A mixed methods evaluation of an individualised yoga therapy intervention for rheumatoid arthritis: Pilot study

Objectives: to explore patients’ experiences of an individualised yoga therapy intervention for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), specifically in terms of its acceptability and impact on patient-reported outcomes. Design: Ten patients took part in a 16 week yoga therapy intervention in a hospital setting, consisting of 10 one-to-one consultations with a yoga therapist followed by two group review sessions. Changes in health (EQ-5D, HADS) were assessed pre- and post-intervention and at 12-month follow-up. In-depth interviews were conducted post-intervention and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Attendance of the 1-to-1 sessions was high (98%) and all participants reported strong commitment to their personalised home practice. There were significant improvements in measures of depression, anxiety, pain, quality of life and general health at post-intervention and 12-months (p<0.05). In interviews, all but one participant reported positive changes to their symptoms and several reported reductions in their medication and broader benefits such as improved sleep, mood and energy, enabling re-engagement with life. The personally tailored nature of the practice and perceived benefits were key motivational factors. Particular value was placed on the therapeutic function of the consultation and provision of tools to manage stress and build resilience. Conclusion: This yoga therapy intervention was positively received by patients with RA, with high levels of adherence to both the treatments and tailored home practice. The findings suggest that yoga therapy has potential as an adjunct therapy to improve RA symptoms, increase self-care behaviours and manage stress and negative affect such as anxiety. A larger multi-centre study is therefore warranted

Characterizing the feedback that learning assistants give to faculty

Learning assistants are undergraduate peer educators that help facilitate learning in a university classroom environment. Jardine (2019) found that learning assistant feedback to faculty roughly fell into three categories: course logistics, student behavior, and student understanding. We built from this previous work by further characterizing the feedback given to faculty by learning assistants and found the following categories: student experience, classroom content, classroom structure, accessibility, empathy, and broad feedback. Using interview data with learning assistants and faculty working with learning assistants, we created a preliminary framework for the types of feedback and examples by learning assistants. This framework may be useful for both learning assistants and faculty members as they provide and elicit feedback

Pengaruh Kepemimpinan dan Kompensasi Finansial terhadap Kepuasan Kerja dan Kinerja Karyawan Ubud Aura Accomodation di Ubud, Gianyar

Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah 1) Menganalisis pengaruh langsung kepemimpinan dan kompensasi terhadap kepuasan kerja, 2) Menganalisis pengaruh tidak langsung kepemimpinan dan kompensasi terhadap kinerja melalui kepuasan kerja, dan 3) Menganalisis pengaruh langsung kepuasan kerja terhadap kinerja karyawan. Penelitian ini dilakukan di Ubud Aura Accomodation yang berlokasi di Ubud, Gianyar - Bali. Responden dalam penelitian adalah seluruh karyawan yang berjumlah 52 orang. Pengumpulan data menggunakan metode observasi, wawancara dan kuisioner. Teknik analisis data menggunakan analisis jalur (path analysis). Hasil penelitian membuktikan pengaruh positif dan signifikan secara langsung kepemimpinan dan kompensasi terhadap kepuasan kerja karyawan yang berarti semakin baik kepemimpinan dan semakin sesuai kompensasi yang diberikan Perusahaan maka semakin tinggi tingkat kepuasan kerja. Penelitian ini menunjukan terdapat pengaruh tidak langsung kepemimpinan dan kompensasi terhadap kinerja melalui kepuasan kerja dan kepuasan kerja berpengaruh terhadap kinerja. Hasil penelitian ini menggambarkan bahwa kinerja karyawan akan menjadi lebih baik ketika kepuasan kerja karyawan dapat ditingkatkan. Dari hasil penelitian ini pihak Perusahaan penting untuk lebih memperhatikan aspek kepemimpinan terutama dalam hal komunikasi dengan karyawan dan menciptakan lingkungan kerja yang dapat membuat karyawan merasa nyaman. Pemberian kompensasi finansial dalam bentuk gaji perlu disesuaikan dengan beban karyawan dan kepuasan kerja akan meningkat dan kinerja karyawan juga akan meningkat

Myths and taboos in dentistry

Background: India, a developing country, faces many challenges in rendering health needs to its countrymen. The influence of culture is seen in every discipline of health and medical practices, and dentistry is no exception. This study was performed to investigate the existence of myths and taboos in dentistry, to assess the variation of these myths across various demographic aspects and socio-economic status, to co-relate the existence of myths with the oral health of the subject and to impart education to the people regarding abolishing the myth as that will be a hindrance towards a healthy life in patients.  Methods: The study had a cross-sectional design, used a structured questionnaire and was conducted to assess the existence of dental myths and taboos and to determine its correlation with the OHIS index of the patients. Statistical analysis software SPSS V 16.0 was used. Descriptive &amp; inferential statistical analysis was performed on categorical and continuous data. Chi-square, independent sample T tests and ANOVA test were used to compare the distribution of caries and OHI-S between different groups. P value less than 0.05 (p&lt;0.05) was considered to be significant. Socioeconomic status was also calculated.Results: In the present study it was found that the there was almost an equal distribution of prevalence of myths in the educated as well as uneducated patients .Also the ratio of existence of myths was found higher in females as compared to males.Conclusions: Existence of myths and taboos regarding dental health has started decreasing among the urban population due to the widespread of awareness regarding dentistry.But still there is prevalence of some myths in the patients having primary education as compared to patients having secondary and tertiary education. If community is educated about proper prevention and cure, the myths relating dental concepts will vanish from the society and over all dental health status of the community will improve

Medical management of primary open-angle glaucoma: Best practices associated with enhanced patient compliance and persistency

Primary open angle glaucoma is a chronic optic neuropathy often requiring lifelong treatment. Patient compliance, adherence and persistence with therapy play a vital role in improved outcomes by reducing morbidity and the economic consequences that are associated with disease progression. A literature review including searches of The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, PubMed, conference proceedings, and bibliographies of identified articles reveals the enormous public health burden in various populations due to the impact of glaucoma associated visual impairment on the overall quality of life eg, fear of blindness, inability to work in certain occupations, driving restrictions, motor vehicle accidents, falls, and general health status. Providing specific definitions for the frequently misunderstood terms “compliance, persistence and adherence” with reference to medication use is central not only for monitoring patients’ drug dosing histories and clinical outcomes but also for subsequent research. In this review article, a summary of the advantages/disadvantages including cost-effectiveness of various medical approaches to glaucoma treatment, techniques employed for measuring patient compliance and actual patient preferences for therapy are outlined. We conclude by identifying the key barriers to ongoing treatment and suggest some best practices to enhance compliance and persistence

The effect of 0.25% levobupivacaine and 0.25% ropivacaine in fascia iliaca block in elderly patients with fracture femur given before positioning for subarachnoid block

Background: Positioning of elderly patients with fracture femur for subarachnoid block (SAB) is a challenging task, both for the patient and anesthesiologist. Severe pain not only adds to the morbidity but also alters the success rate of SAB as appropriate positioning becomes difficult. Fascia iliaca compartment block (FICB) is a simple, rapid, effective and safe method for achieving excellent pain relief. The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of 0 .25% of levobupivacaine and 0.25% ropivacaine in FICB on reducing preoperative and postoperative pain and analgesic consumption in lower limb surgery.Methods: 60 elderly patients of ASA class I-III scheduled for elective fracture femur surgery were enrolled in the study and randomly divided into two groups. Group L received 30ml 0.25% levobupivacaine in FICB while Group R received 0.25% ropivacaine in FICB 15min before SAB. Parameters recorded were blood pressure, heart rate, visual analogous scale (VAS), quality of positioning and time to first rescue analgesia. VAS was noted before and after performing FICB and at the time of positioning for subarachnoid block (SAB).Results: The VAS score at different time interval and time to first rescue analgesia were comparable (P >0.05). Quality of positioning was also similar in both the groups (P >0.05).Conclusions: The study demonstrates that levobupivacaine and ropivacaine produce comparable preoperative and postoperative analgesia when used for FICB

A case of ovarian fibroma masquerading as a uterine fibroid

A case of a 37-year old patient who presented with a pelvic mass, recurrent urinary tract infection, urinary hesitancy and elevated serum CA-125 levels. A diagnosis of a large, posterior wall uterine fibroid was made on the basis of clinical examination and radiological imaging and abdominal myomectomy was planned. Intraoperative findings were a large left ovarian mass and multiple small uterine fibroids. The ovarian mass was removed and its histopathological examination findings were suggestive of an ovarian fibroma. This article highlights the unique clinical and radiological presentation of an adnexal mass as a fibroid and the non-specificity of CA-125 as a marker of ovarian malignancy

An update work of pulse oximetry screening for detecting critical congenital heart disease in the newborn

Background: Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is the commonest group of congenital malformations and affects 7-8 per 1000 live born newborns. Nevertheless, it is estimated that more than 50% of babies with undiagnosed CHD are not detected by routine neonatal cardiac examination. Aim: To find the incidence of CHD in newborns and to determine the accuracy of pulse oximetry for detecting clinically unrecognized critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) in the newborns. Methods: Pulse oximetry was performed on clinically normal newborns within 4 hours of first day of life. Inclusion criteria: All newborns who were admitted in postnatal ward & Neonatal Intensive care unit (NICU). Exclusion criteria: babies and neonates with a prenatal diagnosis of duct dependent circulation. If oxygen saturation (SpO2) was below 90%, then echocardiography was performed. Results: During the study period, 4926 live born neonates were examined. Nine out of 12 neonates with SpO2<90% had CCHD. Four neonates had tetralogy of Fallot (TOF), two had tricuspid atresia, two had transposition of great arteries (TGA) and one had truncus arteriosus. The incidence of CHD was 33.49 per 1000 live births and CCHD was 1.82 per 1000. A pulse oximetry cut-off value of below 90% for detecting CCHD showed 90% sensitivity, 99.94% specificity, 75% positive predictive value (PPV) and 99.98% negative predictive value (NPV). Conclusion: Pulse oximetry is safe, feasible and noninvasive and also used to screen for CCHD. It is the nice method to detect the CHD along with the physical examination of neonates by medical personal.peer-reviewe

Toll-Like Receptors and Cytokines as Surrogate Biomarkers for Evaluating Vaginal Immune Response following Microbicide Administration

Topical microbicides are intended for frequent use by women in reproductive age. Hence, it is essential to evaluate their impact on mucosal immune function in the vagina. In the present study, we evaluated nisin, a naturally occurring antimicrobial peptide (AMP), for its efficacy as an intravaginal microbicide. Its effect on the vaginal immune function was determined by localizing Toll-like receptors (TLRs-3, 9) and cytokines (IL-4, 6 , 10 and TNF-α) in the rabbit cervicovaginal epithelium following intravaginal administration of high dose of nisin gel for 14 consecutive days. The results revealed no alteration in the expression of TLRs and cytokines at both protein and mRNA levels. However, in SDS gel-treated group, the levels were significantly upregulated with the induction of NF-κB signalling cascade. Thus, TLRs and cytokines appear as sensitive indicators for screening immunotoxic potential of candidate microbicides

An Observational Study of Sthaulya Inconcern with Obesity

Obesity, as considered, is the most common nutritional based disorder in all affluent societies. WHO 2010 report, considering the same, worldwide obesity seem too had doubled since 1980. 65% of the world's population lives in countries where overweight &amp; obesity both does kill more people although being underweight. So obesity is gaining absolutely more attention at the global zone. That seems to be the reason for which many countries are absolutely making an effort to find perfect remedy for this ascending problem. The incidence of Diabetes mellitus, hypertension, angina pectoris and myocardial infarction. Etc. is with the raising source among obese individuals. Commonly, it seems that the obesity is due to excessive eating and lack of adequate exercise. Hence this topic is selected for research. Objectives: This study is conducted with the objectives to evaluate that, how the lifestyle modification does affect overweight and obesity both. Material and Methods: An attempt has been made in the present study that the 30 patients of Sthaulya have been selected between the age group 18 years to 50 years. Observations were well noted. Data collected from the patients was tabulated under following two sections, General observations like age, sex, marital status, diet and lifestyle etc. Results: Statistical analysis was thorough resulting the illustrations alike; if people do habituate with the following type of lifestyle, but obviously, they may obese themselves, in case of Mind related causative factors. There are majority of the patients alike 80% were habituated with Happiness and only 20% were carrying lack of stress. Hence, we had mentioned that if in case the people are habituated with the same i.e., happiness, but obviously they will turn up obese. Conclusion: Sthaulya is the main over nutritive disorder which further causes other complications if not cured properly