Die Belangstelling van die Kerk vanaf die vroegste Eeue in verband met die Godsdiensitge Vorming van die Jeug in die Erediens, die Ouerhuis, die Kategese, Jeugvereniging

No abstract available

Nutritional status of HIV-infected adults on antiretroviral therapy and the impact of nutritional supplementation in the Northern Cape Province, South Africa

Objectives: The study aimed to describe the nutritional status and determine the impact of current nutrition intervention strategies on weightchanges in adult HIV-infected patients on antiretroviral (ARV) therapy.Design: A descriptive, prospective trial was performed.Setting: The investigation was conducted at ARV roll-out centres in Kimberley, Upington, Kuruman, Prieska and Springbok in the NorthernCape Province of South Africa.Subjects: Adult HIV-infected patients receiving ARV therapy were included in the study. Outcome measures: Each participants’s body mass index (BMI) was determined before and after a four-month intervention period ofnutritional supplementation with an instant, enriched maize product.Results: Data from 98 patients (mean age 39.7 years; standard deviation 8.9 years) were assessed. Prior to intervention, the median BMI was 20 kg/m2 (range 12.6–29.7 kg/m2); the patients from Kuruman had a greater incidence of underweight compared to the other towns, with a median BMI of 17.9 kg/m2. Of the 87 patients assessed during the final week, 49.4% experienced weight gain and 40.2% lost weight. Eighteen (20.7%) patients gained more than 5% of their baseline weight, which was significant. Only eight (9.2%) patients lost more than 5% of their baseline weight. Twenty-two patients who presented with a BMI 18.5 kg/m2 presented with no change in median weight.Conclusions: Nutritional supplementation, provided according to provincial policy and combined with ARVs, nutritionally benefitted about half of the patients in the ARV programme in the Northern Cape.Keywords: nutrition supplementation; HIV-infection; ARV; adults; nutritional statu

Recombinant alpha-interferon as salvage therapy in multiple myeloma

Ten patients with end-stage multiple myeloma refractory to conventional chemotherapy and hemibody irradiation received recombinant α-interferon as salvage therapy. The median duration of treatment was 8 weeks. One patient had an objective response and survived 8 months, whereas in the remaining 9 patients the disease progressed and median survival was 11,5 weeks. Side-effects were substantial and included confusion with extreme weakness, resulting in 5 patients refusing further therapy. The low response rate and the morbidity in this pilot study resulted in its discontinuation and the conclusion that recombinant α-interferon as singleagent therapy used for salvage in patients with refractory myeloma is of no value.S Afr Med J 1989; 76: 100-10

The appropriateness of patients' visits to an emergency department.

Aim: The appropriateness of patient visits to an emergency unit was investigated in this study. Method: This descriptive study included 2968 patient cards from the National District Hospital, Bloemfontein emergency unit during 2003. Patient information was evaluated according to predetermined criteria to determine whether a visit was appropriate or not. Results: The patient's ages varied between 0 to 97 years (median 29 year) and 50.8% was female. Informal residencies presented 26.4% of patient's neighbourhoods. The most common chronic condition was hypertension (7.9%). Only 8.4% of patients already used medication for their presenting condition. Most (72.4%) patients presented after hours and 36.6% presented during weekends. The total number of injuries was 22.9% and 75.6% were examined for medical or surgical problems. The criterion with the most visits was the trauma category (21.8%). The criterion with the least patients (0.3%) was the criterion for significant bleeding. According to the results more than a third (35.4% ; 95% CI 33.7% ; 37.2%) of the patient visits can be seen as inappropriate. Conclusion: The emergency unit is used inappropriately South African Family Practice Vol. 49 (4) 2007: pp. 1

Rhizobial characterization in revegetated areas after bauxite mining.

Little is known regarding how the increased diversity of nitrogen-fixing bacteria contributesto the productivity and diversity of plants in complex communities. However, some authorshave shown that the presence of a diverse group of nodulating bacteria is required for dif-ferent plant species to coexist. A better understanding of the plant symbiotic organismdiversity role in natural ecosystems can be extremely useful to define recovery strategies ofenvironments that were degraded by human activities. This study used ARDRA, BOX-PCRfingerprinting and sequencing of the 16S rDNA gene to assess the diversity of root nodulenitrogen-fixing bacteria in former bauxite mining areas that were replanted in 1981, 1985,1993, 1998, 2004 and 2006 and in a native forest. Among the 12 isolates for which the 16SrDNA gene was partially sequenced, eight, three and one isolate(s) presented similarity withsequences of the genera Bradyrhizobium, Rhizobium and Mesorhizobium, respectively. The rich-ness, Shannon and evenness indices were the highest in the area that was replanted theearliest (1981) and the lowest in the area that was replanted most recently (2006)

Internet use among university students: A reason for concern?

International studies reveal that students have more freedom, as well as unstructured and unsupervised time, which makes them susceptible to problematic internet use (PIU). Although students are a risk group for PIU, no evidence of local research on internet use among students could be identified. This article reports on a study on the nature and impact of internet use among students at a tertiary institution. A quantitative research approach was adopted and a survey with a group-administered questionnaire was conducted with 295 second-year students (between 18 and 25 years) registered for a module in a basic social science. Respondents were recruited through convenience sampling. The nature of internet use was explored with reference to internet platforms, reasons for internet use, devices for connecting to the internet, and the locations where respondents access the internet. The impact of internet use was explored through eight constructs adopted from two screening instruments in the public domain, i.e. the Internet-Related Addictive Behaviour Inventory and the Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire. The research results were calculated by means of descriptive and association statistics, specifically the chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests. Ethical considerations, such as informed consent and voluntary participation, were observed. The research results revealed that the respondents preferred email and chatting as internet platforms, while they used the internet mostly for extrinsic reasons, such as for assignments and socialising. Online activities occurred mostly on campus and at home during the early evenings via mobile phones or laptops. The respondents scored relatively low on the constructs measuring PIU. However, two constructs ‘escape from problems’ and ‘loss of control’ presented with markedly higher scores and could be flagged as potential risk areas. Furthermore, association statistics indicated a statistically significant difference of some constructs with regard to gender and the romantic relationship status of respondents, which could be considered in the provision of student support services. The development and evaluation of evidence-based interventions for the prevention, treatment and management of PIU are recommended

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi diversity in revegetated areas after bauxite mining.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are obligatory biotrophs that have a symbiotic evolutionary relationship with about 80% of all terrestrial plant species. The fungus mainly supplies water and nutrients to the plant and receives photoassimilates. The AMF diversity affects both the competition among species and floristic composition of an area. Fluctuations in the population of this group of microorganisms can cause fluctuations in plant populations above ground. In this work, the AMF community profile in areas with different ages of revegetation was evaluated by morphological identification of spores and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) techniques. We found 12 AMF species and dominance of the species Glomus macrocarpum determined by spore density. Since the richness level observed in each plot was low and there was predominance of one species of AMF, it can be concluded that these areas still present a high degree of disturbance. It was possible to detect complex band profiles by DGGE analyses for the two plant species studied, Visnia latifolia and Cecropia hololeuca. No relationship between AMF diversity and revegetation time was observed in these areas