Incidence of non-tunnelled central venous catheter-related infections in oncologic patients receiving chemotherapy in an outpatient setting

<p><b>INTRODUCTION</b>Central venous catheters (CVCs) are becoming more popular for delivery of outpatient courses of intravenous therapy such as chemotherapy and long-term antibiotics. The incidence of non-tunnelled type CVC-related infections in patients with solid tumours receiving chemotherapy in an ambulatory setting has not been well studied. We aimed to determine the baseline data on CVC-related infections in this retrospective study conducted from January 2005 to December 2007.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Data on cancer patients with CVCs inserted as outpatients at National Cancer Centre Singapore over a three-year period were collected and analysed retrospectively. Data retrieved from medical records included patients' demographics, the number of catheter days, cancer type and other medical illnesses. Definitions from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention for CVC-related infections were used. For data analysis, graphical and quantitative techniques were employed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A total of 88 CVCs were inserted during the study period, with a total of 11,541 catheter days (median 114; range 2-510 days). Infection rate was 0.87 per 1,000 catheter days. The risk of infection was higher when catheters were left in situ for longer periods of time and in patients with solid tumours.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The infection rate for non-tunnelled type CVCs is low in our centre. Hence, its use for chemotherapy on an outpatient basis is relatively safe and convenient in oncologic patients.</p>

Nutritional status and intestinal parasitosis in school-enrolled and non-enrolled school-age children in Yangon

In Myanmar, over 38 percent of children in the age-group 5-9 years were never enrolled in school in 1990. Also, there is a lack of information on the comparative prevalence of malnutrition and intestinal parasitosis among school-enrolled and non-enrolled school-age children in Myanmar. We, therefore, undertook a cross-sectional survey comprising 3325 school children from 13 primary schools and 164 non-enrolled school-age children from neighbouring quarters in Tharkayta and Mingaladon townships of Yangon during December 1993. Height and weight of the children were measured and a total of 944 stool samples, including 148 non-enrolled children, were examined for the presence of intestinal parasites. Expressing the nutritional status as standard deviation scores for weight-for-height, the prevalence of wasting among 5-10 years non-enrolled school-age children was 19.8 percent, while that for school children of similar age was 13.9 percent. In addition, non-enrolled school-age children had higher infection rates than school children regarding Ascaris Lumbricoides (66.9 percent vs 50.1 percent), Trichuris trichiura (38.5 percent vs 23.9 percent), and Giardia lamblia (5.4 percent vs 2.7 percent). The policy implication of this study is that health and nutritional status of non-enrolled school-age children needs to be promoted and this should be partly solved by the provision of regular and periodic mass chemotherapy against major intestinal parasitoses influencing nutritional status.

Cost of training: Implications to decision-makers

Costs of training for various categories of health manpower in Myanmar was determined. Using the costs of training thus obtained, the manpower equivalence or conversion rates between different categories of health manpower was generated. This study illustrates how our local decision makers could make a health manpower policy analysis based on cost of training for different health workers.

A sociological study of leprosy patients

A sociological study was done in registered leprosy patients in ten urban townships of Rangoon city who have a minimum of 15 yrs. follow up. A total of 542 cases, 76 per cent of 715 registered cases with 15 yrs. follow up were studied.

Nutritive values of some Burmese sea-fish

The nutritive values especially that of protein and amino acid contents of eight Burmese sea-fish were determined. The results then compared with that of the fresh-water-fishes. It was found that the nutritive value of these sea water fish were in no way inferior to that of the fresh-water-fish. The use ofthese sea-fish as a source of protein should be emphasized, especially in the low socio-economic status population where protein calorie malnutrition is prevalent.