Attitude of the parents seeking service from the paediatricians

The overuse of antibiotics and other medicines have been standing a dangerous proposition and researchers are coming in fore front analyzing and assessing the aftermath of years of misperceptions and inappropriate usage of drugs prescribed by the pediatricians. Two hundred and two parents from the community as well as from the outpatient department of medical college hospitals were interviewed, to study their attitude while seeking for the health service for their children. Data were collected through a face-to-face interview using a structured questionnaire. One hundred and ninety nine (82.7%) of the parents interviewed were mothers and only 3 (1.5%) were fathers. One hundred and sixty-seven (82.7%) parents were from the urban population and the rest 35 (17.3%) were from rural areas. The mothers mean stay in the educational institution was 11.8 years and that of the father's was 13.1 years. About 34.7% parents had to seek for doctor's advice at least once or twice a month and around 43% had to visit doctor's clinic. Most (66.8%) of the parents were from the family earning tk.6000 to tk.20000 a month, 19.8% and 13.4 % were from the families earning below tk.6000 and above tk.20000 respectively. A vast majority of the parents expressed their preference for advice to medicines. Among the medicines they like antibiotics more than vitamins. Majority of the parents showed their interest to spend more time and to have less medicine. For anorexic children parents preferred advice to medicines. An overwhelming majority (98%) of the parents was interested to get advice and ORS for diarrhea. For ARI also a larger number (56.1%) of parents opted for advice only and no medicine at all but 37.1% kept their option for both. A large majority of the parents were preferring more frequent visit and having fewer medicines than the conditions of more medicines with less frequented visits.

Heterogeneous photocatalysed degradation of a herbicide derivative, isoproturon in aqueous suspension of titanium dioxide

Heterogeneous photocatalysed degradation of a herbicide derivative, N-(4-isopropylphenyl)-N',N'-dimethylurea (Isoproturon, 1) was investigated in aqueous suspensions of titanium dioxide by monitoring the change in absorption intensity and depletion in Total Organic Carbon content as a function of irradiation time. The degradation kinetics was studied under different conditions such as pH, catalyst concentration, substrate concentration, different types of TiO(2) and in the presence of electron acceptors such as hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), potassium bromate (KBrO(3)) and potassium persulphate (K(2)S(2)O(8)) besides molecular oxygen. The degradation rates were found to be strongly influenced by all the above parameters. The photocatalyst Degussa P25 was found to be more efficient as compared with other photocatalysts. An attempt was made to identify the degradation product through GC-MS analysis technique.

A comparative study of body iron status and lipid profile in acute myocardial infarction patients

This study was carried out to evaluate the relationship between body iron status and lipid profile in hospital admitted clinically diagnosed AMI patients considering the concept that there is a potential association between body iron status and coronary heart disease (CHD). Total 80 subjects were selected, of which 40 were healthy adults and 40 were AMI patients. Fasting blood samples were collected from healthy adults. Blood samples of AMI patients were collected within 24 hours of the attack of myocardial infarction. Body iron status was measured in term of 3 variables serum total iron concentration, TIBC and transferrin saturation. Lipid profile variables measure were total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-cholesterol and HDL-cholesterol. No correlation was found between serum iron and the variables of lipid profile. TIBC was found to maintain negative correlation with total cholesterol, triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol but positive correlation with HDL-cholesterol. Transferrin saturation was found to maintain strongly positive correlation with total cholesterol, triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol but strongly negative correlation with HDL-cholesterol. This correlation of TIBC and transferrin saturation with lipid profile supports the hypothesis that there is a potential association between body iron status and coronary heart disease.

Granulocytic differentiation of HL-60 cells, both spontaneous and drug-induced, might require loss of extrachromosomal DNA encoding a gene(s) not c-MYC

Treatment of HL-60 cells with drugs induces granulocytic differentiation and c-MYC down-regulation that is irreversible and associated with loss of DNase I-hypersensitive sites in c-MYC promoter. The expression of these phenotypes requires a slow process that appears to accompany a loss of c-MYC copies in double minutes via micronuclei. However, the drug treatment induced c-MYC down-regulation very early, though only reversibly. Here we show that we can resolve this paradox by assuming a gene(s) in other extrachromosomal, acentromeric DNA. Treatment with drugs might induce no down-regulation of this gene, but its complete elimination via micronuclei might be necessary and sufficient for the expression of the above phenotypes. Loss of c-MYC copies is unavoidable because the exclusion of extrachromosomal DNAs via micronuclei is at random. This conclusion is based on the observation of a substantial number of c-MYC copies in certain differentiated cells, irrespective of whether the differentiation was induced with drugs or without.

Evolution of large extrachromosomal elements in HL-60 cells during culture and the associated phenotype alterations

In the HL-60 sublines that were isolated after a long-term continuous culture, abnormally stained or abnormally banded regions on chromosomes replaced extrachromosomal double minutes. The c-MYC gene is amplified in these structures. We followed the c-MYC gene loci during a consecutive passage by using FISH, and have found a large extrachromosomal element (LEE) that preexisted at the earliest passage in a very small fraction of cells. No chromosomal integration of c-MYC sequences was observed in up to 225 passages. The LEEs persistently evolved during culture and were not excluded from the nucleus. In the LEE-positive cells, the spontaneous differentiation was blocked and the granulocytic differentiation that was induced by treatment with dimethyl sulfoxide was reversed by withdrawal of the drug. The c-MYC gene integration into LEEs is unlikely to lead to these phenotypes. The reversibility might be related to the reversible c-MYC down-regulation during the early phase of the drug treatment of HL-60 cells at early cell passages.

Analysis of human rotavirus G serotype in Bangladesh by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and polymerase chain reaction

Distribution of human rotavirus G serotype was investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with faecal specimens obtained from children with diarrhoea in Bangladesh. By ELISA, subgroup and G serotype were determined for 59.5% and 28.6% of group A rotavirus-positive specimens respectively. However, of the 120 specimens, the G serotype of which was not determined by ELISA, serotype of the 112 specimens was typed by PCR. In total, G serotype was assigned for 95.2% of all the specimens, showing the highest rate of G4 (41.7%), followed by G1 (23.2%) and G2 (14.9%). Twenty-four specimens showed mixed types, such as G2 with G1, G8 or G9, or G1 with G4. These results indicate that PCR combined with ELISA is highly effective for G serotyping of rotavirus.

Solitary thyroid nodule: a study of 100 cases

One hundred cases of solitary thyroid nodules attending the thyroid clinic, Institute of Postgraduate Medicine & Research, Dhaka (IPGMR) and the Institute of Nuclear Medicine (INM) were included in a prospective study. Thyroid ultrasonography (USG), scintiscanning, radioactive iodine (I131) uptake (RAIU), estimation of serum total T3, T4 & TSH and Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) were performed in all cases. Surgical resection with histopathologic study was performed in selected cases. Extra-nodular part of the thyroid gland was normal in 68 and diffusely enlarged in 32, RAIU was normal in 62, high in 36 and very low in two subjects. Nodules were solid at USG in 67 subjects, cystic in 16 subjects and of mixed consistency in 17 subjects. Goitrous subjects had significantly lower T4 (p < 0.001) and higher T3 (p < 0.01) and TSH (p < 0.001) than non-goitrous ones. Colloid nodule was the commonest pathology occurring in 41 cases, followed by thyroid cysts (26), follicular adenoma (23), adenoma with cystic change (7), subacute thyroiditis (2) and papillary carcinoma (1). Colloid nodules were more common in goitrous subjects which could hint at iodine deficiency as the major cause of such nodules. Hyperfunctioning follicular adenomas occurred exclusively in non-goitrous subjects. Carcinoma appeared to be uncommon in patients with solitary nodules. It gives an opportunity to our physicians to be more conservative in selecting patients with solitary thyroid nodules for surgical treatment.

Lilliputian hallucinations and medical illness

Lilliputian hallucinations have been described in patients with delirium, schizophrenia, seizure disorders, visual disturbances, and brain tumors. The authors report two cases of patients with lilliputian hallucinations, one with AIDS-dementia complex and the other with dementia following head trauma. This is the first time that lilliputian hallucinations have been described in association with such medical conditions.

Assessment of severity in acute pancreatitis: Use of prognostic factors

This prospective study evaluates the value of Ranson's prognostic factors in predicting severity of acute pancreatitis. One hundred-fourteen patients with 124 attacks of acute pancreatitis were studied duringa 4-year period at Riyadh Central Hospital. The majority of patients were Saudi males, their mean age being 46.5 years. Cholelithiasis was the leading cause of pancreatitis. Ranson's 11 prognostic factors were estimated within 48 hours of admission. Sixty-six percent of the cases were graded as mild pancreatitis with less than 3 Ranson's factors present, whereas 34% were classified as severe pancreatitis with 3 or more of Ransosn's factors present. Prognostic factors correctly predicted severity in 6% of patients, but only 36% from the severe group developed severe disease (complications and/or death). Overall mortality was 5.3%. Ranson's prognostic factors help in identifying severe pancreatitis but their accuracy may be improved by the use of modern imaging techniques.

Glutathione S-transferases in alcoholic liver disease

There is already evidence in alcoholic liver disease, mostly from studies of morphology and cytokeratin distribution, that hepatocytes can undergo a variety of phenotypic changes. This study reports findings of immunohistochemistry using antibodies against members of the glutathione S-transferase supergene family of detoxification enzymes. Hepatocytes in severe alcoholic liver disease coexpressed both alpha and pi class glutathione S-transferase. This coexpression has been previously described only in human fetal liver and in chemically-induced preneoplastic foci in rat liver. The use of function associated markers should provide additional information in the investigation of liver disease.

Control of two–spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) by some selected chemicals

The experiment was conducted to study the effectiveness of four commonly used chemicals viz., deltamethrin, cypermethrin, malathion and sulphur against two-spotted spider mite (TSSM), Tetranychus urticae Koch on potted bean plants and on excised leaf discs. Mite population remained significantly lower in all treated plots except malathion treatment. The population of T. urticae differed significantly due to different chemicals and it remained lower up to 4th week on single-sprayed plants, which again increased. But in double-sprayed plants mite population was checked and remained significantly lower. The estimated LC50 values for cypermethrin, malathion, deltamethrin and sulphur were 2.9956, 15.8663, 0.5386 and 20.7045 nl.cm-2 respectively when the chemicals were sprayed before mite release. But the LC50 values for these chemicals sprayed after mite release were estimated 1.8110, 8.2746, 0.2192 and 6.8308 nl.cm-2. The use of chemicals is essential for better yield of crops. Among the four tested chemicals the pyrithroids (cypermethrin and deltamethrin) were found more effective against the TSSM than the other two. Key words: Two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, bean, deltamethrin, cypermethrin, malathion, sulphur Univ. j. zool. Rajshahi Univ. Vol.25 2006 p.15-18