An exploratory study of the mandate and functions of national pharmaceutical services units: global trends and the cases of Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, and Nepal.

Background: National pharmaceutical services units (NPSUs) - organisational units within the central government usually responsible for pharmaceutical services and management - have an increasingly narrow mandate. Anecdotal evidence points to an increasing focus, almost exclusively, on logistics management, while pharmaceutical care and policy oversight have become fragmented. This study examined NPSUs' current functions and mandates, and proposed what should be the critical functions and roles of these units going forward.

Continuous Incisional Infusion of Local Anaesthetic (CIILA) Reduces Postoperative Opioid Usage in Children.

Aim: Adequate post-operative pain relief is associated with shorter recovery time and higher patient satisfaction. Universally, opioids have been the mainstay but are associated with many adverse effects. We aimed to assess the safety and effectiveness of Continuous Incisional Infusion of Local Anaesthetic (CIILA) for postoperative pain relief in the paediatric population.

Developing Nepal's medicines pricing policy: evidence synthesis and stakeholders' consultation.

Objectives: The objectives of this paper are to (a) explore stakeholders' opinions regarding Nepal's existing medicines pricing practices/situation and (b) build and present a set of medicines pricing policies for Nepal.

Methods: A review of the literature and field visits to community retail pharmacies, hospital pharmacies, wholesalers, and distributor outlets in Kathmandu were conducted to assess the medicines pricing situation. Following the literature review, preliminary meetings with stakeholders and field visits were held and a draft interview guide was prepared.

Cross-correlation and time series analysis of rabies in different animal species in Nepal from 2005 to 2018.

Rabies is a fatal zoonotic disease, resulting in human and livestock deaths. In Nepal, animal rabies has posed a significant challenge to public health. Because animals are the primary source of rabies in humans, a better understanding of rabies epidemiology in animals is necessary.

Recording and Reporting of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Priority Variables and Its Implication on Expanding Surveillance Sites in Nepal: A CAPTURA Experience.

Data on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) from sites not participating in the National AMR surveillance network, conducted by National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL), remain largely unknown in Nepal. The "Capturing Data on Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns and Trends in Use in Regions of Asia" (CAPTURA) assessed AMR data from previously untapped data sources in Nepal. A retrospective cross-sectional data review was carried out for the AMR data recorded between January 2017 and December 2019 to analyze AMR data from 26 hospital-based laboratories and 2 diagnostic laboratories in Nepal.

CAPTURA Regional Workshop Proceedings (28-30 June 2022, Virtual).

In response to the global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), the Capturing Data on Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns and Trends in Use in Regions of Asia (CAPTURA) project worked with microbiology laboratories, pharmacies, and local governments in South Asia and Southeast Asia to expand the volume of historical and current data available on AMR and antimicrobial use and to identify gaps in data and areas for quality improvement. When the CAPTURA project completed its country-level engagement in the first half of 2022, the consortium brought together local, regional, and global AMR stakeholders for a virtual regional workshop to review data outputs from the project and share strategies to inform national and regional efforts to combat AMR. This paper summarizes the main topics presented in the workshop held from 28 to 30 June 2022.

Recommendations for the collection and annotation of biosamples for analysis of biomarkers in neurofibromatosis and schwannomatosis clinical trials.

Introduction: Neurofibromatosis 1 and schwannomatosis are characterized by potential lifelong morbidity and life-threatening complications. To date, however, diagnostic and predictive biomarkers are an unmet need in this patient population. The inclusion of biomarker discovery correlatives in neurofibromatosis 1/schwannomatosis clinical trials enables study of low-incidence disease.

Journey of unidentified bodies towards DNA identification: A social, medico-legal and forensic perspective from New Delhi in India.

Introduction: According to studies undertaken in numerous nations, alarming increase in the number of unidentified bodies is a global concern. The population worldwide is increasing, and so is the population of the developing Indian subcontinent. Interestingly, a portion of this population is made up of individuals who have flocked from different states in search of employment, etc.

Post Frenotomy Massage for Ankyloglossia in Infants-Does It Improve Breastfeeding and Reduce Recurrence?

Objectives: Frenotomy is performed in breast fed infants who experience difficulty in latching after failed conservative management for ankyloglossia or tongue-tie. Though parents sometimes enquire about massage after frenotomy, neither published evidence nor clinical consensus supports this. The aim of our study was to assess if there was significant difference in breast feeding or recurrence rate between those infants who had post frenotomy massage and those who did not.

Management of neurofibromatosis type 1-associated plexiform neurofibromas.

Plexiform Neurofibromas (PN) are a common manifestation of the genetic disorder neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1). These benign nerve sheath tumors often cause significant morbidity, with treatment options limited historically to surgery. There have been tremendous advances over the past two decades in our understanding of PN, and the recent regulatory approvals of the MEK inhibitor selumetinib are reshaping the landscape for PN management.

Workplace Mental Health Interventions in India: A Rapid Systematic Scoping Review.

The mental health initiatives at the workplace are growing in numbers over the past few years. Public and private sectors continue to explore avenues to navigate and adapt initiatives to promote employee's mental wellbeing. However, such initiatives in the Indian context are not thoroughly studied.

Stoma recycling in a surgical neonatal unit: Prevalence, challenges, and review of nursing attitudes.

Aim: Recycling has been shown to improve growth, nutrition and facilitate early stoma closure. We aim to review current practice and nursing experience at a tertiary paediatric surgical unit and to evaluate possible areas for improvement.

Method: Retrospective study of all neonates who underwent a stoma closure between January 2018 and October 2020, alongside a nursing staff survey on experience and barriers to effective recycling.

Giant Isotope Effect of Thermal Conductivity in Silicon Nanowires.

Isotopically purified semiconductors potentially dissipate heat better than their natural, isotopically mixed counterparts as they have higher thermal conductivity (κ). But the benefit is low for Si at room temperature, amounting to only ∼10% higher κ for bulk ^{28}Si than for bulk natural Si (^{nat}Si). We show that in stark contrast to this bulk behavior, ^{28}Si (99.

High-resolution breakpoint junction mapping of proximally extended D4Z4 deletions in FSHD1 reveals evidence for a founder effect.

Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) is an inherited myopathy clinically characterized by weakness in the facial, shoulder girdle and upper a muscles. FSHD is caused by chromatin relaxation of the D4Z4 macrosatellite repeat, mostly by a repeat contraction, facilitating ectopic expression of DUX4 in skeletal muscle. Genetic diagnosis for FSHD is generally based on the sizing and haplotyping of the D4Z4 repeat on chromosome 4 by Southern blotting (SB), molecular combing or single-molecule optical mapping, which is usually straight forward but can be complicated by atypical rearrangements of the D4Z4 repeat.

Raising Dielectric Permittivity Mitigates Dopant-Induced Disorder in Conjugated Polymers.

Conjugated polymers need to be doped to increase charge carrier density and reach the electrical conductivity necessary for electronic and energy applications. While doping increases carrier density, Coulomb interactions between the dopant molecules and the localized carriers are poorly screened, causing broadening and a heavy tail in the electronic density-of-states (DOS). The authors examine the effects of dopant-induced disorder on two complimentary charge transport properties of semiconducting polymers, the Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity, and demonstrate a way to mitigate them.

Environmental sampling for the detection of foot-and-mouth disease virus and peste des petits ruminants virus in a live goat market, Nepal.

Livestock markets are considered vital parts of the agricultural economy, particularly in developing countries where livestock keeping contributes to both food security and economic stability. Animals from diverse sources are moved to markets, they mix while they are there and are subsequently redistributed over wide geographic areas. Consequently, markets provide an opportunity for targeted surveillance for circulating pathogens.

Epidemiological, clinical and biomarker profile of pediatric patients infected with COVID-19.

Background: Given the limited and diverse nature of published literature related to COVID-19 in pediatrics, it is imperative to provide evidence-based summary of disease characteristics for guiding policy decisions. We aim to provide comprehensive overview of epidemiological, clinical and biomarker profile of COVID-19 infection in pediatric population.

Methods: For this umbrella review, published systematic reviews from PubMed and pre-print databases were screened.