Impact of DDT spraying on malaria transmission in Bareilly District, Uttar Pradesh, India

Background & objectives: Impact of indoor residual spraying of DDT on malaria transmission andvector density was evaluated in six villages of Shergarh PHC, Bareilly district, Uttar Pradesh under theoperational condition of National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) from July 2001to March 2002 (one transmission season only).Methods: Two rounds of DDT (50% WDP) spraying @ 1 g/m2 were done both in the experimental andcontrol villages by the state health authorities. The spraying in experimental villages was supervisedby Malaria Research Centre (MRC) whereas the district health authorities supervised the operation incontrol villages. Mass blood surveys were made three times— before the first round, in between thefirst and second rounds and after the second round of spraying. The blood smears were examined bythe trained microscopists of MRC, Haldwani. From the above examinations epidemiological indicatorssuch as slide positivity rate (SPR), slide falciparum rate (SFR) and infant parasite rate (IPR) werecalculated. All malaria positive cases were given radical treatment as per NVBDCP schedule.Entomological parameters such as per man hour mosquito density, parity rate, gonotrophic conditionand adult susceptibility status of Anopheles culicifacies to diagnostic dosages of DDT (4%) weremonitored as per the standard techniques.Results: A total of 988.5 kg of DDT was consumed during two rounds of spray. The house coveragevaried from 87 to 95.3%. Parasitological evaluation revealed significant reduction in malaria cases (p <0.0005) and infant parasite rate declined from 2.9 to 0%. Entomological observations revealedconsiderable reduction in the density of malaria vector An. culicifacies despite of its 21.4% mortalityagainst DDT test papers.Interpretation & conclusion: The overall results of the study revealed that DDT is still a viableinsecticide in indoor residual spraying owing to its effectivity in well supervised spray operation andhigh excitorepellencyfactor

Training Programmes and Success of Agri Clinics and Agri Business Centres (Acabcs) In Karnataka – An Evaluation

Agriculture Sector is contributing 16.5%to the GDP of the country and has enclosed more than 50% workforce are still engaged in agriculture and allied activities. (Economic survey 2019-20)Though higher workforce is involved, they are not self-reliable to earn their livelihood and it is indispensable to rethink the shift of agricultural sector. In this scenario Agri entrepreneurship or farm entrepreneurship apparently benefits the small-scale farmers to be self- reliable and independent. The National Institute for Management of Agricultural Extension (MANAGE) has classified 32 activities of agribusiness all over India (as on 5th February 2021) covering horticulture, floriculture, sericulture, dairy farming, poultry, agri clinics and agribusiness centres. Agri Clinics and Agri Business Centres (ACABCS) in the post globalization era have emerged as an important commercial activity in agriculture and Agribusiness undertakings formed by trained agriculturists. Such business may include sale of inputs, maintenance and custom hiring of farm equipment with other facilities in agriculture and allied areas as well as market linkages for revenue generation, post-harvest administration and entrepreneurial progress. Nodal Training institutes are contributing significantly for the development and growth of ACABCs. With this background, the study is undertaken at with an objective of examining the relationship of training programmes and the success of ACABCs in Karnataka. Sixty (29 Trained and 31 untrained) sample Agripreneurs drawn from Bengaluru urban and rural districtswere contacted with a structured questionnaire to understand their business growth and success level with the help of various parameters. Hypothesis testing was done with the help of Chi square test. For analysis simple percentage technique was applied. It has also come out with few findings and suggestions

Analysis of delivery pattern and neonatal outcome in the calendar year 2015 in urban field practice area of Kamineni Institute of Medical Sciences, Narketpally, India

Background: Neonatal mortality is the number of neonatal deaths in a given year per 1000 live births in that year. It is estimated that 5.9 million children under 5 years of age died in 2015, with a global under-five mortality rate of 42.5 per 1000 live births. Of those deaths, 45% were newborns, with a neonatal mortality rate of 19 per 1000 live births. The present study aimed at to assess the neonatal mortality in the study area and to study the socio demographic factors, obstetric and neonatal factors among study population.Methods: This is a Cross-sectional study conducted in the field practice area of Urban Health Centre (UHC) under department of Community Medicine, KIMS, Narketpally, Nalgonda district, Telangana from February 2016 to April 2016. A total of 240 women were included in the study. Information collected was their socio-demographic data, previous and present obstetric history and utilization of health facilities and condition of Baby after birth.Results: Neonatal mortality rate in the study area during the study period is 8.39/1000 live births. Out of 242 new born babies 129(53.3%) were males and 113 (46.7%) were females. Majority (94.2%) had a birth weight of more than 2.5 kgs. Out of 242 babies 7 babies were suffering from congenital anomalies (2), Sepsis (2) and skin infections (3).Conclusions: Most of the study population were in the age group of 19-25 years, literates, laborers by occupation, Hindu by religion, belong to nuclear families and belong to below poverty line. Most of the new born babies have birth weight >2.5 kgs

Treatment of acute ischemic stroke with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator: practice pattern among neurologists and physicians

Background: Stroke is an abrupt onset of a neurologic deficit due to a focal vascular disease. Treatment guidelines for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) within 4.5 hours of onset are thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA). To determine the practice pattern of rtPA in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke among consultants using a questionnaire.Methods: A questionnaire based study was carried out from May to September 2015. Neurologists and physicians from Kolar and Bengaluru were given a questionnaire comprising of 21 questions, regarding the treatment of AIS with rtPA. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics.Results: A total of 76.9% responded to the questionnaire, of which 18 were neurologists and 82 were physicians. An average of 4-5 AIS patients per month were seen by the doctors. Majority (72%) did not use rtPA, due to delay in patient reaching hospital or non-affordability of the drug. The consultants (66%) opined that rtPA was the best if patient arrived within 4.5 hours of onset of AIS. Only 34% consultants knew the correct score of AIS for administration of rtPA. The usage of penumbral imaging before thrombolysis was agreed by neurologists (58%) and physicians (34%). The IV+IA rtPA thrombolytic therapy produced highest rate of recanalization as expressed by neurologists (84%) and physicians (56%). Majority (80%) felt that use of rtPA beyond 4-6 hours had no beneficial effect. The adverse effects encountered were hypotension and bleeding.Conclusions: Neurologists and physicians opined that treatment with rtPA was effective in patients of AIS within 4.5 hours of onset, but the limitations were late arrival of patient to hospital and drug cost

Tetrabutylammonium tribromide mediated condensation of carboxylic acids with alcohol

The direct condensation of various carboxylic acids and alcohols was achieved efficiently at reflux temperature under a solvent free condition using a catalytic amount of Tetrabutylammonium Tribromide (TBATB). Chemoselective acylation of primary alcohols in presence of secondary alcohols and phenols has been achieved. Steric factors in carboxylic acids played a crucial role during chemoselective acylation of diols. Reaction under a solvent free condition, absence of any dehydrating agent or use of any special techniques for removal of water and higher yields are the important features of this protocol

Mild and eco-friendly chemoselective acylation of amines in aqueous medium

Amines in the form of amine hydrochlorides are efficiently acylated with anhydrides in an aqueous medium on addition of NaHCO3. Both cyclic and acyclic anhydrides react with equal ease with an amine and amines of various stereo-electronic factors react with the same rates with an anhydride. No chromatographic separation is needed for isolation of the acylated product. Reactions in aqueous medium, innocuous by-products and chemoselective acylation of amines in the presence of phenols and thiols have been achieved with high selectivity

A CASE REPORT OF PHENYTOIN AND CARBAMAZEPINE CROSS-REACTIVITY

ABSTRACTA case report of cross-reactivity between phenytoin and carbamazepine, a 63-year-old male patient was prescribed phenytoin for generalized seizuresand on the 15 day of therapy developed generalized maculopapular eruptions. Phenytoin was discontinued, and carbamazepine was administered.After 28 days, he developed fever, generalized rashes with ulcers in the oral cavity. Carbamazepine was withdrawn, and the patient was treatedsymptomatically.thKeywords: Phenytoin, Carbamazepine, Cross-reactivity

Benthos - Polychaetes

Polychaetes are one of the major benthic group of animals just like molluscs and crustaceans. Globally 12,620 species of Polychaetes are supposed to be occurring and in India around, 1,093 species representing 8.66% of the total number of polychaete species are known. Polychaetes are very important in the marine and brackish water ecosystems extending from the abyssal depths to the inter-tidal regions. Its major role is through the biomass formation in the benthic as well as in the pelagic aquatic systems as sedentary and pelagic polychaetes and through the different larval forms released by them. It also forms the major food for crustaceans, molluscs as well as for fishes. Because of the special adaptive nature of this group, Polychaetes are distributed in almost all ecological conditions, both in the macro and micro environments having different ranges of salinities and dissolved oxygen. Certain species survive in the anaerobic conditions also

Assessment of dynamic balance and bone density in premenopausal and postmenopausal middle-age women: a comparative study

Background: Dynamic balance control is required to perform simple and complex mobility task in our day-to-day life. Deficit in balance can results in falls and fractures which can affect health-related quality of life. Menopause is also considered as a risk for fracture due to osteoporosis, which at later life becomes difficult to manage and causes higher morbidity. So, evaluation of balance and bone density is important in middle-age in women, so that we can plan and administer proper treatment strategies at an early stage which can reduce risk of falls and fractures. Therefore, the aim of the study was to assess and compare dynamic balance and bone density in premenopausal and postmenopausal middle-age women.Methods: Female participants in the age-group of 40-60 years were divided into premenopausal and postmenopausal group based on the criteria of cessation of menstrual cycles for minimum one year. Participants were assessed barefooted for dynamic balance by physical performance mobility tests such as narrow walk test (NWT), Figure-of-8 walk test (F8WT), obstacle walk test (OWT) and normal gait speed (NGS). Bone density was evaluated by using ultrasound bone densitometer at calcaneus in community setting. Results: The time taken to complete the NWT, F8WT, OWT was reduced significantly (p<0.05) in post-menopausal group, showing dynamic balance is significantly affected in postmenopausal women when compared with premenopausal women in middle-age group. Gait speed was also reduced in both the groups but it was significantly reduced (p<0.05) in postmenopausal group. Also bone density decreases significantly in post-menopausal group showing osteoporosis, premenopausal group also showed osteopenia when assessed by ultrasound bone densitometer in community setting.Conclusions: Dynamic balance and bone density significantly decreases in post-menopausal middle-age women as compared with pre-menopausal middle-age women

Generic Paddy Plant Disease Detector (GP2D2): An Application of the Deep-CNN Model

Rice is the primary food for almost half of the world’s population, especially for the people of Asian countries. There is a demand to improve the quality and increase the quantity of rice production to meet the food requirements of the increasing population. Bulk cultivation and quality production of crops need appropriate technology assistance over manual traditional methods. In this work, six popular Deep-CNN architectures, namely AlexNet, VGG-19, VGG-16, InceptionV3, MobileNet, and ResNet-50, are exploited to identify the diseases in paddy plants since they outperform most of the image classification applications. These CNN models are trained and tested with Plant Village dataset for classifying the paddy plant images into one of the four classes namely, Healthy, Brown Spot, Hispa, or Leaf Blast, based on the disease condition. The performance of the chosen architectures is compared with different hyper parameter settings. AlexNet outperformed other convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in this multiclass classification task, achieving an accuracy of 89.4% at the expense of a substantial number of network parameters, indicating the large model size of AlexNet. For developing mobile applications, the ResNet-50 architecture was adopted over other CNNs, since it has a comparatively smaller number of network parameters and a comparable accuracy of 86.1%. A fine-tuned ResNet-50 architecture supported mobile app, “Generic Paddy Plant Disease Detector (GP2D2)” has been developed for the identification of most commonly occurring diseases in paddy plants. This tool will be more helpful for the new generation of farmers in bulk cultivation and increasing the productivity of paddy. This work will give insight into the performance of CNN architectures in rice plant disease detection task and can be extended to other plants too