Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to B Larouze.
Hydatidosis is a very common disease in Tunisia, with a great economical importance for the health care system. In 1983, for Sousse Hospital, the total cost for hydatidosis was 125,000 US $. More than half of these costs were for "hospital days". A more rational in the services administration would make decrease these costs, but the best is a special attention to primary prevention.
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The activity of four antimalarial drugs against 66 Plasmodium falciparum isolates from 15 countries was assessed by an in vitro semi-microtest. Median inhibitory concentrations (IC50) for chloroquine were less than 120 nM in 22 isolates from patients successfully treated with chloroquine, and more than 250 nM in six isolates from patients with chloroquine-resistant malaria. 10 of 15 isolates from Brazil (Amazonia), 7 of 12 isolates from Madagascar, two from Kenya and two from Thailand had IC50 for chloroquine of more than 250 nM. None of the 35 isolates from West and Central Africa had IC50 of more than 120 nM. Very different levels of sensitivity were observed in Brazil and Madagascar. 27 of 28 isolates (including two that were chloroquine-resistant in vivo) had IC50 of less than 50 nM for dichlorquinazine, a 4-aminoquinoline. The IC50 for mefloquine was less than 160 nM in 55 isolates including ten from patients who were successfully treated with mefloquine. IC50 for quinine were between 140 and 660 nM for 30 isolates. This test has proved useful in epidemiological studies, therapeutic monitoring of clinical cases and in the evaluation of new drugs.
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Naturally occurring malaria, arbovirus infection and hepatitis in monkeys can be a hazard for the investigator and might interfere with the outcome of experiments. 63 young adult Macaca fascicularis from Malaysia were screened for these infections. About 1 year after their arrival in France, parasitaemia due to Plasmodium spp., was present in 6.4% of the animals and specific antibodies in 55.5%. 19 of 35 initially positive monkeys were tested again 2 years later. Parasitaemia was found in 1 of 4 monkeys and antibodies in 11 of 19 monkeys which were initially positive. 9 of the monkeys initially tested had low titres of antibodies to the Flavivirus genus. All animals were negative for the hepatitis B surface antigen and anti-HBc. The prevalence of IgG antibodies against hepatitis A was 46.0%. The implications in terms of control are discussed.
The annual surgical incidence rate of hydatid disease in central Tunisia varies from 11.1 to 30.1 per 100,000 population depending on the district. In order to obtain more comprehensive data, we conducted a serologic survey in the district with the highest rate, using hemagglutination-inhibition to test 480 workers from a state farm and 190 inhabitants of villages in the neighborhood. The overall prevalence rate was 1.3% (9/670). Echotomography revealed liver cysts in all cases and the diagnosis was confirmed in the eight subjects who underwent surgery. If these preliminary results are confirmed by further surveys, mass screening might be considered in high risk districts.
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A case/control study of patients with primary hepatic carcinoma (P.H.C.) and their families was carried out in Dakar, Senegal. 28 P.H.C. cases were matched by age,sex, and ethnic group with 28 controls. Serum was collected from cases, controls, parents (28 mothers, 27 fathers) of cases, parents of controls, 71 siblings of cases, and 58 siblings of controls. Assays of their sera for hepatitis-B surface antigen (HBsAg), antibody to HBsAg (anti-HBs) and antibody to hepatitis-B core antigen (anti-HBc) produced the following results. (1) Nearly all P.H.C. cases (97%) and controls (93%) had some evidence of infection with hepatitis-B virus (H.B.V.), but the cases were more likely to be anti-HBc(+) and less likely to be anti-HBs(+) than the controls. (2) Most of the mothers of the cases were HBsAg(+) (71%), whereas only 14% of the mothers of controls were HBsAg(+). Lover titres of anti-HBs were less common in the mothers of the cases. (3) None of 27 fathers of cases had detectable anti-HBs, but 13 (48%) of the fathers of controls were anti-HBs(+). (4) Siblings of the P.H.C. cases were more likely to have anti-HBs than either their sibs with P.H.C. or the sibs of the controls. However, sibs of P.H.C. cases had lower titres of anti-HBs than the sibs of the controls. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that the P.H.C. cases were infected with H.B.V. by their mothers and that there was an environmental factor which affected the immunological response of all family members to H.B.V. Infection with H.B.V. and the mode of response to that infection among members of families appear to be major factors in the aetiology of P.H.C. in West Africa.
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