Spatially heterogeneous dynamics in a thermosensitive soft suspension before and after the glass transition

The microscopic dynamics and aging of a soft thermosensitive suspension was investigated by looking at the thermal fluctuations of tracers in the suspension. Below and above the glass transition, the dense microgel particles suspension was found to develop an heterogeneous dynamics, featured by a non Gaussian Probability Distribution Function (PDF) of the probes' displacements, with an exponential tail. We show that non Gaussian shapes are a characteristic of the ensemble-averaged PDF, while local PDF remain Gaussian. This shows that the scenario behind the non Gaussian van Hove functions is a spatially heterogeneous dynamics, characterized by a spatial distribution of locally homogeneous dynamical environments through the sample, on the considered time scales. We characterize these statistical distributions of dynamical environments, in the liquid, supercooled, and glass states, and show that it can explain the observed exponential tail of the van Hove functions observed in the concentrated states. The intensity of spatial heterogeneities was found to amplify with increasing volume fraction. In the aging regime, it tends to increase as the glass gets more arrested.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, Soft Matter accepte

Drug utilization pattern of antihypertensive drugs in chronic kidney disease stage 5 patients in a tertiary care hospital of central India

Background: India is experiencing a rapid health transition and is projected to become a major reservoir of chronic diseases like Diabetes and Hypertension and 25 to 40% of these subjects may develop chronic kidney disease and end stage renal disease. Aim and objective of the study was to analyze utilization pattern of antihypertensive drugs in chronic kidney disease patients in a tertiary care hospital.Methods: The present observational cross-sectional study was conducted in Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore (M.P.) from 01.01.2018 to 31.03.2018 on patients with chronic kidney disease stage 5. The drug utilization pattern was studied with respect to age, sex, basic disease, duration of dialysis, type of antihypertensive used, etc. Comparison of mean between gender and dialysis / not on dialysis was done using unpaired ‘t’ test. A p value of < 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.Results: Of 198 patients, 63 (31.8%) were females and 135 (68.2%) were males, showing a male preponderance. Majority of the patients (54%) belonged to the age group 41-60 years. Majority of the patients were having diabetic nephropathy (40.9%), followed by CGN-CKD 5d (18.7%) and CIN-CKD 5d (17.2%). 11.6% patients were not on dialysis, while 88.4% were on dialysis with a mean duration of dialysis of 31.45±34.57 months. Calcium channel blockers were given in 87.4% patients, followed by centrally acting drugs in 56.1% patients, beta blockers in 51.0% and alpha blockers in 39.9%. 93.9% patients were on multidrug antihypertensive therapy. Mean number of antihypertensives required in patients on dialysis was lower than those not on dialysis (2.69±1.44 vs. 3.48±1.16, p <0.05), similarly mean number of antihypertensives use in males was higher than females (2.99±1.41 vs. 2.32±1.37, p <0.05).Conclusions: In order to treat CKD, it is important to treat hypertension as hypertension and CKD are related to each other. Treatment of hypertension will help in controlling future development of comorbidities. Calcium channel blockers and centrally acting drugs are the treatment of choice in patients with CKD stage 5D with hypertension. Multi-drug antihypertensive therapy is a better choice than mono/single-drug antihypertensive therapy

Perception and correlates of excessive vaginal discharge in rural women

Background: Vaginal discharge is one of the most common symptoms of gynecological morbidity. Vaginitis is the most prevalent cause. Gynecological disorders have substantial impact on female health and behaviour. Recent evidence suggests that the association between the complaint of vaginal discharge and the presence of Reproductive Tract Infections is weak. Women who are overanxious, introspective or suffering from fears of venereal disease and cancer tend to exaggerate the complaint of vaginal discharge into something pathological. The objective of the study was to study rural women’s perception and health care seeking behaviour regarding excessive vaginal discharge. To study various psychological and biological correlates of excessive vaginal dischargeMethods: This was a community based cross sectional study, conducted in the rural field practice areas under the Department of Community Medicine, Christian Medical College, Ludhiana. House to house surveys were conducted with semi-structured questionnaire and GAD 7 (Generalised Anxiety Disorder) scale, using systematic random sampling.Results: 160 rural women were interviewed to collect data. Of them, 27.5% reported having excessive vaginal discharge. There was no association observed between menstrual hygiene methods and excessive vaginal discharge (p= 0.77). Association couldn’t be observed with selection of barrier and other non-barrier methods of contraception (p= 0.09) either. Statistically significant association was observed between presence of anxiety and vaginal discharge (p=0.01).Conclusions: All vaginal discharges are not pathological. Causative factor of excessive vaginal discharge may not be infections always. There was a statistically significant association between anxiety and perceived vaginal discharge

Type of antihypertensive medications in CKD-stage V patients on hemodialysis and its relationship with demographic variables: an observational study

Background: The majority of the patients with chronic kidney disease stage V on hemodialysis have been found to have hypertension and many studies have recommended that hypertension should be essentially controlled in these patients for better clinical outcome. But till now no study analyzing the relationship between antihypertensive medication and the demographics of the patient has been done, so with this objective in mind the present study was carried out. Aim and objectives were to analyse the types of antihypertensive being used in CKD stage V patients on hemodialysis and their relationship with the demographic variables.Methods: The present observational cross-sectional study was conducted in Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore (M.P.) from 01 January 2018 to 31 March 2018 on patients with chronic kidney disease stage V on hemodialysis. The demographic variables evaluated were age, sex, basic disease and duration of dialysis. The relationship with type of antihypertensive being used and these demographic variables was calculated using Pearson Chi-square test. A p value of<0.05 was taken as statistically significant.Results: Diabetic nephropathy, CIN-CKD 5d, CGN-CKD 5d and hypertensive nephropathy were the commonest basic diseases in our study. Calcium channel blockers, beta blockers, ATRB, centrally acting antihypertensive, ACE inhibitors were the commonest antihypertensive used. Statistically significant relationship was seen between antihypertensive and basic disease (p<0.05).Conclusions: The study revealed that all the antihypertensive medications are prescribed on the basis of basic disease while other demographic variables do not play a vital role prescribing antihypertensive in patients with CKD stage V on haemodialysis. And the prescription of antihypertensive medications also matches with the actual clinical practice

Prescription of antihypertensive agents in the treatment of hypertension in diabetic nephropathy patients on hemodialysis

Background: All the patients with diabetic nephropathy have inherent hypertension and uncontrolled hypertension leads to deterioration in the kidney disease speedily. Aims and objectives were to analyze the prescription of antihypertensive agents in the treatment of hypertension in diabetic nephropathy patients on hemodialysis.Methods: The study was conducted on diabetic nephropathy patients on maintenance hemodialysis, in Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore (M.P.). We had included 73 diabetic nephropathy patients on maintenance hemodialysis, who provided their consent for participation in the study. Pearson coefficient of correlation was used for finding the correlation. Unpaired ‘t’ test was applied for intergroup mean comparison. A p value of0.05). An inverse and statistically not significant correlation was seen between duration of dialysis; age and use of multiple antihypertensive medications (p>0.05).Conclusions: A strong association has been reported by many between hypertension and diabetic nephropathy. It is imperative that hypertension is well controlled in all the patients of diabetic nephropathy. This will slow down the progression of kidney disease and improve the quality of life in patients with diabetic nephropathy

Evaluation of various culture and staining techniques for the detection of extra pulmonary tuberculosis

Background: Though pulmonary tuberculosis form is the commonest presentation, the extra pulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) is also an important emerging clinical problem. The objective of the current study was to compare two staining techniques, Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) stain, fluorescent stain and two-culture medium, solid Löwenstein-Jensen (LJ) medium and liquid 7H9 Middle brook medium in MGIT (Mycobacterium Growth Indicator Tube) 320 system, for detection of Mycobacterium in clinically suspected patients of EPTB.Methods: A total of 100 clinically suspected cases of EPTB samples from various extrapulmonary sites had been collected. All the specimens were stained with ZN stain and fluorescent stain. The culture were processed after decontamination of specimens with NaOH-NALC method and thereafter inoculated on solid and liquid culture medium.Results: Out of the 100 EPTB specimens, 30 were found positive by any of the above techniques used. Out of 30 positive cases 18 showed positivity by ZN staining while 20 showed positivity by fluorescent staining technique. In two culture methods, 27 isolates were grown by any of the culture system. Out of 27, 22 and 26 specimens showed growth of MTB complex on LJ media and MGIT culture system respectively. In AFB smear positive specimens, the average turnaround time was found to be 8.45 days and 22.5 days in MGIT and LJ medium culture assay respectively. While the turnaround times in AFB smear negative cases, it was 16.5 days and 32.3 days in MGIT and LJ medium culture assay respectively.Conclusions: MGIT was a dependable, highly efficient system for recovery of MTB complex for EPTB specimens in combination with LJ media

Duxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity

The survival rate of cancer patients has greatly increased over the last 20 years. However, to achieve this result, a considerable price has been paid in terms of the side-effects associated with the intensive anticancer treatment. Cardiotoxicity of anticancer drugs is a serious problem. It is defined, by the National Cancer Institute, as the “toxicity that affects the heart.” This definition not only includes a direct effect of the drug on the heart, but also an indirect effect due to enhancement of hemodynamic flow alterations or due to thrombotic events. Cardiotoxicity can develop in a subacute, acute, or chronic manner. The risk for such effects depends upon: cumulative dose, rate of drug administration, mediastinal radiation, advanced age, younger age, female gender, pre-existing heart disease and hypertension. Anthracyclines, such as doxorubicin (DOX), cause serious cardiac side-effects. Acute tachyarrhythmias and acute heart failure (HF) may occur after high doses, but these reactions are now rare due to changed dosage schemes (e.g. slower infusion) with the aim to prevent this. However, the sub-acute or chronic cardiac effects of anthracyclines remain a clinical problem. Clinically, anthracycline induced cardiotoxicity manifests itself as left ventricular failure, which develops insidiously over months to years after completion of the anthracycline based chemotherapy and may result in congestive HF. The mechanism of anthracyclin induced cardiotoxicity is not totally unraveled. It is likely that the decline in myocardial function is related to apoptosis of cardiac myocytes that occurs apparently at random in the myocardium. Anthracyclin induced formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the presence of intracellular iron, impaired homeostasis of intracellular iron and calcium (that may facilitate the apoptosis induced by the ROS) have been put forward as mechanisms. Cardiac protection can be achieved by limitation of the cumulative dose. Further, addition of the antioxidant and iron chelator dexrazoxane to anthracycline therapy has shown to be effective in lowering the incidence of anthracycline induced cardiotoxicity

ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY AND PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING OF LEAVES EXTRACT OF MORINDA PUBESCENS LINN. PLANT

The ethanolic extracts of leaves of Morinda pubescens Linn. were explored for their phytochemical constituents and antimicrobial activity. The preliminary evaluation of ethanolic extract exhibited appreciable antimicrobial activity on the tested pathogenic bacterial isolates at a concentration of 100mg/g and displayed inhibitory potency (20-22mm) in diameter on the tested bacterial isolates. Phenol and alkaloids was found to be present in the plant parts while highest phenolic constituent was recorded in the leaves extract

Investigation of micro-hardness of H11 die steel using composite material electrodes in EDM

Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM), a non-traditional material removal process has been well recognized for itsability for precision machining of electrically conducting hard materials. Repetitive heating and cooling of the workpiecesurface during the machining make the surface hard. During this process, the transfer of material into workpiece surface dueto diffusion of material from the tool electrodes results in the desire surface modifications. This paper investigates the effectof electric discharge machining on H11 die-steel materials with composite material electrodes fabricated by stir casting aswell as powder metallurgy process. Copper (85% by weight) has been used as matrix material with tungsten and carbonnanotubes (10%-5% by weight). The performance of fabricated composite electrodes has also been compared withconventional copper electrode. Microhardness achieved has been found to be best when H11 die-steel surface ismachined with composite electrodes fabricated by powder metallurgy process. Also, the microhardness has been enhancedby 19.57% with optimal input parameters. Results show that optimum microhardness has been observed at high peak currentvalue when surface is machined with copper conventional electrode while pulse on time has been found to the majorcontributor when surface is machined by composite material electrode. XRD analysis indicates the formation of tungsten-carbide, iron-carbide, chromium- nickel and copper on the machined surface of the workpiec