Outcomes of Catheter Ablation of Ventricular Tachycardia Based on Etiology in Nonischemic Heart Disease: An International Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation Center Collaborative Study

This presentation explores the study conducted by Marmar Vaseghi, Tiffany Y. Hu, Roderick Tung, et al.: Outcomes of Catheter Ablation of Ventricular Tachycardia Based on Etiology in Nonischemic Heart Disease: An International Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation Center Collaborative Study Researchers determined the effects of ventricular tachycardia ablation in nonischemic cardiomyopathy (NICM) patients. By studying the six most common etiologies of NICM, researchers came to the conclusion that the etiology of NICM is an important factor when predicting ventricular tachycardia recurrence, death, or cardiac transplantation. The paper also indicated that adjustments were performed to the data to account for confounding factors such as age, New York Heart Association functional class, left ventricular ejection fraction, etc. Discussions were held among the student scholars to better understand the logistics of this international study and explore the effects of the confounding variables and other limitations of this study

Helicobacter pylori infection and hyperemesis gravidarum: a prospective pilot study in India

Background: About 80% of all pregnant women experience some form of nausea and vomiting during their pregnancy. Hyperemesis gravidarum, the commonest indication for admission to hospital in the first half of pregnancy affects approximately 0.3%-2.0% of pregnancies. Helicobacter pylori infection has been implicated in the cause of nausea and occasional vomiting in early pregnancy. The objectives of this study are to determine the proportion of H. pylori seropositivity among women with hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) and determine its relation with socio-economic status.Methods: This was a prospective study conducted in a tertiary hospital in Bangalore among 60 pregnant women with HG for a period of 12 months. Venous blood samples were obtained and serum IgG for H. pylori was measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA). Details regarding socioeconomic status, recurrence of symptoms and severity were noted.Results: The proportion of H. pylori seropositivity among pregnant women with hyperemesis in our study was 70%.There was a significant increase in severity and recurrence of vomiting among seropositive cases. Women belonging to rural areas had 1.17 times the risk of infection compared to women with urban area. We also found women belonging to the lower socioeconomic status had 0.52 times more risk to develop Helicobacter pylori infection.Conclusions: This study suggests that H. pylori is an independent risk factor for vomiting in pregnancy. Effective treatment and eradication of H pylori infection may help reduce severity and recurrence of vomiting among positive cases thus reducing its adverse consequences

Current factors affecting the menstrual cycle

A regular menstrual cycle is an important indicator of a healthy reproductive system. Menstrual problems affect not only women but also families, social & national economy as well. The menstrual cycle is divided into two 14-day phases. In normal healthy women, menarche occurs between the ages 10 and 16 years, with an average rhythm of 28 days, inclusive of 4–6 days of bleeding, with some common minor variations like Amenorrhoea, Oligomenorrhoea, Polymenorrhoea, Menorrhagia, Hypomenorrhoea, etc., these menstrual disorders frequently affect the quality of life of young adults women, some of the lifestyle factors like obesity, intake of junk food, stress, lack of physical activity, skipping breakfast are associated with irregular menstruation. The purpose of this study is to identify menstrual irregularities and assess the impact of lifestyle factors and on the menstrual patterns in reproductive-age females

ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY SCREENING OF M. MINUTA EXTRACTS

Objective: Infectious diseases are a leading cause of global disease burden with high morbidity and mortality especially in the developing world. Furthermore, there have been threats of new diseases during the past three decades due to the evolution and adaptation of microbes and the re-emergence of old diseases due to the development of antimicrobial resistance and the capacity to spread to new geographic areas. Since antiquity, humans have used plants to treat common infectious diseases and some of these traditional medicines are still included as part of the habitual treatment of various maladies. Objective of the study was to evaluate, one of the traditionally used drugs, Marselia minuta for its antimicrobial activity. Methods: Extracts of M. minuta was prepared using successive solvent extraction method and the antibacterial activity of thus prepared petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate, alcohol and aqueous extracts of M. minuta was performed using agar well diffusion method. Four bacterial strains were used to assess the antimicrobial properties of the plant extracts viz Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pneumonia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Results: All the extracts showed activity towards the tested microorganisms except petroleum ether extract. Ethyl acetate extract was more active towards S. aureus and P. aeruginosa. Alcohol and chloroform extract was active toward E. coli and P. aeruginosa. Aqueous extract was active against E. coli and S. aureus. minimum inhibitory concentration were calculated for each extract and the Significant activity was observed for ethyl acetate extract (E. coli-11.33 mm, S. aeruginosa-16.0 mm) and alcoholic fractions (E. coli-15.33 mm and P. aeruginosa-10.66 mm) for concentration 500 mcg/ml. Conclusion: Thus, the result in the present experiment ensures the traditional use of M. minuta as antibacterial agent. Further, the most active extracts can be subjected for isolation of the therapeutic antimicrobials and its formulation which will be relatively safer than synthetic medicines and offering profound therapeutic benefits at the more affordable price

QoS Constrained Optimal Sink and Relay Placement in Planned Wireless Sensor Networks

We are given a set of sensors at given locations, a set of potential locations for placing base stations (BSs, or sinks), and another set of potential locations for placing wireless relay nodes. There is a cost for placing a BS and a cost for placing a relay. The problem we consider is to select a set of BS locations, a set of relay locations, and an association of sensor nodes with the selected BS locations, so that number of hops in the path from each sensor to its BS is bounded by hmax, and among all such feasible networks, the cost of the selected network is the minimum. The hop count bound suffices to ensure a certain probability of the data being delivered to the BS within a given maximum delay under a light traffic model. We observe that the problem is NP-Hard, and is hard to even approximate within a constant factor. For this problem, we propose a polynomial time approximation algorithm (SmartSelect) based on a relay placement algorithm proposed in our earlier work, along with a modification of the greedy algorithm for weighted set cover. We have analyzed the worst case approximation guarantee for this algorithm. We have also proposed a polynomial time heuristic to improve upon the solution provided by SmartSelect. Our numerical results demonstrate that the algorithms provide good quality solutions using very little computation time in various randomly generated network scenarios

Impromptu Deployment of Wireless Relay Networks: Experiences Along a Forest Trail

We are motivated by the problem of impromptu or as- you-go deployment of wireless sensor networks. As an application example, a person, starting from a sink node, walks along a forest trail, makes link quality measurements (with the previously placed nodes) at equally spaced locations, and deploys relays at some of these locations, so as to connect a sensor placed at some a priori unknown point on the trail with the sink node. In this paper, we report our experimental experiences with some as-you-go deployment algorithms. Two algorithms are based on Markov decision process (MDP) formulations; these require a radio propagation model. We also study purely measurement based strategies: one heuristic that is motivated by our MDP formulations, one asymptotically optimal learning algorithm, and one inspired by a popular heuristic. We extract a statistical model of the propagation along a forest trail from raw measurement data, implement the algorithms experimentally in the forest, and compare them. The results provide useful insights regarding the choice of the deployment algorithm and its parameters, and also demonstrate the necessity of a proper theoretical formulation.Comment: 7 pages, accepted in IEEE MASS 201

PHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF HIV PHARMACOTHERAPY AT DISTRICT ART CENTER IN SOUTH TELANGANA

Objective: Objective of the study was to assess the drug utilization pattern of antiretroviral drugs, and medication adherence behavior among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients attending a local ART center, Suryapet, South Telangana. Methods: This was a prospective observational study approved by institutional ethics committee. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, and the treatment details were collected on daily basis for new cases and the data add on was collected for old cases. Medication adherence behavior was assessed through Morisky Medication Adherence Scale-8. Results: During the study period, a total of 505 HIV patients were enrolled. Among them, majority patients were women (61%), in the age group of 31–45 (49.7%). Illiterates (52.6%). Major mode of transmission identified was intimate contact (74%), and majority patients were in Stage I (49%). TLE regimen was prescribed in 69.9% patients and for children the prescribed regimen was ABC, 3TC, EFV (5.1%). About 43% patients were found with medium adherence. Conclusion: This study concludes that the most prescribed regimens were combination of TLE, and majority of the patients were found with medium adherence

Determining Effective Treatment Regimens for Breast Cancer Using Combined Immunotherapy and Chemotherapy in Vivo

Breast cancer has the highest incidence rate of all cancers globally in women, and those of African descent, especially West African females, face higher rates of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a more aggressive form of breast cancer. Immunotherapy for breast cancer is a relatively new treatment option, and research is ongoing to identify the best combination treatments for increasing survival of those diagnosed with TNBC. Eganelisib (IPI-549: a PI3K-gamma inhibitor that works to shift M2 macrophages to M1 to augment T cell function) with other combinatory treatments has shown promising results in reducing tumor growth and increasing survival in mice. We have been conducting experiments to determine the most effective treatment regimen that will reduce growth of 4T1 mammary cancers, a murine TNBC model in syngeneic BalbC female mice. Combinations of eganelisib, cyclophosphamide, and anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 have been tested to determine how immunotherapy and chemotherapy can induce a strong immune response, resulting in better responses to chemotherapy. Our current data indicates that a treatment regimen combining eganelisib, cyclophosphamide, and anti-PD-1 was most effective at suppressing tumor growth, compared to other treatments that only included one or two of these treatments. Mean tumor sizes of mice treated with a combination of eganelisib and other treatments were 187±70 mm3, 232±71 mm3, and 227±59 mm3 at the end of the experiments, compared to control data of 576±137 mm3, 414±31 mm3, and 591±200 mm3, respectively. These results could lead to further research on effective immunotherapy treatment combinations for TNBC.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/uresposters/1417/thumbnail.jp

A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW ON PHARMACEUTICAL AND NUTRITIONAL APPLICATIONS OF INULIN

Inulin is a versatile, water-soluble polysaccharide that is commonly available in nature. In the pharmaceutical industry, the non-digestible function of inulin has made it attractive. Inulin is granted with GRAS status by the FDA and more than 30,000 plants in nature store inulin as a carbohydrate. The chicory is the key plant source of inulin out of all sources. It can be used as the sugar or fat replacer in the processed foods to influence the desirable characteristics. Good biocompatibility, essential chemical properties, and a wide variety of bioactivities have rendered inulin an outstanding natural nutrient. Regulating blood sugar, antioxidant, anticancer is some of the biological activities of inulin. Inulin can also be a carrier for colon/tumor targeting, as only specific enzymes in the colon zhydrolyze the inulin. It allows the growth of micro-flora, the good bacteria in the gut. Inulin is considered as a prebiotic as it is fermented by bacteria that normalize the colon. This review offers an in-depth insight into its novel Pharmaceutical applications as well as sources, processing, physicochemical properties, and nutritional and physiological activities. The chemically modified inulin is gaining a specific interest in the pharmaceutical field with its outstanding properties which are discussed in this review