Risk of falls and its association with activities of daily living and depression among elderly residing in a rural area in Bangalore, Karnataka

Background: According to 2011 censes, elderly account for 8.6% of Indian population and is projected to become 20% by 2050. Early identification and prevention of fall-related factors would play a vital role in reducing the health costs in elderly. The objective of the study was to assess the risk of falls among elderly residing in Mugalur subcentre, Bangalore Urban.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the ten villages of Mugalur subcenter, from March-May 2019 using a structured questionnaire that was administered through a face-validated interview. Systemic random sampling was done from the ten villages, proportionate allocation was done to reach a calculated sample size of 220. Timed up and go test (TUG) was done for all participants.Results: Mean age of the study population was 69.05±8.3years. Among the study subjects, 40 (18.2%) had moderate risk of fall and 9 (4.1%) were seen to have high risk of fall. 26 (11.8%) subjects had a fall in past one year. TUG test showed a median value of 18.5 seconds, and 179 (18.4%) elderly had TUG result ≥13 sec. According to Geriatric Depression scale (GDS-15), 18 (8.2%) subjects were found to be severely depressed. Significant association was seen between the GDS-15 scores and risk of falls according to Fisher’s exact test. The mean TUG score was shown to have a significant association with the risk of falls according to ANOVA.Conclusions: Moderate to high risk of fall is seen among 22.3% of the elderly. Significant association was seen between age, TUG score and depression with risk of falls.  

Occupational risk assessment and selected morbidities among cement brick unit workers in a rural area of Bangalore District, India

Introduction: The labor-intensive nature of cement brick manufacturing, its unorganized nature and internal migration, expose the employees to several occupational health hazards. The objective of the study was to assess the occupational risks in cement brick unit settings and to estimate the prevalence of respiratory and musculoskeletal morbidities among the cement brick unit workers in a rural area of Bangalore urban district. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among cement brick unit workers over two months. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to capture sociodemographic details. Multiple observations on the field and the World Health Organization semi-quantitative risk assessment matrix were used to obtain risk scores of the occupational hazards. A structured questionnaire on respiratory symptoms and Minispir Portable Spirometer were used to assess the respiratory morbidities and lung functions. Musculoskeletal morbidities were assessed using the Modified Nordic questionnaire. Proportions were used to describe respiratory and musculoskeletal morbidities. Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test and multivariate logistic regressions were done to identify significant variables. Results: Among 120 subjects, 110 (91.6%) were men and 85.8% were migrants. Injury due to falls of heavy objects, back injury, respiratory complaints and slips/falls were found to be high-risk health hazards. The prevalence of respiratory morbidity was 21.7% and that of musculoskeletal morbidity was 51.7%. Workers receiving a higher salary (≥ 1500 Indian rupees) had higher odds of having respiratory morbidity. Conclusion: The prevalence of respiratory and musculoskeletal morbidities was high. Introduction of mechanical equipment, decreasing work hours, periodic medical examinations and appropriate use of personal protective equipment will help in risk reduction as per this study

Ramadan and diabetes: As-Saum (The fasting)

Ramadan, the ninth month of Islamic lunar calendar, is marked by religious ritual of fasting from early dawn till sunset by Muslims. Islam has allowed many categories of people to be exempt totally or temporarily from fasting. Patients with uncontrolled diabetes face possible major metabolic risks including hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia with or without the risk of impending ketosis, dehydration, and thrombosis. Diabetics can be stratified into four categories based on their level of risk associated with fasting. The recommended ruling for persons in categories 1 and 2 is that they are prohibited from fasting to prevent harming themselves based on the certainty or the preponderance of probability that harm will occur, whereas the recommended ruling for those in categories 3 and 4 is that they should fast. The strategies to ensure safety of diabetics who are planning to fast include Ramadan-focused patient education, pre-Ramadan medical assessment, following a healthy diet and physical activity pattern, physician-recommended modifications in medication protocol and therapeutic recommendations and checking blood glucose as and when required

Effectiveness of yoga program in the management of diabetes using community health workers in the urban slums of Bangalore city: A non-randomized controlled trial

Trial Design: Nonrandomized controlled trial. Methods: Nonrandomized controlled trial. This was an interventional study that was conducted in 4 slums of Bengaluru . Of the 256 diabetes participants, only 109 people agreed to participate in the program. Of 109 people, 52 people agreed to participate in the intervention (agreed to learn and practice Yoga) while the remaining 57 people were assigned to nonintervention group. Randomization and blinding could not be done. Objective and Outcome: The study was conducted with objective of assessing the effectiveness of Yoga, Pranayama, and Sudarshan Kriya in the community-based management of diabetes mellitus. The primary outcome variable was Hb1Ac and secondary outcome variables were systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), adherence to medication, and changes in lifestyle. Results: The study was conducted for 40 days. Community health workers made a total of 6 visits during the study. All the 109 participants were available for weekly follow-up. There were no drop outs among the study population. Statistically significant change was seen in the consumption of vegetable (c2 = 15.326, P < 0.005), fruits (c2 = 16.207, P < 0.005), salty food (c2 = 14.823, P < 0.005), bakery food (c2 = 10.429, P < 0.005) and fried food (c2 = 15.470, P < 0.005), adherence to metformin (c2 = 41.780, P < 0.005) and other medication(c2 = 21.871, P < 0.005) and proportion of patients with DBP under control (c2 = 9.396, P < 0.005) and proportion of people with glucose random blood sugar under control (c2 = 29.693, P < 0.005) between the two groups following the intervention. Statistically significant change was also seen in the proportion of people with SBP/DBP ≤140/90 (c2 = 10.635, P < 0.005) between the two groups. Conclusion: The Yoga program was successful in improving dietary practices and medication adherence and in increasing the proportion of diabetics and hypertensive patients under control

Prevalence of diabetes and pre-diabetes and assessments of their risk factors in urban slums of Bangalore

Background: To determine the prevalence of diabetes and pre-diabetes and to assess the risk factors associated with diabetes and pre-diabetes in the urban slums of Bangalore. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in four slums of Bangalore in the age group of 35 years and above comprising of total 2013 subjects. Risk factors like age, sex, family history, behavior, physical activity, BMI, waist hip ration, diet habits were assessed to find their association with diabetes. Results: Prevalence of diabetes was 12.33% and of pre-diabetes was 11.57%. Prevalence was more among the females compared to males. Increasing age, over weight and obesity, sedentary life style, tobacco consumption, diet habits showed statistically significant association with prevalence of diabetes and pre-diabetes. Conclusion: Physical activity like regular exercises both at the office and at home, fibers-rich diet, blood sugar estimation after 35 years are some of the recommendations which can control diabetes

Productivity losses among individuals with common mental illness and comorbid cardiovascular disease in rural Karnataka, India.

ContextCommon mental disorders (CMD) and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) frequently co-occur. Productivity losses due to these diseases are substantial in high-income countries. Similar data from the developing world are lacking.AimsThis study aims to quantify productivity losses among individuals with comorbid CMD and CVD in rural Karnataka, India.Settings and designA cross-sectional study was done among patients with a dual diagnosis of a comorbid CMD and CVD in a district in Karnataka, India.Subjects and methodsThree hundred and three patients were administered the iMTA Productivity Cost Questionnaire to measure losses of productivity at paid work (absenteeism and presenteeism) and unpaid work.Statistical analysis usedValuation of productivity losses was done by multiplying the number of days of lost productivity by the standard value of productivity based on the minimum wage for agricultural work.ResultsAmong individuals with dual CMD and CVD, 76% had productivity losses. These losses were higher at unpaid (62%) than at paid work (32%). At paid work, losses due to presenteeism were greater than those due to absenteeism. The total days of productivity loss were 1204, amounting to 14.2% of the available person-days. The total productivity loss among 303 individuals with mental illness and comorbid CVD over a 4-week period amounted to 30.3 INR (0.47 USD) per person per day, representing 9.9% of total potential productivity.ConclusionsProductivity losses due to common mental illnesses and CVDs are high. There is a need to conduct more studies in this field

Absenteeism among female pluckers in a tea plantation in south India

Background: The tea industry which is one of the world’s oldest agro-based industry provides direct employment to more than a million workers, of which most are women. Two of the main causes for decreased tea production in India is due to shortage of pluckers and their absenteeism which impacts tea productivity. So, this study was undertaken to study absenteeism rates and the causes of absenteeism among female pluckers in a tea plantation in South India. Methodology: This was a cross section study undertaken in tea estates located in Anamalais, Tamilnadu. All female pluckers working in the estates were eligible to part of the study. The study population consisted of 256 female tea pluckers who were selected at random and an interview schedule was used to collect the following information – socio-demographic status, nature of the job, job satisfaction and reasons for absenteeism. Results: The study population consisted of 80.9% permanent workers and 19.1% temporary workers, with an average work experience of 21.6years.The main cause of absenteeism was health related (47.8%), followed by visit to native place (29.3%), then illness among family members (15.7%) and either lazy of bored to report to work (7.2%).There was an association between absenteeism and hospitalization in the past one year, increasing number of children in the family and the number of years of work experience. Conclusion: Majority of the pluckers were in the age group of 40-45 years. Women in this age group are more vulnerable to health issues such as osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, work related musculoskeletal disorders and also probably time taken off to take care of dependents apart from house old chores. Increasing age, illness of self or family member were the most important factors which contributed to increase absenteeism. &nbsp

Challenges and coping strategies faced by female scientists-A multicentric cross sectional study.

Women can play a pivotal role in the progress and sustainability of the world if they are empowered through education and employment opportunities in Science, technology, innovation and through changing the social stereotypes that restrain them in certain workplaces. In the literature, few recently published studies exist that document the challenges faced by female scientists in their workplaces. The purpose of this study was to understand the challenges and coping strategies faced by female scientists around the world today, in order to contribute to their improved performance. A multi-centre electronic cross-sectional survey across 55 countries was conducted to profile female scientists and to identify the challenges that they experience throughout their career as well as the coping mechanisms that they use to overcome the barriers. A total of 263 female scientists from different countries across the world participated in our study and most participants were from the South East Asian Region. Most female scientists in our study belong to the middle and junior level career category and earning around 1250 USD per month. Most of the scientists reported availability of maternity leave at their workplace but less than a third reported presence of a creche at work. Workplace sexual harassment was reported by 24% of the study population. Work related stress (71.5%) and work life imbalance (46%) are also major challenges faced by female scientists. Self-confidence, dedication and hard work are the most commonly adopted coping strategy. Flexible work timings, woman-friendly management policies, fair appraisal and mentorship appear to reduce the work-related stress and improve work-life balance among female scientists. In conclusion, female scientists face numerous challenges, which can greatly affect both their individual and career growth. Intrinsic (personal) and extrinsic (institutional) factors are important for improving female scientists' wellbeing and productivity

Prevalence of Malnutrition and Relationship with Scholastic Performance among Primary and Secondary School Children in Two Select Private Schools in Bangalore Rural District (India)

Background: Malnutrition is a serious problem among children in developing countries. In India; a school meal program is in place to combat malnutrition, but only in government schools. This study is an attempt to assess the prevalence of malnutrition in primary and secondary school children in private schools and to also assess the relationship between malnutrition and academic performance. Materials and Methods: All 582 students from class 1-7 from two select schools in rural Bangalore, India were included in the study. Information on age of study subjects were collected from school records. Height and weight measurements were taken. BMI was calculated. Children were clinically examined for pallor. Data on height, weight and BMI was transformed into WHO 2007 Z scores and then was categorized as -2 SD, > 2 SD. Mathematics and English scores of the previous two class tests were taken, average scores were calculated. Statistical tests used were Chi square test, Odd′s ratio, Chi square for trend. Results : A total of 582 students participated in this study. Males were 54% (315) and females were 46% (267). One hundred and fifty-nine (27%) of the children had pallor, 81 (20%) had under nutrition, 38 (7%) had stunting, 197 (34%) had thinness and 5 (1%) were found to be obese. Positive relationship was found between weight for ageZscores and English as well as Maths; Height for age Z scores with English. Conclusion : Hence we conclude that the prevalence of malnutrition is high among children in private schools also; and the nutritional status of the children is strongly associated with their academic performance