COMPARISION OF SEDATIVE EFFECT OF DEXMEDETOMIDINE/ XYLAZINE IN COMBINATION WITH BUTORPHANOL-MIDAZOLAM AS PREANAESTHETIC TO KETAMINE ANAESTHESIA FOR OVARIOHYSTERECTOMY IN DOGS

The research was conducted in 12 female dogs undergoing elective ovariohysterectomy. They were divided into two groups of six animals each to evaluate and compare sedative effect in Group-I atropine- meloxicam - dexmedetomidine - butorphanol - midazolam - ketamine and Group-II atropine- meloxicam - xylazine - butorphanol - midazolam - ketamine anaesthetic combination. Maintenance of anaesthesia was done by ketamine in both the groups. Anaesthetic combinations were evaluated by clinical and physiological observations. Adequate muscle relaxation, sedation and analgesia necessary for surgical intervention were achieved along with smooth and uneventful recovery of the patients. Onset of sedation and induction time were quicker in Group-I. Physiological parameters fluctuated within the normal limits. Both anaesthetic protocols in the present study provided satisfactory surgical plane of anaesthesia in dogs. But dexmedetomidine may be preferred over xylazine in the anaesthetic regimen of atropine-meloxicam-butorphanolmidazolam-ketamine for elective ovariohysterectomy in dogs

Challenges and opportunities in mixed method data collection on mental health issues of health care workers during COVID-19 pandemic in India

Background: The present paper describes the key challenges and opportunities of mixed method telephonic data collection for mental health research using field notes and the experiences of the investigators in a multicenter study in ten sites of India. The study was conducted in public and private hospitals to understand the mental health status, social stigma and coping strategies of different healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic in India.Methods: Qualitative and quantitative interviews were conducted telephonically. The experiences of data collection were noted as a field notes/diary by the data collectors and principal investigators.Results: The interviewers reported challenges such as network issues, lack of transfer of visual cues and sensitive content of data. Although the telephonic interviews present various challenges in mixed method data collection, it can be used as an alternative to face-to-face data collection using available technology.Conclusions: It is important that the investigators are well trained keeping these challenges in mind so that their capacity is built to deal with these challenges and good quality data is obtained

Global burden and strength of evidence for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Understanding the health consequences associated with exposure to risk factors is necessary to inform public health policy and practice. To systematically quantify the contributions of risk factor exposures to specific health outcomes, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 aims to provide comprehensive estimates of exposure levels, relative health risks, and attributable burden of disease for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, from 1990 to 2021. Methods: The GBD 2021 risk factor analysis used data from 54 561 total distinct sources to produce epidemiological estimates for 88 risk factors and their associated health outcomes for a total of 631 risk–outcome pairs. Pairs were included on the basis of data-driven determination of a risk–outcome association. Age-sex-location-year-specific estimates were generated at global, regional, and national levels. Our approach followed the comparative risk assessment framework predicated on a causal web of hierarchically organised, potentially combinative, modifiable risks. Relative risks (RRs) of a given outcome occurring as a function of risk factor exposure were estimated separately for each risk–outcome pair, and summary exposure values (SEVs), representing risk-weighted exposure prevalence, and theoretical minimum risk exposure levels (TMRELs) were estimated for each risk factor. These estimates were used to calculate the population attributable fraction (PAF; ie, the proportional change in health risk that would occur if exposure to a risk factor were reduced to the TMREL). The product of PAFs and disease burden associated with a given outcome, measured in disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), yielded measures of attributable burden (ie, the proportion of total disease burden attributable to a particular risk factor or combination of risk factors). Adjustments for mediation were applied to account for relationships involving risk factors that act indirectly on outcomes via intermediate risks. Attributable burden estimates were stratified by Socio-demographic Index (SDI) quintile and presented as counts, age-standardised rates, and rankings. To complement estimates of RR and attributable burden, newly developed burden of proof risk function (BPRF) methods were applied to yield supplementary, conservative interpretations of risk–outcome associations based on the consistency of underlying evidence, accounting for unexplained heterogeneity between input data from different studies. Estimates reported represent the mean value across 500 draws from the estimate's distribution, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) calculated as the 2·5th and 97·5th percentile values across the draws. Findings: Among the specific risk factors analysed for this study, particulate matter air pollution was the leading contributor to the global disease burden in 2021, contributing 8·0% (95% UI 6·7–9·4) of total DALYs, followed by high systolic blood pressure (SBP; 7·8% [6·4–9·2]), smoking (5·7% [4·7–6·8]), low birthweight and short gestation (5·6% [4·8–6·3]), and high fasting plasma glucose (FPG; 5·4% [4·8–6·0]). For younger demographics (ie, those aged 0–4 years and 5–14 years), risks such as low birthweight and short gestation and unsafe water, sanitation, and handwashing (WaSH) were among the leading risk factors, while for older age groups, metabolic risks such as high SBP, high body-mass index (BMI), high FPG, and high LDL cholesterol had a greater impact. From 2000 to 2021, there was an observable shift in global health challenges, marked by a decline in the number of all-age DALYs broadly attributable to behavioural risks (decrease of 20·7% [13·9–27·7]) and environmental and occupational risks (decrease of 22·0% [15·5–28·8]), coupled with a 49·4% (42·3–56·9) increase in DALYs attributable to metabolic risks, all reflecting ageing populations and changing lifestyles on a global scale. Age-standardised global DALY rates attributable to high BMI and high FPG rose considerably (15·7% [9·9–21·7] for high BMI and 7·9% [3·3–12·9] for high FPG) over this period, with exposure to these risks increasing annually at rates of 1·8% (1·6–1·9) for high BMI and 1·3% (1·1–1·5) for high FPG. By contrast, the global risk-attributable burden and exposure to many other risk factors declined, notably for risks such as child growth failure and unsafe water source, with age-standardised attributable DALYs decreasing by 71·5% (64·4–78·8) for child growth failure and 66·3% (60·2–72·0) for unsafe water source. We separated risk factors into three groups according to trajectory over time: those with a decreasing attributable burden, due largely to declining risk exposure (eg, diet high in trans-fat and household air pollution) but also to proportionally smaller child and youth populations (eg, child and maternal malnutrition); those for which the burden increased moderately in spite of declining risk exposure, due largely to population ageing (eg, smoking); and those for which the burden increased considerably due to both increasing risk exposure and population ageing (eg, ambient particulate matter air pollution, high BMI, high FPG, and high SBP). Interpretation: Substantial progress has been made in reducing the global disease burden attributable to a range of risk factors, particularly those related to maternal and child health, WaSH, and household air pollution. Maintaining efforts to minimise the impact of these risk factors, especially in low SDI locations, is necessary to sustain progress. Successes in moderating the smoking-related burden by reducing risk exposure highlight the need to advance policies that reduce exposure to other leading risk factors such as ambient particulate matter air pollution and high SBP. Troubling increases in high FPG, high BMI, and other risk factors related to obesity and metabolic syndrome indicate an urgent need to identify and implement interventions

Fate of an unapproachable sharp metallic foreign body in the gastrointestinal tract

Sharp pointed objects carrying a risk of injury and perforation should be removed immediately with a flexible endoscope. In the present case, a 3-year-old boy ingested a sharp pin during a dental procedure. The only complain was mild pain in the throat. Chest X-ray done after 14 h of ingestion revealed a sharp pointed pin in the mid esophagus. On urgent endoscopy, no pin was found, but fluoroscopy (C-arm) image revealed same pin parallel to the endoscope at about 20 cm from incisors. It was planned for video thoracoscopic removal, patient referred to a pediatric surgeon, but, fortunately, the pin passed through stool after 3 days before any intervention

Fisheries and Aquaculture

India, a country with rich aquatic diversity endowed with vast aquatic resources has made tremendous progress in the field of fisheries and aquaculture. At the national level, the GDP contribution of Fisheries to Agriculture is 7.28%. At the global level, India holds the second rank in aquaculture. But looking back there are many Individual, Institutional and Governmental efforts in achieving present day’s success. At the individual level, the contribution of Dr. Hiralal Chaudhuri for the development of artificial spawning is a major landmark. Development of induced breeding followed by composite fish culture during the 1980s revolutionized the sector, today which we term as Blue Revolution. At Institutional Level various research Institutes were established like Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI), Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA), Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA), Central Institute of Fisheries Education (CIFE), Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT), Directorate of Coldwater Fisheries Research (DCFR), National Bureau of Fish Genetic Research (NBFGR) to develop cutting edge aquaculture technologies. Noticeable technologies that need to be highlighted are Captive breeding of high-value freshwater, brackishwater and marine species, Development of improved variety of fish species, Enclosure culture, Disease management, Feed Management, Cataloguing and conservation of novel species, etc. A lot has been achieved, but there are several challenges that also need to be addressed like climate change, the emergence of new aquatic diseases, fulfilling the feeding requirement, the establishment of value chains and domestic market linkages, development of motivated entrepreneurs. Besides, there is also a need for the development of information and communication technology and precision farming in this field. The whole idea in developing this sector further will be sustainable development of fishers and fisheries for a better tomorrow in the form of economic growth, nutritional fulfilment with a healthy environment

Multiple sequence alignment for amplicons NGES1-NGES10 using ClustalW program.

<p>Black colour dash (—-) indicates gap, red colour fonts base substitution or base insertion, forward and reverse primers are underlined.</p

Morphological observation of <i>Naegleria</i> -like cyst at 100X magnification.

<p>Zone of <i>Escherichia coli</i> clearing progressed and the number of cysts increased markedly.</p

Overview of geographic sites sampled for <i>Naegleria</i> spp.

<p>^<b>#</b><b>Sample was positive for <i>N</i>. <i>fowleri</i></b></p><p>Overview of geographic sites sampled for <i>Naegleria</i> spp.</p