Prevalence and effects of violence against women in a rural community in Minia governorate, Egypt

This study was carried out to investigate prevalence and the characteristics of domestic violence (DV) against women in a rural area in Minia governorate, Egypt, as well as its physical and psychological consequences. Seven hundred and seventy-two women were interviewed. Sociodemographic data were collected; the WHO questionnaire was used to identify the abuse; the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM IIIR (SCID) to detect psychiatric disorders. Abused females constituted 57.4% of the total sample. There were significant relationships between DV and low education, low income, higher number of children, and husband's education. Psychiatric disorders occurred in 18% of the sample. There were statistically significant relationships between psychological and physical abuse of women and the occurrence of psychiatric disorders. In conclusion, DV against women was related to various negative health outcomes, and it is recommended to be given its real importance in both Forensic Medicine Council and in psychiatric assessment.     

Suicide by explosion of natural gas: case report and review of literature

Natural gas (NG) is used as a home energy supply and, with or without ignition, is rarely misused to result in death. The authors report an unusual suicidal explosive death induced by NG. A huge explosion with resultant fire had blown out a bungalow, with destructive damage predominantly above the ground, resulting in only 1 exterior wall and the foundation still in place. The victim was transferred to the hospital, and on the way, he admitted to undoing the natural gas fitting and to igniting the source. He survived for a short interval of time in the hospital before all resuscitative efforts failed. During autopsy, a special attention was paid to victim's identification and search for other injuries, not related to the explosion, so as to exclude or document homicidal injuries disguised by the subsequent explosion. The forensic pathologist should be aware of the different kinds of inflammable substances and integrate the findings with the scene information and the impression of the investigators at the scene.     

Data for 15 autosomal STR markers (Powerplex 16 System) from two Tunisian populations: Kesra (Berber) and Zriba (Arab)

Allele frequencies, together with some parameters of forensic interest, for 15 STRs included in the Powerplex 16 System (CSF1PO, D3S1358, D5S818, D7S820, D8S1179, D13S317, D16S539, D18S51, D21S11, FGA, Penta D, Penta E, TH01, TPO and VWA) were estimated from two samples of unrelated individuals from Tunisia, of different ethnicity: Kesra (Berber) and Zriba (Arab). No deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were observed after Bonferroni's correction for the number of loci analysed. Comparative analyses between our population data and other North African databases showed that significant differences were concentrated on loci with lowest values of diversity (mainly CSF1PO and D13S317), irrespective of ethnicity and geographic location.     

The gender gap in pro-environmental political participation among older adults

Citizens are increasingly concerned with environmental issues and some of them take contentious political actions or adapt their lifestyles to reduce their environmental footprint. Research finds that there is an eco-gender gap in everyday environmental behaviours, with women more active than men. However, studies of the eco-gender gap have infrequently looked at other forms of pro-environmental political behaviours and focused mostly on young people. We contribute to the literature by examining to what extent older women and men differ in a range of pro-environmental political behaviours, using a unique dataset based on a survey of individuals 64 years and older. We find strong evidence of a gender gap in everyday behaviours and political consumerism, but not in relation to contentious forms of political participation. This gender gap in relation to everyday behaviours and political consumerism diminishes with age.