Evaluation the results of surgical management of traumatic paraplegia in traumatic thoracolumbar fractures

Background: Thoracolumbar spine fractures are common injuries that can result in significant disability, deformity and neurological deficit. Aim of this study was to evaluate the results of surgical management of traumatic paraplegia, complete or incomplete as classified by Frankel scoring.Methods: A prospective study was conducted in patients attending outdoor and emergency department of Orthopedics of a tertiary care teaching institute in Kolkata, West Bengal with traumatic paraplegia involving the dorsolumbar spine. The important objectives are the time for recovery of various functions like sensory, motor and bowel and bladder function, comparison between early and late decompression, results of posterolateral fusion and time taken for solid bony fusion after operation. Total 46 cases were selected within a minimum of 6-month post-operative follow-up of which 4 cases lost in follow-up. Data collected from patient records included age, sex, time from injury to hospitalization, initial neurological status as per Frankel Score, MRI findings, surgery performed, postoperative course and neurological status at the time of discharge and latest follow up. Patients lost to follow up were not studied for outcome analysis.Results: When decompression done within 1st week in incomplete paraplegia, 80% of the patients showed return of grade 3 power. In complete paraplegia cases, 11% of the patients had return of power up to grade 3 when decompression done within 1 week, where no cases showed return of grade 3 power when decompression done after 2nd or 3rd week.Conclusions: After recovery from spinal shock, the earlier the surgical compression done, the better the neurological and bowel/bladder function recovery both in complete and incomplete paraplegic cases. Reduction is better and easy and less time consuming in early decompression than in late. Motor recovery can continue for over 6 months after decompression

Prevalence of Rhesus & Kell phenotypes among blood donors of Bangladesh

The Rhesus blood group system is one of the most polymorphic and highly immunogenic systems in humans. Because of its high and strong immunogenicity Rh D antigen testing is mandatory before issuing a compatible blood. There are five major antigens i.e. DCEce in the Rhesus (Rh) blood group system. On the other hand from the immunogenicity point of view Kell antigen is next to the Rh system. Both of them may cause severe hemolytic transfusion reaction and hemolytic disease of fetus and new born. Exposure of Rhesus negative individuals to Rhesus positive blood through transfusion or pregnancy is most likely to stimulate production of Rhesus antibodies. These antibodies may cause Hemolytic Disease of Fetus and Newborn (HDFN) and Delayed Hemolytic Transfusion Reaction (DHTR). Like Rhesus antibodies, Kell antibodies may also cause HDFN and DHTR. So far we know, there is not enough study regarding antigens C, c, E & e of Rh or K, k antigen of Kell blood group system regarding these antigens in the donors in Bangladesh, thereby exposing transfused patients to these antigens negative patients. To determine the phenotype prevalence of the Rh and Kell blood group systems in the blood donors in Bangladesh, a descriptive cross sectional study was done in the laboratory of Department of Transfusion Medicine, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, during the period of 1st January 2020 to 31 December 2020. Rhesus Phenotype CCDee is highest (48.4%) & CCDEe & ccDEE both are lowest (0.4%). Most probable Rhesus Genotype CDe/CDe (R1R1) is highest (48.4%) and CDe/CDE (R1Rz) & cDE/cDE (R2R2) both are lowest (0.4%). Kell Genotype kk is highest (99.2%) and Kk is lowest (0.8%). BSMMU J 2021; 14(3): 38-4

Patterns of post endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) complications- experience from an university hospital

In the treatment of common bile duct stones and palliative decompression of malignant strictures, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is the gold standard. However, there are still concerns about procedure-related complications and patient discom- fort. To evaluate the pattern of the post ERCP complications. This prospective observational study was conducted at the Department of Gastroenterology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka from February 2017 to October 2017. A total of one hundred patients who were eligible for ERCP were included in this study but five patients were excluded due to cannulation failure. Clinical examination , biochemical, and radiological investigation were performed before and after ERCP to assess the complication that occurred. The majority of patients in this study were under the age of 50, with a mean age of 49.74 }14.07 years between the ages of 18 and 80 years. Males (54.7%) were predominant than female (45.3%) and male to female ratio was 1.21:1. The most common diagnosis was choledocholithiasis (58.9%) followed by proximal cholangiocarcinoma (13.7%), Carcinoma-gallbladder with biliary infiltration (8.4%), Distal cholangiocarcinoma (6.3%), Chronic calcific pancreatitis and Periampullary carcinoma each (3.2%), Suspected SOD & Chronic pancreatitis each (2.1%) and Worm in CBD and benign biliary stricture each (1.1%). In this study, the overall post-ERCP complication rate was 12.6% with pancreatitis accounting for 9.4%, bleeding accounting for 2.1%, and cholangitis accounting for 2.1%. From the study data it can be concluded that pancreatitis is the most frequent Post-ERCP complication. BSMMU J 2022; 15(1): 50-5

Patterns of post endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) complications- experience from an university hospital

In the treatment of common bile duct stones and palliative decompression of malignant strictures, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is the gold standard. However, there are still concerns about procedure-related complications and patient discom- fort. To evaluate the pattern of the post ERCP complications. This prospective observational study was conducted at the Department of Gastroenterology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka from February 2017 to October 2017. A total of one hundred patients who were eligible for ERCP were included in this study but five patients were excluded due to cannulation failure. Clinical examination , biochemical, and radiological investigation were performed before and after ERCP to assess the complication that occurred. The majority of patients in this study were under the age of 50, with a mean age of 49.74 }14.07 years between the ages of 18 and 80 years. Males (54.7%) were predominant than female (45.3%) and male to female ratio was 1.21:1. The most common diagnosis was choledocholithiasis (58.9%) followed by proximal cholangiocarcinoma (13.7%), Carcinoma-gallbladder with biliary infiltration (8.4%), Distal cholangiocarcinoma (6.3%), Chronic calcific pancreatitis and Periampullary carcinoma each (3.2%), Suspected SOD & Chronic pancreatitis each (2.1%) and Worm in CBD and benign biliary stricture each (1.1%). In this study, the overall post-ERCP complication rate was 12.6% with pancreatitis accounting for 9.4%, bleeding accounting for 2.1%, and cholangitis accounting for 2.1%. From the study data it can be concluded that pancreatitis is the most frequent Post-ERCP complication. BSMMU J 2022; 15(1): 50-5

Frequency of ABO and Rh-D blood groups in cervical cancer

There is much evidence that the ABO blood group system may play a role in the pathogenesis of the disease. The relationship between ABO and Rhesus blood groups and cancer risk has been demonstrated in many research works. However, concerning gynaecological malignancies, these findings are inconsistent. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of ABO and Rh-D blood groups in patients with carcinoma cervix. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Transfusion Medicine, Department of Gynaecological Oncology and Department of Pathology of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka. A total of 110 clinically suspected cervical cancer patients were included in this study. Pap smear tests was done in all cases and the patients were divided into case (Pap test positive) and control group (Pap test negative). A total of 55 patients were included in each group. Blood groups (ABO & Rh-D) of all the patients were recorded. A higher number of the patients in the cervical cancer group were multiparous than in the control group. Almost in two-thirds of the population, the age of marriage was <18 years in the cervical cancer group compared to 34.5% in the control group. More than one-third population had “O” blood group in the case group, while it was 31% in the control group. The almost equal number had Rh D+ve in the case and control (92.7% vs. 94.5%). The differences between the blood group and Rh D were not statistically significant between the two groups. Nearly half (40.0%) of the participants had used a hormonal contraceptive in the case and 61.8% in control. The differences in hormonal contraceptives use were statistically significant within the two groups. The distribution of “O” blood group and Rh D +ve cases was found to be higher in patients with cervical cancer than in non-cancer patients although the difference was not statistically significant. BSMMU J 2022; 15(2): 70-7

Comparison of Healthy and Dandruff Scalp Microbiome Reveals the Role of Commensals in Scalp Health

Several scalp microbiome studies from different populations have revealed the association of dandruff with bacterial and fungal dysbiosis. However, the functional role of scalp microbiota in scalp disorders and health remains scarcely explored. Here, we examined the bacterial and fungal diversity of the scalp microbiome and their potential functional role in the healthy and dandruff scalp of 140 Indian women. Propionibacterium acnes and Staphylococcus epidermidis emerged as the core bacterial species, where the former was associated with a healthy scalp and the latter with dandruff scalp. Along with the commonly occurring Malassezia species (M. restricta and M. globosa) on the scalp, a strikingly high association of dandruff with yet uncharacterized Malassezia species was observed in the core mycobiome. Functional analysis showed that the fungal microbiome was enriched in pathways majorly implicated in cell-host adhesion in the dandruff scalp, while the bacterial microbiome showed a conspicuous enrichment of pathways related to the synthesis and metabolism of amino acids, biotin, and other B-vitamins, which are reported as essential nutrients for hair growth. A systematic measurement of scalp clinical and physiological parameters was also carried out, which showed significant correlations with the microbiome and their associated functional pathways. The results point toward a new potential role of bacterial commensals in maintaining the scalp nutrient homoeostasis and highlights an important and yet unknown role of the scalp microbiome, similar to the gut microbiome. This study, therefore, provides new perspectives on the better understanding of the pathophysiology of dandruff

TOMOGRAPHY OF HUMAN BODY USING EXACT SIMULTANEOUS ITERATIVE RECONSTRUCTION ALGORITHM

In this paper an Exact Simultaneous Iterative Reconstruction Algorithm is developed and applied on a large semi human size normal biological model and a diseased model (liver region affected) to verify the efficiency of the algorithm. The algorithm is successfully reconstructed the normal model having 15%-20 % perturbation i.e. change in permittivity during disease. In diseased case, reconstructed imaginary part of complex permittivity clearly detects the affected zone and it may help the medical diagnosis. Hence it may be a powerful tool for early detection of cancerous tumors as the interrogating wave is a noninvasive one at the ultra high frequency range. The resolution of this system is increased with the reduction of wavelength by immersing the antenna system and the model in saline water region. The advantage of this algorithm is that the calculation of cofactor are done offline to save the computational time and cofactors are expressed as a function of distances irrespective of their positions

Antioxidant, antimicrobial, cytotoxic and analgesic activities of ethanolic extract of Mentha arvensis L.

Objective: To investigate potential antioxidant, antimicrobial, cytotoxic and analgesic activities of ethanolic extract of Mentha arvensis L. in different in vivo and in vitro experimental models. Methods: In vitro DPPH radical scavenging assay was used to evaluate the antioxidant activity of the plant extract. In vivo analgesic activity was carried out by acetic acid-induced writhing test in Swiss albino mice. All studies in mice were undertaken at the doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg body weight. Antibacterial activity was studied by disk diffusion assay against some Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. Brine shrimp lethality assay was used to investigate cytotoxicity effects of the plant extract. Results: The extract showed free radical scavenging activity in the DPPH assay (IC50∼41 μg/mL) compared to the standard antioxidant ascorbic acid (IC50∼19 μg/mL). The extract also produced prominent antimicrobial activity against Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi, Shigella boydii, Streptococcus pyogenes and Streptococcus aureus compared to standard drug kanamycin at the dose of 30 μg/disc. The extract exhibited lethality against the brine shrimp nauplii with the LC50 values of 40 μg/mL, and also 90% mortality (LC90) value was found to be 160 μg/mL. In analgesic test, the extract demonstrated statistically significant (P<0.01) analgesic effect in acetic acid induced writhing in white albino mice at both dose levels. Conclusions: These results suggest that the ethanolic extract of Mentha arvensis L. has potential antioxidant, antibacterial, cytotoxic and analgesic activities that support the ethnopharmacological uses of this plant

Solar Light-Assisted Oxidative Degradation of Ciprofloxacin in Aqueous Solution by Iron(III) Chelated Cross-Linked Chitosan Immobilized on a Glass Plate

The massive worldwide use of antibiotics leads to water pollution and increasing microbial resistance. Hence, the removal of antibiotic residues is a key issue in water remediation. Here, we report the solar light-assisted oxidative degradation of ciprofloxacin (CPF), using H2O2 in aqueous solution, catalyzed by iron(III) chelated cross-linked chitosan (FeIII-CS-GLA) immobilized on a glass plate. The FeIII-CS-GLA catalyst was characterized by FTIR and 57Fe-Mössbauer spectroscopies as well as X-ray diffraction, revealing key structural motifs and a high-spin ferric character of the metal. Catalytic degradation of CPF was investigated as a function of solar light irradiation time, solution pH, concentration of H2O2 and CPF, as well as cross-linker dosage and iron(III) content in FeIII-CS-GLA. The system was found to serve as an efficient catalyst with maximum CPF degradation at pH 3. The specific ·OH scavenger mannitol significantly reduces the degradation rate, indicating that hydroxyl radicals play a key role. The mechanism of catalytic CPF degradation was evaluated in terms of pseudo-first-order and Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetic models; adsorption of CPF onto the FeIII-CS-GLA surface was evidenced by field emission scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. FeIII-CS-GLA can be reused multiple times with only minor loss of catalytic efficiency. Antimicrobial activity tests performed against both Gram-negative (Escherichia coli DH5α, Salmonella typhi AF4500) and Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis RBW) before and after treatment confirmed complete degradation of CPF. These results establish the immobilized FeIII-CS-GLA as a rugged catalyst system for efficient photo-Fenton type degradation of antibiotics in aqueous solutions