Bilharzia in a small irrigation community: an assessment of water and toilet usage

A study on the hygienic usage of pit- latrines to avert bilharziasis in rural Zimbabwe.A questionnaire study was conducted in the Mushandike small scale irrigation schemes in Zimbabwe to investigate the following: 1) to establish whether field latrines are used or not; 2) to find out why people visit natural water bodies for bathing and laundry instead of using water from boreholes for these purposes; 3) to assess people’s knowledge on the transmission and control of schistosomiasis. Results of the study indicated that die field latrines tire utilized and that the borehole water is not preferred for bathing and laundry because of its hardness and oily nature. The results further indicated that the community was aware of schistosomiasis but their knowledge on transmission and control of the disease was limited. Possible reasons for tire observations made tire discussed in die paper and recommendations emanating from the study are stated

Challenges of caring for children with mental disorders: Experiences and views of caregivers attending the outpatient clinic at Muhimbili National Hospital, Dar es Salaam - Tanzania

It is estimated that world-wide up to 20 % of children suffer from debilitating mental illness. Mental disorders that pose a significant concern include learning disorders, hyperkinetic disorders (ADHD), depression, psychosis, pervasive development disorders, attachment disorders, anxiety disorders, conduct disorder, substance abuse and eating disorders. Living with such children can be very stressful for caregivers in the family. Therefore, determination of challenges of living with these children is important in the process of finding ways to help or support caregivers to provide proper care for their children. The purpose of this study was to explore the psychological and emotional, social, and economic challenges that parents or guardians experience when caring for mentally ill children and what they do to address or deal with them. A qualitative study design using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions was applied. The study was conducted at the psychiatric unit of Muhimbili National Hospital in Tanzania. Two focus groups discussions (FGDs) and 8 in-depth interviews were conducted with caregivers who attended the psychiatric clinic with their children. Data analysis was done using content analysis. The study revealed psychological and emotional, social, and economic challenges caregivers endure while living with mentally ill children. Psychological and emotional challenges included being stressed by caring tasks and having worries about the present and future life of their children. They had feelings of sadness, and inner pain or bitterness due to the disturbing behaviour of the children. They also experienced some communication problems with their children due to their inability to talk. Social challenges were inadequate social services for their children, stigma, burden of caring task, lack of public awareness of mental illness, lack of social support, and problems with social life. The economic challenges were poverty, child care interfering with various income generating activities in the family, and extra expenses associated with the child's illness. Caregivers of mentally ill children experience various psychological and emotional, social, and economic challenges. Professional assistance, public awareness of mental illnesses in children, social support by the government, private sector, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are important in addressing these challenges

P130Cas Attenuates Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) Receptor Internalization by Modulating EGF-Triggered Dynamin Phosphorylation

BACKGROUND: Endocytosis controls localization-specific signal transduction via epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), as well as downregulation of that receptor. Extracellular matrix (ECM)-integrin coupling induces formation of macromolecular complexes that include EGFR, integrin, Src kinase and p130Cas, resulting in EGFR activation. In addition, cell adhesion to ECM increases EGFR localization at the cell surface and reduces EGFR internalization. The molecular mechanisms involved are not yet well understood. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We investigated the molecular mechanism by which p130Cas affects the endocytic regulation of EGFR. Biochemical quantification revealed that cell adhesion to fibronectin (FN) increases total EGFR levels and its phosphorylation, and that p130Cas is required for this process. Measurements of Texas Red-labeled EGF uptake and cell surface EGFR revealed that p130Cas overexpression reduces EGF-induced EGFR internalization, while p130Cas depletion enhances it. In addition, both FN-mediated cell adhesion and p130Cas overexpression reduce EGF-stimulated dynamin phosphorylation, which is necessary for EGF-induced EGFR internalization. Coimmunoprecipitation and GST pull-down assays confirmed the interaction between p130Cas and dynamin. Moreover, a SH3-domain-deleted form of p130Cas, which shows diminished binding to dynamin, inhibits dynamin phosphorylation and EGF uptake less effectively than wild-type p130Cas. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results show that p130Cas plays an inhibitory role in EGFR internalization via its interaction with dynamin. Given that the EGFR internalization process determines signaling density and specificity in the EGFR pathway, these findings suggest that the interaction between p130Cas and dynamin may regulate EGFR trafficking and signaling in the same manner as other endocytic regulatory proteins related to EGFR endocytosis

Burden of mental illness on family members, caregivers and the community

Objective: To determine the burden of mental illness in the family/caregiver and the community. Design: A cross-sectional descriptive study. Setting: Rehabilitation centres, community day centres, resettlement villages and in the community in three provinces (Harare, Bulawayo and Masvingo), Zimbabwe. Subjects: A sample size comprising sixty six care-givers and 126 patients were consecutively interviewed for the study. Results: The care-givers had a mean ± s.d. age of 48.8 ±15.7 years. The majority were females (80.3%), married males, 76.9% (p=0.073), unemployed females, 94.3% (p=0.0004) and parents of the patients accounted for 51.5%. Many respondents believed that the cause of mental illness was witchcraft (31%), they experienced financial constraints (63.6%), and spent a lot of money on food (56.1%). Patients were younger than their caregivers, with a mean ± s.d. age of 37.7 ± 12.8 years and mostly on medications (91.3%). Conclusion: The caregivers were mainly women and unemployed, whereas patients were mostly male. Caregivers were faced with multiple problems, but they were more tolerant to patients' behaviour than the community at large. (East African Medical Journal: 2002 79(4): 206-209

Barriers to healthcare access and coping mechanisms among sub-Saharan African migrants living in Bangkok, Thailand: a qualitative study

No AbstractKeywords: Access; healthcare utilization; barriers; sub-Saharan African; migrant; Thailan

Cancer awareness and perceived barriers to health seeking in a rural population

Background: Low cancer awareness may lead to delays in cancer screening behaviour and diagnosis.Objectives: We set out to assess public awareness of cancer and perceived barriers to seeking help among the rural population of Murewa district in a cross-sectional survey o f384 conveniently selected respondents.Methods: A self-administered and interviewer guided questionnaires were developed with the guide of the Cancer Awareness Measure (CAM) used in public awareness studies.Results: Awareness of the occurrence of cancer in the population was high with 90.1% responding that they had heard about cancer. However, 60.6% of the respondents could not explain what cancer is. An association was identified between educational level and awareness on the existence of cancer in the population (p=0.001). Age was also associated with awareness of the existence of cancer in the population (p<0.001). Level of education was also associated with awareness on types of cancers with breast cancer (p=0.0014), and prostate cancer (p=0.001). Barriers to health (help) seeking included low levels of awareness of the availability of cancer screening and not being able to afford treatment services. Other barriers to help seeking included fear of screening and the costs of screening services. Unavailability of preventive and curative services for cancer at primary care level was another barrier to help seeking.Conclusion: There is therefore an increasing need for health promotional interventions to raise public awareness of cancer and to create supportive environments for cancer prevention, screening, early detection and treatment.