Mohamed A. Ahmed

Prophylactic ceftizoxime for elective cesarean delivery at Soba Hospital, Sudan

BackgroundA prophylactic antibiotic is recommended to reduce infection-related complication following cesarean delivery. There is a current debate on the time of prophylactic antibiotic in cesarean delivery.MethodsAn opened randomized, controlled clinical trial was conducted at Soba hospital, Sudan to investigate the timing (pre-incision or after clamping of the umbilical cord) of ceftizoxime for elective cesarean delivery. The outcome measures were; the incidence of post-cesarean febrile and infection-related morbidity and neonatal outcomes between the two groups.ResultsHundred –eighty women (90 women in each arm of the study) received intravenous injection of 1 g of ceftizoxime as single dose either at pre-incision or after clamping of the umbilical cord. None of the women in either group had endometritis. One woman in the pre-incision group had chest infection. There was no significant difference in the incidence of wound infection between the two groups, 8 (6.7%) vs. 3 (3.3%); P = 0.2. Two babies in the pre-incision group (P = 0.497) had a low Apgar score (< 8) at 1 min. Similar number of neonate (15 in each arm) was admitted to nursery. There were no significant difference in the neonatal jaundice between the two groups, 5 (5.5%) vs. 4 (4.4%), P = 0.2. There was no perinatal death.ConclusionsThere was no difference in the two regimens (pre-incision or post-clamping of the umbilical cord) of ceftizoxime as prophylactic for elective cesarean delivery.Trial registrationNCT01347593

Trimester pattern of change and reference ranges of hematological profile among Sudanese women with normal pregnancy

Trimester specific reference ranges of hematological indices were described in several populations; however, comparable reports among Sudanese women with normal pregnancy are lacking. To evaluate trimester pattern of change and reference ranges of hematological profile among Sudanese women with normal pregnancy, we followed 143 women with singleton gestation since early pregnancy until the third trimester in Saad Abu-Alela Hospital, Khartoum, Sudan, during the period of January-December 2015. Obstetrics and medical history was gathered using questionnaire and hematological profile was investigated using hemo-analyser. The first, second and third trimester mean (SD) [5th-95th centile] of hematological profile were as follow: RBC counts 4.30 (0.36) [3.69-4.93], 4.35 (0.36) [3.69-4.93], 4.08 (0.44) [3.44-4.78] ×106/mm3; hemoglobin concentration 10.81 (1.22) [8.92-12.74], 10.62 (0.93) [9.00-12.10], 10.83 (1.13) [8.82-12.60] g/dL; hematocrit 35.38 (3.52) [30.12-40.30], 34.43 (2.51) [30.58-38.23], 35.17 (3.18) 29.66-40.04] %; WBC counts 7.69 (1.96) [4.36-11.20], 8.45 (1.97) [5.48-12.13], 8.36 (2.11) [5.00-11.96] ×103/mm3; platelet counts 278.02 (66.93) [182.6-418.0], 251.96 (64.17) [163.8-381.8], 238.36 (57.10) [150.4-346.2] ×103/mm3. The present study is the first to establish trimester specific, reference range for hematological profile among Sudanese women with normal pregnancy. The trimester reference range of RBC, WBC and platelets and other hematological indices are mostly parallel to international records.

Labour supply for cotton picking in the Blue Nile agricultural schemes of The Sudan

Cotton still plays the role of the most important crop in the Sudanese economy. The Blue Nile Agricultural Corporation (BNAC) is a government organization established to administer about 270 000 feddans of cotton schemes along the Blue Nile. There is a low rate of family labour participation in cotton picking which is the most labour-demanding cultural operation. Hired labour is not easy to come by. The objective of this study is to examine family and hired labour supply in the BNAC schemes and to identify the underlying causal factors for labour shortage. The analysis has compared two ethnic groups in the area, Arabs and West Africans, to discover the influence of cultural backgrounds on the attitude towards farming. The data have shown that there is a higher rate of family participation in cotton picking among the West Africans than among the Arabs. The West Africans had been exposed to farming practices before, have a higher polygamy rate and lower enrolment of children in schools. The Arabs are originally pastoralists. The picking operation, for socio-economic reasons, is limited to women and children. The wage rate is too low to attract enough of the local hired labourers. Difficulties of transportation, their high costs and lack of good incentives make it difficult to secure large numbers of seasonal migrant labourers. Matching school holidays with the picking season and freeing women partially from home care responsibilities could help in increasing family labour participation. Facilitating the movement of seasonal migrant labourers and giving them incentives could increase their availability.

O Blood Group as Risk Factor for Preeclampsia among Sudanese Women

AIM: To investigate blood groups and the other possible risk factors for preeclampsia among Sudanese women. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A case – control study was conducted at Saad Abualila Hospital, Khartoum, Sudan during the period of July 2013 through December 2014. The cases were women with preeclampsia and healthy pregnant women were the controls. RESULTS: Two hundred eighty pregnant women were enrolled (140 in each arm of the study). Around one-quarter of all women (280) were primiparae (74.0, 26.4%), the majority were housewives (201, 71.7%). Seventy-nine (28.2%) were illiterate or had no informal education. Around half of the women (130, 46.4%) had O blood group. Binary logistic regression showed association between preeclampsia and lack of antenatal care (OR = 2.75, 95% CI = 1.172–6.494, P = 0.020) as well as O blood group (OR = 1.78, 95% CI = 1.088–2.934, P=0.022). CONCLUSION: The current study showed that women with blood group O were at higher risk of preeclampsia.

Maternal age and intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcome in infertile couples at Khartoum, Sudan

Background Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) was considered as the mainstay of treatment for male infertility. Nowadays, the scope of ICSI has been widened to include other causes of infertility. There are few published data on ICSI in countries with low incomes. Aims A cross-sectional study was conducted at Saad AbuAlla and Banoun Centers, Khartoum, Sudan to investigate outcomes of ICSI and to determine the parameters that might predict pregnancy success rate following ICSI. Methods The study included 191 infertile couples who underwent 296 ICSI cycles between 1st April 2013 and 31 March 2014. Results One hundred and ninety one couples (comprising 296 cycles of ICSI) were enrolled to the study. The mean (SD) number of retrieved oocytes was 9.7 (7.5). The mean (SD) number of transferred embryos was 2.9 (1.0). Out of these, 50 (26.2%) and 40 (20.9%) had chemical and clinical pregnancy, respectively. Thirty–six couples (18.8%) and five couples (2.6%) had miscarriage and had ectopic pregnancy, respectively. Under logistic regression, younger age (OR = 0.8, 95% CI= 0.81 ─ 0.96, P = 0.004) and endometrial thickness (OR = 1.3, 95% CI= 1.07─1.60, P = 0.009) were the significant predictors for the success of ICSI in inducing pregnancy. Conclusion The rates of successful fertilisation and pregnancy-to-term rates in this setting depend mainly on the maternal age.

Hepatitis B infection and preeclampsia among pregnant Sudanese women

BackgroundPrevious published studies have reported conflicting results of association between hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and preeclampsia. There was no published data on HBV and preeclampsia in Africa including Sudan. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between HBsAg seropositivity and preeclampsia.MethodsA case –controls study (200 women in each arm) was conducted at Saad Abualila Maternity Hospital, Khartoum, Sudan.The cases were women with preeclampsia and the controls were healthy pregnant women. Socio-demographic characteristics were gathered using questionnaire and HBsAg was investigated using an ELISA.ResultsThere was no significant difference between the cases and the controls in their age, parity, residence, education and blood groups. The majority of the cases were mild preeclampsia (159; 79.5%).In comparison with the controls, a significantly higher number of the cases were HBsAg seropositive [30 (15.0%) vs.12 (6.0%), P = 0.005]. In binary regression women with HBsAg seropositive were at higher risk of preeclampsia than women who were HBsAg seronegative (OR = 2.86, 95%, CI = 1.41–5.79, P = 0.003).ConclusionIn the current study HBsAg seropositivity is associated with preeclampsia. Preventive measure should be implemented.

Helicobacter pylori and Chlamydia trachomatis in Sudanese women with preeclampsia

Abstract Background: Helicobacter pylori and Chlamydia trachomatis infections are associated with many complications of pregnancy including preeclampsia. The association between H. pylori and C. trachomatis with preeclampsia needs to be further explored. Methods: A case–control study was conducted at Saad Abualila Hospital, Khartoum, Sudan during the period of February to August 2015 to investigate the association between H. pylori or C. trachomatis with preeclampsia. The cases were women with preeclampsia and healthy pregnant women were the controls. The obstetrics and clinical history were gathered using questionnaires. Weight and height were measured and were used to compute body mass index (BMI). H. pylori and C. trachomatis antibodies (IgG) were determined by their specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), respectively. Results: There was no significant difference in the age, parity, gestational age, BMI, and hemoglobin between the two groups (93 women in each arm). In all, 31 and 62 cases were severe and mild preeclampsia, respectively. H. pylori seropositivity (IgG) was significantly higher in the preeclamptic women compared with their respective controls (80/93 [86.0%] versus 52/93 [55.9%], p < 0.001). In binary logistic regression, H. pylori seropositivity (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 4.933, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.082–11.692) was associated with preeclampsia. No C. trachomatis seropositive women were detected in the studied subjects. Conclusion: The current study confirmed that H. pylori, but not C. trachomatis, is associated with preeclampsia.

Utilization and cost of electronic resources in adult cancer center

ObjectivesThis study aims to evaluate the knowledge of healthcare providers and the cost of the current institutional e-resources in an adult oncology setting. To assess the awareness, accessibility, and utilization of the available intranet e-resources, a survey questionnaire was distributed to all oncology healthcare practitioners (physicians, nurses, and pharmacists) in an adult oncology center. The e-resources were divided into two main categories: pre-paid and institution-specific. The cost of the pre-paid e-resources was obtained from the relevant department. The cost of the institution-specific e-resources was calculated based on the human cost spent developing these e-resources; the cost of the information technology (IT) and the organizational overhead were also taken into consideration.ResultsInstitution-specific e-resources constituted the majority (62%) versus (38%) for pre-paid. The overall awareness, access, and frequent utilization of institution-specific e-resources, as compared to pre-paid e-resources, were low (< 50%). The cost of the institution-specific e-resources was

Development of a Web-base Application to Detect Palindromes in DNA Sequence

1,137,196, which was more than ten times higher than the pre-paid e-resources. This study identifies the general lack of awareness and utilization of institutional e-resources. The low utilization coupled with the high cost of the institution-specific e-resources makes pre-paid e-resources an attractive alternative for any institution.

Trimester-specific thyroid hormone reference ranges in Sudanese women

Detecting palindromes in DNA sequence is a central problem in computational biology. Identifying palindromes could help scientists advance the understanding of genomic instability. DNA sequences containing long adjacent inverted repeats (palindromes) are inherently unstable and are associated with many types of chromosomal rearrangements. In this paper, we present a simple web-base tool to assist biologist detecting palindromes in DNA sequence.