A guide to an improvised femoral traction splint in a resource-limited setting.

A femoral traction splint is a mechanical device that uses traction to align and provide stability to femoral fractures. The use of this device has many benefits however there is still limited availability in low- and middle-income countries. This article provides the reader with a step by step guide to improvise a femoral traction splint built from recyclable materials readily available in most hospitals. The authors' concept will give patients access to a potentially life-saving device in a resource-limited setting.

Experimental infection of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) with SAT-1 and SAT-2 foot-and-mouth disease virus.

The potential role of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) in the epidemiology and spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) SAT types was investigated by experimental infection and detection of virus in excretions using virus isolation on primary pig kidney cell cultures. In two experiments separated by a period of 24 months, groups of four animals were needle infected with a SAT-1 or SAT-2 virus, respectively and two in-contact controls were kept with each group. Viraemia was detected 3-9 days post-infection and virus isolated from mouth washes and faeces only occasionally up to day 13. The SAT-1 virus was transmitted to only one in-contact control animal, probably via saliva that contained virus from vesicles in the mouth of a needle-infected animal. None of the animals infected with the SAT-2 virus had any vesicles in the mouth, and there was no evidence of transmission to the in-contact controls. No virus was detected in probang samples for the duration of the experiments (60 days post-infection), indicating that persistent infection probably did not establish with either of these isolates. Giraffe most likely do not play an important role in FMD dissemination. Transmission of infection would possibly occur only during close contact with other animals when mouth vesicles are evident.

Characterization of pigeon paramyxoviruses (Newcastle disease virus) isolated in South Africa from 2001 to 2006.

Pigeon paramyxovirus type 1 (PPMV-1), a variant of Newcastle disease virus that primarily affects doves and pigeons has been isolated in South Africa since the mid-1980s. Phylogenetic evidence indicates that pigeon paramyxovirus type 1 viruses were introduced into South Africa on multiple occasions, based on the presence of two separate lineages, 4bi and 4bii, that have been circulating in Europe and the Far East since the early 1990s. During 2006, a PPMV-1 virus was isolated from an African ground hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri) which became acutely infected with PPMV-1 and died, probably after scavenging off infected dove carcasses in the region, since a closely-related PPMV-1 strain was also isolated from doves collected nearby. The hornbill isolate had ICPI and MDT values characteristic of PPMV-1 strains. The threat of PPMV-1 to poultry production and biodiversity in southern Africa highlights the importance of monitoring the spread of this strain.

The efficacy of an experimental oil-adjuvanted encephalomyocarditis vaccine in elephants, mice and pigs.

An oil-adjuvanted inactivated encephalomyocarditis (EMC) vaccine was developed to protect a wild population of elephants against a natural outbreak of disease. The experimental vaccine was initially tested for efficacy by challenging mice and pigs. Mice showed protection against challenge and pigs developed high antibody levels. Since both vaccinated and control pigs failed to develop clinical disease, apparently due to the low virulence of the strain in this species, protection in pigs could not be evaluated. Vaccinated elephants developed high antibody titers which protected all vaccinates from a challenge roughly two months post-vaccination, whereas controls developed fatal or sub-clinical myocarditis. This is the first report of an inactivated EMC vaccine inducing high antibody titers in domestic and wild animal species. Due to the potency of this vaccine and the acceptability of the oil adjuvant used, it has potential for use in animals in zoological collections as well as in the pig industry.

Ilizarov fixation.

Professor Gavanit Ilizarov, a Russian, was practising medicine in Siberia and although not trained as a surgeon he was becoming increasingly faced with orthopaedic problems. As he had no means of treating many of these, he devised his own system based on Kurstner wires and rings but using bicycle spokes and modified clutch rings. This was in 1951. He continued to make modifications over the years and, as the system has been introduced to the rest of the world, others, too, have added their own adaptations. There are now 42 components which go to make up the Ilizarov system. By using various combinations of these components it is possible to build a frame to treat a variety of orthopaedic problems i.e. deformities, non-unions and limb lengthening.