Prevalence of oral lichen planus among north Indian population: a descriptive epidemiological study

The aim: oral lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the oral mucous membrane. It can present in various clinical forms: reticular, papular, plaque-like, atrophic, erosive and bullous. Though the exact etiology is not certain - autoimmunity, trauma, stress, and habits are considered as etiological factors. Oral lichen planus has been classified as a premalignant lesion. The present study aims to describe the prevalence of oral lichen planus in a sample of north Indian population. Materials and methods: the present study was conducted in the outpatient department of Dentistry, GMC Badaun. The parameters recorded were age, gender and site affected. The data was collected and analysed. Results: a total of 6263 patients reported to the outpatient department of dentistry out of which 43 patients were diagnosed with oral lichen planus. The overall prevalence of oral lichen planus was found to be 0.69 %. The mean age of disease presentation was 37.5 years. A higher prevalence of oral lichen planus was reported in females compared to males with a ratio of 1:1.15. Most affected site was found to be buccal mucosa bilaterally (58.14 %). Conclusion: the present study estimated the overall prevalence of oral lichen planus as well as its distribution according to age, gender and site in north Indian population. This could contribute to the precise assessment of the disease for better policy making for better treatment and management of oral lichen planus

Efficacy of craniosacral therapy in cervicogenic headache: a literature review

BackgroundNeck discomfort is a frequent problem that can impair quality of life and make it difficult to perform daily tasks. Pain from neck strain is not limited to the cervical spine; it can also radiate into the skull and result in a headache of cervical origin, known as cervicogenic headache. Craniosacral can cure a wide array of musculoskeletal and neurological conditions, including headaches, but there is little evidence in the literature of its efficacy, particularly regarding cervicogenic headaches.ObjectiveTo determine the effectiveness of craniosacral therapy (CST) for cervicogenic headache and improve our understanding of cervicogenic headache.MethodsA review of the literature was performed using the following electronic search bases: PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus and The Cochrane library. To perform the search, these MeSH terms were used: “Cervicogenic headache” AND “Neck pain” AND “Craniosacral therapy” AND ‘Headache’ between the date 2020 to 2022.ResultsEleven articles were included in the literature review. Overall, the results of published articles indicate 97.5–100% of the patients thought the treatment program was satisfactory. No adverse effects were reported. It has been demonstrated that CST is particularly safe and effective in lowering the intensity of neck pain. It may also enhance the quality of life and functional impairment for up to three months following the intervention. In addition to the conventional medical therapy, CST may be a beneficial therapeutic option for persistent and recurrent neck discomfort.ConclusionThis review shows that CST is very effective for the treatment of cervicogenic headaches. CST evaluation is feasible in randomized controlled trials and may offer insightful results to enhance therapeutic decision-making

Effect of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Pattern on Balance and Gait in Post-Stroke Patients

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) patterns on gait and balance in post-stroke patients. Material and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted involving 24 post-stroke patients who were equally allocated to an intervention group and a control group. The intervention group received PNF patterns for pelvic and scapular mobility utilizing elastic resistance bands in conjunction with conventional physiotherapy. The control group received only conventional physiotherapy. The intervention was administered for 60 min per session, 5 days per week, for a duration of 4 weeks. Gait and balance were assessed using the observational gait analysis, Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test, and Stroke Specific Quality of Life Scale. Results: The intervention group exhibited significant improvements in gait and balance compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, enhancements in stroke-specific quality of life were observed in the intervention group. Conclusion: PNF patterns utilizing elastic resistance bands demonstrate significant improvements in gait, balance, and quality of life among post-stroke patients. This intervention, characterized by its cost-effectiveness and ease of implementation, exhibits beneficial outcomes in stroke rehabilitation

Interspecies Communication and Periodontal Disease

More than 500 bacterial strains may be found in dental plaque. In the beginning, the emphasis was laid on the isolation of bacteria in pure culture to define their properties. However, now, it has been well established that in nature the bacteria exist as a member of polymicrobial community or consortium of interacting species. Interactions among human oral bacteria are integral to the development and maturation of the plaque. These interactions occur at several levels including physical contact, metabolic exchange, small-signal molecule-mediated communication, and exchange of genetic material. This high level of interspecies interaction benefits the microorganism by providing a broader habitat range, effective metabolism, increasing the resistance to host defence, and enhancing their virulence. This generally has a detrimental effect on the host and is attributed to many chronic infections which poses a therapeutic challenge

Nanomaterial-based biosensors: a new frontier in plant pathogen detection and plant disease management

Nanotechnology has significantly advanced the detection of plant diseases by introducing nano-inspired biosensors that offer distinct advantages over traditional diagnostic methods. These biosensors, enhanced with novel nanomaterials, exhibit increased sensitivity, catalytic activity, and faster response times, resulting in improved diagnostic efficiency. The increasing impact of climate-induced stress and emerging plant pathogens have created an urgent demand for real-time monitoring systems in agriculture. Nanobiosensors are revolutionizing plant disease management by enabling on-site detection of pests and weeds, facilitating precise pesticide applications. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the development and application of nanobiosensors in real-time plant disease diagnosis. It highlights key innovations, such as smartphone-integrated nanozyme biosensing and lab-on-a-chip technologies. Special emphasis is placed on the detection of molecular biomarkers, demonstrating the critical role of nanobiosensors in addressing the evolving challenges of plant disease management and agricultural sustainability

Characterizing Gravitational Wave Detector Networks: From A♯^\sharp to Cosmic Explorer

Gravitational-wave observations by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and Virgo have provided us a new tool to explore the universe on all scales from nuclear physics to the cosmos and have the massive potential to further impact fundamental physics, astrophysics, and cosmology for decades to come. In this paper we have studied the science capabilities of a network of LIGO detectors when they reach their best possible sensitivity, called A#, and a new generation of observatories that are factor of 10 to 100 times more sensitive (depending on the frequency), in particular a pair of L-shaped Cosmic Explorer observatories (one 40 km and one 20 km arm length) in the US and the triangular Einstein Telescope with 10 km arms in Europe. We use a set of science metrics derived from the top priorities of several funding agencies to characterize the science capabilities of different networks. The presence of one or two A# observatories in a network containing two or one next generation observatories, respectively, will provide good localization capabilities for facilitating multimessenger astronomy and precision measurement of the Hubble parameter. A network of two Cosmic Explorer observatories and the Einstein Telescope is critical for accomplishing all the identified science metrics including the nuclear equation of state, cosmological parameters, growth of black holes through cosmic history, and make new discoveries such as the presence of dark matter within or around neutron stars and black holes, continuous gravitational waves from rotating neutron stars, transient signals from supernovae, and the production of stellar-mass black holes in the early universe. For most metrics the triple network of next generation terrestrial observatories are a factor 100 better than what can be accomplished by a network of three A# observatories.Comment: 45 pages, 20 figure

Characterizing gravitational wave detector networks: from A ♯ to cosmic explorer

Gravitational-wave observations by the laser interferometer gravitational-wave observatory (LIGO) and Virgo have provided us a new tool to explore the Universe on all scales from nuclear physics to the cosmos and have the massive potential to further impact fundamental physics, astrophysics, and cosmology for decades to come. In this paper we have studied the science capabilities of a network of LIGO detectors when they reach their best possible sensitivity, called A ♯ , given the infrastructure in which they exist and a new generation of observatories that are factor of 10 to 100 times more sensitive (depending on the frequency), in particular a pair of L-shaped cosmic explorer (CE) observatories (one 40 km and one 20 km arm length) in the US and the triangular Einstein telescope with 10 km arms in Europe. We use a set of science metrics derived from the top priorities of several funding agencies to characterize the science capabilities of different networks. The presence of one or two A ♯ observatories in a network containing two or one next generation observatories, respectively, will provide good localization capabilities for facilitating multimessenger astronomy (MMA) and precision measurement of the Hubble parameter. Two CE observatories are indispensable for achieving precise localization of binary neutron star events, facilitating detection of electromagnetic counterparts and transforming MMA. Their combined operation is even more important in the detection and localization of high-redshift sources, such as binary neutron stars, beyond the star-formation peak, and primordial black hole mergers, which may occur roughly 100 million years after the Big Bang. The addition of the Einstein Telescope to a network of two CE observatories is critical for accomplishing all the identified science metrics including the nuclear equation of state, cosmological parameters, the growth of black holes through cosmic history, but also make new discoveries such as the presence of dark matter within or around neutron stars and black holes, continuous gravitational waves from rotating neutron stars, transient signals from supernovae, and the production of stellar-mass black holes in the early Universe. For most metrics the triple network of next generation terrestrial observatories are a factor 100 better than what can be accomplished by a network of three A ♯ observatories

Ultralight vector dark matter search using data from the KAGRA O3GK run

Among the various candidates for dark matter (DM), ultralight vector DM can be probed by laser interferometric gravitational wave detectors through the measurement of oscillating length changes in the arm cavities. In this context, KAGRA has a unique feature due to differing compositions of its mirrors, enhancing the signal of vector DM in the length change in the auxiliary channels. Here we present the result of a search for U(1)B−L gauge boson DM using the KAGRA data from auxiliary length channels during the first joint observation run together with GEO600. By applying our search pipeline, which takes into account the stochastic nature of ultralight DM, upper bounds on the coupling strength between the U(1)B−L gauge boson and ordinary matter are obtained for a range of DM masses. While our constraints are less stringent than those derived from previous experiments, this study demonstrates the applicability of our method to the lower-mass vector DM search, which is made difficult in this measurement by the short observation time compared to the auto-correlation time scale of DM

Search for eccentric black hole coalescences during the third observing run of LIGO and Virgo

Despite the growing number of confident binary black hole coalescences observed through gravitational waves so far, the astrophysical origin of these binaries remains uncertain. Orbital eccentricity is one of the clearest tracers of binary formation channels. Identifying binary eccentricity, however, remains challenging due to the limited availability of gravitational waveforms that include effects of eccentricity. Here, we present observational results for a waveform-independent search sensitive to eccentric black hole coalescences, covering the third observing run (O3) of the LIGO and Virgo detectors. We identified no new high-significance candidates beyond those that were already identified with searches focusing on quasi-circular binaries. We determine the sensitivity of our search to high-mass (total mass M>70 M⊙) binaries covering eccentricities up to 0.3 at 15 Hz orbital frequency, and use this to compare model predictions to search results. Assuming all detections are indeed quasi-circular, for our fiducial population model, we place an upper limit for the merger rate density of high-mass binaries with eccentricities 0<e≤0.3 at 0.33 Gpc−3 yr−1 at 90\% confidence level