Clinico-Microbiological Profile and Treatment Outcome of Infectious Scleritis: Experience from a Tertiary Eye Care Center of India

Medical and microbiology records of seventeen patients (17 eyes), diagnosed as scleritis of infectious origin were reviewed; to study clinical features, predisposing risk factors, microbiologic profile and treatment outcome of infectious scleritis. The mean patient age was 52.3 ± 19.75 years. Twelve patients (70.6%) had history of trauma/prior surgery. Isolated organisms included Staphylococcus species (spp) (n = 5), Fungus (n = 4), Nocardia spp (n = 3), two each of atypical Mycobacterium spp and Streptococcus pneumoniae and one Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Treatment included intensive topical antimicrobial in all eyes and systemic medication in 15 (88.2%) patients; surgical exploration was needed for 13 (76.5%) patients and scleral patch graft was done in four (23.5%) patients. Lesions resolved in all patients and none required evisceration. The presenting log MAR visual acuity of 1.77 ± 1.40 and improved to 0.99 ± 0.91. (P ≤ 0.039) after treatment with a mean follow up of 22.57 ± 19.53 weeks. A microbiological confirmation, appropriate medical and/or surgical intervention has a good tectonic and visual outcome

Study of umbilical coiling index and perinatal outcome

Background: Study was to evaluate the relationship between umbilical coiling index (UCI) and hypo-and hyper coiling of the umbilical cord and parity, neonatal weight, Ponderal Index (PI), APGAR (Appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, and respiration) score, meconium staining of the amniotic fluid, Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and delivery interventions.Method: A prospective analytical study was performed from January 2017 to December 2018. Total of 300 patients giving birth at labour room of SCB Medical College, Cuttack were taken into study. Immediately following delivery, the umbilical cord was clamped at the foetal end and cut with scissors. UCI, mode of delivery and perinatal outcome was followed up.Results: There were 149 lower segment caesarean sections accounting to 49.7% and 151 vaginal deliveries including instrumental deliveries which was accounting to 50.3%. Minimum number of coils observed was 2. The maximum number of coils observed was 50. Caesarean section was more in hypo coiling group. APGAR score at 5 min was calculated and there was a total of 109 neonates who had APGAR <7 at 5 minutes (36.33%) out of which there were 17 neonates with hypo coiling (2.33%), 77 neonates with normo-coiling (25.66%) and 15 neonates with hyper coiling (5%). Meconium staining and instrumental delivery was more associated with hyper coiling.Conclusion: Both hyper-coiling and hypo-coiling had significant correlation with adverse perinatal outcome. If the UCI can be measured reliably in utero by ultrasound, then it might be a promising prognostic marker for adverse pregnancy outcome

Modelling Stock Return Volatility in India

This paper empirically estimates the clustering volatility of the Indian stock market by considering twelve indicators of BSE SENSEX. The cluster volatility has been estimated through ARCH family models such as ARCH, GARCH, IGARCH, GARCH-M, EGARCH, TARCH, GJR TARCH, SAARCH, PARCH, NARCH, NARCHK, APARCH, and NPARCH

EFFECT OF AYURVEDIC TREATMENT ON BIO-MARKERS OFRHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA) : A CASE STUDY

Amavata is a disease caused by vitiation of Vata Dosha associated with formation of Ama (bio-toxin). The Ama combines with Vata Dosha and occupies Sleshmasthana (Asthisandhi) which results in Amavata, producing symptoms like stiffness, swelling and pain in the joints. Amavata is compared with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) based on similarities in sign and symptoms. RA is a chronic progressive disease causing inflammation in the joints and resulting in painful deformity and immobility, especially in the fingers, wrists, feet and ankles. The prevalence of Rheumatoid arthritis is approximately 0.8 % of the population (range 0.3 to 2.1%) women are most commonly affected. CASE PRESENTATION: We report the case of a 20 years old female patient experiencing pain in multiple joints along with swelling and stiffness. Patient was investigated with markedly raised level of bio-markers like R.A. Factor, E.S.R., C-Reactive Protein (CRP) and Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) antibody. The patient was administered various Shaman, Deepana and Ama-paachanyogas along with Balukaswedan. The symptoms of Amavata (RA) like Sandhi ruja (joint pain), Sandhishotha (joint swelling) Stabdhata (morning stiffness), and tests like R.A. Factor, ESR, CRP and Anti-CCP were observed over the treatment. Marked improvement were observed in signs and symptoms of Amavata during the course of treatment. Patient was feeling much better than earlier and she felt that about >95% of her symptoms got decreased. No any complication was found during the treatment

SURVEILLANCE OF MICROBIAL FLORA FOR INFERTILITY COUPLES IN AN INDIAN TERTIARY CARE TEACHING HOSPITAL

Objective: Infertility has been known to cause serious social and emotional problems in India. Microorganisms may be a primary cause for thisinfertility. This study was carried out to know the prevalence of microorganisms in the infertility couples of a tertiary caring teaching hospital.Methods: One thousands of couples were screened for the infertility test presented at the outpatient Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.The suspected infertility couples were tested for microbial contamination in their reproductive sample. Simultaneously, the demographic data of allpatients were documented, and all the data were analyzed with SPSS 20 software.Result: From one thousand couples, 288 couples were found infertility symptoms, whereas 67.71% were primary infertility problems and rest weresecondary. It is due to male factor (27.08%), female factor (50%), and both (4.86%) but 18.05 were unexplained. From vaginal swabs, 186 and semen145 microbial colony were grown. However, Chi-square (χ) showed that there is no significant difference between the growth of microbial colony from semen or vaginal swap as p=0.06. Eight varieties of bacteria (387) and Candida albicans (37) were documented. 2Conclusion: With respect to older ages of the infertile couples, it is more chances to infections. Antibiotic should be prescribed to primary infertilitycouples and infections can be avoided the cross transmission during intercourse.Keywords: Primary infertility, Candida, Semen, Antibiotic, Vaginal swab

COMPREHENSIVE EYE EXAMINATION IN OUT-REACH CAMP PATIENTS REFERRED FOR CATARACT SURGERY- AN EFFECTIVE INSTRUMENT FOR ASSESSING OCULAR COMORBIDITIES IN COMMUNITIES.

Introduction: Modern cataract surgery aims to provide optimum visual acuity to the patient according to his requirements and with early visual rehabilitation. A detailed evaluation before cataract surgery can help in planning proper interventions, preventing post-operative visual impairment, and appropriate patient counseling. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of ocular co-morbidities in outreach camp patients referred for cataract surgery. Materials and methods: This retrospective study was conducted among patients admitted to Hi-Tech Medical College and Hospital, Rourkela, Odisha, India. Patient details were obtained from hospital records from January 2021 to January 2022. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 21. Results: A total of 3109 patients were considered out of which 1060 (34.1%) presented with some comorbidities other than cataracts. Retinopathy comprised of 26.4% followed by pterygium (24.8%) and post cataract surgery complications (10.4%). Glaucoma was present in 8.5% while nearly 7% presented with corneal involvement and 6.04% with uveitis and its sequel. Conclusion: A comprehensive examination of patients referred from camps can be a cost-effective and efficient tool to identify the hidden ocular diseases in the community. It not only aids in identifying but also provides optimum management of the comorbidities to provide maximum benefit to the patients. Recommendation: A thorough examination of patients with ocular comorbidities can help in identifying the ocular diseases earlier and planning their management efficiently

Mobilization of Stem Cells Using G-CSF for Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Randomized Controlled, Pilot Study

Background. There is emerging evidence to support the use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Aims. To explore feasibility, safety, and preliminary efficacy of G-CSF therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Patients and Method. In randomized study, 10 patients with acute ischemic stroke were recruited in 1 : 1 ratio to receive 10 μg/kg G-CSF treatment subcutaneously daily for five days with conventional care or conventional treatment alone. Efficacy outcome measures were assessed at baseline, one month, and after six months of treatment included Barthel Index (BI), National Institute of Health Stroke Scale, and modified Rankin Scale. Results. One patient in G-CSF therapy arm died due to raised intracranial pressure. No severe adverse effects were seen in rest of patients receiving G-CSF therapy arm or control arm. No statistically significant difference between intervention and control was observed in any of the scores though a trend of higher improvement of BI score is seen in the intervention group. Conclusion. Although this study did not have power to examine efficacy, it provides preliminary evidence of potential safety, feasibility, and tolerability of G-CSF therapy. Further studies need to be done on a large sample to confirm the results

Zika virus protection by a single low dose nucleoside modified mRNA vaccination

Zika virus (ZIKV) has recently emerged as an explosive pandemic associated with severe neuropathology in newborns and adults1. There are no ZIKV-specific treatments or preventatives; thus, development of a safe and effective vaccine is a high priority. Messenger RNA (mRNA) has emerged as a versatile and highly effective platform to deliver vaccine antigens and therapeutic proteins2,3. Here, we demonstrate that a single low-dose intradermal immunization with lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated nucleoside-modified mRNA (mRNA-LNP) encoding the pre-membrane and envelope (prM-E) glycoproteins of a 2013 ZIKV outbreak strain elicited potent and durable neutralizing antibody responses in mice and non-human primates. Immunization with 30 μg of nucleoside-modified ZIKV mRNA-LNPs protected mice from ZIKV challenges at 2 weeks or 5 months post-vaccination, and a single dose of 50 μg was sufficient to protect non-human primates from a challenge at 5 weeks post-vaccination. These data demonstrate that nucleoside-modified mRNA-LNPs elicit rapid and durable protective immunity and thus represent a new and promising vaccine candidate for the global fight against ZIKV