42 research outputs found
Bacterial ‘Cell’ Phones: Do cell phones carry potential pathogens?
Cell phones are important companions for professionals especially health care workers (HCWs) for better communication in hospital. The present study compared the nature of the growth of potentially pathogenic bacterial flora on cell phones in hospital and community. 75% cell phones from both the categories grew at least one potentially pathogenic organism. Cell phones from HCWs grew significantly more potential pathogens like MRSA (20%), Acinetobacter species (5%), Pseudomonas species (2.5%) as compared to the non HCWs. 97.5% HCWs use their cell phone in the hospital, 57.5% never cleaned their cell phone and 20% admitted that they did not wash their hands before or after attending patients, although majority (77.5%) knows that cell phones can have harmful colonization and act as vector for nosocomial infections. It is recommended, therefore, that cell phones in the hospital should be regularly decontaminated. Moreover, utmost emphasis needs to be paid to hand washing practices among HCWs
Adverse drug reactions and cost effectiveness of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, muscle relaxants, and neurotropic drugs in patients with low back pain
Background: The objective was to evaluate the adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and cost effectiveness of different classes of drugs in therapy of low back pain.Methods: A prospective observational study was carried out over a period of 12 months (November 2012 to November 2013) in which a total of 300 patients with low back pain were enrolled and divided equally into three groups – Group 1 (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [NSAIDs]), Group 2 (NSAIDs ± muscle relaxant), and Group 3 (NSAIDs ± muscle relaxant ± neurotropic drugs). Any ADR developed after the initiation of treatment at 3 weeks and 6 weeks was noted. Prescription cost per day was also calculated.Results: There was a male predominance in the study population with a mean age of 39.76±9.40 years. A total of 262 ADRs were noted among which most were seen in Group 3 (119 ADRs). Gastritis was the most common ADR in Group 1. Drowsiness was the most common ADR in Group 2 (30%) and 3 (46%). Prescription cost per day was highest in Group 3 (30.28±11.24 Indian Rupee [INR]) followed by Group 2 (25.92±8.66 INR) and Group 1 (12.22±3.38 INR).Conclusion: Patient on combination of three drugs (NSAIDs, muscle relaxants, and neurotropic agents) had maximum ADRs and their prescription cost per day was highest among the three groups
Hydroethanolic Allium sativum extract accelerates excision wound healing: evidence for roles of mast-cell infiltration and intracytoplasmic carbohydrate ratio
Fluoxetine during Development Reverses the Effects of Prenatal Stress on Depressive-Like Behavior and Hippocampal Neurogenesis in Adolescence
Depression during pregnancy and the postpartum period is a growing health problem, which affects up to 20% of women. Currently, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs) medications are commonly used for treatment of maternal depression. Unfortunately, there is very little research on the long-term effect of maternal depression and perinatal SSRI exposure on offspring development. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the role of exposure to fluoxetine during development on affective-like behaviors and hippocampal neurogenesis in adolescent offspring in a rodent model of maternal depression. To do this, gestationally stressed and non-stressed Sprague-Dawley rat dams were treated with either fluoxetine (5 mg/kg/day) or vehicle beginning on postnatal day 1 (P1). Adolescent male and female offspring were divided into 4 groups: 1) prenatal stress+fluoxetine exposure, 2) prenatal stress+vehicle, 3) fluoxetine exposure alone, and 4) vehicle alone. Adolescent offspring were assessed for anxiety-like behavior using the Open Field Test and depressive-like behavior using the Forced Swim Test. Brains were analyzed for endogenous markers of hippocampal neurogenesis via immunohistochemistry. Results demonstrate that maternal fluoxetine exposure reverses the reduction in immobility evident in prenatally stressed adolescent offspring. In addition, maternal fluoxetine exposure reverses the decrease in hippocampal cell proliferation and neurogenesis in maternally stressed adolescent offspring. This research provides important evidence on the long-term effect of fluoxetine exposure during development in a model of maternal adversity
Dominant culture and bullying : personal accounts of workers in Malaysia
Workplace bullying has been termed the cancer of the workplace; it is a widespread and often intractable problem. Internationally, a wealth of research has examined the prevalence of workplace bullying and its negative effects. This research base and the scientific definition of workplace bullying are, however, based on Western perspectives and supported by theories, models, and research studies conducted in Western cultures. The differences in cultural perspectives of Western and Eastern countries mean that workplace bullying may not be understood in the same way across different cultural groups, particularly when cultures differ along the Individualism-Collectivism dimension. Given that Malaysia is an Eastern country with a number of ethnic groups, a more comprehensive understanding of workplace bullying in the Malaysian context is important. Through a case study comprising in-depth qualitative interviews with 20 employees from different organisations in Malaysia, this chapter reveals six lay beliefs of workplace bullying and 19 lay beliefs about bullying behaviors. The study also found that the 12 bullying behaviors are work related while the other seven are personal-nature bullying behaviors. These results emphasize the influence of culture on how bullying is perceived within the Malaysian context, and the importance of understanding lay representations of workplace bullying from the Eastern context that apparent across nation. Based on the interviews, a general definition of workplace bullying from Malaysian employees' perspectives is presented and developed. The chapter concludes with implications for understanding bullying as an important psychosocial hazard at work and recommendations for future research and practice across the Asia Pacific region
Exposure to blood-borne viruses among healthcare workers in a tertiary care hospital in south India
Exposure to blood-borne viruses among healthcare workers in a tertiary care hospital in south India
<i>Citrobacter freundii</i> infection in glutaric aciduria type 1: Adding insult to injury
Glutaric aciduria type 1 (GA1) is an inborn error of organic acid metabolism, where the brain is the principal organ affected with exposure to toxic metabolic product, 3-hydroxyglutaric acid (3-OHGA). A 2-year-old boy with GA1 and delayed developmental milestones had an acute neurological crisis leading to massive brain abscess with Citrobacter freundi infection, a rare cause of neonatal meningitis and often associated with brain abscess. Both 3-OHGA and C. freundii can damage the blood-brain barrier and can cause significant trauma which demands immediate and appropriate management. Encephalopathic manifestations of GA1 may consequently increase the risk of meningeal infection and it has not been previously documented
Citrobacter freundii infection in glutaric aciduria type 1: Adding insult to injury
Glutaric aciduria type 1 (GA1) is an inborn error of organic acid
metabolism, where the brain is the principal organ affected with
exposure to toxic metabolic product, 3-hydroxyglutaric acid (3-OHGA). A
2-year-old boy with GA1 and delayed developmental milestones had an
acute neurological crisis leading to massive brain abscess with
Citrobacter freundii infection, a rare cause of neonatal meningitis
and often associated with brain abscess. Both 3-OHGA and C. freundii
can damage the blood-brain barrier and can cause significant trauma
which demands immediate and appropriate management. Encephalopathic
manifestations of GA1 may consequently increase the risk of meningeal
infection and it has not been previously documented