Prevalence, Laboratory Findings and Clinical Characteristics of Campylobacteriosis Agents among Hospitalized Children with Acute Gastroenteritis in Lebanon

Ghssein, Ghassan,Awada, Rana,Salami, Ali,Bahmad, Hisham F.,Awad, Ali,Joumaa, Wissam H.,Roz, Ali El The Korean Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology 2021 Pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology & nutrition Vol.24 No.4

Purpose: Campylobacter species are currently the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. In Lebanon, Campylobacter infection occurrence is underdiagnosed owing to the lack of specific culture and rapid test kits, particularly among children. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence, laboratory findings, and clinical characteristics of Campylobacter infection in hospitalized children with acute gastroenteritis in South Lebanon. Methods: We conducted a 6-month retrospective cohort study between January and June 2018, including 291 children aged between 1 month and 12 years, who were admitted to a tertiary healthcare center in South Lebanon. The medical files of the patients were reviewed to retrieve the required clinical information, including clinical and laboratory data. Results: The prevalence of campylobacteriosis agents in pediatric patients with acute gastroenteritis is 12.02%. Patients infected with Campylobacter had more severe acute gastroenteritis than Campylobacter-negative patients and often presented with high-grade fever, diarrhea episodes more than six times per day, diarrhea lasting for more than five days, and dehydration. Indeed, children with high-grade fever (≥38.5℃) were five times more likely to test positive for Campylobacter than those with low-grade fever. In addition, the results showed a higher Vesikari score for the majority of Campylobacter-positive patients with severe acute gastroenteritis compared to a moderate profile for Campylobacter-negative patients. Conclusion: The present study findings highlight that Campylobacter infection is frequent among children with acute gastroenteritis. Therefore, the detection of Campylobacter should be carried out for the diagnosis of human gastroenteritis in Lebanon, along with the detection of routine enteropathogens.

An Investigation to Produce Virus-Free Plants in Two Iranian Grapevine Cultivars

Ali Ebadi,Alireza Salami,Mina Koohi Habibi,Zabihollah Zamani 한국원예학회 2006 한국원예학회 기타간행물 Vol.- No.-

Surveillance Study of Acute Gastroenteritis Etiologies in Hospitalized Children in South Lebanon (SAGE study)

Ghassan Ghssein,Ali Salami,Lamis Salloum,Pia Chedid,Wissam H Joumaa,Hadi Fakih 대한소아소화기영양학회 2018 Pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology & nutrition Vol.21 No.3

Purpose: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is a major cause of morbidity and remains a major cause of hospitalization. Following the Syrian refugee crisis and insufficient clean water in the region, this study reviews the etiological and epidemiological data in Lebanon.Methods: We prospectively analyzed demographic, clinical and routine laboratory data of 198 children from the age of 1 month to 10 years old who were admitted with the diagnosis of AGE to a private tertiary care hospital located in the district of Nabatieh in south Lebanon.Results: Males had a higher incidence of AGE (57.1%). Pathogens were detected in 57.6% (n=114) of admitted pa-tients, among them single pathogens were found in 51.0% (n=101) of cases that consisted of: Entamoeba histolytica26.3% (n=52), rotavirus 18.7% (n=37), adenovirus 6.1% (n=12) and mixed co-pathogens found in 6.6% (n=13). Breast-fed children were significantly less prone to rotavirus (p=0.041). Moreover, children who had received the rota-virus vaccine were significantly less prone to rotavirus (p=0.032).Conclusion: Our findings highlight the high prevalence of E. histolytica infection as the major cause of pediatric gastro-enteritis in hospitalized children, during the summer period likely reflecting the insanitary water supplies and lack of hygiene. Moreover the 42.4% of unidentified causative pathogens should prompt us to widen our diagnostic laboratory arsenal by adopting new diagnostic technologies.

Surveillance Study of Acute Gastroenteritis Etiologies in Hospitalized Children in South Lebanon (SAGE study)

Ghssein, Ghassan,Salami, Ali,Salloum, Lamis,Chedid, Pia,Joumaa, Wissam H,Fakih, Hadi The Korean Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology 2018 Pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology & nutrition Vol.21 No.3

Purpose: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is a major cause of morbidity and remains a major cause of hospitalization. Following the Syrian refugee crisis and insufficient clean water in the region, this study reviews the etiological and epidemiological data in Lebanon. Methods: We prospectively analyzed demographic, clinical and routine laboratory data of 198 children from the age of 1 month to 10 years old who were admitted with the diagnosis of AGE to a private tertiary care hospital located in the district of Nabatieh in south Lebanon. Results: Males had a higher incidence of AGE (57.1%). Pathogens were detected in 57.6% (n=114) of admitted patients, among them single pathogens were found in 51.0% (n=101) of cases that consisted of: Entamoeba histolytica 26.3% (n=52), rotavirus 18.7% (n=37), adenovirus 6.1% (n=12) and mixed co-pathogens found in 6.6% (n=13). Breast-fed children were significantly less prone to rotavirus (p=0.041). Moreover, children who had received the rotavirus vaccine were significantly less prone to rotavirus (p=0.032). Conclusion: Our findings highlight the high prevalence of E. histolytica infection as the major cause of pediatric gastroenteritis in hospitalized children, during the summer period likely reflecting the insanitary water supplies and lack of hygiene. Moreover the 42.4% of unidentified causative pathogens should prompt us to widen our diagnostic laboratory arsenal by adopting new diagnostic technologies.

Prevalence and Clinical Significance of Urinary Tract Infection among Neonates Presenting with Unexplained Hyperbilirubinemia in Lebanon: A Retrospective Study

Harb Alya,Yassine Viviane,Ghssein Ghassan,Salami Ali,Fakih Hadi 대한감염학회 2023 Infection and Chemotherapy Vol.55 No.2

Background: Neonatal jaundice is commonly seen in term and preterm newly born babies. It could be either physiologic or secondary to multiple underlying pathologies like urinary tract infection (UTI). Our main objective was to confirm the relationship between neonatal jaundice without apparent cause like hemolysis and the presence of UTI. Materials and Methods: We, retrospectively over a period extended from 2017 to 2020, included 496 babies admitted for elevated indirect hyperbilirubinemia for whom demographic, clinical, laboratory, and therapeutic data were collected through a detailed questionnaire. Results: Our study included 496 neonates and showed a prevalence of UTI in 8.9% of neonates. The two most common microorganisms in urine culture were Escherichia coli (65.9%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (25.0%). A multivariate logistic analysis showed that UTI was associated with male neonates (odds ratio [OR] = 2.366, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.173 – 4.774; P = 0.016), history of prenatal UTI (OR = 5.378, 95% CI: 2.369 – 12.209; P <0.001), poor feeding (OR = 3.687, 95% CI: 1.570 – 8.661; P = 0.003), and positive urine culture in catheter (OR = 2.704, 95% CI: 1.255 – 5.826; P = 0.011). The mean length of stay was higher in patients with positive UTI (Median = 216 hours) compared to patients with negative UTI (Median = 48 hours) (P <0.001).

Machine learning and RSM models for prediction of compressive strength of smart bio-concrete

Hassan Amer Algaifi,Suhaimi Abu Bakar,Rayed Alyousef,Abdul Rahman Mohd. Sam,Ali S. Alqarni,M.H. Wan Ibrahim,Shahiron Shahidan,Mohammed Ibrahim,Babatunde Abiodun Salami 국제구조공학회 2021 Smart Structures and Systems, An International Jou Vol.28 No.4

In recent years, bacteria-based self-healing concrete has been widely exploited to improve the compressive strength of concrete using different bacterial species. However, both the identification of the optimal involved reaction parameters and theoretical framework information are still limited. In the present study, both experimentally and numerical modelling using machine learning (ANN and ANFIS) and response surface methodology (RSM) were implemented to evaluate and optimse the evolution of bacterial concrete strength. Therefore, a total of 58 compressive strength tests of the concrete incorporating new bacterial species were designed using different concentrations of urea, cells concentration, calcium, nutrient and time. Based on the results, the compressive strength of the bacterial concrete improved by 16% due to the decrement of the pore percentage in the concrete skin; specifically, 5 mm from the concrete surface, compared to that of the control concrete. In the same context, both machine the learning and RSM models indicated that the optimal range of urea, calcium, nutrient and bacterial cells were (18-23 g/L), (150-350 mM), (1-3 g/L) and 2×107 cells/mL, respectively. Based on the statistical analysis, RMSE, <i>R</i>², MPE, RAE and RRSE were (0.793, 0.785), (0.985, 0.986), (1.508, 1.1), (0.11, 0.09) and (0.121, 0.12) from both the ANN and ANFIS models, respectively, while; the following values (0.839, 0.972, 1.678, 0.131 and 0.165) was obtained from RSM model, respectively. As such, it can be concluded that a high correlation and minimum error were obtained, however, machine learning models provided more accurate results compared to that of the RSM model.

Post-mortem assessment of vimentin expression as a biomarker for renal tubular regeneration following acute kidney injury

Juan Carlos Alvarez Moreno,Hisham F. Bahmad,Christopher A. Febres-Aldana,Andrés Pirela,Andres Azuero,Ali Salami,Robert Poppiti 대한병리학회 2021 Journal of Pathology and Translational Medicine Vol.55 No.6

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common cause of morbidity and mortality. It mainly targets the renal tubular epithelium with pathological changes, referred to as acute tubular injury. The latter is followed by a regenerative response that is difficult to visualize on routine hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stains. In this study, we examined the regenerative capacity of renal tubules by correlating vimentin (VIM) immunohistochemical (IHC) expression and pathological findings of AKI and renal tubular regeneration (RTR) on H&E.Methods: We reviewed 23 autopsies performed in the clinical setting of AKI and RTR. VIM expression was scored in the renal cortical tubular epithelium using a statistical cutoff ≥ 3% for high expression and < 3% for low expression.Results: Of the 23 kidney tissues examined, seven (30.4%) had low VIM expression, and 16 (69.6%) had high VIM expression. Kidney tissues with evidence of AKI and RTR had significantly higher VIM expression. Renal peritubular microenvironment features showing regenerative changes on H&E were associated with high VIM expression. In the univariate model, kidney tissues with RTR were 18-fold more likely to have high VIM expression.Conclusions: In conclusion, our findings suggest that VIM could serve as an IHC marker for RTR following AKI. However, correlation with H&E findings remains critical to excluding chronic tubular damage. Collectively, our preliminary results pave the way for future studies including a larger sample size to validate the use of VIM as a reliable biomarker for RTR.