Dietary Inadequacy of Micronutrients in Adolescent Girls of Urban Varanasi: Call for Action

Background: Adolescent girls are vulnerable to dietary inadequacy in general and micronutrients (viz, Iron, Calcium, Vitamin A and C etc) inadequacy in particular due to variety of reasons including their own food preferences. Lack of protective foods in their diet can have serious consequences.Objective: To assess dietary inadequacy of micronutrients in urban adolescent girls and to pinpoint their correlates.Methodology: A community based cross sectional study was undertaken on 400 adolescent girls (10-19 years) of urban Varanasi, selected by adopting multistage sampling technique. Their socio-demographic and personal characteristics were obtained by interviewing parents or other responsible family member. Dietary intake of subjects was assessed by 24 hours recall oral questionnaire method and their micronutrients intake was computed by using nutritive value of Indian foods.Result: In case of 72.8%, 71.2%, 88.2% and 6.2% subjects calcium, iron, Vitamin A and Vitamin C intakes were <50% of Recommended Dietary Allowances. Taking 10-14 years as reference risk of less iron intake was more (AOR; 3.66 CI: 1.30-10.30) in subjects aged 18-19 years. When Scheduled Caste was taken as reference category, risk of less iron intake was more in subjects from other caste category (AOR; 2.91, CI: 1.07-7.91). In comparison to subjects having sibling <4 risk of less calcium intake was more (AOR; 4.37 CI: 1.10-17.39) in subjects having sibling >7.With reference to vegetarians, odds of less vitamin C intake was more in nonvegetarian (AOR=2.01: CI-1.10-3.65) and eggitarian (AOR=2.53: CI-1.03-6.19).Conclusion: Micronutrients deficiency in urban adolescents is quiet predominant and calls for community based interventions to streamline micronutrients supplementation and therapeutic strategies

The Power of Women’s Global Health: A Comparison of Reproductive Multipurpose Prevention Technologies

Despite major progress in family planning and contraception, there are still many barriers to improving reproductive health including access to care and clinics, risks of HIV and STI, male-dominated cultures, and the burden of cost. The DIAL 3D Ring project serves to study the development of a 3D printed multi-purpose intravaginal ring with contraceptive and HIV/STI prevention purposes, in coordination with the UNC NCSU Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, UNC School of Medicine, and UNC Gillings School of Public Health. As a sophomore, I joined the DIAL 3D women's health study as a qualitative researcher and after working on this project throughout undergraduate career, I have realized the true power of women's global health. This thesis research question explores how the DIAL 3D technology we are developing serves to globally progress women’s health in comparison to other multi-purpose prevention technologies as seen in international intravaginal ring (IVR) acceptability studies. To truly advance women’s health, women must be in control of their own decisions regarding their bodies. In the last three years of studying qualitative data on women’s preferences for intravaginal rings, we aimed to understand how a multitude of factors could affect women’s acceptance of the ring. With data from qualitative focus groups and discussions, our team was able to provide concrete feedback for the engineering team throughout the DIAL 3D ring development stage. Our results provided us with strong data in terms of users’ likely uptake adherence for different features of the physical ring. To fully answer my research question, the data analysis completed in this thesis not only focused on whether or not women would want to use the ring, but what features made them feel most excited and empowered to use it since that is ultimately what will progress women’s health. By looking at size, texture and flexibility, hygiene and cleanliness, color, and ring functionality, I found that results from DIAL 3D are very consistent with the findings of other IVR studies in terms of acceptability, providing great potential for the DIAL 3D ring to help women feel protected and excited about their birth control technology.Bachelor of Art

Influence of Solvent Composition on the Performance of Spray-Dried Co-Amorphous Formulations

Ball-milling is usually used to prepare co-amorphous drug–amino acid (AA) mixtures. In this study, co-amorphous drug–AA mixtures were produced using spray-drying, a scalable industrially preferred preparation method. The influence of the solvent type and solvent composition was investigated. Mixtures of indomethacin (IND) and each of the three AAs arginine, histidine, and lysine were ball-milled and spray-dried at a 1:1 molar ratio, respectively. Spray-drying was performed at different solvent ratios in (a) ethanol and water mixtures and (b) acetone and water mixtures. Different ratios of these solvents were chosen to study the effect of solvent mixtures on co-amorphous formulation. Residual crystallinity, thermal properties, salt/partial salt formation, and powder dissolution profiles of the IND–AA mixtures were investigated and compared to pure crystalline and amorphous IND. It was found that using spray-drying as a preparation method, all IND–AA mixtures could be successfully converted into the respective co-amorphous forms, irrespective of the type of solvent used, but depending on the solvent mixture ratios. Both ball-milled and spray-dried co-amorphous samples showed an enhanced dissolution rate and maintained supersaturation compared to the crystalline and amorphous IND itself. The spray-dried samples resulting in co-amorphous samples were stable for at least seven months of storage

Gynaecological Cancers in India: The Less Heard Perspectives of Healthcare Providers

There has been mounting evidence on the role of healthcare providers in chronic illnesses such as cancer. The specific complexities in their roles to enable health are less heard. Gynaecological cancers have several undercurrents beyond the obvious. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with healthcare providers in Southern India (n = 35) and the data presented in this article were collected as a part of a larger study on the role of communication in the management of gynaecological cancers in India. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data provided information on the providers’ perspectives of gynaecological cancers. Patient numbers, cost, time, cultural norms, context, and institutional constraints in cancer care provision are just some of the factors impacting care provision. Healthcare providers are typically acknowledged for the criticality of their roles in the continuum of care. However, our research suggests that the psychological harm and challenges they themselves may face in providing that care are severely neglected. Through listening to healthcare provider voices, clear solutions emerge to better support the practice of those who are responsible for cancer care

Screening of traditionally used medicinal plants for their antimicrobial efficacy against oral pathogens and GC-MS analysis of <em>Acacia nilotica </em>extract

162-168Oral diseases are one of the major public health issues. Due to acquisition of pathogenic resistance over conventional antimicrobials, the search for natural alternatives continues. In the present study, thirty two methanol and ethyl acetate extracts prepared from 14 different plant species were screened against oral pathogens. Principal Component Analysis indicated that methanol extract of Acacia nilotica twig was the most influential with highest F1 score and showed almost 2 fold higher antimicrobial activity in comparison to others. GC-MS analysis of Acacia nilotica twig revealed the presence of various bioactive such as limonene, stigmasterol, linoleic acid, ricinoleic acid, santalol, undecylenic acid. Evaluation of antimicrobial potential of medicinal plants may thrive a safe, inexpensive and efficient therapeutic in developing formulation for oral care products

Note on occurrence of Lutke’s halfbeak Hemiramphus lutkei Valenciennes, 1847 (Beloniformes: Hemiramphidae), along Odisha Coast

The paper reports occurrence of Lutke’s halfbeak Hemiramphus lutkei Valenciennes, 1847, for the first time from the coastal waters of Odisha coast, India. This report confirms the occurrence of this species form an extended geographical range along the east coast of India and will be helpful in further study of its biology, zoogeography and taxonomic status of the family Hemiramphidae

Pancytopenia and transient synovitis of hip joint in a SARS CoV-2 positive pregnant female: a case report

Pregnant women are at an increased risk for severe COVID-19 illness. Apart from the typical clinical manifestations, atypical presenting features of COVID-19 are also being found. We report the case of a 20 years old COVID positive antenatal patient with pancytopenia. The patient presented with scar tenderness and was taken up for emergency caesarean section at a platelet count of 5860 per microlitre. She was managed with intraoperative and postoperative transfusion of blood products. She developed chronic persistent hip pain and was diagnosed to have transient synovitis of the hip joint, which was managed conservatively. COVID-19 is a new disease with evolving clinical presentation. Pancytopenia and synovitis of hip are a rare manifestation of COVID-19 and has never been reported in a pregnant woman with COVID-19

Minimally invasive management of pyoperitoneum attributed by spontaneous perforated pyosalpinx and pyometra

Pyoperitoneum, apart from bowel perforation, can occur due to gynecologic causes like ruptured pyometra or ruptured tubo-ovarian abscess. Earlier, the management of pyoperitoneum included broad-spectrum antibiotics and emergency laparotomy with or without a hysterectomy and bilateral saphingo-oophorectomy. A higher rate of surgical complications like bowel or bladder injury was noted with surgery, and future fertility was also compromised in these patients. Later on, treatment strategies improved to laparoscopic drainage of pus with antibiotics without extensive surgery. However, such cases can be managed with an even more minimally invasive approach by image-guided pigtail drainage. In this report, we describe two cases of pyoperitoneum that were managed successfully with pigtail insertion and continuous drainage of pus along with antibiotics obviating the need for anaesthesia and surgery. It seems to be a promising approach for pyoperitoneum in a hemodynamically stable patient, not showing any features of severe sepsis

Screening of antimicrobial efficacy of traditionally used Indian plants against microorganisms associated with dandruff

Dandruff is a clinical condition affecting the scalp causing itching and relapsing inflammation. Staphylococcus epidermidis, Propionibacterium acne and Malassezia furfur pathogens are found more and less respectively in the scalps of dandruff subjects. In the present study, a total of 32 plant extracts were screened for their anti-dandruff activity by agar well diffusion method. Among the selected plant extracts of methanol and ethyl acetate, 25 showed significant activity while 7 extracts have not showed activity at a particular concentration. Among all the extracts ethylacetate extract of Cinnamomum zeylanicum and Glycyrrhiza glabra showed very high activity i.e. 18-20 mm while methanolic extract of Punica granatum and Syzygium aromaticum showed moderate activity against all the three pathogens. Thus the active plant extracts can be a potential source for the formulation of natural anti-dandruff agents

Some Majorization Integral Inequalities for Functions Defined on Rectangles Via Strong Convexity

In this paper, we have extended some integral majorization types and generalized Favard’s inequalities from functions defined on intervals to functions defined on rectangles via strong convexity and apply the results to establish some new integral inequalities for functions defined on rectangles