PREVALENCE AND DRUG RESISTANCE IN ACINETOBACTER SP. ISOLATED FROM INTENSIVE CARE UNITS PATIENTS IN PUNJAB, INDIA

Objective: This study was designed to study the prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility patterns of Acinetobacter sp. as isolated from patients lodged in intensive care units (ICUs) of a tertiary care hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India.Methods: The clinical samples were simultaneously streaked on Blood agar and MacConkey agar. The identification of the bacterial isolates was carried out with the aid of Gram stain, motility test and along with a combination of other commonly employed biochemical tests. The antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) of all the bacterial isolates was carried out on Muller-Hinton agar through Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method.Results: Acinetobacter sp. formed a fair allowance contributing at 42% among all ICU culture positive samples. The respiratory tract samples had a major share at 63.15% for all samples attributed to be positive for Acinetobacter sp. nosocomial etiology. The antibiotic sensitivity pattern portrayed that more than 95% of Acinetobacter sp. isolates were multiple drug resistant (MDR) whereas >50% Acinetobacter sp. showed extensive drug resistant (XDR). The last resort for such Acinetobacter sp. nosocomial infections is left to colistin and polymyxin B.Conclusion: Acinetobacter sp. is a highly prevalent microorganism among ICU patients of Ludhiana, Punjab, India, while its potential to acquire resistance toward commonly used antibiotics represents it as a grave threat to the health-care industry, therefore signifying the need for its regular monitoring in the health-care setups

Characterization of Actinomycetes and Trichoderma spp. for cellulase production utilizing crude substrates by response surface methodology

Laboratory bench scaling was done and an average of 1.85 fold increase by Response Surface Methodology (RSM) optimization was obtained. It was found that the predicted value (4.96 IU/ml) obtained by RSM is in close accordance with observed activity 5.14 IU/ml. Endoglucanases are mainly induced by CMC while Wheat bran (natural substrate) exoglucanase is more active when induced by avicel and cellulose. Addition of substrate beyond a level caused inhibition of cellulase production. The molecular weight of protein as determined by SDS-PAGE is very similar to molecular weight of cellulase of Trichoderma viride (T. viride) cellulase and Trichoderma reesei (T. reesei) endoglucanase. T. reesei β-glucosidase has high enzymatic activity on CMC substrate when compared with T. viride β-glucosidase. Secondary structure analysed by using Circular Dichroism confirmed that composition of celluase system is very similar to other analysed species. The cellulase was found to be active in pH range of 4.8-5.5; while temperature range varied from 50°C to 70°C. Although the enzymatic activity produced by mutants were lesser than the parent, but in one case mutants of Trichoderma reesei’s BGL has shown higher activity on cellulose

A dosemetric and radiobiological impact of VMAT and 3DCRT on lumbosacral plexuses, an underestimated organ at risk in cervical cancer patients

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate dosimetric and radiobiological difference between volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) and 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) in organ at risk (OAR) lumbosacral plexus (LSP) in cervical cancer patients. Materials and methods: 30 patients of cervical cancer who were treated using 3DCRT or VMAT along with chemotherapy followed by brachytherapy were enrolled. LSP was delineated retrospectively. Dosimetric and radiobiological difference was evaluated. Patients were followed for radiation induced lumbosacral plexopathy (RILSP). Results: Median follow-up was 12 months (3–16 months). 53.3% of patients were treated by 3DCRT and 46.7% by VMAT. The mean (±SD) LSP volume: 119.03 ± 15 cm3. The mean volume percentages (%) of the LSP: V5, V10, V20, V30, V40, V50, V55, and V60 were 100%, 99.8%, 99.2%, 94.3%, 84.03%, 59.7%, 0%, 0%, respectively. All patients received doses to the LSP in excess of 50 Gy, one patient received 55 Gy. A statistically significant difference was observed in the median value of V20, V30, V40, V50, D50, P2, P4, P7, P8, P9, and P10 across two different techniques of radiotherapy — VMAT and 3DCRT. None of the patients presented with RILSP. NTCP value was less in VMAT plans compared to 3DCRT, which is also statistically significant. Conclusion: RILSP is a rare and often refractory complication of pelvic radiotherapy. Advance radiotherapy technique with proper OAR delineation and constraint can prevent the occurrence of RILSP. VMAT has potential benefits for the probability of dose reduction in LSP. Further studies are required focusing on dose distribution in LSP–OAR and radiotherapy modality

Can water evaporation rates be enhanced by employing a different polar ambient?

Enhancing evaporation rates are of great practical interest in many technological applications such as water desalination or drying in industry. Since the conventional methods of increasing evaporation viz. increasing temperature, surface area etc. may not be always practically feasible or economical, novel methods of evaporation enhancement are necessary. The current study explores the possibility of evaporation enhancement by introducing a Tetrafluoroethane gas ambient under different conditions of heating and circulation. Depending upon the temperature and circulation conditions, as enhancement of 58 to 375% in evaporation rate has been measured and physical explanations into the underlying mechanism have been suggested

Effect of an herb root extract, herbal dentifrice and synthetic dentifrice on human salivary amylase

Background: Salivary amylase is an enzyme, which plays a vital role in formation of dental plaque. It has the ability to bind on the bacterial surfaces and to hydrolyze starch, giving rise to products that are transformed into acids leading to dental caries. Suppression of salivary amylase activity can lead to decrease in risk of dental caries and plaque associated periodontal diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an herb, Spilanthes calva (in form of a test dentifrice) on human salivary amylase activity and to compare it with other dentifrices. Materials and Methods: A total of 80 subjects of age 18-35 years were randomly selected and divided equally into 4 groups. Group 1 subjects were assigned to use Test Dentifrice (with S. calva root extract), while Group 2, Group 3, and Group 4 subjects were assigned to use Herbal Dentifrice (Arodent™ ), Synthetic Dentifrice (Colgate ® ), and Control Dentifrice respectively. Salivary amylase activity was determined by Bernfeld method in each group, before and after using the given dentifrices. Results: Maximum inhibition of salivary amylase activity was found in the group using test dentifrice as compared to others. Conclusion: The present study indicates that, the root extract of S. calva possess significant inhibitory activity for salivary amylase. Use of S. calva root extract will provide a wider protection against different pathogenic oral microflora. Use of this extract singly or in combination is strongly recommended in the dentifrice formulations

Single-stage posterior-only debridement and transpedicular screw fixation for dorsolumbar tuberculosis: A prospective study of twenty cases

BACKGROUND: India bears the highest burden of tuberculosis (TB), i.e., about one-fourth of the total burden. Of the musculoskeletal TB, spinal TB affects half of the patients. Pharmacological treatment in the form of AKT is the mainstay of treatment of spinal TB, but surgery has its own role to play as an adjunct to AKT in selected cases. Various surgical methods and approaches are mentioned in literature. We studied the efficacy and safety of posterior only approach for decompression and internal fixation in treating thoracic and lumbar spinal TB in adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this prospective randomized control study, we treated twenty patients with thoracic-lumbar TB with single-stage posterior only debridement, decompression, and transpedicular screw fixation. Preoperative and postoperative C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), kyphosis angle, visual analog scale (VAS) score and Frankel neurological grading, intraoperative blood loss, and duration of surgery were compared. Correction in kyphosis angle and loss of kyphosis angle at final follow-up was assessed. RESULTS: Sixteen male and four female patients with mean age 37.9 years were treated. Average follow-up was 14.95 months. Thirteen patients had two level involved; seven had single level. The average duration of surgery was 155 min (standard deviation [SD] 23.951). Preoperative average increase in ESR was 39.4 mm/h (SD 9.046) and 24.15 mm/h (SD 3.787) at 3 weeks. Average preoperative CRP was 15.7 mg/L (SD 5.398) and 9.05 mg/L (SD 3.456) at 3 weeks. Average preoperative kyphosis angle was 24.7° (SD 6.822) corrected to an average of 10.1° (SD 3.932) postoperative. At final follow-up, there was a mean loss of 1.4° of kyphosis angle. The average blood loss was 722.75 ml; the average duration of surgery was 228.5 min. The pain VAS dropped significantly from 7.05 (SD 1.468) to 3.9 (SD 1.209). At final follow-up, VAS was 1.7 (SD 0.864). All the patients had good neurological recovery except one. CONCLUSIONS: Single-stage posterior-only procedure is safe and effective for management of thoracolumbar spinal TB

Effect of Comorbidities on the Outcome of Patients with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Prospective Observational Study

Background The pathophysiological changes following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) lead to a varied degree of neurological deficit and cognitive decline. The presence of comorbidities can contribute to the progression and course of the disease resulting in high morbidity and mortality. Methods A total of 140 patients with aSAH, scheduled for surgical clipping or endovascular coiling were included. The patients' comorbidities were recorded. The postoperative outcome was evaluated using Glasgow Outcome Scale at 1 month following discharge. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify variables predicting poor outcome, taking into consideration those variables which were significant in univariate analysis. Results Sixty-six percent of these patients with aSAH had associated comorbidities. In our patient cohort, we found that smoking and hypertension were associated with worse outcome (odds ratio [OR] = 4.63 [confidence interval [CI] = 1.83–11.7] and OR = 2.92 [CI = 1.41–6.01], respectively). Hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease, and asthma did not influence the neurological outcome because of their small number. Conclusion Presence of comorbidities like smoking and hypertension significantly worsen the outcome of these patients with aSAH