Prevalence of hepatic steatosis as diagnosed on unenhanced abdominal computed tomography

Background/Objectives: The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been found to be lower in the African American population when compared to European American or Hispanics, even after controlling for obesity and insulin resistance. The prevalence of hepatic steatosis in the local population is unknown. No studies looking at the association between metabolic syndrome and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease have been done in the local population. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of hepatic steatosis in patients undergoing unenhanced abdominal Computed Tomography (CT) at Aga Khan University Hospital, NairobiSubjects/Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study of resident indigenous African patients undergoing an unenhanced CT abdomen at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi’s (AKUHN) Radiology department. Data from 246 patients who meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria was collected. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed using the WHO definition.Results: Of the 246 patients, 39.3% were female and 60.7% were male. Only 77 patients consented to undergo testing for fasting lipid profile. This limited the number of patients who could be diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. Out of the 246 patients, 33 had hepatic steatosis giving a prevalence of 13.4%, at a P value of 0.05 and a confidence interval of 9.0 to 17.8.Although a large number of people reported occasional/social alcohol intake, only 10 patients had alcohol uptake threshold meeting the criteria used. The causes of hepatic steatosis were mainly attributable to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; only 2.5% had hepatic steatosis due to alcohol consumption. Obesity was found to be a strong risk factor for hepatic steatosis and patients with elevated BMI were up to 4 times more likely to have hepatic steatosis. Diabetes was also found to be a strong risk factor for hepatic steatosis, diabetics were 3 times more likely to have steatosis when compared to non-diabetics.Conclusions: The prevalence of hepatic steatosis was 13.4%. There was a strong association of hepatic steatosis and diabetes, with diabetics 3 times more likely to have hepatic steatosis. An association was found between the components of metabolic syndrome and hepatic steatosis

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4 (62.3 (55.1�70.8) million) to 6.4 (58.3 (47.6�70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization�s Global Nutrition Target of <5 in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2 (30 (22.8�38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0 (55.5 (44.8�67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic. © 2020, The Author(s)

Author Correction: Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017 (Nature Medicine, (2020), 26, 5, (750-759), 10.1038/s41591-020-0807-6)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. © 2020, The Author(s)

Author Correction: Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017 (Nature Medicine, (2020), 26, 5, (750-759), 10.1038/s41591-020-0807-6)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. © 2020, The Author(s)

Analysis of developed transition road safety barrier systems

Road safety barriers protect vehicles from roadside hazards by redirecting errant vehicles in a safe manner as well as providing high levels of safety during and after impact. This paper focused on transition safety barrier systems which were located at the point of attachment between a bridge and roadside barriers. The aim of this study was to provide an overview of the behavior of transition systems located at upstream bridge rail with different designs and performance levels. Design factors such as occupant risk and vehicle trajectory for different systems were collected and compared. To achieve this aim a comprehensive database was developed using previous studies. The comparison showed that Test 3-21, which is conducted by impacting a pickup truck with speed of 100 km/h and angle of 25 to transition system, was the most severe test. Occupant impact velocity and ridedown acceleration for heavy vehicles were lower than the amounts for passenger cars and pickup trucks, and in most cases higher occupant lateral impact ridedown acceleration was observed on vehicles subjected to higher levels of damage. The best transition system was selected to give optimum performance which reduced occupant risk factors using the similar crashes in accordance with Test 3-21. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Evaluating the effect of Ramadan fasting on muslim patients with diabetes in relation to use of medication and lifestyle patterns: A prospective study

10.1155/2014/308546International Journal of Endocrinology201430854