No abstract

Epilepsy is characterised by abnormal behaviour which is leading to tonic flexon, tonic extension, clonus and stupor. Many novel therapeutic regimens were used to treat these disorders through different ways including altering neurotransmission, but so far there is no specific treatment approach which is satisfactory to the patients in terms of complete cure. Our approach is to make understand the herbal medicines usage towards epilepsy. The ethanolic plant extract of Gomphrena Serrata at 400mg/kg, 600mg/kg and 800mg/kg were given to albino mice which were treated with maximum electric shock of 30mA current and pentelene tetrazolium in two different techniques. The results with these extract doses showed significant results which indicated decrease in clonic extension and stupor. Whereas there is no decrease in the tonic flexon observed with all doses. All these results were compared with the standard drug Phenytoin at 25mg/kg I.P. However, the ethanolic plant extract of Gomphrena Serrata at 600mg/kg showed marked increase in the therapeutic activity which is equivalent to Phenytoin and can be compared. Apart from these the ethanolic plant extract of Gomphrena Serrata at 400mg/kg, 600mg/kg and 800mg/kg showed significant decrease in the recovery times when compared to control group

Praziquantel (PZQ) is efficacious against all species of schistosome: Schistosoma mansoni; Schistosoma haematobium; Schistosoma japonicum and other parasites like the Taenia species. This cross-sectional cohorts study was carried out in Kigungu fishing village along Lake Victoria shore in Entebbe Uganda. Our analysis was based on examining microscopically three slides from a single stool specimen from each of base line cohorts 945.These included children and adults, participants from both sexes in Kigungu fishing village in Entebbe Uganda. Nine hundred and one (901) of the cohorts were reexamined after six months and 625 of the same cohorts who were examined at the baseline and after six months were reexamined 18 months later. The slides were prepared using modified Kato/Katz (Odongo-Aginya) method. The infection proportion with Schistosoma mansoni at baseline was 448 (47.5%) but this was reduced to 244 (25.8%) 18 months after treatment with a single oral dose of praziquantel at 40mg/kg. However 495 (52.5%) were negative at the baseline study. The cure proportion after six was significant {(P=0.00), (OR4.63) CI at 95% (3.53-6.06)}. Similarly the cure proportion after 18 months was significant {(P=0.00), (OR2.2) CI at 95% (1.87-3.34)}. The force of re-infection after six months was significant {(P=0.0001), (OR 0.47) CI at 95% (0.31-0.71)}. Nevertheless the force of re-infection was not significant after 18 months {(P=0.766), (OR 0.95) CI at 95% (0.68-1.34)} eggs excretion did not reach the level of the pre-treatment intensity. The egg reduction was 69.3%. This was associated with age and pre-treatment intensity < 400 eggs per gram (epg) of faeces and age groups ≥ 30 years. The egg reduction also resulted in marked decrease in clinical symptoms in the participants. Our study suggests evidence of long-term benefit of praziquantel in Kigungu and that the re-infection occurred more commonly in younger age group than in the older patients.