A seizuring alagille syndrome

Alagille syndrome is a rare autosomal dominant inherited disorder with incidence of one in 100,000 live births. This syndrome with seizure as a presentation has been rarely reported in Indian studies. We present a 3-month-old infant who presented to us with seizures was found to have a dysmorphic face, jaundice, hepatomegaly, and soft systolic murmur. Infant was stabilized and remained seizure free. A detailed clinical evaluation of a common presentation may reveal a rare syndrome

Regression Equations for Peak Expiratory Flow Rates for Children (8–12 years) in Ernakulam District

Objective: The objective of this study was to study the peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) in healthy school going children between 8 and 12 years in Ernakulum district and derive a regression equation to predict expected PEFR. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done in schools of Ernakulum among healthy children between 8 and 12 years of age. Pro formas and consent forms were distributed to schools who gave their consent for participating in this study. Eligible children were examined, anthropometric measures were taken, and PEFR values were recorded using a Mini-Wright peak flow meter. The best of the three recordings was taken to compare against each variable. Statistical analysis was carried out using statistical package, SPSS (version 22.0.0.0). Results: A total of 954 students between 8 and 12 years were studied, of which 482 were boys and 472 were girls. The scatter diagram for PEFR and age, height, weight, body mass index, and chest circumference for boys and girls suggests that there is a significant positive correlation between PEFR and the studied variables. Based on the multiple regression analysis, only age and height have a significant effect on PEFR for both males and females. The regression equation based on both height and age is PEFR = −150.290 + 1.811 (height) + 10.831 (age) for males and PEFR = −149.623 + 1.813 (height) + 8.329 (age) for females. Conclusion: Among different factors affecting PEFR, height and age correlate better with PEFR than the other variables studied. The derived regression equations can be used to predict the regional reference value

Pediatric peak expiratory flow rate nomograms for Ernakulam district

Objective: To obtain the normal reference values of peak expiratory flow rates (PEFRs) among healthy school-going children between 8 and 12 years and thereby construct a nomogram. Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among healthy children attending schools in Ernakulam district over a period of 1 year. PEFR values were recorded using a Mini-Wright peak flow meter, and the best of three readings was documented. Results: Nine hundred and fifty-four students were studied. PEFR increases as the age increases. A similar trend was observed across various heights. Nomograms based on age and height were constructed separately for boys and girls. Conclusion: Established baseline values of PEFR in this study can be useful in diagnosing and following asthmatic children in Ernakulam district

Prevalence and risk factors associated with underweight among under-five children in a rural area of Puducherry

Background: Nutrition has been recognized as a basic pillar for social and economic development. One in every three malnourished children in the world lives in India. The objective of this study was to measure the prevalence and to study the selected factors associated with underweight among the under-five children in a rural area of Puducherry. Aims: This study aims to study the prevalence of underweight among children under-five years of age and to study the associated risk factors. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study conducted over a period of 13 months with a sample size of 500. The anthropometric assessments were taken and plotted on the Indian Academy of Pediatrics growth charts.Results: The prevalence of underweight was found to be 23.8%. The age of the child, gender, socioeconomic status, duration of exclusive breast feeds, birth order, and birth weight were found to have statistical significance in underweight. However, the maternal education did not show any significance in underweight. Conclusion: Nutritional status of under-five years children is one of the important indicators of overall development of community and thus country. Intervention to reduce the burden of underweight should be directed toward the education of the mothers regarding the importance of nutrition by community health workers

Discovery of Oxygen Induced Chemoselectivity in Pd-catalyzed C-H Functionalization: Cross Dehydrogenative Coupling vs C-H Amination

The functionalization of unactivated C-H bonds at will for the strategic introduction of bonds or functionalities have been a matter of extensive investigation for the last couple of decades. We have come across a substrate namely, 5-benzoyl-pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline in which three different functionalizable C-H bonds were identified that could be judiciously transformed site selectively for the generation of complex polyring fused N-heterocycles. At first, we attempted a Pd-catalyzed cross-dehydrogenative coupling in 5-benzoyl-pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline towards the synthesis of 8H-indeno-pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolinones. Later, we identified a hitherto unknown oxygen induced palladium catalyzed selective C-H amination in 5-benzoyl-pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline towards a pentacene viz., 9H-indolo-pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline. Finally, we came across an unexpected site selective C-H amination towards the formation of multiring fused benzazepine which is believed to form due to its stability and to the higher electron density at the reaction centre on isoquinoline ring