Serum calcium 125 level in normotensive and pre-eclamptic pregnancies in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Preeclampsia is one main reason for high-risk pregnancy. Among the disorders in hypertension, preeclampsia develops in antenatal period and it is defined by high blood pressure of more than 140/90 mmHg and arteriolar vasoconstriction, both of which lower uteroplacental perfusion and ultimately lead to placental hypoxia. The objectives of this study was (a) to estimate CA125 level in normotensive and pre eclamptic pregnancies; and (b) to predict severity of pre-eclampsia with CA125 levels with cut off value of CA125 level as 23.7 IU/ml. Methods: This two year cross sectional study was conducted on all antenatal mothers bestween 20 -40 weeks gestational age getting admitted RLJH and research centre Tamaka (January 2021-December 2022), for the period of 2 years who fulfilled inclusion and exclusion criteria. Detailed clinical history along with antenatal examination was done. For each study subject the blood pressure was recorded. Complete blood picture was done and CA125 levels were done of the study subjects. Results: Mean CA125 among normal subjects was 24.24±13.71 IU/ml and Mean CA125 among pre-eclampsia subjects was 30.61±15.69 IU/ml. There was a statistical significance found between two groups with respect to CA125. Conclusions: In pre-eclampsia, CA125 was increased more compared to normotensive group. This indicates the importance in estimation of CA125 level in preeclampsia. The same has been determined with significant p value

The common and uncommon cestodal infestation encountered in routine histopathological practice from a semi-urban population in south India and their public health importance.

Parasites are encountered uncommonly in routine histopathologic practice. Among them, cestodes form a major bulk. Cysticercosis heads the list forming the bulk of cases followed by Hydatidosis and Sparganosis. Microscopic identification of inflammation with surrounding reactions along with other morphological features forms the mainstay of diagnosis of parasitic diseases on histopathology. Identification of the parasites on histopathological examination would reduce the cost-diagnosis ratio avoiding expensive serological investigation

The nutrition transition in India

No Abstract.South African Journal of Clinical Nutrition Vol. 18(2) 2005: 198-20

Maternal serum selenium as a predictor of preeclampsia

Background: Preeclampsia (PE) is a hypertension disorder condition occurring in 7-10% of all pregnancies. Preeclampsia if unidentified and left untreated is associated with poor maternal and fetal adverse outcomes. The objective of the present study was to characterize maternal serum selenium levels as a predictor of preeclampsia and to correlate dietary selenium intake with serum selenium levels in first trimester of pregnancyMethods: A retrospective case-control study of 107 pregnant women was conducted over 1.5 years at St. John’s Medical College Hospital. On screening for inclusion criteria, at baseline, information on maternal socio-demography, anthropometry, dietary intake and clinical examination was collected. A venous blood sample at baseline and 2nd or 3rdtrimester of pregnancy was collected for estimation of selenium concentrations. Blood pressure was measured at baseline and followed up during pregnancy to select cases and controls. Pregnant women were termed ‘cases’ based on NHBPEP (National High Blood Pressure Education Program) classification and subsequent 22 women with normal blood pressure controlled for age were termed as ‘controls.Results: No statistically significant differences were observed for baseline characteristics, biochemical parameters and blood pressure at recruitment among cases and controls. Cases had significant lower levels of energy (P=0.032) and micronutrients like zinc (P=0.027), selenium (P=0.022), magnesium (P=0.047) at first trimester. The serum selenium levels were significantly higher in cases as compared to the controls (69.2±13.7 vs. 59.6±12.9; P=0.021) at baseline.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that serum selenium levels may not be an independent predictor of preeclampsia. Assessment of other micronutrients, oxidative stress markers and other complementary elements may be useful in predicting preeclampsia

Measurement of protein digestibility in humans by a dual-tracer method

Background: Recent evaluations of the risk of dietary protein deficiency have indicated that protein digestibility may be a key limiting factor in the provision of indispensable amino acids (IAAs), particularly for vulnerable populations living in challenging environments where intestinal dysfunction may exist. Since the digestion of protein occurs only in the small intestine, and the metabolic activity of colonic bacteria confounds measurements at the fecal level, there is a need to develop noninvasive protein digestibility measurements at the ileal level. Objective: We used a dual-tracer method with stable isotopes to characterize the digestibility of uniformly labeled [13C]-spirulina protein as a standard protein, in comparison to a mixture of 2H-labeled crystalline amino acids, and then demonstrated the use of this standard protein to measure the digestibility of selected legumes (chick pea and mung bean) through the use of proteins that were intrinsically labeled with 2H. Design: The digestibility of uniformly labeled [13C]-spirulina was first measured in 6 healthy volunteers (3 males and 3 females) by feeding it along with a standard mixture of 2H-labeled amino acids, in a dual-tracer, plateau-fed test meal approach. Next, intrinsically labeled legume protein digestibility was studied with a similar dual-tracer approach, with uniformly labeled [13C]-spirulina as the standard, when processed differently before consumption. Results: The average digestibility of IAA in spirulina protein was 85.2%. The average IAA digestibility of intrinsically 2H-labeled chick pea and mung bean protein was 56.6% and 57.7%, respectively. Dehulling of mung bean before ingestion increased the average IAA digestibility by 9.9% in comparison to whole mung bean digestibility. Conclusions: An innovative, minimally invasive “dual-stable-isotope” method was developed to measure protein digestibility, in which the ingestion of an intrinsically 2H-labeled test protein along with a 13C-labeled standard protein of known digestibility allows for an accurate measure of digestion and absorption of the intrinsically labeled protein. This minimally invasive method is critical to redefining protein quality and will aid in revisiting human protein requirements in different settings and in vulnerable populations. This trial was registered at Clinical Trials Registry—India as CTRI/2017/11/010468

Recovery priorities in degenerative cervical myelopathy: a cross-sectional survey of an international, online community of patients.

OBJECTIVES: To establish the recovery priorities of individuals suffering with degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). DESIGN: A cross-sectional, observational study. SETTING: Patients from across the world with a diagnosis of DCM accessed the survey over an 18-month period on Myelopathy.org, an international myelopathy charity. PARTICIPANTS: 481 individuals suffering from DCM completed the online survey fully. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Functional recovery domains were established through qualitative interviews and a consensus process. Individuals were asked about their disease characteristics, including limb pain (Visual Analogue Scale) and functional disability (patient-derived version of the modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association score). Individuals ranked recovery domains (arm and hand function, walking, upper body/trunk function, sexual function, elimination of pain, sensation and bladder/bowel function) in order of priority. Priorities were analysed as the modal first priority and mean ranking. The influence of demographics on selection was analysed, with significance p<0.05. RESULTS: Of 659 survey responses obtained, 481 were complete. Overall, pain was the most popular recovery priority (39.9%) of respondents, followed by walking (20.2%), sensation (11.9%) and arm and hand function (11.5%). Sexual function (5.7%), bladder and bowel (3.7%) and trunk function (3.5%) were chosen less frequently. When considering the average ranking of symptoms, while pain remained the priority (2.6±2.0), this was closely followed by walking (2.9±1.7) and arm/hand function (3.0±1.4). Sensation ranked lower (4.3±2.1). With respect to disease characteristics, overall pain remained the recovery priority, with the exception of patients with greater walking impairment (p<0.005) who prioritised walking, even among patients with lower pain scores. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study investigating patient priorities in DCM. The patient priorities reported provide an important framework for future research and will help to ensure that it is aligned with patient needs.NIHR Welcome Trus

Optimized cervical spinal cord perfusion MRI after traumatic injury in the rat

Despite the potential to guide clinical management of spinal cord injury and disease, noninvasive methods of monitoring perfusion status of the spinal cord clinically remain an unmet need. In this study, we optimized pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL) for the rodent cervical spinal cord and demonstrate its utility in identifying perfusion deficits in an acute contusion injury model. High-resolution perfusion sagittal images with reduced imaging artifacts were obtained with optimized background suppression and imaging readout. Following moderate contusion injury, perfusion was clearly and reliably decreased at the site of injury. Implementation of time-encoded pCASL confirmed injury site perfusion deficits with blood flow measurements corrected for variability in arterial transit times. The noninvasive protocol of pCASL in the spinal cord can be utilized in future applications to examine perfusion changes after therapeutic interventions in the rat and translation to patients may offer critical implications for patient management.Neuro Imaging Researc

Nonthermal atmospheric pressure plasma enhances mouse limb bud survival, growth, and elongation.

The enhanced differentiation of mesenchymal cells into chondrocytes or osteoblasts is of paramount importance in tissue engineering and regenerative therapies. A newly emerging body of evidence demonstrates that appendage regeneration is dependent on reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and signaling. Thus, we hypothesized that mesenchymal cell stimulation by nonthermal (NT)-plasma, which produces and induces ROS, would (1) promote skeletal cell differentiation and (2) limb autopod development. Stimulation with a single treatment of NT-plasma enhanced survival, growth, and elongation of mouse limb autopods in an in vitro organ culture system. Noticeable changes included enhanced development of digit length and definition of digit separation. These changes were coordinated with enhanced Wnt signaling in the distal apical epidermal ridge (AER) and presumptive joint regions. Autopod development continued to advance for approximately 144 h in culture, seemingly overcoming the negative culture environment usually observed in this in vitro system. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis confirmed the up-regulation of chondrogenic transcripts. Mechanistically, NT-plasma increased the number of ROS positive cells in the dorsal epithelium, mesenchyme, and the distal tip of each phalange behind the AER, determined using dihydrorhodamine. The importance of ROS production/signaling during development was further demonstrated by the stunting of digital outgrowth when anti-oxidants were applied. Results of this study show NT-plasma initiated and amplified ROS intracellular signaling to enhance development of the autopod. Parallels between development and regeneration suggest that the potential use of NT-plasma could extend to both tissue engineering and clinical applications to enhance fracture healing, trauma repair, and bone fusion

Diffusion Tensor Imaging and Tractography in Brown-Sequard Syndrome

This report illustrates the utility of DTI and DTT in delineating regions of cord injury in two patients with traumatic Brown-Sequard syndrome. Our results indicate that DTI provides clinically relevant information that supplements conventional MR imaging for patients with acute SCI