Effect Of KHAT (Catha Edulis) On Acute Cerebral Infarction With The Relationship To The Dose And Time Of Chewing And The Role To Induce Apoptosis Through Smac/Diablo Clinical And Experimental Study

First partTHE EFFECT OF KHAT (Catha-edulis) ON ACUTE CEREBRAL INFARCTIONObjective: The aim of this study was to show the effects of Khat on Acute Cerebral Infarction (ACI), specifically regarding blood pressure, age and sex, and to open the door for further neurological research.Methods: 358 patients with Acute Cerebral Infarction and 335 volunteers were collected from Al-Thowra modern General Hospital in Sana'a, the capital city of Yemen, and Thamar General Hospital (in Thamar city) about 100km south of Sana'a. During a one year period, from Feb. 2003 to March 2004, research was conducted regarding blood pressure, age, and sex concerning the chewing and / or not chewing of Khat. A comparison was conducted between ACI group and volunteer group, using the SPSS 10.0 Chi-square statistical methods.Results: According to the results of this study Khat is shown to increase blood pressure in patients with ACI, as shown in table (1,2). The sex-related effects of Khat show that a greater percentage of males (74.58%) are affected compared to females (25.42%), Khat chewers in the patient group showed a statistical significance p <0.001 (see table 3). 358 ACI patients the mean age was 51.5 years old, were more towards old age, while in 335 normal individuals the mean of age was 42.5 years old, were younger shows statistical significance of,p <0.001 (see table 4).Conclusion: Khat is a risk to blood pressure in ACI patients with statistical significance of p<0.001. Khat effects on males more than females, and Khat chewers are affected more than non-chewers with statistical significance of p<0.01. Khat also shows a significant relationship with age, affecting older persons p <0.001.