Dakshitha Praneeth Wickramasinghe

Patterns and trends of medical student research

BackgroundOur study describes the change in the research output, trends and content of published research involving medical students over the last century.MethodsPubmed® and Scopus® were searched for keywords ‘Medical Student’ in the affiliation field. The search results were combined in Endnote® and duplicate entries removed and the multiple variables described below were assessed.ResultsThe combined searches after excluding duplicates yielded 416 results and 66 articles were excluded. There was an exponential increase in medical student research from 1980–2010. Medical student was the first author in 170 (48.6%) studies and 55 studies were authored by a single medical student. The 3 most common areas of research in descending order were Psychiatry (n = 26, 7.4%), General Medicine (n = 24, 6.9%) and Medical Education (n = 21, 6%). The commonest type of articles, in descending order were review articles (n = 48, 13.7%), Cross sectional studies (n = 47, 13.4%) and Case reports (n = 43, 12.3. The majority of these articles (n = 207, 59.1%) have never been cited subsequently. The trend of increasing number of articles was seen equally among all article types, fields and countries.ConclusionsThere is an exponential increase in articles by medical students but the majority of articles have not been cited. The numbers of medical student authors per publication have remained static while the total numbers of authors have increased. The proportions in the type of articles, fields of study and country of origin have largely remained static. Publishers and authors should strive to enhance the quality and quantity of data available in indexing services.

Factors influencing the approaches to studying of preclinical and clinical students and postgraduate trainees.

BackgroundStudents can be classified into three categories depending on their approaches to studying; namely, deep approach (DA), strategic approach (SA) and surface apathetic or superficial approach (SAA). The aim of this study was to identify factors affecting the approaches to studying among Sri Lankan medical undergraduates and post graduate trainees and to analyze the change in the pattern of study skills with time and experience.MethodPre-clinical and clinical students of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo and postgraduate trainees in Surgery at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka were invited to complete the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) questionnaire.ResultsA total of 187 pre clinical (M: F = 96:91), 124 clinical (M: F = 61:63) and 53 post graduate trainees (M: F = 50:3) participated in the study. Approaches of male and female students were similar. SA was significantly affected by age among the preclinical students (p = 0.01), but not in other groups. Among pre-clinical students, males preferred a teacher who supported understanding (p = 0.04) but females preferred a passive transmission of information (p < 0.001). This, too, was not visible among other groups. A linear regression performed on group (batch), gender, island rank at GCE Advance Level (AL) examination, self appraisal score and the preference scores of type of teacher only managed to explain 35% or less of variance observed for each approach in individual groups.ConclusionDifferent factors affect the approach to studying in different groups but these explain only a small fraction of the variance observed.

Intestinal helminths detected in capsule endoscopy

Herein is a report on three patients who were diagnosed incidentally by capsule endoscopy (CE) as having worm infestations in the digestive tract. All patients underwent CE after upper esphago-gastro-duodenoscopy and colonoscopy did not reveal a causative pathology. The first patient was a 65-year-old woman who was investigated for melena with microcytic hypochromic anemia without eosinophilia. Her colonoscopy showed blood coming from the ileocecal valve. CE identified multiple roundworms (Ascaris lumbricoides) in the lumen of the stomach and duodenum (Fig. 1). She was treated with anti-helminthics. The second patient was a 64-year-old man investigated for iron deficiency anemia. His full blood count showed eosinophilia, and histology of the colon was reported to be eosinophilic colitis. However, no parasites were seen in colonoscopy. CE identified hookworms (Necator americanus) adherent to the mucosa from the duodenum up to the cecum, with bleeding from probable previous attachment sites of the worms (Fig. 2). The third patient was a 45-year-old man who underwent a follow-up colonoscopy after colectomy in 1999 for fulminant colitis. CE showed hookworms adherent to the ileal mucosa. CE is still a novel technique in developing countries; only small case series have been conducted. Intestinal helminthiasis in the tropics is less common, but it is still an important differential diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia. There have been reports of intestinal helminthiasis first detected by CE. In two of the three patients, worm infestation did not account for the disease that was being investigated. However, given the prevalence of intestinal helminthiasis in the tropics, we would recommend a course of anti-helminthics prior to CE. There are no serological tests for the diagnosis of intestinal helminthiasis, and repeating CE to confirm the success of the cure was not financially feasible. However, in patients with anemia, the cure was confirmed by the rise of hemoglobin level.

Predictors in breast cancer screening behaviors of South Asian women

Screening is important in minimizing breast cancer‐related morbidity. It is prudent to identify the factors that affect womens choice in participation in mammographic screening. Our objective was to identify the factors that influence the breast screening behaviors in Sri Lankan women.

Incidence of esophageal cancer in Sri Lanka: Analysis of cancer registry data and comparison with other South Asian populations

The objectives of this study were to report the incidence of Carcinoma of Esophagus (CaE) in Sri Lanka and to compare these values with other cancer registry data of the region and with migrant populations.

Three-Dimensional Endoanal Ultrasound Features of the Anal Sphincter in Asian Primigravidae: 3D Endoanal Ultrasound Findings in Primigravidae

The normal parameters of 3‐dimensional endoanal ultrasound (3DEAUS) of the anal sphincter have not been reported for primigravidae or pregnant women at present. 3DEAUS parameters in Asian primigravidae were assessed in this study.

Types and patterns of colonic polyps encountered at a tertiary care center in a developing country in South Asia.

Purpose. To identify the prevalence, types, and patterns of colonic polyps in a cohort of patients presenting to a tertiary care referral center in Sri Lanka. Methods. Endoscopy and pathology reports of a single unit from 2006 to 2013 were analyzed retrospectively. Spearmans correlation coefficient and chi-square test were used to identify correlations. Results. There were a total of 158 patients (M : F, 10 : 57) who had polyps encountered on colonoscopy (n = 1408) and flexible sigmoidoscopy (n = 2402) with an incidence of 4.1%. Mean age was 56.5 years (SD 16.4) and the incidence of polyps increased with age. The majority (81.6%) had one polyp. A total of 188 polyps were assessed and most were seen in the rectum (33.5%) followed by sigmoid colon (22.9%). The commonest histological type was tubulovillous adenoma (33.5%) followed by tubular adenoma (24.5%). Most polyps were benign (91.5%). There was no statistically significant correlation with age or gender with malignancy, site, or histology. Discussion and Conclusion. The incidence of colorectal polyps was lower than the values reported in the west. More polyps were identified in males. There was no statistically significant association between age, gender, or multiplicity and malignant change in the polyps.