Infraclavicular arterio-arterial prosthetic loop is a safe and effective vascular access technique for haemodialysis in frail patients: a prospective observational study

Vascular access failure causes significant morbidity among end stage renal failure patients. With the increased life expectancy and frailty of those patients, maintaining vascular access became a great challenge. In this study, we assess the short and midterm outcomes of infraclavicular arterio-arterial prosthetic loop (IAAPL) as vascular access for haemodialysis in frail patients who have exhausted conventional vascular access methods. A prospective observational study of 43 patients undergoing IAAPL was conducted in a single centre between May 2017 and March 2020. Primary, assisted primary and secondary patency rates were recorded in addition to complications and patient compliance with access. The achieved primary, assisted primary and secondary patency rates at 6 months are 87.5%, 95%, 97.5% respectively, at one year, corresponding rates were 75%, 83.3%, 94.4% and at 18 months they were 68.6%, 77.1%, 85.7% respectively. There was no procedure related mortality and life-threatening complications during the study period. So we can assume that infraclavicular AAPL is a safe and effective method of obtaining alternative vascular access for hemodialysis in frail patients for whom the conventional vascular access for hemodialysis is not suitable or contraindicated

OPTIMIZATION OF n-HEXANE REFORMING AND KINETICS OF CATALYST REGENERATION

Catalytic naphtha reforming is practiced extensively in the petroleum-refining industry to convert low research octane number (straight chain paraffin) naphtha feed into high RON component (aromatics and branch isomers) with minimum average molecular weight changes needed for the modern auto-industry. A valuable byproduct, hydrogen, from the process is added bonus needed for hydro processing operations in the refinery. Depending on the operating conditions, hydrogen may be consumed in unwanted hydrocracking reactions which directly contribute to deactivate the catalyst. The present study looks into the optimization of process variable (pressure, temperature and contact time) to maximize isomerization and aromatization (increasing RON value) reaction while minimizing the hydrocracking (catalyst deactivation and reducing RON) reactions in n-hexane reforming using commercially available Pt/Al2O3 catalyst. From the results it is found that high temperature (723 K) with low hydrogen partial pressure (300 KPa) and low contact time (1.78 to 2.4 minutes) favor the production of isomers and aromatics over coke precursors and cracked product species. Addition of CCl4 to the n-hexane reforming process which increases the catalyst acidity, promotes the formation of cracked products. Selective poisoning using dimethyl-disulfide on the other hand is found to decrease monofunctional metal-catalyzed reactions and increased the activity for the isomerization reactions.. To understand and enhance n-hexane reforming the kinetics and catalyst regeneration are also investigated using TGA and TPO analysis. From TPO analysis it was found that applying slow heating rate was the most efficient and convenient way to control the regeneration process. The TGA results indicate that there exist three types of coke categorize as soft, hard and laid coke which can be distinguished by a temperature profile. It was found that the hard coke followed by soft coke makes up the major constituent of the coked catalyst which can be removed successfully by proper regeneration process

Impact Of Using Long Lasting Insecticidal Treated Nets (LLIN) And Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS), Single And In Combination On Insecticide Resistant Anopheles Arabiensis Patton (Diptera: Culicidae) In Republic Of The Sudan

Pengawalan vektor malaria di Sudan bergantung kepada penggunaan kelambu yang diimpregnasikan dengan insektisid yang tahan lama (LLINs) dan penyemburan residu dalam rumah (IRS) di kawasan perumahan Malaria vector control in Sudan depends on the deployment of long-lasting insecticidal treated nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS) in the domestic environmen

Prospective study of surgical management of femoral shaft fractures in children using tens nail

Background: Pediatric femoral shaft fractures are uncommon, constituting less than 2% of all fractures in children; yet they are a significant burden on healthcare systems and families as they are the most common fractures requiring hospitalization in children. In the recent studies, technique of flexible stable intra medullary pinning using titanium pins which is now popularly known as TENS has become the choice of operative management for pediatric femoral shaft fractures. We conducted a clinical prospective study on the use of Titanium Elastic Nailing System (TENS) for the treatment of femoral shaft fractures in children. Methods: This prospective study was carried out at Al-Ameen Medical College and Hospital, Vijayapura. Forty patients (32 males and 8 females) aged between 5-15 years with diaphyseal femur fracture were included in our study. Patients were treated with closed reduction and internal fixation with TENS. They were followed up for 6 months both clinically and radiologically. The functional outcome was evaluated using Flynn’s scoring criteria. Results: Forty patients were followed up for 6 months and their results were evaluated. The functional outcome using Flynn’s criteria was excellent in 24 patients, satisfactory in 14 patients and poor in 2 patients. Complications observed were limb length discrepancy, knee stiffness, superficial infection and nail protrusion. Conclusions: TENS has the advantages of early union, early mobilization, and manageable complications, making it an excellent choice for treating paediatric shaft femur fractures in patients aged 5 to 15 years

Microbial examination of drinking water supply systems of Elobeid city, Sudan

The present investigation was carried out to evaluate the microbial parameters of Elobeid drinking water supply systems, which comprise of Bara underground water system and the surface rainwater harvesting (RWH) system, during the period from July 2010–June 2011. Four samples from Bara and nine from RWH were collected. The microbial parameters were determined using different microbial techniques. The results showed that the mean total viable bacterial (TVC) and spore-forming bacteria counts in the RWH system were ranged as 80.26-1030.11 and 82.8-3479.8 cfu/ml, respectively and 4.67-110.5 and 0.83- 292.5 cfu/ml, respectively in Bara. Moreover, high counts of coliforms, faecal coliforms; faecal Streptococci, Salmonella, Staphylococci, Clostridia and Cyanobacteria were recorded in the RWH system, particularly during the rainy months (June–September), which not in agreement with international or local standards for drinking water. The predominant bacteria in the two water supply systems were Bacillus (6 species) Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas maltophilia, Enterobacter gergoviae, Enterobacter alvi, Proteus vulgaris, E. coli, Salmonella choleraesuis, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus faecium and Streptococcus faecalis, in addition to many Cyanobacterial genera: Lyngbya, Microcystis, Oscillatoria, Synechocystis, Anabaena, Leptolyngbya, Dermocarpa, Aphanizomenon, Schizothrix and Phormidium. The presence of those harmful bacteria in water before and after treatment in the RWH system indicated that water treatment measures adopted by the North Kordofan State Water Corporation (coagulation, sand filtration and disinfection by chlorination) do not guarantee acceptable levels of water disinfection. To alleviate these problems, blending of the two water systems and subsequent treatments to reduce microbial load were suggested as recommended point of view. Published by the International journal of Microbiology and Mycology (IJMM

OPTIMIZATION OF n-HEXANE REFORMING AND KINETICS OF CATALYST REGENERATION

Catalytic naphtha reforming is practiced extensively in the petroleum-refining industry to convert low research octane number (straight chain paraffin) naphtha feed into high RON component (aromatics and branch isomers) with minimum average molecular weight changes needed for the modern auto-industry. A valuable byproduct, hydrogen, from the process is added bonus needed for hydro processing operations in the refinery. Depending on the operating conditions, hydrogen may be consumed in unwanted hydrocracking reactions which directly contribute to deactivate the catalyst. The present study looks into the optimization of process variable (pressure, temperature and contact time) to maximize isomerization and aromatization (increasing RON value) reaction while minimizing the hydrocracking (catalyst deactivation and reducing RON) reactions in n-hexane reforming using commercially available Pt/Al2O3 catalyst. From the results it is found that high temperature (723 K) with low hydrogen partial pressure (300 KPa) and low contact time (1.78 to 2.4 minutes) favor the production of isomers and aromatics over coke precursors and cracked product species. Addition of CCl4 to the n-hexane reforming process which increases the catalyst acidity, promotes the formation of cracked products. Selective poisoning using dimethyl-disulfide on the other hand is found to decrease monofunctional metal-catalyzed reactions and increased the activity for the isomerization reactions.. To understand and enhance n-hexane reforming the kinetics and catalyst regeneration are also investigated using TGA and TPO analysis. From TPO analysis it was found that applying slow heating rate was the most efficient and convenient way to control the regeneration process. The TGA results indicate that there exist three types of coke categorize as soft, hard and laid coke which can be distinguished by a temperature profile. It was found that the hard coke followed by soft coke makes up the major constituent of the coked catalyst which can be removed successfully by proper regeneration process

A clinical study to evaluate the effectiveness of the short proximal femoral nail in the management of unstable intertrochanteric fractures

Background: The objective was to study the effectiveness and drawbacks of short proximal femoral nail in the management of unstable intertrochanteric fractures.Methods: This prospective study was conducted in the department of orthopaedics Al-Ameen medical college, Vijayapura, Karnataka, India from July 2010 to June 2017. Total 175 patients (130 males and 45 females) aged between 41 to 80 years with unstable Intertrochantreric fracture (155 had type IV and 20 had type III according to Boyd and Griffin classification). All patients were operated using Short proximal femoral nail and followed at least for a minimum period of 6 months and were evaluated radiologically and clinically by Kyle’s Criteria.Results: Anatomical reduction was achieved in 125 patients, 105 (60%) had no complications post operatively. Complications included 5 cases of avascular necrosis and screw cut out, 5 cases of delayed union, 5 cases of Z-effect, 20 cases of varus malunion, 10 cases of antirotation screw breakage, 5 cases of distal bolt breakage and 15 cases with lateral thigh discomfort. 125 patients had No shortening and the average shortening was 0.34 cm, average time of union was 19.26 weeks (15-30 weeks) in 170 cases. At the end of 6 months, good to excellent results were seen in 71.5% of cases, 57% patients returned to their pre injury functional level.Conclusions: Short proximal femoral nail provides good fixation for unstable intertrochanteric fractures, if proper pre-operative planning, good reduction and surgical techniques are followed leading to high rate of bone union and minimal soft tissues damage especially for Asian patients with relatively small femora

Effect of Malting Duration on Yield and Proximate Composition of ‘ Fura’ Produced with the Grains of Pennisetum typhoides

The  effects  of   malting  duration on yield  (g/kg)  and  proximate composition  of  ‘Fura’  produced from the  grains  of  Pennisetum typhoides was studied. The grains were cleaned and subjected to 24hr, 30hr and 36hr of malting. Unmalted grains used to produce the ‘Fura’ served as control (0hr, unmalted). Malting   of the grains up to 30hr caused a decrease in protein from 15.0 to 6.25% with a corresponding increase in carbohydrate from 25.14±0.71% to 39.65±0.32%. Further malting, up till 36hr showed reversed compositions of 16.67±1.4% and 26.20±2.55% for protein and carbohydrate respectively. Lipid content of 3.33% remained constant in unmalted and malted ‘Fura’ products. Ash and fibre were not affected significantly (p<0.05). However, the mean dry matter yield with unmalted Fura product (951.05d) was significantly different from the malted products at 24, 30 and 36hr of 920.38c, 850.38b, and 831.04a respectively. The colour, smell, taste and texture of the malted Fura’ products did not make them clearly distinct from each other. The effects of malting are only conspicuous on the protein and carbohydrate compositions, which may be taken advantage of in human nutritional issues. Keywords: Malting, Duration,  Yield, “Fura”, Pennisetum typhoides, Proximate composition.

The role of financial and non-financial incentives in influencing the improvement of the academic performance level of employees: An applied study in Baghdad’s private colleges

This research deals with the effect of job incentives in its two dimensions (financial and non-financial) as an independent variable on the dimensions of job performance (efficiency, effectiveness, productivity). Management is interested in improving the job performance of employees, in addition to knowing the extent to which management supports the motivation strategies followed. Sustainable development describes the dimensions of job performance mentioned above and the extent of their contribution to promoting and achieving the goals of the organization and testing the impact of the incentives variable on job performance. The research identified a set of hypotheses that were tested using the SPSS program, and a random sample of 50 professors and administrators working in the field of academic work in several private colleges was selected. The research reached a set of conclusions, the most important of which was that the total incentives had a weak role in the performance of the organization in question, except for the efficiency dimension, where it had a good role in influencing according to the variables included in the study model. The research also presented a set of recommendations and future proposals aimed at reducing the size of the studied problem