IntroductionMedical students are the source of a country's physicians. Determining how medical students select their areas of specialization is the key to achieve a balanced distribution of doctors among all specialties. The objective is to identify the number of medical students who have decided their postgraduate specialty career, their career specialties preference, and factors that may influence their decision to select a particular specialty.MethodsA facility based cross-sectional study was conducted in September 2013 at Faculty of Medicine, University of Medical Sciences and Technology, Khartoum, Sudan. A self-administered semi-structured questionnaire comprising demographic data and questions about future specialties preferences and factors influencing those preferences was distributed to 887 male and female students, (from first to fifth academic years) recruited in the study.ResultsResponse rate was 73% with 647 questionnaires collected, out of 887 eligible medical students. Of the returned questionnaires, 604 were valid. The majority of students (541, 89.6%) have chosen a specialty. Surgery, medicine, paediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology were the most selected specialties. The least selected specialty was anaesthesiology. A significant association was found between gender and specialty choice using Chi-square test (p = 0.00). There was no association between undergraduate level and specialty choice (p = 0.633). The most common reason for choosing a specific specialty was “Personal Interest” (215, 39.7%) followed by being “Helpful to the community” (144, 26.6%).ConclusionSurgery, medicine, paediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology were the most selected specialties.

Background: The cooperation of patients and their acceptance to involve medical students in their care is vital to clinical education. Objective: To explore the attitudes of patients towards medical students at University charity teaching hospital, and to explore the determinants of those attitudes. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at University charity teaching hospital affiliated to University of Medical Sciences and Technology (UMST). Four hundred and thirty-two patients were interviewed between January and December 2013 using a structured questionnaire. Results: Four hundred and thirty-two patients had responded to all questions they were asked. Of the patients interviewed, 95.2% approved the presence of medical students during the medical consultation. 79.8% of the patients agreed to be examined by students in the presence of a doctor, while 33.5% gave agreement even in the absence of a doctor. More than half of the patients think that it is important that students examine patients as part of their training and 18 % of them were not sure about the importance of clinical examination. Conclusion: The study concluded overall positive attitudes to the medical students involvement by patients. Patients preferred lower number of students to be involved; however, few were aware of their rights. Keywords: Bedside Teaching, Clinical Education, Patients Acceptability.

BackgroundThe use of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in treating breast cancer has shown efficacy in downstaging primary tumors, and allows breast conservative surgery to be performed instead of mastectomy. This study aims to evaluate patterns of clinical and pathological response after two cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced breast cancer.Materials and MethodsThis is a prospective study. Ninety-eight patients who presented from April 2009 through May 2011 with locally advanced breast cancer and treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy were included.ResultsThe clinical response rate was 83%; 11 patients (11.2%) had a complete clinical remission (cCR); 71 had a partial remission (72.4%); 13 had stable disease (13.3%), and 3 had progressive disease (3.1%). Seven patients had complete pathological response.ConclusionNeoadjuvant chemotherapy can achieve a high objective response rate in patients with locally advanced breast cancer even after two cycles. We recommend further research to find predictors for response.

Spontaneous subcapsular hematoma of the liver is an extremely rare but potentially life-threatening condition. We report a case of subcapsular hematoma of the liver without any apparent lesion and in the absence of coagulopathy or trauma. A CT scan of the abdomen demonstrated a huge subcapsular hematoma around the liver. The patient was treated conservatively and was discharged home after one week. Up to our knowledge, this is one of the very few reported cases of a spontaneous subcapsular hepatic hematoma.

Many studies have been done and many results have been established for studying cancers in human and the ways of treating it. However, one thing that remains relevant is the study model that is used to diagnose, cure or conclude treatment methods for human cancers. The scientists have tried some ways to link the data and tried to analyze the malicious disease in various animal models in order to solve the problem for humans. Out of all the models, scientists have preferred dogs as the most suitable model and conducted studies on them. Our article will review the reason for preferences given to dog as a study model and what the previous studies have tried to conclude by considering the dreaded disease in dogs. Our article has focused on most of the recent observations and tried to elucidate the reasons/preferences for studying cancer disease in dogs (scientific name; Canis Lupus familiaris). We will also talk about the idea of comparative oncology programs that many centers adapt in order to study the disease called cancer.

International Journal of Case Reports and Images (IJCRI) is an international, peer reviewed, monthly, open access, online journal, publishing high-quality, articles in all areas of basic medical sciences and clinical specialties.Aim of IJCRI is to encourage the publication of new information by providing a platform for reporting of unique, unusual and rare cases which enhance understanding of disease process, its diagnosis, management and clinico-pathologic correlations.IJCRI publishes Review Articles, Case Series, Case Reports, Case in Images, Clinical Images and Letters to Editor.

Background: Uterine rupture is a deadly obstetrical emergency endangering the life of both mother and fetus.Objective: To determine the frequency of ruptured uterus at Bandier Hospital and to elicit possible causes and type of management.Methods: It was cross sectional and hospital based descriptive study implemented during a time period of six months (July -December 2013) in Bandier maternity hospital and a total of 15 women presented with rupture uterus during the period of the study were included.Results: There were 15 cases of ruptured uterus out of a total of 2142 deliveries. Incidence of uterine rupture was found to be 0.7%. The mean age of women was 30.03 ± 4.55 years. Concerning risk factors for rupture uterus, 10 (66.7%) had previous uterine surgery, obstructed labor was found in 33.3%, and oxytocin was used in 46.7% of respondents. Repair was done for 8 (53.3%), 3 (20.6%) of respondents underwent total abdominal hysterectomy and 4 (26.7%) were ended by subtotal hysterectomy.Conclusions: Previous uterine surgery, obstructed labour and improper use of oxytocin increase the risk of uterine rupture in this study. Half of the patients underwent hysterectomy.

Background: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is now recognized as one of the principal medical problems facing the male population in Sudan. Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the ability of serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) to predict prostate volume (PV) in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Materials and Methods: This is retrospective observational case-detection hospital based study. Eighty medical records of patients with an enlarged prostate attending the urology clinic at University Teaching Hospital were enrolled. This research was conducted in University Charity Teaching Hospital, Khartoum, Sudan. Results: Enrolled patients had a median age of 63.5 years (51 to 94), a mean PSA of 2.94 ng/ mL and a mean PV of 46.96 mL, respectively. There is linear relationship between PSA levels and prostate size. Those with a prostate size of > 40 ml were found to be more likely to have high PSA mean level. PSA mean values were found to be associated with age (P <0.006). Conclusion: Serum prostate specific antigen (PSA) is significantly correlated with prostate volume in Sudanese men. PSA may be a useful tool in making therapeutic decisions and follow-up management in BPH patients. Keywords: Serum Prostate Specific Antigen; Prostate Volume; Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia.