Comparison of Frequency of Hypothermia in Preterm and Low Birth Weight Infant Managed with Plastic Bag Versus Conventional Method

Objective: To compare the frequency of hypothermia in preterm and low birth weight infant managed with plastic bag VS conventional method Study Design: Randomized Control Trial with Consecutive Non probability sampling. Place and Duration of Study: Neonatal unit of Sheikh Zayed Hospital. From October 2014 to November 2016 Methodology: A total of 200 (100 in each group) preterm Neonates gestational age <37 completed weeks, having birth weight <2.5kg of male and female babies were included, informed consent from parents/attendants were taken. Quantitative variables like gestational age, birth weight and temperature was presented by mean and standard deviation, qualitative variables like gender and presence of hypothermia was presented by frequency and percentage in both groups.  Results: In our study, mean gestational age of the mothers was recorded as 33.54+1.76 weeks in Group-A and 33.46+1.82 weeks in Group-B. 54%(n=54) in Group-A and 47%(n=47) were male while 46%(n=46) in Group-A and 53%(n=53) in Group-B were females, in a Group B by conventional method hypothermia was recorded as 69% (n=69) Group-A 45%(n=45). While remaining 31%(n=31) in GroupA and 55%(n=55) in Group-B had no findings of the morbidity, p value was calculated as 0.000 showing a significant result in favor of plastic bag method.  Conclusion: We concluded that by using plastic bags we reduced the frequency of hypothermia in preterm and low birth weight infant managed with plastic bag is significantly reduced when compared with conventional method. However, our data is primary in our population and needs some other studies for its validation

The dynamics of child poverty in Britain: Trends, transition and trajectories. An analysis of the BHPS (1991-2002).

The context for the thesis is the Government's ambitious target to eradicate child poverty by 2020 with interim targets to reduce it by a quarter by 2004/05 and to halve it by 2010/11 compared with its level in 1998/99. This remarkable pledge, with its implication of long-term commitment, is based on static headcount indicators, which measure the proportion of poor children in the population in a given year. These take no account of whether the same children experience poverty over a number of years or escape this condition. Furthermore, this pledge has not been matched by a sustained interrogation into the longitudinal nature of child poverty, which considers time in the mediation of poverty. While research on cross-sectional trends in child poverty and the associated risk factors is well established, there has been a dearth of research into the dynamic aspects of child poverty. Investigating the dynamic aspects of poverty is important since the longer the time a child spends in poverty, the more serious are the consequences to the quality of childhood, future outcomes across the life-course, and to society as a whole. The primary objective of this thesis is to explore the heterogeneity of child poverty experiences using twelve annual waves of the British Household Panel Study (1991-2002). Poverty is explored across three distinct time dimensions, namely, cross-sectional trends, short-term transitions between two consecutive years, and longer-term trajectories over the entire twelve year period. Low income is used as a proxy for poverty, with poverty defined as living in a household where income is below 60 per cent of the median adjusted for household size. As the poverty line is essentially arbitrary, the sensitivity of the findings are tested at different thresholds. Children are systematically compared with the overall population in order to assess similarities, differences, and progress over time

Tactile-like corpuscles in gastric mucosa: a case report

BACKGROUND: The presence of tactile corpuscle-like structures in Schwannomas, Neurofibromas and Neuroid Intradermal Melanocytic Nevi is well-documented. We report a case describing the presence of such structures in the lamina propria of grossly normal gastric mucosa. CASE PRESENTATION: A 30 year-old male underwent esophagogastrectomy for carcinoma. Examination of hematoxylin and eosin stained sections reveal tactile corpuscle-like structures in the mucosa adjacent to the main tumor mass. CONCLUSION: This is a rare phenomenon and a literature search revealed only one paper describing such structures in the benign colonic mucosa of a colectomy done for carcinoma. We did not come across any cases in the literature describing such structures in gastrointestinal specimen resected for reasons other than carcinoma. To our knowledge this would be the first case reporting the existence of tactile corpuscles-like structures in gastric mucosa

An Insight into Different Strategies for Control and Prophylaxis of Fasciolosis: A Review

Fasciolosis is one of the important diseases of livestock and has zoonotic importance. Fasciolosis can cause huge economic losses due to decrease in milk and meat production, decreased feed conversion ratio, and cost of treatment. Treatment and prophylaxis strategies for Fasciola infection are formed based on epidemiological data. The control of Fasciola infection can be attained by treating the animals with active anthelmintics. The use of different combinations of anthelmintics with a possible rotation is more effective against immature as well as adult flukes. Control of the intermediate host (snail) is vital for the reduction of fasciolosis. Due to the rapid growth of snails, the eradication is quite difficult in waterlogged and marshy areas. The use of different grazing methods and treatment of grazing areas can also help to control fasciolosis. A variety of antigens generated by Fasciola spp. have been shown to protect against liver fluke infection. The crude antigens, excretory/secretory, and refined antigens and their combination can be used as prophylactic treatment for the control of fasciolosis. The use of any of the single or combination of these methods can be very effective for the control of fasciolosis

IN ADULT POPULATION OF LAHORE THE PREVALENCE OF DIABETES MELLITUS AND IMPAIRED GLUCOSE TOLERENCE TEST

Objective: The purpose of this analysis was to evaluate the prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance test (IGT) and diabetes in the population of Lahore using a (FPPPG) flexible postprandial plasma glucose test as a screening test. Study design: A cross-sectional study. Place and duration: In the Endocrinology department of Services Hospital Lahore for one year duration from March 2018 to March 2019. Methodology: 938 subjects were selected randomly; 406 of them were male, 532 were female. All were analyzed with FPPPG test by sampling time from 30 to 120 minutes after breakfast / snack / lunch. Results: Of the 406 men, (81%) 329 were normal, diabetic were 36 (8.87%) and IGT in 41 (10.1%) in the, and of the 532 women 329 were found normal, 66 (12.4%) had diabetes and (13.72%)73 had deteriorated glucose tolerance test. Conclusion: The overall diabetes mellitus prevalence for the population of Lahore was 10.87% and IGT in 12.15%. Key words: Diabetes mellitus, Prevalence, FPPPG, IGT

Free l-glutamate-induced modulation in oxidative and neurochemical profile contributes to enhancement in locomotor and memory performance in male rats

Glutamate (Glu), the key excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, is considered essential for brain functioning and has a vital role in learning and memory formation. Earlier it was considered as a harmful agent but later found to be useful for many body functions. However, studies regarding the effects of free L-Glu administration on CNS function are limited. Therefore, current experiment is aimed to monitor the neurobiological effects of free L-Glu in male rats. L-Glu was orally administered to rats for 5-weeks and changes in behavioral performance were monitored. Thereafter, brain and hippocampus were collected for oxidative and neurochemical analysis. Results showed that chronic supplementation of free L-Glu enhanced locomotor performance and cognitive function of animals which may be attributed to the improved antioxidant status and cholinergic, monoaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission in brain and hippocampus. Current results showed that chronic supplementation of L-Glu affects the animal behaviour and brain functioning via improving the neurochemical and redox system of brain. Free L-Glu could be a useful therapeutic agent to combat neurological disturbances however this requires further targeted studies

Examining Relationship between Electricity Consumption and its Major Determinants in Pakistan

The objective of the study is to examine the relationship between electricity consumption and its major determinants; particularly economic growth, number of electricity customers, electricity prices and electricity shortages in Pakistan using time series data from 1972 to 2012. The study employed the Johansen cointegration test to examine relationship between electricity consumption and its determinants. Multivariate granger causality test is then applied to determine the causality direction between electricity consumption and its major determinants. The results reveal that determinants of electricity consumption function are cointegrated and economic growth, number of electricity customers are positively related to electricity consumption, while electricity price and electricity shortages are negatively related to electricity consumption in Pakistan. However, bidirectional causality found between electricity consumption, economic growth and electricity customers except electricity prices which is exogenous determined. The short run, long run elasticities and multivariate granger causality results implies that at different time frame there is need to implement different policies for Pakistan. There is need to revise electricity pricing policy and find alternative renewable sources to generate low cost electricity and  further need to enhance energy management expertise to cope with crises in an efficient way. Keywords:  Electricity consumption; Economic growth; Electricity customers; Pakistan JEL Classifications: Q4; Q4

Evaluation of multiple data sources for predicting increased need for HIV prevention among cisgender women: Understanding missed opportunities for Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP)

Background: Ciswomen constitute a disproportionately low percentage of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention (PrEP) users compared to men. Despite PrEP’s effectiveness, women are 5.25 times less likely to take PrEP than men. Identifying women who have increased reasons for HIV prevention and educating and offering PrEP to these women is crucial to reducing HIV transmission and overall health equity. However, the best method of identifying women at highest risk of acquiring HIV remains unknown. This study aimed to identify common HIV risk factors and data sources for identifying these common factors (e.g., electronic medical record data, open source neighborhood data), as well as potential intervention points and missed opportunities for PrEP linkage. Methods: We conducted an evaluation of multiple data sources: semi-structured qualitative interviews, electronic medical record (EMR) chart abstraction, and open source data abstraction. We accessed EMRs for enrolled participants and all participants signed a standard release of medical information (ROI) form for all institutions at which they had received medical care for the five-year period preceding their HIV diagnosis. Data were abstracted using a standardized procedure. Both structured and unstructured fields (i.e., narrative text of free notes) within the EMR were examined and included for analysis. Finally, open data sources (e.g., STI cases, HIV prevalence) were examined by community area of Chicago. Open data sources were used to examine several factors contributing to the overall Economic Hardship Index (EHI) score. We used these calculated scores to assess the economic hardship within participants’ neighborhoods. Results: A total of 18 cisgender women with HIV participated in our study. Participants were mostly Black/African American (55.6%) and young (median age of 34). Our analysis identified two main themes influencing HIV risk among participants: contextual factors and relationship factors. Further, potential pre-diagnosis intervention points and missed opportunities were identified during reproductive health/prenatal visits, behavioral/mental health visits, and routine STI testing. Our evaluation of multiple data sources included investigating the presence or absence of information in the EMR (STI history, HIV testing, substance use, etc.) as well as whether pertinent information could be gathered from open access sources. Conclusion: Ciswomen recently diagnosed with HIV identified many shared experiences, including syndemic conditions like mental illness and substance abuse, sex with men who have sex with men, and frequent moving in areas with high HIV incidence prior to their diagnosis. It is imperative that providers ask patients about social history, information about partners, and other key variables, in addition to the standardized questions. Findings can be used to better recognize ciswomen most vulnerable to HIV and offer PrEP to them, reducing HIV transmission.</p