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From the
Editor
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A. Abyad, MD,
MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Chief Editor)
Address correspondence
to:
A. Abyad, MD, MPH, MBA, AGSF, AFCHSE (Editor)
Abyad Medical Center & Middle East Longevity
Institute
Azmi Street, Abdo Center, 2nd Floor
PO BOX 618, Tripoli LEBANON
Tel & Fax: 961 6 443684/5/6
Email: aabyad@cyberia.net.lb
Web: www.amc-lb.com
This is our sixth issue this year and has a
good number of papers from the region. Two papers
deal with effects of Gastrointestinal problems
on health.
A retrospective study from Jordan was performed
to find out the Seroprevalence of HBV, HCV,
HIV and syphilis infections among blood donors
at Blood Bank of King Hussein medical center
and to establish strict guidelines for blood
transfusion to reduce the incidence of TTI,
thus ensuring safe blood supply to the recipients.
The study was carried out in the Blood Bank
of King Hussein Medical Center over 3 years
from January 2009 through December 2011. A total
of 94,270 blood donor records from year 2009
to 2011 at King Hussein Medical Center were
apparently healthy adult voluntary and replacement
donors. The overall prevalence of HBs Ag, HCVAb,
HIV1/2 Ab, RPR and HBc Ab total were 0.8%, 0.15%,
0.02%, 0.006%, 6.4% respectively. The authors
concluded that a substantial percentage of the
blood donors harbor HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis
infections so the use of sensitive screening
test for these TTI and establishment of strict
guidelines for blood transfusion are highly
recommended to reduce the incidence of them,
thus ensuring safe blood supply to the recipients.
A paper from Turkey pointed out that very high
levels of C-reactive protein should alert the
clinician to the development of acute chest
syndrome in sickle cell patients. The authors
stressed that acute chest syndrome (ACS) is
associated with both inflammation and tissue
ischemia. C-reactive protein (CRP) is marker
of systemic inflammation. The aim of this study
was to determine if a relationship exists between
CRP and severe ACS.
Forty-three patients with painful crises (range:
4-18 years, mean: 11.4 years) hospitalized between
2012 and 2014, consisting of 23 patients with
ACS and 20 patients without ACS (uncomplicated
vaso-occlusive crisis) were recruited into this
study. The authors concluded that Elevated CRP
was determined in all ACS patients with SCD.
CRP may be a superior diagnostic marker and
herald severe ACS in individuals with SCD.
A paper from Sri Lanka was conducted to explore
patients' attitudes towards training students
in fee levying general practices. Six general
practices to represent different practices (urban,
semi urban, male and female trainers) where
students undergo training were selected for
the study. Randomly selected 50 adult patients
from each practice responded to a self administered
questionnaire following a consultation where
medical students had been present. 300 patients
(57.2 % females) participated in the study.
The authors concluded that the vast majority
of the patients accepted the presence of students
and were willing to participate in this education
process without any reservation. Their wishes
should be respected. Outcome of this study is
an encouragement to educationists and GP teachers.
A descriptive cross sectional study from Baghdad
carried out in the gastro-intestinal and hepatology
teaching hospital, Baghdad Medical City during
2013 on data collected from reviewing patient's
files from the 1st of January to 31st of December
2012 including all adults 18 years and above
of both sexes with dyspeptic symptoms who were
referred for endoscopic evaluation of Helicobacter
Pylori infection by taking multiple antral biopsies
for histopathological stain and evaluation of
their endoscopic findings. The aim is to demonstrate
the prevalence of Helicobacter Pylori infection
in adult patients with dyspepsia who underwent
upper Oesophagio-Gastro-Duodenoscopy so early
treatment can be made to prevent it`s complications,
and to estimate the prevalence of positive endoscopic
findings in patients with dyspepsia.
Chronic idiopathic urticarial patients may
benefit from eradication therapy of H. pylori.
A paper from Saudi Arabia looked at the prevalence
of Helicobacter pylori in the serum of patients
who presented with chronic urticaria .The patient
has endured treatment and is not cured besides
partial treatment causes temporary relive of
symptoms. So, it is important to make the right
decisions regarding the treatment of chronic
urticaria by adding triple therapy for those
who are H.pylori positive.
In an interview with Ben Frank the CEO of Sheikh
Khalifa Medical City he discussed the changes
in hospital management and its impact on the
Health Care Delivery System. He stressed that
the Gulf Corporate Council (GCC) member states
(UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Qatar)
have been witnessing a tremendous increase in
the demand for healthcare services and professionals
especially at a time when markets across the
globe are still recouping from the financial
crisis. One influential reason for the skyrocketing
healthcare jobs is that the industry is collectively
upgrading its facilities and expertise to world-class
standards (Saad, 2012). In fact, some standards
actually surpass the levels of their European
and American counterparts such as Saudi German
Hospital-Dubai (Saad, 2012). A study done by
Alpen Capital Investment (2014) state that "The
GCC healthcare market is projected to grow at
an annual rate of 12% to US$ 69.4 billion by
2018 from an estimated US$ 39.4 billion in 2013."
Saudi Arabia is projected to remain the largest
GCC market while Qatar and UAE are expected
to be the fastest growing markets. (Alpen Capital
Investment Banking, 2014)
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