Association between Covishield vaccine and menstrual disturbance. Findings from a cross-sectional study among participants of Zero TB cohort in India.

Background: The association between covid-19 vaccine and menstrual disturbance is unclear.

Methods: An in-person cross-sectional survey among female members ≥ 18 years enrolled in an ongoing Zero TB prospective cohort in Northern India who had received one or two doses of covid-19 vaccine was conducted to study the characteristics and association of menstrual disturbance within six months of receiving Covishield.

Results: Between June 29 and September 5, 2021, 339 females ≥ 18 years of age were administered the survey.

First and second doses of Covishield vaccine provided high level of protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection in highly transmissible settings: results from a prospective cohort of participants residing in congregate facilities in India.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of Covishield vaccine among residents of congregate residential facilities.

Design: A prospective cohort study in congregate residential facilities.

Setting: Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, India, from December 2020 to July 2021.

No Detectable Electroencephalographic Activity After Clinical Declaration of Death Among Tibetan Buddhist Meditators in Apparent Tukdam, a Putative Postmortem Meditation State.

Recent EEG studies on the early postmortem interval that suggest the persistence of electrophysiological coherence and connectivity in the brain of animals and humans reinforce the need for further investigation of the relationship between the brain's activity and the dying process. Neuroscience is now in a position to empirically evaluate the extended process of dying and, more specifically, to investigate the possibility of brain activity following the cessation of cardiac and respiratory function. Under the direction of the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, research was conducted in India on a postmortem meditative state cultivated by some Tibetan Buddhist practitioners in which decomposition is putatively delayed.

Risk of developing active tuberculosis following tuberculosis screening and preventive therapy for Tibetan refugee children and adolescents in India: An impact assessment.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) rates among Tibetan refugee children and adolescents attending boarding schools in India are extremely high. We undertook a comprehensive case finding and TB preventive treatment (TPT) program in 7 schools in the Zero TB Kids project. We aimed to measure the TB infection and disease burden and investigate the risk of TB disease in children and adults who did and did not receive TPT in the schools.

High prevalence of rifampin-resistant tuberculosis in mountainous districts of India.

Background: India accounts for quarter of global rifampin-resistant/multi-drug resistant-tuberculosis (RR/MDR-TB). Knowledge on risk-factors and distribution of MDR-TB at district level is limited.

Objective: Study prevalence and risk factors of MDR-TB in tuberculosis patients in hilly districts of Himachal Pradesh, India.

High Prevalence of Active and Latent Tuberculosis in Children and Adolescents in Tibetan Schools in India: The Zero TB Kids Initiative in Tibetan Refugee Children.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) prevalence is high among Tibetan refugees in India, with almost half of cases occurring in congregate facilities, including schools. A comprehensive program of TB case finding and treatment of TB infection (TBI) was undertaken in schools for Tibetan refugee children.

Methods: Schoolchildren and staff in Tibetan schools in Himachal Pradesh, India, were screened for TB with an algorithm using symptoms, chest radiography, molecular diagnostics, and tuberculin skin testing.

Bedaquiline and Delamanid Combination Treatment of 5 Patients with Pulmonary Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

We report the experiences of 5 patients taking bedaquiline with delamanid in combination: 1 patient was cured; 3 culture converted, with 2 continuing and 1 changing therapy; and 1 died from respiratory insufficiency. For 2 patients, QT-interval prolongation but no arrhythmias occurred. Use of this therapy is justified for patients with limited options.

Effectiveness and safety of bedaquiline-containing regimens in the treatment of MDR- and XDR-TB: a multicentre study.

Large studies on bedaquiline used to treat multidrug-resistant (MDR-) and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) are lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of bedaquiline-containing regimens in a large, retrospective, observational study conducted in 25 centres and 15 countries in five continents.428 culture-confirmed MDR-TB cases were analysed (61.

Is mercury in Tibetan Medicine toxic? Clinical, neurocognitive and biochemical results of an initial cross-sectional study.

Mercury an important therapeutic substance in Tibetan Medicine undergoes complex "detoxification" prior to inclusion in multi-ingredient formulas. In an initial cross-sectional study, patients taking Tibetan Medicine for various conditions were evaluated for mercury toxicity. Two groups were identified: Group 1, patients taking " Tsothel" the most important detoxified mercury preparation and Group 2, patients taking other mercury preparations or mercury free Tibetan Medicine.

First case of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis treated with both delamanid and bedaquiline.

http://ow.ly/WzeB3004Cmo

Improved Detection of Tuberculosis and Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis among Tibetan Refugees, India.

The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) among Tibetan refugees in India is 431 cases/100,000 persons, compared with 181 cases/100,000 persons overall in India in 2010. More than half of TB cases in these refugees occur among students, monks, and nuns in congregate settings. We sought to increase TB case detection rates for this population through active case finding and rapid molecular diagnostics.

First report of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis in a systemic lupus erythematosus patient.

Background: Treatment of a multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patient is clinically challenging, requiring a minimum of 18 months of therapy. Its occurrence in a systemic lupus erythromatosus (SLE) patient may complicate management of both MDR-TB and SLE. This is the first descriptive report of MDR-TB in an SLE patient.

Survey of tuberculosis drug resistance among Tibetan refugees in India.

Setting: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem among Tibetans living in exile in India. Although drug-resistant TB is considered common in clinical practice, precise data are lacking.

Objective: To determine the proportion of drug-resistant cases among new and previously treated Tibetan TB patients.

"Freezing" parasites in pre-Himalayan region, Himachal Pradesh: Experience with mini-FLOTAC.

Background: Helminths and protozoa infections pose a great burden especially in developing, countries, due to morbidity caused both by acute and chronic infections. Data on distribution of intestinal parasitic infections among the native and expatriates populations in Himachal Pradesh are scarce. The aim of our survey was to analyze the intestinal parasitic burden in communities from Dharamsala, Kangra district, in clinical and public health settings.

Mini-FLOTAC, an innovative direct diagnostic technique for intestinal parasitic infections: experience from the field.

Background: Soil-transmitted helminths and intestinal protozoa infection are widespread in developing countries, yet an accurate diagnosis is rarely performed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the recently developed mini-FLOTAC method and to compare with currently more widely used techniques for the diagnosis of intestinal parasitic infections in different settings.

Methodology/principal Findings: The study was carried out in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India, and in Bukumbi, Tanzania.

Mercury in traditional Tibetan medicine - panacea or problem?

Unlabelled: Symptoms of mercury toxicity, biochemical changes, and blood/urine mercury levels were evaluated in a small group of patients. Six patients attending Delek Hospital, Dharamsala, India, taking mercury-containing traditional Tibetan medicine (TTM) (Group I), were compared with three patients taking non-mercury containing TTM (Group II) and healthy volunteers(Group II). Quantitative estimation of mercury ingestion based on chemical analysis was compared with US regulatory standards.