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The article informs about three distinct topics in pathology it discusses about the development of a lab-developed test (LDT) for multiplex HR-HPV genotyping in cervical precursor lesions, offering a cost-effective and sensitive screening test. Topic include it presents a comparative study of a rapid, economic acetic acid, Papanicolaou stain (REAP) over conventional Papanicolaou stain in oral cytology, demonstrating the efficacy of REAP as a cost-effective and rapid alternative.

The article informs the alcohol addiction impacts not only the individual abusing it but also the people living with them. It mentions the extensive research has been conducted on various aspects of alcoholism, the lives of caretakers, especially wives of alcoholic men in the Indian context, have been given secondary consideration by society and researchers. It highlight the limited studies on this topic in the Indian setting.

Pathogenesis Primary brain stem injury is the result of the direct effect of the trauma which results in its distortion and displacement. Kalyanaraman and Ramamurthi (1969) reported 42 cases of brain stem injury among 1100 cases of head injury patients admitted to their head injury unit in 18 months.[[1]] As late at 2007, Shukla et al. stated, "Several autopsy studies of head injury are available, but pathology of brain stem and hypothalamus injury are addressed in very few of them. "In many general surgical works today the diagnosis of primary brain stem injury amounts to pronouncement of death sentence" (Kalyanaraman and Ramamurthi 1969) It is interesting that around the same time as the above statement on ominous saying in some centers in Delhi acquired a similar predicament, "Yeh to brain stem ho gaya ab iska kuch nahi ho sakta" (He has become brain stem, now nothing can be done about it). While brain stem hemorrhage is more common in the secondary group of brain stem lesions, these are not uncommon in the primary injury especially in the lateral part of the mid-brain, the superior cerebellar peduncle, and rostral pons. [Extracted from the article]

BACKGROUND: Screening of hemoglobin (Hb) before blood donation is one among the vital tests. It is performed to select a blood donor to prevent the collection of blood from an anemic person. However, no accurate, cost-effective, reliable, and standardized method is available to estimate Hb. OBJECTIVE: The aim is to evaluate the efficacy of filter paper cyanmethemoglobin (FPCH) method with the automated hematology analyzer in the estimation of Hb concentration for screening of a suitable donor. METHODOLOGY: This was a cross-sectional study in which the blood samples of 2000 patients visiting KLE's Dr. Prabhakar Kore Charitable Hospital, Belagavi, were collected in vials and directly estimated for Hb using automated hematology analyzer. To evaluate the efficacy of FPCH, 20 μL of blood sample was transferred onto Whatman filter paper and dried at room temperature. After drying, it was placed in 5 mL of Drabkin's solution for 30 min. Optical density was estimated by measuring the absorbance. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. The correlation coefficient, paired t-test, and difference between the means of both the methods were calculated. RESULTS: The mean Hb estimated by FPCH was 11.25 g/dL and automated hematology analyzer gave 11.35 g/dL. The difference in the means of both the methods was 0.1 g/dL. Paired t-test was done to test the level of significance and the result was 8.151 (95% confidence interval: 0.08–0.13 g/dL, P < 0.001). The correlation coefficient was found to be 0.976 (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: FPCH is an efficient method, which is comparable to the automated hematology analyzers for Hb estimation. It could be used as an alternative screening tool for detection of Hb in a blood donation camp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The entire world seems to have responded to COVID-19 pandemic in a knee-jerk manner with a short mindset without building on the existing strengths of public health infrastructure. National governments cannot be blamed for this as we are dealing with a crisis that comes once in a lifetime. Realising this, the Organized Medicine Academic Guild (OMAG) an association of major health associations in this country has suggested measures for long-term solutions to COVID-19-like pandemics in the form of a policy paper by OMAG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic waste or e-waste is a serious and concerning issue globally. Exponential increase in the production of these instrument have created a man-made problem of e-waste; United Nations has called it as "tsunami of e-waste." Informal management and unsafe disposals have compounded the problem further. The hazardous chemicals, metals, and organic pollutants released from e-waste can lead to serious health consequences such as organ damage, genetic defects, neuropsychiatric illness, and cancer. Problem of e-waste is colossal and should be seen as major public health emergency. In India, use of electronic instrument has increased considerably with less focus on formal waste management and safe disposal. This has created a major health hazard. International health agencies, Indian Council of Medical Research, e-waste regulating bodies, academic institutes, and various government and non-government organizations should join hands together to effectively manage the problems of e-waste. Swacch Bharat Abhiyan started by the honorable Prime Minster should consider e-waste as the top most priority in terms of its safe management and disposal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Itraconazole (ITZ) has been the mainstay of oral antifungal treatment for the current epidemic of recalcitrant dermatophytosis (RD) in India. Recently, a newer formulation of ITZ, super bioavailable itraconazole (SUBA-ITZ), is made available in the market by many pharmaceutical companies. It is important for dermatologists to understand the pharmacokinetic properties of SUBA-ITZ vis-a-vis conventional pellet formulation to use it effectively and safely. Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists (IADVL) has established a special interest group for recalcitrant dermatophytosis (SIG-RD) to strengthen research, continuing medical education, and industry collaboration on the subject. This position statement on SUBA-ITZ by SIG-RD is an attempt to address current pieces of evidence and the position of this new formulation in the management of RD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a developing country like India, with limited resources and access to healthcare facilities, dealing with massive hemorrhage is a major challenge. This challenge gets compounded by pre-existing anemia, hemostatic disorders, and logistic issues of timely transfer of such patients from peripheral hospitals to centers with adequate resources and management expertise. Despite the awareness amongst healthcare providers regarding management modalities of bleeding patients, no uniform Patient Blood Management (PBM) or perioperative bleeding management protocols have been implemented in India, yet. In light of this, an interdisciplinary expert group came together, comprising of experts working in transfusion medicine, hematology, obstetrics, anesthesiology and intensive care, to review current practices in management of bleeding in Indian healthcare institutions and evaluating the feasibility of implementing uniform PBM guidelines. The specific intent was to perform a gap analysis between the ideal and the current status in terms of practices and resources. The expert group identified interdisciplinary education in PBM and bleeding management, bleeding history, viscoelastic and platelet function testing, and the implementation of validated, setting-specific bleeding management protocols (algorithms) as important tools in PBM and perioperative bleeding management. Here, trauma, major surgery, postpartum hemorrhage, cardiac and liver surgery are the most common clinical settings associated with massive blood loss. Accordingly, PBM should be implemented as a multidisciplinary and practically applicable concept in India in a timely manner in order to optimize the use the precious resource blood and to increase patients' safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Every year the scientific sessions of Annual National Conference of Indian Psychiatric Society (ANCIPS) are marked by presentation of free papers, posters, and award paper sessions, which are usually meant for presentation of new research which is not yet published. Hence, it is expected that these papers will be published in near future so that the scientific literature is distributed and shared with wider audience. Aim: This paper aims to evaluate the abstract to publication rate of papers presented during ANCIPS in the years 2012–2014. Materials and Methods: For this study, all the free papers, posters, and award papers presented during the ANCIPS of 2012–2014 were listed, and electronic searches were carried out to search for published articles. In addition, one of the authors of papers not found in the electronic searches were contacted through E-mail. Results: A total of 1081 papers were presented during the ANCIPS in the 3 year period under study. Of these, 64 were award papers, 622 were free papers, and 395 were posters. Majority (n = 807; 74.6%) of these could be categorized as research data-based presentations; this was followed by case reports/series (203; 18.8%), review of literature (n = 35; 3.3%), and others (n = 36; 3.3%). Overall, only 27% of the papers were published after at least 5 years of the presentation. Of all the award papers, 69.6% of papers were published, whereas only 26.8% of free oral papers and 22.5% of free posters were published. About half (45.6%) of the papers were published in national journals. In terms of indexing, among those which were published, 62.8% were published in Medline-indexed (PubMed-listed) Journals with a mean impact factor of 1. Conclusion: The present study shows that only 27% of the abstracts presented during the ANCIPS are ultimately published as full text articles in the next 5 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zoonotic diseases are an important public health problem. Keeping this in way, a panel reviewed the discussion around "one health" strategy of the WHO in combating zoonotic diseases during Seventh annual conference of Consortium Against Rabies (CAR) with the theme of "Zoonoses: Thinking beyond Rabies" held on 14th and 15th June 2019. The panel came out a manuscript discussing the need, background, and rationale for basic framework of possible roadmap for one health. Background —About CAR: CAR has been established with the aim to serve as a platform for the control of the rabies menace in India. It will evolve into a full fledged struggle against rabies in the country. The association comprises of medical professionals, veterinary doctors, and public health persons. The idea behind CAR is to bring the best minds in the country for research and information dissemination in the field of rabies. About Academy of Family Physicians of India (AFPI): AFPI is the official association of family physicians in India. Dedicated to provide professional leadership, conduct healthcare advocacy, policy development and a change in health system within the domain of family medicine, and larger public health system in the country, the academy is the recipient of the Healthcare Leadership Award 2012 in the category of Healthcare Governance and Public Administration. The white paper development Process: More than 100 medical experts, veterinary doctors, and public health persons from across the country and belonging to the fields of internal medicine, family medicine, public health, veterinary sciences, nursing science and environmental science and representing reputed medical institutions, government funded research institutions, and policy making bodies participated in discussions on topic of "one health" made during 7th Annual national conference of CAR with the theme of "Zoonoses: Thinking beyond Rabies" held on 14th and 15th June 2019. The panel steering the discussion included leading expert from ICMR, medical colleges, veterinary college, family medicine, private practitioners, and health program managers. The panel committee had prepared a draft document well in advance of the conference, which was communicated to all participants for feedback and comments. The panel was steered by ICMR expert. The discussion of the panellist was presented to the consensus group and unanimously adopted. A writing group worked on the manuscript, which was again circulated by email to all for any comments and suggestions before final publication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family medicine is the internationally recognized nomenclature for the academic discipline, knowledge domain, and medical specialty of primary care doctors, working in the community setting. Family medicine is defined as a specialty of medicine which is concerned with providing comprehensive care to individuals and families by integrating biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences in the community setting. The distinction of family medicine lies in the tradition of medical generalism, promoting whole person care, in a life cycle mode; providing optimal preventive, promotive, and curative healthcare services in a wide spectrum of setting from home to hospital. In 2016, 92nd report of the department‑related parliamentary standing committee on health and family welfare on the “Functioning of the Medical Council of India” has emphasized the need for postgraduate in family medicine. The committee report has noted that “the medical education system is designed in a way that the concept of family physicians has been ignored. The committee recommends that the Government of India in coordination with State Governments should establish robust PG Programs in Family Medicine and facilitate introduction of Family Medicine discipline in all medical colleges. This will not only minimize the need for frequent referrals to specialist and decrease the load on tertiary care but also provide continuous healthcare for the individuals and families. The successive National Health Policies of Government of India–NHP 2002 and 2017 have emphasized the need of family medicine training in India. The recently enacted National Medical Commission Act 2019 has mandated NMC to promote training in family medicine at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Therefore, in the background of the stated policies of the Government of India the concept of family doctors, which was earlier neglected should be institutionalized within the mainstream medical education system of India. It is now time to accelerate and upgrade family medicine training and thereby strengthen the concept of comprehensive primary care in India. This white paper presents the review of family medicine training in India and proposes a way forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urgent care practice (UCP) is a novel concept for India. Urgent care primarily deals with injuries or illnesses requiring immediate care. Medical emergency and urgency can happen anywhere unannounced. Research has shown that 90% of the morbidities can be resolved within the community by primary care physicians lead teams. Given the changing professional demands, non-specialists tend to refer away far too many cases to specialists, undermining generalist medical care, particularly in Indian settings. The spillover of the patient load from the primary care setting to the tertiary care centers is enormous leading to resource mismatch. Family physicians and other primary care providers are best positioned to develop practices and provide good quality urgent care to society. Family physicians, general practitioners, and medical officers are already functioning as the frontline care providers for any emergency or medical urgency arising within communities. Urgent care is essentially ambulatory care or outpatient care outside of a traditional hospital emergency room. "UCP aims to provide timely support, which is easily accessible with a focus on good clinical outcomes, e.g. survival, recovery, lack of adverse events, and complications. Core interventions of urgent care are centered on the 4Rs - Rescue, Resuscitate, Relate, and Refer. At present, there are no available, established training model for future faculty, residents, and medical students on "UCP" in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Half the world’s people currently live in rural and remote areas. About 70% of the world’s 1.4 billion people who are extremely poor live in rural areas. The problem is that the majority of healthcare providers prefer to serve in urban areas. Only a comprehensive and systematic approach can address these inequities. India, the largest democratic republic in the world, possesses 2.4% of the world’s land area and supports 16% of the world’s population. According to census 2011, 68.84% of population resides in rural areas. Nearly 86% of all the medical visits in India are made by rural inhabitants with a majority still traveling more than 100 km to avail healthcare facility, of which 70%–80% is born out of pocket landing them in poverty. A country’s approach must systematically and simultaneously address legal coverage and rights, health worker shortages, extension of healthcare protection, and quality of care. Only then can equitable access for all be fully achieved. Those living in rural areas have access to health protection and services that meet the criteria of availability, affordability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality. Family medicine as a broad specialty has its role from womb till tomb. Family medicine is defined as a specialty of medicine which is concerned with providing comprehensive care to individuals and families by integrating biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences. As an academic discipline, it includes comprehensive healthcare services, education, and research. A family doctor provides primary and continuing care to the entire family within the communities; addresses physical, psychological, and social problems; and coordinates comprehensive healthcare services with other specialists, as needed. The practitioners in family medicine can play an important role in providing healthcare services to the suffering humanity. The general practitioner’s responsibility in Medicare includes management of emergencies, treatment of problems relating to various medical and surgical specialties, care of entire family in its environment, appropriate referrals, and follow-up. He or she is the first-level contact for the patients and his or her family. Family medicine is the ideal solution to growing rural healthcare challenges. This article is a formal position paper of the Academy of Family Physicians of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a complex, chronic inflammatory skin disorder whose pathophysiology is poorly understood. Genetic studies have shown that HS is predisposed by mutations in the γ-secretase gene, but only a proportion of familial and partial sporadic cases have been shown to possess such mutations. HS has high genetic heterogeneity and is thought to be triggered by a combination of genetics and environmental factors. Aims: The study aimed to investigate the genetic causes of HS in a large cohort of patients and to update the mutation spectrum of γ-secretase complex genes. Methods: We conducted mutational screening of 95 sporadic HS cases and one large family with both HS and acne conglobata (AC) to identify mutations in the coding and splice junction region of γ-secretase complex genes (nicastrin (NCSTN), presenilin 1 (PSEN1), presenilin enhancer 2 (PSENEN), and aph-1 homolog B, gamma-secretase subunit (APH1B)). Results: Our study identified a nucleotide substitution of 1876C>T in the NCSTN gene, which caused a stop codon (p. Arg626X) in the affected members of a large family with HS and AC. No pathogenic variants were detected in 95 sporadic cases of HS, indicating there is possible genetic heterogeneity. Conclusion: We report a new family with a nonsense mutation in the NCSTN gene that supports the role of the γ-secretase complex genes in HS with AC. The updated γ-secretase mutation spectrum for HS now includes 78 mutations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2019 WACEM and academic college of emergency experts india position paper on developing the academic department of space medicine in India - The time has come! The Prime Minister of India in August 2019 announced that India will send astronauts into the space by 2022 in its indigenous spacecraft "Gaganyaan" and also that India will have its own Space Station by 2030.[[1]],[[2]] Ever since Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) built its first satellite Aryabhatta in 1975, ISRO has come a long way and has successfully sent Chandrayaan-1 and Mangalyaan to the Lunar and Mars orbits, respectively. Success of India's human mission in the space depends heavily on a legitimate SM research powered by an Academic Department of SM. [Extracted from the article]

The article presents several studies related to psychiatry that were presented in free papers Topics include pharmacovigilance in psychiatric outpatient department in a tertiary care hospital; clinical outcomes in patients with drug resistant schizophrenia receiving antipsychotics other than clozapine; and Impact of two weeks psychiatric clinical posting on Intern doctors' knowledge and attitudes towards psychiatry and mental illnesses.

The government of India has done remarkable work on commissioning a government funded prehospital emergency ambulance service in India. This has both public health implications and an economic impact on the nation. With the establishment of these services, there is an acute need for standardization of education and quality assurance regarding prehospital care provided. The International Joint Working Group has been actively involved in designing guidelines and establishing a comprehensive framework for ensuring high-quality education and clinical standards of care for prehospital services in India. This paper provides an independent expert opinion and a proposed framework for general operations and administration of a standardized, national prehospital emergency medical systems program. Program implementation, operational details, and regulations will require close collaboration between key stakeholders, including local, regional, and national governmental agencies of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is passing through a global pandemic of COVID 19. The number of positive cases has crossed over twenty thousand as of April 2020. Like everyone else, it is indeed a very challenging situation for family physicians and primary care providers as most of the guidelines presently have focused on screening, quarantine, isolation, and hospital-based management. Limited information or clarity is available on running small private clinics during pandemic times. The key concern is professional obligation versus risks of community transmission. Family physicians see routine flu-like illnesses throughout the year with seasonal variation within their practices. This document is intended to develop consensus and standard practices for the family physicians and other primary care providers during the pandemic, ensuring optimal continuity of care. This document was reviewed by the national executive of the Academy of Family Physicians of India and approved for dissemination among members. However, due to the dynamic status of the pandemic, all practitioners are advised to closely follow the instructions, guidelines, and advisories of national, state and local health authorities as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emergency medicine services and training in Emergency Medicine (EM) has developed to a large extent in developed countries but its establishment is far from optimal in developing countries. In India, Medical Council of India (MCI) has taken great steps by notifying EM as a separate specialty and so far 20 medical colleges have already initiated 3-year training program in EM. However, there has been shortage of trained faculty, and ambiguity regarding curriculum, rotation policy, infrastructure, teachers' eligibility qualifications and scheme of examination. Academic College of Emergency Experts in India (ACEE-India) has been a powerful advocate for developing Academic EM in India. The ACEE's Education Development Committee (EDC) was created to chalk out guidelines for staffing, infrastructure, resources, curriculum, and training which may be of help to the MCI and the National Board of Examinations (NBE) to set standards for starting 3-year training program in EM and develop the departments of EM as centers of quality education, research, and treatment across India. This paper has made an attempt to give recommendations so as to provide a uniform framework to the institutions, thus guiding them towards establishing an academic Department of EM for starting the 3-year training program in the specialty of EM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass media including television, internet, and newspapers influences public views about various issues by means of how it covers an issue. Newspapers have a wider reach and may affect the impact that a news story has on the reader by factors such as placement of the story within the different pages. We did a pilot study to see how two English newspapers from Mumbai, India were covering psychiatry related news stories. The study was done over a period of 3 months. We found a total of 870 psychiatry related news stories in the two newspapers over 3 months with the majority of them being covered in the main body of the newspapers. Sex‑related crime stories and/or sexual dysfunction stories received the highest coverage among all the news while treatment and/or recovery related stories received very little coverage. It is crucial that the print media takes more efforts in improving reporting of psychiatry‑related stories and help in de‑stigmatizing psychiatry as a discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is encouraging to see the much needed shift in the understanding and recognition of the concept of "burden of disease" in the context of traumatic injury. Equally important is understanding that the impact of trauma burden rivals that of nontraumatic morbidities. Subsequently, this paradigm shift reinstates the appeal for timely interventions as the standard for management of traumatic emergencies. Emergency trauma care in India has been disorganized due to inadequate sensitivity toward patients affected by trauma as well as the haphazard, nonuniform acceptance of standardization as the norm. Some of the major hospitals across various regions in the country do have trauma care units, but even those lack protocols to ensure that all trauma cases are handled by those units, largely owing to lack of structured referral system. As a first step to reform the state of trauma care in the country, a detailed overview is needed to gain insight into the prevailing reality. The objectives of this paper are to thus weave a foundation based on the statistical and qualitative burden of trauma in the country; the available infrastructure of trauma care centers equipped to deal with trauma; the need and scope of standardized protocols for intervention; and most importantly, the application of these in shaping educational initiatives in advancing emergency trauma care in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proposal for an integrated national emergency number for India is garnering a lot of enthusiasm and stimulating debate. This ambitious project has a two-part paradigm shift to set in; the first being the integration into a single number and the infrastructure required for setting up and operating this number such that a call can be received and identified. The second is the submerged part of the iceberg: That of the ability to respond to a call and deliver the appropriate emergency service. The first part is more technical and has potential precedents like the 911 phone hotline, for example, to emulate. The main premise of this paper is that the second part is a rather subjective exercise largely determined by the realities of existing public infrastructure in a specific geographical area with respect to emergency services management, especially medical care. Consequently, we highlight the key areas of both precall preparedness and postcall execution that need to be reviewed prior to going live with an integrated number on a national scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dengue is a mosquito‑borne disease that is a public health concern and outbreaks have increased in India. The virus produces fever, hemorrhagic fever, and shock syndrome. Dengue may cause encephalopathy. Few autopsies in individuals with neurological complaints have been documented. Our paper reports on an adult with dengue and neurological symptoms with postmortem findings. Thirty‑six‑year‑old presented with a 2‑day fever. He was febrile with a normal systemic exam. By evening, he was stuporous. His platelet count was moderately decreased to about 80,000/cumm. His serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were positive for dengue non‑structural (NS) 1 antigen (Ag). He deteriorated and succumbed on day 4. An autopsy was performed to determine the cause of death. On examination, the brain was edematous with frontoparietal, internal capsule, and brain stem hemorrhages. Microscopy showed vascular congestion, edema, multiple hemorrhages, and liquefactive necrosis. In India, diagnostic testing is limited. This patient’s platelet count was not too low, but postmortem findings of brain hemorrhages highlight the necessity of recognizing its uncommon manifestations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Depression is a major public health concern among Indian adolescents. Pre- and post-natal depression can often alter fetal development and have negative consequences on the physical and mental health of the mother. This paper aims to draw attention to the prevalence of depression and its correlates among currently married, ever-pregnant adolescents from two Indian States, i.e. Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Methods: This study utilizes data from a subsample (n = 3116) of the prospective cohort study Understanding the Lives of Adolescents and Young Adults (UDAYA) among 10 to 19 year-old adolescents. Bivariate analysis was performed to assess the prevalence of depression by sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics. To further access the predictors associated with depression a logistic regression model was applied. Results: Around one-tenth (9%) of pregnant adolescents had depression. Regression analysis indicated that substance use, religion, autonomy, considering attempting suicide, premarital relationship, violence, dowry, adverse pregnancy outcome, menstrual problem, and parental pressure for the child immediately after marriage were significantly associated with depression. Conclusions: This study confirms the pre-existing annotation that teen pregnancy is linked with depression. Findings indicate that Adolescent mothers experiencing violence, and a history of adverse pregnancy outcomes are at increased risk of developing depression. These study findings call for an urgent need to address depression among adolescent mothers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Almost 70% of women residing in urban areas and 48% of women in rural areas use sanitary napkins in India. According to menstrual health alliance India (MHAI), single sanitary pad will take about 500-800 years to decompose as the plastic used in manufacturing is nonbiodegradable and causes severe noxious effects contributing to global warming through the production of planet warming fuels which eventually have severe impact on environment sustainability. Hence, the study was undertaken to contribute the evidence for the "Clean and Green India". Aim: To know the perception and practice of disposal of sanitary napkins among young college-going females in India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted throughout the country employing a self-administered questionnaire using a survey link sent through social media. Data collected were analyzed and interpreted using SPSS version 20.0. Result: The study population comprised 484 young college girls with a mean age of 20.92 ± 1.86 years and 96.9% of them are using sanitary napkins as menstrual absorbent aids. The most common method employed for the disposal of sanitary napkins was dumping them in the bin (87.4%). About 63.2% of them had no knowledge about sanitary napkin-burning machines. Around 92% think that improper disposal of sanitary napkins can cause health problems. Conclusion: The findings from the study revealed that a significant number of women were practicing noneco-friendly disposal methods and menstrual hygiene aids which are a bane to the ecosystem. Study warrants the education and training of females to achieve a green and clean sustainable India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the requirement of human resource for health (HRH) stands at 44.5 skilled health workers per 10,000 population. WHO recognizes India as one of the countries which has HRH crisis. Karnataka, a southern state in India, has the highest number of medical colleges yet faces the shortage of specialists in the public hospitals. We conducted desk review to understand the HRH crisis, particularly the medical specialists in India. Simultaneously, we conducted secondary research to explore the initiatives taken by the Government of Karnataka (GoK) to mitigate the shortage of medical specialists in the rural areas. GoK scaled up the National Board of Examination in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) postgraduate and super-speciality courses such as Diplomate of National Board (DNB), Diploma, and Doctorate of National Board (DrNB) in district hospitals (minimum 250--500 bedded) and taluk hospitals (minimum 100 bedded) by utilizing the existing resources. Karnataka is the first state in India to expand the NBEMS (DNB and Diploma) courses in taluk hospitals and to begin DrNB courses in district hospitals. The paper documents the process of implementation of the NBEMS courses at district and taluk hospitals of Karnataka, which has supported in strengthening these hospitals in the state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to describe the clinical presentation and demographic distribution of keratoconus (KCN) in India by analyzing the electronic medical records (EMR) of patients presenting at a multitier ophthalmology hospital network. Methods: This cross-sectional hospital-based study included the data of 2,384,523 patients presenting between January 2012 and March 2020. Data were collected from an EMR system. Patients with a clinical diagnosis of KCN in at least one eye were included in this study. Univariate analysis was performed to identify the prevalence of KCN. A multiple logistic regression analysis was performed using R software (version 3.5.1), and the odds ratios are reported. Results: Data were obtained for 14,749 (0.62%) patients with 27,703 eyes diagnosed with KCN and used for the analysis. The median age of the patients was 22 (inter-quartile range (IQR): 17–27). In total, 76.64% of adults (odds ratio = 8.77; P = <0.001) were affected the most. The majority of patients were male (61.25%), and bilateral (87.83%) affliction was the most common presentation. A significant proportion of the patients were students (63.98%). Most eyes had mild or no visual impairment (<20/70; 61.42%). Corneal signs included ectasia (41.35%), Fleischer ring (44.52%), prominent corneal nerves (45.75%), corneal scarring (13.60%), Vogts striae (18.97%), and hydrops (0.71%). Only 7.85% showed an association with allergic conjunctivitis. A contact lens clinic assessment was administered to 47.87% of patients. Overall, 10.23% of the eyes affected with KCN underwent a surgical procedure. the most common surgery was collagen cross-linking (8.05%), followed by deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (1.13%) and penetrating keratoplasty (0.88%). Conclusion: KCN is usually bilateral and predominantly affects males. It commonly presents in the second and third decade of life, and only a tenth of the affected eyes require surgical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acute and transient psychotic disorder (ATPD) was recognized as separate from other psychotic disorders and described in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) tenth revision for the first time. A lot of research on ATPD has been conducted in India over the last six decades, but a review focusing exclusively on Indian research on ATPD is not available. Aim: This paper aims to review the literature on ATPD emerging from India. Methodology: A combination of search terms "Acute and Transient Psychosis," "acute psychosis," "non-affective psychosis," "non-affective psychotic disorder," "reactive psychosis," "first-episode psychosis," and "India" were searched on various search engines like PUBMED, Medknow, Hinari, and Google Scholar. We also did a hand search for additional relevant articles, including published abstracts of the Indian Journal of Psychiatry from 2007 to 2023. Relevant papers were selected. Results: The prevalence of ATPD varies across different study settings, and it tends to have an abrupt to acute onset, and is primarily associated with stress. Few studies have assessed the subtypes of ATPD, and symptom profile has been inconsistently reported. There is a lack of trials on the effectiveness or efficacy of antipsychotics in ATPD patients. In a large proportion of patients initially diagnosed with ATPD, the diagnosis remains stable, with recurrence varying from 10% to 46.6% based on the duration of follow-up. Conclusion: There is a need for more multicentric studies, studies with larger sample sizes, and consistency in data about risk factors. There is a need to evaluate symptom profile, course, outcome, and treatment outcomes in patients with ATPD using validated instruments to improve our understanding. Further, there is a need for comparative studies to evaluate the risk factors for ATPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The term "Telemedicine" is being used in the medical and health sector to treat patients and to provide medical guidance remotely. The intellectual output from India in terms of publications was harvested from Scopus® with the keyword "Telemedicine" and analyzed by using bibliometric techniques. Methods: The source data was downloaded from the Scopus® database. All the publications on telemedicine and indexed in the database up to the year 2021 were considered for scientometric analysis. The software tools VOSviewer® version 1.6.18 to visualize bibliometric networks, statistical software R Studio® version 3.6.1 with the Bibliometrix package Biblioshiny® were used for analysis and data visualization, and EdrawMind® was used for mind mapping. Result: India contributed 2,391 (4.32%) publications on telemedicine to a total of 55,304 publications worldwide until 2021. There were 886 (37.05%) papers that appeared in open access mode. The analysis revealed that the first paper was published in the year 1995 from India. Steep growth in the number of publications was observed in 2020 with 458 publications. The highest, 54 research publications, appeared in the "Journal of Medical Systems." The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, contributed the highest number of publications (n = 134). A considerable overseas collaboration was observed (USA: 11%; UK: 5.85%). Conclusions: This is the first such attempt to address the intellectual output of India in the emerging medical discipline of telemedicine and has yielded useful information such as leading authors, institutions, their impact, and year-wise topic trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author offers tips on preparing a model research paper for successful publication in eminent peer-reviewed biomedical journals. Topics covered include the components of the basic Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussions (IMRaD) structure of a manuscript, how to create the different sections, like methods section, results section and discussion section, of the research paper, and the importance of adhering to the instructions to authors.

Part I. Lists various abstracts of research papers related to pharmacology presented during the XXXVI Annual Conference of the Indian Pharmacological Society held on December 5 to 7, 2003 in New Delhi. Title of paper; Research author; Affiliation; E-mail address; Objectives; Methods; Results; Conclusions; Possible anorectic case effect of methanol extract of Benincasa hispida by Kumar A.; Study of ulcerogenic potential of methylene blue by Shah H.; Role of potassium channel agonist and antagonist in ouabain induced arrhythmias by Dhasmana D.C.

The development of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-5 (DSM-5) has been an exhaustive and elaborate exercise involving the review of DSM-IV categories, identifying new evidence and ideas, field testing, and revising issues in order that it is based on the best available evidence. This report of the Task Force of the Indian Psychiatric Society examines the current draft of the DSM-5 and discusses the implications from an Indian perspective. It highlights the issues related to the use of universal categories applied across diverse cultures. It reiterates the evidence for mental disorders commonly seen in India. It emphasizes the need for caution when clinical categories useful to specialists are employed in the contexts of primary care and in community settings. While the DSM-5 is essentially for the membership of the American Psychiatric Association, its impact will be felt far beyond the boundaries of psychiatry and that of the United States of America. However, its atheoretical approach, despite its pretensions, pushes a purely biomedical agenda to the exclusion of other approaches to mental health and illness. Nevertheless, the DSM-5 should serve a gate-keeping function, which intends to set minimum standards. It is work in progress and will continue to evolve with the generation of new evidence. For the DSM-5 to be relevant and useful across the cultures and countries, it needs to be broad-based and consider social and cultural contexts, issues, and phenomena. The convergence and compatibility with International Classification of Diseases-11 is a worthy goal. While the phenomenal effort of the DSM-5 revision is commendable, psychiatry should continue to strive for a more holistic understanding of mental health, illness, and disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: The highest cited papers published in a journal provide a snapshot of the clinical practice and research in that specialty and/or region.Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the highest cited papers published in Neurology India and analyze their attributes.Setting and Design: This study was a citation analysis of all papers published in Neurology India since online archiving commenced in 1993.Methods: All papers published in Neurology India between the years 1993-2014 were listed. The number of times each paper had been cited up till the time of performing this study was determined by performing a Google Scholar search. Published papers were then ranked on the basis of total times cited since publication and the annual citation rate. Statistical Techniques: Simple counts and percentages were used to report most results. The mean citations received by papers in various categories were compared using the Student's t-test or a one-way analysis of variance, as appropriate. All analyses were carried out on SAS University Edition (SAS/STAT®, SAS Institute Inc, NC, USA) and graphs were generated on MS Excel 2016.Results: The top papers on the total citations and annual citation rate rank lists pertained to basic neuroscience research. The highest cited paper overall had received 139 citations. About a quarter of the papers published had never been cited at all. The major themes represented were vascular diseases and infections.Conclusions: The highest cited papers reflect the diseases that are of major concern in India. Certain domains such as trauma, allied neurosciences, and basic neuroscience research were underrepresented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: "CoviSainik Program" was implemented in collaboration with the Ambuja Cement Foundation and Community Medicine Department in rural districts of eight states of India from May to December 2021 to create a cadre of volunteers. The aim of the present paper is to describe the program and evaluate it so that the findings can be the guiding tool for policymakers to replicate a similar program. Material and Method: A cross-sectional, mixed-method – concurrent study design was adopted to evaluate the program for its short-term outcomes such as gain in the basic knowledge of COVID-19 amongst master trainers and their feedback and program output viz – the proportion of volunteers trained and their profile by census sampling. Motivational factors, experiences of volunteers, and outcomes of COVID-19 work in their villages were explored by purposive with maximum diversity sampling with 62 online in-depth interviews and 8 online focus group discussions (FGDs). Results: There was a statistically significant difference in the pre-test (12.8 ± 5.6) and post-test (25.9 ± 9.3) scores of the Master Training Program evaluation test. Out of 6534 trained volunteers, 5901 worked as volunteers, and amongst those, 47.1%, 35.1%, and 17.8% worked for ≤3 months, 3 to 6 months, and ≥6 months, respectively, in their villages. The major themes generated for motivational factors to join the program were altruism, savior nature, generating awareness, and concern for others. The major outcomes generated by trained volunteers COVID-19 vaccination were in raising awareness on COVID-19 appropriate behavior and early identification of COVID-19 cases in their villages. Conclusion: The "CoviSainik Program" was successful in creating cadres of trained volunteers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single parent adoption (SPA) is a relatively new construct worldwide and in India. The Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, has laid down criteria for adoption in general and SPA in particular, in conjunction with the Juvenile Justice Act (Care and Protection of Children), 2015. There is scant literature on this topic of SPA, more so in India, that looks into the various psychological nuances of SPA from a mental health professional's (MHP) perspective. This review paper aims to assess SPA from the perspective of a MHP that will focus on its various legal nuances as well as the psychological connotations attached to it. For this, a search strategy was employed that included a thorough literature search from two databases (PubMed and Google Scholar) with relevant keywords related to the topic. The various legal issues pertaining to SPA in the current scenario, the psychological issues and challenges faced by single parents, the behavioral outcomes of adoptees who are adopted by single parents, and ways to deal with the various obstacles of SPA are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Anemia is a major public health problem amongst elderly population in India. Anemia in old age further worsens the age-related decline in functional ability, mobility, fatigue, bone density, and skeletal muscle mass. There is lack of evidence on the prevalence and risk factors of anemia among elderly population. Hence, this study was undertaken. Methodology: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted during the year 2015–2016 in District Nainital, Uttarakhand state, India. A total of 958 subjects were selected from 30 clusters (villages) identified using population proportional to size methodology. Information on sociodemographic profile, nutritional status, body mass index, and dietary intake was obtained. Blood sample was collected from each subject on the filter paper for estimation of hemoglobin (Hb) level using cyanmethemoglobin method. Results: We found that 92.1% of the elderly subjects were anemic. Moderate and severe anemia was found to be significantly higher among female subjects, unemployed, illiterates, subjects using smoke-producing fuel, subjects belonging to lower socioeconomic status, malnourished and underweight subjects, subjects with self-reported hyperacidity, and subjects who had not utilized health facility and had lower iron and vitamin C intake when compared with subjects with mild anemia and normal hemoglobin levels. Conclusion: High prevalence of anemia exists amongst elderly subjects living at high-altitude region of rural Uttarakhand State, India. There is a need to educate the elderly population about the importance of adequate intake of foods rich in iron and vitamin C to reduce the prevalence of anemia among them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The National Mental Health Survey reports a huge treatment gap for all mental disorders. There is an acute shortage of mental health professionals in India. Hence, there is a dire need to support task-shift interventions by nurses in providing non-pharmacological interventions for persons suffering from mental health issues. The traditional psychiatric nursing curriculum emphasizes nurses' knowledge and skills rather than their competency in providing mental health care. We designed an innovative, digitally driven, modular-based primary care psychiatry program for nurses (PCPP-N) to incorporate mental health with physical health and emphasize redesigning nursing practice. In this paper, we discuss the rationale and guiding principles behind designing the curriculum of PCPP-N. Discussion: The PCPP-N program is based on nine guiding principles to provide skill-based, pragmatic, and feasible modules of a higher collaborative care quotient (CCQ) and translational quotient (TQ) that are essential for upskilling primary care nurses. In this program, nurses are trained through telemedicine-based 'on-consultation training' augmented with collaborative video consultations. A tele-psychiatrist/tele-psychiatric nurse will demonstrate how to screen, identify, and plan treatment for patients with psychiatric disorders from patients coming for general medical care using the manual Clinical Schedules of Primary care psychiatry Nursing (CSP-N). The CSP-N manual includes a screener, simplified diagnosing guidelines relevant for nurses and primary care settings, nursing management, pharmacological management, and related side effects, counseling, and follow-up guidelines. This program helps the nurses in identifying the most commonly prevalent adult psychiatric disorders presenting to primary care. Conclusion: This PCPN curriculum contains pragmatic modules with higher CCQ and TQ. This curriculum is dynamic as the learning is interactive. Upskilling primary care nurses in integrating mental health with physical health may reduce the mental health burden. Further, the policymakers and administrators plan to integrate mental health along with physical health in national health programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Health Family Survey (NFHS) is one of the largest cross-sectional surveys in the world and plays a very important role in seeing the health sector's growth in India. Its comprehensiveness in data points serves as a baseline for policymakers to amend or continue the health policy at the national and state levels. It is also imperative to look up the survey's major findings and compare the same with the previous survey finding to obtain a trend (positive/negative) of the placed data indicators. In writing this information, we aim to provide a researched paper to undergraduates and postgraduates in medical education to identify the trends or gap pockets in NFHS-4 and NFHS-5. These findings might help them as an educational piece of work and further research evidence in their local community. Also, the present work is the compilation of demographic characteristics and major health indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]