No Abstract Available.
Inovirus* ; Pandemics* ; Vibrio parahaemolyticus* ; Vibrio*

OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of the community residents on the prevention and control of Leptospirosis in the National Capital Region, Philippines.
METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, four-stage random cluster sampling proportional to size was used to select the 413 respondents from 30 villages in the National Capital Region. The mother or any responsible adult served as the respondent for the community survey which yielded data on the knowledge, attitudes, domestic practices, and sources of information for the prevention and control of Leptospirosis. Encoding was done using Epi Info Version 6. Descriptive statistics was generated through Microsoft Excel.
RESULTS: Majority of the respondents were able to correctly identify that the causative agent of leptospirosis is bacteria (91%), that the disease is transmitted by the urine of infected of rats (89%) through skin abrasions (71%) and mucous membranes (57%). Most commonly identified signs and symptoms of the disease include acute febrile illness with myalgia (87%), difficulty of breathing and decreased urine output (72%). Majority identified the prevention and control measures correctly. Wearing of boots, maintaining a clean and orderly house and maintaining good sanitation were the top answers of the respondents. In terms of attitudes, respondents had positive attitudes towards the preventive practices of wearing boots or following health advisories of authorities (99%). Majority also believed that leptospirosis is curable if detected early (99%) and that it is a serious disease (98%). Similarly, more than 90% had positive attitude when it comes to health care. Wading in flood waters (93%), walking barefoot (85%) and conducting clearing activities after flood (63%) were the commonly believed forms of exposure to the disease. In terms of domestic practices, respondents usually clean their surroundings (40%), avoid wading in floodwaters (25%), wear boots (21%) to protect themselves from acquiring leptospirosis. Primary sources of information on leptospirosis were the mass media (46%), health workers (17%) and the health facilities (14%). The most common educational materials read by the respondents were flyers (9%), posters (8%), and leaflets (7%).
CONCLUSION: In general, majority of the respondents were knowledgeable on the causes, signs and symptoms, and modes of transmission of leptospirosis, and had favorable attitudes towards the prevention and control measures against leptospirosis. However, when it comes to domestic practices, less than 40% actually implement measures for the prevention and control of leptospirosis. Respondents' main source of information was the mass media and very few have read educational materials containing information about the prevention and control of leptospirosis. 

Human ; Animal ; Male ; Female ; Bacteria ; Rodentia ; Jaundice ; Leptospirosis ; Abnormalities, Multiple ; Cross-sectional Studies ; Floods ; Health Facilities ; Health Personnel ; Limb Deformities, Congenital ; Mucous Membrane ; Myalgia ; Philippines ; Rats ; Sanitation ; Surveys And Questionnaires ; Attitude ; Urine

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Endoscopic ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) has been used to diagnose gastrointestinal submucosal tumors (SMTs). Although rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE) has been reported to improve the diagnostic accuracy of EUS-FNA for pancreatic lesions, on-site cytopathologists are not routinely available. Given this background, the usefulness of ROSE by endosonographers themselves for pancreatic tumors has also been reported. However, ROSE by endosonographers for diagnosis of SMT has not been reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of EUS-FNA with ROSE by endosonographers for SMT, focusing on diagnosis of gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), compared with that of EUS-FNA alone. METHODS: Twenty-two consecutive patients who underwent EUS-FNA with ROSE by endosonographers for SMT followed by surgical resection were identified. Ten historical control subjects who underwent EUS-FNA without ROSE were used for comparison. RESULTS: The overall diagnostic accuracy for SMT was significantly higher in cases with than without ROSE (100% vs. 80%, p=0.03). The number of needle passes by FNA with ROSE by endosonographers tended to be fewer, although accuracy was increased (3.3±1.3 vs. 5.9±3.8, p=0.06). CONCLUSIONS: ROSE by endosonographers during EUS-FNA for SMT is useful for definitive diagnosis, particularly for GIST.
Biopsy, Fine-Needle* ; Diagnosis* ; Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Fine Needle Aspiration ; Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors* ; Humans ; Needles

BACKGROUND: Domestic animals are known to be either maintenance or accidental hosts of Leptospira. Determination of seroprevalence of leptospirosis among these animals is of great importance due to their close association with humans, economic loss as well as the public and veterinary health problems caused by the said zoonosis.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among water buffaloes, pigs, and dogs in selected areas in the Philippines.

METHODS: Microscopic agglutination test (MAT) was used to test for leptospirosis. Testing was done from January 2007 to August 2008.

RESULTS: With the cut-off titer set at 1:80, the MAT-positivity rates were 82%, 67%, and 79% for 190 water buffaloes, 45 pigs, and 106 dogs, respectively. The most common prevailing serovars detected were Hardjo, Tarassovi, and Hebdomadis for water buffaloes; Semaranga, Grippotyphosa, and Patoc for pigs; and, Manilae, Patoc, and Autumnalis for dogs. MAT-positivity rates among these animals in terms of age (except for water buffaloes), sex and sample collection sites were not statistically significant. No Leptospira was isolated from the blood, urine, and kidney samples of these animals.

CONCLUSION: Results indicate a high seroprevalence of leptospirosis among the animals studied and that several pathogenic leptospires are causing infection in these animals.

Animal ; Seroepidemiologic Studies ; Leptospirosis ; Swine ; Philippines

OBJECTIVETo understand the mechanism of invasion by Legionella dumoffii.

METHODSThe L. dumoffii strain Tex-KL was mutated using the Tn903 derivative, Tn903dIIlacZ. After screening 799 transposon insertion mutants, we isolated one defective mutant. We then constructed the gene-disrupted mutant, KL16, and studied its invasion of and intracellular growth in HeLa and A549 cells, and in A/J mice survival experiments. The structure of traC-traD operon was analyzed by RT-PCR.

RESULTSThe transposon insertion was in a gene homologous to Salmonella typhi traC, which is required for the assembly of F pilin into the mature F pilus structure and for conjugal DNA transmission. Results from RT-PCR suggested that the traC-traD region formed an operon. We found that when the traC gene was disrupted, invasion and intracellular growth of L. dumoffii Tex-KL were impaired in human epithelial cells. When mice were infected by intranasal inoculation with a traC deficient mutant, their survival significantly increased when compared to mice infected with the wild-type strain..

CONCLUSIONOur results indicated that the traC-traD operon is required for the invasion and intracellular growth abilities of L. dumoffii Tex-KL in epithelial cells.

A549 Cells ; Animals ; Genes, Bacterial ; HeLa Cells ; Humans ; Legionella ; genetics ; physiology ; Male ; Mice ; Mutation ; Operon