Social marketing campaign for school-based Iron supplementation program

Social marketing was used for a non compulsory short-term iron supplementation trial conducted in two preparatory schools [boys and girls] in Giza Governorate. The iron supplement of 120 mg elemental iron plus 30mg Vit. C /week, was given in form of biweekly doses over eight week's period [Feb.-April,2000], after broad spectrum anti-helmintic treatment. The iron supplement was delivered by two different systems: 4 weeks by Nutrition Institute staff [as model], and 4 weeks by teaching staff. Advocacy staff meeting at district level, meetings with schoolteachers and parents councils, letter to parents, hot-telephone line for inquiries, and health talks using school media and student health groups were the main social marketing activities. Quantitative and qualitative evaluation was made for the prevalence of anemia, coverage of target groups and their compliance to iron supplements. Social marketing activities commenced from the start had created awareness, built trust and confidence among the concerned parties; educational staff, parents, and children and gained support for the program. This led to high coverage [97%] of children participated in the trial; compliance of schoolchildren to biweekly iron supplements reach 82.2% of planned tablets, with significantly more compliance for boys than girls [86.9% Vs. 79.3%]. The school-based delivery for iron tablets is feasible and more sustainable through well-trained and approachable staff. Finally the initial level of anemia [12.81%] was decreased by almost 20% at the end of the trial period. Further study is needed to scale-up iron supplements program for preparatory schoolchildren as a preventive measure against iron deficiency anemia

Consumer perceptions and constraints regarding iron deficiency anemia and flour fortification using focos group discussion technique

Bread is staple food and also sacral food item in the Egyptian diet. Any Change in its content or characteristics may be a very sensitive issue. Therefore consumer perceptions toward fortification of baladi bread with iron must be carefully taken into consideration. Consumer perceptions regarding anemia and fortification were investigated using focus group discussion technique. Eleven focus groups were conducted in Fayoum among different target groups [university students "males, females and mixed", physicians, nurses, teachers "males and females" NGO's leaders, illiterate housewives and consumer protection committee]. The discussion included, their perceptions towards nutritional disorders, priority of iron deficiency anemia and its impact on health, methods of prevention and flour fortification with iron alone versus iron plus vitamins and mineral. The main results of the discussion were as follows: Some consumers believed that anemia doesn't affect more than l0%of the population while others thought that around 70% of the population mainly the poor or rural residents are affected.-The impact of anemia on health varies according to the gender of consumer target groups female consumers stressed the importance of its impact an beauty while male consumers stressed the importance of its impact on power and reproduction. The majority of the target groups supported flour fortification with iron as a cheap and easily administered method for prevention of iron deficiency anemia. Nevertheless this support was given with some suspicion toward iron [perceived as a chemical product added to their sacred bread]. The main perceptions varied from suspect of harmful effects on health, suspected changes in loaf characteristics, or suspicions toward the efficacy of quality assurance techniques. Almost the consumers refuse to give a new name to the fortified bread but they did prefer the use of iron plus vitamins and minerals. The consumers appreciated that the government has taken their views and perceptions into consideration

Physicians' opinion on the relationship between oil smoke pollutant and acute illness

In August, 1991, at the time of the oil-smoke crisis, primary care physicians were asked to fill out questionnaires on their experience with patients exposed to smoke pollutants. A total of 232 physicians from 42 clinics responded, from whom 221 questionnaires were processed. These represented 80% of the primary care physicians available at these five Health Regions at that time. The results showed that the commonest presenting symptoms in patients suffering from the ill effects of oil-smoke pollutants were: allergic conditions of the eyes [79.19%]; asthma [76.92%]; cough [70.59%]; skin allergy with pruritus and itching [68.33%]. There were no marked differences in these estimates among the five Health Regions. As cited by 89.40%, patients with chronic pulmonary illness suffered the most. Those medications most frequently prescribed were: antihistamines [72.85%]; drugs used to treat asthma [71.49%]; cough mixtures [48.87%]; antipruritic preparations [49.77%]; eye drops [44.80%]. The treatment was described as effective in 89.57%. Referrals to hospitals were kept to a minimum

Pathogenicity of peste des petits ruminants [PPR] virus isolated from Egyptian goats in Egypt

Experimental inoculation of two Egyptian goats and a Boscat rabbits with PPR local Egyptian strain [PPR, Egypt, 1987] was performed. The inoculated animals attracted the disease with little clinical manifestations accompanied by rise of neutralizing antibodies to PPR virus infection. The virus was isolated from the ocular, nasal secretions and puffy coat of animals as well as, from the spleen and liver of infected rabbits. No contact infection was recorded between inoculated and healthy goats

On the shedding of spring viraemia of curp virus

Spring viremia of carp virus was presented in the liver of fish till 2.5 months p.i. Amazing was the presence of the virus in the intestine [especially the last segment] starting at the 2.5 months and persisted as long as 4 months p.i. This point should be considered from the epizootiological point of view

3-chlorioden-1-ones and related compounds 3-chloro derivatives of 2- [phenyl, 1-naphthyl and 2'-pyridyl] inden-1- one and their reactions

The use of certain indandione derivatives as hypoprothrombinemic and anticoagulant led the authors to prepare some of its homologues. 3-chloro-2-phenyl, 3-chloro-2 [1'-naphthyl]- and 3-chloro-2- [2'-pyridyl]-inden-l-one [I-HI] respectively were prepared by the interaction of the corresponding 1, 3-diones with phosphorous oxychloride. The structure of these products were established by elemental analysis, IR spectra [CO at 1700 cm[-1], C=C at 1620 cm[-1] and C-Cl at 750 cm[-1] and analogy with chlorination of indandione. The reactivity of the chlorine atom was established by the condensation of [I-III] with primary, secondary amines and sulpha derivatives which produced the corresponding derivatives [IVa-s], [Va-k], [Vla-k], [VIIa-e], [VIIIa, b] and [IXa, b] respectively