Plate waste study among hospitalised patients receiving texture-modified diet

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVESWhile plate waste has been widely investigated in hospitals, there have been minimal studies specific to the texture-modified diet (TMD). This study aims to determine the percentage of plate waste among patients prescribed with TMD and its contributory factors.SUBJECTS/METHODSThis was a single-centre study conducted in the university hospital on three types of TMD (blended diet, mixed porridge, minced diet) during lunch and dinner meals. Weighing method and visual estimation method assisted by digital photograph were adopted in this study. Face to face interview was carried out to investigate on 1) the food/food service quality factors in terms of patients'' satisfaction level towards sensorial quality of food and food services provided and 2) the clinical/external factors including appetite, the provision of oral nutrition support, time taking the diet, the need for feeding assistance and the length of hospital stay.RESULTSThe mean percentage of overall plate waste of 95 patients receiving TMD was high (47.5%). Blended diet was identified as the most wasted diet (65%) followed by minced diet (56%) and mixed porridge (35%). Satisfaction level among patients was moderate. Patients on TMD in general had higher satisfaction level on the aspect of food service as compared to food quality. Substantial association between sensorial qualities of food and plate waste were varied according to individual TMD type. A multiple linear regression showed that only the satisfaction level toward the aspects of appearance and variety of foods were the predictors of TMD plate waste (R² = 0.254, P < 0.05).CONCLUSIONSA significant relationship between the percentage of plate waste and the overall satisfaction level of patients receiving TMD suggests that vigorous strategies are needed to reduce the food waste of TMD which will lead to a better nutritional status and clinical outcomes among the patients.     

Embryonic and Neonatal Mouse Cochleae Are Susceptible to Zika Virus Infection

Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS) is caused by vertical transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) to the gestating human fetus. A subset of CZS microcephalic infants present with reduced otoacoustic emissions; this test screens for hearing loss originating in the cochlea. This observation leads to the question of whether mammalian cochlear tissues are susceptible to infection by ZIKV during development. To address this question using a mouse model, the sensory cochlea was explanted at proliferative, newly post-mitotic or maturing stages. ZIKV was added for the first 24 h and organs cultured for up to 6 days to allow for cell differentiation. Results showed that ZIKV can robustly infect proliferating sensory progenitors, as well as post-mitotic hair cells and supporting cells. Virus neutralization using ZIKV-117 antibody blocked cochlear infection. AXL is a cell surface molecule known to enhance the attachment of flavivirus to host cells. While Axl mRNA is widely expressed in embryonic cochlear tissues susceptible to ZIKV infection, it is selectively downregulated in the post-mitotic sensory organ by E15.5, even though these cells remain infectible. These findings may offer insights into which target cells could potentially contribute to hearing loss resulting from fetal exposure to ZIKV in humans.     

Village family planning volunteers in Indonesia: their role in the family planning programme

Family planning was once a sensitive issue in Indonesia, but today it is considered essential. This paper reports on a study in 1997-98 of the role of village family planning volunteers and the cadres who worked under them in West Java, Central Java and DI Yogyakarta, in implementing the national family planning programme in Indonesia. A total of 108 village family planning volunteers, 108 family planning cadres, 108 local leaders and 324 couples eligible for family planning from 36 villages in the three provinces were interviewed. The volunteers and cadres have made a significant contribution to the implementation of the family planning programme. They promote family planning, organise meetings, provide information, organise income-generation activities, give savings and credit assistance, collect and report data and deliver other family welfare services. Teachers, wives of government officials and others recognised by the community as better off in terms of education and living conditions were most often identified to become family planning volunteers. Because they are women and because they are the most distant arm of the programme, their work is taken for granted. As their activities are directed towards women, especially in women's traditional roles, the programme tends to entrench the existing gender gap in responsibility for family planning and family welfare.     

Rheological Performance of Magnetorheological Grease with Embedded Graphite Additives

The use of highly viscous grease as a medium in magnetorheological grease (MRG) provides the benefit of avoiding sedimentation from occurring. However, it limits the expansion of yield stress in the on-state condition, thus reducing the application performance during operation. Therefore, in this study, the improvement in the rheological properties of MRG was investigated through the introduction of graphite as an additive. MRG with 10 wt % graphite (GMRG) was fabricated, and its properties were compared to a reference MRG sample. The microstructure of GMRG was characterized using an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). The rheological properties of both samples, including apparent viscosity, yield stress, and viscoelasticity, were examined using a shear rheometer in rotational and oscillatory modes. The results demonstrated a slight increase in the apparent viscosity in GMRG and a significant improvement in yield stress by 38.8% at 3 A with growth about 32.7% higher compared to MRG from 0 to 3 A. An expansion of the linear viscoelastic region (LVE) from 0.01% to 0.1% was observed for the GMRG, credited to the domination of the elastic properties on the sample. These obtained results were confirmed based on ESEM, which described the contribution of graphite to constructing a more stable chain structure in the GMRG. In conclusion, the findings highlight the influence of the addition of graphite on improving the rheological properties of MRG. Hence, the addition of graphite in MRG shows the potential to be applied in many applications in the near future.     

Desire for children and subsequent abortions in Matlab,Bangladesh

This study investigated the relationship between desire for children and subsequent abortions in the treatment and comparison areas of Matlab, where ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population Research has been maintaining a Demographic Surveillance System (DSS) since 1966. The women at risk of pregnancy, interviewed in the In-depth-1984 (Cohort-84) and KAP-1990 (Cohort-90) surveys, were followed for five years through the DSS to ascertain their subsequent pregnancy outcomes. The desire for children was negatively associated with the risk of subsequent abortion in recent years. The number of abortions was higher in the comparison area than in the treatment area and increased over time in both the areas among those who wanted no more children. Among the sample women, one in five abortees had repeated abortions in the comparison area, but none had repeated abortions in the treatment area. The other factors associated with high risk of abortion were: old age, education, Hindu religion, and use of contraceptives (at the time of survey). The findings suggest that targeting women who want to limit family size with high-quality family-planning services would reduce the incidence of once and repeated abortions.     

Clinical, histologic and immunologic features of pemphigus in Bangladesh

We studied the clinical, histologic and immunologic features of 32 pemphigus patients evaluated in Dhaka. The diagnosis was pemphigus vulgaris (PV) in 72% of cases, and pemphigus foliaceous (PF) in 28%, with male to female ratios of 1.3 : 1 and 1.25 : 1, respectively. Only 25% of PV patients had vesicles or bullae involving mucous membranes as the initial presentation. Direct (DIF) and indirect (IIF) immunofluorescence tests were positive in all 32 patients. The DIF testing of tissue demonstrated intercellular substance (ICS) deposition of IgG (59%) or IgG plus C3 (41%). Serum ICS antibody titers ranged from 1 : 20–40 in PV and from 1 : 10–20 in patients with PF. To our knowledge, this is the first report concerning the characteristics of pemphigus in Bangladesh.     

Correlation analysis of triglycerides to high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio associated with gestational diabetes mellitus

International Journal of Diabetes in Developing Countries - Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) initiates when a woman’s pancreas could not act appropriately to bypass the diabetogenic...