Spontaneous subarachnoid haemorrhage due to coarctation of aorta and intraspinal collaterals : a rare presentation

The occurrence of spontaneous subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) in association with coarctation of thoracic aorta and absence of intracranial aneurysm is a rare association. In spontaneous SAH, the predominant cause is intracranial aneurysmal rupture. This report describes a case of a 40 year-old male who presented with SAH and was incidentally diagnosed to have coarctation of aorta (CoA) with intraspinal collaterals on further work up. This case demonstrates the importance of detailed evaluation of patients with spontaneous SAH on whom common aetiologies have been ruled out.peer-reviewe

Diversity of MIS 3 Levallois technology from Motravulapadu, Andhra Pradesh, India‐implications of MIS 3 cultural diversity in South Asia

The chronology and hominin association of the South Asian Middle Palaeolithic have attracted much attention in the last few decades. The emergence of Middle Palaeolithic culture in the region has been debated between the local origins (behavioural change) model based on an early date around 380 ka and the diffusion (biological change) model based on Homo sapiens dispersals from Africa around 120–80 ka. The latter has more consensus, whereas the former requires a more robust chronological framework to attribute the emergence of the Middle Palaeolithic to behavioural changes. In the absence of hominin remains, the presence of Middle Palaeolithic technological trajectories are frequently used as behavioural markers of Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens fossil remains from the regions between Africa and South Asia dated to ∼ 200 ka presents more convincing support for the latter model. Here we present contextual, chronological and technological analysis of Middle Palaeolithic assemblages dated to 52 ka from Motravulapadu, Andhra Pradesh, India. Morphometrical analysis of the lithic assemblage indicates diverse Levallois core reductions were practised at the site at the onset of MIS 3. Further this evidence highlights the significance of MIS 3 cultural diversity in South Asia, likely related to changing population dynamics, cultural drift, and the highly variable climatic context of MIS 3

Conventional Radiographs versus MRI in the Diagnosis of Hip Pathologies in a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital:A Comparative Study

Background: The hip joint is a major weight-bearing joint in the human body. It is often difficult to assess painful disorders of the deeply located hip clinically. This necessitates the need for imaging to arrive at an accurate diagnosis. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is an imaging modality with good soft tissue contrast resolution for evaluating hip pathologies. Subjects and Methods: 76 of patients, evaluated for traumatic and non-traumatic hip pain that underwent clinical, radiological, and pathological examination at Maharajah's Institute of Medical Sciences, Nellimarla, Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh between September 2019 and August 2020 were randomly selected and included in the study. Results: 31 (40.8%) out of the total 76 patients had AVN, 9 (11.8%) patients TB hip, 15 (19.7%) patients’ osteomyelitis, 3 (3.9%) patients joint effusion, 3(3.9%) patients SCFE, 5 (6.6%) patients tumor/metastasis, 3 (3.9%) patients DDH, 3 (3.9%) perthes, 3 (3.9%) patients OA and 1 (1.3%) patients osteoporosis. Conclusion: MRI proved to be an excellent modality not only for the early diagnosis of osteonecrosis but also for the detection of infections as well as occult injuries, in and around the hip joint, with superior contrast resolution and without any harmful radiation

A Comparative Diagnostic Ability Between Ultrasound and Computed Tomography in Evaluation of Focal Liver Lesions

Background: The term focal liver lesion refers to circumscript and well-defined liver tumours, which can either be benign or malignant. These lesions can be benign or malignant. Benign lesions include haemangioma, the most common benign tumour of liver.Objectives;1. To study the distributions of various focal liver lesions by ULTRASOUND and CECT. 2. To compare the findings of ULTRASOUND and CECT in focal liver lesions. 3. To assess the sensitivity and specificity of ULTRASOUND and CECT in various pathologies. 4. To assess which modality is more accurate in a particular pathology.Methods: Hospital based observational study was done in 65 patients having focal liver lesions. Clinically suspected, history or physical examination suggestive of a focal liver lesion which is confirmed by ULTRASOUND/CT at Maharajah Institute of Medical Sciences Vizainagaram, Andhra pradesh. Imaging Centre over a period of one year. SPSS was used for analysis.Results: It was seen the lesions were male preponderance (54%) and the most common age group was 61-70 years in both the sex followed by 31-40 years. the most common lesion was metastasis seen in 36% of cases followed by Cysts in 18% of cases. Sensitivity of USG was almost 100% except in Hemangioma (88.8%). Sensitivity and Specificity of CECT was 100% in all lesions.Conclusion:The sensitivity of USG in detecting liver metastases is comparable to CECT. CT is superior to USG in showing exact extent of a focal lesion and in delineating adjacent organs. Hence CT is useful to determine the extent of the liver tumors or hydatid cysts prior to surgical resection

Youngest Toba Tuff deposits in the Gundlakamma River basin, Andhra Pradesh, India and their role in evaluating Late Pleistocene behavioral change in South Asia

The eruption of Toba ca. 75 ka was the largest volcanic eruptive event during the Quaternary, and evidence for this eruption is widespread in terrestrial sediment sequences in South Asia as primary and reworked distal ash deposits. Youngest Toba Tuff horizons (YTT) have been widely employed as isochrons to understand and link regional sediment sequences and the evidence for environmental and cultural change in the archaeological records preserved within them. We identify the YTT deposits at Retlapalle, Andhra Pradesh, India, and present the optical ages of the K-feldspar grains recovered from sediments immediately underlying and overlying the tephra horizon. We combine these results with particle size and magnetic susceptibility analyses to establish the depositional conditions of YTT, which indicate that accumulation and reworking ceased by ca. 64 ka. We explore the role of YTT deposits as an isochron for examining the effect of the 75 ka Toba super-eruption, highlighting the need for an independent chronological assessment of YTT before using it as a Late Pleistocene chronological marker in reconstructing South Asian paleo-landscapes and hominin adaptations. Further, our findings support the regional continuity of human occupations within South Asia, spanning the eruption of Toba and the enduring utility of Middle Paleolithic tools