Frequency of Firearm Injuries, Deaths and Related Factors in Kanpur, India; an Original Study with Review of Literature

Background:Studies on fatal firearm injuries have been published in various countries. However, their pattern and incidence in various regions of India has largely gone unreported. Methods: Present study was conducted to evaluate fatal firearm injuries, their pattern, associated factors, cause of deathand postmortem findings among their victims referred to the mortuary of Kanpur medical college and comparing it with the pattern seen in other countries. Results:Sixty six firearm fatalities autopsied during the August 2008 to July 2010 were studied. 92% were victims of homicidal attacks, 2% suicidal and 2% accidental. In 4% deaths motive could not be ascertained. Conclusion:This is in sharp contrast to the pattern seen in other countries where suicides were the predominant group. In maximum cases, illegal country made firearms was involved with the norm of single firing. Abdomen (39%) and head (30.30%) were the two most common entry sites for the bullets, a pattern somewhat similar to that of other countries. Survival time, cause of death and motives of incidence were also studied. 

Urinary brush border enzymes for early diagnosis of tubular dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background: Diabetic nephropathy is a major cause of premature morbidity and mortality in type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and hence new markers with better sensitivities are being investigated. The study was taken up to investigate whether urinary activities of N-acetyl-β-D-glycosaminidase (NAG), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lactate dehydrogenase LDH) and Gamma glutamyl transferase (γ-GT) can be used as screening markers of renal dysfunction in patients suffering from T2DM.Methods: One hundred and four patients with T2DM along with 30 age- and gender-matched healthy individuals were included in the study. Patients were divided into three groups based on their u-MA levels i.e. normoalbuminuric (group1), micro albuminuric (group 2) and macroalbuminuric (group 3).Results: Urinary enzymes activity was significantly higher in patients with T2DM compared to controls (p<0.05). NAG, ALP, LDH, and GGT were significantly higher in group 3 compared to group1 and group 2 (p<0.0001). NAG, ALP, LDH and GGT showed significant positive correlation with MA (p=0.0001, r=0.308; p=0.0001, r=0.369; p=0.002, r=0.304, p=0.044, r=0.202 respectively). GGT and LDH showed highest sensitivity (86.21%, 84.00% respectively) and specificity (78.57%,53.49% respectively) for diagnosing renal dysfunction in patients with normoalbuminuria.Conclusions: The study suggests that u-GGT and LDH can be useful markers for assessing renal dysfunction in T2DM patients even before microalbuminuria manifests

Traditional Phytotherapy used in the Treatment of Malaria by Rural People of Bhopal, District of Madhya Pradesh, India

Malaria is caused by Plasmodium and transmitted through female Anopheles mosquito. The disease is common in rural areas. Although a number of synthetic medicines have been used for the treatment of malaria, but they have adverse effects and their high cost is beyond the reach of common people. It is, therefore, worthwhile to look towards antimalarial herbal drugs. Herbal drugs are cheaper, easily available and with no fear of any side effects. The present paper enumerates the herbs used in malaria by the rural people of Bhopal district of Madhya Pradesh, India

Thickness-dependent spontaneous dewetting morphology of ultrathin Ag films

We show here that the morphological pathway of spontaneous dewetting of ultrathin Ag films on SiO2 under nanosecond laser melting is found to be film thickness dependent. For films with thickness h between 2 <= h <= 9.5 nm, the morphology during the intermediate stages of dewetting consisted of bicontinuous structures. For films 11.5 <= h <= 20 nm, the intermediate stages consisted of regularly-sized holes. Measurement of the characteristic length scales for different stages of dewetting as a function of film thickness showed a systematic increase, which is consistent with the spinodal dewetting instability over the entire thickness range investigated. This change in morphology with thickness is consistent with observations made previously for polymer films [A. Sharma et al, Phys. Rev. Lett., v81, pp3463 (1998); R. Seemann et al, J. Phys. Cond. Matt., v13, pp4925, (2001)]. Based on the behavior of free energy curvature that incorporates intermolecular forces, we have estimated the morphological transition thickness for the intermolecular forces for Ag on SiO2 . The theory predictions agree well with observations for Ag. These results show that it is possible to form a variety of complex Ag nanomorphologies in a consistent manner, which could be useful in optical applications of Ag surfaces, such as in surface enhanced Raman sensing.Comment: 20 pages, 5 figure

Formulation and Evaluation of Polyherbal Anthelmintic Preparation

The present study was done with the aim to formulate an anthelmintic preparation and to evaluate anthelmintic activity of formulation containing traditionally user herbs viz., Plumbago zeylanica (leaves), Hyoscyamus niger (roots) and Abultion indicum (leaves) using adult earthworm Pheritima posthuma. The aqueous and ethanolic extract of the crude drug of different concentration were tested which involve determination of paralysis time and time to kill the worms. Piperazine citrate was used as standard and it was found that the PHFEE activity is higher than PHFAE

Age at Menarche and Menstrual Problems Among School‑Going Adolescent Girls of a North Indian District

Background: Menstruation and related problems are difficult issues for adolescent girls and are a common reason for consulting healthcare providers.Objectives: To study age at menarche and menstrual problems among school girls in Lucknow district of north India.Materials and Methods: A cross‑sectional study was carried out in urban as well as rural schools of Lucknow district from October 2008 to September 2009. Multistage random sampling was used to select the requisite number of girls. A total of 847 school‑going adolescent girls between 10 and 19 years of age were interviewed and examined. Statistical analyses were done using percentage and Chi‑square test. Results: Out of 847 adolescent girls, 76.7% (650) girls had attained menarche. The overall mean age at menarche was 12.84 (1.4) years. The age at menarche and duration of menstrual flow were significantly associated with place of schools. About one‑fourth of the girls in all the three age groups (10‑13, 14‑16 and 17‑19 years) had irregular menstrual cycle. Overall, 73.7% (479/650) girls had dysmenorrhea, with 74.3% (323/435) girls in urban schools and 72.6% (156/215) girls in rural schools. There was no significant association between reproductive tract illnesses and place of schools.Conclusion: Menstruation is an important milestone for adolescent girls and menstrual problems are common among adolescent girls. So, there is a need to explain everything correctly about menstruation. It was suggested that a strong need exists for strong health educational activities among the adolescent girls, their parents, and teachers for effective management of menstrual problems among all adolescent girls. Keywords: Adolescent girls, dysmenorrhea, Lucknow district, menstruatio

Current therapeutic status of corticosteroid in human immunodeficiency virus patients with tuberculous meningitis

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) poses risk for severe manifestation of TB. These may be in the form of pulmonary or extra pulmonary. According to the level of immunosupression there is risk of developing tuberculous meningitis (TBM). HIV alters pathogenesis, clinical features and prognosis throwing diagnostic and therapeutic challenges.

Boondh: The journey of a raindrop in the drylands

This book gives you glimpses of our work in 13 project sites and also features path breaking initiatives that were successfully implemented at other sites in India