Novel coronavirus infection in the eastern mediterranean region: time to act.

The Eastern Mediterranean Region of World Health Organization has been an emerging focus for global health after the discovery of a novel coronavirus infection in some countries in the Region. The Region has already witnessed a number of emerging zoonoses with epidemic potential. In view of this new virus, there is now an urgent need for strong public health vigilance and monitoring of the evolution of the virus in the Region. The situation will challenge and test the national health authorities' resilience and ability to respond in a timely manner. This review summarizes the evidence related to the emergence in the Region of new epidemic diseases of predominantly zoonotic origin and the challenges posed by the discovery of the novel coronavirus infection, and outlines recommendations for the countries for early detection, prevention threats from this novel coronavirus infection. and control of public health

Highlights and conclusions from the technical consultative meeting on novel coronavirus infection, Cairo, Egypt, 14-16 January 2013.

The emergence of a novel strain of coronavirus in the Arabian Peninsula raised a global health concern in 2012, partly because the majority of human infections were fatal and partly due to its presumed animal origin. An urgent meeting of scientific and public health experts was convened by WHO in January 2013 in view of the limited knowledge available on the epidemiological and natural history of infection with this novel virus. The meeting reviewed current evidence and identified critical knowledge gaps to improve better understanding of the public health risk associated with the virus so as to improve preparedness and to safeguard and protect global health.

The early response to a novel coronavirus in the Middle East.

The detection of a novel coronavirus in patients from the Arabian Peninsula in late 2012 raised serious concerns of a possible international outbreak. Ministries of health of the three affected countries invited missions from the World Health Organization to participate in a review of data and capacity to detect and respond to further cases. Recommendations were made for investigations to answer critical questions about human-to-human transmission and the geographic extent of the virus. Additional recommendations were made to improve surveillance capacity by acquiring the capacity to test for the virus and enhance syndromic surveillance. Available evidence continues to suggest an unknown animal reservoir for the virus with sporadic zoonotic transmission the primary epidemiological pattern of transmission. Human-to-human transmission, while it can occur, does not appear to be sustained in the community.

Clinical management guidelines for pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus infection in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: technical basis and overview.

During the spring of 2009, a novel influenza A (H1N1) virus of swine origin caused human infection and acute respiratory illness in Mexico. After initially spreading in North America, the virus spread globally resulting in the first influenza pandemic since 1968. While the majority of illnesses caused by pandemic (H1N1) 2009 were mild and self-limiting, severe complications, including fatalities, were also reported. In view of the increasing number of laboratory-confirmed cases and deaths from pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in the Eastern Mediterranean Region of the World Health Organization, the Regional Office convened a consultation meeting of experts involved in the clinical management of patients infected with pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. The consultation resulted in developing an interim guidance and algorithm for clinical management of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus infection in health-care settings. This paper describes the process, the technical basis and the components of this interim guidance.

Opium consumption: A potential risk factor for lung cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis.

OBJECTIVE: Lung cancer is the most common malignancy, as well as the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Several studies have shown the causative effect of cigarettes smoking in lung cancer, however, the effect of opium consumption has not yet been well studied. This study has been designed to evaluate the risk of developing lung cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis in pure opium addicts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We designed an analytic case-control study with 490 participants. People were divided into three groups: Group A were pure opium addicts, Group B consisted of nonsmoker patients who visited the chest medicine clinic due to complaints such as asthma, respiratory tract infections, and other signs and symptoms unrelated to smoking. Group C were chosen from nonsmoker individuals who visited the Emergency Department due to nonrespiratory problems. RESULTS: Statistical analysis showed that the three groups were similar with respect to mean age and gender. In Group A, one patient was diagnosed as having bronchoalveolar carcinoma. No other case of lung cancer was found in all three groups. Furthermore, four patients in Group A (5.3%; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-10.3) were found to have pulmonary tuberculosis, as this was significantly higher as compared with groups B and C (P = 0.009 and P< 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: Although, owing to limited number of cases, a robust conclusion cannot be made, this study can be considered as a base for a well-designed, larger study to further clarify the potential effect of opium abuse in developing lung cancer.

3-Dimensional thermal analysis and active cooling of short-length high-power fiber lasers.

A fully 3-dimensional finite element model has been developed that simulates the internal temperature distribution of short-length high-power fiber lasers. We have validated the numerical model by building a short, cladding-pumped, Er-Yb-codoped fiber laser and measuring the core temperature during laser operation. A dual-end-pumped, actively cooled, fiber laser has generated >11 W CW output power at 1535 nm from only 11.9 cm of active fiber. Simulations indicate power-scaling possibilities with improved fiber and cooling designs.

Community-based nutritional intervention for reducing malnutrition among children under 5 years of age in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

A project was conducted in a rural area in September 1994 with the aim of decreasing the incidence of protein-energy malnutrition among children under 5 years, by nutritional intervention through the primary health care system. An initial situation analysis revealed the region's resources and causes of malnutrition. Practical instruction on feeding methods, deworming, environmental sanitation, the promotion of home-grown vegetables and reinforcement of the growth monitoring programme were chosen as the routes for intervention. All indices were reassessed in the region after 1 year. Results showed that nutritional awareness had grown among mothers, and that the incidence of malnutrition had dropped from 6.5% to 1.8%, as measured against the weight-for-height index.

Investigation of modal properties of microstructured optical fibers with large depressed-index cores.

We present what is, to the best of our knowledge, the first systematic study on how negative core-cladding index difference influences microstructured optical fiber's modal behavior. Single-mode lasing has been realized for short-length cladding-pumped phosphate glass microstructured fibers with large depressed-index Er(3+)-Yb(3+)-codoped cores.

Short-length microstructured phosphate glass fiber lasers with large mode areas.

We report fabrication and testing of the first phosphate glass microstructured fiber lasers with large Er-Yb-codoped cores. For an 11-cm-long cladding-pumped fiber laser, more than 3 W of continuous wave output power is demonstrated, and near single-mode beam quality is obtained for an active core area larger than 400 microm2.

Effect of human sperm chromatin anomalies on fertilization outcome post-ICSI.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sperm chromatin anomalies on fertilization outcome post-intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Therefore, along with semen parameters, Chromomycin A3 (CMA3) staining for protamine deficiency, aniline blue staining for excessive histones, SDS for sperm chromatin stability and SDS + EDTA for the ability of sperm to undergo decondensation were carried out on 55 semen samples from patients referred to the Isfahan Fertility and Infertility Center for ICSI. The results showed that among the aforementioned tests and semen parameters only CMA3 showed a significant correlation with fertilization outcome post-ICSI. Patients were also grouped according to CMA3 level of <30% or >30% or fertilization rate of <50% or >50%. The results show that the mean percentage fertilization and mean percentage of CMA3 positivity is different in both groups, respectively. The area under receiver operator characteristics curve shows that CMA3 is a highly sensitive and specific test for prediction of fertilization outcome post-ICSI. In conclusion, that sperm protamine deficiency has profound effect on fertilization failure in ICSI.