Translating the Body Into Image. The Body Politic and Visual Practice at the Mughal Court During the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries

This article investigates the ways in which visual representations reconfigured the body in North Indian political culture of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. While images were meant to transmit and translate ethical conceptions of the polity, communicative modes of the visual medium followed a dynamic that was not a rehearsal of the path taken by texts. As images cut across distinctions formulated elsewhere and drew up new boundaries, they worked to refine and pluralise the understandings of political culture beyond the normative. Pictorial experiments at the North Indian courts involved negotiating multiple regimes of visuality and arriving at pictorial choices that ended up creating a new field of sensibilities, especially the corporeal. An argument is therefore made for the agency of the visual in defining new ideas of the political body that were constitutive of politico-ethical ideals in early modern North India

A cross sectional observational study to find the difference in occurrence of muscle related adverse effects of statins among geriatric and non-geriatric patients

Background: Statins are effectively used for the treatment of dyslipidemias in geriatric patients. The geriatric patients are more vulnerable to experience consequences of drug intensification leading to the manifestation of adverse effects, such as muscle related adverse effects (MRAE) with statins use. The main objective was to find the difference in the occurrence of MRAE of statins among geriatric and non-geriatric users.Methods: This was a cross-sectional, observational comparative study in which MRAE associated with statins and relevant patient information was noted. Creatine phosphokinase (CPK) levels which are considered as a marker for statin induced muscle damage were obtained for all patients. The different parameters were compared among geriatric and non-geriatric statin users.Results: Sixty one patients, 28 geriatric (≥60 years) and 33 non-geriatric (<60 years) statin users were enrolled in this study. Ten (38%) geriatric statin users as compared to 6 (20%) non-geriatric statin users were found to have MRAE (P = 0.207). No significant difference in the occurrence of MRAE among geriatric and non-geriatric statin users was found.Conclusions: The results obtained from the present study suggest that statins are relatively safe, even in older people. There was no evidence to suggest an increased risk of MRAE in geriatric patients receiving statin therapy as compared to non- geriatric patients

Tuberculous Aortic Root Abscess in a child: A case report

Although tuberculous aortitis is fairly common in adults, tuberculous mycotic aneurysm of aorta is rare withinvolvement of aortic root being very uncommon. The diagnosis depends on a combination of clinical criteria,including persistent fever and bacteraemia and echocardiographic confirmation. Because of the rarity of aorticroot abscess in children, there is no consensus on a treatment strategy. We describe a 10-year-old male whopresented with fever, abdominal pain and headache, and was found to have disseminated tuberculosis and aorticroot abscess with mycotic aneurysm. Due to the presence of evidence of tuberculosis elsewhere in the body(multiple tuberculomas in brain, granulomas in liver, lichen scrofulosorum over abdomen), therapy with antituberculousdrugs was started to which the patient responded partially, but later died suddenly at home

The Heritage of the Other. Conservation Considerations in an Age of Globalization

Im Begriff des Kulturerbes verschiebt sich der Fokus der Denkmalpflege von einer fachwissenschaftlichen zu einer ethischen und gesellschaftlichen Aufgabe, und damit zu einer Auseinandersetzung um kulturelle Identität. Denn Erbe ist immer Ergebnis konkurrierender Deutungen, die mit vielfältigen Prozessen der Aneignung, Transformation und Zerstörung verbunden sind. Lokale wie globale Deutungsansprüche können gleichermaßen widersprüchlich wie vorläufig sein; auch geteiltes Erbe (shared heritage) ist nicht für Jeden und Jede (und jederzeit) das Gleiche. Wer bestimmt, was (wie?) erinnert, was (wie?) rekonstruiert, erhalten oder eben vergessen werden darf? Wie gehen wir als Wissenschaftler mit den oft konfliktträchtigen Ansprüchen der jeweiligen Gesellschaften um, ihr Erbe zu bestimmen? Ein multinationales Autorenteam geht an markanten Beispielen der Frage nach, was Denkmalpflege im Zeichen zunehmender Globalisierung heißen kann. Die thematisch breit gefächerten Beiträge umfassen das Kulturerbe des Alten Ägyptens und des Osmanischen Reichs ebenso wie iranische und US-amerikanische Denkmalpolitiken, "wanderndes" Erbe oder aktuelle Deutungskonflikte in Tunesien, Brasilien und Deutschland.With the emergence of the concept of “cultural heritage” has come a shift in focus, from conservation as a scholarly-professional preoccupation to one of much broader ethical and social concern involving fundamental issues of cultural identity. For it is evident that heritage is always the result of competing interpretations, linked to complex processes of appropriation, transformation and destruction. Both local and global interpretive claims can be contradictory and temporary, and even "shared heritage" can have contrasting meanings for different individuals at different times. Who, then, determines what is to be remembered (and how), who determines what must be preserved or reconstructed, and what may be forgotten? How do we as scholars handle the often conflict-laden claims of different societies to define their heritage for themselves? An international team of authors uses significant examples to reflect on the changed conditions and goals of heritage conservation in the age of globalization. The themes addressed range widely, from the cultural heritage of ancient Egypt and the Ottoman Empire to the preservation politics of modern Iran and the United States, and from "mobile" heritage to current disputes over interpretation in Tunisia, Brazil and Germany

Consistent Effects of Early Remdesivir on Symptoms and Disease Progression Across At-Risk Outpatient Subgroups: Treatment Effect Heterogeneity in PINETREE Study

INTRODUCTION: In the PINETREE study, early remdesivir treatment reduced risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related hospitalizations or all-cause death versus placebo by 87% by day 28 in high-risk, non-hospitalized patients. Here we report results of assessment of heterogeneity of treatment effect (HTE) of early outpatient remdesivir, focusing on time from symptom onset and number of baseline risk factors (RFs). METHODS: PINETREE was a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of non-hospitalized patients with COVID-19 who were randomized within 7 days of symptom onset and had ≥ 1 RF for disease progression (age ≥ 60 years, obesity [body mass index ≥ 30], or certain coexisting medical conditions). Patients received remdesivir intravenously (200 mg on day 1 and 100 mg on days 2 and 3) or placebo. RESULTS: In this subgroup analysis, HTE of remdesivir by time from symptom onset at treatment initiation and number of baseline RFs was not detected. Treatment with remdesivir reduced COVID-19-related hospitalizations independent of stratification by time from symptom onset to randomization. Of patients enrolled ≤ 5 days from symptom onset, 1/201 (0.5%) receiving remdesivir and 9/194 (4.6%) receiving placebo were hospitalized (hazard ratio [HR] 0.10; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.01-0.82). Of those enrolled at > 5 days from symptom onset, 1/78 (1.3%) receiving remdesivir and 6/89 (6.7%) receiving placebo were hospitalized (HR 0.19; 95% CI 0.02-1.61). Remdesivir was also effective in reducing COVID-19-related hospitalizations when stratified by number of baseline RFs for severe disease. Of patients with ≤ 2 RFs, 0/159 (0.0%) receiving remdesivir and 4/164 (2.4%) receiving placebo were hospitalized; of those with ≥ 3 RFs, 2/120 (1.7%) receiving remdesivir and 11/119 (9.2%) receiving placebo were hospitalized (HR 0.16; 95% CI 0.04-0.73). CONCLUSIONS: In the outpatient setting, benefit of remdesivir initiated within 7 days of symptoms appeared to be consistent across patients with RFs. Therefore, it may be reasonable to broadly treat patients with remdesivir regardless of comorbidities. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT04501952

Neurodevelopmental disorders in children aged 2-9 years: Population-based burden estimates across five regions in India.

BACKGROUND: Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) compromise the development and attainment of full social and economic potential at individual, family, community, and country levels. Paucity of data on NDDs slows down policy and programmatic action in most developing countries despite perceived high burden. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We assessed 3,964 children (with almost equal number of boys and girls distributed in 2-<6 and 6-9 year age categories) identified from five geographically diverse populations in India using cluster sampling technique (probability proportionate to population size). These were from the North-Central, i.e., Palwal (N = 998; all rural, 16.4% non-Hindu, 25.3% from scheduled caste/tribe [SC-ST] [these are considered underserved communities who are eligible for affirmative action]); North, i.e., Kangra (N = 997; 91.6% rural, 3.7% non-Hindu, 25.3% SC-ST); East, i.e., Dhenkanal (N = 981; 89.8% rural, 1.2% non-Hindu, 38.0% SC-ST); South, i.e., Hyderabad (N = 495; all urban, 25.7% non-Hindu, 27.3% SC-ST) and West, i.e., North Goa (N = 493; 68.0% rural, 11.4% non-Hindu, 18.5% SC-ST). All children were assessed for vision impairment (VI), epilepsy (Epi), neuromotor impairments including cerebral palsy (NMI-CP), hearing impairment (HI), speech and language disorders, autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), and intellectual disability (ID). Furthermore, 6-9-year-old children were also assessed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disorders (LDs). We standardized sample characteristics as per Census of India 2011 to arrive at district level and all-sites-pooled estimates. Site-specific prevalence of any of seven NDDs in 2-<6 year olds ranged from 2.9% (95% CI 1.6-5.5) to 18.7% (95% CI 14.7-23.6), and for any of nine NDDs in the 6-9-year-old children, from 6.5% (95% CI 4.6-9.1) to 18.5% (95% CI 15.3-22.3). Two or more NDDs were present in 0.4% (95% CI 0.1-1.7) to 4.3% (95% CI 2.2-8.2) in the younger age category and 0.7% (95% CI 0.2-2.0) to 5.3% (95% CI 3.3-8.2) in the older age category. All-site-pooled estimates for NDDs were 9.2% (95% CI 7.5-11.2) and 13.6% (95% CI 11.3-16.2) in children of 2-<6 and 6-9 year age categories, respectively, without significant difference according to gender, rural/urban residence, or religion; almost one-fifth of these children had more than one NDD. The pooled estimates for prevalence increased by up to three percentage points when these were adjusted for national rates of stunting or low birth weight (LBW). HI, ID, speech and language disorders, Epi, and LDs were the common NDDs across sites. Upon risk modelling, noninstitutional delivery, history of perinatal asphyxia, neonatal illness, postnatal neurological/brain infections, stunting, LBW/prematurity, and older age category (6-9 year) were significantly associated with NDDs. The study sample was underrepresentative of stunting and LBW and had a 15.6% refusal. These factors could be contributing to underestimation of the true NDD burden in our population. CONCLUSIONS: The study identifies NDDs in children aged 2-9 years as a significant public health burden for India. HI was higher than and ASD prevalence comparable to the published global literature. Most risk factors of NDDs were modifiable and amenable to public health interventions

Das Visuelle in Sprache übersetzen? Der wissenschaftliche Diskurs und die Polyvalenz indischer Bilder

Der Beitrag untersucht die Entstehung eines wissenschaftlichen Diskurses über indische Kunstgeschichte. Unser Wissen zu Bildern entsteht oft über schriftliche Narrative – in diesem Fall über kunstwissenschaftliche Paradigmen und Begriffe, die selbst Ergebnis der kolonialen Wissensproduktion zu indischer Kultur waren und bis in die Gegenwart oft unhinterfragt geblieben sind. Hier entsteht also eine Disjunktion zwischen der kulturspezifischen und mehrdeutigen Visualität und dem akademischen Diskurs, der anhand der 'Textualisierung' von Wissen auch zur Kanonisierung von Wissen über indische Bilder geführt hat. Die Geschichte der Bilder dagegen hat sich über mehrere Jahrhunderte in vielfältigen sozialen und kulturellen Zusammenhängen entfaltet und so immer wieder neuere Schichten von Bedeutung angeeignet. Der Beitrag erwägt eine Annäherung an die nordindische Hofmalerei über die Polyvalenz der Bilder selbst