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Biomedical subjects

M M Hossain

Publications and source records attributed to M M Hossain.

61 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Amoebiasis and giardiasis in Bangladesh: parasitological and serological studies.

To determine the prevalence of infections with Entamoeba histolytica and Giardia lamblia in Bangladesh, we screened stool specimens from patients with diarrhoea attending urban (N = 2,246) and a rural (N = 2,791) hospital and a group of healthy urban residents (N = 440). Sera from 200 healthy villagers were also examined for antibody to E. histolytica using the immunofluorescent antibody test. The prevalence of E. histolytica cysts or trophozoites in all groups assessed by examination of a single stool specimen ranged from 0% among infants (less than 1 year) to 34% among healthy adults 30 to 44 years old. G. lamblia was uncommon in infants and found most frequently in urban hospital patients aged five to nine (21%). 12% of one- to two-year-old children had serum antibody to E. histolytica at a titre of 1:40. By age 14 years, 80% of those tested were seropositive, and this prevalence declined thereafter with increasing age. Amoebiasis and giardiasis occur frequently in Bangladeshi populations and the morbidity and mortality associated with these infections need to be assessed.

Adolescent↗

Antibiotic use in a rural community in Bangladesh.

Antibiotic use by 175 000 people in the Matlab rural surveillance area (MSA) of the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) was studied to identify practices which might affect microbial drug resistance. We surveyed a 3% sample of drug purchases from pharmacies in the MSA over a four-week period in August and September 1980. Fifty-seven drug purchases were made per thousand Matlab residents per week; 9% of these were of tetracycline and 26% were antibiotics. Forty-eight per cent of the antibiotic tablets or capsules for persons aged 15 years or more were purchased in quantities which represented less than a single day's dose and rarely was a full course of therapy purchased at one time. The rate of tetracycline purchase for young children--in whom it is usually contraindicated--equalled the rate for older children and young adults. These practices have probably not led to improvements in health and may have promoted the emergence and persistence of drug-resistant micro-organisms. To optimize antibiotic use, control measures at government, producer, prescriber and consumer levels need to be pursued.

Adolescent↗

Association between birth weight and birth arm circumference of neonates in rural Egypt.

In many developing countries including Egypt, the birth weights (BWs) of most babies go unrecorded because they are born at home. Since it is difficult to record BW in the community setting, birth arm circumference (BAC) has been used as a valid proxy for BW to identify at risk babies with low birth weight (LBW). However, the validity of BAC as an indicator of the actual BW has not been assessed fully. We did this study among neonates in rural Bilbeis, Egypt, to examine the association between BW and BAC, to assess whether BAC can serve as an indicator of the actual BW, and to determine the validity indices of 3 different cut-off levels of BAC as indicators of LBW. During 1987-88, the weights and arm circumference of 148 neonates were recorded within 2 weeks of birth. We observed a strong and highly significant positive linear correlation between BW and BAC (r = 0.6188, p = 0.0001). The BAC cut-off value of < 9.5 cm was associated with the optimal combination of sensitivity (50%) and specificity (88.4%) as an indicator of LBW. In linear regression analysis BAC was found to be a significant (p = 0.00001) predictor of BW. The means of the model predicted weights for males, females, and both genders together were identical to the corresponding means of the observed values. In contingency table analysis, for 78 (52.7%) of the 148 neonates studied the observed and predicted BW categories were identical. For another 59 (39.9%) neonates, agreement with the next lower or higher BW category was observed. We feel that BAC can be used as an indicator of the actual BW in settings where routine recording of BW is currently not practicable.

Arm↗

Mutagenicity studies on irradiated potatoes and chlorogenic acid; micronucleus test in rats.

The micronucleus test was used to study possible mutagenic effects of (1) Irradiated potatoes extracted (a) immediately and (b) after 24-h storage following irradiation; (2) Irradiated and unirradiated chlorogenic acid; and (3) Trenimon. It was observed that irradiated potatoes (groups 1 a, b) and chlorogenic acid (group 2) did not cause mutagenic effects in the bone-marrow cells of rats. The Trenimon group (group 3), which was used as the positive control group, did show significant mutagenic effects.

Animals↗

Varicella infection and pneumonia among adults.

OBJECTIVES: To demonstrate the clinical importance of adult chickenpox in terms of morbidity, mortality, and impact on hospital services, in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. METHODS: A review was conducted of 607 consecutive hospitalized cases of adult chickenpox (1985-1996, Al Ain Hospital) for clinical findings and risk of developing varicella pneumonia. RESULTS: Leading clinical features were fever (98.9%), myalgia (26.9%), cough (24.6%), headache (15.4%), pharyngitis (14.7%), and profuse rash (12.2%). There were 26 cases of varicella pneumonia, of whom three died with respiratory failure (hospital case fatality 0.5%). Multivariate analysis (odds ratios in parenthesis) showed that cough (12.1), profuse rash (4.5), fever for more than 1 week (3.9), and age over 34 years (2.3) were the most significant predictors of pneumonia. CONCLUSIONS: Early aggressive therapy with intravenous acyclovir is recommended in patients at risk of pneumonia. In the community setting, there is a large proportion of adult immigrants (especially from South Asia) who are seronegative and at risk of complications and hospitalization. It is recommended that the varicella vaccine be offered to new immigrants after screening, to benefit themselves and the nonexposed community, and to reduce the economic burden of chickenpox on the health services and employers.

Acyclovir↗

Apoptosis in the central nervous system of developing mouse fetuses from 5-azacytidine-administered dams.

To determine the effect of 5-azacytidine (5 Az), a cytidine analogue, on the developing fetus, different strains of mice were injected with various doses of the agent, ip, at 11 days of gestation. Light microscopically, severely pyknotic cell death profiles were observed in different layers of the developing brain and spinal cord (central nervous system) on the day after the injection. Electron microscopy of the pyknotic cells revealed the shrinkage of the cell body, to various degrees margination of the nuclear chromatin, condensation of nuclear materials, fragmentation of the affected cells, and, finally, neat "bite-size" bodies engulfed by surrounding normal neuroepithelial cells and macrophage-like cells. DNA fragmentation was detected in the nuclei of the pyknotic cells by an in situ detection method for fragmented DNA ends. These changes were consistent with the criteria of apoptosis.

Animals↗