Awareness and acceptance of various contraceptive methods among postpartum women in a tertiary care center

Background: This study was conducted to know awareness and acceptance of contraceptive methods among post-partum women in the tertiary care centre of Chhattisgarh.Methods: A cross-sectional interview-based study was conducted on a sample of 440 post-partum women. The interview included socio demographic profile, awareness and acceptance of contraceptive methods in postpartum period and factors affecting its use.Results: In our study, we observed that 95.9% were aware of some method of contraception. This knowledge increased with increasing education, socioeconomic class. 90.9 % accepted one of the contraceptive methods during their hospital stay. The most common contraceptive method chosen was IUCD (80.8%). Major source of information was health care worker (83.88%). The main reason for non-acceptance of contraception was fear of side effects.Conclusions: High level of persistent motivation is required, so initiation of motivation regarding post-partum contraception should be done in antenatal visits and reinforcement in post-partum period should be done. Proper counseling regarding possibility of milder side effects and way of coping with them should be reinforced, continued motivation and reassurance will give positive attitude for acceptance of contraception. Reinforcement of awareness in society (family and friends/neighbor) this may give positive impact on awareness and acceptance. There is need of couple counseling for better acceptance. Emphasis is required for involvement of men/head of the family for it

Larvicidal Activity of Methanol and Chloroform Extract of Swertia celiata against Three Mosquito Vectors

Background: Mosquitoes are an important public health concern as they spread life-threatening diseases such as malaria, filaria, Japanese encephalitis, dengue fever, chikungunya, and yellow fever. In the last decades, synthetic insecticides were extensively used for the control of these vector-borne diseases but it also reported the detrimental side-effects in human beings and pet animals. To overcome the side effects, plants-derived secondary metabolites were screened and tested for insecticidal properties. The present study deals with the insecticidal activity of chloroform and methanol extracts of Swertia celiata leaves against Culex quenquifasciatus, Aedes aegypti, and Anopheles stephensi larvae.Method: The S. celiata leaves were subjected to chloroform and methanol with 1:3 (Weight/ Volume) ratio and the extracted solvent was dried using rotary vacuum evaporator. The larvicidal activity of the extract was tested using WHO method and LC50 and LC90 were evaluated by probit analysis.Results: The LC50 value of chloroform extract of S. celiata was found to be 65.288, 67.406 and 71.608 ppm whereas LC90 was 184.721, 186.582 and 192.497 ppm against C. quinquefasciatus, Ae. aegypti and A. stephensi, respectively. The methanolic extract was also found potent; LC50 was 91.503, 101.574 and 99.104 ppm whereas LC90 was 230.823, 271.927 and 234.257 ppm against C. quinquefasciatus, Ae. aegypti and A. stephensi, respectively. Both chloroform and methanol extract were found significantly lethal tothe tested mosquito vectors.Conclusion: Taken results together, chloroform extract showed higher toxicity as compared to methanolic extract against all the tested species. The study clearly revealed that S. ciliata extract or bioactive compounds can be used as an alternative to synthetic insecticides

Split hand/split-foot malformations: a report of four cases in a family with variable presentations

Split hand/split-foot malformation is a congenital anomaly with failure of development of the central digital rays of hand or foot to a variable extent. It is characterized by hypoplasia/aplasia of the phalanges, toes, metacarpals and metatarsals. The presentation may be an isolated anomaly or may be associated with syndrome and thus have variable pattern of inheritance. We report a family of 10 members; four of which are affected with autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance. We discuss here the clinical presentation, genetic inheritance, prenatal diagnosis and treatment for the malformation

Convexity meningiomas posing difficult challenges for neurosurgeons: Two case reports and literature review

Meningiomas have been intriguing since the time of Harvey Cushing. Although, most of them have been conquered by “today’s neurosurgeons”, still they can pose difficult challenges sometimes. Convexity meningiomas are relatively easier to tackle especially if they are not too large and do not displace critical neurovascular structures. However, they can complicate matters at times and hence, extreme precautions need to be practised. We report two such cases of convexity meningiomas with unusual set of events where one had an unusual post operative complication and the other had an unusual mode of presentation. Extradural hematomas (EDH) are a common complication after intracranial surgeries. They are usually picked up in the early post-operative scans and are managed according to their size and mass effect. The first patient is a 60 year old female where delayed EDH was detected after a sudden bout of hypertension after the initial scan after 48 hours of surgery was normal. Intraoperatively, middle meningeal artery (MMA) had re-bled due to this sudden rise in the blood pressure. Second case is a 33 year old female who presented with an intracerebral bleed due to hemorrhage within a convexity meningioma.&nbsp

HISTOPATHOLOGICAL STUDY OF CERVICAL LESIONS IN A TERTIARY HEALTH CARE CENTRE IN INDIA.

Introduction: The cervix is the lower cylindrical part of the Uterus which projects into the vagina. The cervix despite being a small part, is home to numerous disease conditions, including both neoplastic and non-neoplastic ones. Important among these conditions are Inflammatory conditions like Chronic cervicitis along with premalignant and malignant conditions like CIN and SCC. Most cervical cancers are caused by HPV, an oncogenic virus. The main objective of our study is to analyze the histopathological spectrum of different types of cervical lesions, both neoplastic and non-neoplastic. Methodology: A retrospective study was done on 380 hysterectomy specimens and cervical biopsies that were submitted to the Department of Pathology, Nalanda Medical College and Hospital, Patna from May 2022 to July 2023. Detailed histopathological assessment of various lesions of the cervix was done, including both non-neoplastic as well as neoplastic.  Results: Out of 380 cases that were taken into consideration, 340 (89.5%) had non-neoplastic lesions, and 40 (10.5%) had neoplastic lesions. 241 cases (63.4%) were that of Chronic non-specific cervicitis. Other non-neoplastic lesions were Chronic papillary endocervicitis, endocervical polyps, squamous metaplasia, and nabothian cysts. Nearly 14 cases (3.7%) were that of CIN 1, 10 (2.6%) had CIN 2, 3 (0.8%) had CIN 3, and 11 (2.9%) had SCC. 43 years was the mean age of the women with preinvasive lesions. The mean age of patients with SCC was 49.2 years. Conclusion: Chronic non-specific cervicitis was the most common disease condition affecting the cervix, comprising 63.4% of total cases. Neoplasms comprised 10.5% of all cervical lesions. Accurate histopathological diagnosis may help in the reduction of complications caused by chronic cervicitis. The accurate and timely diagnosis of premalignant conditions by histopathology may help in preventing disease progression and avoiding more invasive surgeries thereby reducing morbidity and improving their quality of life

The impact of storage conditions on platelets in platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and platelet concentrate (PC)

Introduction: The ultimate aim of blood transfusion services is to give recipients whole blood and blood components that are secure, efficient, and potent. Control, assurance, and audit of quality are the foundational elements of quality. Product standards are developed and accurately met through the process of quality control. Method: In this study, samples of 2.3% PRBCs (50/2155), 9.3% platelet concentrate (42/451), and 3.6% of total whole blood collection (48/1,321) were prepared and tested for haematological parameters of quality control for the period from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022. Parameters for 8 samples of platelet concentrate available on day 5, were compared for day 0 and day 5. Result: Haematological metrics for whole blood, PRBCs, and platelet concentrate underwent quality examination. 50/2121, or 2.3% of the total whole blood collection, was used as a sample for the analysis of haematological parameters. Volume and hematocrit tests were performed on a total of 55 out of 2335 (2.3%) units. With a range of 344–365 mL, the average capacity was 358 mL. With a range of 35.1-48.0%, the mean hematocrit was 42.2%. Between 271 to 389 mL, the mean capacity was 311 mL. The range of the mean hematocrit was 57.3 to 81.9%. There was slight decrease in volume, platelet count and WBC count of platelet concentrates on day 5 as compared to day 0. Conclusion: For effective and safe blood transfusion services, continuous quality improvement is crucial. As a result, attention should be taken to apply consistent criteria for quality assessment, and objective analysis should be used on a regular basis to verify that consistent values are being followed