Study of carotid intimal thickness in ischemic stroke and coronary artery disease

Introduction: Intima medial thickness of common carotid arteries can be used to measure generalized atherosclerosis and also surrogate marker of coronary artery disease and ischemic stroke. It is extensively used examine the carotid IMT and to evaluate the regression of atherosclerosis lesion in interventional studies. Material and methods: It was a cross sectional study conducted in the department of Medicine of a tertiary care centre, Indore, India. Carotid ultrasonography examinations were performed with the use of shimad Zu (SDU 2200) & Toshiba just vision-400 sonography machine equipped with a 7.5 to 10 MHz linear-array transducer. With the subject in the supine position and the neck in slight hyperextension the common carotid artery, carotid bulb, and the extra-cranial part of internal carotid artery was identified of both side and IMT was measured as the distance between the luminal Intimal interface and the medial adventitial interface. Results: P < .001 which is highly significant i.e. increased IMT is strong risk factor for Ischemic stroke and CAD in all the age groups. P < .001 which is highly significant i.e. increased IMT is strong risk factor for both ischemic stroke and Coronary artery disease. When carotid intimal thickness between patients of ischemic heart disease and coronary artery disease is compared, we observed a P value > .05, which is not significant, i.e. there is no much difference of IMT in ischemic Stroke and Coronary artery disease. Conclusion: Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson plus syndrome is a group of sporadic, neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system. There are only a few reports about the frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with Parkinson disease from India and no such Indian report in patients with Parkinson plus syndrom

Spectrum of epilepsy in Neurocysticercosis

Introduction: Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is one of the most common parasitic cause of neurological disease in developing countries. NCC is the infestation of the central nervous system with the larvae of pork tapeworm, Taenia solium. It is endemic in South Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Due to increasing international travel and immigration, NCC is no more a health issue limited to the developing countries but also to the rest of world. Material and methods: A total of 70 patients of seizures presenting with ring enhancing lesion in CT scan of brain suggestive of neurocysticercosis, attending outpatient department or admitted in wards of Medicine Department of S.R.N. Hospital. A detailed seizure history as well as neurological examination was done according to the working proforma. Results: Maximum number of patients 34(48.57%) were presented with simple partial seizures with secondary generalization. Generalized tonic-clonic seizure was present in 22 patient (31.43%) patients. Simple partial seizure without secondary generalization was presented in 12 patients (17.14%). Two patients (2.86%) were presented with complex partial seizure. Conclusion: Neurocysticercosis is more common in young, rural population and in lower socioeconomic class. Vegetarians were significantly more affected than non-vegetarians which suggest other mode of transmission. By combining hygiene education and better sanitation, we will interrupt or reduce the cycle of direct person-to-person transmission. Thus, probably we will succeed to reduce the burden of disease from the society

Spectrum of non-motor neuropsychiatric symptoms among patients with Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson plus syndrome

Introduction: Patients with PD often have non motor symptoms in addition to the motor manifestations of bradykinesia, rigidity and tremor. The NMSs are more often seen in patients with longer duration of disease. There is increasing realization that NMSs significantly contribute to the morbidity and increase the burden of the disease far beyond that caused by the classical motor symptoms. Material and methods: It was a cross sectional study conducted to assess the non-motor dysfunction in 60 patients with Parkinsonism including idiopathic Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson plus syndrome who attended either the outdoor services, or were admitted in the Neurology ward of our tertiary care centre, PGIMER & Dr. RML Hospital, New Delhi, India. Results: Out of 40 patients with Parkinson’s disease, twenty-five (62.50%) were males and 15 (37.50%) were females with mean age of 55.02 (SD ±13.56) years. Among patients with MSA, six (66.70%) were male and 3 (33.33%) were female with mean age of 62.00 (SD ±11.38) years. Out of 40 patients with PD 19 (47.50%) had minimal depression, 12 (30%) mild depression, 7 (17.50%) moderate depression and 2 (5%) severe depression. Out of 20 patients with Parkinson plus Syndrome 12 (60%), 5 (25%), and 3 (15%) patients had minimal, mild and moderate depression. Conclusion: Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson plus syndrome are group of sporadic, neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system. There are only a few reports about the frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with Parkinson disease from India and no such Indian report in patients with Parkinson plus syndrom

Insights on COVID-19 impacts, challenges and opportunities for India’s biodiversity research: from complexity to building adaptations

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every sphere of human society. The paradigm shift of focus to COVID-related research and management has significantly affected various scientific domains, including biodiversity conservation. We assessed the perceptions of early-career researchers working for biodiversity conservation across India, to understand the impacts of the ongoing pandemic on their research. We administered an online questionnaire survey to 565 respondents, who identified four key areas that are affected by the pandemic: (1) research, (2) conservation (3) education, and (4) communication and networking. Respondents (89.2%) perceived that their fieldwork, followed by travel for meetings and funding were the most affected due to COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent lockdown. Nonetheless, responses on the impact varied between different professional categories and were disproportionate. Our study highlights that majority of the respondents (80%) advocate for stakeholder-driven policies and management practices as the most effective strategy to promote biodiversity conservation, in the post-COVID-19 world. To this end, as a post-pandemic response, we propose holistic solutions such as optimising research funding and collaborations, and supporting and strengthening them by citizen science and big data analytics. Our findings and recommendations will also serve as a paradigm for post- COVID-19 biodiversity policy, advocacy and implementation of the post 2020 biodiversity action plan that supports eco civilization