Transvaginal scan versus transabdominal scan for gestational sac detection in the early first trimester of pregnancy in Sudanese Ladies

Since ectopic pregnancy is the leading cause of maternal death in the first trimester, the clear identification of a normal intra-uterine pregnancy by ultrasonography is vital as these pregnancies have a good prognosis. Modern ultrasound technology, especially transvaginal, has improved the assessment of early pregnancy development. The use of diagnostic ultrasound during pregnancy is considered to be safe for both mother and feotus, even in critical periods of development the using high-frequency transvaginal transducers, has no adverse bioeffects been demonstrated. Ultrasound provides reassurance, charts normal development, and identifies women with abnormal or high risk pregnancies. This study was designed to compare the efficiency between transvaginal scan [TVS] over transabdominal scan [TAS] in the early detection for the presence of gestational sac in the first trimester of pregnancy. A total of 100 women with an age that ranged between 15 to 45 years old and showed a positive pregnancy test during first trimester of pregnancy, had transvaginal and transabdominal ultrasound in order to compare the value of these two techniques for the detection of gestational sac. TVS found to be significant and superior when compared with TAS in detection for the presence of gestational sac, where Pearson Chi-Square value=32.727 and P value=.000; [Pearson Chi-Square=32.727 and P=.000]. Despite of this fact, knowledge of the finding on TAS made it easier to interpret the transvaginal findings. Although TVS have limitations such as locate lesions outside the pelvis and needs further counseling and education. TVS is more efficient in accessing the presence of gestational sac in early first trimester of pregnancy rather than the TAS

Smoking status effects on common carotid arteries resistivity and pulsatility indices in current Sudanese smokers

Many different indices have been used to describe the shape of the flow waveforms but commonly used indices available on most commercial scanners are: resistance index [RI] and pulsatility index [PI]. This study intended to evaluate the effects of smoking in common carotid arteries Doppler RI and PI, according to smoking status [number of cigarettes smoked per day] in current Sudanese smokers. 1752 Sudanese subjects with 440 of them were non smokers. Female's distribution in the total number of subjects is 161 while males are 1591 with mean age of 28 +/- 11.8 years. a percentage of 49.32% of male subjects were current smokers but there was no female found to be a smoker. Ultrasound examination was established within each vascular laboratory to ensure that common carotid arteries sonography is performed consistently, comprehensively and accurately. These techniques may be modified to match the needs of specific patients or vascular laboratories. In all cases, however, the protocol should meet or exceed the standards established by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine [AIUM] or the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Vascular Laboratories [ICAVL]. The standards of these two agencies are substantially the same which was our guide for sonographic scanning in the study. Smoking status in current smokers effectively increases the RI and the PI than their normal ranges with a positive linear correlation manner. Findings of this study reported that smoking status effectively increase common carotid arteries Doppler RI and PI in a positive manner were the effect noticed to be in the left common carotid artery more than that of the right one

Radiation dose measurement for staff during cardiac catheterization

The objective of this study was to determine the patient and staff dose during cardiac catheterization procedures and to estimate the risks associated with this exposure in Ahmed Gasim Hospital in Khartoum Bahry-Sudan. The measurements involved 50 operations. The dose received by the medical staff was measured using TLD chips [LiF: Mg, Cu, P]. Dose-area product [DAP] was used to calculate the patients' radiation dose. The main operator and the rest of the staff received 0.14 and 0.01 mSv per procedure, giving rise to an estimated annual effective dose of 17.67, 6.3 mSv per year, respectively. Occupational dose to the cardiologists was much lower than the relevant statutory dose limits. The monitoring of radiation workers is not established properly. It is obvious that high patient and staff exposure is due to the lack of experience and protective equipments