A randomized, comparative study of supervised and unsupervised artesunate-amodiaquine, for the treatment of uncomplicated malaria in Ghana.

Although the use of artesunate-amodiaquine treatment is growing in Africa, data on its effectiveness are limited. In only the second published comparison of supervised and unsupervised treatments with this combination, Ghanaian children with uncomplicated malaria have recently been investigated in an open-label, randomized, comparative study. Children aged 6-120 months attending the Navrongo War Memorial hospital between November 2005 and December 2006 were enrolled if they had uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria and at least one of their parents/guardians gave their informed consent. Overall, 638 patients were screened, 357 were found to have P. falciparum infection, and 308 of these satisfied the other selection criteria and were enrolled. The subjects were divided randomly into two treatment arms. All the children were scheduled to receive 10 mg amodiaquine/kg and 4 mg artesunate/kg daily for 3 days but only 154 (the 'supervised') were given all their treatments in hospital, with each dose directly observed. Although the other 154 children (the 'unsupervised') were given their first dose in hospital, under supervision, they were then sent home with the tablets they required to complete treatment. Study participation lasted for 28 days, with follow-up on days 3, 7, 14, 21 and 28. During follow-up, axillary temperatures, any emergent signs and symptoms, and concomitant drug consumption were recorded and haemoglobin concentrations and malarial parasitaemias and gametocytaemias were measured. All but seven of the 308 subjects completed the study. At enrolment the subjects had a mean age of 45.0 months, a mean weight of 14.8 kg, a mean axillary temperature of 37.9 degrees C and a geometric mean parasitaemia of 11,367 asexual stages/microl. About 55% of the children investigated were girls. There were no significant baseline difference between the two treatment arms. Although there was also no difference in the clearance of fever and parasitaemia between the two arms by day 14, a supervised child was significantly more likely to show an adequate clinical and parasitological response, by day 21 (91.3% v. 84.1%; P= 0.05) or day 28 (80.0% v. 64.9%; P<0.01), than an unsupervised child. The reported adverse effects following treatment and the trend in haemoglobin recovery were, however, similar in the two arms. Although artesunate-amodiaquine appeared very effective in the treatment of uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in children, whether supervised or not, it appears that supervised treatment provided stronger prevention against re-infection and recrudescence. At least in the present study, treatment at home, without medical supervision, probably led to relatively poor compliance.

Trends in the prevalence of female genital mutilation and its effect on delivery outcomes in the kassena-nankana district of northern ghana.

UNLABELLED: Summary RATIONAL: Female genital mutilation (FGM) is prevalent in northern Ghana, as the practice is seen as a passage rite to women adulthood and thus undertaken just before marriage. OBJECTIVES: We determined the changes in trend of FGM in deliveries at the Navrongo War Memorial hospital, and compared the outcomes and FGM status. DESIGN: Retrospective extraction and analysis of delivery data at the hospital from 1(st) January 1996 to 31(st) December 2003. RESULTS: Of the 5071 deliveries, about 29% (1466/5071) were associated with FGM. The highest prevalence (95% CI) of 61.5% (50.9, 71.2) was in women aged 40 years and above, and the lowest of 14.4% (11.7, 17.0) was in women below 20 years. The all-age prevalence of FGM showed a significant decline (p-value for linear trend < 0.01) from 35.2% in 1996 to 21.1% in 2003. About 6% (89/1466) of mothers with FGM had stillbirths compared with about 3% (123/3605) of mothers without FGM. Again FGM was associated with 8.2% (120/1466) caesarean section rate compared with 6.7% (241/3605) in mothers without FGM. Mean birth weight and frequency of low birth weights were not significantly associated with FGM status. CONCLUSION: Although there is a high rate of FGM among mothers in the district and is associated with a higher proportion of stillbirths and caesarean sections, practice has shown a significant decline in the district in recent years due to the prevailing campaigns and intervention studies. There is therefore the need to sustain the ongoing intervention efforts.

[A new minimally invasive arthroscopic technique for reconstruction of the acromioclavicular joint]. / Eine neue minimal-invasive arthroskopische Technik zur Akromioklavikulargelenkrekonstruktion.

BACKGROUND: Over 100 techniques for acromioclavicular joint (ACJ) reconstruction have been described. Most of these techniques are invasive and are associated with a high complication rate. We therefore developed a new minimally invasive arthroscopic technique for reconstruction of the ACJ. METHODS: The new operation technique is described in detail. We operated 13 patients with Rockwood IV or V dislocations of the ACJ using this new technique. Intra- and postoperative complications were recorded. Each patient was evaluated after 3, 6, and 9 months using the Constant score for shoulder function and radiographs (anteroposterior, axillary, and Zanca views) of the operated and nonoperated shoulder for radiologic evaluation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the first clinical results and complication rates using this technique. RESULTS: The mean follow-up was 9 months. Of the 13 patients, 12 could be included in the study and we had 1 dropout. The mean Constant score was 97; all patients were satisfied with the postoperative shoulder function and cosmetics. Radiologically we observed ten patients with anatomic reduction and two with a subluxation between 2 and 4 mm compared to the nonoperated side. In one patient we determined coracoclavicular ossifications which were asymptomatic. There were no complications intra- and postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: These first results suggest that this is a good and safe technique for ACJ reconstruction. Further randomized studies with more patients have to follow to confirm the results.