Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Preliminary In Vitro Antisicklng Properties Of Crude Juice Extracts Of Persia Americana, Citrus Sinensis, Carica Papaya And Ciklavit�.

The antisickling properties of crude juice extracts of the edible portions of three commonly consumed tropical fruits namely Persia americana, Citrus sinensis, and Carica papaya were investigated in vitro alongside a new drug preparation called Ciklavit® that has antisickling activity. Four different solvent extracts of the crude juice of each fruit including aqueous, acidic, alkaline and alcoholic extracts were prepared and their antisickling effects on sickle cell trait (HbAS) and sickle cell disease (HbSS) blood samples checked alongside Ciklavit®. Blood samples were stabilized using normal saline and the antisickling effects were checked by counting the number of sickle cells remaining after incubation of the blood samples with the crude fruit extracts and Ciklavit® for twentyfour hours. The results showed that Ciklavit® produced a sustained reduction in the number of sickle cells in both HbAS and HbSS blood samples. Also the alkaline and alcoholic extracts of P. americana and C. papaya produced significant reduction in the number of sickle cells

Knowledge, attitude and practice of personal hygiene among students of Abayi Girls Secondary School, Aba, Abia State

Background: Personal hygiene deficiency diseases have been found to be a serious public health problem and people often affected are school children. These have been attributed to inadequate knowledge of personal hygiene and its practices.Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of personal hygiene among students of Abayi Girls' Secondary School, Aba.Methodology: This study is a cross-sectional descriptive study. Self/interviewer administered questionnaires were administered to the participants to elicit data on their socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge of, attitude and practice of personal hygiene. Data was collected at a single point in time.Results: The result showed that most of the respondents who participated in the study were in the 1015years age bracket. 91.3% have ever heard of personal hygiene and more than half of them (61.2%) said they heard of it from school.Conclusion: The outcome of this study reveals that majority of the students had a good level of personal hygiene knowledge with a somewhat lower level of personal hygiene practice. The type of house respondents lived in significantly affected their practice of personal hygiene.Keywords: Knowledge, Attitude, Practice, Personal Hygiene, Ab