[Prevalence of dyslipidemia in the biochemistry laboratory of the Reference National Teaching Hospital of N'Djamena, Chad.]

INTRODUCTION

les dyslipidémies constituent un facteur de risque majeur dans la survenue des maladies cardio-vasculaires. La recherche de ce facteur et sa prise en charge adéquate contribuerait à prévenir ces maladies qui sont la plus grande cause de décès dans le monde. L'objectif de cette étude était d'évaluer la prévalence des dyslipidémies au laboratoire de biochimie du Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Référence Nationale de N'Djamena. MATéRIEL ET MéTHODES: il s'agissait d'une étude transversale d'une durée de cinq ans (2015-2020) portant sur tous les patients ayant au moins un paramètre lipidique dans le registre du laboratoire. Les méthodes enzymatiques sur un automate de biochimie de type Cobas Integra 400 (Roche Diagnostics) ont été utilisées pour le dosage de cholestérol total, LDL-c, HDL-c et de triglycérides.

RESULTS

Au total 2038 patients avec une prédominance masculine (sex-ratio :1,33), ont été enregistrés, l'âge moyen de nos patients était de 56,45±8,8 ans. La prévalence des dyslipidémies était de 44,2%. Les différents types des dyslipidémies étaient repartis comme suit : l'hypercholestérolémie (40,52%) ; l'hyper LDLémie (33,02%) ; l'hypoHDLémie (14,72%) ; l%hypertriglyc%rid%mie (11,72%) et l'hyperlipidémie mixte (40,5%). On notait une évolution croissante de la prévalence de dyslipidemie au cours des cinq années de periode d'étude.

CONCLUSIONS

la forte prévalence des dyslipidémies dans notre étude témoigne d'une situation préoccupante au Tchad, d'où l'intérêt d'étudier la prévalence des dyslipidémies et des autres facteurs de risque cardiovasculaire à l'échelle nationale et l'utilité d'organiser des campagnes d'éducations et d'informations sur les maladies cardiovasculaires et les facteurs de risque cardiovasculaire afin de r'duire cette pr'valence.

[Management of heart failure at the CHU the National Reference of Ndjamena/Chad]

INTRODUCTION

Heart failure (HF) is a syndrome of diverse etiologies, and a real public health problem in both developed and developing countries. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical, etiological, therapeutic and evolutionary aspects of heart failure.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This was a descriptive and analytical study carried out in the cardiology department of the national referral university hospital in N'Djamena (Chad).

RESULTS

Heart failure accounted for 30.84% of cardiovascular pathologies hospitalized in the cardiology department during the study period. The mean age of our patients was 52 ± 34 years, with extremes ranging from 18 to 87 years. Females predominated, accounting for 50.7% of cases, with a M/F sex-ratio of 0.97. Hypertensive heart disease (33.7%), valvular heart disease (16.6%) and ischemic heart disease (15.1%) were the most frequent etiologies. The drugs most frequently used were loop diuretics (97%), ACE inhibitors (96%) and beta-blockers (93.5%). The in-hospital mortality rate was 9% in our series.

The Value of Chinese Version GAD-7 and PHQ-9 to Screen Anxiety and Depression in Chinese Outpatients with Atypical Chest Pain

Background

Atypical chest pain in some outpatients could derive from mental disorders. It is necessary for them to have a preliminary emotional assessment in the outpatient department of Cardiology before psychiatric outpatient visits.

Methods

This study included 122 Chinese outpatients with atypical chest pain in the department of Cardiology. They accepted routine examinations, including treadmill test, and were judged by the three-question method as highly likely to have emotional disorders. Then, a standard questionnaire package containing the Chinese version of the seven-item scale for General Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) was administered to evaluate anxiety and depression.

Results

The percentages of anxiety evaluated by GAD-7 and SAS were 62.3% and 26.2%, respectively. Analogously, the assessment by PHQ-9 showed a significantly higher percentage of depression than that by SDS (61.5% vs 29.5%) (P < 0.05). Kappa analysis showed that the consistency between GAD-7 and SAS, or that between PHQ-9 and SDS was not very good. About 73% outpatients suffered from emotional disorders, presenting as anxiety/depression evaluated by GAD-7 and PHQ-9. Furthermore, sleep disorders accounted for more than 80% of patients with mental disorders. Finally, the suicidal tendency of depression patients was about 17% that should not be ignored.

Conclusion

Compared with SAS and SDS, GAD-7 and PHQ-9 detected more participants with emotional disorders in the Chinese outpatients with atypical chest pain, indicating that GAD-7 and PHQ-9 could be briefly well-validated tools to screen emotional disorders in the outpatient department of Cardiology before psychiatric visits.

Photonic logic NOR gate based on two symmetric microring resonators

We demonstrate an all-optical NOR logic gate based on symmetric GaAs-AlGaAs microring resonators whose resonances are closely matched. Two input pump data streams are tuned close to one resonance of the symmetric microrings to switch a probe beam tuned to another resonance by two-photon absorption. The switching energy of the gate is 20 pJ/pulse, and the switching window is 40 ps, limited by the carrier lifetime. The use of two rings provides for better cascading in photonic logic circuits because of the higher number of available ports.

Dysregulation of blood lymphocyte subsets and natural killer cells in schistosomal liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma

Immunological factors are important in the pathogenesis of a wide spectrum of hepatobiliary diseases. Using flow cytometry, we determined the changes in lymphocyte subsets and natural killer cells in 123 individuals (81 patients with liver disease and 42 healthy volunteers). The liver diseases included periportal fibrosis (PPF, 10 patients), liver cirrhosis (LC, 31 patients), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC, 40 patients). Schistosomiasis and viral hepatitis B and C were the putative etiological agents of liver diseases. Immunophenotyping by indirect immunofluorescence was conducted using monoclonal antibodies to CD3 (T-lymphocytes), CD4 (helper/inducer T-cells), CD8 (suppressor/cytotoxic T-cells), and CD57 (natural killer cells) cell surface markers. Immunophenotyping of PPF patients showed no significant changes in all markers compared with the healthy controls. However, there was a significant decrease ( P<0.01) in CD3 and CD4 T-cells, and a highly significant increase ( P<0.001) in CD57 T-cells in patients with LC or HCC. In addition, LC and HCC patients showed no significant change in CD8 T-cells compared with controls. In conclusion, the progression of liver diseases is associated with a dysregulation of cellular immune responses. T-lymphocytes and natural killer cells may play a role in the immunopathogenesis of liver cirrhosis and HCC.

Dysregulation of blood lymphocyte subsets and natural killer cells in schistosomal liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma

Immunological factors are important in the pathogenesis of a wide spectrum of hepatobiliary diseases. Using flow cytometry, we determined the changes in lymphocyte subsets and natural killer cells in 123 individuals (81 patients with liver disease and 42 healthy volunteers). The liver diseases included periportal fibrosis (PPF, 10 patients), liver cirrhosis (LC, 31 patients), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC, 40 patients). Schistosomiasis and viral hepatitis B and C were the putative etiological agents of liver diseases. Immunophenotyping by indirect immunofluorescence was conducted using monoclonal antibodies to CD3 (T-lymphocytes), CD4 (helper/inducer T-cells), CD8 (suppressor/cytotoxic T-cells), and CD57 (natural killer cells) cell surface markers. Immunophenotyping of PPF patients showed no significant changes in all markers compared with the healthy controls. However, there was a significant decrease ( P<0.01) in CD3 and CD4 T-cells, and a highly significant increase ( P<0.001) in CD57 T-cells in patients with LC or HCC. In addition, LC and HCC patients showed no significant change in CD8 T-cells compared with controls. In conclusion, the progression of liver diseases is associated with a dysregulation of cellular immune responses. T-lymphocytes and natural killer cells may play a role in the immunopathogenesis of liver cirrhosis and HCC.

All-optical time-division demultiplexing and spatial pulse routing with a GaAs/AlGaAs microring resonator

We report what is to our knowledge the first demonstration of all-optical time-division demultiplexing and spatial pulse routing in a compact nonlinear GaAs/AlGaAs microring resonator operating at 1.55 microm . Switching is through the refractive-index change induced by two-photon absorption. The switching time of the device, limited by the ring-charging time and the recombination time of the induced carriers, is measured to be 30 ps. The switching on-off contrast, limited by the slight mismatch between the input and output coupling coefficients, exceeds 8 dB. The device can be used for time-division multiplexing as well.

DNA ploidy of liver biopsies from patients with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma: a flow cytometric analysis

Flow cytometric DNA analysis was used to assess cellular kinetics of needle liver biopsies from patients with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). An abnormal DNA content was shown in 44.5% of liver cirrhosis cases and in 78.6% of tumor sites. The number of proliferating cells (S + G2M%) was significantly increased in cirrhotic liver (P < 0.05). Dysplasia was found in 66% of cirrhotic specimens. All negative dysplasia specimens showed a diploid pattern while 69% of positive dysplastic specimens were aneuploid (P < 0.001). In conclusion, cell proliferation, aneuploidy and liver cell dysplasia are important indicators in liver cirrhosis for the development of HCC.

DNA ploidy of liver biopsies from patients with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma: a flow cytometric analysis

Flow cytometric DNA analysis was used to assess cellular kinetics of needle liver biopsies from patients with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). An abnormal DNA content was shown in 44.5% of liver cirrhosis cases and in 78.6% of tumor sites. The number of proliferating cells (S + G2M%) was significantly increased in cirrhotic liver (P < 0.05). Dysplasia was found in 66% of cirrhotic specimens. All negative dysplasia specimens showed a diploid pattern while 69% of positive dysplastic specimens were aneuploid (P < 0.001). In conclusion, cell proliferation, aneuploidy and liver cell dysplasia are important indicators in liver cirrhosis for the development of HCC.

Retrospective review of dot enzyme immunoassay test for typhoid fever in an endemic area

Typhoid fever remains a common problem in Malaysia, but for its diagnosis both blood culture and the Widal test have drawbacks. A dot enzyme immunoassay (EIA) has been developed which detects IgM and IgG antibodies to a specific 50 kDa outer membrane protein on Salmonella typhi. This study was performed among outpatients attending the university hospital in Kelantan, a state on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia where typhoid is endemic. The dot EIA was done on 149 outpatients of all ages in whom typhoid was suspected. Of these, 60 were not analysable due to insufficient data. The other 89 were retrospectively classed as typhoid (total = 21), or not typhoid (total = 68). The criteria for diagnosis of typhoid was either, blood culture was positive, or with blood culture negative, temperature was at least 38 degrees C and Widal O and/or H titer greater than or equal to 1/160. We then compared the diagnosis with the EIA result. For the result where either IgM or IgG was positive, sensitivity was 90%, specificity 91% and negative predictive value 97%. For IgM positive, specificity was 100%. But the specificity of IgG positive alone was reduced by six false positives, which were probably due to persistence of IgG after acute infection. Other cases were found where IgG positive alone appeared in the first week of typhoid fever, probably due to rapid response in a second or subsequent infection. We also found that IgM-producing patients were significantly younger than those showing IgG alone positive.