Correlation of Glasgow Coma Scale with Non-Contrast Computed Tomography findings in immediate post traumatic brain injury

Background: This study was undertaken to correlate Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score with Non-Contrast Computed Tomography (NCCT) findings in patients with acute traumatic brain injury (TBI) attending tertiary care Shree Narayana Hospital, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India.Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed among 100 patients of acute traumatic head injury (those presenting to hospital within 24 hours of injury) over a period of six months. The patient’s GCS score was determined and NCCT Brain scan was performed in each case immediately (within 30 minutes) after presenting to casualty of the hospital. A 16 slice siemens Somatom CT scan was utilized and 5mm and 10mm sections were obtained for infratentorial and supratentorial parts respectively.Results: The age range of the patients was 0 to 76 years and male: female ratio was 2.85:1. Younger age group was more commonly involved, with 61% of cases seen in 11-40 years of age group. The most common causes of head injury were road traffic accident (RTA) (65%) and fall from height (25%). The distribution of patients in accordance with GCS was found to be 55% with mild TBI (GCS 12 to 14), 25% with moderate TBI (GCS 11 to 8) and 20% with severe TBI (GCS 7 or less).Conclusions: The presence of multiple lesions and midline shift on CT scan were accompanied with lower GCS, whereas patients having single lesion had more GCS level. There was significant correlation between GCS and NCCT findings in immediate post TBI

Clinical profile of recurrent headache in rural children of Rajasthan: A cross-sectional study

Context: Recurrent headache is a commonly encountered clinical entity in rural children. Aims: This study aims to record the clinical profile of recurrent headache in rural children of Rajasthan. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional, observational study in a pediatric outpatient department of a tertiary care teaching hospital. Methods and Materials: A total of 164 children of either sex, between 5 and 17 years of age, presenting with complaints of a recurrent headache were included in the study. All relevant clinical details collected from patients and their relatives were recorded in a structured pro forma. A detailed examination was performed to rule out underlying problems associated with a headache. Headache subtypes were classified according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 3rd edition beta, 2013. Pediatric migraine disability assessment test score and Faces pain rating scale were utilized to assess the disability and severity, respectively. Statistical analysis involved summarizing the continuous variables as mean and standard deviation while nominal/categorical variables were expressed as percentages. Results: The mean age was 11.5 years and the M:F ratio was 1:1.1. Adolescents in 13–17 years age group constituted 61.5% (n=101) of the study sample with 58.4% (n=59) female subjects. Primary headaches - tension-type headache (n=77, 46.9%), migraine (n=43, 26.2%), and new daily persistent headache (n=5, 3%) were observed in 125 (76.1%) cases. Common causes of secondary headache were somatization disorder (n=27, 16.5%), ophthalmic problems (n=7, 4.3%), medication overuse (n=3, 1.9%), intracranial tumor (n=1, 0.6), and postictal (n=1, 0.6). Conclusions: Recurrent headache in rural children has distinct etiological profile which mandates a meticulous evaluation for initiating appropriate management

Psychological Contract Violation and Sharing Intention on Facebook

While there is a psychological component to every written contract, it is particularly the case for exchanges on social network site (SNS), where users tend to ignore the user agreement. As a form of social exchange, content sharing on SNS is guided by psychological contract, i.e., implicit and assumed reciprocal obligations. This study investigates how psychological contract violations (PCVs) affect people’s sharing intentions on Facebook. Based on a survey of 347 Facebook users, we find that sharing intention is negatively influenced by interpersonal and institutional PCVs through SNS users’ information privacy concern and trust. Interestingly, PCV by another user positively influences the affected user’s perceived violation by the SNS, suggesting a collateral damage of interpersonal PCV towards SNS. This paper adds to the privacy literature on SNS by revealing the fundamental role of PCV that alters users’ trust and information privacy concern in online social exchange

Vascular Response to Sildenafil Citrate in Aging and Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) - the leading cause of vision loss in the elderly - share many risks factors as atherosclerosis, which exhibits loss of vascular compliance resulting from aging and oxidative stress. Here, we attempt to explore choroidal and retinal vascular compliance in patients with AMD by evaluating dynamic vascular changes using live ocular imaging following treatment with oral sildenafil citrate, a phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor and potent vasodilator. Enhanced-depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) and OCT angiography (OCT-A) were performed on 46 eyes of 23 subjects, including 15 patients with non-exudative AMD in one eye and exudative AMD in the fellow eye, and 8 age-matched control subjects. Choroidal thickness, choroidal vascularity, and retinal vessel density were measured across the central macula at 1 and 3 hours after a 100 mg oral dose of sildenafil citrate. Baseline choroidal thickness was 172.1 ± 60.0 μm in non-exudative AMD eyes, 196.4 ± 89.8 μm in exudative AMD eyes, and 207.4 ± 77.7 μm in control eyes, with no difference between the 3 groups (P = 0.116). After sildenafil, choroidal thickness increased by 6.0% to 9.0% at 1 and 3 hours in all groups (P = 0.001-0.014). Eyes from older subjects were associated with choroidal thinning at baseline (P = 0.005) and showed less choroidal expansion at 1 hour and 3 hours after sildenafil (P = 0.001) regardless of AMD status (P = 0.666). The choroidal thickening appeared to be primarily attributed to expansion of the stroma rather than luminal component. Retinal vascular density remained unchanged after sildenafil in all 3 groups (P = 0.281-0.587). Together, our studies suggest that vascular response of the choroid to sildenafil decreases with age, but is not affected by the presence of non-exudative or exudative AMD, providing insight into changes in vessel compliance in aging and AMD

Cataract Surgery in Uveitis

Cataract surgery in uveitic eyes is often challenging and can result in intraoperative and postoperative complications. Most uveitic patients enjoy good vision despite potentially sight-threatening complications, including cataract development. In those patients who develop cataracts, successful surgery stems from educated patient selection, careful surgical technique, and aggressive preoperative and postoperative control of inflammation. With improved understanding of the disease processes, pre- and perioperative control of inflammation, modern surgical techniques, availability of biocompatible intraocular lens material and design, surgical experience in performing complicated cataract surgeries, and efficient management of postoperative complications have led to much better outcome. Preoperative factors include proper patient selection and counseling and preoperative control of inflammation. Meticulous and careful cataract surgery in uveitic cataract is essential in optimizing the postoperative outcome. Management of postoperative complications, especially inflammation and glaucoma, earlier rather than later, has also contributed to improved outcomes. This manuscript is review of the existing literature and highlights the management pearls in tackling complicated cataract based on medline search of literature and experience of the authors

Strategies for improving early detection and diagnosis of neovascular age-related macular degeneration

Treatment of the neovascular form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has been revolutionized by the introduction of such agents as ranibizumab, bevacizumab, and aflibercept. As a result, the incidence of legal blindness occurring secondary to AMD has fallen dramatically in recent years in many countries. While these agents have undoubtedly been successful in reducing visual impairment and blindness, patients with neovascular AMD typically lose some vision over time, and often lose the ability to read, drive, or perform other important activities of daily living. Efforts are therefore under way to develop strategies that allow for earlier detection and treatment of this disease. In this review, we begin by providing an overview of the rationale for, and the benefits of, early detection and treatment of neovascular AMD. To achieve this, we begin by providing an overview of the pathophysiology and natural history of choroidal neovascularization, before reviewing the evidence from both clinical trials and "real-world" outcome studies. We continue by highlighting an area that is often overlooked: the importance of patient education and awareness for early AMD detection. We conclude the review by reviewing an array of both established and emerging technologies for early detection of choroidal neovascularization, ranging from Amsler chart testing, to hyperacuity testing, to advanced imaging techniques, such as optical coherence tomography

Moving fast but going slow: coordination challenges for trials of COVID-19 post-exposure prophylaxis

An unprecedented volume of research has been generated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there are risks of inefficient duplication and of important work being impeded if efforts are not synchronized. Excessive reliance on observational studies, which can be more rapidly conducted but are inevitably subject to measured and unmeasured confounders, can foil efforts to conduct rigorous randomized trials. These challenges are illustrated by recent global efforts to conduct clinical trials of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) as a strategy for preventing COVID-19. Innovative strategies are needed to help overcome these issues, including increasing communication between the Data Safety and Monitoring Committees (DSMCs) of similar trials. It is important to reinforce the primacy of high-quality trials in generating unbiased answers to pressing prevention and treatment questions about COVID-19

Vitamin D deficiency and non-infectious uveitis:A systematic review and Meta-analysis

Background: Vitamin D plays a critical role in immunomodulation, and its deficiency is implicated in the pathogenesis of several autoimmune diseases. Nevertheless, its relationship with non-infectious uveitis (NIU), an inflammatory ocular disorder, remains inconclusive. Methods:A systematic search was conducted in three databases from database inception until May 8, 2023, to investigate the potential relationship between vitamin D deficiency and NIU. We included observational studies reporting the measurement of vitamin D levels in patients with NIU and healthy controls without restriction of language or date of publication. Three pairs of authors independently screened the title and abstracts for potential eligibility and then in full text. A third author resolved disagreements. Three pairs of independent reviewers abstracted the data from the fully reviewed records and evaluated the risk of bias. We followed The MOOSE and PRISMA guidelines. Random effects meta-analyses were used for primary analysis. Studies not included in the meta-analysis were summarized descriptively. This review was registered in PROSPERO: CRD42022308105. Findings: Of 933 records screened, 11 studies were included, and five were meta-analyzed, encompassing 354 cases and 5728 controls (mean participant age ranging from 7.1 to 58.9 years). Patients with vitamin D deficiency exhibited an Odds Ratio of 2.04 (95% CI = 1.55–2.68, P &lt; 0.00001) for developing NIU compared to controls. Overall, potential sources of bias were low across most studies. Interpretation: Our findings suggest that vitamin D may play an essential role in the pathophysiology of NIU. While the included studies demonstrated generally low potential bias, additional rigorous prospective studies are necessary to confirm these findings and further elucidate the underlying mechanisms involved. Vitamin D supplementation could represent a possible therapeutic strategy for preventing or managing NIU if substantiated. Clinicians should consider screening for and addressing vitamin D deficiency in patients with or at risk for NIU.</p