Search

Herbal medicines are considered an intricate and integral part of humankind's knowledge systems. Time has proven their efficacy and safety for both human and animal applications. Modern science, guided by indigenous knowledge systems can further optimize the use of various herbal products. To widen the current focus on herbal medicines, a study was carried-out to determine antioxidant properties, phytochemical and mineral contents of some medicinal plants used in ethnoveterinary practices in the management of animal wounds in Zimbabwe. The studied plants were Cissus quadrangularis L, Erythrina abyssinica Lam. ExDC. and Adenium multiflorum Klotzsch. Radical scavenging activities, antioxidant properties were determined using the DPPH and the β-carotene-linoleic acid model while the total phenolic content was determined using the Folin C method, flavonoid content using the aluminium assay and mineral content was investigated using the ICP-OES method. All extracts investigated exhibited radical scavenging activities and antioxidant properties, with C. quadrangularis leaf extracts exhibiting superior activities such as radical scavenging (EC50 of 21.04 ± 3.00 μg/ml) and antioxidant properties (ORR of 0.03 ± 0.01). Variations were observed in the total phenolic, flavonoid and metal contents. C. quadrangularis leaf extracts exhibited highest amounts of total phenolic and flavonoid contents. The E. abyssinica (bark) and A. multiflorum extracts exhibited moderate (40–70%) affinity for protein binding while the rest of the extracts exhibited high affinity. Their antioxidant properties, phytochemical profile and mineral content justify applications in animal wound management and many other human and/or animal uses.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to estimate the average outpatient cost of providing adult antiretroviral therapy (ART) at an urban care centre for the first year following ART initiation. METHODS: A retrospective, ingredients-based costing approach was implemented, as previously described in literature. Medical records for a convenient sample of 120 patients were reviewed 1 year after ART initiation. Subjects were assigned to any one of the following outcome categories based on their status at the end of the study period: in care and responding (IC); in care but not responding (NR); or no longer in care at study site (NIC). Average cost per outcome category was estimated based on resource utilisation, in 2013 US$. RESULTS: The overall annual retention in care was 93.3%. At the end of the first 12 months of ART care, 109 (90.8%) of the patients were IC, 7 (6.7%) patients were NIC and 3 (2.5%) patients were NR. The average outpatient cost per patient initiated was USD $461. The costs were structured as follows; outpatient visits (49.2%), medications (26.4%), laboratory tests (21.8%) and fixed costs (2.6%). The average cost to produce an IC patient was US$ 472, NR US$ 438 and NIC US$ 322. The average cost of producing a patient in care and responding to ART represented 49.2% of the country's GDP per capita for 2013. This estimate excludes building and utility costs because they were unavailable, hence the actual average cost may be higher. CONCLUSIONS: These findings show that maintaining an HIV/AIDS patient in care and responding to ART is an expensive undertaking relative to the country's GDP per capita. This underscores the need for periodic costing studies as a way of continually monitoring the costs and cost structures associated with caring for people living with HIV and AIDS, as this would aid in planning and decision-making.