Health literacy levels and correlates among refugees in Mount Lebanon.

OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to assess the levels and correlates of health literacy among refugees. STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study design. METHODS: Health literacy was assessed through face-to-face interviews in eight primary healthcare centers (PHCs) in Mount Lebanon. The questionnaire consisted of the Arabic Functional Health literacy scale, the short version of the European Health Literacy Survey (HLS-EU-Q16), socio-economic questions (sex, age, nationality, marital status, educational level, and ability to pay for medical fees at PHCs), and health-related questions (self-perceived health, long-term illness, recent visit to health care, and freedom to make health decisions). Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate the association between functional health literacy (FHL), comprehensive health literacy (CHL), and potential explanatory variables. RESULTS: Of 263 participants (61.6% females), mean age 38.49 ± 12.80 years, 52.1% had inadequate FHL and 35.7% had inadequate CHL. The likelihood of having inadequate CHL was higher in refugees who were ever married (odds ratio [OR] = 2.794; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.187-6.576) or had average ability to pay for medical expenses at PHC (OR = 4.562; 95% CI: 1.554-13.393). The odds of having inadequate FHL was lower in refugees with some level of education (OR = 0.211; 95% CI: 0.077-0.580). Furthermore, their perceived lack of freedom to make personal health decisions was associated with inadequate levels of CHL (OR = 5.195; 95% CI: 2.693-10.022) and FHL (OR = 4.676; 95% CI: 2.610-8.376). CONCLUSIONS: Health messages and delivery should be tailored to refugee health literacy levels. Initiatives should seek to improve refugee interaction with the health system, promote uptake of available health services and facilitate health-related decision-making in daily life.

Endoscopic sinus surgery for dental implant displacement into the maxillary sinus-a retrospective clinical study.

The aims of this retrospective clinical study were to present our management protocol for the retrieval of impacted dental implants that have become displaced into the maxillary sinus cavity and to define the role of endoscopic sinus surgery in this setting. All 24 patients (25 implants) who underwent surgical retrieval of dental implants displaced into the maxillary sinus between 2012 and 2019 were included. Data on surgical interventions and complications were collected retrospectively. Eleven patients (46%) had chronic sinusitis associated with the migrated implant. All implants were successfully retrieved via transnasal endoscopic approach alone: 80% via a middle meatal antrostomy and 20% via a combined middle and inferior meatal antrostomy. Five patients required a concomitant transoral approach for oro-antral fistula repair. None required a transoral approach for displaced implant retrieval. All patients healed uneventfully without complications. Transnasal endoscopic sinus surgery via a middle meatal antrostomy or a combined middle and inferior antrostomy is recommended as the primary choice for dental implant retrieval from the maxillary sinus. A transoral approach should be performed simultaneously only for oro-antral fistula repair. This surgical protocol proved to be safe and efficient, and it obviated the need for osteotomies of the anterolateral maxillary wall.

Failure of viral protein 3 of infectious bursal disease virus produced in prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression systems to protect chickens against the disease.

In recent years, infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) has become a serious economic problem as a result of the emergence of new and very virulent strains. Most of the antibodies produced against IBDV are for the structural proteins viral protein (VP) 2 (VP2) and VP3. The purpose of this study was to test the potential of recombinant VP3 to induce protective antibodies. The gene for VP3 was isolated from a virulent strain of the virus and cloned into prokaryotic (Escherichia coli) and eukaryotic (baculovirus) expression systems. The protein expressed by both systems was of the expected size (32 kD) and was detected by anti-IBDV antibodies. Following partial purification, the polypeptides were injected into intact birds and induced the production of high levels of anti-IBDV antibodies, as detected by immunoblot and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests. These antibodies did not prevent changes in the bursa and mortality when birds were challenged with a virulent IBDV strain after vaccination with the recombinant VP3. The results show that VP3 polypeptide cannot be used as a subunit vaccine against IBDV and raise questions concerning the nature of the neutralizing epitope on this structural protein.

Characterization of alkaline and acid phosphatases from skeletal muscles of young and old rats.

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and acid phosphatase (ACP) specific activities were measured in gastrocnemius muscles of female Wistar rats ranging in age from 2 to 30 months. ALP activity reached a peak at 12 months, with a subsequent slow decline with age. ACP activity increased sharply up to 12 months of age, followed by a slower elevation up to the age of 30 months. Using histochemical staining techniques and electron microscopy, the presence of ALP was demonstrated in the sarcolemma of gastrocnemius muscles, as well as in some capillaries around muscle fibers. ALP and ACP were isolated further from muscles of young (12 months) and old (30 months) animals by applying ion-exchange chromatography and separation on a Sephadex G-200 column. The purity of ALP was shown on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). From a calibrated Sephadex G-200 column and SDS-PAGE, the molecular mass of ALP was determined as 116 kilodaltons (kDa), a dimer of two 56-kDa monomers. The ACP major peak of the Sephadex G-200 column revealed a molecular mass of 40 kDa. No differences in molecular mass or in amino acid analysis were detected between ALP(s) from young and old animals, indicating that most probably the decline of activity with age is due to some post-translational events, as has been shown in the past for many other enzymes and proteins.

Antioxidant properties of nitecapone (OR-462).

Nitecapone [3-(3,4-dihydroxy-5-nitrophenyl)methylene-2,4-pentanedione] [OR-462] is a catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitor with gastroprotective properties. Recently, its antioxidant properties have been discovered: It scavenges peroxyl radicals (ROO.) and thus spares glutathione. Further examination of the properties of nitecapone demonstrated a remarkable ability of this compound to act as an antioxidant: (1) to scavenge ROO. in solution with a stoichiometry factor of 2; (2) to scavenge ROO. in membranes; (3) to inhibit lipid peroxidation; (4) to act as a competitive inhibitor for xanthine oxidase with Ki of 8.8 microM; (5) to scavenge O2- with a second order kinetic rate constant of 1.0 x 10(4) M-1 s-1; and (6) to scavenge HO.. Nitecapone also interacts with oxidation product of ascorbate to participate in recycling of vitamin E. Thus, nitecapone potentially is an effective therapeutic antioxidant, and the use of this compound in a combination with other antioxidants may be beneficial.

Modification of plasma proteins by cigarette smoke as measured by protein carbonyl formation.

Exposure of human plasma to gas-phase (but not to whole) cigarette smoke (CS) produces oxidative damage to lipids [Frei, Forte, Ames & Cross (1991) Biochem. J. 277, 133-138], which is prevented by ascorbic acid. The ability of CS to induce protein damage was measured by the carbonyl assay and by loss of enzyme activity and protein -SH groups. Both whole and gas-phase CS caused formation of carbonyls in human plasma, which was partially inhibited by GSH but not by ascorbic acid or metal-ion-chelating agents. Isolated albumin exposed to CS showed much faster carbonyl formation (per unit protein) than did whole plasma; damage to isolated albumin was partially prevented by chelating agents. Isolated creatine kinase (CK) lost activity upon exposure to CS much faster than did CK in plasma. Direct addition to plasma of mixtures of some or all of the aldehydes reported to be present in CS caused protein carbonyl formation and inactivation of CK, but neither occurred to the extent produced by CS exposure.

NADPH-dependent inhibition of lipid peroxidation in rat liver microsomes.

Microsomal NADPH-driven electron transport is known to initiate lipid peroxidation by activating oxygen in the presence of iron. This pro-oxidant effect can mask an antioxidant function of NADPH-driven electron transport in microsomes via vitamin E recycling from its phenoxyl radicals formed in the course of peroxidation. To test this hypothesis we studied the effects of NADPH on the endogenous vitamin E content and lipid peroxidation induced in liver microsomes by an oxidation system independent of iron: an azo-initiator of peroxyl radicals, 2,2'-azobis (2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile), (AMVN), in the presence of an iron chelator deferoxamine. We found that under conditions NADPH: (i) inhibited lipid peroxidation; (ii) this inhibitory effect was less pronounced in microsomes from vitamin E-deficient rats than in microsomes from normal rats; (iii) protected vitamin E from oxidative destruction; (iv) reduced chromanoxyl radicals of vitamin E homologue with a 6-carbon side-chain, chromanol-alpha-C-6. Thus NADPH-driven electron transport may function both to initiate and/or inhibit lipid peroxidation in microsomes depending on the availability of transition metal catalysts.

Activity of alkaline phosphatase in rat skeletal muscle localized along the sarcolemma and endothelial cell membranes.

Alkaline phosphatase (AP), a membrane-associated glycoprotein which enhances the hydrolysis of monophosphate esters at alkaline pH, is widely distributed in animal tissues. AP activity is increased in a variety of muscle disorders, i.e., myopathies and denervation. Established histochemical methods at the light microscopy level failed to demonstrate AP in skeletal muscles. In the present study we applied the Gomori lead nitrate method for ultrastructural examination of AP in rat gastrocnemius muscles and showed that the enzyme was linked to the sarcolemma of the striated muscle and to the membranes of endothelial cells in adjacent capillaries. In comparison with ATPase activity, AP activity was inhibited by both levamisole and a pH of 7.2, but not by ouabain. Hence, it appears that in skeletal muscles AP is active at a high pH and is bound to cell membranes.