Introduction:Western media coverage of the violence associated with the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq has contrasted in magnitude and nature with population-based survey reports.Objectives:The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent to which first-hand reports of violent deaths were captured in the English language media by conducting in-depth interviews with Iraqi citizens.Methods:The England-based Iraq Body Count (IBC) has methodically monitored media reports and recorded each violent death in Iraq that could be confirmed by two English language media sources. Using the capturerecapture method, 25 Masters' Degree students were assigned to interview residents in Iraq and asked them to describe 10 violent deaths that occurred closest to their home since the 2003 invasion. Students then matched these reports with those documented in IBC. These reports were matched both individually and crosschecked in groups to obtain a percentage of those deaths captured in the English language media.Results:Eighteen out of 25 students successfully interviewed someone in Iraq. Six contacted individuals by telephone, while the others conducted interviews via e-mail. One out of seven (14%) phone contacts refused to participate. Seventeen out of 18 primary interviewees resided in Baghdad, however, some interviewees reported deaths of neighbors that occurred while the neighbors were elsewhere. The Baghdad residents reported 161 deaths in total, 39 of which (24%) were believed to be reported in the press as summarized by IBC. An additional 13 deaths (8%) might have been in the database, and 61 (38%) were absolutely not in the database.Conclusions:The vast majority of violent deaths (estimated from the results of this study as being between 68–76%) are not reported by the press. Efforts to monitor events by press coverage or reports of tallies similar to those reported in the press, should be evaluated with the suspicion applied to any passive surveillance network: that it may be incomplete. Even in the most heavily reported conflicts, the media may miss the majority of violent events.

2,4-Dichlorphenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) is a selective herbicide widely used to kill broad-leaved plants in wheat cultivation. Only a few cases of documented poisoning cases with this compound have been reported from India. Since the initial manifestations are not very different from anticholinesterase poisoning, the chances of misdiagnosis are high. Anticholinesterase compounds are the most commonly used insecticides and are implicated as the commonest cause of agrochemical poisoning in India. This report aims to make physicians aware that not all cases of agrochemical poisoning are caused by anticholinesterase insecticides. Efforts must be made to correctly identify the offending compound for appropriate management.

Financial constraints affected all components of SCI management in all except the upper group. The results of the survey suggest that a very large percentage of the Indian population would find it difficult to access comprehensive SCI management and advocate extension of essential medical coverage to unaided upper lower, lower middle and upper middle groups.

Backgrounds/Aims: The course of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) complicated by hemorrhage is associated with poor outcome. Methods: Twenty-four (13%) out of 183 cases of SAP had hemorrhagic complications-12 intraabdominal & 12 intraluminal, 13 had major & 11 had minor and 16 had de-novo & 8 post-surgical bleeding. The mean duration of pancreatitis prior to bleeding was 27±27.2 days. Results: Predictors of haemorrhage on univariate analysis were delayed admission (0.037), more than one organ failure (p=0.008), presence of venous thrombosis (p=0.033), infective necrosis (0.001) and systemic sepsisbacterial (0.037) & fungal (p=0.032). On multivariate analysis infected necrosis (OR=11.82) and presence of fungal sepsis (OR=3.73) were the significant factors. Patients presenting with more than one organ failure and bacterial sepsis had borderline significance on multivariate analysis. Need for surgery (50% vs. 12.6%), intensive care stay (7.4±7.9 vs. 5.4±5.2 days) and mortality (41.7% vs. 10.7%) were significantly higher in patients who suffered haemorrhage. Seven of the 13 with major bleeding had pseudoaneurysms-4 were embolized, 4 needed surgery including 1 embolization failure. Seven with intraabdominal bleeding required surgical intervention, 2 had successful embolization and 3 had expectant management. CT severity index and surgical intervention, were significantly associated with intraabdominal bleeding. Organ failure, presence of pseudoaneurysm and surgical intervention were associated with major bleeding. Conclusions: Hemorrhage in SAP was associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Infected necrosis accentuated the degradation of the vessel wall, which predispose to hemorrhage. Luminal bleeding may be indicative of erosion into the adjacent viscera by the pseudoaneurysm.

Ammonia (NH3) is a highly water-soluble, colorless, irritant gas with a unique pungent odor. Liquid ammonia stored under high pressure is still widely used for refrigeration in cold stores used for storing grains. Severe toxicity may occur following accidental exposure. We report an interesting case of accidental exposure to ammonia treated with glycopyrrolate along with other supportive measures.