Massive Cervico-Lingual Cystic Hygroma

Cystic Hygroma (CH) is an aberrant proliferation of lymphatic vessels  creating fluid-filled sacs that result from blockage in the abnormal lymphatic system. These benign lesions are characteristic in their capability to grow to an enormously huge size has potential pressure effects on the neighboring structures. The massive expansion can also lead to gross disfigurement of the neck and face. In this paper, we present a rare case of cervico-lingual CH in a 17-year old Rwandese boy. Though the lesion had caused massive expansion of the tongue (12cm x 10cm) and led to gross deformity of the mandible, the boy had no signs of respiratory distress. His main concerns were inability to eat solid foods and compromised speech. The management challenges and literature review on cystic hygroma of the head and neck region are discussed.Key Words: Cystic Hygroma, Cervico-Lingua

Analysis of Effects of Selected Aerosol Particles to the Global Climate Change and Health using Remote Sensing data: The Focus on Africa

The desert's dust and anthropogenic biomass burning's black carbon (BC) in the tropical regions are associated with many effects on climate and air quality. The dust and BC are the selected aerosols, which affect health by polluting the breathable air. This research discusses the effects of both the aerosols, especially while they interact with the clouds. The respective aerosol extinction optical thickness (AOT) extinction was analysed with the sensible heat from Turbulence. The research purposes to quantitatively study the remote sensing data for fine particulate matter, PM2.5, heterogeneously mixing both the dust and the pulverized black carbon's soot or ash, to analyse at which levels PM2.5 can endanger human health in the sub-Saharan region. The mainly analysed data had been assimilated from different remote sensing tools; the Goddard interactive online visualization and analysis infrastructure (GIOVANNI) was in the centre of data collection; GIS, the research data analysis software. In results, the rise and fall of the averaged sensible heat were associated with the rise and fall of averaged aerosol extinction AOT; the direct effects of the selected aerosols on the clouds are also presented. Regarding the health effects, PM2.5 quantities are throughout beyond the tolerably recommended quantity of 25μg/m3; thus, having referred to erstwhile research, inhabitants would consume food and drug supplements which contain vanillic acid during dusty seasons. Keywords: Geographic Information System (GIS), remotely sensed data, spatio-temporal (data) analysi

Landslides Hazard Mapping in Rwanda Using Bivariate Statistical Index Method

Landslides hazard mapping (LHM) is essential in delineating hazard prone areas and optimizing low cost mitigation measures. This study applied the Geographic Information System and statistical index method in LHM in Rwanda. Field surveys identified 336 points that were employed to construct a landslides inventory map. Ten landslides predicting factors were analyzed: normalized difference vegetation index, elevation, slope, aspects, lithology, soil texture, distance to rivers, distance to roads, rainfall, and land use. The factor variables were converted into categorized variables according to the percentile divisions of seed cells. Then, values of each factor’s class weight were calculated and summed to create landslides hazard map. The estimated hazard map was split into five hazard classes (very low, low, moderate, high, and very high). The results indicated that the northern, western, and southern provinces are largely exposed to landslides hazard. The major landslides hazard influencing factors are elevation, slope, rainfall, and poor land management. Overall, this LHM would help policy makers to recognize each area’s hazard extent, key triggering factors, and the required hazard mitigation measures. These measures include planting trees to enhance vegetation cover and reduce the runoff, and construction of buildings on low steep slope areas to reduce people’s hazard exposure; while agroforestry and bench terraces would reduce sediments that take out the exposed soil (erosion) and pollute water quality

Health Professional Training and Capacity Strengthening Through International Academic Partnerships: The First Five Years of the Human Resources for Health Program in Rwanda

Abstract Background: The Rwanda Human Resources for Health Program (HRH Program) is a 7-year (2012-2019) health professional training initiative led by the Government of Rwanda with the goals of training a large, diverse, and competent health workforce and strengthening the capacity of academic institutions in Rwanda. Methods: The data for this organizational case study was collected through official reports from the Rwanda Ministry of Health (MoH) and 22 participating US academic institutions, databases from the MoH and the College of Medicine and Health Sciences (CMHS) in Rwanda, and surveys completed by the co-authors. Results: In the first 5 years of the HRH Program, a consortium of US academic institutions has deployed an average of 99 visiting faculty per year to support 22 training programs, which are on track to graduate almost 4600 students by 2019. The HRH Program has also built capacity within the CMHS by promoting the recruitment of Rwandan faculty and the establishment of additional partnerships and collaborations with the US academic institutions. Conclusion: The milestones achieved by the HRH Program have been substantial although some challenges persist. These challenges include adequately supporting the visiting faculty; pairing them with Rwandan faculty (twinning); ensuring strong communication and coordination among stakeholders; addressing mismatches in priorities between donors and implementers; the execution of a sustainability strategy; and the decision by one of the donors not to renew funding beyond March 2017. Over the next 2 academic years, it is critical for the sustainability of the 22 training programs supported by the HRH Program that the health-related Schools at the CMHS significantly scale up recruitment of new Rwandan faculty. The HRH Program can serve as a model for other training initiatives implemented in countries affected by a severe shortage of health professionals

Antagonistic effects of raffia sap with probiotics against pathogenic microorganisms

Introduction. Probiotics are known for their beneficial properties. Numerous studies have been conducted to find advantages that probiotics can provide. This study aimed to evaluate the functional properties of raffia sap, a Cameroonian drink, fermented with probiotics by investigating its antagonistic activity against pathogenic bacteria. Study objects and methods. The study objective was raffia sap fermented by Lactobacillus fermentum and Bifidobacterium bifidum. Box-Behnken design with four factors (seeding rates of L. fermentum and B. bifidum, temperature, and incubation time) was used to generate mathematical models. The disc diffusion method was used to evaluate an antagonistic effect of the probiotics against four pathogenic bacteria (Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella sp., and Bacillus cereus). An optimization of mathematical models of the inhibition diameters allowed to determine the optimal conditions of antagonistic effect. Results and discussion. The experimental data showed that zones of inhibition were 0‒21 mm for Salmonella sp., 0‒23 mm for E. coli, 0‒20 mm for L. monocytogenes, and 0‒22 mm for B. cereus. ANOVA results and the mathematical models obtained showed that L. fermentum was effective against B. cereus and B. bifidum against Salmonella sp., E. coli, and B. cereus. The optimization ofthe models revealed maximum zones of inhibition at the seeding rates of L. fermentum and B. bifidum of 2 and 10%, respectively, incubation time of 48 h, and temperature of 37°C. Conclusion. Raffia sap fermented by L. fermentum and B. bifidum demonstrated antagonistic effect against pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli, L. monocytogenes, Salmonella sp., and B. cereus. © 2020, Mbarga et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), allowing third parties to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format and to remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially, provided the original work is properly cited and states its license

Influence of three cultivation technologies to control Fusarium spp. In winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production under Moscow conditions

In Russia, winter wheat represents important production with a significant proportion in the whole agricultural system. However, fungal diseases induce high quantitative and qualitative losses causing critical damages with significant economic losses. The current paper aimed at investigating the impact of three integrated treatments: basic, intensive and highly intensive to control Fusarium infection. The treatments contained fertilizers, fungicides and growth regulators at different combinations and concentrations. Six winter wheat varieties were studied: Moscovckaya 39 variety (V1), Moscovckaya 40 variety (V2), Moscovckaya 56 variety (V3), Nemchinovckaya 17 variety (V4), Nemchinovckaya 24 variety (V5) and Nemchinovckaya 57 variety (V6). Yield performances and grain quality (measured through protein content) were determined according to the tested cultivation technologies and the infection rates were measured for Fusarium. The results showed that the high intensive technology (T3) was the most effective against Fusarium with the most important values in terms of wheat yield (3 t/ha) more than technology 1 (T1) and grain quality. The results were variety-dependent revealing the intrinsic genetic performances and the different patterns of resistance to Fusarium. The current results open real opportunities concerning the application of potent treatments and selection of resistant varieties. © 2020, Gaurav Society of Agricultural Research Information Centre. All rights reserved

Developing algae as a sustainable food source

Current agricultural and food production practices are facing extreme stress, posed by climate change and an ever-increasing human population. The pressure to feed nearly 8 billion people while maintaining a minimal impact on the environment has prompted a movement toward new, more sustainable food sources. For thousands of years, both the macro (seaweed and kelp) and micro (unicellular) forms of algae have been cultivated as a food source. Algae have evolved to be highly efficient at resource utilization and have proven to be a viable source of nutritious biomass that could address many of the current food production issues. Particularly for microalgae, studies of their large-scale growth and cultivation come from the biofuel industry; however, this knowledge can be reasonably translated into the production of algae-based food products. The ability of algae to sequester CO2 lends to its sustainability by helping to reduce the carbon footprint of its production. Additionally, algae can be produced on non-arable land using non-potable water (including brackish or seawater), which allows them to complement rather than compete with traditional agriculture. Algae inherently have the desired qualities of a sustainable food source because they produce highly digestible proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates, and are rich in essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. Although algae have yet to be fully domesticated as food sources, a variety of cultivation and breeding tools exist that can be built upon to allow for the increased productivity and enhanced nutritional and organoleptic qualities that will be required to bring algae to mainstream utilization. Here we will focus on microalgae and cyanobacteria to highlight the current advancements that will expand the variety of algae-based nutritional sources, as well as outline various challenges between current biomass production and large-scale economic algae production for the food market

Exploring the potential of a family-based prevention intervention to reduce alcohol use and violence within HIV-affected families in Rwanda.

HIV-affected families report higher rates of harmful alcohol use, intimate partner violence (IPV) and family conflict, which can have detrimental effects on children. Few evidence-based interventions exist to address these complex issues in Sub-Saharan Africa. This mixed methods study explores the potential of a family-based intervention to reduce IPV, family conflict and problems related to alcohol use to promote child mental health and family functioning within HIV-affected families in post-genocide Rwanda. A family home-visiting, evidence-based intervention designed to identify and enhance resilience and communication in families to promote mental health in children was adapted and developed for use in this context for families affected by caregiver HIV in Rwanda. The intervention was adapted and developed through a series of pilot study phases prior to being tested in open and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in Rwanda for families affected by caregiver HIV. Quantitative and qualitative data from the RCT are explored here using a mixed methods approach to integrate findings. Reductions in alcohol use and IPV among caregivers are supported by qualitative reports of improved family functioning, lower levels of violence and problem drinking as well as improved child mental health, among the intervention group. This mixed methods analysis supports the potential of family-based interventions to reduce adverse caregiver behaviors as a major mechanism for improving child well-being. Further studies to examine these mechanisms in well-powered trials are needed to extend the evidence-base on the promise of family-based intervention for use in low- and middle-income countries

Exploring the potential of a family-based prevention intervention to reduce alcohol use and violence within HIV-affected families in Rwanda

HIV-affected families report higher rates of harmful alcohol use, intimate partner violence (IPV) and family conflict, which can have detrimental effects on children. Few evidence-based interventions exist to address these complex issues in Sub-Saharan Africa. This mixed methods study explores the potential of a family-based intervention to reduce IPV, family conflict and problems related to alcohol use to promote child mental health and family functioning within HIV-affected families in post-genocide Rwanda. A family home-visiting, evidence-based intervention designed to identify and enhance resilience and communication in families to promote mental health in children was adapted and developed for use in this context for families affected by caregiver HIV in Rwanda. The intervention was adapted and developed through a series of pilot study phases prior to being tested in open and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in Rwanda for families affected by caregiver HIV. Quantitative and qualitative data from the RCT are explored here using a mixed methods approach to integrate findings. Reductions in alcohol use and IPV among caregivers are supported by qualitative reports of improved family functioning, lower levels of violence and problem drinking as well as improved child mental health, among the intervention group. This mixed methods analysis supports the potential of family-based interventions to reduce adverse caregiver behaviors as a major mechanism for improving child well-being. Further studies to examine these mechanisms in well-powered trials are needed to extend the evidence-base on the promise of family-based intervention for use in low- and middle-income countries