Efficacy and Tolerability of Fixed-Dose Combination of Dexketoprofen and Dicyclomine Injection in Acute Renal Colic

Objective. To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of a fixed-dose combination of dexketoprofen and dicyclomine (DXD) injection in patients with acute renal colic. Patients and Methods. Two hundred and seventeen patients were randomized to receive either DXD (n = 109) or fixed-dose combination of diclofenac and dicyclomine injection (DLD; n = 108), intramuscularly. Pain intensity (PI) was self-evaluated by patients on visual analogue scale (VAS) at baseline and at 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 hours. Efficacy parameters were proportion of responders, difference in PI (PID) at 8 hours, and sum of analogue of pain intensity differences (SAPID). Tolerability was assessed by patients and physicians. Results. DXD showed superior efficacy in terms of proportion of responders (98.17% versus 81.48; P < 0.0001), PID at 8 hours (P = 0.002), and SAPID0–8 hours (P = 0.004). The clinical global impression for change in pain was significantly better for DXD than DLD. The incidence of adverse events was comparable in both groups. However, global assessment of tolerability was rated significantly better for DXD. Conclusion. DXD showed superior efficacy and tolerability than DLD in patients clinically diagnosed to be suffering from acute renal colic

Sonosynthesis of microcellulose from kenaf fiber: optimization of process parameters

Green composites using cellulose fibers as a reinforcement material provide a sustainable and renewable alternative to petroleum-based polymers. However, controlling the usage of chemicals and processing parameters to extract the cellulose could be sometimes difficult. Therefore, this study aims to optimize the conditions for extracting the microcellulose from kenaf fibers using central composite design (CCD), a statistical tool in design of experiments. Three factors and three levels were chosen for carrying out the analysis. The design was based on sodium hydroxide (NaOH) dosage, Sodium Chlorite (NaClO2) dosage and sonication time as independent variables, while dependent variables were the fiber size and degradation point. Later, size responses were fitted using quadratic polynomial model and degradation responses using 2-factor interaction model (2FI). The R2 values of 0.89 and 0.83 were obtained for the quadratic and the 2FI model, respectively. Further, surface morphology, thermal analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-Ray diffraction (XRD) were also used for design validation. Optimal parameters for microcellulose extraction were found to be 0.15 g of NaOH at first stage, 4.6 mL of NaClO2 at second stage, and 10 min of sonication during third stage

Analytical approach for entropy generation and heat transfer in CNT-nanofluid dynamics through a ciliated porous medium

The transportation of biological and industrial nanofluids by natural propulsion like cilia movement and self-generated contraction-relaxation of flexible walls has significant applications in numerous emerging technologies. Inspired by multi-disciplinary progress and innovation in this direction, a thermo-fluid mechanical model is proposed to study the entropy generation and convective heat transfer of nanofluids fabricated by the dispersion of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) nanoparticles in water as the base fluid. The regime studied comprises heat transfer and steady, viscous, incompressible flow, induced by metachronal wave propulsion due to beating cilia, through a cylindrical tube containing a sparse (i.e. high permeability) homogenous porous medium. The flow is of the creeping type and is restricted under the low Reynolds number and long wavelength approximations. Slip effects at the wall are incorporated and the generalized Darcy drag-force model is utilized to mimic porous media effects. Cilia boundary conditions for velocity components are employed to determine analytical solutions to the resulting non-dimensionalized boundary value problem. The influence of pertinent physical parameters on temperature, axial velocity, pressure rise and pressure gradient, entropy generation function, Bejan number and stream-line distributions are computed numerically. A comparative study between SWCNT nanofluids and pure water is also computed. The computations demonstrate that axial flow is accelerated with increasing slip parameter and Darcy number and is greater for SWCNT- nanofluids than for pure water. Furthermore the size of the bolus for SWCNT-nanofluids is larger than that of the pure water. The study is applicable in designing and fabricating nanoscale and microfluidics devices, artificial cilia and biomimetic micro-pump

Temporal bone verrucous carcinoma: outcomes and treatment controversy

Verrucous carcinoma is a rare tumor that presents in the head and neck with the most common sites being the oral cavity and larynx. Fourteen cases of verrucous carcinoma of the temporal bone have been described in literature; this study aims to examine treatment outcomes and discuss the controversy surrounding postoperative radiation. The study design included a literature review along with individual case report in the setting of a tertiary care medical center. Outcome analysis of all cases of verrucous carcinoma of the temporal bone, which are documented in the English literature, and presentation of a single patient report including gross, histologic and radiologic analyses were performed. The longest recorded survival for verrucous carcinoma of the temporal bone occurs in patients treated with surgery alone. Poorer outcomes for patients treated with adjuvant (chemo)radiation may be due to more advanced stage of disease at the time of treatment. Early reports of radiation leading to tumor dedifferentiation or early recurrence are not supported by more recent studies. Whether adjuvant radiation therapy is indicated in verrucous carcinoma of the temporal bone remains controversial

Root Canal Anatomy of Maxillary and Mandibular Teeth

It is a common knowledge that a comprehensive understanding of the complexity of the internal anatomy of teeth is imperative to ensure successful root canal treatment. The significance of canal anatomy has been emphasized by studies demonstrating that variations in canal geometry before cleaning, shaping, and obturation procedures had a greater effect on the outcome than the techniques themselves. In recent years, significant technological advances for imaging teeth, such as CBCT and micro-CT, respectively, have been introduced. Their noninvasive nature allows to perform in vivo anatomical studies using large populations to address the influence of several variables such as ethnicity, aging, gender, and others, on the root canal anatomy, as well as to evaluate, quantitatively and/or qualitatively, specific and fine anatomical features of a tooth group. The purpose of this chapter is to summarize the morphological aspects of the root canal anatomy published in the literature of all groups of teeth and illustrate with three-dimensional images acquired from micro-CT technology.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Biological risk factors for coronary artery disease among adults residing in rural area of North Karnataka, India

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) accounts for 60% of all deaths and 47% of burden of diseases which is progressively increasing in rural population in terms of absolute numbers. Biological risk factors contribute significantly to the cardiovascular burden. Hence, this study was undertaken to assess the biological risk factors among adults residing in rural area. Materials and Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study conducted among 980 adults aged between 20 and 60 years residing in rural area of Belagavi district, India. World Health Organization-STEPS-based predesigned questionnaire was used for data collection by house-to-house visit after obtaining written informed consent. Sociodemographic variables and biological risk factors which included hypertension, self-reported diabetes mellitus, overweight, and obesity were assessed. Statistical analysis was done using Pearson's Chi-square test and P value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: In the present study, 48.8% were men and 51.2% were women. Prevalence of hypertension was 26.6%, self-reported diabetes mellitus 6.3%, overweight 26.7%, and obesity was 7.0%. Men had higher prevalence of hypertension and overweight, whereas women had higher prevalence of diabetes and obesity. A significant gender difference was noted with the biological risk factors for CAD (P 0.05). Conclusion: Biological risk factors, which included hypertension, diabetes, and overweight, were observed in a significantly higher proportion among men, whereas women were more obese with a significant higher proportion. Advancing age, lesser education, and retirement from the job were the contributors for the increasing prevalence of these risk factors

Effect of pregnancy plasma, neuraminidase and sialic acid on phytohemagglutinin-induced human lymphocyte response

The effect of human pregnancy plasma on phytohemagglutinin-(PHA-)induced blastogenesis of lymphocytes from unrelated donors was studied in relation to the sialic acid (N-acetyl-neuraminic acid) content of the plasma. The total sialic acid levels in plasma were found to be elevated during pregnancy as compared with plasma from non-pregnant, normally menstruating control groups (p &lt; 0.001) and to increase with advancing gestation, reaching peak values in the post-partum period (1-14 days). On the other hand, pregnancy plasma at a concentration of 15% caused a significant suppression of lymphocyte proliferation (p &lt; 0.05 to p &lt; 0.001, depending on the stage of gestation). The maximum effect was observed with plasma obtained during the third trimester of pregnancy. The immunosuppressive activity was not detectable after parturition. It was further observed that desialation of both pregnancy and control plasma with neuraminidase diminished lymphocyte response to PHA (p &lt; 0.05). Addition of free sialic acid (0.1-1.0 μmol/ml) or treatment of the cells with neuraminidase (0.06-1.0 IU/ml) had no effect on lymphocyte transformation under assay conditions. These findings support the hypothesis that an immunosuppressive environment provided by pregnancy plasma could be one of the mechanisms protecting the antigenically alien fetus from maternal immunologic attack. The sialic acid content of maternal plasma did not appear to play a role in the immunosuppressive property of maternal plasma. On the contrary, the presence of plasma-bound sialic acid in the culture medium was found to be necessary for normal lymphocyte reactivity