Microbiology of postoperative wound infection: a prospective study of 1770 wounds.

A prospective study of postoperative wound infection was carried out over a 12-month period. Intra-operative swabs from the patients' anterior nares, the opened viscus and parietes were cultured using standard bacteriological techniques. Of the 1770 wounds studied, 167 (9.4%) became infected. Wound infection rates, according to clinical wound types, were clean 5.9%, clean-contaminated 10.7%, contaminated 24.3% and dirty 52.9%. The figures according to microbiological wound types were clean 4.7%, and potentially, lightly and heavily contaminated 15.3%, 22.1% and 30.2% respectively. The commonest causative organisms were Staphylococcus aureus 23.7%, Escherichia coli 16.9%, Staphylococcus epidermidis 13.5% and Pseudomonas aeruginosa 13.0%. When isolated intra-operatively, Enterobacter spp., Proteus spp., Klebsiella spp. and P. aeruginosa appeared to have a high probability of causing postoperative wound infection, but the intra-operative isolation of Bacteroides sp. was a poor predictor of subsequent wound infection.

Saudi Arabic speech audiometry for children.

Phonetically balanced mono and disyllabic Classical Arabic word lists were chosen to construct a Saudi Arabic speech test for children. These words were taken from children's stories. They were first evaluated by primary and pre-school children in the urban and rural areas of the Province and then divided in eight subgroups of 10 words each. The articulation curves obtained from the children with this test material are similar in course and value to that of the German language using similar speech-test material under the same conditions.

Effects of intramuscular depot-corticosteroid on the nasal mucosa in allergic rhinitis.

Effects of a single intramuscular depot-corticosteroid in allergic rhinitis were studied at clinical and light microscopic levels in Saudi personnel with allergic rhinitis. Clinical studies and biopsies were performed before and after treatment. Following a single intramuscular injection of Depo-Medrol all patients experienced relief and remained symptom-free thereafter for several months. The roentgenographic appearance of the sinuses, eosinophilia of blood and nasal secretion, skin reactivity and the microscopic features exhibited improvement. These findings suggest that a single intramuscular injection of Depo-Medrol is a satisfactory agent for the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Saudi Arabic speech audiometry.

Phonetically balanced monosyllabic classical Arabic word lists were chosen to construct a Saudi Arabic speech test. These words were taken from primary school books, daily newspapers and children's stories. They were first evaluated by our students for their familiarity and homogeneity and then divided into six sub-groups of 20 words each. The normal speech-audiometric curves obtained from our students (normally hearing subjects) with this material are similar to normal curves obtained with most European and American monosyllabic word lists. The threshold of intelligibility for our test material was also found to be similar to that of most foreign languages using monosyllabic word lists under the same conditions.

Perennial rhinitis in Saudi Arabia. A prospective study.

One hundred consecutive patients with perennial rhinitis were examined clinically and by means of a test battery of laboratory investigations in order to clarify the pathogenesis of the disease, and the clinical value of various tests in the assessment of the patients. In 54% of the cases allergy was proven. The most common allergen was Bermuda grass which is found widely distributed in the Eastern Province. In 46% of the cases, allergy could not be demonstrated. Twelve percent had eosinophilic rhinitis. In this study, investigations of blood eosinophils and IgE were found to be of value in the assessment of patients with perennial rhinitis. The possible connection between pollen allergy and perennial rhinitis in Saudi Arabia is discussed.

The occurrence of indoor allergens in Saudi Arabia.

Investigations on indoor airborne allergens in Saudi Arabia were performed by mold cultures and dust analyses by counter-current immunoelectrophoresis. Twenty fungal genera were isolated, with Aspergillus as the most often encountered. Most of the dust-bound fungi found are ubiquitous and common. Antibodies against Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, cat- cow- and rat dander, and Cynodon dactylon pollen were used in the dust analyses. Animal antigens were found in five of the ten dust samples. House dust mites were extraordinarily rare. Pollen of Cynodon dactylon (Bermuda grass) was present in nearly all the samples, and in a concurrent clinical study this antigen was found to be the most common cause of perennial rhinitis.