Anthropometric characteristics and the burden of altered nutritional status among neuropsychiatric patients at Zomba Mental Hospital in Zomba, Malawi

Objective To determine the prevalence of overnutrition and undernutrition among neuropsychiatric inpatients and outpatients at Zomba Mental Hospital in Zomba, Malawi. Methods In this analytical cross-sectional study (n = 239), data were collected from psychiatric patients who were either inpatients (n = 181) or outpatients (n = 58) at Zomba Mental Hospital, which is the largest mental health facility in Malawi. Information was collected about patient demographics, anthropometric data, dietary information, and tobacco and alcohol use, among other variables. Data were entered and analysed in SPSS 16.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Means were generated and compared between male and female patients, and between inpatients and outpatients. Results The study recruited 158 male and 81 female patients, with mean ages of 31.24 ± 11.85 years and 33.08 ± 15.18 years (p = 0.328), respectively. Male patients were significantly taller (165.27 ± 7.25 cm) than female patients (155.30 ± 6.56 cm) (p < 0.001); were significantly heavier than females (60.02 ± 10.56 kg versus 55.64 ± 10.53 kg); and had a significantly lower mean body mass index (BMI) than females (21.87 ± 3.21 vs. 23.01 ± 3.78) (p = 0.016). Overweight and obese patients comprised 17.6% of the participants, and 8.8% were underweight. There were no significant differences in the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and underweight between male and female participants, or between inpatients and outpatients. Conclusion Our study—the first one of its kind in Malawi—characterised the anthropometry of neuropsychiatric patients at a major metal health facility in Malawi, and has shown a high proportion of overweight patients and a notable presence of underweight patients among them. Being overweight or obese is a risk factor for metabolic disorders. Being underweight may aggravate mental illness or disturb the effect of medication. There is need, therefore, to include nutrition screening and therapeutic or supplementary feeding as part of a comprehensive care and treatment plan for neuropsychiatric patients.

Prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase among Gram-negative bacteria recovered from clinical specimens in Benin City, Nigeria

Purpose: Infections caused by AmpC-positive bacteria results in high patient morbidity and mortality making their detection clinically important as they cannot be detected in routine susceptibility testing. This study aim to determine the prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase among Gram negative bacteria recovered from clinical specimens in Benin City, Nigeria. Methods: A total of 256 consecutive and non-repetitive Gram negative bacteria were recovered from various clinical specimens. The prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase was determined using a combination of disc antagonism test and cefoxitin-cloxacillin inhibition test. Disc susceptibility test was performed on all isolates using standard techniques. Results: Cefoxitin-cloxacillin inhibition test detected more AmpC β-lactamase than other tests. The prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase did not differ significantly between both genders and between inpatients and out-patients (p>0.05). Isolates recovered from sputum had significantly higher prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase producers compared with isolates from other clinical specimens (p=0.0484). The prevalence of AmpC production was significantly higher among isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa than other isolates (p = 0.0085). Isolates that produced AmpC β-lactamase were more susceptible to the test cephalosoprins. Conclusion: An overall prevalence of AmpC β-lactamase (15.23 %) was observed in this study. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the most prevalent producer of AmpC enzymes. Prudent use of antibiotics is advocated.