[Ambulatory pediatric morbidity. Evaluation of one year activity of consultation in department of Pediatrics, emergency and consultations of children's hospital of Tunis]

Pediatric morbidity has been the subject of many studies, nevertheless those concerning with ambulatory morbidity are rare. The subject of this study is to establish the epidemiologic profile of patients. Identify the encountered pathologies and their frequency, precise morbidity characteristics and raise difficulties in the diagnostic and therapeutic management. In this retrospective study we reviewed the data of 4387 children that have consult for the first time external consultation of the department of Pediatric External Consultations and Emergency [PUC] of the Children's Hospital of Tunis during the year 2003. The 4387 patients benefit from 7323 consultations which represent 44.3 per cent of the total of consultations of the year 2003 [16 507]. 59.4 percent of the studied population was male [sex ratio = 1.2] and two thirds were aged under 6 years old. The main motif of consultations was recurrent bronchopneumonia [15.2 percent], cutaneous disease [6.2 percent], vomiting [6.1 percent] and abdominal pain [5.6 percent]. 3.2 percent of the children were admitted. Ambulatory morbidity was dominated by four pathologies: digestive 16 percent, pulmonary 14.9 percent, neurologic 6.7 percent and hematologic pathothologies [6 percent]. Gastro-oesophageal reflux was the major digestive disease followed by acute diarrhea [10.6 percent]. The principal pulmonary disease were bronchopneumonia [60.5 percent], acute bronchitis [21.6 percent] and asthma [14.4 percent]. 59.9 percent of the neurologic pathology were represented by seizures. 28.4 percent of the seizures were feverous. Anemia is the most frequent hematologic pathology [55.1 percent]. It was caused by iron deficiency in 87 percent of cases. The endocrinologic pathology is essentially represented by the short stature. We suggest to informatize medical data so it would be more exploited for studies, to make more complementary explorations available in the Children's Hospital of Tunis and to decentralize the management of the simples diseases

Identification of black mustard and black cumin seeds widely used in Indian system of medicine

Both black mustard [Brassica nigra, Linn, and Koch.] and black cumin [Nigella sativa Linn.] are of immense value in the Indian system of medicine since ancient times. They are commonly used as spices to give agreeable flavour and aroma to insipid food and pickles, to stimulate the appetite and to flow the gastric juices, to camouflage or disguise the slightly unpleasant taste of many fishes or meats and to increase the rate of perspiration, thus having a cooling effect on the body. Apart from their culinary uses, they are used as active ingredients in many Ayurvedic and Unani medicines [Kochhar, 1981; Pruthi, 1987]. But commerce in this country is often concomitant with adulteration. Detection of genuine sample and its adulterants is extremely difficult. The above two drugs are no exception. So proper identification, authentication and evaluation of these crude drugs are of much importance