Spontaneous Achilles tendon rupture in alkaptonuria

Spontaneous Achilles tendon ruptures are uncommon. We present a 46-year-old man with spontaneous Achilles tendon rupture due to ochronosis. To our knowledge, this has not been previously reported in Sudan literature. The tendon of the reported patient healed well after debridement and primary repairs

Why do people prefer traditional bonesetters in Sudan?

Background: In Sudan as in other developing nations, traditional bonesetters play a significant role in primary fracture care. There is widespread belief in our society that TBS are better at fracture treatment than orthodox practitioners. Significant numbers of patients with fractures present first to the traditional bonesetters before coming to the hospital and therefore this mode of care delivery cannot be overlooked in Sudan. Objectives: A prospective study designed to determine the reasons of why a considerable number of people prefer to go to the traditional bonesetters in Sudan.Patients and methods: This prospective two stages study was carried out in two different stages, 1st stage in 2006 targeted general population, and the 2nd stage in the period from May 2009 to September 2009 targeted traditional bonesetters and their patients. In the 1st stage of the study we distributed a predesigned questionnaire to general population, while in the 2nd stage of the study we visited different traditional bonesetter in order to interview them and their visitors and completing the early prepared Performa. We excluded the too elderly patients and children who have nodecisions to choose TBS.Results: In the 1st stage of study the participants were 199 of them, 192 participants responded well to the questionnaire. The reasons why they went to traditional bonesetters were; in 71 participants (37%) was their beliefs, in 27 (14.06%) was due to the low cost, and in 27 (14.06%) was due to fear of plaster. In the 2nd stage of the study 276 participants fulfilled the criteria of the research. The reason why they went to traditional bonesetters; in 63 candidates (22.8%) was their beliefs (P value < 0.003), in 53 (19.2%) was low cost (P value < 0.05), and in 46 (16.7%) was due to fear of cast or amputation. Study included sixteen traditional bonesetters, of them 14 were males and 2 were females. One of them has a bachelor graduation from faculty of sciences. 11 (68.8%) traditional bonesetters accepted the idea of regular training under medical supervision.Conclusion: Despite an adequate number of physicians practising in the region, traditional bonesetters continue to be consulted. Study showed that a belief is the most leading cause of consulting traditional bonesetters, other causes including fear of plaster or amputation and less cost. We recommend that the efficacy of their treatments have to be further assessed.Keywords: Traditional bonesetter (TBS); Beliefs, medical services

The sensitivity and specificity of the conventional symptoms and signs in making a diagnosis of acute appendicitis

Introduction: Simple appendicitis can progress to perforation, which is associated with a much higher morbidity and mortality. So, surgeons have therefore been inclined to operate when the diagnosis is probable rather than wait until it is certain. Objective: This study is designed to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of clinical examination in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis.Methods: The study included 866 patients of acute appendicitis who had undergone appendicectomy with preoperative diagnosis of acute appendicitis. They were analyzed retrospectively. The parameters evaluated were age/gender, clinical presentation (signs and symptoms) and total white blood cell counts. The operative findings were recorded and the inflammation of the appendix was graded into normal, acutely inflamed and gangrenous.Results: Clinical diagnosis was made correctly in 807 (93.2%) of the patients. White blood cells count ranged from 3.70 to 45.30 /mm3 (mean 17.5353 /mm3). It wa

Perceptions, Experiences and Expectations of Physicians Regarding the Role of the Pharmacist in an Iraqi Hospital Setting

Purpose: To investigate the perceptions, expectations, and experiences of physicians regarding hospital-based pharmacists in some Iraqi government hospitals.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at four government hospitals in Baghdad and Erbil, Iraq from March to July 2012. A validated, self-administered questionnaire was hand-delivered to a random sample of 200 physicians. The questionnaire comprised four sections that probed the physicians' demographic characteristics as well as their perceptions of, expectations of, and experiences with hospital pharmacists.Results: Most participants (69.4 %) reported rarely interacting with pharmacists and that enquiring about the availability of medications was the main purpose (74.9 %) of any interactions. Physicians reported being comfortable with pharmacists preventing prescription error, treating minor illness, and suggesting prescription medication to physicians of 74, 75 and 67 %, respectively, but only 47 % were comfortable with pharmacists providing patient education. The perspective of physicians in Erbil differed from that of physicians in Baghdad (p &lt; 0.05).Conclusion: Interactions between Iraqi physicians and pharmacists are still not optimal. Physicians are much more comfortable with traditional pharmacist functions than with the extended, patient-oriented pharmacy services currently being promoted. Great efforts are needed to enhance the Iraqi physician's attitude regarding the clinical services provided by pharmacists which in turn would result in more collaboration among healthcare professionals.Keywords: Physician, Pharmacist, Perception, Experience, Expectation, Patient-oriented, Pharmacy servic

Thyroid cancers in nodular goitres in Northwestern Nigeria

Background : Cancer is an occasional incidental finding in nodular goitres, but there has been no formal study on this disease in our centre which is located in an endemic goitrous region. Aims and objectives: To determine the prevalence and pattern of malignant growths in multinodular goitres. Methodology : This is a seven year (2000-2006) retrospective study of all histologically diagnosed malignancies within nodular goitres at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano Results : There were 160 multinodular goitres during the study period, out of which 24 (15.0%) had histologically diagnosed cancer and one out of the thirteen patients with solitary thyroid nodule (7.6%) had carcinoma. The ages of the patients with carcinoma ranged from 16 to 65 years, with a mean age of 38.8 years. Eighteen (72%) were females, and 7(28%) were males. Six out of the 25 cases of carcinoma were detected preoperatively by fine needle aspiration cytology. Well differentiated follicular carcinoma was the predominant histological type in 13 (52%) cases, followed by papillary in ten (40%), medullary carcinoma in one (4%) and anaplastic carcinoma in one (4%) patient. Conclusion : One-seventh of nodular goitres in our centre harboured malignancy, and follicular carcinoma was the prevalent histological type. This is consistent with the findings elsewhere in endemic goitrous regions. Ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration would improve preoperative diagnosis and guide appropriate surgical management

Development of adhesive test for hot-poured crack sealants

Sealants may be defined as the flexible materials used in cracks and/or joints preventing moisture infiltration into the pavements. These materials should acquire certain adhesive and cohesive properties to remain intact in the cracks and/or joints. Hot-poured applied crack sealants are one of the most common preventive techniques in North America that extend pavement life. However, most of these applied sealants fail due to their poor adhesion to crack walls. Various tests are currently used to measure the sealants’ adhesive properties. Most of these tests apply a mechanical load (tensile, shear, bending, torsion, and peeling) or study the chemistry at the interfaces, especially the molecular and interatomic forces generated at the interfaces. These tests, however, either lack a real correlation with field performance or have not yet been validated. This study introduces the development of a procedure for an adhesive prediction test, tensile adhesive method (TAM). It also evaluates the feasibility of two other tests: the single end notch interface (SENI) test and sessile drop method (SDM). TAM test, which is a modified version of the current crack sealant adhesion tester (CSAT) test, shows consistent results among specimens and users. In addition, it was successful in capturing the effect of temperature changes and aging effects. It is concluded that good adhesive properties of hot-poured crack sealant are required for desired field performance, which can be predicted from lab-aged specimen test results. However, other factors affecting sealant performance should be considered, including sealant installation, stiffness, and other preventive maintenance applied to the pavement

Assessment of cotton-seed (Gossypium species) meal as ingredient in the diet of Clarias gariepinus juveniles

The effect of feeding graded levels of cotton GossypiumSpp. seed meal as an inclusion in the diet of Clariasgariepinus juveniles for growth performance was analysed in comparison with the conventional commercial fish feed. Six experimental rations formulated were cotton-seed Gossypium spp. meal replaced fish meal at graded levels of 20%, 30%, 40% 50%, and 100% and were fed to Clarias gariepinus juveniles for 56 days. The experiment was conducted in six outdoor concrete tanks in the Department of Biological Sciences Garden, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. Data for each parameter were subjected to Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and the means for various experimental diets were compared for significant differences at 0.05% level of inclusion. The results showed that fish fed with diet contained 20% cottonseed meal (D1) gave the best Body Weight Gain (81.28g), Specific Growth Rate (2.23), and Condition Factor (1.49), while diet contained 30% cottonseed meal (D2) gave the least Weight Gain (49.67g), Specific Growth Rate (1.58) Conversion Ratio (3.64) and Condition factor (0.79). The results were significantly different (p&lt;0.05) for both growth and feed utilization parameters. Therefore, cotton-seed meal can be used as a replacement for fish meal at 20% level of inclusion. The results established significant reduction in production cost while optimal production is achieved.Keywords: Cotton-seed (Gossypium species), Diet, Growth performance, Clariasgariepinus juvenile

Histiocytosis X

Histiocytosis X (Langerhan’s cell granulomatosis) is a disease of unknown aetiology, but viral origin has been implicated.1 It is a clinicopathologic entitycharacterized by proliferation of Langerhan’s cell (which are not primarily phagocytic) in an appropriate milieu.

Trisomy 9 syndrome in a neonate with unusual features

Aim of the Work: To report a newborn infant with multiple congenital anomalies and apparent complete trisomy 9 in the blood. Review will be included.Methods: Clinical examination, TORCH screening, echocardiography, skeletal survey, ultrasound head and abdomen were done. In addition chromosomal analysis of a peripheral blood sample using GTG, CBG banding and FISH techniques were employed.Results: Multiple congenital anomalies including craniofacial features, centralnervous, cardiovascular, skeletal, gastric and urogenital systems becauseof chromosomal abnormality which indicated: 47, XY, inv (9) (p12;q13) + inv(9) (p12;q13) mat. Conclusion: Our case could be a new case of apparently complete trisomy 9syndrome with unusual findings.Key Words: Trisomy 9, congenital anomalies, karyotype, FIS

Abelian-Higgs and Vortices from ABJM: towards a string realization of AdS/CMT

We present ans\"{a}tze that reduce the mass-deformed ABJM model to gauged Abelian scalar theories, using the fuzzy sphere matrices $G^\alpha$. One such reduction gives a Toda system, for which we find a new type of nonabelian vortex. Another gives the standard Abelian-Higgs model, thereby allowing us to embed all the usual (multi-)vortex solutions of the latter into the ABJM model. By turning off the mass deformation at the level of the reduced model, we can also continuously deform to the massive $\phi^4$ theory in the massless ABJM case. In this way we can embed the Landau-Ginzburg model into the AdS/CFT correspondence as a consistent truncation of ABJM. In this context, the mass deformation parameter $\mu$ and a field VEV $$ act as $g$ and $g_c$ respectively, leading to a well-motivated AdS/CMT construction from string theory. To further this particular point, we propose a simple model for the condensed matter field theory that leads to an approximate description for the ABJM abelianization. Finally, we also find some BPS solutions to the mass-deformed ABJM model with a spacetime interpretation as an M2-brane ending on a spherical M5-brane.Comment: 43 pages, latex, explanations added in the introduction, end of section 4, and on page 2