Development of College of Industrial Technology FM Broadcast Trainer

An FM Broadcast Trainer was developed to expose the students to the basic equipment needed in radio broadcasting. The cost of Portable FM Broadcast Trainer is much lower than the cost of the traditional commercial equipment because of the materials used. The FM Broadcast Trainer is laboratory equipment that can be used by schools offering academic programs in Industrial Courses specifically Electronics Communication courses. At present there is no portable FM broadcast station available in the local market. Some schools are reluctant to by new FM station equipment since these are quite costly. To resolve this problem, the researchers deemed it necessary to design and develop a portable FM Broadcast Trainer that is simple and affordable to fulfil the basic curricular requirements for offering courses in Electronics Communication Technicians. This is a requirement for our graduates to qualify to take the Radio Telephone Operator examination given by the National Telecommunication Commission the telecommunication body in the Philippines counterpart of Federal Communication Commission in the US. Aside from this, the station will be a venue for Mass Communications students and a vehicle for channelling important announcement from the School.

Racecadotril for the Treatment of Severe Acute Watery Diarrhoea in Children Admitted to the Kenyatta National Hospital - a Randomised Double Blinded Placebo Controlled Trial

Background: Diarrhoeal disease is the second most common cause of death in children under 5 years of age in Kenya. Treatment with Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS), elemental zinc and continued feeding (as recommended by the World Health Organisation) led to a significant reduction in mortality in the 1970s and 1980s, which has slowed since then. Adjunctive treatments have however, not gained much popularity either due to modest improvements in morbidity and mortality or unacceptable adverse effect profiles. Racecadotril, an enkephalinase inhibitor, has been used for over 2 decades in parts of Europe but is only recently gaining recognition in other parts of the world. No trials have been done testing its efficacy compared with the standard treatment recommended by the WHO (i.e. the combination of ORS and Zinc). This study aimed to measure the efficacy of racecadotril in the treatment of acute severe gastroenteritis disease in children admitted to hospital and on zinc. Objectives: The primary objective was to compare the number of stools in the first 48 hours in children admitted with severe acute gastroenteritis treated with either Racecadotril or placebo. The secondary objectives were: to study the impact of Racecadotril on duration of inpatient stay as well as duration of illness in children admitted with severe acute gastroenteritis, and to describe the side effect profile of Racecadotril. Methods: This was a parallel randomised double blinded placebo controlled trial. It enrolled children between the age of 3 and 60 months of age who were admitted to hospital with severe acute gastroenteritis as evidenced by a Vesikari score of greater than 11. Children who fulfilled the criteria for inclusion were enrolled after informed consent had been obtained from their parents/guardians. They were then randomised to receive either racecadotril or placebo in addition to the standard treatment prescribed by the admitting physicians. These children were followed up daily for: the number of stools for the first 48hrs, duration of admission, duration of illness and any adverse effects noted by the accompanying parents/guardians. The results were analysed by comparing the median number of stools using the Mann Whitney test. Results: 156 children were screened, from which 120 were enrolled for the study and a final number of 58 in the placebo group and 57 in the drug group were analysed by intention to treat. There were no differences between the two groups when the numbers of stools at 48hours after introduction of