Prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension in rural area of Amravati District of Maharashtra, India

Background: Hypertension is responsible for 57% of stroke deaths and 24% of coronary heart disease deaths in India. Cardiovascular disease will be the largest cause of death and disability in India by 2020. Hypertension is emerging as a major health problem. The prevalence of hypertension has increased in rural people. The objectives were to find the prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension in rural area of Amravati District and to study association between various factors and hypertension in a rural area.Methods: A community based cross sectional study was carried out in rural community. 792 study subjects aged 10 years and above were selected using systematic random sampling. A structured pretested schedule was used to collect data regarding demographic characteristics and blood pressure pattern. Mean, Standard Deviation, Chi- square test and ANOVA were used to analyze data.Results: The prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension was found to be 55.8% and 13.4% respectively. The mean systolic as well as diastolic blood pressure patterns were found to be higher with the increase in age. Older age and increased body mass index were significantly higher among hypertensive compared to normotensive. Factors like tobacco use and alcohol were significantly associated with hypertension.Conclusions: The prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension was found to be high in rural Amravati.

Antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of bacterial isolates from wound infection and their sensitivity to antibiotic agents at super specialty hospital, Amravati city, India

Background: Wound infection is one of the health problems that is caused and aggravated by the invasion of pathogenic organisms. Information on local pathogens and sensitivity to antimicrobial agent is crucial for successful treatment of wounds. So the present study was conducted to determine antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of bacterial isolates from wound infection and their sensitivity to antimicrobial agents.Methods: A retrospective study was conducted among patients with wound infection in Suyash super speciality hospital, from January 2012 to December 2013. Wound swab was collected using sterile cotton swabs and processed for bacterial isolation and susceptibility testing to Systemic antimicrobial agents.Results: In this study 78 bacterial isolates were recovered from 258 specimens showing an isolation rate of 31.2%. The predominant bacteria isolated from wounds were gram positive  staphylococci 36 (46.2%), followed by gram negative streptococci 18 (23.1%) gram negative pseudomonas 12 (15.4 %) and gram negative proteus 8 (10.4%). The gram positive and gram negative bacteria constituted 68 (87.2%) and 10 (12.8%) of bacterial isolates; respectively.  Conclusion: In the present study most of the pathogens isolated from wound isolates showed high rate of resistance to most commonly used newer antibiotics used to treat bacterial infections. Therefore, rational use of antibiotics should be practiced.

Efficacy of Different Herbicides on Weed Flora of Berseem (\u3cem\u3eTrifolium alexandrium L.\u3c/em\u3e)

Berseem is one of the prominent winter legume fodder crops. It has 20-24% crude protein and 70% digestible dry matter. Common weeds found in berseem are Cichorium intybus, Cornopus didimus, Spergula arvensis, Chenopodium album, Rumex dentatus and some grass family weeds. Weeds compete with main crop for essential plant nutrients, light, moisture and space. They not only deteriorate fodder quality but also decrease fodder and seed yield. Weed infestation reduces normally 25-35% green fodder and seed yield. It is the major challenge to control the berseem weeds for enhancement of productivity and quality of fodder and seed yield. Hence the present investigation is undertaken to study the efficacy of some herbicides for berseem weed management

Domestic violence against women: a crossectional study in rural area of Amravati district of Maharashtra, India

Background: Domestic violence against women is a matter of serious public health concern in most of the communities and culture. In India, the problem has been highlighted after legislation against domestic violence in 2005, popularly known as the protection of women from domestic violence act. Main objectives of the study were to assess the prevalence of domestic violence against women, to study the sociodemographic factors in females suffering from domestic violence and to identify causes of domestic violence in them.Methods: A crossectional study was carried in the field practice area of rural health training centre of Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Memorial Medical College, Nerpinglai in Amravati district of Maharashtra state for a period of 3 months. Simple random sampling method was used for the selection of samples. The study participants were interviewed using a predesigned pretested questionnaire. Proportion, Chi square test were calculated for the analysis of the study.Results: Out of 400 study participants interviewed, 161 (40.25%) reported some type of violence i.e. either in the form of physical, emotional or sexual violence in their life time or in recent past. The most common type of violence reported was physical violence. The most common cause of domestic violence reported in our study was financial problems followed by influence under alcohol.  Conclusions: The prevalence of domestic violence was 40.25% which is still high and necessary measures should be taken to strengthen the laws for women and to empower them

Short-Term Effect of Forage Grasses on Carbon Sustainability, Fodder Security, and Soil Properties in Poor Soils of Semi-Arid India

Grasses are essential sources of fodder for livestock and provide options for climate resilience due to their broad range of adoption. They are also valuable resources for soil quality enhancement. Therefore, a six-year field study using nine grasses (2013 to 2019) was initiated in a semi-arid region of central India. The study aimed to assess the short-term impact of these nine grasses on soil carbon stock, selected soil physiochemical and biological properties, and green fodder yield. Results (after six years) revealed that a greater carbon stock (7.0 and 7.2 Mg ha–1), carbon sustainability index (71.6 and 89.3), and sustainable yield index for green fodder (0.89 and 0.91), respectively, were observed in lampagrass [Heteropogon contortus (L.)] and guineagrass [Megathyrsus maximus(Jacq.)]. These improvements could be due to the greater root length (1700 and 2220 cm plant–1) and root weight density of grasses in the upper soil layer (0–10 cm, 70%), and the higher green biomass production (~44.1 t ha–1 year–1). These beneficial changes might have further led to the lower soil bulk density (~1.05 g cm–3), higher water-filled porosity (14.7 and 16.1%), and soil organic carbon content (~0.67%) over other grasses and barren soil. Consequently, the highest total bacterial count (21.9 and 44.5 × 107 CFU g–1), soil microbial biomass carbon and enzyme activities such as acid phosphatase (17.7 and 22.6 µg p-nitrophenyl g–1 h–1) and alkaline phosphatase (9.6 and 15.9 µg p-nitrophenyl g–1 h–1) were noticed in lampagrass and guineagrass rhizospheres. Therefore, cultivation of perennial grasses in the low fertile soils of semi-arid environments can be an eco-friendly approach to enhance soil fertility, green fodder supply, and soil carbon build-up

Prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension in rural area of Amravati District of Maharashtra, India

Background: Hypertension is responsible for 57% of stroke deaths and 24% of coronary heart disease deaths in India. Cardiovascular disease will be the largest cause of death and disability in India by 2020. Hypertension is emerging as a major health problem. The prevalence of hypertension has increased in rural people. The objectives were to find the prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension in rural area of Amravati District and to study association between various factors and hypertension in a rural area.Methods: A community based cross sectional study was carried out in rural community. 792 study subjects aged 10 years and above were selected using systematic random sampling. A structured pretested schedule was used to collect data regarding demographic characteristics and blood pressure pattern. Mean, Standard Deviation, Chi- square test and ANOVA were used to analyze data.Results: The prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension was found to be 55.8% and 13.4% respectively. The mean systolic as well as diastolic blood pressure patterns were found to be higher with the increase in age. Older age and increased body mass index were significantly higher among hypertensive compared to normotensive. Factors like tobacco use and alcohol were significantly associated with hypertension.Conclusions: The prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension was found to be high in rural Amravati.