Evaluation of pulse-oximetry oxygen saturation taken through skin protective covering

BACKGROUND: The hard edges of adult finger clip probes of the pulse oximetry oxygen saturation (POOS) monitor can cause skin damage if used for prolonged periods in a neonate. Covering the skin under the probe with Micropore surgical tape or a gauze piece might prevent such injury. The study was done to see if the protective covering would affect the accuracy of the readings. METHODS: POOS was studied in 50 full-term neonates in the first week of life. After obtaining consent from their parents the neonates had POOS readings taken directly (standard technique) and through the protective covering. Bland-Altman plots were used to compare the new method with the standard technique. A test of repeatability for each method was also performed. RESULTS: The Bland-Altman plots suggest that there is no significant loss of accuracy when readings are taken through the protective covering. The mean difference was 0.06 (SD of 1.39) and 0.04 (SD 1.3) with Micropore and gauze respectively compared to the standard method. The mean difference was 0.22 (SD 0.23) on testing repeatability with the standard method. CONCLUSION: Interposing Micropore or gauze does not significantly affect the accuracy of the POOS reading. The difference between the standard method and the new method was less than the difference seen on testing repeatability of the standard method

Str Locus Mutations in Paternity Case

DNA analysis is widely applied in solving forensic cases, especially Short Tandem Repat (STR) because of its advantages. In identifying the individual, the National Police compared the individual's DNA with that of his parents. Each anal has a pair of DNA fragments of which half are inherited by the father and the remainder by the mother according to Mendel's Law of Segregation. In this study, we compared DNA typing between the child and the mother with the help of PCR extracted by the Chelex method to find the mother fragment and obtain the father fragment. A child is the biological child of the alleged father if he or she has less than 2 exclusion STR loci. The results of this study revealed that all paternal fragments from the child were identical to the DNA fragments of the alleged father, except for one locus, namely CSF1PO which had a mutation. Mutations in the STR locus lower the paternity index, although it can still be concluded that the child is the biological child of the alleged father.   Keywords: Paternity Test, DNA, STR, Mutatio