, 100-500 ha; and (3) large, larger than 500 ha. Responses were quantified using Bayesian Belief Networks to provide probability estimates of the likelihood of a given action, taking place within a particular part of the landscape, considering both climatic and ecohydrological risks. The findings indicated that GLAMS was more intuitive to farmers than traditional question-based surveys, resulting in a low cost technique that is rapid to implement while providing spatially explicit information relevant to farm and catchment management