A note on the statistical analysis of point judgment matrices

The Analytic Hierarchy Process is a multicriteria decision making technique developed by Saaty in the 1970s. The core of the approach is the pairwise comparison of objects according to a single criterion using a 9-point ratio scale and the estimation of weights associated with these objects based on the resultant judgment matrix. In the present paper some statistical approaches to extracting the weights of objects from a judgment matrix are reviewed and new ideas which are rooted in the traditional method of paired comparisons are introduced

Marriage patterns in Ankole, South-Western Uganda

This paper studies marriage patterns and systems in Ankole. Discussed in the study are age at marriage, proportion married,marriage dissolution, remarriages, types of marriage and bridewealth. The paper finds that most of the marriage patterns are among the major causes of high fertility in the area

HIV/AIDS among surgical patients in Butare University Teaching Hospital

Background: Despite the increasing number of patients with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, surgical experience with these patients remains limited. A prospective review of 165 surgical patients admitted over a period of 3 months from 20th September to 20th December 2006 was undertaken. The main objective of the study was to determine the frequency HIV among these patients and associated surgical conditions.Methods: This 3-months prospective study was undertaken at Butare Teaching Hospital Rwanda over a 3-months period starting from 20th September 2007. A total of 165 patients who after counseling gave an informed consent had their blood collected for HIV screening. Data obtained was analyzed using Epidata and SPSS 11.5. P value was P value equal to 0.05 or less was considered as statistically significant.Results: The patients’ ages ranged from 6 to 86 years with a mean of 35.2 years. The sex ratio M: F was 2.11:1. The HIV seroprevalence was 6.7%. The majority of HIV positive patients were female (54.5%) and the most affected age range was 30-39 years. Only 2 (22.2 %) affected patients were on ARV therapy. Eight of the HIV patients had musculoskeletal sepsis (72.72 %). Associated surgical diseases included infection of osteosynthetic material in, chronic osteomyelitis, Pyomyositis and osteonecrosis of the head of femur associated with pyomyositis.Conclusion: With a prevalence of 6.6%, HIV/AIDS is a real and significant problem in surgical practice and patients with HIV admitted to a surgical department require special consideration if their surgical management is to be effective. Surgeons and other health-care workers who are potentially exposed to blood and body fluids must take appropriate precautions to avoid getting infected with HIV. We found no statistically significant difference in the surgical pathologies between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients

Acute Leukemias Immunophenotypes at Agakhan University Hospital, Nairobi

Objective: The aim was to determine relative frequencies of acute  leukemia immunophenotypes using commonly expressed markers and to describe the clinicopathological characteristics.Design: This was a prospective cross-sectional study.Setting: The study was based at Aga khan clinical laboratory department.Subjects: One hundred and thirty two (132) consecutive blood and bone marrow specimens from patients suspected to have acute leukemia were analysed for cytomorphological characteristics and immunophenotyping. The clinical-pathological characteristics were also recorded. Immunological category was assigned using the EGIL criteria.Results: There were 88 AML and 42 ALL patients analysed for  immunophenotypes. Only tw cases of biphenotypic leukemia were found. The commonest overall AML morphological sub-type was AML-M2, 26 (29.5%). Majority of ALL cases were B-cell immunological sub-type (96.6%). Early pre-B phenotype constituted 62.07% and Common B-cell ALL 37.93%. There were only 4 cases of T-cell ALL. Majority of patientspresented with anaemia with a median hemoglobin of 7.5g/dl (range 2-15g/dl). The median platelet count was 55 (range 4-462 × 109/L).Conclusion: Immunophenotyping of acute leukemia is beneficial in accurate diagnosis of patients with these malignancies in this setup. T-cell ALL, AML-M6 and M7 are less frequent than what has been reported in most studies in Africa.Key words: acute leukemia, immunophenotype, WHO, EGIL, CD marker

Ethnopharmacological use of potassium permanganate in South African traditional medicine

Background. Potassium permanganate (KMnO4), which is widely available, is often used by traditional health practitioners (THPs) in South Africa (SA) without taking its potentially harmful properties into account. The crystalline KMnO4 salt is sold at traditional medicine markets and shops throughout SA. However, to date, traditional uses of KMnO4 remain undocumented.Objective. To describe KMnO4 use by THPs in KwaZulu-Natal, SA.Methods. This sub-study is part of a larger study investigating substances used in SA traditional medicine that are collectively known as imikhando in isiZulu – literally translated as ‘ore’. THPs (N=201) were interviewed in the local language (isiZulu) by trained interviewers. Information on the reasons for using/not using KMnO4, the source of information on its use and modes of administration were collected.Results. KMnO4 was used as a constituent of traditional medicine by 158 (79%) THPs. Their knowledge of KMnO4 use was acquired predominantly from fellow THPs (n=134; 85%). Reasons for use included skin rash or wounds (n=99, 63%) and to treat aches, pains and swelling (n=74; 47%). The main modes of administration were in the bath (n=94; 60%), orally (n=67; 42%) and in herbal compresses (n=66; 42%). The principal reason of the 43 THPs for not administering KMnO4 was not knowing how to use it (n=29; 71%).Conclusions. This study has identified traditional medicine users at risk of manganese toxicity owing to commonly used sociocultural practices. In particular, reports of oral ingestion and use in enemas are cause for concern. This public health issue needs regulatory measures and education programmes to enlighten the population against possible harm caused by KMnO4 exposure

Immunophenotypic profile of acute leukemias at Agakhan University Hospital, Nairobi

Background: Reliable distinction between AML and ALL is important for the selection of appropriate therapy. The final diagnosis of acute leukemia should be based on clinico-pathological, morphological, cytochemical and molecular cytogenetics data, together with immunophenotypic information. Flow cytometry has become the preferred method for the lineage assignment and maturational analysis of malignant cells in acute leukemias. Immunophenotyping has also allowed the detection of aberrant antigen co expression and the analysis of heterogeneity and clonality of malignant cells in acute leukemias. It is insufficient to merely make a diagnosis of acute leukemia, or even AML or ALL. Further classification is essential in order to determine the prognosis and select the most appropriate treatment. Furthermore, immunophenotypic characteristics of acute leukemias have not been described in Kenya yet and the existing immunophenotypic patterns of the disease in Nairobi are not known. Objective: The main objective was to determine the relative frequencies of Acute Leukemia immunophenotypes using commonly expressed markers and to describe clinicopathological characteristics. Setting: The study was carried out at Aga Khan University Hospital Laboratory between March 2009 and March 2010. Patients and methods: One hundred and thirty two consecutive blood and bone marrow specimens were analyzed for cytomorphological characteristics and immunophenotypic markers. The clinical-pathological characteristics were also recorded for each patient with acute leukemia. The immunological category was assigned using the EGIL criteria. The end point was the immunophenotypic profiles and the association of each immunophenotype with the clinical and pathological features. Immunophenotyping was done by Flow cytometry. Results: There were 132 patients in total in whom immunophenotyping was done. These comprised of 67(50.8%) males and 65(49.2%) females with M: F ratio of 1.03:1. The age ranged from 2 years to 87 years with a median age of 29.5 years. There were 88 cases of AML and 42 cases of ALL. Only 2 cases of biphenotypic leukemia were studied. AML was found to occur more in adults with a total of 76 (86.4%) cases in patients above 15 years of age and only 12 (13.6%) cases in those below 15 years of age. The commonest AML immunophenotype in all patients was AML-M2 accounting for 26 (29.5%) cases with 19 (21.5%) cases seen in adults and 7(7.95%) in children. The peak adult age range for AML patients was 41-50 years. The proportion of AML-M4 in this study was 19.3%. Majority of ALL cases were B-ALL phenotype at 29 (96.6%) with the dominance of early pre-B phenotype at 62.07%, followed by Common B- ALL in 37.93%.There were 4 cases of T-ALL one of which was seen in a patient below 15 years. The phenotype associated with most cases of adenopathy was the Pre B-cell ALL but this was not statistically significant (P=0.193). The majority of patients presented with anaemia with the median hemoglobin of 7.45g/dl (range 2-15g/dl). The median platelet count level was 55.1 (range 4-462 X109/L). Conclusion: The relative frequencies of the immunological subtypes in this study are similar to those reported by developed countries in the world, except for the low frequency of T-ALL and absence of AML-M6 and AML-M7. Results concerning the antigen expression compares well with what has been reported in other studies in developed and developing countries

HIV/AIDS among Surgical Patients in Butare University Teaching Hospital.

Background: Despite the increasing number of patients with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, surgical experience with these patients remains limited. A prospective review of 165 surgical patients admitted over a period of 3 months from 20th September to 20th December 2006 was undertaken. The main objective of the study was to determine the frequency HIV among these patients and associated surgical conditions. Methods: This 3-months prospective study was undertaken at Butare Teaching Hospital Rwanda over a 3-months period starting from 20th September 2007. A total of 165 patients who after counseling gave an informed consent had their blood collected for HIV screening. Data obtained was analyzed using Epidata and SPSS 11.5. P value was P value equal to 0.05 or less was considered as statistically significant. Results: The patients’ ages ranged from 6 to 86 years with a mean of 35.2 years. The sex ratio M: F was 2.11:1. The HIV seroprevalence was 6.7%. The majority of HIV positive patients were female (54.5%) and the most affected age range was 30-39 years. Only 2 (22.2 %) affected patients were on ARV therapy. Eight of the HIV patients had musculoskeletal sepsis (72.72 %). Associated surgical diseases included infection of osteosynthetic material in, chronic osteomyelitis, Pyomyositis and osteonecrosis of the head of femur associated with pyomyositis. Conclusion: With a prevalence of 6.6%, HIV/AIDS is a real and significant problem in surgical practice and patients with HIV admitted to a surgical department require special consideration if their surgical management is to be effective. Surgeons and other health-care workers who are potentially exposed to blood and body fluids must take appropriate precautions to avoid getting infected with HIV. We found no statistically significant difference in the surgical pathologies between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients

Ethnopharmacological use of potassium permanganate in South African traditional medicine

Background. Potassium permanganate (KMnO4), which is widely available, is often used by traditional health practitioners (THPs) in South Africa (SA) without taking its potentially harmful properties into account. The crystalline KMnO4 salt is sold at traditional medicine markets and shops throughout SA. However, to date, traditional uses of KMnO4 remain undocumented.Objective. To describe KMnO4 use by THPs in KwaZulu-Natal, SA.Methods. This sub-study is part of a larger study investigating substances used in SA traditional medicine that are collectively known as imikhando in isiZulu – literally translated as ‘ore’. THPs (N=201) were interviewed in the local language (isiZulu) by trained interviewers. Information on the reasons for using/not using KMnO4, the source of information on its use and modes of administration were collected.Results. KMnO4 was used as a constituent of traditional medicine by 158 (79%) THPs. Their knowledge of KMnO4 use was acquired predominantly from fellow THPs (n=134; 85%). Reasons for use included skin rash or wounds (n=99, 63%) and to treat aches, pains and swelling (n=74; 47%). The main modes of administration were in the bath (n=94; 60%), orally (n=67; 42%) and in herbal compresses (n=66; 42%). The principal reason of the 43 THPs for not administering KMnO4 was not knowing how to use it (n=29; 71%).Conclusions. This study has identified traditional medicine users at risk of manganese toxicity owing to commonly used sociocultural practices. In particular, reports of oral ingestion and use in enemas are cause for concern. This public health issue needs regulatory measures and education programmes to enlighten the population against possible harm caused by KMnO4 exposure