Recent Articles

The examination of saliva traces left on cigarette butts as evidences are complicated due to the availability of biological material in trace amounts and its rapid degradation due to extreme effects of environmental factors. This study is aimed to assess the DNA purity and quantify the amount of DNA preserved in saliva found on cigarette butts subjected to various temperatures and humidity. Isolation of cell material from biological traces on forensic evidence is often a serious challenge to solving forensic cases.

Deep endometriosis is a disease with a great negative impact on patient quality of life, requiring surgical treatment in tertiary centers and surgeons highly skilled in performing complex surgeries, and is associated with high rates of morbidity and related complications. We evaluated all cases of deep endometriosis operated by the same surgeon since 2011 to evaluate the profiles of patients, sites and organs affected, surgical indications and complications and to propose a standardization of the surgical technique used in our service.

Gastroschisis (GQS) and omphalocele are congenital defects of the abdominal wall; The GQS is a defect usually on the right side of the umbilical cord, where there is exposure of the intestinal loops and there is no membrane that covers them; The omphalocele is a defect through the umbilical cord, in which there is a herniation of the intra-abdominal organs, which are covered by a membrane. GQS is generally associated with minor abnormalities of the digestive tract and generally does not have an association with severe congenital abnormalities. The diagnosis can be made prenatally by Ultrasound (USG). The objective is to present a clinical case of gastroschisis associated with severe midline congenital anomalies, such as ectopia cordis, which is not frequent in these patients [1-4].

Here, we present a 43-year-old male with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) with previously placed intramedullary growing rods that sustained an atypical femur fracture (AFF) following long-term bisphosphonate use. He additionally experienced a non-traumatic ipsilateral femoral neck fracture that was successfully managed with operative stabilization. Despite previous reports following successful conservative management for AFF in patients with OI, nonunion developed requiring osteotomy and surgical stabilization.

We present a case report of a patient with Mounier-Kuhn syndrome. The clinical, radiological and endoscopic illustrations contribute to the awareness and recognizability of this rare and under-diagnosed pulmonary syndrome. It is characterized by tracheobronchomegaly and tracheomalacia, leading to ineffective mucociliary clearance, recurrent respiratory infections and bronchiectasis. Computed tomography is the golden standard for diagnosis. Etiology remains unknown. Prognosis depends on adequate treatment and prevention of respiratory infections.

1-D, 2-D gel electrophoresis, mass spectrometry and bioinformatics analysis were established and utilized to examine the changes in protein expressions associated with germination of Ceiba pentandra seeds.The change in protein pattern was analysed by 1-D and 2-D gel electrophoresis for better separation and to ascertain the pattern of protein mobilization during germination.

In 1987, the World Health Organization Global Programme on AIDS identified three phases of the HIV/AIDS epidemic: the epidemic of HIV, the epidemic of AIDS, and the epidemic of stigma and discrimination. The report also notified that the third phase is a central issue to the global AIDS challenge and the disease itself. Despite continued multilateral efforts to tackle HIV/AIDS, stigma and discrimination remain among the most poorly understood aspects of the epidemic. In this paper, stigma and discriminatory attitude among high school students was assessed.

Joint endoprosthesis are standard treatment in orthopedic surgery, but the risk of infection represents a major drawback for elderly patients with comorbidities. Therefore, we investigated joint endoprosthesis infections in Germany (2005-2012) focusing on elderly patients. We extrapolated infection related costs to estimate the burden for the health care system.

Laboratory bioassays were conducted in Calabar, Nigeria, to evaluate repellencies of the essential oils extracted from Xylopia aethiopica and Dennittia tripetala fruits, chemical constituents of the oils and their blends as well as compare repellencies of the blends with those of the constituents using a 3-day old adult Prostephanus truncatus, a primary pest of stored maize and dried cassava chips, cultured in the laboratory. Fresh fruits of X. aethiopica and D. tripetala, 100 g each was collected, washed and dried, then pounded separately using laboratory pestle and mortar for the extraction of essential oils

Dental carries is a disease with both high prevalence and severity in adults’ worldwide population. Dental carries affect over half of the population in both developed and developing countries globally. Since the outcomes from dental carries are mostly discrete, they are often modelled using count regression models. It is therefore the purpose of this study to determine the appropriate count regression model that efficiently fits the Decayed Mining and Filled Teeth Data (DMFTDATA) and further identify the key risk factors contributing significantly to dental carries in adults in Ghana using the appropriate count regression model.

We propose a novel strategy to predict unknown data from a smaller sample size by using compressive sensing which is one of the information technology used in artificial intelligence. In this study, we applied the compressive sensing to an empirical sample of clinical trials comprising of two groups. Each group required the time data of 25 patients but the data of 12 more patients had to be acquired to satisfy alpha and beta errors.

Celiac disease (CD) is a systemic chronic immune-mediated disorder that is associated with weight loss, diarrhea, and laboratory abnormalities. Celiac disease (CD) is a disease in which the mucosal lining of the small intestine is damaged in response to the ingestion of gluten and similar proteins, which are found in wheat, oats, rye, barley and other grains. Children with CD are very common [1].

Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by an extreme sensitivity to UV rays from sunlight, a high incidence of skin cancer and occasional neurological symptoms. XP, primarily defined as a DNA repair syndrome, has been found associated with defects in the Nucleotide Excision Repair (NER) pathway, and more recently by transcriptional deregulation. XP results from mutations in eight genes (XPA to XPG and XPV) coding for proteins involved in NER.

Malnutrition remains a concern in the central province, despite being the most productive province in terms of Agriculture. Most studies in the province have not paid attention to the importance of women empowerment and the nutrition outcomes of the population. In light of this knowledge gap, this study focused on the Women’s empowerment and the nutrition status of children aged 6-59 months.

This work presents the first record of the regular sea urchin Sphaerechinus granularis in a coastal lagoon in the Mediterranean. S. granularis (Echinoidea: Echinodermata) was found for the first time in Bizerte lagoon (North Western Tunisia) associated with a population of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus at 5,5 m deep and on sandy mud substratum with Cymodocea nodosa beds. This finding demonstrates that the species can live in a semi enclosed Mediterranean ecosystem where the environmental conditions (i.e. temperature and salinity) are very variable.

Patients under two years of age who were admitted Emergency Department (ED) within three months due to MHT and who underwent cranial CT scan were included in the study. Trauma mechanisms, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores, symptoms (crying/unrest, vomiting, to refuse eating, drowsiness, loss of consciousness) and clinical signs (hyperemia/ecchymosis, abrasion, skin laceration, cephalohematoma, fontanel bulging) were retrospectively screened.

Cassava plays an important role as a food security crop in Sub – Saharan Africa. However, yields of cassava in Sierra Leone are generally low. Adoption of improved varieties resistant to the Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) which is one of the most limiting factors of production remains low. Therefore cultivation of local varieties infected with the cassava mosaic disease dominates the farming system in Sierra Leone.

SCAD with an estimated prevalence of 1.7% to 4% is an important cause of Myocardial infarction especially in middleaged women with no or minimal cardiovascular risk factors. Diagnosis requires a high degree of suspicion and better coronary imaging. The hereditary/ genetic component has been postulated to play a role, but there is insufficient data on familial SCAD. We present a case of SCAD with probable genetic and autoimmune association.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as measured by the EQ-5D (European quality of life-5 dimensions) self-report questionnaire in patients treated with complete revascularization versus infarct artery-only revascularization at index admission.

Introduction: The evolution of health models occurred along with the changes of the definition of health and rehabilitation but it is still unknown the predominant model of health that fits the clinical practice of physiotherapists who work in manual therapy. Aim(s): Creation of a questionnaire to assess the health model that fits the clinical practice of physiotherapists and after application,