Iron content in common Cambodian fish species: Perspectives for dietary iron intake in poor,rural households

Iron deficiency is the most widespread nutritional disorder in Cambodia. Sixteen Cambodian fish species were screened for iron, zinc and calcium contents. Esomus longimanus has a higher iron content (451 mg Fe/kg dry matter, SD = 155, n = 4) than other species. Iron pools were measured as inorganic iron (I-Fe) by the ferrozine method, haem-bound iron (H-Fe) by the acetone method and total iron (T-Fe) by atomic absorption spectrometry. I-Fe + H-Fe accounted for <50% of T-Fe in E. longimanus, indicating a pool of complex bound, probably high-molecular weight non-haem iron (Hm-Fe). In a field study, thirty rural women were interviewed about traditional use of E. longimanus; their cleaning and cooking practices were observed and the amounts of fish consumed were recorded and meal samples were collected for iron analysis. Calculations based on the iron content and a high bioavailability of Hm-Fe showed that a traditional fish meal, sour soup, covered 45% of the daily iron requirement for women.     

Effect of medical record audit and feedback on residents'' compliance with preventive health care guidelines

BACKGROUND: Location of the sapheno-popliteal junction (SPJ) is highly variable and therefore often difficult to identify correctly at operation. The anatomy is often complicated by associated pathology in the popliteal fossa, which makes clinical examination unreliable. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of our study was to quantify this variability and record other concomitant pathology in patients with sapheno-popliteal junction incompetence. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed duplex scans of 544 patients with 638 legs showing SPJ incompetence, from a total of approximately 4000 patients attending our laboratory between August 1993 and August 1995. RESULTS: We found that 51% of sapheno-popliteal junctions were located within 2 cm above the popliteal skin crease and a further 36% within 4 cm, with the remaining situated anywhere between 4 and 10 cm above the popliteal skin crease. Additionally 18% of patients had either Giacomini or gastrocnemius vein incompetence in addition to SPJ incompetence, further complicating the clinical picture. CONCLUSION: When SPJ incompetence is suspected, duplex scanning identifies the exact location of the junction and other associated pathology in the popliteal fossa, and allows the position of the junction to be marked on the leg preoperatively.     

Incidents/accidents classification and reporting in Statoil

Based on requirements in the new petroleum regulations from Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) and the realisation of a need to improve and rationalise the routines for reporting and follow up of incidents, Statoil Exploration & Production Norway (Statoil E&P Norway) has formulated a new strategy and process for handling of incidents/accidents. The following past experiences serve as basis for the changes made to incident reporting in Statoil E&P Norway; too much resources were spent on a comprehensive handling and analysis of a vast amount of incidents with less importance for the safety level, taking the focus away from the more severe and important issues at hand, the assessment of "Risk Factor", i.e. the combination of recurrence frequency and consequence, was difficult to use. The high degree of subjectivity involved in the determination of the "Risk Factor" (in particular the estimation of the recurrence frequency) resulted in poor data quality and lack of consistency in the data material. The new system for categorisation and handling of undesirable incidents was established in January 2002. The intention was to get a higher degree of focus on serious incidents (injuries, damages, loss and near misses), with a thorough handling and follow-up. This is reflected throughout the handling of the serious incidents, all the way from immediate notification of the incident, through investigation and follow-up of corrective and preventive actions. Simultaneously, it was also an objective to rationalise/simplify the handling of less serious incidents. These incidents are, however, subjected to analyses twice a year in order to utilize the learning opportunity that they also provide. A year after the introduction of this new system for categorisation and follow-up of undesirable incidents, Statoil's experiences are predominantly good; the intention to get a higher degree of focus on serious incidents (injuries, damages, loss and near misses), has been met, the data quality for the more serious incidents (5% of the total number of incidents registered) has improved, the improved handling of incidents has contributed to more reliable and accurate HSE indicators at a corporate level, more user friendly codes in place for incident registration (based on MTO methodology), the revised matrix gives distinct criteria with respect to which investigation level to be initiated for a specific incident. All activities related to handling of undesirable incidents have been summarised and illustrated on a two-sided plastic form, incorporating both the categorisation matrix and the activity flowchart (see Figs. 1 and 4).     

Polymorphisms in dopamine system genes are associated with individual differences in attention in infancy.

Knowledge about the functional status of the frontal cortex in infancy is limited. This study investigated the effects of polymorphisms in four dopamine system genes on performance in a task developed to assess such functioning, the Freeze-Frame task, at 9 months of age. Polymorphisms in the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) and the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) genes are likely to impact directly on the functioning of the frontal cortex, whereas polymorphisms in the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) and dopamine transporter (DAT1) genes might influence frontal cortex functioning indirectly via strong frontostriatal connections. A significant effect of the COMT valine1??methionine (Val158Met) polymorphism was found. Infants with the Met/Met genotype were significantly less distractible than infants with the Val/Val genotype in Freeze-Frame trials presenting an engaging central stimulus. In addition, there was an interaction with the DAT1 3` variable number of tandem repeats polymorphism; the COMT effect was present only in infants who did not have two copies of the DAT1 10-repeat allele. These findings indicate that dopaminergic polymorphisms affect selective aspects of attention as early as infancy and further validate the Freeze-Frame task as a frontal cortex task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fatty fish intake,n‐3 fatty acids and self‐rated health in middle‐aged adults

Background – Since n‐3 fatty acids, abundant in fatty fish, may improve health, we raised the question whether self‐reported intake frequency of fatty fish (FF) might be related to the percentage of n‐3 fatty acids in serum phospholipids (PL‐n‐3), and also to self‐rated health (H). Design – The study followed a cross‐sectional design. Methods – In the cross‐sectional Oslo Health Study, PL‐n‐3 were determined in 121 middle‐aged ethnic Norwegians and 102 immigrants from the Indian subcontinent and correlated with FF and H. Logistic regression was used to study the relationship between PL‐n‐3 and H (dichotomized, i.e. Poor vs. Good health). Results – FF correlated positively with PL20:5n‐3 (PL‐EPA, r = 0.467, p <0.001) and PL22:6n‐3 (PL‐DHA, r = 0.499, p <0.001), and negatively with PL20:4n‐6 (PL‐AA, r = –0.350, p = 0.001). H was positively associated with PL‐EPA (r = 0.321, p <0.001) and PL‐DHA (r = 0.275; p <0.001), but negatively with PL‐AA (r = –0.220, p = 0.001). The odds ratio for reporting Poor vs. Good health was significantly higher in subjects with low levels of PL‐EPA (OR = 1.49; 95% confidence interval = 1.17–1.89, p = 0.001), persisting after adjusting for sex, physical activity, ethnicity and length of education. Conclusion – The intake frequency of fatty fish is related to n‐3 fatty acids in the serum phospholipids, and to self‐rated health.