Biocompatibility properties of polyamide 6/PCL blends composite textile scaffold using EA.hy926 human endothelial cells

Enhancing the cytocompatibility profiles, including cell attachment, growth and viability, of designed synthetic scaffolds, has a pivotal role in tissue engineering applications. Polymer blending is one of the most effective methods for providing new desirable biomaterials for tissue scaffolds. This article reports a novel polyamide 6/poly(ϵ-caprolactone) (PA6/PCL) blends solution which was fabricated to create composite fibrous tissue scaffolds by varying the concentration ratios of PA6 and PCL. Highly porous blends of fibrous scaffold were fabricated and their suitability as cell-support for EA.hy926 human endothelial cells was studied. Our results demonstrated that the unique nanoscale morphological properties and tune porosity of the blends scaffold were controlled. We found that these properties are mainly dependent on the PA6/PCL blending viscosity value, and the viscosity of the blending solution has an intense effect on the properties of the blends scaffold. The influence of the scaffolds extraction fluids and the scaffold direct contact of both the metabolic viability and the DNA integrity of EA.hy926 endothelial cells, as well as the cell/scaffold interaction analysis by scanning electron microscope, after different co-culturing intervals, demonstrated that PA6/PCL blend scaffolds showed different behaviors. Blend scaffolds of PA6/PCL of 90:10 ratio proved to be excellent endothelial cell carriers, which provided a good cell morphology, DNA integrity and viability, induced DNA synthesis/replication, and enhanced cell proliferation, attachment, and invasion. These results indicate that blends of PA6/PCL composite fibers are a promising 3D substitute for the next generation of synthetic tissue scaffolds that could soon find clinical applications

Breastfeeding knowledge, attitude and practice among school teachers in Abha female educational district, southwestern Saudi Arabia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Inadequate knowledge, or inappropriate practice, of breastfeeding may lead to undesirable consequences. The aim of this study was to assess breastfeeding knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) among female teachers in the Abha Female Educational District and identify factors that may affect breastfeeding practice in the study population.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted among school teachers in Abha Female Educational District during the months of April to June, 2011. Breastfeeding KAP of participants who had at least one child aged five years or younger at the time of the study were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire, based on their experience with the last child.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 384 women made up of 246 (61.1%) primary-, 89 (23.2%) intermediate- and 49 (12.8%) high-school teachers participated in the study. One hundred and nineteen participants (31%) started breastfeeding their children within one hour of delivery, while exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months was reported only by 32 (8.3%) participants. Insufficient breast milk and work related problems were the main reasons given by 169 (44%) and 148 (38.5%) of participants, respectively, for stopping breastfeeding before two years. Only 33 participants (8.6%) had attended classes related to breastfeeding. However, 261 participants (68%) indicated the willingness to attend such classes, if available, in future pregnancies.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study revealed that breast milk insufficiency and adverse work related issues were the main reasons for a very low rate of exclusive breastfeeding among female school teachers in Abha female educational district, Saudi Arabia. A very low rate of attending classes addressing the breastfeeding issues during pregnancy, and an alarming finding of a high percentage of babies receiving readymade liquid formula while still in hospital, were also brought out by the present study. Such findings, if addressed comprehensively by health care providers and decision-makers, will lead to the improvement of breastfeeding practices in the study community.</p

Thromboprophylaxis and mortality among patients who developed venous thromboembolism in seven major hospitals in Saudi Arabia

Introduction: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) during hospitalization is a serious and potentially fatal condition. Despite its effectiveness, evidence-based thromboprophylaxis is still underutilized in many countries including Saudi Arabia. Objective of the Study: Our objectives were to determine how often hospital-acquired VTE patients received appropriate thromboprophylaxis, VTE-associated mortality, and the percentage of patients given anticoagulant therapy and adherence to it after discharged. Methods: This study was conducted in seven major hospitals in Saudi Arabia. From July 1, 2009, till June 30, 2010, all recorded deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) cases were noted. Only patients with confirmed VTE diagnosis were included in the analysis. Results: A total of 1241 confirmed VTE cases occurred during the 12-month period. Most (58.3%) of them were DVT only, 21.7% were PE, and 20% were both DVT and PE. 21.4% and 78.6% of confirmed VTE occurred in surgical and medical patients, respectively. Only 40.9% of VTE cases received appropriate prophylaxis (63.2% for surgical patients and 34.8% for medical patients; P 0.05). Appropriate thromboprophylaxis was associated with 4.11% absolute risk reduction in mortality (95% confidence interval: 0.24%–7.97%). Most (89.4%) of the survived patients received anticoagulation therapy at discharge and 71.7% of them were adherent to it on follow-up. Conclusion: Thromboprophylaxis was underutilized in major Saudi hospitals denoting a gap between guideline and practice. This gap was more marked in medical than surgical patients. Hospital-acquired VTE was associated with significant mortality. Efforts to improve thromboprophylaxis utilization are warranted

Changes in the prevalence of influenza-like illness and influenza vaccine uptake among Hajj pilgrims: A 10-year retrospective analysis of data

Background: Influenza is an important health hazard among Hajj pilgrims. For the last ten years, pilgrims are being recommended to take influenza vaccine before attending Hajj. Vaccination coverage has increased in recent years, but whether there has been any change in the prevalence of influenza-like illness (ILI) is not known. In this analysis, we examined the changes in the rate of ILI against seasonal influenza vaccine uptake among Hajj pilgrims over the last decade. Method: Data for this analysis is a synthesis of raw and published data from eleven Hajj seasons between 2005 and 214. For seven Hajj seasons the data were obtained from studies involving pilgrims of UK, Saudi Arabia and Australia; and for the remaining four Hajj seasons data were abstracted from published studies involving pilgrims from multiple countries. The data from both sources were synthesised to estimate the relative risk (RR) of acquisition of ILI in vaccinated versus unvaccinated pilgrims. Results: The pooled sample size of the included studies was 33,213 with most pilgrims being in the age band of 40-60 years (range: 0.5 to 95 years) and a male to female ratio of 1.6. The pilgrims originated, in order of frequency, from Iran, Australia, France, UK, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, India, Algeria, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Somalia, Turkey, Syria, Sierra Leone and USA. Except for one year (2008), data from individual years did not demonstrate a noticeable change in the rate of ILI against influenza vaccine coverage, however the combined data from all studies suggest that the prevalence of ILI decreased among Hajj pilgrims as the vaccine coverage increased over the last decade (RR 0.2,