Background: Herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) is one of the most common diseases of the spine. For an optimal management and prevention, there's a need for data on factors related to the onset of complaints because this disease lowers the quality of life and increases morbidity. This study is aimed to see the scale and pattern of the HNP in Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Bandung. Methods: This is a descriptive study with the design of case series, data was obtained from medical records of patients with the diagnosis of HNP in the inpatient care of Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital in the period of 2007-2011. Results: According to the study on 79 patients, with 43 men and 36 women, the highest incidence was at the age group of 51-60 years old (31.6%) and most common occupation was civil servant (11.4%). The most common clinical symptoms were sciatica (51.9%) and low back pain (51.9%). Most frequent location was in the lumbar vertebrae at the level of L5-S1 (58.2%). Trauma was found to be the highest relatable history in the patients (39.2%). Therapy of choice was primarily conservative (58.2%) and most patients went home after the progression (84.8%). The year 2007 showed the highest prevalence of HNP at 25.3%. The most common clinical symptoms were sciatica (51.9%) and low back pain (51.9%) Conclusions: The most common clinical symptoms were sciatica and low back pain. Most frequent location was in the lumbar vertebrae at the level L5-S1. [AMJ.2015;2(1):

The MORES and the OST score should be used together to screen for osteoporosis in men.

Background: Incidence of tuberculosis has risen again, including extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Spondilitis tuberculosis is one the most commonly encountered which can cause disability and even death. The aim of this study was to evaluate characteristics of spondilitis tuberculosis patients and probable risk factors. Methods: This was a descriptive, cross sectional study from all medical records of spondylitis tuberculosis patients at Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital from January 2012 to December 2013. Variables evaluated were demographic data, history related to tuberculosis, nutrinutional status, patient's characteristics, and treatments received. Results: Spondylitis tuberculosis represented 65.6% of bone and joints tuberculosis. From 78 cases, the male to female ratio was 1.2:1, and mostly found in young and middle-aged adults (79.6%) between 20−64 years old. Patients' level of education were mostly elementary school (30.8%) and unemployed. Clinical symptoms were mostly neurological disorders, deformity (kyphotic/gibbus), and tenderness. Predilections sites were thoracal and lumbal vertebrae. Forty eight percents of cases were also sufferring from TB in other organs. Treatments given for these cases were anti tuberculosis drugs (80.8%) and operative procedures (62.8%). Conclusions: Most common clinical manifestations are neurologial deficit, deformity, and tenderness; mostly have pulmonary tuberculosis as a comorbid disease; probable risk factors are young and middleaged adults, low education level, and unemployment.

In the present study, we analysed the association between the incidence of tuberculous spondylitis with the Natural Resistance Associated Macrophage Protein 1 (NRAMP1, also known as Solute Carrier Family 11a member1) polymorphism by studying the genetic segregation of this polymorphism and the incidence of the disease among members of the West Javanese population undergoing surgery for tuberculous spondylitis at our institution. We compared the distribution of NRAMP1 polymorphism at two specific sites, namely D543N, and 3’UTR, among subjects with pulmonary tuberculosis and tuberculous spondylitis. We found no significant differences in distribution of polymorphism between the two groups, or between pulmonary tuberculosis and tuberculous spondylitis compared to healthy subjects. However, a pattern emerged in that polymorphisms at the two sites seemed to be protective against development of tuberculous spondylitis in our study population. We concluded that in the West Javanese population, there is no association between NRAMP1 polymorphism with the propensity for development of pulmonary tuberculosis or tuberculous spondylitis. In fact, NRAMP1 may provide protection against the development of tuberculous spondylitis.Key Wordstuberculous spondylitis, NRAMP1, polymorphism

Background: Osteoporosis has become a growing public health problem in Indonesia. A definite estimation of osteoporosis prevalence in Indonesia is not available due to the limited access of dual energy X ray absorptiometry (DXA) facilities. In 2008, the World Health Organization has developed a tool called Fracture Risk Assessment Tool to identify fracture risk based on the clinical risk factors. The study aimed to identify the risk factors of osteoporotic fracture using Fracture Risk Assessment Tool in Dr.