KAP Studies Among Indian Antenatal Women: Can We Reduce the Incidence of Anemia?

Aim

To study the knowledge, attitude, and practices of antenatal women regarding nutrition and drug compliance in a maternal and child health center in Navi Mumbai.

Material and Methods

This study was carried out on 250 pregnant females visiting a maternal and child health center over a period of 4 months from November 2012 to February 2013. Women attending the antenatal OPD were asked to fill a questionnaire regarding anemia so as to test their knowledge, attitudes, and practices pertaining to anemia and role of their diet.

Observation

The observations were analyzed. This study reflects the ignorance and lack of education among the majority of child-bearing women of low socioeconomic class.

Conclusion

Educating antenatal women about the importance of diet and implementing this into practice will help in the prevention of anemia. It is also seen that drug compliance for iron and folic acid (free supply) has significantly improved, not only because of the cost factor but also due to the reinforcement of knowledge by the staff so as to achieve the minimum WHO target hemoglobin of 10.5 g% in all mothers.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13224-014-0618-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

A molecular connection of Pterocarpus marsupium,Eugenia jambolana and Gymnema sylvestre with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 in the treatment of diabetes

Context: Pterocarpus marsupium (PM) (Leguminosae), Eugenia jambolana (EJ) (Myrtaceae) and Gymnema sylvestre (GS) (Asclepiadaceae) are the most important medicinal plants in the Indian system of traditional medicine for the treatment of hyperglycemia.

Objectives: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors are the emerging class of anti-diabetic agents. However, only few compounds are commercially available. Therefore, in the present study we tried to explore the naturally occurring PM, EJ and GS semi-standardized extracts for their potential DPP-4 inhibition in vitro and in vivo.

Materials and methods: DPP-4 inhibition was evaluated by in vitro inhibitory assay, and enzyme kinetics were calculated using one-phase exponential decay equation. Glucose load (2?g/kg) was administered to control and diabetic rats 30?min following extract administration (100, 200 and 400?mg/kg) orally once, and blood samples were withdrawn at 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2 and 3?h to measure plasma active glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) levels.

Results: PM and EJ inhibit DPP-4 potently with IC₅₀ values of 273.73?±?2.96 and 278.94?±?6.73?µg/mL, respectively, compared to GS (773.22?±?9.21?µg/mL). PM, EJ and GS exhibit long duration of action with enzyme inhibitory half-lives of 462.3, 317.2 and 153.8?min, respectively. Extracts significantly increase GLP-1 levels compared to negative control groups and peak GLP-1 level was observed at 2?h for PM and EJ, whereas for GS it was at 1.5?h

Discussion and conclusion: Taken together, results suggest the extracts may have potent DPP-4 inhibitory action, and their hypoglycemic action attributed through an increase in plasma active GLP-1 levels.     

Evaluation of Efficacy of Microwave Irradiation in Disinfecting Dental Gypsum Casts: An Ex Vivo Study

The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of microwave irradiation in disinfecting gypsum casts and also to compare its efficacy with validated method of chemical disinfection. The present study is an ex vivo study conducted on a sample of five irreversible hydrocolloid impressions in vitro and on ten patients gypsum casts in vivo following standard impression techniques to check the efficacy of microwave oven irradiation and compare its efficacy with standard chemical method of disinfection. Results were analysed using Mann–Whitney test and Wilcoxon signed rank test. Untreated gypsum casts showed cfu/ml counts with a median log value of 6, while microwave-irradiated ones had median cfu/ml counts of 0. Casts poured from chemically disinfected impressions demonstrated cfu/ml counts with a median log value of 5. Microwave irradiation was found to be effective in disinfecting gypsum casts when compared to chemical disinfectant in disinfecting dental impressions.     

Aesthetics in ear surgery: A comparative study of different post auricular incisions and their cosmetic relevance

Post auricular incisions play a very important role in the final post operative position of pinna and hence keeps a cosmetic bearing. This study shows that “behind the groove” incision gives a better post operative result in terms of minimal deviation of pinna and thus is cosmetically a better incision. This study also includes a new method to measure the conchomastoid or the post auricular angle. This paper was awarded the first prize in the Post Graduate award paper section at 58th AOICON (All India Conference of Otolaryngologists of India) held at Lucknow, 5th–8th Jan 2006     

Radio frequency coil technology for small-animal MRI

A review of the theory, technology, and use of radio frequency (RF) coils for small-animal MRI is presented. It includes a brief overview of MR signal-to-noise (S/N) analysis and discussions of the various coils commonly used in small-animal MR: surface coils, linear volume coils, birdcages, and their derivatives. The scope is limited to mid-range coils, i.e. coils where the product (fd) of the frequency f and the coil diameter d is in the range 2-30 MHz-m. Common applications include mouse brain and body coils from 125 to 750 MHz, rat body coils up to 500 MHz, and small surface coils at all fields. In this regime, all the sources of loss (coil, capacitor, sample, shield, and transmission lines) are important. All such losses may be accurately captured in some modern full-wave 3D electromagnetics software, and new simulation results are presented for a selection of surface coils using Microwave Studio 2006 by Computer Simulation Technology, showing the dramatic importance of the "lift-off effect". Standard linear circuit simulators have been shown to be useful in optimization of complex coil tuning and matching circuits. There appears to be considerable potential for trading S/N for speed using phased arrays, especially for a larger field of view. Circuit simulators are shown to be useful for optimal mismatching of ultra-low-noise preamps based on the enhancement-mode pseudomorphic high-electron-mobility transistor for optimal coil decoupling in phased arrays. Cryogenically cooled RF coils are shown to offer considerable opportunity for future gains in S/N in smaller samples.     

Co-infection with hepatitis viruses among HIV-infected individuals at a tertiary care centre in South India

We studied the occurrence of hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) virus co-infections in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals in a tertiary care centre. The occurrence of co-infections in our study was less than in the literature reported from the West. However, routine screening of these co-infections in HIV patients is recommended to avoid possible liver-related morbidity and mortality as a part of improving their quality of life.