Efficacy, safety, and tolerability of lifitegrast 5% eye drops: A randomized, double-blind, active-controlled trial in Indian patients with dry eye disease.

Purpose: To compare the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of lifitegrast 5% versus carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) 0.5% in adult patients with dry eye disease (DED).

Methods: A total of 370 eligible patients with DED were randomized equally to receive twice-daily doses of a single drop in each eye of either lifitegrast 5% or CMC 0.

Impact of the COVID-19-induced lockdown on the incidence of ocular trauma presenting to a tertiary care hospital.

Objective: To assess the effects of lockdown and unlock phases mandated in view of COVID-19 on the incidence and characteristics of ocular trauma presenting to a tertiary care hospital.

Methods And Analysis: The study was carried out as a hospital record based retrospective comparative analysis on patients presenting with ocular trauma in the lockdown period (March-July 2020) compared with the same time frame of the previous year considered as prelockdown period (March-July 2019) and during the unlock phases (August-December 2020).

Results: Overall, the casualty department saw 464 patients of ocular trauma in the prelockdown period, 173 in the lockdown and 253 in unlock.

Study of ocular manifestations in tuberculosis and its association with HIV AIDS in a tertiary care hospital.

Objective: To assess and understand the prevalence and clinical presentation of ocular morbidity in patients suffering from tuberculosis and compare it with ocular involvement in patients coinfected with tuberculosis and HIV AIDS.

Materials And Methods: This was a non-comparative, observational, cross sectional study done on 580 patients, who were diagnosed cases of tuberculosis, pulmonary or extrapulmonary, on or off treatment, visiting the Ophthalmology OPD, Tuberculosis OPD and ART Centre of the institute in the period from March 2015 to March 2018, screened for ocular morbidity.

Results: Out of 580, 408 patients had only tuberculosis and 172 had tuberculosis with HIV AIDS.

Fourier Transform Near-Infrared Spectroscopy for rapid and simple determination of phytic acid content in green gram seeds (Vigna radiata).

The feasibility of measuring phytic acid content in green gram (Vigna radiata) seeds was investigated by Fourier Transform Near-Infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopic technique. Pure phytic acid standards of varying concentrations were scanned using FTNIR spectroscopy. The spectra were measured in diffused reflectance mode by keeping 100-1500 mg/100g standard of pure phytic acid in small sample cuvette.

Microwave drying for safe storage and improved nutritional quality of green gram seed (Vigna radiata).

The present study describes the effect of the microwave-heating method on disinfestations and physico characteristics, viz., grain size, grain hardness, and nutritional quality, of the stored green gram seed. It has been observed that the use of the microwave-heating method not only prolongs the storage duration of the green gram seed but also enhances its nutritional quality.