Peripheral intravenous cannulae in neonates: To splint or not?

Objective: To determine the effect of splint on the dwell time of peripheral intravenous cannula in neonates.

Setting: Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Patients: Consecutive babies with presumed need of peripheral intravenous access of at least 24 h.

Management of BK virus-associated haemorrhagic cystitis in allogeneic stem cell transplant recipients.

BK virus (BKV)-related haemorrhagic cystitis (HC) is an important cause of morbidity following allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The various risk factors include high-level BKV viruria and/or viremia, myeloablative conditioning, acute graft host disease (GVHD), cytomegalovirus viremia, and unrelated or HLA-mismatched donor. The presence of high plasma BK viral load and cytopenias have been implicated as important predictors for protracted disease course.

Cognitive Impairment Among Older Adults With Diabetes Mellitus in Puducherry: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

Background Cognitive impairment is a global public health problem in the elderly population. There is increasing evidence that diabetes mellitus predisposes to cognitive impairment. Early diagnosis and management of cognitive impairment can delay the onset of dementia, thereby improving self-care and quality of life of diabetic patients.

Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma (PCNSL) - A Rare and Unusual Presentation of Rapidly Progressive Major Cognitive Dysfunction.

Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) is a rare, extranodal non- Hodgkin's lymphoma confined to craniospinal axis. PCNSL accounts for less than 5% of all primary CNS malignancies and 1 to 2% of all lymphomas. Amongst the causes of major cognitive dysfunction, primary brain tumor exists as a less frequent cause.

Neurocognitive Functions and Brain Volume in Patients with Endogenous Cushing's Syndrome Before and After Curative Surgery.

Introduction: Cushing's syndrome (CS) leads to various neuropsychiatric manifestations due to structural and functional changes of the brain and contributes significantly in the impairment of health-related quality of life.

Aim And Objective: This study is conducted with aims to evaluate neurocognitive functions and brain volume in patients with endogenous Cushing's syndrome before and after curative surgery.

Methods: The diagnosis of CS was made by clinical features, abnormal cortisol dynamics, ACTH levels, and imaging studies.

Cytomorphometric Study of Changes in Buccal Mucosal Cells in Alcoholics.

Background: Chronic alcohol consumption carries a high risk for oral and pharyngeal cancers among persons who have never smoked. Excessive alcohol consumption displays cytogenetic changes in oral mucosa cells. Cytomorphometric analysis of oral mucosal cells helps in the early detection of cytomorphological transformations in alcoholics before and after the onset of carcinoma.

Assessment of safety and efficacy of intra-articular injection of stromal vascular fraction for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis-a systematic review.

Purpose: Stromal vascular fraction (SVF) as an injectable regenerative therapy for knee osteoarthritis (OA) has gained recent popularity. However, there is no clear consensus on the outcomes of such treatment. We systematically reviewed available evidence on the use of SVF injection in the treatment of knee OA.

Cognitive dysfunction in ulcerative colitis patients in remission and its comparison with patients with irritable bowel syndrome and healthy controls.

Background: There is a paucity of research concerning cognitive impairments in Inflammatory bowel disease - ulcerative colitis (IBD-UC) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Studies on cognitive dysfunction in patients with IBD-UC have either been small or have shown conflicting results. This study is conducted to examine the evidence of cognitive dysfunction in IBD-UC patients in remission and compare the evident cognitive deficit with IBS patients and healthy controls.

Electrocardiogram Heart Rate as a Predictor of Severity in Acute Alcohol-Related Pancreatitis With Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome.

Background The severity of acute alcohol-related pancreatitis (AAP) with alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) has not been studied. Electrocardiogram (ECG) has not been used as a predictor of severity in patients with AWS and acute pancreatitis. Objectives The study aimed to determine whether the ECG heart rate (HR) could predict the severity of AAP; secondarily, whether AWS influenced the severity of AAP based on Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II and Bedside Index for Severity in Acute Pancreatitis (BISAP).

Lafora body disease: a case of progressive myoclonic epilepsy.

Progressive myoclonic epilepsy (PME) is a progressive neurological disorder. Unfortunately, until now, no definitive curative treatment exists; however, it is of utmost importance to identify patients with PME. The underlying aetiology can be pinpointed if methodological clinical evaluation is performed, followed by subsequent genetic testing.

Gender differences in the epidemiology of Rheumatic Fever/Rheumatic heart disease (RF/RHD) patient population of hill state of northern India; 9 years prospective hospital based, HP-RHD registry.

Objectives: We report the gender-based differences in the prevalence, severity, pattern of valvular involvement, and complications in patients with Rheumatic Fever/Rheumatic heart disease (RF/RHD).

Methods: The 2475 consecutive patients with RF/RHD diagnosed using clinical and echocardiographic criteria were registered prospectively from January 2011 till December 2019. The association of gender with the pattern of valvular involvement, nature, and severity of valvular dysfunction and cardiovascular complications was analyzed using a logistic regression model, and odds ratios with 95% CI were estimated.

A Prospective Observational Study Comparing Long-Course Conventional Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy with Short-Course Radiotherapy Followed by Consolidation Chemotherapy with Delayed Surgery in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer.

 Polish and Australian randomized studies compared short-course radiotherapy (RT) with immediate surgery and long-course chemoradiotherapy (CRT) with delayed surgery. In these studies, similar long-term survival and local control have been reported for both these approaches, but pathological complete response (pCR) is not better with short-course RT. Moreover, studies have shown better tumor downstaging with delayed surgery.

Management of possible serious bacterial infection in young infants closer to home when referral is not feasible: Lessons from implementation research in Himachal Pradesh, India.

Background: Government of India and the World Health Organization have guidelines for outpatient management of young infants 0-59 days with signs of Possible Serious Bacterial Infection (PSBI), when referral is not feasible. Implementation research was conducted to identify facilitators and barriers to operationalizing these guidelines.

Methods: Himachal Pradesh government implemented the guidelines in program settings supported by Centre for Health Research and Development, Society for Applied Studies.

Painless subcutaneous nodules in an adolescent male: A diagnostic challenge.

Cutaneous nodules in children arise from variety of pathologic conditions. Thorough history taking and clinical examination helps in narrowing down the differential diagnosis and reducing the need for an extensive panel of investigatons. Here, we report a case of cutaneous nodules in an adolescent male which posed diagnosed challenge and finally diagnosed with cytology.

To Evaluate the Accuracy of Axillary Staging Using Ultrasound and Ultrasound-Guided Fine-Needle Aspiration Cytology (USG-FNAC) in Early Breast Cancer Patients-a Prospective Study.

In breast cancer, axillary lymph node involvement directly impacts the patient survival and prognosis. Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is a procedure of choice for axillary staging in early breast cancer. Currently, management options for axilla management are axillary lymph node dissection and sentinel node biopsy in node positive and in node negative respectively.

The Effectiveness of Non-Benzodiazepine, Non-Barbiturate Medications for Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome: A Rapid Systematic Review.

Aim: There are potential clinical, ethical and legal concerns with overdosing benzodiazepines (or barbiturates) for the treatment of moderate to severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms (AWS) through telemedicine or ambulatory outpatients. A rapid systematic review to (a) qualitatively summarize the non-benzodiazepine treatment alternatives, (b) evaluate the quality of evidence for the same to effectively manage moderate to severe AWS.

Methods: We conducted searches on PubMed (January 1990 to 31 March 2020), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Google Scholar.

Maxillary bone metastasis, as an early sign of breast cancer; an unusual & rare site of metastasis from the common cancer.

Oral cavity metastases are considered rare and represent approximately 1% of all oral malignancies. Due to their rarity and atypical clinical and radiographic appearance, metastatic lesions are considered a diagnostic challenge. In this article we present a rare, unusual & exceptional case of left maxillary mass which on further evaluation leading to diagnosis of left breast carcinoma with metastasis to isolated left maxillary bone.

Comparative analysis of virulence determinants, phylogroups, and antibiotic susceptibility patterns of typical versus atypical Enteroaggregative E. coli in India.

Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) is an evolving enteric pathogen that causes acute and chronic diarrhea in developed and industrialized nations in children. EAEC epidemiology and the importance of atypical EAEC (aEAEC) isolation in childhood diarrhea are not well documented in the Indian setting. A comparative analysis was undertaken to evaluate virulence, phylogeny, and antibiotic sensitivity among typical tEAEC versus aEAEC.

Utility of platelet indices in alcoholic hepatitis: a retrospective study.

Background: The commonly available platelet indices are platelet distribution width (PDW), plateletcrit (PCT), and mean platelet volume (MPV). They have been used in diagnosis and prognosis of various abdominal disorders. They have never been used to predict severity of alcoholic hepatitis.

The AGE-RAGE Axis and RAGE Genetics in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a heterogeneous group of lung diseases limiting the airflow due to narrowing of airways, chronic bronchitis and emphysema that leads to difficulties in breathing. Chronic inflammation is another important characteristic of COPD which leads to immune cell infiltration and helps in the alveolar destruction. Pathology of COPD is driven by various environmental and genetic factors.

Renin-Angiotensin System Inhibitors in COVID-19: Current Concepts.

The functional receptor to SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, is angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE-2), the same enzyme that physiologically counters the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) activation. Some researchers have questioned RAS inhibitors' safety in COVID-19 patients since these drugs have demonstrated an increase in ACE-2 expression in preclinical studies; therefore, they may facilitate viral invasion. On the contrary, others have hypothesized a protective role of RAS inhibitors against COVID-19-associated lung injury.