Symptom cluster experiences in patients with oral cancer using mixed methods

Aims: 1. Identify distinct patient subgroups based on severity of symptoms using hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and latent profile analysis (LPA) and assess concordance between the two methods. 2. Examine if selected person-, disease-, and environment characteristics predict subgroup membership. 3. Explicate patients\u27 lived experience of symptom clusters (SCs)

P. AMERICANA AS AN INTESTINAL CARRIER OF NOSOCOMIAL AND FOOD BORNE BACTERIAL PATHOGENS

The study was undertaken to search the carrier potential of P. americana, the predominant cockroach species in India, of various human bacterial pathogen including L. monocytogenes in their intestine. Cockroaches were collected from tertiary care hospitals, domestic environments, market places and restaurants. Identification of the bacterial isolates from the aseptically removed intestine was carried out by standard bacteriological procedures (Cowan and Steel, 1974) including morphological, cultural, biochemical and physiological studies. Listeria species were isolated following USDA method. The bacteriological examination of the intestinal content of P. americana  revealed the presence of various potential human bacterial pathogens including Listeria spp. The major bacteria with epidemiological significance in nosocomial infection isolated from the intestinal contents of P. americana were Enterococcus spp. (95.6percent), Klebsiella spp. (39.6percent) and Proteus spp. (36percent).51.2percent of cockroaches under study were found to be harboured with Listeria spp. The observations made in this study establish the possible role of the insect P. americana in carrying and transmitting human pathogens especially in nosocomial and food borne infections and goes to suggest that the pest cannot be ignored as a casual harmless inhabitant of the human environments.Keywords: P. americana, intestine, bacterial pathogen

Validity of mannheim peritonitis index in predicting outcome of patients with perforative peritonitis in a tertiary care centre Kerala, India

Background: Perforation peritonitis is one of the most commonly encountered surgical emergencies in our country. The prognosis of secondary peritonitis remains poor despite development in diagnosis and management. Early identification of patients with severe peritonitis may help in selecting patients for aggressive surgical approach.Methods: The study was conducted in 128 cases of perforation peritonitis admitted and treated in the department of surgery in a tertiary care centre. Initial diagnosis was made on the basis of detailed history, clinical examination and presence of pneumoperitoneum on erect abdominal X-ray. Patients were first assessed using a predesigned Performa, then MPI score was calculated for each patient and the patients were followed-up till death or discharge from the hospital.Results: The ROC curve analysis shows area under the curve was 0.986 with a standard error of 0.008, 95% CI (0.971 to 1.001), p<0.0001. In our study authors found that for the MPI score of 26, sensitivity was 91.3% and specificity was 92.4%, with a positive likelihood ratio of 12.01 and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.09. Age of the patient, presence of organ failure, associated malignancy, generalised type of peritonitis and the original MPI Score has got a significant association with the final outcome (i.e. p value <0.05).Conclusions: MPI is an excellent prognostic index for peritonitis with high accuracy in individual prognosis that is cheap, cost effective, easily measurable and reproducible. The study accentuates that early diagnosis, appropriate resuscitation and prompt surgical intervention still remain the keystones in the management of perforation peritonitis

Machine Learning Techniques, Detection and Prediction of Glaucoma– A Systematic Review

Globally, glaucoma is the most common factor in both permanent blindness and impairment. However, the majority of patients are unaware they have the condition, and clinical practise continues to face difficulties in detecting glaucoma progression using current technology. An expert ophthalmologist examines the retinal portion of the eye to see how the glaucoma is progressing. This method is quite time-consuming, and doing it manually takes more time. Therefore, using deep learning and machine learning techniques, this problem can be resolved by automatically diagnosing glaucoma. This systematic review involved a comprehensive analysis of various automated glaucoma prediction and detection techniques. More than 100 articles on Machine learning (ML) techniques with understandable graph and tabular column are reviewed considering summery, method, objective, performance, advantages and disadvantages. In the ML techniques such as support vector machine (SVM), and K-means. Fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm are widely used in glaucoma detection and prediction. Through the systematic review, the most accurate technique to detect and predict glaucoma can be determined which can be utilized for future betterment

Survey on functionally diverse bacterial strains from marine finfishes and crustaceans

Prokaryotic microorganisms compromise a large portion of the organic biomass of the world’s ocean and play an important role in the biogeochemical cycles and food webs of this ecosystem. Surface colonization by microorganisms is ubiquitous in marine systems with a large proportion of microbes occurring as complex communities. Despite their importance, comparatively little is known about the phylogenetic composition of this complex microbial population and the functional roles of their members. Living surfaces are ideal to explore colonization by microorganisms because eukaryotes are subject to a constant bombardment from the millions of microbial cells typically found in a millilitre of seawater

The Influence Of Maternal Infections On Congenital Heart Defect

ABSTRACT Congenital heart defects (CHDs) contribute significantly to heightened infant mortality rates. This review explores the intricate link between maternal infections and CHDs, emphasizing diverse factors influencing fetal development, such as bacterial, fungal, protozoan and viral agents. These infections pose reproductive health risks, potentially leading to complications like prematurity, stillbirth and heart defect to the fetus. The TORCH acronym (Toxoplasma, Other infections, Rubella, Cytomegalovirus, Herpes simplex) identifies infectious teratogens related to congenital issues, emphasizing vertical transmission through the placenta or ascending from the vagina. Rubella and Cytomegalovirus play a significant role in heart defects, particularly when maternal infections amplify CHD risk during pregnancy. Specific scrutiny is placed on Rubella and Cytomegalovirus for their impact on pregnancy outcomes and potential links to congenital heart defects, with preventive strategies discussed, including vaccination and antiviral therapy. The timing and severity of these infections are pivotal in determining their impact on fetal heart development. Environmental exposures and maternal nutrition are critical factors influencing fetal development. Maternal undernutrition in low- and middle-income countries associates with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including congenital heart defects. Emphasizing the importance of maintaining a nutritious maternal diet, rich in essential nutrients, is crucial for improved fetal health and successful pregnancy outcomes. This review offers insights into preventive measures and underscores the need for continued research to enhance prenatal care strategies

The global distribution of special needs dentistry across dental school curricula

Introduction: Special needs dentistry (SND) is an emerging dental specialty, with ongoing developments in education and clinical practice focused towards the tailored management of individuals with special needs (SN). Patients with SN have a higher prevalence of oral diseases and unmet dental needs compared to the general population. Although inadequate training and experience in managing patients with SN has been highlighted as a significant barrier to accessing care, there is limited data about the extent of SND teaching at the entry-to-practice or higher levels. Methods: This work is the first to map SND curricula globally, across 180 countries and 1265 dental schools. Results: Although 74.62% of dental schools were found in developing economies, the distribution of programs that reported SND in their courses was highly skewed towards developed countries. In terms of advanced degrees, beyond basic entry-to-practice training, the USA delivered 60% of the SND programs, followed by Canada (15.56%), UK (13.33%), and Australia (8.89%). The term SND appeared in 33.95% of entry-to-practice level program curricula and was less commonly used in transitioning economies. Only 112 SND-specialized practitioners enter the workforce globally each year from developed economies, and all but three advanced degrees are found in G7 countries. Conclusion: By exploring the impact of economic status on its distribution, this paper highlighted the lack of SND representation in dental curricula, especially amongst programs in transitioning or developing economies. Education of both general dentists and specialists is critical as a collaborative effort is needed to manage the growing population of patients with SN

Vertical variance analysis of geomagnetic disturbance during solar cycle 23

300-309The geomagnetic field consists of temporal variations induced primarily by the variations in the solar wind and embedded interplanetary magnetic field. 34 stations across the Earth have been categorized in this paper on the basis of their geomagnetic disturbance during solar cycle 23 (1997-2008). The Vertical Variance (VV) disturbance quantifier has been used to develop such profile. The latitude profile of geomagnetic disturbance has been found to exhibit a typical ‘Knee’ behaviour, with the fluctuation content seen to rise sharply beyond this critical latitude determined near 52° latitude. The increasing trend in geomagnetic fluctuation content however is seen to end around the auroral oval beyond where abrupt variations has been observed indicating the transition from closed to open magnetic field lines. The physical mechanism behind this trend has also been explored. The VV analysis of geomagnetic disturbance has revealed prominent features of solar wind – magnetosphere coupling