Second year medical students’ feedback on teaching-learning methodologies and evaluation methods in Pharmacology: a questionnaire based study

Background: Pharmacology enables medical students with the art of rational prescriptions of drugs. It is one of the rapidly evolving subjects in medical sciences. The purpose of the study was to assess whether teaching-learning methodologies and evaluation methods are supporting the curriculum goals and what modifications can be made for the benefit of medical students.Methods: After approval by the Institutional Ethics Committee the study was carried out in January-February 2017. A total of 128 students of 2nd MBBS were administered a pre-validated questionnaire after explaining the purpose of the study. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis of data. Frequency was expressed as percentage.Results: A total response rate of 93.75% was observed. Most of the students mentioned cardiovascular system (20.8%) as the most interesting topic. 78.3% preferred teaching by use of combination of both audio-visual aids and chalk and board. Majority of the students rated practical classes as similar to theory (34.2%). 91.7% students mentioned that seminars are useful to them. 95% of students are interested in continuation of the integrated classes conducted at the end of each chapter. 98.3% of students for written tests and 90% for viva voce responded positively for the need of such periodic evaluation in addition to university prescribed evaluations. 95% students mentioned that field visits helps them in better understanding of pharmacology.Conclusions: The present study helped us to elicit student preferences regarding teaching and evaluation methods in pharmacology. Implementation of the same would be helpful for better outcome of students

IN VITRO ASSESSMENT OF NATURAL HERBAL EXTRACTS FOR ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY

Objective: Herbal medicine is still the mainstay of about 75-80% of the whole population, and the major part of traditional therapy involves the use of plant extract and their active constituents against infectious pathogens. Objective: The study aimed to investigate in vitro antibacterial activity of extracts from some medicinal plants against the most common microbial pathogens including MDR bacteria. Methods: The processing of plant materials was performed with the washing, drying and grinding of collected plant materials. The plant extracts were prepared by mixing 10 g of powder to 150 ml of ethanol solvent for 5 h at room temperature and sonicated for 15 min; for prepared test samples under laboratory conditions, the air-dried samples were mixed with the respective solvent (1:15 w/v) for 72 h at room temperature with occasional and then filtered through Whattman filter paper No.1. The obtained extract was freed from the solvent by evaporation under reduced pressure and then resuspended in the appropriate solvent to make the solution of known concentration of 10-50 mg/ml. The extract was stored at 4 °C in airtight glass bottle for the antibacterial assay using the Agar-well diffusion method. Ciprofloxacin was used as a control antibiotic. Results: The growth of K. pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, P. aeruginosa and E. coli were inhibited better with the plant extract Tinospora cardifolia leaves than ciprofloxacin antibiotic. Coagulase-negative Staphylococci was inhibited greatly with Costus igneus leaf extract. The growth of Enterococcus faecalic was inhibited significantly with Tridax procumbens leaf extract than ciprofloxacin. Conclusion: The present study indicates Tridax procumbens, T. cordifolia and Costus igneus methanolic leaf extracts were showed strong antimicrobial activity against all the tested cultures. They were rich in primary and secondary constituents. Most of the biologically active phytochemicals were present in methanolic extract. The tested plant extracts were more efficient than standard antibiotic ciprofloxacin used in the current study

Commercial importance of marine macro algae

India with a vast coastline of more than 8000 km supports a rich standing crop of marine algae wherever rocky or coral formations occur along the coast. The current estimate of annual standing crop of marine algae of India is 3, 01,646 tonnes (fresh weight).The algae contain minerals, trace elements (iodine and bromine), proteins, carbohydrates, lipids etc.The marine algae are a good source of organic constituents such as vitamins, bioactive substances and polysaccharides and also are useful as raw material for biofuel production and liquid fertilizer. Important polysaccharides obtained from algae are agar, carrageenan and algin. The Indian red algae such as Gelidium, Gelidiella, Pterocladia and Gracilaria yield agar and agarose. Agarose is the most important medium for electrophoresis. The red algae viz. Hypnea, Kappaphycus, Acanthophora, Laurencia are the sources of carrageenan. Algin is extracted from brown algae like Sargassum, Turbinaria, Hormophysa and Cystoseira. Mannitol is also obtainable from brown algae. This is used as a diuretic and helps in excretion of some toxins. Many of the green, brown and red algae form part of the diet taken by people of South East Asia. In India, the red alga Gracilaria edulis is eaten in certain coastal areas of Tamil Nadu as porridge. Some of the marine algal constituents are of antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, diuretic and spasmolytic values. The algae are used in the treatment of goiter and as ichthyotoxic compounds. Other medicinal properties and commercial uses of algae in industry and biotechnology are reviewed in this paper. Efforts must therefore be made by concerned agencies and entrepreneurs to make best use of the renewable marine algae which are available along our coasts

Exploitation of marine algae in Indo-Pacific region

Marine algae are harvested from the coastal waters of numerous countries of Indo-Pacific region due to their value as food, feed for animals, fertilizers and a source of various minerals, trace elements and phycocolloids. Out of 20, 000 species of marine algae in the world, 145 are used for food and 101 for extraction of phycocolloids. The Indo – Pacific region encompasses approximately 75% of the world’s coral reefs and provides ideal habitat for marine algae and various other organisms. According to FAO Fisheries Statistics, 2006, the total estimated marine algal production in the world is more than 15.8 million tonnes and that of Indo–Pacific region is of the order of 13 million tonnes. The global production of edible marine algae has been assessed as four million tonnes (wet wt.).The Indo- Pacific region produced 2,60,00,00 tonnes wet weight. In India, the annual production of marine algae has been estimated as 3, 01,646 tonnes. The bulk production comes from Tamil Nadu coast and Andaman-Nicobar Islands amounting to 60 %.Information on global production of useful marine algae, important edible species, harvesting, industrial exploitation and culture of Indian resources is given in this paper. The marine algal industry has grown in leaps and bounds in other countries increasing the employment potential and gainful economic returns for them. There is an urgency in improving the culture and exploitation of our marine algal resources to face competition in the world markets

PRESCRIPTION PATTERN OF ANTIBIOTICS AND THEIR APPROPRIATENESS IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE-AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY IN A TERTIARY CARE TEACHING HOSPITAL IN SOUTH INDIA

Objective: The primary objective of the study was to assess the prescribing pattern of antimicrobial agents in patients with chronic kidney disease. The secondary objectives of this study are to assess antibiotic appropriateness and dose optimization in patients with chronic kidney disease in relation to their comorbidities. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted, and medical records of all patients with CKD who were admitted in the nephrology department of Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences, Tirupati, during Jan 2018-Dec 2018 were reviewed for antibiotic prescriptions. A total of 200 medical records were selected and assessed for antimicrobial prescriptions. A p-value <0.05 was considered significant throughout the statistical analysis. Results: Analysis showed that overall 163 drugs were prescribed to CKD patients, of which nearly 96 (58.9%) required dosage adjustment. Of those 163 drugs, the majority N= 25 (26%), were unadjusted, and the remaining N = 71 (74%) were properly adjusted. The length of hospitalization of CKD patients was below 7 was 13.5%, above 7 was 86.5%. Mean and SD was 10.27±7.18 d, (Range: 1–35 d). The Chi-square analysis confirmed that out of the seven studied variables, two i.e. Length of stay days; p<0.001. Conclusion: It is concluded that the occurrence of medication dosing errors was moderate in hospitalized chronic kidney disease patients in our study. Nearly 20% of patients who had prolonged stays were prescribed antibiotics for a prolonged period. The predictors of medication dosing errors in CKD patients were the severe-to-end stages of chronic kidney disease, the number of prescribed antibiotics, and the length of hospitalization

Standardisation of RTS beverage from reconstituted cashew apple-based blended juice powder along with Sugandi

Cashew has commercial value for its nut and peduncle (false fruit), known as cashew apple. Requirements of consumers considering convenience, food safety, health benefits and sensory quality have increased demand for fruit juices, but most consumers don’t get time for the ready to use products. Instant juice powders can meet consumer requirements being cheap to transport and with prolonged shelf life. Then the blended juice was mixed with maltodextrin @15 per cent, i.e., 15 g for 100 mL of blended juice by proper homogenisation. The roots of the sugandi (Swallow root - Decalepsis hamiltonii) were collected, cleaned thoroughly and discarded the central white portion of the roots. Among the blended juice treatment combinations, the highest pH of 3.45 was recorded in B3 (75% cashew apple juice + 25% pineapple juice powder at 150°C inlet temperature with a flow rate of 10 mL min-1). The ready-to-serve (RTS) beverage, along with sugandi stored under refrigerated condition, were free from microbial proliferation till the end of the storage period (60th day of storage), indicating its fitness for consumption with maximum flavour, taste and overall acceptability

Analysis of spontaneously reported cutaneous adverse drug reactions in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India

Background: Skin is the most common organ involved in adverse reactions due to drugs. With newer drugs released into market every year, there is changing pattern of the reported cutaneous adverse drug reactions (ADRs). In order to ensure safer use of medicines in patients, there is need for continuous monitoring of ADRs. This is a retrospective study to analyse spontaneously reported cutaneous ADRs.Methods: All the cutaneous ADRs reported between January 2017 and September 2018 were analysed for clinical patterns, suspected medications, causality, severity and preventability.Results: Of the 1035 reports received during the study period, 232 (22.41%) included cutaneous reactions. 113 (48.7%) were male and 119 (51.29%) were female. Maculopapular rash 70 (30.17%), pruritus 31 (13.36%), palmar plantar erythrodysesthesia 30 (12.93%), acne 19 (8.19%), urticaria 16 (6.89%) and fixed drug eruptions (FDE) 13 (5.6%) were the common clinical patterns. Antimicrobial agents followed by anticancer drugs, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), hormones and related drugs, and antiepileptic drugs were the common suspected group of drugs. Causality assessment as done by WHO-UMC scale showed that 3 (1.29%) were certainly related, 174 (75%) were probably related and 55 (23.7%) were possibly related to the suspected medication.Conclusions: Cutaneous ADRs are most frequently reported ADRs in the present study. With newer drugs released into market, there is a need for continuous monitoring of use of drugs to promote safer use of medicines in patients

Ondansetron versus palonosetron: a comparative study on efficacy and safety in prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting

Background: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a major complication in patients who undergo surgery under general anaesthesia. Various drug regimens and antiemetic interventions have been tried from time-to-time for prevention of PONV but with a variable success rate. This study compares the safety and efficacy of ondansetron and palonosetron in preventing PONV in such patients.Methods: A prospective study was conducted in 60 ASA grades - I and II patients of either sex, aged between 20 to 50 years, scheduled for elective surgery under general anaesthesia, 30 of who received 4 mg ondansetron and the remaining 30 received 0.05 mg palonosetron intravenously 5 minutes before induction of anaesthesia. Postoperatively they were observed for 24 hours for complete response, any episodes of nausea and vomiting, their severity, need for rescue antiemetic and side effects. After the study, results were compiled and the data was analysed using Student’s T test. P value 0.5). Complete antiemetic response was 60% in ondansetron group and 83% in palonosetron group. There was no significant statistical difference between both the groups in causing headache (p >0.5) and dizziness (p >0.05).Conclusions: Our study concludes that the antiemetic efficacy is comparable for both ondansetron and palonosetron in the given doses in preventing PONV and none is superior. Both the study drugs had almost the same adverse effect profile