National Antidote of Poisoning Distribution System: New Initiatives in Saudi Arabia

Objective: To declare the national antidote of poisoning distribution system as new initiatives in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Methods: It is a new initiative project, the national antidote of poisoning distribution system. The project drove the antidote of poisoning distribution guidelines and the international business model, pharmacy project guidelines project management institution guidelines of a new project. The initiative project is written through project management professionals and consisted of several parts, including the initial phase, the planning phase, the execution phase and the monitoring and controlling phase. Results: The antidote of poisoning distribution system with a defined vision, mission and goals was initiated. The services had various advantages with clinical and economic impacts on patients and healthcare services as illustrated in the review. The extension of the project was assured by risk management elements description. Furthermore, the monitoring and controlling of the services was demonstrated. The conversion to operation project though closing project stage was revealed in the analysis. Conclusion: The national antidote of poisoning distribution system is new initiative project and is considered as a part of the management of poisoning. There are multiple locations of antidote distribution services suggested and it is highly required in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Perceptions and Knowledge of Storing Medications at Home in Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

Objective: Globally people store medications at home, which is also common among the residents of Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia. They should be stored safely to prevent the accidental ingestion or unintended use. However, the method of storing medications at homes in Al-Qassim region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is unknown. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to explore the perception and knowledge of medications stored at Al-Qassim region, Saudi Arabia. Methodology: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional survey which was conducted through the random distribution of a pre-validated structured questionnaire with the public and private sector employees and with general population from all walks of life above the age of 18 years in Al-Qassim region. The survey was designed electronically through the Survey Monkey system and was distributed through social media. Results: A total of 708 participants responded to this survey. Most of the responders (485 (68.10%)) were females. About half of the responders were in the age group of 18–29 years (393 (58.31%)) with a significantly dominant female population compared to males (p<0.05). Most of the responders checked or almost checked the instructions of storing medications (192 (28.24%) and 273 (40.15%), respectively) without any significant difference between education level (p>0.05). Most of the responders checked the expiry date of stored medications (496 (70.06%)). Most of the responders did not receive instructions on storage of medications from pharmacist or physician (597 (84.32%)). Most of the resources regarding storage of medications were obtained from the physician (388 (54.8%)), drug leaflet (320 (45.2%)) followed by pharmacist (318 (44.92%)) and self-learned (154 (21.75%)). Therapeutic classes of stored medication were analgesics and antipyretics (322 (41.87%)) followed by cardiovascular drugs (64 (8.32%)) and oral anti-diabetic drugs (58 (7.54%)). Conclusion: The results of this study showed that people at Al-Qassim region tend to store medication at home not just over the counter medications but also medications of chronic illnesses. They should be educated on the need of medications, safety of medications and requirements of storing medications at home. Educational activities should be conducted through all possible channels to increase the awareness and to educate people on the proper method of storing medications.

Poisoning Due to Stored Medications at Home in Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

Objective: Storing medications at home is a global practice. By storing medications in an appropriate and safe environment, we can prevent accidental poisoning. Information is scarce regarding the storage of different types of medications at homes in Al-Qassim region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to explore the cases of poisoning due to stored medications at home in Al-Qassim region. Methodology: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional survey conducted through the random distribution of a pre-validated structured questionnaire among the public and private sector employees and people from all walks of life above the age of 18 years in Al-Qassim region. The survey was designed electronically through the Survey Monkey system and was distributed through social media. Results: A total of 708 subjects responded to the survey. Most of the responders (485 (68.10%)) were females. About half of the responders were in the age group of 18–29 years (393 (58.31%)) with females being significantly dominant than males (p<0.05). Majority of the responders stored their medications separated from households’ chemicals (524 (77.06%)). Most of the responders did not store multiple medications in the same container without any significant difference related to gender or educational level (p>0.05). The total number of poisonous cases were 41 (5.79%) without any significant difference related to gender or educational level (p>0.05). Poisoning due to medications were mostly caused due to the medications stored in refrigerator (15 (40.54%)) and bedroom (10 (27.03%)). Most of the stored medications were disposed into the trash after their expiry dates (463 (65.4%)) while 189 items remained at home (26.69%). A total of 33 different types of stored medications caused poisoning in 44 cases. Paracetamol caused 6 cases of poisoning (18.18%), followed by ibuprofen 3 (9.09%) and multivitamins 3 (9.09%). Conclusion: The results of this study revealed an alarming setting of poisoning cases due to stored medications in Al-Qassim region. Awareness campaigns and more educational sessions should be conducted through social media. By doing so, people can be educated regarding the proper storage of medications to prevent poisoning. Thus, public awareness programs stressing on the safe storage and identification of the right ways to dispose of medication are highly recommended.

Medication Storage at Home among People in Al-Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia

Objective: Storing medications at home is a global practice. By storing medications in an appropriate and safe environment, we can prevent accidental poisoning. Information is scarce regarding the storage of different types of medications at homes in Al-Qassim region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to explore the types of medications stored at homes among people residing in Al-Qassim region. Methodology: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional survey conducted through the random distribution of a pre-validated structured questionnaire among the public and private sector employees and people from all walks of life above the age of 18 years in Al-Qassim region. The survey was designed electronically through Survey Monkey system and was distributed through social media. Results: A total of 708 subjects responded to the survey. Most of the responders were females (485 (68.10%)). About half of the responders were in the age group of 18–29 years (393 (58.31%)) with a significantly dominant female population as compared to males (p<0.05). The most frequently stored medications were related to headache (462 (65.25%)) and pain (445 (62.85%)). Most of the responders stored their medications in the refrigerator (467 (65.96%)) or in their bedroom (324 (45.76%)). A total of 633 medications were found to be stored at homes during this survey. The top 20 most frequently stored medications were paracetamol (266 (42.02%)) and ibuprofen (42 (6.64%)). Conclusion: The results of this study show an alarming situation about the methods of storing medication and types of medicines stored among the residents of Al-Qassim region. More and more campaigns and awareness programs should be conducted through different types of social media to educate the people regarding the appropriate methods of storing medications at home. Such awareness programs should stress more regarding safe methods of storage and spread awareness regarding how to identify the appropriate method of disposal to prevent harmful impact on the environment.

Correlation between retinopathy, nephropathy and peripheral neuropathy among adult Sudanese diabetic in patients

Diabetes Mellitus is a worldwide common metabolic disorder. Increasing prevalence of diabetes, lack of proper education about the nature and course of the disease and necessary control are the main factors for an early onset of micro vascular complications. To correlate between retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy, among adult Sudanese diabetic patients at Elshaab Teaching hospital, Ahmed Gasim Teaching hospital and Gabber Abu Eleaz centre, from December 2006 to September 2008. This is a descriptive prospective cross sectional hospital based study, 71 patients were included. Male to female ratio was1.4:1.Common age group affected was 60-69 [32.4%].Common duration of diabetes mellitus was 20-24 years [23.9%].All patients who had diabetes for 25 years or more had developed complications [19.7%].The commonest long term microvascular complication was found to be retinopathy [71.2%], followed by neuropathy [69%] and nephropathy [50.7%].It was found that [47.6%] of our patients had the three complications. Long-term micro vascular complications affect male more than female, with average age of onset 60-69 years. All patients who had diabetes for 25 years or more had developed complications. Retinopathy is the most common micro vascular complication, followed by neuropathy. There is a significant correlation between retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy in association with the duration and control of blood glucose level

Effect of ozone on osseointegration of endosseous implants in osteoporotic bone

Sixteen adult New Zealand rabbits were used in this study. They were divided into two equal groups. Group I received normal diet, while group II received bran bread [diet for inducing osteoporosis]. Each group was subdivided into two equal groups. Rabbits of group A received an endosseous implant in each tibia after application of ozonated oil. Animals were sacrificed at two and 8 weeks following implant insertion [eight at each time]. The tibia was removed and kept in 10% formalin until specimens were prepared. Specimens were investigated histologically and ultrastructurally using scanning electron microscope [SEM]. SEM and histological analysis of both trabecular and cortical bone revealed a significant delay in the osteointegration rate in osteoporotic versus non-osteoporotic animals. Moreover, groups receiving ozonated oil revealed more accelerated osteointegration

Role of mast cells in angiogenesis of aggressive periodontitis [immunohistochemical study]

Limited attention has been given to the role of mast cells in periodontal diseases. Among the cells involved in immune and inflammatory response in periodontal disease, mast cells have been shown to be capable of generating a large number of biologically active substances [surface adhesion molecules, cytokines and their receptors] which communicate via a complex network of intercellular signaling pathways to enhance angiogenesis. The aim of the present study was to determine the quantity of mast cells in generalized aggressive periodontitis [GAP] histochemically and immunohistochemically and to correlate its releavance with Vascular endothelial growth factor VEGF immunoexpression. Results = Mast cells density were significantly increase in aggressive Periodontitis compared with clinically healthy ginigiva. Interestingly, mast cells were markedly distributed in close apposition to mononuclear cells with a close association of intense VEGF immunoexpression

P63 immunoexpression in normal, dysplastic and neoplastic oral epithelium [A new level of complexity to the P53 field]

P63 is a P53 homologue that is mapped to chromosome 3q27. this gene encodes six different isoforms, which have either transactivating or dominant negative affects on P53-reported genes. It has been demonstrated that P63 is a reliable keratinocyte stem cell marker and that is involved in the maintenance of the stem cell population. We here evaluated P63 expression in normal, dysplastic lesions, verrucous and squamous cell carcinomas SCCs of the oral cavity

Methods: Immunohistochemistry according to the streptavidinbiotin - perioxidase technique, using the antibody 4A4 raised against all P63 isoforms, was performed. P63 expression was evaluated in epithelial cells. Semiquantitative evaluation [-, +, ++, +++] of P63 expression was carried out

Results: In normal stratified epithelium, P63 was mildly or moderately expressed in the nuclei of epithelial basal and suprabasal cells, all terminally differentiated cells were negative"P63 positivity increased with histologic progression in all cases of dysplasia. SCCs showed moderate to strong immunoreactivity. Terminally differentiated SCC cells were either negative or showed only focal immunoreactivity. Based on our findings, the balance of probabilities favors that P63 might play a role in the pattern of differentiation and in the oncogenesis of usual carcinomas of the oral cavity

Immunoexpression of the cellular adhesion molecules e-cadherin/p-catenin in oral lichen planus before and after systemic corticosteroid therapy

Lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory, mucocutaneous disease, thought to result from cell mediated immune alteration. E-cadherin, [3-catenin complex is a key molecule of the adherens junction that connect epithelial cells via homotypic interactions. The present study was conducted to estimate the level of E-cadherin, [3-catenin Immunoexpression in patients with oral lichen planus [OLP] [reticular and papular types] before and after treatment with systemic corticosteroid. The immunoreactivity of E-cadherin of OLP before treatment was extremely upregulated than that of the control group, with maintainance of the normal membranous pattern in most of cases. As regard P-catenin it showed lower intensity of the immunoreactivity in comparison to E-cadherin. Down regulation of E-cadherin, p-catenin complex was observed in OLP after corticosteroid treatment indicating that E-cadherin has a definite role in the pathogenesis of OLP

Electromyographic activities of selected leg muscles and range of motion during wearing high heeled shoes.

The aim of this study was to examine the ankle and knee joints range of motion and to investigate the electromyographic activities of selected leg muscles [calf and quadriceps muscles] during wearing of high-healed shoes. A total of 100 young healthy females with an age range from 17 to 25 years was included in this study. Three shoes with 1.7, 5 and 7 cm heel height were used. The range of motion of the ankle and knee joint using universal goniometer was calculated. Electromyographic data were collected from calf and quadriceps muscles during wearing of different heel heights. There were a decrease in ankle dorsiflexion and an increase in planter-flexion range of motion. The electromyographic data showed a significant increase in the activity of calf and quadriceps muscles with the increased heel height