A Survey of Data Mining Tasks

Data Mining is the process of discovering patterns in large data sets and establish relationships to solve problems through data analysis. The main goal of data mining is to identifynbsp patterns and to transform them into a more understandable structure for further analysis. Data mining process pares the overall task of finding patterns from data into a set of well defined subtasks. Data mining uses sophisticated algorithms to find patterns and evaluate the possibility of a future event. There are fundamentally different types of tasks these algorithms address. In this paper we make an effort to briefly explain these funadamental tasks

Study of serum uric acid in liver cirrhosis and its correlation with Child Turcotte Pugh, MELD and UKELD score

Background: Liver cirrhosis is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality. The availability of liver transplant has stressed on the need for accurate prognostication. Various scoring systems have been developed for the same and studies have been conducted to find the correlation of various biochemical parameters with these.Methods: This is a cross sectional study conducted on 100 patients with stigmata of liver cell failure on clinical examination and substantiated by imaging. Serum Uric acid and other biochemical parameters were determined. Child Turcotte Pugh Score, Model for End Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score, United Kingdom Model for End Stage Liver Disease (UKELD) score was calculated and the correlation obtained.Results: The study showed significant, positive correlation between uric acid level and CTP, MELD and UKELD score. The study also showed the positive correlation of serum uric acid with various biochemical parameters such as total bilirubin, Prothrombin time/ International Normalized Ratio (PT/INR) and serum creatinine and negative correlation with serum albumin, with a significant p value. The mean serum uric acid was found to be 4.79(4.79± 2.0)Conclusions: The study showed a correlation between serum uric acid and the various available scoring systems such as CTP score, MELD and UKELD score. Hence serum uric acid can be used as an alternative prognostic parameter in predicting the severity and prognosis of cirrhosis of liver

Formaldehyde tracking in a histopathology laboratory in a medical college

Background: Formalin 10% is a fixative agent used in pathology laboratories. Formaldehyde released from formalin is a strong irritant and a carcinogen. The lab personnel are exposed to 10% formalin preserved surgical and post-mortem tissue samples during the visual examination and grossing. The present study aims to assess the exposure to formaldehyde in a histopathology laboratory unit as well as the effectiveness of existing engineering/ventilation systems. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. Formalin levels were measured using portable air quality/pollution meter which measures formaldehyde (HCHO) in terms of mg/m3 in the morning, noon, and evening in different areas for one month. Areas of rooms and ventilation were mapped. The level of formalin was noted before, during, and after the grossing procedure and compared with the reference values given in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and World Health Organisation (WHO). Results: Formaldehyde concentration ranged from 0.005 to 0.48 ppm (parts per million) in the grossing room and 0.002-0.010 ppm in the museum. Formaldehyde levels were highest in the morning and during grossing without using exhaust/ventilation and the levels reached minimum value within 15-20 minutes of switching on the existing control methods (exhaust fan of grossing station and opening of window panes). Conclusions: Formalin from the histology laboratories cannot be removed entirely but can be reduced sufficiently to lessen the risks to health by educating lab personnel and adopting appropriate control techniques

Evaluation of postpartum intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUCD) insertion: 5 years study

Background: The intrauterine contraceptive device (IUD) primarily in the form of copper T is used by more than 150 million women around the world making it the most widely used reversible method of contraception with a remarkably low failure rate of less than 1 per 100 women in the first year of use for cu T 380 A. It is more suitable for a country like India which is in urgent need of population control methods.Methods: A Prospective observational study was under taken where in a series of women who delivered either vaginally or through caesarean section during the period of November 2013 to October 2017 in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences, Hubli counseled for PPIUCD insertion were included in the study. Mothers who were suffered from Chorioamnionitis, Puerperal sepsis, Postpartum haemmorrhage, PROM more than 18 hours, extensive genital trauma, uterine abnormalities, Multiple sexual partners and obstructed labour were excluded from the study. Since it was a time bound study, a total of 16009 cases were enrolled in the study after counseling them.Results: A total of 16009 women were counseled to undergo PPIUCD, out which 5144 women accepted for PPIUD amounting to a total acceptance rate of 32.1%.Out of the 10865 women who did not accept device, the reason for non-acceptance preference another contraception 60%, family opposition was reason in 21% of women, while 08% of women had side effects from their previous use. 11% of women said that they were not desire to use contraception.Conclusions: Family planning and mother and child health services are supplied to the people free of cost in India. Use of an intrauterine device is simpler , less expensive, and immediately reversible

Prospecting endophytic fungal assemblage of Digitalis lanata Ehrh. (foxglove) as a novel source of digoxin: a cardiac glycoside

Endophytes, the chemical synthesizers inside plants, are the microorganisms having mutualistic relationship with the host plant. They can be used by plants for defense in addition to the production of a wide variety of beneficial bioactive secondary metabolites. There are reports that microbial endophytes mimic the bioactive compounds as produced by the plant itself thus making them a promising source of novel compounds. During the present study, endophytes were isolated from the symptomless leaves and stem of the angiosperm, Digitalis lanata (foxglove). Digitalis lanata belongs to the family Plantaginaceae and is an important medicinal plant known for the production of an important glycoside, digoxin having valuable medicinal importance. Glycosides from Digitalis have been reported to be cardiotonic and are widely used in the treatment of various heart conditions namely atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, heart failure, etc. Endophytic fungi were isolated from Digitalis to screen them for such glycosides as have been found in the plant itself. A total of 35 fungal endophytes were isolated and screened for the production of secondary metabolites. After preliminary analysis by thin layer chromatography for the presence of bioactive compounds, crude extracts of five fungal cultures were selected for HPLC. HPLC chromatograms revealed the production of glycoside digoxin from the five selected endophytic cultures, thus providing a novel, alternative and eco-friendly source for the production of such a pharmaceutically important and valuable drug

Evaluation of blood donor deferrals in a government teaching hospital

Background: Blood transfusion is a life-saving intervention. Blood should be accepted from non-remunerated and healthy donors. Proper donor screening procedure minimizes the risk of transfusion transmitted Infections and also wastage of blood and blood products and thus screening of donors is a prerequisite for blood donation. Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted in blood bank center in the Department of Pathology in a Government teaching hospital, Shivamogga from January 2022 to June 2022. All the voluntary and replacement donors were evaluated by the standard questionnaire and medical examination including demographic profile, anthropometry, blood group, vital signs and hemoglobin estimated by cyanmethemoglobin method were collected from the donation requisition forms and online deferred list. The data were represented in the form of percentage, descriptive statistics and analysed. Results: Out of 3,449 blood donors, 252 were deferred. The deferral rate was 7.31%. Among the ineligible donors, males 245 (97.22%) outnumbered females 7 (2.8%). 242 donors (96.03%) were temporarily rejected among which high blood pressure constituted to 23.02% followed by alcohol consumption (11.11%) whereas 10 donors (3.96%) were deferred permanently. 9 donors (3.57%) had low haemoglobin level. Conclusions: Temporary deferrals are more than permanent deferrals thus temporarily deferred donors should be instructed to return for blood donation after their period of deferral days to retain the pool of blood donors

Evaluation of adnexal masses: correlation of clinical examination, sonographic assessment and histopathological findings

Background: Prevalence of symptomatic adnexal masses is 1:1000 in premenopausal women and 3:1000 in post –menopausal women. Benign diseases of ovaries and fallopian tube are commonest etiology. However, as risk of neoplastic lesions increases with age and further after menopause The primary goal of diagnostic evaluation of adnexal masses is to exclude malignancy. Methods: This one-year prospective observational study was carried out on 100 female patients attending gynaecology OPD with the clinical diagnosis of adnexal mass. Female patients presenting with symptoms like lower abdominal pain, menstrual irregularity and palpable mass or asymptomatic patients with incidental finding of adnexal mass were included in the study. The aim of the study was to compare the sensitivity, specificity and predictive value of clinical examination, ultrasonography and to compare it with the histopathology. Results: Ultrasound of pelvis was done for all patients. Laparotomy was done for all cases and the specimen was sent for histopathological examination. 70% tumours were benign and 30% tumours were malignant. As per our study, ultrasonography has the highest diagnostic accuracy (93%) followed by pelvic examination (86%) and RMI score (86%). Clinical examination has highest sensitivity of 93.33% followed by CA-125 (86.66%) and ultrasonography (83.33%). Conclusions: Thus, ultrasound is the primary modality used for detection and delineation of pelvic masses. The study also showed that RMI has better performance than CA 125 in the prediction of malignancy. Thus, with such simple methods we can diagnose precisely without advanced radiological imaging