Research Articles
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A research article reports the results of original research, assesses its contribution to the body of knowledge in a given area, and is published in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal. The faculty publications through published and on-going articles/researches are captured in this community
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Item The Role of Street Food Vendors in the Transmission of Enteric pathogens in Accra(Ghana Medical Journal, 1999-03) Mensah, P.; Owusu-Darko, K.; Yebooh-Manu, D.; Ablordey, A.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Kamiya, H.The role of street food vendors in the transmission of diarrhoeal pathogens was evaluated by assessing their knowledge on the definition of diarrhoea and transmission of diarrhoeal pathogens. Stool and blood cultures as well as the Widal test was carried to deter· mi ne their carrier status on a number of bacterial enteropathogens. All the vendors were female which emphasises the Important role women play in the provision of food through street food vending activities. They provide useful Service to the community by selling food to school children. market women, traders and workers. The level of education of these females was low and this reflected in their knowledge on the definition.. causes and transmission of enteric pathogens. Their personal hygiene was however good but the environment was often littered with garbage. A number of diarrhoeal pathogens were isolated from 66(37.5%) of these individuals. Salmonella '\P was isolated from 6(3.4%), Shigella from 2(1. 1%). Enteropathugenic E.coli (EPEC) from 59 (33.5%) and enteroaggressive E.coli (EPEC) from 34( 19.3%). Mixed enteric infection was common: seventeen had two different bacteria. Six had three and one had four different bacteria and another one had five. A total of 176 blood samples were cultured for bacteria and out of these only 1(0.6%) tested positive for Pasteurella gallinarium. In the Widal test only 153 serum samples were tested for antibodies to S typhi and 15(9.8%) titre of 1:80 to the somatic antigen. These were positive according to the manufacturers specifications but comparison with the stool and blood culture results showed that only one subject among this group actually had confirmed S typhi infection The screening of food handlers for enteric pathogens may be difficult to monitor SO food and personal hygiene education is recommended. Although the effectiveness of the Widal as a diagnostic tool for typhoidfever was not included in the initial objectives. the study showed that the Widal test cannot be used in isolation from laboratory results. This is even more difficult in the absence of a National Cut-Off Point. A survey to provide such data is also obviousItem The cytokine balance in severe malarial anemia [5] (multiple letters).(Journal of Infectious Diseases, 1999) Kurtzhals, J.A.L.; Akanmori, B.D.; Quarm Goka, B.; Adabayeri, V.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Behr, C.; Hviid, L.; Othoro, C.; Udhayakumar, V.Item Fever in Africa and WHO recommendation.(Lancet, 1997) Dunyo, S.K.; Koram, K.A.; Nkrumah, F.K.Item A longitudinal study of malaria infection, morbidity and antibody titres in infants of a rural community in Ghana.(Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 1995) Akanmori, B.D.; Afari, E.A.; Sakatoku, H.; Nkrumah, F.K.Item Immunological background in children with persistent diarrhea in Ghana(Pediatrics International, 1999) Taniguchi, K; Rikimaru, T; Yartey, J.E.; Akpedonu, P.; Armar-Klemesu, M.A.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Kamiya, H.; Kishi, K.; Armar, D.A.BACKGROUND: Persistent diarrheal diseases have become one of the most serious medical problems in developing countries, but few studies have been conducted to determine the risk factors. In the present study, we investigated the nutritional and immunological background in children with persistent diarrhea in comparison with those with acute diarrhea. METHODS: Children with diarrhea who were brought to the Oral Rehydration Salt Clinic of Princess Marie Louise Children's Hospital in Accra were evaluated from an immunological and nutritional aspect. In the follow-up visit, the cases whose diarrhea stopped within 2 weeks after onset were classified into the acute diarrhea group; those with diarrhea lasting more than 2 weeks were classed in the persistent group. Nutritional and immunological data at the initial visit were compared between these two groups. RESULTS: In general, the diarrhea cases had a tendency to undernutrition and impaired cellular immunity compared with healthy control. Persistent cases had lower values for longer half-life, rapid turn-over proteins. Persistent cases had a higher percentage of CD8+ cells and lower CD4/CD8 ratio. CD25 expression in CD4+ cells stimulated by anti-CD3 antibody was lower in the persistent diarrhea group. CONCLUSION: These results appear to support the hypothesis that more severe nutritional status and impairment of cellular immunity is related to the persistence of diarrhea.Item Structure-activity studies: In vitro antileishmanial and antimalarial activities of anthraquinones from morinda lucida.(Planta Medica, 1999) Sittie, A.A.; Lemmich, E.; Olsen, C.E.; Hviid, L.; Kharazmi, A.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Christensen, S.B.Anthraquinones have been isolated by bioassay guided fractionation from Morinda lucida. Structure-activity studies show that an aldehyde group at C-2 and a phenolic hydroxy group at C-3 enhance the activity of the anthraquinones against the growth of Plastnodium falciparum and promastigotes of Leishmania major in vitro.Item Acute renal failure and dermal necrosis due to bee stings: Report of a case in a child(Central African Journal of Medicine, 1990) Tumwine, J.K.; Nkrumah, F.K.Although several cases of reactions to bee venom including acute renal failure have been reported, the literature from Africa is scanty and that concerning children virtually non-existent. We report a child who was stung by over 1,000 bees and developed acute renal failure and extensive scalp necrosis. The pathogenesis of these complications is discussed and the importance of their public awareness stressed.Item Prevalence of hepatitis G virus and characterization of viral genome in Ghana.(Hepatology Research, 1999) Saito, T.; Ishikawa, K.; Osei-Kwasi, M.; Kaneko, T.; Brandful, J.A.M.; Nuvor, V.; Aidoo, S.; Ampofo, W.; Apeagyei, F.A.; Ansah, J.E.; Adu-Sarkodie, Y.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Abe, K.The prevalence of hepatitis G virus (HGV) infection was investigated in 85 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and 30 uninfected individuals' sera obtained from Ghanaians. HGV RNA in serum was identified by a nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using primers derived from the 5′-noncoding region. We also tested for hepatitis C virus by nested RT-PCR and for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) by passive hemagglutination method. HGV RNA was detected in 17 of 85 (20%) HIV sero-positive and three of 30 (10%) sero-negative Ghanaians, respectively. The prevalence of HGV infection was much greater than hepatitis C (0.9%) and hepatitis B virus (7.8%) infections in the present study. Ninety four percent of HGV infected patients were seronegative for hepatitis B and C virus infections. The nine different Ghanaian isolates in the 5′-untranslated region of the HGV genome had one nucleotide deletion at the same position when compared with other HGV isolates. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all Ghanaian isolates belonged to type 1 (West Africa type) of the HGV genotypes. Moreover, we determined nearly full-length nucleotide sequence of the HGV genome (denoted HGV-GA128) recovered from a Ghanaian infected with HIV. The HGV-GA128 was composed of 9231 nucleotides and had a single open reading frame, encoding 2843 amino acid residues. This isolate differed from previously reported HGV/GBV-C isolates by 10–15% of the nucleotide sequence and 2–5% of the amino acid sequence. Our data indicate a high prevalence of HGV, especially genotype 1, in Ghana.Item Carbohydrate and electrolyte content of some home-available fluids used for oral rehydration in Ghana(Journal of Tropical Pediatrics, 1993) Yartey, J; Harisson, E.K.; Brakohiapa, L.A.; Nkrumah, F.K.Coconut milk and kenkey water (a maize gruel) which are traditionally used for the treatment of diarrhoea in Ghana, were analysed to ascertain their suitability for use in rehydration. The pH, carbohydrate, and electrolyte levels of the food fluids were compared to the recommended UNICEF/WHO ORS to ascertain if these are within physiologically acceptable ranges for the treatment and prevention of dehydration in children with diarrhoea. The carbohydrate and electrolyte levels of kenkey water were found to be comparable to UNICEF/WHO ORS and is suitable for use in rehydration. Coconut milk has the advantages of being fresh, sterile and readily available in most Ghanaian communities. However, use of coconut milk for rehydration cannot be recommended on the basis of its glucose and electrolyte composition.Item Risk factors for the prevalence of malnutrition among urban children in Ghana.(Journal of Nutritional Science and Vitaminology, 1998) Rikimaru, T.; Yartey, J.E.; Taniguchi, K.; Kennedy, D.O.; Nkrumah, F.K.A case-control study was completed at the Princess Marie Louise Hospital in Accra, Ghana, to identify risk factors for the prevalence of underweight and severe malnutrition in urban African children. A total of 170 children, aged 8 to 36 mo, with normally nutritional status (≥80% W/A of NCHS reference), underweight (moderate malnutrition) (60-80% W/A), or severe malnutrition (<80% W/A and presence of edema, or <60% of W/A) were recruited at the clinical ward and at the public health service section of the hospital. Anthropometric measurements and physical examinations were completed, and the guardians were interviewed about their children's health status, birth weight, child care, and household conditions. The severely malnourished children were more likely to have young mothers (p<0.05) and low weight at birth (p<0.05). The under-weight children were also observed to have low birth weight (p<0.05). The severely malnourished group showed the tendencies of less feeding frequency (p<0.01), less access to breast-feeding (p<0.01), and less support by both parents (p<0.05). Moreover, the parents of the severely malnourished children had lower educational levels and lower-income jobs, compared with those of the normal children (mother's education, p<0.001; father's education, p<0.001; mother's occupation, p<0.05; father's occupation, p<0.001). No significant differences in most variables existed between the normal and underweight groups. Multivariable analysis resulted in the conclusion that the Z-score of weight-for-age, birth weight, and mother's educational level were highly associated with one another. We conclude that low birth weight is one of the important risk factors for the prevalence of underweight and severe malnutrition and that the lack of a mother's education is also a risk factor for the prevalence of severe malnutrition in the urban children in Ghana.