A multi-template multiplex PCR assay for hepatitis B virus and human β-globin.

The Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) is the hallmark of HBV infection. Detection of antibodies to HBs and the core (ie, HBsAg and HBcAb) are primary serological algorithms in the laboratory diagnosis of HBV. Detection of HBsAg DNA is an important supplement to serological diagnosis especially in clinical cases.

Human brucellosis in Northern Saudi Arabia.

Objectives: Analysis of the clinical features, laboratory findings, treatment given and complications seen in brucellosis patients at the Northern Area Armed Forces Hospital, Hafr Al-Batin, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Methods: We retrieved and reviewed the record charts of all patients from January 1995 to December 2001 with a clinical diagnosis of brucellosis whose brucella agglutination titre was 1:160 or greater from the Medical Records Department of Northern Area Armed Forces Hospital, Hafr Al-Batin. We extracted from the files the information on age, gender, occupation, history of raw milk or milk products ingestion, presenting symptoms and physical signs.

Sickle cell anemia morbidity in Northern Saudi Arabia.

Objective: Documentation of the morbidity in sickle cell patients presenting at the Northern Area Armed Forces Hospital, Hafr Al Batin, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the burden of delivering care to these patients.

Methods: The record charts of all Saudi patients with Sickle Cell Anemia (SCA) admitted between June 1994 through to July 2001 were retrospectively analyzed. Focus was on age of patients, frequency of admissions, duration of hospital stay and requirements for blood transfusions.

[Splenic nodules and sickle cell anemia].

Objective: We report 4 patients with sickle cell anemia presenting with intra-splenic benign nodules corresponding to islands of preserved tissue within splenic ferro-calcinosis.

Material And Methods: Ultrasound, CT and MRI findings were evaluated and compared to a follow-up study by ultrasound and CT done after 6 to 12 months.

Results: Ultrasound showed multiple well-defined rounded nodules appearing hypoechoic compared to the rest of the spleen that was hyperechoic.

Chronic duodenitis in Zaria, northern Nigeria.

Thirty-four consecutive patients presenting to the Endoscopy clinic of the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria with symptoms of upper abdominal pain were investigated for chronic duodenitis by endoscopy and histology and for associated diseases. Twenty-two patients had histological evidence of chronic duodenitis. No clinical features separated these from those who had no duodenitis.

Hepatocellular carcinoma: A clinicopathological analysis of 118 cases from Riyadh Central Hospital.

A review of 118 cases of histologically diagnosed hepatocellular carcinoma in Riyadh Central Hospital over a 15-year period from 1985 to 1989, showed that there were 73 Saudi nationals and 45 other nationalities. The overall sex ratio was 2.5;1, M:F (1.

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding among Saudis: Etiology and prevalence the Riyadh Central Hospital experience.

Fiberoptic esophagastroduodenoscopic examination of 747 Saudi patients who presented with acute upper gastrointestinal (UGI) bleeding between January 184G to December 1986G showed that ruptured esophageal varices, erosive gastritis, duodenitis and peptic ulcer disease were the most common findings. There were 515 males and 232 females (M:F 2.2:1).

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in hemodialysis patients in Riyadh.

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) was determined in 190 adults (mean age 40.4 years; range 15 to 75) with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who are on regular hemodialysis in the Nephrology Unit, Riyadh Central Hospital. The overall prevalence rate was 53.

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in blood donors in Riyadh.

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) was determined in 580 voluntary blood donors in Riyadh. Among 403 Saudis screened, the prevalence was 1.24%, while among 177 expatriates screened the prevalence was 4.

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in Saudi patients with chronic liver disease.

The prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) has been measured in 113 Saudi patients with chronic liver diseases. Twenty-five percent of 20 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were positive for anti-HCV and 29.7% of 38 patients with cirrhosis and 27.

Prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in Saudi and expatriate women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Six of 511 (1.17%) parturient Saudi females were positive for antibodies to hepatitis C virus (HCV), while one of 171 (0.58%) expatriate female nurses tested positive for the antibody.

Pattern of primary gastrointestinal tract malignancy among Saudi nationals: A retrospective study.

This histopathological reports from the central laboratory of Riyadh Central Hospital for between 1404 to 1406H (1984 to 1986) were reviewed retrospectively to determine the pattern of primary cancer of the gastrointestinal tract among Saudi nationals. During the study period, a total of 32,990 histopathological examinations were conducted. Neoplasms were identified in 4683 cases (14.

Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in Zaria, northern Nigeria.

The indications for and findings in 431 consecutive patients who had upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in Zaria from June 1978 to August 1982 are reviewed. The major indications were dyspepsia (78.1%), upper gastro-intestinal bleeding (12.

Evidence against the red blood cell origin of mitogenic factors in mouse malarial infection.

The mean [3H]thymidine incorporation in response to stimulation of spleen cells of malaria-immune and non-immune BALB/c mice by normal mouse red blood cell culture supernatants were compared with unstimulated cultures of the same spleen cells. No significant difference was obtained between stimulated and unstimulated cultures for both immune and non-immune spleen cells. These findings do not support the hypothesis that erythrocyte-derived mitogenic factors occur in malarial infection.

A case of blastomycosis from Zaria, Nigeria.

A case of blastomycosis from Zaria, Nigeria is reported. The clinical features were indistinguishable from those of tuberculosis which is very common in this environment. Lack of response to anti-tuberculosis therapy within eight weeks prompted the search for other organisms which resulted in the isolation of Blastomyces dermatitidis.

The role of hepatitis B surface antigen in Nigerian children with nephrotic syndrome.

Hepatitis B surface antigen was detected by radioimmunoassay in the sera of 18 out of 50 (36%) children with nephrotic syndrome and in 28 of 61 (45.9%) controls. Immunofluorescent studies of kidney biopsies showed HBsAg, IgG, IgM and C3 deposits in a granular pattern in the biopsies of 12 children with nephrotic syndrome and in none of the control kidney biopsies, even though there was no significant difference between the frequencies of HBsAg in the sera of these two groups.

Failure to induce splenomegaly in BALB/c mice using rodent malaria culture supernatants.

Uninfected male and female BALB/c mice were given a twice weekly intraperitoneal injection, of supernatants obtained from 24-h cultures of Plasmodium berghei-infected and control mouse red blood cells, for 5 weeks. The mice were then weighed along with uninjected controls. All the animals were sacrificed by chloroform anaesthesia and their spleen weights measured.

The nature of hepatic lymphocytic infiltrates in the tropical splenomegaly syndrome.

The lymphocytes infiltrating the liver of patients with tropical splenomegaly syndrome (TSS) were shown to be mainly T lymphocytes. Migration of leucocytes obtained from patients with TSS was inhibited by TSS liver extract, normal liver extract and liver-specific lipoprotein. These findings suggest that the hepatic infiltrates which occur in TSS are probably caused by a cell-mediated immune response to an antigen present in liver cells.

Tropical splenomegaly. Part 1: Tropical Africa.

The emergence of tropical splenomegaly syndrome as a distinct entity in tropical medical practice has been briefly described, together with its link with malaria. The clinical and haematological aspects of the syndrome have been reviewed with some emphasis on local experience. No attempt has been made to give details of the immunological aspects, but the mechanisms by which the established immunological features of the disease help to understand the pathogenesis of the syndrome have been highlighted.