Screening of Plants Used as Traditional Anticancer Remedies in Mkuranga and Same Districts, Tanzania, Using Brine Shrimp Toxicity Bioassay

Background.Inadequate specialized cancer hospitals and high costs are contributing factors that delay cancer patients from accessing health care services in Tanzania. Consequently, majority of patients are first seen by Traditional Health Practitioners (THPs) before they access specialized services. This study presents ethnomedical information and preliminary evaluation of 25 plant species claimed by THPs in Mkuranga and Same districts of Tanzania on use for treatment of cancer. Literature search and laboratory investigation results are presented to support evaluation.Methods. This study was a single disease ethnomedical enquiry focusing on plants being used for cancer treatment.Face-to-face interviews and questionnaires were administered toeight (8) THPsin Mkuranga and Same districts on the claimed plants and their use for management of cancer. Plants were selected based on being frequently mentioned and emphasis given by THPs. Literature search and brine shrimp toxicity (BST) of methanol : dichloromethane (1:1) extracts was used as surrogates to evaluate strength of the claims.Results.This study reports 25 plant species used by the THPs in two districts of Tanzania. Eight plants (32%) have been reported in the literature to have activity against cancer cells. BST results revealed, 14 (56%) plants exhibited high toxicity against brine shrimps. The most active plants includedCroton pseudopulchellusPax (LC504.2μg/ml),Dalbergia melanoxylonGuill. & Perr. (LC506.8μg/ml),Loranthus micranthusLinn (LC504.0μg/ml),Ochna mossambicensisKlotzsch (LC503.3μg/ml), andSpirostachys africanaSond. (LC504.4μg/ml); their toxicity was comparable to that ofCatharanthus roseus(L) G. Don. (LC506.7μg/ml), an established source of anticancer compounds. Nine other plants had LC50values between (19.8 and 71.6)μg/ml, indicating also potential to yield anticancer.Conclusion.Literature search and BST results provide a strong support of the potential of the claimed plants to yield active anticancer compounds.

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Self-rated health among women and their assessment of the health care system / Samoocena zdravja med ženskami in njihov odnos do zdravstvenega sistema v sloveniji

Slovenian Journal of Public Health ◽

10.2478/sjph-2013-0011 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 52 (2) ◽

pp. 87-98 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Mirjana Ule ◽

Slavko Kurdija

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Health Care System ◽

Access To Health Care ◽

Health Care Services ◽

Strong Support ◽

Social Categories ◽

Female Population ◽

Care Services ◽

Self Assessed Health ◽

Care System

Abstract Background: This article researches gender inequality in health based on subjective assessments of health, the accessibility of health care services and trust in the health care system between different social categories of women in Slovenia. Methods: The study is based on the Slovenian Public Opinion survey (ISSP Health Module) carried out in 2011 on representative samples of the adult Slovenian population. In the data, we investigated the gender differences and difference between different socio-economic categories within the female sub-sample in self-assessed health, and some other related topics such as: trust in doctors, trust in health care system, access to health care services and attitude to the health care policy in Slovenia. Results: The data shows significant inequalities in self-assessed health between different social strata. Self-assessed health is significantly lower among women at the bottom of the educational and income scale. The data also reveals strong support for the preservation of the available public health. Conclusion: Neoliberal economic reforms (of health care) affect vulnerable social categories the most, and women are particularly exposed. The use of women’s unpaid work in the family belongs among the basic (neo)liberal saving strategies. These want to take more care and health work within families from the shoulders of the state and place it onto the shoulders of family members, which mainly means women. In these circumstances, it is understandable that women subjectively assess their health as being worse than men’s. Moreover, conditions are being established that de facto could lead to worse health in the female population in Slovenia.

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A Framework for Neurodevelopmental Disorders: Operationalization of a Pathogenetic Triad for Clinical and Research Use

10.31234/osf.io/mbeqh ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Darko Sarovic

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Health Care ◽

Clinical Reasoning ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Neurodevelopmental Disorders ◽

Health Care Services ◽

Research Use ◽

Contributing Factors ◽

Care Services ◽

Exogenous Factors

The relevance of neurodevelopmental disorders, even outside of health care services, has become increasingly acknowledged. Endogenous, as well as exogenous, factors have been shown to influence their development, and the effects and interactions of those factors have been extensively discussed. Despite this, an operationalized and clinically relevant framework that aids clinical reasoning and diagnostics is lacking. This paper presents a framework for conceptualizing the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders from the interaction of a triad of contributing factors: genetic susceptibility, cognitive compensation, and environmental risk factors. The triad is operationalized to create a clinically relevant framework and approaches for quantification of each operationalized variable are presented. This allows clinicians to implement the framework in a practical setting, potentially improving diagnostics, and provides researchers with an explanatory framework for their findings. Methods for testing and validation of the triad are outlined.

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