A Study of Environmental Awareness among Muslim Girls Pursuing Graduation Course in Bareilly Region

The present study is focused on the assessment on environmental awareness among Muslim girls pursuing graduation course in Bareilly Region. The investigators used normative survey method for the study. The sample consists of 500 Muslim girls from five degree colleges in Bareilly Region. Simple random sampling technique has been used for the selection of sample. Environmental Awareness Test was used to assess environmental awareness among Muslim girls. The major finding of study reveals that rural Muslim girls are less aware of their environment as compared to urban Muslim girls. Similarly, girls belonging to arts stream have less environmental awareness as compared to their counterparts belonging to science stream. Further, it is also found that Muslim girls, whose parents are graduate, have high level of environmental awareness that that of those girls whose parents are non –graduate

Development of Standardized Scientific Temper Tool

The prime aim of the present paper was to develop a standardized tool to measure scientific temper. For this purpose, the investigators organized three workshops with experts in the field of science and social sciences and the tool is developed in three phases. In the first phase, the term scientific temper had been operationally defined and four dimensions, i.e. spirit of enquiry, rational thinking, cause and effect relationship and scientific information were finalized to measure the scientific temper among people. This scientific temper tool was developed in the form of a questionnaire. The items related to above four dimensions were collected and shuffled well to prepare initial draft of the schedule. Thus the initial draft contained 70 items in it. The questionnaire was prepared in three parts, designated as FORM A, FORM B and FORM C. In the FORM A responses were recorded on Likert-scale while in FORM B questions were kept open-ended and the responses in FORM C, which constituted the core of Scientific Temper Questionnaire (STQ), were categorized into three options, from scientific to superstitious. It should be noted that all the three parts contianed identical indicators.In the second phase, the initial draft of STQ was administered on a sample of 120 students in order to determine the discriminative value and popularity value of each item for the purpose of item analysis. The reliability was established through Kuder Richardson formula and content and concurrent validity were also established. In order to develo

Study on pattern of consumption of fruits and vegetables and associated factors among medical students of Delhi

Background: Fruits and vegetables are a rich source of essential micronutrients i.e. vitamins/minerals and dietary fibers required for the normal daily functionality of the body. Young adults such as medical students are a particularly vulnerable population in terms of health issues and adequate diet. Objective of the study was to find the pattern of fruits and vegetables consumption in undergraduate medical students of Delhi.Methods: A cross-sectional study was planned among 300 undergraduate students from medical college in New Delhi. The questionnaire consisted of questions about identification data, pattern of fruit and vegetable consumption. Data was analyzed by SPSS software version 21.0 and for qualitative data analysis chi-square test was used.Results: Mean age of study subjects was 20.82±2.1 years and females (52.7%) were more as compared to (47.3%) males. Out of 300 participants, only one third (33.3%) of study participants consumed more than five servings of fruits and vegetables. More than half of study participants felt that unsafe use of pesticides, difficult to eat five servings in a day, poor handling and poor quality of fruits and vegetables were the most common barriers in consumption of FVs. Age and semester of study participants and education status of mothers were found significant predictors of consumption of recommended number of serving of FVs in day.  Conclusions: This study concludes that only one third of study participants consumed more than five servings of fruits and vegetables which is recommended number of serving in a day. So, there is a need to increase awareness about importance of fruits and vegetables consumption among study population

Massive collision tumor of ovary in pregnancy: rare successful perinatal outcome

A collision tumor is the co-existence of two adjoining but histologically distinct tumors without histological admixture in the same tissue or organ. The most common histological combination of collision tumor in the ovary is the coexistence of mature teratoma with mucinous cystadenomas. The incidence of adnexal mass in pregnancy is 0.05-2.4% of which 94-99% are benign. The 1-6% maybe malignant requiring more extensive surgical procedures that increases likelihood of pregnancy loss. Ovarian tumors first diagnosed during pregnancy often present a challenge for diagnosis and management. Hence accurate knowledge of tumor characteristics, especially the ultrasound appearance and gestational age at diagnosis, are the key prerequisites for establishing the most effective plan of management for the pregnant women. To the best of our knowledge this report of huge collision tumor with successful pregnancy outcome is first of its kind

A prospective randomized study to compare dexmedetomidine and dexamethasone as an adjunct to bupivacaine in transversus abdominis plane block for post-operative analgesia in caesarean delivery

Background: Caesarean section is most frequently performed surgery worldwide. Patients experience moderate to severe pain in the first 48 hours post-operatively. Aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of dexmedetomidine and dexamethasone as an adjunct to bupivacaine in ultrasound guided TAP block for postoperative analgesia in patients of caesarean section.Methods: A total 120 ASA I and II patients undergoing elective and emergency caesarean section under subarachnoid block were randomly divided into three groups B, BDM, BDX to receive bupivacaine alone or dexmedetomidine or dexamethasone as an adjunct to bupivacaine in ultrasound guided TAP block. Postoperatively, the patients were evaluated for pain level at rest and on movement with a 10 cm visual analog scale (VAS) pain score (0 = no pain and 10 = worst pain), time to demand of first analgesic request, number of analgesic requirements, nausea or vomiting, sedation and patient satisfaction at 0 hours and at 2, 4, 6, 12, 18, and 24 hours.Results: VAS score was significantly higher in group B in comparison to BDM and BDX, and higher in BDX in comparison to group BDM. Mean duration of analgesia was significantly higher in group BDM in comparison to group B and BDX. Total number of rescue analgesic demands were significantly lower in group BDM in comparison to group B and BDX. Sedation score and satisfaction score was higher in group BDM as compared to group B and BDX.Conclusions: Addition of dexmedetomidine and dexamethasone as an adjunct to bupivacaine reduces postoperative pain, prolongs analgesia, decreases demand for additional analgesics and provides better maternal satisfaction as compared to plain bupivacaine group in TAP block in patients undergoing caesarean section under subarachnoid block. Among dexmedetomidine and dexamethasone, dexmedetomidine had prolonged analgesia as compared to dexamethasone group

Phylogenetic and morphological analysis of Gloydius himalayanus (Serpentes, Viperidae, Crotalinae), with the description of a new species

Gloydius is a widespread pitviper group occurring from Eastern Europe to Korea and Siberia, with only one known species, G. himalayanus (Günther, 1864), found south of the Himalayas. We provide combined genetic and morphological data for G. himalayanus from specimens collected from Himachal Pradesh, India. Bayesian Inference and Maximum Likelihood phylogenetic analysis were performed on four concatenated mitochondrial genes, along with a multi-locus coalescent analysis of these and five additional nuclear genes. Our results indicate that G. himalayanus from the Chamba Valley, in western Himachal Pradesh, are highly distinct from the remaining studied populations. Haplotype networks of each nuclear locus showed that G. himalayanus contains high haplotype diversity with low haplotype sharing between the Chamba Valley population and populations from further west. Principal component analysis and canonical variate analysis conducted on morphological data of live and museum specimens also highlight the morphological distinctiveness of the Chamba population and we herein describe this population as a new species, Gloydius chambensis sp. nov. Recent descriptions of other new species of snakes from this valley underscores its isolation and suggests that further herpetological investigation of the highly dissected landscapes of the western Himalayas is needed to assess the true diversity of the region

Unraveling Prostaglandin and NLRP3 Inflammasomemediated Pathways of Primary Dysmenorrhea and the Role of Mefenamic Acid and Its Combinations

Painful menstrual cramps during or around the time of the monthly cycle are known as dysmenorrhea. The estimated global prevalence in women of reproductive age ranges from 45% to 95%. It has a significant negative impact on regular activities and productivity at work. However, despite the severe consequences on quality of life, primary dysmenorrhea (PD) is underdiagnosed. Dysmenorrhea has complex pathogenesis. It involves the release of prostaglandins and activation of the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome and also includes the involvement of other mediators such as bradykinin, histamine and acetylcholine. Even though nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) remain the most common type of pain medication, the question of which one should be the most preferred is still open to debate. The current review examines the existing evidence for the pathogenesis of PD and makes evidence based and clinical experience based recommendations for the use of mefenamic acid and its combination in the treatment of dysmenorrhea. Mefenamic acid alleviates PD by inhibiting endometrial prostaglandin formation, restoring normal uterine activity, and reducing the inflammatory response by inhibiting the NLRP3 inflammasome and reducing the release of cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-1β. It is also known to have bradykinin antagonist activity. Dicyclomine has a dual action of blocking the muscarinic action of acetylcholine in postganglionic parasympathetic effect or regions and acting directly on uterine smooth muscle by blocking bradykinin and histamine receptors to relieve spasms. According to the experts, mefenamic acid and dicyclomine act synergistically by acting on the different pathways of dysmenorrhea by blocking multifactorial agents attributed to the cause of dysmenorrhea. Hence, the combination of mefenamic acid and dicyclomine should be the preferred treatment option for dysmenorrhea