Assessment of the insecticidal potency of neem (Azadirachta Indica) seed kernel methanolic and aqueous extracts on the malaria vector Anopheles gambiae

The potency of aqueous and methanolic extracts of neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) seed kernel, in inhibiting and disrupting development of Anopheles mosquito was assessed in the laboratory. Different concentrations of aqueous and methanolic extracts were tested on eggs, larvae and pupae. Both extracts were found to cause mortality on the specimens used and the level of mortality was concentration dependent. Mortality increased as the concentration increased. Methanolic extract of the neem seed kernel caused significantly higher (P = 0.05) mortality than aqueous extract. Few adults emerged among those treated with lowest concentration of 1 %( wt./vol.) aqueous extract, whereas no larvae or pupae survived to next stage in methanolic extract of the same concentrations. At highest concentration of 5 % (wt/vol), both extracts caused 100% mortality of larvae although the methanolic extract gave a quicker kill (12 hours) than the aqueous extract (24 hours). No egg hatched in all concentrations of both extracts

Twelve-month observational study of children with cancer in 41 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction Childhood cancer is a leading cause of death. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted childhood cancer mortality. In this study, we aimed to establish all-cause mortality rates for childhood cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the factors associated with mortality. Methods Prospective cohort study in 109 institutions in 41 countries. Inclusion criteria: children <18 years who were newly diagnosed with or undergoing active treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, retinoblastoma, Wilms tumour, glioma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma. Of 2327 cases, 2118 patients were included in the study. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality at 30 days, 90 days and 12 months. Results All-cause mortality was 3.4% (n=71/2084) at 30-day follow-up, 5.7% (n=113/1969) at 90-day follow-up and 13.0% (n=206/1581) at 12-month follow-up. The median time from diagnosis to multidisciplinary team (MDT) plan was longest in low-income countries (7 days, IQR 3-11). Multivariable analysis revealed several factors associated with 12-month mortality, including low-income (OR 6.99 (95% CI 2.49 to 19.68); p<0.001), lower middle income (OR 3.32 (95% CI 1.96 to 5.61); p<0.001) and upper middle income (OR 3.49 (95% CI 2.02 to 6.03); p<0.001) country status and chemotherapy (OR 0.55 (95% CI 0.36 to 0.86); p=0.008) and immunotherapy (OR 0.27 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.91); p=0.035) within 30 days from MDT plan. Multivariable analysis revealed laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR 5.33 (95% CI 1.19 to 23.84); p=0.029) was associated with 30-day mortality. Conclusions Children with cancer are more likely to die within 30 days if infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, timely treatment reduced odds of death. This report provides crucial information to balance the benefits of providing anticancer therapy against the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with cancer

Global patient outcomes after elective surgery: prospective cohort study in 27 low-, middle- and high-income countries.

BACKGROUND: As global initiatives increase patient access to surgical treatments, there remains a need to understand the adverse effects of surgery and define appropriate levels of perioperative care. METHODS: We designed a prospective international 7-day cohort study of outcomes following elective adult inpatient surgery in 27 countries. The primary outcome was in-hospital complications. Secondary outcomes were death following a complication (failure to rescue) and death in hospital. Process measures were admission to critical care immediately after surgery or to treat a complication and duration of hospital stay. A single definition of critical care was used for all countries. RESULTS: A total of 474 hospitals in 19 high-, 7 middle- and 1 low-income country were included in the primary analysis. Data included 44 814 patients with a median hospital stay of 4 (range 2-7) days. A total of 7508 patients (16.8%) developed one or more postoperative complication and 207 died (0.5%). The overall mortality among patients who developed complications was 2.8%. Mortality following complications ranged from 2.4% for pulmonary embolism to 43.9% for cardiac arrest. A total of 4360 (9.7%) patients were admitted to a critical care unit as routine immediately after surgery, of whom 2198 (50.4%) developed a complication, with 105 (2.4%) deaths. A total of 1233 patients (16.4%) were admitted to a critical care unit to treat complications, with 119 (9.7%) deaths. Despite lower baseline risk, outcomes were similar in low- and middle-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: Poor patient outcomes are common after inpatient surgery. Global initiatives to increase access to surgical treatments should also address the need for safe perioperative care. STUDY REGISTRATION: ISRCTN5181700

Bacteriological examination of the middle ear of school-aged children

Objective: To examine the middle ear of school children aged between 2-6 years attending both nursery and primary schools to see whether the bacteria associated with otitis medical can be isolated from their ears even without showing symptoms. Setting: University Demonstration Primary School, UNIZIK, Awka, Akpenyi Memorial Nursery and Primary School, Awka.Method: The bacteriological investigations were done using samples collected from the middle ears of children aged between 2-6yrs. Sample were collected using sterile swab sticks according to standard methods.Results: Out of 47 chlidren (24 boys and 23 girls), there were 30 whom bacteria responsible for otitis media were found. The commonest bacterium isolated was streptococcus pneumonia (50.0%) followed by Haemophilus influenza (16.7%). Others were Moraxella catarrhalis (10%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa(10%) Proteus mirabilis (6.7%), Esherichia coli (3.3%), Stapphyococcus aureus (3.3%). Conclusion: Gram–negative bacteria had the highest prevalence and were the commonest organisms from the middle ears of the children. Keywords: bacteriological examination, middle ear, school-aged childrenTropical Journal of Medical Research Vol. 9(1) 2005: 1-

Country-level correlates of the Dark Triad traits in 49 countries

PMID = 3255761

The fear of COVID-19 scale: Its structure and measurement invariance across 48 countries

COVID-19 has been a source of fear around the world. We asked whether the measurement of this fear is trustworthy and comparable across countries. In particular, we explored the measurement invariance and cross-cultural replicability of the widely-used Fear of COVID-19 scale (FCV-19S), testing community samples from 48 countries (N = 14,558). The findings indicate that the FCV-19S has a somewhat problematic structure, yet the one-factor solution is replicable across cultural contexts and could be used in studies that compare people who vary on gender and educational level. The validity of the scale is supported by a consistent pattern of positive correlations with perceived stress and general anxiety. However, given the unclear structure of the FCV-19S, we recommend using latent factor scores, instead of raw scores, especially in cross-cultural comparisons

Structure of Dark Triad Dirty Dozen Across Eight World Regions

PMID = 3248440

Country-Level Correlates of the Dark Triad traits in 49 Countries

Objectives: The Dark Triad traits (i.e., narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) capture individual differences in aversive aspects of personality to compliment work on the other taxonomies such as the Big Five traits. However, most studies on the Dark Triad traits rely on samples from English-speaking countries that are relatively advanced in socio-political development (e.g., Westernized).Method: We drew on data from 49 countries (N = 11,723; 65.8% female; AgeMean = 21.53) to examine how a wide net of country-level variables in economic status (e.g., Human Development Index), social relations (e.g., gender equality), political orientations (e.g., democracy), and cultural values (e.g., embeddedness) relate to country-level rates of the Dark Triad traits and variance in the magnitude of sex differences in them.Results: Narcissism was especially sensitive to country-level factors. Countries that had less advanced systems, with more embedded and hierarchical cultural systems, were more narcissistic as a population. Sex differences in narcissism were larger in more advanced societies, because women were less likely to be narcissistic in advanced as opposed to less advanced countries.Conclusions: We discuss the results using evolutionary and social role models of personality and sex differences. In particular, higher nation-level narcissism was more common in “less advanced” places and sex differences in narcissism were larger in “more advanced” places which is more consistent with evolutionary than social role models.</p