Premature Myocardial Infarction in the Middle East and North Africa: Rationale for the Gulf PREVENT Study

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has a high burden of morbidity and mortality due to premature (≤55 years in men; ≤65 years in women) myocardial infarction (MI) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Despite this, the prevalence of risk factors in patients presenting with premature MI or ACS is incompletely described. We compared lifestyle, clinical risk factors, and biomarkers associated with premature MI/ACS in the MENA region with selected non-MENA high-income countries. We identified English-language, peer-reviewed publications through PubMed (up to March 2018). We used the World Bank classification system to categorize countries. Patients with premature MI/ACS in the MENA region had a higher prevalence of smoking than older patients with MI/ACS but a lower prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Men with premature MI/ACS had a higher prevalence of smoking than women but a lower prevalence of diabetes and hypertension. The MENA region had sparse data on lifestyle, diet, psychological stress, and physical activity. To address these knowledge gaps, we initiated the ongoing Gulf Population Risks and Epidemiology of Vascular Events and Treatment (Gulf PREVENT) case-control study to improve primary and secondary prevention of premature MI in the United Arab Emirates, a high-income country in the MENA region.

Gastric volvulus--a late complication of gastrostomy

Two cases of gastric volvulus are reviewed. Both patients were nonverbal, mentally handicapped children, who were fed through a gastrostomy. They had intermittent intolerance to bolus feeds through the gastrostomy, accompanied by abdominal distension and vomiting of gastric contents. One had a previous partial fundoplication and gastrostomy, and the other had had two pyloroplasties and gastrostomy. The axis of torsion ran from the esophagogastric junction to the gastrostomy site. Both children were treated by detorsion and gastropexy. It is postulated that the gastrostomy served as a fixed point for the volvulus. This was facilitated by the chronically dilated stomachs induced by bolus feeds. These two cases are reported to alert the clinician to this possibility when a neurologically impaired child with a gastrostomy presents with feeding difficulties and persistent vomiting.

Segmental agenesis of intestinal muscularis: a case report

A case of an infant girl with segmental agenesis of intestinal muscularis is presented. The eight other cases from world literature and the histopathology are reviewed. Different theories regarding the pathogenesis are discussed.