Changing Etiology and Antibiogram of Urinary Isolates from Pediatric Age Group

To The Editor: Pediatric UTI often remains an under-diagnosed clinical entity in primary care [1]. Usually, the presentation of UTI is variable with nonspecific signs and symptoms. But it is important to diagnose the condition as it could be the first presentation of an underlying urological anomaly [2] or it may in itself, lead to significant morbidity from renal scarring, hypertension or eventually renal failure [1]

Outbreak of Salmonella Typhi enteric fever in sub-urban area of North India: A public health perspective

AbstractOutbreaks of enteric fever are a major health concern not only due to significant human morbidity and mortality but also fear of spread of multidrug resistant strains. We report an outbreak of enteric fever caused by Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi in a suburban area, in city Chandigarh of North India. Twenty-seven strains of S. typhi were isolated from blood cultures over a period of two weeks with 18 of these 27 patients residing in the same area. Maximum cases were in the age group 5-14 years (10 patients, 55.5%) while 4 (22.2%) cases were children under 5 years. All the strains showed similar resistogram being resistant to ampicillin and nalidixic acid, intermediate to ciprofloxacin and sensitive to chloramphenicol, ceftriaxone, cefotaxime, cotrimoxazole and azithromycin on disc diffusion testing. Minimum inhibitory concentration of ciprofloxacin was determined by agar dilution method and was found to be raised (⩾ 2 μ g/mL). This nalidixic acid resistant S. typhi outbreak report warrants the necessity of implementing stringent sanitation practices in public health interest

Haematological profile of dengue fever

Background: Dengue is a viral illness that is increasingly becoming endemic in India. This study aimed to study the haematological profile of patients diagnosed with dengue infection in a tertiary care hospital.Methods: 89 patients suspected of having dengue illness were followed. Out of which those confirmed by positive serology were followed and studied in detail (n=46).Results: Common clinical symptoms were fever, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Common haematological abnormalities were thrombocytopenia and leucopoenia. All patients improved clinically with improvement of biochemical and hematological parameters. None of the patients died in this series.Conclusions: Dengue Fever continues to be a significant health problem especially in Northern region of India. A sharp vigilance is required by concerned authorities to prevent and minimize any future outbreak. It is extremely important to implement and maintain an effective, sustainable and community based disease prevention program

Role of radiology in central hemangioma of jaws

Central hemangioma, a bone destructive lesion, is a benign tumor. Hemangiomas of jaws are rare entity and produ- ces many different radiographic images. Radiographic differential diagnosis includes osteosarcoma, fibrous dysplasia, central giant cell granuloma, ameloblastoma, odontogenic myxoma, multiple myeloma, dentigerous cyst and aneurysmal bone cyst. Since it involves proliferation of blood vessels so aspiration or biopsy of such lesions can lead to severe hemorrhage which can turn out to be lethal. We stress on the importance of radiology in the timely diagnosis of such lesions which can prevent the disaster not only to the patient but also to oral surgeon in legal and professional aspects

Demographics and follow up of post partum intra-uterine copper device in tertiary hospital in Delhi, India

Background: Increasing unintended pregnancies in post partum females in our country warrants urgent attention towards prevalence and efficacy of contraceptives used. This study was done to determine the prevalence of PPIUCD and its follow up in patients attending tertiary hospital in New Delhi, India.Methods: Prospective study was carried in Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. RML Hospital, New Delhi, India over a period of 1 year from July 2017 to July 2018. The awareness and prevalence of PPIUCD was assessed. At 6 week follow-up visit, women with PPIUCD were asked for symptoms of unusual vaginal discharge, irregular or heavy bleeding per vagina, and any expulsions if noticed. All the data was recorded and assessed.Results: Out of 1478 deliveries, 1372 were eligible for PPIUCD. 335 patients got PPIUCD inserted. 295 patients were followed as 40 patients were lost to follow up. 79.3% women did not have any complaints. 11.8%, 1% and 7.4% women had only heavy menstrual bleeding, only lower abdominal pain and both symptoms respectively. Spontaneous expulsion rate was noted in one patient (0.3%) at 6 weeks. IUCD removal was done in 4 patients who had complaints of pain and heavy menstrual bleeding not conservatively managed.Conclusions: PPIUCD insertion is a safe, convenient and effective method of contraception. The benefits of contraception immediately after delivery outweigh disadvantage of complications. Antenatal counseling and follow up in hospitals need to be strengthened to increase awareness and acceptability of PPIUCD

Spectrum of magnetic resonance imaging findings in ovarian torsion

Purpose: Ovarian torsion is the twisting of the ovary on its vascular pedicle resulting in vascular compromise. Diagnosis of ovarian torsion is challenging in patients who have atypical clinical or ultrasound (US) findings. The objective of our study was to demonstrate the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features of ovarian torsion to help radiologists make a conclusive diagnosis when the clinical and US findings are unclear. Material and methods: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical and MRI features in 10 females with surgically proven ovarian torsion, who had inconclusive clinical, US, or computed tomography findings. Results: All patients showed a significantly enlarged ovary with size ranging from 5 to 18 cm. 'Twisted ovarian pedicle' sign was seen in seven patients. Eight cases showed areas of haemorrhage within the ovarian stroma. Non-enhancement of ovarian stroma was observed in six patients. Seven patients showed an ipsilateral deviation of the uterus. Conclusions: MRI features of ovarian torsion include ovarian enlargement, twisted ovarian pedicle, ovarian haemorrhage, abnormal ovarian enhancement, and ipsilateral deviation of the uterus. Awareness of these imaging features will enable the radiologist to recognise ovarian torsion and differentiate it reliably from other benign or malignant ovarian lesions

Dengue shock syndrome in sickle cell disease precipitating sickle cell hepatopathy: a case report

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a known risk factor for the development of severe dengue, however, literature documenting dengue in SCD is scarce. Dengue fever further triggers the sickling process in a patient with SCD by augmenting endothelial dysfunction, the main identifiable cause behind organ dysfunction. Hepatic involvement in SCD due to enhanced sickling can be in the form of acute viral hepatitis, cholecystitis, acute sickle hepatic crisis, and more severe sickle cell intrahepatic cholestasis (SCIC). Initially starting as an acute sickle hepatic crisis, SCIC progresses to striking jaundice, enhanced bleeding tendency coupled with mostly renal failure. We report a rare case of a female, native of Chhattisgarh with SCD and dengue shock syndrome who had fatal hepatic complications resulting from accelerated severe endothelial dysfunction due to concurrent illnesses

Effect of processing on pinhão seeds and extrudabilty of pinhão flour

Pinhão is the seed of Brazilian Pine (Araucaria angustifolia), a conifer that grows in the south of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. Pinhão seeds are very good source of carbohydrates but there is no wide scale consumption of these seeds hence a large quantity is lost at the end of each harvest. Due to high humidity, seeds can easily be contaminated by fungi during stockpiling, thus hindering its commercialization. The seeds are traditionally used as source of flour for baking or cooked in hot water, peeled, and consumed. The objectives of my research were: (1) To study the migration of polyphenols from hull to seed during atmospheric and pressure cooking of pinhão seeds and; (2) To test the extrudability of pinhão flour fortified with soy flour to make snack food. The hull of pinhão has ample amount of phenolics but hull forms the non-edible part of the whole nut. It has been proved by previous researchers that phenolics diffuse from the hull to the seed during atmospheric cooking. In this study we investigated the migration of phenolics during atmospheric and pressure cooking as a function of time. More migration of phenolics from hull to seed occured in a shorter time period during pressure cooking as compared to atmospheric cooking which proved that pressure cooking is an efficient cooking process as regards to polyphenolic content in cooked seeds. We also studied the single screw extrusion of pinhão flour fortified with soy flour using Response Surface Methodology. Box-Behnken (BBD) design was used to obtain the extrusion conditions to make extrudates. The process parameters during the extrusion were moisture content of the blended flour (17-24% w.b.), barrel temperature (120- 180°C), and ratio of pinhão flour to soy flour (1-3). The physical characteristics studied were sectional expansion index, bulk density, breaking strength, hue, chroma, water absorption index, and water solubility index. The total phenolic content of the blended flour and extrudates was also compared; it was found that there was substantial loss in polyphenols after extrusion cooking. For the expansion of the extrudates, maximum puffing of the samples was obtained at 17% moisture content of the blended flour, 150°C barrel temperature, and 3:1 ratio of pinhão flour to soy flour. Sensory testing of the selected extrudate samples was also conducted and results showed that sample extruded at low moisture content and high pinhão to soy flour ratio was perceived and liked by subjects the most.M.S.Includes bibliographical referencesby Nidhi Singl