Measurement of Peak Expiratory Flow Rate Values in Healthy School going Children between 6 and 12 Years attending Urban Schools in Chennai

INTRODUCTION: Asthma is a leading cause of chronic respiratory illness in childhood (1) .It affects persons of all ages and is a major health problem. The prevalence of Asthma is steadily increasing in developing as well as developed countries due to environmental pollutions as result of industrialization. However, with early diagnosis and proper treatment satisfactory control of symptoms is possible. Asthma may be regarded as “a diffuse, obstructive lung disease with (1) hyper reactivity of the airways to a variety of stimuli and (2) a high degree of reversibility of the obstructive process, which may occur either spontaneously or as a result of treatment”. Also known as reactive airway disease, asthma complex includes wheezy bronchitis, viral associated wheezing, exercise induced asthma and atopic – related asthma. In addition to broncho constriction, inflammation is an important pathophysiologic factor. Mast cells, eosinophils, activated T-lymphocytes, macrophages and neutrophils have key roles in the chronic inflammation of asthma. Although the exact cause of asthma has not been pinpointed contemporary research implicates an interplay between genetic and environmental factors strong association of common childhood asthma with concomitant allergies suggest that environmental factors influence immune development towards asthmatic phenotype in susceptible individuals. Asthma may have its onset at any age; 30% of patients are symptomatic by 1 year of age, whereas 80 – 90% of asthmatic children have their first symptoms before 4 – 5 years of age. The majority of affected children have only occasional attacks of mild to moderate severity. A minority experience severe intractable asthma, usually perennial. It is incapacitating and interferes with school attendance, play activity and day-to-day functioning. These children may have growth retardation, chest deformity secondary to chronic hyperinflation and persistent abnormalities on pulmonary function testing. Both prevalence and morbidity from asthma have increased during the last three decades. Recurrent episodes of coughing and wheezing especially if aggravated or triggered by exercise, viral infection, inhaled or ingested allergens or cold exposure are highly suggestive of asthma. AIM OF THE STUDY: 1. To study the peak expiratory flow rate in healthy school going children between 6 – 12 years and 2. To study the correlation between PEFR and age, sex, height, weight and maximum chest circumference and to construct a nomogram DISCUSSION: The early detection of asthmatic exacerbations by means of objective measurement can provide a solution to these problems and stimulate the development of self-management and self-control techniques. The lack of perception of degree of pulmonary obstruction is an important cause for delay in the initiation of treatment. This is supported by recent reports of failure of parents to recognize the severity of the episode resulting in death of some children before arriving at the hospital, especially in children with difficult to control asthma. Early recognition of these asthmatic exacerbations can be made by measuring PEFR and also it is useful in assessing the response to therapy Though many types of peak flow meters are available to measure the peak expiratory flow rate, the mini Wright peak flow meter is now internationally accepted as the ideal instrument to measure the PEFR in children The mini Wright peak flow meter is cheap, easily available small, portable and is now being used extensively in western countries for all asthmatic children. It plays a very important role in home monitoring of asthmatics. It is now mandatory for all asthmatics to have a baseline PEFR recorded when they are asymptomatic and clinically free from wheezing. But the first reading of PEFR taken in a child should be compared with the PEFR value that is normal for the particular child with a specific age, height, weight, etc. Such a normal value will be obtained from nomogram or regression prediction equations derived from analyzing PEFR values of large number of children. The daily monitoring of the disease is made easy by observing the daily variations in PEFR that serve as a guide to the severity of asthma, the effectiveness of current therapy and the need for any additional treatment. In the present study PEFR values was measured in a large number of children between 6 and 12 years, so that resulting PEFR values would have a higher significance. So the final average values of PEFR derived would be better representation of the widely variable peak expiratory flow rates that occur in different children belonging to the same age group. All the study variables showed statically significant linear correlation to PEFR when evaluated individually. Maximum positive correlation was seen for height, followed by age, weight and the least positive correlation was found for maximum chest circumference. The coefficient of correlation between height and PEFR was 0.847 (whole sample), 0.848 for boys and 0.849 for girls CONCLUSION: 1. Large population size helped to establish reference values for PEFR in south Indian children at Chennai aged between 6 and 12 years. 2. Baseline values of PEFR, established can be useful in diagnosing and following asthmatic children. Prediction formulas derived from statistical analysis can serve the same purpose. 3. Significant correlations are found between PEFR and biological variables like age, weight, height and chest circumference. 4. The correlation is more robust with regard to height. 5. Boys have more PEFR values than girls across all age groups. 6. Regression analysis gives prediction of PEFR based on the height and also for age and height. 80% value of the mean PEFR at different heights is also given in nomogram for easy diagnosis

New Colorimetric Method Development And Validation Of Sulfacetamide In Bulk And Formulation By Different Analytical Reagents

Four simple, sensitive and reproducible spectrophotometric methods (Method A, Method B, Method C and Method D) were developed for the determination of sulfacetamide (SA) and its pharmaceutical formulation. Method A was developed based on diaziatation of the SA by sodium nitrite in acidic medium followed by coupling with B.M reagent having absorption maximum at 530 nm. Method B was developed based on reaction of NQS with primary amine in SA in presence of alkaline medium having maximum absorption at 466nm. Method C was based on reaction of primary amine with MBTH in presence of FeCl3 having maximum absorption at 562nm. Method D was developed based on reduction of phosphomolybdotungstic acid in presence of alkali medium having an absorption maximum at 760 nm. Beers law was obeyed in the range of 1 to 3 g/ml for Method A, 5 to 30 g/ml for Method B, 10 to 50 g/ml for Method C, and 100 to 300 g/ml for Method D. These methods were successfully validated and estimated in bulk and pharmaceutical formulations

GO NATURAL, SAY NO TO CHEMICALS - A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON EFFECTIVENESS OF GREEN TEA EXTRACT CONTAINING FORMULATIONS ON DENTAL CARIES

Objective: In recent years, the side effects encountered with the use of chemicals has led to the search for safe anticariogenic alternatives. Green tea is one such naturally occurring alternative which possesses anticariogenic activity through a direct bactericidal effect against cariogenic microorganisms. Therefore, the objective of this systematic review was to analyze the existing literature on the effectiveness of green tea extract containing formulations on dental caries. Methods: The databases of PubMed, Cochrane, Science Direct, Metapress, and Google Scholar were searched up to July 2015 for the related topic. References of the selected articles and relevant reviews were searched for any missed publications. Results: The systematic search revealed a total of 437 publications which were scrutinized based on eligibility criteria. Six publications fulfilled the criteria and 431 publications were excluded from the review. Out of six studies, three studies reported a statistically significant difference in favor of green tea while two studies showed no statistically significant difference between the groups. One study reported no statistically significant difference between the two groups; however, the reduction observed in chlorhexidine (control group) was slightly greater than green tea. Conclusion: With the available evidence, it can be concluded that green tea extract containing formulations are effective in reducing cariogenic microflora and caries increment

Role of X‐ray Scattering Techniques in Understanding the Collagen Structure of Leather

This review focuses on the SAXS and WAXS analysis of the collagen structure of leather, from pioneering works through to recent developments. X-ray scattering can be used to investigate the structural features of fibrillar collagen in the leather matrix, including axial periodicity, fibril diameter, chemical fixation, hydration and fibrillar orientation. Key properties of leather, such as appearance, handle, strength, hydrothermal stability and resistance to putrefaction, are closely linked to these parameters, thereby underlining the importance of X-ray scattering to the study of leather. Recent research on the molecular level changes in collagen structure at different stages of leather processing with a range of treatments is also summarized. We will highlight how studies using X-ray scattering techniques have provided significant insights into tanning processes which could be used to improve leather properties and optimize/reduce the use of tanning agents such as chromium (III) in the industry. The review will also describe the details of collagen structure and tanning mechanisms that are yet to be determined by X-ray scattering, as well as future advancements of this technique and what it can accomplish for the leather industry

Characterization of polyxylylenes with solid state {sup 13}C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Polyxylylenes are thermoplastics used as encapsulants for electronic devices. Five polyxylylenes were prepared by pyrolysis of [2.2]paracyclophanes and characterized by solid state {sup 13}C NMR spectroscopy. The chemical shift data, in combination with interrupted decoupling experiments, allowed assignment of resonances to their carbon sources in the polymers. This confirmed the integrity of the xylylene building block in the polymers and is consistent with linear polymers. No crosslinking could be detected within the NMR sensitivity limits. Residual paracyclophane was detected by {sup 13}C CP MAS NMR spectroscopy in the polyxylylene samples prepared at room temperature; however discrete {sup 13}C resonances due to amorphous and crystalline phases in the polymers were not resolved

Environmental Response and Genomic Regions Correlated with Rice Root Growth and Yield under Drought in the OryzaSNP Panel across Multiple Study Systems

The rapid progress in rice genotyping must be matched by advances in phenotyping. A better understanding of genetic variation in rice for drought response, root traits, and practical methods for studying them are needed. In this study, the OryzaSNP set (20 diverse genotypes that have been genotyped for SNP markers) was phenotyped in a range of field and container studies to study the diversity of rice root growth and response to drought. Of the root traits measured across more than 20 root experiments, root dry weight showed the most stable genotypic performance across studies. The environment (E) component had the strongest effect on yield and root traits. We identified genomic regions correlated with root dry weight, percent deep roots, maximum root depth, and grain yield based on a correlation analysis with the phenotypes and aus, indica, or japonica introgression regions using the SNP data. Two genomic regions were identified as hot spots in which root traits and grain yield were co-located; on chromosome 1 (39.7–40.7 Mb) and on chromosome 8 (20.3–21.9 Mb). Across experiments, the soil type/ growth medium showed more correlations with plant growth than the container dimensions. Although the correlations among studies and genetic co-location of root traits from a range of study systems points to their potential utility to represent responses in field studies, the best correlations were observed when the two setups had some similar properties. Due to the co-location of the identified genomic regions (from introgression block analysis) with QTL for a number of previously reported root and drought traits, these regions are good candidates for detailed characterization to contribute to understanding rice improvement for response to drought. This study also highlights the utility of characterizing a small set of 20 genotypes for root growth, drought response, and related genomic regions

Additional records of Tettigoniidae from Arunachal Pradesh, India

Ten species of Tettigoniids under 10 genera belonging to five subfamilies of the family Tettigoniidae from Arunachal Pradesh are discussed of which five species are new records to India and nine species are new records to Arunachal Pradesh