Screening of Blood Levels of Mercury, Cadmium, and Copper in Pregnant Women in Dakahlia, Egypt: New Attention to an Old Problem.

Heavy metals toxicity is a prevalent health problem particularly in developing countries. Mercury and cadmium are toxic elements that have no physiologic functions in human body. They should not be present in the human body by any concentration. Copper, on the other hand, is one of the elements that are essential for normal cell functions and a deficiency as well as an excess of which can cause adverse health effects. To test blood levels of mercury, cadmium, and copper in pregnant women in Dakahlia, Egypt. Using atomic absorption spectrophotometry, blood levels of cadmium, mercury, and copper were measured in 150 pregnant women attending to the antenatal care in Mansoura University Hospital in Dakahlia governorate, Egypt. The mean ± SD of blood mercury, cadmium, and copper levels were found to be far from their levels in the population surveys carried in developed countries like United States of America (USA) and Canada. Heavy metal intoxication and accumulation is a major health hazard. Developing countries, including Egypt, still lack many of the regulatory policies and legislations to control sources of pollution exposure. This should be dealt with in order to solve this problem and limit its health consequences.

Spontaneous retropharyngeal hemorrhage causing airway obstruction: a case report with a review of the literature.

Spontaneous retropharyngeal hemorrhage, although uncommon, can be rapidly progressive and potentially life-threatening. Timely recognition and appropriate treatment are essential for a successful outcome. We report a case of retropharyngeal hemorrhage in an 81-year-old male with a history of arteriosclerotic disease who presented with cough, dysphagia, dyspnea, and cervical ecchymosis. Lateral plain films and computerized tomography (CT) revealed a diffuse soft tissue density distending the retropharyngeal space and adjacent fascial compartments but sparing the glottic and subglottic airway. Emergency tracheostomy was required to relieve progressive upper airway obstruction. The literature on spontaneous retropharyngeal hematoma is reviewed including clinical presentation, causative factors, and recommended treatment.

Disparities in obstructive sleep apnea and its management between a minority-serving institution and a voluntary hospital.

We assessed disparities in severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and associated comorbidities, as well as in provision of sleep medicine health care, between patients evaluated for OSA in a voluntary hospital (VH) primarily serving a middle-class population with health-care insurance and a city hospital-based minority-serving institution (MSI) largely treating lower income, uninsured, and indigent patients. A retrospective chart review of patients evaluated for OSA at the VH (n=200) and at the MSI (n=103) was performed. Despite similar age and apnea hypopnea index, MSI patients had a greater body mass index, higher daytime systemic blood pressure, more comorbid medical conditions, and a lower minimum sleep SaO2 than VH patients. Systemic hypertension, diabetes mellitus, asthma, and congestive heart failure were more prevalent in the MSI group. Forty-two percent of the MSI patients diagnosed with OSA failed to follow up for treatment compared with 7% in the VH group, p<0.001. Disparities in OSA-associated comorbid conditions, as well as in delivery of sleep medicine-related health care, were evident between the VH and MSI groups. These findings suggest that OSA may be an important factor contributing to socioeconomic-based differences in morbidity and mortality.