Editorial – Article Keyword Selection

Keyword selection is the second Sudan Journal of Medical Sciences (SJMS) short guidance piece on the international academic standards. As a Section Editor at SJMS, I am honored to be invited to write in this series. In future, I can see SJMS leading the way to improving the publishing standards in Sudan's medical field. And with the current practice and unique services that SJMS provides for their readers and authors, it marks its step to be one of the best regional journals in the discipline. The Importance of Keywords As authors, we aspire to share our work among the readers in our field and get appropriately cited. Here comes the volume for the authors' keywords. The first journey for each manuscript begins with a literature review in which the indexing databases such as Scopus and PubMed are searched for any present work related to our ideas. This ends by the citation of most of those works in our reference list. It is curial to select your keywords so that it acts as a promoter for your work among your colleagues. Apart from being used by the indexing service to classify your work, keywords for the publisher and the editorial board serve as a guidance for choosing the referee for your article and your paper's subject. How to choose your keyword? First, make a list of words from the manuscript, which you believe represents the work's essential idea. They could also be a phrase (e.g., colon cancer). Most researchers use sentences or phrases in search engines. Do not use words from your title, as this will decrease the chances of the article appearing during the logarithmic search. There is also a word generator engine like MeSH on Demand, a google keyword planner. Each journal has its own maximum number of keywords; for SJMS, the number of keywords are specified according to the article types. Next, have a look at the standard term used for indexing in the medical field (MeSH, PsycInfo, and others) and ensure that the keyword of your choice is listed there. Lastly, go through the standard search engine used commonly by professionals in your field and type it to see if the same titles as yours come up. To publish means to be known. I believe each article's minor part deserves the same input as a significant section

Alcohol and the heart: to abstain or not to abstain?

Alcohol has been consumed by most societies over the last 7000 years. Abraham Lincoln said It has long been recognized that the problems with alcohol relate not to the use of a bad thing, but to the abuse of a good thing. Light to moderate alcohol consumption reduces the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic stroke, peripheral arterial disease, CHD mortality, and all-cause mortality, especially in the western populations. However, heavy alcohol consumption is detrimental causing cardiomyopathy, cardiac arrhythmias, hepatic cirrhosis, pancreatitis, and hemorrhagic stroke. In this article, we review the effects of alcohol on CHD, individual cardiovascular risk factors, cardiomyopathy, and cardiac arrhythmias, including the most recent evidence of the effects of alcohol on CHD

Public Awareness of Sepsis and Stroke in Singapore: A Population-Based Survey

Abstract Introduction: Management guidelines emphasise the importance of prompt therapeutic intervention for sepsis as well as stroke, both of which are common causes of death. Unfortunately, a rate-limiting step may be delayed presentation to the emergency department by patients themselves. The aim of this study was to assess public awareness of sepsis and stroke in Singapore. Materials and Methods: This was a population-based, structured telephone survey of adults in Singapore. Results: There were 1067 completed surveys (response rate 50.3%). The survey population was mostly comparable with the actual Singapore population. Fifty-three respondents (5.0%) had heard of the term sepsis. Of these, 45 respondents (4.2%) could provide at least one accepted defi nition of sepsis, the commonest being that of an unspecifi ed infection. Respondents mostly heard about sepsis from school, the Internet, and newspapers. On the other hand, 963 respondents (90.3%) had heard of the term stroke. Of these, 818 respondents (76.7%) could name at least one accepted warning sign of stroke, the commonest being that of numbness, while 806 respondents (75.5%) could name at least one accepted risk factor for stroke, the commonest being hypertension. Respondents mostly heard about stroke from television, newspapers, a relative, a friend, media (unspecifi ed), and the Internet. Conclusion: Our fi ndings refl ect the differences in the public profi le of sepsis versus stroke in Singapore. More concerted efforts involving healthcare professionals, medical societies, statutory boards, and the mass media are required to improve public awareness of these 2 conditions -especially sepsis

Splenic infarction: an update on William Osler\u27s observations.

BACKGROUND: Osler taught that splenic infarction presents with left upper abdominal quadrant pain, tenderness and swelling accompanied by a peritoneal friction rub. Splenic infarction is classically associated with bacterial endocarditis and sickle cell disease. OBJECTIVES: To describe the contemporary experience of splenic infarction. METHODS: We conducted a chart review of inpatients diagnosed with splenic infarction in a Jerusalem hospital between 1990 and 2003. RESULTS: We identified 26 cases with a mean age of 52 years. Common causes were hematologic malignancy (six cases) and intracardiac thrombus (five cases). Only three cases were associated with bacterial endocarditis. In 21 cases the splenic infarction brought a previously undiagnosed underlying disease to attention. Only half the subjects complained of localized left-sided abdominal pain, 36% had left-sided abdominal tenderness; 31% had no signs or symptoms localized to the splenic area, 36% had fever, 56% had leukocytosis and 71% had elevated lactate dehydrogenase levels. One splenectomy was performed and all patients survived to discharge. A post hoc analysis demonstrated that single infarcts were more likely to be associated with fever (20% vs. 63%, p \u3c 0.05) and leukocytosis (75% vs. 33%, P = 0.06) CONCLUSIONS: The clinical presentation of splenic infarction in the modern era differs greatly from the classical teaching, regarding etiology, signs and symptoms. In patients with unexplained splenic infarction, investigation frequently uncovers a new underlying diagnosis

Outcome of pregnancies in epileptic women: a study in Saudi Arabia

AbstractWe studied the outcome of 79 pregnancies in 44 Saudi women who had epilepsy. Their mean age was 28 ± 6.5 years and the number of pregnancies studied varied from one to six. Nineteen subjects had generalized seizures, 16 had partial seizures and nine were unclassified. The commonest drug prescribed was carbamazepine and the majority of the women (61%) were on monotherapy. The seizures were controlled in 53 pregnancies (67%). Spontaneous vertex deliveries were the commonest. The indications for intervention by lower segment Caesarean section, forceps or ventouse were foetal distress, pre-eclamptic toxaemia (PET), eclampsia, breech presentation and prolonged labour. The most frequent adverse outcome in the babies was low birth weight (<2.5 kg) in nine pregnancies. The frequency of congenital malformation was 2.5%. Low birth weight was associated with prematurity, PET, congenital malformation and polytherapy. Avoidance of polytherapy appears to be the most feasible intervention in reducing the frequency of low birth-weight children by epileptic mothers

Antiepileptic drug research in Asia: Where do we go from here?

Abstract Efforts in clinical research of antiepileptic drug therapy in Asia have traditionally biased towards postmarketing surveillance studies

Altered Fibrin Clot Structure in the Healthy Relatives of Patients With Premature Coronary Artery Disease

Background-A family history of premature coronary artery disease (CAD) is an independent cardiovascular risk factor. Fibrin clots composed of dense fiber networks are found in young CAD patients and may occur in the relatives of such individuals. Methods and Results-The ex vivo fibrin structure of 100 healthy male relatives of patients with premature CAD and 100 age-matched control subjects was assessed by measurement of permeability (K s ), fiber mass-length ratio (), and turbidity (lag phase and maximum absorbency [max ⌬Abs]). Scanning electron microscopy was performed on selected samples. Relatives and controls shared similar levels of conventional cardiovascular risk factors. K s was lower in relatives than in controls, 12.2 (11.1 to 13.3) versus 15.2 (14.0 to 16.5) ϫ10 Ϫ9 cm 2 ( PϽ0.001), associated with a smaller decrease in , 8.5 (7.7 to 9.2) versus 9.7 (8.9 to 10.5) ϫ10 13 Da/cm (PϽ0.05), respectively. Lag phase was shorter in relatives than in controls, 39 (37 to 41) versus 47 (44 to 50) seconds (PϽ0.001), and max ⌬Abs was higher in relatives, 0.78 (0.74 to 0.82) versus 0.71 (0.67 to 0.74) in controls (Pϭ0.02), which indicates the presence of thicker fibers in relatives. After adjustment for fibrinogen levels, lag phase and K s remained significantly different between relatives and control subjects. Scanning electron microscopy images confirmed increased fiber diameter in relatives, possibly of reduced density. Factor XIII Val34Leu and fibrinogen A␣ Thr312Ala and B␤ -455 G/A showed no association with clot structure. Conclusions-The male relatives of patients with premature CAD form fibrin clots that begin polymerization more quickly, have thicker fibers, and are less permeable than those of control subjects

Effects of HIV Proteins on Macrophage Response to MAI

https://digitalcommons.unmc.edu/surp2023/1006/thumbnail.jp

Filicide-Suicide Involving Children With Disabilities

Abstract Filicide-suicide, or murder of a child by a parent followed by suicide, has an unknown incidence in both the general and disabled population. As there is no national database, the authors examined known associated factors and newspaper reports to characterize filicide-suicide victims and perpetrators involving children with disabilities. A newspaper search was conducted using LexisNexis and NewsBank: Access World News databases through the University of California, Irvine Library&apos;s Web site. Age, gender of child and parent, method used, and diagnoses of parent and child were recorded. Twenty-two news articles were found describing a total of 26 disabled children as victims of filicide-suicide between 1982 and 2010. Eighty-one percent of children killed were male, and 54% were autistic. Thirty percent of perpetrators had a reported mental illness. Male children or children with autism may be at risk for filicide-suicide, but accurate record keeping is needed to determine the incidence and risk factors and aid in its prevention in the disabled population