Clinical and biochemical profile of alcohol users in Basra

All psychiatric and general medical male patients referred to 2 hospitals in Basra, Iraq from September 2000 to April 200l were screened using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test. A total of 189 men were identified as having alcohol-related problems. The majority were aged 30-49 years, and two-thirds had drunk alcohol for over 10 years. About 53% of patients exceeded 1 bottle [750 mL] of spirits daily, and 14.8% reported morning drinking. Elevation of liver enzymes, hepatomegaly, jaundice and cirrhosis were identified in 46.0%. Liver cirrhosis was more common in patients drinking locally made arak. Many of the patients suffered psychiatric disorders, including anxiety disorders, depression and suicide attempts, and 80.9% took other psychoactive drugs

Haemolytic potential of three chemotherapeutic agents and aspirin in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency

The potential haemolytic effect of three chemotherapeutic drugs and aspirin was tested in vitro by gluthathione stability tests. Blood was collected from the local population of Basra, Iraq where previous studies had found a high frequency of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase [G6PD] deficiency. Primaquine, chloramphenicol and sulfanilamide caused significant concentration-dependent reductions of glutathione levels in G6PD-deficient red cells when compared to normal red cells. Acetylsalicylic acid had no effect on glutathione level. The G6PD-deficient erythrocytes behaved as previously reported, probably due to similar patterns in the distribution of its variants. Studies on each local variant are warranted and new drugs should be tested for haemolytic potential prior to their introduction in areas where the deficiency is common