Diagnostic performance of plasma D-dimer, fibrinogen, and D-dimer to fibrinogen ratio as potential biomarkers to predict hypertension-associated acute ischemic stroke.

Background: Ischemic stroke is a common type of stroke that leads to death and functional disability in hypertensive patients. However, there are no well-studied non-invasive and less expensive fluid biomarkers routinely used to detect ischemic stroke in hypertensive patients. Hence, this study aimed to tease out the performance of D-dimer, fibrinogen, and the D-dimer to fibrinogen ratio (DDFR) in predicting hypertension-associated acute ischemic stroke. Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional study was done from October 2022 to January 2022 at Yikatit 12 Hospital Medical College, Ethiopia. We recruited 55 hypertensive patients who had an ischemic stroke and 110 who did not. A ROC curve was used to calculate the areas under the curves (AUCs) and determine the diagnostic power of the D-dimer, fibrinogen, and DDFR. The Youden index was used to find the best cut-off points for biomarkers in detecting acute ischemic stroke. A De Long test was employed to show whether there was a significant difference between the AUCs of biomarkers in diagnosing ischemic stroke. Results: D-dimer yielded the highest diagnostic power (AUC = 0.776) in detecting acute ischemic stroke, followed by DDFR (AUC = 0.763) and fibrinogen (AUC = 0.694), but there was no significant difference between them. At 0.52 µg/ml cut-off point, D-dimer had 82.9% sensitivity, 66.7% specificity, 62.5% PPV, and 85.3% NPV to diagnose acute ischemic stroke. Fibrinogen could detect acute ischemic stroke at 405.85 mg/dl level, with 70.0% sensitivity, 57.1% specificity, 41.2% PPV and 81.6% NPV. At a 1.83 ratio, DDFR might also identify ischemic stroke with 80.0% sensitivity, 67.1% specificity, 51.1% PPV, and 88.7% NPV. Conclusion: We showed D-dimer, fibrinogen, and DDFR as promising, affordable, and non-invasive biomarkers for the detection of ischemic stroke among subjects with hypertension. This will help clinicians make an early diagnosis and better guide patient therapy.

Level of knowledge, attitude, and practice on modern contraceptive method and its associated factors among housemaids living in Debre Tabor town, northwest Ethiopia: a community-based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Contraception is widely recognized as an effective technique for avoiding unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. Promoting contemporary contraceptive methods would minimize the number of unplanned pregnancies and the high number of maternal fatalities connected with unsafe abortions. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice of modern contraceptive methods and its associated factors among housemaid residents of Debre Tabor Town, northwest Ethiopia: METHODS: A structured questionnaire supplemented with face-to-face interviews was used to conduct a community-based cross-sectional study with 423 housemaids' women of reproductive age in Debre Tabor City. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, binary analysis, and multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: A 12.8% of respondents in this study used modern contraceptive methods. A 44.68% of study participants had good knowledge of modern contraceptive methods, and 36.40% had a positive attitude towards them. Housemaids' older age, urban location, educational status, work experience, and family situation were found to be positive predictors of a good understanding of current contraceptive techniques. Housemaids' older age, urban residence, educational level, work experience, family situation, and first sex before now are all positive predictors of a positive attitude and good practices. CONCLUSIONS: Housemaids' knowledge, attitude, and practice of modern contraceptive methods were influenced by a variety of socio-demographic factors. As a result, housemaids should be educated about modern contraceptive methods by the health sector and other stakeholders to improve their knowledge, attitude, and practices.

Effect of bromocriptine on glycemic control, risk of cardiovascular diseases and weight in patients with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) patients, including those in good glycemic control, have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Maintaining good glycemic control with drugs may reduce long-term CVD risk. Bromocriptine has been in clinical use for over 30 years, but the utility of bromocriptine in the treatment of diabetes patients has been proposed more recently. OBJECTIVE: To summarize the available data regarding the effect of bromocriptine in T2DM management. METHOD: A systematic literature search was conducted in the electronic databases, including Google Scholar, PubMed, Medline, and Science Direct, to locate studies that meet the objectives of this systematic review. Additional articles were included by conducting direct Google searches of the references cited by eligible articles located by the database search. The following search terms were used on PubMed "bromocriptine OR dopamine agonist AND diabetes mellitus OR hyperglycemia OR obese". RESULT: Eight studies were included in the final analysis. 6210 of the 9391 study participants received bromocriptine treatment, while 3183 received a placebo. The studies demonstrated that patients who took bromocriptine treatment had significantly reduced blood glucose and BMI, which is the main cardiovascular risk factor in T2DM patients. CONCLUSION: Based on this systematic review, bromocriptine may be used for T2DM treatment for its cardiovascular risk reduction effect, especially body weight reduction. However, advanced study designs might be warranted.

Evaluation of antibiotic utilization pattern in the treatment of acute diarrheal diseases at Debre Tabor comprehensive specialized hospital, Debre Tabor, Ethiopia: A retrospective cross-sectional study.

Background: In clinical settings all across the world, including Ethiopia, the irrational use of antibiotics to treat acute diarrhea is common. The main causes of resistance are antibiotic abuse, misuse, and underuse, and among infectious diseases, antibiotic overuse is pervasive in diarrheal infections around the world. As a result, the primary goal of this study was to evaluate antibiotic use patterns for the treatment of acute diarrheal diseases at Debre Tabor Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in North-West Ethiopia. Methodology: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the antibiotic utilization pattern used to treat acute diarrheal illness, taken from the record cards of 243 patients who received treatment for acute diarrheal illness, employing structured questions from September 1 to September 30, 2022. The results are displayed using percentages and frequency distributions in tables along with figures. Results: A total of 243 patients were involved, 134 (55.1%) of whom were male and 134 (55.1%) were under the age of five. Out of the 103 cases of acute watery diarrhea, 83 received antibiotics that were given improperly. Additionally, 88 individuals had bloody diarrhea diagnoses, but 58 of them received the currently administered antibiotics. Amoxicillin and co-trimoxazole were the most frequently prescribed medications, with 193 (79.5%) of the 243 cases of patients receiving some form of antibiotic. Conclusion: The results of the study revealed that there is inappropriate antibiotic use in acute diarrheal disease at Debre Tabor Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, which might be the cause for the overall increase in antimicrobial resistance as well as the associated costs of treatment. The finding is helpful as evidence for prescribers' inappropriate use of antibiotics for the treatment of acute diarrheal sickness.

In vivo antidiarrheal activity of the crude extract and solvent fractions of Rhamnus prinoides (Rhamnaceae) leaves.

Background: Even though numerous conventional anti-diarrheal agents are available, the inherent toxicities of the drugs urge the search for alternative drugs that are safe and effective. Objective: To evaluate the in-vivo anti-diarrheal activity of crude extract and solvent fractions of Rhamnus prinoides leaves. Materials and methods: The Rhamnus prinoides leaves were macerated using absolute methanol and then fractionated using solvents of different polarity indexes. For in-vivo antidiarrheal activity evaluation of the crude extract and solvent fraction, castor oil-induced diarrhea, castor oil-induced anti-enteropolling, and intestinal transit models were used. One-way analysis of variance was used to analyze the data, followed by a Tukey post-test. The standard and negative control groups were treated with loperamide and 2% tween 80 respectively. Results: A significant (p˂0.01) reduction in the frequency of wet stools and watery content of diarrhea, intestinal motility, intestinal fluid accumulation, and delaying the onset of diarrhea as compared with controls were observed in mice treated with 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg methanol crude extract. However the effect increased dose-dependently, and the 400 mg/kg methanol crude extract produced a comparable effect with the standard drug in all models. Amongst the solvent fractions, n-BF significantly delayed the time of diarrheal onset and reduced the frequency of defecation, and intestinal motility at doses of 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg. Furthermore, the maximum percentage inhibition of intestinal fluid accumulation was observed in mice treated with 400 mg/kg n-butanol extract (p˂0.01; 61.05%). Conclusions: The results of this study showed that crude extract and solvent fractions of Rhamnus prinoides leaves showed a significant anti-diarrheal activity which supports its traditional use as a diarrhea treatment.

Incidence, time to occurrence and predictors of peripheral intravenous cannula-related complications among neonates and infants in Northwest Ethiopia: an institutional-based prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral intravenous cannulas (PIVC) are venous access devices commonly used for the administration of intravenous fluids, drugs, blood products, and parenteral nutrition. Despite its frequent use, it has complications that can seriously threaten patient safety, prolong hospital stays, and increases medical care costs. PIVC complications are associated with increased morbidity and reinsertion attempts are painful and anxiety-provoking for children and their parents. Therefore, this study was aimed to assess the incidence, time to occurrence and identify predictors for PIVC complications among infants admitted to Debre Tabor Comprehensive Specialized Hospital (DTCSH), Northwest Ethiopia. METHODS AND SETTING: An institutional-based prospective cohort study was conducted on 358 infants admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit and pediatric ward, DTCSH from January 1 to April 30, 2022. A systematic sampling technique was employed. RESULTS: The incidence rate of PIVC complication was 11.6 per 1000 person-hours observation. PIVC complication was observed in 56.4% (202) of PIVCs, of which infiltration (42.1%) was the most common complication followed by phlebitis (29.7%). The median time to complication was 46 h. Anatomical insertion site (AHR = 2.85, 95%CI: 1.63-6.27), admission unit (AHR = 1.88, 95%CI: 1.07-4.02), sickness (AHR = 0.24, 95% CI: 1.31-4.66), medication type (AHR = 2.04, 95%CI: 1.13-3.66), blood transfusion (AHR = 0.79, 95%CI: 0.02-0.99), clinical experience (AHR = 0.52, CI:0.26-0.84), and flushing (AHR = 0.71, 95%CI: 0.34-0.98) were potential predictors of PIVC complication. CONCLUSION: Knowing the predictor factors helps clinicians to provide effective care and to detect complications early.