Pattern of growth and utilization of abdominal fat bodies during larval development and metamorphosis in five South Indian anurans

The tadpoles of Rana tigrina, Rana cyanophlyctis, Rana curtipes, Polypedatus maculatus and Bufo melanostictus grew in size (mass and snout vent length of.SVL) progressively until metamorphic climax. The abdominal fat bodies first appeared in stages 25-30; and accumulation/utilization of fat during larval development and metamorphosis varied with the species. In B. melanostictus; fat bodies were barely seen. In laboratory-reared R. curtipes, body weight and fat body mass were better developed than in the wild caught. The amount of fat deposition was related to the duration of metamorphosis in the various species studied. The findings thus show that the size of fat bodies in the larval anurans is correlated with the body mass, SVL as well as duration of metamorphosis

Unmasking of tracheomalacia following short-term mechanical ventilation in a patient of adult respiratory distress syndrome

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are susceptible to airway malacia, which may be unmasked following mechanical ventilation or tracheostomy decannulation. Dynamic imaging of central airways, a non-invasive test as effective as bronchoscopy to diagnose airway malacia, has increased the recognition of this disorder. We describe a 70-year-old woman admitted with adult respiratory distress syndrome. She had cardiorespiratory arrest on admission, from which she was successfully resuscitated. She had obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, recurrent ventricular tachycardia, sarcoidosis with interstitial lung disease and COPD. She received short-term (18 days) mechanical ventilation with tracheostomy and developed respiratory distress following tracheostomy decannulation