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Background and Aim: In this era of the coronavirus disease (COVID) pandemic, new health issues appear quickly and cause an outbreak in India. Here, we focus on invasive fungal infections (IFA), namely mucormycosis, aspergillosis, and candidiasis. Hence, in this article, we focus on conventional techniques for early diagnosis of fungus to help clinicians start empirical treatment for the patient and take necessary steps thereby. Materials and Methods: This observational study was conducted for 1 month, from May 2021 to June 2021, on 200 patients admitted to our mucormycosis ward. Samples were first examined microscopically using potassium hydroxide (KOH) wet mounts followed by culture on sabouraud dextrose agar and the gross appearance of the growth was observed. Further identification of species was achieved through the use of lactophenol cotton blue mounts and slide culture technique. Results: Out of 200 patients, 65.5% were male and 34.5% female. We divided these patients into three age groups, i.e., 20–30 years (15%), 40–60 years (54%), and 60–80 years (31%). Seventy-four percent of patients presented with a history of diabetes mellitus, 50% had a history of steroids taken in their past, and 48% had a history of oxygen therapy taken at the time of COVID-19 positivity (52%) samples positive for mucormycosis. Forty-one percent were KOH-positive for Mucorales and 35.5% were culture positive. The most commonly isolated fungus was Rhizopus, followed by Mucor, Lichthemia, Aspergillus spp., and Candida spp. Conclusion: To improve test sensitivity and enable early diagnosis, other serum biomarkers such as galactomannan, beta-D-glucan, cryptococcal antigenemia, and blood quantitative polymerase chain reaction for Aspergillus or Mucorales should be implemented.

Background and Aim: In India, among adolescent girls, the problem associated with menstrual hygiene management (MHM) has a deep impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Improvement in knowledge and menstrual hygiene practices may lead to enhancement in HRQoL. Therefore, the aim of the study was to enhance the HRQoL of adolescent school girls by improvement in menstrual hygiene knowledge and practices. Materials and Methods: The present study was an interventional, cross-sectional, questionnaire study conducted among adolescent school-going girls. The study was conducted among randomly selected five government secondary schools in Ajmer city and was conducted among adolescent girls of 7th–10th Class with the age group of 14–16 years. A total of 538 adolescent girls were surveyed in the pretest, and 503 was the sample size in the posttest with an attrition of 6.5%. Moreover, after the pretest, a workshop was conducted to educate adolescent girls about MHM. Results: A majority of the study participants (328 [61%]) had poor HRQoL after the pretest, which was improved to 195 (39%) of the study participants with good HRQoL after 3 months of the workshop during the posttest. The mean general health scores ([15.35 ± 0.38]) after 3 months of the workshop were significantly (P = 0.01*) higher among the study participants compared to the pretest scores ([10.93 ± 1.63]). Conclusion: From the above results, it has been concluded that there has been a significant improvement in knowledge, practice, and HRQoL among adolescent school-going girls of age 14–16 years when assessed after 3 months of the workshop on MHM.

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and senses of coherence (SoC) can be affected by the use of tobacco. Hence, the aim of the present study was to explore the association between HRQOL and SoC among health professionals working in primary health centers (PHCs) consuming Tobacco. Materials and Methods: It was a cross-sectional descriptive study where sampling technique used was systematic stratified random sampling. Jaipur District has 37 PHCs retrieved from site of NRHM Rajasthan. A close-ended questionnaire was prepared to conduct the interview. Results: Majority of study participants (57; 37.01%) were of 36–40 years of age. Males respondents (86; 55.85%) consuming tobacco were more in number than female respondents. Majority of study subjects (91; 59.09%) consumed smoked kind of tobacco, in which most contributed were nurses (49; 62.82%). On applying a linear regression model, it was determined that all subscale of SF-36 was significantly (P ≤ 0.000) associated with SoC. Conclusion: From above, it was concluded that there was a strong association between HRQOL and SoC among health professionals working in primary health centers consuming tobacco.