Do precursor tests influence the performance of Oral Hygiene students in subsequent semester tests?

Introduction: Precursor tests may be useful educational tools in dentistry to enhance learning among Oral Hygiene students, but their application and possible effect on the subsequent performance of these students have not been studied.

Aim: To determine whether precursor tests, used as dental educational and formative assessment tools, influence the performance of undergraduate Oral Hygiene students in ensuing formal semester tests in the discipline of Basic Restorative Dentistry.

Methods: This descriptive cross sectional study involved seventeen consenting Oral Hygiene students.

Inpatients' awareness of admission reasons and management plans of their clinical conditions at a tertiary hospital in South Africa.

Background: Inpatient awareness of the reason for their admission and the planned management enhances patient compliance and empowers patients to be resourceful in subsequent consultations. The objective of this study was to determine patients' awareness of their clinical conditions while admitted to an academic hospital.

Methods: A survey was conducted at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital in Pretoria, from 6 to 17 December 2010, on 264 inpatients drawn from a population of 837 through a systematic sampling method.

Achieving blood preSsure goals sTudy in uncontrolled hypeRtensive pAtients treated with a fixed-dose combination of ramipriL/hydrochlorothiazide: the ASTRAL study.

Background: Hypertension is a common cardiovascular disease, affecting adults worldwide and it accounts for up to 30% of all deaths. The need for better control of arterial hypertension justifies observational studies designed to better understand the real-life management of hypertensive patients. The ASTRAL study was primarily designed to evaluate the percentage of hypertensive patients achieving blood pressure goals after eight weeks of treatment with a fixeddose combination of ramipril/hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ).

A cross-sectional study of blood pressure control in hypertensive patients in general practice (the I-TARGET study).

Introduction: Despite the availability of multiple effective antihypertensive drugs, hypertension control rates remain poor. The reasons for this are complex, but increasingly, physician inertia has been identified as a crucial factor. In this study we attempted to define the level of blood pressure (BP) control and reasons for not achieving control in a survey of selected general practices within South Africa.

Generic versus non-generic formulation of extended-release clarithromycin in patients with community-acquired respiratory tract infections: a prospective, randomized, comparative, investigator-blind, multicentre study.

Background And Objective: There is a general concern about the use of multisource (generic) antibacterials in the clinical setting with registration based solely on bioequivalence data. In order to address this concern, two modified-release formulations of clarithromycin (i.e.

Prophylaxis of venous thrombosis in medical patients: A real-world perspective.

Background: Although low-molecular weight heparins (LMWH) have been proven to be efficacious for prophylaxis of venous thrombo-embolism (VTE) in non-surgical patients, their use and safety outside the setting of a clinical trial has not been investigated.

Objective: The objective of this survey was to determine the efficacy and safety of LMWH (enoxaparin) in the prevention of VTE in a study population comprising general medical patients.

Methods: The study involved an open-label, non-controlled, multicentre survey of any patient confined to bed due to medical illness, where the physician had made an independent decision to prescribe LMWH as prophylaxis for VTE.

Effects of triamcinolone on quality of life in patients with persistent allergic rhinitis.

Objective: To study the effects of triamcinolone acetonide on health-related quality of life (HRQL) in adult patients with allergic rhinitis.

Methods: This study was conducted in South Africa as a placebo-controlled, multicenter, randomized, double-blind study. Following a 7-day baseline run-in, patients were treated for 28 days with either triamcinolone or placebo.

Out-of-season breeding of milk goats--the effect of light treatment, melatonin and breed.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectivity of melatonin in addition to light treatment (exposure to 2 hours of light during the night = a long-day photoperiod) to modify the breeding season of Saanen and cross-bred milk goats and to compare the difference between the breeds. Twenty-two Saanen and 22 cross-bred does were randomly divided into 3 treatment groups. Group 1 (controls) received no treatment, Group 2 received light treatment for 37 days and Group 3 received light treatment plus melatonin implants after the light treatment.

A survey of animal welfare needs in Soweto.

The diagnostic phase of an interactive research evaluation model was used in the investigation of the animal welfare needs of a low-income urban community in South Africa. Data were gathered by means of a structured interview and direct observations by animal welfare officers. During the survey of 871 animal owners in Soweto, it was found that dogs were owned by 778 households and cats by 88 households.

Shear bond strength of a composite resin to differently silicoated base metal alloys.

This study was undertaken to determine the shear bond strength of Charisma composite resin to both thermal and pyrogenic silicoated base metal alloys namely, Duracast MS, Rexillium V and Wironit extra-hard. The bonded specimens were subjected to three stress treatments prior to shear bond testing. The results indicated that both silicoating techniques significantly improved shear bond strengths to sandblasted alloys, whereas wet heat and thermocycling treatments reduced the bond strengths, except for pyrogenic silicoated Wironit.

Ototoxicity of aminoglycoside drugs in tuberculosis treatment.

The possible ototoxic effect of kanamycin, streptomycin and a standard anti-TB drug combination, used in the treatment of 92 TB patients (7-71 years old), was examined by measuring the highest audible electric bone conduction frequency before and after treatment, using an Audimax 500 audiometer. At the so-called "safe" levels of drug administration it was found that kanamycin was markedly ototoxic, streptomycin very slightly ototoxic and the standard anti-TB drug combination had practically no ototoxic effect. Furthermore, it was found that none of these drugs were gender specific.

A comparison of the metabolic effects of captopril and atenolol on glucose, insulin and lipoproteins in patients with mild-to-moderate essential hypertension.

The metabolic effects of captopril 25 mg twice daily and atenolol 50 mg daily on glucose, insulin and lipids were compared in 83 otherwise healthy mild-to-moderate hypertensive between the ages of 25 and 60 years in a randomised double-blind trial. Hourly glucose and insulin levels were measured during a 2-hour 75 g oral glucose tolerance test at baseline and after 12 weeks of treatment. Lipid profiles including total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, HDL2, HDL3, triglycerides, apoprotein (Apo)A1, ApoB, and Apo(a) were obtained before and after the treatment period.

Tentative age-related norms for high frequency electric bone conduction audiometry.

From 172 male and female patients aged 7-71 years old and admitted in one month to a tuberculosis hospital, 150 had their highest audible electric bone conduction (EBC) frequency evaluated, prior to the commencement of any medical treatment. Various problems in establishing high frequency norms are discussed and from the results of this study tentative age-related highest frequency EBC norms are suggested. Possible clinical applications of evaluating the highest audible EBC frequency is suggested.

Pilot trial to determine the efficacy of a low dose of fish oil in the treatment of angina pectoris in the geriatric patient.

23 geriatric patients completed a single-blind placebo controlled, crossover trial using fish oil as adjunctive therapy for stable angina pectoris. The results indicated a significant reduction in the number of anginal attacks, as well as a significant reduction in the consumption of sublingual isosorbide dinitrate tablets. A possible prolonged carry over effect of fish oil was noted after crossover from the active substance to placebo.

Zocor, the postmarketing experience.

The aim of this study was to develop and test a descriptive, intensive drug surveillance methodology in order to examine the effectiveness and safety of new drugs in the immediate postmarketing period. The HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, simvastatin (Zocor), was chosen as the test drug. Data were collected from 100 randomly chosen cardiologists, specialist physicians and general practitioners practising in the six main centres of South Africa.

Cimetidine as modulator of the cell-mediated immune response in vivo using the tuberculin skin test as parameter.

The in vivo pharmacological effects of cimetidine on delayed hypersensitivity reactions in healthy volunteers were studied using the tuberculin skin test as parameter. Cimetidine clearly enhanced this reaction when it was administered well before antigenic stimulation.

The effect of autonomic blockers on heart rate: a comparison between two ethnic groups.

The influence of autonomic blockers on the heart rate of ten Bushmen and eight White volunteers was studied. There were significant differences in heart rate response to atropine alone between the White's and Bushmen. However, after prior beta-adrenoceptor blockade, these differences were no longer significant.

The value of magnetic resonance imaging in the staging of musculoskeletal tumours.

In view of the changes that are occurring in the management of musculoskeletal tumours and the importance of precise pre-operative staging, a study to determine the value of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a modality for this purpose was undertaken. Sixty-four patients were examined and 70 MRI examinations were carried out. Fifteen cases were found to be benign and 49 malignant.

Double-blind study comparing indoramin and propranolol in the treatment of black patients with hypertension.

A 20-week double-blind randomised study of 50 black hypertensive patients was designed to compare the efficacy and safety of indoramin (Baratol; Wyeth/Ayerst) and propranolol in patients who did not respond to diuretic therapy alone. Indoramin (initial dose 50 mg/d) or propranolol (initial dose 80 mg/d) was added to the regimen of patients whose supine diastolic blood pressure (SDBP) remained elevated at 100- 200 mmHg after 2 weeks' treatment with a combination diuretic tablet (hydrochlorothiazide 50 mg plus amiloride HCl 5 mg). Supine systolic blood pressure (SSBP) and SDBP of all patients was successfully controlled (SDBP lowered to less than 95 mmHg) by daily doses that did not exceed 100 mg of indoramin or 160 mg of propranolol; over 90% of patients in each group achieved control with lower doses, i.

A comparative study of pipemidic acid and nitrofurantoin in the treatment of uncomplicated urinary tract infections.

In an open uncontrolled trial 60 women with confirmed uncomplicated urinary tract infections were randomly allocated to receive either pipemidic acid (Septidron; Ethimed) or nitrofurantoin for 10 days. Urine cultures were done on day 1 and day 10. No statistical difference was found in the subjective and objective assessments of the response to the two medications and it is concluded that pipemidic acid is a satisfactory and effective alternative to nitrofurantoin in the treatment of uncomplicated urinary tract infections in women.