Dog bite as a public health concern in Addis Ababa

Introduction: Animal bites and scratches represent the most important public health issue related to dogs and cats because of the risk of rabies transmission associated with physical, psychological trauma and wound infection. Objective: The study was aimed at estimating the prevalence of animal bite of human beings in Addis Ababa. Methods: Data on the kind of animal, age of the patients, gender, site of bites and /or scratch were collected from the registry book and analyzed using SPSS version 11.5. Results: A total of 1299 cases of bite and/or scratch were reported for the period September 2008 to August 2009. The majority of bites were made by dogs where stray dogs are much higher (X2 = 0.83, p= 0.36). There is statistically highly significant difference of bites between sex (p = 0.001) and between age group (F = 5.41, p=0.02). The animal bite made by dogs was higher on legs (55.6 %) followed by hands (26.45 %) and multiple bites (7.51 %). Conclusions: The majority of bites were attributed to stray dogs followed by cats, horses, donkeys. To reduce the problem a preventative public education is suggested

Classical calculation of total and differential cross sections for electron capture and ionization in proton - molecule collisions

The Classical Trajectory Monte Carlo method is applied to treat proton collisions with N2, CO and CH4 at collision energies 25< E < 2.5 × 103 keV. The calculation employs model potentials to describe the interaction of the active electron with the molecular core. General good agreement with available experimental data is foun

Overview of Rabies in and around Addis Ababa, in Animals Examined in EHNRI Zoonoses Laboratory Between, 2003 and 2009

A retrospective data on the number of confirmed animal rabies cases and applied rabies control measures over the period 2003-2009 were collected and analyzed to elucidate the situation of animal rabies in and around Addis Ababa. Over the last seven years, 2517 animals brain tissue samples from Dogs, Cats, Cattle, Horses, Donkeys, Shoats, Hyenas and Monkeys were examined for rabies using Fluorescent Antibody Test. Out of all samples examined, 76.9% (n=1936) were positive for rabies antigen. A statistically significant difference (χ2 = 34.08(1),

Assessment of Handling Practices, Utilization and Concentration of Iodine in Iodized Salt at Wondo Genet town, Southern Ethiopia: A Crossectional Study

Iodine deficiency is severe public health problem in Ethiopia. One out of every 1000 population is mentally handicapped due to a congenital thyroid deficiency, and about 50,000 prenatal deaths are occurring annually due to iodine deficiency disorders.nbsp Even though the problem is serious, there were no adequate researches conducted. Therefore, this study focuses on assessment of handling practices of iodized salt and the amount of iodine concentration retained in iodized salts at households and retailers level in Wondo Genet town. The objective of this study was to assess handling practices and concentration of iodine across iodized salt consumption in retailers and households level. Two hundred ninety four households and seventh six retailers were selected by systematic random sampling method for survey using questionnaire and rapid test kit method was used to measure iodine concentration of salt used by the households. The result of this study indicated that iodized salt coverage was found to be 100 % at households and retailers level. Iodine level in the salt examined by iodometric titration, in this study was 4.4 to 70.9 ppm. This indicates the need for further improvement of handling practices of iodized salt. Iodine level in the salt examined by iodometric titration in this study was 60.54% of households and 65.79% retailers salt samples had 15 ndash 40 ppm iodine concentration. This shows that in the iodized salt there is no adequate iodine content in accordance with the nbsprecommendation. Majority of the households 37.4% add iodized salt half way during boiling of the food/coffee. Although the coverage of iodized salt in the study area was high but availability of adequate iodized salt at household level was low as compared to the WHO recommendation.There for this shows that handling practice of iodized salt at the household and retailer level and utilization practice at the household level is poor

Assessment of Handling Practices, Utilization and Concentration of Iodine in Iodized Salt at Wondo Genet town, Southern Ethiopia: A Crossectional Study

Iodine deficiency is severe public health problem in Ethiopia. One out of every 1000 population is mentally handicapped due to a congenital thyroid deficiency, and about 50,000 prenatal deaths are occurring annually due to iodine deficiency disorders.nbsp Even though the problem is serious, there were no adequate researches conducted. Therefore, this study focuses on assessment of handling practices of iodized salt and the amount of iodine concentration retained in iodized salts at households and retailers level in Wondo Genet town. The objective of this study was to assess handling practices and concentration of iodine across iodized salt consumption in retailers and households level. Two hundred ninety four households and seventh six retailers were selected by systematic random sampling method for survey using questionnaire and rapid test kit method was used to measure iodine concentration of salt used by the households. The result of this study indicated that iodized salt coverage was found to be 100 % at households and retailers level. Iodine level in the salt examined by iodometric titration, in this study was 4.4 to 70.9 ppm. This indicates the need for further improvement of handling practices of iodized salt. Iodine level in the salt examined by iodometric titration in this study was 60.54% of households and 65.79% retailers salt samples had 15 ndash 40 ppm iodine concentration. This shows that in the iodized salt there is no adequate iodine content in accordance with the nbsprecommendation. Majority of the households 37.4% add iodized salt half way during boiling of the food/coffee. Although the coverage of iodized salt in the study area was high but availability of adequate iodized salt at household level was low as compared to the WHO recommendation.There for this shows that handling practice of iodized salt at the household and retailer level and utilization practice at the household level is poor

Law Libraries and Laboratories: The Legacies of Langdell and His Metaphor

Law Librarians and others have often referred to Harvard Law School Dean C.C. Langdell’s statements that the law library is the lawyer’s laboratory. Professor Danner examines the context of what Langdell through his other writings, the educational environment at Harvard in the late nineteenth century, and the changing perceptions of university libraries generally. He then considers how the “laboratory metaphor” has been applied by librarians and legal scholars during the twentieth century and into the twenty-first. The article closes with thoughts on Langdell’s legacy for law librarians and the usefulness of the laboratory metaphor

Visceral leishmaniasis patients display altered composition and maturity of neutrophils as well as impaired neutrophil effector functions

Immunologically, active visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is characterised by profound immunosuppression, severe systemic inflammatory responses and an impaired capacity to control parasite replication. Neutrophils are highly versatile cells, which play a crucial role in the induction as well as the resolution of inflammation, the control of pathogen replication and the regulation of immune responses. Neutrophil functions have been investigated in human cutaneous leishmaniasis, however, their role in human visceral leishmaniasis is poorly understood. In the present study we evaluated the activation status and effector functions of neutrophils in patients with active VL and after successful anti-leishmanial treatment. Our results show that neutrophils are highly activated and have degranulated; high levels of arginase, myeloperoxidase and elastase, all contained in neutrophils’ granules, were found in the plasma of VL patients. In addition, we show that a large proportion of these cells are immature. We also analysed effector functions of neutrophils that are essential for pathogen clearance and show that neutrophils have an impaired capacity to release neutrophil extracellular traps, produce reactive oxygen species and phagocytose bacterial particles, but not Leishmania parasites. Our results suggest that impaired effector functions, increased activation and immaturity of neutrophils play a key role in the pathogenesis of VL

BCG Vaccination Induces M. avium and M. abscessus Cross-Protective Immunity

Pulmonary non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections particularly caused by Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) and Mycobacterium abscessus (MAB) are becoming major health problems in the U.S. New therapies or vaccines which will help prevent the disease, shorten treatment duration and/or increase treatment success rates are urgently needed. This study was conducted with the objective of testing the hypothesis that Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG), a vaccine used for prevention of serious forms of tuberculosis (TB) in children and adolescents in tuberculosis hyperendemic countries, induces cross-protective T cell immunity against Mycobacterium avium (MAV) and MAB. Human TB and NTM cross-protective T cells were quantified using flow cytometric assays. The ability of BCG expanded T cells to inhibit the intracellular growth of MAV and MAB was assessed in co-cultures with infected autologous macrophages. In both BCG-vaccinated and M. tuberculosis (Mtb)-infected mice, NTM cross-reactive immunity was measured using IFN-γ ELISPOT assays. Our results demonstrate the following key findings: (i) peripheral blood mononuclear cells from TB skin test-positive individuals contain MAV and MAB cross-reactive T cells, (ii) both BCG vaccination and Mtb infection of mice induce MAV and MAB cross-reactive splenic cells, (iii) BCG-expanded T cells inhibit intracellular MAV and MAB, (iv) CD4, CD8, and γδ T cells play important roles in inhibition of intracellular MAV and MAB and (v) BCG vaccination of healthy volunteers induces TB and NTM cross-reactive T cells. In conclusion, BCG-vaccination induces NTM cross-reactive immunity, and has the potential for use as a vaccine or immunotherapy to prevent and/or treat pulmonary NTM disease

Burden of podoconiosis in poor rural communities in Guliso woreda, western Ethiopia

Background. Podoconiosis is an environmental lymphoedema affecting people living and working barefoot on irritant red clay soil. Podoconiosis is relatively well described in southern Ethiopia, but remains neglected in other parts of the Ethiopian highlands. This study aimed to assess the burden of podoconiosis in rural communities in western Ethiopia. Methodology/Principal Findings. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Gulliso woreda (district), west Ethiopia. A household survey in the 26 rural kebeles (villages) of this district was conducted to identify podoconiosis patients and to measure disease prevalence. A more detailed study was done in six randomly selected kebeles to describe clinical features of the disease, patients’ experiences of foot hygiene, and shoe wearing practice. 1,935 cases of podoconiosis were registered, giving a prevalence of 2.8%. The prevalence was higher in those aged 15 – 64 years (5.2%) and in females than males (prevalence ratio 2.6:1). 90.3% of patients were in the 15 – 64 year age group. In the detailed study, 335 cases were interviewed and their feet assessed. The majority of patients were farmers, uneducated, and poor. Two-third of patients developed the disease before the age of thirty. Almost all patients (97.0%) had experienced adenolymphangitis (ALA - red, hot legs, swollen and painful groin) at least once during the previous year. Patients experienced an average of 5.5 ALA episodes annually, each of average 4.4 days, thus 24 working days were lost annually. The incidence of ALA in podoconiosis patients was higher than that reported for filariasis in other countries. Shoe wearing was limited mainly due to financial problems. Conclusions. We have documented high podoconiosis prevalence, frequent adenolymphangitis and high disease-related morbidity in west Ethiopia. Interventions must be developed to prevent, treat and control podoconiosis, one of the core neglected tropical diseases in Ethiopia