Ashish Goel

A retrospective case-control study of modifiable risk factors and cutaneous markers in Indian patients with young coronary artery disease.

Objective Indians have the highest risk rates for coronary artery disease (CAD) among all ethnic groups. There is a paucity of data on the risk factors and clinical markers associated with premature CAD. We aimed to determine whether young CAD is due to preventable lifestyle-related factors and cutaneous clinical markers are useful in identifying at-risk patients. Design Single-centre retrospective study. Setting Tertiary care center. Participants A total of 292 patients (age ≤40 years) who presented with acute CAD between January 2005 and June 2009 and 92 age, and gender-matched controls. Major outcome measures Details of smoking, family history of premature CAD, waist size, blood sugar and lipid profile. Clinical evidence of arcus juvenilis, premature greying of hair and premature baldness sought. Results Dyslipidaemia (91%), smoking (74.3%), low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (68.9%), central obesity (47.7%) and greying of hair (34.9%) were the most commonly associated factors. Compared with male patients, females had greater prevalence of dyslipidaemia, low HDL-C, central obesity, hypertension, diabetes and family history of premature CAD. The presence of cutaneous markers was significantly associated with premature CAD. Conclusions CAD in young Indian people is multifactorial; dyslipidaemia, low HDL-C, smoking, hypertension, central obesity and family history of premature CAD are the most common risk factors. Smoking in men and central obesity in women are the most prevalent factors. Clinicians should be highly suspicious of patients with presence of cutaneous markers, and they should be followed intensively for lifestyle modifications.

Sonographic evidence of ascites, pleura-pericardial effusion and gallbladder wall edema for dengue fever.

INTRODUCTION Radiographic findings of dengue fever have not yet been clearly elucidated in relation to clinical and serological findings, despite the fact that two-fifths of the world population lives in areas where the virus is endemic. The current study is a retrospective analysis of ultrasonographic (USG) features of patients presenting with probable dengue fever during the outbreak of DF of 2006 in North India. METHODS Case records of a 169 patients with probable dengue fever were included. Ten individual sonographic parameters were reviewed vis-à-vis ascites, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, gall bladder wall edema (GBWE), pleural effusion (right or left or both), pericardial effusion, pericholecystic collection, perinephric collection. Subjects who had GB wall thickness >3 mm as measured on ultrasound were identified as positive for GBWE. The cases were analyzed in view of their serological profile. RESULTS The mean age of the subjects was 27.9 +/- 13.4 years. The mean value of the platelet count was 57.4 +/- 22.3 x 103/cmm. The most common ultrasonographic feature was ascites (126, 74.6%) followed by gall bladder wall edema (122, 72%), hepatomegaly (78, 46.2%), splenomegaly (66, 39.1%) and pericholecystic collection (63, 37.3%); 48 (28.4%) subjects demonstrated evidence of pleural effusion on the right side, while 19 (11.2%) had bilateral effusion. None of the subjects had an isolated left pleural effusion. Twenty-seven (16%) subjects reported bleeding manifestations in the form of petechiae and five (3%) developed renal dysfunction. Presence of pleural and pericardial effusions was found to be specific while ascites and GBWE were identified as highly sensitive markers for seropositive Primary DF. CONCLUSIONS Ultrasonographic evidence of ascites, pleuro-pericardial effusion, and gallbladder wall edema are rapidly acquired, non-invasive markers of dengue and can be helpful before serological investigations become available. These findings may indicate severity and may herald the onset of bleeding (petechiae) or predict the development of acute renal dysfunction.

Role of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin for early detection of acute kidney injury

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is characterized by abrupt or rapid decline of renal function and is usually associated with the development of serious complications as well as an independent risk of mortality in hospitalized patients. Emergency physicians play a critical role in recognizing early AKI, preventing iatrogenic injury, and reversing the course of AKI. Among the various available biomarkers for AKI, reliable and automated assay methods are commercially available for only cystatin-C and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL). NGAL appears to be a promising marker for early detection of AKI and is likely to be adapted for wide-scale clinical use in patient management as a point-of-care test. Use of NGAL along with panel of other renal biomarkers can improve the rate of early detection of AKI. Large, multicenter studies demonstrate the association between biomarkers and hard end points such as need for renal replacement therapy (RRT), cardiovascular events, hospital stay, and death, independent of serum creatinine concentrations.

Novel occupational therapy interventions may improve quality of life in older adults with dementia

Background Dementia is a major health problem in advancing age with no definitive treatment. Occupational therapy interventions are recognized strategies in treatment of dementia. Quality of life (QOL) assessment has been reliably used as an objective index of an individual’s well being pertaining to interventions in dementia. A randomized controlled trial was conducted to study the effects of a novel occupational therapy program in improving QOL of subjects having mild to moderate dementia. Methodology 273 subjects older than 60 years were screened. 196 were excluded having cognitive impairment with no dementia (CIND). Remaining 77 subjects after satisfying DSM IV criteria for diagnosis of dementia were included in the study and were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Experimental group received a novel occupational therapy regimen along with medical treatment, while control group received only medical treatment for 5 weeks. Outcome measures included standard occupational therapy assessment and WHOQOL-BREF. Subjects were assessed at baseline and post intervention. Result The mean age of participants was 69.39 years with male preponderance (80.5% male, 19.5% female). The quality of life (QOL) scores of physical and psychological domain in experimental groups significantly increased from 37.30 ± 5.42 and 45.13 ± 3.52 to 45.43 ± 7.32 and 51.50 ± 6.46 respectively. The QOL scores in social and environmental domains did not change significantly. The QOL scores in control groups declined in all domains with statistical significance found in social and environmental domain. (29.67 ± 4.58 and 38.49 ± 1.77 to 28.45 ± 5.26 and 38.18 ± 2.15 respectively). Conclusion This novel occupational therapy program improved the short term physical performance and psychological well being domain of quality of life in older adults with dementia. An improved physical performance is achieved by physical exercise of novel program and it creates sense of independency, increased motivation, positive outlook and reduced behavioral and psychological symptoms. The long term effects of the intervention can be ascertained in a study with longer period of intervention and follow-up. Trial registration [CTRI/2014/01/004290]

Burnout and Sleep Quality: A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire-Based Study of Medical and Non-Medical Students in India.

Introduction It is well documented that on entering college, students experience a multitude of changes in sleep habits. Very few studies have been conducted that explore sleep quality in Indian undergraduate students; fewer still study the effects of burnout in the same population. Medical students, in particular, are believed to be more stressed, sleep deprived, and burnt out than their non-medical peers. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to study sleep disturbances and burnout in a sample of 214 Indian undergraduate students (112 medical, 102 non-medical). The instruments used to measure the sleep quality and burnout were the PSQI (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index) and OLBI (Oldenburg Burnout Inventory), respectively. Differences between continuous variables were analysed using Wilcox Mann Whitney U-tests. Bivariate Spearman’s rho correlations were done to identify correlations between the individual burnout components and the PSQI sleep quality components. Results Of the students surveyed, 62.6% were found to be poor sleepers with an average score of 6.45 ± 2.85. It was seen that 20% of the students (n = 43) slept less than five hours a day. Medical students, in particular, were found to have more poor sleep (72.9%) than their non-medical peers (51.9%; p < 0.001). Of the sampled women, 65.8% were poor sleepers, as compared to 62.1% of the sampled men, but the difference was not statistically significant. The average scores of the burnout dimensions were 2.43 ± 0.57 for exhaustion and 2.32 ± 0.53 for disengagement. Both exhaustion and disengagement correlated with PSQI sleep scores (Rho 0.21, p 0.001) and (Rho = 0.18, p = 0.008), respectively. The exhaustion dimension of burnout was higher in medical students (2.46 ± 0.55) than in non-medical students (2.38 ± 0.59), but was seen to correlate more with the PSQI sleep score in the non-medical group (Rho = 0.62, p < 0.001). The PSQI scores showed a weak but significant correlation with academic year (rho = -0.19, p = 0.004). Unlike the sleep scores, the burnout dimensions did not correlate well with the academic year. Conclusions Burnout and sleep quality are both uncommonly studied topics in India. Fostering a healthier and more proactive approach to tackling burnout and poor sleep quality may help unearth culture specific causes for some of the results we have demonstrated.

End-of-Life Care Attitudes, Values, and Practices Among Health Care Workers

Introduction: This study aims to ascertain attitudes of health care workers on end-of-life care (EOLC) issues and to highlight the disparity that exists in countries with different backgrounds. Methods: It is a cross-sectional questionnaire survey across heterogeneous health care providers in India, Chile, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands using an indigenously prepared questionnaire considering regional variations, covering different areas of EOLC. Results: Of the 109 participants, 68 (62.4%) felt that cardiopulmonary resuscitation should be done selectively, 25 (22.9%) had come in contact with at least 1 patient who had asked them to hasten death, and 36 (33%) felt that training was insufficient to prepare them for skills in issues of EOLC. Conclusion: To avoid cumbersome through well-meant interventions, it is important that the caregiving team is aware of the patient’s own wishes with respect to EOLC issues.

Prevalence of tuberculosis in Faridabad district, Haryana State, India

Background & objectives: Epidemiological information on tuberculosis (TB) has always been vital for planning control strategies. It has now gained further importance for monitoring the impact of interventions to control the disease. The present study was done to estimate the prevalence of bacillary tuberculosis in the district of Faridabad in Haryana State of India among persons aged older than 15 years. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, residents of Faridabad district were assessed for the prevalence of tuberculosis. Twelve rural and 24 urban clusters with estimated populations of 41,106 and 64,827 individuals were selected for the study. Two sputum samples were collected from individuals found eligible for inclusion. The samples were also cultured by modified Petroffs method and were examined for growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis once a week for eight weeks. A person found positive by smear and/or culture was identified as sputum-positive pulmonary TB positive. Results: A total of 105,202 subjects were enumerated in various clusters of the Faridabad district. There were 50,057 (47.58%) females and 55,145 (52.42%) males. Of these 98,599 (93.7%) were examined by the study group (47,976 females; 50,623 males). The overall prevalence of sputum smear or culture positive pulmonary tuberculosis in our study was found to be 101.4 per 100,000 population. Interpretation & conclusions: The present results showed that the prevalence of sputum positive pulmonary tuberculosis was higher in Faridabad district than the notification rates recorded by the World Health Organization for the contemporary period, a disparity that could be explained by a difference in case detection strategy employed for the study.

Study of Electrophysiological Changes in Sensory Nerves Among Diabetic Smokers.

INTRODUCTION Neuropathy is one of the most troublesome complication affecting individuals with diabetes. The resultant loss of function in peripheral nerves causes loss of protective sensations and impairs patients ability to perceive incipient or even apparent ulcerations in the feet. AIM This study was undertaken to test the hypothesis of alteration in electrophysiological parameters of nerve before actual manifestations of neuropathy in type 2 diabetic patients and to analyse the effect of smoking on Sensory Nerve Conduction Velocity (SNCV) of diabetic subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS One hundred and twenty diagnosed diabetics were taken as cases while 30 healthy non diabetics were taken as control. Case group was divided into diabetic non-smoker and diabetic smoker. Diabetic smoker were further subdivided into light smoker, moderate smoker and heavy smoker according to smoking index. After detailed history and physical examination SNCV of median and ulnar nerve in upper limb and sural nerve in lower limb was performed. RESULTS On comparison of SNCV of median and ulnar nerve of upper limb and sural nerve of lower limb between control and diabetic non-smoker only sural nerve of diabetic non smoker showed significant bilateral decrease. There was significant bilateral decrease in SNCV of median and ulnar nerve of diabetic heavy smoker when compared to control and diabetic non smoker. Similarly, SNCV of sural nerve of diabetic heavy smoker was significantly decreased when compared with control, diabetic non-smoker, diabetic light and moderate smoker. A negative and statistically significant correlation was found between SNCV and smoking index. CONCLUSION Present study indicates that nerves of lower limbs are more susceptible to diabetic assault as compared to upper limb suggesting that long nerves are commonly affected. Also, apart from duration and severity of diabetes, smoking itself is an independent factor for diabetic neuropathy.

Efficacy of Intralesional Steroid Injection in Small Benign Vocal Fold Lesions

OBJECTIVES The present study was conducted to study the efficacy of intralesional steroid (ILS) injection in small benign vocal fold lesions and compare the outcomes with microlaryngeal surgery in terms of improvement in symptoms and reduction in lesion size. METHODS The current randomized control trial was conducted in the Department of Otolaryngology at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh between 2014 and 2015. The clinical diagnosis was based on appearance of the lesion during endoscopy and the mucosal vibration pattern. Subjects with lesions of size less than or equal to 5 mm were included. RESULTS A total of 29 subjects were included in the study and 15 (nine men and six women) of them were randomized to receive ILS injection. Fourteen (13 men and one woman) were randomized to the second group to receive initial microlaryngeal surgery. We noted significant reduction in the size of the lesion among subjects undergoing ILS injection at 12 weeks (1.11 + 1.45 mm) as compared to baseline (2.63 + 1.28 mm) with no recurrence. CONCLUSIONS ILSs are effective in reducing size of lesion and also improve acoustic parameters, perceptual analysis, and grade of dysphonia in patients presenting with small benign vocal cord lesions.

Pragmatic Combination of Available Diagnostic Tools for Optimal Detection of Intestinal Microsporidia

Diarrhea is a debilitating condition in HIV infected individuals and with the finding that almost 1/4 cases of diarrhea in HIV are due to microsporidia, there is a dire need to institute measures for its detection on a regular basis. Keeping this in mind the study aims to determine the burden of intestinal microsporidiosis in HIV seropositive patients presenting with and without diarrhea and to compare the ability of microscopy and PCR in its detection.The study group consisted of 120 patients divided into four groups HIV seropositive with/without diarrhea, and HIV seronegative with/without diarrhea. Performance of four staining techniques including Modified Trichrome, Calcofluor White, Gram Chromotrope and Quick hot Gram Chromotrope stains were evaluated against PCR in diagnosing enteric microsporidiosis from stool samples.Overall prevalence of intestinal microsporidiosis was 10.83%. The same for HIV seropositive patients with diarrhea was 23.33%, HIV seropositive patients without diarrhea and in immune-competent hosts with diarrhea was 10% each. Enterocytozoon bieneusi was found to predominate. Calcofluor white stain detected maximum microsporidia in stool samples (76.92%), followed by Modified Trichrome stain (61.5%), PCR (46.15%) and Gram Chromotrope and Quick hot Gram Chromotrope stains (38.4% each). PCR exhibited the best performance with a sensitivity and specificity of 100%. Our data suggests screening of stool samples with either Modified Trichrome or Calcofluor white stain followed by PCR confirmation thus leading to maximum detection along with speciation for complete cure.