Comparison of culture media for detection of Acinetobacter baumannii in surveillance cultures of critically-ill patients.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of CHROMagar Acinetobacter when compared to sheep blood agar, MacConkey agar and MacConkey agar with 6 µg/ml of imipenem for the detection of A. baumannii in surveillance cultures of hospitalized patients. We utilized peri-anal swabs and sputum samples from patients admitted to the University of Maryland Medical Center ICUs from December 7 through December 21, 2009. Samples were plated onto four media in the following order: (1) 5% sheep blood agar (SBA), (2) MacConkey agar, (3) MacConkey agar with 6 µg/ml of imipenem, and (4) CHROMagar Acinetobacter (CHROMagar). SBA was the gold standard to which all media was compared. There were 165 samples collected during the study period. SBA and CHROMagar detected 18 of 18 (100%) Acinetobacter and 11 of 11 (100%) MDR-A. baumannii. MacConkey agar detected 16 of 18 (89%) Acinetobacter and 10 of 11 (91%) MDR- A. baumannii while MacConkey agar with 6 µg/ml imipenem detected 9 of 11 (82%) MDR-A. baumannii. CHROMagar did not differentiate MDR- A. baumannii from non-MDR-A. baumannii. CHROMagar may be useful for rapid detection of patients with MDR-A. baumannii if improved upon to better select for MDR-A. baumannii.

Natural activities of 40K, 238U and 232Th in elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria.

Samples of elephant grass collected at some pasturing farmlands across different locations in Ibadan metropolis were analyzed for their natural radioactivity concentrations due to 40K, 238U and 232Th radionuclides. Radioactivity measurements were carried out using gamma-ray spectroscopy. The average radioactivity concentration of 40K was found to be 25.7+/-5.5 Bq kg(-1) for 238U and 33.4+/-3.9 Bq kg(-1) for 232Th. The radiological health implication to the population that may result from these values is found to be very low and almost insignificant. No artificial radionuclide, however, was detected in any of the samples, hence, measurements have been taken as representing baseline values of these radionuclides in the grass in the metropolis.

"Idiopathic" intra-abdominal abscess.

Primary peritonitis that tends to occur especially in children, and cirrhotic spontaneous bacterial peritonitis are well recognized clinical entities. At the University College Hospital, Ibadan, cases of intra-abdominal abscess that do not fit the recognized criteria for primary peritonitis have been seen. These patients were neither cirrhotic nor nephrotic and all the intra-abdominal organs at operation appeared normal. This "idiopathic" intra-abdominal abscess seems to occur mainly in the tropics and is a strong differential diagnosis of typhoid perforation. Treatment consists of exploratory laparotomy, thorough irrigation of the abdominal cavity with sterile saline solution, and systemic administration of broad spectrum antibiotics.

Breast abscess.

Breast abscess is a relatively important disease in the tropics, and yet this condition has received little attention in the literature. Breast abscess encourages artificial feeding, which in many instances may be responsible for gastroenteritis in infants. This occurs when foods are not properly prepared by mothers of low socioeconomic class with inadequate sanitation.Breast abscess occurs primarily in the lactating breast and is most commonly located in the upper half of the breast.The organism most commonly present in the pus is Staphylococcus aureus. When the abscess is localized, it may present with all the clinical features of a breast carcinoma.

Tropical pyomyositis.

Tropical pyomyositis, a suppurative condition involving a group or groups of muscles, has only been described in the tropical areas of the world. An etiological factor in the genesis of this disease is closed muscle trauma causing bleeding, hematoma formation, muscle necrosis, and secondary blood borne infection; but this does not explain why the condition occurs or is contracted only in the tropical belt. The commonest organism present in the abscess is Staphylococcus aureus. Neglected or poorly treated tropical pyomyositis can give rise to chronic osteomyelitis or septic arthritis.

Studies on the prevalence of tinea capitis infection in Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

Investigations were carried out into the prevalence of tinea capitis infection among school children in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. The prevalence rate of clinical infection was found to be 14.02%. The infection was found to be more frequent among pupils between ages 5 and 10 years, and more prevalent among the poor than the rich (p less than 0.005). Families having between 1 and 4 children had lower prevalence than families having minimum of five children (p less than 0.10). Approximately one-third of the clinically infected children were not receiving any treatment while about two-thirds of the remaining two-thirds were using local native remedies, some of which had resulted in deaths of some children. The most common causative agent isolated from the lesions was Microsporum audouinii.