Unilateral congenital short femur: A case report

A case of congenital short femur in an otherwise healthy infant is described. Antenatal sonographic diagnosis was made at 26 weeks of gestation. The left femur was shorter than the right (ratio 0·82–0·85). In this case, the occurrence of congenital short femur was sporadic. The diagnosis was confirmed after delivery. This case illustrates the importance of ultrasound as an early detector of certain congenital anomalies and as a useful tool in their follow-up.     

Prenatal diagnosis of a left ventricular aneurysm

In a fetus with ventricular extrasystoles a congenital aneurysm of the left ventricle was diagnosed prenatally. At 32 weeks of gestation, echocardiography showed a large apical left ventricular aneurysm with a thin, hypokinetic wall. Congestive heart failure did not occur. Prenatal and postnatal examinations did not detect the aetiology of the aneurysm, but excluded the majority of possible causes. The 2-year-old child is now asymptomatic and normally developed. Neither medication nor surgical treatment have been necessary, except for antithrombotic prophylaxis with low-dose aspirin.     

Prenatal diagnosis of aortic atresia by colour doppler flow mapping

A case of aortic atresia with insufficiency of mitral valve diagnosed prenatally at 33 weeks of gestation is presented. An accurate diagnosis of this fetal cardiovascular malformation was possible by application of Doppler colour flow mapping, which demonstrated (a) the absence of forward flow in the hypoplastic ascending aorta, (b) reverse flow of blood from the ductus arteriosus into the severely hypoplastic ascending aorta in the late systole, (c) pansystolic mitral valve regurgitation, and (d) absent flow across the foramen ovale as a result of premature closure of the foramen ovale.     

Prenatal detection of an Arg→Ter mutation at codon 111 of the pah gene using DNA amplification

A CGA→TGA mutation at codon 111 in exon 3 of the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene was recently identified in a Chinese phenylketonuria (PKU) patient. This paper reports the prenatal diagnosis of a Chinese fetus at risk for PKU using DNA amplification with PCR and oligonucleotide hybridization. RFLP analysis revealed that the fetus had inherited a PKU gene from his mother, but his paternal PAH gene was uninformative. PCR amplification of 300 bp which included exon 3 plus the flanking intronic sequences of the PAH gene was performed. The amplified DNA was hybridized with a pair of allele-specific oligonucleotide probes. The results indicated that the fetal DNA carried a PAH 111 Arg→Ter mutant gene inherited from his father. Thus, the fetus was predicted to be affected with PKU.     

Environmental technological education in a developing country—Libya

Summary The environmental education needs of a currently wealthy developing country, Libya, are outlined. Because of specific local requirements, the data presented clearly shows how such educational requirements differ in many respects from the various Western-style environmental sciences curricula. The aim is to produce graduates capable of comprehending environmental problems as they arise in the different regions of Libya. This involves not only dealing with the effects of new developments but also with peoples who must adapt to new life-styles.Since most of what has to be learned is communicated originally in English to Arabic-speaking students via lectures, visits and books, special emphasis is laid upon the added importance oflocally produced bilingual audio-visual teaching aids supported by spoken commentaries, printed texts and glossaries of technical terms used in both languages. A technique for producing such aids has been evolved at the Higher Institute of Technology, Brack, Libya.     

Environmental management in Greece and the challenge of sustainable development

Summary Environmental management is linked to decisions concerning sustainable development which peripheral countries would find quite challenging, given their development priorities and their demands for a restricted share in the burden of global environmental protection. This paper examines the Greek experience with the growing awareness of environmental problems in that country and in the light of current efforts to attain economic convergence with its northern European partners. The focus is on the analysis of the role of the political institutional system in sustainable development, embracing the government, the parliament and the political parties, the courts, and the local authorities. In addition, the role of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) is also summarized. The quest for sustainable development holds both positive and negative effects for Greece, and despite development priorities, there are some workable options available to follow a pathway of transition.graduate diplomas from the Institute of Business Management of the Graduate School of Economics and Commercial Sciences, Athens (Greece) and the School of Social Studies, University of East Anglia (UK), an MA in Economics from the University of Kent, Canterbury (UK), and a PhD in natural resources from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (USA). Dr. Lekakis served at the Centre of Planning and Economic Research (KEPE) in Athens for over 15 years, where he was in charge of the technical processing of Greece's five-year development plans in the area of environmental protection. He is currently on the faculty of the School of Social Sciences, University of Crete, Rethimno (Greece) where he teaches environmental and resource economics. His most recent research activity includes a just completed international water resource allocation project financed by the European Science Foundation (ESF), and an ongoing project on the institutional adjustment for sustainable development strategies in the European Union.     

Book reviews

The Impact of English Towns P. J. Corfield

Oxford Paperbacks. O.U.P. 1982, 206 pp, £3.95 Bibliography, Maps, Graphs and Tables

Change in the City Centre

D. Sim

Gower, Aldershot 1982, £11.50, 124 pp.