Reasons for unsatisfactory acceptance of antiretroviral treatment in the urban Kibera slum, Kenya.

The aim of this study was to explore why patients in the urban Kibera slum, Nairobi, Kenya, offered free antiretroviral treatment (ART) at the Médecins Sans Frontièrs (MSF) clinic, choose not to be treated despite signs of AIDS. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 patients, 9 men and 17 women. Six main reasons emerged for not accepting ART: a) fear of taking medication on an empty stomach due to lack of food; b) fear that side-effects associated with ART would make one more ill; c) fear of disclosure and its possible negative repercussions; d) concern for continuity of treatment and care; e) conflicting information from religious leaders and community, and seeking alternative care (e.g. traditional medicine); f) illiteracy making patients unable to understand the information given by health workers.

Platelet monoamine oxidase in a pedigree with schizophrenia: an interlaboratory project.

Conflicting reports on the association between platelet MAO activity and schizophrenia prompted a critical review and determinations on identical samples at one laboratory in Sweden and one in the U.S.A. Samples originated from eight schizophrenics and 27 relatives belonging to a large pedigree, thus ensuring biological homogeneity. In the USA laboratory, a significantly lower MAO activity was found in the schizophrenics when benzylamine or beta-phenylethylamine was used as substrate (but not with tryptamine), while a similar result was obtained in the Swedish laboratory when tryptamine was used (but not with benzylamine or beta-phenylethylamine). Comparisons between materials examined in different laboratories do not seem meaningful until differences in methodologies have been clarified. At present there is neither proof nor disproof of MAO being a "genetic marker" for vulnerability to the schizophrenic disorder.