An assessment of household energy types, sources, uses and its implication on sustainable forest management, in the Buea municipality of the south west region of Cameroon

The study focused on the assessment of household energy types, sources, uses and their implications on sustainable forest management in the Buea Municipality of the South West Region of Cameroon. The study was carried out in the months of May- September 2005 and November-April 2006. The study made use of the random sampling technique for the administration of questionnaires. Along side the administration of the questionnaire, some selected Participatory rural Appraisal (PRA) tools were employed. Results revealed that, Fuel wood (FW), Kerosene (K), Sawdust (SD), Cooking gas (CG), Charcoal (CH), Rubber (RB), Electricity (EL), were the main energy types/sources identified in the Buea Municipality. Saw dust and Fuel wood were found to be the most frequently consumed energy type/source in the Buea Municipality with a resultant effect on  deforestation. On an aggregate weighting, the area was found to consume a total of about 253m3 of FW, 744Litres of K, 14602Kg of SD, 6360Litres of CG, 20625Kg of CH, 3861g of RB, and 40,299KW of EL in a month. Monthly total household expenditure on the various energy types/sources for the study area was evaluated at about 10496640 FRS CFA (US$ 20993). The quantity supplied and consumed of the identified energytypes/sources were observed to be adversely affected by income levels of consumers, market prices for these energy types/sources, seasons and the disappearing forest.KEYWORDS: Energy, Types, Sources, Household, Consumption

Antiinflammatory therapy with canakinumab for atherosclerotic disease

BACKGROUND: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P=0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P=0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P=0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P=0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P=0.31). CONCLUSIONS: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. Copyright © 2017 Massachusetts Medical Society