Climate change and anthropogenic intervention impact on the hydrologic anomalies in a semi-arid area : lower Zab river basin, Iraq

Climate change impact, drought phenomena and anthropogenic stress are of increasing apprehension for water resource managers and strategists, particularly in arid regions. The current study proposes a generic methodology to evaluate the potential impact of such changes at a basin scale. The Lower Zab River Basin located in the north of Iraq has been selected for illustration purposes. The method has been developed through evaluating changes during normal hydrological years to separate the effects of climate change and estimate the hydrologic abnormalities utilising Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration. The meteorological parameters were perturbed by applying adequate delta perturbation climatic scenarios. Thereafter, a calibrated rainfall-runoff model was used for streamflow simulations. Findings proved that climate change has a more extensive impact on the hydrological characteristics of the streamflow than anthropogenic intervention (i.e. the construction of a large dam in the catchment). The isolated baseflow is more sensitive to the precipitation variations than to the variations of the potential evapotranspiration. The current hydrological anomalies are expected to continue. This comprehensive basin study demonstrates how climate change impact, anthropogenic intervention as well as hydro-climatic drought and hydrological anomalies can be evaluated with a new methodology

Bilateral anterior dislocation of the shoulders at the start of a backstroke competition

Bilateral anterior dislocation of the shoulders is very rare. A 20-year-old man presented with bilateral anterior shoulder dislocation as a result of a diving incident. He complained of pain and restriction of movement in both shoulders with abducted and externally rotated arms. Radiographs revealed that the shoulders were dislocated. The patient was treated with closed reduction and was able to resume swimming 3 months later. To our knowledge, this is the first bilateral anterior dislocation of the shoulders during a backstroke swimming competition that was caused by this mechanism of injury. The rarity of this lesion and its uncommon mechanism prompted us to relate this observation

Experience versus complication rate in third molar surgery

OBJECTIVES: The records of 1087 patients who underwent surgical removal of third molar teeth were prospectively examined to analyse the possible relationship between postoperative complications and the surgeon's experience parameter. METHOD AND MATERIALS: Seven surgeons (three specialists in surgical dentistry [specialists SD] and four oral and maxillofacial Senior House Officers [OMFS residents]) carried out the surgical procedures. For each patient, several variables were recorded including age, gender, radiographic position of extracted teeth, treating surgeon, duration of surgery and postoperative complications. RESULTS: Analysis of the data revealed some differences in the incidence of complications produced by the specialists SD and OMFS residents. The main statistically relevant differences were increase the incidences of trismus, nerve paraesthesia, alveolar osteitis and infection in the resident-treated group, while the specialist-treated group showed higher rates of post-operative bleeding. CONCLUSION: The higher rate of postoperative complications in the resident-treated group suggests that at least some of the complications might be related to surgical experience. Further work needs to compare specialists of training programmes with different years of experience, using large cross – sectional studies

An Improved Technique for Chromosomal Analysis of Human ES and iPS Cells

Prolonged in vitro culture of human embryonic stem (hES) cells can result in chromosomal abnormalities believed to confer a selective advantage. This potential occurrence has crucial implications for the appropriate use of hES cells for research and therapeutic purposes. In view of this, time-point karyotypic evaluation to assess genetic stability is recommended as a necessary control test to be carried out during extensive ‘passaging’. Standard techniques currently used for the cytogenetic assessment of ES cells include G-banding and/or Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH)-based protocols for karyotype analysis, including M-FISH and SKY. Critical for both banding and FISH techniques are the number and quality of metaphase spreads available for analysis at the microscope. Protocols for chromosome preparation from hES and human induced pluripotent stem (hiPS) cells published so far appear to differ considerably from one laboratory to another. Here we present an optimized technique, in which both the number and the quality of chromosome metaphase spreads were substantially improved when compared to current standard techniques for chromosome preparations. We believe our protocol represents a significant advancement in this line of work, and has the required attributes of simplicity and consistency to be widely accepted as a reference method for high quality, fast chromosomal analysis of human ES and iPS cells

Acute aortic dissection type A discloses Corpus alienum

We report an unusual case of an aortic type A dissection with a corpus alienum which compresses the right ventricle. The patient successfully underwent an aortic root replacement in deep hypothermia with re-implantation of the coronary arteries using a modified Bentall procedure and the resection of the corpus alienum. Intraoperative finding reveals 3 greatly adhered gauze compresses, which were most likely forgotten in the operation 34 years ago

East and west separation of Rhipicephalus sanguineus mitochondrial lineages in the Mediterranean Basin

Background: Rhipicephalus sanguineus belongs to a complex of hard tick species with high veterinary-medical significance. Recently, new phylogenetic units have been discovered within R. sanguineus, which therefore needs taxonomic revision. The present study was initiated to provide new information on the phylogeography of relevant haplotypes from less studied regions of Europe and Africa. With this aim, molecular-phylogenetic analyses of two mitochondrial markers were performed on 50 ticks collected in Hungary, the Balkans, countries along the Mediterranean Sea, Kenya and Ivory Coast. Results: In the "temperate lineage" of R. sanguineus, based on cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) and 16S rRNA genes, Rhipicephalus sp. I was only found in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Basin (with relatively homogenous haplotypes), whereas Rhipicephalus sp. II occurred in the middle-to-western part of this region (with phylogenetically dichotomous haplotypes). Ticks identified as R. leporis (based on morphology and cox1 gene) were found in Kenya and Ivory Coast. These clustered phylogenetically within R. sanguineus (s.l.) ("tropical lineage"). Conclusions: In the Mediterranean Basin two mitochondrial lineages of R. sanguineus, i. e. Rhipicephalus sp. I and Rhipicephalus sp. II exist, which show different geographical distribution. Therefore, data from this study confirm limited gene flow between Rhipicephalus sp. I and Rhipicephalus sp. II, but more evidence (analyses of nuclear markers, extensive morphological and biological comparison etc.) are necessary to infer if they belong to different species or not. The phylogenetic relationships of eastern and western African ticks, which align with R. leporis, need to be studied further within R. sanguineus (s.l.) ("tropical lineage")

An Outbreak of Dengue Fever in St. Croix (US Virgin Islands), 2005

BACKGROUND: Periodic outbreaks of dengue fever occur in the United States Virgin Islands. In June 2005, an outbreak of dengue virus (DENV) serotype-2 with cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) was detected in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. The objective of this report is to describe this outbreak of DENV-2 and the findings of a case-control study examining risk factors for DHF. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: This is the largest dengue outbreak ever recorded in St. Croix, with 331 suspected dengue cases reported island-wide during 2005 (62.2 cases/10,000 population); 54% were hospitalized, 21% had at least one hemorrhagic manifestation, 28% had thrombocytopenia, 5% had DHF and 1 patient died. Eighty-nine laboratory-positive hospitalized patients were identified. Of these, there were 15 (17%) who met the WHO criteria for DHF (cases) and 74 (83%) who did not (controls). The only variable significantly associated with DHF on bivariate or multivariable analysis was age, with an adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of 1.033 (1.003,1.064). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: During this outbreak of DENV-2, a high proportion of cases developed DHF and increasing age was significantly associated with DHF

High catechin concentrations detected in Withania somnifera (ashwagandha) by high performance liquid chromatography analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Withania somnifera </it>is an important medicinal plant traditionally used in the treatment of many diseases. The present study was carried out to characterize the phenolic acids, flavonoids and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging activities in methanolic extracts of <it>W. somnifera </it>fruits, roots and leaves (WSFEt, WSREt and WSLEt).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>WSFEt, WSREt and WSLEt was prepared by using 80% aqueous methanol and total polyphenols, flavonoids as well as DPPH radical scavenging activities were determined by spectrophotometric methods and phenolic acid profiles were determined by HPLC methods.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>High concentrations of both phenolics and flavonoids were detected in all parts of the plant with the former ranging between 17.80 ± 5.80 and 32.58 ± 3.16 mg/g (dry weight) and the latter ranging between 15.49 ± 1.02 and 31.58 ± 5.07 mg/g. All of the three different plant parts showed strong DPPH radical scavenging activities (59.16 ± 1.20 to 91.84 ± 0.38%). Eight polyphenols (gallic, syringic, benzoic, p-coumaric and vanillic acids as well as catechin, kaempferol and naringenin) have been identified by HPLC in parts of the plant as well. Among all the polyphenols, catechin was detected in the highest concentration (13.01 ± 8.93 to 30.61 ± 11.41 mg/g).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results indicating that <it>W. somnifera </it>is a plant with strong therapeutic properties thus further supporting its traditional claims. All major parts of <it>W. somnifera </it>such as the roots, fruits and leaves provide potential benefits for human health because of its high content of polyphenols and antioxidant activities with the leaves containing the highest amounts of polyphenols specially catechin with strong antioxidant properties.</p

A six-year descriptive analysis of hospitalisations for ambulatory care sensitive conditions among people born in refugee-source countries

Background: Hospitalisation for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSHs) has become a recognised tool to measure access to primary care. Timely and effective outpatient care is highly relevant to refugee populations given the past exposure to torture and trauma, and poor access to adequate health care in their countries of origin and during flight. Little is known about ACSHs among resettled refugee populations. With the aim of examining the hypothesis that people from refugee backgrounds have higher ACSHs than people born in the country of hospitalisation, this study analysed a six-year state-wide hospital discharge dataset to estimate ACSH rates for residents born in refugee-source countries and compared them with the Australia-born population. Methods: Hospital discharge data between 1 July 1998 and 30 June 2004 from the Victorian Admitted Episodes Dataset were used to assess ACSH rates among residents born in eight refugee-source countries, and compare them with the Australia-born average. Rate ratios and 95% confidence levels were used to illustrate these comparisons. Four categories of ambulatory care sensitive conditions were measured: total, acute, chronic and vaccine-preventable. Country of birth was used as a proxy indicator of refugee status. Results: When compared with the Australia-born population, hospitalisations for total and acute ambulatory care sensitive conditions were lower among refugee-born persons over the six-year period. Chronic and vaccine-preventable ACSHs were largely similar between the two population groups. Conclusion: Contrary to our hypothesis, preventable hospitalisation rates among people born in refugee-source countries were no higher than Australia-born population averages. More research is needed to elucidate whether low rates of preventable hospitalisation indicate better health status, appropriate health habits, timely and effective care-seeking behaviour and outpatient care, or overall low levels of health care-seeking due to other more pressing needs during the initial period of resettlement. It is important to unpack dimensions of health status and health care access in refugee populations through ad-hoc surveys as the refugee population is not a homogenous group despite sharing a common experience of forced displacement and violence-related trauma