Telemedicine = means doctor is always in
By Edson C. Tandoc Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:53:00 11/09/2008
MANILA, Philippines–The doctor is online.
Facing a laptop with a built-in camera, and wearing a headset, the specialist is ready to give medical advice to another doctor or a health worker thousands of kilometers away from the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital in Manila City.
Soon, he will be using the software being developed by the College of Engineering of the University of the Philippines Diliman which can transmit medical information like a patient’s blood pressure, temperature or even electrocardiogram (ECG) results from provinces as far and as isolated as Batanes.
Netizens usually use them for leisure, but the National Telehealth Center is maximizing free online resources, like the Internet call software Skype, to provide healthcare access even to remote areas in the country.
“Our vision is to provide telemedicine to remote, underserved areas. We do not accept geographic limitations for people not to get basic health services,” center director Alvin Marcelo told the Philippine Daily Inquirer in a recent interview.
In just a few clicks, a doctor in a remote village can log into the center’s website, called buddyworks, and send a query, which is received instantaneously in the computer system of the center’s office.
The system is manned by two nurses and functions like a hospital triage system. They study the query and if necessary, refer it to a specialist in the UP-PGH.
Information exchange could be through the website. If immediate response is needed, then the specialist reaches the doctor seeking advice using Skype.
For an enormous vision, the center has a small office in UP Manila. For each video call, the center has three computers simultaneously working. There is a laptop on the center of a small table equipped with a webcam where Internet calls are made.
To its right is a computer for the specialist to access the information base. Marcelo said they have been developing a database of healthcare information about remote villages which could inform the specialist about the nearest hospitals and available facilities to the doctor calling.
To its left is another computer where test results and patient information can soon be uploaded almost instantaneously from the villages and downloaded at the center.
To facilitate information exchange, the center has distributed laptops and gadgets to a few sites.
The system would give health care access to more people regardless of distance and at the same time, make health care more efficient, Marcelo said, recalling a recent example where a doctor referred to the center the case of a teenager suffering from a bone infection in Batanes.
The patient would have been brought directly to the PGH to queue along with the hundreds of regular patients the hospital receives per day. The family would have paid much for the airfare and for a place to stay while consultation was ongoing.
But since the doctor referred his case to telemedicine, a PGH specialist studied the emailed case history, physical examination and x-ray results of the teenager. To get more information, the surgeon also did a video call to see the teenager, who sat beside the doctor in Batanes.
The surgeon prescribed intravenous antibiotics for 10 days and when the teenager was finally brought to the PGH, the patient was ready for operation.
Marcelo explained this saved the family from spending more and maximized the capabilities of health practitioners in Batanes.
The system was also maximized in helping health workers give aid to typhoon victims in the Bicol region in coping with trauma through what Marcelo called as “tele-psychiatry.”
“It has been a big help to me and to my patients,” general practitioner Cherrilyn Zablan, the only doctor for more than 6,500 villagers in the town of Alilem in Ilocos Sur, also said.
According to Zablan, assigned in the remote town for almost two years, the nearest hospital is 45 minutes away while the nearest tertiary hospital is almost two hours away and both do not have many specialists as well.
“It has helped me a lot in accessing information. The help of a specialist is just one click of the mouse or one text message away,” she added.
The center started in 1998 with a humble vision—to just provide a website where the public can browse reliable health information, Marcelo said.
Soon, the proponents of the project, fresh from training in the US and the UK, thought of expanding the project and proposed to the government what they called as “telehealth,” which would “use the Internet to facilitate interaction between remote doctors and PGH doctors.”
Supported by government funds, the project began in 2005 in a few remote villages in Cagayan, Leyte, Capiz and Lanao Del Norte.
The center distributed laptops to the project sites, which included medical colleges, government hospitals and provincial health centers.
The project did not fly, however: The center did not get any referrals in the first two years.
“We realized that telemedicine is very complex. Technology plays an important role, but more than that is the organizational aspect and the trust that is involved,” Marcelo explained.
The sites for the project also did not lack doctors and specialists. Instead of going online for telemedicine, the general practitioners could just go to specialists in the provinces.
Thus, the center networked with Department of Health’s doctor-to-the-barrios program. The program has been deploying new doctors in very remote areas and “they were yearning for somebody to consult,” Marcelo added.
There was another glitch, however. The areas were so remote there were no Internet connections.
But the country is not dubbed as the text capital world for nothing: The center shifted to the short messaging service (SMS) platform, more popularly known as text messaging.
“We shifted to a device which serves as a personal extension of Filipinos. This felt perfectly natural,” Marcelo adds.
So aside from the using the Internet, telemedicine also accepts referrals through text messages. It has a computer system which stores the cell phone numbers of all member-doctors and specialists. It accepts the messages and also forwards them to appropriate specialists.
Thanks to text messaging, referrals to the center grew from nothing in the first two years to at least 638 between October 15, 2007 and October 10, 2008.
The center has been getting referrals from remote areas and islands in Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra, Cagayan, Quezon, Ifugao, Bohol, Aklan, Romblon, Palawan, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Masbate, Iloilo, Sibugay, Lanao Del Norte, Lanao Del Sur, Cotabato, Bukidnon, Surigao Del Norter, Surigao Del Sur, Zamboanga Del Norte and Tawi-Tawi.
Zablan said that as a general practitioner, she encountered uncommon cases where she needed expert advice to arrive at the correct diagnosis.
Most of her patients are poor residents who cannot afford transportation fares and consultation fees to find specialists.
She recalled having a patient whose legs were paralyzed, but thanks to a series of email consultations with a specialist at the UP-PGH, she was able to give the correct diagnosis.
Zablan uses her cell phone as a way to send e-mails to the center. She also sends some of her queries through text messaging.
The system is so simple it can save lives.
Nurse Alexandra Belle Bernal recalled receiving a text message from a village doctor in Leyte months ago: A 3-day-old baby suffered from blood infection and was having fever. The nearest hospital can only be reached by boat—and there was a storm.
They forwarded the query to Marcelo. They quickly phoned the doctor to say that the baby should be given antibiotics—not orally—but through intravenous therapy.
Though Bernal missed actual patient care—of talking to them, seeing them, making sure they are fine—she recognized the importance of what she has been doing, working in an online triage.
“This is very important especially here in the Philippines because we have so many islands. Like in that case (in Leyte), they did not have a specialist in the island,” Bernal says.
Telehealth is not only about providing medical advice. Marcelo said prevention would be far better, so the center has been training health workers, like midwives and nurses, deployed in far-flung areas, using video conferencing.
The center is focusing on training health workers how to deal with poisoning, stroke, tuberculosis and bird flu. Through video conferencing, health workers gathered in Cebu, for instance, can ask questions from resource speakers in Manila City.
Telemedicine and training are intertwined. Marcelo said they have been aiming to spread the reach of telemedicine in areas which have not been able to get doctors. If health workers like midwives and nurses in these areas can be trained to be “tele-presenters,” patient consultation can soon be done online.
The center has been benefitting far-flung general practitioners who could refer cases to specialists and at the same time, has been giving doctors at the UP-PGH a “social benefit,” Marcelo said.
There are about 10 specialists from the UP-PGH who are among the regular pool of experts for the center, according to Marcelo. They offer their time, services and knowledge for free.
“They (PGH specialists) feel that they are able to help even beyond their physical limitations. They get to learn about the situation in remote areas, about the conditions there,” Marcelo says.
The system is not flawless, however.
Marcelo said a national broadband system, like those in many neighboring nations, would boost national healthcare system through telemedicine, as what has been done in other countries.
But as long as an Internet connection is available, phone signals do not fluctuate, and supply of electricity is stable, health workers in remote villages can be assured of help. The doctor is always in. Or online.
Filed Under (Philippine News) by on 06-11-2008
By Nancy C. Carvajal
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:20:00 11/07/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Two students from Quezon City have received invitations to go to Washington and be in the front seat of history when Barack Obama, the first black president of the United States, formally lays claim to the White House on Jan. 20, 2009.
Anne Marie Liwanag and classmate Paul Michael Thomas Cruz got their invites as early as March this year to the oath-taking of the 44th US president.
They were selected by the organizers of the University Presidential Inaugural Conference (UPIC) for their outstanding achievements during the Global Young Leaders Conference (GYLC) held in June 2007 in Washington and New York, according to Emil Ong, a director at the Reedley International School in Libis, Quezon City.
The two students were Reedley high school seniors when they represented their alma mater in the GYLC. Liwanag, 18, and Cruz, 19, are now college freshmen.
According to its website, UPIC offers delegates “the opportunity to take part in and personally witness the historic event of the presidential inauguration and challenges students to greatly enhance their understanding of a presidential campaign.”
“I dropped the invitation on the table the first time I read it, and had to read it at least five times to make sure it really had my name on it,” Liwanag told the Philippine Daily Inquirer Thursday at her Parañaque City residence.
“Just the thought of being in the same room (with Obama) makes me giddy. I showed the invitation to everyone in school, and everyone got really exited,” she added.
Should she be granted an audience with Obama, Liwanag said, she would pose some tough questions for the new leader of the free world: “What was he doing when he was 18 years old and what can he do for the Philippines?”
Liwanag said she rooted for Obama in the Nov. 4 presidential election, but admitted she earlier favored New York Sen. Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries.
The invitation, however, is a not an all-expenses-paid affair.
Liwanag said she would have to raise around $4,000 (roughly P200,000) to cover UPIC “fees” and airfare for the trip. “I could not hide my excitement, I really want to go, but the problem is, I am still raising the funds to make it to the inaugural,” she added.
The UPIC website said “tuition” charged for its program covers the cost of events and activities, hotel accommodation for four nights, meals, and transportation during the conference, hotel tips and taxes, and group insurance.
Conference participants—also called “inaugural scholars”—are responsible for their own travel to and from the Washington DC area, it added.
Ong said the UPIC invitation was made on behalf of members of the US Congress, particularly the Honorary Congressional Board of Advisors.
“On behalf of the (UPIC), it is my great pleasure to inform you of your selection to come to Washington as an inaugural scholar and take part in this historic occasion,” UPIC Managing Director of Education Donna J. Synder said in a letter to Liwanag.
As inaugural scholars, Liwanag and Cruz will be part of a five-day series of special events and activities commemorating the inauguration of the US president and vice president, the letter said.
The students will join other invited participants at the National Mall in the morning of Jan. 20 and experience firsthand the grandeur of the inaugural parade and presidential motorcade that will take the new US leaders from the Capitol Building to the White House, the letter added.
According to their itinerary, Liwanag and Cruz would also have an opportunity to meet members of the US Congress, White House officials, presidential historians, political experts and other government personalities. The students would cap their activities by attending a black-tie inaugural gala at the White House.
I’m proud to be nominated once again in a Professional Blog category. The first nomination I had was last year at Philippine Web Awards. Now I have given another chance by Digital Web Awards. I’m not expecting to win this award, for me being nominated is already enough I’m already satisfied with it. But If given a chance to win this award, why not I’ll be more than happy with that.
Visit http://digitalfilipinowebawards.blogspot.com/ to view all finalist on different categories
Here are the finalists competing for the Blogs - Professional category:
The winner in this category shall be contacted this week and be invited to our November 5 awards ceremony.
* Certified Public Accountant 2008 October 20
* Mechanical Engineer 2008 October 16
* Certified Plant Mechanic 2008 October 16
* Professional Mechanical Engineer 2008 October 16
* Real Estate Appraisers 2008 October 10
* Real Estate Brokers 2008 October 10
Filed Under (Philippine News) by on 28-10-2008
Bolante in Senate custody at hospital
Will answer charges in proper forum–statement
By Jerome Aning, Maila Ager
INQUIRER.net, Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 22:04:00 10/28/2008
Filed Under (Philippine News) by on 27-10-2008
The Bureau of Food and Drugs on Monday said it is recommending a ban on Croley Foods Sunflower cream-filled crackers after Hong Kong health authorities found high traces of melamine in one of the Philippine-made products.
“We will be testing all Croley Foods Sunflower Crackers but for public health reasons, we want the cream-filled crackers banned for now,” BFAD Director Leticia Gutierrez said over radio dzMM.
Gutierrez said the bureau has already started taking samples of Croley Foods products after the Hong Kong Center for Food Safety found 3.2 parts per million of melamine in Sunflower Crackers Blueberry Cream Sandwich.
Aside from the biscuit, the CFS said it also detected melamine in Select Fresh Brown Eggs (Extra Large, 6 piece), from China. It had a melamine level of 4.7 ppm.
The CFS said “the legal limit for melamine in the concerned products is 2.5 ppm.”
“We have informed the food trade of the test results and asked them to stop selling the products with unsatisfactory results. We have also sent warning letters to the retainlers and the importers concerned. The CFS will take out prosecution if there is sufficient evidence,” a spokesman of the CFS said.
Croley Foods Sunflower Crackers exports cracker, biscuits and cookies under several trade names to Asia and other countries. Its major brand is Sunflower Crackers. Its sales and marketing office is in Gulod, Novaliches, Quezon City.
According to the company website, Croley Foods “became a major player in the industry during the late 70s when it launched the Sunflower Crackers.”
Citing the US Food and Drug Administration, the CFS said the tolerable daily intake (TDI) for melamine is 0.63 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day. For children under the age of three years, who are more sensitive to melamine, the TDI for melamine is 0.32 mg per kg of body weight per day.
The CFS said that for the Croley Foods Sunflower Crackers, “a child weighing 10 kg (about three years old) would have to eat about 1 kg (about 4 big packs, i.e. 37 small individual packs) of the product a day to reach the TDI.”
“An adult with average body weight of 60 kg would need to consume about 11.81 kg (about 44 big packs, i.e., 437 small individual packs) of the product a day before reaching the TDI,” the CFS said.
“Based on the levels, people are advised to stop consuming the products concerned,” the CFS said.
A spokesman for Croley Foods earlier said it has “various certifications (to follow) issued by its raw material suppliers attesting to the fact that the supplies are free from melamine.”
The manufacturer said it will submit samples to BFAD for tests.
“Nevertheless, Croley will submit product samples to the BFAD for the purpose of examination,” said Jeremiah Lim, Croley Foods Mfg. Corp. marketing manager in the statement.
Lim said it hopes BFAD would help the manufacturer by speeding up the test. “The company will abide by any action that the BFAD may take in the matter of the Hongkong report,” said Lim.
Four children have died and 53,000 fallen ill in China after drinking milk or milk products laced with melamine, which is usually used in making plastics.
BFAD has found melamine in four products: Greenwood Yili Fresh Milk (in Chinese character); Jolly Cow Slender High Calcium Low Fat Milk (more Calcium and Vitamin D) 1 Liter; Lotte B&W Koala Biscuit; Lotte Chocolate Snack Koala Biscuit; Lotte Strawberry Snack Koala Biscuit; Mengniu Drink (in Chinese character).
Filed Under (Philippine News) by on 20-10-2008
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
Professional Electronics Engineer Board Exam Results for October 2008. The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announces that 38 passed the …
www.prcboardexamresults.com/ - 51k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
The Official Blog for Nurses all over the world! Lots of NLE Practice Test, NCLEX practice questions, nursing references, PRC NLE Results, study guides, …
www.philippinenurses.blogspot.com/ - 223k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
10 Jun 2007 … Prc nursing board exam results on Philippine held in June 2007.
nursingboardexamresult.net/prc-nursing-board-exam-results-june-2007/ - 8k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
So you are looking for nursing board exam result? Well you came to the right place. In the right menu “ Nursing exam results” you will find on line archive …
nursingboardexamresult.net/ - 7k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
In case you wanted to be notified when the results are out, just fill out the form found in the Nursing board exam results website …
www.cerveo.com/exams/ - 21k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
The Nursing Board Exam Results for June 2008 is fast approaching. If you want to be informed … PRC Nursing Board Exam (NLE) Results for December 2007 …
examresults.i.ph/ - 54k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
Nursing Board Exam Results. The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announces that 28924 out of 67728 passed the Nurse (First Timers, Repeaters, …
boardexamresults.blogspot.com/2007/12/nursing-board-exam-results.html - 84k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
-
- [ Isalin ang pahinang ito ]
Are you looking for the June 2008 Nursing Board Exam Results?
www.jehzlau-concepts.com/2008/01/nursing-board-exam-results.html - 63k - Naka-cache - Mga katulad na webpage
83-year old mall mogul, Henry Sy has been named the Philippines wealthiest man, according to the Forbes Asia 2008 Philippines Rich List.
Sy has an estimated net worth of US$3.1 billion. His wealth is up by $1.4 billion from last year, the biggest gain on the list in absolute terms. Sy and his family control SM Investments, which owns stakes in a dozen companies including the nation’s second largest bank, Banco de Oro Unibank.
Business tycoon Lucio Tan is in second place with a net worth of $1.5 billion. Tan’s holdings include Fortune Tobacco, Philippines Airlines, Asia Brewery, mining operations and Hong Kong property.
The top 10 richest in the Philippines are:
1. Henry Sy & family; US$3.1 billion
2. Lucio Tan & family; $1.5 billion
3. Jaime Zobel de Ayala & family; $1.2 billion
4. Andrew Tan; $700 million
5. Tony Tan Caktiong & family; $690 million
6. John Gokongwei Jr. & family; $680 million
7. Eduardo Cojuangco Jr.; $610 million
8. Enrique Razon Jr.; $525 million
9. George Ty & family; $435 million
10. Inigo & Mercedes Zobel; $430 million
Forbes Asia calculated net worths using October 3 stock prices and exchange rates to compile this list. Public wealth was estimated using shareholder and financial information while privately held assets were estimated based on what they would be worth if public.
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 15:08:00 10/17/2008
Melamine is an organic base and a trimer of cyanamide, with a 1,3,5-triazine skeleton. Like cyanamide, it contains 66% nitrogen by mass and, if mixed with resins, has fire retardant properties due to its release of nitrogen gas when burned or charred, and has several other industrial uses. Melamine is also a metabolite of cyromazine, a pesticide. It is formed in the body of mammals who have ingested cyromazine.[2] It has been reported that cyromazine can also be converted to melamine in plants.[3][4]
Melamine combines with cyanuric acid to form melamine cyanurate, which has been implicated in the Chinese protein export contaminations.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Etymology
* 2 Uses
* 3 Toxicity
o 3.1 Acute toxicity
o 3.2 Chronic toxicity
* 4 Regulation
* 5 Synthesis
o 5.1 Recent production of melamine in mainland China
* 6 Poisoning and kidney failure caused by melamine cyanurate
o 6.1 2007 Animal feed recalls
o 6.2 2008 Chinese milk scandal
o 6.3 Testing for melamine and cyanuric acid in food
* 7 See also
* 8 References
* 9 External links
[edit] Etymology
The German word Melamin was coined by combining the names of two other chemical products: Melam (a distillation derivative of ammonium thiocyanate) and Amin. [5] [6]
[edit] Uses
Melamine is combined with formaldehyde to produce melamine resin, a very durable thermosetting plastic, and melamine foam, a polymeric cleaning product. The end products include countertops, dry erase boards, fabrics, glues, housewares and flame retardants. Melamine is one of the major components in Pigment Yellow 150, a colorant in inks and plastics.
Melamine also enters the fabrication of melamine poly-sulfonate used as superplasticizer for making high-resistance concrete. Sulfonated melamine formaldehyde (SMF) is a polymer used as cement admixture to reduce the water content in concrete while increasing the fluidity and the workability of the mix during its handling and pouring. It results in concrete with a lower porosity and a higher mechanical strength exhibiting an improved resistance to aggressive environments and a longer life-time.
The use of melamine as fertilizer for crops had been envisaged during the ’50s and ’60s because of its high nitrogen content (2/3)[7]. However, the hydrolysis reactions of melamine leading to the nitrogen mineralisation in soils are very slow, precluding a broad use of melamine as fertilizing agent.
Melamine derivatives of arsenical drugs are potentially important in the treatment of African trypanosomiasis[8]
Melamine use as non-protein nitrogen (NPN) for cattle was described in a 1958 patent.[9] In 1978, however, a study concluded that melamine “may not be an acceptable non-protein N source for ruminants” because its hydrolysis in cattle is slower and less complete than other nitrogen sources such as cottonseed meal and urea.[10]
Melamine is sometimes illegally added to food products in order to increase the apparent protein content. Standard tests such as the Kjeldahl and Dumas tests estimate protein levels by measuring the nitrogen content, so they can be misled by adding nitrogen-rich compounds such as melamine. [11]
[edit] Toxicity
Melamine by itself is nontoxic in low doses, but when combined with cyanuric acid it can cause fatal kidney stones due to the formation of an insoluble melamine cyanurate.[12] Melamine is described as being “Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Chronic exposure may cause cancer or reproductive damage. Eye, skin and respiratory irritant.” However, the toxic dose is on a par with common table salt with an LD50 of more than 3 grams per kilogram of bodyweight.[13] FDA scientists explained that when melamine and cyanuric acid are absorbed into the bloodstream, they concentrate and interact in the urine-filled renal microtubules, then crystallize and form large numbers of round, yellow crystals, which in turn block and damage the renal cells that line the tubes, causing the kidneys to malfunction.[14]
[edit] Acute toxicity
Melamine is reported to have an oral LD50 of 3248 mg/kg based on rat data. It is also an irritant when inhaled or in contact with the skin or eyes. The reported dermal LD50 is >1000 mg/kg for rabbits.[15] In a 1945 study, large doses of melamine were given orally to rats, rabbits and dogs with “no significant toxic effects” observed.[16]
A study by USSR researchers in the 1980s suggested that melamine cyanurate, commonly used as a fire retardant[17], could be more toxic than either melamine or cyanuric acid alone.[18] For rats and mice, the reported LD50 for melamine cyanurate was 4.1 g/kg (given inside the stomach) and 3.5 g/kg (via inhalation), compared to 6.0 and 4.3 g/kg for melamine and 7.7 and 3.4 g/kg for cyanuric acid, respectively.
A toxicology study conducted after recalls of contaminated pet food concluded that the combination of melamine and cyanuric acid in diet does lead to acute renal failure in cats.[19]
[edit] Chronic toxicity
Ingestion of melamine may lead to reproductive damage, or bladder or kidney stones, which can lead to bladder cancer.[15][20][21][22][23]
A study in 1953 reported that dogs fed 3% melamine for a year had the following changes in their urine: (1) reduced specific gravity, (2) increased output, (3) melamine crystalluria, and (4) protein and occult blood.[24]
A survey commissioned by the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians suggested that crystals formed in the kidneys melamine combined with cyanuric acid, “don’t dissolve easily. They go away slowly, if at all, so there is the potential for chronic toxicity.”[25][26][27]
[edit] Regulation
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides a test method for analyzing cyromazine and melamine in animal tissues in its Chemistry Laboratory Guidebook which “contains test methods used by FSIS Laboratories to support the Agency’s inspection program, ensuring that meat, poultry, dairy and egg products are safe, wholesome and accurately labeled.”[28][29] In 1999, in a proposed rule published in the Federal Register regarding cyromazine residue, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed “removing melamine, a metabolite of cyromazine from the tolerance expression since it is no longer considered a residue of concern.”[30] Melamine, classified a controlled substance in China[31], has been illegally used in the high profile 2008 baby milk scandal case which led to the death of at least 4 infants[31].
On October 3, 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said that up to 2.5 parts per million of melamine was safe for adults, but declined to set a standard for children. The FDA also implied it would not permit the sale of food deliberately adulterated (rather than accidentally contaminated) with melamine.[32]
[edit] Synthesis
Melamine was first synthesized by the German chemist Justus von Liebig in 1834. In early production, first calcium cyanamide is converted into dicyandiamide, then heated above its melting temperature to produce melamine. However, today most industrial manufacturers use urea in the following reaction to produce melamine:
6 (NH2)2CO ? C3H6N6 + 6 NH3 + 3 CO2
It can be understood as two steps.
First, urea decomposes into cyanic acid and ammonia in an endothermic reaction:
6 (NH2)2CO ? 6 HCNO + 6 NH3
Then, cyanic acid polymerizes to form melamine and carbon dioxide:
6 HCNO ? C3H6N6 + 3 CO2
The second reaction is exothermic but the overall process is endothermic.
The above reaction can be carried out by either of two methods: catalyzed gas-phase production or high pressure liquid-phase production. In one method, molten urea is introduced onto a fluidized bed with catalyst for reaction. Hot ammonia gas is also present to fluidize the bed and inhibit deammonization. The effluent then is cooled. Ammonia and carbon dioxide in the off-gas are separated from the melamine-containing slurry. The slurry is further concentrated and crystallized to yield melamine.[33] Major manufacturers and licensors such as DSM, BASF and Eurotecnica have developed some proprietary methods.
The off-gas contains large amounts of ammonia. Therefore melamine production is often integrated into urea production which uses ammonia as feedstock.
Crystallization and washing of melamine generates a considerable amount of waste water, which is a pollutant if discharged directly into the environment. The waste water may be concentrated into a solid (1.5-5% of the weight) for easier disposal. The solid may contain approximately 70% melamine, 23% oxytriazines (ammeline, ammelide and cyanuric acid), 0.7% polycondensates (melem, melam and melon).[34]
[edit] Recent production of melamine in mainland China
Between the late 1990s and early 2000s, both consumption and production of melamine grew considerably in mainland China. In the United States Geological Survey 2004 Minerals Survey Yearbook, in a report on worldwide nitrogen production, the author stated that “(mainland) China continued to plan and construct new ammonia and urea plants using coal gasification technology.”[35]
By early 2006, melamine production in mainland China is reported to be in “serious surplus”.[36] In April 2007, DSM’s melamine industry update painted a grave global picture.[37] Between 2002 and 2007, while the global melamine price remained stable, a steep increase in the price of urea (feedstock for melamine) has reduced the profitability of melamine manufacturing. Currently, China is the world’s largest exporter of melamine, while its domestic consumption still grows by 10% per year. However, reduced profit has already caused other joint melamine ventures to be postponed there.
[edit] Poisoning and kidney failure caused by melamine cyanurate
[edit] 2007 Animal feed recalls
Further information: 2007 pet food recalls and Chinese protein export contamination
In 2007 a pet food recall was initiated by Menu Foods and other pet food manufacturers who had found their products had been contaminated and caused serious illnesses or deaths in some of the animals that had eaten them.[38][39][40] In March 2007, the US Food and Drug Administration reported finding white granular melamine in the pet food, in samples of white granular wheat gluten imported from a single source in China, Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology[41] as well as in crystalline form in the kidneys and in urine of affected animals.[42] Further vegetable protein imported from China was later implicated.
In April 2007, The New York Times reported that the addition of “melamine scrap” into fish and livestock feed to give the false appearance of a higher level of protein was an “open secret” in many parts of mainland China, reporting that this melamine scrap was being produced by at least one plant processing coal into melamine.[43] Four days later, the New York Times reported that, despite the widely reported ban on melamine use in vegetable proteins in mainland China, at least some chemical manufacturers continued to report selling it for use in animal feed and in products for human consumption. Li Xiuping, a manager at Henan Xinxiang Huaxing Chemical in Henan Province, stated, “Our chemical products are mostly used for additives, not for animal feed. Melamine is mainly used in the chemical industry, but it can also be used in making cakes.”[44] Shandong Mingshui Great Chemical Group, the company reported by the New York Times as producing melamine from coal, produces and sells both urea and melamine but does not list melamine resin as a product.[45]
Another recall incident in 2007 involved melamine which had been purposely added as a binder to fish and livestock feed manufactured in the United States. This was traced to suppliers in Ohio and Colorado.[46]
[edit] 2008 Chinese milk scandal
Further information: 2008 Chinese milk scandal
In September 2008, several companies were implicated in a scandal involving milk and infant formula which had been adulterated with melamine, leading to kidney stones and other renal failure, especially among young children. By 22 September, nearly 53,000 people had become ill, with more than 12,800 hospitalizations and four infant deaths.[47][48]
Melamine may have been added to fool government protein content tests after water was added to fraudulently dilute the milk. Because of melamine’s high nitrogen content, it can cause the protein content of food to appear higher than the true value.[49][50] Officials estimate that about 20 percent of the dairy companies tested in China sell products tainted with melamine.[51]
[edit] Testing for melamine and cyanuric acid in food
Until the 2007 pet food recalls, melamine had not routinely been monitored in food, except in the context of plastic safety or insecticide residue. This could be due to the previously assumed low toxicity of melamine, and the relatively expensive methods of detection.
Because melamine resin is often used in food packaging and tableware, melamine at ppm level (1 part per million) in food and beverage has been reported due to migration from melamine-containing resins.[52] Small amounts of melamine have also been reported in foodstuff as a metabolite product of cyromazine, an insecticide used on animals and crops.[53]
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides a test method for analyzing cyromazine and melamine in animal tissues. [28][29] In 2007, the FDA began using a high performance liquid chromatography test to determine the melamine, ammeline, ammelide, and cyanuric acid contamination in food.[54] Another procedure is based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). [55][56]
-
This article is about the chemical substance called melamine. The term “ melamine ” may also be used to refer to the plastic melamine resin. …
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine - 87k - Cached - Similar pages
-
Melamine resin or melamine formaldehyde (also shortened to melamine) is a hard, thermosetting plastic material made from melamine and formaldehyde by …
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melamine_resin - 20k - Cached - Similar pages
-
24 Sep 2008 … HONG KONG— Melamine, a chemical that has tainted milk formula and made thousands of Chinese children ill, is used as an agricultural …
newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20080924…/Melamine-found-in-pesticides-human-food-chain-say-experts - 95k - Cached - Similar pages
-
9 Oct 2008 … Jolly Cow Slender High Calcium Low Fat Milk (1 liter), which comes in a red and white box, has a melamine level of four parts per million …
newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20081009-165407/3rd-China-milk-product-has-melamine - 14 hours ago - Similar pages
More results from newsinfo.inquirer.net »
-
GulfNews |
|
China said Wednesday that it had strengthened dairy-product testing to reduce the allowable trace amounts of melamine, a toxic industrial chemical at the …
|
|
-
Brief and Straightforward Guide: What is Melamine?
www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melamine.htm - 75k - Cached - Similar pages
-
1 Oct 2008 … The news came a day after the British manufacturer recalled 11 types of its Chinese-made candy after its own tests found melamine, …
www.gmanews.tv/story/124079/HK-finds-traces-of-melamine-in-Cadbury-products - 31k - Cached - Similar pages
-
HONG KONG – The Hong Kong government said Friday it has found traces of the industrial chemical melamine in Chinese-made crackers and Heinz baby cereal.
www.gmanews.tv/story/123285/Hong-Kong-finds-melamine-in-baby-cereal-crackers - 29k - Cached - Similar pages
More results from www.gmanews.tv »
-
25 Sep 2008 … China finds melamine in 31 milk powder products: govt · Three more trapped miners rescued alive in Itogon …
www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/metro-manila/09/25/08/possible-melamine-laced-milk-products-also-removed-market-shelves - 26k - Cached - Similar pages
-
On Monday, the AVA found White Rabbit candies positive of melamine contents, … Melamine contamination was found positive in the products of at least three …
www.sunstar.com.ph/static/net/2008/09/23/food.bureau.to.test.white.rabbit.for.melamine.html - 15k - Cached - Similar pages
-
9 Oct 2008 … Like many similar incidents in the past, the melamine poisoning scandal is just a symptom of a global food system characterized by corporate …
www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/oct/09/yehey/opinion/20081009opi5.html - 21 hours ago - Similar pages
-
|
|
